*This takes Place before What To Expect When You're Expecting, but after their marriage. Nova and Adrian are living in a house by themselves. They had just gotten back from their honeymoon a week prior and are being self-quarantined, along with the rest of Gatlon.*
Thank you, @grandesventi, for this idea!
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"I'm so bored!" Adrian groaned.
Nova rolled her eyes as she made little tweaks to her latest invention.
"Read a book,' Nova suggested.
"I read all of them!"
"No, you haven't."
"The only books I haven't read are the ones that belong to you and are about war and weaponry." Adrian replied.
The cat Adrian got for Nova was looking out the window, seated on her cat jungle.
"Even the cat is having fun," Adrian groaned.
Nova kind of liked quarantine. She was an introvert, and recharged by being alone, and she was full of energy because she was never around people anymore.
Adrian, however, was a complete extrovert. He lived for other people. He was not doing well.
Nova knew of this thing called the Coronavirus that her ancestors had to go through. It was very contagious and it killed a lot of people. They had developed a vaccine at some point, and the illness was eradicated.
The illness taking over the world now was similar to the coronavirus.
This sickness also had flu-like symptoms, but the only way to differentiate the two was a rash that came with it.
It killed many, mostly the elderly and immunocompromised, just like COVID-19.
Because of this, the government officials made a non-essential travel ban and only people whose jobs were essential were working.
Nova and Adrian, being renegades, were essential workers, but due to the danger this illness posed, the renegade council were only having a certain number of teams working, usually two at a time, since crime was also not very common right now due to Quarantine, and Adrian and his team had the week off.
"Browse the internet," Nova offered.
"I've done that a million times. Ruby and Oscar stocked up on food, Danna is panicking because she ran out of toilet paper and the stores are all out, Tara and Jesse had to postpone their wedding, and Oliver is hanging out with a dog version of Kennedy because she heard that the illness can't affect animals, thus using her shapeshifting power to be a dog 95% of the time. Their yellow lab seems to be enjoying the company, though."
"I bet she's a cute dog."
"An adorable greyhound. But still. I know what everyone is up to."
"Well it's good we had our wedding before all this started," Nova said.
Nova and Adrian had gotten married a mere month before this illness broke out and put the world into a panicked frenzy.
"That's true," Adrian agreed.
The cat meowed and plopped off her cat jungle and walked into Nova and Adrian's bedroom.
"She's probably taking a cat nap," Adrian observed.
"You should quit bothering me and do the same," Nova said.
Adrian sighed.
"We need sardines. I'm going to the store to get sardines," Adrian said, sitting up from his lying position.
"We don't eat sardines, Adrian." Nova said. "Up until last month, you thought a sardine was how someone with a speech impediment called saltines."
"We should try sardines. I'm going to get something."
"Adrian Everhart, if you leave this house, you are sleeping on the porch for two weeks," Nova threatened.
"You sound just like Ruby," Adrian said. "Oscar says that she heard that the illness gets into the bloodstream and that's how people get infected. Since Ruby's blood is abnormal, she doesn't think she can get infected, so she's making Oscar stay home and she's the only one allowed to go grocery shopping and if Oscar takes one step out of the house, their chihuahua starts barking and alerts Ruby."
"Really?"
"Yep. Danna puts on a hazmat suit. Kennedy goes shopping in her greyhound form, and Luna uses her power to make herself super bright to keep people at least six feet away from her. I told you, Nova, I know what everyone is doing because all I ever do is browse social media."
Nova stopped tweaking her invention.
"You wanna watch a movie?" Nova asked.
"Like what? I've seen everything a million times." Adrian complained.
"That's why rewatching is a thing." Nova replied, turning the TV on.
She got onto one of the most popular streaming services and browsed through movies.
"We can watch the Harry Potter series," Nova suggested.
"I'm not in the mood for a movie," Adrian moaned.
Being in quarantine has made Adrian such a baby.
"Adrian, I don't know what to tell you. We have to stay inside. I'm surprised. You're usually the responsible one in our relationship."
"I want to see people! I'm going crazy, Nova!"
"I know, Adrian. I know it's tough. But the more we stay inside, the sooner this pandemic will be over." Nova stated.
"If I hit myself hard enough, can you take me to the hospital?"
"No. I'll order a straitjacket," Nova replied.
"I just want to go somewhere. Anywhere! Even if it's a landfill!" Adrian groaned, lying on the couch again. His head was on Nova's lap.
She sighed and opened her laptop.
"What are you doing?" Adrian asked.
"We're going to facetime Ruby, Oscar, Danna, and Olivia."
