A/N: Here we are, my wonderful readers! I present to you the next installment of the continuing saga of Jed and Abbey, in which we see Jed navigating his first real relationship, Abbey deals with her guilt, and Jed receives a priceless gift! I hope you enjoy!

It took every ounce of self-control that Jed possessed to keep from pinching himself until his arms were bruised to prove that he wasn't, in fact, dreaming. He really had given up the priesthood, really had asked Abigail Barrington to be his girlfriend, and she really had said yes. His life had changed so much in the last twenty-four hours, and to say that he was still in a state of shock would have been a massive understatement. He didn't think he had ever seen Jeremy as happy in all the months they had known each other, and he briefly wondered if Millie had reacted similarly when Abbey had told her the news.

Assuming, of course, that Abbey had actually told her. He had no idea how close they were, though he was fairly certain that they were almost like sisters at this point, and he sighed as he flopped down onto his bed. What was he supposed to do now? His experience in romance was nonexistent until this moment, and he had never been more confused in his entire life, basically walking into this entire relationship blind. He wasn't naïve enough to think that Abbey shared his lack of experience, knew for a fact that she'd slept with Ron during the course of their relationship, but he would have been lying if he'd said he wasn't nervous.

Still, he didn't have time to dwell on his insecurities right now. He was supposed to be getting ready to meet Abbey for their study session and as he hauled his body to an upright position, he was surprised to feel his hands shaking. Why was he suddenly nervous? It was just a study session with Abbey, something they had done more times than he could count. He had no reason to be nervous around her.

Yet he was. No matter how many times he tried to convince himself otherwise, the feeling persisted, like a nagging voice in the back of his head. He knew it was because the very nature of their relationship had changed, but that knowledge did little to alleviate it. He sighed, running his hand through his hair, and as he grabbed his books, he shook his head in a last-ditch attempt to make the nervousness disappear.

It didn't work.

Abbey had already claimed their usual table in the far corner of the Reference section of the library by the time he arrived, her attention focused on the large book she'd lain out in front of her. Jed felt his nervousness vanish as soon as his eyes landed on her, and he couldn't keep himself from smiling as he approached. Keeping his steps carefully light, he moved slowly enough that she wouldn't notice him, and when he was near enough, he leaned down, his lips brushing over her cheek.

She immediately turned, her eyes lighting up as she saw him, giving him a warm smile.

"Jed! Hey."

He suddenly worried that he had been a bit too forward with her and as he sat down across from her, he met her eyes slightly fearfully.

"I didn't even think—is it okay that I—I mean, that—"

Abbey laughed, looking at him seriously. God, she had a beautiful laugh.

"It's fine," she assured him, "That's kind of part of being in a relationship, you know."

Right. They were in a relationship now. Just hearing her say it made him smile, and he felt the tension leave his body in a matter of seconds. She reached across the table to take his hand in hers, her skin warm against his.

"If I don't want you to do something, I'll tell you. I promise."

God help him, he had to fight the urge to pinch himself right then and there.

"So, have you kissed her yet?"

Jed rolled his eyes as he pulled his shirt over his head, shaking his wet hair as Jeremy passed.

"Not that it's any of your business, but no. We just started dating two weeks ago."

"Exactly. Bartlet, it's been two weeks! If you don't make a move soon, she's gonna think you don't like her anymore. Which is stupid, because any idiot can see that you practically worship her, but girls are weird like that."

Sighing as he picked up the mail he'd brought in, Jed did his best to ignore his roommate, focusing instead on the letter he'd received from his father. He really didn't want to read this one. He was sure by now that word had reached his father that he'd changed his major, though he couldn't have explained how or why he thought so, and as he ripped open the envelope, he took a deep breath to brace himself. A quick glance showed his father's usual correspondence, merely reminding him to be on his best behaviour and to bring his grades up to Bartlet standard, and he frowned.

Was it possible that he hadn't been told? Regardless of the fact that he was now an adult, there was still a part of him that expected his every move to be reported to his father. A rather large part if he were being completely honest. Tossing the letter aside, Jed fell onto his bed, considering the conversation he'd been having moments ago, raising his head to look at Jeremy seriously.

"How do I go about it?"

"About what?" Jeremy asked, apparently having already forgotten what they'd been discussing.

