EaC! FanFiction: For Joe by Lynx

Lynx wrote this piece for Sir Joe's birthday. Non-canon between Keke and Matt. Enjoy!

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I leaned on the railing overlooking the Abyssinian River. A cool evening breeze drew ripples on the water’s surface, bringing with it the aromas of sizzling meat and sweet desserts from the restaurant nearby. My stomach growled.

She’s late.

It was odd. Keke was never late. I’d become so accustomed to her presence that I could set a clock by almost any one of her habits. Tonight, though, I had to give her some leeway. It was the third anniversary of my arrival in Nyarlea and our one-month anniversary of us deciding to settle in together.

Three years. As I watched the fyreflies bob and weave around the growing reeds, I let the weight sink in. Three years since I’d been on Earth. It felt simultaneously like an eternity, and only ten minutes had passed since Leiana had offered me that choice.

But, if it still led to this, I would make the same call all over again.

“Matt.” Delicate fingers touched my shoulder. “Sorry to make you wait.”

“No problem. I just—” I turned to face her, and my words caught in the back of my throat.

Keke looked stunning. A dark silk dress caressed her curves, showing flashes of green when a fyrefly drifted past her shoulder. Intricate black lace wrapped beneath her chest and offered the viewer tiny pieces of her tan bare skin. The back dipped low, the hem stopping just above her tail, and the side slit cut high on her thigh, framing her toned leg beneath.

It was rare that she wore makeup, and I gambled that Ravyn helped her with it. The charcoal carefully dabbed around her eyes made her golden hues glitter in the moonlight, and the rouge on her lips was slick and inviting.

“Matt? Are you all right?” Keke leaned forward, tilting her head to the side.

I could smell the sweet perfume on her throat. “Yeah. You’re…” I traced the lines of her shoulders and pointedly looked her over from head to toe. “Just wow.”

Keke blushed; the playful half-smile that made my heart race tugged at the corner of her lips. “It’s not too much?”

“No, not at all. You look amazing.”

Her fingertips brushed the satin choker around her throat as a small group of fyreflies gathered around her.

Do you know what you do to me?

“You don’t look so bad yourself.” Keke tugged at the sleeve of my coat. “I don’t remember the last time we dressed up like this.”

“We should do it more often,” I suggested. Her perfume spun circles around my head, pulling thoughts of how I could get that dress off of her to the forefront of my mind. My stomach growled again. I frowned. “Sorry. I skipped lunch.”

“Let’s get you some food then, hm?” Keke giggled, raising a hand to her lips. For a woman who shot arrows like a Gatling gun, she sure pulled off the demure thing well.

I held out my arm, and she took it, strolling beside me as we made our way to the restaurant’s entrance. The capital of Nyarlothep was the place to be for fine dining, shopping, and entertainment. Any time we visited was an adjustment, but Ceres was adamant that we try this eatery. You both must partake! It is a culinary experience!

As we stepped inside, I have to say it was a visual experience, too. Shimmering chandeliers hung from high ceilings painted with elaborate filigree and twisting ornamentations. The dining room was lit by floating candles and soothed by a lone piano player in a far back corner.

Keke gasped. “I guess I didn’t overdress.”

I tried stealing a page from Tristan’s tome of suave replies. “No. But you are the best-looking one here.” Not great. Needs improvement.

She bumped into me with her shoulder, staring up at me beneath heavy lids. “You’re just saying that.”

“You’re making it hard to think.” I walked my fingers down her spine, resting them on her lower back, then dropped my voice to a whisper. “I can’t take my eyes off of you.”

Keke leaned into me, her body warm and her head lulling against my chest.

Can we have dessert before dinner?

“Good evening,” a smiling hostess greeted us. Even she was dressed to the nines, wearing dazzling jewelry with her tailored dress. “A table for two?”

“Yes, please,” I replied.

The tables were spaced farther apart than I was used to seeing in most restaurants, bearing pristine, white tablecloths that were freshly pressed. Crystal glasses and silver utensils sparkled on each setting, and fresh flowers painted pops of color throughout an otherwise ivory room.

