A Bottle of Beer, Mongolian Beef and You
Title: A Bottle of Beer, Mongolian Beef and You
Author: Jelsemium
Pairing/Characters: Charlie/Amita
Rating: K
Summary: Picnicking in the back yard
Word Count: 1411
Spoilers: None
Notes/Warnings: Shades into Gen
Prompt/Challenge (if applicable): One word prompt for for the numb3rs_het #19 - Outside
Disclaimer: Not responsible for damage to your keyboard
It had been a horrible day and Amita Ramanujan was still upset.
It seemed like a good time to take a walk. Actually, it was far past time for her to take a walk. She had been visiting this neighborhood for years before she had moved in with Charlie, but she had never really explored it.
The area was really quite lovely, especially in the golden glow of the late afternoon sun. Antique houses that were solidly built out of wood and stone, rather than the flimsy plaster, chicken wire and pressed board that passed for modern houses. The yards were much larger than in the newer housing tracts, too.
She could tell that the neighbors were proud of their homes because they obviously put a lot of time and money into the yards. The grass was lush and springy. The flower beds were filled with beautiful flowers… roses, azaleas. fuchsias, camellias and many other plants that Amita had seen before but didn't know by name.
She was particularly interested in the trees with the purple flowers. So, when she spotted a woman working in her garage, she walked up to her and greeted her.
"Hello, dear. Out for a walk?" Amita's new neighbor was someone shorter and heavier than Amita. She had brown hair with grey streaks and crow's feet that her smile emphasized.
"Yes," Amita said. "I needed to stretch my legs and thought I'd look around." She half turned and gestured to the graceful tree in the middle of the lawn. "I love your tree! What kind is it?"
The woman smiled up at her. "It's a jacaranda, my dear. Or hack-a-randa, if you want to try the Spanish pronunciation. They're from Mexico." She looked Amita up and down. "I saw you and Charlie get out of a cab earlier." She paused, and then held out her hand. "I take it you two are living together?"
Amita smiled and nodded. "I finished moving in just yesterday," she said, shaking Sharon's hand. "I'm Amita Ramanujan."
"Pleased to meet you, I'm Sharon McCray." She smiled conspiratorially. "I'm glad to see Charlie's settling down. He's such a nice boy, even if he is the stereotypical absent minded professor."
Amita grinned. "Tell me about it," she said ruefully.
"Why the taxi? I thought Charlie was driving now?" she asked.
Amita made a face. "He is, but his car broke down." She heaved a deep sigh.
"Bad day?" Sharon asked sympathetically.
"To put it mildly," Amita said. "We've been in meetings all day. Then, when I went to get some lunch, my purse was stolen."
"No lunch, then?"
Amita shook her head. "Charlie shared his sandwich with me," she said. "Then he drove me to the police station after work, because my car's been in the shop since last week!"
"Oh, you are not having a good week, are you?" Sharon asked sympathetically.
"It gets worse," Amita said gloomily. "On our way home, Charlie's car broke down."
Sharon patted her on the shoulder. "Things are bound to start getting better," she said.
Amita could have contradicted her, but decided that she'd complained enough for the first meeting. Instead, she looked over at what Sharon had been working on. "Cleaning out the garage?"
"Yes," Sharon said. "We are going to have a garage sale this weekend." She gestured to the piles of stuff that had been moved to the driveway. "You're welcome to a sneak preview if you want, although I expect you don't need much in that nice house."
"You'd be surprised," Amita murmured, mainly to herself
To be polite, Amita walked around and looked at the 'treasures'. She headed to the pile of books first, of course. "Oo, poetry," she said. She flipped through the anthology and spotted a couple of her favorite poems.
"Ha, I figured you'd go for the books, first," Sharon said.
Amita grinned. "What can I say? I'm a serious minded academic!" Then she crossed her eyes and stuck out her tongue.
Sharon laughed and held something out. "Here, sweetie, you can't be serious all the time."
