Merry Christmas Indeed
"Merry Christmas Eve guys and gals! Or as the Swedes would say, 'God d jul!' I've got a special number just for you. I hope you enjoy!" The first notes of 'We Three Kings of Orient Are' rang through a crowded Irving Hall and Medda's melodic siren-esque voice captivated everyone almost instantly, some joining her with their own off-key renditions of the words.
The hall was extravagantly decorated, several Christmas trees strategically placed throughout. Lights hung precariously across the bottom of the stage, and each table had a pretty poinsettia centerpiece. Even the columns that were spaced along the wall were wrapped in the twinkling lights. It looked magical and it was hard not to beam like a little kid while looking at it.
Christmas had always been one of Flash's favorite times of year. It was the one time of year where everything felt right with the world; at peace. Even growing up, it was one of the calmer times for her family, surprisingly enough. Her father wasn't as much of a monster, and she felt some semblances of joy surrounding the holiday.
Her Ma always tried to make Christmas special for them. Some of Flash's earliest memories were of the Christmas lights draped around their tree, the shining bulbs dancing with light, casting shadows on the walls. The warmth of their light surrounding her, enveloping her with excitement of what was to come as she would lay awake on the living room floor waiting to catch sight of Saint Nicholas. The smell of pine needles and her Ma's sugar cookies stuck in her nose. She loved Christmas, a sentiment that a lot of the newsies seemed to share with her.
"Weeeeestward leeeeading, still proceeeeeding, Guide us to thy peeeeerfect light!" Jack threw an arm around her and swayed, screaming the lyrics in her ear. His back-and-forth motion caused some of his drink to dribble out onto her shoulder and she grabbed his glass out of his hand.
"Jack, you think you might want to slow down a bit? You're getting a bit lushed, yeah?" she inquired gently, sitting his glass down on the table in front of her.
He gave her a crooked grin and waved his free hand in the air. "Nonsense," he slurred, "It's Christmas! I'm just having some holiday spirit!"
"Oh, you're having spirits alright." she muttered under her breath, sniffing the contents of his cup. It was half filled with a caramel liquid, and Flash could only assume it was Jack's favorite drink, a Manhattan. Rather on the nose, if you asked her.
He reached out his hand and grabbed it from her, drinking the rest before she could protest. He let out a belch and chuckled. "My drink. Go get one of your own if you're thirsty." He raised his hand to get the attention of the barmaid. "I need another please! And bring one over for my friend as well," he ordered, gesturing towards Flash. His hand movement caused him to move a bit to the right again and Flash could tell it took tremendous effort on his part to sit back upright.
Flash shook her head, signaling to the barmaid, a slight woman named Rita, that she in fact did not want a drink, before turning her attention back to Jack. "I'm fine, thanks. I'm trying to stay vigilant tonight. You never know when something will happen. I gotta keep an eye on you and this rowdy bunch. Speaking of, can you please take it easy?" He chuckled again and she raised an eyebrow. "Jack, you shouldn't be drinking at all. You aren't completely healed up yet. It's only been a few weeks."
Jack shrugged and waved a hand dismissively before taking a big gulp of the new glass Rita sat down in front of him. "I'll be fine, Flash. Geez. This helps some with the pain. I don't feel it as much now when I breathe in deeply." He winced as he tried to take in a deep breath and Flash snatched his cup from him again.
"That's a lie and you know it. Look," she sighed, looked at the glass, and reluctantly handed it back to him, "I know Christmas is not the best time for you. I remember from back in the day. But you can't drown your sorrows with alcohol. You'll turn into someone you won't like very much in the end."
He moved the drink in a 'cheers' motion before taking a hearty swig, gulping its contents down before he gave her a pointed look. "You're annoying when you're right, you know that?"
She gave him a cheeky grin and reached out to ruffle his hair. "Then I must be downright dreadful to be around all the time."
"Ain't that the truth," Racetrack's voice cut in from behind her. He gave her a toothy grin and pulled out the chair next to her, sitting down. "Alright Jack? How's the head?"
