we could stay in this moment for the rest of our lives

I would rather
share one lifetime with you

Extremely pleased with himself, Zavien couldn't hide his own beaming smile to have won Soh over to his side. He couldn't tell if she was just humoring him or not, but he didn't much care when her condition was one he'd gladly accept. "I'd love that." With his burger lifted towards his mouth, he gave her another playful wink. "I couldn't imagine a better meal than one I get to share with you."

As they ate, her eyes darted between the fries and shake, continuing to alternate in what appeared to be a perfect ratio of sweet to salty. It had him smirking around bites of burger, wondering what her thoughts were when her eyes fluttered closed, feeling like he knew exactly what she was debating, finding it adorable she seemed so conflicted. 

Swallowing his bite, Zavien mentioned nonchalantly, "You know, I prefer ketchup, but I've seen some people dunk their fries in their milkshake." He smirked a little but nodded to a little kid nearby copying their mom as they shove the fry into a chocolate milkshake before cramming it unceremoniously (and more than a little messily) into their mouth.

than face all the ages
of this world alone.

Zavien

I wanna break every clock
The hands of time could never move again

Her amused smile turned sweeter when Zavien winked at her, readily agreeing to her condition. And with that seemingly settled, Soh turned her attention back to her food. The fries were just crispy enough, salted wonderfully, and tasted delicious. The chocolate shake was rich and sweet, complementing them perfectly. As she alternated between her fries and shake, she noticed Zavien watching her - and then, as if he’d read her mind, he nodded to a nearby table, where a child and his mom were dunking their fries into their shakes.

Blushing because she hadn’t realized that she’d telegraphed her thoughts quite so obviously, Soh picked up a new fry and used it to swipe some of her shake out of the glass. ”Chocolate is a much better condiment than ketchup.” Raising a brow as though daring him to argue, Soh popped the fry into her mouth and groaned happily.

We could stay in this moment
For the rest of our lives

Sohalia

I would rather
share one lifetime with you

His comment was met with a cute blush, one he was determined to see more often. Soh appeared to accept his suggestion with vigor, as if she'd been planning to do it all along and he'd been kind enough to realize it, swiping her fry into the milkshake without remorse. 

Laughing, Zavien dipped his own in ketchup and raised it in toast. "I'll take your word for it." He grinned around the bite then took a sip of his own drink before offering it forward to her. If she liked the fries with chocolate, he wondered if she'd want to try it with the extra flavor. "Want to try it with mine? It has peanut butter in it too." Maybe the addition would make it that much better, or maybe it would muddy the ratio and ruin everything, but he'd let her try if she wanted.

than face all the ages
of this world alone.

Zavien

I wanna break every clock
The hands of time could never move again

Resisting the urge to stick her tongue out at him as he laughed, Soh dunked another fry in her milkshake and shrugged. ”Okay, but you’re missing out,” she teased, wagging a fry at him playfully. Still, she was content to let him have his ketchup and burger, given that he had readily accepted her minimal order of food for lunch.

He offered his shake to her, and she tilted her head thoughtfully. Under normal circumstances, she might not be too keen to mess with the perfect salt to sweet ratio - but today, she found herself wondering what it might taste like to add peanut butter to the mix. So she reached over to dip her fry in, then popped it into her mouth. Her brows shot up as she chewed, surprised pleasure etched in the lines of her face. ”Oh, that’s good!” she said after she’d swallowed her bite. ”The peanut butter definitely adds something.”

We could stay in this moment
For the rest of our lives

Sohalia

I would rather
share one lifetime with you

Zavien smiled, popping his fry into his mouth. "I don't know about that." After all, he got to watch her enjoy it, even if the flavor combination wasn't something that appealed to him. Her face lit up, pleasure and delight crashing across her features with every bite, so much so that he had to keep from laughing again. He wasn't sure he'd ever seen someone enjoy food so much. 

