Title: When He Comes Home

Summary: The number of times Jesse (male-Jessica Rabbit) only felt truly home is when he comes home to her (fem-Roger Rabbit).

Waiting for You

The anticipation was deadly.

The female patrons of The Ink-and-Paint Club waited by the back door. Applause with a stage on the way was sorely dissatisfying at showing appreciation. Backdoor encounters are more… personal.

The worn, metal door creaked. They pressed closer along with the clamor.

"Jesse, you're so wonderful-"

"Can you sign this?"

"Oh my stars! It's-"

"Eeeeeeeeee!"

"Are you going to sing again in-"

The girl froze, words dying in her lips when his emerald gaze locked in to her. She felt helpless, wonderfully blank, when the others stopped too as he reached out.

He put his hand on the wall, near above her shoulder. Slightly caging her.

Her throat bobbed.

The girl's chest rose rapidly when he moved closer, a deep voice brushing a whisper in her ear.

"Your shoelaces are untied."

Jesse walked away, leaving the poor girl to melt down the dirty brick wall as the others rushed to her aid.

"Quick, Jana! What was it like?"

Unseen by them, he only breathed a sigh of relief that they're finally diverted enough to leave him alone.

XOXOXOX

Unlike in the city part of ToonTown, everything down to the mailbox is asleep in the suburbs.

He slightly frowned when he saw the lights in their house were still on. He took out his key and entered.

A rabbit sleeping on the couch welcomed his eyes. Now inside their home, he didn't bother to restrain his smile at the sight of Rhoda who looked like she had fallen asleep in the most uncomfortable way.

Gently, he prodded her awake.

"Rhoda," he said quietly, lightyears different from the husky whisper that he had used. "Honeybun, wake up."

Her rabbit ears were the first to unfurl before she slowly got up. She rubbed her eyes, ginger hair tousled.

He kissed her cheek. He couldn't resist.

That seemed to have woken her up.

"Jesse," she yawned. His hand stopped her from fixing her dishevelled polka dot pajamas. "You're here."

"What are you doing here so late?" he asked, voice softer, devoid of the Devil Divine.

She grinned sheepishly. "I was waiting for you. But," her ears lowered in regret. "I fell asleep."

He kissed her forehead, hands rubbing her arms. "You don't need to do that. You need to wake up early tomorrow."

"But I thought it would be nice if someone welcomes you home."

All their toon furniture sighed in unison, momentarily becoming soft.

His hand rubbed the ring beneath her yellow glove.

"You being home is already enough."

XOXOXOX

In Your Arms

Jesse parked in the driveway. He glanced in the backseat where Ms. Acme's latest gift was placed.

Despite him returning her gifts to him by mail, they haven't stopped. Being already married didn't deter her "friendly" trinkets.

He shook his head. Maybe he should just give it to charities instead. That was actually a better idea.

Dismissing those thoughts, he got out of their car with a glance at their home.

After making Rhoda agree that she should sleep early, he was glad to see that the lights in their house were turned off -saved for the porch light.

He entered their home to begin his usual evening routine.

A shaft of light spilled into their bedroom when he entered. Thankfully, Rhoda was fully asleep. She was on her side, ears flopped on the pillows as moonlight shone a halo against her fur.

Carefully, he laid down on the bed so as not to wake her up.

But still she stirred.

"Jesse," she mumbled, voice fully drowsy with sleep.

Before he could shush her to lie down again, her arms went around his head and pressed him into a hug.

"Thank goodness you're home," she murmured against his forehead before giving him a kiss.

His whole being that had frozen in surprise soon melted into something warm and blissful. Slowly as not to wake her, his arms wrapped around her waist as he rubbed his face deeper into her chest.

The rest of the day slipped away, forgotten. Working at night just got from tolerable to rewarding.

XOXOXOX

Awake

"Really? I mean, I have heard about it. But… do guys really like that?"

"No, Rhoda," Buggy Bunny said with a grin. "They love it. So here's what you need to do..."

Jesse opened their bedroom door only to see Rhoda sitting on top of their bed, awake.

"Hon? Why're you still awake?"

The rabbit fidgeted with her ear, wide blue eyes looking shyly at the side.

"I, um… just wanna check on you since you've been sleeping late," her gloveless hand twirled her rabbit ear tightly before it sprung back floppily against her cheek.

He subtly bit his lip before he started grinning for no reason at all.

"I'm fine, Rhoda," he replied, sitting on the bed beside her. "You should go to sleep."

One of her bare hands scrunched the sleeve of her loose, comfy PJs. "I… just got something in mind before I do that."

"Do you want a midnight snack? Because-"

He suddenly quieted in surprise when she was suddenly on his lap, giving him a kiss of fully undivided attention. He gasped, his hands gripping her waist, when he felt her grind on him.

"Rhoda," he muttered, already breathless.

"Don't worry," she looked up to him with open-eyed honesty, her hands were already on his lap as she scooched lower. "You don't have to do anything."

XOXOXOX

Unknown to many, Jesse had read a lot of books before about rabbits in the hopes of gaining a better understanding of his friend-now-wife's rabbit side.

