Breathless

A Special Gift

"Fine, wait there," I said, "I'll be down in a minute." I slipped back inside, pushing the window shut and turning back to my room. I grabbed leggings from my desk chair and pulled them on, hissing under my breath as I nearly tripped and fell on the floor. I bolted out of my room and down the stairs, taking them two at a time so I wouldn't make Brian too late. When I got to the front door, I heard giggling and hushed voices from the other side. I thought I recognized the voices, but they were too quiet that I couldn't tell. I opened the door to see Brian and the other Jokers behind him, waving and saying hello before making their way into my house.

"Come in, I guess?" I mumbled, watching as they made their way to the kitchen. Joe was the last to walk in, wielding a massive box of, you guessed it, doughnuts. I stifled a laugh, closing the door behind him and following them into the kitchen. I watched Joe grab a doughnut from the box, but instead of taking a bite out of it, or just shoving the entire thing in his mouth like he so often did, he produced a candle from his pocket, sticking it in the top of the pastry and lighting it with the flamethrower Brian had found in one of the kitchen drawers. I watched on in confusion, wondering whose birthday it was.

"Happy Birthday!" The four said in unison, throwing their hands up with bright eyes and giddy grins. I jumped, suddenly remembering that it was, in fact, my birthday. I must have forgotten about it in the stress of work and this thing Brian and I had going. I took the doughnut from Joe and waited a second before blowing out the candle.

"What did you wish for?" Murr asked, but I shushed him, waving my finger in his direction.

"If I tell you, it won't come true," I reminded him, pulling the candle out and taking a bite of the doughnut.

The five of us spent the rest of the day goofing off, sharing jokes and laughing until tears were running down our faces. It was getting late, and the guys got up, ready to depart. I hugged them each, thanking them for the wonderful time, and Joe for the doughnuts. They were heading out the door, Brian trailing behind them.

"I'll catch up to you guys," He said, which earned a whistle from Sal and a wink from Joe and Murr. We both ignored them, and though I had an idea where this was going, I watched carefully as Brian shut the door, grabbing my hand and pulling me close. "What? Doesn't the birthday girl deserve a special gift?" He asked, not waiting for an answer before pressing his lips against mine, something I don't think I'd ever be used to. A shiver ran down my spine as his hands trailed down to my waist, his fingers slipping underneath my shirt, his kisses trailing down the side of my neck, just above my collar bone. A small sigh escaped my lips, and I felt Brian's lips curl up in a smile against my skin. He pulled away, a cheeky grin lighting up his face. He tugged me toward the couch, sitting down and pulling me on top of him. His hands slid up my back, pulling my shirt over my head and tossing it on the floor. His eyes trailed over my bare skin for a minute, seemingly analyzing every scar and every tattoo. My cheeks heated up as he traced a small tattoo on my left breast, a small rose. He pulled me closer, slamming his lips against mine. Our tongues pressed against each other, seemingly fighting for dominance, and after some time, I gave up, letting him explore my mouth. I grabbed at the edges of his jacket, wrestling with it for a frustrating moment before tugging it off of him and onto the floor beside my shirt. I managed to pull his shirt off, pulling back to marvel at the cat tattoo on the inside of his arm. I chuckled, remembering back to the day he got it done. He scowled at it, and though I thought it was cute, he clearly wasn't too fond of it.

"I can cover that up for you," I offered, but he shook his head, his lips trailing down my neck and to my chest, nibbling at the soft skin. I let out a quiet moan that I thought barely audible, but he must have heard it, because he continued to work the area with gentle kisses and bites. He pulled away to look over his work, giving a nod of approval to the deep purple mark right above the edge of my bra.

I smirked at him, leaning over to press my lips against his neck. His stubble tickled, and I had to suppress a giggle as it brushed against my mouth. I sat like this for a few moments, softly nibbling and licking at the spot just below his jaw. He groaned, holding me tighter against his chest, and though it made it a bit difficult to reach his neck, I enjoyed the feeling of his skin against mine.

I pulled away suddenly as I heard the sound of a car pulling into the drive way. "Oh shit, Alex is home," I realized, nearly falling off of Brian's lap as I went to reach for our shirts. The car outside shut off and I heard the door open and close. We just pulled our shirts on as she walked in the door, staring wide eyed at us for a few minutes before shrieking. She covered her eyes and turned away.

"I'm not seeing this, I'm not seeing this. My roommate is totally not straddling Brian freaking Quinn!" She yelled out, total shock in her voice. I practically threw myself off of Brian, taking a spot next to him on the couch, though he got up a moment later, tugging me up with him.

"I guess I'll be taking my leave," He said, almost hesitantly, as he led me to the door.

I planted a kiss on his lips, pulling away to see a smile run across his face from ear to ear. "Text me later, okay?" I said, and he nodded, backing out of the door and down to his car.

I turned back to Alex to see her stare at me with the same wide eyes she had had a few minutes ago. "You're dating him?" She asked in an eerily hushed tone. I was so afraid that she was angry, but after a second of silence, a grin spread across her face, and she threw her arms around me. "I can't believe it!"

We spent the rest of the night giggling and gossiping about nothing and everything, and it wasn't until we were into the early hours of the morning that we finally went to bed. I was in the bathroom to brush my teeth when I noticed the trail of love bites that snaked down my neck and to my chest. I groaned loudly, wondering what my coworkers were going to say. I traced them lightly with my fingers and smiled, walking out of the bathroom and to my bedroom, flopping down onto the bed and turning off the lamp, easily slipping into a deep, peaceful sleep.

(A/N: Yay, finally a little smut. Also, sorry about the time jump, I just needed it to get to the whole theme of the chapter.)