Positive Ways (Toby/Kelly) PG
Title: Positive Ways
Author: bridgetmoon
Pairing/Character: Toby/Kelly
Rating: PG
Summary: Kelly decides to try positive attention-getting techniques. Written for the ipod_ovenmitt Rare Pair Summer Exchange.
Spoilers: none!
"And can you believe Meredith? She was all, 'I guess somebody needs some attention,' and I was like, 'So what, Meredith?!' I mean, everybody needs attention! Do you know what happens to baby monkeys when nobody pays attention to them?"
Toby didn't answer her for a few seconds. Maybe he didn't realize at first that the question was meant for him and not Meredith of a few minutes ago.
"They…die?" he finally suggested.
"They die! Or go crazy! Positive attention is a good and necessary thing. And this is totally positive! I'm trying to share what's special and unique about me. To focus on the fun, exciting things that make me stand out."
Kelly had come across a really good article titled "Eight Positive Ways to Get Your Ex's Attention," and it had really made her rethink a lot of things. Specifically, it had shocked her to learn that experts considered a number of her go-to tactics to be "negative" attention getting.
"Wouldn't you say that's positive?" she prompted him.
"What is?" he asked.
"Toby!" she exclaimed, wondering why a smart guy like him couldn't keep up, "I made kheer! To share with everybody!" She grabbed the Saran-wrapped bowl and took it around the partition to show him. "See?"
"It looks good," he said, though she thought he was eyeing it doubtfully.
"No, it doesn't!" she said, suddenly discouraged, "It looks totally blah!" She had put the milky pudding in the cut glass bowl she used to hold chips at parties, thinking that would make it festive, but she saw now that it wasn't working. "I should have gotten a rose for it. You sprinkle rose petals in it on special occasions, to make it prettier. Why didn't I do that?!"
"Rose petals?" he said, sounding surprised. "A particular kind of rose, or…?"
"Red or pink look the best," she told him, pleased at his interest. For Toby, this was like a gabfest. "A lot of people use red, but I like pink. Bright pink, not pale pink. And definitely not orangey-pink. More of a fuchsia."
"Well…I have to make a run to the Fed-Ex place," he said. "There's a flower stand on that corner. I'll look for a rose if you want."
"That would be awesome!" she said, perking up again. Toby was always so sweet. It was going to be a good day. A positive day.
An hour later, she was slumped over her desk, tears dripping off her chin into the bowl as she ate the lumpy roseless kheer by herself. It had burnt on the bottom when she cooked it, and though she had carefully avoided scraping any of the black part into the bowl, she thought there was still a little bit of a scorchy taste. Still, she couldn't stop eating it. I must have known in my heart what would happen when I decided to make this instead of basundi, she thought. Kheer is a total comfort food.
Then she thought, Of course, I knew what would happen. It doesn't exactly take psychic powers, by now. What is wrong with me?
"Kelly?" Toby said, "Um…did you still want this?"
She hopped up quickly, away from the bowl, mortified that he had caught her comfort eating. Then she saw that he had a vivid pink rose in one hand, the long stem folded in green tissue paper.
"You actually got it?" she said. She had already decided that he had probably invented the Fed-Ex errand to get away from her. And possibly gone back to Costa Rica.
"I said I would," he replied, with a little shrug. "The guy on the corner only had red and yellow, so I went on up to Gerrity's."
Kelly felt the knot in her chest dissolve as she realized that he had actually been listening to her. She threw her arms around him.
"Oh, Toby," she said, "you are a gentleman and a real man and when you say will do something, you always, always do it."
He made a little huffing noise, and his return hug was a little slow and stiff, but when she looked up at him his eyes were crinkly.
"Do you want to try my kheer?" she asked, squeezing him again.
"…Sure," he said. "Um…Hold on."
She released him and he disappeared back around the partition. Cradling the bowl, Kelly sat down on the floor with her back to the wall, drawing her legs to the side and tugging her skirt over her knees.
Toby reappeared with a black plastic spoon, which he brandished ridiculously. He didn't comment on her sitting on the floor. He eased down beside her and took the bowl when she thrust it at him, holding it awkwardly between them. Kelly took the rose and gently stroked the bloom until a few petals came loose in her hand. She scattered them over the top of the kheer, where they floated in happy little curls.
"Huh," he said.
"Oh - I cried in it a little," she warned him.
"Is that the secret ingredient?" he asked, taking a spoonful. "Isn't there a song like that? 'There's a Tear in My Kheer?'"
"Oh my God, you are such a dork," she said, psyched that he was making dumb little jokes. She figured it meant that he was happy. "Do you like it?"