"Kissing her. I don't exactly have a wealth of experience to draw from here."

"Easy. You just do it. When the moment feels right, you just lean in and kiss her. Just make sure she's not eating or anything. Might choke."

Jed was silent as he considered this. Jeremy made it sound so simple. Was it possible that he was overthinking it and making it more complicated than it needed to be? Was he right in suggesting that Abbey would think he'd lost interest if he didn't kiss her soon? Of all the things he had ever done in his life, this was proving to be the most difficult. He just prayed he wouldn't mess it up when the time came.

As they strolled across the campus late one evening, just after they had ended their study session, Abbey found that she had unconsciously moved closer to Jed, their bodies brushing together as they walked. It reminded her of the time she'd lain her head on his shoulder as they'd tried to avoid Professor Howson and the thought made her shiver, bringing up memories that she desperately wanted to forget. They rounded a corner and Jed stopped, looking at her seriously after he had made sure they wouldn't be overheard.

"Are you okay?"

Abbey nodded.

"Just thinking."

She briefly saw worry flash in his bright blue eyes and shook her head.

"Don't worry, it's nothing serious," she assured him.

He looked as though he didn't entirely believe her, but he didn't press the issue, accepting her words as they stood in front of the stone building. She gave him a smile, hoping that he didn't think he had been the cause of her distress, and she glanced at him with a hint of amusement in her eyes.

"I still don't see how you're not freezing to death," she remarked lightly.

He shrugged.

"Compared to New Hampshire, this is like spring."

Abbey laughed.

"Yeah, I suppose to you, it would be. You know, I—"

Before she had even noticed that he'd moved, Jed's lips on hers silenced the words she'd been saying, effectively stopping all coherent thoughts in her brain. It was fairly tame, as far as kisses went, but when he pulled away several moments later, she found that it had ended far too quickly for her liking. She stared at him for a long minute, unable to remember how to breathe, and when she finally found her voice, it was softer than she'd intended.

"Jed?"

"Yeah?"

He was still impossibly close, so close she could smell the soap he'd used that morning, and she tried to form a sentence, cursing herself in her head.

"Do that again," she said quietly.

Taking a step towards her, Jed leaned down, kissing her again, slightly harder this time, and without even realizing it, Abbey pulled him closer, her right hand winding into his hair. Her left was still on his arm, holding him tighter than she'd meant to, and as he kissed her again, she suddenly didn't give a damn about the cold weather. He ran his fingers through her hair, operating purely on instinct, and when his left hand found her waist, he pulled her as close as humanly possible.

Jed couldn't think about anything other than the feel of her, the way he could smell her perfume at the base of her throat, and when he ran his tongue over her bottom lip, he could have sworn he felt her shaking in his arms. Cautiously, his tongue explored her mouth, trying to ignore the fact that he had no idea what he was doing, and when they finally separated several minutes later, he could see the slight flush of her skin even in the darkness.

"And you wanted to be a priest," Abbey said jokingly, her voice slightly unsteady.

He smiled, wrapping his arm around her shoulder.

"Sorry I interrupted you," he said, only partially serious, "What were you saying?"

"Hell if I remember," she muttered, "Do you really care?"

Jed leaned down, kissing her lightly, laughing as they began walking again.

"Not really," he admitted.

From the moment she walked into her dorm room, Abbey could feel Millie watching her, could see the eager gleam in her eyes as she sat down on her bed, and she tried to pretend that she wasn't dying to tell her. She knew she wouldn't have to wait long before her roommate's curiosity got the better of her, and as she pulled off her shoes, she tried to keep her expression neutral.

"So…." Millie began, "What happened?"

Abbey frowned, feigning ignorance.

"What makes you think something happened?"

"Well, let's see," Millie rolled her eyes, "You left here for class at four, class is an hour long, you studied with Jed for two more hours, so that would make it seven o'clock, and I don't know if you've noticed, my dear Abigail, but it is currently eight-thirty in the evening. That means there is an entire hour unaccounted for. So unless you suddenly lost all sense of direction and got hopelessly lost on your way back from the library, I would say it's safe to assume that something happened."

Abbey merely looked at her, her expression carefully guarded.

"Even if something happened, what makes you think I would tell you?"

"Ah...so something did happen. Tell me, was it incredible? Spill it, Barrington!"

