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The nose bump made her giggle, her hands coming up to curl her chin. It was very rare for her to receive such affection and she wasn't one to waste it, going still when Chel began to speak.
"Good to know someone's getting some." She rolled her eyes, but she was pleased to know they were doing alright.
About to ask how this most recent time was different, her question was answer before she had a chance to voice it and Abbi tried to think.
But she remembered she wasn't supposed to talk.

She broke a few moments later.
"You're the only one who's really offered, so I should probably take you up on the offer." Clearly, she was joking. "What's up with Dawson?"
Gasp! Chel wasn't the reason he was having lady troubles, was she?! Would he have been quiet about it being her because he knew she and Abbi were friends? Maybe that was why he'd wanted her opinion so much! GASP!

It was a good thing Chel clarified her terminology as metaphors, for Abbi looked a little horror stricken. Mostly because she'd pegged Dawson as pretty straight, but the look dissolved quickly and she nodded encouragingly.
With Chel's arms around her waist Abbi felt it fine to lean her head over and rest it on the woman's shoulder, continuing to nod when it was necessary.

Unfortunately she did not possess Jack's mind reading abilities and was a little lost. Mostly she gathered that A) Chel was getting a bunch and still getting offers and maybe Abbi was a little jealous, but also B) Chel had a big heart, and Abbi wasn't really sure how to patch it.
"Maybe you told him no because you know it wouldn't mean what he wanted it to." That she could at least say with full certainty, though if questioned she would play as if it were just an honest guess.

They fistbumped and Abbi felt pretty proud of herself.

As for figuring out Chel's problems, Abbi wasn't at all sure what to do. She didn't want to ask too many questions, but at the same time maybe she ought to...
"You're not a whore, don't say that." The kiss was a surprise and she flushed a little, pushing her head down into Chel's shoulder to hide for a second.
"And it can mean more if you want it too..."

Not really sure what to ask, or how to figure out what the problem was, Abbi asked the one question she thought would help.
"Have you ever been in love before?"

Her face scrunched at the nose boop, but she shook her head vehemently.
"You don't have to be a princess type to fall in love..." She almost was the princess type, and she'd certainly never been in love.

"Maybe you love Jack, maybe that's why everything's weird."

And Abbi was going to huff and puff and pout and look indignant until Chel gave her a proper answer.

Or more information.

Here she screwed her face up in a frown from pure naive stubbornness, clearly believing that this at least played a part in Chel's problem. They had to have something if she was tripped up about declining Dawson, or um... Wait.
Abbi pouted some, trying to work her way through this and it was not working.

In frustration she zoomed back to pushing her face into Chel's shoulder.
"So things are complicated with Jack... Maybe its not love, not yet, its... Its unnamable. But..." One hand reached up to rap her knuckles against her own bangs. She was so close to figuring this out! Even if she was only hazily aware she was trying to puzzle it together at all.

"You told Jack about Dawson and he... Didn't care?" Abbi pulled back to study Chel's face as though that would help at all. "And you feel bad about hurting Dawson... But Jack..." Man, were relationships always this confusing?

All the affection thus far had been perfectly fine and Abbi had relished it, not realizing how starved for attention and basic contact between another human being she was. She had closed herself off so effectively that the most touch she experienced anymore was a hand shake or a brief pat on the shoulder. In fact, she could succinctly remember the last time she'd cuddled with someone and it was... In a situation similar to this.
But Chel's hand on her thigh startles her in an uncomfortable way, and she is in turn surprised to find herself shocked at all. It shouldn't elicit that reaction, the teen scolds herself and stays still, its just Chel. They are friends, she's just being touchy. She's always that way, its nothing.
And yet despite all the logic she presents to herself Abbi cannot shake the feeling that this isn't quite right.

When Chel musses up her own hair enough that she dislodged the knot she'd tied, Abbi took her chance and scurried from her lap, obvious enough that one hand pushes away Chel's own before she gets up. As a form of affection she rushes behind the woman and undoes the hair tie, combing through it gently.
"Jack's kind of a giant d***o, but hey someone's gotta show him some affection or else he'll probably hurt himself being a diva."
Her fingers pulled apart the knots carefully and began to plait it, sighing heavily.
"Something's not the way its supposed to be." But neither of them had a clue.

"Maybe its you who've changed." Once done with the braid, Abbi worked about undoing it only to start smaller ones.
"What do you want, Chel? If you could have anything in the whole world, what would it be?"

The grab is still registered and Abbi is grateful she can hide behind her friend, the bright color of her face out of view.
Why? Why does it feel weird, there's something off, there's something there on the edge of her mind she's not grabbing. Its like sunlight, she can just view it out of the corner of her eye but its twinkling out of her grasp and making her getting frustrated. Both with herself and with Chel, though less so for the latter.

Distracted with her thoughts, Abbi does not at first realize that Chel is joking and instead the teen stares at her friend a little awestruck, but mostly dumbstruck. A weak laughs leaves her and she blinks hastily to bring herself back to the present conversation.
"I dunno. Was just asking." But Abbi thinks about it, brushing out a braid she isn't satisfied with. "I think you're more open. You let people get inside... When we fought that first time," That felt like ages ago, suddenly. "You weren't really hanging out with anyone, not like you are now. Now you've got Jack and me an-and Dawson and Chris!" There were probably others, but she was trying to make a point, not a speech.

Now she has to tread lightly, mostly because this feels important. But this is also a touchy subject because there are certainly days Abbi feels the same.
"What if one of us doesn't wanna leave?"