The rhythm of her conversation
Title: Tacos and Texas Toast
Fandom:Vegan Rockstar Verse
Characters:Makcenzie/Jackson, Dean & Alex
Rating: PG
Disclaimer:All belongs to vylentcrymz and I
Mackenzie supposed it was only fitting that Jackson showed up on her doorstep looking like he had just walked off of the cover of Scarlett Stefani’s latest novel, The Cowboy Who Loved Me, when she, on the other hand, looked like crap.
But, that was how the world worked. She had learned that the hot guys always showed up when you weren’t expecting them back in high school, but she hadn’t had to worry about hot guys for a long while… but now with Jackson around, it seemed she would have to be on her toes a little more than usual.
“So what are you doing here?” she blurted out, tucking some hair behind her ear.
“Oh I was… is this a bad time?” he asked, ducking his head sheepishly. “Sorry.”
“Of course not,” she said quickly, ushering him in. “I’m just… was working and… you can visit anytime, really.”
“Oh. Well, what are you making?” he asked, attempting conversation.
“A dress for a friend. She’s throwing a cocktail party so..” she waved a hand dismissively. “So, what’s up? Not every day I get a visit from a real life cowboy. How’s Dean?”
“He’s fine. Won’t shut up about Alex, though. He’s damn near passed Harry Potter already.”
She grinned. “Well, that’s quite an accomplishment. He’s a sweet kid. Quiet, but sweet.” He smiled back at her for a moment, standing near the couch awkwardly before she remembered her manners. “Oh god, where are my… Please, sit. Would you like something to drink?”
“Why I came over, actually. Would you like to get something to eat?”
“Huh?” was her brilliant response.
“Lunch,” he said simply. “I have the day off, so I figured what with the boys in school now, it would give us both something to do until we gotta pick them up.”
“Oh, right. I mean, sounds great,” she chirped before running a hand through her currently un-shampooed hair. “Actually, I’m really not… can you give me about an hour?”
He laughed, checking his watch. “Sure. I have some errands to run anyway. See you at around two?”
“Two sounds perfect,” she said gratefully.
“See you then.” He paused on his way out the door. “Even though you look fine right now.”
Mack bit her lip, waiting until she heard the lock slide into place before letting out a very immature squeal.
“Oh my… did I just get asked out to lunch by someone who doesn’t have hair plugs and some sort of midlife crisis car!? I…I’ve gotta shower.”
About twenty minutes later she rubbed the fog away from the bathroom mirror, fiddling with her hair before settling on just blow-drying it out. Wouldn’t want to look too put together, after all. Even if this had been her first date in… she actually couldn’t remember the last time she’d been out with a guy who didn’t have dimples and a current attachment to his Superman pajamas with feet.
Wait a second, this wasn’t a date thing. A lunch date maybe, but far from a lunch date. She continued contemplating this as she walked into her closet, nibbling on a freshly painted pink nail as she accessed wardrobe options. There was the option of a skirt. She had shaved her legs for the first time in what seemed like years and what was the harm of showing them off? Of course, Jackson would be oblivious to her legs considering this wasn’t a date!
She settled on a pair of jeans and a fitted pink top she had made the week before just as the doorbell rang again.
“Coming!” she called as she hopped to the door, zipping her Steve Madden boots along the way. “Hey,” she said cheerfully, leaning a hand against the doorframe as the door swung open.
“Hey, back.” He grinned. “Well, don’t you look nice?”
“Thank you!” she replied. “Just figured I’d change clothes before we left the house. You know, wouldn’t wanna pick up Alex from school looking like a bag lady.”
He laughed, shutting the door behind them. “Well, you just might be the prettiest bag lady I ever did see.”
“Oh, hush. Bet you say that to all the girls,” she teased.
“Nope. Can honestly you’re the first girl I’ve ever said that too.”
She grinned looking over at him and… he wasn’t wearing his hat! She had been beginning to think that it was permanently fused on or something, maybe hiding some sort of hideous bald spot, but it seemed that every inch of Jackson Roberts was perfect. Well, the inches she had seen anyway.
“You missing something, Texas?”
“Huh?”
She pointed. “Your hat.”
“Oh, that,” he said, nervously running a hand through his closely cropped hair. “Figured I needed a change.”
