Fic: After Sunset
Title: After Sunset
Fandom/Pairing: How I Met Your Mother, Robin/Barney
Spoilers: All the way up to 405- Shelter Island
Rating: G
Summary: How things pan out as the sun sets on Shelter Island
Length: 2,369 words.
Notes: This is my first fic, unbetaed, first ever post to LJ so forgive me if my formatting sucks, I need help! Please comment! =)
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The setting sun cast a warm orange glow on the deck of the ferry from Shelter Island. The breeze picked up and gently played with wisps of her brown hair, blowing them across her face, but Robin didn’t even notice as her mind reeled at the sight before her.
An hour ago, Ted had adamantly called Stella “The One”. And here she was, resplendent in the wedding gown she was supposed to be marrying him in, and in the arms of another man.
Robin clenched her fists and looked away, stealing incredulous glances at the couple from the corner of her eye, hoping they wouldn’t turn around and notice her staring. Some part of her wanted to scream at Stella and call her a Grinch for what she was doing to Ted, but when she realized this was Lucy’s father and that they were gazing at each other so lovingly, she just closed her eyes, took a deep breath and counted to…around eighty-three…
This was it. She had reached her breaking point. From a monkey throwing marshmallows at her head to quitting her job at short notice and shipping all her (mostly unopened) luggage back to New York, everything had fallen apart those last few days. She thought she would be welcomed back home by everyone, only to be dispatched off Shelter Island - alone - because nobody had bothered to book a room for her, and Barney had a blond dreadlocked girl with unshaven armpits (eww!) tied to his headboard.
She crossed her arms, leaned back against the cabin wall and squeezed her eyes shut, hoping that when she opened them Stella and Tony would have moved away. The orange dusk light was all that permeated through her closed eyelids, and she began to wonder which hotel she should stay at when she reached the city, or whether she should just rent a car and drive to her aunt’s farm upstate, crash there for about a week and spend some time with her five dogs. Her aunt’s lover Betty did make the most comforting beef goulash this side of the border… she needed some time away from Ted, away from Barney even (how could he forget - “Bros before ho’s”- he knew she was arriving that evening and would want to hang out with him…)
She needed to just…escape… from everyone, but especially from herself and her old life, which- no matter where in the world she was- just didn’t seem to be going anywhere.
Shelter Island:
Halfway through reading Stella’s note, Barney glanced down at Ted, and having already guessed the outcome of the letter, he did his best to reassuringly squeeze his best friend’s shoulder. Marshall looked gravely at his own feet. Lily was on the verge of tears and kept glancing worriedly at Ted, anticipating some sort of outburst from the jilted groom. Ted was just staring blankly into space, his mouth contorted into an expression that none of them had ever seen before -a strange hybrid of anger, disappointment and sadness.
“I’m really sorry Ted…”said Barney as he finished glancing over the last sentence (“I love you Ted, but I also have always loved Tony”…really?!) Lily piped in, “Ted, I know what you’re thinking, but this was totally not your fault. You only invited Tony ‘cause-”
“-Guys, let’s just get the hell outta here. I don’t want to talk about this right now. I just want to go home…back to my city, to my own bed, in my own apartment. I want to go back to my old life. I can’t stand to be in this place a minute longer.”
Marshall immediately snapped his eyes away from his feet and looked directly at Lily - they had all moved out of the apartment but still had a week’s worth of the old lease left. The big problem was that all of Ted’s stuff had been packed up and moved to…
New Jersey…
Oh boy, if ever there was a time for telepathic plans to be made in half a minute, this was it!
“Lily, quick, think of a way to stall Ted while I go get some of his stuff back to the apartment from Stella’s house!”
"Of course, honey. When we get back to Manhattan, we’ll take him straight to MacLaren’s. Barney and I will keep an eye on him. By the way, where’s Robin?”
“I don’t know baby, I didn’t see her come in from Japan even.”
“Did Ted go and un-invite her from the wedding? Was that when Stella went to talk to Tony and…decide to leave?”
Marshall’s expression transformed to one of sudden realization. His Lilypad was the smartest woman on the planet….nay, the universe!
