come on and break the door down

Taryn. 19. Call me T or TK, but never Tar or Tary. One of the Stanford kids, from a long line of Stanford kids. Youngest of three and the last piece in a long legacy. I like music and sports. Photography is pretty cool. Political science is my major and according to my father, I'm going to be the president.

[ssgtjuarezatstanford-blog]

Independance Day || Tenny

[ssgtjuarezatstanford-blog]

“I don’t like it when you call me old….” he said softly. “It…makes me sound like I’m…doing something wrong to you” he confessed. His look was steely, focus on the TV as he didn’t want to make her seem like she had done something wrong as well. “I believe there’s 5 on Netflix…and 6 going on right now on TV” he answered. Benny thought for a second, shrugging a bit, “I enjoy the redirection, it keeps me on my toes. I enjoy looking at the actresses as well I suppose.” 

[tarynelisekennedy]

Feeling just a bit guilty, she grabbed his hand and kissed his palm. “You’re not doing anything wrong. You’re older than me, so what? We’re a good team and we’re a legal couple. Nothing to feel bad about,” she explained, looking at him for only a moment before looking at the tv again. “The annoying short one looks like a troll doll and as someone currently dating my teacher, I’m offended that she’s following the same plotline as me. And six seasons? Babe, that’s way too many. You’re gonna get fat if you just sit around and eat cookies while you binge watch this hot mess.”

[ssgtjuarezatstanford-blog]

Independance Day || Tenny

[ssgtjuarezatstanford-blog]

“You’re welcome for the orgasms.” Benny knew that part of why Taryn even laughed at him was the fact that his delivery of certain things he said. There was no smile, or indication that he was joking, but it was obvious to her that he was teasing, which was a change from his assertiveness for the past hour or so. They were of course back to watching Pretty Little Liars and Benny was mostly interested in the story, but he of course liked that she was there with her head in his lap, lounging for the day. “I’m sure that old people don’t have as many…high points as you did…Nor do they enjoy such amazing cookies that could raise their sugar levels. Diabetes is deadly.” he said seriously, another joke however. “I however, will enjoy many of them. Because I’m not old” he said this time with the smallest smile before reaching to the side to grab another off the plate he had set on the end table. 

[tarynelisekennedy]

“You were eleven years old when I was born,” she reminded him, tilting her head back to look at him with the same grin he always got when she found a way to come back at him. “I’m well within my rights to call you old.” Taryn stuck her tongue out at him childishly and then settled back to lay comfortably with her head still in his lap. “So how many seasons of this show are you planning on watching today? I’m only asking because I’m sick of the show directing me towards thinking that one person is A just to explain why they aren’t A and then looping around again with every. Single. Character. It’s unnerving.”

[ssgtjuarezatstanford-blog]

Independance Day || Tenny

[ssgtjuarezatstanford-blog]

His fingers flexed into her thighs a bit, pulling her up to sit on top of the dresser. It put them to the perfect position, her hips able to press against his as he rolled his against her own. Benny pulled at her shirt, slowly tugging it upwards and pulling it off. His lips moved down from her lips to her neck, from her neck across her collar bone and further down. He kissed down her chest, tongue teasing over her breasts as he kept moving lower and lower. It was obvious now that he was teasing her, building her up slowly, wanting her to anticipate every move. He took his sweet time kissing the inside of her thighs, sucking lightly, dragging his teeth over her tender skin. Benny slowly worked his way back up after a while, following the same path as before. He moved them back to the bed finally, knowing she had enough teasing. With her legs wrapped around his waist, he kneeled first on the bed before setting her down, now sitting up on his knees between her legs. He looked down at her, hands running back and forth over her thighs before he started to pull down her underwear slowly, taking them off fully. “And you said I was unpredictable…” he teased, always being the one that never forgot what she teased him about. Benny tossed her panties behind him to the ground before he leaned down, starting his kisses just below her belly button all the way down till his head was between her legs. 