“And you got a haircut too!” she realized. “Looks nice.”
“Yeah? Figured I might as well fit in with you city folk,” he joked.
“Well, I like it. Look like some… studly lawyer.”
Jackson made a face. “I hate lawyers.”
“Who doesn‘t?” Oh god, a lawyer!? How was that a good compliment? And had she actually just used the term studly? She really needed to start thinking before she spoke.
She blinked as they walked past Jackson’s truck. “Um, are you forgetting your car too?”
“Nope. This place isn’t too far. I mean, unless you’d rather drive. Just figured since it was such a nice day and all…”
“Walking sounds okay to me. It is pretty nice out,” she admitted. “But I guess it’s nothing like back home.”
“Sunshine everywhere. Although, girls just might be a little prettier.”
She bit her lip. “Guys are a little flirtier too, I see,” she teased, praying she wouldn’t blush.
“Might be,” he said, opening the door for her with a grin.
“Wow, this place was close!”
“See, I told ya.”
A bubbly blonde waitress lead them over to a table and Mack casually skimmed the menu before bursting into a grin. “Oh, see, now I know why you like this place.”
He smiled. “Why?”
“Who doesn’t want a twenty ounce sirloin with mushrooms, onions, and Texas toast.”
He leaned in, looking around before lowering his voice like he was telling her a state secret. “Well, between you and me…their Texas toast looks a hell of a lot like garlic bread.”
“There’s a difference?”
“Of course there is! Have you ever had Texas toast!?”
She shook her head. “Sorry. I’ve eaten tacos, falafel, pizza, Chinese, Indian, Thai, Greek, but never Texas toast.”
The waitress came over looking eager to get back to the cute busboy she had been talking to moments earlier, so Mackenzie took pity on her, quickly ordering a cheeseburger, smiling when Jackson did the same.
“So, where are you from, anyhow?” Jackson asked, dumping about half the sugar shaker into his tea.
“New York, originally.”
Jackson whistled. “Long ways away from Los Angeles.”
“Oh, that’s just because I chopped up all my past boyfriends and put them into plastic storage baggies.”
Jackson laughed. “That a fact?”
“Well, wanted to be a designer. Then that turned to model and… I dunno, Los Angeles seemed glamorous.”
He nodded. “Makes sense.”
“Made perfect sense back then. Course, we were all young and stupid once. But Los Angeles grows on you, especially after eighteen years of New York winters.”
“Right,” he looked down his hands. “So, mind if I ask you a personal question?”
“Oh, I live for personal questions. Ask away.”
“How is it that a beautiful woman like you doesn’t have a husband?”
She blushed, suddenly wishing she could hide behind her iced tea glass. “We weren’t a good match. He was… more interested in his career than me and Alex.”
“Was he blind or just plain special?”
She laughed, finally feeling brave enough for eye contact again. “Bit of both.”
The conversation continued well after they had finished their food, and Mack learned a lot of stuff she wouldn’t have guessed otherwise. Like every other good Texas boy, he had tried his hand at the rodeo, but came in dead last. It was also where he had met Dean’s mother, a tiny little four foot thing with a set of pipes rivaling Whitney’s. Dean was apparently into sorcery and dragons while most good old Southern boys his age were into Nascar. She would have to remember that. It might coax him into talking to her as well as Alex.
“Oh god! We have to pick up the boys!” she exclaimed as the clock struck three.
They all but ran back to Mack’s driveway, both of them piling into Jackson’s white pick up truck.
“You know, I’ve never been in one of these.”
“Wow, you New York girls must not get out much,” he teased as he pulled up to school.
Alex and Dean hadn’t seemed to have noticed their parent’s absence as they were hunched over the latest issue of Spiderman chattering excitedly.
Jackson honked the horn. “Come on, you two! Don’t wanna be left here with Larry the creepy janitor!”
Alex giggled as he slid into the backseat. “You’re so funny, Jackson.”
“Hi, Miss Mackenzie,” Dean said shyly, sliding his comic book back in his bag.
“Hey, Dean! What are you reading, cutie?” she asked ruffling his hair.
“Spiderman.”
“I love Spiderman! He’s very cute.”
“You’re so silly, mommy.” Alex said, shaking his head. “But you look nice today. You should dress up when you pick me up more often.”
