Author's Note: My chapters were coming out a little long (6-8k words each!), so I had to cut them up into smaller chapters. Which means this little story is going to be closer to 10 chapters instead of the 4-5 I had originally promised.
And thank you for all the positive feedback! It's good to know somebody's reading.
"Kimmie, I can explain," Sarah called out to her daughter as she also fell over herself trying to get around the Goblin King to follow Kimmie. She turned to Jareth, who had thrown himself onto her bed and lay there in all his naked glory, looking at her with a big mischievous grin on his face. "You are so going to pay for this!" Sarah growled at him as she stormed out of the room.
Sarah entered the living room and found Kimmie in near hysterics. Silently cursing the Goblin King, she approached her daughter to try to calm her down.
"What the hell was that about, mom!" Kimmie cried. "What about our deal! And if you're going to back out of it, you could at least put a note on the door to warn me before I just walk in on you while you're. . . you're. . . OH EWWW!" she screamed.
Sarah felt herself tearing up as she realized how disillusioned her daughter was. She would rather run the Labyrinth again, ten times, than face the accusing look in Kimmie's eyes. "Oh, Kimmie," she started. "I'm so sorry! I know how disappointed you are in me." She walked up to Kimmie to give her a reassuring hug while she explained. "I -"
But Kimmie just shook her off. "You know what? Just never mind, mom. I don't want to hear whatever excuse. . . just - forget it," Kimmie replied icily as she turned to walk away from her mother.
Sarah felt her heart breaking at her daughter's accusatory tone. Damn Jareth! She had faced the fierys, the goblin horde, and had even made their master back down before her. The one thing she couldn't do, however, was disappoint her daughter.
"Kimmie, it's not like that. Jareth and I. . ." she began, nearly choking on her words. "We - we've been dating for a while now." The words left a bitter aftertaste, but it was preferable to having Kimmie think the worst, although she was hard pressed to believe that anything could be worse than having Kimmie believe she had feelings for that arrogant jerk.
Kimmie looked at her incredulously. "You've been seeing someone, and you haven't told me?" The hurt look in her eyes told Sarah she still wasn't in the clear.
"I didn't say anything because. . ." she thought furiously to come up with a believable lie. ". . . well, I didn't think it was worth mentioning until I was sure we had a real connection, you know? Something that will last." She repressed a shudder at the thought of having that kind of intimacy with Jareth.
"Oh," was all Kimmie could say as she mulled over her mother's seemingly heartfelt confession. She finally looked up at Sarah, smiling broadly and said, "Mom, that's great! You have a boyfriend!" And with that, she sprang at her mother and gave her a fierce hug. "I knew sooner or later someone beside me would see how awesome you are!"
Sarah tried her best to look happy, but inwardly she was falling apart at the thought of deceiving her daughter so badly.
Back in the bedroom, Jareth had been paying close attention to what Sarah told Kimmie. He let out the breath he had not realized he had been holding at hearing Sarah's "confession." Knowing that lying to her daughter was not easy for Sarah, he decided the least he could do in return was play nice for a while. He strode over to the mirror and conjured himself what he hoped would be considered appropriate attire: tight boot-cut black jeans, a fitted black tee shirt and matching black biker boots. He toned down his facial features, similar to what he had done the previous evening, only this time he kept his hair long and pulled it back into a pony tail. Satisfied as he could be with such mundane attire, he took a deep breath and stepped forth into the living room.
Sarah and Kimmie were sitting on the couch talking quietly. Upon noticing him, Kimmie bounced up, and grinning broadly at him said, "Good morning!"
Jareth slowly walked up to her and extended his hand, looking rather sheepish. "Good morning. You must be Kimmie." Kimmie took his hand and shook it vigorously as he continued. "I'm Jareth."
"It's nice to meet you," she said enthusiastically.
Sarah, immensely uncomfortable with the whole situation, was unable to look either one of them in the eye, so she just sat quietly and prayed Jareth wouldn't embarrass her any further.
"It is a pleasure to finally make your acquaintance, Kimmie," Jareth continued. "Sarah speaks of you often."
"Yeah, well," Kimmie started, looking down at her mother, "I'm afraid I really can't say the same about you."
