RP: Chinese & Conversation

[rar_andromeda]

Date: Friday, July 26, 1999
Characters: Andromeda Tonks, Roger Davies
Location: Roger's flat
Status: Private
Summary: Andy drops by to see Roger
Completion: Complete

Comments

[rar_andromeda]

This was obviously a bad idea. Roger looked shocked to see her, and his greeting of 'uh' wasn't exactly positive. She hadn't really expected him to be home, but now she wondered if he was even alone. Oh, bloody hell. If he had someone with him, she'd just have to perform memory charms and leave and never think about being impulsive again.

When he finally smiled, she tried to relax and figure out a way to save the situation without looking foolish. She was a Slytherin, for Merlin's sake, so she could certainly come up with some reason to be standing at his door with food and wine. "Hello, Roger," she said, failing to think of anything just yet. She was distracted by the sight of his white t-shirt clinging to muscles, so it wasn't really her fault she was at a loss.

"Hmm?" She glanced up and blinked. "Oh, yes. Everything's fine. I just thought I'd stop by to see your flat. Teddy is staying overnight with Harry, which means I found myself with a free evening. Dinner with a friend sounded better than sitting at home alone, but I should have owled. You're probably busy, and I'm disturbing you."

[rar_roger]

"No -- ah, you're not disturbing me," he said, waiting for her to walk in. "I actually got home just a bit ago, so I'm not busy, either. I'm hungry, though, and glad to see you."

He shook his head slightly. "I'm just surprised, I suppose. In a good way. I like surprises." Which sounded unfathomably lame when said aloud, Roger realized. "Anyway. Why don't you come in, sit down? Food smells great."

[rar_andromeda]

"Oh?" She glanced at him curiously. "Did you for a drink after work with your mates or was it work that kept you late?"

She entered the flat when he said that he was hungry and glad to see her. That didn't sound as if he had plans, at least. "It's Chinese. Take-away. I also brought wine, if you're thirsty."

"I'm not particularly fond of surprises, myself, but I'm glad that you don't mind my intruding without invitation." She faced him and smiled slightly. "I tried to go back to work, but I couldn't focus on anything. I thought dinner with a friend might be nice."

[rar_roger]

"Definitely smells like Chinese," he commented, contemplating banging his head against the door once he'd closed it behind Andy. This was so bloody strange. He'd entertained entirely too many birds in the past to be worried about saying incredibly lame things at this point.

"Nah, of course I don't mind," he said, recovering. Dinner with a friend, she'd said; that was all. Right. "Well, ah, why don't you let me take that bag, and I'll fix some plates and some wine and we can work on that? The dinner-with-a-friend thing."

He started to gesture to the table in the corner, but it was covered in books and papers, and he cleared his throat. "Uh. Usually I end up eating at the counter, or on the sofa, so the dining table has become an overflow desk, sort of. I'll just clear that away."

[rar_andromeda]

"Right." She hadn't considered that he could probably smell it. Here she was rambling about the choice when he already figured it out. She made a face at the wall and could practically hear Ted laughing at her. She hadn't acted this foolish even as a teenager, so what was the problem now? "I wasn't sure if you had particular favorites, but I tried to choose a variety."

"I can help. I did intrude without warning, after all. It's only fair that I get everything together while you relax," she pointed out as she faced him. He looked awkward and uncomfortable, which wasn't good at all. She had hoped to relax with a friend, not impose on him like this.

"We can eat on the sofa. I don't want to be any trouble," she told him firmly. "It's not as if I eat at my table when it's just me and Teddy, after all."

[rar_roger]

"I won't say no," he grinned as she told him that she'd help, and told himself that he needed to relax. "but we can do it together; I'd feel weird just relaxing while you did it all. Come on," he said, taking her wrist and leading her into the kitchen. "And you're not any trouble. Never.

"I really should keep it tidy over there, at least. The table's become a general catch-all for whatever I happen to be reading." He laughed.

[rar_andromeda]

He took her wrist and led her into the small kitchen area. "I'd disagree with that, but it's probably best if I allow you to continue believing that for now," she mused. "You'll eventually realize that I actually am trouble, more often than not."

"This is a nice kitchen. Small, but it suits the size of the flat. Reminds me of my first flat, only bigger." She smiled as she looked around. "Having a table isn't nearly that important when you live alone or don't often have company over for dinner."

[rar_roger]

"Want to keep me ignorant, do you?" he eyed her, knowing she was joking but playing along. "How are you trouble? You can't drop a bomb like that and then expect me not to ask."

He snorted. "You had a flat that was somehow smaller than this one?" he asked. "And yeah, living alone is good that way. Etiquette can go out the window if you want it to."

[rar_andromeda]

"Of course. I can't tell you all my secrets, after all," she said in a lofty tone. "You can ask all you'd like, but I'm afraid that you'll never get answers from me. You'll just have to find out for yourself, I suppose."