Jack leaned his head from side to side, popping his neck and put his empty cup on the table. "Still on me shoulders, pal. I'm fine. You guys don't have to watch me so closely. I'm a big boy."
Flash snorted. "A big boy that got his ass handed to him," she muttered under her breath. "Don't take it personally," she said a little louder. "I'm watching everyone closely these days. Don't want a repeat after all."
Racetrack searched their surroundings, noticing that a drink was absent from her hands. "That why you not drinking then? I was going to say that something was missing."
Flash nodded and leaned back in her chair, sighing. "Yes. It's boring, but it has to be done. No one else out of this lot is going to give it up, so it might as well be me making the sacrifice." She poked out her bottom lip and feigned sadness.
Racetrack chuckled to himself. He knew he wasn't going to be dealing with the playful, drunk Flash tonight. He was getting the mother hen version instead, which was fine by him. She was easier to get riled up. It was fun that way.
"Better put that lip back in, you don't want to trip over it." he joked.
She gave him a rude hand gesture and he placed a hand over his heart in mock shock.
"You would do that to me? On Christmas of all days? The Lord's birthday, can you believe that Jack?"
Jack snorted and nodded his head. "The Lord's birthday, the President's birthday, your birthday. Her rudeness has no bounds, my friend. Should be used to it by now. Just ignore her; I do."
Flash smacked him lightly in the arm. "Can it, or I'll push you out of your chair," she said good naturedly. "Wouldn't even have to try all that hard. You're completely two sheets to the wind. You're going to be peeing bourbon in the morning."
"Oh, if only," Jack said wistfully looking dreamily off into the distance.
Race pulled a disgusted face before sipping his drink and offering it to Flash, who shook her head to decline. He shrugged. "Suit yourself. Where is everyone? Why is it just us three sitting here?"
Flash picked at the dry skin around her fingernail. "Dunno, they're here somewhere. Probably looking the same, if not worse than Jack over here."
He scanned the crowd and spotted Mush and Kid Blink, arm in arm, playfully dancing to the song Medda was singing. They both had the cheesiest grins on their faces and Racetrack could tell that Flash was right, they were completely and utterly soused. His eyes fell on Specs and Skittery next, both screaming the words and he could hear their voices over everyone else's, severely out of tune. Racetrack smiled to himself and let his eyes fall on the next person in the crowd. He was sauntering their way, the strap to his slingshot bouncing lazily against this pocket. Uh oh...
"Flash, you sure you don't want this drink?"
Her head snapped up and she looked over at him. "Race, I already told you, I can't. What are you on about?" She let her eyes follow to where his were looking and her heart sank. She averted her eyes back down to the grain of the wood on the table, studying it like her life depended on it.
Spot was standing next to her now, and Racetrack could tell that Flash was purposefully pretending to not notice him. Spot stood there awkwardly looking down at her, and the sight made Racetrack stifle a laugh. He had never seen Spot Conlon look so uncomfortable. Spot's arrogance and authoritative demeanor was usually ever present in his boyish features, but tonight, he just looked... nervous?
As he should be, in Racetrack's opinion. Flash had been a sight for sore eyes when she shuffled her way back into the lodging house that night. It had taken him hours to get her to talk, and she spewed every curse word known to man when she finally did. She had to convince Kloppman to let her stay temporarily at the lodging house until she got her living situation sorted, since Spot had decided to ban her from staying in Brooklyn. An action that she would not easily forget, no doubt.
Spot could feel his nerves rattling from his toes up to his stomach, and he wiped at a bead of sweat that had begun to form on his temple. This could go one of two ways, and he was willing to bet it would not be the way he hoped. Not at first, at least. He knew that she could see him standing there out of the corner of her eye, but she made no move to acknowledge him. He cleared his throat loudly, set his face into a casual expression, and rested a hand on the back of her chair, letting his finger graze lightly on her shoulder.
The table had gotten uncomfortably silent, and Flash willed someone to break it so she didn't have to. But no one tried, they just stared blankly, their eyes flitting from Flash to Spot.
