Gingersnap

Part 6

On Valentine's Day, Ginger climbed into a large box of chocolates and curled up in an empty notch designed for a piece of candy. There, she waited patiently for Edward to return from an afternoon shopping trip. As soon as she heard the front door open, she closed the lid on the box and wrapped her tail around herself.

"I'm home, Ginger!" Edward called out as he walked into the living room. "I bought some more strawberries for you..." He tilted his head to the side when he noticed the ocelot was not on the coffee table where he had left her. "Where'd you go?"

Ginger let out a tiny giggle, knowing the boy couldn't see nor hear her from his position, although he was only a few feet away in the next room. The box she had curled up in both hid her from view and muffled her already quiet voice.

"Gingersnap? Where are you?" Edward glanced around the room before he set his grocery bags on the couch. Is she hiding again? He thought to himself as he headed into his room. He looked around on the floor, under his bed, and even on top of Ginger's shelf, but the ocelot was no where to be seen.

Where else could she be? Edward scratched the back of his head as he thought back to all the other spots Ginger sometimes hid herself in. The only place I haven't checked is... His eyes lit up as he smiled knowingly.The kitchen! With that, the boy spun around on his heel and hurried out into the kitchen and quickly looked around.

"Ginger? Are you in here...?" Edward's voice trailed off when he saw the box of chocolates sitting on the kitchen table. The lid was askew, and a the tip of a furry, spotted tail was poking out from under it. It reminded him of Halloween, when the girl had crawled into a big bowl of candy for him to eat. The thought alone made his stomach growl.

As soon as she heard him walk into the kitchen, Ginger gasped silently and curled herself up tight. She waited in the dark with bated breath until she heard the soft sound of approaching footsteps on the tile floor.

Edward carefully lifted the lid off the box and set it aside, "There you are!" He grinned when he spotted his little friend curled up amongst the morsels of candy.

"Yay, you found me!" Ginger giggled, peering up at the boy over the edge of the box.

"I sure did!" Edward chuckled softly as he reached out to pet her head with the tip of his finger. "Does this mean I get to eat you now?" He asked hopefully.

Ginger nodded eagerly as her mismatched eyes lit up in excitement. "Of course!" She exclaimed. "I mean, only if you want to..."

"I want to! I'm so hungry..." Edward ran his tongue across his lips as his belly gave another demanding grumble. "C'mere, little buddy." He carefully lifted the tiny ocelot out of the box and and held her up in the air above him.

Ginger purred happily, looking down at the boy as she eagerly curled her tail around in the air.

Without warning, Edward opened his mouth wide and dropped her onto his soft pink tongue. He quickly closed his mouth and swallowed her down with a loud gulp.

He didn't hesitate before swallowing me this time! Ginger thought excitedly as she slid down the boy's warm throat.That must mean he's getting used to this! It made her happy to know that Edward seemed to be warming up to it more and more each time she went in his tummy.

Edward hummed in delight and patted his stomach gently when he felt Ginger drop into it. "Mmm....You're delicious, Gingersnap, but I'm still hungry. Do you mind if I eat up the rest of the chocolate?" He asked after a pause.

Ginger chuckled and snuggled up to the front wall of his stomach."I don't mind, but shouldn't you eat lunch first? Something healthy, maybe?" She suggested.

Edward shrugged and looked down, rubbing at the back of his neck. "Nah, I'm sure I'll be fine if I skip a meal just this once..."

Ginger frowned at the idea, but thought it best not to start an argument with the stubborn boy. "Okay then, go ahead." She told him.

With that, Edward reached into the box of chocolates, selected one with vanilla cream filling, and greedily stuffed it into his mouth.

When the entire box of chocolates was empty, Edward stumbled into the living room with his arms wrapped around his belly. He carefully laid down on the couch and stretched out, blushing a bit when his full stomach gurgled from the movement. "S-Sorry Gingersnap, I bet that was loud..."

"That's okay, buddy! I don't mind." Ginger replied. She had winced a bit at the noise, but it was a small price to pay for a chance to be in his tummy again.

"Oh, good!" Edward smiled softly as he looked down. "It must be nice and warm in there, huh?"

"It sure is!" Ginger purred, glancing around at the gobs of melting chocolate and cream filling around her. "I love it in here." She pressed her paws into the wall of his stomach and rubbed it tenderly. "And I love you, too, Ed. Thank you so much for protecting me - I don't know what I would've done without you..."

Edward smiled and hugged his stomach."I love you too, Gingersnap, and I'm so glad we met. I was starting to get kinda lonely living here all by myself..."

"Aww, don't worry! I'll always be here to keep you company!" Ginger purred softly and rubbed her head up against his soft tummy. "Happy Valentine's Day, Ed."

Edward chuckled softly, still cradling his belly in his arms. "Happy Valentine's Day, Gingersnap." He replied.