If Not For You(Sequel to IML)

{8} - Homecoming

Sebastian wouldn't be home until the earlier hours of the morning, so Bethany was trying to keep herself occupied. Work had kept her busy most of the day, but once four thirty came so did the boredom. She was antsy. And because he was traveling home they couldn't face time before she went to bed. They'd had a few very brief text conversations, but it wasn't quite the same.
"If you're gonna be moving could you at least make yourself useful and do dishes or something?" Juliet asked from her spot on the couch. Bethany sighed.
"I guess so." She ran up to her room and grabbed her earbuds. Once the Beatles were playing through her earbuds she started washing dishes, swaying her hips a bit as she did and gently nodding along.
If she hadn't had her earbuds in she would have heard Daredevil start growling at the door just before someone knocked. Juliet smiled, knowing exactly who it was. She stood and answered the door.
"Hi." She grinned at Sebastian. He smiled.
"Hi. She's in the kitchen."
"Thank you." He said as he walked past her.
"No problem." He walked into the kitchen and stopped when he saw Bethany. She was up to her elbows in soapy dishwater, her hair was falling out of the bun she'd put it in and she was moving to the music she was listening to. Her eyes were closed and she was mouthing along to the song. Then she opened her eyes and turned to grab another dish off the counter. She stopped when she saw Sebastian. A smile broke out on her face and she ripped her earbuds out.
"You're back!" She ran and hugged him, forgetting about being wet.
"I am."
"I missed you!" She leaned up and gave him a kiss.
"I missed you too, baby girl." He smiled when she blushed and hid her face in his chest.
"I thought you weren't back till tomorrow."
"I may or may not have lied."
"You jerk." Bethany said, pushing away from him a bit, "I'm so happy you're back. And oh my gosh, I'm sorry. I got you all wet." She backed away from him, but he grabbed her wrist.
"It's fine. I'm not sugar. I won't melt."
"Well that's a good thing."
"Can I have another kiss?" She leaned up and gave him another kiss before wrapping her arms around his waist again.
"Oh! Hi." Andy said as he walked into the kitchen.
"Hi. Sorry. We're kinda in the way." Bethany giggled and tugged Sebastian out of the way. Andy watched them out of the corner of his eye as he walked over to the fridge.
"Have you had supper?" Sebastian asked.
"Nope." Bethany replied, popping the 'p'.
"Then how about we go get supper?"
"Sure. I gotta fix myself up a bit first though." She was dressed in black joggers and a red t-shirt that said 'Sorry I'm late I didn't want to come'.
"You look fine." She raised an eyebrow at him.
"Lies."
"Truth."
"Ugh. Fine. I don't care anymore." She giggled, "Let me grab my shoes and my purse." She turned to leave, but stopped when her eyes landed on the sink. "Fuck. Panda will you finish the dishes for me? Please?"
"You're lucky I like you."
"I love you too." She threw her arms around him. "Thank you!" She called as she left the kitchen. Sebastian watched her go, a smile on his lips. Andy sighed and Sebastian looked at him.
"Before you say I anything, I know you don't like me and you probably don't trust me, but I don't plan to hurt her." Sebastian said.
"You may not plan to, but that doesn't mean you won't." Andy sighed again, "just . . . tell me that you'll be there every time she needs you no matter the circumstances."
"Absolutely." Andy studied his face, then nodded.
"Do I need to give you the whole hurt her and I'll end you spiel?" Sebastian smiled and shook his head.
"I think we're good." Andy nodded.
"Okay, I think I'm ready." Bethany said, skipping back into the kitchen, converse high tops on her feet and her purse hanging off her wrist. "Bye, Panda."
"Bye, Peanut." She smiled up at Sebastian and grabbed his hand. She lead him out the door, saying a quick goodbye to Juliet as they left.

