selfhelp | [IC] Appointments Post

[A compromise... Teddy makes a light hum of thought as he slides down to lay beside Billy instead, shoulder against his boyfriend's head rather than his hip.]

Maybe I'll sleep for a while, and you can wake me up whenever you feel like it's time?

[Which is... pretty much how they work at home anyway. But it's a method that works; it gave Billy his morning time and Teddy his rest, until it was time to really be ready for the day. He suspects it'll be the same way here too.]

Mm... okay, deal.

[It helps, in a way- makes this whole experience feel a little bit like home. A home away from home. ...A home away from home away from home.

Whatever. He shifts once more, nuzzling his face against Teddy's shoulder and getting close until he feels sufficiently cozy, closing his eyes. There's a long moment of silence, pleasant and peaceful, only interrupted by gently rustling leaves and chirping crickets.]

....We probably should've done this in the tent.

... Hmm. Yeah.

[Here Teddy had tilted his head to nuzzle his nose against Billy's hair and shut his own eyes, and probably would've drifted off already if it was just a bit noisier. He still kind of misses the sounds of New York at night, with the cars that pass through the less busy streets, the people who work all night or have dealings only at night passing by, a dog faintly barking... it's really nothing like wind and leaves and crickets.

Still, it's definitely peaceful, and it's something Teddy's slowly been getting used to. More importantly, it's the perfect atmosphere for what he and Billy want to do tomorrow; he knows how hard it was to concentrate back at home when a stray car horn would sound off just below.

He kind of doesn't want to move, satisfied in the entirely too noiseless atmosphere with his fiancé by his side. But Billy does have a point, and it makes Teddy slowly push himself up to his elbows and look down at Billy with a raised eyebrow.]

Wanna get inside? Or am I going to have to carry you over the threshold?

[... Heh. He really can't stop the smile that comes with that question; two months later and the thought of marrying the man beside him still fills him with absolute joy.]

[Billy snorts faintly at that, reluctantly sitting himself up and stretching his arms over his head. God, but he's stiff. Way too much climbing in one day.]

Threshold? Of a tent? You sure know how to seduce a guy.

[Not that he's protesting... although he can get up if he has to. He just knows how much Teddy enjoys doing that kind of thing, so it would be one small concession for making him go through all this nonsense again. Carrying rights in exchange for all the mini-zaps that will inevitably happen in the morning.]

[Well. Billy does have a point; the tent is a little too small to actually carry anyone through it without some uncomfortable ducking going on. But Teddy can unzip the front of it and hold his hand out to guide Billy over the threshold. (Hopefully it won't be this pathetic when the time comes.)]

Yeah, that's me. Mr. Seduce-tastic.

Well...

[Billy leans over to press his lips against the corner of Teddy's mouth, a soft, teasing kiss. His closest hand lifts to rest on the blond's chest for support, and his ring is there, glinting in the pale evening light.]

...you do alright, I think.

[More than alright. It isn't all about seduction, after all; if it was just sex, or even the dating part, then sure, but now that it's marriage they're working towards, it's a whole new level. The fact that Teddy will do this kind of thing for him, the fact that he's been flawlessly supportive in the decisions Billy's made the last several months when it comes to magic, the fact that he's still here. Seduction doesn't factor in because Billy's already hopelessly smitten with the one who had against all odds or good sense had chosen him as a future husband.

Best not screw this up. And he feels like, with Teddy here to support him, he'll actually do okay.]

[It's the kiss, and the hand against his chest, that makes Teddy blink, then duck his head somewhat shyly with a little smile and a flush to his face that he doesn't bother to hide. He lifts his hand to cover Billy's, feeling that cool metal under his own, and just revels in it for a moment. Seduction skills aside, they'll be at each other's sides for the rest of their lives, wake up and fall asleep together, be supportive of each other just like this, trusting the other more than they could trust anyone else... and each knowing that they'll now have a companion like this at their side for as long as the other lives...

... Still, he can't really let Billy get away with that comment. The tent's door is still open and waiting for the two of them, but Teddy, rather than getting the two of them inside, looks at Billy again with raised eyebrows.]

Only alright? I'll show you -

[And with that, he leans forward to the side of Billy's neck... to blow a raspberry against it.

He knows that there won't be anything particularly hot and heavy out here, that concentration on learning the magic again is what's most important. But he can't help teasing and having a little fun.]

[Billy sets free a choked snort, squirming away, the sound quickly dissolving into a laugh. God, his boyfriend's such a dork.]

Ahh, gross, you spat on my neck!

[He rubs at the spot, then reaches up to wipe his (admittedly not very) damp hand on Teddy's cheek. Take that, raspberry-blower!]

[Who's the dork now? Teddy wrinkles his nose, then wipes at the dampness on his cheek with the back of his arm, though a grin comes up to ruin the face of disgust he was trying to get going.]

Wait, so I can suck on your neck and get spit all over the place, but you can't take something like this?

[Billy sticks his tongue out, letting his hand drop to rest on Teddy's chest instead.]

Please. Sucking on my neck and blowing a raspberry are two totally different things.

Yeah, but still. Spit all over the place.

[Teddy sticks his own tongue out too, wiggling it from side to side as if to say see, there's spit here too - and in contrast, moves his hand to cover Billy's, fingers twining through the spaces between his boyfriend's.]

And you get to live with it for a long time.

Mmhm. As long as we both shall live, I hear, is the phrase.

[He can't quite keep up the teasing expression, saying the words aloud. It's a thrill, a quiet little delight that spreads through him like a shot of concentrated warmth. He's happy for the ring, happy for the promise between them that it represents, happy to have Teddy here, with him. Happy that he gets to share him and his spit and everything other part of him, body and soul, for the rest of his life.]

