James "Logan" Howlett (bringitonbub) wrote in blackpoint, @ 2013-07-27 19:43:00 |
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Entry tags: | james "logan" howlett, jean grey |
Who: Logan & Jean Grey
When: July 22nd? Sometime early this week.
Where: At a little burger joint in NYC!
What: Semi-Awkward date? Or not date? It’s not clear.
Rating: PG, Logan’s pretty good in this one.
It hadn’t occurred to Jean, not until about halfway through her burger, that she wasn’t entirely sure if this was a date. It seemed likely that he would want it to be, but he’d be gone in a few days and that made things complicated. If she treated this like a date, there were expectations. Not necessarily on his end, but in general. Having him walk around shirtless in her apartment had certainly left her thinking about the possibilities - in annoyingly intense detail, at that - but Jean wasn’t really the temporary type. She jumped into things with both feet and she wasn’t completely sure he was anywhere near the same way. Even if he was, he’d be gone for months at a time and that fact was hard enough to accept when they were just friends. Aware that she’d lapsed into thoughtful silence for entirely too long, Jean shook her head and set her more than half-eaten burger down on the plate so she could gesture secretively towards their waitress. “Not to make this weird, but I’m pretty sure “April” there hasn’t stopped giving you the eye since we walked in. Or...maybe it’s me she’s giving the eye too. Hm. I can’t tell,” she smirked awkwardly, unsure if her attempt to joke just sounded like a thinly-veiled attempt to sort out what this was. Logan was used to sitting in silence comfortably, being someone who didn’t do well with casual conversation. He’d already gotten used to Jean’s chatter in the short time he’d known her, which let him relax around her. Eight weeks in basic had already conditioned him to eat quickly, and his plate was nearly empty by the time she set down her half and leaned forward. He’d been trying not to stare, which caught his face turned away as her question came through. He gave the waitress a quick glance and shrugged, clearly not having noticed anything. “Didn’t notice.” He turned his gaze back on her, the corner of his mouth upturning slightly. “You gonna ask me to go get her number for ya?” He clearly had no interest in anyone in the eatery except for the woman sitting across from him, and even that was unclear with how guarded Logan tended to keep himself. He hadn’t been lying when he’d told her that she probably knew him better than anyone else, and even that wasn’t much. Jean’s eyes dropped shut as she let out a small, embarrassed laugh and then reached for her soda glass. “Tempting. She’s cute. But she’s not really my type.” Taking a sip through her straw, Jean turned back to her plate with an internal sigh. Whether this was a date or not didn’t matter nearly as much as coming up with better conversation material. He never seemed all that enthusiastic about talking about himself, but that wasn’t likely to stop her. “So, what are you thinking of New York after a little more time here? Still bored? If so, I’m going to have to insist on dragging you out for the tourist treatment,” she insisted with a quick glance his way and the glass still held up near her mouth like some kind of shield. Logan coughed into his hand, that return being a comment he wasn’t expecting from her mouth. He’d barely glanced at the waitress in question before shrugging and going back to the last of his fries. “Ain’t really mine either.” He wasn’t sure what the focus on the waitress had to do with anything, but he would have rather focused on that than bringing up tourism. And his face showed it. His grimace wasn’t long lasting, however, when his brain caught up to the idea that it’d just mean more time with her. So he swallowed his pride and fished a fry from her plate without asking permission. “Ain’t bored, but what’d you have in mind, Red? Anything that ain’t five am drills and powdered eggs.” He leveled his eyes on her, mouth still tugging upwards. “‘Long as you’re the one showin’ me around.” His dramatic shift in expression made Jean’s own go from mock-insulted to baffled to amused in the same space of time. She had to remind herself that she hadn’t expected him to be thrilled at the idea of touring the city, because he’d obviously think standard tourist trap locations and not local highlights. “Just so you know, it’s really hard to resist the urge to make you take awkward pictures in front of famous buildings and whatnot after that face you just pulled,” she smiled, finally setting her glass down to take a quick bite of her burger. Even though she chewed and swallowed quickly, Jean covered her mouth with a hand as she continued. “But you can relax. I was thinking more along the lines of less obvious stuff. Flea markets and record stores, parks that aren’t jam-packed with tourists. There’s this quirky little antique store in the East Village that I used to love to visit. Obscura. I wonder if it’s still there....Anyway, it could be fun. If you can manage not to grumble or grimace through the entire tour, anyway,” she teased with a pointed look. Logan winced again, but this time at the fact that she caught his grimace. It wasn’t that he was ungrateful for the offer to be shown around, Logan simply wasn’t used to niceties from friends. Or anyone. He raked a hand through his hair and had the grace to look a little ashamed, but figured he owed her at least half of an explanation if he was going to be a dick while she was offering him a place to stay and something to do. “Sorry, Red. Promise I won’t grumble much.” With his place cleared, he shifted into lounging position, leg