#also hadn't done a straightforward Doc x Jess fic yet really

[johannstutt413]

(inspired by this)

It was late in the afternoon, close to time for the Doctor to head home for the day, and while he wasn’t physically tired, his mind was thoroughly mush at this point; staring at a computer screen, editing reports and classifying documents, was mind-numbing on the best of days, but recently the workload had spiked thanks to a recent breakthrough in the identity of the true masters of Reunion. There were others deciphering the “clues'' to the puppetmasters’ identities and allegiances, of course, but along with this information was a bunch of tactically-significant but ultimately minor details that were passed along that the Doctor had to dutifully summarize and report to Kal’tsit and others in the organization, and frankly, it was too much. He needed a mental break. He needed something he didn’t have to think about.

What he got was a text from Jessica as he was putting on his coat, asking him (in her usual roundabout way, rife with conditionals and apologies) if he was free to talk to her...in her apartment. ‘She wants me to visit her? I’m not really in the mood for talking, but...I can’t say no. For all the other hats I wear, being her friend takes precedence.’ “Sure, I’ll be over there once I’m out of my work clothes,” he texted back as he made a dash for his apartment.

After putting on something casual but layered (to battle the cold front that’d settled over RI as of late), the Doctor took the shortest route to his Feline friend’s apartment - a route he was quite familiar with at this point, having walked he home from various meetings and social gatherings on a couple occasions. He’d sent her a text when he’d left his house, so by the time he was at her door, she’d had plenty of time to prepare...and prepare she certainly had.

“H-hey, Doctor,” Jessica greeted him at the threshold. “Um, do you have dinner plans?”

“Nothing in particular.” He smiled as the smell of chicken broth and herbs drifted out the door; clearly, she’d thought ahead.

She nodded, more to herself than anything, as she let him inside. “I have some chicken cooking that should be done soon, if you’d be okay eating with me.”

“That sounds and smells delightful.” The Doctor shed his coat, hanging it on a hook by the front door as he slipped his shoes off as well. “I’m happy you invited me over today; it’s been awhile since we had a chance to talk, what with the Contingency Contracts and all that.”

“Yeah. That’s, um, why I wanted to talk to you tonight...Can I get you something to drink while we wait?”

He shrugged. “Do you have cola? My mind’s a bit fried from work still.”

“I do!” She seemed very happy to be able to help. “Do you want ice with it?”

“No, in the can or bottle is fine. Is this a new couch? It’s a lot more cushiony...Actually, a lot of the furniture seems different.”

Jessica brought him two cans of cola, with a bottle of water for herself, and sat down a safe distance away on the couch; as long as he’d known her, six feet apart was the minimum for her. “I’ve been making myself more at home here recently. It’s helped me feel more confident in what I’m doing - like I’m here for a reason, I guess.”

“That’s good.” The Doctor grabbed a can and slowly popped the tab; his friend had never been fond of sudden noises. “I heard you scored top marks on your marksmanship recertification; Exusiai said she’d buy you one of those apple pie fritters they have at the donut shop the next time she saw you.”

“Did she? That’s nice of her...Have you been talking to her recently?”

He shrugged. “No more than anyone else, and that’s not much right now. Most nights, once I’m done with work, I kind of shut down, you know? Feels like I go into hibernation once I’m through the door.”

“That makes sense.” The Feline’s ears drooped ever-so-slightly. “I’m not keeping you from resting, am I?”

“In a sense, maybe? But honestly, I’d rather talk to you than be staring at the ceiling until I fall asleep. Having you around is really relaxing.” The Doctor took a long sip, relishing the caffeine and carbonation that rushed through his body.

She smiled. “That’s good...Um, now that Contingency season is over, would it be maybe possible for me to be your assistant again, if the desk is free?”

“Of course you can!” He gave a low-volume cheer. “That’ll make my life so much easier, Jessie, you have no idea.”

“I’m glad to help. Tee-hee.” Jessica started purring, leaning as if to move closer-

*Ding!* “Oh, that’s the chicken! Um, are you hungry now, Doctor?”

“I can eat now,” he nodded. “Do you want any help or-”

“I’ll take care of it, don’t worry! If you want, the remote should be on the table next to you. We can eat on the couch.” She said all of this as she walked back to the kitchen, now obscured behind a half-wall.

As the Doctor flicked on the TV, soft jazz filled the room; apparently she’d had it on a music channel before he got there. It sounded nice, so he set the remote down and let it play. Something about it fit the tone of the evening...even if he wasn’t entirely sure what that was. Why had she invited him over? Did she just cook more chicken than she thought she did and decide to share with him, or was there something else going on? If he had the choice...well, the second one could go a few ways, and one or two of those were too good to be true…

Jessica returned with a pair of bowls, each with a fork and a spoon; she set both on the table in front of them before pulling it closer to the couch without spilling a drop. She sat on the cushion next to him. “There we go. I wasn’t sure if you liked spicy food, but if you want, I have some red pepper flakes in the spice cabinet.”

“Thank you, but I think I’ll be fi- this is so good.” He’d taken one bite, and that was all he needed to know. “I remember you told me you cook for yourself, but...I guess I underestimated you a little, sorry.”

“No, it’s okay. Everyone does.” She’d taken his praise for what it was, smiling as she started on her bowl.

It was then that the Doctor noticed two things. One, she had broken the six-foot barrier, and was close enough for him to set an arm around her shoulder; two, she was wearing make-up, and not just a fairly typical “hide the blemishes” sort of thing, but an honest-to-goodness night-out look, which he’d never seen her in before...and frankly, it worked for her.