Ted was already up on his feet and silently packing what little he had brought back into his suitcase. They made it just in time for the last ferry, Marshall trying to lighten the mood by letting the others win at Zitch Dog on the drive back.
It was pretty late by the time they got to MacLaren’s, and Barney insisted that Marshall stay to console Ted. “I’ve already made all the arrangements to get his stuff back into the apartment in the next two hours”, he said. “Did you really think I was playing Tetris on my phone all the way back here? Please…just leave it to me, Marshall. Ted’s really crushed, he can’t ever go back to New Jersey and you’re his best friend so you better just stay with him, you hear me?”
Marshall feebly attempted to interject but was cut off with “No ‘buts’ Eriksen!” from Barney, who grabbed the apartment keys and almost flew out of the bar, his phone already pressed to his ear. It took Marshall a while to realize that Barney had just admitted for the first time that Marshall was Ted’s best friend…
Two hours later, at MacLaren’s:
“Whhhhhooooo caaaahaaaarrreeeeesssss???? THAT was not MY wedding anyway! Right? RIIIGHT?! I’M gonna get married in…wait for it…CENTRAL PARK. I’M gonna live in Manhattan. I’M gonna..”- and with that, Ted slipped off the chair he was standing on while the entire bar looked on, openly gaping at him as he went down, dousing himself with the pint in his outstretched hand.
“Gosh, Ted, I leave you for a minute to go take a leak and you manage to give yourself a concussion?! Man, let’s get you up to the apartment”, said Marshall, pulling Ted up from the floor and pulling his arm across his shoulder. He turned to Lily and said, “Baby, its ok if his stuff is not here yet, but could you go ahead and make up his bed with the old sheets we left in the closet? It’ll take a while for me to get him up the stairs...”
Lily nodded wordlessly and rushed up the stairs, relieved that she could finally be of some help. She had run out of ideas to try to console Ted about an hour ago. Nothing could stop him from downing those shots. When she got to the staircase, her path was blocked by a chain of uniformed moving men passing boxes up all the way to their apartment.
Inside, Barney was barking strict orders to the men unpacking the boxes, pointing out exactly where the lamp, the telephone booth, the Encyclopædias and cushions should be placed. Lily was astounded by the fact that 99 percent of Ted’s stuff was all back in their original places in such a short time, and when Barney turned around and noticed her, she squealed with glee and offered him a high five. Barney just smiled… it was nice to have friends like Lily with whom you could communicate without even exchanging words.
Speaking of good friends, he had completely forgotten about Scherbatsky in all this. Earlier in the evening when the receptionist and Stella’s sister (what was her name…Naomi…Noelle…whatever) had left and he was getting dressed for the ceremony, all he could think of was the way Robin’s eyes had glazed over, and the disappointment in her tone when she mumbled, “See you Barney”.
He had done it this time. Not a chance, there was no hope now. Forget banging her, he didn’t think she’d even want to be bros any more. Forgetting the movers, Ted being dumped at the alter and Lily standing in front of him, Barney just closed his eyes and sighed.
Lily was not an awesome kindergarten teacher for nothing - she could read people and kids like billboards, even the ones who would sweep the Oscars for their acting skills if given half a chance. She knew something was up. And, having seen that look on Barney in only one kind of situation, she knew it was about Robin.
“Well, well, Barney Stinson, what have you gone and done this time?” she asked.
“Wait….what? Lily, can’t you see I’m busy setting up Ted’s stuff…go and bother somebody else or make yourself useful around here.” With that he pushed her towards a carton full of James Bond tapes and photo albums.
Shaking her head at Barney’s hopelessness, Lily picked up an album, and a loose picture of Robin and Ted from their Vancouver trip fell out onto the floor. She knelt to pick it up, looked at the picture and looked up at Barney who was seeing the last of the movers out, signing the release forms and pressing a wad of cash into the guy’s hand.
“Barney, what happened with you and Robin at Shelter Island? Why did she leave and not even come by our room to say hi?”
