RP: Aubrey and Reggie dinner Who: Aubrey Summers and Reggie Rimeblossom. What: Friends hanging out. When: Tuesday 7th May, after work. Where: Reggie's house. Warnings: None. Completion Status: Completed in docs.
Cooking for one was not an activity Aubrey considered worthwhile. Cooking for two, on the other hand, meant that the activity counted as socialising, not just sustenance, and that changed the equation dramatically. Especially when, as now, she could socialise while doing the actual cooking. She'd stopped at home after work to pick up the bag of ingredients she'd packed the night before, and to change out of her work suit into black jeans and a monochrome sweater. Working so locally, Reggie had already been home by the time she arrived, letting her make her way into the kitchen and set things up to her own specifications.
After measuring out 150ml of the white wine she'd brought with her, Aubrey waved the bottle at Reggie. "You want a glass while you're waiting?" Aubrey did love efficiency, so it pleased her that the wine which wasn't being used in the cooking could be drunk alongside (or before) the meal.
Since all she had to do now was watch the wine reduce, she turned her attention to Reggie. She'd seen him only a few days ago, but that conversation had ended up mostly being about sets for the next production he might be putting on. "How are you? Outside of work, I mean."
–
Most people hated Mondays. It tended to catch a lot of crap, but Reggie never got it. He loved Mondays. Tuesdays? Not so much. Which was why he'd been thrilled that Aubrey wanted to come cook and hang out today. It had given him something to look forward to after rehearsals with the kids after school. They were so close to the end of year performances, and it wasn't always easy to keep them focused. He enjoyed the challenge, but what the kids didn't seem to understand was that it was difficult for him too.
He had always been easily distracted. This time it was by the pattern in her sweater. His eyes were tracing the lines, finding patterns in it that weren't actually there, and he couldn't help imagining her as a character in an old black and white silent film. As such, he was lost in his imaginations when she offered him the wine, and it took a few beats longer than it ought to have for him to register it.
"Yeah, sure," he said with an easy grin, leaning his forearms against the counter, wearing a simple pair of blue jeans with a dark green t-shirt.
"I feel like I haven't had much of an outside of work lately," he answered, the pout as clear in his words as it was on his face. "Just a few more weeks until summer vaca starts, and then I can come up for air again. Sean has been pestering me to get back to the comedy nights at Sunny's." Sean helped run the comedy nights, and he loved to play on Reggie's ego, insisting that those nights fell flat without him there. He just hadn't had time to go the past month or so. "How about you?"
-
Fetching two glasses, Aubrey poured for them both, if a rather smaller measure for herself than for Reggie. She gave a sympathetic grimace as she passed it to him. "I know. Why do you think I asked?" Reggie had been working in a school for a decade, Aubrey knew what things tended to be like towards the end of the school year. "You could make time to come up for air. Or I could make it for you, I'm very good at that." While most people did not consider Aubrey to be masses of fun, she was a master at handling a schedule. If Reggie had actually wanted her to, she could have enforced it.
"Is that what you want to do?" Aubrey always attended Reggie's comedy nights, if she could, but had literally never been to one he wasn't performing at, so she was in no position to compare the two. "There's still time to plan something else, if you're leaning more in a different direction." She'd support Reggie in anything, all she cared about was that it would be the use he wanted to put his time toward.
As for herself, she shrugged. "Outside of work?" She shrugged one shoulder. "Not much, and I don't even have the excuse that this time of year is particularly busy." She had her weekly dance classes, she would of course attend the end of year performances with any of her friends she could convince to come. "Camille's decided I should try online dating." Aubrey's face plainly indicated what she thought of that idea.
–
"Yeah, yeah, yeah," he sighed, chuckling a moment later. There wasn't anyone in the world who knew him better than Aubrey, but that's what over two decades of friendship would do. "I probably should make the time. The kids definitely give me lots of extra material to work with," he admitted. Not that any of them could attend the comedy nights, which were strictly adults-only.
Reggie scrunched up his face, crossing his eyes a bit. "Planning," he said on a groan. "But if you feel you need to, you know I'd let you beat it into me." It wasn't even worth pretending that she couldn't manipulate his life in that way, not that he saw it as a manipulation particularly.
The face he made at her oh-so-casual mention of Camille's idea was entirely out of his control. "Online dating?" he echoed. That seemed so… impersonal. "I can't imagine you fishing through hundreds of bios just to try to find the few that seem acceptable." Only to invariably find something wrong with them if they made it to an actual date. His Aubrey had high standards, and he didn't fault her for that in the least. She deserved the best. "Wait, does that mean Camille's been online dating? I'm going to have to talk to her soon, pick her brain. There's got to be stories there. Hmm, maybe you trying it isn't the worst idea." His stand up comedy pulled not only from his life and experiences, but from those around him, and he didn't apologize for it.
-
"It's only because I care," Aubrey pointed out, her tone and expression deadpan. It was true, of course; she bossed around the people that she cared about. Anyone who didn't matter, she was far more likely to allow to make their own mistakes. She trusted Reggie to know that, even if it wasn't the kind of thing they (sincerely) said out loud.
Her response to the groan was mostly a sigh, and a piercing glance. "Right now, you feel like the vacation will last forever and you don't need to plan, but two or three or four weeks into it, you'll be wondering where it all went and why you didn't do something with it." That wasn't specifically a Reggie problem, most people who objected to planning had the same issue, at least in Aubrey's opinion. "At least give it some thought. Top three things you'd like to do with your break." If it came to it, Aubrey could handle the actual planning herself, but she could not decide what Reggie most wanted to do with his time.
