Stephew Oneshots.

Rainy Days.

Prompt: It's raining outside and they were going to have a picnic, now what? - @GTLit on Twitter

"Matthew? Its 3pm, time to go."

"With you in a minute!"

Matthew slipped his headphones back over his ears subconsciously, not really hearing the music as his mind focused on the script in front of him. He had been trying to finish this script for the last few days and was agonisingly close to completing it. However, he and Stephanie had made plans to go out for a picnic since the afternoon was supposed to be bright and sunny. It was a Saturday, so there was no live stream and no meetings to go to that would interrupt their plans. Instead, everything hinged on whether he could tear himself away from his work to spend time with his wife.

Minutes raced by as he tried to finish his paragraph, not wanting to stop mid-sentence. Fleshing out his thoughts was always harder than actually coming up with them, hence why he kept a notebook on the edge of their bed in case he thought of anything during the night. Saving his work, he leaned back and allowed the music to wash over him for a moment, just living in the rhythms and beats instead of the stresses of everyday life. Normally, he sat downstairs on the sofa near Stephanie so he could bounce ideas off of her but today he had remained in their bedroom with the duvet wrapped around his legs to keep his feet warm. He ran a hand through his hair and stopped his music, setting the laptop aside as something else had caught his eye.

"Matthew, are you coming?"

Stephanie's head poked around the doorframe, her eyes searching the room before settling on him. She shook her head, though there was a little smile on her face as she took in his slightly dishevelled appearance on the bed. Her mouth opened as if to speak but she paused, catching sight of exactly what had caught Matthew's attention in the first place. Their window, which used to have sunlight streaming through it a few moments before, was now distorted by the droplets of rain that pattered against the window. They fell faster and faster, until the pounding of water against the window could not be mistaken for anything else. Grey clouds stretched as far as the eye could see and the sun was nowhere to be seen. Clearly their picnic plans had to be rearranged.

"Ah. It's raining so we can't go for our picnic anymore. Any ideas?"

A frown creased Matthew's forehead as he tried to think of another way they could spend time together without being tempted to carry on with the work they needed to complete. A picnic was normally the solution to that issue as they didn't need anything but each other and a hamper of food. They'd been to the cinema recently so that was out of the occasion; they watched a lot of movies anyways in order to do research for Film Theory. He ran his hand through his hair whilst he thought, causing Stephanie to giggle as she watched his fringe become unruly and wild. The end result was a crossover between a lion's mane and a hedgehog. She walked over to his side and played with his hair for a bit, smoothing down the spiky bits in some places and fluffing up other areas.

"Here's an idea. Do you want to maybe... play hide and seek?"

Looking down into Matthew's eyes, she saw a determined expression in his eyes alongside that playful glint that she adored so much. He wanted to make up for the weather plotting against them and if childhood games was the way he wanted to do it, then there was no way in hell that she was going to miss out on it. Nodding, she ran out of their bedroom in search of a place to hide. Matthew started counting very loudly, masking the sound of his wife's footsteps as she scurried away. Where would she hide? Stephanie was a surprisingly sneaky person, with flexibility that allowed her to hide in unpredictable places. He still loved watching the video of her popping out of the box and throwing Styrofoam pieces at him, back when they lived in New York.

Stephanie decided to be cunning. She walked into the live stream room and shut the door behind her, ensuring that the lights were all turned off so to not give her location away. Giggling, she looked around the room in search of a good hiding spot. The GTLive Golden Play Button sat in the corner of the room, surrounded by the various foam and boxes that it had come packaged in. Jason had clearly cleaned up whilst they were writing scripts, he was a big fan of organisation. Tilting her head, she examined the size of the hole behind all the foam and came to the conclusion that she could fit behind there although it'd be a bit tight. She moved swiftly, shuffling foam and cardboard to the side whilst she squeezed into the hole and then replacing it to cover her limbs that still stuck out.

"30. Ready or not, here I come!"

Matthew exited the bedroom, shutting it behind him and listened carefully. He couldn't hear any footsteps or movement in the surrounding rooms which meant she was either downstairs or had already gotten into position. He decided to check downstairs first, that way she couldn't sneak past him. It must've taken him around twenty minutes but eventually he finished scouring the area, checking in every nook and cranny that he could find. No Stephanie. That meant she was upstairs. Creeping up the stairs, Matthew winced at every creaking floorboard as he attempted to get the jump on Stephanie.

He opened the door to the live streaming room, his eyes scanning the room in search of his beloved wife. After spotting nothing out of the ordinary, he started to leave the room but paused, something amiss in his mind. Taking a second look at the room, Matthew's eyes settled on the pile of foam and cardboard sitting on the sofa. On closer inspection, it was moving slowly. It rose and fell with a constant rhythm as if someone was breathing underneath it. He crept towards it and then launched himself into it, laughing at the squeak of shock that escaped Stephanie. Rolling off of the foam, Stephanie's head poked out of the gap and mockingly glared at Matthew as vengeance for scaring her. His response was to kiss her on the nose, laughing again at the startled expression in her eyes.

Wriggling her way out of the foam and cardboard fort she had built for herself, Stephanie flopped on top of her husband and lay there, her head on his stomach and his hand playing with her hair. A smile rested on both of their faces. Even though the rain had ruined their plans and they would probably go back to work in a short while, they could still enjoy moments like these. In one another's company, not having to communicate yet their love for one another was clearer than ever. Stephanie stared at the ceiling of the live streaming room, thinking of all the good times and fond memories they had created in here. She wondered what memories they had yet to make together. What adventures they would have together. Whether they were big or small, she wanted to be there with Matthew to experience it all with him. After all, he was her other half. He completed her, made her appreciate everything that she was and could be. Even on rainy days, when the world seemed grey and miserable, he lit up the world around her. He was her sunshine. And she was his.

A/N

This was short and sweet. I've been at work all week so didn't have time for a full-length one. Hope you enjoyed regardless. Big thanks to GTLit on Twitter for the prompt.

The game plan is to have Falsely Accused Part 2 completed for next Sunday but considering I have coursework due in 12 days, that may not be possible.

I'll still throw something your way but it'll be short like this till my life calms down again.

Much love,

Caitlin.