Filed under "I really wish I knew how this was supposed to end"
Found in a document with some cryptic alphanumeric file name:
Kara says, "Marry me, Lee" and the crowd around the table goes quiet.
Lee almost drops his cards. Almost. He shuffles them together, reorders them once, twice, then fans them out again in his hand before he looks up and across the pile of cubits and candy bars and dog-eared paperbacks between them. The way she's watching him, her focus is narrowed down to him alone like she might be able to get a better read on his cards if she just stares hard enough, makes his stomach feel like they've lost the gravity generator for a second.
"Are you serious?" he asks and hopes his voice doesn't sound as high as he thinks it does. She tilts her head slightly and draws his attention back down to the pile of loot on the table. The space right in front of her is bare, save for her near-empty glass. It's late and most of the crowd had left the rec room hours ago. Of those still left, Boomer folded early in the hand, Felix not long after. Only Hotdog was foolish enough to hold on until he was stripped of his stash of chewing gum and razors. They're down to the last round and there's no mistaking what Kara's implying.
Lee looks down at his cards again. They're good. Really good. Across from him, Kara shifts and her ankle brushes his under the table. Her mouth twitches in what might be a wince at her still-tender knee, but could also be part of her carefully school triad-face, meant to illicit sympathy and break his concentration.
Boomer crosses her arms and leans back. "It's a legitimate bet."
"If you set the terms," Felix counters, and they're both right - chits and promises are the new currency, valued on a sliding scale depending on how desperately the holder of said voucher wanted or needed the favor. Of course, in some cases, limits have to be set.
"Write it up then," Kara says without looking at either of them. "If I win, you, Lee Adama will agree to marry me whenever I choose." Felix rips a yellowed page out of one of the paperbacks in the pile, flips it author's-notes side down and copies down her words. He looks up at Lee, waiting for a caveat.
Lee checks his cards again, just in case he'd mis-read them. Nope, still pretty much unbeatable. It might tick her off that she's not going to be able to call in that particular bet, but there's no way she's going to have a proposal to hang over his head as leverage. He looks up and meets Kara's eyes. "I'm good. Same terms apply if I win."
I'm sure there must have been more to it, but damned if I can remember. *frowns*
Also posted at DW, where
people have commented. Comments welcome here or there.
Kara says, "Marry me, Lee" and the crowd around the table goes quiet.
Lee almost drops his cards. Almost. He shuffles them together, reorders them once, twice, then fans them out again in his hand before he looks up and across the pile of cubits and candy bars and dog-eared paperbacks between them. The way she's watching him, her focus is narrowed down to him alone like she might be able to get a better read on his cards if she just stares hard enough, makes his stomach feel like they've lost the gravity generator for a second.
"Are you serious?" he asks and hopes his voice doesn't sound as high as he thinks it does. She tilts her head slightly and draws his attention back down to the pile of loot on the table. The space right in front of her is bare, save for her near-empty glass. It's late and most of the crowd had left the rec room hours ago. Of those still left, Boomer folded early in the hand, Felix not long after. Only Hotdog was foolish enough to hold on until he was stripped of his stash of chewing gum and razors. They're down to the last round and there's no mistaking what Kara's implying.
Lee looks down at his cards again. They're good. Really good. Across from him, Kara shifts and her ankle brushes his under the table. Her mouth twitches in what might be a wince at her still-tender knee, but could also be part of her carefully school triad-face, meant to illicit sympathy and break his concentration.
Boomer crosses her arms and leans back. "It's a legitimate bet."
"If you set the terms," Felix counters, and they're both right - chits and promises are the new currency, valued on a sliding scale depending on how desperately the holder of said voucher wanted or needed the favor. Of course, in some cases, limits have to be set.
"Write it up then," Kara says without looking at either of them. "If I win, you, Lee Adama will agree to marry me whenever I choose." Felix rips a yellowed page out of one of the paperbacks in the pile, flips it author's-notes side down and copies down her words. He looks up at Lee, waiting for a caveat.
Lee checks his cards again, just in case he'd mis-read them. Nope, still pretty much unbeatable. It might tick her off that she's not going to be able to call in that particular bet, but there's no way she's going to have a proposal to hang over his head as leverage. He looks up and meets Kara's eyes. "I'm good. Same terms apply if I win."
I'm sure there must have been more to it, but damned if I can remember. *frowns*
Also posted at DW, where
people have commented. Comments welcome here or there.