Amita laughed when she saw that Sharon was holding a Miller Lite Talking Beer Opener.
"What does it say?" she asked. She tucked the poetry book under her arm.
"It says: 'Oh, It's Miller Time!' when you open a bottle," Sharon said. "My husband thought it was so funny… the first three thousand times he used it."
Amita grinned, and then her eye was caught by a pile of blankets. She picked up a pink chenille bedspread that had seen better days. "This is nice," she said. "Just right for picnics." She looked at Sharon. "How much for this?"
"You can have it, the book and the bottle opener for five dollars," Sharon said.
Amita smiled, and then her face fell. "Oh, I don't have any money on me."
"Don't worry, I'll give you credit," Sharon replied, waving Amita's concerns aside. She smiled impishly. "I know where you live."
"Thank you," Amita said, smiling.
"I hope to see more of you," Sharon replied. The older women went back to work.
"Oh, you will," Amita said. She waved as she walked back to Charlie's house feeling much more relaxed than she had fifteen minutes ago.
"Maybe I should take up gardening," she announced when she returned to the Eppes' yard.
Charlie, who had his cell phone plastered against his ear, held up one forefinger.
Amita placed her fingers against her lips, feeling a trifle embarrassed. She started feeling stressed again as she noticed Charlie's expression. She wondered if Don had been injured.
"Megan? Are you sure there's nothing that I need to know about?" Charlie said. "I can call Dad; he'll break all the speed laws between here and San Diego..."
There was a pause as Megan obviously gave the right answers. Amita saw Charlie's face relax and she relaxed, too.
"Okay, thanks, Megan," Charlie said. "Tell Don I expect him to drop by the house as soon as he's done at the hospital or I'm telling Dad that he got injured." He paused. "I'm fine with lying, actually. You'd be surprised how good I am when I'm not face to face with someone."
Amita could hear Megan laugh.
"Thanks, Megan," Charlie said again. He flipped the phone shut and smiled brightly at Amita. "Looks like it's just you and me for dinner, then." He gestured to the koi pond. "Picnic?"
Amita sighed, shook her head, and then laughed. "Sure, why not?" She shook the pink chenille bedspread at him. "I even found us a blanket."
"Ah, from Mrs. McCray," Charlie said. "I remember this from when we went to barbecues over at her house." A wistful expression crossed his face. "Her husband made the best barbecue."
"We'll have to invite them over sometime," Amita said.
Charlie nodded. Then he held up his cell phone again and said: "Well, since the car is in the shop, we'll have to order out. Any preference?"
"Chinese will be fine," Amita said.
They spent a few minutes discussing the menu with the nice lady who was taking their order. As they waited for their order, they sat out on the front porch dissecting Millie's latest project proposal.
The picnic next to the koi pond was a mild success. They fed each other with the chopsticks, tossed bits of rice in to the koi and sipped from each other's beer. (They ordered Kirin Lite instead of Miller Lite.)
After dinner, they read poems from the book. Well, Amita tried to read poetry. Charlie seemed intent on having dessert.
"Stop that!" Amita said as he nuzzled her neck.
"Why?" Charlie asked. "Dad's out of town and Don won't be here for another hour, at best."
"What about the neighbors?"
Charlie looked around. "There are no windows with a clear line of sight to this spot," he said. He went back to nibbling. "Not to mention that it's getting dark…"
Amita pushed the book into his hands. "Read, Charlie."
Charlie flipped it open and read: "A Book of Verses underneath the Bough/ A jug of wine, a loaf of bread, - and thou/ Beside me singing in the Wilderness/ Oh, Wilderness were Paradise enow!"
"More like a bottle of beer, Mongolian beef and …" Amita paused.
"Chenille?" Charlie said. He lifted the corner of the pink chenille bedspread. "What more could we ask for?" he teased.
