(Untitled)

[lexiepedia]

If asked, Lexie would say that she isn't nervous about this. Of course she isn't nervous. It's a date; she's been on plenty of them before. Despite this, though, and despite her hypothetical insistence to the contrary, she's spent the past two weeks quietly freaking out, torn between thinking it's a terrible idea and wanting to make sure it's

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[cibosity]

If she's trying to put up some air of levity, it isn't working. The way that her cheeks are dusted with pink and the way her lips are spread in a wide smile, it looks eager and shy all at once, which gives Sawyer the very sudden, cutting impression that he doesn't deserve a girl like that. Frankly, he probably doesn't. But if there's something he's learned from all his time on both of the islands, it's the fact that what's more important than what people deserve is how people feel, perhaps. Better than having someone 'good' enough for her might be having someone who can make her happy, in the way that just seeing that smile already warms something in his own heart, his chest swelling with a warm contentment as his gaze dips down for a second to let him collect himself.

The fact that he's the one who needs a moment, and the humor of that, doesn't escape Sawyer at all.

"Hey yourself," he drawls, unable to make himself tie the package entirely together. Yes, he's capable of dressing like a gentleman, and if he tried hard enough he'd probably even be able to speak like one, but maybe it's better not to push himself too hard yet, he figures. She might like the rogue. "I'm one lucky guy. You look... amazin'."

Shaking his head with that touch of awe, he holds the flowers out. "And these're for you. In case that wasn't obvious already."

[lexiepedia]

Ducking her own head briefly, Lexie smooths a hand over the waist of her dress as she shifts her weight, a little self-conscious. It's short-lived, though, at least outwardly; her smile unwavering, she reaches out for the flowers only to realize she isn't entirely certain where to put them, the gesture itself having seemed more important than the details. They'll need to go in water, she thinks, to keep them from wilting, because she's definitely keeping them. She isn't even sure she remembers the last time someone gave her flowers, though that's a train of thought she stops quickly; whatever the answer, it isn't going to do her any good.

"I - thank you, wow," she says, earnest in her surprise, eyes a little wide. Maybe she's just lowered her standards too much, or doesn't expect anyone to be able to compare. Either way, it serves her well now. "Believe me, it took me an age and a half to find this dress, so I'm glad you like it. And, uh, I'm just going to... put these inside." It occurs to her for a moment that she could invite him in until they go, wherever they're going, but she decides it's too forward. It's not a very big place, after all, and she doesn't want to give the wrong impression.

[cibosity]

Even if there's a voice in the back of Sawyer's mind telling him how very juvenile this entire process is, the blond doesn't find it too hard to ignore. What matters is that, regardless of whether everything he's done can practically be lifted off the pages of a boy's first dating guide (the types meant for middle and high schoolers), it makes her feel appreciated. At least, that's what her stammers tell him, and hearing that is well worth the effort as Sawyer just smiles, leans against the door frame patiently while Lexie skirts on inside to put the flowers somewhere. Good call, he adds mentally. Sometimes the movies show the women holding onto the flowers through the whole date, but Sawyer remembers quite a few occasions where he ended up having to hold everything for the girl, bouquet and all. It's just another hassle.

And it'll be prettier wherever she sets it up in the hut.

"I guess the clothin' box just wanted to take you for a spin," he drawls, standing straight when she returns to the door and holding out the crook of his arm for her to take. (Sonuvabitch, it feels pretty much like he's taking her to prom or something equally ridiculous and normal. Normal for people half his age, anyway.)

"So," he continues, as he guides the both of them in the general direction of the ferris wheel. "Just makin' sure, but you're not deathly 'fraid of heights, are you?"

[lexiepedia]

As awful as she knows it would sound, Lexie almost finds herself a little grateful for the moment out of sight, giving her a few seconds to catch her breath and slow her heart and get herself together. There are times, especially these days, that it's just too difficult to keep from overthinking, to keep from thinking at all, and she doesn't want to screw this up by getting ahead of herself, getting awkward, saying something she probably shouldn't. This is the best thing she has going for herself here, the flowers she leaves temporarily lying on the dresser in her fairly empty hut proof enough of that, and she wants to make the absolute most of it.

"Heights?" she asks, almost instinctively taking his arm, though she can't help but grin a little wider as she does, her nose wrinkling. She doesn't yet have any idea why he might be asking, but she has no problem following along for now, mostly distracted by the gesture, anyway, definitely not unwelcome. "No, I'm not scared of heights. Why?"

[cibosity]

His smile widens when Lexie takes his arm without much hesitation at all, a gesture that makes him feel like things are going somewhere, like this is a part of life that he's missed out on for decades. Courting someone with the actual intention of taking this somewhere in the long term, if not with Lexie, then at least in general. He has this nagging suspicion that something will come along to derail the life he's made for himself on Tabula Rasa, in the way that it always does, but it's been long enough that he's stayed on this island without great problems (nightmares notwithstanding) that he feels capable of putting his best foot forward. He can't expect to distance himself from his past life, from Kate in specific, without progressing in some way or another.