stuck out to bump against her chair lightly. “Lived the last decade on my own, in the woods. Did a little woodwork, lived off the land, trained everyday. Just ain’t used to crowds and people kinda annoy the shit outta me. So if you’ve got options that ain’t crowds...” It was more of his history than he’d told anyone here, even the boys at basic, most of whom enjoyed badgering him despite knowing of the famous older one. She gave him a small, sympathetic smile when he looked ashamed, but the fact that he went on to offer information about himself without badgering on her part turned her expression more sober. Jean turned a thoughtful gaze his way and lifted her eyebrows before turning back to her burger for one last bite. “Sounds lonely,” she murmured around a mouth full of food. “But I think I can give you a tour that doesn’t involve too many crowds.” Needing something to do with her hands now that she’d decided she was done eating, Jean picked her glass up again and swiveled it between her palms. “Do you still have an interest in woodworking? Or the woods? There are great places for camping outside of the city...” Logan’s hand drifted from the back of his head to his neck to rest comfortably, kneading muscle there absently. He was usually guarded and reserved when it came to talking about himself, but he found himself more comfortable talking about things with Jean than he had with anyone. Maybe it was her open frank approach to things, or the fact that she genuinely seemed to care about people. He shrugged, giving her a wry smile. “Quiet, ‘m used to it. But I’d appreciate that, Red. Somethin’ not so crazy like that clock square or whatever it’s called.” He made a gesture out the window, even if they weren’t anywhere near Times Square. “If they’ve got campin’, you can sign me up. I like doin’ stuff with my hands.” The sentence wasn’t supposed to have double meaning, but as soon as it came out he smirked a little to himself and glanced down at the table with a growing grin. “Woodworkin’ stuff.” “Woodworking stuff,” Jean laughed, shaking her head. “Whatever you say, Mr. I Like Doing Stuff with My Hands.” She regretted the statement as soon as she said it because it brought a blush to her cheeks. Thinking about him doing stuff with his hands was probably not a good idea in the middle of a semi-crowded diner. Waving to their waitress, she ordered a refill on her drink and asked if they could get their check, before turning back to him with less of a flush to her skin. “Okay, so no Times Square and no crowds. Camping is okay. You like wood,” Jean joked with a lift of her eyebrows. “Anything else I should know? You’re not going to tell me you refuse to ride the subway or anything, right? Because it’s crowded, but it’s kind of a must.” His grin had reached the toothy stage, bordering on obnoxiously pleased with not only her blush, but the turn the conversation had took. He even laughed at the wood joke, which might’ve been his first genuine laugh around her since the two had met. All over a ridiculous conversation having to do with woodworking and him doing stuff with his hands. “Never been on one, you gonna hold my hand so I don’t run away.” When the check came, he turned his grin on the waitress delivering it and barely noticed that she faltered, stuttering a little as she dropped it off at his hand. Fishing some cash out of his wallet before Jean could try and insist, he dropped it on the table and leaned back again, focusing his attention solely on her. “Got any hiking outside the city? Good way to see the heart of where you’re livin’.” Jean rolled her eyes at the hand-holding suggestion, but even that was mostly to get a momentary reprieve from the laugh-grin combo that had her grinning in turn. “They have these great bars that you can hang on to. Very supportive! And I’m quite sure you don’t want the kind of mocking that would come along with you running from a simple train ride.” The fact that he paid too quickly for her to offer to pay her half wasn’t lost on her, and Jean had just enough time to narrow a curious glance at his profile before he was looking at her again. And there’d been a question. Jesus, had she zoned out like some kind of daft teenager who stared dreamily at the guy across the table and didn’t hear a word he’d said? Jean’s mouth fell open slightly as she rewinded the conversation in her head and finally picked up the one word that was enough to go on. “Hiking? Oh yeah...definitely! Tons, probably. I know there’s this park on Staten Island called Clove Lake that has a few trails and a giant old tulip tree that I’ve always been sort of in love with. It’s probably not what you’d consider serious hiking, but...” Jean shrugged. “...it might meet your approval.” “You’d be surprised what kinds of things I can put up with for a good reason.” Logan was oblivious to her zoning out, in doing a little of his own. It was only a matter of time before she caught the lingering stares he kept giving her, and that still wasn’t enough of a push to cause him to stop. His eyebrow raised at the reference to a tulip tree, but anything was better than the noise and pollution of the inner-city. It was still a far-cry from Canada and what he’d conditioned himself to be used to, but as far as Logan knew, he had a helluva lot of years ahead of himself, not learning how to acclimate would’ve been stupid. “Think it’ll be just fine, Red.” He didn’t add the fact that he was likely to follow her just about anywhere, even on one of those subways she insisted he could survive. Instead, he dropped a hefty tip on the table and tucked his wallet back in, pushing away from the table. “Wanna head back? Little worried that waitress might come back and try to steal you from me.” It