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 Posted: Wed Nov 27, 2013 1:41 am
Robert making comparisons to sandwiches registered as normal enough for Mimsy to gloss over it, so she progressed to mentally picking apart the pieces of the 'sandwich' and did exactly what he told her not to do. "I will refrain from any arguments that include my lack of expertise, but I still don't understand the sentiment. I think that my enjoyment of some things would be diminished if I tried to combine them, in spite of my high level of interest in each separate subject. For instance, I enjoy testing hypotheses with experiments, and I enjoy...uh." She couldn't finish her sentence, but she stubbornly tried to continue anyway. "But if I 'smashed', as you said, you with my exper--" Then she finally realized what she was saying. The moment of clarity brought everything to an abrupt stop, and her face flushed with color as she considered how to proceed. "Nevermind," she blurted out, staring across the street. Maybe a distraction would work. If anything, it was probably better than her brilliant tactic of 'nevermind', which she'd seriously selected from a short list of possibilities. With her teeth clenched to avoid any further incrimination, she tightly clutched his hand and crossed the street, hastily yanking open the shop door as soon as it was in reach. A bell chimed to greet them, and she stomped past it, beelined to the first pair of black boots she saw, and gathered up a box labeled with her size. Mission now fulfilled, she dared to look at him again. "Okay. Done. Do you need anything, now that we are here?" She tapped her thumb against the top of the shoebox and watched him expectantly. If he hadn't guessed before now, it was suddenly very evident that she treated shopping the same way she treated every other basic task.
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Posted: Wed Nov 27, 2013 2:52 am
The bubbling burst of laughter that Mimsy's sudden halted sentence forced out of him was loud, and it almost made him trip when they crossed the street. His hand tightened around hers, and he caught himself just in time, stumbling until they were inside. True to Mimsy's form, she had her new boots in her hands before he'd taken more than a few breaths. He slid the book away from her, and tucked it under one arm. The other wrapped smoothly around her waist, leading her to the checkout.
"I don't need nothing. You sure you don't wanna make sure these fit? Or are comfy? I'm gonna make you walk today." He peeked in the box, checking to see if they were hot. Which they totally were.
He leaned down and kissed the top of her head, while handing the box off to the cashier. His hand pulled his wallet out of his pocket, placed it on the counter, and slid his credit card out with one finger. He was getting a little more satisfaction over the moment than he wanted to admit.
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Posted: Thu Nov 28, 2013 12:37 am
Any comments or protests that Mimsy might have made about the laughter were stifled in favor of completely ignoring that any of those words came out of her mouth. She only hoped that it all seemed like a joke, and that he'd just forget about it soon. Or that he'd already forgotten what was funny, preferably. "They will fit," she assured him, playfully feigning an insulted look. "Are you implying that you doubt my ability to make suitable choices? Now I might have to reconsider every choice I've ever made, gauging how comfortable they are." The analogy was pretty clear. Luckily, she'd made sure it was still apparent that she wasn't serious. There were very few things that felt entirely comfortable for her anyway; life would be extremely lackluster if she got rid of them all. She easily let him take the shoebox, thinking nothing of it, but her brow furrowed with confusion when she saw why. They were her shoes, and she had her own card with her. Why was he... < DAAAATE.> Svensyl screeched, loud enough to make her jump. < More seeds spent, more kisses get! Ooooh callay!> A poem dictating various levels of payout followed the initial outburst, but she wasn't paying attention. He was paying for her because this was a normal thing that was supposed to happen. Just giving her things she wanted. And she didn't have to ask. She looked delighted at this development. "Thank you." Her gratitude was expressed with a kiss on his cheek, as Svensyl suggested. "I will put them on outside. Then I will consider allowing you to let me walk." It was a little less evident if she was joking or not this time.
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Posted: Thu Nov 28, 2013 1:47 am
He got the point. Unfortunately, this did not worry him, so much as make him want to tease her further. When the shoes were being boxed up, he leaned in, and smushed himself against her, rubbing his nose against hers. "Awww, you're comfortable. You're so cooomfortable with me." He pulled her against him, and snuggled her like a teddy bear. "I fit better than any pair of shoes." He was being the worst, because he felt confident enough to be the worst. And it felt so damn good to feel that way again. He'd been putting his card away when she jumped, so he turned just in time to miss it. Instead, he got a kiss on the cheek, and his lips twisted up with pride. It was her last response, however, that actually snuck a little worry into him. "No, no no no no no. I change my mind. It don't matter if they're comfy or not." He handed her the bag, and ducked his head. "I'll carry you anywhere. Don't let me let you walk." That sounded right in his head, but as soon as he'd said it, he felt like it sounded silly, so he tried to decide audibly if he'd put that sentence together right. "Don't let me.. let you.. let me.. no, yeah, yeah. What I said before." He was right. Totally. That moment of clarity where he'd considered all the steps and long walks they were about to take was now gone. He wanted her on him, for as long as he could manage it. He suddenly wished they hadn't bought any new boots at all. Good going, numbnuts. Jezebel praised from her quiet, brooding spot in the corner of his mind.
