Kicking A Habit

Thank you to our Beta who wants to remain nameless.

Jay shoved a couple of ding dongs into his pocket as he picked up the thermos,
ate the last bite of his smores pop tart and swallowed the last of Jack's
special cocoa. He then walked toward the bed, smiled as he saw his lover
sleeping and then kissed him goodbye for the morning. "See you later, Sweets,"
he whispered.

Jack just snorted and rolled over. He was used to Jay leaving early in the
morning and rarely woke up anymore. When he did wake up it was to the urge to
visit the bathroom. After finishing he glanced towards the kitchen and was
shocked at the mess. He should be used to it by now, he thought sourly to
himself although he thought that the spanking he'd given Jay the last time would
have driven the message home. That had happened after many, many warnings. He
sorted through the mess and the over-riding theme was sugar, sugar and more
sugar. Jack was almost a fanatic about eating right and this trend concerned
him. He wanted his Brat healthy. He'd given way on Mountain Dew but he needed to
talk to Jay about his eating habits.

Jay dropped his board onto the sidewalk. There weren't too many people out that
morning as he skated his way toward the local sweet shop. The window of the
business was decorated for the upcoming holiday. Halloween was one of Jay's
favorite as a kid when he'd run around the neighborhood, dressed up or not, and
get candy and treats. He dropped the half pound of candy corn in his bag and
put the bag of gummy bears into his pocket. He was hoping Jack was making
something different for lunch; he was getting tired of healthy.

Grabbing his board, Jay opened the door to their building. He dropped the empty
monster can into the recycling bin and the empty candy bag into the trash.
Taking the steps two at time he opened the door to the loft. A smile crossed his
face when he saw his Sweets at home. "Hey," he said as he came over and gave
his lover a kiss.

"Lunch is ready," Jack announced returning the kiss. "Vegetable soup and fresh
bread."

He tried not to but he could not help the face he made. He was not a vegetable
person, and to mix them in a soup was just plain gagging. "Cool," he said, going
over to the fridge. "By the way, we are out of cocoa," he said, pulling out a
Mountain Dew.

"Didn't you have enough sugar this morning?" Jack asked calmly. "It took me
half an hour to clean up the mess you left behind."

"Oh come on you aren't going there are you?" Jay asked, letting out an exhausted
breath as he flopped down into the chair. "Remember, love, you are what you
eat," he said giving him a smile.

"I am going there," Jack replied seriously, "after lunch."

Jay threw his head back and let out sound that was like a grown-growl. He didn't
say anything; he just ate his bread and soup and never touched his soda. He did
his best to make this lunch last.

Jack grinned; he knew exactly what Jay was up to. After a while he took Jay's
empty bowl from him and gestured towards the couch. "Let's get comfortable," he
suggested, "this talk may take some time. Oh, and by the way, you and the mop
will be spending time together tonight. The floor needs cleaning after this
morning."

"Oooooh maaaaan," he whined as he stomped off toward the sofa. He hated mopping
as much as the next brat. He grabbed his squishies pillow and flopped down onto
the sofa much like a ragdoll. `This cannot be as bad as I think,' he thought as
he watched Jack come into the room.

"I could make you mop with a freshly spanked butt," Jack replied mildly. He
smiled at Jay's look of shock followed by rapid head shaking. "Okay first
question. How much sugary stuff have you eaten this morning?"

Jay gave his lover a look. `What a stupid question,' he thought as he started.
"For breakfast, cereal with milk; while getting ready for work, two pop-tarts
with your cocoa; at break two ding dongs, some more cocoa; and on my way home a
monster and a bag of gummy bears," Jay said, clicking each item off. "Like
always," he said. "Why?"

Jack shuddered slightly. "Why don't you review what you just told me and see if
you can see a problem," he said finally.

Jay just looked at him for a minute; a very serious look crossed his face, as he
got to his feet, doing his best to look his lover in the eyes. "Look, Sweets,
banning me from drinking is one thing, but I am not going to allow you to ban me
from eating snacks, that I buy," he snapped, as he slapped himself in the chest.

"Sit down," Jack snapped back and waited until Jay had sat back down. "One, I
never stopped you from drinking, I didn't like what you were drinking. I gave
way on that; the fridge is now fully stocked. All I ask is that you think about
moderating your intake. Too much sugar can be dangerous and I want you around
for a long time. I will not ban anything; that's not my job."

Jay plopped down onto the sofa, with such force that the springs under him
popped loose; he crossed his arms with a huff and gave his lover a snarl along
with a glare. Beside a floor to scrub and mop he would now have to try and fix
the sofa. before Jack got home that night, On top, his mild headache was getting
bad enough to kill a bull moose. "Don't you have employees to boss around and a
shop to run? " he snapped.

Jack counted to ten, then counted again. "I thought we'd dealt with your
attitude problem. I am worried about you. I can put my foot down and make sure
you eat less processed sugar but I don't want to do that. I want you to see
there is a problem."

