Something About Stars (10/20)
Title - Something About Stars (10/20)
Author - earlgreytea68
Rating - General
Characters - OCs
Spoilers - Through the specials.
Disclaimer - I don't own them and I don't make money off of them, but I don't like to dwell on that, so let's move on. (Except for the kids, they're all mine.)
Summary - Four Time Lords and a Bad Wolf human, gallivanting through time and space. What could possibly go wrong?
Author's Notes - I am about to once again become engulfed in work and social obligations, so it's another early post this week. Also, an unusually short chapter, but trust me when I tell you that it had to stand on its own, and I think it will make all of you happy.
Huge thanks to Kristin and chicklet73 , who talked through plot points. Special thanks to Kristin for coming up with the title. And even more thanks to jlrpuck and c73, who so graciously beta'd.
The icon was created by swankkat , commissioned by jlrpuck for my birthday.
Prologue - Ch 1 - Ch 2 - Ch 3 - Ch 4 - Ch 5 - Ch 6 - Ch 7 - Ch 8
Chapter Nine
She didn’t land the TARDIS in his flat. She felt that might be stepping over a line after the words that had been flung on her previous visit, so she landed on the street, across from his flat, and she waited, because, at some point, he would have to leave or come home.
It turned out that she met him coming home, that he had almost walked past the TARDIS before he stopped and turned back to it slowly. Athena stood up, from where she’d been sitting on the curb waiting.
Matt put his hands in his pockets and raised his eyebrows expectantly.
She really wished she’d planned something out, some sort of speech, something, instead of just rushing right here and what exactly had she been doing while she waited for him, she could have planned a spectacular speech for him!
“Can we go somewhere?” she heard herself blurt out.
He regarded her for a very long moment. It was twilight, and the light was too dim for her to quite make out the expression in his eyes. Then he nodded.
She would have skipped over to him, she was so delighted to have passed this first hurdle, but he was not smiling or looking especially welcoming so she thought skipping might be premature. She walked over to him solemnly. He said nothing to her, simply turned and started walking, and she walked next to him, trying now to belatedly plan her spectacular speech.
He held the door open, when they got to where he had been leading her, and she saw it was a bar, full of cozy corners and squishy chairs. He did not lead her to a cozy corner or a squishy chair, going instead for a prosaic and uninviting bar stool, and she reluctantly slid onto the stool next to him, thinking that she would have preferred a cozy corner for her spectacular speech.
He made a small gesture to the bartender, and she watched him, the jut of his chin and the curve of his nose, the way his dark hair curled against the nape of his neck. She found herself staring at the nape of his neck.
“So what’s up?” he asked, heavily. And then, self-consciously, “What?”
She shifted her gaze to his face, and he clapped a hand to the back of his neck and rubbed.
“What?” he asked again, and she realized it was obvious she’d been staring.
“Matt, about…” She trailed off, trying to figure out what the actual topic was.
He waved his hand. “Let’s not discuss it. What’s up? What do you need?”
She stared at him, as the bartender passed him a bottle of beer and he took a sip and they had shouted at each other and she had taken away his Thhhhhhhhhhhmyrian fudge and all of her DVDs (among other advanced video technologies) and she had shown up here again without even an apology and he had not even hesitated but asked her what she needed. And partially she was appalled that maybe she only came to see Matt when she needed him, but mostly she was realizing that she always needed him and that he had always let her need him and had never demanded anything from her in return and she scooted forward on her barstool, closer to him, and he looked at her if he was expecting her to speak and instead she closed her fingers into that lovely hair on the nape of his neck and kissed him.
He pulled away with a strangled noise of obvious surprise, staring at her wide-eyed. “What’s wrong with you?” he breathed.
“Nothing,” she said. “Matt-”
“No. Really.” He put a hand over each side of her chest, and she knew it had nothing to do with a thought toward a caress but more that he was checking that both her hearts were beating. “Is it some kind of…” He frowned in thought. “What could it be? A…drug? A virus?”
“Matt,” she said, and kissed him again.
“Listen to me,” he murmured, drawing back again but not nearly as far away as he’d moved the last time. His hands had risen up, cradling her head, his thumbs stroking at her jaw. “If you keep kissing me, I’m going to kiss you back.”
“Any time you’d like to start doing that would be fine with me,” she told him, kissing him again, and he did kiss her back then, and, for the first time in her life, Athena Tyler smiled while being kissed. It was the most astonishing feeling. Happiness bubbled up from the tips of her toes, until she had to push Matt away to laugh with sheer joy.
He looked at her worriedly. “See, you’re really not okay, you’re-”
“I’ve never been better,” she told him, honestly. “I’ve really never been better.” She threw her arms around him and buried her nose into the curve of his neck, underneath the collar of the button-down shirt he was wearing. “Did you come from work?” she asked, contentedly, nuzzling at him.
