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Immediately, Audrey was thankful that on that day, she'd chosen to not wear a skirt. When Elzo had lifted her off the ground and tucked her into his arms, she'd been surprised and nearly had dropped her bag before clutching it to her chest, clinging to him for dear life. It was only then she noticed exactly where his hands had landed.

One was casually tucked right under her thighs, dangerously close to her butt and somehow even worse as it was a part of Audrey absolutely no one had ever touched. Not even Khal had gotten his hands that far up her body to the grab-able flesh beneath her rear. But that was exactly where her carrier had his. Bright red, almost dying of shame and shoving down the impulse that had her clinging to him in an entirely different way, she simply shook her head and squeaked.

"No...no it's ok. Really it is easiest. Oh god please don't move your fingers." The last was little more than a whisper, but at their proximity, it was clearly audible.

Thankfully for Elzo's midsection (or lower), Audrey had simply attributed his lingering hand to wanting to see her safely on the ground before releasing her. Why his hand couldn't go to the small of her back, she wasn't exactly thinking about it. At all. Still blushing pink she resettled her bag across her chest and linked her arm through Elzo's, tugging him along.

"This way, we kinda live in the 'burbs but don't worry. I'll keep you safe when we go out to dangerous Middle Class Land. I mean, you're not wearing your uniform at least so my dad shouldn't freak out too hard." Never mind that he would technically be the first boy that had ever brought her home. Pasha did not at all count.

This thought had Audrey pinking up even more and she dismissed it entirely. Some friend zone!

Laughing at the story, she shook her head and bounced a bit in her step and enjoying the nice day and nice company. Even if it was mildly awkward and somewhat titillating! "My parents should be used to me and guy friends, since my best friend ever is a boy. But I guess Pasha is kinda androgynous. He likes rainbows and sometimes wears skirts over his pants and stuff. My mom adores him to bits, and dad kinda thinks he's funny. But he'd never say it, you know?" Six feet of straight male, however, would probably make Jason Collins incredibly gruff.

She shrugged off the successive holidays easily, shaking her head again. "Nope, can't say I have plans for either one. Have to remember to wear green that day though. I got detention last year because I forgot and some joker thought it'd be cute to pinch my backside. They got a fist in their gut for it!" This came out just as cheerful as anything else she'd said, proof she didn't regret a single second of it. "As for spring break, I'll probably just sorta languish around town like I always do. I like school, so it kinda sucks when I'm out of it. I had a month off not long ago anyway, but I'm just eager for the year to be over. I'm graduating this year, early." And she was damn proud. "You? Going to find a beach somewhere and ogle all the honies?"

At the idea of little Audrey Collins attending a party where alcohol was served, let alone drinking said alcohol, she nearly tripped over her own feet with laughter. Only Elzo's arm squeezing her around the midsection kept her upright as she gurgled with mirth. "Me? Drinking? Oh no no, I do nothing of the sort! All my friends do it enough for me, I consider myself their consciences." Mentally she thought of Tanzanite, and her drunken forays, and sobered just a bit. She still wasn't quite over that whole situation, and it stung her heart.

Pushing it aside like a linebacker, she smiled up at the Hillworth student. "How about I just wear really baggy, ugly clothes? I mean, then you shouldn't have any trouble keeping your hands to yourself huh?" This did also not cheer her the way it should have, because for too long that was exactly what she had done. It was also why she had such self-esteem issues! When the words 'dancing' hit her ears, Audrey winced. "Dancing? Oh man, you really do hate me dontcha Elzo? I don't dance that well, it's kinda like the gnome dance. Or maybe the undead? I can ballroom ok because my dad made me rehearse with him a few times so he could surprise my mom for their anniversary one year but ACTUAL dancing? Oh god."

She buried her face with joking shame in his arm, but smiled up at him. "I would like to hang out though, whenever you want. I mean, you have my number right? I'm almost always around, and I promise to call back if you can't get me!" She never, ever took her phone on patrols. Ever. Too easy to get caught that way! "Now the question is if you'll bother calling!" Wink, flirt. Audrey was a minx, plain and simple!

Giggling at his vehemence she smiled and tilted her head a bit before fishing the chains out of her top and dangling them lightly in front of her face. "What, necklaces like this?" The red of the potion caught the sun and she smiled at the memory of her first birthday gift not from her parents in a good long while. "And hey, wait until it gets hot! It's still sorta chilly, my neck and ears get cold you know? Summer, you'd be hard-pressed to find me with my hair down. I hate the heat." Audrey's face screwed up and she made a face before sighing over the thought of prom.

Thinking of the slim expanse of silk and sateen wasting away in her closet, now that her pre-arranged date had sorta gone to the dogs, as it were. Even if Khal had asked now, she wouldn't go with him. It would be demeaning, to say the very least. Wasn't like Ursula had anything to blackmail her with anymore anyway, that particular cat was seriously out of the bag. "Oof, yeah, prom. Totally forgot about it. Guess I'm going to have to learn to shake that empty bag of goods I call a body sooner or later, huh?"

Smiling up at Elzo, she'd started to walk again and was seriously considering asking him about his own date situation when her phone exploded into the Final Fantasy fanfare, her text message sound. The phone was pulled out, message read, and she groaned while looking down at the message. "Parents should not be allowed to have cell phones oh my god." Snapping it shut and shoving the piece of technology back into her hoodie pocket she sighed and turned to look at the boy.

"I hate to do this, but I'm going to have to run. Dad's just informed me that I must be home right now so I can only imagine that something truly wonderous has happened for this honor." She was incredibly disgruntled about having to cut the time short, and was going to seriously give her father a piece of her mind as soon as she got home, in teenage temper-tantrum volume. "Quick, gimme a time on Friday and we can dance all you want. I'll even wear a dress, how's that for a shock?"

Watching his back retreat, Audrey pinked up slightly and looked down at the bag in her arms. Damn, he was supposed to take them with him, not load them off on her! Turning, she walked, then slowly jogged, before flat-out running the three blocks towards her home. The whole time, she couldn't help but smile, and relive the moment when he'd kissed the back of her hand.

Nobody'd ever done that before! God damn Elzo Xanis and his flirty ways, she just wasn't that good at keeping it all fake! Blowing into her house, she immediately ran up into her room and pulled out the dress she'd worn to the Killingworth wedding, mentally tagging it for Friday. If she was lucky, he wouldn't know what had hit ******** friend zone!