Together Again - A Wonderful Life [Shmi]

[Josh Dragovalor]

She seemed to enjoy teasing him about other women for some reason. I mean, before her, he'd only had two relationships total... One was a short-term one with a twi'lek who cheated on him in his own apartment bedroom, before running off with her new boyfriend and getting shot by a bounty hunter who was after her new loan-dodging boyfriend who had taken out too much for drugs, and well... The second one was a miraluka, and that had been uh... Rocky. Well, at first anyway. You know when he found out he'd been macking a Sith Knight this whole time. Still, she did end up a good one, and left the Sith as a show of good faith. Sure, he had to admit he wasn't sure if he could trust her sometimes, since who knows where her loyalties actually were? Even if that ended up being her downfall, as it turned out she was right all along, but he didn't know until the Sith went looking for her and killed her while she was alone. Since then, well... Sure, he'd been a flirt and all that, but he hadn't actually slept with anyone since his last time he'd dated someone. Which was... How many years ago? He couldn't remember anymore.

Still, sure he jokingly flirted a lot. Hell, Shmi would never let him hear the end of it if she knew he'd smacked her own Master, dark sider and all, on the rear end, going... Just a little more then standard fare, he supposed. Although Shmi herself got more then standard fare too. Verbally, anyway. He'd have gone physical but he didn't know if it was professional. Granted he was just being casual with her, and trying to figure out what the hell was going on with Sochi, but nonetheless... But that had all been before Shmi and he had gotten together. He'd curtailed that stuff, it was all for Shmi now. And boy, was she able to tell when his flirting with her had completely amped up. It was like everything that he would normally have given in general, and yes that includes Sochi, ended up going to Shmi, and Shmi only.

Although he really didn't want to end up in a room with those two and discuss it. Then again, it shouldn't be that hard to explain that he was dating Shmi and intended to stay loyal to her, right?

Riiiight?

Still, Shmi seemed intent on teasing him on this "reputation" of his every chance he got. Annoying, but it was her way of teasing, he'd let it slide. He'd find ways to tease her back, he knew. But he stared at her for a moment with one eye, another on the road. "If I recall, I bear hugged you much harder" He would remark dryly, smirking faintly. Shmi wouldn't win a bearhugging contest, not with Josh. Once they arrived, and he took her by the hand, he would sneak a peck on her cheek before answering her question as they walked. "I've got a grocery list, I scribbled it down yesterday. If you want to add anything, just let me know" He would remark.

[member="Shmi Labooda"]

 

[Tarrlok]

"Oh whatever." She playfully rolled her eyes, "Next time I won't let you get me in that type of hold..." She said smirking to herself, not even looking back over at him. She certainly didn't mind his muscles, or even his bear hugs. She preferred more, but in the moment she had to act like she didn't like them. When she stepped up she pushed forward her cheek when he went to kiss it, she smiled and looked at him. She shrugged her shoulders and gave him an unsure look. "Uhh, I'm not quite sure. I may see something I like inside however, I'll just wing it." She moved behind him, "Alright lets get moving Dragon" she said playfully, patting him on the rear as she gently pushed him forward. "Come on!" she said as her voice went up in pitch.

They approached the exit, she saw a holo-image of some sort of ad. She slowed her pace behind josh and trailed off to look for a brief moment. She leaned in to read it closer, placing her index finger just under her lip. "Festival of Glad Arrival huh?" She stood back up and took one of the flyers that were piled up underneath. "Hmph, interesting..."

She scurried inside to find Josh, well he was from here so maybe he had an idea. They had some plans already but this could be another option if he felt up to it. "Hey Josh!" She screamed trying to locate him. When she did she held up the flyer, "Hey, uhm they have this festival coming up." She held it back up to read it, "Festival of Glad Arrival? You know what that is?"

[member="Joshua DragonsFlame"]

 

[Josh Dragovalor]

"Well then maybe I'll just have to get you in another type of hold!" He would blurt out. Deciding to roll with it, he would just grin cheekily, pretending he had totally made that dirty joke on purpose and not just as a spur of the moment thing. He would smirk when she would pat him, and would playfully nudge her with his elbow in turn, without her releasing her hand as they would walk. As they did, something appeared to catch Shmi's eye, and he would look over with a curious glint in his own as he would stop, seeing as she had him by the hand. He didn't recognize the festival she brought up though...

