125Disclaimer: I do not own any characters.
IMPORTANT A/N:
I'm not even sure how many people actually read my stories, let alone read this author's note. But if you do either, thank you tremendously. First off, I apologize for seeming like I dropped off the face of the Earth. I have a lot of excuses that none of you probably want to hear, so I won't bother listing them out. They're probably the same reasons that many other people have when needing to find the time to update: school and sports. But now, some bad news: I have to be truthful with you guys. Realistically, I probably won't have time to write another chapter until at least June and update then, when I get out of school. The next month for me will be consumed with track and studying day and night for my AP U.S. History AP Exam in May. And then finals the next weeks. Ugh. So anyways, the chapter. I'll admit, this chapter ended up going in a different direction than I initially planned. But I liked how it was turning out as I was writing it, so I kept it. I think it's pretty good. And don't worry, there WILL be more chapters in this fanfiction (when I get around to writing them)! Hopefully you guys like it! I hate to beg, but please review! It's what motivates me to update and actually write this story!
If you have more Christmas ideas or activities that you'd want the Grimms to do, let me know! Or if you have any other one-shot ideas!
Chapter 9: Thank You
Walking in through the garage door, Sabrina noticed the house seemed oddly silent. Glancing at Puck, who just shrugged his shoulders, she continued warily into the household.
"See if you can find anything saying that they went somewhere… I'll check upstairs," Sabrina said to Puck, putting down her purse and taking off her coat. Bounding up the stairs, she peeked in all the rooms, and they remained as empty as before. Only Elvis could be found snoring loudly underneath Granny Relda's bed. "Puck!" Sabrina called, waiting for an answer. She faintly heard a 'yeah' from him. "Found anything yet?" She called out to him. Sabrina could barely interpret what he was saying because of the distance between them, so she sighed and headed downstairs.
As she walked into the kitchen, she could hear Puck saying to her, "Uncle Jake just texted me. Here," he said, handing her the phone, "I've already read it, you can read it yourself."
Sabrina took Puck's phone and read the text from Uncle Jake herself: "We went out to finish Christmas Shopping and grab some take-out Squid burgers. Be back around 6:30." Sabrina looked up at the clock. It was only 5:00.
She sighed, frustrated, and handed back Puck's phone to him.
Puck, noticing Sabrina's new aura of sadness, asked, "What's wrong?" Sabrina glanced up at him and shrugged her shoulders.
Responding, she said, "Eh. Just that we're having food from Grumpy's Gump, and I hate it."
Puck frowned. "So what do you eat instead of that when we get food from there?"
Looking shyly away, Sabrina replied, "Nothing."
Shaking his head, Puck hastily scolded her, "That's not good for you, not to be eating. You probably do it all the time," he accused her.
Sabrina didn't reply as she looked down at the ground, trying to avoid Puck's stern gaze. She only assumed that Puck interpreted her silence as a yes. She then heard him leave, presumably off to the kitchen area or family room area for comfort food and television. Sabrina just made her way over to their living room, attempting to find a decent fairytale book she could read without falling asleep. Settling upon one she had never heard of, she sat down on the living room couch, laying on her side. She noticed Puck rummaging around a lot, especially in the kitchen.
After nearly falling asleep from the dreary book, nearly fifteen minutes later, Sabrina resorted to just lying on the couch with her eyes closed. A second later, she heard the shuffling on feet, followed by a faint, "Sabrina? You awake?"
Rubbing the slight sleep out of her eyes, she could make out Puck standing there with a tray in his hand. He sat down next to her, and Sabrina sat up.
Sheepishly and somewhat nervously, Puck uttered, "I made some dinner for you, since you said that you don't like Squid Burgers." He handed over a tray to her, setting it on her lap. On it was an assortment of Sabrina's favorite foods: soup, a piece of bread, an orange, and a tall glass of hot chocolate.
In disbelief, she grinned up at him: "Thank you so much Puck. You don't understand how kind this was of you."
"Don't worry: I understand. Otherwise, I wouldn't have done it. I'll be right back, I'm gonna grab some chow because I'm not the biggest fan of squid burgers either." Awkwardly looking at Sabrina for a moment, he got up, and turned to go back to the kitchen. Quickly, he turned back around and gently kissed Sabrina's forehead. Lingering just a second longer, he dared not look into Sabrina's eyes, feared of what her reaction might be. Sabrina's eyes followed his form as he exited the room, and she gently touched her forehead, the place where Puck's lips had just previously been. Subconsciously, she smiled to herself, and looked down at the food he had just made and brought to her.