“I really think you’re not okay,” he said, even as he held her to him. She was properly off her bar stool now, standing between his legs, and his hands were wonderfully warm against the small of her back.
She chuckled and straightened. His hands stayed securely on her back, as he looked up at her, hazel eyes cast with concern. “I love you so much,” she realized, in astonishment. “I love you so, so much.”
He stopped breathing, the rise and fall of his chest suspended. He stared at her, his eyes searching her face. “Tell me you mean it,” he said, finally.
“I mean it.”
He stood abruptly and kissed her hard, before pulling back just as abruptly. “Just a second,” he told her, and then dug cash out of his pocket and dropped it on the bar. Then he took her hand. “We need to talk,” he said, and led her out of the bar.
“Matt, I’m sorry,” she said, as they walked, feeling it was necessary to let him know this, that she was sorry for everything. “I’m so sorry. I-“
He stopped walking, turning to her. “It doesn’t matter. None of it matters now. Say it again.”
“I love you.”
“I love you, too,” he said, and caught her up in another kiss.
“Matt,” she mumbled.
He grunted, busy still kissing her.
“Can we go to your flat?”
“Yes. That’s where we’re going. Right now. Or in just a second. Soon.”
“To talk?”
“What?” He sounded slightly annoyed she kept talking to him.
“Are we going to your flat to talk?”
“Yes.”
“When we’re done talking, can we not talk?”
“Yes,” he answered, and then paused and pulled away. “Full disclosure,” he said.
Athena felt a sinking feeling in her stomach. “Is this about Kelly?”
He shook his head. “No, I…I broke up with Kelly.”
Athena was surprised. “You did?”
“Yes, she got some ridiculous idea in her head that I was in love with someone else. I don’t know where she got this idea.”
Athena smiled at him and kissed him again.
“No. Seriously,” he said, pushing her away. “Full disclosure. I don’t have any…I mean, there are no…See, the thing about tentacles is that…I don’t have any.”
Athena looked delighted. “I know. You’re you, that’s what makes you perfect. And this will be my first time, without the tentacles. It’s almost like being a virgin again!”
Matt looked fretful. “I don’t know if that’s less pressure, or more.”
Athena laughed, and hugged him again, and buried her face against him again. She had hugged him countless times but it was different to hug him and know that she loved him. She wanted to hug him forever. “I am absurdly in love with you,” she said, and then he kissed her again, and stars burned overhead, and time didn’t skip.
Next Chapter
Author - earlgreytea68
Rating - General
Characters - OCs
Spoilers - Through the specials.
Disclaimer - I don't own them and I don't make money off of them, but I don't like to dwell on that, so let's move on. (Except for the kids, they're all mine.)
Summary - Four Time Lords and a Bad Wolf human, gallivanting through time and space. What could possibly go wrong?
Author's Notes - I am about to once again become engulfed in work and social obligations, so it's another early post this week. Also, an unusually short chapter, but trust me when I tell you that it had to stand on its own, and I think it will make all of you happy.
Huge thanks to Kristin and chicklet73 , who talked through plot points. Special thanks to Kristin for coming up with the title. And even more thanks to jlrpuck and c73, who so graciously beta'd.
The icon was created by swankkat , commissioned by jlrpuck for my birthday.
Prologue - Ch 1 - Ch 2 - Ch 3 - Ch 4 - Ch 5 - Ch 6 - Ch 7 - Ch 8
Chapter Nine
She didn’t land the TARDIS in his flat. She felt that might be stepping over a line after the words that had been flung on her previous visit, so she landed on the street, across from his flat, and she waited, because, at some point, he would have to leave or come home.
It turned out that she met him coming home, that he had almost walked past the TARDIS before he stopped and turned back to it slowly. Athena stood up, from where she’d been sitting on the curb waiting.
Matt put his hands in his pockets and raised his eyebrows expectantly.
She really wished she’d planned something out, some sort of speech, something, instead of just rushing right here and what exactly had she been doing while she waited for him, she could have planned a spectacular speech for him!
“Can we go somewhere?” she heard herself blurt out.
He regarded her for a very long moment. It was twilight, and the light was too dim for her to quite make out the expression in his eyes. Then he nodded.
She would have skipped over to him, she was so delighted to have passed this first hurdle, but he was not smiling or looking especially welcoming so she thought skipping might be premature. She walked over to him solemnly. He said nothing to her, simply turned and started walking, and she walked next to him, trying now to belatedly plan her spectacular speech.
He held the door open, when they got to where he had been leading her, and she saw it was a bar, full of cozy corners and squishy chairs. He did not lead her to a cozy corner or a squishy chair, going instead for a prosaic and uninviting bar stool, and she reluctantly slid onto the stool next to him, thinking that she would have preferred a cozy corner for her spectacular speech.
