ancientflower | 04

[Tony grinned when the door open and lifted his eyebrows at being called 'eager'. His smile turned into a playful smirk as his gaze drifted down her form and back to her eyes.]

How can I possibly be faulted for that?

[As he stepped in, he took a quick glance around the room. However, he really didn't care what he was seeing until his eyes fell back on her.]

You look beautiful, sweetheart. Thank you for inviting me over. I would've treated you to a nice restaurant somewhere but sadly, I discovered there aren't any. The only one isn't open today and waiting to see you was the last thing I wanted.

[There was some pink to Aerith's cheeks at the compliment, but not one to be outdone, she put her hands on her hips and deliberately looked Tony up and down, taking in the suit and the fact he'd clearly had a shower. Not a single smudge of chocolate on him!

Then she grinned and gave him a playful wink.]

Very handsome yourself, Tony. But... [She clapped her hands together than and with a little flutter of her skirts, she turned and lead the way to the small kitchen.] ... You say you have food? Great, I'm starving!

[The house was still a very basic one. Aerith had done very little to personalise it yet, she hadn't had the time. There were only a few things that could mark it as any different from another house, and that was the throw cushions on the couches, the little botted plant on the coffee table and the large mug with a flower motif on the kitchen counter.]

[If she kept doing stuff like that, he was proposing by dessert time.

And he just couldn't help himself to give her a spin when he had her eyes on him. Like what you see, eh? He sure did as he followed her into the kitchen.]

I did. You'll have to forgive me, though. I'm a much better chef than I was able to produce with these weird replicators. Also.. no wood, so no picnic baskets. There's a certain cartoon bear from my world that would be incredibly disappointed about that fact.

[He stepped over to the table to put the basket down and drew out four individual sized bowls with lids, a wrapped fresh loaf of bread, two tall cups with lids, two empty cups, and a bottle of white wine.

As he used a corkscrew to open the wine, he gestured for her to sit.]

A bear disappointed not to have a picnic basket?

[Aerith cocked her head to the side, not quite getting the joke but smiling indulgently. Tony was such a strange and funny man, she'd never met anyone quite like him before. So she watched all the things he pulled out and found her smile widening as she slid into one of the chairs at the table.]

This all looks amazing! I am forgiving nothing at all. This is more than I imagined.

It was a show for kids, so instead of a bear wanting to eat people or other animals, he just wanted to steal picnic baskets full of food that campers brought to his park. His name was Yogi and he had a little bear side kick named Boo Boo. They'd try to trick people and hide from the 'mean' Park Ranger Smith who was trying to keep the bears from eating the people's food. It was silly, but my daughter loved it.

[Okay, so he loved it and made his daughter watch it on Youtube. As he'd told the story, he poured wine into the glasses and taken lids off each container. The first was a salad with greens, winter fruit and nuts. The larger bowl was lobster ravioli still steaming hot. The last dish to uncover was for dessert (or early) and it was a black forest parfait.]

I'm glad you like it so far. I want you to have the very best.

Edited 2021-05-17 03:57 (UTC)

[She was fascinated to hear this. A show for kids with a bear? Aerith would have loved to have seen that but she understood that would be impossible. She just enjoyed listening to him talk.

It would have been easy to think he was just teasing her, but Aerith believed him whole-heartedly]

Did they at least get their picnic baskets?

[She asked hopefully as she watched him setting out the food. It smelled as good as it looked and it was so hard to stop herself from just reaching over and snatching up a leaf from the salad! But she was good and she waited.]

Such a flatterer!

[With how interested she is in this silly tale, it makes him wonder what her upbringing must have been like. He'd have to ask her about what kind of technology she was used to and if TV existed in her world.

Right now, he had a beautiful woman enjoying hearing him talk. He was in heaven!

He gave a soft laugh and shook his head.]

Not always, but that's okay. It's just gave a great excuse for him to try again the very next day.

[He winks at her. He then speaks in Quenya, knowing the elven language is the most beautiful, before translating it for her. He opted for a sip of the wine first.]

Good health and good blessings, my dear. Please, enjoy.

[She laughed. At least the bear didn't give up. It sounded like a wonderfully charming story, even if it was for children!

