A Series of Unlikely Events - Boring Teenagers Date

[madesomenoise]

The movie was...it was pretty okay. Mostly, Girl had spent it being very aware of her own boundaries, very aware of Carson's. She's never been in this situation before. Any connections she'd managed to make out in the Zones had been fleeting, a few hours at most, warm bodies in scavenged sheets. This is different. This is a boy who had wanted to spend time with her, who'd danced with her. At one point, she'd wanted to hold his hand so much her fingers had itched.

She'd held onto a fistful of her skirt instead.

After the movie, the Mall feels incredibly, intensely bright. Girl had spent what felt like hours getting ready while Poison had helped. He'd picked out the polka dot skirt flaring slightly just above Girl's knees. Her hair is up, held back with red cotton that matches her lipstick.

Why does she still want to hold his hand?

"So," she says. "What are we doing next?"

Comments

[madesomenoise]

She hadn't realised that that was something she hadn't told him. She nods, swallowing the bite of food that she's been chewing.

"Yup. All that's left of California. Zones one through six and Bat City. I don't know how Bat City maps onto Californian cities. So, I know Jack is from San Francisco."

[boywhoflew]

It never would have occurred to him that the horrific place she had described could have actually been his own home state. Even with the knowledge that she was American, that the Zones were the result of war and desolation, California never would have been his first guess. It made sense in a strange way, if he guessed. She often felt like some kind of fictional character, too complex to be real, and if he was honest those sorts of things were almost always set in California.

It didn't make it any less weird though.

"That's insane," He said, still thrown by it. "I didn't-- I wouldn't have guessed that. I'm from California." He leaned back in his chair. "Just a very different version of it, I guess."

[madesomenoise]

"Yeah," says Girl. "I mean, I don't remember anything before the wars, obviously, but Poison does. He remembers what it was like before." She worries her lip for a moment, takes another bite of her pizza. "Maybe everyone's from California." She smiles. "We should still totally go to the beach one day."

[boywhoflew]

It was difficult to shake off the oddness of it, but her smile was definitely a good distraction. He can't resist a small grin in response before he takes a large bite from his pizza and chews, his mind already turning in double time as he thought out questions he would probably new never get answers to, like where she would have been from, what Clover would have looked like in her future, if their worlds were tied at all and he had narrowly escaped that future.

"We might want to go in the evening or I'll burn like a boiled lobster," he admitted dryly. "But... yeah. I haven't been out to the water here yet. I dunno, I guess it didn't occur to me." He'd been born and raised in California and only ever seen the ocean once, and that had only been a few days before the lightning, before Darrow.

[madesomenoise]

"I could help you put on sunblock," says Girl, and the corner of her mouth quirks into a smirk, her eyebrows raising slightly. She likes it when he blushes. She's trying to get him to do it again. And the idea isn't unpleasant, either.

"We should," she says. "I'd like that."

[boywhoflew]

Regardless of his determination to not, there was no stopping the slight heat that her offer brought up to his ears and for a moment all he could do was level her with a flat, suspicious look. She looked impish enough that it was almost cute and the best he could manage was a pointedly raised brow in return.

"You did that on purpose," he accused, and while his tone of dry there was already the slightest bit of a smirk starting to pull at the corners of his mouth. "Is this how it's going to go? I try to treat you like a normal boring teenage girl and you take advantage of me? You're lucky I want to see you in a bathing suit or I'd revoke the beach trip idea."

[madesomenoise]

The raised eyebrow makes Girl smirk and she reaches for her soda, taking a sip, trying to look as innocent as possible.

"I don't know what you mean, man," she says, and then she bites her lip over a smirk. "And are you honestly complaining about the idea of being taken advantage of? Because I can be good. I can be so, so good." Her tilts her head. "But I do look awesome in a bathing suit."

[boywhoflew]

The ribbing she offered in response was suggestive enough to just further the blaze of heat to his face, and if he hadn't been so distracted by the entertaining mental image of what she might look like in a swimsuit he would have been far crosser regarding it.

"You're terrible," he said flatly, but there was a grin threatening to contrast his tone. "But you're cute enough that I'll allow it. That, and the promise that there will be retribution at some point, and the revenge will be sweet." Grabbing his soda he took a sip, watching her carefully from over the top of his drink. "But alright, beach trip it is. Any other demands I should know about or are you just going to get me complacent and spring them on me?"

[madesomenoise]

"I think I'll let you sweat a little," she says, still smiling sweetly at him as her hand brushes his knee under the table. "How long have you been in Darrow, anyway?"

[boywhoflew]

"About five months." Carson answered, stilling a little when he felt her brush over his knee and then forcibly taking another casual sip from his soda. "Early February? It was weird, it had been March back home so the little time jump back was kinda crazy." With a cautious glance at her from the corner of his eye he tried to decide just how bold to play with being, then mentally shrugged and moved his his foot to press it closer to her's.

"What about you?" He asked as he grabbed for his pizza.

[madesomenoise]

"Nowhere near that long," says Girl, smiling when he shifts a little closer. She leaves her hand on his knee, her thumb rubbing against the seam of his jeans. "Since May. I don't know when it was back home. Difficult to keep track in the Zones unless you're tuning into Bat City signals."

[boywhoflew]

"That makes sense," he agreed, his cheeks tinging a pale shade of pink much to his own frustration. Picking at his food, he peeled a glob of cheese and pepperoni off of his crust and chewed it thoughtfully. "You really haven't been here long, huh?" He realized, considering the time. "It's crazy that you came pretty close to not even being here for prom. I wonder if we would have met, otherwise."

[madesomenoise]

They've barely known each other for any time at all and, already, she hates the thought of that - the thought of not having met him, the thought of not having whatever this is.

"I kind of hate the thought of that," she says, flushing. It feels like admitting something big.

[boywhoflew]

Maybe it was stupid and reckless, but he kind of hated the idea of it too. If anything it was a relief for her to admit to it first, but there was still a large part of him that wanted to shrink back and brush it off, pretend like it wouldn't have mattered either way. But as stupid as the mall was, as simple and ordinary and cliche sitting in the foodcourt with a pizza and a pretty girl felt, the fact it was her made it appealing and fun.

That line of thought was dangerous, but it was too late to back out of it when he had been the one to bring it up.

"I kinda do, too." He agreed, giving her a hesitant and lopsided smile. "So I guess it's good you showed up in time, huh?"