Fic: Things We Share
Author: 
andibeth82
Rating: G
Fandom: LOST
Characters: James/Juliet
Spoilers: None really
Word Count: 1,564
Note: James goes to dance lessons, but only to make her happy.
It wasn’t my idea. At least, that’s what James tells himself as he makes his way across the barracks, as if repeating the mantra will make the situation easier. The last thing he wants to do is subject himself to what he’s sure will be pure torture (and probably a bit of embarrassment) but he’s doing this because of her, because of the look on her face when she had seen the sign on the bulletin board last week that advertised free dance lessons. It was a look James had never seen before, not when they were reading together, or laughing at each other’s banter, or cooking dinner. At the time, he couldn’t help but think that maybe if he could do something that made her happy like that, she would have that look around him more often.
He cautiously pushes open the door to the rec room. She’s sitting on the couch, barefoot and swinging her feet against the floor and he can’t help but notice she looks far too much like the six year old version of herself that’s somewhere off the island, far away from their Dharma life. Juliet looks up at his entrance, hiding a smile underneath a sheet of blonde hair.
“Thought I was gonna be the early one here, but it seems you’re showin’ me up already.”
She smiles slightly. “I actually asked you to come a little early. I was hoping we could have some time to ourselves...if that’s okay.”
James doesn’t answer, and Juliet shakes her head. “Come on. Don’t be scared.”
“I ain’t scared!” He realizes his voice is coming out rather defensively and stops himself before speaking again. “We really gotta do this?”
Juliet shrugs, standing up to face him. “We don’t have to do anything.” She steps closer and places her hands on his shoulders, her head just inches away from his. “But it would be nice.”
She’s way too close for comfort and this isn’t anything what he imagined dance lessons would be like, and shit, he’s not prepared. He avoids her gaze and tries not to flinch when she places his hands on her hips.
“So…did you dance as a child?” He tries to keep his voice as casual as possible, tries to keep his mind off where he really wants her hands to be placed at this moment. Juliet nods, and James thankfully notes she seems to be lost in thought.
“Yeah. Took lessons for a few years at a local studio. Would’ve kept with it a lot longer than I did, but the divorce kind of took a toll on my social life, so...” She trails off, shrugging, and nods down at his legs. “Left foot.”
He moves his foot near hers, wondering if she really meant for her gaze to travel that far below his waist. He pulls his eyes away from her body and focuses them on her face. “So why does it make you happy?”
Juliet steps back, harboring a look of confusion. She’s farther from his personal space than before but her arms are still tight around his body, almost as if she doesn’t want to let go now that she’s able to hold him without protest.
“I don’t know.” She thinks for a moment, then moves close to him again, swaying her hips slightly as she starts to lead him around the room. “I guess it was something I was good at, something that I’ll always associate with a good point in my life, you know? My parents were still together, my sister would come to recitals…I’d see their faces in the audience and be reminded of how good it felt to have a family that supported me. I was young, but…you learn quickly not to take things for granted.”
She stops talking suddenly, focusing her eyes on something invisible behind his head. He doesn’t really know what to say in response, so he keeps quiet and realizes it’s completely inappropriate for his mind to start thinking of how much he wants to kiss her, but he can’t help it. Intentional or not, she’s not exactly making it easy for him to think of anything else at the moment.
“Can I ask you a question, James?” Her voice has dropped to a tone that borders on slightly serious. He looks down, noting their arms are still on each other’s bodies, and that she hasn’t made any attempt to pull away despite the fact that they’ve stopped moving entirely. He swallows.
“Yeah. Whatever you want, Blondie.”
Juliet lets her head fall slightly to one side and bites her lip, almost as if she’s debating whether or not to speak. “I know the last thing you wanted to do was come here with me. Don’t apologize,” she adds, seeing the look on his face and realizing how her words must sound. “I know you did it because you wanted to. I just don’t know why.”
For a moment, James can’t answer because she’s staring at him with those eyes, with that look that turns him on even though he quite can’t figure out why. He takes a breath, figuring that if he wants to get anywhere with her that’s not in his head, he might as well start being honest.
“I came because…because…well, I saw the look on your face when you saw that ad the other day,” he says slowly. Her forehead creases, and he hurries on. “I mean, you looked so damn happy, happier than I’ve ever seen an’ well, I thought maybe…maybe if we did this, doin’ it together would make you happy. Give us somethin’ to share besides dinner, you know?”
Her hands finally drop, but she doesn’t respond and for a moment he’s worried that he’s completely screwed up, that he’s said exactly the wrong things and hell, he doesn’t even know the right thing to say would be. He wracks his brain for something that won’t make him sound like a complete idiot, his mind drawing blanks.
“Juliet?”
She’s still silent, unmoving from her spot on the floor. When she finally speaks, her voice is soft and almost unbelieving. “You…really came just for me? Because you thought it would make me happy?”