He peers at her nose, laughing at the way it wrinkles whenever she's in thought, deep or otherwise. Nodding to himself, he takes them in the general direction of the ferris wheel, unsure whether or not Lexie's seen it yet. For some reason, he suspects that it might just be her type of thing.

[lexiepedia]

With a short laugh at the lack of explanation, Lexie just shakes her head, not so curious that she can't accept that it's probably meant to be a surprise. In the absence of an answer, her mind is still going a mile a minute, but fortunately, it's fast enough that even she can't keep up with it, can't grasp on to the small little voice in the back of her head that says this might be a bad idea. It very decidedly isn't one. There's a warmth about him, she's found, that makes him easy to be around, even without having known him for very long. That coupled with the fact that he seems to care enough already to have asked her out in the first place is all the reason she needs to want to take this seriously, to try to do more than just prevent herself from feeling.

"Okay," she says, head tilting to the side, then lifts her gaze to him, arm still linked through his. "So, uh, how... are you?"

God help her, she's completely forgotten how to date.

[cibosity]

He doesn't let her in on the wheel yet, because... well, because the whole point is to have her see it and for it to be a surprise, something he can't really do if he just explains his plans. The way he figures, it's probably not dangerous enough of a date to merit that forewarning anyway, compared to more physically taxing pastimes like bungee jumping (he's done it before, and he'll never do it again) or more intimate settings, like in some abandoned hut in the middle of nowhere. God, it might even count as cute. Or lame. Ferris wheels are, after all, largely used by kids a quarter of his age.

He kind of wishes it had bumper cars instead.

"Sorry, Lexicon, I couldn't spoil the surprise," he apologizes with a low quality in his voice, before perking right back up again and feeling a whole hell of a lot more nervous than he expected to. There's a thud against his chest and he's almost hyperaware of the hand that she still has resting on his arm. All he needs is for this not to be a letdown. "And I've been... well, same old, same old, aside from spendin' most of my free time figuring out where I was gonna take us today. Also been rehearsin' for a play that I got a role in. The Mousetrap, if you've ever read it."

[lexiepedia]

"No, I haven't," Lexie replies, but her voice lilts up a little, painting her obviously interested. "I didn't know you acted." As the words leave her mouth, it occurs to her for the first time that she hardly knows anything about him at all, really, except that he seems to like her and that she finds herself comfortable enough around him to have wanted to agree to this, and she feels like a world class idiot for it, heat rising to her cheeks before she can try to stop it. It doesn't make her want to change her mind, or anything like that; if anything, it makes her wonder how he must see her for it, if he thinks she's rushing in too quickly when that's the opposite of what she's trying to do.

Mouth set in a self-deprecating smile, she draws in a breath, pulling a face slightly. "You know, for all that I rambled at you on the beach, I didn't really let you say anything about yourself, huh?"

[cibosity]

"Sure you did," Sawyer immediately retorts, his dimples becoming apparent as the smile stretches across his face, something almost resembling a twinkle in his eye. It's putting the more serious matters off for a while, he knows. If this goes somewhere, in the way that he feels he's almost depending on, then he'll have to be open with her in a way that he hasn't been with most women. He's not going to make the same mistake that he did with Cassidy, never again, not with a woman who's good and isn't seemingly scared away at the slightest brush. But there's also something to be said for not immediately burdening someone with more than they should have to take. So he just stares down at her with the same mischievous smirk as always.

"I was George, remember? Proves I can totally ad lib," he drawled with a touch of a rough laugh under his breath. "But no, I didn't know I acted either 'til I came here. I mean, I've always been able to skate my way outta sticky situations, but the first time I stepped onto a stage was for my audition. S'just the island that makes all these things possible. My life ain't all that great to hear 'bout though, trust me. Ain't nothin' like being a surgeon. I'm totally outta my league right now."

[lexiepedia]

"No, trust me, that's... actually kind of refreshing," Lexie admits with a slight laugh, wincing even as she speaks at the truth of it. For the past two weeks, she's been freaking out, but maybe it's really been for nothing. Maybe she's somehow been lucky enough to find someone nice, someone normal, without far too much baggage or surrounding drama or both. Even in the early days, when things were good between them, she and Mark still had a rough go of it, between the interns' gossip and his friendship with Derek on the line. This could be different, and she's grateful for it. "Dating someone who isn't another surgeon, I mean. It kind of has a way of complicating things. At least from what I've seen. And I... really don't need complicated."

That this feels simple enough so far is evident in the content smile on her face, the fact that her arm is still laced through his. She doesn't know exactly what it is she wants, but this is seeming more and more like a good step.

[cibosity]

"See? I knew that you'd dated that George fellow of yours at some point. Maybe you got your wits 'bout you, since datin' a colleague's a bad idea ninety percent of the time, but the temptation's always there. Someone who understands what you do every day," Sawyer ponders, smile turning a bit wry as he thinks about the only time he can remember love really aching. Both times, it's been with women who know his way of life one way or another, whether it's because he's taught Cassidy himself, or because his life and Kate's just have too many parallels running all the way back into childhood. Yeah. That ache is what pulls birds of a feather together, but these days, Sawyer's starting to think that type of magnetism's a bad thing. "At least, that's what you assume'll happen."

