#marvelweek2025

They went to space as four, and came back as five.

It was a few days after their return from outer space when you got called to Reed’s lab by Johnny. And, as usual, your heart raced on your chest when you saw your boyfriend.

The perfect smile, the piercing blue eyes, his short and soft hair, his jawline, his arms. He was the perfect man to your eyes, and the fact that he was holding the cutest baby in the world didn't help your nerves.

“I want you to meet someone” is all Johnny said when you walked in, with a kind and loving smile on his face. But his eyes were telling a different story: he looked… worried. And for Johnny to be worried, things had to be worse than you thought.

But right now, that didn’t matter.

You walked closer, slowly, and looked down at the baby in his arms— his nephew, Franklin Richards. How can something so small, so fragile, cause so much turmoil? Why would a creature like Galactus want him?

“He’s…” you started the sentence, but didn’t know to follow it. He’s what? Cute? Small? Chubby?

No. He was a problem.

But you couldn’t say that to your boyfriend, who was looking down at you with loving eyes as he handed you the baby.

“This is the first time I see you go speechless” he pointed out, amused, snapping you back to reality. Your arms felt warm as you held Franklin for the first time.

You couldn’t help but gasp a whispered ‘wow’ as you held him. Franklin was so small, probably the smallest thing you’ve ever held. His peach fuzz blonde hair was the softest thing you’ve ever touched as well, and his skin was the loveliest shade of pink.

Johnny leaned back against the red work table, his eyes never leaving his girlfriend’s face. He’d never seen you like this, so quiet and careful. He tried to understand what it was making him feel, but for now he just enjoyed the sensation before labelling it.

“You’re a natural.”

You clicked your tongue, giggling softly, making sure to not disturb the baby. “I’ve been holding him for literally five seconds.”

Johnny chuckled back, as he crossed his arms. “Yeah, but you haven’t dropped him, that makes you a natural.”

The lab was quiet— just soft sounds from machines beeping softly every few seconds. Johnny used to take Franklin quite often to the lab whenever he was on babysitting duty, because he had a feeling the white noises soothed him.

You rocked the baby a little, as he squirmed and cuddled himself closer into your arms. “You’re handling it better than me, that’s for sure.” Johnny said, almost in a whisper.

“Yeah?”

“When Reed gave me Franklin for the first time, I was really scared. I mean…” Johnny took a step closer to you, and softly caressed the baby’s cheek. “He’s just so fragile, you know?”

“He is.” You said back, rocking the baby a little, letting your soft movements ground you, and enjoying the comfortable weight on your arms.

You knew Johnny's words meant a lot more than that. You knew he was scared not because of his size, but because of what his birth meant for the world, and for the team. “But he’s going to grow stronger and bigger each day, you’ll see. And before you can think about it, he’ll be all grown.” You continued, trying to draw your boyfriend away from his worries. “A little pain in the ass just like his uncle.”

Johnny nodded in agreement, and he couldn’t help the small smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth as his mind wandered off to the future. “He will be for sure. But, right now, he’s pretty damn cute.”

“I don’t think he’s ever not gonna be cute, you know?” His girlfriend replied.

“You’re just saying that because you haven’t had to change his diapers yet”

That made you chuckle once again, the sound of your giggles making Johnny feel warmth all over him, a different kind of heat than his flames. Their joint laughter made his nephew twitch a little in your arms, fluttering his eyes open.

When he noticed Franklin’s blue eyes on you, Johnny took a step closer, standing behind your back, looking down at the baby from your shoulders. His hands immediately landed on your waist, holding you closer to him.

Franklin’s blue eyes —the same ones Sue and Johnny had— were big and shiny as they focused on you.

“Look at that” Johnny murmured in a soft voice. “He knows how beautiful you are.”

Johnny’s girlfriend was just as wild as his flames, hot like his flames, unpredictable like his flames. That's why he had fallen head over heels for you— you were living, breathing fire, just like him.

You never said no to a dare, or turned down a plan. If he made any dirty comments, you’d always double down and say something ever dirtier, making him blush. Him, the human torch, blushing. His girlfriend was the only one who managed to do that.

