āSensitive people should be treasured. They love deeply and think deeply about life. They are loyal, honest, and true. The simple things often mean the most to them. They donāt need to change or harden. Their purity makes them who they are.ā
Billie Dean Howard x Reader - Slow dancing in a burning room
word count: 2.5k
warnings: none, just fluff
Prompt: Billie returning home from a work trip while reader tries to surprise her with dinner, however reader is an awful cook. Just a soft fluffy established relationship fic, as requested.
A/N: This is dedicated to my love @billiebeanhoward !! Happy birthday my darling š I hope you have the best day and that this will do your request justice š
As you impatiently wait for Billie Dean's return, you hear the clock on the wall tick. Usually, the ticking was never to be heard, apart from the early morning hours when you both were asleep, as Billie's voice would always fill the walls of your shared apartment. Whether it was her honey-like voice filling your ears with words of praise or affectionate ones, whispered love confessions.
Billie was without a doubt, the person you had always dreamt about, your soulmate, the person randomly coming into your life and instantly knowing she just had to be a permanent addition to your otherwise boring and plain life. When you met the whirlwind, you never imagined that a few months and eventually years later, she was gonna be the woman laying beside you each night. The woman that would cause not just your whole face to light up with excitement but also your heart, both of your souls connecting in a way so unique, a connection you never had with anyone before.
The medium brought light into your life, finally a reason to wake up every morning and wanting to make the most of your days. A reason to keep fighting the bad days and to enjoy the good days, although those ones were pretty much every day spent with the medium. You enjoy every single moment with the blonde, whether it was the long nights together, eventually laying breathlessly beside each other, the calm and quiet Sundays before work weeks would begin, or the silly little moments together, Billie teasing you on purpose and getting you all flustered, even years after meeting and getting together.
However, the moments without Billie were always so incredibly quiet. Her voice not able to calm you or make you smile anymore, her smile not present to cause you to smile in return, and her calming presence not there to calm you now. You coped, especially after being used to it, at the same time, before every single return, it felt like the calm before the storm. The peace and quiet, before Billie would return, alongside multiple ghost stories and things she had experienced while being away, as well as her apologies for being gone in the first place and reassuring just how much she had missed you.
You planned this for a few days now, doing something nice for Billie for when she was going to return. In the end, you decided on cooking, despite it not being your strong suit, you figured Billie would definitely be hungry, after her flight and also the traveling leading up to her arrival. As a result, you planned a simple pasta dish and got a recipe as well as getting the groceries a day in advance, also picking up some dessert and her favorite wine. Billie Dean loved spoiling you and despite you bringing her so much joy and giving so much back with your mere existence as she would always highlight, you still wanted to do something in return and give back.
However, as you now stand in the mostly marble colored and fancy decorated kitchen, that neither you nor Billie actually use to cook a lot, as neither of you are the best cooks and Billie preferring to eat out, you realize maybe this wasn't the best idea. You start with chopping the vegetables, some tomatoes, and onion but midway you realize, you haven't added the pasta to the water yet. Huffing, you walk over to get the packet, only to realize the oil in the pan is on too much heat and the chopped onions are already starting to burn.
You try and fix it by removing the pan from the stove but due to the added onions, the kitchen is already filled with a burnt smell, in addition to the smoke detector that just started blasting down your ears. Jumping, you turn everything off, feeling overwhelmed already and deciding that after all this wasn't a good idea. No matter how much you try and fix it, by chopping more vegetables and getting more dishes, you canāt seem to contain the chaos within the marble kitchen. As you look at the time on your phone, you start getting even more stressed, feeling the pressure build-up, especially after seeing a notification from Billie pop up that she is due to land soon.
In your stressed and slightly panicked state, you quickly unlock your phone and decide to order dinner instead, burning a tea towel in the middle of it all and quickly throwing it in the laundry basket. After picking two dishes as well as some starters, you quickly rid the kitchen of any evidence, opening the windows and putting the used pans and utensils in the dishwasher. You sigh in relief, hoping now that the food will arrive before Billie so you might be able to disguise it as your own. You decide on setting the table, choosing some of the fancy placemats and only the best cutlery that Billie bought at some fancy place, and even lighting some candles.
Before you know it, you hear someone by the door and you cross your fingers that it's not the blonde medium you are dying to see, as that would expose your awful cooking skills and also ruin the nice evening and surprise. Luckily, you hear the doorbell and open the door to the delivery driver. After tipping and paying him, you place the food on the plates, making it look like this was indeed a cooked meal, not even thinking about the possibility of Billie instantly knowing considering neither of you have ever really cooked a meal before, without something going wrong.
As you wait for Billie by the table, knowing she is about to arrive any minute, you are lost in thoughts, drooling about the soft blonde that has you completely captured even after all of this time. You look forward to the little things, like waking up to feel her arm wrapped around you and finding her snuggled into your embrace. Her blonde curls falling freely all over her pillow and half of your face, depending on the snuggling position and causing your face to itch but you never moving, fearing to wake her up. You look forward to the quiet evenings, spent on the sofa together, Billie sometimes on her laptop doing research for work while a movie is playing.
Despite the medium's busy schedule, she would always make time for you, small gestures like a hand holding onto yours, her fingers running through your hair, or her brown eyes locking onto yours and making sure you are doing alright. Falling for the medium was something you couldn't control or stop and as you remember the two of you confessing your love to each other and eventually giving dating a go, you still feel like you are dreaming as the thought of Billie ever loving you back, still seeming so unreal, even after all of this time.
