Lisa Turpin (bl_lisa) wrote in bloodlines_rp, @ 2009-12-22 20:44:00 |
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Entry tags: | feb 2003, lisa turpin, loc: greater britain, type: rp, wesley turpin (npc) |
Happy Birthday, Dad
Date & Time: 22 February 2003 | evening
Post Type: RP
Status: Closed: Complete
Character(s): Lisa Turpin, Wesley Turpin (NPC)
Location: Wesley's house in York
Summary: Lisa visits her dad for his birthday and gets an unexpected gift herself.
"I barely see more of you now than I did when you were travelling," Wesley Turpin said, setting their drinks down on the coffee table before settling on the couch.
Lisa could tell he was mostly joking, but she still hated that the words could be said at all. She knew she didn't visit often enough. Some of it was habit, some of it was being busy even if she was in England, and the rest was general avoidance of her family. The less she was around, the less likely she was to run into Lydia or Lilah unexpectedly. It was awful, but it was the truth--even if she wasn't volunteering that truth to her father.
"Well, I thought I'd ease you back into it," she said, grinning as she sat down on the couch next to him. They'd finished dinner already, and he'd poured them each a glass of wine. She reached for hers, pausing before she took a drink to pull an envelope from her pocket and hand it to him. "Happy birthday, Daddy."
He reached for it, but put an arm around her shoulder and squeezed without even looking at the contents. "Thanks, Lise. You know you don't have to get me anything."
Lisa glared at him, but she leaned into his side anyway. Spending time with her dad was easy, even when she hadn't seen him in months. She wished she could have invited Will, because that was really all the evening was lacking, but he was working that night. And since she hadn't told him about Isaac yet, she thought it was probably a good idea to give her dad his gift without her brother around. "You haven't even opened it."
Chuckling, he flipped the envelope open and pulled out the Quidditch tickets that Isaac had gotten for her. She probably could have gotten a couple through work, but the seats wouldn't have been as good. Wesley's eyes scanned the tickets, then looked back up at her. "I haven't seen the Arrows in years." He gave her another squeeze and kissed her temple. "Thanks, kiddo. You're taking the second ticket, right?"
"Are you joking?" Lisa said, laughing before taking a drink of her wine and setting the glass back on the table. "Of course I'm going. When have I ever passed up an opportunity to see the Arrows? Except...well...I've got to cheer for the Falcons. Minor detail."
He raised an eyebrow, tossing the tickets onto the table. "Cheer for the Falcons? Since when?"
"Since I started dating one of them?"
His reaction was less than what she expected, though if she was honest with herself, she hadn't been sure what to expect. As close as they were, she and her dad didn't really talk about her love life because, well, it had never really existed before. She didn't date. Ever. Until Isaac, that was.
"That's...new. Did you meet him through work?"
She reached for her glass again, took a long drink of it. Why was it so nerve-racking to talk to her dad about this? She could talk to him about everything else, so this shouldn't be a big deal, should it? "No, he's just started with them. Last month. He lives in Blackthorn Ridge, though, so I met him there. At Pendragon's Pub. You remember where we went for my birthday? He used to tend bar there."
"You've been seeing him that long?"
"Well, since, um, September?" she said, glancing away. "Sort of."
When Lisa looked back, he was studying her in a way that let her know he wasn't quite sure how to react to this news. Since she still didn't quite know how to react to it, she couldn't really complain that her dad felt similarly. "Is this the 'friend' whose family you spent Christmas with?"
Fuck. She downed the rest of her wine, then nodded. "Yeah."
"You don't think I'll like him, then?"
"No!" She very nearly jumped up from the couch, waving her hand emphatically at him. "It's not that. No, I think you'll like him. A lot." Merlin, she hoped he would. She knew that the two would be meeting this coming weekend, after the Quidditch match, but it hadn't really hit her until that moment exactly how nervous she was about it. Probably because she'd been trying not to think about it. It seemed she did quite a lot of that with Isaac these days. "It's just...."
"Just what, Lisa?"
Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck. "I haven't told Will yet." Her dad didn't immediately comment, and the silence was just too much. "Because he's Timothy brother," she added, practically in a single syllable. This time she did get to her feet, walking a few steps away from the couch. "Isaac Cornfoot. And I don't want Will to go overprotective on me and hex him or do something else that might fuck this up."
She could tell he was studying her again, could feel his eyes on her back, but she didn't turn around to look at him. The pause felt a lot longer than it probably was. "Then you're pretty serious about this bloke? Isaac?"
Yes. Her stomach flopped at just how instantaneously that answer came to her mind. Serious? Was she really? These days she seemed to be thinking about him more often than not. When they were together, the world just seemed to fade away behind them, and nothing else mattered. The way he touched her, made her laugh, did thoughtful things even when he didn't seem to realise he was being thoughtful at all. "Yes," she said quietly. She couldn't lie to her dad about this, even if the truth was pretty scary. "I don't know. I guess I'm still trying to figure it out."
Wesley laughed softly, a gentle, comforting sort of sound. "I don't know many people in the world who aren't still trying to figure that one out. I have to admit, though, I thought you were going to take longer than most. I'd begun to wonder if Will would have the first grandchildren instead."
"Merlin, dad, I'm not talking about bloody grandchildren," she said, turning back toward him with scrunched up eyebrows. It was only when she could see his expression again that it was obvious he was teasing her. She sank back down onto the couch and punched his arm. "Will might still beat me to it yet."
"Wait here a minute," he said.
He watched her for half a second more before standing up and disappearing down the hallway. Lisa took a few deep breaths, trying to convince her body that it could calm down now. She'd gotten out that bit of news, if one could even call it that, and now she only had to get around to telling Will, and it would be done. She had to tell her brother. Needed to tell him. Will was important to her, and so was Isaac. Will would have to understand that.
After a few minutes, her dad returned carrying a small box. It wasn't just a simple cardboard one, but rather an ornately decorated wooden one that was about the size of her fist. He handed it to her, and she gave him a confused look. "What's this? You do remember that this is your birthday, right old man?"
He laughed, but just as she was about to lift the lid of he box, he stopped her with a hand over hers. "I've been saving this for you for awhile," he said. "I just wasn't sure if you'd need it any time soon. And maybe you still won't, but I think you should have it anyway. So you know it is possible to figure it out."
Lisa gave a short laugh in response to his words, mostly because she had no idea what he was talking about. What could he possibly have been saving for her, and why was he giving it to her now? He moved his hand, and she pulled the lid off the box, then promptly dropped it to the floor. Her hand was shaking as she looked from the box to her dad and then back down at the box again.
Two rings.
"But dad, these are--"
"Our wedding bands. Your mum and I."
"But I don't need wedding rings," she said, her voice tight and higher pitched than normal. She fumbled for the lid of the box, finding it hidden on the floor behind her foot. "Fuck. It's not that serious." It wasn't, was it? She shook her head in answer to her own silent question. Besides, it didn't matter. She wasn't going to think about anything like that. There were too many other questions she needed to answer first, too much potential for heartache. "You can't give these to me, dad. I might never...."
I might never use them.
"I can, and I have," he said, grabbing her in another hug. She couldn't relax into it like she usually did, but he persisted anyway. He put the lid back onto the box for her, which was a good thing, because her hands were still shaking too much to do it herself. "These have been passed down in your mum's family for centuries. Usually they skipped generations, of course, but...." He sighed. "I want you to have them, because I know they'll mean something to you. And not just because they're antiques."
Lisa stared down at the box as if she could still see its contents. Wedding rings. Fucking wedding rings. "Thanks, Dad."
What else could she possibly say?