--THE COP & THE JOURNALIST

[ichixshiro14]

YAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAY YOU UPDATED!! Thanks sooo much, I reallyyyy love this story! Awww, poor Winters...I just wanna cuddle him in a great big hug and wrap him up like a burrito in blankets! Your writing style is great, so detailed! Thank you so much again!

[LeapYearKisses]

Wheeee! There's an update! Thank you for continuing this story; it truly is wonderful!

[Rika]

Sooooo.... I'm in love with this cop and this story. So glad someone brought it back up to the surface or I would have never seen it!

Anyway just wanted to drop in to thank you for the yummy sneezy heroic goodness (my favorite)!

And say that I am anxiously awaiting an update!!!

And ALSO: YOU ARE AWESOME.

The End.

[Tassielli]

YAYYYYYYYYYYYY You updated! and you thanked me for bumping!@ urrr welcome great post loved it

~tassi

[sweethoney]

AWWWW <3 YOU GUYS ARE SO GREAT. i'm so happy people are reading and enjoying this!

i can NOT tell you how much your comments mean to me!

i seriously get this big stupid grin on my face when i read them!

<3 <3 <3 <3

merry christmas to all those who celebrate it!

here's the new update!

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The first hour felt like six. Jackie tried her best to occupy herself. She heated up some leftover Chinese food, put on a Frank Sinatra record, changed into a pair of sweatpants, poured herself a glass of wine and tried her very hardest to forget there was a poor guy sneezing his head off outside her door. No matter how high she had the music or the TV in the background though, every few minutes Matthew Winters would announce his presence once again with a punctual sneeze. Though muffled, they were still quite powerful and made their way into her apartment with ease.

She sat there with her half empty wine glass, staring at the way the light poured into the light blonde liquid. Her resolve was crackling under her, she could feel it. She looked to the doorway again with light jade eyes and narrowed them in scrutiny at the off white paint. It was silent for a few moments and she eventually turned her face back towards the blank TV screen that she’d turned off -it was a wasted effort anyway. Sinatra was still playing softly from the other room but it felt silent. Almost too silent. Like she was sitting here with her guilt as it blanketed over everything.

“uhEsch-hu!” A muffled sneeze snuck its way into her thoughts.

“That’s it,” she murmured before standing. She set her wine glass on the coffee table and marched straight to the door, not able to take the torture any longer. With a defiant chin she strode forward and ripped open the door. A pair of broad shoulders met her eyes before the Matthew turned and realized she was there.

He looked surprised, but weary. His nose was pink and his eyes looked watery after the last sneeze. He snuffled as subtly as he could, running a hand under his nostrils, before resuming a professional stance again. He looked down at her and she could have sworn his mouth twitched into what might have been a smile at her disgusting t-shirt and sweatpants. In hindsight, she should have at least checked her hair or something or changed into one of those fancy bathrobes to look a bit more appealing. But it was too late now.

“Problem, Ms. Jae?” he asked, his voice a little hoarse.

She placed her hands on her hips and braced herself, “Yes.”

He cleared his throat, “Care to enlighten me?”

“The problem, Officer Winters, is that your sick as a dog and you’re stuck standing outside my door until morning. Now, I know perfectly well that your orders are to stand guard here but I’m a firm believer in some rules being made to be broken, and this is one of them. I am not going to continue to sit in there and listen to you be miserable out here because of my big stupid mouth and my uncanny ability to get myself into trouble! You’re going to come inside and I’m going to make you something hot to drink. Our cover is that I felt safer with you in the apartment because I thought I heard something. Got that?”

For such a tiny woman, she seemed to grow four feet while she spoke. Her voice was quick and curt and provided no room for nonsense. Even someone as stoic and strong as Matthew Winters was stumped for a moment in the wake of her argument. His mouth hung open as if he’d tried to formulate an argument earlier but it had gotten lost in the hurricane of her demands. Before he had a chance to speak at all though, his handsome face crumpled and he turned away from her.

“But Ms. Jae, I --huESCHoo! hi-Escsh!” He caught two quick, powerful sneezes into his fist mid-sentence. But careful not to let that deter him he straightened up and continued to speak almost immediately.

“I’m here to stand watch. It’s not your job to make me comfortable, and absolutely not your responsibility.”

“Tonight it is my job, buck-o. I’m not taking no for an answer.” Jackie folded her arms over her chest and gave him the best stink-eye she could muster.

He looked at her for a long moment and sniffled miserably. He was tired. She could see it, she could almost feel it. Just as her resolve had crumbled, so did his. After a long pause he sighed.

“Ms. Jae, you’re one hell of a woman, you know that?” Gratitude, with a tint of exasperation flushed his feverish face. He seemed thankful for her demands but at the same time weary of them. She’d certainly given him enough trouble today to warrant that look.

She reached forward and grabbed his arm and lead him in through the doorway, “That’s another thing. Call me Jackie.”

The strong bands of strength in his forearm tensed under her palm as he suddenly gasped and leaned to the side. His free arm came up and he caught a powerful, desperate sneeze in the elbow of his uniform, “Euh-ESCH-hu!” He sniffed hard and cleared his throat, “All right Jackie, call me Matt.”

“Bless you, Matt. God, that’s one hell of a cold. Go sit on the couch and...keep watch or whatever. I’m going to make you some tea,” Jackie announced, she lifted her palm from his arm and reached back to close and lock the door behind them. She watched to make sure he obeyed her and only once he lowered himself tiredly onto the couch did she slip away into the tiny kitchenette.

