(no subject)
Who: Toby Hastings & Noreen Rivera
What: A puppy named Checkmate changes owners.
When: Backdated; after the Wonderland wedding, but before the Toby/Anne fight.
Where: A coffee-shop by their old apartment.
Noreen: Pacing. It was something most people did when they were nervous or worried. In the case of Noreen, it was no different from any other case. She was nervous about today and what she had planned to do, which was to meet up with Toby. Toby. Toby Hastings, her ex-boyfriend. A lock of dark hair was caught up in one hand, the other reaching for something - really anything to fidget with. Sunlight was barely flickering through the closed shutters of her apartment window as she sat on a stool in the kitchen, legs tucked underneath the seat, one hand fiddling with an apple. She was waiting for 5 o'clock, but the hands on the clock hanging on her wall couldn't be any slower. The whole day in general had passed by rather slowly. Wednesdays were just exceptionally slow days for her and the impending doom that was happening after 4 o'clock hadn't made the time go by any faster. You'd think that with her luck, the day would pass by rather quickly, presenting Noreen's fate to her a lot quicker then she was comfortable with and rather then shoving her under the bus, the fates had decided to slow down her day, which was by far worst then what she'd been thinking about. It had given her too much time. Time to mull over the relationship and what had gone wrong, why they had broken up, what it had been like to be with him.
He was a good guy. A really good guy. And she'd gotten a lot of shit for why they had broken up. Her parents had been almost positive they were going to get married. They'd had the right formula. A good, loving relationship. They could live together without wanting to rip each other's throats out. A steady three-year relationship. They'd even gotten a dog together, which was akin to having a child, if she really wanted to delve deep into that. But it just wasn't enough, apparently. Neither of them could stick it out and as much as they'd loved each other, the mutual termination of the relationship had been a sort of blow to her pride and her ego. It wasn't that either of them had done anything bad. There had been no infidelity, no feelings for other people. It had just been a fear of a domestic routine. It was probably deciding to live together that had really done them in. She felt like they were married already and it felt suffocating. Being with him had been refreshing and as much as she loved to come home to him, at the same time, she'd just been unable to deal with this routine of theirs. They had both gotten busy with their own lives; him teaching and her going to school and working at the bars. She'd celebrated so many milestones with him. Their first apartment. She'd finished up her Master's in Mechanical Engineering with him and he'd supported her every step of the way. There were so many times when Noreen thought to herself, what the fuck was I thinking? She'd had it all then. And then she'd ruined it cause she needed something new. A new fix. And she still loved him. Not in the way that she still pined for him. She didn't think that would ever happen anymore. It was a fond love. A first real, true love. And probably one that she'd never forget. It was what made putting up with Anne and her condescending bitchiness completely worth it. She didn't mind seeing him right now, which was why she'd agreed to the meeting. Not to mention she missed her dog. He had been beautiful, a Siberian Husky with big, blue eyes. He had been full of adventure and she'd coddled that dog like a child.
Tick tock was the sound that the clock made. "Five o'clock," Noreen murmured to herself, the first hand on the five and the second on the twelve. Grabbing her coat and stuffing her feet into a pair of boots to combat the East Coast winter weather, she left her apartment, hair unbound and loose, made up like she'd just gotten out of work.. which she had. Cain had needed an extra pair of hands for some sort of event someone was holding in the club during the day and who else but their most charming, flirty waitress would take the job? The coffee shop wasn't crowded as she went over, standing outside to wait for Toby to show. She tried not to look for him, which was hard, due to the fact that she could spot him from a mile away. The leggy brunette instead chose to focus on two children across the street playing hop scotch on the sidewalk. A smile crossed her face at the simplicity of a child. Oh to be young and child-like again.
