I didn't have any morning classes today because of snow, whoopie! (Don't you love how winter weather just cripples us Southerners, with our acclimation to warm climates?) Seriously, I heard the best explanation of snow one time. It's scary. It means that it's so cold that water freezes as soon as it hits the air. Your body is 70% water. Think about that. (That was from nuklearpower.com, by the way.) So, how was everyone else's V-days? I spent mine watching movies and restarting good ol' FFVIII. (Irvine Kinneas...:sigh:) Anyway, let's see how everyone's favorite never-gonna-happen-in-real-life stable is doing.
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Lita took the first available plane back to North Carolina. Normally she'd drive a rental car back from short distances, but she wanted to be home as soon as possible. She wanted to be somewhere without responsibility.
Not wanting to call anyone for a ride, and thereby alerting them to her presence in the state (she really had no one to rely on but Jeff anyway, and Jeff wasn't exactly the posterboy for reliability), Lita took a cab back to Sanford from the RDU airport. It was a ridiculously long way to go by cab, but these were extenuating circumstances.
She collapsed on the couch as soon as she made it through the front door with her luggage. Cody tried to get her to play, but quickly caught onto the fact that his lady was not feeling like herself. He laid his muzzle on her leg and looked up at her with sad puppy eyes.
She scratched him behind the ears. "Sorry Code, I'm just not up to it today. Mommy's had a very rough week. And since no one else is around for me to whine to, you're gonna have to hear all about it."
"Mommy had this one special friend. His name was Rob. To put it in dog terms that you'll understand, Rob's kinda like, well...I guess like a Sheltie. He's very sweet, and he always wants to make you happy, but he gets under your feet all the time and isn't always very bright. Oh, and he's not very particular; he just kinda loves everyone." She smiled wryly, amused at herself. "Confessing everything to a dog," she thought. "At least they're cheaper than a shrink." "So anyway Cody, you get what Mommy's friend Rob is like? Like a Sheltie. Well, anyway, Rob was Mommy's special friend. And, you know Mommy has a lot of friends, but you're only supposed to have one special friend. Well, Mommy found out that Rob had another special friend. And she's kinda like a poodle. You know, pretty and yappy. So, Mommy got mad. And you know how Mommy gets when she gets mad. She gets stupid."
Lita laughed. "I'm really going crazy," she thought. "So, in that sense, I guess Mommy's like a rottweiler. Well anyway, Mommy was mad, so she went to go hang out with another friend of hers, Kane. Kane is like you, he's like a Doberman. He's big and quiet but very, very protective. You'd like him. He looks out for Mommy."
"Well, some people got confused and thought that Kane was Mommy's new special friend. So they're really pissed. And they formed a lynch mob. And Mommy ran and flew all the way back to North Carolina so she could stay with you, her favorite friend, and the only one in the world who always makes sense."
Cody stared blankly up at her.
"Riiight. Well, I guess after that you deserve a treat." She jumped to her feet. "Come on Cody."
Lita and Cody the doberman ran out to the backyard and played tag and fetch for a couple of hours until they were both exhausted. Lita smiled as she headed back inside. That had really been what she needed. Cody never asked her to make important strategic decisions or to solve arguments. He just wanted her to be happy.
"Cody," she said from the kitchen counter as she poured his food in his dish. "You really want to make me give up my current line of work sometimes."
"Please don't do that."
Lita dropped the heavy bag of dog food and Cody yelped, startled.
They both turned to see Rob standing in the entrance from the dining room.
Lita asked the first question that popped to mind, not caring how harsh it sounded. "How did you get in here?"
Rob's eyes went wide, hurt. "The front door was unlocked. I knocked, but no one came and I got worried. So I came to check on you."
Lita sighed. "I'm sorry. I was out back. Must be why we didn't hear it."
Cody was growling from her side. "Cody, at ease." He sat down at her side and stopped growling, but his teeth were still bared and his eyes were trained on Rob.
"I guess I don't have to worry about you with him around, huh?" Rob asked.
"Not at all. So...why are you here?"
"Why do you think I'm here? I was worried about you."
