timewasting | OPEN POST 2020.

[ she tucks her head underneath his chin, allowing her eyes to close as his hand rests on her hip. she hasn’t felt relaxed like this in eight months, hearing his heartbeat, and his mouth moving against her hair . . . ]

I don’t want to spend another eight months not being able to sleep.

[ it’s murmured, fingers curling into his shirt. ]

I need a break. Now is as good a time as any, isn’t it?

Fair point.

[ It's a bit of a grim thought, but at least it's not just him suffering in the months between. Certainly, she should be getting more rest as her work was fairly intensive. His was every now and again but he could handle the occasional scuffle.

It's different than taking on an entire ship of slavers ready to protect their find. ]

You do have a house to get used to. [ Well, they both do. He's been in the house, but solely for renovating, not living in it. Already, it's shaping up to be a good thing for them both, especially as he lets himself relax. It's quiet save for the steady in and out of her breathing and he feels himself drifting off to the sound. ]

[ it's a good nap, but inej wakes up after about an hour to kaz . . . very much not awake. and she's loathe to wake him up now, especially knowing that he hasn't slept well.

so, in a way only the wraith can, inej carefully extracts herself from his arms by artfully substituting a pillow into his arms. there's a tenuous moment where he stirs in his sleep, but after stroking his hair for a few moments, he mumbled his way back into sleep.

how precious.

so inej quickly collects her shoes and slips out of the house to get something for dinner. it takes some time, to go through the market, pick out something to eat that she can cook for dinner. but once she returns home (home) around two hours later and deposits the food in the kitchen, she steals back upstairs, silent as the grave thanks to taking off her shoes by the door.

soon, she steps onto the bed, careful not to disturb too much weight, in order to carefully lean over kaz, brushing her lips against his cheek. ]

Wake up before you're up all night.

[ she whispers. ]

[ He feels her get up. Or rather, senses the change in weight distribution. But then she's combing his hair back with her palm and the sensation is enough to subdue his awareness again.

From then on, it's the blank bliss of sleep, the days of tossing and turning finally being allowed to catch up to him. There's a couple dreams, more like figments, bits and pieces of imagery that don't string together into anything coherent. It's more like snapshots: a moment here, a moment there. Some of it memories and then branching off into things that definitely haven't happened.

He's pulled from what feels like sunlight on his face by a familiar voice and a brush of lips to his cheek. ]

Inej? [ He says blearily, slowly blinking awake. The light in the room has lowered, having gone from midday to evening, the rays filtering in a dusty orange. ] What time is it?

Nearly six.

[ she probably shouldn't have let him sleep so late, but better to wake up now for a few more hours than wake up at two in the morning wide awake. she sits against him, her leg resting against his chest as she runs her fingers along his cheek, soothingly. waking up from a nap is tough. ]

I'm going to make dinner, but wanted to give you the chance to wake up first, before you eat.

[ and also so that he didn't wake up by himself. ]

Huh.

[ Well shit, he really slept. It didn't even feel that long, passing in the blink of an eye.

He rubs the sleep from his eyes and rakes a hand through his hair before he sits up. There's a temptation to lie right back down and take her with him, but she has a point: they should have dinner. ]

What are you making?

[ he's close, now that he's sit up, and inej grins a little before brushing the hair out of his eyes. he's still half asleep, but getting there. slowly but surely. ]

Roast chicken and squash.

[ it had been the easiest thing she could find on short notice, at any rate. ]

We can eat in here, if you want to stay in bed.

[ they don't have a table yet, so this is probably their only sitting place. ]

[ He leans a bit towards her and lets his eyes slip shut momentarily as she brushes the hair off his forehead. It's a light touch but he's still sleepy and her physical affection always puts him more at ease. ]

I'll help, if you want. If I stay in here, I'm going to fall asleep again.

[ Maybe not as quickly or easily with her next to him. But just knowing she's nearby is enough to get him to relax. Reluctantly, he leans away from her and flips back a corner of the covers, at least wanting to make an attempt at getting out of bed. ]

[ it's not often that inej thinks of kaz as cute, because he's typically such an intense person. but there are tiny moments of vulnerability and quiet, and kaz waking up from sleep is one of her favorite moments. mostly because he feels softer in these moments. and not quite so severe.

but he's decided to move, and she watches him shift before getting up herself, on her feet. ]

I won't say no.

[ warmly, as she reaches out to straight his shirt, a bit askew from sleep. ]

[ Before he fully gets up, she straightens his shirt and he gives her a brief smile. Swinging his legs over the edge of the bed, he braces himself, his good foot touching the floor first. Finally, he stands and plucks his cane from where it's resting, heading towards the bathroom to at least wash his face.

