Genevieve Jones / Eve (appletreething) wrote in monte_logs, @ 2012-09-02 02:25:00 |
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Current mood: | indescribable |
Characters: Genevieve/Eve (appletreething) & Adam (mackaphobe)
Date/Time: Thursday, 08/30, dinnertime
Location: Dorms, then walking through town
Rating: PG
Warnings: n/a
Summary: Eve finds out Adam is around. It doesn't go as well as Adam assumed it would.
Eve was worried. It was starting to become a natural state of affairs for her, though in this case she was trying to convince herself that she shouldn’t be.
One would think getting ready to go eat with an old friend wouldn’t be a stress-inducing activity, and that would probably be true if they weren’t an incarnate who had recently discovered that said friend was also an incarnate. And was unsure of who that friend was the reincarnate of. If she had to hazard a guess, Eve wouldn’t even know where to begin. She knew Adam felt familiar to her, but she’d never really thought about why beyond the obvious -- that she had known him for as long as she could remember.
Still, as she smoothed down her knee-length black skirt and checked her simple white eyelet top in the mirror, running her fingers through her hair before pronouncing her appearance suitable, she felt an odd nervousness in the pit of her stomach. What if Adam turned out to be one of her sons? Sure, both Cain and Abel were here, but what about Seth? That would make the crush she’d had on her friend as kids seem even more awkward. She hoped he turned out to be an angel, or someone else who she wouldn’t come to regret knowing.
Making her way to his dorm room, she knocked on the door with a hesitant smile. They were going to walk into town to get something to eat at the Garden of Eatin’, and the irony of the locational choice was lost on her. Which was probably for the best, really.
~
Meanwhile, Adam was getting out of the shower. He’d been looking forward to seeing Eve again for a while, and the reunion wasn’t going to be soured because he had showered too early.
He knew who she was, of course; it hadn’t been hard to decipher. He’d been calling her Eve all her life and know he knew why. If she hadn’t realized it yet, it was only because she was married to her full name, maybe. Still, it was a glaring ‘duh’ in his book.
In a pair of faded jeans, white sneakers, and a nice, light-blue shirt, he walked to the door to answer it when the knock comes, opening it with a sweeping motion of his arm and a wide, friendly grin. “Evie!” And he didn’t wait for her to return the greeting; instead, he simply swooped her into a hug with both arms, squeezing her and lifting her just a bit off the ground for a moment. He took a deep breath of her, and she smelled fantastic until he recognized the scent, and with a supreme effort, he pushed down the nausea as he set her down.
“I missed you. Hi.”
~
Swept up into a mammoth hug before she could even get a word out, Eve squealed in shock as Adam lifted her up. That was unexpected, in fact she couldn’t remember the last time that had happened.
She stepped back, shaking her head slightly with a laugh, hands coming up automatically to make sure nothing was out of place. “I guess you did miss me, with a greeting like that,” she responded, a blush lightly spreading across her cheeks.
It was for the best that she had no idea that he felt at all nauseated, since that would have made her feel wretched. While that was a step up from nervous, it wasn’t exactly better. “Are you ready to go? I think you’ll like the place I picked out, their lunches are usually quite good.”
Taking in what he’d chosen to wear Eve felt overdressed for the briefest of moments, realizing belatedly that she had no reason to dress up for Adam other than just wanting to. Admittedly, outside of work her clothing choices were typically more feminine, but that didn’t mean that she couldn’t have paired her top with a nice fitted pair of jeans or even shorts. Her flat shoes, although comfortable, weren’t as good for walking around in as a pair of sensible sneakers, and if she’d thought ahead she might’ve considered Adam would want to go for a walk after they ate instead of heading straight back to the dorms.
Ah well, she’d deal with that if it happened. “I really do wish I’d known you were coming here, I still feel silly and so out of the loop that I didn’t.”
~
Adam took a step back to consider her after the hug while she spoke. His eyes dipped down, and then made their way up to her face again at a leisurely pace. Once there though, he smiled at her and reached for her hand, pulling the door closed with the other. “You look amazing,” he offered, closing the door and making sure it was locked.
“And I didn’t tell you on purpose. What’s the point of a surprise if you know ahead of time?” Adam didn’t seem to notice she was overdressed --he couldn’t possibly be underdressed, she was the silly one-- and instead snaked an arm around her waist and started walking. “So where are we going again?”
