Old Habits Die Hard
Title: Old Habits Die Hard
Characters: Jude/Max
Fandom: Across the Universe
Rating: R
Table: 11
Prompt: 20, Lie In
Author's Note: This is entirely a product of imagination, and I do not own Jude Feeny, Max Carrigan, or any of the other characters depicted in the film Across the Universe.
"I don't feel like getting up." Jude stretched and yawned as he opened one eye, glancing towards the window of their bedroom where bright sunlight was filtering in and dappling the floor and walls. "It's too early. Let's just stay in bed."
"Early? It's after ten in the morning!" Max laughed, turning over in bed to snuggle more closely against his boyfriend. "But since I was up late last night working at the bar, I agree. Let's stay in bed today. Hey, it's Sunday. It's the day of rest, right?"
"That's right!" Jude answered, pleased to have an excuse not to get out of bed. He'd been out at the bar last night too; Sadie's band had played, and he wanted to see them. It had been a fun night, but he was feeling the effects of being out late.
"How do you stay up so late every night and still have any energy the next day?" he asked Max, raising one hand to his face to cover another yawn. "I know you've got to stay up when you're scheduled to work the late shift, but I don't think I could do it."
"I'm used to late nights, babe," Max told him, sliding an arm around Jude's waist and pulling him closer. "When I was in college, I never went to bed early. Meant that I missed a lot of classes, but that was par for the course with just about everybody."
"So what was the use of going to college, then?" Jude asked, shaking his head and laughing softly. "It must have driven your parents crazy to know that you weren't 'living up to your potential' and all that. I don't think college was cheap."
Max shrugged, waving a hand as though he was brushing the question away. "Eh, they've got more than enough money not to have to worry about it," he said vaguely. "I didn't want to be there, anyway. I never wanted to go to college. I just did it to please them."
"It seems like your days of pleasing your parents are long gone," Jude said, sighing contentedly and relaxing in Max's arms. "I know that I'm definitely not what they wanted for you. I'm never going to give you that good job, two kids and nice house with a white picket fence."
Max made a face, sticking out his tongue and crossing his eyes. "Perish the thought!" he said grandly, trying to imitate his mother's tones. "My folks wanted that. I don't. I'm perfectly happy with what I've got. If they don't like it, too bad. It's not their life, it's mine."
"They definitely wouldn't approve of you having a lazy lie in, even on a Sunday morning," Jude laughed, remembering the two times he'd met Max's parents. They hadn't been impressed with him at all. "They'd probably say that I'm giving you bad habits."
"I always laid around in bed on weekend mornings. They'd just say that my old habits die hard," Max told him with a laugh, hugging him close. "Hey, the two of us know that we give each other our bad habits. It doesn't matter what my parents think."
"We're far away from them, anyway," Jude said with a sigh of relief. He hadn't been comfortable around his boyfriend's parents at all when he'd met them, and since Max had dropped out of college and gone to New York with him, he knew that he didn't meet with their approval.
"They're not a part of our lives any more," Max said softly, stroking a hand through Jude's soft dark hair. "Don't worry about them, babe. They thought that not supporting me would keep me under their thumb. They didn't count on the fact that I can support myself."
"I feel badly about taking you away from your home," Jude whispered, wishing that the conversation hadn't taken this turn. "Even though I know you'd have left eventually -- it still feels like I'm the reason you're not living in a lot more comfort."
"Those comforts never meant much to me," Max said, shrugging and shaking his head. "Jude, don't think like that. I grew up being a rich spoiled brat. It's way past time I stood on my own two feet. I'm doing that now, and I'm enjoying it."
"That's good to know," Jude murmured, his spirits lifting. "I'd feel awful if you said this wasn't what you wanted to be doing. I'd feel like I took you away from the life you were supposed to be living -- or the life that you wanted for yourself."
"The only life I'm interested in is the one I'm living with you," Max said, pressing a kiss to Jude's brow. "The life where I can work in a bar -- which I like doing, by the way -- and have lazy Sunday mornings in bed with you. That's heaven to me."
"Heaven? Really?" Jude laughed softly, cuddling closer to Max. "You know, I think you might be right about that. But there's one thing that could make it even better." He looked up at his boyfriend, a mischievous glint in his dark eyes.
"And just what would that be?" Max asked, cocking his head to the side and regarding Jude with a loving look. "There's a lot of things I could think of that might make this morning even better -- but I think it's pretty damn good just the way it is."
Jude pressed his lips against Max's ear, breathing the words out in a soft, husky tone. "You could make love to me. That would make this morning perfect, as far as I'm concerned. In fact, since it's Sunday and we don't have to go out anywhere, we could make love all day."
"All day?" Max looked at him in mock concern. "Are you sure you're up for that? It'd take a lot of stamina for us to be able to do that. I'm pretty sure I'm up for the challenge, but I don't know if you could deal with it, babe."
"Oh, really?" Jude raised himself up on one elbow, laughing as he spoke. "I'm a lot stronger than you give me credit for! You'd be surprised at all the stamina I can have when I'm doing something I love. Just try me, Max Carrigan!"
Max wrapped his arms around Jude's waist and pulled his boyfriend close to him, laughter spilling from his lips as he rolled them over and pinned Jude beneath him on the pillows. "Oh, I'll try you all right, pretty boy. Over and over and over again."
Jude wrapped his arms around Max's neck, pulling his boyfriend down for a heady kiss that took their breath away. "You know, this might just be the best lie in I've ever had," he whispered before their lips met again, sweeping the away any need for further speech.