Toby: And it was that slight edge of thoughtful daydreaming which meant Toby could, with perfect timing, appear out of the crowd and walk up alongside Noreen unnoticed. Tick tock goes the clock. It had only been six months since their official breakup -- seeing her for the first time in weeks, the instinctive pang in his gut was still to slip his arms around her and surprise her. It was how he'd often greeted her: impromptu tickles and blindfolds, or a poke suddenly seguing into a hug from behind. As a boyfriend and significant other (longterm or not), Tobias Hastings was known for his spontaneity and little surprises. He used to keep her on her toes. Oh, dear.
Six months. Which was one sixth of their total time together, which had been thirty-six. Standing there seeing her waiting, his mind became suddenly occupied with counting and thinking and wondering, and musing over the fact that the numbers balanced oddly well. It was easier to consider time than to consider his ex.
But he didn't greet her. He let Checkmate do the talking for him, as the puppy suddenly leapt at Noreen's knees in a fit of joy, and Toby waited until she turned around before finally saying, "Hey," with a hesitant smile and awkwardly rubbing the back of his head.
Noreen: An interruption by a sudden besieging of her knees caused her to glance downward. A smile spread across her face faster than a Nascar race car as she knelt down, scooping the puppy up into her arms and burying her face in his dark fur. The smile on her face was genuine, one that not all people saw. Everyone saw the part of Noreen that she chose to show to people. Few saw the part of her that she didn't choose to show.
An excited lick to her face woke her up to the fact that Toby was behind her. She turned around, Checkmate still excitedly licking her face and wiggling around in her arms as most puppies did when they saw their other owners. The rush of emotions caused by his sudden appearance caused her to swallow and open her mouth, then close it. Toby Hastings, the only guy who could render her utterly speechless, in many ways, but for now, the current reason for her speechlessness was seeing him for the first time in the six or so months since they'd broken up. It was two different things; talking to him over the Compendium and seeing him in person, being in actual touching range. She hoped that everytime she saw him now, she wasn't cursed with the sudden rush of memories of their relationship. There was just so many that there were times that she often couldn't help but reminisce about them and the past and all that. She was half-expecting him to greet her in his usual way; do something surprising or completely out of the ordinary. That was probably one of her favorite things about him and one of the many things that had caused her to fall in love with him in the first place, his spontaneity.
"Hi," was the response she finally emitted in a low voice. "How are you?" Noreen finally asked, checking herself and her manners. Because how else could they do this platonic friendship thing if they didn't get over this small, minor hump of the initial awkwardness right after the break-up?
Toby: Small minor hump of initial awkwardness indeed -- he hadn't expected the stalemate between them to last for six months. Every single week since he'd moved out, he kept thinking he'd call her. He thought he remembered calling, so, well ... he never did. Days turned to weeks and Toby had never initiated the going-out-for-coffee which was supposed to break the post-relationship ice. He was still mentally kicking himself for never following up on that.
So before he even realised what he was doing, Toby blurted out, "Let's go for coffee."
He fidgeted. "Er, not in a date way, obviously. I just... normal coffee, like normal friends, right? We can find a place where they'll let us tie Check up outside."
Toby shot her another smile, this time optimistically. Sooner was better than later, but hey, at least later was better than never.
Noreen: "Uh... yeah!" she responded right away before she could mentally talk herself out of it. It would be good for her. Maybe it would help make things better, tie up loose ends. She highly doubted that though. They had three years worth of loose ends to tie up and that couldn't all be done in one coffee platonic date. "I mean, here works. Check will be fine out here." She turned to the puppy that had probably stolen her heart from the first time he'd looked up at her with those big blue eyes and smiled down at him. "Isn't that right, baby?" Noreen asked him, a hint of a baby voice creeping into her tone. Though the dog couldn't respond, sometimes she liked to think so. Setting him down, she waited for Toby to tie him up so they could go inside to a coffee shop that was a frequent haunt of theirs. The puppy trotted back to his other owner to wait for him. She glanced at the pair of them and couldn't help a smile. She'd forgotten how cute they both were together. Checkmate had adored each of them in his own way and she loved how human-like the dog could act at times.
