Snippets of Forever:
So Not... Ready to Run.
-x-
The Austrian ski slopes were absolutely breathtaking, even as the severe blizzard raged on.
The tall, white lights that lined the tracks were almost certainly overshadowing what had to be a billion bright stars speckling the dark sky. But the way the heavy snowfall danced and swirled under the glowing light was surely just as beautiful.
The glass of the window was cool to the touch as Kim admired the natural spectacle through wide, green eyes. The redhead relaxed in the warmth of the fireplace she could feel burning on the opposite wall. The calm that filled her was so still that she nearly jumped in surprise at the sound of her name.
"Miss Possible, I simply cannot thank you enough for the safe return of my precious sculptures."
Kim turned around on the spot, brushing off the all too familiar praise with a humble grin. It's not that it wasn't fulfilling to hear how appreciated she was - there was definitely no denying that. At the end of the day, there was just one person's opinion of her that she truly cared about above all others.
And Kim's heart simply raced at the proud smile Ron was beaming at her from across the room.
With a small shrug of her shoulders, Kim took a step away from the window, "It was no big, Lord Wagner."
"Yeah, well, except for the sculpture of the snow leopard that Junior was trying to tow away on the back of his sled," Ron interjected with a scratch of his head, "That was pretty big."
Lord Walter Wagner came from one of the wealthiest families in Austria, and was the owner of the high-class ski resort where he and the teen heroes currently stood. Kim and Ron had been called to the European country when the Lord's prestigious collection of expensive ice sculptures had been stolen from the sub-zero vault under his mountain-top cabin.
The attempted heist was yet another failed plot by the Seniors - one that had started out as a cover for an early birthday trip for Señor Senior Senior. But their foolish underestimation of Team Possible quickly became their undoing.
They may have just managed to escape - Senior was surprisingly nimble on a pair of skis for an old man - but what was most important was that each of Lord Wagner's priceless possessions had been safely recovered. And now, Kim and Ron were preparing to head back to the States just in time to start their weekend.
"Well, seeing as Snowy and the rest of your collection are right back where they belong, we should probably be on our way," Kim spoke, reaching for the Kimmunicator, "But if there's any more trouble around here, you can call - "
Before the last of her sentence could fall from her lips, Kim raised a curious eyebrow at the bizarre waves of static that crossed the screen of the Kimmunicator.
"Wade?" she asked, squinting at the flickering image of her tech genius.
"Ki- " Wade stuttered over the poor connection, "Wh- bl- "
Ron had joined Kim by then, peering over her shoulder just in time to spot the screen go completely blank. There was a beat of confused silence, before the familiar four-tone jingle bounced off the walls of the ski cabin.
When Kim answered, she was relieved to see a much clearer picture of Wade's face, "Wade, can you hear me?"
"Sorry, Kim. I had to re-route the connection," Wade began, "That is one nasty blizzard you guys are dealing with up there."
"Oh, come on," Ron argued, rolling his eyes in disbelief, "Don't tell me a couple of itty, bitty snowflakes really froze your whole system?"
"That's not the only thing the storm froze," Wade sniped back at his friend's sarcasm, "All flight paths in and out of the country have been totally shut down for the rest of the night."
Any sense of cynicism dropped from Ron's expression as he and Kim spoke at the same time, "What?"
"So, the ride you had already lined up for us?" Kim asked skeptically.
"They wouldn't be cleared for take off even if they tried," Wade confirmed, "Sorry guys. The blizzard's due to clear up overnight - I can have you out of there first thing in the morning."
"And in the meantime we're supposed to stay, where?" Ron questioned.
Kim sighed in agreement, her mind wandering for a moment as she chewed down on her bottom lip. She was just beginning to reach for a semi-decent solution, when her train of thought was suddenly derailed by the other voice that still lingered in the room.
"Why, the two of you are more than welcome to stay in my guest house tonight."
"Hey!" came a protesting squeak from the pocket of Ron's pants.
Lord Wagner chuckled to himself, "And your fearless, little rodent friend, of course."
The two teen heroes spun around on the spot to stare at the wealthy lord in pleasant surprise.
"Oh... Lord Wagner," Kim began gratefully, "I mean, we wouldn't want to impose - "
"Nonsense! It is the least I can do to repay you for all your help this evening," he insisted, beckoning Kim and Ron towards a second window, "See the cabin just at the crest of that smaller hill? My spare bedroom suite is all yours for as long as you need - I insist!"