[tarynelisekennedy]

It was later; they’d come down from the highs they got every time they touched each other and Taryn was back in one of his t-shirts. Lounging on the couch with her head on his lap, she had another cookie in her hand. “I had all of these plans for ways to spend the day...and now I honestly think I’d rather spend them like this. You’re turning me into an old person and I don’t even think I hate it that much.”

[ssgtjuarezatstanford-blog]

Independance Day || Tenny

[ssgtjuarezatstanford-blog]

“I’m not that old…” he said with a frown. Benny let out a soft hum when her hips replied to his, only making him roll his hips a bit more frequently as they kept kissing. “We should…” he said between kisses, “…move to…the bed…” he said before sitting up with her. He walked them over to the bedroom, although he made a small stop at the dresser just to be more ‘unpredictable’ as Taryn had said. His lips moved down her neck, fingers already dipping into the elastic of her underwear, pressing against her skin. 

[tarynelisekennedy]

Benny had surprised her by making a stop in their traverse to the bed. She gave him the freedom to do everything he wanted to do to her, ensuring that he had room to touch her anywhere and everywhere that his fingers wanted to wander. “Oh,” she mumbled, pressing her hips closer to his. Taryn nearly whined when his fingers touched her skin, but she bit it back. Her own hands moved up over his chest again, her fingers and thumbs rubbing over his skin with a slight pressure.

[ssgtjuarezatstanford-blog]

Independance Day || Tenny

[ssgtjuarezatstanford-blog]

“Well…” he said as he looked over at her and then back at the T.V. and then back at Taryn. His breathing hitched once she put her hands up under his shirt, feeling over the muscles in his abdomen. “You didn’t even have to spill water on me this time…” he said with a small smirk before he turned to meet her lips with his. This time, he pulled his shirt off for her, knowing she liked that, especially when they were making out. The kiss intensified after a while, his hips rolling against hers as he was on top of her on the couch. 

[tarynelisekennedy]

“I never have to spill water on you. It’s a choice I make when I don’t think you’ll strip down and show me your abs,” she confessed. “For an old guy, your muscles are pretty great.” When Benny kissed her, she let him lead the way. They were good at respecting each other’s boundaries and she trusted him not to do anything she wouldn’t be okay with. Taryn’s hands were everywhere, touching every inch of the skin that he had exposed for her. His hips rolled against hers and made her breath catch in her throat. She moved her hips back against his experimentally, unsure of how he would react - his willingness to take things to certain levels always depended on his mood so she treated him as gingerly as he did her.

[ssgtjuarezatstanford-blog]

Independance Day || Tenny

[ssgtjuarezatstanford-blog]

Benny was usually good at this. He would sit there unamused and unflinching even while she kissed against that one particular spot in his neck that had him clutching into the edge of the sofa cushion. But this time, it seemed to take less time than normal, his heart rate rising among other things while she kept pressing slow kisses to his exposed skin. “You’re not being fair…” he said in a low grainy voice, his fingers flexing in the fabric of his shorts. 

[tarynelisekennedy]

“I never promised to be fair,” she reminded him, her hand resting on his thigh as she continued to trace the lines of his upper body with her kisses. “But you know I’ll stop if you ask me to.” Taryn let her hands slip under his shirt, lightly rubbing circles against his skin with her thumbs. “Say the word either way, Benny. Do you want more or do you want less?”

[ssgtjuarezatstanford-blog]

Independance Day || Tenny

[ssgtjuarezatstanford-blog]

Benny gave her a look, obviously feeling like she was challenging him to do something, and he just leaned in and kissed her hard. He leaned forward, laying her back onto the couch, his hands moving over the body he knew so well now. It was unexpected and while passionate, it ended far too quickly he was sure for Taryn’s liking.  “Didn’t expect that did you?” he said sitting up to keep watching the show. Of course the fact that they just kissed had him ultra aware of where she was now and how close she was and how good she smelled, but he was watching his ‘stories’ and that, at least at that moment was more important at the time. 