“Well hell, course I did!” He’s so relieved that she hasn’t stormed out of the room that he bursts out in a tone louder than he means to. “I mean…it does…doesn’t it?”
She smiles almost bashfully, pressing one foot into the floor and steps close to him and now he knows she definitely meant to let her gaze fall below his waist.
“Yes,” she says quietly, wrapping her arms around his chest. The next thing he knows, she’s pressing her lips against his, her hands moving over his shoulders, to the back of his neck and there’s nothing he can do except return the favor and realize she’s actually doing this, this thing that he thought would never happen because he figured she would never look at him in that way.
But she does. And suddenly, as if spurred by that realization, he finds himself pushing back into her, one hand coming up to brace himself against the back wall, his tongue edging deeper and deeper into her mouth while she reciprocates, her motions becoming more aggressive, more harried. She stops the kiss suddenly, letting her tongue linger inside of his mouth for a brief moment before pulling away and there’s nothing but the sound of both their breathing in the silence.
“I’ve been thinking about that for awhile,” she confesses, tucking hair behind her ear, obviously embarrassed. James leans down.
“Wanna know a secret?”
She nods, letting her head fall into his shoulder, feeling the heat from his body against her bare skin.
“I’ve been thinkin’ about it too.”
She starts slightly, letting a smile fold onto her face as she reaches his gaze. His lips quirk into a similar grin.
“Since when?” She realizes that this is not exactly the most romantic post-first kiss conversation, but the words are out before she can stop them. The dimples on James’ face grow deeper.
“Since that day on the dock.”
“Oh.” Juliet falls silent again, and he nudges her toes with the front of his shoe. “Come on, Blondie. Tell me. I wanna know.”
She raises her head, training her gaze towards the ceiling, almost as if she doesn’t want to look him in the eye.
“Since…since that day on the beach. The day you jumped off the helicopter and came back,” she says quietly.
His hands tighten around her in response and she knows she doesn’t need to say anything else, that between both of them a huge weight has been lifted, heavier than anything they ever thought they could carry.
Juliet glances up at the clock on the wall, realizing she’s counting the minutes until they’re no longer alone in the room. “So what do we do now?”
James smiles, bringing a hand to her face, feeling satisfied and happy for the first time in days. He brushes a strand of hair from her forehead. “Well, I thought we’d start with dance lessons, and maybe go from there. Ain’t like we got nowhere else to be…we got time.”
All the time in the world. She closes her eyes against his touch, knowing that if she could make everything stop, she would never leave from this moment.
andibeth82
Rating: G
Fandom: LOST
Characters: James/Juliet
Spoilers: None really
Word Count: 1,564
Note: James goes to dance lessons, but only to make her happy.
It wasn’t my idea. At least, that’s what James tells himself as he makes his way across the barracks, as if repeating the mantra will make the situation easier. The last thing he wants to do is subject himself to what he’s sure will be pure torture (and probably a bit of embarrassment) but he’s doing this because of her, because of the look on her face when she had seen the sign on the bulletin board last week that advertised free dance lessons. It was a look James had never seen before, not when they were reading together, or laughing at each other’s banter, or cooking dinner. At the time, he couldn’t help but think that maybe if he could do something that made her happy like that, she would have that look around him more often.
He cautiously pushes open the door to the rec room. She’s sitting on the couch, barefoot and swinging her feet against the floor and he can’t help but notice she looks far too much like the six year old version of herself that’s somewhere off the island, far away from their Dharma life. Juliet looks up at his entrance, hiding a smile underneath a sheet of blonde hair.
“Thought I was gonna be the early one here, but it seems you’re showin’ me up already.”
She smiles slightly. “I actually asked you to come a little early. I was hoping we could have some time to ourselves...if that’s okay.”
James doesn’t answer, and Juliet shakes her head. “Come on. Don’t be scared.”
“I ain’t scared!” He realizes his voice is coming out rather defensively and stops himself before speaking again. “We really gotta do this?”
Juliet shrugs, standing up to face him. “We don’t have to do anything.” She steps closer and places her hands on his shoulders, her head just inches away from his. “But it would be nice.”
She’s way too close for comfort and this isn’t anything what he imagined dance lessons would be like, and shit, he’s not prepared. He avoids her gaze and tries not to flinch when she places his hands on her hips.
“So…did you dance as a child?” He tries to keep his voice as casual as possible, tries to keep his mind off where he really wants her hands to be placed at this moment. Juliet nods, and James thankfully notes she seems to be lost in thought.
“Yeah. Took lessons for a few years at a local studio. Would’ve kept with it a lot longer than I did, but the divorce kind of took a toll on my social life, so...” She trails off, shrugging, and nods down at his legs. “Left foot.”
He moves his foot near hers, wondering if she really meant for her gaze to travel that far below his waist. He pulls his eyes away from her body and focuses them on her face. “So why does it make you happy?”