She dipped her shoulder down to get it away from his hand and turned her head to face him. "Are you lost? Let me help you out, Brooklyn is that way," she said pointing in the other direction. "Straight through those double doors, take a left, and walk allllllll the way down the bridge. You can't miss it." She returned her attention back to the table, her eyes focused on the glass of amber liquid sitting in front of Race. She watched the beads of condensation roll down the side and had to remind herself that she was not allowed to drink tonight. No matter how strong the urge was now.
"Allie, I need to talk to you."
She jerked her head back. "You've got a lot of nerve showing your face to me right now, much less trying to talk to me," she spit. She could feel her face getting hot and knew that she was turning red. This whole situation came as no surprise though. She knew there was a good chance that Spot was going to try to talk to her tonight. It was part of his modus operandi. He would get angry, spew his venom at her, and then try to make amends weeks later like she was supposed to forget what happened. Not this time though. She was not letting it happen this time. "If you couldn't pick up on the not-so-subtle hints I've given you, let me just spell it out plain and clear. I. Do Not. Want. To Talk. To You." she finished, a note of finality in her voice.
Spot scoffed but made no moves to walk away. Instead, he made a production of planting his feet even more firmly on the ground and crossed his arms behind his back, smirking at her. He knew this wasn't going to be easy. But he was never one to shy away from a challenge.
Jack cut in before Spot could say anything. "Hold on, hold on, Flash. Give him a break. It is Christmas after all," he slurred and gave them both a cheeky look. "'Sides, how can you say no to that adorable face of his? Just look at him." He pinched Spot's cheek and surprisingly, Spot returned the motion back to him.
"Jacky boy, how you doing? You seem to be having a pretty good time."
"The best. I got me friends. I got me girl. I got me drink. What more could a guy ask for?" he said grinning.
"I told you to stop drinking," Flash hissed at him.
Jack waved her away. "I'm fine. I'm not even a little bit lushed." His slight swaying was contradicting his statement and Flash rolled her eyes at him. "Hear him out, Flash."
"I don't give a damn what day it is. No."
"For me?" he raised an eyebrow.
"I said no, Jack," she snapped.
"I'll stop drinking if you do."
"...Fine."
She stood quickly, letting her chair fly back not caring who it might bump into. If this was the only way she could get Jack to stop drinking for the night, then she was willing to do it.
Spot cleared his throat again and gestured towards the back of the hall, indicating that he would follow her. She raised an eyebrow at him, keeping her face as emotionless as possible. When she didn't walk in front of him, Spot grabbed her hand and pulled her behind him, leading her to a secluded table in the back.
"Get your hands off me!" She shouted, snatching her hand from his grasp. "I am only coming over here because Jack wants me to. And right now, what Jack wants, Jack gets. So, you better make this quick, pretty boy. You are on borrowed time."
Spot smirked at her. "I must say, your tone is rather abhorrent for such a holy day." When she didn't respond back to his comment, he continued. "Well... since it IS a holy day, a day for friendship and good tidings and whatever... I got you something."
Flash's eyebrows almost disappeared into her hairline, and she fought to bring them back down, fixing her face into a scowl. "Whatever it is, I don't want it. Keep it. Give it to Betsy. I really don't give a damn what you do with it."
Spot shook his head and bit the corner of his bottom lip. "Betsy's uh... Well there's no more Betsy. Besides, I don't think she can read."
She crossed her arms and stared at him blankly, trying like hell to read his thoughts. "No more Betsy?" She raised an eyebrow again and cleared her throat. "Sorry to hear that."
He chuckled and gave her a genuine smile. "No, you're not."
"Not in the slightest."
He was still smiling, and Flash was having a hard time maintaining her composure. His smile was evocative. Bright. It caused her stomach to bubble, and she could feel suppressed feelings start to come to the surface. Feelings and emotions she had spent months trying to shove down into the deepest trenches of her mind. All that work, undone in a matter of seconds, with something as simple as a smile.