Unable to keep up the act any longer, Abbey laughed, nodding her head as she pulled a loose cotton shirt from her drawer.

"Millie, oh my God…" she paused, trying to find the right words, "I've been kissed before, but not like that. Never like that. Let me just say this, Jed Bartlet is doing the world a favour by not becoming a priest."

"You mean he's doing you a favour by not becoming a priest," Millie said knowingly.

Abbey pulled her shirt off, replacing it with the one she always slept in, and as she tossed it into her laundry basket, she looked at her roommate seriously.

"I think I know why Jed's so good at learning foreign languages."

"Do tell."

"Well," Abbey began conspiratorially, "he's extremely good at using his tongue."

Millie jumped from her place on the edge of her bed, rushing across the room to grab Abbey by the arm, spinning her around and pulling up her shirt. Abbey jumped, startled by the contact and looked at her in confusion over her shoulder.

"What are you doing?"

"Looking for scratch marks from the wall he shoved you up against."

"Millie!"

"Oh, right…" Millie paused, amending her statement, "You were the one pushing him up against the brick wall. I remember now."

"Millie!" Abbey shrieked, pulling free from her grasp, laughing, "You know damn well that never happened."

Millie raised her eyebrows, throwing her a look that was more than a little suggestive.

"Give it time."

Pulling Abbey to the secluded area of campus behind the girls' dorm rooms that was normally obscured by thick trees, Jed wasted no time in finding her waist with his hands, his lips on hers before she had time to protest. The trees were bare now, in the center of winter, offering them little cover, but neither one cared, too consumed by each other to give the matter much thought. His tongue tasted every corner of her mouth, still able to detect the hint of toothpaste from that morning, and when Abbey's hands tangled into his hair, he kissed her harder.

"Jed," she said, pulling away just enough to speak, "we should really be—"

Her words were cut off as he moved his lips to her throat, the idea just having occurred to him, eliciting a soft gasp as he kissed along her collarbone. A sound that was somewhere between a gasp and a moan fell from her lips as he ran his tongue along the shell of her ear and he thought it was quite possibly the best thing he'd ever heard. God, he would do anything to hear that sound again. He kept his hands on her waist, holding her as close to him as he possibly could, and Abbey gripped his shirt in her fingers, something he strongly suspected she was using to keep herself standing.

"You were saying?" he whispered.

She laughed breathlessly.

"We should really be studying," she said, though he knew she didn't really mean it.

"I am," he answered with a smirk, "I'm studying you. It's an extracurricular course, specializing in romance, physical education, and anatomy."

He kissed her again, his hand trailing up her body, sweeping her hair to one side to give him better access to her throat, and her grip on his arm tightened. When he pulled back to look in her eyes, he noticed that they were darker than they had been previously, her lips swollen from his attention, and he tried to pretend that he didn't feel his pants growing tighter.

"You're a fast learner," Abbey said quietly, reaching up to run her fingers through his hair.

"I would certainly hope so. So, what's my grade for the day?"

"You definitely passed with flying colours," she whispered, kissing him again.

Though he wanted nothing more than to kiss her until the end of time, he knew that if he had any hope of controlling himself, he would need to stop now. Just because he'd given up being a priest, that didn't mean he was going to jump into bed with her at a moment's notice. No matter how much he wanted to. He gave her one final kiss before stepping away, hoping as he led her back to her dorm room that no one was looking closely at his clothing. The last thing he needed was for his arousal to be noticed in public.

"Jed?"

"Hm?"

"Do you have plans this weekend?"

He frowned, thinking for a moment before shaking his head.

"Nothing other than Sunday Mass. Why?"

"I was thinking...you haven't been to a party since you changed your major. Millie and I are going to one on Saturday, and I would like it very much if you would accompany me as my date."

Smiling as he kissed her cheek, Jed laughed quietly.

"Sure. Just don't expect too much. I'm still the same person, after all."

Abbey looked at him thoughtfully, her gaze so intense that for a moment, he felt as though she could see into his very soul.

"You know, Jed, I think you're just now finding out who you really are," she said softly.

When he heard it put that way, from such a lovely source, Jed was forced to admit that she might have a point.