She nibbled quietly on the food for the next few moments until she heard Puck come back into the room and a 'plop' on the seat beside her. They sat there a few minutes longer until they both started to speak at the same time. Looking at each other, they both said, "You first."
Another awkward second later, Puck looked down and said, "You go first," for the second time.
Clearing her throat, Sabrina looked at him. "I just wanted to say thanks again for the food, you really didn't have to. But it was still really kind of you."
"Oh," Puck replied, sounding a little relieved. "It was really no problem." Sabrina noticed that he seemed as if he had expected bigger news than what she had just said. "I pretty much just threw everything that you like from the fridge onto the plate or into the microwave."
Gratefully, Sabrina wrapped a arm around his shoulder and gave him a half-hug. She tried not to think about his arm muscles when her arm came into near contact with them through the thin fabric of his long-sleeved t-shirt.
Silence ensued for a moment longer, and Sabrina spoke up. "Oh, sorry! What were you going to say?"
Puck looked away shamefully. "Nothing important."
Raising her eyebrow, Sabrina nudged him with her shoulder. "You sure? You seemed like you had something important to say."
"Yeah, positive."
"Well, if you want to tell me later, that's fine as well."
Sabrina finished eating her food, and then brought the tray and dishes up to the counter, where she started to wash them. Surprisingly, Puck came over and helped dry them off and put them away in the appropriate spots. Returning a small smile sent in her direction, Sabrina couldn't get over the new, mature person that Puck was becoming. He now gave her compliments, smiled at her, didn't prank her, took a shower at least once a day, and ate his food like a normal person. And this had been happening for a while now, getting better and better since they started aging. As she thought through all of this, Sabrina nearly dropped the dish in shock, managing to grasp it as it nearly touched the base of the sink. Why was he behaving this way? She discreetly peeked out of the corner of her eye and saw Puck reaching up to put away the last plate on the uppermost shelf of the cabinet.
Suddenly speaking and surprising Sabrina, Puck retorted, "You know, all fairies have enhanced senses. Sight, smell, touch, taste, and hearing." Sabrina only patiently waited, for she had no idea where Puck was going with this. "Which means that I know that you where just checking me out."
Sabrina gawked at him, at a loss of words for what to say. She hadn't realized that she had been staring at him for that long. "I was just thinking and looking off in your general direction!"
Puck winked at her. "It's fine, we're now even for when I was checking you out." Sabrina snickered. "And at least I'm man enough to admit that."
He then slowly walked closer and closer to her from across his place in the kitchen, until they were less than a foot apart from each other. Sabrina held in her breath, unsure of what he was going to do next. He gently took her hands into his and placed on of hers onto his side and the other in his own hand. They then started gently rocking back and forth to the music that Sabrina had just noticed had been playing. She didn't recognize the song, though she knew that it was, of course, some Christmas song. "What song it this?"
He softly whispered to her, "It's one of my favorites: Christmas Lights, by Coldplay."
With each note, they got closer and closer until Sabrina's head was against Puck's chest and they were slowly swaying back and forth with the tune. Faintly, Sabrina could hear Puck leaning down and murmuring the words into her ear
Those Christmas lights light up the street
Down where the sea and city meet
May all your troubles soon be gone
Oh, Christmas lights, keep shinin' on
Those Christmas lights light up the street
Maybe they'll bring her back to me
And then all my troubles will be gone
Oh, Christmas lights, keep shinin' on
Oh, Christmas lights, light up the street
Light up the fireworks in me
May all your troubles soon be gone
Those Christmas lights keep shinin' on.
Sabrina looked shyly down and the ground from her place on Puck's chest, for she was slightly embarrassed that Puck was singing to her. He gently reached under her chin and pulled her head back up to look at him. He looked to be deep in thought. She could feel the creases of her eyes beginning to form tears, and Puck gently used his thumb to wipe them away. They swayed for a moment longer, She closed her eyes and sighed in utter bliss from the moment. Puck was gently rubbing circles in her back near her lower spine, and gently spoke up, pulling away from her a bit. "Sabrina, we need to talk."
Interrupted from her own thoughts, Sabrina lifted her head up and took a step back. Puck's voice was not, per say, the happiest one out there. It sounded a bit strained, and frankly, another tone that she had never heard coming from Puck. Nervousness. Her lips rose into a mischievous smile. "Someone's a little nervous, huh?"