He brandished a rectangular shaped gift, wrapped in brown paper. She could tell he had wrapped it himself, the sides a bit uneven. But everything was covered, nonetheless. He turned the gift over in his hands, looking down at it in silence for a few moments before he spoke.
"Merry Christmas, Allie." He glanced up at her, his eyes boring into hers. "I'm not really good at this sort of thing. I don't exactly know where to start. But I'm-"
Jones's sudden appearance made Spot stop speaking immediately. He let out a breath, annoyed at the interruption. "Jones. Did the thing we talked about get here yet? I need it. Now."
"Yes, sir. But-"
"But?" he questioned, cutting him off.
"Well, we're having a hard time... getting it in the door. Kinda putting up a fight."
Spot bit his lip and cursed to himself. He shoved the gift in Flash's arms and swiftly followed Jones away. "I'll be right back," he muttered to her as he passed.
She stood there, frozen in confusion. After a few minutes of waiting without him returning, she decided to open the gift. She gently peeled the paper off and slid it to the side, exposing the tattered cover of a worn book. Belinda by Maria Edgeworth.
She opened the cover and to her surprise, saw something written in Spot's handwriting.
To my little bird, who is my own rough-around-the-edges version of Belinda. May you find bits of yourself in this book. As I did. -Sean
She stared down at the words, her eyes scanning the sentence over and over again, almost as if she were trying to subconsciously memorize it. To etch it in her brain so that it lived there forever. She closed the book and held it close to her chest, letting it rest there while she tried to grasp all the elusive thoughts from the previous 10 minutes. Her bitterness was still there, no denying that. But it was severely muted and replaced with a different feeling. A feeling she was scared to admit she had.
The double doors to the entrance slammed open, and a commotion pulled Flash out of her head. There was yelling and the faint sounds of scuffling could be heard over the music before it stopped entirely. What was all that about? She had to go see, her curiosity peaked.
"You no good son of a... I swear to everything that is almighty, I will end you if you don't let me go right now! You can't just go grabbing people off the street like this. I don't care who your leader is. Frankly, he can go to hell too. God, let me go! This is hardly fair."
Spot stepped through the doors, following behind Jones and Poole. They were attempting to drag a curly haired boy across the floor, but he was giving them a run for their money, hurling every vile insult he could think of at them. Spot searched the crowd of people that had all stopped to stare at the ruckus this was causing. He hadn't planned for it to happen this way. It was supposed to go smoother than this. But Christ, this kid sure put a wrench in his plan.
"This has to be some sort of crime or something. I will give you until the count of three to take your dirty, calloused mitts off me, or I swear it will be the last thing you ever do!" the boy shouted. "Three! Okay, that's it. I'm breaking your face."
"Troop? Trooper! Trooper, is that you?"
Spot looked to his right and saw Flash's head peeking out from between two sets of shoulders. Her eyes were as wide as dinner plates, pure shock plastered on her face.
Trooper stopped struggling and stilled, snapping his head to meet Flash's. "...Allie? Let me go, that's my sister!"
Jones and Poole must have loosened their grip because Trooper was able to free his arms with one tug. He ran full sprint towards her and snatched her up in an embrace. Flash breathed in his scent, smelling something that she could only describe as his signature smell. He still smelled like the farm, oddly enough. Like... horses?
"I thought I lost you forever," she managed to breathe out, barely able to talk because of how tight he was squeezing her.
"I thought you were dead," he choked.
Racetrack broke through the crowd, staring at the pair of them in awe. "Um... Alright. Everybody, nothing to see here! Go back to your singing or dancing or...whatever." He made his way cautiously to stand next to them. He looked at her brother, not sure how he hadn't seen the resemblance before. It was honestly uncanny. They had the same prominent cheekbones, the same upturned nose. The same freckles. They even smiled the same. The only thing of noticeable difference was their hair color.
Trooper broke away from the hug first, catching sight of Racetrack. "Heya Race, I didn't realize you'd be here."
Flash's mouth dropped open, and she flitted her eyes from Race to Trooper and back again. "Race? Excuse me?"