The young couple exchanged a fleeting glance, and then with another shrug of their shoulders, Kim directed her attention back down to the Kimmunicator, "I guess we've got a place to stay for the night, Wade."
"Sounds great," Wade spoke with a breath of relief, "Leave the other details with me. I'll let your parents know you're safe, and reschedule your trip home for first thing in the morning."
"As always, Wade - you rock."
"Sleep tight, guys."
As the screen went black, Walter eagerly clapped Ron on the back, "Excellent news!"
Kim shot the lord an appreciative smile, "We so can't thank you enough, Lord Wagner."
"The pleasure is all mine, my dear," he assured her, "Now then, my personal assistant resides in the guest house, as well. I'll call to him to prepare the room for yourselves, and then he'll be straight down to collect you."
"Wow," the redhead exclaimed, "Again, thank you."
"You're both more than welcome," Walter replied, offering his hand for each of them to shake, "If there's anything else you need, please, do not hesitate to ask."
With that being said, Lord Wagner took his leave, stepping out of the main lounge of the ski resort to make the call to his assistant from reception.
For just a moment, Kim and Ron remained totally speechless. A chill ran up Kim's spine as she fixated her vision back on the pitch black sky beyond the window. A million miles away from home in the freezing cold wasn't exactly where she pictured laying her head to rest that night, but the teenager knew there was no use complaining.
Turning back towards her boyfriend, Kim offered Ron an affectionate smirk, "Well... bright side?"
Ron cocked a teasing eyebrow, "Um, we're in a beautiful, snow-covered country with a luxury pad to crash in for the night - I'd say the whole side is a bright one."
Kim's smirk beamed into a smile brighter than the flames from the fireplace. Leaning forward, she wrapped her arms around Ron in a loose hug, "You took the words right out of my mouth."
Before they both knew it, the pair were being whisked away across the slippery slopes on the back of a speedy snow mobile. Their driver, Walter's assistant, was a stocky man who introduced himself as Tobias. Kim and Ron weren't convinced that he didn't secretly double as Lord Wagner's body guard, as well - he certainly knew his way around the powerful motor that roared beneath them.
It may not have been a long journey between the main building of the resort through to the guest house, but with the snow still tumbling down as heavily as it was, the teens were grateful for the lift. Kim was nestled in behind Tobias, with Ron sitting at the back and sandwiching her securely in place. The blonde boy inched closer towards her. He had one arm stretched out to the back of his seat to keep stable, while his other was slinked tightly around Kim's hips, holding her snug against him.
Kim felt her heart skip a beat. It definitely wasn't just the freezing temperature that was making the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end.
The warmth beyond the heavy, wooden door was a welcome sensation against their skin. Kim and Ron melted at the sight of the smaller fireplace at the end of the hallway that heated each corner of the house. As the three of them removed their ski masks, Tobias cleared his throat.
"Now then, your room for the night is just here to the left. There are plenty of towels, additional bedding can be found in the drawers, and two pairs of guest pyjamas have been laid out for you," he explained with a friendly nod of his head, "And as Lord Wagner said, if you need absolutely anything at all, my room is right across the hall."
"Wait, I have a question," Ron spat almost instantly.
Kim shot her boyfriend a suspicious side-eye, "Ron - "
"We kinda' haven't eaten since lunch, so if you could be so kind as to point out which of these tall mountains has the nearest Bueno Nacho, then - "
"And on that note, we will leave you to it," Kim interjected, grabbing onto Ron's shoulder and dragging him towards their room, "Thank you again, for everything. We'll see you in the morning!"
"Hey, wait, KP - !"
Tobias simply chuckled under his breath as the two teenagers disappeared behind their door. Ron slouched down in disappointment as soon as Kim released her grip on him.
"Kim," he whined, "This is a nine-one-one empty stomach situation!"
The redhead rolled her eyes, "Sleep now, food later. We need to get some shut eye if Wade's flying us out first thing in the morning," she argued, before adding with a laugh, "Besides, you are such the exaggerator."
His vision narrowed at her accusingly, "About what?"
"Not eating since lunch?"
"I haven't! I - "
"The whole bag of Snicker Doodles you downed on the trip across the Atlantic?"
"Well, yeah, okay, I mean aside from - "
"And the entire tray of hors d'oeuvres you inhaled in the resort literally fifteen minutes ago?"
"They were little, mini wieners with potato cheese spread, Kim!"
"Hck, wieners!" Rufus agreed, leaping to Ron's defence.
