slow down, you're doing fine
Flora hums her agreement, though the sound curls warm at the edges as delight swells so visibly in her cheeks that she has to look down at the mud-streaked cobblestones to keep it from spilling too brightly across her expression. The idea of an item that snaps them back together threads straight into her heart with a sweetness so sudden it nearly knocks the air from her lungs, and while she doesn’t say a word about the first thing that flashes through her mind, the thought shimmers there all the same. Wedding rings would be perfect for magic like that. She knows it with the same certainty she knows the tide will always come back in, but she keeps that particular dream wrapped in something precious and unspoken. Even though they’ve talked about marriage, even though she doesn’t doubt for a second that they’ll get there, she refuses to make it mundane by tossing the idea too casually into the morning rain. Some things deserve gilding, and so she merely hums her agreement.
"Of course I know a place," she says brightly as she glances up at him, the adoration in her eyes as effortless as breathing. A quiet laugh slips from her, soft and incredulous. "I can’t believe I didn’t think to get you a life-sized pancake blanket for your birthday," she mutters, shaking her head with exaggerated disappointment in herself, as though failing to procure a novelty bedding item has been a grave oversight.
When Kai circles back to Asta, she feels the subtle shift in him the way one feels the faint tightening of a rope they’re holding; small tells, shaping the air between them like the unnecessary fuss over silverware and his measured tone slipping just slightly around the edges. Flora settles her hand on his leg, her palm warm through the fabric of his jeans as she leans comfortably against him, choosing softness instead of teasing the way she might otherwise have done.
"It was a long time ago," she agrees gently, her voice smoothing the air rather than catching on it. "And honestly, dating is probably the wrong word." Her eyes roll upward with wry amusement before she adds, "What we were doing was dating. I thought we were dating. Asta absolutely did not think we were dating." She gives her head a small, resigned shake. "He thought he was just being a gentleman, even when things got physical. Which, in retrospect, is very on brand for how he can be sometimes."
She doesn’t let the moment sit long enough for Kai to stew in it. "Anyway,”" she continues, her tone lifting as the memory warms with humour, "that’s actually how Danta and Asta finally got together. They’d obviously had feelings for each other, and one night we all got drunk and did karaoke, which started normal enough, but then I basically outed them both for being in love with each other after Danta confessed his feelings to me, and then kicked them out of my bar so they’d finally figure their shit out." Her grin widens at the memory, bright and fond, even though she'd felt hurt and betrayed at the time. "So trust me, the whole thing is ancient history."
"Of course I know a place," she says brightly as she glances up at him, the adoration in her eyes as effortless as breathing. A quiet laugh slips from her, soft and incredulous. "I can’t believe I didn’t think to get you a life-sized pancake blanket for your birthday," she mutters, shaking her head with exaggerated disappointment in herself, as though failing to procure a novelty bedding item has been a grave oversight.
When Kai circles back to Asta, she feels the subtle shift in him the way one feels the faint tightening of a rope they’re holding; small tells, shaping the air between them like the unnecessary fuss over silverware and his measured tone slipping just slightly around the edges. Flora settles her hand on his leg, her palm warm through the fabric of his jeans as she leans comfortably against him, choosing softness instead of teasing the way she might otherwise have done.
"It was a long time ago," she agrees gently, her voice smoothing the air rather than catching on it. "And honestly, dating is probably the wrong word." Her eyes roll upward with wry amusement before she adds, "What we were doing was dating. I thought we were dating. Asta absolutely did not think we were dating." She gives her head a small, resigned shake. "He thought he was just being a gentleman, even when things got physical. Which, in retrospect, is very on brand for how he can be sometimes."
She doesn’t let the moment sit long enough for Kai to stew in it. "Anyway,”" she continues, her tone lifting as the memory warms with humour, "that’s actually how Danta and Asta finally got together. They’d obviously had feelings for each other, and one night we all got drunk and did karaoke, which started normal enough, but then I basically outed them both for being in love with each other after Danta confessed his feelings to me, and then kicked them out of my bar so they’d finally figure their shit out." Her grin widens at the memory, bright and fond, even though she'd felt hurt and betrayed at the time. "So trust me, the whole thing is ancient history."
Flora
you can't be everything you wanna be before your time