The plastic cup of beer in his hand made him feel suspiciously like he was committing a major crime, though logically he knew it was perfectly normal for a college student to drink. Expected, even. Though they had come together, Millie had quickly disappeared into the crowd of people, leaving Abbey to stand in the far corner of the room, her eyes watching with keen interest as their classmates provided a wide array of entertainment with their drunken behaviour. Jed didn't mind in the least that Millie had decided to mingle as it gave him more time to be alone with Abbey, or rather, as alone as they could be in the crowded room, and when he felt her eyes on him, he turned, curious.

"Are you okay?" she asked, just loud enough to be heard over the music.

He nodded, taking a small sip of his drink. It fizzed and bubbled on his tongue, a surprisingly pleasant sensation, and when he had swallowed, he gave her a reassuring smile.

"Yeah. Not like I haven't been to a party before."

"True," she conceded, "But this is the first time you've had alcohol of any kind other than communion wine. It can sneak up on you if you aren't careful."

Jed held out the cup, tipping it just enough to show her the contents, and laughed.

"I've had exactly half of one cup of beer. I highly doubt it will make me act like that."

He nodded to the group of boys practically falling over themselves as they struggled to walk across the room and Abbey laughed, nodding her head.

"No, that would take at least two beers in your case."

Wrapping his arm securely around her waist, Jed gestured with his cup in the direction of the door leading to the back porch.

"Want to go somewhere a little quieter?"

After stopping to grab two more cups of beer, they found themselves sitting out on the porch, much like they had after Abbey had broken up with Ron, and as she brought her nearly empty cup to her lips, she laughed.

"We always seem to end up outside when we're at a party," she remarked, "Which we could do just as easily anywhere else."

Jed nodded, still nursing his drink. Abbey drained her cup and reached for one of the two she had grabbed on her way out the door, tipping it back carefully.

"Yeah," he agreed, looking at the cup in her hand, "but you wouldn't have free alcohol then."

"This is a very good point."

As they sat on the porch, Abbey made quick work of the drink she'd picked up, looking at him in question as she set the empty cup on the ground next to her. He nodded at her, not having planned on drinking it anyway, and she reached for the cup next to his hand. By his count, that made her fourth beer of the night, not that he particularly cared, and when she moved closer to him, he was suddenly very aware of the scent of her perfume. Laying her head on his shoulder, Abbey reached for his hand, her fingers entwining with his easily, and he smiled, pressing his lips to her hair lightly.

They stayed in that position for quite some time, the only movement occurring when one of them took a drink, and as he finally emptied his cup, he found that a strange warmth had spread throughout his body. He wasn't sure if it was a result of the alcohol he had consumed or Abbey's close proximity, but as he tried to figure it out, he quickly realized he didn't care.

"Jed?"

"Yeah?"

"Why did you really give up becoming a priest?"

Abbey's voice was soft, warm in the darkness and he smiled, pulling her closer.

"Lots of reasons," he said, running his fingers through her hair, "But the most important one was you."

Abbey was silent as her inebriated mind worked to process this information, and finally she nodded, draining her cup, and placing it next to the others they had abandoned. She raised her head from its position on his shoulder, looking at him seriously, her eyes bright in the darkness.

"Jed?"

He glanced at her to show he was listening, and she immediately crashed her lips to his, pulling him closer by the light jacket he wore. His hands tangled in her long mahogany hair as her tongue swept into his mouth, fighting the urge to lift her into his lap in an attempt to be closer, and when he whispered her name, she kissed him harder. She finally broke away, her eyes locking with his, and when he spoke, he briefly noticed the shock flash through them at his words.

"Do you want to leave?"

Abbey knew if she'd been entirely sober, she would have never done it, but she nodded, kissing him once more before standing. They swiftly collected their abandoned cups, tossing them into the trash as they exited the house, and as they began walking across the campus, Jed frowned.

"Wait. Which room?"

Abbey glanced around, trying to get her bearings in the dark. Finally, she realized where they were and nodded at him, a smile on her face.

"Yours is closer."

Jed never quite knew how they made it back to his room without being seen, but as soon as he kicked the door shut behind them, he couldn't have cared less. Abbey wasted no time in pulling him to her, her lips finding his quickly, and as they sat down on his bed, Jed met her eyes, his gaze apologetic as he turned on his bedside lamp.

"Sorry for the mess. Jeremy's not the neatest person in the world."

