MHA #4, Monday very late morning (or maybe early afternoon)

[stykera]

It had been a very good (if artificially long) New Years Eve. After leaving Caritas Stark and Summer had headed west for celebrations in Chicago and Boulder and Los Angeles and finally one on a beach in Hawaii before they had stumbled back to MHA in the early hours of the morning. Every midnight had found Stark smiling softly at Summer after kissing her and telling her just how lucky he was to be starting another year with her in his arms. And every midnight found Summer reacting to that in different ways though none were unhappy with the sentiment.

Late that morning, after not enough sleep, Stark had woken up and found himself still entangled with Summer. "'M still lucky," he said quietly, more to himself than to her. "Morning, Summer." He didn't want to wake her if she was still asleep. He would be happy to stay right here as long as she was willing to even if he was meant to be at the clinic today. The nurses would understand or he hoped they would. He could always make it up to them later.

[For the scandalously modded woman in the bed with him. Although if you want to knock on the door or send a text nobody's gonna stop you.]

Comments

[somethingwithturquoise]

Yeah, there was no way Summer was setting foot in Turtle & Canary on New Years Day, much less one following a marathon if countdowns and balldrops across the country. She even thought of putting her phone on mute in case Apu still tried to get in touch with her.

Almost.

But the groaning hum that escaped from Summer in response was an indication that she was, reluctantly, waking up, too, and she stubbornly nuzzled her face into Stark's shoulder to show how unwilling she was to give into the tyranny of 2024 already starting in and expecting her to be conscious. Probably even before noon!

Not a cute start, 2024!

Still, she did give a small concession for a murmured, "Morning, Stark" back.

[stykera]

Stark thought it was a cute start! There was nuzzling and there was Summer so what better start could there be?

"Coffee?" he asked, pulling her a little closer and starting to run his fingers through her hair. "I can make coffee or breakfast or both or... stay right here."

[somethingwithturquoise]

"If you could make me coffee and breakfast and still stay in bed," Summer mumbled, "then I'll really be impressed."

And then she thought about what she'd said and about Stark's very strong drive to impress her, and very hastily added, "Not really, though. Please don't try to do that."

Her opinion on that might've been different,though, if they'd been in his bed.

[stykera]

"Hmmmm, sounds messy," Stark agreed, turning his head so he could press a kiss to the top of her head. "I wouldn't want to ruin your bed. I could order coffee and breakfast. My phone is...somewhere. In my pants. Over there, I think? Then someone will bring us food and coffee and I only have to get out of bed for just a moment..."

[somethingwithturquoise]

"Yeah, but," Summer countered, "if you move, then I'll have to move because you moved, and no."

She was feeling very anti-movement in general at that specific moment, really.

[stykera]

"You wouldn't have to move much," Stark said gently. "I would come right back to bed. Or..."

He moved his hand slowly through her hair once more, letting his fingers trail against her skin. "Or we could stay right here until you're ready to move. It might be cold out of bed."

Nobody wanted that. Not when where they were felt so warm and inviting. "But you're all right? You don't need anything?"

[somethingwithturquoise]

A short list of things she might need or want went marching through Summer's head, but she mostly just landed on one thing:

"Probably just to go back to sleep, honestly. Like, if it's even a second before noon, there is no justice in the world."

It was practically already halfway to noon already by the time they got home!

[stykera]

"I don't know what time it is," Stark admitted. "I usually just look at my phone for that."

And the phone was probably in his pants and so probably on the floor over there, somewhere.

"We did get home late. Or very early. Changing times is confusing especially when you do it so many times but it was worth it, I think. Getting to start the new year with you so many times. I'm lucky."

Was it possible to say that too many times on one New Year's Day? Stark was probably going to find out.

[somethingwithturquoise]

Summer's phone was easily within arm's reach on her bedside table, but see previous statements, re: movement was basically fascism, honestly.

"It was a pretty good idea, wasn't it?" Summer, ever humble, mused through her sleepy grin. "I'm glad I thought of it."

And then, it seemed like her boycott against the oppression of moving was lifted, at least long enough for her to stretch up to kiss him on the cheek.

"And I'm glad you went with me," she added. "Thanks, Stark."

[stykera]

A little kiss on the cheek wasn't nearly so much movement as reaching for a whole phone was.