He could survive the scent. He survived it all his childhood. It was mild! It’d be fine. Just fine.
~
Eve was surprised by the arm going around her waist, and though her eyes flicked down to confirm the presence of his arm she quickly relaxed. It was hard not to when he was smiling as though seeing her had somehow brightened his day. Or perhaps she was projecting her own feelings, it was hard to tell. “Don’t be silly, I haven’t changed all that much,” she demurred.
He was the one who looked amazing, but then again he always had. “It was certainly a big surprise, that much is true. However, I would have made sure I was there to greet you and help you move in.” Eve genuinely was torn up thinking that he might have needed assistance and not had it. “I noticed that you got a lot of offers to see the town though, so that must have been nice. Have you made many new friends already?” The question was basic, and asked because she felt it was her duty to make polite conversation. It would be good if he had made friends though.
“Oh, we’re going to the Garden of Eatin’ Cafe,” she revealed. “Their food is all organic.”
~
“I haven’t met all that many people yet, no,” Adam confessed with a shake of his head. “I’ve been sort of holed up getting ready for classes and what not. And anyway, I wouldn’t want to go out with someone else before I had a chance to hang out with you.” Adam smiled a bit. Then he heard the name of the restaurant, and it resulted in a sharp bark of laughter. “Perfect.” It was hard to tell if he meant it or if he was being sarcastic, but he was still smiling to there was that to clue her in.
He walked at a leisurely gait; there was no hurry to get there early or on time, just the walk was nice, really. “You’ve always looked nice, by the way. But just because you being gorgeous is status quo doesn’t mean I shouldn’t let you know, does it?”
Organic food was fine. As long as he didn’t get tricked into eating anything with apple in it.
~
“Oh, it seemed like you attracted some attention when you asked about getting shown around, so I guess I thought you’d have taken people up on the offers.” She chose not to comment on his remark on not wanting to go out with anyone else before seeing her, but the redness in her cheeks flared up stronger. “It’s one of my favorite places in town to eat,” Eve mentioned, confused by his little laugh. Maybe he didn’t appreciate the pun, or he had some other reason for being oddly amused.
Her eyebrows shot up to hide under her bangs when he called her gorgeous, words failing her as she tried to process the compliment. “That’s... very kind of you to say, Adam.” She wanted to ask him what had gotten into him, as it wasn’t like Adam to take note of her appearance.
Biting her lower lip, she glanced over at him and decided to bite the bullet. “So, you’re an incarnate too?”
~
Adam was a firm believer in words being important: if you abuse them, or overuse them, then they start to lose meaning. So complimenting her on her appearance wasn’t something he did often, but when he did it, he certainly meant every word. Besides, taking note and vocalizing it were two very different things, and Adam kept them pretty separate.
“I’m sure the people interested in giving me tours around will still be there when I’m ready. If they aren’t, then they weren’t that interested.” Adam shrugged. No big deal. Her question drew his smile out again and he smirked, tilting his head down and away for a moment. “Yeah.” He nodded, and said again, “Yeah.”
He cleared his throat. “Three guesses and the first two don’t count.”
~
Eve felt the same, but was also raised to be overly polite and compulsively complemented others despite not always believing them when nice things were said about her in return. She had never truly been the ‘pretty’ girl growing up, always working hard to appear graceful as she was just a bit taller than most girls her age. She’d grown into her looks, but hardly recognized it.
“People here are nice for the most part, but there are a few who aren’t. Like most colleges, I’m sure.” Eve didn’t have experience with a lot of people outside her own pantheon and the Greeks, but then again she didn’t put herself out there as often as others. “How long have you known, if you don’t mind my asking?”
She paused, studying him. “I don’t even get a hint?” He clearly thought she wouldn’t need one, which meant the answer was easier than she figured. Putting on her best thinking face, she closed her eyes with a gasp. “You... know who I am already, and you’re making it very clear that I should know who you are. I know who you’re not, so that leaves three possibilities. Were you angelic or not?”
~
Adam shook his head and smiled at her, letting out a brief little chortle. He slid his hand down from her waist and slipped it into hers, interlacing the fingers. “It’s really, really obvious,” he offered, looking her in the eyes.