[tarynelisekennedy]

“I knew you were going to do something,” she answered honestly. “Maybe I didn’t know exactly what you were going to do, but I didn’t think you’d be able to leave that alone. You never can when you feel like somebody is challenging you - which I was not doing.” Taryn had wanted him to continue kissing her, but he was too distracted by the tv to do anything of the sort. She was torn between letting him watch in peace and bugging him, so the decision was easy enough. She sat up next to him, leaning in and pressing kisses to his shoulder and neck.

[ssgtjuarezatstanford-blog]

Independance Day || Tenny

[ssgtjuarezatstanford-blog]

“I’m just a motivator. You gained all that yourself. I’m very proud” he said seriously and directly. “She’s not you” he said with a shrug, as if that made it clearer to her what he meant. Until of course he processed that she just called him uptight. “I am NOT uptight…that much. As her. I can be very…reckless and unpredictable…when I want to” he told her. 

[tarynelisekennedy]

“Let’s just be honest with each other,” she began, fighting a grin. “Your idea of reckless and unpredictable is picking out your outfit the day you’re going to wear it rather than picking something out before.” Taryn rolled her eyes. “I really hate to break it to you, but you are entirely predictable. I love you for it, but it’s true.”

[ssgtjuarezatstanford-blog]

Independance Day || Tenny

[ssgtjuarezatstanford-blog]

“I’m not invested” he said to her quickly after she said it, most certainly meaning that he was DEFINITELY invested. “You’re much better looking than her. She’s too…not you. At least you have some muscle too” he said a bit critically. “I would prefer you a million times over her.”

[tarynelisekennedy]

Taryn set her phone down on her leg and grinned. “Yeah, I do have some muscle. Thanks to this guy I know. He’s kind of a hard ass, but I think he might have some idea of what he’s doing.” Obviously she was talking about him, but she wasn’t going to compliment him directly. She lifted her shirt to expose the muscles of her abdomen, proud to show off her newly defined stomach every chance she got. “What do you mean she’s too not me? I think you two are just about uptight enough to get along fairly well.”

[ssgtjuarezatstanford-blog]

Independance Day || Tenny

[ssgtjuarezatstanford-blog]

“I mean…I wouldn’t say invested…” he said a bit defensively. He knew he wasn’t exactly in the target demographic for the show, or maybe it was because the main girls were all extremely attractive, but he didn’t want to admit that he was definitely invested at that point. When she leaned against him, he put his arm on the back of the couch, letting her cuddle into him a bit as he adjusted to get more comfortable. “Yes” he said as he clicked the little control to continue watching. It started with a cold open, and once they got to the theme song, Benny noticed midway through that he actually hummed it softly. He stopped immediately, hoping Taryn hadn’t noticed the fact that he hummed and tapped his foot against the carpet as the theme played because that would be ultra embarrassing. 

[tarynelisekennedy]

Taryn hadn’t been paying much attention to the show if she was being honest. She’d opened up a game on her phone once she’d cleared out her emails and she’d been focused on her game of sudoku. She’d been distracted by the low hum of Benny’s as the theme song played. Grinning, she looked over at him. “I’d say you’re definitely invested,” she deadpanned, looking away from him after a moment to continue her game. “It’s probably because the smart one looks like a better version of me.”

[ssgtjuarezatstanford-blog]

Independance Day || Tenny

[ssgtjuarezatstanford-blog]

Benny was quiet, his eyes following Taryn as she went to go shower. When she came back this time, he looked at her with a small smile before turning back to watch the T.V. He always loved the smell of her body wash, it was something sweet like honey and warm like cloves and cinnamon, and to be honest he may have taken a whiff of it while he showered alone and fantasized about having her in there with him. Benny never told her that of course. “There’s…four high school aged girls. And one of their friends is dead. And they’re receiving threatening text messages from an anonymous person who knows all their secrets including who killed their friend, who might also be this anonymous person…” Benny explained. He laid out every episode he had watched up until the moment that was actually playing on screen in great detail, as if he was reading the actual descriptions of each episode, except it was all just his observational skills. “This is episode 11″ he ended before looking back at the screen. 

