1Sentence Entry: Coupling UK, Steve&Susan
Fandom: Coupling, UK sitcom
Pairing: Steve Taylor and Susan Walker
Theme set: Alpha
Rating: 15/soft R
#01 - Comfort *-* She knew it wasn’t a fair question to ask Steve, but she really needed to know: “This doesn’t make me look fat, does it?”
#02 - Kiss *-* Although he is loath to admit it, Steve is glad that with Susan, a kiss doesn’t have to necessarily end in sex like it did with Jane; the amount of carrying on they used to get up to was frankly exhausting.
#03 - Soft *-* Although Patrick teases Steve and calls him a big old softie, he knows, deep down in his heart, that if anyone tried to steal Susan away, his response would be a lot more immediate than the standard rant and angry letter to the Times.
#04 - Pain *-* Although he is glad to have something to do for Susan during the birth, Steve wishes that she hadn’t put him in charge of the pain relief; it upsets him even to see her with a stubbed toe, and this kind of pain has to be hundreds of times worse.
#05 - Potatoes *-* She knows he can't cook, and he knows that she knows; still, he is immensely proud when she eats her burned beans and lumpy mashed potatoes and says the meal was delicious.
#06 - Rain *-* Steve is always secretly pleased when the clouds open up and Susan shelters from the rain under his umbrella instead of bringing one of her own.
#07 - Chocolate *-* Whenever Susan is given a box of Roses she hoards the Bourneville 'til last; it replaced the Caramel Keg as her favourite one when she realised it was the same colour as Steve's hair.
#08 - Happiness *-* Susan's happiest day comes when she realises that all she has to do to make Steve pay attention to her, no matter how engrossed in his PlayStation he may be, is to kiss him passionately and then walk off, pretending nothing happened.
#09 - Telephone *-* Late one evening, when Steve had gone out with the boys, Susan got a surprise text message: I juv u pteve xww.
#10 - Ears *-* One night in bed Susan tries Steve’s “ear thing” out on him, and is rather amazed by the zeal with which he responds.
#11 - Name *-* "Who, exactly, is Angus, Susan - and why was he on your mind at that particular point in time?"
#12 - Sensual *-* There are times when Susan really wishes that Steve wouldn't interpret the words "sensual massage" as "quick back rub followed by randy fumbling".
#13 - Death *-* "Don't be silly, Steve, you're not dying; and, no, I won't stay home to look after you, it's just a summer cold!"
#14 - Sex *-* After his dinner in Hell, Steve decides to never give her parents an opportunity to talk about sex in his flat ever again.
#15 - Touch *-* Steve is a little embarrassed to ask this of Susan; and he finds his mortification is justified by the look on her face when he says, “Could you do that thing with your foot again?”
#16 - Weakness *-* Although Susan feels as though she's been with Steve since the 12th Century, but when he puts on an Australian accent for fun, she finds her knees still go weak.
#17 - Tears *-* Whenever the guys come 'round during (or after) a (compulsory) viewing of Susan's favourite weepy film, Steve claims that he had been cutting raw onions, and, despite a lack of evidence, neither Patrick nor Jeff questions this statement.
#18 - Speed *-* The first time Steve took Susan away in his car he became rather disconcerted when she began asking vital statistics about Miles per Gallon and top speed; when he sheepishly explained that he didn't have a clue, and he only bought it for its looks, Susan laughed in relief, grateful that she hadn't picked another car nut who worships at the altar of Jeremy Clarkson.
#19 - Wind *-* The first time Susan belched in front of Steve was a moment of intense embarrassment for Susan (because that kind of thing is always embarrassing for girls) but it was a moment of deep, heartfelt relief for Steve (because boys are scatological creatures by nature and habit, and he wasn't sure how long he could go without audibly farting in her presence).
#20 - Freedom *-* Susan was very surprised (and pleased) to overhear Steve saying to Patrick that the freedom of being single is rubbish when compared to being with Susan all the time.
#21 - Life *-* Steve was so taken up with Susan’s upset at the fertility clinic that it took him a few days to realise that her judgment was way off; in his own opinion, he was in no way mature enough to become a father.
#22 - Jealousy *-* Susan was late to the bar, as usual, and Jane had taken advantage of that fact to monopolise Steve’s attention; but when Susan saw his look of happiness (and relief) at seeing her arrive, Susan’s jealousy disappeared.
#23 - Hands *-* Steve regrets offering to accompany Susan shopping in the sales; he had a vision of a romantic stroll through the shops, holding hands and picking out pretty things for her to wear in the bedroom; the reality was that she dragged him into every shop and used him as a clotheshorse and pack mule.
#24 - Taste *-* Susan was pleased at first, when Steve agreed that he had no sartorial taste whatsoever; what she didn’t realise is that it meant she had to dress him every day.
