Give And Take [Closed]

Serenity had been gone a little longer than she originally thought. Once Alain went to work, she finished her chores and headed out to play with the dragon and puppy. She needed some sort of stress relief since things between her and Alain had gotten a little weird. She didn't know what it was, but Serenity said a few things that must have hit him hard. She didn't know how to make him feel better. She hated seeing him like this, so she had been thinking on what to do. Unfortunately, all of this thinking had brought her stress level quite high and she needed a little bit of a break. The moment she was done with everything in the house, she suited up and ran out with the intention of coming back before Alain had gotten home from work. Yeah, things didn't exactly go her way.

Night had fallen and Serenity was running toward the house as fast as she could while carefully carrying bag. The little puppy, who now apparently had two names, was running right beside her. Knowing Alain would be home, she sprinted across the shoveled path and darted into the house, breathing heavily as she burst through the door. She quickly shut the door behind her and sat down, leaning her back against the wall as the tired pup fell next to her to catch his own breath. "I-I'm... home..." she said as she tried catching her breath, looking around to see if Alain was even in the room at this point. If he wasn't, she'd get up a few seconds later to go look for him. Once she found him, or if he was already in the room, she'd give a sweet smile and wave, "Sorry. I know I'm late."

Serenity pushed herself back to her feet, picked the bag up, and walked to the kitchen. "I went into town and ended up buying dinner." Serenity told him as she set a bag on the counter, "I knew I was going to be a little late, so I figured you'd be hungry." There was a strange tone on Serenity's voice the entire time she talked. It sounded shaky, almost sad, like it was a little hard for her to talk right now, but she was trying to bring up the mood. She grabbed a plate for herself and Alain and set the food out along the counter. "There's sliced turkey or chicken, with mixed vegetables, potatoes, mac and cheese, and some dinner rolls." she told him as she handed him a plate to get ready for himself, "Oh, and there is some gravy if you wanted a little extra flavor or anything is a little dry."

Alain's welcome home got a cheerful "Thank you!" in return. Someone had to keep up the mood around here. Serenity was afraid to ask him to talk to her at this point. The past few days have been even more distant than usual; It hurt her, but it was her fault and she knew it. Serenity set everything out and right as she was beginning to put things on her plate, Alain spoke up. She froze and looked around at everything she had gotten. "Oh..." she said and set the plate down. Everyone loved potatoes, even she, but potatoes was not a meal that one could enjoy on it's own. "You're right... Sorry about that..." she said, though she wasn't entirely sure why she was apologizing to him. She was the one that couldn't eat now. "I've been a little scatter brained lately."

Serenity put the clean plate back into the cabinet. "That's okay though. I'll eat a little later; I'm not too hungry right now." Serenity said with a soft, but forced smile, "I guess I haven't had much of an appetite lately, either." These two were a little on the stupid side. Anyone else would be able to tell them that they needed to sit down and talk, but no. These two just had to be complicated. If Lillianna could see her right now, Serenity would probably get hit upside the head. If Logan saw Alain right now, he'd 'toughen him up'. There was no way in hell this could go on for much longer. Serenity could not handle being in a house that was so full of sad tension she felt she could choke on it at any minute. Coming out of her thoughts, Serenity looked to Alain and sighed.

"We need to talk..." she said as she walked passed him, placing a hand on his shoulder and then sliding it down to his hand to guide him into the living room. Once the two got to 'his' chair, she let go of his hand and sat across from him on the couch. She felt nervous; her stomach was even hurting. When she looked at him, that strange look in his eyes made her feel even more nervous. After being silent and figeting with her fingers nervously for a few seconds, Serenity gulped and finally spoke up, the nervousness in her voice being obvious. "I-I said something... I don't know what it was, but... it hurt you in some way." she said, her voice even shakier as she talked. She took a deep breath. She was obviously going to continue talking, but she had to prepare herself for what might come.

"I care a lot about you." Serenity said while staring him directly in the eyes, almost seeming like she couldn't turn away if she tried, "I care... more than I even understand myself. I've never... ever... liked someone. I've never had a boyfriend, a crush, or wanted someone... t-to want me. I've never wanted to make someone else happy. I've never been excited to hear someone walk through the front door ever day. I... I've never done this before and I know that I don't know how to. I know that two days ago I might have messed everything up. The way I went about telling you everything... It was stupid and selfish of me. I was hurt and angry... I was jealous of that girl that came by the house..." Even when she tried not to sound angry about it, there was still an infliction there.