"Yeah, I was expecting a response of that sort. What I meant was, how did you know I was here?"
"Oh, that. Kane told me."
Lita shook her head at him. "Huh?"
"He called me and told me that you'd gone home. He was worried about you."
"Did he tell you why I left?" Lita asked hesitantly.
"The mix-up? Yeah, he told me."
"And...you're not mad?"
Rob sighed and shifted on his crutches. "I'm sorry, but...do you mind?"
"Oh, no, go ahead," Lita stammered. "I'm sorry, I wasn't even thinking."
"It's okay," Rob hobbled back into the living room and lowered himself carefully onto the couch. Lita watched him sadly, noting the rods and screws extending from his cast. "You shouldn't have come out here," she stated with soft realization. "How's the recovery coming?"
"Pretty good. I'm actually ahead of schedule. They're saying I should be up to a walking cast in a few weeks."
"That's great Rob," Lita said quietly.
"Hey," he flashed her his trademark self-assured smile. "I'm gonna be fine. I always am. Now come here. I really want to tell you something."
Lita sat down on the far side of the couch. She crossed her legs indian-style and faced him.
"Then I defer to my previous question. How aren't you mad?"
His voice was serious for once. "I know I made a mistake, Li. And I know I hurt you. So even if something did happen between you and Kane, it was nothing more than I deserved."
"Wow," Lita whispered in awe. "Did you rehearse that? I could never get off a speech like that without sounding jealous or pissed."
"Hey, I never said I'm not jealous. I'm so jealous it hurts. I'm so jealous I can't stand it. It's driving me crazy. But, I know it's my own fault. So...," he smiled, a dimple appearing in his left cheek. "I guess I won't kill Kane."
Lita snorted. "I'd like to see you try."
"Been there, done that. Remember?"
"Oh yeah."
"No, honestly, I'm glad in a way."
"Okay," Lita shook her head. "Now I know you're just flat-out lying."
Rob grinned mischieviously. "You've only been here a few hours and already your Southern accent sounds stronger. That's so sexy..."
"Anyway," Lita interrupted him. "You were saying?"
"No, really, I'm glad this happened. 'Cause I know that no matter what happens, even if everyone else turns their backs on you, even if I'm laid up with an injury a thousand miles away, you've got a 7-foot monster there doing all he can to protect you. It's very reassuring. And..." Rob took a deep breath. "If something were to develop between you and he, I couldn't think of anyone else, besides me of course, that I'd rather you be with. I mean, I know I can't be there for you right now, and he can take care of you. And if you think you'd be happiest with Kane..." Rob lowered his eyes, and when he raised his face to her, she was struck by both his sad smile and the tears lining his eyes. "You have my blessing, even my encouragement."
"Sorry, but that's not gonna work," Lita told him.
"Why not? Damn it, Li, I just poured my heart out to you. What do you want?"
She moved close to him, stared straight into his eyes. "I want you. Not Kane, not anyone else. I want you. And I won't give up on you recovering if you won't give up on me being faithful."
He answered her with a kiss, both passionate and gentle. She pulled away, breathless and giggled.
"What?" Rob asked, his self-confidence finally shaken a little.
"Sorry, it's just that we never had any privacy on the road, sneaking around back in lockerrooms or hotels, and now we have all the privacy in the world and you have a banged-up knee so we can't do anything about it." Lita's giggles evolved into fullblown hysterical laughing.
"Fine," Rob smirked. "You're right."
"Of course I am," she smiled, standing up and stretching her back so that every single vertebrae creaked. "Now after that little pep talk, I guess I have to get back to my team and work out this mess. But first..."
She lowered herself down so that she was straddling Rob's lap, carefully avoiding his injured knee. She tossed her hair back over one shoulder, exposing the milky white of her neck as she pressed full-length up against him, giggling mischieviously at the way he shivered underneath her. She ran her hands up his face, through his hair and laced them together behind his neck. Leaning down, she kissed him, slow and sensual and for nowhere near long enough. "You'd better be waiting for me, *alone*, when I get back. Or else."
Lita stood up, picked up her bags and headed for the door. "Lock up when you leave," she called over her shoulder.
