Kimber Benton, Mia Dearden, Eli Loker, UTR 067. Confused: Kimber, Mia, Eli
"You sank my battleship," Mia said, tossing up her arms in defeat. "You win again." The woman across from her was Tina, one of the more recent arrivals at Starlight House. Sure, Battleship wasn't exactly the most exciting activity, but sometimes mundane things helped get people's minds off their worries and their bruises for a little while, and made things seem just a little more normal.
"I've gotta go, guys," Mia said, getting up. It was past quitting time, and Mia had dinner plans with Eli. One of the younger girls hugged the teenager around the waist, and Mia smiled. "I'll be back tomorrow," she told the girl, hugging her back gently.
Eli was waiting out in the lobby for Mia. "Hey," he said. He kissed her lightly on the cheek in greeting. He was aware that a lot of the people at the shelter had had not-so-great romantic experiences, and tried to be conscientious of that. "So I was thinking either Thai or pizza. What do you think?" He knew spicy foods like Thai or Mexican sometimes weren't an option, depending on what kind of day Mia was having, but it was rare that she couldn't stomach pizza.
Mia smiled, taking one of his hands. "Mmm. I think there's a place a few blocks from here that actually makes Thai pizza. If you're feeling adventurous."
Eli smiled, more pleased that she was feeling well today than at any particular food choices on the table. She'd been having a lot of good days recently, and he was glad. "Lead the way."
As they were leaving, Kimber was walking in with a large bag of what looked like clothes. Kimber smiled brightly when she saw Mia. "Hey, gorgeous," she said, a bit of a purr in her tone. She ignored the confusion on Mia's face, turning instead to address Eli. "Stealing her away from me?" The redhead pouted.
Kimber put the bag down on the desk and turned back to Mia, one hand on her hip. "Well, you should come to my place later," she said, winking. She opened the inner door and picked up the bag again. "You two have a good night," she said and disappeared inside.
Mia was staring after the popstar, her mouth hanging open. "What just happened?" she asked after a moment.
Eli smirked, shrugging as he held open the front door. "I believe we agreed on Thai pizza."
Still looking bewildered, Mia followed out the door. "She was joking, right? That was joking." She had been too distracted to look at pupil dilation, or whatever.
"I certainly hope not," Eli said, grinning. "Well, it would be awkward for everyone, and I'm sure I would get jealous if it actually led to anything, but for right now I'm just going to enjoy the mental images, if that's all right with you."
Mia rolled her eyes. "Why, thank you, Dr. Loker, that's very helpful." She couldn't help smirking a little, though.