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Posted: Thu Nov 28, 2013 6:33 am
It didn't take very long for Mimsy to realize that she'd made a terrible mistake. Her nose wrinkled up as he nuzzled her in public, and she gave the cashier a panicked glance out of the corner of her eye, holding her hands up in what she only hoped was a universal indication of 'that thing he is saying is definitely not true'. By the time he was done being the worst, she no longer thought it was funny that the things he did while claiming she was comfortable were anything but - now she had a suspicion that it had been exactly what he intended. She took the bag with one hand and tidied her mysteriously disheveled braid with the other as he spoke. The idea of having her walk extensively really seemed to be bothering him. That didn't make much sense to her, despite the obvious correlation between this and her comment, so she waited for him to finish. Even when she shouldn't have. The only reply she gave him before she looked away from him and turned to leave the store was a pensive 'hm', her thoughts a flurry of questions to answer. Once she was outside, she plopped down on the sidewalk and kicked off the bee boots, setting them aside to put the new boots on. She was halfway through when she found words that were satisfactory enough to say, and talked with her attention still directed towards her feet, assuming he was close enough to hear her. "Why did you change your mind? You inferred a significant amount of walking, so it can't be very practical to carry me that far. Do you really think that I have such strong feelings about exercise? Do I not seem capable?" She closed the shoebox, which now contained the rainboots, and stared at the top of it. "Or...do you want to carry me so badly that you leapt at the opportunity?" She didn't sound angry, but the questions were more distant than usual as she continued her attempts to solve this.
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Posted: Sun Dec 01, 2013 8:28 pm
She hated it. He loved that she hated it. That was a terrible way to feel, but he supposed it was because he liked knowing how she would react, before she did so. So he sat down beside her when she changed her boots, carefully refraining from pointing out to her how much easier that would have been inside, and he smiled a smug little smile. Her questions sounded clinical, and he answered them like a questionaire. His fingers tapped off each one as he spoke. "I changed my mind because I realized I'm a dummy who was throwing away a perfectly good opportunity. I think you're just fine about exercise, and you're perfectly capable - you're a hunter, baby. You kind of have to be." He grinned, but his grin faltered when he realized she wasn't looking at him. She was staring at the box, and she was hiding something beyond the questions. That worried him a little. "Hey." He murmured, putting his hand on her head. "I know you don't like it when I get too close, or do too much. But I do. I love every second that I'm touching you. Don't care what it is. So I gotta make do with anything I can get - and yeah, carrying you means I get to hold you in my arms. It gives me a valid reason to be close to you without making you uncomfortable. I'd carry you to the top of a mountain if it meant getting to feel you near me, without making you unhappy. You get that?" His hand pulled away, brushing very faintly against her neck, her shoulder, and her arm, until it rested on top of her own hand. "I want you to be happy. But I want me to be happy, too. And the feel of you makes me happy." His fingers wrapped carefully around hers. "Is that okay?"
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Posted: Wed Dec 04, 2013 1:41 am
All of the responses were straightforward enough to not require prompts for elaboration, and Mimsy paired questions with answers and stored them away, seamlessly methodical until he put his hand on her head and stopped making any sense. "Oh," was all she offered in return, and she shivered when he touched her neck, leaving goosebumps to be felt all the way down to her hand. The mention of the 'top of a mountain' stirred memories of what she'd done to gauge his levels of things like affection and adoration, actions she allowed for the sake of understanding. Many were somewhat uncharacteristic of her, and a few felt unsustainable, but she supposed she could now see how she could have been expecting this. It still puzzled her. She narrowed her eyes and looked at him, something almost suspicious, as she tried to comprehend this. The concept of him wanting her to be happy was nothing new, and played a large part in the interest she'd taken in him. It was what followed that brought her this pause. They were together. On a date, even. She allowed him numerous things that she had never allowed - and would never allow again - to anyone else, because of the certainty she felt over the cohesive benefits it would provide. Each time she learned of something that she thought she should be doing, including the acceptance of the title of 'girlfriend', she'd done it. The idea that there was actually anything left that he needed to feel happy was strange, and she might have suspected dishonesty if she wasn't so sure that he might literally rather die than risk hurting her with a lie. Because it just didn't make sense. Her projections included nothing like this; she assumed that he would simply do anything it took to make her happy, without question or consequence or protest. She wasn't so far from the mark that she felt it could only be saved by starting over and recalculating, and she knew that it was something she could allow for and reciprocate, but... She squeezed his hand, gave it a pat with the hand he wasn't holding, and took a deep breath. "Yes. I think that it will be. I will be more aware of my reactions in the future." With only a marginal amount of hesitation, she slid a little closer, until there wasn't much space left between them on the sidewalk. "I may learn to not find it so unfavorable. In the meantime, if you would truly prefer to carry me, I am not opposed." She never really had been, but even Alice had to make sense of things sometimes.