Racetrack smiled sheepishly and shrugged a shoulder. "I didn't realize Joe was your brother."
"Joe?" she raised her eyebrows, her mouth still agape.
Trooper nodded his head. "Yeah, I go by Joe now. Mostly. No one's called me Trooper in years. I know Race from the tracks."
"How long? How long have you known each other?"
"What would you say, Race? About 2 years, give or take?"
"2 years?!" You mean to tell me you've been at Sheepshead this whole time?" She crossed her arms, her forehead wrinkling in annoyance.
"That's where I work, Allie. I don't live there. I live in Queens." He chuckled. "It's so good to see you, you have no idea. I didn't think I'd ever see you again."
Flash uncrossed her arms and put her hands on her hips, turning to face Racetrack. "You mean to tell me that my brother has been in Sheepshead Bay this whole time and I couldn't find him because YOU ran me off my first day there?" an obvious accusatory tone in her shaking voice.
Racetrack pulled his cap off his head and ran a hand through his dark hair. "Listen Flash, I'm awfully sorry. I didn't... I didn't know that good old Joe was your brother. But looking at him now in this light, I don't understand how I didn't see it. You guys really are twins."
"No shit, Sherlock." she squinted her eyes at him and pointed a finger to poke his chest. "I'll deal with you later." She turned her attention back to Trooper. "How did you even get to Medda's anyways? What was all the yelling about?"
Trooper gave her a disgusted look before speaking. "I was on my way home from Sheepshead. Those two bozos grabbed me, put a sack over my head. Started saying Spot Conlon had a surprise for me. The words 'surprise' and 'Spot' in a sentence is unnerving to say the least. Like a damn oxymoron almost. I was wracking my brain trying to figure out what I did to piss off the infamous Spot Conlon the whole way here. It was an ambush."
Flash could feel her heart start racing. "You're here because of Spot?"
Trooper shrugged and tilted his head. "I suppose so. He's the one that ordered them to grab me."
Flash's mind was abuzz. Spot did this. Spot did this for her. This was the real Christmas gift. That's why he told Jones he needed it now. She took out a scrap of paper and a pen, shoving them into Trooper's hands. "I have to talk to you. I need to talk to you. Write down your address. What are you doing tomorrow?"
Trooper grinned at her and hurriedly scrawled his address on the piece of paper before handing it back to her. "Looks like I'm getting word to Big Johnny that I won't be in to work tomorrow on account of me spending time with my little sister."
Flash shoved his arm playfully. "Hey! You're only 2 minutes older, you donkey's ass. I'll see you in the morning. Bright and early. I would love to just stay and chat but... there's something I gotta do first. It's very important, you understand."
"Gotcha, sis. No worries. And hey, come with an empty stomach tomorrow. I'll make you breakfast, like old times. I still remember how you like your eggs," he kidded.
She pulled him into another long hug and kissed his cheek. "Thanks, Troop. I love you. And Merry Christmas. Best present ever."
"Merry Christmas, Allie. I love you too."
Flash slipped her way out of his arms, ruffled his hair, and turned to make her way through the crowd. They had all went back to their drunken madness and Allie was glad that she stuck to her guns and didn't drink for once. She needed a clear head, especially now. She didn't want anything clouding her judgement. But she sorta wished she had a little bit of liquid courage.
She scanned the faces of all the people around her, looking for one in particular. She couldn't see him anywhere. She made her way to the back of the hall, hoping that he was just hanging back. The only person she found back there was Jones.
"Hey, Jones. You see Spot anywhere?"
Jones pointed towards the door with his thumb. "Left. He said he wanted to turn in early and to not let anyone bother him."
Flash nodded her head in thanks and went towards the door, but Jones stopped her. "Did you not hear me, girl? He said he didn't want to be disturbed." He rested his arm across the doorway, blocking her exit.
Flash turned to glare at him, her nostrils flaring. "Jones, I will give you 3 seconds to remove your arm from this threshold before I rip it off and use it to play croquet. Do not test me."