During the uncomfortable silence that followed, Jareth strode to the couch and sat down next to Sarah, letting his arm drop over the back of the couch and over her shoulders. Sarah reigned in the alarm she felt at having Jareth in such close proximity, and turned to him to shoot him a venomous glare. Jareth took it all in his stride and smiled at her. Then looking up at Kimmie began, "Kimmie, I would like to apologize for what happened earlier. I should have realized that he last thing you would have expected was to find a naked man in your mother's room. I should have taken the appropriate measures to prevent such an occurrence."
Sarah was surprised at hearing the Goblin King sounding so contrite. She looked up at him and was even more surprised to see that there was nary a trace of a smirk or sardonic grin.
"Oh, that's okay," Kimmie replied. "I'm over it."
"So, Sarah my love," Jareth began as he turned his attention to the woman desperately trying to shrink away from him, despite the fact that he had his arm around her shoulders. "How about we all get dressed and go out to breakfast? My treat, of course." He took advantage of the situation to satisfy a curiosity he had harbored for years, and shifted the position of the arm he had wrapped about Sarah so he could stroke her hair.
Feeling Jareth's hand on her head, Sarah snapped her out of her reverie, and she quickly stood up. "Oh, Jareth," she all but jeered his name. "That's a wonderful idea." She turned to leave.
Not to be outdone, Jareth also stood up, and before Sarah had a chance to walk away, he placed a hand on her waist and said, "Not so fast, love. How am I supposed to help you dress if you take off without me?" Thoroughly enjoying Sarah's mortification, Jareth smiled and turned to Kimmie, "Young lady, I suggest you get dressed as well!"
"Cool! I'll be ready to go in ten." Kimmie was too excited at the prospect of going out to breakfast to be disturbed by Jareth's allusion to the intimacy he supposedly shared with her mother. She scampered off to her room to get herself ready to go.
Once back in the bedroom and behind closed doors, Sarah shook off the offending hand as she sat down on the bed to rub her temples. The adrenaline surge from finding herself in bed with Jareth and then dealing with a hysterical Kimmie was wearing off, reminding her that she was still very hung over from the night before. "Just what the hell are you playing at?" she whispered at the Goblin King through gritted teeth.
Jareth looked at her in mock surprise. "Why Sarah, I'm just trying to be your loving and attentive boyfriend. You wouldn't want Kimmie to get suspicious about me?" Then realizing that something was wrong, he sat down next to her and asked, "Sarah, are you all right?"
About a dozen emotions all surfaced at once, erupting in a flood of tears. "NO! I'm not all right! I got drunk last night, woke up in bed with you, I just told a whopper of a lie to my daughter, and I have the headache from hell!" she sobbed, gripping her head, as if she could squeeze the pain out.
Jareth just looked at her shamefaced. He was solely responsible for everything that ailed Sarah this morning. Well, he mused, at least he could remedy her headache. He leaned forward and attempted to place his hands on either side of her head, but Sarah once again shook him off.
"Knock it off!" she snapped at him, thinking it was just another lame attempt at mock affection.
"Sarah, if you will just permit me. . ." he started in an exasperated tone as he again tried to initiate physical contact with her, "I can at least take the headache away."
She looked at him suspiciously, but allowed him to continue. He placed his hands on her cheeks and gently applied pressure. After about ten seconds, he let go, and much to Sarah's surprise, her headache was indeed gone. She took a deep, cleansing breath, and looked up at him. "Thank you," she said.
"You're welcome," he said as he stood and began walking toward the door.
"What are you doing?" Sarah asked in a tone that sounded almost alarmed.
"I'm giving you your privacy so you can get dressed. I'll be waiting for you in the living room," he said, pausing at the door.
"Well, you're going to be waiting a while," she replied. "I'm not going anywhere until I've had a shower. You know, you might want to freshen up a little, too."
"Why precious," he purred, "Is that an invitation?" He ducked out of the way just in time to avoid being hit by the pillow Sarah threw at him and left her alone, as promised.
Approximately 45 minutes later, Kimmie and Sarah Williams, together with Jareth the Goblin King headed out the door and enjoyed a pleasant spring morning while they walked the four blocks to the nearby IHOP. Sarah was glad the weather had improved from the previous day.
