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Post by Roland Ferrera on Mar 27, 2009 12:49:42 GMT -5
But Roland couldn't help smiling. He covered it quickly, but seeing how upset she got at the question was all the answer he needed. "You would miss me," he said softly while she was in the kitchen. It made him all the more determined to survive. Whatever it was that was between them, he had no intentions of dying before he had a chance to find out what it was.
As she got ready to leave, he stood up and grabbed her arm. "Don't go," he said. "I'm sorry... I shouldn't have said that."
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Post by Riley Neves on Mar 27, 2009 13:24:43 GMT -5
Riley sighed, frustrated, as she looked at his hand on her arm and then up to his eyes. He was putting her through the wringer lately, and tonight capped it. But she needed to be patient with him... this wasn't exactly easy for him either.
"Why do you want me to stay, Roland? You've got a bottle of firewhiskey in the kitchen that's only half empty, take out menus, and a yes from me about this plan. What else is there?"
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Mar 27, 2009 13:36:01 GMT -5
Roland's eyes were soft, but he again had that crooked grin on his face. "This may be my last night alive. Maybe I don't want to spend it alone. Maybe I want to spend it with a friend."
He was asking so much from her, and he knew that she had every right to be annoyed with him. But he didn't want her to leave. He didn't know what else he expected from her tonight, but if she left now, he would almost certainly polish off that bottle of firewhiskey.
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Post by Riley Neves on Mar 27, 2009 13:40:26 GMT -5
Rley rolled her eyes. "You're not going to die."
Every time she had been here, he asked her to stay. That meant something, she thought, and he had that stupid look in his eyes that she couldn't say no to again. "Roland... I'm tired. I want to make some pasta, maybe watch a movie, and relax in a hot bath later." She bit her lip, then tilted her head. "Come over to my apartment. I'll make you dinner and you can watch a movie with me."
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Mar 27, 2009 13:48:50 GMT -5
In all honesty, there was no one he wanted to spend the evening with more than her. Yes, he supposed he probably should have gone to see his mother or something... but he didn't think he would be able to keep the truth from her. She had that way of getting things out of him even when he didn't want her to.
He smiled softly. "I think that's the best offer I've had in a while," he said.
He probably could have made a suggestive comment about the bath, but he knew well enough to know that if he tried, he would certainly be spending the evening alone.
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Post by Riley Neves on Mar 27, 2009 13:56:26 GMT -5
Riley assessed him for a moment, but then smiled softly and nodded. "Come on, then."
She mentally went through the rooms in her apartment, wishing she had time to clean up first. The living room was pretty clean, as clean as the last time he was over. So was the kitchen, except that there were dishes in the sink from the last time she had Fabian over.
Her bedroom was a mess, but he didn't need to see that room. And she honestly couldn't remember what state the bathroom was in. There wasn't much she could do about it now, though.
She started towards his door, knowing he would follow her.
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Mar 27, 2009 14:07:48 GMT -5
He honestly wouldn't have cared if her apartment was messy. He rather liked to find the little quirks and imperfections in her, just as she did with him.
He followed her to the door, taking a quick look around his apartment. He hadn't even touched the third glass of firewhiskey, but at this point, he didn't think he needed it. He'd made up his mind, and accepted his situation. He just wanted to enjoy the rest of the evening with Riley.
"Are we going to watch one of your scary movies?" he asked softly.
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Post by Riley Neves on Mar 27, 2009 14:14:04 GMT -5
"If that's okay with you," She said, her tone just as soft. "I don't really own a lot of other kinds of movies, to be honest." She frowned. "But maybe that's not the best kind of movie for tonight, hm?"
It was less than a moment before they were in her apartment, and she turned the lights on, sighing somewhat deeply. "So, I don't know. I might have a comedy or two. Is pasta okay?" She asked, laying her cloak over the back of one of the chairs in the dining room as she turned on the lights in the kitchen. She made a face at her sink. The left side was full of dishes.
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Mar 27, 2009 14:25:20 GMT -5
"Whatever you're comfortable with," he said. "If you get scared, I'll hold you. As a friend, of course."
He thought it an interesting contradiction about her that she liked scary movies, yet she had nightmares. He wondered if the movies caused the nightmares, or were an attempt to keep the fear in her waking mind in order to keep it out of her dreams. Either way, he found it to be utterly adorable.
"Pasta is fine." He followed her into the kitchen and broke into a smile at the pile of dishes in the sink. "I knew it! You're not perfect, either."
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Post by Riley Neves on Mar 27, 2009 14:32:25 GMT -5
"Shut up," Riley said, casting a sideways glance at him as he spotted the dishes. "I'm mostly perfect. You just caught me on a slightly off day." She smiled though, to let him know that she was just kidding. Her eyes flicked to the hallway though, where she could clearly see into her room. She would have to close that door as soon as possible.
"I was thinking of watching Carnival of Blood," she said, the corner of her lips quirking up in a smile. "It's a couple years old. Kinda gory... I swear I can try and find something... lighter." She was taking things out of cupboards and putting a pot of water on the stove.
