my only love *, tag; char only for now

[clayton tranquility benett]

The sun shone brightly down on the almost empty city park, making it almost easy to forget about the chill in the February air. Feet pounded against the ground. For once, he didn’t have to go in for work, something about emergency sessions and meetings for the higher-ups. That meant he had unexpected time on his hands. Also it meant he had almost nowhere to put all his extra energy, having no real life outside due to work and studying taking up most of the time he had. Being a naturally energetic and curious man, he found the only way to not drive him or his sister crazy was to burn off the excess in hopes he’d eventually calm down. There were just some things he didn’t know how to handle. And so he went for a run in the small park near his apartment that he often shared with his sister. It didn’t matter if he’d been up since he got the page telling him not to bother coming in in the wee hours of the dark morning, he was too restless to stay cooped up. Too many things were running through his mind even as he moved down the path.

He loved his job, he really did. He was following his old man’s footsteps to a tee, first by enlisting as a marine, secondly by taking the position as the Research Assistant to Mr. Connor. So far it had yet to be much more than secretarial work and answering questions on said research and the studies he was undergoing. They were so close to finding something that would help the lycan gene not trigger the change, closer than ever since they’ve already identified the gene and realized the protein produced was similar to adrenaline. It wasn’t pretend, being severely interested in the research. His sister, Ren, might not have to be in pain for much longer and still keep her life. But there were another couple of problems that had him completely stressed out. He was good at hiding it, though he’d have to avoid the few people he was close to do so. Strangers would never know, his sister and his best friend would know the instant he was near them that there was something bugging him. One thing was that he was gaining the trust of the DSC, how he was doing that. His boss, Mr. Connor, was just one of those hard asses everyone would love to hit before spending five minutes with. The smug superiority and Clay was a little worried that the feeling might slip out of the realm of control. For example, most people talked about family. Mr. Connor mentioned his son once and that was it. And Clay knew the guy never took any time off. Wasn’t family supposed to take precedence?

At least he made sure he had time to give Ren whatever attention she wanted from him. Even if it was letting her kick his butt at Halo or one of her many Star Wars games. Just how many people in the DSC had that kind of loyalty issues? He was warned before, but this was pushing it. No life outside the company? He couldn’t even go to intentionally hang out with his best friend without notifying them. Something that was more painful than anything since he fell for Charisma Reid the moment he saw her. He pushed himself harder, making his muscles strain. On top of it she was pregnant by her last boyfriend, the last thing she needed was a cult or mafia following her around, checking up on him or threatening her or her currently unborn daughter, another innocent person he couldn’t help but worry about. He still wasn’t sure, even after all these years that the DSC had nothing to do with his father’s death. How, then, could he ask someone he loved to take such a risk? He’d be completely cut off if it hadn’t been for Ren’s blindness for what he was actually up to. All she knew was that he came and left according whenever he was called.

He stopped, panting as the cold air burned his lungs. He was in shape and had lost track of how many laps he had run already. Part of being in the military was finding exactly where weaknesses were and trying to improve endurance so he’d last longer. Longer, he didn’t know if he had that much, that being the second thing. Ren had brought in the mail the night before when she came to sleep over again. The annual Star Wars movie marathon was on, something that would drive their mother beyond insanity. So he’d graciously accepted the fact that the large flat screen tv at his place was too lonely and his sister was perfect for changing that. But when he was going through the piled up mail, an official letter had caught his attention. Apparently he was up for deployment for an Iraq tour. Not that it was surprising, but he was just getting somewhere and they wanted to drag him from everything only when he had other things to worry about. He didn’t know if he’d be going next week, next month, or even next year. The letter had said they’d contact him again when he was up.