But right now, as you held his newborn nephew, you were far away from that wildfire. You were still spirited, but in a different way— your eyes didn’t glow like a bonfire or a sun, they glowed like birthday candles, or a hearth. Like a home.

“You two killing me here, you know?” Johnny muttered, making you raise an eyebrow, amused.

“Don’t tell me you’re getting baby fever.” she teased.

Johnny shook his head, his usual smirk returning back to its place. “Me? Nah.” He lied. “But you look good holding a baby”

“Yeah?”

He turned around, to face you fully. He tucked a piece of your hair behind your ear, leaning so close to you that your foreheads touched. “You look… beautiful. I mean, you are beautiful, always, but right now… damn.”

You chuckled again— that sweet, sweet noise he loved. In your arms, little Franklin cooed a little, blinking his eyes tiredly.

“I think he agrees with me” Johnny said, but his girlfriend shook her head.

“He’s the only beautiful thing here. I can’t believe how cute he is” you said, now that the first impression —fear and confusion— had worn off a little. Yeah, Franklin’s arrival was a problem for the world, but maybe it was a problem worth having, especially if it made Johnny this soft and sweet and cuddly.

“Hey! Don’t sell yourself short. You’re pretty damn cute too” he said, rolling his eyes playfully. “Maybe the baby is cuter, but you’re a second close.”

You didn’t reply. Instead, you let gravity pull you closer to Johnny. You both stayed this way for a moment— you, holding Franklin in your arms, letting him feel your heartbeat as he fluttered his eyes shut once again, whileJohnny held you in his arms, surrounding you both.

The silence in the lab was peaceful, comfortable. Usually, they weren’t the kind of people to stand silence, or be quiet like this. But now, silence had a new taste, and a new warmth they hadn’t known before.

“You know” Johnny said, finally breaking the silence with a whisper. “If you keep holding him like that, he ain’t gonna want to go back to Reed”

You rolled her eyes. “Oh, the moment he gets hungry and realises these boobs don’t have milk, he’ll be screaming to go back to Sue.”

That made him snort a laugh, although he contained it enough to not wake the baby. “Yeah, probably” he agreed, and sighed. “But until then… he seems pretty content with you.”

You nodded, but your mind was now away from the scene in front of you. Just mentioning Sue and Reed was enough to bring back the worries. “How is she holding up?” You asked, biting her cheek.

Johnny stepped back, at last, from their embrace. You immediately felt cold— you always did when Johnny dropped his arms off of you, regardless of the weather.

You paced a little, rocking Franklin, while Johnny leaned back on the table, crossing his arms. “Sue? She’s… managing as well as anyone would, I guess.” He made a pause, looking at Franklin. “She’s stronger than anyone I know, but it’s stupid to think this whole thing isn’t taking a toll on her, or Reed. You know how he is— he had planned every little detail for the birth and… well, we had to wing it in the end.”

You sighed, shaking your head. You remembered your surprise as you watched Sue walk down their space craft, no longer with a bump, and instead holding Franklin tightly on her chest.

“I can’t even begin to imagine what she went through, what you all went through out there. Giving birth is already as hard as it is, and she had to do it in space, God.” You rambled out loud.

Johnny nodded, with a sad smile on his face, but a smile nonetheless. “It was a nightmare— I’d never been so scared, but we all had to get it together for her.” He took another pause before he spoke again, his voice filled with emotion. “We should’ve done better, if she hadn’t come with us, maybe none of this would’ve happened.”

That made you stop on your tracks. You took a step closer to Johnny, and adjusted the baby on your arms to free one hand and hold Johnny’s.

“It’s all in the past now, babe. Sue’s fine and safe, and so is Franklin. That’s all that matters.”

You watched him nod, shortly, trying to let your words sink in, and push the memories and worries away— hard job.

“Yeah, you’re right. It’s in the past. Now, all we have to do is find a way to get Galactus off our backs, and then we can go back to our normal lives.” Johnny replied, trying to not be sarcastic, and failing miserably.

You sighed, hard and heavy. The silence… the silence of the lab was heavy and uncomfortable now, no longer peaceful.

Yeah, Franklin was a problem.

You moved to lean on the table by Johnny’s side, still rocking the baby in her arms. “My baby fever has died all of the sudden” you murmured, not even realizing you’d spoken out loud.