It was then that she realized that she was flirting--was it flirting? It felt like it, but it had been ages since she'd ever done that, so it could just be friendly teasing. Yes, that's what it was. She nearly dropped a box of rice and suddenly found the plates very interesting because this was embarrassing, even if he hadn't noticed. Maybe moreso because he hadn't.

The smaller flat. That was safe. Nostalgia and youth, reminding her just how young he was and how old she was. Always good for those reminders since she seemed to forget too often. "It was a lot smaller, actually. Just this tiny studio in a Muggle area that I could actually afford, so it was pretty horrible. Barely enough room to walk around, the hot water never worked, and I still loved it because it was mine. A symbol of taking over my own life, I guess you'd say."

[rar_roger]

"Now I'm wondering how I can find out," he mused. "I'll have to somehow get myself into trouble, I reckon; so I'll need to figure out how to do that." He smiled slightly and raised a brow. Andy fumbled with the box of rice and he reached for it before she could drop it, so that their hands were both on the box at the same time, their fingers touching. He cleared his throat, but for whatever reason, he didn't move his hands, and wondered when she would.

"It sounds like fun," he said. "Like how I felt when I first moved away from home. For you, though, I'm sure it had even more meaning than the freedom to walk around in shorts whenever you wanted." He watched her a moment. "Anyway. My water's plenty hot, if you were wondering."

[rar_andromeda]

He wasn't letting go of the box. Instead, he was standing there staring at her. Standing much too close. She stared at the white fabric of his shirt as it stretched across his chest but didn't step back. His fingers brushed against hers, and she felt how warm and rough they were. He wasn't someone who avoided hard work, wasn't a bloke with soft hands and a light touch.

It was odd to be standing there holding a box of rice while discussing her old flat, but it didn't feel wrong. How could it be strange but right? It didn't really make sense. When he mentioned his water being hot, she glanced up and arched a brow. Her mind was still on his comment about walking around in shorts, but she certainly wasn't going to say that to him.

"Definitely more freedom than walking around nude, though I did enjoy having that opportunity if only because it would have horrified my mother." She tugged on the box of rice as she took a step back. "I'm glad to hear that you're not restricted to only cold showers, though. I'm sure that wouldn't be pleasant at all."

[rar_roger]

Andy tugged on the box and took a step back, which Roger took as a sign that he should probably let go. He did, though the exchange left him wondering what had taken either of them so long.

Well. He knew why in his case.

When she mentioned walking around naked, he coughed. "That's, ah, well. I'm sure it was very liberating." He was trying not to think about it too much, but without much success, and now he was wondering when the conversation had turned to cold showers. "They have their uses," he said, fumbling open a box of chicken with broccoli, "but I wouldn't want cold constantly; that'd be pretty inconvenient."

[rar_andromeda]

"Yes, it is," she agreed. "Not that I indulge now, with Teddy in the house. But it can be liberating just to feel comfortable in your own skin."

Since it wasn't a good idea to be thinking about showers and Roger in connection with each other, she let the subject drop. Instead, she finished opening cartons and began to put things on a plate.

"If you'd get me two glasses, I'll pour some wine." She reached for the bottle and wondered if having wine was smart when she seemed to have lost her ability to keep a nice distance between her reality and her inappropriate thoughts.

[rar_roger]

Roger nodded. "Glasses. Can do." He actually had to pause for a split second and consider where he kept the wineglasses; he never used them. Remembering that they were in the highest cabinet, he reached up to grab the only two he had. He was more of a beer drinker, but it was best to have wineglasses on hand anyway, because girls so often wanted it in his experience and it was nice for dates. Not that this was a date. They hadn't even planned this evening. He set the glasses in front of her and busied himself with gathering flatware and napkins before he grabbed their plates.

"I'll just take these to the couch, if you'll bring the wine over, and we can eat."

[rar_andromeda]

While he got glasses, she put the bottle of wine down and finished making two plates. She wasn't sure what he would prefer to eat, so she put a little of everything on his plate. She finished in time to take the glasses from him.

"Alright." She watched his bum as he walked out of the kitchen and went to the sofa. With a shake of her head, she opened the wine and poured two glasses. After considering it, she took the bottle with her.

"This is cozy," she said as she put the glasses down. She slipped off her shoes before she sat down and sipped her wine. "Do you like living here?"

[rar_roger]

Roger watched Andy remove her shoes, taking the time to note the way her stockinged legs looked with the tidy skirt she wore. "I do," he said. "It's quieter than I'm used to -- the whole town is, really -- and I still manage to not get out enough despite having five immediate neighbors, but I like it."

He reached for his wine to wet his dry throat. "One day, obviously, I'll want my own place, with a yard, and such."