timewasting | OPEN POST 2020.

[ he finds her hand, and inej rolls closer, to stretch an arm across his chest as she makes herself comfortable. and Kaz can feel a laugh, though there’s no noise — a rise and fall of her chest, before she says: ]

That was easy.

[ no, it wasn’t, but inej counts that particular theft under “you would be dead in a jail somewhere” when Kaz asks “what would I do without you?” what a ridiculously stupid job. ]

You should probably find better locks, if that is your standard for difficulty.

[ this house is a fortress, if their front door can’t be broken into by anyone but kaz brekker. ]

[ She rolls closer and he smiles, relaxing as she gets comfortable. He'll never get sick of this, just laying with her tucked in close. It's amusing to think about how touch and go those first times had been, when they'd been figuring out comfort levels.

At least now they don't really worry about it. ]

They aren't that bad, just tricky. It's meant to dissuade someone in a rush. [ Just tricky says the man who's picked every lock under the sun. ]

Your definition of tricky is similar to my definition of gravity.

[ it’s murmured, allowing her eyes to close. ]

Besides, I doubt anyone is going to try and break into our house.

[ whoever does likely has a death wish. ]

But you can show me, if you want to.

Oh.

[ He supposes he might've overlooked that particular facet. Inej so regularly keeps up with him that it had slipped his mind. Also, he realizes in hindsight he'd been using his own measure of what counted as easy and difficult.

Oops. ]

That's probably true. [ It's not as though they were lazy merchers, who were painted as interesting and easy targets. Once word got out they were in the area, it would probably be enough to put off most people from willing to try.

Then again, if there's anyone remotely like himself out there, they wouldn't be deterred. ]

I'll go through it in any case.

[ her lips curve upward, as he connects the dots. for someone so brilliant, he was often four steps behind. on some things, anyway. most things, he’s fifty six steps ahead. at least.

but still: ]

I’ll let you teach me if you let me try it first without your help.

[ she won’t be able to get it but she’ll give it her best go. ]

Alright. No hints.

[ It's not the type jam up if she gets it wrong, so there's no harm in it. That and he knows it's easier to learn by feeling it out for oneself, getting a sense of what it does when you try to push the tumblers out of order.

This one takes a particularly patient hand, pushing the tumblers out of the way in a specific pattern. It had taken him a few tries to get it down. ]

Do you want to have Jes and Wylan over? [ Jesper had seen the house in an earlier stage and Wylan has only seen the outside. Maybe. If he had gotten curious and walked a few blocks. ] Unless you want to wait until everything's finished.

No hints.

[ an agreement that comes in a soft laugh that’s really more of an exhale. but at Kaz’s next words, inej shifts her head slightly against his shoulder to roll just a tiny bit closer, so she can fold her legs a bit over his lap.

she had missed falling asleep with him, desperately. so she as as well get as comfortable as she can. ]

I would like that.

[ and she would, genuinely. but her tone shifts to something a little more dry: ]

I assume they knew about the surprise, too.

[ She curls a bit closer and he loops a familiar arm around her middle, his hand resting on her thigh. It's how they've fallen asleep for a few years now, with her legs draped across his lap and his shoulder serving as a pillow. Eventually, they'll move around in the middle of the night, but it always starts like this. He likes the routine. ]

Jes found out. [ Kaz says, clearly chagrined. ] And definitely told Wylan afterwards. I threatened to dump them both in the harbor if they told you anything.

[ his hand on her thigh is comforting, and she grins into his shoulder, at the news of jesper discovering the secret... and the subsequent unraveling from that. ]

They kept the secret. [ clearly, given how surprised she had been. ] But I don’t think dumping them in the harbor would have been necessary.

[ saints knows inej would’ve fished them out. ]

It was a little extra incentive. [ Kaz please. ]

I was nervous that Jes was going to spill it at dinner. [ It wasn't that he was bad with secrets, just his excitement got ahead of him sometimes. ] He looked like he was ready to vibrate out of his chair.

[ Inej had definitely gotten suspicious, asking some pointed questions after. Somehow, he'd managed to dodge them. It worked out. ]

He always looks like he wants to vibrate out of his chair.

[ in jesper’s defense. sort of.

but she sighs to herself, tilting her head slightly to press her lips against his jaw. a soft motion, gentle. ]

It was a surprise well kept.

That's true.

[ Ever since he started embracing being a Fabrikator, that energy has had somewhere to disperse, but that doesn't mean he's totally calm. Jesper will just always be someone on the move. ]

I'm glad you like it. [ He murmurs, patting her thigh affectionately. There's a part of him that wants to return the kiss (there usually is), but he doesn't want to disturb her comfortable position.

Besides, they'll have time for that in the morning. And tomorrow, in general. The thought makes him smile a bit, relishing their space. ]

[ inej can’t remember such a good sleep. it’s blissfully quiet, in their home, and when she stirs to wakefulness, she can already hear the birds chirping at their window. the curtains are drawn, so the sun doesn’t disturb them ... but inej already knows that she’s slept in.

Kaz is still asleep, arms wrapped around her middle, his face buried in her neck. and she allows him to remain that way for a little bit before she gently shifts, scooting herself down a little bit so she can watch him sleep.

she only lasts a few moments, though, before she brushes her lips against his in a soft kiss, her hands gently cupping his face as she does so. mostly because waking him up is one of her least favorite things to do, but waking him up in a pleasant way is one of her favorites. ]

[ By far, it's the best sleep he's had in a while. Not only from Inej's proximity but from the sheer lack of sound. Once the morning comes, he can usually hear some of the distant sounds on the first floor of the Slat. Or the waking up sounds from on the street.