"So . . . ," Kimmie began, looking expectantly at Sarah and Jareth as they finally took their seats at the booth that had been prepared for them. She had insisted the two lovebirds sit next to each other, much to Sarah's consternation. Jareth, ever the gentleman, had insisted Sarah be seated first, thereby trapping her up against the wall as he took his seat on the bench next to her. He was absolutely in his element as he scooted up close to her and casually let his arm fall around Sarah's shoulders. Self-important ham, she thought to herself as she tried her hardest to look like she was enjoying being the recipient of his affections. When both of the adults refused to accept Kimmie's prompt, she decided to be a little more direct. Looking her mother in the eyes, she finally said, "Well, spill!"
Sarah was reluctant to elaborate on her supposed relationship with Jareth for several reasons. First, there was the whole lying to Kimmie aspect that she was very uncomfortable with, and which only added to her dislike for Jareth, not to mention the fact that she really didn't know what to say. She and Jareth had not had time to come up with a plausible cover story, and without one she feared discovery more than anything. Thankfully, the arrival of their waitress brought them all to the realization that they needed to look at their menus to decide what to eat. They ordered their beverages and promised to be ready to order when she returned with them, allowing Sarah a few more minutes to collect herself before proceeding with this ill-conceived game of Jareth's.
The waitress returned with one cup of black coffee, one cup of Earl Grey and one tall glass of ice cold milk. True to their word, Sarah, Kimmie and Jareth each placed their orders, and Kimmie continued with her clumsy attempt at a third degree.
"Okay, mom, seriously! You can't just spring a boyfriend on me out of the blue and not expect me to have questions. Especially one as hot as Jareth," she added, glancing quickly at Jareth before continuing. "Honestly, mom, I thought you were sort of an ice queen and above noticing things like hot guys."
Sarah groaned internally at Kimmie's assessment of both her and Jareth. Great, she thought, I'm an ice queen, and Mr. Tight Pants' already over-inflated ego just got bigger!
Jareth, on the other hand, was highly amused by Kimmie's assessment of Sarah and quickly silenced her cry if indignation with a hearty chuckle. "Well, my love," he teased, "it seems you've managed to give your daughter a very different impression of you than I have. You see, Kimmie, I find Sarah to be a very spirited, willful and at times volatile woman. Now throw in her wit, intellect and beauty, and - well, I never really stood a chance." He was looking at Sarah as he said this, and had a tender, almost wistful look on his face.
Sarah smiled gratefully at him and was about to speak, but was cut off by Kimmie. "Ooh, do tell, please, because apparently I was asking the wrong person!"
"Well, would it interest you to know that your mum was your age when I first met her?" Jareth continued.
"Really?" Kimmie exclaimed. "Oh, my gosh! High school sweethearts who reconnected again later in life! How romantic is that?"
"Well, we weren't exactly sweethearts," Jareth said remorsefully.
"No," said Sarah, finally feeling comfortable enough with the topic to break her silence. "The nature of our relationship back then can only be described as adversarial."
"Oooh! The plot thickens!" Kimmie quipped. "So what happened?" Her eyes as round as saucers, she leaned forward over the table, propping one elbow squarely on it and rested her chin on her palm and waited for the ill-fated lovers to relate how they came to their, for now, happy ending.
"Well," Sarah began, looking at Jareth and hoping he wouldn't contradict her, "it all began when Jareth took something valuable from me, and refused to return it unless I participated in this sick little game he had set up."
Jareth stiffened almost imperceptibly, but due to his close proximity to Sarah, she was able to notice and could not help doing a mental jig in response to finally having been able one-up him. It was during this brief break in the conversation that the waitress arrived with their food. In an attempt to postpone the discomfort he knew Sarah was planning on inflicting on him, Jareth suggested they put their conversation on hold and enjoy their food while it was still hot.
Kimmie, having the voracious appetite of a teenage girl, was the first to finish, and as she polished off the last bite of her waffles, she looked at her mother and Jareth, curiosity positively bristling from her being. "Okay, I'm all ears. So tell me about the 'sick little game.' Did you guys fall for each other right after that, or did you have to wait twenty years for your happily ever after?"
