A/N: Finally, the third and final part, the one you've all been waiting for. It's...different from the previous two parts. It might be confusing or hard to understand, and if it is please let me know! It's also longer, but I hope you like it. Sorry it took so long to get out. Please read and review when you finish, I live off of feedback! I'm really glad everyone has liked it so far!
xx
Part 3: The Feeling
His breathing was labored and ragged; the sheets were beginning to become soaked with sweat. Opening his blue eyes, he glanced at the clock. 4:19 AM. After blinking a few couple of times to refocus his eyes, Tommy gently removed himself from the bed and left the room.
Once in the kitchen, he ignored the light switch and headed straight for the refrigerator. Pulling the door open, he reached for a dark brown bottle, filled with his poison.
Tommy shuffled to the island and placed the bottle on the black granite countertop as he seated himself on a stool. He stared at it, the thing that taunted him without mercy. Finally, he reached out and grabbed his tormentor, pulling off the small metal cap that released the all too familiar scent of his poison.
He brought the bottle to his lips, contemplating whether he should begin the long descent down, which would inevitably result with him at the bottom. Tommy lifted the bottle higher and higher, his poison coming closer and closer to its prey. It was almost there...so close.
But before the beer touched his lips, he lowered the bottle, realizing what he was actually doing. Shaking his head, he replaced the bottle in its former spot on the counter. Once again, Tommy stared at the brown bottle, but this time his thoughts were completely different.
He got up and went to the kitchen sink, bottle in tow. Surprisingly, he didn't feel as much satisfaction as he thought he would as he watched the liquid swirl down the drain. Once the bottle was empty, Tommy put it down and tried to figure out what was wrong, what he still needed to do.
Once the answer finally hit him, Tommy could've smacked himself because it was so obvious. He turned away from the kitchen sink and headed towards his destination, knowing he was doing the right thing.
xxxxx
There were two piles of bottles, one on the right side of the sink, the other on the left. As each bottle was emptied, it was placed on the left side of the sink, where it waited to be joined by the others it had left behind.
Tommy had two bottles to go, one of vodka and the other of tequila. He opened the one containing vodka and turned it over, not hearing the soft footsteps making their way towards him. There was still half of the liquid left in the bottle when the slim pair of arms slipped around his waist, startling him and causing him to release his grasp on the glass bottle, which plummeted downward, shattering into thousands of tiny fragments as it crashed into the stainless steel.
They both jumped at the sharp sound, their hearts pumping fanatically inside of them, making the blood pound through their veins. Once their breathing had slowed, Tommy turned around to face the one whose arms were still encompassing his waist.
She looked up into his eyes. "Oh, baby, I'm sorry for coming up behind you like that. I just wondered what you were doing out here at this time. Let me clean it up, it was my fault in the first place."
She released her grip on him and tried to move around him to she could begin cleaning up the broken glass in the sink. She began reaching for the towel that was hanging nearby on a rack, but he reached up and captured her wrists before she could grab it. Confused, she maneuvered back around to face him.
He still held onto her wrists as he gazed into her eyes, inwardly smiling at the evident confusion he found in them. Tommy moved towards her, forcing her back against the wall. She continued to question him with her eyes but he just returned her gaze. He pulled her arms up over her head and pinned them against the wall with one hand. She finally broke his gaze and looked back over at the sink.
Noticing the direction of her eyes, he began to lean closer towards her. With his free hand, he gently grabbed her face and turned it back towards his own. Her eyes were still trying to figure him out. He smiled at her and spoke in a soft voice, "Don't worry about it."
She closed her eyes for a moment as he continued to lean into her. When she opened them again, her mouth opened as well. In a whisper she asked, "Tommy, what are you doing?"
He was becoming closer and closer. Finally, when his face was only inches from hers, he answered in the same tone that she had asked.
"What I want to do for the rest of my life..."