Rob let his head flop back against the house and groaned in frustration. "The things you do to me, woman," he muttered.
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heeheehee Okay, so I'm wicked. That could have so been a much more, um :cough: "interesting scene", but poor Rob, I left him to suffer. Alone. bwahaha
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Lita took the first available plane back to North Carolina. Normally she'd drive a rental car back from short distances, but she wanted to be home as soon as possible. She wanted to be somewhere without responsibility.
Not wanting to call anyone for a ride, and thereby alerting them to her presence in the state (she really had no one to rely on but Jeff anyway, and Jeff wasn't exactly the posterboy for reliability), Lita took a cab back to Sanford from the RDU airport. It was a ridiculously long way to go by cab, but these were extenuating circumstances.
She collapsed on the couch as soon as she made it through the front door with her luggage. Cody tried to get her to play, but quickly caught onto the fact that his lady was not feeling like herself. He laid his muzzle on her leg and looked up at her with sad puppy eyes.
She scratched him behind the ears. "Sorry Code, I'm just not up to it today. Mommy's had a very rough week. And since no one else is around for me to whine to, you're gonna have to hear all about it."
"Mommy had this one special friend. His name was Rob. To put it in dog terms that you'll understand, Rob's kinda like, well...I guess like a Sheltie. He's very sweet, and he always wants to make you happy, but he gets under your feet all the time and isn't always very bright. Oh, and he's not very particular; he just kinda loves everyone." She smiled wryly, amused at herself. "Confessing everything to a dog," she thought. "At least they're cheaper than a shrink." "So anyway Cody, you get what Mommy's friend Rob is like? Like a Sheltie. Well, anyway, Rob was Mommy's special friend. And, you know Mommy has a lot of friends, but you're only supposed to have one special friend. Well, Mommy found out that Rob had another special friend. And she's kinda like a poodle. You know, pretty and yappy. So, Mommy got mad. And you know how Mommy gets when she gets mad. She gets stupid."
Lita laughed. "I'm really going crazy," she thought. "So, in that sense, I guess Mommy's like a rottweiler. Well anyway, Mommy was mad, so she went to go hang out with another friend of hers, Kane. Kane is like you, he's like a Doberman. He's big and quiet but very, very protective. You'd like him. He looks out for Mommy."
"Well, some people got confused and thought that Kane was Mommy's new special friend. So they're really pissed. And they formed a lynch mob. And Mommy ran and flew all the way back to North Carolina so she could stay with you, her favorite friend, and the only one in the world who always makes sense."
Cody stared blankly up at her.
"Riiight. Well, I guess after that you deserve a treat." She jumped to her feet. "Come on Cody."
Lita and Cody the doberman ran out to the backyard and played tag and fetch for a couple of hours until they were both exhausted. Lita smiled as she headed back inside. That had really been what she needed. Cody never asked her to make important strategic decisions or to solve arguments. He just wanted her to be happy.
"Cody," she said from the kitchen counter as she poured his food in his dish. "You really want to make me give up my current line of work sometimes."
"Please don't do that."
Lita dropped the heavy bag of dog food and Cody yelped, startled.
They both turned to see Rob standing in the entrance from the dining room.
Lita asked the first question that popped to mind, not caring how harsh it sounded. "How did you get in here?"
Rob's eyes went wide, hurt. "The front door was unlocked. I knocked, but no one came and I got worried. So I came to check on you."
Lita sighed. "I'm sorry. I was out back. Must be why we didn't hear it."
Cody was growling from her side. "Cody, at ease." He sat down at her side and stopped growling, but his teeth were still bared and his eyes were trained on Rob.
"I guess I don't have to worry about you with him around, huh?" Rob asked.
"Not at all. So...why are you here?"
"Why do you think I'm here? I was worried about you."
"Yeah, I was expecting a response of that sort. What I meant was, how did you know I was here?"
"Oh, that. Kane told me."
Lita shook her head at him. "Huh?"
"He called me and told me that you'd gone home. He was worried about you."
"Did he tell you why I left?" Lita asked hesitantly.
