InsaneJournal

Greeting The New Year
Who: Kami, Shae
What: Kami believes that how you spend the first day of the new year is vital... And it probably is when you're facing down the gun of your own negligent self-care.
Where: Kami's apartment, all over Pax, Shae's apartment
When: January 1st
Warnings: Believe it or not, these two fade it to black!


One of the sweetest joys in the year, Kami had always thought, was the chance to sleep in on New Year’s Day. Probably because it was a hotly disputed day and, if you won the right to be away from work on it, you were pretty much considered the luckiest bitch ever. It wasn’t that she needed it to sleep off excess, anyway. She had an insanely high tolerance for alcohol given her size and she never enjoyed going too far with it, anyway. Stone-cold drunk was a rotten way to appreciate a good time, she figured, and Jack hadn't pushed any of it at her the night before.

So it had only been a couple hours past her usual waking time when she surfaced from her dreams and it had nothing to do with alcohol but it still felt terribly decadent. It was also part of the ritual. Something deep within her, beyond rational thought and logic, said that the New Year could never start right if there was no ceremony to bring it to life. Nothing her parents had ever done seemed enough to celebrate a fresh start and so Kami had developed her own set of rules years ago. They were simple and pleasant enough to follow and kept the dark away a little longer. For some reason, the peace felt even stronger this year and she lay in bed for long minutes, reflecting on the subtle difference as if were a faint flicker deep within, sunshine-warm and laced with the grass-scent that kept haunting her.

When Kami finally slipped from her cocoon of blankets, the warmth followed her into the bathroom where the rituals began in earnest. Still smelling the sun-drying grass, she moved through an extra-long hot shower until the mirror fogged, steam bringing all of the blood pumping to the surface, a rosy flush to her skin. Breakfast featured pancakes and eggs and bacon, way more food than she usually ate in the mornings but New Year's Day was special and she ate it all while still in her silky emerald-colored robe. Then it was time for a never-before worn something-or-other and visits. This year, she wrapped herself up in a soft, new cardigan over her t-shirt and loose, knee-length skirt. The color of a perfect summer sky. As she slipped her feet into a pair of heeled clogs, she reviewed the rest of her list in her head. The last batches of cookies sat packaged neatly beside the door, ready for their New Year's homes.

She should start at the bottom, she decided, and work her way up… Except she would temporarily skip the ninth floor, she reminded herself with a grin. The list had grown longer than she expected, coming to include people who she had met only briefly, but that was fine. What was the difference between making a dozen chocolate chip cookies and making ten dozen? Just more flour and maybe more bags to ferry around the building. Kami eyed the pile of silver cellophane bags, each holding a neat dozen, with dubious concern. Lightning hit and she scampered over to fetch a large Victoria’s Secret bag before using one arm to push the packages carefully inside. It was heavier than the bag’s previous occupants but it would work just fine. Even better, it would give Rick a chance to test his wit as well as making Ren go adorably pink.

Now for the list...

Which took longer than she had estimated, she thought, as she began the run of stairs back down to the ninth floor. She glanced at her watch. Nearly four o'clock. A smile crossed her face and she sped her steps, reaching the door in no time and hooking her fingers around the handle to swing into the turn. He ought to be awake at this hour, she told herself as she threw open the door and half-skipped to the apartment of choice with her final bag of cookies. If he wasn't... Well, she would just have to apologize. Her sharp knock echoed in the silence of the hall and she almost winced. She really hoped he hadn't been indulging. Interrupting a hangover was not the way she wanted him to experience her gift.

Absently adjusting the lay of her flimsy skirt with one hand, Kami waited as patiently as she could. After five minutes, she lifted her hand once more to knock but, before she could connect, it swung open and she drew herself back with a faint laugh. Shae stood on the other side, blinking owlishly at his unexpected guest. As he processed her appearance, Kami fought down the giggles provoked by the combination of his expression and the way his dark hair ruffled up in the back, clear bedhead. Though she guessed it was more properly couch-head, knowing the quirks of his hair as she did, not to mention his own bad habits and tendencies. He also carried the faint whiff of beer and dissipation; three guesses how he rang in the New Year and the first two didn't count, she thought. Thrusting the pink Victoria's Secret bag out towards him, she grinned, pure mischief in her dark eyes. "Happy New Year, sugar," she purred. "I brought you something to start it off right."

Shae's expression brightened, eyebrows lifting as he returned her grin. One of his hands reached out towards the bag but course-corrected upon nearing her, wrapping strong fingers around her wrist and giving a tug. She came willingly with a giggle on her lips and he took a step back into the apartment. "Yo'self, ma cher?" he drawled. "Don' min' if I do."