Contrary to popular belief, courtship is short between wild rabbits and mating even shorter. But because artists lack certain knowledge and only know that rabbits breed fast, when they created rabbit toons they gave them a very distinct libido based from the phrase, "Go at it like-

"Jesse, are you okay?"

Jesse snapped out of his thoughts. "Yes."

Leroy looked at him strangely. "You've been zoning out."

Rhoda had always been playful and earnest in their moments. But last night was certainly-

Jesse kept his smile from getting too wide. "I'm good."

He must be scaring Leroy for the other toon backed away slowly. Jesse shrugged.

"Have you ever thought you know someone but they keep on surprising you?"

Leroy stared pointedly at Jesse, slowly nodding. "Yeeeeeeessss?" He tried not to make a sign of the cross when Jesse's stoic expression flowed into a rare, beatific grin.

"That's all."

For something where he didn't have to do anything, he sure was spent that night.

XOXOXOX

Going Home Together

"Cut! That was great!"

Baby Mina spat out the rattle, still stuck in the "The End" board of their new episode, "Tummy Trouble".

"If I have to swallow that rattle one more time, I'm gonna puke my guts out!" she groused.

The propsmen shook the board and Rhoda flopped out of the hole.

"Git me out of this thing!" Mina struggled in the board, stuck in one of the holes.

Rhoda followed after her. "Jeepers, Baby Mina! Calm down!" she soothed as someone whacked the "baby" out of the board with a mallet.

However, the "baby" didn't lose steam.

"Don't ya know who I am? This is no way to treat a star!" she continued to rant as the producer and intern tried to placate her.

"You're going to give Raul a heart attack! Why Baby Mina, you were stupen- whoa!" Rhoda accidentally knocked down a table of props. She tried to catch it but too late.

"Rhoda, dear," Jesse called out, waiting for him at the sidelines of the set.

The rabbit apologetically looked at the mess but she had made Jesse wait long enough. She took his hand.

"Let's go home and play," Jesse casually said.

Rhoda perked. "Jeepers! What're we playing? Tiddlywinks? Canastas?" She leapt up excitedly. "Parcheesi?"

This was what she liked the most when Jesse was needed in their cartoon shorts. They get to go home together.

Jesse hummed thoughtfully before glancing at her. "Oh… how about a little patty-cake instead?"

Rhoda went red, conscious that people could still hear them. Yet Jesse just mentioned it so casually.

"Pattycake?" she exclaimed ironically. "Jeepers," she laughed off her own embarrassment as she took his hand once again.

Going home with Jesse just might be one of the best parts of the day.

XOXOXOX

Waking Up

Rhoda woke up to the beeping of the alarm clock… and to being tangled with Jesse.

"Shhhhh!" she tried to placate the clock when it still continued to jump and ring. She had asked it to stop singing just to prevent Jesse from waking up too early.

But the clock shook its head and showed her its little button. The clock wanted her to press it to stop ringing.

Which shouldn't be so difficult if only she wasn't squished possessively against Jesse with one leg thrown over her rabbit feet.

She stretched her arm to its rubbery length and pressed the alarm clock's button. It went back to its happy, quiet ticking once more.

Rhoda sighed in relief. Problem #1 solved. Now for problem #2.

She looked at her knotty situation. Slowly, with the same skill of an expert extortionist, she tried to shimmy her way out of his arms.

Rhoda yelped when Jesse simply rolled her under.

"Jesse!" she exclaimed.

His only response was to snore softly.

She laughed, she couldn't help it. "Now I know you're awake! I have to get to work!"

He nuzzled deeper into the crook of her neck. "No."

Rhoda laughed again, trying to push him away. But then all strength left her when he started to nibble.

"Jesse… no," she giggled weakly, already feeling like a puddle.

"Check the calendar, dear," was his casual reply on top of her.

She turned her head. "Oh… it's my day-off. My mistake."

He finally raised his head to look at her, leisurely resting on his elbows, his bangs falling down to frame his green eyes. "Now I'm jealous. What does making people laugh has that I don't?" Perhaps he should remind her of certain perks.

"Sorry," she replied sheepishly. "I just get all this energy to make people laugh when I'm happy."

Her hand reached out to cup his cheek, furred thumb caressing across his skin. "And I am happy," she said quietly.

He froze, the tables turned. "I..."

She laughed, affectionately rubbing her pink nose against his. "Wanna make breakfast?"

But Jesse only embraced her again, feeling like the luckiest man alive as he lay down once more.

The End.

Thank you for taking a minute or two for your feedback!

Author's Notes: I should be writing my original novel but after a rough session with the therapist, she told me to do something that makes me feel happy. And writing happy, healthy relationships makes me happy. This is also my sorry-for-making-you-go-through-hell fics for Rhoda and Jesse. The events happened before and after the movie. Sorry, Jack and Rose. You don't exist in this universe.

Plus, I just realized that FF's definition for Teen is mild violence with NO sexual themes. So that means some of my fics should be rated M. I'll correct that.