[Veronica, Stacy & Webster - Opposite Plot]

[plntfood]

There is something different.

Mathias isn't quite aware of it, although he feels it on some level, he feels brighter and better and just different. He can't name it, can't place it and, most importantly, he doesn't want to. Whatever is different, it isn't bad

Comments

[neptune_sleuth]

His good cheer is infectious, surely, and Veronica can't help but be grateful she made extra sure of herself before she headed out this morning. The clothes box has been just the kindest thing, fitting her out with the sweetest little sundress she ever did see. Nervously running a hand over the full skirt, she jerks it back toward her and trots up to meet Mathias, throwing her arms around his waist with a happy sigh. "I was hoping I'd run into you today."

[plntfood]

"You were?" Mathias asks, feeling his smile growing wider still as he wraps his arms around her shoulders and leans down to catch her mouth in a kiss. That Veronica wants to see him still makes him so happy, it fills him with cheer and when he pulls back, he sighs happily.

"I was hoping I would see you, too," he admits. "Seeing you is probably the best part of my day."

[neptune_sleuth]

"Oh, Mathias," Veronica says, a little flustered as she presses a hand to her heart. "That's awfully sweet of you to say. On both counts, I mean." Fluttering her eyelashes, she ducks her head a little. "It's the best part of my day, too."

After all, the minute she spotted him, didn't her day just brighten up? And it had been so bright already. Whatever weight had been on her shoulders before seems to have lifted so utterly, she simply can't care what caused it to begin with.

[plntfood]

"You're just so great," he says honestly, lifting his shoulders in a shrug. "Things here are very hard sometimes, trying to be normal and act normal when, in fact, all my insides are sort of broken, but you make everything seem easier."

He isn't sure where this is all coming from, but it's the truth, and that's what counts. For some reason, he's just never been able to say it before, but now it feels right.

[neptune_sleuth]

"Oh, no, no, no," she says, a persistent sort of clucking as she shakes her head and tips it to the side, reaching to take his hands. "You can't think of yourself that way. You've been so brave. It takes real bravery to go through what you did and - oh, well, you know what I mean."

There's a part of her that's afraid that he'll think she's foolish, that her words are silly, and it's so difficult to pretend that isn't so. She doesn't like to think about things as dark as this, but the truth is right there and he ought to know it.

[plntfood]

There are definitely a lot of reasons Mathias likes Veronica so much, but the fact that she's so nice and complimentary doesn't hurt at all. Smiling softly, he squeezes her hands, feeling good to know someone out there thinks he's brave.

"You're not like any other girl I know," he tells her. "Would you like to come for a walk with me? Webster says I should consider baking some cookies for you, but I think Webster just wants to get me laid and you should know, that's not my main priority at all. I just like spending time with you." Maybe that isn't something he needs to be sharing, now that he's thinking about it. But Webster did say it.

[neptune_sleuth]

It makes her blush to hear, not quite embarrassed, but a bit unsettled all the same, and Veronica ducks her head. "Oh, well, I'm sure his motives aren't so unselfishly base as all that," she protests. "It's actually really sweet. But you don't need to bake for me or - or do anything but be your own self. I'd love to walk with you."

The reasons she holds herself at bay are numerous, but it would be awfully inappropriate to discuss them, she decides - unladylike and unsavory, and really, a bit too sad for such a bright day. All she wants is to be happy in his company, and it's soothing to hear him say the same.

[plntfood]

"Oh, no, they are," Mathias assures her, nodding as he takes her hand and begins to walk down the boardwalk once more. It's a nice, quiet stroll, all the green is very calming -- something he hasn't truly felt since before Mexico -- and the distant sound of the waves crashing on the beach makes him smile.

"Webster likes me to tell him about you," he continues. "But I mostly keep things to myself. I'm not sure why I do that anymore. It seems very silly not to tell everyone just how much I like you."

[neptune_sleuth]

Veronica can't - doesn't even try to - suppress a giggle at that. It just seems so miraculous still that someone as wonderful as Mathias - that anyone at all - could care about her as he does. "I want to shout it from the rooftops," she says, bright and laughing. "The whole world ought to know."

[plntfood]

"We should do that," Mathias agrees, wondering why he hasn't thought of such a thing before. "We should have a nice dinner with your dad and tell him how much we like each other, too."

That seems like a brilliant idea, one that's come out of nowhere and he isn't sure how he hasn't thought of it earlier. Veronica is so nice and he remembers her dad being pretty nice, too, especially that day on the beach when he had helped him with Henrich.

[neptune_sleuth]

"Oh!" Veronica's hand flies to her mouth at the thought, and she finds herself nodding fervently. The idea of it makes her a little bashful, certainly, but isn't it about time her father had a chance to get to know Mathias? It only made sense that the two best men in her life should meet. "That's perfect. I love it. Oh, and he'll love you. Oh, can we? We really should. I could cook, too. Oh, what to make..."

[plntfood]

"Yes, let's do it," Mathias says with a smile, feeling excited and nervous all at once. He's already thinking of all sorts of things to tell Mr. Mars; his life story, of course, and just how much he likes his daughter. All things he expects Veronica's dad might be pleased to hear.

"Oh, I'm excited just thinking about it," he continues. "We can cook together and I can really make a good impression on him. I'm very good with parents, I think, I always have been. I hope your dad likes me, I really do."

[neptune_sleuth]

"He will," she says, fervent in her need to believe this. Goodness, if he doesn't, she won't know what to do. "He'll like anyone who makes me happy, and you make me awfully happy. I'll have to arrange something. I know he's just so busy, but I'm sure he can find time for this."

[plntfood]

"Do you think he'll still like me even if I tell him everything that happened back in Mexico?" Mathias asks. This morning, he's felt the need to really talk about it, explain what happened and how it makes him feel sometimes, but he isn't sure who to tell. "It is all pretty gruesome, but he saw Henrich's body. He should know everything, right?"

[neptune_sleuth]

"He's a man who appreciates the truth," Veronica says, just verging on worshipful, nevermind that it's a trait she can't find in herself today. All of this needing to know - she can't really understand, not when there's so many terrible things out there. It's so much better to enjoy the sunlight and the feel of Mathias' hand in hers than to think of all of it.

[plntfood]

"Then I'll tell him," Mathias decides with a firm nod, feeling content and firm in this. More than almost anything, he wants Veronica's dad to like him. He wants her friends to like him, too, and he wonders if he can meet them all soon.

His only real friends are Webster and Stacy.

"Did you ever meet Stacy?" he asks. "We should meet each others' friends, too."