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Posted: Wed Dec 04, 2013 2:05 am
Robert imagined that he could actually see the thousands of perfect, intricate little cogs intertwining into one another inside of her mind as she processed every word he said. She was trying so hard to figure it all out, and when she lost herself in computation, it gave him a chance to lose himself in her. A tiny wrinkle deepened on her forehead. He reached up and brushed it away, smoothing the skin out as she figured things out. He suspected that she was trying to squirrel away all of this, including her own emotions, so she could explain them away later on. He also suspected she was going to make this mistake for a very, very long time. He leaned in, until his eyes were matched with hers, and pressed a chaste, but fervent kiss against her lips. It was palpable how much he held back just to give her that one soft gesture. But it wasn't the right time to drown her in his emotional overflow. She was thinking, and he was politely giving her the room to do so. Just not completely. Never completely. "I would prefer to carry you. At least for a little while. It won't be so hard, until we get to the - " His lips pursed and then were sucked in, as if he was trying to hold his words back. His cheeks flushed with color, and he grinned. "Oooops. I almost told you! I almost ruined the surprise. I'm so bad at this." The sudden realization that the day was waning on without them reaching their destinations started to worry at his heart. He looked up at the sky, though he wasn't the type to actually know how to tell time very well using the sun - and the sky was grey with clouds anyway. So he just stared, as if all those factors did not matter, and he was totally able to figure out what time it was. "It's getting later. We'd better hurry, or we won't have time for everything." He straightened out and held both of his arms out for her, his heart skipping a happy beat. "Okay goddess, climb aboard. Let's get this show on the road."
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Posted: Wed Dec 04, 2013 4:12 am
As anticipated, he opted to carry her, which Mimsy had already begun to prepare for by slipping her hand through the handle of the shopping bag. What she had not anticipated was how disarming the little kiss would be. This was (by far) not the first time he'd kissed her, and there had been a wide range of them by now. By all measurable accounts, it should have been no different. But it was, somehow; it felt different, and she felt different. Why? The location didn't hold the type of significance that could encourage such a reaction, and there were no relevant words or actions surrounding it that she could identify. There had to be a reason, because it was ridiculous to assume that there was not a linear, logical path between what she felt and why she felt it. Her thumb traced her lower lip as she watched him stare into the sky, too preoccupied to question what he was doing. It hadn't taken long after he acknowledged how close he'd been to divulging the secret for her mind to begin to wander to something else, searching for any information she might have about locations in this general area where walking would be problematic. It was so natural a reaction that it was almost impossible to stop herself, once the reminder of avoiding guesses stood in her way, so she tried to combat it in a way she never tried before. "I would like to play a somewhat one-sided game while you walk," she began, cautiously climbing into his outstretched arms, mindful not to hit him in the face with the old shoes. Her body was tense, like a cat afraid of being thrown off balance, and only began to relax after she leaned her head against him. "Tell me something that you are certain I do not know. It can be in reference to anything. I will allow you an infinite expanse of possibilities." Such an allowance seemed proper from a goddess, after all. It amused her that he hadn't forgotten.
