#tbh. justice for carmy/claire i really liked them together ajdhghsj

[oliviaischillin1204]

18 minutes (tickletober day 8- "nuzzles")

Pairing: Romantic Carmy/Claire

Word Count: 824 words

ck anon if ur out there, our convos abt the bear inspired me to finish this one asjdhgshj

It was just past 4:30 in the morning, and Carmy was about to walk out the door. Sydney had offered to take the opening shift this morning, but he'd turned her down. He hadn't been able to sleep past four in the morning in over ten years, and there was no point for both of them to be up before dawn. It was a mere six minute walk (three minute run) to The Bear from his apartment, so as long as he was out the door by five til, he'd be right on time.

Then again, if he got there earlier, that'd be more time that he could be working, and less time that he would have to be alone with nothing but his thoughts. So he was leaving a bit early.

Until his door opened from the outside, keys jangling into the bowl before he could even react.

"Hey," he said. A beat, then Claire stepped into the light.

"Hey."

For a rare moment, Carmy allowed himself to do nothing. Nothing but stare, taking her in. He wasn't used to standing still, but something in Claire seemed to ground him.

She dropped the rest of her things on the little side table before taking in a deep breath.

"Come here," she asked, raising her arms as if he needed more invitation. His eyes went to the clock on instinct, but he didn't stop himself from stepping forward into his girlfriend's embrace. He inhaled the hospital antiseptic she worked with, mixed with her deodorant and the faintest notes of her shampoo.

"Good shift?" Carmy asked, but Claire shushed him.

"Mmmm. Talk later."

She smushed her face into his shoulder for emphasis, and he smiled to the wall behind her. His arms wrapped tighter around her, and for several minutes they swayed in silence.

"When are you leaving?" she eventually asked (breaking her own 'no talking' rule, which Carmy very maturely did not point out).

"Gotta head out of here in about..." He craned his neck to the clock above the stove. "About 20 minutes."

Claire hummed into his shoulder. "Wanna kill some time?"

Keeping it cool, Carmy cleared his throat. "Sure. We can- I mean, if you want to- do you wanna, uh, go to the bed, or-?"

Thank God, Claire took mercy on him; her lips pressed on his were enough to both shut him up and help his stammering brain go calm. There was still the ever-present anxiety, of course, but Claire was good at making it go quiet in the back of his head.

"Missed you," she whispered before pressing a kiss just under his ear. Carmy twitched his shoulder up.

"Missed you, too," he murmured. Claire's mouth trailed down, down, down his neck and towards his collarbone. Carmy shivered.

"Come on, let's--" She exhaled heavily through her nose and he twitched, this time hard enough to jostle her away from his shoulder. She looked at him with a furrowed brow.

"Uh, what was that?"

"What was what?"

"Carmy." She tilted her head, giving him a loving smile. "You're a shitty liar."

"I don't-- can we go back to the kissing?" he asked weakly.

"Oh, I was kissing you," she said, "before you interrupted me."

Unfortunately Carmy decided to open his mouth at the same time that Claire lifted a hand to run her nails underneath his ear to his jawline. Now that they were face to face, she could plainly see the flustered smile on his face as he scrambled to pull her hand away.

"No."

"No, what?"

"I know that face. No." He tried to move away, but Claire locked her hands behind his neck and held him in place.

"When were you gonna tell me this little secret?"

"Uh, probably-- probably never."

"Mhmm," she replied. Then she stuck her face back into the crook of his throat, rubbing her nose and lips all over his stubble.

"Claire," he said, and he'd never admit it but it was only her arms around him that kept him standing, his knees buckling immediately at the sensation.

"What's the problem, Berzatto?" she murmured; the Z and T's zinged down his spine. He whined, choking back quiet laughter. He hasn't laughed like this in-- he doesn't even know.

Effortlessly she moved her head, stroking her lips down to nuzzle at the front of his throat. Now there were high pitched giggles mixed in with his breaths. He couldn't pull back, couldn't push her away. Wouldn't have done it even if he could.

"Come on," she whispered into his ear, warm breath setting his laughter alight. She started maneuvering them to the bedroom.

"I have--" Carmy managed. He caught a glimpse of his clock even as he let himself be pushed back onto the bed. "About 18 minutes."

"Well, then," Claire said; every word was punctuated with a pecking kiss to his neck, holding Carmy close as he trembled. "Better make it count."