It's us {Dani and Jamie}

Serenity

9
- Jamie's Perspective -

Don't go too fast, I told myself, stumbling over the simple act of climbing the stairs, she's never done this before, don't go too fast, don't go too fast...
   
I repeated this to myself over and over, willing it to stick in my mind. I wasn't one to be overexcited. I wasn't one for the nervousness, the tripping over words or the butterflies. But something about this one...
   
I don't know, but the butterflies had found me and they were merciless. Instead of fluttering around, they beat and battered against the walls of my insides, making it very difficult to restrain myself from the urge to drop all forms of subtlety and just kiss her. Right up against that wall right there, what a perfect spot.
   
Not too fast, not too fast.
   
I fumbled the key into the hole to my apartment, flicking on the lights.
   
"So this is it," I murmured, looking around. If I had known this was going to happen maybe I would have cleaned up a bit more. I shoved a stray shirt under the couch with my toe, "Home sweet home."
   
"It's pretty," She smiled at one of my many, many potted plants, "Very you."
   
"Want the tour?"
   
She turned to me with a look of both impatience and amusement that made my stomach do flips,  "Alright..." She sighed, "Give me the tour."

I took a few steps ahead so she was behind me - her stare was making it hard to focus, "There's the kitchen over there. I don't cook much, I'm pretty rubbish at it, so it doesn't really matter that it's small. There's the bathroom, right there on the left - Hey!"

I jumped nearly out of my skin, feeling soft lips press onto the back of my neck. I turned with wide eyes to find Dani, looking at me with a gaze that made the butterflies increase the force of their attack.

"What are you..." I breathed.

"Shh," She whispered, turning me back around, "Keep going with the tour."

"Uh... alright," I swallowed hard as her mouth returned to my neck, "So the... the bathroom is over there. And uh... there's my coffee table."

She wrapped her arms around my waist before stretching her them up my front. Her hands found the buttons near my collar, "Mmh hmm." She prompted.

"There are my crosswords," I continued, breath coming heavily, "I uh... finished a tricky one this morning."

She half laughed, half hummed into my hair as she finished off the buttons,  "Good job."

My 'thankyou' came out as a little gasp as my shirt fell to the floor. Her cool hands touched my skin softly, landing on my upper chest.
"Your heart is racing," She said teasingly.

At this I whirled around, letting my promise to myself to not go too fast fly straight out the open window.

She tasted like strawberry chapstick.

- Dani's Perspective -

   
Heat was coming from multiple sources. One was the soft light streaming through the curtains, dancing across Jamie's delicate features. The other was from her hand, sleeping peacefully on Dani's bare hip.
   
The final source was within the au pair's heart. She had been lying there for several minutes, just breathing in the morning and the gardener. With every intake she felt lighter, giddier - practically high on happiness - reaching a level of serenity she hadn't thought possible.
   
But accompanied with the good - because of it, actually - there was another feeling. A feeling of uneasiness. She hadn't slept this good in a long time, she hadn't felt this good in a long time and that's what worried her.
   
In this room, in this perfect heaven, she realized that something was missing from her normal days of waking up at Bly Manor. A darkness had been lifted off her shoulders that she hadn't realized had been sitting there. Only in the absence of this feeling did she realize how much it had been weighing on her.
   
There was a twinge of fright but then...
   
Blue green eyes.
   
All darkness was gone again.
   
"Mornin' Poppins." She murmured sleepily. The hand on Dani's waist also stirred awake, tracing circles.
   
"Good morning," Dani smiled, "Sleep good?"
   
"You have no," She grinned, leaning in for a quick but careful kiss, "idea."
   
She layed back down and nuzzled into her pillow. They stayed like that for a while in an easy silence, just looking at each other.  Looking... looking... for what could have been either a minute or an hour. Who could tell?
   
"Pancakes?" Jamie finally suggested.
   
"Both of us are terrible cooks."
   
"If we combine both of our bad cooking skills," She reasoned, sitting up, pulling on Dani's sweater over her bare chest, "That has to make one good cooking skill."
   
"Is that how that works?" Dani grinned, admiring how she looked in her sweater.
   
"'Course," Jamie scoffed, "Half plus half equals whole. Math."
   
"Can't argue with that"

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