Abbey kissed him again, shaking her head as she pulled away moments later.

"I hadn't noticed," she said breathlessly.

Deciding that it really didn't matter, Jed kissed her again, pulling her bottom lip between his teeth without thinking. As soon as his mind comprehended what he'd done, he felt a sharp pang of worry, but the soft moan that came from Abbey told him that she didn't seem to mind, and he slowly pushed her back onto the bed. Carefully hovering over her, Jed met her eyes seriously, running his fingers over her cheek softly.

"Is this okay? Do you want me to stop?"

Abbey shook her head, giving him a smile that he was sure would be the death of him.

"Don't you dare."

He kissed her hard, gently biting down on her bottom lip before moving his mouth to her throat, gauging his success by the way her breathing changed. Abbey suddenly reached up, pushing his jacket from his shoulders, her fingers aching to touch him, and when he ran his hands slowly up her body, he felt her shiver. He couldn't deny that his pants were becoming almost unbearably tight, though he strongly suspected she already knew, and as he kissed her again, his hand moved to touch her breast without even meaning to.

Though he had expected her to say something in protest, she did no such thing, her body arching into his as her hands tangled in his hair. Remembering what she had said about stopping him, he didn't remove his hand, merely acting on what felt right, and when the low moan that fell from her lips took the form of his name, he felt himself grow harder than he could ever remember being in his life.

He had never thought that his name could sound so sensual but hearing it with Abbey's slightly ragged voice made him seriously reconsider his opinion, making it his mission to do whatever was necessary to hear it again. Her hands slowly slid under his shirt, the feeling of her fingers on his skin making him kiss her harder, and when she pulled it over his head, he felt her eyes roaming over his body even in the dim light.

"Damn, Jed," she whispered, running her fingers over his chest lightly, "You're gorgeous."

He was suddenly very glad he hadn't been anywhere near his father in months, thankful that there were no recent bruises for her to see. Still, he couldn't imagine how she found him attractive, much less gorgeous, but he wasn't stupid enough to say as much out loud.

"You're gorgeous," he said instead, running his fingers through her hair.

Abbey pulled him back down for another kiss, her tongue finding his the moment their lips met, and his hand immediately cupped her breast, earning him a low moan. Her hands went to his waist, her fingers lightly brushing over his hips, and he knew, without a doubt, that if he had any hope of stopping, he would need to do it now. He broke away, looking into her eyes, hoping she wouldn't take offense to what he was about to say.

"Abbey," he was painfully aware of how badly his voice was shaking, "We have to stop."

She ran her fingers slowly through his hair, her eyes never leaving his.

"Are you okay?" she asked softly.

"Never better," he answered with a smile, "but I don't want to take this too far too soon."

Nodding, she shifted enough that she was upright, reaching over to pick up his shirt, handing it to him with a smirk on her face.

"Put this back on, because God knows I won't be able to keep my hands off you if you're sitting there without it."

Jed laughed, quickly doing as she asked, shaking his head as she watched him.

"Better?"

Abbey moved closer, running her hand over his chest, kissing him slowly before answering, her smile evident in her tone.

"Better, but not foolproof," she quipped.

Resting her chin on his shoulder, Abbey's hand slowly began a path through his hair, her touch gentle, her free hand reaching out to grasp his.

"I meant what I said, you know."

Jed raised his eyebrow, turning to look at her, wondering which remark she was referring to. After all, she'd said quite a few things over the course of the evening.

"Which part?"

"All of it," she said seriously, "But especially the part about you being gorgeous."

He had no idea what to say to that, so he kissed her again.

No matter how many times she played it back in her head (and she had done that a lot in the following hours), Abbey still couldn't quite believe that she had gotten Jed Bartlet to not only attend a party with her but had also kissed him for the better part of an hour after they had gotten back to his dorm room. She could still feel his hands on her body, could still taste him, an intoxication better than any she'd ever experienced with alcohol, and as she heard the door to her room open, she found herself staring at an extremely excited Millie, only just returning from the party she and Jed had left hours ago.

"Where the hell did you go?" she said as soon as she had closed the door, "I came looking for you to see if you wanted any of the pizza and you were gone."

"Sorry," Abbey said, not feeling sorry in the least, "Jed and I went outside to talk."

"Uh-huh…talk, did you? I'm sure that's exactly what you used your tongue for."

