Naming Candies

Pairing: Gaius and Sumia

Timeline: Eh…no comment…

l*l*l*l

"…Three dozen lollipops, one dozen lemon drops, fourteen chocolate bars, nine chocolate rabbits, and one hundred and two gummy bears. Should last us 'till the weekend," Gaius figured, nibbling on a rope of red licorice—fifty-six. His stash of candies took up every inch of the table in front of him. Even as lowly as a thief he gained a rich man's pleasure from counting his treasures…although lately he tasted surprisingly little of it.

A sigh drew his attention away to the one thing other than sweets that could make his mouth water with just a glance. Sumia was lying back on the bed with a book open in her hand. Gaius could watch her read for hours. No matter the story she would become so invested in it that sometimes Gaius would catch her pacing around the room, processing what she had read, sometimes with watery eyes, other times with an unwavering grin, and every so often with eyebrows furrowed so tightly he thought they would need a massage to smooth out the wrinkles.

Her lips pursed as she gazed over the top of the book, seeing not the walls of their home but something farther away that Gaius could not spot even if he squinted.

"What you need is a Pensive Lollipop." He had to repeat himself twice before Sumia glanced up blankly.

"A what lollipop?"

"Pensive. You know, because you suck on it while you're thinking."

"Do you name all your candies, Gaius?" By now the book was closed, her thumb placed between the pages to mark her spot.

"Yup. They all have one to fit a mood or circumstance."

"Really? But there's so many! How do you know what fits?"

"The challenge is all part of the game, Stumbles, just like nicknames. You look at it, think about what makes it tick, and bang!" Gaius snapped his fingers. "You got a name."

"Oh, perhaps I should be the one to name our child. It wouldn't do to name the baby Nougot or Jelly," Sumia mused, tracing hearts over her swollen belly. She hesitated, her fingers pausing before twiddling nervously. "Actually, I've been thinking of naming the baby after Cordelia. O-o-or at least something that begins with C."

Without missing a beat, Gaius propped his feet on the table and crossed them, leaning back so the chair was balanced on its back legs as he gazed up at the ceiling. "C…C…C… How does Cocoa sound?"

"Are you asking if I want some cocoa or if we should name the child Cocoa?"

Gaius waved the question aside with the licorice rope. "Scratch that. Our baby deserves to be named after higher class desserts."

Sumia shook her head at her husband's one-track mind. She scooted to the end of the bed, rustling the napkin that concealed a heap of candy wrappers underneath. The front legs of the chair thudded to the floor as Gaius moved to help. Sumia brushed him away and stood up, leaning on the bedpost for support. Waddling to the table, she eyed the colorful piles before pointing to a pyramid of thinly wrapped squares. "What did you name those?"

"That's easy. Boredom Bubblegum."

"And these?"

"Almost-Caught Chocolate Coins."

Sumia tilted her head, eyeing him worriedly. "Do I want to know?"

"Nah. Nothing you need to lose your beauty sleep over."

Sumia sighed, but only held her palm out expectantly. Gaius moved to toss a coin to her for compensation, then thought better of it and handed it to her instead. Pregnancy did little to help with her coordination, although it did give her quite the sweet tooth. The chocolate coin was gone the second after the gold paper had been ripped off. Sumia looked at him with wide, innocent eyes. "It ran away."

Gaius smirked and handed her another one, which disappeared as quickly as the first. Her face turned red when the chocolate came up as a burp. She quickly covered her mouth with her hand. "Excuse me," she squeaked.

Gaius laughed. "We'll blame it on the baby." He arched an eyebrow and pointed to a triangular pastry drenched with honey. "That one's named after you. Snoopy Stumbles' Baklava."

"Oh, I said I was sorry! Will you never let me live that down?"

She swiped a finger through the honey and popped it in her mouth. Gaius watched in satisfaction as her eyes fluttered shut while she purred, the taste all the sweeter from the memory of the stings they had braved the first time they harvested the golden liquid. Her eyes were a warm caramel brown when she opened them. She scooted the candies away to make room as she sat on the edge of the table, surveying the candies again.

"What do you call this one?"

Sumia plucked a chocolate covered strawberry by its tip. Instead of eating, she bit down on its leaves, holding it in place in front of her lips.

"Pretty sure that's the wrong way 'round, Stumbles."

Sumia answered by tilting her head in the most adorable way, although her expression was far from innocent. The licorice dangled from Gaius' open mouth, and Sumia giggled as he stumbled to catch it when it tipped. She grinned coyly, almost tauntingly, around the berry. Gaius slowly returned the smile as he rose. He brushed the back of his fingers against her cheek. Holding her gaze, he took the bait and bit into the berry. The juice spilled down their lips, staining them red. The berry dropped to the floor as he pulled her onto his lap and—"

"Um, Gaius?"

Gaius blinked. Sumia was watching him with a puzzled look. He must have been staring at her for a while because her cheeks began to blush as red as the berry. Gaius smirked roguishly, his fingers twirling the fruit by its stem.

"Sexy Strawberry."

This is probably rubbish (that was supposed to be one page but turned out to be 3) but at least it's sweet rubbish, and I'm in need of something cheerful, so it's getting published now, gosh darn it! Reviews and critique is much appreciated!