Olivia was Danna's new girlfriend. They met because Olivia was the wedding planner Adrian and Nova hired.
Nova facetimed them altogether.
She saw Ruby's exasperated face appear on the screen, along with Oscar.
"Oscar won't stop asking me if I can go to the store and get candy," She complained.
"She only lets me eat healthy anymore! I need my jellybeans!"
"This virus should be a wake-up call that we need to keep our bodies healthy by eating right so our immune system will be strong enough to fend it off."
"I am a renegade! What is healthier than that?! I exercise every day!"
"Hey, guys," Danna said, relaxing on her bed and holding her phone above her.
Olivia and Danna didn't live together yet, because they've only been dating for a month, so Olivia was not with her.
Olivia must have been busy, because she declined the facetime call.
"Danna! Do you have candy?"
"I have some hard candy in my pantry, but that's all..." She sighed. "And I've been using tissues as toilet paper because I'm still out and three stores were all out. Damn hoarders."
"See! Danna has candy, Ruby!"
"Oscar, no! We will eat veggies and organic protein from now on." Ruby snapped. "And we will eat some healthy carrot cake or kettle cooked chips, but only if you've been good."
"But I miss McDonald's!" Oscar cried.
"Nova, please don't make me eat healthy," Adrian said.
"Not a chance," Nova replied. She herself was a chocolate addict. "Besides, we eat salad sometimes. We eat enough veggies,"
"The last time I ate salad was a month ago," Adrian said.
"Shhh," Nova said.
"The last time I ate salad was yesterday," Oscar stated. "I didn't enjoy a minute of it."
"I worked hard on that salad, Oscar!"
"You put lettuce, hardboiled egg pieces, and onions in a bowl. It's not an exact science! You didn't even let me put dressing on it."
"Dressing defeats the purpose of being healthy," Ruby argued.
Adrian was started to feel amused. The argument was hilarious.
"Will you be postponing your wedding?" Adrian asked.
"We're not sure. We're gonna see how long this quarantine lasts," Ruby replied. "But it's looking that way."
They planned to have their wedding a month from now, but that probably won't happen.
"We're pretty much married already. We're already fighting like a couple," Oscar said. "And she's already controlling my diet."
"Only because I care," Ruby replied.
"But I like candy!" Oscar whined. "Don't you care about my happiness?"
"I want you to live a long life, Oscar, not be taken down by some stupid germ." Ruby replied.
"Says the person who never gets a flu vaccine," Oscar said.
"I have a good reason," Ruby said. "I'm not some anti-vaxxer or anything."
"Have you guys been fighting a lot?" Danna asked.
"Only over stupid stuff," Ruby replied. "Most of them happen to be about what's for dinner."
"Just one night where I can have pizza! One night!" Oscar exclaimed.
"I told you I'd think about it!"
"This is why I want to grocery shopping! I don't like the stuff you get." Oscar complained.
"I told you! The virus probably can't affect me, so I'm going! You stay here where I know you're safe!"
"What are you making for dinner tonight?" Adrian asked.
"Baked chicken breasts with mashed cauliflower. The chicken is thawing as we speak."
"I hate my life," Oscar groaned.
"Yeesh," Adrian said as Nova handed him an ice cream sandwich.
"Why do you mock me?" Oscar cried.
Nova muttered "Oops,", just now realizing what she had done.
"I'm not a health nut, but I don't really eat junk food either, but you gotta give Oscar some say," Danna said.
"He's my responsibility now that we live together, and I want him to be healthy." Ruby said.
"So, what was the reason for the call?" Danna asked.
"Adrian keeps complaining that he's bored," Nova said.
"And he's describing the lives of the people we know right now. Apparently, Tara and Jesse had to postpone their wedding, and Luna is taking social distancing to the extreme."
"I spend a lot of time on social media because I'm so bored."
"Yeah, and he wouldn't stop complaining, so I'd thought we'd all talk." Nova said.
"Well, other than just happening to be out of toilet paper at the worst possible time, I'm doing just dandy," Danna said, still lying on her bed. "I've been so lazy lately. The last time I left my bed was when I talked to my dad over the phone, and that was this morning."
"How do you eat?" Ruby asked.
"I turn into a swarm and get a couple of the butterflies fly it to my room," Danna replied. "Technically, I didn't leave the bed. Just some of me did."
"Wow," Nova said. "I can barely get Adrian to sit still. He always wants to go outside or see his dads and Max."
"You're an introvert. You can handle this. But I live for talking to other people!"
