Eden sighs, stretching her arms up over her head. She'll feel it tomorrow, that's for certain, but truth be told, she relishes it, the ache in her muscles that promises she's only getting stronger. It's been a long time since she really had anyone to keep her on her toes like this, and she's taken more than a few knocks since starting, but she appreciates it. She's let herself grow rusty. It's one thing to relax, another to lose touch, and though the island is relatively peaceful, it helps her sense of peace to know she's prepared to fight.
"Well, you sure as hell don't make it easy," she says, smiling over at him. Shaking her hair loose from its short ponytail, she heads over to sit near him and sip her own water. "That was a good one."
"Where's the fun in making it easy?" he counters with a laugh. Still, there's something satisfying in the fact he's a little out of practice himself and he can still hold his own. That she's such a challenge isn't what he expected, but all the better, if you ask him.
"Oh, none at all," Eden says. She's out of practice and he can more than hold his own even without being able to see her, so it's far from easy, but it's exactly what she needs. It helps, knowing she's getting back in shape, that she'll be ready if anything happens here. Combat was never a big part of her field experience, but Bennet wanted her prepared for anything. She has to wonder what he'd say if he could see her these days. "It makes stopping even better. So how's moving going?"
"Not bad, especially considering my roommate wants us to do most of the repairs ourselves," he snorts, though he sounds less annoyed and more amused by that fact. Honestly, he can't complain when it's giving him something to do himself during the times of the day everything seems to just drag. "I've basically had a crash course in hut repair these last few weeks."
Eden laughs, shaking her head. "God, I can imagine," she says. "I like to leave that to the professionals. It's so much less likely to end in tears. Are you decorating everything, too?" Annie probably is, she figures. The huts are nice, sturdy buildings, but they're plain enough to be depressing without a little work inside.
"It luckily isn't too bad. Otherwise I probably would've insisted," he shrugs. For all of Annie's bravado, he knows she knows about as much as he does about home building. Repairs are manageable, but beyond that, it'd probably end up in disaster. He just grins at the question of decoration, leaning back on one hand. "I'm living with a girl. What do you think?"
If it'd been just him, he knows he would've decorated it a little eventually, more for other people visiting than himself. He could make do with simple pretty easily otherwise.
"I think that means fresh flowers in the living room," Eden teases. "And paintings of kittens. I don't know, I don't know Annie's taste in interior design." She knows she likes the other woman, though, and that she doesn't seem like the kitten painting type. That she and Auggie knew each other before the island explains this living situation, and Eden knows men and women are fully capable of simply being friends, contrary to popular opinion, but she doesn't know if there's something more behind it or not. It's hard not to wonder. "So how are things with you two then?"
"Kittens and puppies," he agrees, laughing. Annie doesn't quite seem the type - or so he hopes. He'd rather not think about her decorating things to that extent. "No, I think - hope - I don't need to worry about that. You can tell me if you spot anything suspicious when it's finally ready to be shown off."
He shrugs at her other question, pausing to take a good swig of the water he's still holding. "It's going fine so far. We haven't tried to kill each other yet, anyway. I haven't had a roommate in a while, nevermind a female one, so it'll take a little while to get used to it."
Eden's brow raises, and though she'd rather he could see than not, it's also nice to be able to make a face at that with no questions. True, she knows Annie's still grappling a bit with her last relationship, but she did say she was ready to move on. Maybe it was a bit presumptuous, based wholly on the fact of their already knowing each other, but Eden assumed that, when the time came for Annie to carry that on to a new relationship, she already had an idea of who with.
"Just roommates?" she asks, tone coy, and if she's curious for their sakes, she may also have a slight vested interest of her own.
He just laughs when the question comes, shooting her a grin.
"Just roommates," he confirms. He'd already been resigned to the knowledge he's probably going to get this question once or twice. And, okay, he kind of sees why people would assume, too, all things considered. "We just both wanted out of the Compound, and the hut she picked is more than big enough for two people. Saves me the trouble of finding something for myself."
"Oh, well, that's good to know," Eden says, intentionally casual, mostly teasing. It's not as if she doesn't mean it - since they're both her friends, it's worth knowing, for one. For another, she'd be lying if she said she didn't think he was cute. "I just thought there might be something else there."
"Nope, just a plain old boring friendship," he jokes with a casual shrug. That their friendship - and how they came to meet - is nothing close to boring isn't really the point. Eyebrow raising a moment later, he asks, in a similarly teasing tone of voice, "Why do you ask? Wondering if I'm single?"
"Well, you can't blame a girl for being curious." It isn't actually a no. In fact, it's kind of a yes, if Eden's honest, but she's not trying to be especially honest. She's just playing, flirting - taking a page out of Lily's book for a change, although both Lily and the girl Eden once was would probably be a hell of a lot bolder about it. She doubts Auggie's the kind of guy who'll get awkward about her saying so either.
"Well to satisfy your curiosity, I am definitely single," Auggie replies. A status that's been pretty constant the last few years, though he's had no lack of beautiful women come and go in his life. The conversation's taken an interesting turn, either way, and he figures there's no harm in continuing it. "So do I get to ask you the same question now?"
"You can ask me anything you want," Eden says, laughter bubbling up. She can't always guarantee she'll answer honestly, although she mostly does, but she's not opposed to questions. From him, she's sure anything he'd have to ask would be harmless anyway. "I am. I'm very single. For the last... I don't even know now. God, a year." She still misses Grigg sometimes, but she knows it's more than time for her to move on.
"Oh, see, offering that is dangerous," he jokes, biting back a laugh. Or it would be if he were the type to take up that offer. At her answer, he pauses to consider that. "A year? Pretty girl like you? Haven't met anyone interesting, I guess?"
For as casual as he throws the compliment out, he means it. Usually he can only say that with the knowledge everything but his eyes could give, but this time he's actually seen her, too.
"Well, you sure as hell don't make it easy," she says, smiling over at him. Shaking her hair loose from its short ponytail, she heads over to sit near him and sip her own water. "That was a good one."
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If it'd been just him, he knows he would've decorated it a little eventually, more for other people visiting than himself. He could make do with simple pretty easily otherwise.
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He shrugs at her other question, pausing to take a good swig of the water he's still holding. "It's going fine so far. We haven't tried to kill each other yet, anyway. I haven't had a roommate in a while, nevermind a female one, so it'll take a little while to get used to it."
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"Just roommates?" she asks, tone coy, and if she's curious for their sakes, she may also have a slight vested interest of her own.
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"Just roommates," he confirms. He'd already been resigned to the knowledge he's probably going to get this question once or twice. And, okay, he kind of sees why people would assume, too, all things considered. "We just both wanted out of the Compound, and the hut she picked is more than big enough for two people. Saves me the trouble of finding something for myself."
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For as casual as he throws the compliment out, he means it. Usually he can only say that with the knowledge everything but his eyes could give, but this time he's actually seen her, too.
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