The grin on his face softens and fades as he looks into those dark, yet contrastingly bright eyes of Lexie's. "Anyway, I'm in the same boat. Complicated sounds good in theory, reads well in books, but it's tirin'. So you won't get complicated from me, if I can help it."

It doesn't take too much longer until the ferris wheel is peeking with bright colors through the leaves of the trees; Sawyer keeps his gaze averted, just to see how long it'll take for her to notice.

[lexiepedia]

"Oh, oh, no, I - I never -" Lexie starts, free hand waving absently through the air as she lets out a laugh, eyes closed. Her recent romantic history is so damn complicated that she hesitates to talk about it now, certain that it will change his mind about it being a good idea, but it's already been mentioned and she can, she suppose, gloss over the facts. "George, he was just my best friend. I had a crush on him, you know, for a while, but he didn't feel the same way, and I, I got over it. I dated someone else at the hospital, an attending, but that ended before I showed up here, so."

There's a part of her that already feels guilty for it, for downplaying the significance in her life that Mark had, that he still has now, but it's what's best for everyone. Alex doesn't even merit a mention; Sawyer doesn't need to know that she was screwing someone else to get over her ex. It isn't like any of it is a lie. So she smiles at him, totally at odds with the thoughts running through her head but no less genuine for it. If anything, she seems grateful. "So that's good. That we both know to avoid complications."

[cibosity]

Avoid complications, Sawyer hears immediately, raising his brow at the thought. Sure, he likes to avoid complications, he'd liked keeping his life simple from the start. Just go to school, get involved on the soccer team, come home to a mother and father who loved him and make sure his hands were clean before sitting at the dinner table. But somehow, complications always manage to worm their way in, making that white picket fence dream impossible to realize, and he's taken for a moment by the suspicion that this, whatever they're starting together, there will come a time when it isn't simple. Especially now that he knows keeping details from people, it can only end up hurting sooner or later.

But for now, he grins, a little crooked and a little sobered. "Means we've got pretty much the same goal. That's always a good start. And I ain't one to judge you for whatever happened in the past, so we can just start fresh."

They're coming around to the destination at last, the two of them weaving through the last of the thick forest before coming to the ferris wheel, twenty-five feet tall, multi-colored. He waves his arm, the one still holding the picnic basket, to present the sight to her. "And here we are. It ain't a dinner on the beach, but I figure here on the island, beaches are overrated. Thought we'd have dinner first, then enjoy a ride when the stars start comin' out."

[lexiepedia]

There's a moment where Lexie is certain that she must look like a child, starry-eyed and beaming incredulously, her eyes fixed on the ferris wheel as if she's never seen one before in her life. Though she's passed by this very one and made note of its presence, it's different like this, having been brought by someone else, romantic in an old-fashioned and utterly appealing sort of way. Meredith told her not to compare to Mark and she'd agreed that doing so wasn't a good idea, but even so, he's one of her first thoughts, when she manages a coherent one: he never did anything like this for her.

And that, in part, is her own fault. Between the secrecy and their jobs and his reputation, there hadn't really been time for it. Even so, it only makes this seem even better. When she turns her gaze to Sawyer, she's struck, briefly, by the impulse to just kiss him and get it over with, but she settles for just smiling wider instead, hopefully looking a little closer to her age.

"This is great," she says, meaning it entirely. "Definitely beats dinner on a beach."

[cibosity]

When she looks at him, he almost expects it. The sort of reaction that a lot of women give him for going that extra mile, something he's done most often in his life for an extra dollar (or thousand), only they never know until it's all said and done, with him retreating in a cloud of smoke. This time though, he really is putting forth that extra effort for her, for himself on a deeper level, no money involved, no careful application of give or take. He almost expects for her to give him a kiss, whether on the cheek or a grateful smooch on the lips, but when she doesn't, it's almost even more reason for his approval, and twice the incentive for him to go about this the right way. Like old-fashioned courting.

His smile widens and he takes them just a bit further, to a clear patch of ground where he sets down the picnic basket gently, tugging a large cotton tablecloth, all checked red and white like the cliches, out to spread over the soft grass.

"Ain't no one ever taken you on a picnic before?" he asks curiously, getting down on his knees and holding out a hand to help her down.

[lexiepedia]

"Are you kidding?" Lexie asks, like that ought to be obvious, shaking her head. Her smile doesn't fade, though, as she reaches for his outstretched hand and carefully takes a seat, legs bent to her side, skirt just covering her knees. "I went right from med school to being an intern, there wasn't enough time for things like picnics." She can't see Mark as having been the type, anyway, and it wasn't like she'd ever been close enough to anyone else for something like this. She hardly knows Sawyer, but as far as she can see, this has been meant to be meaningful from the start, and there hasn't been anything else fitting that description.

She looks at him for a few moments longer, then finally gestures to the picnic basket he's pulled the blanket from, curious, if still a little awestruck. "So what do we have to eat?"