Triumphant Return
Title: Triumphant Return
Pairing: Jack/Liz
Rating: PG
Word Count: 1,516
Summary: Sequel to the AU Story “ That Kind of Girl.” With Liz back at TGS, events work out a little differently because Liz once quit.
The return of Pete and Liz was triumphant. Frank and Kenneth were more than happy to dump their series of disasters on someone else. The most immediate problem was that Tracy was in hiding. Fortunately, Liz could practically write the whole episode herself -- no Tracy required -- thanks to the ideas that had come to her over her year in exile.
The year that followed was in many ways one the most confusing of her life. First, with Tracy eventually back in the fold she had to adapt to working with her unstable new star, which was a full-time job in itself. Second, she thought that working for her ex-boyfriend would be awkward all the time, but it wasn't. Jack was right; the work Jack grew on her just as dating Jack had. He taught her things about leadership and life, and looked out for her in ways that she couldn't anticipate. He'd grown from a guy that it was fun to date to a person whose opinion she valued, perhaps more than anyone else's.
One of the more uncomfortable moments was early one morning, when she'd walked in on him with his new girlfriend, C.C. She hadn't really expected him to refrain from dating, but the sight of it was a bit of a shock. It was a shock that made her realize that she should be doing the same thing. Luckily, her job presented several opportunities. There was Jamie the coffee boy, who was great until he turned out to be twenty and to have a mother that looked all too much like Liz; Tracy's manager, Steven Black, who she ended up not liking at all; Gray, who she liked a lot but ultimately turned out to be her cousin; and an ill-advised rerun with Dennis. To his credit, Jack was, surprisingly, enormously supportive of all these escapades but the last. More than anything, it made her realize just how great it had been to date Jack.
**
It was one of Liz's favorite days of the year: sandwich day. The teamsters had just delivered those spectacular subs, and Liz had barricaded herself in her office to enjoy it in peace. It had been a rough couple of weeks, with her guilt about putting Geiss in a coma and possibly ruining Jack's career. He'd seemed a bit brittle since that happened.
“Lemon.” He marched in without knocking. He'd developed the habit of addressing her by her last name. She guessed it was an effort to create the proper distance.
Liz wiped sauce from her mouth. “What's up, Jack?”
He sat down on her couch. His expression was ashen. “How's the sandwich?”
She forced herself to swallow so that she could reply. “Incredible.”
Jack smiled at her gently. He'd meant to talk to her about his crisis, to share some of the burdens. But she seemed so happy and at peace with the sub, he couldn't bear to do it.
“What do you need?”
“Uh... nothing. I was just... stopping by.”
Liz looked at him, confused, as he left her office, hunched over as if carrying a heavy load.
**
He came around again around 6pm. There was no show that week, so the staff had gone home, but Liz was puttering around the writer's room to take care of some things.
“What's wrong, Jack?”
“Banks. He's demoted me. I'm on the twelfth floor.”
Liz was genuinely concerned. “Oh, no.”
“There's no future for me at GE.” Jack seemed defeated. She'd never known him to be so hopeless, so pessimistic. He'd become her compass, and it was disorienting for him to suddenly point south.
“So what are you going to do?”
“I'm taking a job in the Bush Administration.”
Liz's expression went from concern to a full-on frown. “Leave New York?”
“Yes. There's only one thing still holding me here.”
“What's that?”
Jack didn't answer. He just looked at her with a depressed, faraway expression, and turned to leave.
“Jack, wait, don't go--”
He turned.
Something swelled up within Liz. All of a sudden, things that hadn't even occurred to her seemed obvious. With lightning speed, the realization had hit her while she composed the sentence, and it poured out before she could filter it.
“Wait, I don't mean 'don't leave this room'... I mean, 'don't go to Washington.' Because you didn't say what's still holding you here... but if it's what I think it is... it - I mean 'she' - thinks she might be in love with you.”
She had his attention now. “What?”
“ Please don't go.” She took a deep breath. “Because I'm in love with you.” In the moment between sentences, she'd gone from might to is in her heart. She was laying it out on the table now, because there was nothing to lose, and he wasn't even her boss any more, right?
He approached, lifted his chin with her hand, his eyes locked on hers.
“I have to go. I have no choice.”
Then he gave her a kiss, which quickly escalated. She leapt into his arms, legs wrapped around him, as all the feelings came out at once. He inched over to the writers' table for support and set her down as they continued.
"Ew, Jack. You didn't see what Frank and Lutz did on this table today." She frowned. "Let's go in my office."
She took his hand to lead him there.
**
A year ago, they'd both dismissed the idea of a long-distance relationship across the continent. But Washington was a lot closer, and they were a lot closer than they'd been back then. So they decided to give it a shot.
He'd only been gone a matter of days when Liz got the shock of her life - she was pregnant. She wasn't a particularly religious person, but she was seriously considering prayer that the baby was Jack's and not Dennis's. Unfortunately, the timing suggested that it would be a futile hope.
The smart thing to do was to wait till the whole thing was resolved to call him. But she couldn't help herself but to leave messages on his voicemail.