[tarynelisekennedy]

Taryn listened to his words. She heard everything he said, but her mind also wandered to a zone of appreciation for the detail he provided. It never failed to amaze her that he was able to so easily the nuances any tv show or movie that he chose to watch and he never missed a moment when retelling her the events of said tv shows. He completely filled her in and she felt like she hadn’t missed a moment of the show, despite the fact that she hadn’t ever actually seen it. It was actually a show that she’d heart Tristan and a few of her friends in high school talking about, but she wasn’t going to relay that information to Benny lest it ruin the show for him. “Sounds like you’re invested,” she replied when he finished, changing seats on the couch to sit beside him. Taryn pulled out her phone and leaned against him slightly to be comfortable. “You gonna press play?” she asked, quickly checking her email.

[ssgtjuarezatstanford-blog]

Independance Day || Tenny

[ssgtjuarezatstanford-blog]

“Yes” he said as he sat as he always did on the couch, leaned back, hands relaxed between his spread legs. Benny didn’t even bat an eyelash when she climbed over the back of the couch and got a cookie, looking at her however when she brought him one. “Thank you. And You’re welcome” he said curtly, not really saying much else as he watched the episode of some new show he had started on Netflix. His eyes were trained solely on the T.V., seemingly emotionless but still processing his feelings inwardly. 

[tarynelisekennedy]

Knowing how Benny got when he was watching something on tv, Taryn helped herself to another cookie before wandering out of the kitchen and into the bathroom. She took a quick shower, glad to wash off the previous day's activities. After she had gotten dressed and combed her hair, she went back out to where Benny was still watching his show and resumed her previous spot. "Fill me in," she requested as the episode ended. She turned to face him and curled her legs under her, looking at him with genuine interest.

[ssgtjuarezatstanford-blog]

Independance Day || Tenny

[ssgtjuarezatstanford-blog]

“I gave you a beer. You gave yourself tequila” he said softly, as he tried to get comfortable, his breath hitching a little as she ran her fingers over his tattoo. “Go to bed. You can have cookies tomorrow” he answered a bit sternly, but his voice softened once she mentioned seeing him embarrassed. “I wasn’t embarrassed…” he said defensively, “…You’ll forget all about the videos in the morning” he said before leaning in to kiss her forehead, laying back to fall asleep. In the morning, Benny left Taryn to sleep a while longer, leaving a large glass of water and some asprin by the bedside for her. He made a pot of coffee and some breakfast, even ran over to the store to grab some ready to bake cookies since he had promised her the other night. The smell of the chocolate chip  cookies filled his apartment and he took the tray out of the oven to cool before he sat down to watch some T.V. Thankfully, he didn’t have work that day since the Library had been closed and he spent most of it on the couch watching Netflix before he head the first groans from his bedroom. Benny looked up from the television screen to see Taryn and her long legs trudging onto the couch. “Good afternoon” he said with a friendly smile, his eyes going up and down her long legs since his shirt left nothing to the imagination. Not that he needed to imagine at this point, in the last 7 months they had managed to go to every figurative ‘base’ except home plate. But it made for really great inside joke before having to have dinner with Taryn’s parents. Mostly because Taryn would remind Benny that his hands and tongue had been places her father would be enraged about and her sister would be utterly jealous about. 