Swallowing another bite of burger, he wiped some ketchup from his lips and grinned at her reaction to the new milkshake. He noted that her own plate was beginning to look empty and Zavien pushed his forward, plenty of fries still piled high. "You can eat mine too if you want." It wasn't like she had any other food to eat and he didn't want her getting hungry later.

than face all the ages
of this world alone.

Zavien

I wanna break every clock
The hands of time could never move again

Soh reached for another fry and came up empty, surprise raising her brows as she looked down to find her plate mostly empty. Blushing, she grabbed her milkshake and took a sip. She hadn’t thought she was that hungry. Maybe she should have gotten a sandwich or something, even if a burger didn’t sound appealing right that moment.

Zavien seemed to notice her predicament, because suddenly he was shoving his plate towards her. ”Oh, no -“ she said, even though she very much would have liked to take him up on the offer. ”I shouldn’t steal your food just because I didn’t think I was hungry enough to get my own.” She glanced toward the counter where they’d originally ordered, wondering if it was too late to just order something else. It was like now that she’d started eating, she was starving - and she wasn’t sure what to make of that.

We could stay in this moment
For the rest of our lives

Sohalia

I would rather
share one lifetime with you

Ignoring her protest, Zavien pushed his plate a little closer. "I promise my burger is more than enough." He smiled at her, holding his heaping burger as he gave another shoulder shrug. "And if it's not, I'll go get us more fries." There was the unspoken caveat that if she needed more, he'd get them. He wouldn't make her feel guilty by implying she'd eaten part of his meal, and he was genuinely happy with just a burger and a milkshake. 

But as she looked to the menu, Zavien raised an eyebrow. "Unless something else sounds better?" She'd seemed pretty convinced that only fries sounded good, so it would surprise him if her appetite had suddenly changed, but he wasn't the kind of man who was about to question a woman's eating habits. Maybe her stomach was just acting up. It could be her monthly cycle or maybe the rain had been persistent enough that she was coming down with a cold. If she wanted to share, he didn't mind, but he was otherwise happy as long as she was eating.

than face all the ages
of this world alone.

Zavien

I wanna break every clock
The hands of time could never move again

Glancing at the menu and back again, Soh’s blush deepened. ”If you’re sure…” she said hesitantly, before reaching out to snag one of the fries. She wasn’t sure what was wrong with her today. Nothing else on the menu sounded particularly appealing, but the fries were practically the best thing she’d ever eaten. Maybe she was coming down with something, or maybe she was about to start her period. It was about that time, she thought. In any case, as long as they were both satisfied with their meals, such as they were, Soh supposed she shouldn’t balk at sharing. After all, they were dating, so surely such a thing was to be expected.

”So…” she said as she dipped her fry in her milkshake. ”What’s your favorite color?” Grinning, she thought back to the last time they’d played this game of questions. It had led to some unexpected places, but she wouldn’t trade the knowledge she’d gained for all the world.

We could stay in this moment
For the rest of our lives

Sohalia

His head nodded, reassuring her that 'Yes, he was sure she could eat his fries.' He tried to hide his smirk behind his burger, choosing not to mention the blush as he took a bite, even as he tucked the image into the back of his brain. Instead, he took a bite to lapse into silence, letting Soh dig into the next serving of fries. 

Zavien grinned back at her question, recalling their game on the Barrows and wondering what new things they'd learn this time. He gave a nod as he said, "Yellow." Rather than simply return the question, his smile turned a little more playful. "Should I guess yours?" He had a pretty good idea of what it could be, and he wiggled his eyebrows to suggest he was willing to bet on being right.

Zavien

I wanna break every clock
The hands of time could never move again

Yellow being Zavien’s favorite color somehow made perfect sense, and Soh tucked the information away in the back of her mind. He was just so bright, so loving - he certainly made her days shine all the brighter when he was around. That and his moniker, the Risen Sun - all things pointed to a favorite color that would be easy for her to remember.