"Oh, sweetie," Sarah began sadly, "you're a sensible girl. You should know there's no such thing as happily ever after." Sarah had actually given much thought to what she was going to tell her daughter while she ate, and she decided to be as vague as possible. Jareth had been absolutely right in his assumption that she didn't want Kimmie knowing the truth about them.
However, as she was about to begin her narrative, giving as few details as possible of course, Jareth interjected, "Actually, Sarah my love, I didn't take anything from you. You gave it to me, and when you changed your mind, I offered you a fair exchange. Complete a challenge, and you were free to take back the item you gave me."
Sarah wanted nothing more than to slap that smug look off his face, but instead she forced a smile and coolly asked, "All right, I'll let you tweak it your way if you'll answer me this. Was cheating always a part of your plan, or was it only something you resorted to when it became obvious you were going to lose?"
Jareth was taken aback by her question, and despite his fervent desire to maintain the illusion of being Sarah's amorous companion, her tone was rankling him. "Cheat? Cheat! Precious, I don't need to cheat. And even if I did, you cheated first, by asking for help."
"You never said I couldn't," Sarah countered. "And I think you were more upset by the fact that the . . . 'friends' you sent to distract me found your style of play distasteful and decided to help me instead."
Kimmie sat and watched and listened, absolutely enthralled by the discourse taking place before her. She couldn't help thinking that given the level of animosity the two were displaying while relating how they met, the love that eventually took root must be of earth shattering proportions.
"Don't you dare mention those three traitors!" Jareth hissed.
"Friends, Jareth. They ended up being my friends!" Sarah's temper had now flared, and all pretense was gone. She thoroughly hated this man, and for the moment she completely forgot that she had told her daughter he was her boyfriend.
"Oh, yes. I was witness to just what kind of friend you were to them. How one day, for no apparent reason, you demanded that they stop bothering you. And they had the nerve to ask if I'd had anything to do with it!" Jareth paused and looked somber as he recalled the dejected trio marching into the castle to ask if he knew why their friend had cut off all communication with them. "After you so callously abandoned them, they turned to me for solace."
Sarah was nearly in tears at hearing this. "They had been miserable long before I stopped calling, Jareth. With your constant pestering of 'Tell Sarah this,' or 'Give Sarah that' and your demanding to know every time we met, every time we spoke, and everything we spoke of. They hated feeling like they needed your permission to be friends with me. They never complained, of course, but I could see the stress they were under. You were forcing them to choose - loyalty to you or loyalty to me. They freely gave it to me, but they owed it to you. So rather than allow you to continue torturing them, I made the choice for them."
Jareth was dumbstruck at hearing this confession. Here he had been, feeling all high and mighty as he made his assertion. It had never occurred to him that maybe Sarah had had reasons of her own for doing what she did.
Absolutely unaware of the drama playing out at her table, the waitress came by and placed the bill in front of Jareth, snapping them both back to the present. They both looked at Kimmie apologetically. Jareth stood up, pulled out his "wallet" (a feat which Sarah was convinced involved magic because there was no way anyone could pull anything out of jeans that tight with so much ease) and rifled though it until he found what he sought, namely a Visa card. Sarah offered up a silent prayer that whatever magic Jareth used to produce the credit card was thorough enough to let the payment process. Otherwise, Sarah would be on the hook for a very expensive breakfast.
It was Kimmie who finally had the nerve to break the awkward silence. "I can't wait to hear how this story ends. Because from what I've heard so far, you two should have throttled each other by now, and not ended up all lovey-dovey in mom's bed last night."
They waitress returned with the bill for Jareth to sign, and much to Sarah's surprise, Jareth did not ask for help. He added the appropriate tip and slipped the credit card back into his wallet, which in turn slid quite easily back into his too-tight jeans.
As they got up to leave, Jareth let Kimmie lead the way. When Sarah slid out of the booth, he gently grabbed her arm to hold her back for a moment. "Sarah," he began glumly. "I'm so sorry. I never realized that I was the reason you stopped calling on them. Please, forgive me."
Sarah could tell he was earnest, but she was still too angry to forgive him. "Forget it," she responded coldly. "What's done is done."
Sarah could tell from the pained look on Jareth's face that the barb had hit its intended mark.