She didn’t miss him leaning back tilting his head to the ceiling with a soft, but audible, groan. She slipped into the kitchen and microwaved hot water. When it was close to scalding she put the bag in and watched the water swirl until it became tinted with amber. A touch of honey, like her mother had taught her, and a whisk of a spoon and she was out in the living room in seconds. Matt looked pretty much like the saddest most miserable man in the world. His eyes were puffy, nose red, and skin pale. The dark blonde of his stubble seemed even darker against the sick white skin of his jaw.

“Here,” she soothed gently, cupping the mug in her hands before handing it off to him.

He breathed in the fumes and closed his eyes. A happy moan rumbled in his muscled chest. “Thank you,” he said deeply and took a long sip as Jackie folded herself into the love seat across from him. She curled her long legs under her and watched him like a hawk, her maternal instincts in over drive.

He lowered the cup and sighed after swallowing. His bleary, but striking blue eyes found hers and the first legitimate smile she’d ever seen on his face painted itself onto his mouth. It was quite becoming, she noted. He had a crooked almost boyish smile that sent her heart into a flurry of motion.

“Why did you ever decide to become a cop?” she sympathized, half joking with him but the other part of her serious.

He laughed gently, and she could tell he was restraining himself from a coughing fit. When he had his breath with him he shrugged his heavy shoulders. The glint of the pistol in its holster at his side winked at her.

“Nights like this I couldn’t tell ya,” he joked, but when he saw the guilty look that crossed her soft face he quickly recanted, “No, but it’s all worth it. I come from a family of cops. My great-grandpa, grandpa and my father were police officers. I just grew up with it and decided I want to save people like my father some day. I looked up to him like you wouldn’t believe.”

He smiled at her again and she returned it. But watching closely she could see his red nostrils twitch. He cleared his throat as if trying to sooth the tickle but it flared up the back of his throat and to his nose quicker than he could counter it. His eyes squinted and his mouth stretched in dismay. “Oh-h, shit,” he murmured, seeming to make the connection that sneezing while holding a hot cup of tea probably wasn’t in his best interest.

His breath caught and hitched fervently as he leaned forward, one hand coming up to his mouth and the other setting the mug down on the table. “Hih--ehh -eh.” The mug finally made touch down on the table and he allowed himself the satisfaction of releasing the first sneeze into his cupped hand. “Euh- Ashoo!”

He sniffed wildly and blinked his eyes open only to be assaulted by the tickle again “Heh- heeh,” he hung on the cusp of it, in obvious torture. Jackie leaned forward, watching him, and moved the box of tissues from the side table to the coffee table in front of him. He nodded, trying to thank her as his words were lost, and plucked one from the box.

“Thagk y- ARSCH-hu!” his strong face crumpled in desperation as he steepled his hands and sneezed into the tissue. He only had a breath in between as the final sneeze bent him over in his lap, “huEsch-hu!”

“Bless you,” she said softly.

He recovered quickly again though it seemed to take a considerably higher amount of effort. His need to stay in control and professional was painfully obvious. He didn’t enjoy her seeing him vulnerable, that much Jackie was sure of. He hopped onto a question before they could acknowledge his progressively stronger sneezes.

“Why did you ever decide to become a journalist?” he asked with a sniff, rubbing at his nose with a new tissue.

Jackie laughed airily and combed a piece of hair behind her ear, “I’m nosey and cutthroat, it seemed like the obvious career choice.”

Matt chuckled gently, thumbing at his nose. His laughter faded and a frustrated groan preceded a barely caught sneeze into the tissue he was holding, “Hu-ESCH-hu!” He sniffed once and made sure she didn’t have time to bless him, “You don’t give yourself enough credit.”

Jackie felt her cheeks color. He dabbed at his nose again and didn’t look at her, going for another sip of tea. She opened her mouth to pry further about the subject, coyly of course as was her M.O, but there was suddenly a violent knock at her door. Matt’s body stiffened and his hand went for his gun.

“You expecting someone?” he asked lowly, his voice congested and deep.

She shook her head and let her eyes go wide as he undid his weapon from his holster and stepped up from the couch. He met eyes with her very seriously and his words dripped icily down her spine.

“Stay here.”

[ichixshiro14]

Oh the sneezes! Oh the suspense! I think you're killing me!!! Awesome update as always, thanks!

[Tassielli]

Ummmmmm ummm me olvida inglés Ummmmmm ummm *dies* yup awesome.

[Tassielli]

Hi ho its tassi please continue. I really want to know what happens next

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I am not crazy, I merely mantain a healthy level of insanity.

[atessouhaits]

I've just read this for the first time and I really really enjoyed it! Your writing is amazing. Hope to read another update soon!

[Emily]

Oh my god, I love this! Matt and his sneezes are so cute, I just want to steal him away from Jackie and cuddle him ♥

And I totally get the being bogged down by school thing. Thank god I have the whole next week off. I really hope you continue this!

[Anonymouse]

I only just finished reading the first chapter but I have to comment NAO. I was so absorbed in the introduction that for a moment I forgot I was reading a sneezefic, so when he finally did sneeze I was like "Omigosh I remember now." And what a beautiful scene it was! You write wonderfully and I love the characters. Now I'm going to read the rest.

ETA: I also forgot to mention that a journalist is a perfect profession for a sneeze fetishist. It allows you to stalk and pester sneezy people like Matthew under the guise of trying to get a story and nobody thinks anything strange is going on.