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Posted: Thu Dec 05, 2013 1:06 am
Everything felt warmer when Mimsy crawled up into his arms, but he didn't move yet. He sat there, curling his arms carefully around her, and let her settle in. But she wasn't settling in, and she was stiff as a board for a few seconds. He would have asked her if she was really all right, if she'd lasted any longer. But her head dropped softly to rest on his body. and slowly she unfurled into him. He felt her every inch when it pressed against his sweater, and he took in the moment with pure, unadulterated enjoyment. He almost forgot that they had somewhere to be. Because this was nice. Just this. Destinations and plans could go to hell, if the world would allow him more moments just like this. Robert loved games - but the mention of one stirred his desire to travel back into existence, and he hefted her playfully up as he stood, carting her off against him towards the main road. It was clear that all the roads had begun to merge, towards the one he was leading her to. But he wasn't quite ready to get there, yet. "OKAY. Uhhh. s**t. Okay. ********, that's a hard one Mimsy. You're like, the smartest person on the planet. If I didn't know better I would safely guess that you actually know everything." But she didn't know everything, and even he knew that - because he was waiting - would wait for as long as it took - until she knew the only thing that mattered. "Let's see.." He really wanted to stump her. "Okay. What's the car company that first started to make a lot of cars, like not just a few but you know, a lot." His lips broke out into a wide, proud grin. He knew car s**t!
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Posted: Thu Dec 05, 2013 3:17 am
They remained in that spot for just a bit longer, but Mimsy didn't question it or complain, assuming that this was another thing that made him happy. This wasn't wholly unpleasant, so she closed her eyes and waited, stirring only to languidly drape one arm over his shoulder. When he did stand up to begin walking, she made a startled sound, fingers clutching the fabric on his back. Her eyes opened long enough to get a glimpse of the direction they were heading in, then closed again, resolving to observe their surroundings when she was walking again. "Smartest person on the planet," she repeated, laughing. "I firmly believe that I could be among the top percentile, but I forfeited my opportunity to be the smartest. The sentiment is appreciated, however." The feelings of bitterness were not as strong as they once were. It was only a year ago that she opted to take an alternate route in her search for the Higgs, in a place that was possibly not too far from here. Her life had not gone in an expected direction since then, but it no longer seemed like a tragic mistake, because this was not an experience that she would have secured if she had chosen differently. She extended her fingers to toy with the ends of his hair and avoided thoughts of comparisons. This was part of a critical experiment to her, but placing it next to the experiments at CERN did seem a lot like sacrilege. "Ah. Well done," she praised him, tone somewhere between restrained and intrigued. "I do not know the answer to that. I could only make guesses, if I tried. What is it? I would also like to know how you learned that information, if you are willing to share. The origins of knowledge can often be as interesting as the knowledge itself."
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Posted: Thu Dec 05, 2013 4:06 am
"You didn't forfeit s**t. To me, you are the smartest. That's all that matters." It didn't matter what she gave up, or what she'd been set to do. Mimsy was brilliant, and she was doing amazing things in Life. He couldn't say the same about himself, unless making her happy counted as something brilliant. Maybe it did. The jury was still out on whether he was doing the right thing for her, by loving her so hard. But when she asked him about where he'd picked up information about cars, she was close enough to feel his pulse quicken with excitement. His face lit up like a child on Christmas Day, and he took a deep breath before beginning to happily ramble. "Oldsmobile did. Benz says they got a few hundred out but whatever it was totally Olds that started mass producing them. Then Ford got his hands in it, and s**t got crazy. I love cars. I love driving them and fixing them up and ******** with them until they're all broken again. I love everything about cars. It's 'cause my dad loved cars. People in town would bring their cars over to him and he'd try to fix them, because the car shop was a ripoff." He hefted her happily in his arms, and snuggled in, clearly enamored with the subject. "He made a lot of good loyal customers that way, while the corn and wheat grew hot. Connections will make or break a farm. But he let me watch him work if I didn't touch anything - I was never allowed to touch anything - and he talked while he did it. Then I saved up enough and I bought my baby." His expression turned fond, and reminiscent. "I miss her so much. I loved her like she was my own kid, and she was so beautiful. I wish you coulda seen her, Mimsy." He pictured his car in her head, and hummed dreamily. "Her name was Becky. She was a pistol, that Becky. Blood red, with flame decals across her sides and gunshot holes. 1969 Roadrunner, mint condition." He let out a long, slow sigh, breathing out of his mouth to try and calm himself down. "426 CID Hemi V8, and a 440 six barrel-" He stopped here, looking down at her as if to explain. "That means it had three two-barrel carburetors." Satisfied that that was understandable, he continued. "And oh, Mimsy. She had the most beautiful growl. You could hear her coming from a mile away. The sound of her made my heart race." He was flushed, and decided to set Mimsy down, because he felt it inappropriate to be holding her at a time like this - as if he was cheating on her, somehow. As to which her he thought he was cheating on.. it was unclear. "Uh." He rubbed a hand down his face, and waved shyly at a little door to a building that looked like all of the others around it. "We're here. Dinner for two at the Thatched Tavern. Didn't even need a reservation." He held the door open for her.
