That Last Little Spark

"Hey Ba-WHOA!" Dico yelled as the door swung open. Bam turned around and Jess hopped down off the desk.

"Sorry! Sorry! Shit! Didn't mean to...interrupt things!" Dico started babbling and fumbling for the doorknob, slamming the door shut. From the sound of it, he was running fast, and then they heard crashing, as though someone was falling down the stairs.

"Just a bit overdramatic, don't you think?" Jess wiped her eyes.

"He'll live. And I meant what I said. I'm not leaving your life without a fight." he hugged her again. She sighed in content and nodded against his chest.

"Thank you." she whispered. They stood like that until Jess heard his stomach rumbling and giggled.

"Oh you think that's funny?" he laughed.

"A little." she grinned up at him.

"You know, we never finished our wrestling match last night." he smirked. Before she could say anything, he started tickling her. Jess managed to knock his feet out from under him and push him onto the bed, where she pinned him on his stomach.

"Are you letting me win?" she asked breathlessly.

"A little." he copied her voice.

"Asshole." she giggled and rolled off of his back.

"Come on, before everyone eats all the food." Bam stood up and cracked his back.

"How charming," Jess wrinkled her nose. "And stay away from the eggs. They've been picking them up with their hands."

Bam laughed and shook his head.

"BAM! JESS! ARE YOU DONE SCREWING...AROUND?" Novak yelled from downstairs. Jess' face flushed scarlet.

"Ignore him. We all do." he rolled his eyes and opened the door again. Jess lingered behind for a moment.

"Really, just ignore him like you used to." he grinned at her before scooping her up in his arms.

"Are you going to put a shirt on?" she mused, running her fingers along the outline of one of the tattoos on his arms.

"Nah." he shrugged and continued walking down the stairs. He set her back down on her feet. He walked around the island and smacked Dico right upside the head.

"Ow! What the shit was that for?" he yelled through a mouth of pancake.

"For screaming like a little girl over nothing!" he hit him again as Jess sat down on an empty stool and helped herself to a donut.

*

A few hours later, Jess and Bam were standing in the driveway as the early summer sun beat down on them. It was almost noon, and Jess had to start driving soon if she wanted to make it to the city before it was too late at night. She leaned against the door of her car.

"You're gonna come back down here, right?" Bam asked anxiously.

"The next time I get the chance, I promise. If not, you should come up to the city for a few days. Maybe a few days before and after the wedding?" she suggested with a hopeful smile.

"Definitely." he nodded with a smile. Everything was silent for a few minutes before they both sighed simultaneously.

"I should get going." she looked at the front seat of her car, where two pages of printed directions sat. Her GPS was at the bottom of the trash can.

"You have enough gas and everything?" he asked.

"I'll get some on my way out of town. I'm gonna stop by my aunt's first and tell her goodbye first." she explained.

"Be careful." he cautioned before kissing her lightly again. Jess wound her arms around his neck and kissed him more forcefully. His hands found her hips again and he pulled her closer. They kissed until they had to stop to breathe.

"I will." she smiled and closed her eyes.

"Drive safe."

"I'll do that too." she laughed lightly and hugged him.

"Love you." he said against her hair.

"Love you too." she let him go and opened her door. She slid into the seat and tucked the directions up in the visor.

"See you soon." she smiled sadly and pulled out of the driveway. He watched the car until it disappeared while she honked the horn all the way to the gate.

He stood there alone as the dog trotted up to him with something black in its mouth.

"Whatcha got there?" he kneeled down and the dog dropped the thing onto the driveway. Bam picked it up and held it in front of him. It was black and lacy, and very sheer...with little blood red bows on it.