Amita leaned against his shoulder, nuzzled his earlobe and said throatily, "The.House.Keys."
Author: Jelsemium
Pairing/Characters: Charlie/Amita
Rating: K
Summary: Picnicking in the back yard
Word Count: 1411
Spoilers: None
Notes/Warnings: Shades into Gen
Prompt/Challenge (if applicable): One word prompt for for the numb3rs_het #19 - Outside
Disclaimer: Not responsible for damage to your keyboard
It had been a horrible day and Amita Ramanujan was still upset.
It seemed like a good time to take a walk. Actually, it was far past time for her to take a walk. She had been visiting this neighborhood for years before she had moved in with Charlie, but she had never really explored it.
The area was really quite lovely, especially in the golden glow of the late afternoon sun. Antique houses that were solidly built out of wood and stone, rather than the flimsy plaster, chicken wire and pressed board that passed for modern houses. The yards were much larger than in the newer housing tracts, too.
She could tell that the neighbors were proud of their homes because they obviously put a lot of time and money into the yards. The grass was lush and springy. The flower beds were filled with beautiful flowers… roses, azaleas. fuchsias, camellias and many other plants that Amita had seen before but didn't know by name.
She was particularly interested in the trees with the purple flowers. So, when she spotted a woman working in her garage, she walked up to her and greeted her.
"Hello, dear. Out for a walk?" Amita's new neighbor was someone shorter and heavier than Amita. She had brown hair with grey streaks and crow's feet that her smile emphasized.
"Yes," Amita said. "I needed to stretch my legs and thought I'd look around." She half turned and gestured to the graceful tree in the middle of the lawn. "I love your tree! What kind is it?"
The woman smiled up at her. "It's a jacaranda, my dear. Or hack-a-randa, if you want to try the Spanish pronunciation. They're from Mexico." She looked Amita up and down. "I saw you and Charlie get out of a cab earlier." She paused, and then held out her hand. "I take it you two are living together?"
Amita smiled and nodded. "I finished moving in just yesterday," she said, shaking Sharon's hand. "I'm Amita Ramanujan."
"Pleased to meet you, I'm Sharon McCray." She smiled conspiratorially. "I'm glad to see Charlie's settling down. He's such a nice boy, even if he is the stereotypical absent minded professor."
Amita grinned. "Tell me about it," she said ruefully.
"Why the taxi? I thought Charlie was driving now?" she asked.
Amita made a face. "He is, but his car broke down." She heaved a deep sigh.
"Bad day?" Sharon asked sympathetically.
"To put it mildly," Amita said. "We've been in meetings all day. Then, when I went to get some lunch, my purse was stolen."
"No lunch, then?"
Amita shook her head. "Charlie shared his sandwich with me," she said. "Then he drove me to the police station after work, because my car's been in the shop since last week!"
"Oh, you are not having a good week, are you?" Sharon asked sympathetically.
"It gets worse," Amita said gloomily. "On our way home, Charlie's car broke down."
Sharon patted her on the shoulder. "Things are bound to start getting better," she said.
Amita could have contradicted her, but decided that she'd complained enough for the first meeting. Instead, she looked over at what Sharon had been working on. "Cleaning out the garage?"
"Yes," Sharon said. "We are going to have a garage sale this weekend." She gestured to the piles of stuff that had been moved to the driveway. "You're welcome to a sneak preview if you want, although I expect you don't need much in that nice house."
"You'd be surprised," Amita murmured, mainly to herself
To be polite, Amita walked around and looked at the 'treasures'. She headed to the pile of books first, of course. "Oo, poetry," she said. She flipped through the anthology and spotted a couple of her favorite poems.
"Ha, I figured you'd go for the books, first," Sharon said.
Amita grinned. "What can I say? I'm a serious minded academic!" Then she crossed her eyes and stuck out her tongue.
Sharon laughed and held something out. "Here, sweetie, you can't be serious all the time."