With her arms folded across her chest, Kim raised an unwavering eyebrow at the two of them. No matter how many times they tried to tag team her with their own bizarre logic, Ron and Rufus truly were no match for their fearless leader.
"Fine," Ron huffed out with a pout. His words may have been compliant, but his stomach only continued to protest as he spun around on the spot to hide its grumbling sounds from his girlfriend.
A curious frown sunk into his face as Ron tried to distract himself by gazing around the room. There was a rather cozy looking plush sofa nestled in the corner beside the tall chest of drawers. With his interest piquing further still, the blonde boy reached forward and tugged open the top drawer. A mountain of comfortable sheets were neatly packed inside, and just like the rest of the small room, they exuded only the finest luxuries.
"Oh, yeah, silk sheets!" he exclaimed, "Boo-yah! Rufus, buddy, you'll sleep like a king tonight!"
With an eager squeal, Rufus sprung from Ron's pants pocket and scurried to the edge of the wooden drawer. And then, with all the grace of an Olympic high-diver, the naked mole rat leaped into the deep space and buried himself beneath the silky waves.
Ron chuckled to himself. That was almost certainly the last he would be seeing of his little, pink pal until the next morning. As the sensation of sleep finally began to creep up on him, as well, Ron spun back around to smile at Kim.
"So, which bed do you - oh."
Ron wasn't sure why he expected to see two single beds pushed up against the far wall when he turned around. This was a guest room, after all. At a high-class ski resort. That had been offered to him and his girlfriend.
But even so, the sight of the queen-sized bed staring back at him made the teenage boy's heart skip a nervous beat.
As she leaned into his side and wrapped her hand around his, Kim smirked up at Ron.
"I think you mean which side of the bed?"
A single bead of sweat slowly rolled along Ron's hairline. The flirtatious tone of Kim's comment was definitely telling him one thing, but somehow, the gentlemanly chamber permanently located at the front of his brain instantly warned him otherwise.
"Uh... I could always take the couch, like, if you wanted."
As soon as the last word had fallen off his tongue, Kim stretched upwards and kissed Ron on the cheek with a small laugh, squeezing his hand.
"Relax and get comfortable, goofball. Just give me two minutes for a super quick shower, and then we can go to bed."
Her hand slipped away from his as gently as Kim gathered up her pyjamas and slipped into the guest en-suite. Ron watched her leave, gulping in time with the latch of the door closing in place behind her.
The immediate silence that filled the bedroom left Ron with nothing but his own thoughts - and they were speaking absolute volumes. He blew out a shallow breath, trying to drown out the voice in his head as he glanced down to the pair of PJs left on the bed for him. But as he reached for the zipper of his snow jacket, Ron suddenly froze, his eyes flying back to the door of the en-suite.
Should he wait for Kim to finish up in the bathroom so he could change in there after her? Would it be awkward if she walked out in the middle of him getting undressed? The couch actually didn't look too uncomfortable, if he was being honest...
The abrupt sound of the water from the shower turning on instantly snapped Ron out of his panicked trance as he blinked and shook his head at himself.
Was he seriously allowing this irrational sense of anxiety to get to him? This was Kim he was talking about, his KP, his best friend. Aside from the fact that his pants-less antics had led to his girlfriend seeing him in his underwear a million times before, Ron knew exactly how Kim felt about him. And he knew that she wouldn't be putting herself in this situation with him if it wasn't what she wanted.
The fluffy, fleeced guest pyjamas were incredibly soft as Ron pulled the long-sleeved shirt over his shoulders and buttoned it up his front. He slung his damp snow gear over the arm of the couch to dry, and then spun back around to face the foot of the bed. Taking one step forward, Ron released a second, brave sigh. Kim had told him to relax and get comfortable, after all.
As he switched the main light for the lamp on the nightstand and climbed into bed, Ron realised that this wasn't even close to the first time he and Kim had slept beside each other. Not to say that it had happened recently, exactly... but it certainly wasn't anything new to them.
There were a million sleepovers as kids at six, seven, eight years old where they would curl up with each other and a bed-full of Kim's Cuddle Buddies and crash out for the night. When they were older still, in their early teens, a few too many late night movies in the Possibles' living room would often end with their eyes closed and their heads on each other's shoulder.
But, obviously - this was very different to all of that.
When he heard the water faucet turn off, Ron felt his breath hitch in the back of his throat. He wriggled down underneath the blankets, but in the very next second, he shot back up to lean against the bed head. Sitting up would surely be less confronting. Or less... whatever Ron was worried about this sitch being.
