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 Posted: Sun Aug 03, 2014 10:04 pm
"I don't want apples," said Arkady, but the compromise of pop tarts and fruit seemed fair. Especially in the light of his hand in her hair and 'I love you'. She flopped sideways, her head on his shoulder, and watched the stoplight. "So that light makes you stop," she said, doubtfully. "That's dumb."
They got home and Arkady hurried up the stairs and bounced uncertainly by the door to his apartment until Finn caught up and let her in. She promptly hopped on the couch and watched him, all big green eyes. "Pop tarts," she prompted, propping her head up on Mister Penguin.
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Posted: Sun Aug 03, 2014 10:04 pm
“Pop tarts,” Finn agreed, following her into the apartment, shopping bags in hand. He’d put all this stuff away later, once he figured out once and for all where Arkady’s things went. Did they go in his room? The spare den? What kind of precedent was he supposed to be setting here? Was the assumption supposed to be that she’d be living with him forever, or she’d move out on her own eventually (not that he would mind her living here forever…)?
It was too much to think about, so he dropped all the bags unceremoniously by the door and went to start the pop tarts. “No apples,” he said helpfully. “Got it.” Vanya had had a thing about them, too, which made sense only after he found out who she really was. And maybe he ought to stop using Tate and Vanya and points of reference for Arkady, but…
He wasn’t ready to stop just yet. Finn fixed up a pair of plates and joined her on the couch. “Do you want to watch a movie?” he asked. She’d lost all her cultural reference points. It was important to get those back before anyone noticed anything weird was up.
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Posted: Sun Aug 03, 2014 10:04 pm
She went straight for the pop tart, breaking it into four pieces and carefully eating around the crust. “These are so good,” she sighed, kicking her feet up into the air. She and Mister Penguin had claimed the rightmost two thirds of the couch, leaving Finn with--she thought--plenty of room. After a moment’s shifting, she stuck her head in Finn’s lap with Mister Penguin on her thighs. “Okay,” she said. “What kind of movie? Can we watch a princess one?”
The fruit was a nectarine. She balanced it on her chest and turned her attention back to her pop tart, setting the plate on the floor beside her. “Hey. I like you.” She reached up and put a hand on his face, frowning at the scar. It didn’t belong there. She didn’t remember it there.
Her pop tart was gone. She started in on her nectarine with some dissatisfaction.
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Posted: Sun Aug 03, 2014 10:04 pm
Finn considered her empty plate for a moment, and then tipped half his pop-tart onto it. He wasn’t particularly attached to the idea of processed-pastry-product-as-dinner, anyway, and figured he’d get something later or just go to sleep hungry.
He put a hand over hers, pressing her palm over the scar. Someday he’d tell her where he’d gotten it, or perhaps she’d remember it herself. Until then, he’d let it be. She might not like it but it wasn’t like it was going anywhere. “Yeah, a princess one,” he said, and started up The Princess Bride. “This one’s a comedy, ok? It’s sort of old but it’s really good.”
Smiling down at her, he set the remote aside and settled his hand into her hair, fingers tangling in the long red strands. “You might remember it,” he said. “You’ve seen it before.”
She’d seen most of these before.
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Posted: Sun Aug 03, 2014 10:04 pm
She peeked down at the poptart on her plate, and then beamed up at Finn. “Really? Thanks!” Setting her tangerine aside, she took tiny bites of her half of his poptart, treasuring each little moment. She felt certain, in that moment, that he really did love her, and he wasn’t just pretending because she’d had those letters and looked like someone he used to know. Nobody shared food with people they didn’t like at least a little.
The movie started, and she turned a solemn gaze towards the screen. “I like Wesley,” she said almost immediately, an opinion that had been stealthily shared by Tate, though the earlier incarnation of Avalon had never said as much to Finn directly. “He’s witty.” As you wish! She wondered if that line would work on Finn. Buttercup seemed to love Wesley an awful lot… a lot like she wanted Finn to love her.
“You like me, right,” she asked, tugging on the hem of his sleeve. “Even though I’m annoying?” At least she wasn’t wearing her shoes on his couch. They were kicked off neatly by the door, paired fastidiously with the laces tucked in. “I’m sorry I was a butt at the store.”
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Posted: Sun Aug 03, 2014 10:05 pm
“Yes,” Finn assured her, scratching the back of her head. “And you’re not annoying. And you weren’t a butt.” She had been a little bit of a butt. But he wasn’t going to tell her that - it would just devolve into an endless string of apologies, he thought. “Stuff can be overwhelming,” he shrugged. “I get it. And trying on clothes sucks even when things do fit.” He still for the life of him couldn’t remember where Tate used to shop.
“I like you very much,” he said, slipping her hand gently away from his face and folding his fingers around hers. “Okay? But you’ve gotta be quiet for the movie.”
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Posted: Sun Aug 03, 2014 10:05 pm
She fell silent, as bid, and watched the movie. His fingers were warm where they overlapped hers; his stomach rose in a steady one-two-three-four pattern of breathing. He was relaxed around her. That was good, she thought, that was probably the best. And his hand in her hair, that was delightful, a gentle susurration of a breeze through the strands and the rasp of nails on her scalp. If Arkady could purr, she would have been. It felt good. She was warm and full and safe, and the television was funny, and Finn was there, being the best pillow.
“True love,” she whispered, almost before Wesley exhaled it when in the miracle maker’s shop. That sure was something worth living for. She turned on her side, poptart crusts and their plate set on the ground beside the couch so she could see the TV better. Her hand covered Finn’s knee near exactly.
As the credits rolled, she slipped her hand under his knee and tickled him.
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