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Posted: Fri Dec 06, 2013 11:36 pm
It must be nice, Mimsy thought, to really believe that was all that mattered. She had no doubt that he did, but she knew that she could never feel that way in this existence. That philosophy was better left to other Mimsys in other universes, where they might be better sustained with just one person's confidence fueling their ego. She didn't comment further, allowing him to talk about his interests rather than potentially souring the day by being too contrary. Those kinds of things were more important to pay attention to off-island, where there wasn't a well-planned escape route to take when awkward situations arose. But she was glad she'd paid attention, because there was a glimmer of recognition in her eyes as he explained. This must be how almost everyone else felt when she began to go into detail about the experiments that especially excited her. She picked up on only a handful of terms, and was appreciative of the clarification she didn't have to ask for; but she found it easy to be intrigued nonetheless, even if it didn't always make perfect sense. "Very interesting. Thank you for sharing that information with me," she said, smoothing her coat once she was back on the ground. She made a conscious decision not to ask him about the way the car made his 'heart race', and gave him a practiced smile instead. "I can only imagine that level of connection, but you describe it well. I hope that you do not feel too much remorse for what you had to leave behind. Namely 'Becky', in this instance." As he gestured to the door and held it open, her thoughtful, wide-eyed focus remained momentarily on him, long enough to blink a couple of times and consider a few things. Then she stepped through the door as if that never happened.
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Posted: Sat Dec 07, 2013 2:54 am
It was nice. So nice. Robert believed in some things with so much fervor, so much pure fierce determination, that it almost felt like they came true based off of nothing but his own faith. It was that intensity that got him through each and every day, despite the stumbles and pitfalls in his way. But the determination never kept him from looking back. Over, and over, he cataloged and rekindled all of those pitfalls in his mind. "I feel a lot of remorse." He answered honestly. "For everything. I live every single day with an equal dose of love and remorse." It pushed through him, fighting for the right to majority rule, with every breath he took. Love usually won, but it was a tenuous balance. He caught the look she gave him. There wasn't even an inkling of worry, or suspicion, at the pause. Her eyes were wide, and in them, he saw things she wasn't meant to show. So he let her have her moment, because he was stealing his. It made the corners of his lips turn up just barely, in satisfaction. This date was going very well. When she stepped through the door, the inside of the building looked just as quaint as the outside. He settled his hand on the small of her back, and gently guided her to a table. It was easy to choose - nobody was actually there to eat. There were several men at the bar, but they paid them no heed. He let go of her back when they got to a table, and he held out a chair. "My lady." His over-exaggerated voice offered. He knew how to be a gentleman, from start to finish, even if it wasn't always necessary. Just fun.
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Posted: Sat Dec 07, 2013 11:34 pm
The remorse was to be expected, and Mimsy had only mentioned it to quantify its current level of risk with his response. Unfortunately, it was more than she had accounted for, and she was bothered just enough to not let it go. She would simply have to work to adjust the ratio, she decided, allowing him to lead her inside. Remorse was laughably unimportant. Her expression darkened, directed towards the rest of the room, and the bar patrons might have met a particularly nasty look if they'd bothered to glance at the new arrivals. She regained her composure before she looked at him again - incredulous and a bit confused. It served to lighten her mood, at least, and she was almost smiling as she put the bag next to her chair. "Is this that sort of proper date?" she asked, sitting down and folding her hands in her lap as she played along with the formality. Though many of her actions resulting from being uptight correlated with something akin to 'good manners', most of it was still part of the world of nonsense, polite for the sake of being polite. A waste of time. Even if it was meant in jest, she struggled to get the joke enough to make her own. "Oh!" Her hand hit the underside of the table as she tried to raise it, excited to have thought of something. "This is when I should laugh and assure you... ah, I've got it." Attentive to the importance of staging, she pulled herself closer to the table, leaned one elbow on it to prop her head against her hand, and pouted just slightly. As technically sound as it was, she probably just looked absurd. "Now, Robert," she teasingly chided, reaching to gently touch his arm then pull it away as if it had been too much. She hit the table again, with her elbow this time, and pretended she hadn't. "I hope that you do not expect me to 'put out' on our very first date. I am a lady, after all, and you have not yet asked my father for permission. That would stir a scandal." Yes, this date was going very well.
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