Right across the street from the apartment, the pair had made many a coffee run over here, whether it was some pre-work coffee/breakfast or even some late night coffee that occurred after things she didn't want to think about anymore.
Warmth spread over her as she pushed the glass door open in front of her, stepping in and holding the door open for Toby before letting it go and offering a smile to the owner behind the counter, the older man lifting a hand to the both of them in recognition. She slid into a booth, rubbing both arms and glancing down at the menus momentarily, more so out of habit than anything. Their orders were placed -- for Noreen, a Caffè Latte and for Toby, a London Fog latte. Then the server left and they were finally left just the two of them to finally talk. 'So' was rather overused so she figured she'd just dive right into things. She'd dated this man for three years. He probably knew her just as well as some of her oldest friends.
"So, how is everything? Work? Living with Anne? All that." At the mention of Anne, the smile on her face faltered slightly but she hid her distaste for the other woman as best she could.
Toby: The old man was a good guy, always friendly to his customers and particularly the regulars. Toby should know -- he used to be one. The only thing he hoped for was that the proprietor wouldn't bring up any awkward questions. This meeting would be hard enough without the owner blithely asking if they'd finally gotten back together.
"This would be the single most boring answer ever, but -- it's the same old, same old," he answered, his hands laced together in his lap as he leaned back in his seat, the chair tipping slightly off the ground. "Porter hypothetically deals cat drugs now. Our team won last week's trivia. We're getting ever closer to the end of term, so the students are antsy."
Another flickering smile across his face. The rest of his sentence went unsaid. She knew the students wouldn't be the only ones anxious for the free stretch of summer; Tobias Hastings was notoriously fidgety and impatient along with the best of them.
Noreen: An amused smile crossed Noreen's face. Boring? Toby was anything but boring. "Wow. I'm shocked. I don't talk to you for six months and you go all boring on me," she couldn't help but tell him in a teasing tone, eyes dancing with amusement, that same amused smile still set on her face.
The lattes both came and Noreen thanked the chipper waitress, smiling at her before turning her attentions to her Caffè latte, taking a sip and not noticing the froth on her upper lip. It always happened and she never wiped it off. Back in the day, Toby usually just took a napkin and wiped it off. Or... found other ways to take it off. She knew it always happened, yet she never got self-conscious enough to check if she had the frothy mustache. Dark locks were pushed away from her neck as she cupped the cup with both hands, taking another sip, and then letting her gaze fall back on Toby. "I know you're ready for summer break."
Toby: Before she'd even finished speaking, Toby burst out laughing -- he couldn't take her seriously as long as the froth was there, wholeheartedly ruining Noreen's dignified look. The second sip made it worse, and before he could stop himself, he reached forward with napkin in hand to lightly brush the froth away. He was halfway across the table when he suddenly realised what he was doing--
-- but he did it anyway. At least it wasn't an accidental kiss or anything of the sort. He rescued her upper lip, then withdrew safely back to his own corner of the table, arms crossed.
"Sorry. You looked more than a bit dweebish," he admitted, with a grin.
Noreen: An indignant expression crossed the brunette's face at the dweebish comment. Noreen pursed her lips at Toby, pretending to look cross with him. Letting him wipe the froth off her upper lip, all Noreen's polite class went out the window after that one and she couldn't help it; she stuck her tongue out at him. Rolling her eyes, Noreen laughed and took another sip from her latte, making sure this time to get rid of the accursed upper lip froth.
This wasn't as awkward as she thought it would be. At least they'd gotten over the first initial awkwardness that seemed to always appear when two exes tried to be friends, definitely in their case because of the amount of time they'd dated.
"So tell me what's goin' on," she pushed.
Toby: He drummed his fingers slightly on the edge of his own coffee cup, setting an off-beat rhythm while his thoughts bounced around, trying to think of the best way to answer that particular question.
"Well, uh. There was that big wedding over the weekend. Did you go? It was pretty massive. And now Anne's out of town for the moment, so I'm attempting to fend for myself. It turns out that remembering how to cook isn't the problem; it's remembering when to." Toby shrugged. His problems with time were fairly notorious amongst his friends. Living backwards had a tendency to do that to you. "And you? Still studying, still flipping bottles?"