Slamming his hand against the railing of a small bridge over a makeshift stream, he sighed. No curse word could accurately describe what he was feeling and he refused to take it out in any major inappropriate way. Just as his nostrils flared, the “training” from playing with light sabers in the dark with his sister began to kick in. He barely got a whiff of the scent of her perfume as the wind carried it to him. Then she appeared, not too far off from where he was standing. Char. Perfect. He needed a distraction. Being careful that she wouldn’t notice him, he silently snuck over to her from behind. Mischief twinkled in his green eyes, silently reaching out and covering her eyes. “Guess who, darlin’,” he whispered in her ear, kissing her cheek, and dancing out of the way in case she decided to smack him or something. He couldn’t resist doing that to her periodically. Then he moved back to her, assuming he was safe, and wrapping his arms loosely around her in a hug. It was hard to do, the baby taking up so much room, but he didn’t mind the slightest. Meant the kid was healthy and who was he to complain about that? “How’re my girls?” He was best friends with the woman for so long, he always asked her that. Always meant it too. He was happy to see Char and was excited for her. He’d always wanted a family of his own and it was nice to see someone he cared about getting one. His body trembled with nervous energy. Char was as beautiful as ever, but she of all people could read him like a book for the most part. He smiled, trying to pretend nothing was up for her benefit. Maybe a day off was what the real doctor ordered. “Missed ya, lil lady,” he said part-teasingly, making light of the difference between their heights.

[charisma megan reid]

✕ weapon of choice

Life, was a prime example of the theory of “complication” as many of her friends put it when they sat in their theories class. She was happy that she was going to be a mother, happy it didn’t happen in high school, and very happy that her family loved her, that her best friend was willing to give her such a gift such as the large summer home her and her parents didn’t use anymore. She was lucky that she had the strength to ignore the asshole known as the ex that gave her the lovely baby girl that grew within her. But that did not mean she was ungrateful for her life. She loved her life, so as she sat inside, laying upon her bed, hands mindlessly rubbed her stomach as she stared at the ceiling. Oh how boring her life was. She got the day off from school simply because she had an OB appointment at noon, and with classes ending at two thirty she wasn’t expecting to be home before then. She wasn’t looking forward to taking the bus though, with both her parents working, Sloane busy doing who knows what and to go out and bug Clay when he had such a strict work schedule, she didn’t have any other alternative currently.

“Well, I guess we could always go outside and walk for a bit. I know how much you love the sun.” She smiled as she felt the being within her move and kick. So reactive, she could only wish that time would fly during the next two months. Though she did not look forward to the pain that came with child birth, but to see that little girl, to hold her and to know that the ass that had been her sperm donor wasn’t going to do a damn thing to her child. She smiled as she slowly pulled the loose fitting white baby doll over her bulging stomach. Seven months pregnant and she still had anywhere between two and three months left. Her feet were already starting to kill her the more she walked, and don’t even get her started on back pains. No body said the pain would be this bad, even her mother, but this is what she got for being stupid.

But her child wasn’t a mistake, if god intended for her to bare a child then bare the child she would, keep it, cherish it, and love her for the rest of her life. And so, now that she was fully dressed in the baby doll that was long enough to be considered a dress, with jeans underneath and flats on her feet she headed out of the large home and slowly made her way to the large park that she would say always mimicked central park during the right times of the year. But in the cool yet inviting and crisp weather she couldn’t help but smile. It was a lovely change from the hard humid days of the summer. The winter months were always wonderful in New Orleans. And so, as she walked, pain was relieved as the wind continued to blow as a gentle breeze and she watched people going by, little kids giggling as they saw her stomach. She was sure many asked their moms or dad if they could rub her stomach, only told no because “it wasn’t polite”.

And she was happy they said no, though her child was not born she would not let just anyone touch, rub, kiss, or massage the stomach. It carried her child, something she would always be protective off. So as she walked, her hands gently resting on her stomach, it was obvious why her hands lay there, gently allowing her thumb to rub against the fabric of her shirt to her stomach, calming the always moving child. Further down she went, the happier she felt. And soon, well, her day just got happier. “Guess…who…guess who…would it be a certain someone who’s supposed to be at work?” She laughed and turned around to find the one man that seemed to always treat her right. She loved that about him, yes loved. She always felt loved, the kind of love not just friends have but those that are much more but she knew, they were just friends. Best friends, and would most likely stay that way.

“Haha your girls are just fine, going in for the second of her twice monthly ultrasounds to make sure little joy here is in good health before she turns into the reality her mommy always wanted.” She said with a smile as she watched the man hug her, struggling to do so with her stomach before going down and kissing the stomach that was hers. He was one of the few that were allowed to do that much. But the next remark, oh that sparked her her little spit fire personality she could only hope her daughter had one day. “Little? Little? If it wasn’t for this lovely little angel that was still baking in her mommy’s oven you know I would kick your marine ass right here and now for calling me that simply because I’m fun sized.” She smiled and shook her head as she allowed her hands to rest back on her stomach, feeling the child move even more. “Well looky there, she knows you’re here.”