After her question, he rolled his eyes and smiled. “All right. Eve? What’s my name?”
Come on, he thought, It’s literally staring you in the face.
~
Eve stood like a statue, blinking even as his hand moved to take hers. She heard what he was saying and wanted to answer, but at the same time couldn’t bring herself to admit that she had never considered the one person she’d been looking for had always been with her.
Opening her mouth, she could feel her lips fumbling over the two syllables of his name. “Adam.”
Eyes going wide, she pulled her hand from his, bringing it up to her chest as she backed away. “How long have you known?” she repeated, the words thick on her tongue.
~
Adam watched her back away and to be honest wasn’t all that surprised. He let his hands fall to his sides and smiled at her easily, lazily even, and then said, “Two months or so?” He shrugged. “Woke up in the middle of the night in a cold sweat and just... you know.” Adam sighed. “Knew.
“It took me awhile to figure out you were--well, you know. But once I did, I was like, ‘well, hey, that makes sense’.” Adam reached out with his hand, palm upwards. “I didn’t want to tell you over the phone.”
~
Eve nodded reflexively to show she heard and understood him, but she was still visibly reeling. He was Adam. The Adam. First man, he whose rib she came from, her husband, father to (most of) her children. Adam. There were no words, and yet she had to say something. “I see.”
She fell silent again, gazing at her shoes. This wasn’t something she’d expected, though she supposed it could have been worse. At least this was someone she knew, and had grown up with. That might make it easier. Looking up slowly, she took a deep breath. “I’ve been trying to find you, you know, since I first discovered who I was. If it’s any consolation, I’m not expecting anything of you, I hope you know that. This doesn’t have to change a single thing.” Even if she did want it to.
~
“I figured. But, honestly, Evie, you didn’t suspect?” He tilted his head a bit to the side and smiled at her. “It’s not exactly subtle, over here. At least you got a sort of name change, I’m just--Adam.” He laughed, and then took another step over, grabbing her hand.
“If it doesn’t have to change anything, why are you being all weird? Come on. Let’s go get something to eat at, oh God, the Garden of Eatin’.” He barked the same laugh he had earlier, and tugged at her hand.
~
No Adam, sorry, Eve didn’t suspect a thing. In fact, she hadn’t even suspected that she was an incarnate until she remembered herself. There hadn’t been any Harry Potter-style parseltongue reveals or anything like that, just a date gone wrong and memories overwhelming her. She ‘hmm’ed softly, her hand stiff in his.
“I’m sorry I’m ‘being all weird’ Adam, it’s just a bit of a shock to me.” The tug on her hand had her stumbling forward, tripping over her feet at first. “I’ve always liked your name, Genevieve is far too exotic a name. It makes me feel like I should be French, or have an accent.” Eve was short, easy, and less fussy. A good name for someone who had spent their life wanting to help others and not be in the way.
~
“I didn’t mean it like that, don’t be like that,” Adam said with a slow roll of his eyes and a smile. “I just mean, like, if nothing has to change, then nothing has to change, right?” He pushed his fingers between hers and smiled. “D’you still want to go eat?”
He hoped she did. He was starving. Honestly, he had been hoping to get the reveal out during dinner, when it was much more awkward for her to just up and bail. Not that he suspected she would, but you never could tell with people.
No, that wasn’t true. He could always tell with her.
~
’Don’t be like what?’ she wanted to ask, but bit her tongue instead. It wouldn’t do for her to be snippy at a time like this, regardless of how infuriatingly calm he was being. “Right, we’re still friends, we’re just also who we are.” Slowly, carefully, Eve’s hand closed around his.
“I’d be lying if I said I didn’t want to eat, however I can’t guarantee that I’ll eat all that much.” She was still hungry, but her appetite had diminished. This shouldn’t have been as difficult to absorb as she was making it, but to Eve it seemed that suddenly everything would change despite her words.
For one thing, Eve had the feeling that Cain was not going to react well. She wasn’t sure about Abel though. And she wondered if this meant she should set aside her growing desire to ask Markus on a date. She’d have to see, but for now she couldn’t dwell on all that.
~
Adam already knew--or at least, he had heavily suspected--which was probably why he was being so alarmingly calm. He squeezed her hand and then started walking again. “Makes a lot more sense this way, though, doesn’t it?” He grinned a little wider, boyish and flirty; his fingers opened in her hand, and then wrapped around it again.