Fandom:Vegan Rockstar Verse
Characters:Makcenzie/Jackson, Dean & Alex
Rating: PG
Disclaimer:All belongs to vylentcrymz and I
Mackenzie supposed it was only fitting that Jackson showed up on her doorstep looking like he had just walked off of the cover of Scarlett Stefani’s latest novel, The Cowboy Who Loved Me, when she, on the other hand, looked like crap.
But, that was how the world worked. She had learned that the hot guys always showed up when you weren’t expecting them back in high school, but she hadn’t had to worry about hot guys for a long while… but now with Jackson around, it seemed she would have to be on her toes a little more than usual.
“So what are you doing here?” she blurted out, tucking some hair behind her ear.
“Oh I was… is this a bad time?” he asked, ducking his head sheepishly. “Sorry.”
“Of course not,” she said quickly, ushering him in. “I’m just… was working and… you can visit anytime, really.”
“Oh. Well, what are you making?” he asked, attempting conversation.
“A dress for a friend. She’s throwing a cocktail party so..” she waved a hand dismissively. “So, what’s up? Not every day I get a visit from a real life cowboy. How’s Dean?”
“He’s fine. Won’t shut up about Alex, though. He’s damn near passed Harry Potter already.”
She grinned. “Well, that’s quite an accomplishment. He’s a sweet kid. Quiet, but sweet.” He smiled back at her for a moment, standing near the couch awkwardly before she remembered her manners. “Oh god, where are my… Please, sit. Would you like something to drink?”
“Why I came over, actually. Would you like to get something to eat?”
“Huh?” was her brilliant response.
“Lunch,” he said simply. “I have the day off, so I figured what with the boys in school now, it would give us both something to do until we gotta pick them up.”
“Oh, right. I mean, sounds great,” she chirped before running a hand through her currently un-shampooed hair. “Actually, I’m really not… can you give me about an hour?”
He laughed, checking his watch. “Sure. I have some errands to run anyway. See you at around two?”
“Two sounds perfect,” she said gratefully.
“See you then.” He paused on his way out the door. “Even though you look fine right now.”
Mack bit her lip, waiting until she heard the lock slide into place before letting out a very immature squeal.
“Oh my… did I just get asked out to lunch by someone who doesn’t have hair plugs and some sort of midlife crisis car!? I…I’ve gotta shower.”
About twenty minutes later she rubbed the fog away from the bathroom mirror, fiddling with her hair before settling on just blow-drying it out. Wouldn’t want to look too put together, after all. Even if this had been her first date in… she actually couldn’t remember the last time she’d been out with a guy who didn’t have dimples and a current attachment to his Superman pajamas with feet.
Wait a second, this wasn’t a date thing. A lunch date maybe, but far from a lunch date. She continued contemplating this as she walked into her closet, nibbling on a freshly painted pink nail as she accessed wardrobe options. There was the option of a skirt. She had shaved her legs for the first time in what seemed like years and what was the harm of showing them off? Of course, Jackson would be oblivious to her legs considering this wasn’t a date!
She settled on a pair of jeans and a fitted pink top she had made the week before just as the doorbell rang again.
“Coming!” she called as she hopped to the door, zipping her Steve Madden boots along the way. “Hey,” she said cheerfully, leaning a hand against the doorframe as the door swung open.
“Hey, back.” He grinned. “Well, don’t you look nice?”
“Thank you!” she replied. “Just figured I’d change clothes before we left the house. You know, wouldn’t wanna pick up Alex from school looking like a bag lady.”
He laughed, shutting the door behind them. “Well, you just might be the prettiest bag lady I ever did see.”
“Oh, hush. Bet you say that to all the girls,” she teased.
“Nope. Can honestly you’re the first girl I’ve ever said that too.”
She grinned looking over at him and… he wasn’t wearing his hat! She had been beginning to think that it was permanently fused on or something, maybe hiding some sort of hideous bald spot, but it seemed that every inch of Jackson Roberts was perfect. Well, the inches she had seen anyway.
“You missing something, Texas?”
“Huh?”
She pointed. “Your hat.”
“Oh, that,” he said, nervously running a hand through his closely cropped hair. “Figured I needed a change.”