Juliet steps back, harboring a look of confusion. She’s farther from his personal space than before but her arms are still tight around his body, almost as if she doesn’t want to let go now that she’s able to hold him without protest.
“I don’t know.” She thinks for a moment, then moves close to him again, swaying her hips slightly as she starts to lead him around the room. “I guess it was something I was good at, something that I’ll always associate with a good point in my life, you know? My parents were still together, my sister would come to recitals…I’d see their faces in the audience and be reminded of how good it felt to have a family that supported me. I was young, but…you learn quickly not to take things for granted.”
She stops talking suddenly, focusing her eyes on something invisible behind his head. He doesn’t really know what to say in response, so he keeps quiet and realizes it’s completely inappropriate for his mind to start thinking of how much he wants to kiss her, but he can’t help it. Intentional or not, she’s not exactly making it easy for him to think of anything else at the moment.
“Can I ask you a question, James?” Her voice has dropped to a tone that borders on slightly serious. He looks down, noting their arms are still on each other’s bodies, and that she hasn’t made any attempt to pull away despite the fact that they’ve stopped moving entirely. He swallows.
“Yeah. Whatever you want, Blondie.”
Juliet lets her head fall slightly to one side and bites her lip, almost as if she’s debating whether or not to speak. “I know the last thing you wanted to do was come here with me. Don’t apologize,” she adds, seeing the look on his face and realizing how her words must sound. “I know you did it because you wanted to. I just don’t know why.”
For a moment, James can’t answer because she’s staring at him with those eyes, with that look that turns him on even though he quite can’t figure out why. He takes a breath, figuring that if he wants to get anywhere with her that’s not in his head, he might as well start being honest.
“I came because…because…well, I saw the look on your face when you saw that ad the other day,” he says slowly. Her forehead creases, and he hurries on. “I mean, you looked so damn happy, happier than I’ve ever seen an’ well, I thought maybe…maybe if we did this, doin’ it together would make you happy. Give us somethin’ to share besides dinner, you know?”
Her hands finally drop, but she doesn’t respond and for a moment he’s worried that he’s completely screwed up, that he’s said exactly the wrong things and hell, he doesn’t even know the right thing to say would be. He wracks his brain for something that won’t make him sound like a complete idiot, his mind drawing blanks.
“Juliet?”
She’s still silent, unmoving from her spot on the floor. When she finally speaks, her voice is soft and almost unbelieving. “You…really came just for me? Because you thought it would make me happy?”
“Well hell, course I did!” He’s so relieved that she hasn’t stormed out of the room that he bursts out in a tone louder than he means to. “I mean…it does…doesn’t it?”
She smiles almost bashfully, pressing one foot into the floor and steps close to him and now he knows she definitely meant to let her gaze fall below his waist.
“Yes,” she says quietly, wrapping her arms around his chest. The next thing he knows, she’s pressing her lips against his, her hands moving over his shoulders, to the back of his neck and there’s nothing he can do except return the favor and realize she’s actually doing this, this thing that he thought would never happen because he figured she would never look at him in that way.
But she does. And suddenly, as if spurred by that realization, he finds himself pushing back into her, one hand coming up to brace himself against the back wall, his tongue edging deeper and deeper into her mouth while she reciprocates, her motions becoming more aggressive, more harried. She stops the kiss suddenly, letting her tongue linger inside of his mouth for a brief moment before pulling away and there’s nothing but the sound of both their breathing in the silence.
“I’ve been thinking about that for awhile,” she confesses, tucking hair behind her ear, obviously embarrassed. James leans down.
“Wanna know a secret?”
She nods, letting her head fall into his shoulder, feeling the heat from his body against her bare skin.
“I’ve been thinkin’ about it too.”
She starts slightly, letting a smile fold onto her face as she reaches his gaze. His lips quirk into a similar grin.
“Since when?” She realizes that this is not exactly the most romantic post-first kiss conversation, but the words are out before she can stop them. The dimples on James’ face grow deeper.
“Since that day on the dock.”
“Oh.” Juliet falls silent again, and he nudges her toes with the front of his shoe. “Come on, Blondie. Tell me. I wanna know.”
She raises her head, training her gaze towards the ceiling, almost as if she doesn’t want to look him in the eye.
“Since…since that day on the beach. The day you jumped off the helicopter and came back,” she says quietly.
His hands tighten around her in response and she knows she doesn’t need to say anything else, that between both of them a huge weight has been lifted, heavier than anything they ever thought they could carry.
Juliet glances up at the clock on the wall, realizing she’s counting the minutes until they’re no longer alone in the room. “So what do we do now?”
James smiles, bringing a hand to her face, feeling satisfied and happy for the first time in days. He brushes a strand of hair from her forehead. “Well, I thought we’d start with dance lessons, and maybe go from there. Ain’t like we got nowhere else to be…we got time.”
All the time in the world. She closes her eyes against his touch, knowing that if she could make everything stop, she would never leave from this moment.