for nurse_boy: fun with canon age compliance

[too_fairytale]

Today has been a good birthday, Amy thinks to herself. It began with Aunt Sharon announcing that, now that Amy is finally old enough to look after herself (an announcement that had been greeted with a very healthy eye-roll where the older woman couldn't see it), she plans to get her own place in Gloucester and leave the big old house to Amy. As far

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[too_fairytale]

She has been smiling at him more lately, or at least, she has been tonight; any other time recently that Rory's noticed her doing it, it's been an unconscious thing on her part. Today has been on purpose--she's angling for a goodnight snog, true, but she's also genuinely enjoyed herself. Amy has found that Rory can be good company now that they're both more grown up and the developmental divide between them isn't as wide a gulf as it was when, say, she was eleven and he was fifteen. He isn't embarrassed to be seen with her (though to be fair, he never really was that) or scandalized by the idea of being with her at all (which had seemed to start happening after she tried getting a New Year's snog out of him when she was fourteen). He's still as awkwardly sweet as ever, though, and his jokes are still terrible, and he still gives her his complete attention. It's nice to know that some things about him haven't changed.

Though, the things that have changed... like him growing older, and therefore a lot less gawky-looking... or whatever prompted him to actually ask her out when she'd thought he would never be interested... they aren't so bad, either.

Amy gives him a teasing eye-roll as he takes her hand again. "Afraid I'll get lost between here and the door?"

[nurse_boy]

Rory rolls his eyes right back at her, though it's tempered somewhat by the way he ducks his head a little and smiles, slightly awkward and a touch shy.

"No," he says, and dares to be upfront. "Maybe I just like holding your hand ... is that okay?"

The question comes almost automatically. It's sort of an unwritten rule between them, something understood, that even though they may be sort-of dating, Amy doesn't do public affection. At all. (She doesn't even really do affection by itself much, either, but especially out in public.) And while they aren't exactly out in public right now, they are outside.

[too_fairytale]

"Maybe," she replies--also almost automatically, as a tease, but she actually does mean it. Sort of. Maybe. No one's around, it's just them; she can let herself like it a little, too. She gives their joined hands a swing.

[nurse_boy]

He can't help but smile brightly as Amy steps ahead to get her key in the lock of the back door. It's not a yes but it's definitely better than a no, and Rory will take maybe over no any day, from her.

Letting go of her hand so she can get the door open, he stuffs both his hands back in the pockets of his coat to warm them, and stamps his feet. Amy's face is glowing milky white in the moonlight, highlighting her cheeks and eyebrows making her hair shine copper red, and once again Rory is struck by just how lovely she's become. At heart and in mind she's still the stubborn, bonkers, slightly damaged Amy he's always known, but physically there's hardly a trace of the young girl she once was left. It still surprises him--after all, when he was learning to drive and taking his GCSEs, Amy was still Amelia, shedding the last vestiges of childhood and still very much into her Raggedy Doctor games.

So it both confounds and pleases him that he is dating pretty Amy Pond--confounds, because even though she's been his best friend for years she was always, well, younger; and pleases because beautiful, witty, sparky Amy seems to have given up casual dating and serial snogging (outside of her job) for him. Best friends or not, they're an unlikely match.

"Hey," he says, reaching out to touch her elbow as she gets the door open. "Mind if I come inside for a moment? I've got ... I've got something for you. A present."

Bugger, that was transparent ...

[too_fairytale]

Something like a jolt of electrical excitement shocks right through Amy's chest at that, and she almost drops her keys as she wrestles them away from the lock. A present? But their entire trip to Bristol for dinner was supposed to have been her birthday present (and she knows it wasn't cheap). If she's been successful in hinting at wanting a goodnight snog, or he's been planning to snog her goodnight all along, and that's what he means by a present... it will officially be his most un-terrible joke ever.

"Yeah," she replies--almost blurts, really--and shoves her keys into her coat pocket, standing aside to let him go past her inside. "Come on in."

[nurse_boy]

Rory grins at her as he goes past, trying to ignore the way a cage full of butterflies have just been set loose in his stomach and hoping it doesn't show. His hand in his coat pocket closes around the small box again and holds it tight.

Inside, he stands in the hall and waffles over whether or not to take off his coat while Amy comes in. Would it be too obvious? Too forward? He would certainly be looking to stay for longer than a minute, and he has no clue how tired she is or if she'll be wanting to head to sleep soon.