Her smile only widened when Tony spoke a language she didn't understand, but whatever he said sounded truly lovely. She waited for him to tell her what he had said, gazing at him with open curiosity and trusting he hadn't just told her something that would make her blush.

When he spoke, she laughed again and reached for her own glass to take a small sip. Wine wasn't something she was used to drinking. It was an odd taste, but it was polite to drink it.]

Thank you, Tony. I have no doubts I will enjoy this! Especially the company.

It's my pleasure.

[At least he didn't see her curling her nose in disgust. He would've known to go get her a different drink then!

After his little intro, he set the glass down and picked up his fork. He had a feeling watching her mimic his moves that she wasn't going to eat until he started. After taking a bite and deciding that his food at traveled pretty decently, he set his fork down again to cut a piece of bread and butter it before handing it to her.]

So Aerith, tell me a little more about you. Did you have any childhood shows you watched?

[With a smile, Aerith accepted the piece of bread and set it down on the edge of her plate before she picked up her own fork to try the pasta. It was, of course, delicious. The sauce was lovely. Everything was so nice!

She was just breaking a piece of the bread off to dip into the sauce when Tony asked his question. She laughed.]

I didn't have a tv at home. I spent most of my time outside or helping my mom. So I didn't really have any shows I watched. I suppose that makes me sound a little odd, hm?

Some might think so but encouraging kids to play outside or to help around the house is better for them than parking them in front of a screen all day. Obviously I didn’t always win that battle but..

[He shrugged with a not-really-sorry grin.]

Everyone has to do the best with what they have. I’ve gotten much better at it but, like anyone else, my patience can only go so far!

Edited 2021-05-24 20:52 (UTC)

You've been very patient with me so far. I think you're harder on yourself than you should be.

[She gave him a bright smile before popping the piece of bread she'd broken off into her mouth.

Tony was a very sweet man. He was definitely tough on himself and there didn't seem to be a need for it, as far as Aerith could tell.]

[Tony's smile turns sly at that remark and his eyes trace the beautiful lines of her face, the smooth, bare skin at her throat, down to the collar of her dress. If only that were lower. As cliché as it was, it were her radiant green eyes that kept drawing him in.]

You certainly haven't made it easy being that beautiful.

[He speared a piece of pasta.]

But I promise to behave just as long as I can.

[A warm flush coloured her cheeks pink and Aerith had to laugh. This man. Such a flatterer.

People just didn't talk to her this way and she wasn't entirely sure how to handle it. But Tony was charming and sweet so it helped a lot. It also helped that she was in a playful mood herself.]

Don't go making promises you can't keep, Tony.

[He took his bite and smirked. He paused to wash it down with his wine.]

Here I thought that gave me a pretty wide playing field. So long as I claim it's my best, who can judge me? Personally, I'm going to take it as an accomplishment if I let you get through your salad without interrupting you for a kiss.

[Aerith was just reaching for her own glass of wine when Ton delivered that line. She smiled and raised a brow before she raised the glass to her lips to drink.]

You're ambitious, I'll give you that much. And on a first date? Is that normal for you?

[It most definitely wasn't normal for her, but then again, she hadn't been on many dates. Zack had been her first and... pretty much her only. Not for a lack of trying for some.]

[He chuckled and helped himself to some bread. A sign, maybe, that he wasn't about to pounce on her over the table perhaps?]

I wouldn't dare treat you like you were anything less than incredibly special.

Although that's not the only reason. I told you I was somewhere before I arrived here since you helped me calm down over the network. Well, it was this train that was full of people from different worlds and times kind of like this place only we couldn't get off. Long story short, there wasn't a way to have anything normal like a date.. or even your own house like this.

We still did our best, but it's been a really long time since I was able to do anything as close to normal as this, which, to me at least, makes it anything but. If that makes any sense.

[She listened and ate, chewing thoughtfully. A train full of people from different worlds. It sounded incredible. But also something of a shame that for all those people and different worlds, there was nowhere you could go on a date. It seemed a great shame to her.

She smiled and nodded, Aerith most definitely understood.]

Then I hope you can enjoy this one. [She laughed.] A quiet evening in seems a lot more normal than a train full of people. Did you have any privacy?

04 - Inbox

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