The Feline noticed his eyes on her about halfway through her bowl - they were eating in silence, outside of the jazz music - and turned to look at him with a hint of color to her face. “Is everything, um, to your liking, Doctor?”

“I hadn’t noticed before tonight,” he replied, almost as much to himself as her, “how beautiful you look when you’re in control.”

“Eh??” She flustered immediately, to the point she had to set her bowl back on the coffee table before she tried to regain her composure.

The Doctor chuckled. “Sorry, Jessie; it just struck me so profoundly, I had to tell you.”

“N-no, it’s fine! I really appreciate it!” She clearly did, even as her brain scrambled to find a way to respond. “I, um...I wanted everything to be perfect tonight, not just good.”

“Perfect, huh? You’ve done that so far, as far as I’m concerned.”

That only caused another Feline.exe crash. “Heheh, um...Th-thank you, Doctor, but it’s n-not done yet.”

“It isn’t,” he agreed, “but I’m having trouble imagining where it goes from here.”

“I’ll um...I’ll be right back.” Jessica got up from the couch and walked across the room and down a short hallway - presumably, to her bedroom.

In the intervening minutes, the Doctor’s brain, despite the fatigue still wearing on it, was starting to fire again, and it had some very interesting ideas about where all this was heading...but it all seemed rather far-fetched to his heart. ‘No, it’s nothing like that; she’s nervous around everyone. Besides, even if she did feel that way, Jessie isn’t the kind of person to make the first...move...’ The breakdown occurred when the Feline returned from her bedroom dressed like this - a white garment the Doctor couldn’t name, leaving little to the imagination while still technically covering it, albeit not the black bra straps beneath that seemed about ready to slip off of their own accord.

It wasn’t something you entertained guests in...It was something you wore to bed.

It was actually happening.

“I um, I bought this the other day while I was shopping with Blue Poison.” The blush from earlier was still plain on her face, although it was now spread across the Doctor’s as well. “What do you think?”

“They’re bigger than I thought,” was what came out of his mouth, stunning both of them.

She crossed her arms in front of her chest. “A-anything else?”

“Sorry! I just-” The Doctor caught his mouth by the reins and forced it to heel for a moment. “I’m kind of overwhelmed. I didn’t think you thought of me like this, I guess...”

“Thought of you like what?”

He found there was nowhere safe to look, so he simply looked into her face. “Like...romantically, I guess.”

“Really?” She’d started deflating after the chest comment, and her confidence seemed to be steadily draining with each word. “I th-thought it was p-pretty obvious how I felt ab-bout you...You m-make me feel s-safe, s-so I th-thought...m-maybe we could b-be a c-c-couple, if you want-t-ted?...”

“Really?” He tried to inflect it so he sounded less in disbelief and more happy things were turning out this way.

Jessica nodded. “Y-yeah. I d-didn’t think it’d be s-such a sh-shock.”

“Sorry, I’m just...” The Doctor stood up, walking around the coffee table’s kitchen-facing edge so she knew he wasn’t running away. “I’m really happy you told me how you feel, because I um...I kind of got my hopes up when you invited me over.”

“You did?”

He nodded. “I know I probably should have said something, but I...I’ve always liked you, Jessie. I’ve gotten to watch your self-confidence soar as you proved yourself time and time again to be dependable, and skilled, and smart, and wonderful, and I knew that you thought I was a big part of that, but I never thought you’d actually want to be something more than friends. Um...” He held out his hand.

“Doctor...” Rather than take it, the Feline hugged him instead, almost accidentally kissing him as she did but angling her head to avoid it for the moment. She wanted him to hear this first. “I was w-waiting for you to make a move first, but I- I couldn’t wait anymore.”

“Sorry about that, really,” he whispered in her ear.

She half-laughed as tears came to her eyes. “No, no, it’s fine! I’m p-proud of myself for s-saying it, finally...after all those m-months...”

“Months?” The Doctor sighed. “That’s a lot of time to make up for.”

“Um, well...Th-that’s why I b-bought this.”

He blinked, looking at the side of her face since the rest was in his shoulder. “Well, um...I don’t have anywhere else I want to be tonight.”

“And I d-don’t want you to go anyw-where yet...” They both decided that now was the right time for their first kiss...and shortly thereafter, their next dozen or so, as the rest of the night planned itself.

(Bonus: Completely unnecessary song parody.)

♫ Jessie is a friend

Yeah you know she’s a good friend of mine

But lately something’s changed - it ain’t hard to define

Jessie’s bought a new outfit and now I wanna make her mind ♪

♫ And she’s watching with those eeeeeeeyes

And she wants to date somebody, I just know it

Could be holding her in my arms late-late at night ♪

♫ But Elon’s not done with cat-girls!

No Elon’s not done with cat-girls!

How long has been working on that?! ♪

♫I guess I’ll keep playing the game

Doesn’t seem to be a reason to change

Oh, I feel so dirty every time that I swoon

Wanna find someone to love, but it just won’t happen soon♪

♫ But she’s watching with those eeeeeeeyes

And she wants to date somebody, I just know it

Could be holding her in my arms late-late at night ♪

♫ But Elon’s not done with cat-girls!

No Elon’s not done with cat-girls!

How long has been working on that?! ♫♪

*record scratch as song abruptly ends*     

#arknights #jessica (arknights) #this cat deserves everything #so when i saw this art #i knew what i had to do #also hadn't done a straightforward Doc x Jess fic yet really #i mean there are a couple others with her but both of those have some other tones #this is just me fanboying over my housecat waifu looking hot #hopefully it shows :P #although she does look a little sad even in this picture... #justice for catgirl cutie! #arknights fic