“Oh, so you are the one with baby fever, then!” Johnny said, smiling again, unable to resist a small laugh. “And you were worried about me getting it.”

“You do have it, tho” you accused, rolling your eyes. Johnny’s copying mechanism whenever they talked about real problems —like Sue, Franklin, or Galactus— was humor, the dirtier the better. And, as much as it bothered you sometimes, you couldn’t really complain. In the end, you were just like him. And yeah, you did have baby fever, just like him.

You smirked when you saw Johnny blush, even just a little. “I mean, yeah babe, of course I’ve got baby fever, but can you blame me? You just look so good holding my nephew, I can only imagine how much hotter you’d look holding our kid.”

Our kid.

Those two simple words echoed on your head, making you blush now too. “Our… wow.” you gasped a little, blinking.

“What are you thinking about?” He asked, tilting his head to try and take a look at your eyes as you looked away.

“About our hypothetical baby” you replied, and swallowed nervously. “Would they have powers?”

Johnny shrugged. “Most likely, yeah, although we don’t even know if Franklin has them. But powers or not, our baby would be perfect, because it’d be ours.”

He moved, then, picking up Franklin very gently, to put him down on his carrier and let him continue his nap in peace. “Though we should probably practice first, right? To make sure we’d be good parents” he said as he settled the baby down, feeling proud of himself for not waking him up in the process.

“I thought for a moment you’d say practice baby making” you replied, choking a little on your own saliva.

“Well, that’s important too” Johnny teased, walking back to you, and immediately holding you by your hips, pushing you against the table softly enough to feel your body against his. “We can’t let that get too rusty, now do we, babe?”

The kiss took you by surprise, as usual. He never hesitated or lingered too much— he’d always kiss you if he wanted to, although most most times because he needed to.

You grabbed his hair on the base of his neck, pulling him closer to your lips. His hands traveled from your hips up into your skirt, slowly making their way up your back towards your waist, where he anchored them.

“God, Johnny—“ you moaned his name into his lips, pushing him aside to breathe for a moment. “Please give a good reason to not fuck right here, right now” you begged.

Johnny chuckled. “Well, pretty thing” he said, clearing his throat. “As much as I’d love to do that, I can actually think of a couple of reasons.”

He leaned in closer to your ear, as his hands moved once again, slow like the flame of a match stick, down to your legs.

“One, we’re in the lab.” He whispered. His hands were caressing the hem of your skirt. “Reed wouldn’t really appreciate it if we started making babies in here” he tilted his head, letting his intrusive thoughts win him over. “Or maybe he would. He might have conceived Franklin right here, for all I know.”

“Johnny!” You gasped a giggle. His hands were now tracing down your thighs through the fabric of your skirt.

“Two” he continued. “This place isn’t as soundproof as you’d think. I don’t need Ben or Reed to walk in on us while we’re hands deep in baby making.”

His hands were now touching the bare skin underneath your skirt, but instead of going down, they moved up. You couldn’t help but whimper a little when his hot, warm hands got closer and closer to your underwear.

“Shhh, don’t wake the baby.” He whispered in your ear, but didn’t stop his movements. His fingers reached your panties, and toyed around with the hem of the underwear, pulling it out just a little, and moving his finger around it.

“Three…” Johnny nodded to where Franklin was sound asleep. “We’ve got a cute, tiny little audience”

“Right, we can’t traumatize him right away, can't we?” You replied, but your voice quivered as you tried to hold a moan in. Nothing in your tone sounded sure of your words.

“Definitely not. That’d be cruel.” Johnny agreed, while his fingers moved past the hem of your underwear, to softly touch your lips, parting them apart to feel your wetness. “But… he’s taking a nap. And if we’re very quiet…”

You pressed your lips shut into a thin line, trying to actually be quiet. “No, please” you pouted, shivering a bit when Johnny’s fingers began to move in circles. You leaned your head closer to his ear now, and whispered in a drowned moan. “I don’t want to be quiet when you put a baby in me”

Now, it was Johnny’s time to get flustered. His cock twitched inside his pants, and his fingers moved a little bit faster against your clit. “Jesus, you can’t just say stuff like that, babe.”