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[clayton tranquility benett]

Nothing made him happier to see that the only thing that changed about her was the size of her belly, where her daughter resided. Char was seemingly extremely protective of her kid, judging from how often she pressed her hands gently to her “joy”. It didn’t bother him the slightest that the child was as active as her mother kept saying, it was a funny sort of justice in which the baby took after her mommy. Though he would bet his friend would love it if her babe would relax for a little while so she could rest. “Work? What work? Oooh you mean the people that turned me practically into a zombie slave. I… unexpectedly have a day off.” His eyes were still sparkling. She always appeared happy to see him, with or without plans to meet up. There were times where he could swear she was every bit as crazy about him as he was her. At times he was content to be her best friend, other times it secretly pissed him off to no end. Staying like that, knowing another man could take both Charisma and Joy away from him, hurt. She was the one person he hated to be secretive to, he sighed.

His lips curled into a small smile. “Does mommy want me to go with her to see if the princess is healthy? I am a doctor… sort of and I’d like to see her pretty picture.” Mostly he just wanted to confirm that Joy was healthy, though he was extremely sorry and felt guilty he couldn’t be around more. His thoughts turned to Joy, making his heart flutter about how big the baby was getting. He could still remember his sister’s birth and he found it strange sometimes how big mommies’ stomachs got when the kid started out so small. Very slowly he got up and backed off, knowing that she wasn’t comfortable with too much touching of her stomach. He missed being there continually for her, only because of the work schedule. Soft sighs from parents nearby told him that they were envious of the affection display, probably most of them thinking he was the father since that was a popular guessing game around town. He reached out, brushing some blonde hair away from her face. The spark came quickly and he couldn’t help but chuckle. “I guess I owe my life to our favorite lil pumpkin-angel.” He paused, thinking he heard something, and looked around to see nothing out of the ordinary. “Fun-size is a bit crude, I prefer height-challenged squirt.” He smirked lightly, leaning close for the smack he righteously deserved for that comment. He watched her carefully, control slipping through his grasp as she mentioned Joy knowing he was here. He was willing to bet the unborn child cradled within her was responding to her mother’s surge of happiness rather than responding to him. One thing was certain: he would never lay his hands on the pregnant stomach without express permission from Char, no matter how much he wanted to feel the baby move.

“Yeah, well. She takes after her mother. Impeccable tastes. Look Chari -” He looked directly into her eyes. He couldn’t face going away without her knowing some of his feelings he had for he; but then the noise that distracted him before he could utter another word. Senseless yelling, though this time it was perfectly clear where it was coming from. A woman stood across the cool grass, surrounded by a bunch of little kids, looking as if she was about to be swallowed up by the wrath of the many munchkins. He almost had the urge to laugh, the woman having an embroidered jean jacket that said “#1 Foster Mom” on it. Everyone picked their own poison and it looked like she was getting hers handed to her on a silver platter. Sure, kids would always be great in his eyes, but it didn’t mean anything unless there was a tiniest smidgeon of order around the chaos. He went behind Charisma again and settled for wrapping his arms loosely around her upper torso, avoiding the breasts and still respecting the space of the one part of her body he knew she could be extremely protective of. He buried his face in the crook of her neck. To outsiders it looked like something like a romantic pronouncement of their undying love, while, in reality, it was just one of many de-stressors that he had while she was around. “[color=660000]Joy’s going to the playground when she’s out of the oven. Daily. Even if I have to kidnap her. That over there is a fate I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy.[color=660000]” If he was still there…

[charisma megan reid]

✕ weapon of choice

“Mommy would love it if Clay took her to the doctors. Means I don’t have to take the bus cause I can’t find a ride from everyone else. So…please? I’d love you to actually see her you know, you’re the only one that hasn’t gotten to see her pretty little face yet.” Have clay as Joy’s dad? Please she’d give up anything to have that. Anything but her baby girl of course, but then again that’s a choice she never wants to even think she’ll have to make. Clay and Joy were her entire world, if she didn’t have one her life felt empty. She was partly scared that she’d suffer from post-pardum depression because of how empty she would feel without her Joy moving about her tummy, causing her to smile and feel complete. But she was sure, even if Clay was by her side as a friend instead of the man she wanted to spend the rest of her life with she would forever feel safe and like nothing could hurt her. She had always wondered how well Clay was with children though. Sure, he had his sister but his sister wasn’t that young, she wanted to see him with small little children, attempting to use him as the jungle-gym, to see how he could tolerate the smell, the sound and touch of a child.