"I'm... Pretty much a hermit except when I go to town for groceries or a drink" He would admit. "So... I'm not familiar with it. I suppose we could add it to our things to do then, though?" Josh would offer, shrugging his shoulders in turn with a light smile. Hey, it was worth a shot, especially if it made Shmi happy. Once they were inside, he would begin grabbing things from the list, and happened to ask around about the festival while he was at it... Nothing seemed satisfactory though.

"You wanna ask around about the festival? I can't get anything concrete" He would inquire toward Shmi. "Maybe a cute girl asking will get more results" He teased with his usual smirk.

[member="Shmi Labooda"]

 

[Tarrlok]

(Sorry! Forgot about them holding hands! I'll edit my earlier post)

She slowly nodded with a smirk, "Maybe you will..." She said softly before turning away and smiling to herself. She enjoyed the playful banter between them, even if it happened to be just slightly dirty. It was kind of normal for them, she'd be worried only if it stopped. Then maybe something was off.

Well...it made sense. She should have suspected that answer. But still it seemed interesting, and it was always fun to add something else to their to-do list. "Yeah I mean if your feeling up to it, why not?" She said shrugging her shoulders. "I'd hope we could get more info on it first though, or we won't even know what we're getting ourselves into haha." she began to giggle.

She squeezed his muscles, "That's because your big and menacing." She said smirking and walking past him but stopping and twisting her body to face him when he began to speak on the matter of her being cute enough to get the information they need. She noted his smirk, one of things she liked. "I'll try..." She said blushing, while shaking her head simultaneously.

She approached this one guy who wasn't too far from where she and Josh were just talking. "Hey, excuse me" She said smiling when he turned around. "I uhh, I was wondering if you could tell me anything about this Festival?" She said pointing to the flyer as she held it up.

"Oh yeah, Festival of Glad Arrival. It's just one of our annual springtime celebrations, I'm actually planning on going myself if you'd like to join me."

She slowly nodded as she took in the information. Though she was sensing it wasn't going in the direction she hoped. Her eyes got wide, and she bit down on her lip. Then she spoke, "Oh no, I...I can't. I'm sorry I'm..." he'd cut her off, "Oh c'monn, It won't hurt anything."

[member="Joshua DragonsFlame"]

 

[Josh Dragovalor]

"She was about to say, she's married."

Josh would walk up from behind Shmi and prop his arms and elbows on her head, resting his chin on his hands on her head with an innocent smile. Of course, they weren't married, but he'd listened to the whole thing, and knew a thing or two about playing pretend to ward guys like this away. He knew a trick or two... The question is, just how many would he use?

Casually playing with Shmi's hair, he would look the man in the eyes. "I see you've met my wife! Isn't she beautiful? Isn't she just great?" He would crack, as he would bring his arms down, but would tip Shmi's head up by the chin to get her to look at him as he would place a little kiss on her lips. Step one? Claiming she was married usually warded them away better then them just being in a relationship... Sure, he could have told the truth, but it had less odds.

Besides, it was funner this way...

His tongue poked her lips teasingly at the end, just because he knew about step two, PDA always was the way!

Oh, but step three was the best one.

"And the best part? We're expecting!" He would lie as he would pat Shmi's belly, wrapping his arms around her waist from behind with a grin. Oh, the both of them would get a good laugh out of this later. "Also we'll be going to the Glad Arrival... Thingy, together, it seems, since she seems so eager about it.

So... What were you saying before? I thought I caught something about joining you, but my ears aren't doing well today... Care to repeat that?"

At that, his eyes bore into him. His expression was cheerful, but his eyes? Oh, they told another story. They were a clear "back off, or this won't be pretty", that was as good as any physical threat. He didn't want to cause a scene here though... So the joking, and the look he gave him would have to suffice.

[member="Shmi Labooda"]

 

[Tarrlok]

She started shaking her head in protest till she heard Josh' voice and felt his arms and hands on her head and shoulders. He was taller than her so it wasn't much pressure on her in this position. She simply looked up, as one eyebrow rose. Then she looked back at the guy while bringing her right hand to rest on Josh' right hip.