“Hey, Jack, it's Liz. Maybe you're busy spreading democracy. Anyway, give me a call. AHH! Things are happening!”
“Hey, it's Liz Lemon. Funny story! I think I'm pregnant! I'm not sure if it's yours or Dennis Duffy's! I'm sure you're super proud to be in such good company! Ah! In a way, it's what I wanted... yeah, it's going to be fine. But don't worry, I don't have any expectations... however you want to be involved or don't want to be involved, I understand.”
“Dennis knows! Oh God, call me Jack! This is a disaster! I really hope it isn't his!... What? Kenneth just did a flip into the elevator!”
“Jack! I just spent the last hour looking at cribs online! It's crazy, even with all this Dennis stuff, all I can think about is baby hair, and converting my laundry and newspaper pile into a nursery... so I don't want you to freak out about this because... I'm happy... and I've got in under control. And oh yeah, you hear me eating Sabor de Soledad because I can eat whatever I want now... Oh hang on, it's my doctor...”
“...never mind. I am not um... never mind.”
**
He took the next jet to New York without returning her call. After greeting him with an embrace, she explained how the Sabor de Soledad had given her a false positive, but she dared not share how baby-crazy the whole episode had made her. It wasn't a good thing to share with a love interest, and at any rate she was already feeling silly enough.
Jack pondered there, feeling sorry for herself while perched on her ottoman. He began to talk.
"Lemon, I've had a few pregnancy scares before.."
Liz grunted. She didn't like to be reminded of that kind of thing.
"...and your message made me realize something."
"What's that?"
"I'm glad you're not having Dennis Duffy's baby."
She snorted, looking down. "Me too."
"But I think that one day I'd like you to have mine."
Liz looked up. "What?"
As she said it, she realized that he'd produced a ring. She wasn't prepared.
"Wh... are, are you proposing to me?"
"Yes."
"But.. I don't know what to say!"
"You could say, 'yes.'"
She stood up, looking at him, mouth slightly open. She hadn't allowed herself to consider the possibility. But she couldn't think of anyone she could stand as well as she could stand him. They'd worked as a couple and they'd worked as close friends.
And then she wished she wasn't wearing sweats.
"Wait, aren't you living in Washington?"
"I'll get out of it. I'm going to come back to GE."
"So we'd be working together again."
"I don't date key employees because I can't simply ship them off when things go wrong," Jack explained, "but I have no intention of letting things go wrong with you."
"Well then," Liz's mind spun, "OK. I mean yeah. Yes."
It wasn't the most graceful acceptance in the world, but it would have to do.
END
Merry Christmas to everyone!
Pairing: Jack/Liz
Rating: PG
Word Count: 1,516
Summary: Sequel to the AU Story “ That Kind of Girl.” With Liz back at TGS, events work out a little differently because Liz once quit.
The return of Pete and Liz was triumphant. Frank and Kenneth were more than happy to dump their series of disasters on someone else. The most immediate problem was that Tracy was in hiding. Fortunately, Liz could practically write the whole episode herself -- no Tracy required -- thanks to the ideas that had come to her over her year in exile.
The year that followed was in many ways one the most confusing of her life. First, with Tracy eventually back in the fold she had to adapt to working with her unstable new star, which was a full-time job in itself. Second, she thought that working for her ex-boyfriend would be awkward all the time, but it wasn't. Jack was right; the work Jack grew on her just as dating Jack had. He taught her things about leadership and life, and looked out for her in ways that she couldn't anticipate. He'd grown from a guy that it was fun to date to a person whose opinion she valued, perhaps more than anyone else's.
One of the more uncomfortable moments was early one morning, when she'd walked in on him with his new girlfriend, C.C. She hadn't really expected him to refrain from dating, but the sight of it was a bit of a shock. It was a shock that made her realize that she should be doing the same thing. Luckily, her job presented several opportunities. There was Jamie the coffee boy, who was great until he turned out to be twenty and to have a mother that looked all too much like Liz; Tracy's manager, Steven Black, who she ended up not liking at all; Gray, who she liked a lot but ultimately turned out to be her cousin; and an ill-advised rerun with Dennis. To his credit, Jack was, surprisingly, enormously supportive of all these escapades but the last. More than anything, it made her realize just how great it had been to date Jack.
**
It was one of Liz's favorite days of the year: sandwich day. The teamsters had just delivered those spectacular subs, and Liz had barricaded herself in her office to enjoy it in peace. It had been a rough couple of weeks, with her guilt about putting Geiss in a coma and possibly ruining Jack's career. He'd seemed a bit brittle since that happened.
“Lemon.” He marched in without knocking. He'd developed the habit of addressing her by her last name. She guessed it was an effort to create the proper distance.
Liz wiped sauce from her mouth. “What's up, Jack?”
He sat down on her couch. His expression was ashen. “How's the sandwich?”
She forced herself to swallow so that she could reply. “Incredible.”
Jack smiled at her gently. He'd meant to talk to her about his crisis, to share some of the burdens. But she seemed so happy and at peace with the sub, he couldn't bear to do it.
“What do you need?”
“Uh... nothing. I was just... stopping by.”