Millie threw herself onto Abbey's bed, not caring that she crashed into her, and leaned closer, examining her intently.

"Hm…hair a mess, clothing a little wrinkled, and—" she moved, inhaling deeply, "A hint of soap that is most definitely not yours. Abigail Barrington, did you corrupt our dear Jed and lead him down the path of sin?"

Abbey laughed, though she couldn't help but feel there was a bit of truth to Millie's words and shook her head.

"We just kissed."

"Bullshit," Millie said, nudging her, "Abbey, I can smell him all over you. That doesn't happen when you're just kissing. What else happened?"

"Really, all we did was kiss. I mean, we were in his bed, but no clothing was removed except his jacket."

And his shirt, she added silently in her head. It was best to keep that little detail to herself she felt. She certainly didn't want to risk Millie picturing a shirtless Jed in her imagination. Millie threw her arms around her, hugging her tightly, and smiled, kissing her cheek.

"Seriously, Abs…I'm so happy for you. Both of you. Jed's a great guy and it's clear he thinks the world of you. I mean, the man gave up the goddamned priesthood for you!"

Abbey laughed quietly, shaking her head.

"Do you even realize the irony of using the words 'goddamned' and 'priesthood' in the same sentence?"

Millie rolled her eyes, standing and making her way back to her own bed, falling onto it unceremoniously.

"I'll mention it in an English paper," she said dryly.

Though she didn't know it, Millie had given voice to the one fear that had been lingering in the back of Abbey's mind, tormenting her each time she stopped to truly think about it, and as she made her way to Jed's dorm room two days later, she swore that she was going to do the right thing even if it destroyed her. She knocked softly on the door, feeling both nervous and guilty, fighting to control the emotions as she waited for an answer. The door swung open, revealing Jeremy, and she smiled.

"Is Jed here?"

Jeremy nodded, smiling.

"You must be Abbey. It's nice to finally meet the girl my roommate won't shut up about. I'm Jeremy."

"Thanks, I think," Abbey said with a laugh as he stepped back to allow her in the room.

Jed gave her a puzzled look as she walked closer to his bed, his mind flashing back to Saturday night, flooding his senses with the memory of the last time she'd been in his room. She stood a careful distance away, as though she were unsure of where to go, and when he finally caught her eyes, he noticed the worry in them immediately.

"Can we talk?"

He nodded.

"Sure," he glanced at Jeremy, "Could you give us a minute?"

"I mean, I was going to take a nap, before class, Jed—"

"Get out," Jed said shortly, his tone making it clear that it wasn't a request.

Sighing, Jeremy pulled on his shoes, waving Abbey's whispered apology away as he left the room, and as soon as the door had closed behind him, Jed stood, reaching for Abbey's hand.

"What's wrong?"

"Jed, I can't let you do this."

She hadn't intended to blurt it out, but it fell from her lips before she had even realized it. His confused blue eyes met hers as she pulled her hand from his grasp, taking a step back, willing herself not to cry.

"What?" he asked weakly.

"I can't be the reason you give up being a priest. You don't have any experience in relationships, so you have nothing to compare me to, and I'm worried that you've put me on this pedestal as some perfect, idealized version of me. What happens when you eventually see me as the person I really am, and you end up hating me for being the reason you gave up your dreams? I can handle a lot of things, Jed, but I couldn't handle it if you hated me. I'm not worth turning your back on the church and I could never forgive myself if you ruined your life and wasted your potential because of me."

He was silent for so long that she wondered if she should simply leave, and when he finally spoke, there was none of the anger she had expected, only a mild curiosity.

"Are you finished?" he asked.

She nodded.

"Yeah."

"Come here."

Abbey stayed where she was, sure that she would break down if she did so much as look at him, and when he sighed, she pretended not to notice.

"Abigail. Come here."

The use of her full name made her raise her eyes to his, the look in his bright blue irises telling her that he was deadly serious, and she took a hesitant step forward, jumping slightly when he reached for her hand. He pulled her into his arms, feeling her entire body shake as he held her, and when he glanced down at her, he realized she was dangerously close to crying.

"Are you sure you want to be a doctor?"

"What?" she asked, her voice muffled by his chest, "Of course I am."

"Then you'd better study like hell, because you're incredibly stupid."