The man looked confused, and was sort of forming some sort of idea about what was going on but...

Well her face lit up and of course her cheeks turned red when he introduced her as his wife. Yes, she knew they weren't married but it was adorable and sounded cute. She playfully rolled her eyes, and formed a smirk as he would claim she was beautiful and great, albeit in a way to let this guy know who she really belonged to. Before she knew it he'd reached under her chin and lifted her head into a kiss.

Heck, she'd even join in. When he teased by poking at her lips, she followed by gently biting his lip and gripping his head with both of her hands. Then she shrugged, as signal to the fact that she was all his, and everything he said was true.

She chuckled when he went in about them expecting a baby, when he came to wrap his arms around she settled into his embrace and brought her hand up and placed it against his cheek.

"Oh, uhh, I didn't realize...I'm.." he started to explain, but then scattered instantly with a dumbfound expression on his face when Josh told him to back off. Shmi gently tapped her hand against Josh' face as a way to settle him, because she also heard the power behind his voice and felt the awkward feeling after he spoke.

Then she turned to him, "If it's a problem, we don't have to go." her words were soft.

[member="Joshua DragonsFlame"]

 

[Josh Dragovalor]

Once he had scattered, he would bury his face in Shmi's shoulder and begin laughing uncontrollably. He had been able to hold it in, keep the act up all the way to the end, but once it no longer became necessary, he couldn't keep it up. "Oh my Force, he fell for it..." He would mutter into her shoulder, just losing his chit in the end. Once he would calm down, he would smirk in turn at her words.

"Oh no, now we're definitely going. And I'm going to hope that guy goes too, just so he sees" He would remark, beginning to laugh a bit in turn. "Besides, your eyes lit up when you saw the poster... And you clearly want to go. Why keep you from it? It's not like we don't have anything but time" He would add, shooting her a grin.

"So, how long before we actually get married?" He would suddenly joke with another laugh, sneaking another peck onto her lips before casually returning to shopping as though the incident hadn't happened.

[member="Shmi Labooda"]

 

[Tarrlok]

She just stood there shaking her head, and smiling while Josh was full with laughter. When he mentioned they were going to go for sure, she rolled her eyes playfully because there was a chance they'd encounter this guy again or at least he'll see them together. Then they'd be right back at playing around and rubbing it in his face probably. She playfully nudged his shoulder before beginning to take a step, though she stopped herself when he continued on about her eyes lighting up...

"Oh you noticed huh?" She said smirking before turning and looking down at some sort of fruit they had scattered for everyone to possibly buy. She pushed the hair from her eyes when she looked back up and smiled. "Alright, it's a date." She said with a kittenish expression.

She placed her hands in her back pockets and slowly began to stroll, knowing that Josh would be behind her or maybe even in front seeing as how he had the list. She just casually walked, observing all that there was the store had to offer. She stopped and picked up another piece of fruit she'd never even seen. When he asked that question, she looked up and was met with his lips she returned the affection. She figured he was joking, "Oh, so you wanna marry me?"

"Well...I guess that depends on how long it takes you to ask me" She said giving him an alluring look, accompanied by a smirk before she walked away.

[member="Joshua DragonsFlame"]

 

[Josh Dragovalor]

Well, he didn't mind either way. She wanted to go, she wanted to go, no reason not to. It wasn't like they had much else to do, and Josh was still figuring out things to do that didn't start with F and ended with G. No seriously, Fighting seemed to be all he ever did. (I honest to god made the innuendo by accident while writing it, then realized and just rolled with it) He... Kinda should get out more, shouldn't he? Geez. Hopefully with the beach plans, and the dinner plans and all that, things would get better on that front. The carnival should help too. He just needed to adjust to more normal things more. Hopefully what was to offer on Naboo would help with that. He would smirk then as she would note him noticing the light in her eyes before, and he nodded.

"It's a date indeed."

He would chuckle at her joke, and nod his head again. But there was one more thing mentioned in the prior remarks that he hadn't joked about...

"Well, that settles it. And what about the baby? When did you plan to be expecting?" He cracked, shooting her a grin.