Liz looked at him, confused, as he left her office, hunched over as if carrying a heavy load.
**
He came around again around 6pm. There was no show that week, so the staff had gone home, but Liz was puttering around the writer's room to take care of some things.
“What's wrong, Jack?”
“Banks. He's demoted me. I'm on the twelfth floor.”
Liz was genuinely concerned. “Oh, no.”
“There's no future for me at GE.” Jack seemed defeated. She'd never known him to be so hopeless, so pessimistic. He'd become her compass, and it was disorienting for him to suddenly point south.
“So what are you going to do?”
“I'm taking a job in the Bush Administration.”
Liz's expression went from concern to a full-on frown. “Leave New York?”
“Yes. There's only one thing still holding me here.”
“What's that?”
Jack didn't answer. He just looked at her with a depressed, faraway expression, and turned to leave.
“Jack, wait, don't go--”
He turned.
Something swelled up within Liz. All of a sudden, things that hadn't even occurred to her seemed obvious. With lightning speed, the realization had hit her while she composed the sentence, and it poured out before she could filter it.
“Wait, I don't mean 'don't leave this room'... I mean, 'don't go to Washington.' Because you didn't say what's still holding you here... but if it's what I think it is... it - I mean 'she' - thinks she might be in love with you.”
She had his attention now. “What?”
“ Please don't go.” She took a deep breath. “Because I'm in love with you.” In the moment between sentences, she'd gone from might to is in her heart. She was laying it out on the table now, because there was nothing to lose, and he wasn't even her boss any more, right?
He approached, lifted his chin with her hand, his eyes locked on hers.
“I have to go. I have no choice.”
Then he gave her a kiss, which quickly escalated. She leapt into his arms, legs wrapped around him, as all the feelings came out at once. He inched over to the writers' table for support and set her down as they continued.
"Ew, Jack. You didn't see what Frank and Lutz did on this table today." She frowned. "Let's go in my office."
She took his hand to lead him there.
**
A year ago, they'd both dismissed the idea of a long-distance relationship across the continent. But Washington was a lot closer, and they were a lot closer than they'd been back then. So they decided to give it a shot.
He'd only been gone a matter of days when Liz got the shock of her life - she was pregnant. She wasn't a particularly religious person, but she was seriously considering prayer that the baby was Jack's and not Dennis's. Unfortunately, the timing suggested that it would be a futile hope.
The smart thing to do was to wait till the whole thing was resolved to call him. But she couldn't help herself but to leave messages on his voicemail.
“Hey, Jack, it's Liz. Maybe you're busy spreading democracy. Anyway, give me a call. AHH! Things are happening!”
“Hey, it's Liz Lemon. Funny story! I think I'm pregnant! I'm not sure if it's yours or Dennis Duffy's! I'm sure you're super proud to be in such good company! Ah! In a way, it's what I wanted... yeah, it's going to be fine. But don't worry, I don't have any expectations... however you want to be involved or don't want to be involved, I understand.”
“Dennis knows! Oh God, call me Jack! This is a disaster! I really hope it isn't his!... What? Kenneth just did a flip into the elevator!”
“Jack! I just spent the last hour looking at cribs online! It's crazy, even with all this Dennis stuff, all I can think about is baby hair, and converting my laundry and newspaper pile into a nursery... so I don't want you to freak out about this because... I'm happy... and I've got in under control. And oh yeah, you hear me eating Sabor de Soledad because I can eat whatever I want now... Oh hang on, it's my doctor...”
“...never mind. I am not um... never mind.”
**
He took the next jet to New York without returning her call. After greeting him with an embrace, she explained how the Sabor de Soledad had given her a false positive, but she dared not share how baby-crazy the whole episode had made her. It wasn't a good thing to share with a love interest, and at any rate she was already feeling silly enough.
Jack pondered there, feeling sorry for herself while perched on her ottoman. He began to talk.
"Lemon, I've had a few pregnancy scares before.."
Liz grunted. She didn't like to be reminded of that kind of thing.
"...and your message made me realize something."
"What's that?"
"I'm glad you're not having Dennis Duffy's baby."
She snorted, looking down. "Me too."
"But I think that one day I'd like you to have mine."
Liz looked up. "What?"
As she said it, she realized that he'd produced a ring. She wasn't prepared.
"Wh... are, are you proposing to me?"
"Yes."
"But.. I don't know what to say!"
"You could say, 'yes.'"
She stood up, looking at him, mouth slightly open. She hadn't allowed herself to consider the possibility. But she couldn't think of anyone she could stand as well as she could stand him. They'd worked as a couple and they'd worked as close friends.
And then she wished she wasn't wearing sweats.
"Wait, aren't you living in Washington?"
"I'll get out of it. I'm going to come back to GE."
"So we'd be working together again."
"I don't date key employees because I can't simply ship them off when things go wrong," Jack explained, "but I have no intention of letting things go wrong with you."
"Well then," Liz's mind spun, "OK. I mean yeah. Yes."
It wasn't the most graceful acceptance in the world, but it would have to do.
END
Merry Christmas to everyone!