"Yeah, it's lovely," he said.
Author: bridgetmoon
Pairing/Character: Toby/Kelly
Rating: PG
Summary: Kelly decides to try positive attention-getting techniques. Written for the ipod_ovenmitt Rare Pair Summer Exchange.
Spoilers: none!
"And can you believe Meredith? She was all, 'I guess somebody needs some attention,' and I was like, 'So what, Meredith?!' I mean, everybody needs attention! Do you know what happens to baby monkeys when nobody pays attention to them?"
Toby didn't answer her for a few seconds. Maybe he didn't realize at first that the question was meant for him and not Meredith of a few minutes ago.
"They…die?" he finally suggested.
"They die! Or go crazy! Positive attention is a good and necessary thing. And this is totally positive! I'm trying to share what's special and unique about me. To focus on the fun, exciting things that make me stand out."
Kelly had come across a really good article titled "Eight Positive Ways to Get Your Ex's Attention," and it had really made her rethink a lot of things. Specifically, it had shocked her to learn that experts considered a number of her go-to tactics to be "negative" attention getting.
"Wouldn't you say that's positive?" she prompted him.
"What is?" he asked.
"Toby!" she exclaimed, wondering why a smart guy like him couldn't keep up, "I made kheer! To share with everybody!" She grabbed the Saran-wrapped bowl and took it around the partition to show him. "See?"
"It looks good," he said, though she thought he was eyeing it doubtfully.
"No, it doesn't!" she said, suddenly discouraged, "It looks totally blah!" She had put the milky pudding in the cut glass bowl she used to hold chips at parties, thinking that would make it festive, but she saw now that it wasn't working. "I should have gotten a rose for it. You sprinkle rose petals in it on special occasions, to make it prettier. Why didn't I do that?!"
"Rose petals?" he said, sounding surprised. "A particular kind of rose, or…?"
"Red or pink look the best," she told him, pleased at his interest. For Toby, this was like a gabfest. "A lot of people use red, but I like pink. Bright pink, not pale pink. And definitely not orangey-pink. More of a fuchsia."
"Well…I have to make a run to the Fed-Ex place," he said. "There's a flower stand on that corner. I'll look for a rose if you want."
"That would be awesome!" she said, perking up again. Toby was always so sweet. It was going to be a good day. A positive day.
An hour later, she was slumped over her desk, tears dripping off her chin into the bowl as she ate the lumpy roseless kheer by herself. It had burnt on the bottom when she cooked it, and though she had carefully avoided scraping any of the black part into the bowl, she thought there was still a little bit of a scorchy taste. Still, she couldn't stop eating it. I must have known in my heart what would happen when I decided to make this instead of basundi, she thought. Kheer is a total comfort food.
Then she thought, Of course, I knew what would happen. It doesn't exactly take psychic powers, by now. What is wrong with me?
"Kelly?" Toby said, "Um…did you still want this?"
She hopped up quickly, away from the bowl, mortified that he had caught her comfort eating. Then she saw that he had a vivid pink rose in one hand, the long stem folded in green tissue paper.
"You actually got it?" she said. She had already decided that he had probably invented the Fed-Ex errand to get away from her. And possibly gone back to Costa Rica.
"I said I would," he replied, with a little shrug. "The guy on the corner only had red and yellow, so I went on up to Gerrity's."
Kelly felt the knot in her chest dissolve as she realized that he had actually been listening to her. She threw her arms around him.
"Oh, Toby," she said, "you are a gentleman and a real man and when you say will do something, you always, always do it."
He made a little huffing noise, and his return hug was a little slow and stiff, but when she looked up at him his eyes were crinkly.
"Do you want to try my kheer?" she asked, squeezing him again.
"…Sure," he said. "Um…Hold on."
She released him and he disappeared back around the partition. Cradling the bowl, Kelly sat down on the floor with her back to the wall, drawing her legs to the side and tugging her skirt over her knees.
Toby reappeared with a black plastic spoon, which he brandished ridiculously. He didn't comment on her sitting on the floor. He eased down beside her and took the bowl when she thrust it at him, holding it awkwardly between them. Kelly took the rose and gently stroked the bloom until a few petals came loose in her hand. She scattered them over the top of the kheer, where they floated in happy little curls.
"Huh," he said.
"Oh - I cried in it a little," she warned him.
"Is that the secret ingredient?" he asked, taking a spoonful. "Isn't there a song like that? 'There's a Tear in My Kheer?'"
"Oh my God, you are such a dork," she said, psyched that he was making dumb little jokes. She figured it meant that he was happy. "Do you like it?"
"Yeah, it's lovely," he said.