In the end, he decides to keep his coat on. No use being assuming.

[too_fairytale]

Amy is similarly waffling as she gets the door closed--automatically turning the lock out of habit, because Aunt Sharon always kicks up a fuss whenever she comes back after Amy and finds the door open to all and sundry. She's got no idea what Rory has up his sleeve, besides hoping for a kiss, so she thinks maybe inviting him in in might be... presumptive, because goodnight snogs that start indoors leads to shagging. It always does on telly, anyway. And Rory might interpret her inviting him in in as hoping for a goodnight shag rather than a goodnight snog (although she wouldn't say no to the former, definitely not, oh god Amy stop thinking) and get flustered or offended or something and make a hasty exit and then she won't get either a snog or a shag.

Five seconds of that particular thought apocalypse sees the door good and shut and Amy turned to face him again and, for one of the very few times in her life, erring on the side of caution.

"So!" she says, just a shade too brightly. "What's this about a present? I thought dinner was my present."

[nurse_boy]

Rory smiles, breathing in slowly and hoping Amy can't tell how the butterflies in his stomach are now doing loop-the-loops at a dizzying speed, and that he's doing the right thing. He's never gotten a girl jewelry before, not even Sarah, and while he had done his best to pick something that he found tasteful and nice and well-suited to Amy, he's still afraid that she'll find it gaudy and tacky and just downright silly. Or too--important, big, for the length of time they've been dating. Which would be extremely awkward. And would probably kill any chance of that kiss he's been angling for all night.

(And possibly any chance of them. He doesn't know if he could standard the awkwardness.)

But he keeps smiling, and taps the box in his pocket nervously. "It was," he replies, taking a step toward her. "But just part of it. Um--here." And he takes the box out of his pocket and holds it out to her without any further preamble. "I got you this."

[too_fairytale]

Both Amy's brain and stomach nearly stage a revolt when she sees the box. That can't be a ring box, she's mentally shrieking, why would he--already?!--but he's not bending down on one knee--

As television and movies have just about been her only portal into how romance is supposed to work, and given the fact that on telly when a bloke breaks out a little jewelry box for his girl it always contains a ring... it's probably not surprising that a completely unexpected marriage proposal is the first thing she thinks is happening.

But she takes the box with only a minor tremble to her hands and when she opens it, instead of finding a ring (and that's a massive catastrophe averted), there's--a necklace with a gold 'A' pendant. And--is that a diamond nestled in the crook of the letter? Oh god it better not be a diamond. She'd have to kill him for spending that kind of money on her. (No one's ever spent that kind of money on her.)

"Oh," Amy breathes out in a rush, ridiculously relieved and flattered and almost indignant all at once. "You--how much did you spend on this?" She reaches out and lightly punches him in the arm, a patented reaction of hers when she's feeling heartfelt but awkward about it, and as usual not realizing or caring that it's generally considered rude to ask how much a present cost.

[nurse_boy]

She likes it! Brilliant!

Rory is almost light-headed for a brief moment as a similar rush of relief goes through him; he laughs a little and tries to dodge her arm punch, but she connects and he makes a bit of a show of crying "ow!" and rubbing at his arm in protest.

"Not nearly enough," he mutters a bit bashfully, straightening out his coat. Then he realizes what he's said and cringes inwardly. That, perhaps, is a bit too telling (on a number of things). But Amy doesn't seem to have heard him; she's still holding the box in one hand and trying to work the delicate gold chain out with the other. He comes to stand just in front of her, peering over the lid of the box.

"So you like it then?" Bugger, he can't quite keep a hint of nervousness from creeping into his voice. "It's not rubbish?"

[too_fairytale]

"It's--"

Beautiful, you idiot, you bought this for me?

Amy's temporarily too wowed by the fact that he obviously spent a lot of money on a very nice piece of jewelry to be potentially freaked out by that very same fact: that he bought her jewelry. Which is supposed to be some kind of binding symbol of commitment, right? Of course it isn't as concretely binding as a ring would be, but... blokes don't buy jewelry for their platonic girl mates. Do they? (Which is a patently ridiculous thing to think, given that they can't be platonic mates if they're sort of dating each other, so it's probably good that she isn't thinking it just this moment.)