“It’s your nephew’s fault for messing with our brains” your giggled a little in between whimpers.

“You’re damn right. Worst wingman ever.” Johnny smirked too, pressing his lips against yours again.

You both continued your make out session, the rhythm of his fingers matching with the urgency of their kisses. But he didn’t slide his fingers inside of you— not yet. He enjoyed making you shiver and cross your knees with shaky legs just by toying with your clit.

“Should we drop him off with his parents?” You asked, breaking the kiss apart, and nodding to the baby. He knew this was your way of begging to leave the lab and go to his room.

“Yeah, probably” he agreed, finally moving his fingers away from your cunt. He rested his hands on his hips, and adjusted the boner inside his pants, clear as day, as he watched you take a deep breath to cool down, and finally move to pick up the baby carrier.

And there it was again, that odd sensation— pleasant, sure, but odd nonetheless. “Are you sure you’re ready to give him back? Because you look pretty damn good with a baby” Johnny teased as you walked out of the lab.

“Well, that’s exactly why I want to drop him off” you said as you made your way down the hallway towards Reed’s office. “So you can actually get me one for myself.”

Johnny chuckled at that, and he had to adjust his boner once again as he felt his cock twitch in his pants. “You’re really in a rush now, huh?”

“It’s the smell of newborn, Storm. It’s driving my hormones wild” you said, and he just rolled his eyes.

“I think your hormones were pretty damn wild already, babe.”

The Baxter Foundation was quiet that Sunday morning as they walked around the long hallways. Sue was taking a well deserved nap (hence why Johnny was babysitting), while Ben and Reed were in his office, working like usual.

Once baby Franklin was back with his dad and uncle, Johnny began to walk to his room, his girlfriend stepping on his heel. But the baby fever washed off with every step— or rather, the baby fear increased.

He knew they were just playing, that this whole baby making talking was one of the dirty little games they played in bed. But something about the glow in your eyes, and the heavy sensation on his chest every time he saw you carrying Franklin made Johnny feel…

Nervous.

When they finally reached his room, he didn’t move from the doorframe. Not even when his girlfriend began to undress.

“What?”

“I— you really were serious about having a baby now?” Johnny stuttered.

“Well, no. I’m on birth control, we’re just playing around.” You said, standing in the middle of the room, half naked. “But it can happen now if you want to— all I gotta do is stop taking my pills.”

He sighed. Did he? He wasn’t sure he wanted to tell his girlfriend he didn’t want to right now. And probably not for a couple of years.

As much as he made fun of Reed and Sue, he secretly envied them a little. He wanted to do things the right way, just how they’d done it— with a ring on your finger first.

Besides, what if another creature comes to claim his kid too?

“Just think about it this way, babe. The longer we wait, the wilder it’ll be when we actually do it” is all Johnny said in the end, smiling, trying to convince you to wait and masking it the only way he knew how.

You raised an eyebrow at that— he wanted to wait? “Is that a challenge?” You asked.

Johnny couldn’t help but smirk as he shrugged. “Maybe. You think you can handle the wait? Or will your hormones drive you crazy before?”

“Please” you smirked back. “I can hold up, I just spent weeks waiting for you to come back and I did fine. Question is…” you took a step closer to Johnny, giving him that look that always drove him to the edge. “…can you handle the wait?”

“Me?” He snorted a small laughter, trying to not let his cheeks burn red. “I’ve got the patience of a damn saint, babe. I think you’ll be the one who’s gonna crack first.”

“Not if you crack first.”

“Babe, you underestimate a man on his willpower”

“Well, then. Game on, Storm.”

What had started as a silly bet, soon turned… to a fucking problem.

Two months. Two whole fucking months without sex— and touching yourself, as well. Those were the rules you’d established: no sex and no masturbating at all, or getting off mentally in any way. That meant Johnny couldn’t look at those playboy magazines he had under his bed and pretended you didn’t know about, and you couldn’t read any of those erotica books you also pretended he didn’t know you had sitting on your shelves.

You’d only agreed to the silly bet because you knew your boyfriend. Johnny was gonna break within hours, crawling back on his knees begging to let him fuck you. But, to your surprise, he didn’t.

