baby, kiss it better
matt taylor x jessica riley
summary: matt comes home from class to find one jess waiting patiently for him
tags: mattjess, one year post-canon, jess has brain damage, jess has scars, matt is attending college and jess lives with him, i wrote this on my notes app with no wifi, inspired by "cardigan" by taylor swift, screenshot by @mattjess
word count: 570
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matt had only been home for about a minute when a pair of arms snaked around his waist.
he hung his jacket on a hook and spun around, smiling softly. “hey, i think that’s a new record. fastest hugs in the west.”
jessica had her hands hooked behind his back, and she was grinning at him. her short blonde hair curled around her jaw, softening her face. “howdy,” she mumbled, “i’ve been practicing, see how… quiet i was?”
he brushed his fingers through her hair, tucking it behind her ears and kissing her forehead. “you snuck up on me again.”
she had a blue band-aid with pale yellow stars on it on the bridge of her nose, covering a scar, and she wasn’t wearing any makeup. he loved her like this, soft, human, there.
“i see you found my sweatshirt,” he said wryly, pulling its navy blue hood over her head. she was wearing his pajama pants, too, and she was leaning pretty heavily on him.
“it may never have been missing,” she said, her grey eyes twinkling like starlight. “how was… uh, practice?”
“class was boring,” he sighed, catching her frown when she realized she’d gotten the place wrong. “but i’m glad there’s no practice today, because i’ve got big plans for us.”
“oh, yeah?” she asked, her fingers gently clutching the fabric of his sweater. “like… capital b, big?”
he grinned. “yep, i’ve got big plans. c’mere.”
matt walked her to the kitchen, letting her cling to his arm as much as she needed, then, smiling, stepped closer to her. he slipped his hand under the hem of the stolen sweatshirt and cupped her waist, chuckling when she shivered.
he leaned forward and pressed his lips against each of the scars on her face, then lifted her up to sit on the counter. “we’re making cookies.”
“we’re making cookies?”
“well, i’m making cookies, i think you’re just gonna sit there and look pretty. think you can handle that?”
her beam lit the whole apartment.
they chatted while matt mixed the dough, listening to jess’ music, and matt got distracted a couple of times just looking at her. she couldn’t look more different than the jess he’d seen at the lodge the year before.
she couldn’t look more different than the bleeding, terrifying jess he’d caught in the mines that night, either.
“you’re looking at me funny,” she murmured, sliding gingerly off of the counter and stepping close to him. she slipped her hands in the pockets of his levis, looking up at him with a smile that was equal parts mischievous and apprehensive. “why?”
matt offered her a small blob of cookie dough and gave it to her as she opened her mouth.
“i’m just happy,” he said softly, “happy we’re here.”
“i’m, uh, i’m glad you came to see me,” she whispered, “even though—” she broke off, pressing her eyes into her skull with the palms of her hands. jess had a hard time remembering things, talking, walking, even, after the mines. she was the strongest person he’d ever met.
“i think we both knew i’d come back to you,” matt said earnestly.
she tugged on the front of his cardigan and he leaned down, letting her kiss him slowly and clumsily. when she broke away, he kissed her forehead, holding her close and swaying to the soft music playing in their kitchen.
“thank you,” she whispered.