He made a small gesture to the bartender, and she watched him, the jut of his chin and the curve of his nose, the way his dark hair curled against the nape of his neck. She found herself staring at the nape of his neck.
“So what’s up?” he asked, heavily. And then, self-consciously, “What?”
She shifted her gaze to his face, and he clapped a hand to the back of his neck and rubbed.
“What?” he asked again, and she realized it was obvious she’d been staring.
“Matt, about…” She trailed off, trying to figure out what the actual topic was.
He waved his hand. “Let’s not discuss it. What’s up? What do you need?”
She stared at him, as the bartender passed him a bottle of beer and he took a sip and they had shouted at each other and she had taken away his Thhhhhhhhhhhmyrian fudge and all of her DVDs (among other advanced video technologies) and she had shown up here again without even an apology and he had not even hesitated but asked her what she needed. And partially she was appalled that maybe she only came to see Matt when she needed him, but mostly she was realizing that she always needed him and that he had always let her need him and had never demanded anything from her in return and she scooted forward on her barstool, closer to him, and he looked at her if he was expecting her to speak and instead she closed her fingers into that lovely hair on the nape of his neck and kissed him.
He pulled away with a strangled noise of obvious surprise, staring at her wide-eyed. “What’s wrong with you?” he breathed.
“Nothing,” she said. “Matt-”
“No. Really.” He put a hand over each side of her chest, and she knew it had nothing to do with a thought toward a caress but more that he was checking that both her hearts were beating. “Is it some kind of…” He frowned in thought. “What could it be? A…drug? A virus?”
“Matt,” she said, and kissed him again.
“Listen to me,” he murmured, drawing back again but not nearly as far away as he’d moved the last time. His hands had risen up, cradling her head, his thumbs stroking at her jaw. “If you keep kissing me, I’m going to kiss you back.”
“Any time you’d like to start doing that would be fine with me,” she told him, kissing him again, and he did kiss her back then, and, for the first time in her life, Athena Tyler smiled while being kissed. It was the most astonishing feeling. Happiness bubbled up from the tips of her toes, until she had to push Matt away to laugh with sheer joy.
He looked at her worriedly. “See, you’re really not okay, you’re-”
“I’ve never been better,” she told him, honestly. “I’ve really never been better.” She threw her arms around him and buried her nose into the curve of his neck, underneath the collar of the button-down shirt he was wearing. “Did you come from work?” she asked, contentedly, nuzzling at him.
“I really think you’re not okay,” he said, even as he held her to him. She was properly off her bar stool now, standing between his legs, and his hands were wonderfully warm against the small of her back.
She chuckled and straightened. His hands stayed securely on her back, as he looked up at her, hazel eyes cast with concern. “I love you so much,” she realized, in astonishment. “I love you so, so much.”
He stopped breathing, the rise and fall of his chest suspended. He stared at her, his eyes searching her face. “Tell me you mean it,” he said, finally.
“I mean it.”
He stood abruptly and kissed her hard, before pulling back just as abruptly. “Just a second,” he told her, and then dug cash out of his pocket and dropped it on the bar. Then he took her hand. “We need to talk,” he said, and led her out of the bar.
“Matt, I’m sorry,” she said, as they walked, feeling it was necessary to let him know this, that she was sorry for everything. “I’m so sorry. I-“
He stopped walking, turning to her. “It doesn’t matter. None of it matters now. Say it again.”
“I love you.”
“I love you, too,” he said, and caught her up in another kiss.
“Matt,” she mumbled.
He grunted, busy still kissing her.
“Can we go to your flat?”
“Yes. That’s where we’re going. Right now. Or in just a second. Soon.”
“To talk?”
“What?” He sounded slightly annoyed she kept talking to him.
“Are we going to your flat to talk?”
“Yes.”
“When we’re done talking, can we not talk?”
“Yes,” he answered, and then paused and pulled away. “Full disclosure,” he said.
Athena felt a sinking feeling in her stomach. “Is this about Kelly?”
He shook his head. “No, I…I broke up with Kelly.”
Athena was surprised. “You did?”
“Yes, she got some ridiculous idea in her head that I was in love with someone else. I don’t know where she got this idea.”
Athena smiled at him and kissed him again.
“No. Seriously,” he said, pushing her away. “Full disclosure. I don’t have any…I mean, there are no…See, the thing about tentacles is that…I don’t have any.”
Athena looked delighted. “I know. You’re you, that’s what makes you perfect. And this will be my first time, without the tentacles. It’s almost like being a virgin again!”
Matt looked fretful. “I don’t know if that’s less pressure, or more.”
Athena laughed, and hugged him again, and buried her face against him again. She had hugged him countless times but it was different to hug him and know that she loved him. She wanted to hug him forever. “I am absurdly in love with you,” she said, and then he kissed her again, and stars burned overhead, and time didn’t skip.
Next Chapter