As soon as you hear the clicking of the lock, followed by the sound of Billie's suitcase echoing through the hallway, you are pulled out of your thoughts, a smile already gracing your lips, as you make your way over to her. ''Babydoll I'm home'' you hear her soft voice and instantly your eyes are blessed with her beautiful appearance. She is wearing her usual ''work attire'' which consist of some fancy suit from a brand you don't even know and some fancy looking heels. Almost instantly, you jump into her arms, longing for her arms to wrap around you.
''Hi, there sugar'' she coos, instantly wrapping both of her arms around you, discarding her bag and suitcase by the door. You both stay like this for a while, in each other's embraces and soaking the comfort of each other in. After a little bit, Billie moves her hand to the back of your head, rubbing small circles on it and pressing a kiss to your temple. ''Missed me much?'' she jokes, a smirk playing on her lips, and in response, you pull away from her a little and raise an eyebrow at your girlfriend's antics.
Billie scans you a little, checking on her babydoll, just like she usually would. You never really noticed the little things the medium does, as her eyes scan for any signs of how you truly are, as she could instantly tell in case something was off. You miss the little pleased smile on her face as she realizes you look well, no signs of anything being wrong. ''I made dinner'' you lie, hoping she won't catch on. As a response she raises her eyebrow in a surprised way, melting at the same time at the thoughtful gesture. Her chin quivers a little as you lead her into the dining room, exposing the candles and the set dinner table with her favorite wine.
''What have I done to deserve this?'' she asks as you lead her to a chair, pulling it back for her so she can sit down. ''Just being yourself'' you reply, internally scolding yourself for being so sappy as usually, that was Billie's part. ''Aww babydoll'' she melts again before the two of you start engaging in a conversation about the medium's trip, the annoying producers she had to work with, the ghost stories, and who she helped moving on from what, as well as details about her time off there, the fancy hotels and restaurant she has been to, as well as the usual remarks about missing you so terribly and how glad she is to be back home with you.
''This is really nice babydoll'' Billie remarks while taking some more bites from her plate. Blushing you avert your gaze, still trying to hide the fact you ordered the food and thinking about the disaster in the kitchen minutes before her arrival. As a result, you miss the little smirk on her face, as your girlfriend has quickly figured it out, however, Billie choosing not to share that piece of information with you just yet.
The two of you get lost in conversations again, Billie asking about your day, how work has been and if you have been okay while she was away, having to reassure her you didn't just live off pizza's and takeaway food while she was gone, despite having to lie a little about that detail in particular. As you both finish, your eyes meet the medium's brown ones, and just like usual, you find her piercing right into your soul, making your heart feel warm and your body at home, knowing that now she is back home, everything is in order again.
''Do you mind if I quickly unpack and get changed?'' the blonde asks and you shake your head in response. ''You go, I'll clean up'' you announce and before Billie leaves, you find her walking over to you, pressing a kiss to your cheek and whispering a quick ''I love you babydoll'', causing you to blush furiously yet again. The medium has you captured by her love, knowing exactly which whispered love confession or little affectionate touches it needs to warm your heart.
Which is partly the reason you had fallen in love with her. People often mistook Billie for someone she's not, as they mistook her for a woman only caring about her career and materialistic things, judging her for not being the relationship or affectionate type. However, the medium was so much different at home and with you, as she was on tv and around others. She loved showing you this side of her, the private, quiet, and hushed one that others wouldn't get to see as yet another sign of how truly and deeply she cared about you.
As you rid the kitchen and dining room of the dirty dishes, half-empty bottle of wine, you get so lost in your thoughts about the medium, you fail to recognize that she is already finished, sorting her suitcase, showering including her evening skincare routine, which usually takes a long time but she hurried, as she wanted to enjoy the rest of her night with her one and only babydoll.
You feel a set of tender arms wrap around your waist before you feel the medium's chin rest on your shoulder, the blonde snuggling into you. Instantly her perfume clouds your senses, reminding you so much of home and the woman currently having you in her arms, not thinking about letting you go for a second. As you are so mesmerized by her mere existence, you don't realize that through the speaker in the living room, one of Billie's favorite songs starts playing.
Next thing you know, a gentle hand takes your own and guides you into the living room, and she slowly starts swaying along to the music with you, not taking her eyes off you for a second. ''I missed you, my love, thank you for tonight'' she whispers, once again causing you to melt right there as you sway along to the music, despite dancing also not being your strong suit.
As Billie leads you, matching the song and chords, you smile, grateful that the medium is back now, your rock that has been by your side for so long. You suddenly feel the need to feel her a little closer so you close the gap between you two, catching her lips with your own and earning a surprised but pleased gasp in return. Now you are the one, having the medium blush a little but she knows exactly how to get you back for this one, as she smirks. ''By the way, did you really think that I wouldn't figure it out?'' she whispers.
''Figure what out?'' you reply, still hoping to get away with the dinner situation. In response, she raises an eyebrow and you give in, not really liking the fact of lying to her anyway, even about things like these. ''Fine, but how did you know?'' you ask and this question earns you a chuckle in response. ''Honey I love you but we both know we can't cook for shit'' she curses and has you chuckling now. The two of you carry on swaying before she rests her head on your shoulder again. ''I appreciate you for trying though'' she whispers, once again showering you in praise and reassurance. āAnd also you arenāt good at hiding your messes, I found the burnt towelā she adds and winks at you.
As the two of you, enjoy being in each other's arms again, all that is to be heard is the music slowly playing in the background, as your hearts beat in synch again now finally reunited, neither of you wanting to be anywhere else in the world right now, besides with each other.
