Work Text:
Grant Curly was a simple man. Once he left behind his previous airplane pilot job, one that he only took upon due to his family’s ties with aviation, he knew what he wanted to do. With enough money in his savings to last him the next ten years or well onto his fifties, Grant decided to settle down. It was surprising, especially to his old ‘friends’. He would be lying if he said he missed the hectic routine, being a long-haul pilot, he would be around two to three weeks away from home often.
He didn’t have much to come back home to, anyway. Most of the friends he had worked in aviation with him. Most of them had their own lives, far away from Grant, where he lived in Colorado. His mom was one of the only people he still had to come back to and he was happy for that. Grant always valued his family, despite his dad being more of a ‘hero’ than a ‘father’ to him, and being a huge momma’s boy.
However, ever since around a year ago, he had someone else to come back to. A doctor-to-be was training during some of the many flights he made. She supposedly considered being part of the medical support program for commercial flights, but ultimately decided to stick to specializing in other fields. Thanks to her curiosity, Anya Musume was able to meet Grant Curly. And he would be lying, again, if he said she didn’t catch his attention from day one.
Outside the plane, always with a book in hand, making annotations, carrying a pen here and there. Sometimes a medical book, other times a bizarre horror tale and sometimes a psychology book. Anya wasn’t one to approach others, rather he approached her, with his witty commentary and cheesy remarks. But Grant would say she wound up surprising him with her talks, what with how smart she was and how excited she seemed about the concepts of life and death itself. Admittedly, their talks always wound up being something existential. But it was the doctor’s knowledge in psychology that finally made him question why he was still doing all this, if there was more to life than being inside a cockpit for weeks on end month after month.
And thus, he was home, it was quite ‘humble’ for a man that had a reputation in aviation. But it was enough to keep himself comfortable, for now. He wasn’t exactly fond of acting like he needed more than this, anyway. Now, he was the one who would wait for the door to open, after long hours away from home. Grant could hear it as a car stopped by his house and a soft ‘bye!’ was heard. The blonde smiled a bit, flipping some burgers on a pan, which he had just made out of ground meat from scratch. Grant was no chef, so he congratulated himself when these small burgers didn’t come apart as he flipped them and the oil he put on the pan fizzled and popped slightly.
The front door opened and he heard soft steps come by, but didn’t take his blue eyes off the burgers, he didn’t want them to burn after all. He felt hands come from behind and touch his abs through his shirt, looking down to see Anya, “Hello, have you finally decided to try and burn down the house when I’m not around?” She had her usual tired eyes, now from working long hours rather than studying, they were dark and stared deeply with expectation to his blue eyes.
Grant laughed and shook his head, “I’m just trying to make you something nice, it’s Friday! And you’re not on call for the next two days. We should do something nice, hm? Like those reality shows you like.”
“You know, you don’t have to force yourself to like them,” Anya’s hands went up to his broad shoulders and squeezed them before letting go and sitting at the small table that Grant had recently built in their kitchen. It was peaceful. For now, it was just the two of them. But it was still more than Grant was used to, after all. This house was empty, way too empty, for a man like him. A man that never lets his thoughts stop. Which is why he was always often out doing something, working out, weightlifting, flying. With Anya, though, he had some peace of mind, as if she was his moment of peace, not having to rely on being shoved in a cockpit for over seventy hours per month.
“Last time we saw western movies, it’s only fair that we see more of your realities. Besides, I need to see what happens next! Will Rebecca really do that to her boyfriend? I will be shocked ,” He teased back with a smile, looking back at her. Anya had her head leaning on her hand, observing him cook.
“I will take your word on that, Captain,” She sighed and leaned back on the chair. “My next exam for Psychiatry is next week,” She threw her head back and rubbed her eyes, seeming tired. Curly didn’t have to look back to know that though.
“It will be okay. You have been dedicating yourself, just like you have since the start. I mean…” He flipped the burgers one last time before placing them in their respective buns, along with cheese on top. “If I’m fit to be a chef, then how is Anya Musume not fit to be a psychiatrist?” He turned around with the plates, burgers ready to be eaten, placing them on the small table. “I know that’s making you stressed out, but the hardest part, going through medical school, is already done. What about we just focus on right now though, and not next week? I will put the episodes for your reality show on TV.”
“You decided to make the burgers from scratch so we wouldn’t spend more on ordering?” Anya wondered, turning her head.
Curly pretended to clean his throat and stood up straight. “I did it because I’m a very good boyfriend… But also, yeah, because we could use some homemade junk food instead. I don’t know if I will be as good as Burger King, but you tell me.”
Anya smiled and shook her head, taking a burger in hands and biting it softly before chewing and swallowing. She frowned for a second and Curly got worried but then shook her head, “I suppose you’re fit to be a chef, for now.”
“So I passed the evaluation? Where’s my Burger King crown?” Curly crossed his arms and smiled proudly and Anya rolled her eyes before getting up and taking the plates with her.
“Come on Burger Captain,” Anya took them to the living room and Curly followed right behind, stretching his arms. Anya sat down and turned the TV on, the room was dark and the only light came from it, putting the burger plates on the center table. The man sat beside her putting an arm behind her shoulders. The doctor didn’t put the show on for a second, making Curly look at her for a moment, confused. “Thank you Grant.”
Curly was taken back for a second. He was used to people, including Anya, calling him Curly. He preferred it, generally, but he didn’t mind it when it came from her. He lifted an eyebrow though, confused, “That’s just what I do, it’s not a big deal.”
Anya shifted and sighed, looking away from the ocean of blue that stared at her. “It is, to me.”
Curly knew she didn’t have many experiences with love, unlike him, who was seen as a ‘big catch’ ever since high school. And the experiences she did have… Didn’t end up pleasantly. He smiled, reaching out to rub her thigh, “I should be the one thanking you. C’mon though, let’s consume questionable media.”
“My favorite pastime,” Anya let out a snort before putting on her usual favorite reality show.
Curly sometimes wondered, during the night, while laying on his bed, if he wanted to go back to his old job. But, right now, living a simple life with Anya seemed way closer to heaven than he ever was, even when he flew up in the clouds his entire career.