Jones paused for a moment, the hint of a smile playing at the corners of his mouth. "Feisty little one, aren't you? Fine. But if I get in trouble with him for this, I'm coming for your head, capisce?"
Flash picked up his arm and tossed it to the side. "I hear you Jones, I hear you."
The lodging house was quiet; peaceful. With everyone gone to Medda's or to the slew of Christmas parties around the city, Spot finally had a moment of silence to think. The plan hadn't gone as smooth as he had hoped, but it still went and that's all that mattered. The look of pure shock and then joy on Flash's face had been a vision. He replayed it in his head, committing every detail to memory. He had never seen her look so happy before.
Her smile was one of megawatt proportions and he closed his eyes, drawing pictures of it in his head. She may not forgive him for the things he said. Hell, he didn't even get the chance to actually apologize, something he was slightly grateful for. He was shit at apologies. They were foreign to him and always made his mouth taste strange. But at least she was happy. And she had no excuse to leave New York anymore. That was alright by him.
Spot rested his cane against the wall and took off his shirt, throwing it haphazardly on the back of the chair before making his way to stretch out on his bed. The stress of planning and executing the events of tonight had exhausted him and he just wanted to sleep now while it was still quiet. He closed his eyes again and began to drift off, content with how everything played out. He was almost asleep when there was a rapping at the door.
Great, another interruption as usual. Dammit Jones, why couldn't you listen when I told you not to let anyone come to my room?
Spot flung open the door annoyed. "This better be good, I was almost-" he stopped dead in his tracks when he saw her. "Flash, what are you doing here?"
"Jones told me where I could find you. Please don't be mad at him. I sort of threatened bodily harm if he didn't get out of my way. Can I come in?" she asked breathlessly.
Spot didn't say anything as he stepped back out of the door, letting her pass through before closing it behind her. "Are you okay? You sound out of breath."
She doubled over and held up a finger to him, breathing in deeply. "I... ran... all the way... here." she finished in between each breath. "God my chest hurts."
Spot walked over to the chair with his shirt on it and pulled it out for her, gesturing for her to sit down.
She shook her head, still panting. "No, it's better if I stand, actually. I don't want to get too comfortable."
Spot slid the chair back in and sat down on the edge of his bed. "I didn't expect you to turn up. I thought you'd be with your brother."
Flash stood, finally catching her breath. She leaned her shoulders up against the mantel of the fireplace, letting the flames of the fire warm her back. It was freezing outside, and the running had heated her up momentarily, but the wind was brutal out there. She felt like a block of ice.
"I'm meeting with him tomorrow. It's gonna take longer than one night to talk things through. We have 4 years of ground to cover."
They were silent for a good while, not looking at each other, choosing separate corners of the room to train their eyes on. Spot was the first to break the silence.
"What are you doing here, Allie?" he asked her quietly.
She didn't answer him for another minute or so before glancing at him and shrugging her shoulders. "I dunno. I... I had this whole speech planned out on my way over here but... I haven't the faintest idea of what it was anymore."
Spot smirked to himself. "You have the memory of a goldfish."
She continued, ignoring his comment. "You found him."
"Yes. Well, Jones and his contacts did. I just facilitated."
"But it was your idea," she said definitively.
Spot didn't speak, but he nodded his head in confirmation.
Flash scratched at her temple and bit her lip. "Why did you do that?"
Spot half threw his hands up and tilted his head to the side. "'Cause I knew you couldn't. You don't have the same resources as I do. I know more people around these parts."
She was still biting her bottom lip and Spot couldn't stop staring at it as she did. "But why?" she asked again.
"Because I could, little bird," he stated matter-of-factly. Her eyes were glued to him, and Spot could feel them analyzing him, like she was searching for the answer to her question on his face.
"Well... Thank you. Truly, thank you. I don't know how you did it," she said softly, "but that was probably the most meaningful present anyone has ever gotten me."
Spot stood and made his way to his cabinet to grab his bottle of Whiskey. "Don't mention it, little bird. It was nothing really." He rummaged around until he found his bottle of Jack Daniel's.