And God, it was getting hard to wait for Johnny to, well, get hard.

You tried everything to bend his will— you wore his favourite skirts, with your hair down and the socks up to your knees. You’d touched him under the chair during family dinners on Sundays, softly caressing his leg with your foot, up and down. You’d slept with your door open and your sluttiest, most scandalous pajamas on, just to tempt him to take a peek in.

Nothing.

Well, nothing except fire.

Turns out, Johnny had a lot of willpower— but not his flames.

Every time you walked into a room, Johnny would just light up like a Christmas tree. Reed couldn’t help but laugh whenever it happened, that was until Johnny burned some very important documents —and that got him banned from the lab indefinitely.

“Or until you two… stop being so childish, whatever happens first” Reed had told him before shutting the door.

None of them believed him when he said he couldn’t help it, his flames acted faster than his head. And, of course, he didn’t tell anyone the reason why they were out of control was your voluntary celibacy.

Sue was a bit concerned about Johnny’s problem, and asked you to announce yourself before walking into a room, because she was scared Johnny was going to burn Franklin by accident with his stupid joke. She’d even asked Reed to run tests on Johnny, just to make sure he wasn’t suffering any unknown side effects of his power.

Ben, on the other hand, took advantage of the situation, and mocked Johnny every single time he could. Like right now.

“I need a lighter” Ben said, touching his pockets. It was a beautiful spring night, with stars shining bright in the New York sky. He was standing on the balcony in his best tailored suit, waiting with Johnny for you to show up. “I guess I’ll just call your girl so you light up.”

Johnny didn’t think it was amusing, at all, but Ben was laughing almost hysterically at his bad joke.

“No, but seriously, I need a lighter” he said again, now more calm, as he put a cigarette in his mouth. That’s when you showed up beside Ben, and handed him your zippo.

“Thank you, doll.” Ben replied, smirking, and then lit up his cigarette, his eyes darting from the star struck Johnny to you.

Johnny tried to keep his expression neutral and not react to his girlfriend, but it wasn’t an easy task— you were wearing a beautiful dress in shades of blue that matched his eyes.

And when Ben thanked you, and saw your fingers brush over his as you handed him the lighter, his flames sputtered in annoyance. Huffing, Johnny crossed his arms over his chest to stop them.

Ben laughed, enjoying how riled up Johnny was getting just from looking in his girlfriend’s direction. He leaned against a wall, taking a drag of his cigarette as he smirked at Johnny. “You good there, matchstick?”

Johnny just rolled his eyes and grumbled something inaudible while you got closer to him, and swiped some ashes off his suit.

“This is exactly why I’m here tonight. Sue and Reed said this ball is way too fancy and important for you to light up on fire. So, I’ll be by your side for the whole night.”

Ben just stood there, leaning on the wall, a smirk on his lips as he puffed his cigarette, finding this whole thing ridiculously entertaining. But Johnny’s face got red like a tomato, and his shoulders stiffened as she touched him. He huffed.

“You’re going to babysit me all night?” he asked, raising his eyebrow.

“Yeah” you replied, tucking some of your hair behind your ear. “This is serious."

“It’s just a fancy dinner—“

“Yeah, for your nephew.” You reminded him.

In the midst of your silly bet, the Fantastic Four got busy saving the planet and Franklin from Galactus. And now, like after every important mission, came the press conferences, the reunions with politicians, and the charity events.

Tonight, the Mayor of New York was throwing a ball in honor of the team. A ball so big Sue had personally asked you to keep Johnny’s flames in check, so he didn’t accidentally burn the Mayor’s eyebrows off. Again.

The music inside the ballroom was soft and elegant, with soft violins and champagne bubbles twinkling through the crowd. The kind of music that made you walk a little slower, more elegant. The kind of music that made your hips sway when you walked— something that, of course, Johnny noticed immediately.

He swallowed hard, his eyes darting down your body before he jerked his gaze away like the dress had physically slapped him. Ben laughed as he finished his cigarette, and winked at him before walking out of the balcony, leaving you two alone.

Two months. Two whole months without touching you, without sleeping in your bed, without waking up by your side. Two months of you intentionally walking around like a forbidden fantasy with legs, teasing him. And now this dress?

