★ but I'm going to be okay as long as you're beside me along the way

[complexguy]

Comments

[complexguy]

He has to kiss her again tenderly, but then he sits up and shifts out of the van. Tugging his clothes back on, he sits on the blanket she spread out. "C'mere and feed me then, little woman," he teases her with a grin.

[dharmalady]

She grins and tugs her shorts and tanktop back on before grabbing the sandwiches and handing him his sandwich, sitting right between his legs, leaning back against one side of his chest.

They eat and talk, and he makes her laugh; God, she laughs so much with him, and after a story about a security mishap with Miles that ended in him being covered in fertilizer, she's flushed from laughing so hard.

"You know I have to give Miles shit. Thank you for telling me," she says with another laugh, polishing off the last of her sandwich.

[complexguy]

He's so damn full and satisfied, and after he's finished off his sandwich, he presses a tender kiss to her shoulder as he grins. "Man's gonna be takin' three showers everyday for the next month," he laughs again.

[dharmalady]

Juliet laughs again, then sighs contently and stretches out on her back beside him.

"Let me know when you want the surprise," she tells, looking up at the stars and pointing out a constellation.

"Orion. See it?"

[complexguy]

He stretches out with her, resting his hands behind his head. "Anytime, sweetheart." But then he looks up to where she's pointing and nods a little. "And yeah, I see it."

[dharmalady]

"My dad took me out once, just the two of us. Few years from now, when I'm eight," Juliet says wistfully, still staring up at the stars.

"Anyway. It was nine at night. I was in a Wonder Woman nightgown ad my dad loaded me into the car. I fell asleep and he drove a hundred miles to the best stargazing spot outside of Miami. He woke me up, and we laid out, just like this, eating cookies and drinking milk while he showed me every constellation. Taught me how to navigate in the dark."

She goes quiet for a second.

"Never would have thought his kid would need it on a tropical island, I bet." But it's a good memory, and there's a soft, sad smile on her lips, a soft glisten to her eyes.

"I fell asleep again on the way home and I woke up in my bed. All tucked in."

[complexguy]

"Glad you had that with your daddy," he notes softly. It was something nice to hold on to, especially these last few years, trapped on this island with very few pleasant things to remember.

Turning his head, he kisses her temple now and just shifts to wrap an arm around her shoulders.

[dharmalady]

"Wait a sec," she says with a soft smile, rolling over a little to the bag the sandwiches were in. She pulls out a second baggie with two joints inside.

"I was cleaning out a Jeep and found these under the seat. I thought I should return them to the proper authorities," Juliet says with so much sincerity in her voice as she rolls back toward him again.

[complexguy]

He smirks a little. "You're a bad influence, Juliet. Gonna get me in trouble."

[dharmalady]

She scoffs as she hands him one and the lighter.

"You gonna narc on me?"

[complexguy]

He shakes his head, still smirking. "Only 'cause you're my girl." He takes the joint and lights it, but pauses to confess something. "Never smoked one of these before."

[dharmalady]

Juliet actually as to sit up and stare at him. Not because he hasn't but because she has and he hasn't.

"Oh my God, you were more of a square than I was in high school, is that what you're saying right now?"

[complexguy]

He raises an eyebrow, curious and a little amused, though he'll certainly do his best to dodge talk of his adolescence since it wasn't very pretty.

"The hell kind of kid you think I was?" It's said in amusement and he is genuinely curious what her perception of him at that age was. He also has no idea how to smoke a joint, so he's just prepared to smoke it like an actual cigarette.

[dharmalady]

Juliet reaches out and covers his hand for a second, a soft smile in her eyes.

"Don't inhale too hard, like you would a cigarette. Slow draw, okay?"

She lights hers in demonstration, sitting up now and taking a slow, steady drag on her own. She holds it for a few seconds before exhaling.

"See? Smooth. And hmm. Let's see." Juliet settles back down beside him on her back, takes another hit as she thinks. When she exhales this time, she turns her head to look at him.

"And I had you as stereotypical T-Bird type in my head. You know, the popular school jerk who wins over the quiet shy girl from an island who probably never heard a genuine compliment until him."

She's amused too, but she's also just a little curious. Juliet has never questioned him about his childhood, and they both know why.

[complexguy]

He's sitting up for now, not yet ready to lay back with her. Taking a slow drag the way she showed him, James inhales and slowly exhales.

"Well, you go on thinkin' that," he tosses over his shoulder at her, still with a soft smirk on his lips.

[dharmalady]

Juliet watches him from where she's lying, eyes moving over him. He crashed on an island and within 72 hours, she knew his full name, date of birth, social security number, and every horrific detail of his life. But details aren't knowing someone.

Reaching up, her hand slides up his back slowly, hesitating when she feels tense muscles. She decides to turn it around, letting him make his best guess about her.

"Well, what about me? How do you think I was in high school?"

[complexguy]

"Well, let's see..." He takes another drag and then lays down next to her. "Probably the one with good grades, everyone tryin' to cheat off you during exams. Am I close?"

[dharmalady]

Juliet snorts.

"Well. You're right about the grades, I'll give you that." She inhales, thinking, then slowly exhales.

"No one cheated off of me, so much as cornerd me for my notes. I was a pushover," Juliet tells him matter-of-factly. "Hated confrontation, too afraid to even run. Rachel saved my ass more times than I can even remember, probably."

[complexguy]

"You were that girl that woulda been too good for me," he concludes softly, eyes focusing on the stars.

[dharmalady]

Juliet's quiet, because she certainly doesn't think so. She doesn't think he would have even noticed her enough to think she was out of his league in high school. But this isn't about that, and she shifts until she can lay with her head on his stomach, laying sideways.

"Well, look at us now, LaFleur. In love and getting stoned together on an island in the middle of literally fucking nowhere."

She grins, just a touch, then takes another pull from her joint.

"You know. Miles and that one really bouncy redheaded woman are the ones who returned the Jeep I found this in. What's she do for the security team?"

As if Juliet hasn't just used a van for the exact same purpose.

[complexguy]

"He got a new girl already?" James smirks softly, thinking of his friend and his notorious penchant for cycling through women; all the new recruits, particularly. "Can't keep 'em straight."

Part of him wants to share some kind of memory with her, like she shared with him. But he can't think of any good ones. They're all fucking depressing, and he feels too happy to wanna talk about that shit now.

So he just lays there with her happily, running his fingers through her hair.

[dharmalady]

She doesn't mind it. She likes letting him see pieces of her, the things she's ready to give him. And she knows her life was a far cry from his, that there his well of good things worth sharing might not be as deep. So she doesn't push, doesn't ask him for stories. He'll tell her things when he's ready.

And she hopes he'll eventually trust her with the terrible things, too.

"Miles does like variety," she says with a snort before remembering something.

"Did I tell you Amy wants to come over and make me over? I dunno if I should be flattered or offended."

[complexguy]

James screws up his face a little in confusion, halfway through another puff of his joint. "Make-over?" He drawls out the word. "The hell does that even mean?"

He's heard it before, of course. He's just never understood what the fuck it is. How does someone get "made over," and why?

[dharmalady]

For some reason, his confusion is absolutely hilarious, and she laughs, coughing a little as she does.

"Because she can't possibly imagine grease and jumpsuits is attractive to you. I guess she wants to see how I would 'fill out' a dress. See what I'd look like in makeup. Which I hardly wore before the island."

[complexguy]

He's not quite there with the amusement yet, if only because he's more confused. "Puttin' on a dress and fancy makeup makes you a whole new person or somethin'?"

He's not understanding. Help him.