Characters: Jude/Max
Fandom: Across the Universe
Rating: R
Table: 11
Prompt: 20, Lie In
Author's Note: This is entirely a product of imagination, and I do not own Jude Feeny, Max Carrigan, or any of the other characters depicted in the film Across the Universe.
"I don't feel like getting up." Jude stretched and yawned as he opened one eye, glancing towards the window of their bedroom where bright sunlight was filtering in and dappling the floor and walls. "It's too early. Let's just stay in bed."
"Early? It's after ten in the morning!" Max laughed, turning over in bed to snuggle more closely against his boyfriend. "But since I was up late last night working at the bar, I agree. Let's stay in bed today. Hey, it's Sunday. It's the day of rest, right?"
"That's right!" Jude answered, pleased to have an excuse not to get out of bed. He'd been out at the bar last night too; Sadie's band had played, and he wanted to see them. It had been a fun night, but he was feeling the effects of being out late.
"How do you stay up so late every night and still have any energy the next day?" he asked Max, raising one hand to his face to cover another yawn. "I know you've got to stay up when you're scheduled to work the late shift, but I don't think I could do it."
"I'm used to late nights, babe," Max told him, sliding an arm around Jude's waist and pulling him closer. "When I was in college, I never went to bed early. Meant that I missed a lot of classes, but that was par for the course with just about everybody."
"So what was the use of going to college, then?" Jude asked, shaking his head and laughing softly. "It must have driven your parents crazy to know that you weren't 'living up to your potential' and all that. I don't think college was cheap."
Max shrugged, waving a hand as though he was brushing the question away. "Eh, they've got more than enough money not to have to worry about it," he said vaguely. "I didn't want to be there, anyway. I never wanted to go to college. I just did it to please them."
"It seems like your days of pleasing your parents are long gone," Jude said, sighing contentedly and relaxing in Max's arms. "I know that I'm definitely not what they wanted for you. I'm never going to give you that good job, two kids and nice house with a white picket fence."
Max made a face, sticking out his tongue and crossing his eyes. "Perish the thought!" he said grandly, trying to imitate his mother's tones. "My folks wanted that. I don't. I'm perfectly happy with what I've got. If they don't like it, too bad. It's not their life, it's mine."
"They definitely wouldn't approve of you having a lazy lie in, even on a Sunday morning," Jude laughed, remembering the two times he'd met Max's parents. They hadn't been impressed with him at all. "They'd probably say that I'm giving you bad habits."
"I always laid around in bed on weekend mornings. They'd just say that my old habits die hard," Max told him with a laugh, hugging him close. "Hey, the two of us know that we give each other our bad habits. It doesn't matter what my parents think."
"We're far away from them, anyway," Jude said with a sigh of relief. He hadn't been comfortable around his boyfriend's parents at all when he'd met them, and since Max had dropped out of college and gone to New York with him, he knew that he didn't meet with their approval.
"They're not a part of our lives any more," Max said softly, stroking a hand through Jude's soft dark hair. "Don't worry about them, babe. They thought that not supporting me would keep me under their thumb. They didn't count on the fact that I can support myself."
"I feel badly about taking you away from your home," Jude whispered, wishing that the conversation hadn't taken this turn. "Even though I know you'd have left eventually -- it still feels like I'm the reason you're not living in a lot more comfort."
"Those comforts never meant much to me," Max said, shrugging and shaking his head. "Jude, don't think like that. I grew up being a rich spoiled brat. It's way past time I stood on my own two feet. I'm doing that now, and I'm enjoying it."
"That's good to know," Jude murmured, his spirits lifting. "I'd feel awful if you said this wasn't what you wanted to be doing. I'd feel like I took you away from the life you were supposed to be living -- or the life that you wanted for yourself."
"The only life I'm interested in is the one I'm living with you," Max said, pressing a kiss to Jude's brow. "The life where I can work in a bar -- which I like doing, by the way -- and have lazy Sunday mornings in bed with you. That's heaven to me."
"Heaven? Really?" Jude laughed softly, cuddling closer to Max. "You know, I think you might be right about that. But there's one thing that could make it even better." He looked up at his boyfriend, a mischievous glint in his dark eyes.
"And just what would that be?" Max asked, cocking his head to the side and regarding Jude with a loving look. "There's a lot of things I could think of that might make this morning even better -- but I think it's pretty damn good just the way it is."
Jude pressed his lips against Max's ear, breathing the words out in a soft, husky tone. "You could make love to me. That would make this morning perfect, as far as I'm concerned. In fact, since it's Sunday and we don't have to go out anywhere, we could make love all day."
"All day?" Max looked at him in mock concern. "Are you sure you're up for that? It'd take a lot of stamina for us to be able to do that. I'm pretty sure I'm up for the challenge, but I don't know if you could deal with it, babe."
"Oh, really?" Jude raised himself up on one elbow, laughing as he spoke. "I'm a lot stronger than you give me credit for! You'd be surprised at all the stamina I can have when I'm doing something I love. Just try me, Max Carrigan!"
Max wrapped his arms around Jude's waist and pulled his boyfriend close to him, laughter spilling from his lips as he rolled them over and pinned Jude beneath him on the pillows. "Oh, I'll try you all right, pretty boy. Over and over and over again."
Jude wrapped his arms around Max's neck, pulling his boyfriend down for a heady kiss that took their breath away. "You know, this might just be the best lie in I've ever had," he whispered before their lips met again, sweeping the away any need for further speech.