Condensed, Evaporated, and Whole

No One But You

[A/N: This short little fluff piece concludes my ventures into the realm of Lincoln Lawyer  and Lana & Manuel. If you know my other stories, you will recognizes this perfect little family... Chapter is set in the summer of 2023 when season 2 of Lincoln Lawyer was released on Netflix, and Marley is one year old.

It's not Lana x Manuel, but it's still an idea that I had around the topic, and I feel that it ties in nicely with the other fic, showing a side of it that we haven't seen before.

Anywho, hope you enjoyed this pairing, fictional as well as real-life, even though chapters weren't always coherent and a bit messy here & there. You can definitely say that those two were inspiring 😏]

--------------------------------------

With a displeased grunt, he got up from the couch.

„I'm gonna go get a can of La Croix", he mumbled.

„Oh!", she said, sitting up on the couch, and turned around, following him with her gaze into the kitchen, „can you bring me one too?"

He looked over his shoulder and shrugged. „Sure..."

She frowned.

As she took one of the cans from him when he came back, he wasn't even looking at her.

„Everything alright, babe?"

„What? Yeah, sure...", he sat back down, not bothering to keep watching the TV.

„No no... uh-uh! What is it?"

„It's nothing!"

„Come on! I know that's not true. Is it... you don't want to watch anymore? We can stop!"

„No! No, of course, we can go ahead."

„Well, I don't know, just now you were so excited to watch Lincoln Lawyer, and now you're sitting here moping like Marley when we take away her favorite plush fishy."

„I'm not!"

„Oh, yes, you are, Mister!"

„Let's just... keep watching."

She though, couldn't let it rest. She was too excited to finally watch the fruit of her labor, having been a part of this exciting project, the first time on a Netflix show, and she didn't want him to ruin the mood with his antics.

„Don't you like it?"

„I do! I mean... It's a great part! And you and this... what's his name?"

„Manuel?"

„... Manuel, you two have... great chemistry."

She blinked at him once, twice... She knew that it wouldn't be long into the very first episode until her character, Lisa Trammell, made a move on the Lincoln Lawyer, Mickey Haller, and in no ambiguous terms, followed by a steamy make-out scene. And yes, she had to admit that it had been hot filming it, and she had gotten along perfectly with Manuel García Rulfo, who had played her on-screen partner, but still... it was just a role, a job, and it was just acting.

„Hang on, are you... jealous?", she frowned.

Right away, she saw him wince and shake his head eagerly, a tell-tale sign that he was lying, that's how well she had come to know him after the few years they'd been together.

„You are!"

„I'm not!"

„Babe, come on..."

„It's a great job and a great role, and I'm happy you got along so well with your fellow actors. That's it."

„Jordane... baby", she said more calmly now, she didn't want to frustrate him even more by acting smug and invalidating her husband's feelings, „Don't be ridiculous, please!"

She reached out her arms for him, but he didn't look at her, taking a sip from his drink instead.

„I don't need to explain acting to you, I'm sure?"

„No, you don't...", he sighed, „Don't worry, I know I have no reason to be jealous and you didn't do anything with that guy, off camera."

„Well, good! Because I didn't. And wouldn't, ever."

„I know that! But still... it stings a bit. I don't like seeing it. Is that so bad?"

She sighed. „No, of course not..."

„I mean... Ain't it you who's always going on about how I'm constantly flirting with other woman on screen... allegedly? Younger women?"

„Well, that... does sound familiar indeed."

„See? I mean... we're constantly talking about our age difference, and how insecure you are about your age, how you'd fear that I'd dump you for someone half your age the next best opportunity I get. But no one ever wonders whether I might be too young for you. You know how that makes me feel?"

She looked at him, seriously puzzled now. Hearing him talk like this now... she had to admit to herself that she had never seen it like that.

„I mean", he continued, „except for both of us being actors, we've always had very little in common, at least on paper. And then there's this guy, this... Manuel. In his forties, Mexican, I mean, it just fits, doesn't it? He could share so much more of your life experience than me. He isn't Benicio del Toro, but he sure looks more like him than I do! In comparison, I'm inexperienced, I'm boring... sure, I'm black, and I've had that to carry around all my life, but I have no idea what it's like to be Latino? It's totally different, I'm sure. So in the end... why wouldn't you just dump me for a guy like him?"

She was listening to his words while her heart sighed inside her chest, then nodded solemnly and reached out for him once more. „Come here, baby!"

Still a little hesitant, he finally leaned into the hug. Of course, in his heart, he knew that she loved him, and that she wouldn't want anybody else but him, just like he would never want anybody other than her. And yet, by pure logic alone, he just sometimes couldn't shake the feeling...

„I never knew you felt this way", she whispered, gently stroking his back.

„I know. I never told you."

„You could have though... you know? Maybe if you had... I wouldn't have felt so stupid and so alone sitting here with my doubts and insecurities about my age... huh?"

„Yeah", he sat back to look at her, tucking one of her dark curls behind her ear, smiling, „Probably not. And, again... I'm not seriously worried, okay? Or jealous. It's just..."

„I know. Just like I am, or have never been. I'm still glad we talked..."

A whimper, then a faint cry started blaring from the babyphone.

„... about it though", she finished her sentence, then she leaned forward to give him a kiss that should leave absolutely no doubt about her feelings towards him, and only him, whatsoever.

When he moaned into the kiss helplessly, the crying from the babyphone still persisting, she pulled away and got up.

„Well then... let me go upstairs and check on our child, you know... your baby girl that I carried and grew inside of me for nine months and then pushed out into the world in unimaginable agony, you may remember..."

He blushed and chuckled, scratching his head apologetically. „Alright, alright... I get it, message received!"

She smirked and placed a kiss on his forehead, then put her lips right next to his ear and whispered: „And when I come back... I might be naked. I hope my husband is too, so he can make me forget about every other man who doesn't even matter."

She winked at him and turned around with a nonchalant flip of her hair, leaving him behind, nearly gasping for air.