Brown
The first time he mentioned Searider Falcon, Laura's eyes lit up with glee – a book she remembered loving in her youth, read to her by a man she loves in her –uh –prime.
Thus, this is how she ended up curled up on his worn, brown couch, the leather melding seamlessly to her form, with her feet resting in Bill's lap and the book perched open on top of them. A lazy smile flits past her lips as she watches Bill read, listening more to his warm tones than the words being said. She has definitely fallen hard. Mesmerised by his reading, she doesn't notice Bill slowly tracing her foot with his free hand, reaching gently further up her calf with each pass and swipe over her ankle. Doesn't realise, that is, until he hits her ticklish spot and she can't suppress a yelp and the subsequent fit of giggles that are uncontrollably tumbling out of her mouth. Sensing the shift in attention, Bill places the book down on the couch, and feels his heart soar at the sound of Laura's light-hearted and unrestrained giggles. Chuckling himself, Bill continues to tickle Laura, pausing only when she smacks him weakly on the arm. Grinning giddily, she sits up and leans in towards Bill, kissing him with the spirit of a woman untroubled – telling him that he has been forgiven for the heinous crime of tickling her. Bill moves away from her lips only to shift closer on the couch so that he can now cradle her. Looking into her sparkling green eyes, he can't help the words that slip out of his mouth, but knows instantly that he doesn't regret them at all –
"I love you, Laura."
Dumbfounded, Laura says nothing, but kisses him instead, hoping that he understands that she loves him too, but is simply unable to say the words.
As always, Bill understands.
Sitting in the raptor alone, Bill picks up the now-heavily-damaged copy of Searider Falcon he had gifted Laura. Gazing at the formerly brown cover, he traces the lettering fondly, remembering the times that he has read the book previously, and most recently with Laura. Opening it gently, he attempts to read it whilst waiting for her return. Pretending to ignore the roiling sensation in his stomach that accompanies the thought that Laura might be dead, Bill flips the page conscientiously, and is content to wait for Laura for as long as it takes.
Unaware of how much time has passed – only that it has indeed passed – Bill stares up at the Basestar in awe. Returning his attention to the raptor's controls, he straps himself in and docks on the rebel ship as quickly as safety allows – thinking only of Laura the entire time. Stepping down from the raptor, he does not expect Laura to be waiting for him, and yet there she is in all of her blood-stained glory. He does a cursory sweep of her frame (as he is accustomed to doing by now), concludes that the blood is not hers, and steps into her longing embrace with equal vigour – squeezing her tightly.
"I love you," she whispers suddenly into his ear. A smile breaks out unbidden across his lips as she nuzzles her head further into his neck. Chuckles almost escape him at the thought that it took yet another near death experience for her to finally admit it. Instead of releasing his laughter, he replies, "It's about time," with a cheeky smile before replacing it with a gentler and genuinely caring one. Placing a kiss on her temple, he wipes the tears away from beneath her relieved eyes.
Never before has she looked so beautiful to him, and he can't think of another person he could have ever dreamed of sharing his life with. She is so obviously his one and only.
His sine qua non, after all.
Bonus! Since "Brown" and "Yellow" are complementary chapters, I decided to post them at the same time :)
Thanks for reading, and please leave a review if you enjoyed it! :D