"You don't think I want to see Leroy or Evie? 'Course I do! But Leroy is quarantining with his sister, who has increased risk due to a lung condition she was born with, and her son has asthma. Evie has to stay put because several of the other kids at the orphanage have lung problems. Which is why I told you we should take her in."
"We asked her. She said she wanted to stay with her friends."
"We shouldn't have given her a choice!"
"Anyway, besides the dieting, how are you guys?" Nova asked Ruby and Oscar.
"Good. A lot of people say that once you live with a person, they'll start to annoy you, but Oscar is always annoying, so it hasn't changed much." Ruby joked.
"Hey, I complain about wanting candy sometimes. Am I really annoying?"
"No, I was just joking," Ruby said, pecking his cheek. "In fact, you and Mr. Barks-a-lot are the only things keeping me sane."
"Did you really name your chihuahua Mr. Barks-a-lot?" Danna asked.
"No. We're still thinking of a name, so we're using that right now as a nickname, but we try not to call him by that name often because we don't want him thinking it's his real name."
Ruby looked down at her phone. They were using Oscar's laptop to facetime.
"My mom is calling. My brother is infected so she's been updating me. I need to get this," Ruby said.
Adrian knew, of course, and Nova was told by Adrian, so their hearts went out to Ruby and her family. But Sterling was strong, and they knew he would survive. Besides, he wasn't old or immunocompromised.
Oscar ended the call as Ruby said "Hello, mom?"
"Shoot, I'm getting another call." Danna said. "It's from my dad, I should take this."
"Go ahead. Adrian and I can entertain our selves," Nova said.
Danna ended the call.
"What now?" Adrian asked.
"We could build a pillow fort," Nova said.
"Oh! Good idea! We should bake cookies, too!"
Adrian got the cookies out while Nova went throughout the house, grabbing pillows and blankets from every possible place.
First, they would make the cookie batter and then bake it. While it was baking, they'd start on the pillow fort.
Adrian was a decent cook.
Nova was not.
She never had her parents with her as she grew up. She didn't watch anybody do domestic things. It wasn't her fault.
But Adrian used to watch his mom cook, and after she died, he watched his dads make food. They also enjoyed dessert every now and then.
He measured the ingredients out as Nova read them out loud.
They combined them in a cup.
The batter formed, and they used cooking spray and flour to line the pan.
Until Nova realized how messy the flour was.
With a smirk, she threw some at Adrian's face as he turned around to face her.
"Nova!" Adrian exclaimed, looking down at his apron.
(Sidenote: Please don't look up aprons for men. BAD IDEA)
It was a black apron that read "Caution: Extremely Hot". Yeah, it was one of those cheesy ones an embarrassing dad would wear.
"Well, your black apron is now white," Nova said.
Adrian looked at her apron. As a birthday present last year, Oscar and Ruby had gotten Nova a cat apron. It's exactly what it sounds like. An apron covered in cartoon cats
(Sidenote: You can look up cat aprons. None of those images will scar you unless you have a fear of cats).
Every renegade or renegade supporter knows full well that Nova has a soft spot for the creatures, and they never let her forget it.
"Adrian, no. Don't cover the kitties in flour," Nova said, backing away.
"An eye for an eye, Nova Everhart," Adrian said.
"It's Nova Artino-Everhart," Nova corrected.
(Yes, Nova hyphenated. You know she would.)
Adrian flicked flour on the apron.
"I shall avenge my cats!" Nova exclaimed, grabbing a fist full of flour. Most of it slipped through her fingers as she moved, but she threw the remainder in Adrian's face.
The house cat went in the kitchen for some water.
But then she saw the scene, and got the hell out. She headed back to the shared bedroom of Adrian and Nova.
Adrian quickly wiped the powder off his glasses and grabbed some chocolate chips.
He threw them at Nova.
"Hey! Don't waste chocolate, you monster!" She exclaimed, coming up behind him and sprinkling sugar on his hair.
"Hey!" Adrian said, turning around and trying to grab her, but Nova, being so short, just ran under his arm, escaping.
She turned on the sink, and splashed water on Adrian as he stalked towards her.
He grabbed some sugar and threw it on Nova, covering her face.
They went at it, throwing baking supplies at each other, until Adrian noticed how messy the kitchen was and called for a truce.
Nova accepted because damn, Adrian was hard to beat.
"You're good competition," She said to him.
He smiled. 'I learned from the best."
"Well, we'll have to put the pillow fort on hold," Adrian said, surveying the damage.
'But first, we need to put these babies in the oven. I still intend on enjoying some chocolate chip cookies tonight."