"You got me two Christmas gifts. I didn't get you anything," she trailed off.
His back was to her as he poured himself a drink and put the stopper back in the bottle. "Didn't have to, did you? I didn't expect anything from you. Still don't." He turned around and came nose to nose with her. He startled and dropped his glass, shattering it on the floor.
"Merry Christmas, Sean," she whispered into his ear before crashing her lips into his. She moved her lips across his slowly, wanting to feel every inch of them. They were softer than she expected, and she fought the urge to consume them.
Spot hesitated and then pulled away, holding her at arm's length. "Allie, you don't have to do that. I told you, I don't expect anything from you. How much have you had to drink tonight? I think the rum is getting to you."
She gave him a timid smile before answering. "Oh please, you act like the girls you sleep with aren't drunk half the time anyways."
"How much have you had to drink?" he asked again, a little more sternly.
She paused, deciding that she needed to be honest. She could lie and blame the actions on alcohol, sure. But she needed him to know that this was done out of clear mind and body. She needed all the cards on the table, so to speak. "Not a one. I'm stone cold sober as they come. Swear."
He blinked at her. "You're... you're sober?"
"Does that surprise you?"
Spot hesitated again before nodding his head. "I mean, yeah. A little."
Flash's face fell a bit, her semblances of a smile wavering. "Sorry. I guess you were right. Maybe I can't read you as well as I thought." She took a step back and Spot grabbed her arms, pulling her back to his chest.
"What are you talking about?" he asked her confused.
"That night. The night I told you I could read your eyes; you told me that I couldn't read you as well as I thought. I saw something in them other than the anger. There was pain and... Well... the other thing I couldn't decipher at the time," she swallowed and didn't meet his eyes as she continued. "I've had time to mull it over and I thought it was maybe the same thing I had been feeling. But I guess I misread, I'm sorry for overstepping."
"Oh. Allie... You were never wrong," he muttered before grabbing her chin and slamming his lips back into hers.
Their mouths moved feverishly together, and Spot could feel a warmth spread throughout his entire body. It moved from his toes to his legs, brimming up into his chest. He was on fire; pleasantly burning from the inside out.
She was kissing him back, matching the eagerness that he had felt for a long while. She needed this just as much as he did.
He ran a hand up her back and grabbed a handful of her long, blonde hair, gripping it in his hand to keep her in place. He didn't want her to move. He wanted to keep her there. He wanted to keep her stationary until the world exploded, and they all turned into piles of nothing.
She gasped softly into his mouth and slid her tongue along his bottom lip, a silent invitation. He took full advantage of the motion, parting her lips with his tongue and letting himself taste her. She tasted like honey and vanilla and... Flash. Her own brand of flavor.
He removed his hand from her hair and gripped her face with both hands, walking forward until her back was up against the wall, knocking his pictures off, their mouths never breaking contact.
She moaned as he slid a hand up her shirt, tracing patterns against the skin on her cleavage. She gripped his hair and pulled his head away from her, trailing kisses from his jaw down to his neck and Spot let out a small moan of his own. Her breath was hot against him and Spot closed his eyes, reveling in the feeling.
Flash giggled before clamping her teeth down around the soft skin of his neck, and Spot's breath hitched in his throat.
He let out a soft growl and grabbed her around the waist with one arm, forcing her to wrap her legs around him. His mouth was on her again, needing to taste her lips once more, and he used one hand to undo the buttons of her shirt, making quick work of it. He swiveled their bodies until he could feel the bed up against the front of his legs. He dropped her down onto it and spread her shirt open, exposing her corset.
Flash lifted herself up and began undoing the corset, staring darkly into Spot's eyes as she did. Her eyes could've swallowed him whole in that moment, and he wouldn't have cared.
The corset dropped down, giving him a full look at her body. Her skin was pale, etched in the markings that he had seen time and time before. But this was different. They were a part of her, beautiful in their own right. They spoke truth; nasty, beautiful truth.
Flash avoided looking at him, feeling a sudden rush of warmth in her face. In the heat of the moment, she had forgotten what her torso looked like. All jagged and cut up from years' worth of injuries. It made her self conscious and she reached to pull her shirt closed again.