"I was already angry because of Logan, but I had no right to treat her like that. I don't even know why I did." Serenity was overcome by guilt by this point; she had started fighting tears, allowing only a couple to fall out as her eyes began to redden, "I'm sorry for that and I will one day apologize to her as well, but... I can't say that I'm sorry for anything I said to you. It needed to be said. I needed to let you know how I felt and I'm glad I did. I hate... that it hurt you. I don't like seeing you like this. In fact, I hate that too..." Serenity rubbed the side of her neck, a burn mark forming along her skin, "I'm not sorry because it gave me time to think. I even asked a friend of mine about it. I am... new to this, but what I meant the other night... Alain, what I want is for you to want me too... And to show it."

Serenity had just laid everything but her body out on the table for Alain at that point. Everything she had just said revealed so much about her. She was inexperienced, naive, confused, and feelin things she didn't know how to handle. She didn't understand this strong feeling of being drawn to Alain and to want him to look at her the same way. Well, she understood it in the sense that she knew the 'what' part of it. What she didn't understand was the 'why' and that's what worried her. Beyond that, she didn't understand 'how', either. How was she supposed to express herself in this situation? How was she supposed to tell him how she felt? These were things she had to think long and hard about. And that's what she did while she was gone. She thought very hard on what she wanted.

And while she was speaking, she stuttered for second when Alain stood up. That single moment almost tore her heart in two. Her first thought was that he was going to tell her to stop and just walk away, but that didn't happen. Instead, he came over and sat next to her. They were closer now, so much closer. And she continued on explaining herself. When she finished, there were no words. There was a change in his eyes, but she was too nervous to even place it. Did she say something right or wrong? She couldn't tell. She could never tell, but the moment he began leaning in Serenity froze. She didn't want to move away, so she didn't try to. And when his lips hit her own, her eyes widened in utter shock, but instinct seemed to take over and she returned his kiss with a gentle lean in.

When that kiss broke, Serenity's cheeks were redder than red, her heart was racing, chills had been sent all over her body, and her skin was covered in goose bumps. A simple "There." was all that he said. She opened her mouth to speak, but couldn't. She tried again, but all that came out was a short, "Alain..." She took in a deep breath, still staring into his eyes with shock, but she seemed to be able to calm down a few moments later. "D-Did I do it right this time? That means th-that I explained what I want right.... r-right?" she was also a little bedazzled at this point. She couldn't really even talk right. She now seemed a little more excited than she did nervous, but her blush did not fade. She brought her hand up to her lips and lightly touched them, glancing away from him and blushing more.

"C-Can... we... I mean..." Serenity looked back to him very shyly, "Can I have another?"

"Should I let you have another..."

Serenity's eyes drifted away from him for a moment. She puffed up her cheeks a little bit, contemplating something as his loud 'hm' came about. "Please?" she said as she moved her eyes back over to him, a shy nature seemingly overcoming her at this point. Serenity wasn't sure what she was allowed to do now that she had reached a level (or two) above 'friend'. It was something she was going to have to get used to and think on a bit. She was going to have to ask questions, but the one question she had chosen to ask now was answered. He was teasing her again! A moment of wonder later, Alain leaned in and brought his lips to hers in another kiss. Although it was just as sudden, Serenity felt less nervous and was able to return this kiss without the shaky nervousness she had before.

"Mm..." That sound. It could be compared to a moan, but there was something more freeing about it. It came with a light sigh through her nose as they kissed. Feeling his hand lace around hers brought it on. There was a connected that Serenity felt, one that was very strong and bonding. This was a moment she can't say she'd ever forget. It was a moment that unlocked and opened a door to a new world for her. These were Serenity's first kisses and that was more important than even she could understand. A few moments of bliss later, Serenity slowly pulled away from that kiss. Part of her wanted more. Part of her wanted to continue and continue, but there was another part of her that said it was time to take a break, relax, and let everything that just happened register for them.

"Th-Thank you." she said. This was him technically giving her something she asked for, so she felt a thank you was neccessary. She stared longingly into his eyes for a moment before a clear smile was brought onto her lips. She closed her eyes and giggled as a few tears of joy slid freely down the side of her face. She quickly wiped them away and looked back up to him again. Placing a hand over her heart, the other hand sort of clinging to Alain's, she took a deep breath. "I don't think I have ever had my heart racing so much..." she said trying to calm herself down at this point. Not even a moment later, her own stomach growled and she blushed heavily, "Apparently I need to get something to eat... I can eat the potatoes and vegtables... No one is allergic to vegetables."