Barney spun around, looked down at her, spotted the picture in her hand, broke out a sheepish grin and mumbled, “Who? Robin? Uhh…well…she came by but I was…erm…otherwise occupied and she…well, she kinda stormed off…” He collapsed onto the couch, closed his eyes and massaged his forehead. “Let’s not talk about Robin right-”
“Whaat ABOOT Rooobin?! Oh my God, Robin was COMPLETELY right about EVERYTHING. She’s what its all aboot!!! Why didn’t I dfdijsodfm,,,,,”
Barney and Lily jumped at the sight of drunken Ted who had just come to and was standing at the door, leaning heavily on Marshall, suddenly realizing he needed to barf. “Oh oh…” said Marshall, rushing Ted across the living room towards the bathroom, expertly dodging the cartons and Lily still kneeling beside them.
Oblivious to Ted’s queasiness, Lily was just staring, open-mouthed at Barney. “Why, you….”
And in one quick movement she was on her feet, she crossed the room and punched Barney so hard in the arm that he screamed out in pain. “AAARGH!! LILY!!! Don’t hit me!!! I didn’t do anything!”
“Barney Stinson, don’t say I didn’t warn you. I knew you wouldn’t be able to hold out, but I never expected you would be so disgusting that you’d be doing it with some other chick a half-hour before the ceremony, when you KNEW Stella wasn’t expecting Robin and she didn’t have a room and was likely to come looking for one of us. What kind of an idiot are you Barney?”
“A completely awesome idiot is what I am…”
“…An idiot, nonetheless! You have to call her and apologize. Where do you think she’s going to stay? She’s just got back to New York, she’s all alone with no place to stay…”
“You guys talking about Robin?” said Marshall, sticking his head out of the bathroom door. “Yeah, Ted’s going to be ok…hang in there buddy…oh, Robin left me a message saying she’s going upstate to her aunt’s farm to check in on her five dogs.”
Barney perked up and, pointing an accusing finger at Lily, said, “See, Lily, Robin’s fine! She’s a fighter, doesn’t need any of us to take care of her! Besides, I’m sure she doesn’t want to be anywhere near me….uhhhmm…Ted right now, so let’s just drop this subject already. Now, if Ted’s done throwing up, Marshall can tuck him in to his fully and awesomely made bed and the rest of us can make last call at MacLaren’s. I haven’t had a drop of alcohol in two whole days, and all those yoga lessons”, he said, winking pointedly, “have got me thirsty…whaaaat up?!”
“Barney, that’s not the whole story”, Marshall continued. “I called Robin just to make sure she was okay, and she sounded pretty bad. She said she quit her job in Tokyo, she was really unhappy there and now she has no job and no place to stay in New York.”
Lily watched as Barney’s mischievous grin about his recent exploits turned into a somber look of actual concern. She just sighed and said under her breath, “Way to go, Barney…”
“She was on the same boat as Stella and Tony”, Marshall continued, “So she already knew what happened with…well…”
“Maaaarshaaaal! Lilllyyyy! Bahaharneeey!!! Did I ever tell you how much I love you guys? I love you… more than I loved that GRINCH Stella!!! Weee”, drawled Ted, pointing in a circle to all of them, “should all get married…at a mall….TODAY!! Ugh, my head doesn’t feel so good…”
With that, Ted stumbled out of the bathroom and onto the couch. Barney jumped off just in time for Ted’s head to come crashing down where he was just sitting.
“He’s oot, as Scherbatsky would say”, Barney chuckled. “So much for making up his bed for him to sleep in…”
“Poor Ted,” said Lily, “we’d better just let him sleep it off on the couch; it’s been a rough day for him.” She disappeared into Ted’s room for a while, while Marshall heaved Ted’s feet up onto the couch. Lily returned with a blanket and gently covered him with it. She wrapped her arms around Marshall and whispered something into his chest. Marshall just smiled down at Lily and then at passed out Ted.
Barney, having found no alcohol at Stella’s place or in any of Ted’s cartons, made his way down to the bar alone. Sipping his scotch, he whipped out his phone and sent an email to his company’s real estate agent. It was marked “Urgent”, and went something along the lines of offering a considerable commission for finding an apartment in Brooklyn immediately for a certain Ms. Scherbatsky.