"Imagine being in Ruby's house. She'd ban the cookies." Nova said, taking a clump of leftover cookie dough and eating it.
"She's being too hard on Oscar. Junk food is ok in moderation. You gotta enjoy life, and that means enjoying food, too." Adrian said, licking the spoon.
"We can get salmonella," Nova said, but still didn't stop.
"Worth it," Adrian replied.
"Salmonella can't be worse than this virus, right?" Nova said.
"You got a point," Adrian replied.
He put the cookies in the oven and Nova headed to the bathroom to take a quick shower while Adrian started to sweep up the flour and sugar all over the floor.
The cat watched from a spot on the couch, wondering what her humans were up to.
After Nova cleaned herself up, She and Adrian switched roles.
She swept and cleaned, knowing that the sooner she cleans everything up, the sooner they could make the pillow fort.
"Watch out," Nova said to the cat. "Because we're going to have a major cuddle session later and you will have a spot in the middle."
The cat just blinked at Nova and then began licking her paws.
Nova finished cleaning just as Adrian finished up his shower.
"The kitchen is clean. Now we make the pillow fort," Nova said.
"Let me check the kitchen," Adrian replied.
"You don't trust that I did a good job cleaning?" Nova asked, slightly offended.
"I know how excited you are for the fort and in your excitement, you might have forgotten..."
"What?" Nova asked.
"You clean the floor, but you forgot about the whole counter," Adrian replied.
"Oh, sweet rot, you're right," Nova groaned, annoyed at herself.
She and Adrian quickly cleaned the counter, and then moved to the living room and started to build the fort. They forgot all about the cookies.
Adrian looked p from a blanket he was draping over a pile of pillow and sniffed the air.
His eyes widened.
"Nova, the cookies!"
Nova hopped up from behind a pile of pillows that she was working on fluffing up.
Adrian ran to the kitchen, Nova close behind.
He opened the oven and breathed a sigh of relief. He took the cookies out.
"Only the sides are burnt," Nova pointed out. He broke a cookie in half and ate around the burnt side. He gave the other half to Nova.
"Well, the middle is pretty darn good," Adrian said.
"Well, we can put the finishing touches on the pillow fort and then eat the cookies," Nova said.
They finished up the fort. Nova snuck inside, taking the cat, who was very unwilling, while Adrian put the cookies on a platter.
Nova was holding the cat to her chest while Adrian crawled in.
"Um, Nova, maybe..."
"Princess Sweetie stays," Nova growled.
Yes, Nova Artino-Everhart, former anarchist and one of the Renegades toughest members, named her cat Princess Sweetie. Sweetie for short.
"Okay. What are you going to be like when we have kids?" Adrian wondered.
"I'll dote on them more than the cat. Princess Sweetie might get jealous," Nova said, as she set the grumpy cat between the two.
Adrian grabbed a cookie.
"Maybe quarantine isn't so bad. As long as I have you," Adrian said.
"I have the cat. You're just a bonus," Nova replied, nibbling on a cookie.
Adrian just laughed.
The cat shifted a little, so she could curl up and fall asleep.
Nova and Adrian looked at each other.
"I'm exhausted," Adrian said. Nova smiled and kissed his temple, using her powers to put him to sleep.
Then, she laid down.
She didn't need sleep, but whenever she was around Adrian, she found it easier to sleep, and she realized that it did make her feel a little more refreshed than on nights when she didn't sleep.
So, she, too drifted off to sleep.
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I hope you guys enjoyed. I know it's long, but I didn't see the point in making it a two-parter.
And Luna is now one of my favorite OCs. I mean, lighting yourself up to keep others away is pretty extreme, and as an introvert, I respect that.
Anyway, my sister, @grandesventi, gave me this idea and I thought we could all relate, since nearly every country is on lock down right now.
But it's for a good reason! The sooner we can flatten the curve, the sooner we can show this coronavirus who's boss.
So stay inside and stay safe. Rapunzel did it for eighteen years. I think we can handle a few more weeks, and if it gets extended, we have to just keep taking it a day at a time.
I am certainly going to try to help by writing more so you guys will have something to do, but the reason I've been kinda MIA is because all of my assignments are coming at me like a ton of bricks, since it's almost the end of the semester. But once school is over for me, I will have even more time to write and hopefully bring this collection to a close by the end of summer.
Stay strong, and please try not to go out unless you absolutely need to and tell your parents/siblings/friends the same thing if they don't know already. Some people are treating this like it's not a big deal, and that's not ok.
But until next time (probably not until the end of April or beginning of May, when the semester is over)
Keep reading!