#25 - Devotion *-* "Would you like the last biscuit, Susan?"
#26 - Forever *-* Whenever Susan talks wedding bells, Steve worries; after all, forever is a very long time for them to be together, and he thinks he’s probably not the best catch in the world - what he doesn’t know is that Susan has the same fear.
#27 - Blood *-* When Steve and Susan watch horror movies together, she says out loud that it's only tomato sauce and Steve is always relieved to hear this, even though he isn't sure if she says it for her benefit or his.
#28 - Sickness *-* Susan wants to be furious at Steve for inflicting morning sickness on her, but then he holds her head and makes tea and toast for her and she finds she can't be cross anymore.
#29 - Melody *-* After four years of being Steve's girlfriend, Susan suddenly realises that Steve has quite good taste in music, actually; or maybe she’s just so used to hearing the indie rockers in his CD collection that they no longer irritate her.
#30 - Star *-* Susan was very pleased by how literary Steve was, and so it came as a shock when she discovered his fondness for tabloid newspapers.
#31 - Home *-* It might have been his flat once upon a time, but letting her into his life turned it into their home; and really, thinking about it, Susan’s influence made the flat look and feel just the way he liked it.
#32 - Confusion *-* Steve keeps asking Susan to explain why she’s so cross, when, in her opinion, it is perfectly clear that it’s all his fault!
#33 - Fear *-* Steve is quite used to fear of all kinds: hypochondria, career problems, relationship worries and so on, but it is only Susan, and the thought of losing her that really frightens him.
#34 - Lightning/Thunder *-* Neither Susan nor Steve is particularly worried by electrical storms, but Susan still turns the lights off and plugs everything out in case it attracts lightning; it is a quirk that used to annoy Steve until he realised that a proliferation of candles puts Susan in "The Mood".
#35 - Bonds *-* Why is it that silk scarves are impossible to untie only when her parents drop by for an unexpected visit?
#36 - Market *-* Steve hates shopping with Susan because they always end up bickering and arguing; but whenever he goes shopping alone, Steve constantly finds himself in all her favourite shops anyway.
#37 - Technology *-* After Susan first moved in, Steve began making up strange rules regarding gadgets, until Susan realised he didn’t want her vibrator in his flat.
#38 - Gift *-* Steve never remembers things like her birthday or their anniversary, but his attempts to make it up to Susan after the fact are the best gifts she could ask for, simply because it shows how much he fears loves her.
#39 - Smile *-* In between chirps of the phone, Susan realised that she missed seeing his wonky teeth when he smiled; when the door was knocked her first instinct (which was strangely off) was to try and talk with him.
#40 - Innocence *-* Steve is quite old-fashioned in some respects, and Susan's embracing of bad things (like masturbation) shocks him to his core; after their first night together, he realises, that despite her Goldilocks looks, his girlfriend is no innocent creature.
#41 - Completion *-* Driving his sleepy girlfriend and new son home through the rush hour traffic Steve has ample time to contemplate the state of his life; he supposes that he has completed the Situation Comedy portion of his life and is now moving into the Reality segment; he hopes that, if nothing else, it's more fun than Big Brother.
#42 - Clouds *-* "You should stay here in bed today, with me, Susan, because it's cloudy outside and you might catch cold … is that the flimsiest excuse you've ever heard, or the best?"
#43 - Sky *-* When Susan went away for a month for work, Steve spent his days moping around London and comparing the sky unfavourably to the colour of her eyes.
#44 - Heaven *-* As a general rule, Steve hates cuddling in bed, so on days when Susan wakes first and realises he has draped himself around her in his sleep, she wonders whether Heaven will feel as good.
#45 - Hell *-* Hell hath no fury like a pre-menstrual Susan when Steve forgets to pick up the dry cleaning.
#46 - Sun *-* One of the first gifts Susan bought for Steve is a small thing, but he kept it for years - even though it wasn't his preferred tabloid, it was the thought that counted (and the page three girl had no influence in his decision to keep the paper at all).
#47 - Moon *-* Susan likes Steve's flat more than her place because of the location; she also prefers his flat because he has a garden where they have (on more than one occasion) made love beneath the waxing moon.
#48 - Waves *-* When Susan is out of town for more than a day, Steve worries that she will find a better catch somewhere else, so, when he sees her train pulling in, or her plane landing, he waves at her far, far too enthusiastically to successfully pretend he hasn't missed her.
#49 - Hair *-* Susan knows that Steve never notices things like new hair styles - no matter how important they are to her - and so she is terribly proud when, after a marathon styling session in the hairdressers', Steve says he thinks her hair is pretty today.
#50 - Supernova *-* Steve will never, ever admit it to his mates, but he thinks that true love, like he has with Susan, that's returned and everything, is rarer and much more interesting than any kind of astronomical Event, no matter how cool it may be, and no matter how good it looks on Doctor Who and Star Trek.