He'd considered visiting some of her clubs, but every single time he did, he'd shied away from the idea. This reunion definitely worked best at a familiar coffeeshop. He suspected booze-soaked dancing and loud music wouldn't have done quite as well.
Noreen: The cup stayed on the table, but she continued to hold it between both hands. She occasionally lowered her head to sip from the cup, raising it ever so slightly. Really, anything so that she wouldn't be tempted to reach over and take his hand across the table. That wasn't allowed anymore, was it? It wasn't so much that she had feelings for him. It was more of a familiar, nostalgic thing.
"I did actually go," Noreen said, smiling slightly. The wedding had been fun. "It was fun, I really liked it. May and Kilroy make a beautiful couple. I didn't see you there." It was probably a good thing then, wasn't it. "That's never good; you left fending for yourself. I just suggest take-out every night. I don't want to hear about Anne's apartment burning down." At least with her not in it. "And I think you should get an alarm. I always told you that before to. A watch with an alarm. Or something." Nodding, a hand passed through dark brown locks once more as she paused to take another sip from the latte. She'd forgotten how delicious these were. It had been a long time. Six months was a long time not to go to a coffee shop that was just across the street from her apartment. "Still studying. Still flipping bottles. Still working on my Ph. D. Which is taking me forever." A sigh. She still was in disbelief that it might possibly take her just as long (if not longer) than her undergrad, which had been the longest four years of her life.
"So I decided to stop sitting on my Master's and start looking for a job. Getting tired of working at the bars anyways. Working three jobs now." It was the only way she could support herself now. "You should stop by one of the clubs sometime when I'm working. I can get you the hook-up when I'm behind the bar."
Toby: He tilted his head. "Three jobs to my one," Toby remarked, a bit dryly. "You always did live things at such a faster pace."
There was a bit of a pause, suddenly awkward. Little reminders and moments of familiarity made it both better and worse at the same time -- it dragged him one step closer back to the way they used to be, knowing each others' ways inside and out, but on the other hand... well, it dragged him back to where they used to be. Which was more than a little bit taboo.
"Which clubs are these, anyway? It's rather hard to get in and receive-- friendly employee benefits if I don't know where you work."
Noreen: She ticked off the name of the clubs she worked at, then engaged him in some further small talk about his job and his life now. He seemed slightly more domesticated since the last time she'd seen him. She supposed it was his living with Anne. She was terribly proper, neat, and motherly; proper and neat being the things that Noreen was most definitely not. But she'd always taken care of Toby like a proper live-in girlfriend should have. She never regretted anything about their relationship except the night they broke up.
The day went on relatively smoothly, save for some awkward pauses, accidental hand-grabbing and of course, Checkmate being generally very excited about both his owners being together. So it broke her heart when a few hours later, Checkmate had to part with his previous owner. If the puppy could talk, he would've asked pitifully why they couldn't just both own him and get back together. Instead, the dog just trotted up to Toby and nuzzled his hand, looking absolutely pitiful with big, sad puppy dog eyes.
"Poor puppy," Noreen said with a sad smile as she finally gave Checkmate's leash a gentle tug before going over to say good-bye to Toby, promising that she'd bring the dog over for a visit, moreso for Checkmate's sake than Toby's, though she was sure he would appreciate the gesture. And then, with that, she took off.
Toby: They had made their goodbyes -- which also became a bizarre point of contention when they didn't know which sentiment to make. A kiss on the cheek, too close? A handshake? Far too formal. Finally, he settled for a hug which lasted just a little bit too long, arms tight around Noreen's shoulders. And then he let her go.
After she picked up and left, the puppy trailing at her heels, Toby stayed at the table for a while longer and watched her go, his eyes dark with thought. He sat behind discarded napkins and two empty mugs until a server came by and cleared it away.
When the table was empty, the man was gone.