Stories of Our Life: The Second Volume

7: Poke

Newt liked poking Tina's cheeks. She didn't like to admit it, but Tina has incredibly soft and chubby cheeks. It wasn't that obvious, given that she's tall and a bit thin, but it really shows when she smiles that specific type of smile that everybody knows only Newt can bring out of her.

Tina, on the other hand, found it annoying. Since she was a child, she didn't like having her cheeks pinched or poked at; the reason why is because she was often teased for being "fat" or "too chubby" as a kid, and Tina hated that. Because of that, Tina exercised a lot until she gained the figure she had today (it was required, anyway, as an Auror. For easy and quick movements and reflexes). Her cheeks remained the same, though less chubby and softer.

Effectively, it lessened the number of poking and pinching, but Queenie still did so. Tina tolerated it since she was her sister and all. There was another one, she had recently discovered, who liked to poke her cheek. It was her husband Newt.

And to be honest, she didn't know whether to let him slide or bite his finger off.

Newt would poke her cheeks whenever he can, usually when she's busy. It would usually be quick or subtle so that she wouldn't notice—or so he thought.

--

One lazy afternoon, the Scamander sat in the sitting room of their homely cottage. Newt sighed contentedly as he laid his head on his wife's, who was snuggled beside him, reading a book. He gently stroked her hair as he watched the clouds roll by outside.

Then, he got a "wonderful" idea.

Sneaking a glance at Tina, Newt saw that she was deeply immersed in whatever book she was reading. Slowly, he crept the hand stroking her hair to her left cheek. He paused for a second to see if she noticed.

She didn't, her eyes still on the pages of her book.

Newt sighed inwardly in relief and held out his forefinger, angling the tip towards her cheek and...

Poke

Newt bit his lip to suppress a smile. He repeated the action as quick and subtle as he could, not wanting to disturb her. On the third poke, Newt struggled to hold back a childlike giggle and bit his lip as hard as he could.

Merlin, her cheeks are so soft! He thought.

He was about to poke her for the fifth time when she suddenly spoke. "Try that again and I'll bite your finger off, Mister Scamander," Tina warned, although a smile tugged on her lips as she flipped to the next page.

Newt quickly dropped his hand on her shoulder. He looked at her, eyebrows raised and feigning innocence. "Try what again, love?" he wondered.

His wife sighed disbelievingly and placed her book on her lap. She looked at him, a brow raised as if saying, 'Really?'

"I wasn't doing anything, dear," Newt denied, grinning. Behind her head, Newt carefully moved his forefinger to her cheek again, ready to poke. He was about to do so when—"Ow!" he yelped.

Before his finger could even graze her cheek, Tina swiftly turned her head and bit his finger. She held it tightly between her teeth. She bit down hard, sometimes biting even harder which made Newt cry out in pain.

"Ah, ah—Tina!" exclaimed Newt, trying to pull his finger from her pearly whites.

Tina didn't budge; she merely rolled her eyes at him. This woman, Newt groaned.

Newt aggressively tried to pull his finger from her mouth, to which every attempt only resulted in Tina biting down harder and harder. After a few more attempts, Newt finally gave up and apologized.

"Fine! I'm sorry, I won't poke your cheeks again!" he shrieked. When she didn't, he added hastily (his finger was beginning to sting painfully), "I promise! I promise! Sorry!"

It seemingly did the trick and Tina released his finger, but not without one last bite. Newt retracted his arm from her shoulder and examined his poor finger. A small, dark bite mark was shown on the upside of his forefinger. He tried bending it, but it only hurt more, and when he touched the mark, it stung. He gave a soft whine as he shook his finger to relieve the stinging.

"That was not necessary!" Newt complained, pouting at Tina.

Tina only shrugged halfheartedly, a slight smirk on her lips. "Oh, it absolutely was," she said matter-of-factly.

Newt groaned, rolling his eyes, and then focused on his still-aching finger. The bite mark was still visible, but it didn't hurt much when he tried to move it. Did she really have to bite that hard?

Then, Tina his hand and examined his finger. She touched the mark she had bestowed upon it and Newt yelped again.

"Ah!"

Tina tsked. "Oh, please. I didn't even bite that hard." Then, she pressed a soft kiss on his forefinger before depositing his hand on his lap. Newt was blushing pink when she looked at him, giggling.

"Feel better?" she asked.

Newt looked away, still blushing. "Y-yes..." he mumbled. "I guess."

He heard her giggled again before she cupped his chin. She turned his face towards her. Tina smiled warmly, then leaned in to press their lips together into a sweet kiss.

As soon as he felt her lips on his, Newt immediately forgot the pain of his finger and kiss back. He snaked his arms around her waist and pulled her closer. Her hands placed themselves on his shoulders, one going upwards and ran itself through his hair.

The pair separated a while later, panting slightly, arms still around each other. They shared a few more, quick kisses until Tina decided to get up. Before leaving the couch, she gave Newt one more kiss.

She pulled back and whispered between their lips, "And if you poke my cheeks again, I'll bite your entire hand off next. Got it?" Her voice was menacingly low, creating a shiver down Newt's spine.

Newt gulped as his wife sat back, her face expressionless. "Y-yes, ma'am," he stammered, nodding faintly.

Tina broke into a smile. "Good boy," she chuckled as she stood. She ruffled his hair before leaving the room. Newt's eyes followed her until she disappeared. When she was gone, Newt sighed dreamily and slumped against the couch.

"I love my wife," he said to himself, grinning like a love-sick fool.

A/N: I remember biting my index finger hard for 20 seconds just to get a somewhat accurate description of the pain Newt feels when Tina bit his finger.

Please don't do that. 

[Edited and Re-uploaded: August 8, 2020]