Fandom/Pairing: How I Met Your Mother, Robin/Barney
Spoilers: All the way up to 405- Shelter Island
Rating: G
Summary: How things pan out as the sun sets on Shelter Island
Length: 2,369 words.
Notes: This is my first fic, unbetaed, first ever post to LJ so forgive me if my formatting sucks, I need help! Please comment! =)
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The setting sun cast a warm orange glow on the deck of the ferry from Shelter Island. The breeze picked up and gently played with wisps of her brown hair, blowing them across her face, but Robin didn’t even notice as her mind reeled at the sight before her.
An hour ago, Ted had adamantly called Stella “The One”. And here she was, resplendent in the wedding gown she was supposed to be marrying him in, and in the arms of another man.
Robin clenched her fists and looked away, stealing incredulous glances at the couple from the corner of her eye, hoping they wouldn’t turn around and notice her staring. Some part of her wanted to scream at Stella and call her a Grinch for what she was doing to Ted, but when she realized this was Lucy’s father and that they were gazing at each other so lovingly, she just closed her eyes, took a deep breath and counted to…around eighty-three…
This was it. She had reached her breaking point. From a monkey throwing marshmallows at her head to quitting her job at short notice and shipping all her (mostly unopened) luggage back to New York, everything had fallen apart those last few days. She thought she would be welcomed back home by everyone, only to be dispatched off Shelter Island - alone - because nobody had bothered to book a room for her, and Barney had a blond dreadlocked girl with unshaven armpits (eww!) tied to his headboard.
She crossed her arms, leaned back against the cabin wall and squeezed her eyes shut, hoping that when she opened them Stella and Tony would have moved away. The orange dusk light was all that permeated through her closed eyelids, and she began to wonder which hotel she should stay at when she reached the city, or whether she should just rent a car and drive to her aunt’s farm upstate, crash there for about a week and spend some time with her five dogs. Her aunt’s lover Betty did make the most comforting beef goulash this side of the border… she needed some time away from Ted, away from Barney even (how could he forget - “Bros before ho’s”- he knew she was arriving that evening and would want to hang out with him…)
She needed to just…escape… from everyone, but especially from herself and her old life, which- no matter where in the world she was- just didn’t seem to be going anywhere.
Shelter Island:
Halfway through reading Stella’s note, Barney glanced down at Ted, and having already guessed the outcome of the letter, he did his best to reassuringly squeeze his best friend’s shoulder. Marshall looked gravely at his own feet. Lily was on the verge of tears and kept glancing worriedly at Ted, anticipating some sort of outburst from the jilted groom. Ted was just staring blankly into space, his mouth contorted into an expression that none of them had ever seen before -a strange hybrid of anger, disappointment and sadness.
“I’m really sorry Ted…”said Barney as he finished glancing over the last sentence (“I love you Ted, but I also have always loved Tony”…really?!) Lily piped in, “Ted, I know what you’re thinking, but this was totally not your fault. You only invited Tony ‘cause-”
“-Guys, let’s just get the hell outta here. I don’t want to talk about this right now. I just want to go home…back to my city, to my own bed, in my own apartment. I want to go back to my old life. I can’t stand to be in this place a minute longer.”
Marshall immediately snapped his eyes away from his feet and looked directly at Lily - they had all moved out of the apartment but still had a week’s worth of the old lease left. The big problem was that all of Ted’s stuff had been packed up and moved to…
New Jersey…
Oh boy, if ever there was a time for telepathic plans to be made in half a minute, this was it!
“Lily, quick, think of a way to stall Ted while I go get some of his stuff back to the apartment from Stella’s house!”
"Of course, honey. When we get back to Manhattan, we’ll take him straight to MacLaren’s. Barney and I will keep an eye on him. By the way, where’s Robin?”
“I don’t know baby, I didn’t see her come in from Japan even.”
“Did Ted go and un-invite her from the wedding? Was that when Stella went to talk to Tony and…decide to leave?”
Marshall’s expression transformed to one of sudden realization. His Lilypad was the smartest woman on the planet….nay, the universe!