“I mean, all we went through back home. Childhood together and stuff, you know? Seems like it means something else now? Or something more.” Adam shrugged. “Did you know whenever you got hurt, like skinned your knee or whatever, I always had these pangs right over my ribs? I never noticed until lately, but I remembered suddenly, all those times...”
~
Eve didn’t know what to say, but was starting to get annoyed over the fact that the more Adam said the more she suspected that he’d worked out everything long before coming here and cluing her in. That wasn’t sitting well with her at all. Again, she stifled herself before saying anything that might seem contrary, but that didn’t mean she had to agree with him. “If you say so...”
Did it honestly mean something more, or was he just saying that to help convince her? “I’m not sure about that, I mean from the way you’re talking Cain and Abel should have been little boys growing up around the corner, and Samael... well I’m not sure about him.” Eve started, a note of panic creeping into her voice. “Wait, you’d feel it whenever I got hurt?” That didn’t work in reverse, from what she could tell.
~
“Well, I didn’t say it was a perfect theory,” Adam admitted after a moment. He shrugged. “If you don’t think it works, maybe it’s rubbish.” He walked along with her, his hand in hers. Her question made him furrow his brow. “Yeah. I mean, usually I just figured I was just worried and it made my chest hurt, but now I’m sort of--you know, you get hurt, my ribs ache. It’s --well, fitting, I guess.” He snortted. “Not that you have to go around being extra careful on my account.”
She really didn’t. She didn’t. But that hadn’t stopped him from bringing it up, had it? Adam looked at the ground, suddenly not as chipper as he’d been thus far, and rather more solemn. “I get the feeling you’re mad at me for something,” he said, finally.
~
“It’s... a better theory than any of the ones I could think of,” Eve conceded after a moment of consideration. “Not that I’m agreeing with you, just saying that it makes some sense.” She took comfort in the hand-holding, but refused to admit to herself that it was more because that was something a friend would do as opposed to something a former husband might. “I guess it’s a good thing for you that I’m not nearly as klutzy anymore, then,” she joked.
“But just in case I’ll see if I can’t find some padding or a big plastic bubble to walk around in.” Eve tried to imagine herself in a big hamster ball, the picture making her laugh quietly before shrugging. “I just wish you’d said something before about what you suspected, I guess.”
~
“Like when? I haven’t seen you in months, Evie. I wasn’t sure it was you. I mean, I was sure in my gut but that hardly justifies calling you up like, ‘oh, hi, yeah, turns out we’re Adam and Eve, as in, The--’.” He laughed a little, half at her joke, half at his own comment. “I wanted to be sure, and I wanted to tell you in person, anyway. Over the phone would’ve been cheap. Besides, I wanted to see your face, I gotta admit.”
He paused, looked at her, and shrugged. “Have to confess, I thought you’d be a little more... I don’t know. Glad? I don’t know.” Adam frowned.
~
“You could have called and asked me to come visit, Adam. You know I would have for you.” The implication ’I would have done anything for you’ was left unsaid. Eve sighed, this wasn’t going at all like she always pictured meeting Adam would go. “You’re right, over the phone would have been cheap, and I’m glad you were able to tell me face to face. I’m sorry that my reaction is less... pleased than it should be, I don’t think it’s gotten through to me yet.”
She forced herself to smile, squeezing his hand. “I meant it when I said I’ve been trying to find you, and now that I have I’m not going to ruin this. I just need time.”
~
“I know.” Adam sighed after a long moment and then he squeezed her hand again, ambling along with a shrug. “So let’s forget about it for a little bit and just--have dinner, all right?” He looked over at her with a pleading sort of expression, eyebrows raised.
“I don’t want to make this any more awkward, and we’ve been friends for a long time, so why let it bother us tonight, right?” He looked up. “Is that the place?” he asks, pointing ahead.
~
“Alright, we can do that,” Eve agreed without a second thought, walking alongside Adam with a pensive look on her face. “I don’t want it to be awkward either, and in a way I’m thankful that the most important person in my life has turned out to be you instead of some stranger.”
The conversation was by no means over, but now was not the time to continue it. Therefore, instead of elaborating, she nodded. “Yes, that’s the place. It’s small, but I like the ambiance.”