Spot gingerly removed her hand from her clothing and shook his head silently, not taking his eyes off her stomach. He let them trail up to the curves of her breasts, across her collarbones, and finally to her face.
"Don't get shy on me now, Allie. I've seen them before. I didn't forget about them, and they most certainly don't bother me."
He tilted his head down, kissing his way down her soft skin, lapping at it gently with his tongue.
Flash whined and arched her back, into his face. It tickled, but in the best way. She was comfortably numb, every limb tingling with anticipation. She raked her fingers through his hair, trying to pull him closer.
Spot laughed against her skin and fought against the grip of her hands. My my, was she strong.
"I'm not gonna to keep going."
Flash couldn't hide her shock, and she let her mouth fall wide open. "Spot... please?"
"Please what?" he arched an eyebrow and gave her a devilish grin.
"Don't stop. I want you. I want you to keep going," she pleaded, grabbing a hold of his hands and putting them on her body again, urging him to keep touching her.
He snatched her hands up in his own and wrestled them to the side, pinning them down next to her. She was writhing beneath him, bucking her hips into his and fighting against his hands.
"How bad do you want me? How long have you wanted me?" he wanted to hear her say it. He had imagined these words coming from her mouth, over and over again. He needed the satisfaction, it was compulsory.
Flash stopped struggling and stared at him through her lashes. "Since that first day at the pier. I replay that day in my head all the time. Every word, every note of your voice is in my head. The inflection of your words. I wanted you that day and every day since then."
It was like a bomb set off in his head at the last word of her sentence, and he pounced, kissing her hard enough to bruise. He couldn't control himself anymore, the softness in his touch completely gone.
Flash pulled away quickly. "Wait, shouldn't we move over to the other bed? You said you don't do this stuff in your own bed."
"Allie, we're staying right where we are. I don't give two shits anymore. Now be a good girl and take off your pants."
She tore her pants and knickers down in record timing, the feel of the fabric rough against the skin of her legs. Spot already had his suspenders pulled down from his shoulders and they rested lazily by his sides. The sight was... way better than she ever could have imagined. Now she understood why so many women were vying for his attention. Why so many women wanted nothing more than to be in his bed. But she was the one getting his attention now. She felt powerful, and it was intoxicating.
Spot unbuttoned his pants and slid them down halfway, exposing himself to her. He could see the dark desire in her eyes, her pupils almost swallowing her green irises. He pictured this moment more than he was ever willing to admit to anyone, including himself.
He reached his hand to his mouth, licked the palm of his hand, and rubbed it on himself, steadying himself between her legs.
"I'm not your first, am I?"
"'Course not."
"Good. But I am going to be your best," he panted as he slid himself into her.
Her eyes widened and she gasped at the feeling of him. "Oh my god," she whimpered out.
"No, little bird. Not God. He has nothing to do with it," he answered as he moved. Fuck, this wasn't going to last as long as he'd hoped. He had to slow it down a bit if he didn't want to finish so quickly. He slowed his pace and leaned down to kiss her.
"Fuck, Spot," she moaned into his mouth.
He tilted his head and caught her earlobe in between his teeth, nibbling softly before saying, "Say my name, Allie."
"Sean, Sean, Seeeean," she choked out and Spot could feel himself teetering on the edge.
"Allie, I want you."
"I'm all yours for the taking, Sean."
That's it. That was going to be the bane of his undoing, right there. Her words echoed loud in his brain and felt himself finish as the inside of her gripped him, signaling that she too had reached her end.
He toppled onto her, panting in her ear and she let out a groan.
"I'm sorry, I wanted that to go on for longer but... I couldn't help myself," she whispered to him breathlessly.
He lifted his head to look at her and smiled. "Well, I did get you two Christmas gifts technically. You still owe me for the other."
She smirked back at him before rolling him over onto his back and climbing on top of him.
To hell with how everyone else was doing. Merry Christmas to us, and to us a good night.