"No, it's more cookies but..." Kami trailed off in favor of snuggling briefly into his chest and she felt the tickle of his thumb stroking the sensitive inside of her wrist. "I guess I could give you some kisses with them if you think you need a little something extra." She lifted her head and met his amused look with a deliberately coquettish eyelash flutter. "If you're going to be greedy..."

"Ahlways. You gon' complain now 'bout it?" He stole the bag from her fingers with his free hand and, other arm tight around her waist to keep her in place, Shae shook open the unknown present to better peer inside. A little cellophane bag crinkled up at him invitingly, a treasure trove of cookies tempting from within. A strange, pensive look crossed his face then and it was all she could do not to laugh. As it was, another giggle still escaped her and Shae gave her a sharp, slightly suspicious glance before breaking into his own smirk. The hand at her waist slid down to curve against her backside. "Close da door, ma cher. You lettin' da col' in."

Despite his order, his hand didn't budge and she rolled her eyes as she carefully balanced on one heeled foot and stretched the other behind her to kick his door shut with a faint slam. Then she tilted her head up, mouth pursed expectantly. His hand tightened on her captured backside instead and he held still. A moment passed and then he laughed. "What you lookin' for?" he teased. "I ain' got no cookies for you, baby." He paused and the smirk returned as he shifted his grip to keep her curvy body more closely pinned to his. He dipped his head lower, lips brushing her hair and the very tip of her ear. "I' all outta sugah," he purred. "Gimme some?"

"Greedy," she repeated on a faint exhalation but Kami tipped her chin up obediently and offered her mouth for the delayed greeting kiss again, her smile soon hidden by his lips on hers. The slow-melt was automatic, the result of many previous kisses adding into his knowledge until Shae could read her reactions like a book. Before too long, her arms snaked up to loop behind his neck and she leaned into his solid form. The kiss broke eventually and their lips parted no more than a hairsbreadth. Kami sighed happily and her smile returned. "Alright, you win," she murmured. "You get sugar... Sugar."

Shae laughed lowly, rolling his eyes, and then he pulled her more firmly up against him. The Victoria's Secret bag dangled from his hand to brush against her backside. Dipping his head, he nuzzled aside a few loose curls until his mouth could find her delicate ear for teasing kisses. "Dat's good, ma cher," he whispered. "So wheah you been t'day?"

She felt another shiver sleet through her at the tickle of warm breath and then Kami giggled. "Starting the new year right for everyone," she answered. Absently, she allowed her hands to move lightly over his back, exploring lean muscle before slipping low to hook her thumbs into the back pockets of his jeans. "One more big batch of cookies spread out and around," she explained. "And smiles, of course, and some hugs. I saved you for last." She looked up at him again and beamed, pleased with her own foresight.

"Dat raght?" Shae brought his free hand up to trail his knuckles against the side of her face. When she reacted with a happy little sigh and leaned her head into his touch, his smirk returned. "Ain' you jes' da sweetes' duhliv'ry guhl evah?"

"I try." Kami turned her face more to brush kisses over his fingertips. "I hope you didn't mind having to wait." She paused, wrinkled her nose, and then gave him a sideways look. "Though I'm betting you weren't conscious until an hour ago. Did you ring in the new year with a liquor store, Shae?"

"Mm, jes' when you knocked," he offered in answer to her first comment. Then he swung his arm outwards, releasing the bag at the last moment to send it landing on the chair he had vacated with a near-miss. Almost immediately, he brought his hand back to cup her backside with a sense of smug ownership. "An' sure did," he added, giving an extra squeeze. She rewarded him with a played-up squeak and he laughed. "Why not? Not'ing else up fo' da naght." Shae looked at her narrowly as if doing his best to reprimand her abandonment. "Wheah you go, ma cher?"

"Last night? Well..." Feeling suddenly a bit uncertain over her on-off lover's response and annoyed at herself for it, Kami hesitated. This was Shae, for God's sake. No strings, just fun. Tipping her head back once more, she grinned. "Jack and his agent took me out to an industry New Year's party. Believe it or not, sugar, I clean up pretty well. Put me in a pretty dress and I'm good to go."

Shae made a vague sound of agreement in the back of his throat and tilted his head to one side. His expression shone with curiosity. A thought seemed to tease there, nearly coming to his lips before he shook his head with a chuckle. "Alraght, den," he agreed. "Wheah da dress?" He lifted an eyebrow and she buried her answering giggles in his chest. One of his hands slithered up her backbone to draw more shivers from her and she pressed in closer out of appreciation. Her laughter faded, smile hidden against his shirt, as she felt the steadily increasing hardness of his crotch against her stomach. His hand edged further up until he could wind the dark-silk strands of her hair between his fingers. She felt the tension in his touch but could not for the life of her begin to fathom it until he spoke again. "On Jack's floor?"