And then there was no space between them. His lips had finally reached their destination, and they weren't leaving anytime soon. He brought her arms down so they were locked around his neck before he picked her up. Their lips still connected, she wrapped her legs around him and continued to let him take the lead. Walking backwards, they bumped and banged around the house until reaching their final destination, where their bodies became one, just like their hearts.
xxxxx
She'd never get tired of this feeling--the two of them tangled up in the sheets, the powerful scent of their mixed sweat, the steady rise and fall of his breathing. But most of all, she'd never get tired of laying in his arms, naked, with her head against his chest, listening to his heart beat. She smiled to herself and soaked it all in, trying to figure out how she had ever lived without this.
He eventually began to stir. The sun had come up and was shining through the windows, reflecting off of the beautiful hair that was spilled across his chest. Seeing this, he smiled and began to stroke it, relishing the incredible feel of its soft, silky texture.
She was still awake when he finally awoke. Once he began stroking her hair, she flipped over and made a trail of kisses up his rock hard stomach until she reached his lips, where she possessed them with her own. After a little while they broke apart and she laid back down on him. He spoke first.
"Hey."
"Hey."
That was all they needed to say. Each knew what the other was thinking and feeling. Words were useless between them because their hearts spoke for them. But there was something else on her mind.
"Tommy, what were you doing in the kitchen earlier?"
He sighed, but there was a smile on his face as he answered. "Pouring all of the alcohol in this house down the drain."
She rolled her eyes at him in a playful manner. "I figured that much out, I just don't know why you were doing that."
He remained silent for a moment. She could tell he was actually thinking about it and not stalling, so she remained quiet while he gathered his thoughts.
"I had a dream last night. Actually, a nightmare is a more appropriate title. Anyway, in it, there was this girl, a girl that I cared about a lot. I would do anything for her, she was my life, my angel. I loved her more than anything else in the world, and it scared the hell out of me because I'd never felt like that before."
He took a deep breath and looked down at the masterpiece lying in his arms. She met his eyes and nodded, telling him to continue.
"Things between us were perfect...for a while. Then something changed and everything just went downhill. It was mostly my fault, I guess, but I couldn't see that. She tried so many times to point it out to me, to help me, but I was in denial and refused everything that anyone said to me. Still, she stuck with me. But I began to resent, not exactly her, but what she was trying to do. I didn't want to believe that I was in the wrong, that I was the one responsible for all of our problems.
"I ended up taking it all out on her, and it took its toll. You could tell--she wasn't as patient as she used to be, she was always stressed, she didn't laugh or smile as much, and she was so tense. But I still didn't change. Finally, she took matters into her own hands one night and ended it. I couldn't stand being the one rejected, but what I couldn't stand more was her leaving, for good. But I didn't tell her that. I went about everything the wrong way, and in the end I...I-I...I hurt her. I mean really hurt her."
She could figure out the rest of what he was going to say, so she laid her finger on his lips to let him know that she understood. Tommy paused for a moment, and when she removed her finger he continued.
"That dream, it was like, a wake-up call for me, a warning. The big problem was alcohol. And I don't want that to actually happen, because as much as you might deny it, it could. My dad had a problem with it, and I could end up like him just as easily. So I poured it all down the sink because I don't want anything to ever get in the way of us, I won't let anything get between us."
At this she smiled and squeezed him tighter. They both became lost in their thoughts for a few moments, but she came up with another question.
"Hey Tommy, can I ask you something else?"
"Sure...but I can't guarantee that I'll give you the right answer," he said with a wink.
"Who was the girl in your dream? What was her name?"
"Why don't you take a guess."
"Oh, come on, Tommy, you know I suck at games like these."
"I know...but it's fun to watch you try. And if you get it right I might give you something."
"Oooh, present...Ok, then. Would I happen to know this girl?"
"You might."
"That's not really helping me, Tommy."
"You're the one that's supposed to be guessing."
"Why can't you just tell me? Please?"
"Now why would I do that? It'd take all the fun out of it."
"Because if you don't then these legs are staying closed until you tell me."
"Oh-ho, is that supposed to be a threat?"
"It might be."
"Is that so?"
"Well, whether it really is or not all depends on if you're willing to take the chance."