[member="Shmi Labooda"]

 

[Tarrlok]

She slowly formed a smile as she looked at him when he confirmed it would be a date, it was beyond her control and all she could do was lower her head and shake her head. Then there was always his smirk, which only amplified his adorableness and forced reactions from her that she couldn't even predict. He had that type of control, she'd never tell him that of course. He probably figured by now.

She was looking at another piece of fruit, examining closely before her head raised and she started laughing when he brought up the baby. Well according to Josh they were expecting. She tossed the fruit back into its bin and turned to him while holding her stomach.

"Oh you mean baby Josh?" She starting giggling, "He'll be here in a few more months." She started laughing after she joked around when she saw his grin. She walked up to him and gripped his shirt while burying her face in his chest.

Little did they both know, the night they spent together would actually be the night their future son was conceived. She looked up at him but her chin still buried in his chiseled chest. She poked out her bottom lip. "What am I going to do when your away and i'm home by myself? I'm gonna miss you too much."

[member="Joshua DragonsFlame"]

 

[Josh Dragovalor]

"Oh really?" He joked, laughing in turn as Shmi would remark that he'd be there in a few months. Oh he could make a few infidelity jokes, sure... Since they'd only had their night last night. But that'd ruin the mood. He would smirk and wrap his arms around her when she buried her face in his chest, just hugging her and holding her tightly, just... Happy to be in her embrace again. He never could get tired of this, after all...

He hadn't even thought of the possibility their night together would have caused it, but...

He would smile down at her, at her question. "Maybe you could try undersea exploration? You're a fit girl, well in shape, and you seem to love a good exploration. You're also a bit too curious for your own good" He would tease, chuckling as he played with her hair a little. "There's plenty on Naboo we haven't seen, I'm sure. Keeping yourself busy would be good."

Though he would quirk a brow. Wasn't she meaning to return to the Jedi at some point too?

"Besides, won't you be missioning as well?" He would inquire as he would reach over her to grab the last thing he needed from the list from the shelf behind her, tossing it into the cart casually.

[member="Shmi Labooda"]

 

[Tarrlok]

She had contemplative look about her face. Undersea exploration? Well she definitely planned to travel more for sure but she hadn't thought about going underwater. She shrugged, she really didn't know as it would definitely depend on how things turn out with their family. If they were to have a child, she surely be stationary most of the time whether she wanted to go out or not. That's probably when she would miss Josh the most...he'd probably be out doing god knows what haha.

"I definitely plan on doing some exploring and traveling but that all depends..." She said now wrapping her arms around him. She didn't want to let go, she found it funny to how she just clung to him. "I mean if we have a baby, I'll still have a good chunk of downtime."

She looked over when his arm reached out, just a natural reaction. "I'll probably be taking an assignment here and there...but honestly.." She let go and leaned back against the shelf. "The Jedi has been my entire life...you know. I can't say I don't enjoy it, but I kinda want to get into things that I haven't been able to before." She smirked at him, "I think this would be the perfect opportunity to finally do it, I've been putting it off for so long."

[member="Joshua DragonsFlame"]

 

[Josh Dragovalor]

"I mean, I intend to stick around for awhile myself, do some things I probably couldn't have done. I'm going to be here a good while, before I get back to assignments. I did promise, after all, a break is a break" He would remark as he would lead them to the service counter. "Once I get back on duty, well... I'll probably reduce my schedule, if... If I'm being honest" Josh would admit, letting out a breath, biting his lip as he looked away from her for a moment. That clearly was not an easy decision. And could you blame him? The Jedi had been his entire life. Now he was reducing his schedule for Shmi, for the child they wanted to have. He had worked his whole life to work his way up in the Jedi, and now he was going in the opposite direction.

But he knew it was for the best. Because he didn't feel happy in the Jedi anymore. Things were just too questionable, too many agendas... He'd already retreated to just missioning on his own anyway, and training Padawans of his own volition, even if he did let the Silvers assign him a few here and there. So it wasn't like he was getting anywhere anyway. Perhaps having more time to himself, and to their growing family would allow him to find his happiness. He knew Shmi made him happy so... He supposed that was the first place to look.