With effort, Kami managed to bite back her flicker of surprised laughter and instead sighed heavily. "Honestly, Shae, what kind of girl do you think I am? I don't just put out for any guy who walks me home and... Oh. Oh, wait." She lifted her head again and delivered her best Wide Eyed Innocent look. Then she gave a little sigh, bottom lip coming out in the slightest of pouts. "But you were special."

“F’true,” he agreed solemnly, nodding and letting the moment go. His hand squeezed down on her backside again as if to prove exactly how special he was and Kami laughed.

She pulled her hands from his back pockets and moved them up and over Shae’s chest lightly. Reaching his shoulders, she slid her hands behind his neck and allowed her weight to rest against his front. Her expression very nearly matched his for smugness. "And, no, the dress is all hung up, nice and neat and in my closet," she answered finally. "I wasn't about to risk tearing it when I came around."

Shae lifted an eyebrow and the twist of his mouth clearly said "Tear your clothing, who, me?" Kami rolled her eyes and shifted a hand to cup the side of his face. "Anyway, I wanted to wear my new sweater," she explained. "What do you think of it?"

Before she could complete the intended step away, however, Shae had caught her wrist neatly and stopped her. "You' a pretteh little t'ing," he chuckled. "An' you know it." A slow, wicked smile grew on his face and he adjusted his grip on her to rub slow circles over the pulse-point of her wrist with his thumb. "So what you realleh wanna aks me? Go on. Ol' Shae won' laugh."

Kami wrinkled her nose but her gaze slipped down to watch him teasing the skin of her wrist. She felt her breath hitch in the back of her throat and allowed her eyes to half close before she shot him a look from beneath lowered lashes. It was so easy to forget some things when he looked at her like that. When she thought about it, there was no surprise that Shae and Jack were friends. God knew they both could turn her head like nobody's business. Nothing more had really been said about the morning after Halloween but the thought of it never went too far from her mind. She suddenly realized that it was a first step and, strange as it was, allowing Jack back into her life bolstered what Shae gave her and so the darkness stayed further away. Longer. It was easier to make them both smile when the light remained. Maybe...

She interrupted her own thoughts with a surprised squeak as her feet parted company with the floor abruptly, Shae's arms around her hoisting her upwards and placing her over his shoulder. "Shae!" she scolded, trying not to flail too much as he settled her more firmly. "What are you doing, you Neanderthal?" Nonetheless, she was giggling; this was not really the first time he decided to change a conversation's direction with a bit of brute force. The thought of her heavy clogs doing damage in this position had her give her feet a little shake and flex until they dropped off to the floor. Only then did Kami allow her legs to kick a bit. "Put me down!"

"Not happenin', ma cher," he answered, unperturbed by her dramatics. "You' gon' go wit' me somewheah now an' stop t'inking so hahd." He shifted her weight to free one hand and delivered a playful smack to her upturned bottom. "When you' wit' me, baby, you' wit' me. Got dat?" He laughed at her shriek of faux outrage and rubbed the abusing hand over one firm cheek before starting the leisurely walk back towards his bedroom. "So... Wit' me?"

Kami let him hang for a few moments until they had cleared the threshold to his room. Then she let her hands slip down over his back teasingly, stretching until she could find the bottom hem of his wife-beater and begin tugging it upwards. "Always," she purred, velvety voice not quite ruined by giggles. "You know, they say what you do on the first day of the new year..." She trailed off as her concentration was required to trace her name at the small of his back with her fingertips. She felt his step stutter, nearly missing a beat at the erotic motion, and flattened her hands against his warm skin. "What you do," she began again, "is how you're going to spend the rest of the year."

A practiced hand at her waist and another just beneath her buttocks helped ease her down off his shoulder and Shae grinned devilishly as he pulled her curvaceous body against his. "Sounds good t' me, ma cher." One hand left her back to trace fingers down the side of her face, cupping her chin as he leaned in for a lingering kiss.

She parted for him readily and squirmed her body into his even more. When they parted, her smile matched his. "Sounds really good," she agreed in a whisper. Then Kami reached up to tangle her hands in his shirt and let her weight drop back onto his mattress, pulling him down along with her. "Mmm, happy New Year, sugar. Let's do this right..."

In the end, Kami decided, she would not mind at all if her entire year went pretty much exactly like this. There were much worse things in the world than enjoying Shae's various talents. Happy New Year, indeed.