"Help me put it on?" she says, in lieu of continuing to babble like a speechless moron, as she finishes gently extracting the chain from its base in the box.

[nurse_boy]

"Oh. Um--" Rory blinks. "Sure. Right ... here."

He holds his hand out for the necklace and sets about getting the clasp undone while Amy turns her back to him and gathers her hair up and away from her neck. Looking up, he pauses.

It's a bit silly, he thinks, standing this close to Amy and finding it hard to breathe, like this is a new thing. He's been close to Amy more times than he can count over the years, and closer recently; there's been hugs and the occasional cuddle on the couch, not to mention all the times they swung together on the tire swing overlooking the lake. So it's ridiculous that he should be affected now. Except he knows he's been hyper-aware of her physical presence all night, paying close attention to every glance, every smile, every tilt and lean of her posture, looking for clues to tell him whether or not tonight is the right night to finally press his luck for a kiss. Everything so far has said yes.

So it's with barely trembling hands that he moves to awkwardly swing his arm over and around her to drape the necklace around her throat; his heart skips a beat as his knuckles brush over her skin and as he fumbles with the clasp he thinks he catches the faint whiff of strawberries. Probably, it's her hair. He's seen strawberry shampoo in her bathroom before. And then he can't help but wonder what her skin smells like, and that he'd only have to lean forward an inch or two to find out ...

(Stop it, Rory.)

The clasp clicks into place. "There," he says quietly, and drops his hands to briefly touch her shoulders before she turns back around.

[too_fairytale]

It's hard to keep herself from visibly flinching, or squirming, when his knuckles brush against her neck; the skin there feels overly exposed, prickly, in semi-conscious anticipation of just such a touch. Amy finds herself wishing Rory would kiss here there--she could go for that, instead of a kiss on the lips, as an opening move--but then he's got the clasp done and the moment is over. She takes a moment to swallow and wet her suddenly-dry lips as she lets her hair drop back down and settles the necklace into place beneath her throat, then turns around for his inspection.

"So?" she asks, lifting her chin and posing a little. "How does it look?"

[nurse_boy]

Rory blinks as he looks at her. Again.

He's suddenly stricken with not knowing quite what to say, as usual. On one hand, it's just a necklace, and it looks exactly like a necklace should--it's just ... there. Around her neck. Glittering just a bit in the light coming from the kitchen. Nothing fantastic or ostentatious or mind-blowing, just a simple little necklace.

However, on the other hand ... she's all but invited him to stare at the general vicinity of her chest. Shifting his weight on his feet, Rory keeps his eyes firmly zeroed in on the pendant sitting just below the hollow of her throat so she can't accuse him of wandering eyes (oh god he would die). Not that there's really much to see at the moment--her coat is hiding most of her figure--but the point remains. He swallows and licks his lips before shrugging a bit uselessly.

"It looks ... it looks nice," he says, his mouth quirking up at the corners in a smile, taking a step toward her. "So you actually like it then?"

[too_fairytale]

"Yes, I actually like it," Amy replies, giving him a light little punch on the arm as he steps closer--oh god, he's stepping closer--and then (partly on impulse, partly because she wants to, partly because she's hoping he might turn his head into it) darts forward to kiss his cheek in thanks.

[nurse_boy]

He's making a show of rubbing his arm again and grinning, pleased, when she kisses his cheek. Normally a gesture of this sort would get a similar, no-frills kiss back or a hug, but here--now--with everything that's on his mind, everything he's got at stake--his breath audibly hitches when her lips touch his cheek. And when she pulls away he knows his cheeks are glowing, he can feel the heat crawling up his neck and into his face, and he sort of hates himself for it. He's grinning and ducking his head and breathing a small laugh like he's never so much as even seen a girl before, much less had any experience snogging one. But Amy's always managed to fluster him more than any other girl, even when they were younger.

"That's--that's good," he manages, still smiling, but on the inside he is screaming obscenities at himself for being such a hopeless loser. "That's really good."

One slow breath and a swallow to center himself, and he's calming down. The blush fades from his cheeks as his expression settles into something more awkwardly focused, and his eyes flick down to her mouth for a brief second before looking up again. A sort of silence passes between them for a moment before Rory hesitantly reaches up to twine a bit of her hair between his fingers.

This is your chance. Right now.

"Happy birthday, Amy," he says quietly, intently, eyes fixed on hers.