was on the tip of her tongue to ask for a list of good reasons - you never know when something like that might come in handy - but Jean only nodded and took a final drink of her soda before climbing to her feet. “Right, because her tripping over herself just now was directed at me,” she smirked, patting him on the shoulder as she scooted around the back of his chair towards the exit. “I have a shift at the hospital soon, so I say we knock out that first trip on the subway to save some time. If you start to look skittish, I’ll see what I can do to keep you from bolting.” “‘Figured that’s the typical response anybody’s got around you.” He tilted his head slightly, leaning a little into her touch before following at a close distance. His hand hovered slightly at the small of her back, his brain battling an inner-debate on how close was appropriate for a … Date? Fuck, he had no idea. Unsure of what to do and not wanting to look like a hovering idiot. he dropped his hand, fingers lightly skimming before they fell away. “Lead the way, Red,” Logan followed her out of the restaurant, oblivious to the wistful look that followed him out. “Already thinkin’ up a list that might help to keep me in place. You wanna hear it?” She tried not to take his compliment too seriously since he seemed to picking up the habit of dishing them her way, but she couldn’t help but smile once her back was to him. Stepping out onto the sidewalk, Jean spun to face him, the amused tilt of her mouth matching the mock-suspicious squint she gave him. “Oh please, do share. I like lists. They’re ever so helpful,” she insisted, suspicion morphing effortlessly into over-acted, wide-eyed curiosity. Logan’s eyes immediately went down to her mouth, and he pursed his lips trying to maintain his focus on the upper reaches of her face. Without much thought, he closed the space between them, hands reaching out to hover at her hips. He leaned in slightly, but not pushy. Just comforting. He smiled a little, but knew full well that she’d probably push him away and laugh this off. “Number one; Touch. Hear it anchors a person in place.” It was tempting to make him pay for his teasing with some of her own, but she’d never been especially good at it. At least, not on purpose. Besides, Jean was having a little trouble thinking that strategically at the moment. Which meant sarcasm was her default as her brain did its frequent dance between what she wanted to do and the imagined complications that would result. “Touch. Riiight. You know, I think I’ve heard that theory before.” While her face matched her matter-of-fact tone, her smiling eyes and the drift of her hands, from where they’d landed on his forearms to where they gripped the fabric of his shirt to pull him closer, definitely put a dent in any illusion of clinical detachment. The words she blurted out next only shattered it more. “Is this a long list? Or can you just jump to the good part?” Never one for words, Logan was happy to cut straight to it when he had the chance. His grin and one-last flicker down to her lips gave his intent away, and his hand reached up to cup the back of her neck to pull her in the rest of the way when his mouth descended down over hers. Jump to the good part he did. He was fully aware that he wasn’t in New York for long. Fully aware that this was probably a bad idea, even if he’d been thinking about it since before he shipped off and she was writing him letters to keep him company. She wasn’t a love-em-and-leave-em type gal, even if he’d been interested in that. But he wasn’t fully aware to the fact that they were standing on a sidewalk in the middle of New York City. His mouth had just opened over hers to deepen the kiss when he was nudged in the ribs by a stranger walking by. Logan pulled away with a menacing growl, half tempted to go after the offender and teach him a lesson. Jean didn’t go into this outing intending to end up kissing on a busy New York City sidewalk, let alone encouraging it, but once she’d fully accepted that she liked him for more than his looks, and, more importantly, that whether or not he was going to be local didn’t change that, she got over her issues easily enough. At least long enough to lean up into the kiss with a small sigh against his mouth. When the kiss was interrupted, she found herself nudged a half-step backward and her fist tightened into his shirt to maintain her balance. “Did you just...growl?” Jean turned a baffled, but slightly amused face up at him. Once she was sure they weren’t under some kind of attack - an instinctual but very brief scan of his mind giving her the target of that threatening sound - her expression dissolved into the kind of silent laughter that closed her eyes tightly and left her shoulders trembling in the absence of sound. Taking a deep breath to get herself under control, Jean shook her head and moved to his side. She slid her arm along the inside of his to link their hands together and begin tugging him down the street with a bright grin. “Come on, soldier. No time for beating up rude strangers. We’ve got a train to catch.” His mouth turned downward into a muppet-like frown, not overly pleased with the interruption and Jean’s amused grin. But the frown was almost comical, and melted slightly when she slipped her hand into his. “Always time to beat up rude strangers,” he grumbled, but followed after her. Even for all his bluster and crankiness, Logan was already looking at her like he practically had hearts in his eyes. Hand in hers and following behind her like an obedient puppy, Logan was firmly of the belief that he made the right choice for picking New York to visit. Even if he was feeling a little bit of nervousness for the upcoming trip on a subway. |