And when he gets there, fix his hair somewhat, as it's a terrible mess.

Soon enough, he joins her in the kitchen, leaning against the counter as she goes about unwrapping things. ]

How was the market trip? [ He hasn't been the one nearby just yet, still frequenting the one closer to the edge of the Barrel. ]

[ she got a few things for breakfast, too. eggs, and bread. but that's set aside in favor of the chicken and the squash, set carefully on the countertop. she's careful to keep the raw meat separate from the rest of it, mostly to avoid kaz accidentally touching it.

certain things, he's fine with, but best not to ruin their evening over some uncooked chicken. ]

Fine, I think.

[ as she pulls open a few drawers, to locate some knives. she finds two kitchen knives, which she sets on the counter top, along with a roasting pan. and as she ducks down to rummage around in a cupboard, her voice continues, her tone a bit dry: ]

They looked surprised to see me, but I'm not sure if that's because they knew who I was or because they don't expect a Suli woman to have money.

[ the kerch aren't quite as bad as the ravkans, when it comes to dismissing her existence, but still frustratingly obtuse. and inej emerges with a set of wooden spoons, for serving. ]

There weren't any actual spices for sale except salt, so I'll have to move the ones from my ship here.

[ again: the kerch. smh. ]

They'd likely be nervous if they knew. [ So probably the latter, unfortunately. One of the pitfalls of Kerch being an island nation—they'd been quite divorced from the rest of the world until they figured out sailing. And then they'd gotten very good at it, which had lent them something of a superiority complex. ]

We haven't figured out that things beyond salt and pepper exist. [ Kaz smirks a bit at the shared dig. ]

Fermentation is still the preferred method. [ Not that he's against the practice. He's grown up here, after all. It's no curry, though. Or even the flavorful snacks they had at the circus show. ] I think I know a place that imports. Closer to the Lid.

[ there's something of a sigh at the knowledge of salt and pepper being the be all end all in kerch. which she's used to, by now, but she still misses the tastes of ravka whenever she comes back to kerch.

still, she adds a small amount of oil to the roasting pan before turning her attention to the squash. and quickly, she examines the length of the kitchen blade and tests the balance of it with her hand before she gets to work, quickly trimming and dicing the squash one by one, creating a pile.

she idly considers giving kaz a task to do, but she sort of enjoys just having him talk. and besides, he just woke up. handing him a knife and expecting him to work quickly is probably a bad idea.

even though he's the one who taught her in the first place, inej has long since surpassed him. it's easier to just do it herself.

so, as she moves on to the next squash, she says: ]

I could tell, when I asked where the rest of the selection was, and I was treated like I had seven heads.

[ dryly. ]

I'll have to go elsewhere for flavor, I guess.

[ Before he'd traveled with Inej, he might not have understood her sigh as well. It would've been a theoretical understanding; she missed things from where she'd grown up. That's the way it would've made sense.

Having it first hand is quite different and he agrees right along with her exasperation. For all that Kerch liked to trade, they didn't always integrate those traded items into popular society very well. Or rather, they focused on more material wealth—hand woven tapestries, silks, specially cut gems. And not so much on the things they could use on a potato dish to make it taste different.

Their loss. Between the two of them, they'd figure out a way to fill the gaps.

He watches as she gets to work on the squash first, breaking through the thick skin with a clever application of pressure and angle. From there, trimming the rind off and dicing the leftovers looked easy. Well, anytime she used a knife she made it look simple. But he'd taught her the foundations and knew exactly how tricky some of it could be.

She's surpassed that several years ago now; any sort of knife in her hands could be a dangerous one, even one for buttering bread. ]

Go easy, paprika was a big thing last winter. [ Ah, the basics. ] I'll make a traditional stew sometime. It's not fancy but you'll rarely find someone here who would turn it down.

I would like that.

[ with a warm smile, in reference to the stew. and soon, the squash is done, and inej drops it into the oiled roasting pan, tossing it with salt and pepper. she then turns her attention to the chicken.

it’s already been butchered and gutted, so adding oil, salting it and adding pepper is really all to be done, and she deposits that into the pan with the squash before turning to the oven, sliding it in after checking to make sure it’s properly lit.

once that is done, inej turns to wash her hands in the sink, scrubbing them clean before she says: ]

I think it will be ready in about forty five minutes. It isn’t a very large chicken.

[ she had tried to find something quick, easy, and able to throw together with minimal effort. success. ]

[ He doesn't watch her rub salt and pepper onto the chicken, the skin texture of it alone enough to make him feel uneasy. It's the one thing he really has leftover—touching raw meat gives him that nauseated reaction even now.

