InsaneJournal

Who: Alyssa Hamilton & Christian Grey
What: Comforting
When: The same day as this log
Where: Christian's flat
Rating/Warnings: PG13, ftb smut
Status: Complete



It was Christian’s day off, and he’d spent it mostly at home. For once he’d chosen to do nothing with it - not even gone for a run. He’d slept late, played with the cat, and read a book. He was finishing his book now, even as his phone went off.

Alyssa was in her house, pacing in her room. She hadn’t been able to stop crying, not even when the ghost had apologized and left her alone for a bit. She wanted to be held, she wanted to kiss Christian and tell him that she loved him, but she chose instead to call him and make sure that he’d be all right with that first thing. The second one, she knew that it wouldn’t happen.

Christian picked up absentmindedly. “H’lo? Lady, stop it.”

“Christian? May I - may I come over?” She knew she sounded weepy, but she couldn’t help it.

Instantly Christian was alert. “What’s happened? Are you all right? ... Erm. And of course you can come here.” Alyssa didn’t sound this upset even when things were very bad.

“Thank you.” She hung up as she started to splash the door with water to start the teleportation process. She walked into Christian’s flat, wiping her cheeks and biting her lip. “Christian?” It was a weak, sniffling cry, and she hated it.

He would have guessed he’d react badly to something like this, but instead he just put his arms around her, shaking his head. “What on earth’s happened, luv? Your mum all right?” For all the complaining they did, he had no doubt that Alyssa would be sad if her mum were to pass or something.

“She’s fine, she’s all right.” Alyssa burrowed into his chest, wrapping her arms tightly around him. She just wanted to feel how solid he was, how present, how alive. She took a shuddering breath. “I was out and about, and I saw a ghost, which happens fairly often. But she wanted me to tell her boyfriend that she wasn’t going to move on until he came to terms with her death. She was - murdered in their flat, and he blames himself.” The words came out muffled, and she held on more tightly.

“Bloody hell.” Christian had to think about that one. The idea was so odd. To lose someone and to actually have them there, looking out for you. To choose to stay. “She must have adored him.”

“She was murdered, and he thinks it’s his fault, so she wants to make sure he’s okay before she leaves.” Alyssa was still crying, but she could still talk. “She really did love him.”

“Christ.” That kind of devotion was completely unknown to Christian. He couldn’t fathom that kind of love. He just held her tighter. “What did you have to do? Did you send her to rest?” Old Catholic habits died hard.

“I asked her if I could, but she wants to stay for him for a while.” Alyssa leaned back, wiping her eyes so she wouldn’t get mascara on Christian’s shirt. “So I told James. She asked me to. Just ... she was murdered, and she’s worried about him.”

“How’d he take it? He didn’t get angry with you, did he?” It would probably have been Christian’s reaction; to get angry at this girl who out of nowhere told him that someone he’d lost was still around, and they were around because of his own inability to move on.

“At first.” Alyssa sniffled. “But I didn’t back down. I understand her point, there’s some people I’d stay for.” She smiled up at Christian. “Sorry, I’ve probably gotten your shirt all damp.”

“If you stayed away from your eternal rest on my behalf, I’d be bloody well put out.” He hoped she took it as a joke, but he meant it. Nothing was worth roaming the earth over.

He reached for a handkerchief. “Don’t worry about it, luv. You’re allowed. You get more than two feelings a year.”

She sniffled a little, her smile wibbling. “Someone’s got to look after you and Logan,” she murmured. Taking the offered handkerchief, Alyssa dabbed at her eyes. “Do I get five feelings? Because I think this is number four.”

“I don’t know how many you get; that’s your contract with Satan.” Christian was mostly kidding. He kissed her forehead lightly. “Feel like takeaway?” He wasn’t trying to make light of how sad she was, just he knew that when he was upset normalcy helped.

She smiled up at him and nodded. “We can play how many orgasms can we get in until the delivery gets here. I like that game.” Tiptoeing up, Alyssa pressed a light kiss to his mouth, letting him know without words how much she appreciated him.

“Ooh. I do like that game.” Christian didn’t let her go right away, squeezing her hand. “It’s a good thing you did, Lady Hamilton,” he said, smiling a little.

He only called her Lady Hamilton when he was being sweet, and Alyssa knew it. It was as close as he’d come to a pet name. “Thank you, Mister Grey.” The same held true for his pet name. She looked up at him and bit her lip shyly. “Don’t you go getting hurt, yeah?”

“Not if I can help it. After the bloody lecture I got when I went out in the volcanic ash.” He wanted to make her laugh. “I thought I’d never hear the end of it, and the look you gave me, Christ.”

