18. things you said after you kissed me / Jack + Ruby. Best get your imagination hat out.
Admittedly, Jack had let that kiss go on a little longer than he’d meant to. In his defense, though, it was a pretty great kiss, and he would’ve been lying if he said he hadn’t been thinking about making it happen himself. But when he finally pulled away, the first words out of his mouth were:
“What the fuck was that about?”
Ruby stepped back but didn’t quite let go of him, her hand still lingering on his chest. It felt more like a threat than anything else. “That was a pretty PG-13 kiss there, buddy,” she told him. “What are you getting so offended for?”
“I’m not offended,” Jack replied, wiping his lips. “Just… what the fuck.”
Ruby studied him for a moment, arching an eyebrow. “There’s a girl, isn’t there?”
“Who said there was a girl?”
“Seriously, Malarkey, I’ve been around long enough to know when there’s a girl. Someone back home you never got over?” When Jack didn’t answer her, she rolled her eyes. “Honestly, I really don’t care, but if you’re going to stand around and be all pathetic about it, then I’m not going to waste my time.”
Jack didn’t really know how to reply to that, and so Ruby continued to stare. It was unsettling, really. Those red eyes of hers were intense, and he hadn’t entirely convinced himself he wasn’t scared of her yet.
“Yeah, okay, so there’s a girl,” he said finally. “But it’s not like that’s ever going to happen, so–“
Before he could finish, Ruby was already turning to leave. “All right, well, it’s been fun, Hugo Boss, but I’ve got places to be and–“
“Okay, wait–“
Without really thinking about it, Jack grabbed for her arm, which was actually sort of dumb and would probably get him killed. Not that that was new territory for him or anything. And anyway, he wasn’t going to give her the chance. He pulled Ruby back towards and kissed her again, cupping her face in his hands. It was at least a couple of minutes before either of them came up for air again.
“Still think I’m being pathetic?” Jack asked her.
“Yep,” Ruby answered, without missing a beat. “How about you do us both a favor and just stop talking?”