“And you got a haircut too!” she realized. “Looks nice.”
“Yeah? Figured I might as well fit in with you city folk,” he joked.
“Well, I like it. Look like some… studly lawyer.”
Jackson made a face. “I hate lawyers.”
“Who doesn‘t?” Oh god, a lawyer!? How was that a good compliment? And had she actually just used the term studly? She really needed to start thinking before she spoke.
She blinked as they walked past Jackson’s truck. “Um, are you forgetting your car too?”
“Nope. This place isn’t too far. I mean, unless you’d rather drive. Just figured since it was such a nice day and all…”
“Walking sounds okay to me. It is pretty nice out,” she admitted. “But I guess it’s nothing like back home.”
“Sunshine everywhere. Although, girls just might be a little prettier.”
She bit her lip. “Guys are a little flirtier too, I see,” she teased, praying she wouldn’t blush.
“Might be,” he said, opening the door for her with a grin.
“Wow, this place was close!”
“See, I told ya.”
A bubbly blonde waitress lead them over to a table and Mack casually skimmed the menu before bursting into a grin. “Oh, see, now I know why you like this place.”
He smiled. “Why?”
“Who doesn’t want a twenty ounce sirloin with mushrooms, onions, and Texas toast.”
He leaned in, looking around before lowering his voice like he was telling her a state secret. “Well, between you and me…their Texas toast looks a hell of a lot like garlic bread.”
“There’s a difference?”
“Of course there is! Have you ever had Texas toast!?”
She shook her head. “Sorry. I’ve eaten tacos, falafel, pizza, Chinese, Indian, Thai, Greek, but never Texas toast.”
The waitress came over looking eager to get back to the cute busboy she had been talking to moments earlier, so Mackenzie took pity on her, quickly ordering a cheeseburger, smiling when Jackson did the same.
“So, where are you from, anyhow?” Jackson asked, dumping about half the sugar shaker into his tea.
“New York, originally.”
Jackson whistled. “Long ways away from Los Angeles.”
“Oh, that’s just because I chopped up all my past boyfriends and put them into plastic storage baggies.”
Jackson laughed. “That a fact?”
“Well, wanted to be a designer. Then that turned to model and… I dunno, Los Angeles seemed glamorous.”
He nodded. “Makes sense.”
“Made perfect sense back then. Course, we were all young and stupid once. But Los Angeles grows on you, especially after eighteen years of New York winters.”
“Right,” he looked down his hands. “So, mind if I ask you a personal question?”
“Oh, I live for personal questions. Ask away.”
“How is it that a beautiful woman like you doesn’t have a husband?”
She blushed, suddenly wishing she could hide behind her iced tea glass. “We weren’t a good match. He was… more interested in his career than me and Alex.”
“Was he blind or just plain special?”
She laughed, finally feeling brave enough for eye contact again. “Bit of both.”
The conversation continued well after they had finished their food, and Mack learned a lot of stuff she wouldn’t have guessed otherwise. Like every other good Texas boy, he had tried his hand at the rodeo, but came in dead last. It was also where he had met Dean’s mother, a tiny little four foot thing with a set of pipes rivaling Whitney’s. Dean was apparently into sorcery and dragons while most good old Southern boys his age were into Nascar. She would have to remember that. It might coax him into talking to her as well as Alex.
“Oh god! We have to pick up the boys!” she exclaimed as the clock struck three.
They all but ran back to Mack’s driveway, both of them piling into Jackson’s white pick up truck.
“You know, I’ve never been in one of these.”
“Wow, you New York girls must not get out much,” he teased as he pulled up to school.
Alex and Dean hadn’t seemed to have noticed their parent’s absence as they were hunched over the latest issue of Spiderman chattering excitedly.
Jackson honked the horn. “Come on, you two! Don’t wanna be left here with Larry the creepy janitor!”
Alex giggled as he slid into the backseat. “You’re so funny, Jackson.”
“Hi, Miss Mackenzie,” Dean said shyly, sliding his comic book back in his bag.
“Hey, Dean! What are you reading, cutie?” she asked ruffling his hair.
“Spiderman.”
“I love Spiderman! He’s very cute.”
“You’re so silly, mommy.” Alex said, shaking his head. “But you look nice today. You should dress up when you pick me up more often.”