It was torture.

“Stop looking at me like that.” Johnny muttered under his breath as you both stepped inside the golden-lit room.

“Like what?” you asked innocently, leaning closer so he could hear you over the orchestra.

“Like you’re planning to get me dragged out of here in cuffs” he hissed. “And not the police kind, I mean fuzzy pink ones you’ve got in your nightstand.”

You bit your lip, pretending to look around the room. “Behave, Storm. You’re being honored tonight.”

“No, we are being honored. You helped as much as any of us” he said quickly, reminding you that you’ve become a crucial part of the team.

Reed’s shields, Sue’s forcefields, Ben smashing things— and you, right in the middle, helping Reed stabilize the device that ended up taking Galactus away from Earth, saving Franklin.

Johnny grabbed two flutes of champagne off a passing tray and handed you one. His fingertips grazed yours and they immediately lit up, throwing tiny sparks, just enough to settle a wildfire in a dry forest.

You snorted. “Be careful, this dress is expensive, and I’ve got nothing underneath it. I don’t want you to burn it and end up naked.”

He glared at you. “Could you please not tease me while I’m wearing flammable clothes too? Sue threatened to kill me if I ruined another custom-tailored tux.”

You chuckled and sipped your champagne as Johnny forced himself to breathe. ‘Calm down. Calm down. It’s fine.’ He thought. ‘She’s just hot. She’s always hot. You’re used to this.’

But he wasn’t. God, he really wasn’t.

He stiffened again when a senator walked by and shook his hand. Johnny smiled politely— and then nearly burst into flames when he saw you adjusting the strap of your dress.

He yanked you away the second the senator left, taking you by the elbow and moving you away to a hallway. “Okay, you need to stop.”

“Stop what?”

“Existing.”

You laughed, loud and sweet, and Johnny’s jaw clenched.

He loved you. He loved you so much it hurt. But right now? He mostly wanted to drag you into some broom closet and end this bet with the kind of sex that would short-circuit your brain.

You rolled your eyes, and took his arm around yours, pulling him toward the dance floor.

“C’mon. One dance. I’ll behave. Promise.”

“No you won’t.” He replied as he followed anyway.

The music shifted as you made it to the middle of the ballroom. Now, it was even slower, deeper. Johnny placed one hand on your waist. His palm felt hot against the thin fabric of your dress.

You smiled and rested your head lightly against his chest. Around you, people in their best clothes danced in a soft pace. Golden curtains draped across the ball, shimmering under the ballroom lights like the champagne in the flute glasses.

“Johnny?” you asked softly, feeling his heartbeat.

“Yeah?”

“You can end it, you know?”

He stiffened a little, but didn’t stop dancing. Somewhere across the ball, a faint baby cry was heard. Franklin, most likely— the little guy was way past his bedtime in a party just for him.

“The bet” you clarified when he didn’t say anything. “You can end it whenever you want. Just say the word.”

Johnny swallowed, and you moved your head to make eye contact with him. You saw his eyes drop to your lips, then your neck, and then lower than that, before he forced them back up to look at you.

“I’m not losing” he said. “I don’t break.”

“You’re shaking.”

“That’s because you’re wearing that wicked dress.”

You laughed again, quietly this time. And then you shifted your hips just a bit closer. It was involuntary, just a natural sway of the dance. But to Johnny? It was a fatal blow.

His flames bursted— not in a big way, but enough that you felt the heat bloom through his suit, along with a faint burnt smell. Enough that Reed, all across the room, snapped his head up like a dad sensing danger.

“Johnny…” you warned. “If you burn down the mayor’s ballroom—”

“Then the bet is off” he cut in, desperate. “I swear to god I’ll take you on the balcony right now.”

“Johnny!”

He stopped moving, and closed his eyes to focus. Then, after a deep breath, the flames retreated.

You slipped your hand up his neck, your nails grazing just behind his ear in a gentler touch. You were not teasing this time. This was reassuring, grounding, and Johnny's entire body loosened under it.

“Two months” you whispered. “You’re doing better than I thought.”

“Me too” he breathed.

“You still want to wait?”

He glanced down at you— at your eyes, your mouth, your dress, the way you fit against him like you belonged nowhere else.