She pulled away, immediately defensive and he looked at her seriously, still holding her hand.

"Abbey, you must be incredibly stupid if you believe anything you just said. I didn't give up being a priest entirely because of you. Yes, it was the main reason, but certainly not the only one. Furthermore, just because I haven't really dated since the eighth grade, that doesn't mean I'm completely clueless. I do have some idea of what I'm doing. And for your information, I know damn well that you're not some perfect untouchable being. No one is, and it would be ridiculous of me to think that way. Finally, there is nothing you could do that would make me hate you, short of cold-blooded murder. I might get angry, but I could never hate you."

He paused, noticing that she kept her eyes trained on the floor, still shaking as he dropped her hand.

"Did I cover everything?"

She nodded, still refusing to look at him, and he tilted her head up, wanting—no, needing—to see her eyes.

"This is my decision, Abbey," he said softly, "and even if you walk away right now and disappear from my life forever, I'm not changing my mind. So please…listen to me and do me a favour: stop being stupid. Can you do that?"

Abbey laughed quietly, nodding once as she looked at him. He wrapped his arms around her again, holding her close, and when he spoke, she could feel the vibrations in his chest.

"One more thing."

She glanced up, still shocked by just how blue his eyes really were.

"Yeah?"

He leaned down, kissing her long and slow, his right hand in her hair, his left at her waist, keeping her firmly in place.

It had taken hours of begging and pleading, but Abbey had finally convinced Millie to allow her the use of their room late one Saturday evening, promising to make it up to her at a future date, something she was certain she would come to regret. Still, it needed to be done, and after she had ushered the blonde out of the room, she took extra care in fixing her hair, in selecting the perfect dress, and applying her makeup as expertly as she could, wanting to look as perfect as possible for when Jed arrived, humming along with her record player as she waited.

She hadn't told him that she'd purchased a birthday present for him, hidden carefully under her bed, and when he knocked on the door at ten past seven, she couldn't stop the smile that came over her face. She rushed to open it, careful not to fall in her heels, and as he stepped in the room, his eyes looked her up and down appreciatively.

"You look amazing," he said, kissing her as he closed the door, "What's the occasion?"

"Jed, it's your birthday!" she said excitedly, "I had to look nice."

"You look a hell of a lot better than nice, Abbey," he pulled her closer, breathing in her perfume, "You look incredible."

She smiled, kissing his cheek lightly.

"Thank you. That wasn't why I asked you here, though. I have a gift for you."

"Pretty sure I'm already looking at it," he quipped, his eyes never leaving her.

Abbey laughed, rolling her eyes as she pulled the box out from its hiding place, handing it to him carefully. As he unwrapped the brightly coloured package, he fought the urge to tear into it like a child, and when he pulled out the leather-bound book, he frowned.

"What is—oh, Abbey—how did you afford this?"

Resting in his hands was a beautifully restored copy of The Sun Also Rises, the letters gleaming up at him as he held it, hardly able to believe it was real. It was a thing of beauty, sure to become one of his most prized possessions, and he tore his eyes away from it to look at her, noticing that she seemed nervous.

"Do you like it?"

"Are you insane? It's...Abbey, this is the best gift anyone has ever given me. It must have cost a ton of money, though."

She shrugged, smiling as he ran his fingers over the leather cover slowly. He placed it carefully back in the box, pulling her into his arms, his mouth capturing hers in a deep kiss, his hands at her waist.

"This is by far the best birthday of my life," he told her seriously, "and it's all because of you."

He held her for a moment, an idea coming to him as he listened to the record playing softly in the background, and when he reached for her hand, she frowned in confusion.

"Will you dance with me?" he asked.

She placed her free hand on his shoulder, nodding once, and as he spun her around the small dorm room, he couldn't believe how he had gotten so lucky. They moved effortlessly in time with the music, Abbey's head against his chest, and she smiled as she listened to the steady sound of his heartbeat. Raising up to look at him, she met his eyes easily, moving just enough that she could kiss him as they danced.

"Happy birthday, Jed," she whispered.

It was definitely, without a doubt, the best birthday he had ever experienced in his entire life.

A/N: To the lovely reviewer who said they wouldn't mind a little spice in this story, rest assured my love, it will happen. They wouldn't be Jed and Abbey without the spice.