“You had to go into hospital!” Alyssa laughed, pinching him lightly on the hip. “Think of your insurance deductible!”

“I have excellent insurance, and my bank book can take it.” He swatted her bum as he went to go get the takeaway menu. “By the way, have I ever mentioned I appreciate that you don’t fancy me for my money?” He wasn’t rich, but he wasn’t hurting. And he was self-aware enough to know that made him a decent catch.

“Because money’s not a big deal. It buys many things, but it doesn’t buy a personality or intelligence. And furthermore, I can make my own.” She smiled, toeing off her shoes and flopping onto the sofa. Giggling when Lady immediately jumped onto her chest, Alyssa turned her head to look at him. “Besides, it’d be insulting to assume that you’d buy things for me anyway, and that’s hardly the basis for any sort of relationship, platonic or otherwise. God, I’m a grump.”

“Of course you fucking are, that’s why I can tolerate you.” Christian watched his cat indulgently. “She’s madly in love with you, you know. Looks around for you while you aren’t here.” It was true - he was only a little put out by it.

“I think it’s why I started to fancy you,” Alyssa laughed. She was rubbing Lady behind her ears, laughing when the cat just flopped down. “She likes you too, Christian. She probably just smells me or something.”

“She likes your smell? Possibly. I know cats are big on it. Indian food, or Italian?” Christian had a few takeaway menus. Maybe more than a few.

“Cats process most things via smell, if I recall correctly. Indian, please.” Alyssa smiled at Christian, realizing that she loved him madly and would probably never be able to say it out loud.

“Talk about smell.” Christian was fine with that. He ordered, having long since committed her favourite order to memory. “We’ve got an hour.”

Managing to wiggle out from under the cat, Alyssa smiled. “You even know what I eat,” Alyssa beamed. “To quote a nineties song, you are indeed a mighty good man.”

“Oh, God, we’ve resorted to quoting that?” Christian laughed, shaking his head. “Don’t; it only reminds me how small you were when that song came out.”

Alyssa rolled her eyes. “You do realize you’re hardly the oldest man I’ve dated. It’s not as if I’m ten or something.”

“Not my fault you’ve dated a two hundred year old mutant.” That was too weird to contemplate most of the time, anyway.

“He’s forty-three,” Alyssa laughed. “I don’t think he’s actually two hundred in body. Oh god, what if he is.” Alyssa grinned, wrapping her arms around Christian’s waist from behind him. “I’m sure you slept with a cougar once.”

“Define cougar.” He had, of course, but he liked stalling.

“Someone substantially older than you. I wonder what they call men who like younger women? Is there a word for that?” Alyssa paused. “Oh right, they’re just men.”

“Predators.” Christian grunted. He didn’t like the idea of dating anyone substantially younger than him. It smacked of taking advantage of people. And his bastard shithead dreamself had done it, besides. The Steele girl was basically in college.

In the interest of honesty, and to distract her from what she’d just gone through, he answered, “I had a few one-night stands with this lady who was older than me, but not by a lot. I was I think twenty, and she was almost thirty. Not really cougar territory.”

“That’s hardly a large age gap, no. Truly, I think it all boils down to how mature the person is.” She moved her hands to the buttons on his shirt, undoing them carefully.

“Agreed, actually. Once I got clued in to the fact that you’re eighteen going on forty, I was more comfortable with all this.” Christian smiled, slipping his hands under her skirt to rest on her rear.

“So you’re saying I’m the cougar then.” Alyssa smirked, running her fingernails lightly over his chest once it was exposed. “Fifty eight minutes.”

“Mentally, yes.” Christian smirked right back. “I hope you’re not wearing knickers you’ll miss.”

“When do I ever?” Alyssa smiled and reached out to push a bit of hair out of his eyes. “What kind of idiot do you take me for, Mister Grey?”

“The sort of girl who ran here without thinking?” As in, not an idiot. Just scattered.

“I came from the street by way of class. I don’t usually wear fancy knickers to ab-psych, Christian.” Alyssa grinned as she reached behind her back to unzip her dress, casually letting it fall.

“How would I know? You might like wearing fancy knickers to school. It might make you feel empowered.” Christian undid his belt. “I don’t actually know what women think about. Why are we still in here?”

“I’m usually just tired at school, Christian.” Alyssa unhooked her bra and looked up at Christian. “Does it matter where we are?”

“I can bend you over the table if you so desire.” Christian raised an eyebrow, amused.

“You pick,” she beamed. Alyssa couldn’t help looking up at him maybe a bit too happily. “I’m amenable.”

“You’re perfect.” And she was here, and so was he, and hopefully she got the message that neither of them were going anywhere.