“No” he admitted at last. He didn’t say no like he always said— this wasn’t a daring or teasing ‘no’, nor a desperate, horny one. It was a quiet, honest ‘no’. It lingered in the air as the song faded into another, but neither of you moved to step away.

Johnny kept his hand on your waist, his thumb stroking slow, nervous circles against the fabric. It wasn’t sexual, at all. For the first time in weeks, he wasn’t touching you like a man starving. He was touching you like a man thinking. And that was new.

His eyes flicked down to yours, blue and burning. Something else warmed his features, and it wasn’t horniness. “Come with me?” he asked quietly, nodding back to the balcony.

You nodded, and he took your hand, weaving his fingers through yours as he guided you through the crowd. The music from the ballroom hummed faintly behind you as you both stepped back to the night sky. Ben wasn’t there, nor anyone else.

He stopped near the railway and let go of your hand only to cradle your cheek instead.

“You okay?” you whispered, brushing your fingers over the hand holding your face.

He let out a shaky exhale. “Yeah. I just needed… a second, without everyone staring at me like I’m gonna combust and ruin their night.”

“You’re doing great.”

He huffed a tiny laugh. “No, I’m a mess. A two-month celibate mess. But I—” He stopped his own words to exhale again, his eyes dropping to the floor before he forced them back up to yours. “I don’t wanna just end the stupid bet. I wanna… start something.”

You blinked, your breath caught in your throat.

“What does that mean?”

He stepped away, then, running both hands through his hair as he paced around the balcony. “It’s just— I can’t do this anymore. The stupid jokes, pretending I don’t care, acting like this is only about sex when it’s not.”

You didn’t move as he stepped closer again. “These two months” he said quietly, with his eyes locked on yours “messed with my head.”

“Because you’re horny?” you teased softly, although the question was genuine and it hid your frighten. You’d never seen him like this— in the breaking point.

“No.” He shook his head, and reached to take your hands in his. “Because it made me think.”

That alone told you how serious he was.

“When we made that dumb bet” he continued “I thought you’d break in a day. And then you didn’t. You kept going, teasing me and tempting me. And you took care of Franklin, and now he babbles your name and smiles when he sees you, and you— you’re the most beautiful thing alive and you don’t even notice.”

You looked down to hide your warm cheeks, but he squeezed your hand to pull your eyes back up to his.

“And then I realized if I can go two months without touching you, and still want you more than ever? That’s more than a crush. That’s not hormones. That’s not… whatever I thought I was doing.”

He stepped closer, moving your hands to his chest. You felt his heartbeat— fast, wild, as if he was running instead of standing, looking at you.

“I don’t want a baby right now.” he admitted quietly. “Not because I’m scared you wouldn’t be an amazing mom because— God, you will be. I just… I want to do this the way you’re supposed to, you know? With a ring on your finger and a place that’s ours, not Reed and Sue’s.”

You didn’t realize you were crying until he wiped a tear with his thumb, gentle as ever.

“And if we have a kid?” he continued softly. “I want to do it because we want to, not because we were joking around. Not because it was an accident, or we made a bet.”

You swallowed, finding your words at last. “So, what do we do?”

Johnny exhaled a laugh. “We end the bet, but not because I’m giving up. Not because I wanna fuck you so bad I’m losing my mind— even though, trust me, that’s also extremely true.”

That earned him a tiny laugh from you, and he smiled. It was shaky but honest.

“I wanna end it because I love you, and I don’t want you to think this is a game for me.” He said.

You cupped his face with both hands now, gently guiding him to look at you fully. “Johnny” you said his name softly, making him melt. “I know it ain’t. And it’s not a game for me too.”

His eyes went glossy too, but barely. He didn’t cry, but his eyes sparked enough that your heart squeezed.

And then he kissed you, taking you by surprise, like always. But this wasn’t the same kind of kiss he usually gave you. This wasn’t hungry and desperate. He didn’t kiss you like a man two months deep in sexual frustration. Johnny kissed you the same way you saw Reed kiss Sue— not like a boy kissing his girlfriend, but like a man kissing a woman. Like a man kissing the future mother of his child.

And that’s how you knew the bet was over.