Serenity stood up and apparently it was a little too quickly. She got dizzy for a moment and looked like she was about to fall, but was able to catch herself, but not without feeling light-headed. "My... That felt a little odd." Serenity said, shaking her head a little bit as she regained her balance, "Would you like me to make you a plate?" she asked him as she stepped over to the kitchen. She waited for an answer and then remembered something. "Oh! I ran into this guy in the forest today. His name was Dorian and he was pretty nice, so no worries about that." Serenity talked loud enough if he wasn't in the kitchen with her, but normal if he was, "Anyways, that's not the important part... When I was talking to him, an old friend of mine showed up. Her name is Reina."

"I hadn't seen her since before I moved out to the cabin." Serenity explained as she finished making her own plate. If Alain wanted one, she'd start on making his right after, but if not she would sit down at the dining room table. "Apparently she had been looking for me and found out I was living here from Lillianna." Serenity continued and then took a deep breath to tell this next part, "Well, I trust her... always have, so I gave her Viridis, the dragon. She named him based of his eyes."

The tension in this house lifted faster than heat rises. Everything seemed to settle down. There were no words that Serenity could use to express how much better she felt or how happy she was. Even as she told him about the dragon being gone, though it did sadden her, there was still a bit of relief for Alain's sake. As he said across the table from her, he began to speak on it, but she interrupted him with a raise of her hand and smile. "Please..." Serenity said quickly. She shook her head. In her eyes, she was practically begging and pleaded for him not to continue that. She was being strong. She informed him that it was gone. She was trying not to cry at the loss of a dear friend. If he said anything more on the subject, Serenity was not sure that she would be able to handle it very well.

"Right now... I don't think I can handle talking about him." she said with a sigh, but then pushed up a soft smile, "It's one of those things that I have to accept and accept on my own. The fact is, I shouldn't have brought him around without talking to you in the first place. At the time, it was hard to remember that I am a guest here. I won't forget that this time, though!" Serenity's smile just got bigger and she began eating. As she took her first bite, Alain asked an odd question. Was she planning on keeping Little Blizzar-... "Wait, who?" Serenity blinked her eyes and looked under the table, "Are you talking about Shiori? I think we're keeping him... Are we? If we have to find another home for him, I can try. I am sure that finding a home for a puppy is a hell of a lot easier around here."

"Why do you call him Blizzard?"

Serenity was more than thankful when he listened and didn't continue on talking about it. That made her feel quite a bit better, so staying off the subject of the dragon would be a good thing for now. As the subject when on to the other pet of theirs, Serenity was apparently corrected on his name. She raised an eyebrow, a playful expression on her face. She giggled about the comment of Alain tripping in the snow though. "He does blend in rather well, doesn't he?" she said and then something a little unexpected happened. Alain wanted to keep the pup. Serenity had been waiting for him to tell her to get rid of it, but apparently he liked the little guy. She couldn't blame him. Shiori was little and cute and happy and fun to have around. Serenity didn't want to get rid of the little guy either. Who would?

And then Alain made that face. Serenity blinked and stared, and then stared and blinked. She fought a smile and then looked down to her shirt. Grabbing onto the collar, she lifted it up and stuck her face down into her shirt, trying not to d'aaww over Alain. She even curled her knees up to her chest and turned her body back and forth, giggling like a little school girl. A few moments later, she lowered half of the shirt and looked up to him with a nod. "Yes... Cute." Serenity said. She was going to specifically say the puppy was cute, but that look Alain had made her second guess. She just didn't think that Alain would be happy with her calling him 'cute'. He wasn't 'cute'. He was handsome and what Reina would call a 'hottie'. Calling Alain cute was almost insulting to his masculinity, though... that face.

"Um..." she cleared her throat, brushed back her hair, and sat normally in the chair, "I didn't mention it before because... everything that happened with Logan being here and stuff, but I did bring back the gold. I have a large sack of it sitting under my bed right now. I know we talked about going on a vacation, but I'd really rather do that some time in the spring, or at least when most snow is gone, especially for travel reasons. Even if we did head somewhere tropical, traveling there would be complicated if snow was everywhere." She felt her explanation was just and hoped he'd feel the same way, but if he didn't they could go earlier. It would just be harder to get from place to place. Maybe it would turn into an adventure? "Oh... yeah. Since he's gone and we might not be going for a while..."

"What exactly in my diary did you want to know about?"