Jay was pissed. Why he had no idea, but he was he squeezed his pillow with one
hand and shouted, "The only problem I have right now is….." He jumped up and
swung around the pillow he had. It went sailing through the air, hitting Jack's
workstation, sending things scattering to the ground. He closed his eyes. "I'm
in a world of shit," he mumbled.

"You are," Jack agreed. A couple of minutes later, after he landed a half dozen
swats on Jay's bare butt, he asked, "What landed you over my knee Jason?"

"Attitude, tantrum, sorry, I'll clean it," Jay cried out.

"We aren't nearly finished," Jack said calmly. "You're lucky I can't reach the
paddle at the moment so I'll just have to keep using my hand." He began to spank
Jay again, slowly working his way down one side and up the other and then
beginning the circuit again. He only stopped when Jay's bottom was a uniform
bright red. He wanted this to be memorable; he was sick and tired of going over
this territory again and again with his Brat.

Jay slid to the floor and buried his face in between his lover's legs, doing his
best not to get snot and tears all over Jack legs. He tried to speak but it was
incoherent; soon his cries became soft hiccups and he sniffed and looked at up
his Sweets. His eyes were red swollen, his long lashes were spiked with tears,"
I didn't mean to throw it," he told Jack, wiping his eyes with his shirt.

"Jay, I know that," Jack replied softly, running his hand gently through his
young lover's hair. "You need to learn to stop and think before you fly off the
handle. I've got a temper, but I am aware of it, and try not to let it get the
better of me. Are you ready now to have a rational discussion about your sugar
intake? I don't want you to stop eating all that sugar. Just cut back. Maybe one
ding dong instead of two. Maybe get gummy bears once every two days instead of
every day. I can alter the hot chocolate recipe without affecting the taste.
Does that sound doable?"

Jay laid his head against his lover's knee. He loved it when Jack did that; it
made him feel at ease after a punishment or just because. He listened to the
soft voice of his lover and nodded his head to the suggestion. At this point
he'd have agreed to anything. He hated it when Jack was upset with him, but
sometimes the attitude found him and, well, the tantrums just happened. But he
knew the only way to cut back on the sugar was to cut back all of it, just like
he did the other habits he had when he met his Sweets. "But not to cocoa," he
said softly.

"You don't want me to change the cocoa?" Jack asked, his voice tinged with
laughter. His hand gently tugged the hair to get Jay to look at him, "Is it
doable? This has to be something we both work at."


"Yes as long as the cocoa stays the same," Jay told him, rubbing his face into
the rough material of Jack's pants. He forgot they were his dress pants.

"I solemnly swear I will not change the cocoa," Jack replied, hiding a smile. He
pulled Jay close for a deep kiss which led to the bed and activities which left
them both sexually sated.

Three days later Jay passed the big window of Jack's shop, since he was sent
home from work feeling ill. He wasn't sure if he should sneak by or just stroll
by like he usually did; either way he would bring suspicion. He decided to walk
by and pray he wasn't noticed and then headed straight upstairs. He closed the
door and went straight to their bed where he curled up into a ball and pulled
Jack's pillow over his head. His shoes hit the floor with a thud and his soft
cries filled the loft.

Jack did not have super Top hearing but he had a second sense when it came to
Jay. He hurried upstairs, "Jay what's wrong sweetheart?"

He told him, through the pillow. "My head hurts, I can't think, I can't see
good, I just want it to stop," he mumbled.

Jack went into the bathroom and grabbed some painkillers. "It's just the
withdrawal from the sugar, lover," he said, as he coaxed Jay to take the
medicine. "Cutting it all out at once isn't very good for you. It'll be over
soon and I'll be here for you all the way."

After he gulped down the water, Jay laid his head into Jack's chest and said,
"No matter how much I love you and no matter how much you bitch I am not giving
up The Dew."

"Give me some credit." Jack said, "I restocked the fridge this morning. I just
asked you to cut back on the sugar and you decided to stop the lot. I am very
proud of you and it's just unfortunate the withdrawal is as bad as it is."

"Yeah, well, I knew it would happen cause it happened when I gave up smoking and
pot, for you," he said trying to move closer to him. "I wanted to give up all
the bad stuff before I married you. I know I told you no twice but well I'm
ready to say yes now, that is if you still want to," Jay told him as he began
playing with the ring he had given Jack on their first Christmas together. Even
though he got his ass busted for not obeying his lover, he thought it was well
worth the surprise on his Sweet's face when he saw them.

Jack blinked once, then again. He had given up asking Jay to marry him and this
had blindsided him somewhat. He pulled himself together and knelt on the floor
looking up at Jay. "Let's do this right," he said. "Jason Copeland would you
marry me?"

Jay gave him a goofy smile and blushed, even though his head was killing him. He
laughed and, taking his lover's hand into his, said, "Yes, Jackson McCallum, I
will marry you." He bent down to touch his lips to his Sweets, `Until death do
us part," he whispered kissing his true love.

Jack kissed him back.