This looks expensive. It probably was. It didn’t matter. Keke was worth it.

Keke looked at me as the hostess pulled back her chair, her eyebrows raised. She was thinking the same thing. A slight shake of my head was all the assurance she needed, and she visibly relaxed. We’d become very good at speaking without words. I let her order the drinks, and our hostess vanished.

“No menus?” I asked, looking around my plate as if I’d missed something.

“Ceres said that they serve a four-course meal of their choosing, remember?” Keke smoothed her dress underneath the table.

“Oh, that’s right!” I chuckled and rubbed the back of my neck. “Sorry, I must have missed that part in her passionate speech.” I laid my hand halfway across the table, and she took it without a second thought.

The food was excellent, but I still hadn’t developed a palette for fine dining as some of the other girls had. We chatted idly between courses, enjoying the ‘culinary experience,’ as Ceres had called it. Really, all of it was just a step or two above Keke and Cannoli’s cooking for me, but the company and atmosphere were what really made the night sing.

Keke’s every movement seemed in tune with the soft piano music, and the warm candlelight flickered in her eyes and against her skin. Anywhere she stood, she was like the focus of a painting, and the rest of the world was her backdrop. I memorized her silhouette in the candlelight and the laughter she hid behind her hand.

When the hostess returned to clear our dinner plates, Keke raised her hand and looked at me. “Do you mind if we wait on dessert for just a little while?”

I shrugged. “That’s fine with me.”

“As you wish, Miss,” the hostess said with a bow before leaving us alone.

“Just means more time for us,” I said when the hostess was gone.

“Us,” Keke repeated and smiled, reaching for my hand again. I took it. “If someone had told me four years ago that I’d be with you in a place like this today, I would have said they were crazy.”

I frowned. “Why’s that?”

“Well, you remember that Ni didn’t have a man in a very long time. It was coming to a point where I wasn’t sure if I’d even meet one in my lifetime.” She sipped her wine and locked my gaze. “And then, even if it did happen, I didn’t think he’d like me.”

“You’re smart, beautiful, terrifying with a bow, and know how to pick treasure out of Encroacher guts. What’s not to like?”

“Matt.” Keke laughed.

I grinned. “If it makes you feel better, I never thought I’d tell my children, ‘I met your mom because I was drowning.’” I realized what I’d said and froze. Kittens. We hadn’t talked about kittens. “I meant eventually. When we’re ready.”

Keke fretted at her lower lip and took a deep breath. “What if…I told you that I am ready?”

My heart skipped. It didn’t matter how many children I’d fathered since I arrived in Nyarlea. Kids with Keke was different. It felt different. No nyannies, no schools of etiquette, just us and our daughters. Daughters? A wave of emotions washed over me. The image of Keke laughing with our kittens in our yard or on the playground materialized, and I clung to it. There were a hundred things I wanted to say, and the only word I could get out was, “Really?”

Keke nodded, running her hand through her long hair. “It’s been on my mind since we moved in together. I know we talked about waiting, but I think I’m done waiting.” She touched her chest, just above her heart. “What I feel for you, I’ve never felt for anyone else—”

“I love you, Keke,” I blurted out before I could stop myself.

Keke flushed. I heard a fork drop against a plate behind me. I didn’t care. “Where I grew up, couples always talked about soulmates. I never believed it.”

“Soulmates?” Keke whispered.

I nodded. In too deep to stop now. “Another person in the world that’s meant for you and only you. The missing piece to your puzzle.” I took her hand in both of mine. “I didn’t think it was possible. But then I met you.

“No one can make me laugh like you or put me at ease the same way. Just being around you makes me happy. I never want that to end.”

Keke searched my face, then smiled. “My soulmate.”

My heart raced, and my head felt light. I stood and pulled Keke to her feet, drawing her close to me. The whole world could have been watching at that moment, and I wouldn’t have cared. All that mattered was her body against mine. “I guess what I’m trying to say is I’m ready, too.”

She swept her arms around my neck and closed the distance between our lips. “I love you, too, Matt.”

When she kissed me, the room vanished. It was just her. Just us.

Just us.