Somewhere on the Mainland; Sunday Early Evening

[totalwildcard]

You asked Harley, it was a pretty good Sunday, so far.

She'd started out her day with no plan, and yet by happy accident (and it was definitely an accident, and not someone somewhere making room in a shared schedule to facilitate things, or anything deliberate on the part of anyone directly involved!) she'd run into Marc, and that had sparked a simple and easy plan after all: to drive him to the mainland for dinner, at a restaurant she'd overheard someone talking about on one of her off-island jaunts earlier in the week. It was supposed to be a family-run, no-nonsense little Italian place, and exactly the sort of thing Harley was in the mood for, especially right now with the company she had.

So life was indeed pretty good!

And Harley's mood wasn't soured even by finding out there was actually no parking available right by the restaurant. After some searching, she'd managed to find a spot some blocks away - which was to say, she'd sniped it from right under someone's nose with a truly reckless move. Which had led to some blaring horns from other cars. Which was all good in Harley's book! She had more important things to be thinking about, anyway!

"And the tiramisu's supposed to be amazing," she was saying, as they got out of the car. "Like, 'someone's 97-year-old tiny little Italian grandma made it' kind of amazing. D'you think they'd let me order that for an app and not just dessert?"

(NFB for distance, for the one modded with permission + some NPCs)

Comments

[totalwildcard]

Indeed he had!

But Harley still squinted at him. "What? What difference does that make?"

Everything and you know it, Harls.

[hasaknightjob]

"Means I'm interested," Marc said. "Not like I give a shit about - " Marc made a vague gesture as he tried to come up with something " - what some guy at the coffee shop is into."

[totalwildcard]

This was not news in any way.

And yet it seemed to be news to Harley every time.

"Huh."

[hasaknightjob]

Marc shrugged again as he focused on his pancakes. "You're different."

[totalwildcard]

"Yeah, no shit," Harley said, but it almost sounded like it came out on something resembling autopilot. She was still watching him. "No one is like me."

[hasaknightjob]

"To me," Marc clarified, now looking at her too. "You're different to me."

[totalwildcard]

"Well, that tracks from bein' different to everyone else, too," Harley said, so very helpfully. (She knew what she meant, she was just stuck... saying that instead.) "Makes sense."

Only when he said it, it felt different.

[hasaknightjob]

"Don't give a shit about everyone," Marc said.

He nudged the container with the remaining pancake in her direction as a silent reminder it was there if she wanted it.

[totalwildcard]

Harley blinked down at it.

And then looked... weirdly touched. 'Weirdly' if you'd asked her, anyway - but maybe best if you didn't, actually.

And then of course, she stuck her fork in it so she could move it onto her plate.

[hasaknightjob]

Marc possibly looked quietly pleased. But it was one of those things where you had to know him well enough to pick up on the undercurrents of his regular expressions.

[totalwildcard]

Harley was getting pretty good at that!

Of course, Harley was also still preoccupied with metaphorically chewing on some things, as well as physically chewing on a bite of something from her plate, so she missed it, this time.

[hasaknightjob]

"You need to check on Cass?" Marc asked.

[totalwildcard]

Oh, way to ask Harley's brain to jump onto a different track.

She looked up, confusion evident. "Huh, what?"

[hasaknightjob]

"To see if she's okay," Marc said.

[totalwildcard]

Harley made a scoffing noise. "She's a tough kid, she's fine."

That last word went hard on her accent ('foine'), and, yes, regardless of what she'd just said, her eyes were looking a little shifty.

Where had she actually put her phone down after getting it from the bathroom...?

[hasaknightjob]

Marc noticed the shifty look but didn't say anything. After all, he'd already showed more care about the topic than he would usually do.

Or at least do openly.

[totalwildcard]

Harley stood up abruptly - fork still in hand - and wandered on back into the bedroom.

Well, she couldn't let go of this thought now.

[hasaknightjob]

Marc watched her go. A smile touched his face. Mainly because he could sympathize with the sentiments she was feeling right now. Or that he guessed she was feeling at the very least.

[totalwildcard]

Giving a shit was so dumb.

There was a muted 'a-hah!' from the bedroom - apparently she'd just abandoned the phone on the bed! - and then Harley came back again, phone in hand, grumbling to herself.

[hasaknightjob]

Marc was eating what was left of his pancakes. Mind you, he was also smirking to himself while he did it.

[totalwildcard]

"Oh, what, see, she's already texted me a pic of herself eatin' pizza for breakfast, she's fine!"

That was indeed a picture of the kid eating pizza, on the screen of Harley's phone that was now being thrust in front of his face for him to see.

"I told ya."

[hasaknightjob]

"Good for her," Marc said. As though the pizza was the issue. "I'll stick with what we've got."

[totalwildcard]

Harley snorted.

Also whatever faint pressure he briefly felt on his hair was definitely just Harley messing with it, or better yet, a freak breeze! Absolutely not her leaning down on a weird whim and dropping a kiss there.

Anyway, she was already sliding back onto her seat a second later. "We got proper breakfast!"

As if Harley cared about 'proper'.

[hasaknightjob]

And if Marc looked like he was smiling as a result of that freak breeze that was clearly a trick of the light.

"And leftovers for later."

Don't mind him implying he was at least staying through lunch.

[totalwildcard]

Harley certainly didn't mind it. Nor was she going to draw any unnecessary attention to it - if the wattage on her grin didn't betray something about her feelings, anyway.

"Oh, we didn't even touch the dessert last night!"