“That you do Mr. remember that for when she is born, and I save you a dirty diaper to change.” She laughed and smiled as she felt the man come up behind her and grasp her. She loved the feeling, even if the butterflies that came with it were a bit hard to control with child these days. But she still liked the feeling, it was a welcoming feeling, to be held, to feel like she was really part of someone’s life and they liked it. The noise she heard had grabbed her attention as well, and to see that woman, with all those kids, almost over taken by them, she almost shivered at the sight. “Remind me to stop after two kids okay? I don’t want anymore than that.” She gave a firm nod of her head, she was pretty sure she’d have more if she had another girl after Joy, she wanted at least one boy after joy. She wanted that perfect family. The one boy and one girl, genders perfectly even with parents that loved their kids for who they were and allowed them to pave their own roads through their lives, like her parents were. Her children’s mistakes would be seen as learning experiences, punishments would be few and far between, only meant to be used if absolutely necessary.

Smiling she leaned against Clay a bit, allowing some of her weight falling to her ankles to be against him, giving them a break. She sighed in relief, happy her friend was a marine, able to handle much more weight than what she currently was. Because doing this with anyone else would’ve made her feel guilty, Clay was a good half foot taller than her, more muscular than her, could handle more than anyone she knew. He was strong, in everyway she could possibly imagine. Emotionally, physical, hell she was sure that he was pretty mentally strong too. He was perfect in her eyes, if he knew that, well that was his loss. He was perfect no matter how much he would deny it. Perfection took time to create, and his time was in the marines, sculpting him into the respectful marine he was today, working his ass off to make sure those that needed him were taken care of. She felt like she was one of them, she only hoped she was, to always be on his mind was a dream of hers, if only she could read his thoughts, seeing how reading his face sometimes was like trying to get a damn dog to not bark.

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[clayton tranquility benett]

His face lit up as if it were a present better than all Christmas ones. He bowed his head politely, trying to hide the grin on his face. Taking her to the doctor’s office would be an honor, no matter what his few other friends would say. “Of course, Miss Reid,” he said, slowly getting the courage up to look back at her again. “The chariot awaits thy lady. Buses won’t do, they jar... a-and crap like that. Not good for you or for Joy. And I lied. I’d love to see her pretty face.” He spoke quietly. The two girls deserved the best in the world and he’d do his best to make sure they got it. When he found out Joy was… well Joy, he immediately set up a small trust fund in the baby’s name, feeling secretly a little attached to the kid growing within his best friend. He wasn’t the father and might never be, but it made him feel a little better by making a contribution to the little girl’s future. It was more than what her mother’s ex was doing. More importantly, he wanted to eliminate as much of Char’s worries as possible, and that wouldn’t happen if she had known what he planned ahead of time. Though he was partly scared; Char claimed that the child liked him and knew him, but what if it wasn’t true? What if he was horrible with kids? His only real experience had come from his sister, Ren, when their parents had been around and alive, taking care of them. He hadn’t had solely started to bring her up until after tragedy struck their small family. And the thought terrified him. Ren was all set if anything should happen to him and he never made it home, but Char and little Joy? They were just as much his world and he couldn’t forget that.

The sticking out of his tongue was the only response he could think of. “Darling, if I’m changing diapers, you’re gonna be armed with the Febreeze stuff my sister likes. Grant me any of the stinkies and you’re goin’ down with me.” He enjoyed holding her far more than he had any right to, and resisted the urge to let a casual hand brush her belly. Most women he knew while pregnant whined and complained constantly about body changes, arming with a knowledge he wasn’t sure he wanted to have. Swollen ankles, being heavy as a house, not fitting into something, and very rarely, when a couple decided to foreplay to help with the no regular sexual intercourse rule, milk squirted out of the mother’s breasts. He attempted to hold in a shudder. Blood and guts were fine, but he didn’t want to be scarred by visuals of those pregnancies. But Char was amazingly different, relishing in the joy of every movement and milestone her unborn daughter had, the way things should be. He winced, the woman only shouting more. “I can’t promise ya that now, Chari. But I can promise to beat any ass that tries to change your mind.” He was more than sincere in his words, saying them carefully because if there was anything he wouldn’t forgive himself for it was disappointing her.