"So I guess for the most part, we'll be doing this together" He remarked, smiling lightly, managing to look at her again after letting out a breath and trying to steady himself. The moment had been bittersweet for him...

[member="Shmi Labooda"]

 

[Tarrlok]

She quirked her eyebrow and shook her head in response to his if. Yeah, they both were workaholics but there were different types. They loved what they did, and their mission as Jedi meant everything to them, but Shmi was one who would be fine doing or not. Josh...well she knew it was something he loved to do, and she wasn't trying to become between him and that. That wasn't her intention. When he looked away she just smiled, pushed a few loose strands behind her ear and then looked down at the counter.

"Babe, I know you love what you do. I'm not asking you to change anything around for me, I just want you to start putting yourself first more." She got closer and placed her chin on his shoulder while she looked at him. "Yes there's the whole family thing, and of course i'll want you around but...I want you to be happy and not feel stuck." She said before kissing him on the cheek.

She'd rather him not have to feel like he has to tone down his schedule. She stood back up, and starting observing their current situation. She turned to him and smiled, "Yes, we'll be doing this together. Like we always do." She said shaking her head when he managed to look at her and giggling. She noticed their saleswoman observing their interaction and smiling at her when she looked back up.

Shmi blushed, "He's amazing." She said looking over at him briefly and then back at the woman.

"There's so much light and love between you two. It's precious." She said.

Shmi just looked down and tried to fight back the blushing.

[member="Joshua DragonsFlame"]

 

[Josh Dragovalor]

"I'm not changing anything for you" He spoke quietly, letting out a sigh. "I'm changing out of necessity. I told you before, Shmi... I didn't get to grow up with my parents. I had about five years with them... And that was it. I never saw them again" He half-lied. But he didn't know if he could explain the complications with his father... Perhaps it'd come out at some point. "I want our child to have me when he or she needs me... And I want you to as well."

He took a breath, brushing a bit of hair from his face. "I'll still be working. But... I need to tone it down anyway, or I'd almost never be home. Not to mention my body is already breaking down. I don't show it, but... I'm sore as all hell. My body is not holding up all that great. I keep a bacta tank on my ship to try and keep my body stable after mission after mission with very little downtime, but the body isn't meant to handle that. So if I can do some good for you, for our child, in the process... So be it" He spoke softly as he placed a little kiss on her forehead.

"Besides, I couldn't bring myself to leave you here all alone most of the time anyway. Before, I... Didn't really have a reason to go home, besides rest. I do now. This'll be an easier transition then my mind is telling me, I know that. And I'm sure I'll be far happier to, instead of spending my life... Well, throwing glue balls at the wall until it sticks."

He couldn't help but chuckle at the woman's remarks. "Thank you" He spoke softly as he would playfully ruffle Shmi's hair as she was blushing. He would pay for their food items, thank them again and then bring the cart out to begin loading the groceries into the speeder.

"You doing alright there? You're looking a little red" Josh would joke toward Shmi with a smirk as he continued to load up the airspeeder.

[member="Shmi Labooda"]

 

[Tarrlok]

"Yeah I saw the sticky notes you left earlier..." She said responding back to him when he mentioned his body was falling apart, but proceeded to smile when he kissed her on the forehead. Forehead kisses were the best, well second best. She nodded along as she understood where he was getting at but he sort of reiterated her point as well...he'd overwork himself doing something so second nature. Whether he stopped or continued she wanted him to put his health first.

This was before they were complimented by the sales lady, she could only smile while Josh responded. Well maybe it was evident but they were only being themselves. Honestly she never even noticed other people when they were together or interacting, it just always seemed like it was them.

They both walked out to the speeder, when he began to unload she scurried over and started to help. From the corner of her eye she could tell Josh was looking over at her, and she couldn't hide the fact she was blushing. When she looked up the first thing she saw was his smirk...that didn't help.

"Yeah, I'm fine just...blushing up a storm as usual. This is your fault you know..." She said playfully rolling her eyes as she transferred the bags from the cart and into the speeder.

"I don't know I just can't help it, compliments like that are just so...warming." She said smiling to herself for a moment as if she had briefly realized something, "Sometimes I just forget how real this is...us" She said motioning with her hands back and forth between them.