Ted was already up on his feet and silently packing what little he had brought back into his suitcase. They made it just in time for the last ferry, Marshall trying to lighten the mood by letting the others win at Zitch Dog on the drive back.
It was pretty late by the time they got to MacLaren’s, and Barney insisted that Marshall stay to console Ted. “I’ve already made all the arrangements to get his stuff back into the apartment in the next two hours”, he said. “Did you really think I was playing Tetris on my phone all the way back here? Please…just leave it to me, Marshall. Ted’s really crushed, he can’t ever go back to New Jersey and you’re his best friend so you better just stay with him, you hear me?”
Marshall feebly attempted to interject but was cut off with “No ‘buts’ Eriksen!” from Barney, who grabbed the apartment keys and almost flew out of the bar, his phone already pressed to his ear. It took Marshall a while to realize that Barney had just admitted for the first time that Marshall was Ted’s best friend…
Two hours later, at MacLaren’s:
“Whhhhhooooo caaaahaaaarrreeeeesssss???? THAT was not MY wedding anyway! Right? RIIIGHT?! I’M gonna get married in…wait for it…CENTRAL PARK. I’M gonna live in Manhattan. I’M gonna..”- and with that, Ted slipped off the chair he was standing on while the entire bar looked on, openly gaping at him as he went down, dousing himself with the pint in his outstretched hand.
“Gosh, Ted, I leave you for a minute to go take a leak and you manage to give yourself a concussion?! Man, let’s get you up to the apartment”, said Marshall, pulling Ted up from the floor and pulling his arm across his shoulder. He turned to Lily and said, “Baby, its ok if his stuff is not here yet, but could you go ahead and make up his bed with the old sheets we left in the closet? It’ll take a while for me to get him up the stairs...”
Lily nodded wordlessly and rushed up the stairs, relieved that she could finally be of some help. She had run out of ideas to try to console Ted about an hour ago. Nothing could stop him from downing those shots. When she got to the staircase, her path was blocked by a chain of uniformed moving men passing boxes up all the way to their apartment.
Inside, Barney was barking strict orders to the men unpacking the boxes, pointing out exactly where the lamp, the telephone booth, the Encyclopædias and cushions should be placed. Lily was astounded by the fact that 99 percent of Ted’s stuff was all back in their original places in such a short time, and when Barney turned around and noticed her, she squealed with glee and offered him a high five. Barney just smiled… it was nice to have friends like Lily with whom you could communicate without even exchanging words.
Speaking of good friends, he had completely forgotten about Scherbatsky in all this. Earlier in the evening when the receptionist and Stella’s sister (what was her name…Naomi…Noelle…whatever) had left and he was getting dressed for the ceremony, all he could think of was the way Robin’s eyes had glazed over, and the disappointment in her tone when she mumbled, “See you Barney”.
He had done it this time. Not a chance, there was no hope now. Forget banging her, he didn’t think she’d even want to be bros any more. Forgetting the movers, Ted being dumped at the alter and Lily standing in front of him, Barney just closed his eyes and sighed.
Lily was not an awesome kindergarten teacher for nothing - she could read people and kids like billboards, even the ones who would sweep the Oscars for their acting skills if given half a chance. She knew something was up. And, having seen that look on Barney in only one kind of situation, she knew it was about Robin.
“Well, well, Barney Stinson, what have you gone and done this time?” she asked.
“Wait….what? Lily, can’t you see I’m busy setting up Ted’s stuff…go and bother somebody else or make yourself useful around here.” With that he pushed her towards a carton full of James Bond tapes and photo albums.
Shaking her head at Barney’s hopelessness, Lily picked up an album, and a loose picture of Robin and Ted from their Vancouver trip fell out onto the floor. She knelt to pick it up, looked at the picture and looked up at Barney who was seeing the last of the movers out, signing the release forms and pressing a wad of cash into the guy’s hand.
“Barney, what happened with you and Robin at Shelter Island? Why did she leave and not even come by our room to say hi?”