She got him there and they both knew it. Without warning, he grabbed her and flipped them over so he was on top.
"Hey, what was that for?" she asked, not really minding the change in their positions.
"I don't like losing and you have too much control of this situation already, so I thought I'd balance things out a little. That okay with you?"
She smiled and laughed, completely comfortable underneath his large frame with the knowledge that he'd never hurt her. "It's definitely ok with me. Now answer the question. What was her name?"
He looked straight into her eyes as he replied. "Jude."
"Jude?" she repeated. He nodded. "I thought you said I probably didn't know her."
"No, I said you might know her. Do you?" he asked with a slight smirk.
"I might," she teased.
"Uh-huh, and what do you think of her?"
"Well, I think she..."
And that's where she stopped. Tommy, realizing what she was trying to do, began to tickle her.
"Tommy! Tommy, stop!" she gasped out between giggles.
"I will when you finish your sentence."
"Ok, ok, just let me breath for a minute."
He finally stopped tickling and just stared at her beautiful face, now rosy and flushed because she had been laughing.
"Ok, I think Jude..."
She stopped there again, laughing at the way Tommy's eyes practically popped out of his head when she didn't continue. Figuring she had put him through enough torture already, she finally completed her thought.
"I think Jude is married to the best man that has ever existed. She loves him more than life itself and wants to be by his side for forever and after."
After hearing this, Tommy leaned all the way down and pressed his lips against the ones that waited beneath his. After a minute, he barely pulled away, but it was just enough for him to get out his own thoughts.
"I love you, too, Mrs. Quincy, and I'll never leave you, ever."
"Promise?"
"I promise."
Their lips connected again, but she pulled away this time.
"Where's my present?"
Still a little dazed, he questioned, "What present?"
"The one you said you'd give me if I guessed right."
"Oh, that present. You want it now, then?"
She smiled up at him. "Mmhmm."
"You sure?"
"Positive."
"Okay...you asked for it."
With that he pulled the blankets back over them and gave her the present she asked for, and one she'd never forget.
xxxxx
Once again, she cherished the feeling of just being with him, except this time he was awake and enjoying it with her.
"Thanks for telling me, Tommy."
"I'll always tell you anything you ask me, Jude. There's no secrets between us, just like we promised each other at the alter two months ago."
"I know. But I'm glad to know that you'll give up anything that could stand between us."
"Of course I will. You're my number one, in everything."
"No, I'm not...I'm your twenty-one." She gave him a soft, gentle kiss on the lips. "It only took five years, but I finally am," she added.
"Yeah, you are, and you're never getting away from me."
"I wouldn't have it any other way."
They became silent again, content to just be with each other. But something suddenly occurred to Tommy.
"Hey! Jude, you little sneak! You didn't even answer the question right and I gave you your present!"
At this Jude burst out laughing. "I was wondering when you were going to notice that." He just glared at her. "Well, it's too late to take it back, so what are you going to do about it now?"
"Absolutely nothing."
She raised her eyebrows at this. That wasn't something the Tommy she knew would do.
"Why not?"
He gathered her up in his arms as he answered. "Because it wasn't just a present for you..."
Tommy winked at her when she looked up at him.
"Now who's the sneaky one?"
"Both of us. That's why we're so good together."
Jude glanced at the clock. 11:04 AM. She jumped out of bed, reluctant as she was to leave Tommy's arms.
"Crap, Tommy, look at the time! We were supposed to be at the studio an hour ago!"
He looked, then shrugged. "We had better things to do," Tommy replied with a grin.
Jude just rolled her eyes, exasperated. After pulling her jeans on but still without a shirt, she walked around to the other side of the bed. She jumped up on it and, using her foot, cleanly rolled Tommy off it, laughing at the thud and ensuing groan.
Before Jude knew what was happening, Tommy had popped back up from the floor and grabbed her ankles and yanked her feet out from under her. That resulted with her flat on her back on the bed, and then Tommy climbing back over her and tugging her pants off..
He grinned like a devil when he spoke. "Looks like they're going to have to wait a little longer for you, my dear..."