Amita laughed when she saw that Sharon was holding a Miller Lite Talking Beer Opener.
"What does it say?" she asked. She tucked the poetry book under her arm.
"It says: 'Oh, It's Miller Time!' when you open a bottle," Sharon said. "My husband thought it was so funny… the first three thousand times he used it."
Amita grinned, and then her eye was caught by a pile of blankets. She picked up a pink chenille bedspread that had seen better days. "This is nice," she said. "Just right for picnics." She looked at Sharon. "How much for this?"
"You can have it, the book and the bottle opener for five dollars," Sharon said.
Amita smiled, and then her face fell. "Oh, I don't have any money on me."
"Don't worry, I'll give you credit," Sharon replied, waving Amita's concerns aside. She smiled impishly. "I know where you live."
"Thank you," Amita said, smiling.
"I hope to see more of you," Sharon replied. The older women went back to work.
"Oh, you will," Amita said. She waved as she walked back to Charlie's house feeling much more relaxed than she had fifteen minutes ago.
"Maybe I should take up gardening," she announced when she returned to the Eppes' yard.
Charlie, who had his cell phone plastered against his ear, held up one forefinger.
Amita placed her fingers against her lips, feeling a trifle embarrassed. She started feeling stressed again as she noticed Charlie's expression. She wondered if Don had been injured.
"Megan? Are you sure there's nothing that I need to know about?" Charlie said. "I can call Dad; he'll break all the speed laws between here and San Diego..."
There was a pause as Megan obviously gave the right answers. Amita saw Charlie's face relax and she relaxed, too.
"Okay, thanks, Megan," Charlie said. "Tell Don I expect him to drop by the house as soon as he's done at the hospital or I'm telling Dad that he got injured." He paused. "I'm fine with lying, actually. You'd be surprised how good I am when I'm not face to face with someone."
Amita could hear Megan laugh.
"Thanks, Megan," Charlie said again. He flipped the phone shut and smiled brightly at Amita. "Looks like it's just you and me for dinner, then." He gestured to the koi pond. "Picnic?"
Amita sighed, shook her head, and then laughed. "Sure, why not?" She shook the pink chenille bedspread at him. "I even found us a blanket."
"Ah, from Mrs. McCray," Charlie said. "I remember this from when we went to barbecues over at her house." A wistful expression crossed his face. "Her husband made the best barbecue."
"We'll have to invite them over sometime," Amita said.
Charlie nodded. Then he held up his cell phone again and said: "Well, since the car is in the shop, we'll have to order out. Any preference?"
"Chinese will be fine," Amita said.
They spent a few minutes discussing the menu with the nice lady who was taking their order. As they waited for their order, they sat out on the front porch dissecting Millie's latest project proposal.
The picnic next to the koi pond was a mild success. They fed each other with the chopsticks, tossed bits of rice in to the koi and sipped from each other's beer. (They ordered Kirin Lite instead of Miller Lite.)
After dinner, they read poems from the book. Well, Amita tried to read poetry. Charlie seemed intent on having dessert.
"Stop that!" Amita said as he nuzzled her neck.
"Why?" Charlie asked. "Dad's out of town and Don won't be here for another hour, at best."
"What about the neighbors?"
Charlie looked around. "There are no windows with a clear line of sight to this spot," he said. He went back to nibbling. "Not to mention that it's getting dark…"
Amita pushed the book into his hands. "Read, Charlie."
Charlie flipped it open and read: "A Book of Verses underneath the Bough/ A jug of wine, a loaf of bread, - and thou/ Beside me singing in the Wilderness/ Oh, Wilderness were Paradise enow!"
"More like a bottle of beer, Mongolian beef and …" Amita paused.
"Chenille?" Charlie said. He lifted the corner of the pink chenille bedspread. "What more could we ask for?" he teased.
Amita leaned against his shoulder, nuzzled his earlobe and said throatily, "The.House.Keys."