A little smile quirked up the corners of her mouth as she popped a new fry in, a soft giggle escaping as Zavien offered to guess her favorite. She tried to think back on anything she might have done to give hers away in the past, but came up empty. Curious, she gestured for him to go ahead. ”By all means.” But before he could guess, she was taken in by his wiggling eyebrows and grinned. ”Should you get a prize if you get it right?” she asked, raising a brow of her own in a silent, playful challenge.

We could stay in this moment
For the rest of our lives

Sohalia

I would rather
share one lifetime with you

He wasn't going to give away his answer yet, especially not as she suggested a prize. Zavien lowered his burger, a smirk forming on his lips as he said, "A little incentive? Mm. I won't say no." Particularly with his (perhaps misplaced) confidence. 

Setting aside his burger, he leaned a little closer as if they were discussing a heist rather than a single guess on her favorite color. "What did you have in mind? A fry? A kiss?" His conspiratorial smile widened, not caring in the slightest what she chose to offer, although he did wonder aloud, "And what if I get it wrong? Is there a punishment?" There was a playful tease in his voice, figuring the stakes shouldn't be only positive, but curious as to what she might suggest as the alternative.

than face all the ages
of this world alone.

Zavien

I wanna break every clock
The hands of time could never move again

To be honest, Soh hadn’t really thought far enough ahead to consider what kind of prize might be worth guessing correctly, but she laughed all the same as he suggested a fry. ”I think one of your own fries as a prize would be a little unfair,” she pointed out. Pursing her lips, she considered a kiss, but that felt too easy. ”How about… a date? If you get it right, I’ll plan everything and you just have to sit back and relax.” Although, given that she wouldn’t hesitate to do that anyway, maybe that wasn’t much of a prize.

But before she could come up with something better, Zavien was upping the stakes. Grinning again, Soh dipped another fry in her shake. The texture was beginning to get a little soupy for good dipping, so she quickly picked it up to take a sip instead. ”If you get it wrong, you plan the date,” she suggested, knowing that it wasn’t much of a punishment even as she suggested it anyway.

We could stay in this moment
For the rest of our lives

Sohalia

I would rather
share one lifetime with you

Zavien wondered whether it was 'unfair' for him to win a fry, or whether she didn't want to share them. He didn't mind regardless but his smile was crooked, finding her next suggestion equally amusing. Date planning wasn't something he considered to be a punishment or a prize, but he supposed it would be nice to see what kind of outing she came up with. 

Nodding, he agreed with her proposition, reiterating the terms. "Okay. If I get it right, you plan the date, and if I'm wrong, I plan the date."

Tilting his head, Zavien gave her a mischievous smile as he dragged out his guess. "I think... your favorite color is..." He paused to take a sip of his milkshakes, watching her as he dangled the guess. Finally, he grinned, leaning forward to whisper into the cool air between them, "Blue." Feeling pretty good about his choice, he justified with a softer smile, "Because it reminds you of the sky." And everything that came with flying: freedom, hope, escape.

than face all the ages
of this world alone.

Zavien

I wanna break every clock
The hands of time could never move again

She could tell from his crooked smile that he found this endlessly amusing, and her lips twitched with mirth as she tried to maintain a serious expression, as though this offering was worthy of such stoic consideration. Still, even though it was silly, Zavien agreed with her terms, and she propped her chin on one hand, raising her brows to invite him to share. She had to admit that he was quite confident; it was a good look on him, and she found herself leaning towards him as he grinned to whisper, blue.

Sitting back with a good-natured groan, Soh crossed her arms over her chest. "I owe you a date," she said with mock complaint, but she didn't really mind, especially as he even managed to justify the choice. She picked up her shake, swirling what was left in the glass before taking a sip. She was very nearly done with the shake, and had made it through about half the fries on Zavien's plate. Now she was feeling content, and beyond that, she felt seen in a way that she never had before. He really did know her quite well, for all that they were still learning about one another.

"Your turn," she said as she sat the milkshake back on the table, wondering what question he might come up with next.

We could stay in this moment
For the rest of our lives

Sohalia