Welcome to Gaia! ::

Today would a brand new day, filled with all sorts of new failures and successes that Maebe was ready to tackle. She woke up from a dreamless sleep, and that alone made her smile. It was only on the second time knocking that she'd realized there was someone at the door, which had probably been why she'd woken up at all. So she got up, and looked at the door for a minute.

Open it. Or..

She moved to sit at her desk, pulled out a comb, and started to brush her hair. It didn't take long, but the fact that she was doing this, instead of checking to see who was at the door, was enough. When she put down the comb, she finally stood to actually open it, ready for whatever the world was about to put in front of her today.

Ready, but still surprised.

Otto's face was instantly recognizable, even if he did look like he'd been eating lemons all day. He was absolutely unhappy to be at her door that morning, and Maebe was instantly excited to find out why. So she leaned against the frame, pressing her arm up into it to rest her head on, and sized him up like a predator.

"Well." She murmured with great interest, her voice heavy with sinister intent. "Good morning."

Maebe gasped over-dramatically, placing her hand over her mouth as she stared with wide eyed innocence at Otto. "My, my. I don't remember you being that crass. Do you kiss your mother with that mouth?"

Of course he didn't. Because he didn't have a mother, here. "Oh, no." She resolved, melting back into what could honestly be described as visual devouring. "Just me."

Oh. Oh God help her. It was like all of the awful she'd been forced to endure in the last few days had suddenly come back around in glorious, beautiful karma, handing her this jewel of perfection. The boy she'd met in that dream was nothing like this one - Otto was apparently a tight-wad p***k. Were those tears forming in the corners of her eyes? Tears of joy, perhaps. She sucked in a quick breath to try and contain her delight, before moving away from the door.

"Oh, I'm sure it's somewhere in here. If you want it so bad, come and get it. Here's an idea. Maybe you should strip search me."

Thank you, God. She silently prayed. For granting me something this awful to ******** with to make up for all the shitty luck she'd been having lately.

"Damn." She snapped her fingers. "And I was really due for a spanking."

She had written the report, surprisingly, but she'd folded it away and forgotten to hand it in. Otto was actually a blessing in disguise, and she would have to remember how easy it was to get home delivery if she just never handed anything in again. Maybe it wouldn't be Otto next time, but the surprise of who showed up at her door was always half the fun.

"It's in here. I promise." She closed the door behind him, and very quietly locked it. "You just have to find it."

He was so different. It was a vast improvement over what she'd seen - and immediately brushed off when she awoke. He looked like he hated everything. How nice.

"No. I can show you what floats my boat, if you want." She leaned in, and very carefully slid her hand under his jacket. "I'll give you a hint. You're already halfway there."

If Otto had fallen for it, she would have handed him the paper and kicked him out. But he did not disappoint her, pushing her hand away and demanding she stay on task. He was just perfect, and she almost clapped her hands in delight. Instead, she forced her hands to stay at her sides, until she could turn and hop up on her desk. She sat there, ankles crossed, and swung her legs childishly.

"Umm." She looked like she was thinking hard about it. "It's in my bra. Go get it."

She tilted her head, and went silent for just a few seconds, before a surprisingly genuine question escaped. "What changed?" The itch to know was growing. "What's the factor in your life that turned you into this little s**t? And please, don't be offended." She grinned, showing far too much teeth. "I like you much better this way."

"You're not the first male to walk through my door, sweetheart." Maebe assured him, rubbing the side of her foot against his leg when he stepped too far away. "And you won't be the last. So don't flatter yourself." But he was right about one thing, at least. She was bored. He fixed that. That made Otto a clear favorite. Especially when he reacted so sweetly to her piercing question. There was no hiding the way he tensed up - and gave her what was instantly her new favorite nickname ever.

She hoped it would stick.

"It does. So tell me what changed." She couldn't remember much past the six hours where she'd known him, but she remembered his family. They'd seemed nice enough. "Did you lose your parents too?"