[tarynelisekennedy]

Sleep had overtaken Taryn like clouds enveloping the sun on a stormy day. When she woke up, Benny’s side of the bed was cold and she was disoriented. She took the aspirin that he had left for her and then sat on his bed for a few minutes, getting herself used to the feeling of being awake and not drunk all over again. When she stood up she headed into the bathroom and did what she needed to do, brushed her teeth and headed out to the living room. Sitting down at the opposite end of the couch from Benny, she stared blankly at the television screen until he spoke to her. She turned her head to look at him, the bun she’d put in her hair the night before flopping sadly against the side of her head. “Morning,” she said, her morning voice raspier than usual thanks to the night before’s activities. She had no idea what time it was, but she was going to call it morning until she had clothes on and her hair brushed. “Did you make cookies?” she asked, climbing over the back of the couch and walking into the kitchen, grabbing a still warm cookie and popping a piece of it into her mouth. Content, Taryn brought a piece back over to Benny and held it in front of him in offering. “You’re the best boyfriend ever,” she praised, not caring that all he’d had to do was preheat the oven and time things correctly.

[ssgtjuarezatstanford-blog]

Independance Day || Tenny

[ssgtjuarezatstanford-blog]

Benny came in from brushing his teeth in his normal ‘pajamas’, which was basically just an old Army t shirt and basketball shorts. He walked over, helping her get her top off and put his t-shirt on her. He folded up her clothes neatly, placing them on his dresser before heading back over to her. “Tequila. Mixed with beer. Or tequila with some fruit juice. That’s all they were serving pretty much” he said to her as he laid down beside her. 

[tarynelisekennedy]

“Why did you give me so much tequila?’ she asked, lazily putting her hair up into a bun so the she didn’t have to deal with him either rolling over onto it or somehow ending up with it in his face as he had before. “Honestly I just want cookies,” Taryn told him, her hand wandering over so she could trace the lines of his tattoo with her fingers. “And to see old videos of you like the ones Bradley described. I don’t think you know how much I truly love seeing you get embarrassed.” She rolled onto her stomach and resumed tracing his tattoos, her eyelids heavier than her mind was understanding.

[ssgtjuarezatstanford-blog]

Independance Day || Tenny

[ssgtjuarezatstanford-blog]

“It is very unlikely” he said seriously before excusing himself to try not and look like he was as embarrassed as that time his mom showed Taryn old baby pictures of him. “Just get him really really drunk. Ooo! I’ll even get him a super cute banana hammock for the occasion” Bradley joked with a light laugh. He told Taryn some more stories, some embarrassing, some more serious, but most of them lighthearted from their time growing up together as neighbors. “He’s a lot happier now. I mean, I know it doesn’t seem that way because he’s such a Broody McBroodson all the time, but I can tell by the look in his eyes. He wasn’t in the best place when we got back from overseas. He’s worked through a lot but, he’s just…there’s this happiness in his eyes now that he’s with you so I’m pretty happy that you’re with him. No matter if he doesn’t always say it, we can all tell” Bradley spoke honestly with Taryn. 

After more tequila shots were poured and beer bottles were popped open, both Benny and Taryn got back to his apartment safely, although Taryn was still pretty hammered. They went straight to his bedroom, letting Taryn lay on his bed while he grabbed her a t-shirt she could wear and he started getting undressed. 

[tarynelisekennedy]

Taryn had gone through far too much alcohol. His family was very giving with it all, offering her shots and beers and drinks she swore weren’t really as popular as they had told her that they were. Her last drink had been about two hours before and she was still riding the happy train through drunk town. Lying on Benny’s bed, she watched him get undressed and held the shirt he’d given her in her hands, not entirely sure she even had the motor skills required to get herself out of her clothes and into something she could sleep in. With more effort than she was proud of, she kicked off the jeans that she’d worn to his parents’ house and left them in a heap at the foot of the bed, her limbs feeling like jelly. “I blame your uncle and your cousin and your sister and your friend,” she told him, her words slightly slurred. “I can’t even pajamas. What did you let me drink?” she questioned, lifting her head just slightly off of the pillow.