Here, it's almost entirely residential, set away from the market street and general bustle. So the only thing he hears (briefly) is the chirping of birds. His consciousness floats right back to sleep though, and the next thing he's aware of is the soft press of lips to his and it takes him a second to register that Inej is awake.

He's less bleary than when he'd woken up from the nap yesterday, but there's definitely a delay as he blinks awake. Still half asleep, he leans forward, returning her kiss. ]

[ she grins a little, once she feels him reciprocate the kiss — he’s awake, sort of, and she responds gently, her thumb moving over his cheek. and after a moment, she murmurs:]

Good morning.

[ — against his lips, shifting to press her lips against the corner of his mouth, and then his jaw, before settling back into her pillow, hand still gently caressing his face. ]

[ He's waking up slowly but surely, quirking a smile when she kisses the corner of his mouth. It's tempting to let that be all and drift off again, but he can't ignore the soft brush of her thumb to his cheek.

Or the sight of her so close, long hair fanned out on her pillow. Her grin still lingers in her eyes and he feels the familiar skip of his pulse at the sight.

Rubbing the sleep from his eyes, he shifts so he can kiss her again, murmuring a return: ]

Good morning. [ Before he keeps going, kissing her jaw and dipping his head to press another to her neck. ]

[ the movement is lazy, as inej returns his kiss before tilting her head back to allow him room to kiss her neck — and it sort of tickles, just a little, which prompts a chuckle to rise in her throat.

once he’s done pressing a kiss to her neck, she brushes her lips against his jaw, eyes bright. ]

Did you sleep well?

[ as she shifts back to his lips, her kiss soft. ]

[ He shifts back up when he's done kissing her neck. At least for the time being, allowing her to kiss his jaw. ]

Extremely. [ The return kiss is slightly less soft as he starts to wake up more, morning lethargy slowly being replaced by eager wakefulness. He settles a hand on her hip, his pinky just brushing the skin where her shirt doesn't cover. ]

Did you?

[ she enjoys these mornings, where they get to peacefully enjoy each other. most times, it just dissolved into salaciousness, which is fine by inej... depending on the day, anyway. and she idly wonders whether this morning was going to be one of those mornings when she decides that she wants to move.

so when Kaz leans over her, inej uses his weight to flip him onto his back, inej suddenly straddling his hips with her hair falling askew over her shoulders. and she dips down to return his kiss, responding with a grin: ]

I did.

[ peaceful. no bad dreams. ]

[ Sometimes, this is as far as it went; lazy kisses trades back and forth until they're both awake enough to pull themselves out of bed. Or rather, until they decide it's probably best to get up and get to the things they'd intended to do.

Other times, it went from laziness to something a bit more heated. This seems to be one of those times, as she easily flips him onto his back, settling her weight across his hips. There's an immediate hitch in his breath as she does, both from the surprise and the rush of pleasure that slides down his spine. ]

Hmm. [ He starts, tilting his mouth into the kiss and pulling back with a grin that mirrors hers. ] Can I help you with something?

[ Both his hands set at the sides of her neck and he doesn't wait for an immediate answer, kissing her again, this one a little deeper than the last. ]

[ she hums into the kiss, almost thoughtful as she bends easily to respond in earnest, her hips purposefully rolling downward in a gentle sway against his own. ]

Maybe.

[ thoughtfully, as she kisses his cheek, then lowers herself to murmur in his ear: ]

I do not want to get out of bed yet.

[ as she rocks her hips again, the movement still fairly lazy. ]

Do you?

Not at all.

[ The only appropriate response right now, with her rocking her hips against his and her mouth tilted so close.

He rolls his hips up, equally lazy, moving his hands down to her knees. Slowly, he drags his palms up her thighs, the motion eventually lifting the hem of her night shirt. ]

I think I can provide a distraction. [ Oh, they both know he can. He leaves her shirt where it's bunched at her hips, skimming his fingers over her chest through the fabric. ]

[ there's a laugh, at the comment, before she settles back on her knees, surveying him with half a grin, amused. ]

Can you?

[ his hands wander, but inej doesn't stop him, instead appearing to think to herself if such a distraction is worth the wait. ]

We have a lot to do today.

[ delicately walking her fingers along his stomach, humming to herself. ]

We need to buy more food. And furniture.

Extreme likelihood.

[ He's gotten pretty good at it. Not quite as good as Inej is, especially when she coerces him away from work, but still. ]

A city isn't built in a day. [ Does that apply to houses? Probably not. Does he care? No. They do need to get a dining table and some chairs at the very least, but that's floating at priority number 20 on his list of things to do right now.

Because she isn't stopping him, he slides one hand to the small of her back, fingertips tracing up her spine. His other hand palms her breast through her shirt, thumbing across a nipple. ]

[ he makes a fairly convincing argument, with how his hands wander, and she hums to herself before she catches his hand running over her chest by the wrist. but it isn't an aggressive motion or a panicked one.

instead, she tugs his hand a little closer, kissing his palm. ]

I think houses might be quicker.

[ she murmurs, kissing his palm again, before shifting to kiss his fingers. ]

Maybe we should buy the city and find out.

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