———

Deciding they weren't up for anything fancy or amazing, aka Bethany wasn't dressed for that, they chose Wendy's for their dinner. Not amazing by far, but not bad either.
"I finished Elantris." Sebastian said when they had their food.
"Yeah? What did you think?"
"It was really good. That ending. . ." He shook his head.
"I know! Brandon Sanderson writes amazing endings. I don't think I've ever read an author who finishes their stories as amazingly as he does."
"I believe that."
"So, who was you're favorite character?"
"Hrathen, probably." She grabbed a fry off his tray, "or maybe Raoden. What about you?"
"Hrathen. Definitely." She took another fry.
"Why are you eating all my fries? You have your own."
"Yours are better." She shrugged. He rolled his eyes and took one of her fries. She grinned and then yawned. "Oh gosh I'm tired. Trying to talk with you around the time difference totally fucked with my sleep schedule."
"It fucked with your sleep schedule?" Sebastian asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Probably not as much as it did yours, but yes." She yawned again. "I'm gonna get a frosty. Do you want one?" He shook his head and she walked away. A couple minutes later she came back with a chocolate frosty and sat down.
"So I'm just curious, what's your favorite food. Like skies the limit, what would you choose?" He asked.
"Chocolate frosty."
"Are you just saying that because you're eating one right now?"
"No." She took a bite and then pointed her spoon at him, "Chocolate frosties are quite possibly my favorite thing. And I'm aware that they aren't even that great, but I dunno." She shrugged.
"Huh." He dipped a French fry in her frosty. She gasped.
"Excuse you! How dare you defile my frosty!" He laughed. And she smiled.
"I didn't realize I was defiling it."
"You put a French fry in my frosty!"
"I didn't leave it there."
"I can't believe you're one of those people who dips French fries in frosties. Am I right in assuming you dip them in milkshakes too?"
"Yes."
"Disgusting. This totally puts a damper on our relationship." She joked, "sorry."
"It was nice while lasted. Who could've known it would be French fries that ruined it." Sebastian played along.
"It wasn't the French fries it was you."
"It's not my fault you think I defiled your frosty."
"Because you did."
"A lot of people like to dip French fries in their frosties. The odds of you dating someone who does is pretty high. You do realize that right?"
"Except that we've been friends for two years and I should've known by now that you're a frosty defiler. I have lost all respect for you." She laughed and he did too.
"Well that's unfortunate." He dipped another French fry in her frosty. "Exactly how much of a damper does this put on our relationship? Like are we still doing the hand holding and the kissing or are we back to just friends?"
"I was gonna say just friends, but I think I'd miss your kisses too much. Alright you're off the hook. I guess I'll just have to deal with the fact that you're a frosty defiler."
"That's a relief." He went to dip another fry and she pushed his hand away.
"I asked if you wanted one and you said no and now you're eating all of mine." She pouted and took another bite of her frosty.
"Well I didn't want one when you asked."
"Because that would have been convenient." He shrugged and she held out the frosty. "Fine. We can share."
"Thank you." She smiled and leaned across the table to give him a kiss on the cheek.
"You're welcome. Do you realize we sat here and talked about frosties for like ten minutes?"
"You say that like it's a bad thing." She yawned which in turn made him yawn. "Do you have work in the morning?"
"Technically. But I'm thinking of taking a personal day so I can spend some time with you. Plus I'm exhausted and I'm not sure I could handle Janine yelling at me again." He nodded.

———

bennyharris

❤️ liked by sebastiandanzig, 4stephanierachel and 1,192 others
bennyharris FALLING INTO YOUR OCEAN EYES (I'M SO HAPPY YOU'RE HOME!😍😘🥰) sebastiandanzig

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user1 yesssss! Billie Eilish is a queen!
user2 that is a truly amazing picture👏
sebastiandanzig I am too 🐝
user3 I still think Larisa was better tbh
user4 I fucking love that song!!!!
user5 no one cares user3
remingtonleith this was the first thing I saw when I opened my insta and I almost screamed. Monica thinks I'm insane now. Thanks a lot B!
user6 you two are so cute my heart can't handle it!😱
bennyharris 😘😘😘 sebastiandanzig STOP WHINING! remingtonleith
monicaollander I already thought you were insane soooooo🤷‍♀️ remingtonleith
user7 he's such a dork🥰

———

An hour later they were at Sebastian's apartment. With very little prompting Bethany was spending the night. They were in his bedroom. Bethany was looking at his bookshelves, reading titles and studying tchotchkes. Sebastian kicked his shoes off and dropped his jack on the chair in the corner before falling back into his bed.
"I think I could fall asleep right now." He murmered, closing his eyes.
"Sleep sounds nice." Bethany agreed crawling onto the bed. Sebastian hummed in response, eyes still closed. Bethany crawled over to Sebastian and threw her leg over his waist so she was straddling him. She began peppering his face with kisses. He smiled, but didn't open his eyes. "Have I told you yet how much I missed you?"
"I think it might've been mentioned." He opened his eyes and she gave him a kiss on the lips.
"Well I did." She sighed in contentment and began peppering his face with kisses again.
"You're very affectionate this evening." She blushed and nodded before giving him another kiss on the lips. He rested his hands on her hips, sliding them up under the hem of her shirt. She gasped and tried to not to laugh, knowing if she did he actually try to tickle her. He looked confused for a second before he gently rubbed her sides with his thumbs and she giggled.
"Please, don't!" She said, seeing the look in his eyes. He just smiled.
"You're lucky I'm tired."
"Mm. Lucky me." For a few minutes they stayed that way just enjoying being in the moment. "You're eyes are so pretty."
"So are yours."
"Thank you." She leaned down and gave him another kiss. Without warning he sat up. Bethany panicked and grabbed his shirt. He laughed and she pursed her lips.
"Yes. Haha. Very funny. Give me a heart attack why don't you." She said while putting her arms around his neck.
"I'm sorry baby girl." He kissed her forehead. She blushed and buried her face in the space between his neck and shoulder. "You're so cute." He whispered and wrapped his arms around her waist. He kissed her shoulder and felt her smile against his neck. Bethany had never realized how much she'd been missing. This was a kind of intimacy she was coming to realize was important to a relationship. She craved it now.
"I need to go pee." Sebastian said. Bethany sat back a bit and looked at him.
"Way to ruin the moment."
"Sorry." She slid off his lap and he stood up, "I'll be right back." He kissed her forehead again. While he was gone she called the office and left a voicemail saying she wouldn't be coming in the next morning for personal reasons, then she took her hair out the bun and crawled into the bed. Sebastian came back briefly to grab his pajama pants and then left again. When he came back he dropped his pants on the chair he'd put his coat on and took off all his jewelry. Then he pulled his shirt off and crawled into bed. They talked and laughed and got lost in each other's eyes eventually falling asleep with the light on.