Work Text:
Avery Kylie Grambs
The room was an absolute mess—A stark contrast to the clean and scrutinisingly arranged space of the Hawthorne heiress’s.
The rows and rows of closets filled to the brim with tops, sweaters, and pants in every imaginable colour and shade was now messily opened. A brown eyed girl moving on from closets to closets searching for that one lavender sweater she wants to wear for the hundredth time this year.
Though she wore the sweater so many times, there was a rather special reason for her to be rampaging through the closets today—The anniversary holiday, her Jamie had planned for them. A week away from the chaos, just the two of them—and the seven membered security team.
He still hadn’t told her where exactly they were going.
“If I told you, then it wouldn’t exactly be a surprise, would it heiress? All I’m going to tell you is to pack warm” He’d said with that annoyingly lazy smirk playing on his lips.
“Ahem, ahem, looking for this, heiress?” Jameson. Speak of the devil—no actually think of the devil.
She turned around in one sharp movement, facing the green eyed boy—her sweater dangling helplessly in his hands.
“Where did you find that?” She asks accusingly.
“Ouch. Forgot you gave it to dry cleaning after spilling ink over it last week, heiress?” He asks, that mischievous grin still on his face.
“Oh!”The way her boyfriend always remembered everything that had anything to do with her never failed to surprise her. He always, always paid attention.
“What next? You’re going to forget my name too, heiress?” Jameson asks clearly entertained.
A small blush crept upon her face. She snatched the sweater from his hands and said:
“The last thing I’ll forget is you, Jamie”
His eyes softened, the mischievous grin fading to a small, genuine smile. His eyes—full of love and unspoken things.
He took a step forward, closing the space between them, burying his face in the crook of her neck—pulling her into a hug. She buried her head in his shirt, the warmth of him filling her with a deep sense of safety.
He plants a small tentative kiss of the nape of her neck—sending shivers down her spine.
These moments—where he wasn’t the risk taker of the world, letting all guards down and relaxed—were her absolute favourites.
“I love you, Jamie”
“I love you so so much, heiress” He says, his voice full of warmth.
“Enough to tell me where we’re going?” She asks teasingly, pulling back to meet his eye.
“Okay now you’re crossing lines!” He says in mock anger, beating a hand to his chest dramatically.
“C’mon Jamie! Please?”
“Alright! Alright! You and your puppy eyes that beat the ones of tiramisu.” He sighs.
“Yay!!” She beams at him, “So?? Where are we going?”
“Ah! Not that easy heiress! I’ll give you a puzzle.” The smirk was back.
“Of course! You and your puzzles!” She says, pretending to roll her eyes.
He smirks and crosses the room to retrieve a pen and a napkin from her table. He wrote down four phrases, then moved forward, tucking the napkin into her hand and closing it.
“Good luck heiress, I’m sure you’ll figure it out in three minutes or less” He says, planting a kiss on her forehead and exiting the room.
She opened the napkin, and in careful handwriting he’d written:
Alice in wonder…….
The lord….. rings
When the twilight is over
The morning friend everyone has
The first two are obvious enough. Famous book titles. Missing words ‘land’ and ‘of’, ‘the’.
“Land.. of.. the…” She wrote down at the end of the napkin,
When the twilight is over… it’s midnight!
“So 3rd word, midnight,” she scribbled down again.
The land of the midnight… The land of the midnight sun! Norway!! She realised.
She was going to Norway! The realisation set off a wave of happiness exploding through her being. She remembers yapping away to Jameson about those pictures of Norway she’d seen a few months ago. He remembered!
Jameson Winchester Hawthorne’s ability to plan gifts was one unmatched.
She picked up her phone from the nightstand and shot off a text to Jameson:
Norway?!! Really?????? I can’t believe you remembered!!!! Thank you so so so much Jamie!!! I love you so much rn words aren’t nearly enough to express it 🥹🥹🥹
And he replied back:
Well done heiress, A wood cabin’s waiting for us there! Pack fast, heiress!
“The meeting with the Huntlings—” She startes
“Will be taken care of” The crisp voice of Grayson Hawthorne cut through, “Seriously, Avery. Trust me, I can handle the foundation for a week in your absence. Go have fun! Relax! You two—well one of you two—seriously deserve it.”
“Ouch. Even after me being the only one not saying a word against your ability, dear brother?” Jameson asked, his eyes blazing with mock anger.
“Not because of your undying love for me, of course.” Grayson snaps back, “You didn’t want your girlfriend to stay back”
Jameson rolled his eyes, about to deliver a comeback, when—
“Alright, I know a few more minutes and these two are going to start wrestling on the ground. I seriously don’t want to be late, so Lyra let me just whisk him away.” She says, wrapping Lyra in a side hug.
Jameson’s hand slipped into hers and they said their goodbyes.
“Make sure he eats and sleeps in time!” Jameson called out to Lyra.
“Of course!” She yells back.
The quiet humming of the engines continued on, the flight still in its ascending stage.
The sight of everything growing smaller and smaller until they’re nothing but dots of lights whizzing past each other was a sight that managed to take away her breath—no matter how many times she’d seen it.
A ding and the seatbelt sign died down. Freeing herself from her seatbelt she climbed onto the large, spacious seats on the aircraft.
“C’mere” She says to Jameson, patting down the space beside her.
Jamie’s face split into a brilliant smile—one of those rare of ones she found absolutely adorable. He abandoned his own seat and sat down next to her.
His mouth met hers in a hungry kiss, sending every nerve ending in her body exploding.
“Three years tomorrow! Can you believe it?” He asks,
“No, it literally feels like yesterday when you were drunk on that railing. I’ll be honest, never once did I think then, I’d love you this much”
“I love you so so so so much, heiress. You’re the one who finally taught me let go, you’re the one who pushes me to be better everyday, I love you so so much, Avery. I know it’s going to be the end of me” He says, his voice full of warmth, love and unspoken promises.
She can feel her heart swell. A blush creeping up her face.
“I love you too, Jamie. Everyday I keep thinking I can’t possibly love you more, but everyday you prove me wrong. You have to be the most kind, amazing, unbelievably hot person I’ve ever met. I love you so much, Jamie.”
“Now, now heiress, don’t make me cry,” He says, scooping her up into his arms.
She buries her face into his chest, letting his warmth settle around her like a shield from the world. And suddenly every worry, every rush and every demand of her life ceased to exist. No matter how many times, lying there in his arms filled her heart with an unshakable joy, as in she could lie there in that moment till the end of time.
“I love you,” she whispered, her words equal promise and truth.
“I love you too, Avery” He says, nuzzling her nose with his.
Soon the engines would land them in Norway—new memories and adventures waiting for them.
But all she knew in that moment was him. Life could throw anything at them; it didn’t matter.
Because they’d face it all.
Together.