Pairing: Steve Taylor and Susan Walker
Theme set: Alpha
Rating: 15/soft R
#01 - Comfort *-* She knew it wasn’t a fair question to ask Steve, but she really needed to know: “This doesn’t make me look fat, does it?”
#02 - Kiss *-* Although he is loath to admit it, Steve is glad that with Susan, a kiss doesn’t have to necessarily end in sex like it did with Jane; the amount of carrying on they used to get up to was frankly exhausting.
#03 - Soft *-* Although Patrick teases Steve and calls him a big old softie, he knows, deep down in his heart, that if anyone tried to steal Susan away, his response would be a lot more immediate than the standard rant and angry letter to the Times.
#04 - Pain *-* Although he is glad to have something to do for Susan during the birth, Steve wishes that she hadn’t put him in charge of the pain relief; it upsets him even to see her with a stubbed toe, and this kind of pain has to be hundreds of times worse.
#05 - Potatoes *-* She knows he can't cook, and he knows that she knows; still, he is immensely proud when she eats her burned beans and lumpy mashed potatoes and says the meal was delicious.
#06 - Rain *-* Steve is always secretly pleased when the clouds open up and Susan shelters from the rain under his umbrella instead of bringing one of her own.
#07 - Chocolate *-* Whenever Susan is given a box of Roses she hoards the Bourneville 'til last; it replaced the Caramel Keg as her favourite one when she realised it was the same colour as Steve's hair.
#08 - Happiness *-* Susan's happiest day comes when she realises that all she has to do to make Steve pay attention to her, no matter how engrossed in his PlayStation he may be, is to kiss him passionately and then walk off, pretending nothing happened.
#09 - Telephone *-* Late one evening, when Steve had gone out with the boys, Susan got a surprise text message: I juv u pteve xww.
#10 - Ears *-* One night in bed Susan tries Steve’s “ear thing” out on him, and is rather amazed by the zeal with which he responds.
#11 - Name *-* "Who, exactly, is Angus, Susan - and why was he on your mind at that particular point in time?"
#12 - Sensual *-* There are times when Susan really wishes that Steve wouldn't interpret the words "sensual massage" as "quick back rub followed by randy fumbling".
#13 - Death *-* "Don't be silly, Steve, you're not dying; and, no, I won't stay home to look after you, it's just a summer cold!"
#14 - Sex *-* After his dinner in Hell, Steve decides to never give her parents an opportunity to talk about sex in his flat ever again.
#15 - Touch *-* Steve is a little embarrassed to ask this of Susan; and he finds his mortification is justified by the look on her face when he says, “Could you do that thing with your foot again?”
#16 - Weakness *-* Although Susan feels as though she's been with Steve since the 12th Century, but when he puts on an Australian accent for fun, she finds her knees still go weak.
#17 - Tears *-* Whenever the guys come 'round during (or after) a (compulsory) viewing of Susan's favourite weepy film, Steve claims that he had been cutting raw onions, and, despite a lack of evidence, neither Patrick nor Jeff questions this statement.
#18 - Speed *-* The first time Steve took Susan away in his car he became rather disconcerted when she began asking vital statistics about Miles per Gallon and top speed; when he sheepishly explained that he didn't have a clue, and he only bought it for its looks, Susan laughed in relief, grateful that she hadn't picked another car nut who worships at the altar of Jeremy Clarkson.
#19 - Wind *-* The first time Susan belched in front of Steve was a moment of intense embarrassment for Susan (because that kind of thing is always embarrassing for girls) but it was a moment of deep, heartfelt relief for Steve (because boys are scatological creatures by nature and habit, and he wasn't sure how long he could go without audibly farting in her presence).
#20 - Freedom *-* Susan was very surprised (and pleased) to overhear Steve saying to Patrick that the freedom of being single is rubbish when compared to being with Susan all the time.
#21 - Life *-* Steve was so taken up with Susan’s upset at the fertility clinic that it took him a few days to realise that her judgment was way off; in his own opinion, he was in no way mature enough to become a father.
#22 - Jealousy *-* Susan was late to the bar, as usual, and Jane had taken advantage of that fact to monopolise Steve’s attention; but when Susan saw his look of happiness (and relief) at seeing her arrive, Susan’s jealousy disappeared.
#23 - Hands *-* Steve regrets offering to accompany Susan shopping in the sales; he had a vision of a romantic stroll through the shops, holding hands and picking out pretty things for her to wear in the bedroom; the reality was that she dragged him into every shop and used him as a clotheshorse and pack mule.
#24 - Taste *-* Susan was pleased at first, when Steve agreed that he had no sartorial taste whatsoever; what she didn’t realise is that it meant she had to dress him every day.
#25 - Devotion *-* "Would you like the last biscuit, Susan?"