Once it's safely in the oven and she's wiped her hands off, he considers what to do in the meantime. ]

I think we can kill forty-five minutes pretty easily. [ Just. You know. Putting that out there. ]

[ she deposits the towel on the counter, about to ask him what he wants to do when he beats her to the punch. and inej allows herself a slight roll of her eyes at his comment before stepping forward to curl her fingers into his shirt, tugging on it.

pulling him a little closer. ]

Dinner could burn if we get distracted.

[ thoughtfully. ]

What did you have in mind?

[ She rolls her eyes but still steps closer and he grins. Her fingers curl into the fabric of his shirt and he follows the tug, looping an arm around her waist to pull them flush. ]

Maybe a little distraction. [ After all, she had gone through the effort to get the food to begin with, he doesn't want it to go to waste. ]

Haven't decided. [ Not fully, anyway. ] Hold on.

[ And that's really all the warning she's going to get before he tucks his cane under one arm and uses both hands to lift her up. ]

[ she’s about to lazily loop her arms around his neck when he pulls them together, but inej gives him a questioning look at being told hold on when she is suddenly in the air.

the largest mistake she made was allowing him to pick her up in the first place, inej thinks to herself as she’s suddenly at his eye level. but it’s a bit too late now, and so she loops her arms around his neck and lifts her legs a bit to loop more fully around his waist, so she’s a little more anchored, and easier to carry.

she then kisses his cheek. ]

Do not drop me.

[ how inej manages to say something affectionately while also sounding vaguely threatening is beyond anyone, but she does it. ]

When have I ever? [ Okay, they might've had a few close calls in the Slat. Three flights of stairs was sometimes hard on his own, let alone with the added weight of Inej—however slight that is.

Still, he never actually dropped her, not even in that desperate run to the ship that would take them to Fjerda. Though most of that journey is a blur to his memory, all he really remembers is panicking.

A far cry from where he is now, as he steadily carries her to the bedroom. The layout just happens to make it easy to get to and he feels a vague sense of relief when there's no incident from one room to another. He sets her down on the bed and then uses the same motion to kiss her neck. ]

You nearly dropped me down three flights of stairs.

[ a bit flatly, though she knows kaz is going to argue the nearly to his grave, because she did not, in fact, get dropped down three flights of stairs. but as she's set down on the bed, she unfolds herself from around him easily, tilting her head back a little as he kisses her neck.

she hums to herself, closing her eyes, enjoying the feeling, before she adds: ]

The only reason why you have a perfect track record is because of me.

[ as usual, she adds silently to herself, but best not to ruin the moment with an argument over ego. ]

[ A fair point, though he still stands by the fact it had only been nearly dropped, not actually dropped.

Granted, it had been Inej's quick reflexes that had stopped them both from toppling from near the top of the stairs. They hadn't done a repeat of that particular move afterwards, probably for the best. ]

And what would I do without you? [ He murmurs into the side of her neck, a bit of a cheeky smile pressed there. Reluctantly, he pulls away to set his cane aside before joining her on the bed, running his hands up her legs and leaning in for a proper kiss. ]

[ oh, he's in a good mood.

so she grins, returning the kiss in earnest, curling her fingers into the collar of his shirt to tug him properly on top of her, her back hitting the bed with a laugh before shifting to press her lips to his jaw. ]

Dead at the bottom of the ocean.

[ murmured, fingers brushing through his hair. ]

With cement blocks tied around your waist, probably.

[ He goes with her eagerly, using one arm to brace himself up. The other he sneaks a hand under the hem of her shirt, walking his fingers up along her side. At her kiss, he tilts his head, making an agreeing sound. ]

A likely possibility. [ The Black Tips certainly wouldn't mourn the loss. He'd say the same for the Razorgulls but their most recent leadership is more of a friendly rivalry than it has been in the past.

Which. Whatever, not important at all right now. Not when he could be thinking about other things, like kissing Inej. He presses another to her mouth and works his way down, shifting backwards so he can lift her shirt and kiss a line along her torso. ]

[ a certainty, really, inej thinks to herself, letting her eyes close at the feeling of his lips trail down her body. kaz is a capable person and more than capable of surviving on his own, but she always feels better when she's nearby. because while she knows the barrel is terrified of kaz brekker when furious, inej knows they're even more scared of the wraith.

the ghost in the dark, who is always watching, even when she's not there.

but similarly to kaz, inej pushes that thought of her mind, instead shifting her arms so she can get out of the shirt that kaz is pushing aside anyway. she manages to do so without distracting kaz from his mission, depositing the shirt off the side of the bed.

being flexible has perks. ]

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