"Very good idea," Stark agreed. "You have the best ideas, Summer. Thank you for taking me with you so we could start the year together over and over."

He grinned at her, pulling her a little closer after she kissed his cheek. "This is a very good way to start the year too. Here like this. Here is one of my favorite places." Summer already knew that she was his favorite person.

[somethingwithturquoise]

"There are definitely worse places to get things started in," Summer agreed, and her budding appreciation for movement had her even wriggling in closer to Stark, in case he needed for evidence to support that fact. Then, stretching a little further, to kiss him in his lips, a kiss that lingered and stayed because it took ~soo~oo~ooo~ much effort to get there in the first place, might as well make it count.

"That coffee," she admitted, as the ratio between awake and asleep started to shift toward the first one, "is sounding better and better by the minute, actually..."

[stykera]

"Really?" Stark asked, grinning at her a little wickedly, letting his hand fall to her back and slide down. "I was just thinking I was getting very comfortable right here."

She'd started it with that unfair wriggling and stretching against him.

"Maybe we don't need to leave the bed all day."

[somethingwithturquoise]

"Well, we'll have to leave eventually," Summer argued. Very lightly. Clearly against her own benefit, too. "I'm gonna want to eat something at some point, and it's not like Pancakes'll bring us food. Like, she probably could, but she's definitely not going to."

And Summer was actually very okay with that, considering her history with pets capable of doing more than boilerplate pet things.

[stykera]

Pancakes seemed more likely to deliver a hairball and that was, most likely, for the best.

"Mmm," he hummed. "I wouldn't want you to be hungry. I'd feel terrible."

He didn't look like he felt terrible. He looked like he was very happy right where he was. Happy and turning, just a bit, so he could put his other arm around her as well to keep her where she was.

"Should I order food then? Or go make something and come back as quick as I can?"

[somethingwithturquoise]

"Mmmm." Summer might not have had to move, but she was already in this deep with the dark side that was mobility, so she was going to shift accommodating to the new position, one of her arms sliding up around Stark's shoulder, hand curling at the back of his neck. She looked like maybe she was considering it, then kissed him again.

"Maybe not yet," she said, and emphasized, again, with another wiggle, another kiss. "Eventually. I think I might have a bit before I'm starving and wasting away into nothing."

Although she couldn't blame you for thinking otherwise, the way she dramatically tilted her head back like she was in a dramatic, malnourished swoon as she said it.

[stykera]

"If you keep doing that," Stark said in the tone of someone who never ever wanted her to stop, "I'll never be able to get you food. I'll never want to leave your bed at all."

Such a hardship. Summer could probably tell how horrible of a fate he found this by the way he kissed her this time, starting at her mouth and then leaving a trail down her newly exposed throat.

"But I think if I eat some food we can come back to the bed. Or...the couch? I like your couch very much."

[somethingwithturquoise]

There was a pleased and satisfied grin on Summer's face as she kept her head tilted back for Stark to kiss her neck. She would have been terribly disappointed if she'd given him an opportunity like that and he hadn't taken it, so good job, Stark. Definitely starting the year out right.

"Energy for later," she agreed, finally tilting her head back up, "and more effective than resorting to cannibalism. So whattya say, Stark?" Her grin grew a little sharper, the hand at the back of his neck curled a little tighter. "Should we work up an appetite? Really make the effort to get out of this bed really worth it?"

[stykera]

Stark was determined to start the year out well. Begin as you mean to go on and all that.

"Did you not work up an appetite last night?" he asked, trying for an innocent look and failing utterly. "You're not hungry now? Not even a little? Not even a need for a...nibble?"

Like the little nip to her lower lip that was about to happen.

[somethingwithturquoise]

"Heh. A soft laugh, at that little nip, Summer grinned. "A little peckish, maybe," she said, looking at Stark with that familiar light of challenge in her eyes. "I could definitely be hungrier.

[stykera]

That sounded like a challenge, Summer.

"Hmmm. I could help with that," Stark said. "I think I'm already hungry."

The look in his eye was certainly hungry. "What could I do for you? Another kiss?"

The kiss he gave her then was full of hunger.

"Something more?" He slid one hand from her back to her side, ghosting his fingers along her ribs, the other dropping to fall at her thigh. "What would you like?"