You forgot the "'til death do us part"... part.

[Despite that awkward little sentence-ender, Teddy ends up smiling too, and he leans his head down to press a kiss against Billy's hair while squeezing his hand, feeling the ring there between his fingers. He can still see it in his mind: Billy's face when Teddy looked up at him, when he said yes, the best word he'd ever heard in all of his life, and the huge smile on his face...

It's like the joy he felt on that day had never died down. And seeing visual proof of Billy feeling the same way, even the day before something as big as delving into magic again, makes him feel like flying again.

But no. He's cozy here, cuddled up against his fiancé as the evening sky turns into night, as stars start to wink into existence. This is where he belongs, after all.]

[Billy hums softly, expression torn between joy and unease, and closes his eyes. It's true that the vows - the ones they'll say aloud and to one another someday - are wonderful to ponder, with all the close calls they've had, it's hard to say them now without thinking too deeply about what they mean.]

I'd rather focus on our life together than how it'll end.

Mm. Yeah. Me too.

[He says it in Billy's hair; he knows how many close calls they've had, lived through them all, every moment his heart sped up way too fast, and he knows Billy had moments like that too. Best to think about the life they'll have - hopefully long, living together and watching gray hairs start to show, little wrinkles in the face that Teddy would insist are smile lines, kids... maybe. If Billy could get behind it. Lord knows Teddy wants to be a father, and -

Maybe he's focusing too much on what life together would be like. He nuzzles his nose against Billy's hair, then leans his head back down again, a gentle smile on his face as he keeps his eyes shut.

It'll be a great life, that's for sure.

...]

Our first kid will be named Speed Racer.

[Okay, so thinking too deeply about the future is out, but teasing about it is totally cool.]

[There's a moment's pause, and then Billy abruptly snorts out another laugh, turning his head and burrowing it against Teddy to muffle the sound. His shoulders shake with silent laughter at the ridiculousness of it until he finally restrains himself, lifting his head just enough to mumble a reply.]

You realize... if we did that, Tommy would just assume we named the kid after him.

[Teddy scrunches his face at that, hand moving from Billy's shoulder to thread into his hair instead. Yeah, that's true, huh...]

Yeah, then he'd be all over the kid so much that we'd never see them. Scratch that.

[He gives an exaggerated face of thought, a frown on his face and a pout on his lips as he glances upward.]

Then our first kid will be named Godzilla.

[Oh god. Leave it to Teddy to come up with something worse.]

Is that just because you're hoping they'll take after you, Mr. Jolly Green?

[...wow, they really could have a green kid if they took a biological route rather than adopting and it wound up with a lot of Teddy's traits. How cool would that be?]

I don't think "jolly" is a good word for Godzilla. [And he doesn't think they want a kid with a temper like that. With another pout and some more thought, he tilts his head to look down at Billy.]

Well, what about you? What would you name our kid?

[Billy hesitates at that; the first name that pops into his head is something he used to think about but hadn't said aloud, not only because talking about kids at their age would be weird, but... because he wasn't sure what Teddy's reaction would be. He doesn't want to make Teddy fret, but he can't lie about it, either. Teddy would know immediately.

He worries his lower lip, then glances down.]

...Sarah. If- if we had a girl.

[There's a long pause from Teddy at that, half because he didn't think Billy would take this seriously, and half because... well.

Sarah.

Sarah.

It's perfect and bittersweet at the same time. He knows that before he met Billy - and after, too, he wanted his mom to be there for all the big events in his life. Graduation from both high school and college, getting married... having kids. He'd imagined it sometimes, introducing her to a child of his and her being natural with it. She'd be a wonderful grandma. And her life was cut short before she could witness any of those things.

... What better way to honor her and have her be there for at least one of those events than to name a possible daughter after her?

With a deep breath, Teddy leans his head down to press his lips to Billy's hair again and tightens his arm around his shoulder, pulling him a little closer.]

Yeah. Yeah... Sarah. I like that a lot...

[Billy's relief is obvious immediately; the tension eases out of him, and he presses closer to Teddy as he's pulled in, eyes closing. Teddy's reaction seems genuine, rather than hiding it to avoid making Billy feel guilty... he's glad.]

's a good Jewish name, too. That'd make the grandparents happy.

[Not. That his parents were particularly fussy about Jewish names. But he was sure they'd appreciate the gesture, even if that wasn't their reason for choosing the name at all.

...God, his parents as grandparents. Rebecca Kaplan was going to have the happiest aneurysm.]

[There's a small puff of air against Billy's hair as Teddy leans back again, a smile on his face from the little snort he let out. Grandparents, wow... If they were so happy about him and Billy dating, then what about marriage and kids?

... In the future, anyway. Not right now. They'd probably receive the worst punishments ever if they came back with a ring and a little girl at their age.]

Yeah... somehow I don't think they'd approve of Godzilla for their granddaughter's name.

[Billy shares the smile at that; he can all too easily imagine his parents' reaction to such a suggestion. Yeah, it probably wouldn't go over too well.]

I think my mother would kill us in our sleep.

[He looks like he's about to say more, but a yawn catches him off-guard before he can continue.]

[Looks like conversations about kids and the future and what it might hold will have to wait. That cute yawn earns another kiss on top of his head, and then Teddy's pushing the both of them up, the movement causing Optimus to lift his head and see what's going on.]

Speaking of sleep, how about we catch a little bit of it ourselves? We've got a pretty big day tomorrow.

[Without waiting for an answer, Teddy unzips the entrance to the tent, then holds his hand out to help Billy step inside. Weakest carrying over the threshold ever.]

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