[ssgtjuarezatstanford-blog]

Independance Day || Tenny

[ssgtjuarezatstanford-blog]

Benny just grumbled something under his breath when his mother kept poking fun at him, rolling his eyes like Taryn would when he tried to be strict ‘Professor Juarez’. He couldn’t help the small, sheepish, smile on his face when watching Bradley make a fool of himself while trying to channel his best Channing Tatum in Magic Mike impression. When the song ended and his family just laughed and called him güero and talked about how crazy he was. Benny gave her a look, narrowing his eyes at Taryn’s question, “I choose not to boast about my amazing dancing skills” he said completely straight faced. “Have you not told her the story about that time in Farah?” Bradley asked raising his brows at Benny. A look of surprise and ‘oh shit’ was clearly written on Benny’s face and while he wanted to quickly pounce on Bradley to keep him from telling the story about Farah. He kept cool, hoping that he wouldn’t continue, but those hopes fell far flat. Bradley was alway the better story teller, always having been more animated and into what he was saying. He told the story about how Benny and him along with the rest of their troupe had decided to try and make a viral video. Of course, they had to get Benny completely wasted to participate,  but it ended up being one of the best things Bradley had ever seen because Benny was the ACTUAL Magic Mike that day. He had gyrated his way through the entirety of Prince’s ‘Kiss’. “Sadly, that video is no more but I wish it was because you would love it. This guy has some MOVES” Bradley said to a bright red Benny.

[tarynelisekennedy]

Taryn laughed the whole way through Bradley’s story, her laugh hardly more than a snort by the time he was finished speaking. Imagining Benny in his younger years was always fun for her, but when his friends and family members pulled out stories like the one she had just been told it was more than satisfying. Though she wouldn’t say it out loud, she often thought about how well they would have gotten along if he’d been her age or if she were closer to his age. She wouldn’t change the way things were, but her mind was always churning out new trains of thought. “Okay, I have a new mission in life,” she told Bradley, still grinning widely. “Because clearly I’m doing something wrong and I have never been more jealous of someone else’s experience.” Reaching over and giving Benny’s side a light pinch, Taryn didn’t try to hide her smile as she looked at him. “Any chance you want to recreate that for me?”

[ssgtjuarezatstanford-blog]

Independance Day || Tenny

[ssgtjuarezatstanford-blog]

Benny didn’t fight his smile this time, letting it show wide after she answered. Of course though, in that moment, a bright flash went off in front of him as his mother had snapped a picture of him smiling. “GRACIAS A DIOS. POR FIN UNA SONRISA” his mother cheered because god only knew she had about 5 pictures in the last 30 years of Benny actually smiling. “Te vez tan guapo cuando sonrias, Bennito. God, it’s a miracle really. Thank you for making him smile Taryn” Mari said to taryn, giving her a kiss on the forehead before walking away. “And this is why I don’t like to spend the night” Benny said scrunching up his nose before standing. He dusted off his knees, walking over to kiss Taryn on the cheek. Before he moved away, he whispered lightly to her “I’m happy you love me…as much as I love you” he said giving her another quick kiss before leaving her be and going back over to Bradley who was now dancing with Eva to Ginuwine’s classic, ‘Pony’. 

[tarynelisekennedy]

Taryn had no idea what his mother had said, but she had assumed that even though it had sounded like she’d made a comment about sunrises, the word must have been a false cognate. “If it makes you feel any better, I’m sure it was a cute picture,” she offered, watching him as he came over to her. The quick kisses he gave her were enough to satisfy the bubbling emotions she could feel going haywire inside of her mind. She picked up the chalk again and drew a few more swirls in her letters before getting distracted by the song playing. Finding the spectacle that was Bradley and Eva dancing, Taryn quickly grabbed her camera and snuck over to them, taking pictures every so often. When the song ended and his family had stopped giving the pair amused smiles and shakes of their heads, she approached Benny and bumped her shoulder against his. “Why don’t you ever dance on me like that?” she asked teasingly, almost positive that he’d try to show Bradley up if she provoked him enough.