"The mix-up? Yeah, he told me."
"And...you're not mad?"
Rob sighed and shifted on his crutches. "I'm sorry, but...do you mind?"
"Oh, no, go ahead," Lita stammered. "I'm sorry, I wasn't even thinking."
"It's okay," Rob hobbled back into the living room and lowered himself carefully onto the couch. Lita watched him sadly, noting the rods and screws extending from his cast. "You shouldn't have come out here," she stated with soft realization. "How's the recovery coming?"
"Pretty good. I'm actually ahead of schedule. They're saying I should be up to a walking cast in a few weeks."
"That's great Rob," Lita said quietly.
"Hey," he flashed her his trademark self-assured smile. "I'm gonna be fine. I always am. Now come here. I really want to tell you something."
Lita sat down on the far side of the couch. She crossed her legs indian-style and faced him.
"Then I defer to my previous question. How aren't you mad?"
His voice was serious for once. "I know I made a mistake, Li. And I know I hurt you. So even if something did happen between you and Kane, it was nothing more than I deserved."
"Wow," Lita whispered in awe. "Did you rehearse that? I could never get off a speech like that without sounding jealous or pissed."
"Hey, I never said I'm not jealous. I'm so jealous it hurts. I'm so jealous I can't stand it. It's driving me crazy. But, I know it's my own fault. So...," he smiled, a dimple appearing in his left cheek. "I guess I won't kill Kane."
Lita snorted. "I'd like to see you try."
"Been there, done that. Remember?"
"Oh yeah."
"No, honestly, I'm glad in a way."
"Okay," Lita shook her head. "Now I know you're just flat-out lying."
Rob grinned mischieviously. "You've only been here a few hours and already your Southern accent sounds stronger. That's so sexy..."
"Anyway," Lita interrupted him. "You were saying?"
"No, really, I'm glad this happened. 'Cause I know that no matter what happens, even if everyone else turns their backs on you, even if I'm laid up with an injury a thousand miles away, you've got a 7-foot monster there doing all he can to protect you. It's very reassuring. And..." Rob took a deep breath. "If something were to develop between you and he, I couldn't think of anyone else, besides me of course, that I'd rather you be with. I mean, I know I can't be there for you right now, and he can take care of you. And if you think you'd be happiest with Kane..." Rob lowered his eyes, and when he raised his face to her, she was struck by both his sad smile and the tears lining his eyes. "You have my blessing, even my encouragement."
"Sorry, but that's not gonna work," Lita told him.
"Why not? Damn it, Li, I just poured my heart out to you. What do you want?"
She moved close to him, stared straight into his eyes. "I want you. Not Kane, not anyone else. I want you. And I won't give up on you recovering if you won't give up on me being faithful."
He answered her with a kiss, both passionate and gentle. She pulled away, breathless and giggled.
"What?" Rob asked, his self-confidence finally shaken a little.
"Sorry, it's just that we never had any privacy on the road, sneaking around back in lockerrooms or hotels, and now we have all the privacy in the world and you have a banged-up knee so we can't do anything about it." Lita's giggles evolved into fullblown hysterical laughing.
"Fine," Rob smirked. "You're right."
"Of course I am," she smiled, standing up and stretching her back so that every single vertebrae creaked. "Now after that little pep talk, I guess I have to get back to my team and work out this mess. But first..."
She lowered herself down so that she was straddling Rob's lap, carefully avoiding his injured knee. She tossed her hair back over one shoulder, exposing the milky white of her neck as she pressed full-length up against him, giggling mischieviously at the way he shivered underneath her. She ran her hands up his face, through his hair and laced them together behind his neck. Leaning down, she kissed him, slow and sensual and for nowhere near long enough. "You'd better be waiting for me, *alone*, when I get back. Or else."
Lita stood up, picked up her bags and headed for the door. "Lock up when you leave," she called over her shoulder.
Rob let his head flop back against the house and groaned in frustration. "The things you do to me, woman," he muttered.
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heeheehee Okay, so I'm wicked. That could have so been a much more, um :cough: "interesting scene", but poor Rob, I left him to suffer. Alone. bwahaha