Puck blushed. What was up with him today? "Nuh uh! The Trickster King does not EVER get nervous or scared."
"Yeah, sure. What about last year when we had to catch that stray dragon that Heart set free? You were terrified when that thing came within an inch of killing you."
"You were terrified too!"
"Of course I was, I care about you!"
"How cute, Sabrina cares about Puck now! You love me and can't stand to see me get hurt, just admit it."
"Don't let it get to your head and inflate your eg—" Sabrina paused mid-sentence, getting a sense of déjà vu. Her eyes opened wide, and she thought out loud to Puck, "This is exactly what happened between us when we were twelve."
Puck's face scrunched up as he attempted to remember what had happened. "What?"
"Don't you remember?" She couldn't decide if he was kidding or if he actually didn't remember what had happened between them all those years ago. He shook his head, answering no. Sabrina internally groaned, for she would have to relive that moment once again. "It's what you and I were talking about right before you first kissed me?" She gulped and nearly choked when she said 'kissed'.
Puck smiled cheekily. "And you punched me. Ah, good times."
"You're joking, right?" Sabrina forced a grim smile onto her face.
"Eh," Puck shrugged. "The punch didn't feel so great, but it was well worth it."
Sabrina opened her mouth to reply, but what Puck had said hit her like a train a moment later. "Wait, what did you say?"
"I said that it was worth kissing you to get punched in the gut." Puck was not in the least bit ashamed of himself, and enjoyed seeing Sabrina flustered and confused at his responses. Her eyes just opened wide, and was, again, at a loss for words.
She shook her head in disbelief and turned to walk out of the kitchen before another thought came to her mind. "What was it that you wanted to talk about before?" She hopped up onto the counter and sat on the ledge of it, with her back pressed up against one of the cabinets.
Puck cleared his throat and rubbed the back of his neck. "Well, uh, it's about, you know, us."
Scrunching up her eyebrows, Sabrina was lost. "What do you mean?"
Puck sighed. "This is really difficult for me. My whole life, decisions have been made for me. I've never had the choice of what I want to do or who I want to be. I've never had any responsibilities. I've also had boundaries set for me." He paused for a moment, thinking. Sabrina opened her mouth to speak, but Puck spoke before she got the chance. "Please just wait and hear me out. Ever since your Granny's taken me under her roof, I've been under even more restrictions: when to bathe, how to behave, etc. But since the moment I met you, when you pushed me into the pond when we were twelve years old, I've had to grow up and make my own decisions and take responsibility for them. No matter how much I complain about growing up, or how hungry I am, or how I have to take a shower every day, I still love my life and who I am now. I love what and who have made me who I am." Sabrina could see where this was going, and she started to get anxious sitting on the counter. Puck grabbed her hands and gently held them still while he bravely continued on with his speech. "Granny, Uncle Jake, Daphne, Mr. Canis, Red, Elvis, and you. You most of all. Sabrina, you're the bane of my existence. I love that you've cared enough about me to remain my best friend, teaching me all of your best qualities. I've learned to love and care for others." Sabrina's face was a deep scarlet now, and she did not dare look up and Puck, scared beyond her wildest dreams. He sighed deeply, "'Brina, what I'm trying to say is that I'm in love with you." Her eyes were fully opened, and she felt a little giddy inside. This was not how she imagined a boy telling her that he loved her. Nonetheless it felt perfect.
She must have taken too long to tell him how she felt, because she looked up and saw a crestfallen face upon Puck. Their eyes met, and she noticed Puck's face, specifically his lips, inching closer and closer to hers. She closed her eyes in anticipation, not knowing what to expect. Of course, she had kissed him two other times. But those were not in the same circumstances as this one was: Puck had just professed to her his undying love for her. All of the sudden, Sabrina felt Puck's lips come into contact with hers. She knew right away that her feelings reciprocated his, because she could feel the spark and intensity between them at that moment. The kiss was not so much as desperate as their last one, but rather much slower and filled with much more emotion and feeling. After a few minutes, Puck pulled away slowly and looked deep into Sabrina's eyes. "I believe the words that you are searching for are 'thank you'. And don't tell me you don't feel the same way about me after that."
In response, Sabrina merely smiled and him and leaned in for another kiss.
Please review and let me know what you think!
If you haven't done so already, please read my A/N at the top of the story!
c.15