The humidity from the steam that poured in from the bathroom to the bedroom was instant when Ron glanced up at the sound of the door clicking open. A coat of goosebumps quickly popped up over his skin at the mere sight of Kim. Her gorgeous, red locks were tied in a high ponytail on top of her head to keep them from getting wet in the shower. She tugged on the black elastic, allowing her hair to cascade over her shoulders as she took a second to shoot her boyfriend the tiniest smile.
Just when Ron could swear that his thoughts had finally stopped and his voice had fully returned to him, any attempt of his to speak was quickly cut off by Kim.
"Ya' know what really tweaks me the most about the bad guys getting away? I mean, like, a part from the whole evading justice thing?"
As she crossed the carpeted floor and pulled back the covers, Ron suddenly fell back to silence again. Of course Kim was nothing but the cool, calm and collected young woman she always was. The confidence simply oozed from her as her weight sunk into the mattress beside Ron.
"It's the totally flawed sense of entitlement they magically gain that tells them to immediately go out and commit another crime," she went on, "Especially the Seniors. Honestly, those two have all the money in the world, but instead of using it to do something worthwhile, they'd rather have us chase them all over the world forever while they steal priceless ice sculptures and invest in spinning tops of doom."
Her last word came with a sarcastic roll of her eyes as she lifted her legs onto the bed and climbed under the thick, warm duvet.
"I mean, not that I'm complaining, I guess," she continued, not noticing how intently Ron was watching her every move, "I love what we do, and I'm more than happy to help people. But I don't think it's selfish to want just a slightly heavier skew in the win-loss record sometimes."
Man, those pyjamas sure were cute on her. They were maybe a tiny bit big, but the over-sized look added such an alluring imperfection that Ron wasn't used to seeing in her. Not to mention the fact that her top button was undone, and...
Ron suddenly snapped himself out of it, his cheeks turning red. Here Kim was, unloading all the weight she felt from the bad guys escaping that night, and Ron didn't even have the decency to properly pay attention to her. Not that he could be totally blamed, of course. Kim was so beautiful that it was no surprise he was becoming so distracted - especially as she began to wriggle her way further across the bed.
Each movement she made seemed to come so naturally to her as Kim coaxed Ron to shuffle down under the sheets with her. She pulled his arm around her shoulders and silently rested her head on his chest. No doubt she was able to hear how loudly his heart was suddenly pounding. And yet, Kim simply carried right along.
"But, anyway, so not the point right now. I still can't believe Lord Wagner was nice enough to let us stay here tonight. Like, yeah, obviously we helped him out, but we help people all the time, and the generosity has never been this off the charts, you know?"
In the swift moment of confusion, Ron frowned to himself.
Was she rambling?
Had Kim been rambling this whole time?
"I mean, a hot shower, all that food you ate, our own room, our own bed, just you... and... me..."
And then, that's when it hit him.
The heat from her skin powered on a light bulb in his mind as Ron looked down at Kim. An intense blush had finally seemed to settle into her face, which was conveniently shied away into his side and out of his direct sight.
While her general complaints of villainy were all too understandable, Kim hadn't been expressing her thoughts as a means of getting them off her chest. Instead, her constant chattering was being used as a tool to fill any silence that she feared would awkwardly creep in between her and Ron.
One of those very silences passed by in a single beat as Ron hesitated. And then, for the first time in the last ten minutes, the teenager sensed the butterflies confidently soar away from his stomach.
If there was one thing that could cause his normally dormant volcano of bravery to bubble over the edge, it was knowing that Kim was feeling just as flustered as he was.
As he scratched the back of his neck, Ron took a deep breath.
"This is really nice."
His comment settled into the quiet of the room - softly, sweetly, innocently, and with a sense of complete and utter calmness. With the slightest movement of her head, Kim glanced back up to stare at Ron. And through narrowed eyes, the teen hero smiled.
How lucky was she that he knew her so well? It was a beautiful kind of intimidating to know that her unshakable facade of constant courage wasn't anywhere near enough to fool him. And how lucky was Kim further still to know that no matter the mask she wore, none of them would cause Ron to ever see her any differently?
Plucking her bottom lip between her teeth, Kim didn't need another second to think as she slowly leaned up and pressed her kiss against Ron's. There was almost a joint sigh of relief from the young couple as they finally crossed the dreaded bridge of initial contact - and almost instantly, it was clear that they had been crazy to question any awk-weirdness in doing so.
