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MANniversary, part 2

There was always a lot to do before international events, but Seth had gotten used to Becky preparing right alongside him. She had been helping him get ready for his Saudi Arabia trip, but it still felt somewhat bittersweet to him. After she had finished packing one of his bags, Seth pulled her to his chest and kissed her. "Thanks, babe. I need to go out quick and pick up a few things, but I shouldn't be gone long."

That, naturally, piqued Becky's curiosity, and she leaned back to give him a suspicious look. "I can go if you want. Then you can keep packing." After a beat, she rolled her eyes and added, "I won't hurt your precious car, I promise."

"I know, but I'm good. I need to stop at the school anyway, so I'll do it all in one shot." Then he ruffled Becky's hair. "And no, I'm not going to pick up a dog. No snooping while I'm gone."

Becky rolled her eyes. "There's nowhere left to look anyway, unless you have an attic." He had already caught her peeking in the highest kitchen cabinets, almost making her tumble from the countertop when he had surprised her. It was all more amusing than invasive, especially since he knew better than to try hiding anything in his house anymore.

"Then you can stop hunting around. Don't you have a Halloween party to plan?" He kissed her again and grabbed his keys. "I should be back in a couple hours." What he would be coming back to was anyone's guess. Sometimes reverse psychology seemed to work on Becky, but then there were times when her reasoning made no sense to him. It was going to make married life very interesting, to say the least.

He did have errands to run; that much was true. But he also had a small surprise waiting for her at Black and Brave that he wanted to pick up before he forgot about it again. It was technically late now, but he didn't think Becky would mind. Getting away from the school could be hard if students were in session and wanting to ask questions, but he managed to get in and out in less than fifteen minutes. The errands took a bit longer, mostly because fans kept recognizing him, so he was impressed that he managed to get back home in about two and a half hours. "Becks?" he called out as he entered.

Seth couldn't hear her, but he could hear something. Background music, like a soundtrack, and . . . gunfire? Leaving his bags on the floor and part of Becky's surprise on the kitchen counter, he went downstairs to his gaming den.

"Stupid gun empties so quickly!" Becky swore, utterly oblivious to his arrival. She had pushed the coffee table out of the way and was sitting against the couch, her legs stretched out in front of her. "Am I supposed to throw the damn thing at them? It might do more!"

"You just need to reload." Seth chuckled when she jumped, the controller dropping into her lap. He picked it up and pressed a button, bringing up a small map. "The red dots show where you can get more ammo." Then he paused the game and looked at the screen, fervently hoping she hadn't messed with any of his pre-sets or saved games. "You've barely made it into the town! How are you out of ammo already?" He flopped down on the couch and stretched out behind her.

"Because I have no idea what I'm doing, obviously. And I was testing what all the buttons did." Becky shook her head. "Asuka probably won't pick a shooting game, right?"

A glint off to the side caught Seth's eye and he saw Becky's UpUpDownDown belt sitting in the armchair, almost like a coach watching their student. "Holy shit," he swore softly, playing with her ponytail. "When you said you were going to practice, I thought you were joking. . . ."

Becky half-heartedly reached back to bat his hand away. "There's so many damn games! Fighting games and racing games and quest games and shooting games and puzzle games. It's bad enough that I could be facing anyone, but I don't even know what type of game to prepare for! And Asuka's going to challenge me soon. I can feel it. . . ."