#26 - Forever *-* Whenever Susan talks wedding bells, Steve worries; after all, forever is a very long time for them to be together, and he thinks he’s probably not the best catch in the world - what he doesn’t know is that Susan has the same fear.
#27 - Blood *-* When Steve and Susan watch horror movies together, she says out loud that it's only tomato sauce and Steve is always relieved to hear this, even though he isn't sure if she says it for her benefit or his.
#28 - Sickness *-* Susan wants to be furious at Steve for inflicting morning sickness on her, but then he holds her head and makes tea and toast for her and she finds she can't be cross anymore.
#29 - Melody *-* After four years of being Steve's girlfriend, Susan suddenly realises that Steve has quite good taste in music, actually; or maybe she’s just so used to hearing the indie rockers in his CD collection that they no longer irritate her.
#30 - Star *-* Susan was very pleased by how literary Steve was, and so it came as a shock when she discovered his fondness for tabloid newspapers.
#31 - Home *-* It might have been his flat once upon a time, but letting her into his life turned it into their home; and really, thinking about it, Susan’s influence made the flat look and feel just the way he liked it.
#32 - Confusion *-* Steve keeps asking Susan to explain why she’s so cross, when, in her opinion, it is perfectly clear that it’s all his fault!
#33 - Fear *-* Steve is quite used to fear of all kinds: hypochondria, career problems, relationship worries and so on, but it is only Susan, and the thought of losing her that really frightens him.
#34 - Lightning/Thunder *-* Neither Susan nor Steve is particularly worried by electrical storms, but Susan still turns the lights off and plugs everything out in case it attracts lightning; it is a quirk that used to annoy Steve until he realised that a proliferation of candles puts Susan in "The Mood".
#35 - Bonds *-* Why is it that silk scarves are impossible to untie only when her parents drop by for an unexpected visit?
#36 - Market *-* Steve hates shopping with Susan because they always end up bickering and arguing; but whenever he goes shopping alone, Steve constantly finds himself in all her favourite shops anyway.
#37 - Technology *-* After Susan first moved in, Steve began making up strange rules regarding gadgets, until Susan realised he didn’t want her vibrator in his flat.
#38 - Gift *-* Steve never remembers things like her birthday or their anniversary, but his attempts to make it up to Susan after the fact are the best gifts she could ask for, simply because it shows how much he fears loves her.
#39 - Smile *-* In between chirps of the phone, Susan realised that she missed seeing his wonky teeth when he smiled; when the door was knocked her first instinct (which was strangely off) was to try and talk with him.
#40 - Innocence *-* Steve is quite old-fashioned in some respects, and Susan's embracing of bad things (like masturbation) shocks him to his core; after their first night together, he realises, that despite her Goldilocks looks, his girlfriend is no innocent creature.
#41 - Completion *-* Driving his sleepy girlfriend and new son home through the rush hour traffic Steve has ample time to contemplate the state of his life; he supposes that he has completed the Situation Comedy portion of his life and is now moving into the Reality segment; he hopes that, if nothing else, it's more fun than Big Brother.
#42 - Clouds *-* "You should stay here in bed today, with me, Susan, because it's cloudy outside and you might catch cold … is that the flimsiest excuse you've ever heard, or the best?"
#43 - Sky *-* When Susan went away for a month for work, Steve spent his days moping around London and comparing the sky unfavourably to the colour of her eyes.
#44 - Heaven *-* As a general rule, Steve hates cuddling in bed, so on days when Susan wakes first and realises he has draped himself around her in his sleep, she wonders whether Heaven will feel as good.
#45 - Hell *-* Hell hath no fury like a pre-menstrual Susan when Steve forgets to pick up the dry cleaning.
#46 - Sun *-* One of the first gifts Susan bought for Steve is a small thing, but he kept it for years - even though it wasn't his preferred tabloid, it was the thought that counted (and the page three girl had no influence in his decision to keep the paper at all).
#47 - Moon *-* Susan likes Steve's flat more than her place because of the location; she also prefers his flat because he has a garden where they have (on more than one occasion) made love beneath the waxing moon.
#48 - Waves *-* When Susan is out of town for more than a day, Steve worries that she will find a better catch somewhere else, so, when he sees her train pulling in, or her plane landing, he waves at her far, far too enthusiastically to successfully pretend he hasn't missed her.
#49 - Hair *-* Susan knows that Steve never notices things like new hair styles - no matter how important they are to her - and so she is terribly proud when, after a marathon styling session in the hairdressers', Steve says he thinks her hair is pretty today.
#50 - Supernova *-* Steve will never, ever admit it to his mates, but he thinks that true love, like he has with Susan, that's returned and everything, is rarer and much more interesting than any kind of astronomical Event, no matter how cool it may be, and no matter how good it looks on Doctor Who and Star Trek.