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Mar 27, 2009 14:41:02 GMT -5
He was now officially in the sappy phase where every little thing he discovered about her was adorable. He used to make fun of his friends back at school when they got like this. And now, here he was, up to his elbows in it. He could almost hear them laughing at him, mooning over a woman who still barely tolerated him.
"I like finding your flaws," he said, still smiling broadly. "It makes me feel less inferior. So you're not always neat. I don't care, and I don't judge you for it."
As proof of this, he moved over to the sink and turned on the water to begin washing the dishes. It was the least he could do, he reasoned, after all that she was doing for him. He owed her a lifetime of clean dishes.
"Carnival of Blood?" he said with amusement. "You really do surprise me, Riley. I never thought you'd be into blood and gore. I had you figured for more like suspence. Like something by Alfred Hitchcock. His films are quite good... scary, but not necessarily gory. Have you watched any of his?"
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Post by Riley Neves on Mar 27, 2009 14:48:05 GMT -5
Riley made a strange sort of face when she started doing his dishes.
"You don't have to do those, Roland," she said, turning and putting a hand on his arm. "Really, it's okay."
She didn't know why, but she felt weird with him cleaning things in her apartment. No one ever did, actually. She heard the water boiling and turned back to it, adding some pasta while he talked about movies. "I like Hitchcock," she said. "Rear Window is one of my favorite movies."
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Mar 27, 2009 14:54:06 GMT -5
He turned and locked eyes with her. "I want to," he said. "Not because I have a problem with it, or because I'm judging you, but because... I want to do something nice for you. You're doing me a huge favor, Riley, and I owe you forever. Please, let me do this. It won't take me more than five minutes."
He continued washing the dishes and looked over at her as she talked. "I thought you'd like that one. The one I really liked was Vertigo. It was disturbing, yet fascinating."
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Post by Riley Neves on Mar 27, 2009 15:00:51 GMT -5
"I didn't think you were judging me," Riley said softly, but she relented and let him do her dishes. What else could she do? "Thank you," she added.
A moment later, she slid up next to him, the pasta pot in hand. "Watch out," she said, tipping the pot so the water drained out. Steam rose from the side of the sink she temporarily kicked him out of. For a moment, they stood shoulder to shoulder, and she could almost feel like this was home. Not the apartment, but standing here with him, doing the dishes and making dinner.
It sent a chill up her spine and she moved away, back to the stove.
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Mar 27, 2009 15:09:44 GMT -5
The homey feeling of it all was not lost on him, either. But unlike Riley, he was no longer fighting the feeling. He relished it, and just let himself imagine that they were husband and wife, doing little things for each other. Like a partnership.
So many times he'd watched his parents together, and how they were such a perfect team. His father would do things before his mother could even ask. His mother would know what his father was going to say before he said it. It always comforted him to see how happy they were together, but he'd never really expected to have that same kind of relationship with anyone. But he could imagine it happening with her. If only he could get her to like him.
He finished the last dish and stacked it in the dish rack. "See? It didn't take long."
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Post by Riley Neves on Mar 27, 2009 15:22:05 GMT -5
"Good timing," She said, producing two plates. She would have put more effort into it if she felt like it, but it just didn't seem worth it tonight.
"I'll put on Vertigo for you," she said, handing him both plates. "If you take these out, I'll grab forks and drinks. What would you like? Water, tea, juice?" She wasn't going to offer wine. Not tonight, though there was little she liked more than a glass of wine with an Italian dinner.
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Mar 27, 2009 15:28:26 GMT -5
"Thank you," he said, surprised as she made her movie selection based on what he liked. Although he had been sort of intrigued by the idea of holding her if she got scared during the other movie.
He accepted the plates from her. "You really don't like my drinking habit, do you?" he commented, amused. She never openly criticized it, but she often seemed to be trying, subtly, to convince him not to drink. He sort of liked it.
"Water is fine," he replied.
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Post by Riley Neves on Mar 27, 2009 15:35:10 GMT -5
"Water it is. And I can't say anything about your drinking habit. I drink. It'd be hipocritical, wouldn't it?" It would be, but the truth was, she didn't like it. He drank when he was stressed, and he was always stressed. Still, it wasn't her place to say anything. So she didn't.
But she felt guilty at being found out. "Would you like a glass of wine? I don't have anything stronger than that."
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Mar 27, 2009 15:43:22 GMT -5
He shook his head. "No, you're right. I drink entirely too much. It's a bad habit--one of my many--and I should work on it."
She was trying to deny it now, but he could see through her. Her expression gave her away. He couldn't help but smile. To him, it meant that she cared about him, just a little bit. It was something to work with.
"It's OK. I'll stick with the water."
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Post by Riley Neves on Mar 27, 2009 15:55:08 GMT -5
"I was going to have water too," Riley said, as if that would make Roland feel more at ease. She poured two glasses of water from a pitcher in the fridge, noting the he was still in the kitchen talking to her. She smiled slightly, but said nothing.
Grabbing the glasses and two forks, she nodded towards the living room.
And as soon as she set everything down, she moved the short distane into the hallway and closed the door that was bothering her. Silently, she sat down in front of her muggle TV and looked the movie that he liked. She knew she owned it, but it was hidden behind a couple of disorganized stacks of tapes.
When her fingers finally closed around it, she put it on and finally joined him at the couch.
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