“Lucas Jasper Levay! Lukey!” A growl from the unseen boy let it be known he hated being called by that. “Fine, Jazzie, if you don’t get your ass down from there…”

Clay ignored it and gently picked up Char into a sort of bridal-carry. He didn’t mind bearing the brunt of her weight, especially knowing the weight she carried with her. The girl had to rest sometime and he didn’t mind making her, thinking her feet had to be killing her. He started walking, looking more at the petite pregnant woman in his arms than where he was going. He knew the layout of the park well enough he could probably navigate it without being able to see where he was going. She was the eternal picture of perfection, with or without the swelling stomach, having the biggest heart he knew, and facing the possibility of having a child by herself. “Kiddo says mommy needs to rest,” he whispered, putting her gently down on a bench inside a small gazebo. He knelt down, removing the flats she wore, and began to rub her feet, ignoring most noises. The part of the park closest to them was recently turned into a new playground, but then he realized the mother and several kids were gone. He froze hearing pounding on top of the monkey bars – one kid had been left behind. He sighed, getting up and planting a kiss on Char’s forehead. “I’m gonna see if the kid’s okay, alright with you? The others left and I think he’s stuck.”

[charisma megan reid]

✕ weapon of choice

If she could bounce she would, but she was smart, knowing that having to go through morning sickness all over again was not exactly what she wanted to do right now, not when she was so happy with herself and with how the day was going so far. But she hugged and turned, kissing Clay on the cheek, causing her to go up on those tip toes of hers. “Thank you Clay, means a lot to me you know that. And I’ll pay for your gas too next time you fill up, promise. And I know you were lying, remember, I’m a women, I already know.” She winked and hugged him as best as she could before relaxing and just watching the world around her unfold. It was amazing how well Clay could always make her day ten times if not a hundred times better than it already was. She was everything she saw in a guy, yes you could say she is the type of girl that would say he was perfect for her but it wasn’t like he didn’t have bigger and better things to worry about. He had to take care of his sister and mother full time, was an enlisted marine. She couldn’t do much really, asking him to be anything more than a friend could really complicate things anyway. She had seen how that ended with a lot of her friends, and it never ended good. So she was content with her little fantasies of one day being with Clay, seeing Joy waddle to him calling him “daddy” with another one on the way that was truly their child together. She sighed contently before she gasped a bit, feeling herself get picked up. “What are you, telepathic? She’s inside my gut and I didn’t even hear her say that!” She laughed and wrapped her arms about his neck and relaxed, knowing he could very easily carry her she wasn’t going to complain, she’d admit any day she missed getting carried around like a young child.

“Of course you’d drag me down, I’d like to see you get past the smell of a stinky diaper and not flinch with fear!” She smiled and allowed herself to settle quite easily upon the bench, but what made her melt was his hands working at her feet gently, pain melting away with them and damn the man had magic fingers. She smiled and closed her eyes as he worked, not telling him to stop in anyway shape for form. A pregnant women knew when she needed to be taken care of, and she wasn’t stupid enough to turn it away. “Oh, yea that’s fine. No need to ask me for permission Clay.” She smiled and relaxed, allowing her now bare feet to rest upon the cool concrete as Clay went off to make sure the young boy was alright. The man was great with kids, his sister being a prime example of how great he was with them. If only he could’ve seen the boy when his sister was younger. He had always imagined what he was like when he was younger, how cute he would’ve been with his younger sister following him around like he had always described. She wanted that for Joy, but Joy would’ve had to come at a later time and been a boy currently. But she did want that for Clay, to have Joy follow him around, it would’ve been adorable.

In her fantasies she felt Joy kick, she growled and glared at her stomach, but couldn’t help but laugh and go back to relaxing as much as she could on the bench. The peace and quiet of the park was lovely, but as she continued to watch Clay work with the boy she wondered where his parents had gone, or if he had been one of the many kids with that woman earlier. If she had left the poor boy alone Char was going to hunt that woman down and give her a piece of her own mind. You don’t leave a child behind, that was…just horrible. She would’ve gotten up to help, but she wasn’t sure she could get up on her own now, Joy moving around so much the little girl was kicking her so hard she really had to pee, and getting up would’ve caused an accident she did not want to deal with. “C’mon Joy, mommy doesn’t want to have to go home and change her undies, so please? Stop the kicking.”

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