Barney spun around, looked down at her, spotted the picture in her hand, broke out a sheepish grin and mumbled, “Who? Robin? Uhh…well…she came by but I was…erm…otherwise occupied and she…well, she kinda stormed off…” He collapsed onto the couch, closed his eyes and massaged his forehead. “Let’s not talk about Robin right-”
“Whaat ABOOT Rooobin?! Oh my God, Robin was COMPLETELY right about EVERYTHING. She’s what its all aboot!!! Why didn’t I dfdijsodfm,,,,,”
Barney and Lily jumped at the sight of drunken Ted who had just come to and was standing at the door, leaning heavily on Marshall, suddenly realizing he needed to barf. “Oh oh…” said Marshall, rushing Ted across the living room towards the bathroom, expertly dodging the cartons and Lily still kneeling beside them.
Oblivious to Ted’s queasiness, Lily was just staring, open-mouthed at Barney. “Why, you….”
And in one quick movement she was on her feet, she crossed the room and punched Barney so hard in the arm that he screamed out in pain. “AAARGH!! LILY!!! Don’t hit me!!! I didn’t do anything!”
“Barney Stinson, don’t say I didn’t warn you. I knew you wouldn’t be able to hold out, but I never expected you would be so disgusting that you’d be doing it with some other chick a half-hour before the ceremony, when you KNEW Stella wasn’t expecting Robin and she didn’t have a room and was likely to come looking for one of us. What kind of an idiot are you Barney?”
“A completely awesome idiot is what I am…”
“…An idiot, nonetheless! You have to call her and apologize. Where do you think she’s going to stay? She’s just got back to New York, she’s all alone with no place to stay…”
“You guys talking about Robin?” said Marshall, sticking his head out of the bathroom door. “Yeah, Ted’s going to be ok…hang in there buddy…oh, Robin left me a message saying she’s going upstate to her aunt’s farm to check in on her five dogs.”
Barney perked up and, pointing an accusing finger at Lily, said, “See, Lily, Robin’s fine! She’s a fighter, doesn’t need any of us to take care of her! Besides, I’m sure she doesn’t want to be anywhere near me….uhhhmm…Ted right now, so let’s just drop this subject already. Now, if Ted’s done throwing up, Marshall can tuck him in to his fully and awesomely made bed and the rest of us can make last call at MacLaren’s. I haven’t had a drop of alcohol in two whole days, and all those yoga lessons”, he said, winking pointedly, “have got me thirsty…whaaaat up?!”
“Barney, that’s not the whole story”, Marshall continued. “I called Robin just to make sure she was okay, and she sounded pretty bad. She said she quit her job in Tokyo, she was really unhappy there and now she has no job and no place to stay in New York.”
Lily watched as Barney’s mischievous grin about his recent exploits turned into a somber look of actual concern. She just sighed and said under her breath, “Way to go, Barney…”
“She was on the same boat as Stella and Tony”, Marshall continued, “So she already knew what happened with…well…”
“Maaaarshaaaal! Lilllyyyy! Bahaharneeey!!! Did I ever tell you how much I love you guys? I love you… more than I loved that GRINCH Stella!!! Weee”, drawled Ted, pointing in a circle to all of them, “should all get married…at a mall….TODAY!! Ugh, my head doesn’t feel so good…”
With that, Ted stumbled out of the bathroom and onto the couch. Barney jumped off just in time for Ted’s head to come crashing down where he was just sitting.
“He’s oot, as Scherbatsky would say”, Barney chuckled. “So much for making up his bed for him to sleep in…”
“Poor Ted,” said Lily, “we’d better just let him sleep it off on the couch; it’s been a rough day for him.” She disappeared into Ted’s room for a while, while Marshall heaved Ted’s feet up onto the couch. Lily returned with a blanket and gently covered him with it. She wrapped her arms around Marshall and whispered something into his chest. Marshall just smiled down at Lily and then at passed out Ted.
Barney, having found no alcohol at Stella’s place or in any of Ted’s cartons, made his way down to the bar alone. Sipping his scotch, he whipped out his phone and sent an email to his company’s real estate agent. It was marked “Urgent”, and went something along the lines of offering a considerable commission for finding an apartment in Brooklyn immediately for a certain Ms. Scherbatsky.