[member="Joshua DragonsFlame"]

 

[Josh Dragovalor]

(Post 157... Geez lol)

"You did, did you?" He remarked, quirking a brow toward her, unaware that she'd gone out of her way to read them all. Shrugging it off, seeing as he left them there and he just wasn't used to people being in the house to read them, he didn't really find a problem with it as he would bring the groceries to the airspeeder. He knew he needed to rest. He was working on it. It was just... Well, yeah. A big adjustment. He knew his body needed to heal but he was always so damn stubborn about it, following his heart instead of following basic logic for his body... But the problem was, he'd been conditioned to do what he'd done for so long. It was just part of his training.

Once they had loaded everything up, he would smirk toward her, listening as she talked about why she was blushing. He would walk over and wrap his arms around her, pulling her close and giving her a big kiss in turn. "You're adorable when you get all flustered" He would whisper against her lips with a light laugh as he would just hold her to him for a little bit...

"I still can't believe this is real sometimes, but... I'm enjoying every bit of it" He would admit, smiling softly. "I never thought this would be a reality, but... I'm really glad it is. And I'm glad, more then anything, that I'm with you."

He took a breath as he would slowly let go, before hopping into the speeder. "Shall we go? We can make breakfast, maybe take that trip down to the beach, and then perhaps go out for dinner like we planned on."

[member="Shmi Labooda"]

 

[Tarrlok]

Releasing the bags and pulling herself back up she was met with him grabbing at her and pulling her into him. She allowed herself to fall into his embrace, accepting the kiss and returning the love as she kissed him back. Her hands came up and would rest of his chest. When they separated she just looked into his gaze before poking her tongue against his lip. She smiled, and shook her head.

So he understood where she was coming from, I mean a relationship such as this was something she never seen for herself. It wasn't something she thought about honestly, she had never even had relations with anyone until Josh last night. So she was still adjusting, but she knew she fell for him every day and with every look. He was a really good guy, and she wanted nothing more than to be at his side. In the times she was starstruck, she forgotten that this was reality and Josh was really with her.

She kissed him again in reaction to all that he'd said. She tugged at his shirt before he let go, playfully indicating she didn't want him to but she giggled and got in the speeder.

With a warm and bright smile on her face she nodded, "Yeah, let's go. I'm looking forward to today."

"Where did you want to go for dinner?"

[member="Joshua DragonsFlame"]

 

[Josh Dragovalor]

He couldn't help but laugh a bit when she would poke his lip with her tongue, mimicking the trick he'd played with her about a hundred times by now. "Oh, I'm going to get you for that" He would tease with a smirk as he would back up to get in the speeder, noting her tugging at his shirt. "Perhaps when we get home, I will..." He teased. He would start the engine on the speeder, once the groceries were packed securely.

As they went, he would look over at her when she would ask her question, and he shrugged his shoulder. "Are you alright on meat at all? There's this awesome steak place I've gone to once or twice, and it's probably the best food I've ever tasted. I was thinking of grabbing a steak there... If you're not interested in it, you can always order fries, or salad, or some other dish. Of course, if you'd prefer another type of restaurant, I'm open for ideas. That's just the main one I know of that isn't primarily a bar" He would crack, laughing a little in turn.

"But I really am looking forward to today. So long as I'm with you, I'm going to be looking forward to a lot of them."

[member="Shmi Labooda"]

 

[Tarrlok]

"Oh I'm sure you will..."

She held back her laughter when he started to tease. She watched him back up when she finally released his shirt, and her eyes followed him until he got in the speeder. She took up her spot on the opposite side, and made eye contact with him after she asked her question. She thought maybe he knew of some restaurant or two that he liked.

Steak?

Well she couldn't even recall whether she had steak before, "Meat is fine..." she said nodding her head, "I just can't say I've had steak before...so this'll probably be new for me." She said looking back over at him. She smiled, "No lets go to that one...I'll try whatever it is you'll have." She laughed along with him and then turned her head to take back in the scenery. She never got tired of it.

Her head turned and face his direction again, with her gaze falling on him. His words forced her to smile "I'm looking forward to spending more time with you too...just being in your presence period is more than enough for me."

[member="Joshua DragonsFlame"]