There was only one other question that remained. Now that they had dared to take the first stumbling step - how much further across that bridge were they both willing to travel?
Any logical thinking on Ron's part was quickly thwarted when Kim embraced him a little closer and dived into him a little deeper. Her fingers traced the outline of his face as she reached up to caress his cheek. Her touch had to be laced with some kind of supernatural power. It gave Ron all the added bravery he needed to move his mouth with more meaning against Kim's as their lips parted for one another.
The heat of her kiss was enough to melt every last icy snowflake that flew past their window. Ron could swear it. His heart raced when he felt Kim roll her hips just slightly and inch her way closer inwards, daring to timidly wrap the lower half of her leg around his.
Kim's head was in a spin as her best friend continued to lap at her kiss with all the affection in the world. It made her stomach flutter with thousands of irresistible nerves. The sweetness of his breath as she drank in every ounce of it drove her crazy. The gentle movements of his mouth and his tongue made her shiver. The warm grip of his hand where it sat on her back, sliding down between her shoulder blades, past the tingling skin of her ribs, over the curve of her hips... oh man.
When his palm nestled under her shirt and against her bare skin in the delicate dip of her back, a coy voice in Kim's head almost wondered if Ron was going to slip any lower. It was like, for a split second, she was nearly, sort of... hoping for it? Was she?
But then, before her thoughts had the chance to totally distract her from the pure magic layered between each of his kisses, Ron suddenly snapped his girlfriend from her trance. His hand had a more protective hold on her when it shimmied away from her waistline, climbing back upwards as he squeezed at her side and began to slow in their kiss.
Kim didn't want it to end. She stole the last possible opportunity to arch her body into his and meet her lips with his in a final, long, tender peck.
The pounding of their hearts drowned out any other noise in the room, and their breath was hot on each other's faces when they eventually parted. Kim's green orbs remained downward at first, but when they finally crept up to find the brown of Ron's, her boyfriend was already staying at her with reddened cheeks and a tiny, goofy grin.
"Did you, um," he began quietly, "Did you want to go to sleep?"
Kim subtly chewed down on the inside of her cheek. A sudden heatwave of pining and the faintest hint of desire told her a million and one other things she'd rather be doing than sleeping right now. And the way Ron's thumb was tracing circles around the bone of her hip only echoed all the same cravings.
But it didn't take long for common sense to kick in.
Kim and Ron were thousands of miles away from home. This was their first night as a couple sleeping beside one another, and it was also the first time one of their make-out sessions had taken such a distinct, horizontal positioning.
No matter how much she adored the way Ron looked at her and the way his hands felt on her skin - Kim knew that this had been more than enough firsts for one night.
Baby steps, she told herself. Baby steps were perfect.
"Can I use your shoulder as a pillow?"
Ron chuckled under his breath, his mouth crinkling into another smile. It was one that carried a sense of confidence that he had very obviously been lacking only fifteen minutes ago - but still, the relief in his expression was clear.
Ron definitely wasn't in any kind of rush, either.
"I dunno' how comfy it's gonna' be."
Kim giggled right back, snuggling her head down into the crook of Ron's shoulder as he lifted his arm back up for her, "Comfy enough for a solid night's sleep, hopefully. We'll be up bright and early in the morning."
"Bright and early?" Ron repeated, shocked, "What, no sleep in?"
"We have to get back home," Kim argued, still laughing, "We've got that huge math quiz of Barkin's on Monday that we have to study for this weekend, remember?"
Ron's expression collapsed into a foul cringe. Barkin. How that man managed to infiltrate even a steamy make-out session with his beautilicious girlfriend, Ron would never begin to understand.
As he shook off the disgust of his looming C-minus, Ron stretched across to his left and flicked off the bedroom lamp. When he rolled back over, Kim instantly wrapped her arm across his torso, closing her eyes.
She heard him sigh in happiness. The feeling was definitely mutual.
"Good night, Ron."
"Sweet dreams, KP."
Okay - confession time. I had intended for this chapter to be a little longer... I know I had promised some steam, and I hope this initial sample is more than enough for now ;) When this portion began to hit close to the 5k word mark, I decided to split up my original idea into two separate chapters. Which of course means there's only more of the above to come... *wink*
I would love to hear everyone's thoughts and reviews for now! I'll try to be back as soon as I can :)
Till next time guys,
Reneyyyyyy x