"I'm quite sure Camille can't imagine me doing it either, which is probably why she suggested it." The trawling through matches would be tedious, and Aubrey had heard other womens' dating horror stories enough that she doubted she'd be successful. Besides, what would she even put on a profile? She was well aware that… the way she was had very particular and limited appeal. "Camille is an extremely physically fit woman in an industry dominated by men," Aubrey pointed out. "I don't think she needs online dating." Technically, Aubrey was also a physically fit woman in an industry dominated by men, but firstly the men were mostly much older and secondly, trading on her looks to get a date would only lead to disappointment. At least, so she assumed. She'd never thought to wonder whether being in a relationship would change the frequency with which she wanted physical connection. "Are you about to suggest you come watch these hypothetical dates of mine? Because that might be useful for comedy, but would almost certainly guarantee failure in terms of actual dating."
–
It was far from the first time they'd gone in these circles, but the familiarity was a comfort to Reggie as much as it was a mild annoyance. He didn't know what he would do if she ever decided to stop bossing him around; he'd always rather thought if that happened, he would know that he'd lost her, and that simply wouldn't do. "Top three things," he echoed speculatively. That probably wasn't the most difficult task she'd set him. "We're doing the two week summer drama camp again this year. There's a couple kids I'm still trying to talk into signing up for it. They're assholes, but that's why I think it'd be good for them."
Not that that was one of the top three things. It would be work, so it didn't count, but it still seemed like a good time to share it with her. "But yeah, I'll give it some thought and get back to you on it," he promised. And he wasn't one to break a promise. Perhaps it was the fae side of him, that it was simply in his nature to hold true to his word.
Reggie snorted out a soft chuckle at that, shaking his head. "No, I don't imagine Cam does." His best friend's little sister certainly seemed more into the dating scene than Aubrey, as well as more confident in what she brought to the table. Her question had him flashing her a rather mischievous grin. "Who says you'd know I was there? I could sit at a nearby table, wear a trench coat and sunglasses, all mysterious like, no one would even know I was there! Or they'd assume I was some kind of spy. Unless of course you brought your date home, in which case I'd need you to tell me stories," he pointed out with a decisive nod, as if it wasn't absurd in the least to suggest such a thing. Mostly, he said it just to try to get a rise out of her.
-
That the first thing Reggie said after being asked his top three non-work things was, in fact, a work thing just proved Aubrey's point that he needed to force his brain to switch gears a little more often. Not that she was really one to talk, but Aubrey promised her friends and family good advice, she made no promises about whether it was hypocritical. "How are we friends, again?" Aubrey teased. "You actively try to spend more time with assholes, whereas I go out of my way to avoid idiots." Actually, maybe that was why. Aubrey could certainly qualify as an 'asshole' at times, but Reggie was never an idiot.
Giving his hand a tiny pat, Aubrey measured out the cream and added that to the pan currently on the stove. "Go on, explain to me the theory of how drama camp will cure students of being dicks. You're obviously dying to." Unlike Aubrey's job, at least what Reggie did for a living was interesting to both of them. Aubrey was really very happy to leave her own work in the office, never to be mentioned elsewhere.
"Yes," Aubrey agreed, rolling her eyes, "because obviously my dating venue of choice is a speakeasy from the 30s where a trench coat and sunglasses will look totally normal." No, Aubrey was quite sure she'd simply know if Reggie was there. They might not be able to read one another's minds, but her fae senses were strong enough that she could never overlook him in a crowd. She wrinkled her nose at the idea of telling Reggie anything about her sex life. She never had, though the same was not necessarily true in reverse. "I think taking someone home on the first date would give a very wrong impression." Aubrey wrinkled her nose even harder; she hadn't meant to sound like someone who condemned casual sex.
–
No one who met Reggie casually would ever think he was a workaholic, but the thing about him was that he had a single-minded focus if something interested him that could be a bit scary at times, and teaching drama was definitely one area that he found positively fascinating. He couldn't help laughing at her reaction, though, shrugging and not bothering to deny the insanity of it.
That brief pat of her hand on his was far more distracting than she would probably ever realize, but he'd long ago shoved his crush on her in a box, knowing that she would never be interested in him that way. "So here's the thing, it doesn't cure them of being dicks. But usually–not always, but usually–the students that are the biggest assholes have this whole shitton of borderline trauma, sometimes actually trauma, to draw from that, if they can tap into it, can make them pretty fucking fantastic actors. They just need the reprieve from all their shit to get there." Hence, drama camp.
Reggie grinned crookedly at her, nodding enthusiastically. "See, exactly. I'm so glad you see it too," he said, as if her words hadn't been sarcastic. Even if he didn't love the idea of her dating, though he had no right to express as much and so wouldn't, he wouldn't be so crass as to stalk her during it just for material for his stand up act. "If that impression is that you enjoy sex, I think that's the right impression. Unless you don't like sex? In which case, you've probably not had the right kind of sex." It was on the tip of his tongue that they should figure that out together, but he'd never outright propositioned her, and he wasn't about to start now. They had so many lifetimes to look forward to, and if they ever went there, he didn't want it to come about while she was pondering online dating, of all things.
–
Aubrey listened as she stirred the rest of the ingredients into the sauce, humming in the appropriate places as Reggie explained. "I can see that." Not that Aubrey had any experience with trauma, or even borderline trauma, but she'd done a lot of reading around psychology and other such topics. "And being good at something is generally good for people, right? So maybe, long-term, it would help cure them of being dicks, too." Not everyone, of course, but being an asshole could be a defence mechanism, and if there was less to defend, it might improve their behaviour.
She snorted, unable to help being amused by the way Reggie just took her words at face value, though she was sure he knew they hadn't been. If only they could have stuck to talking about Reggie crashing Aubrey's date… but he had to go and ask whether she liked sex and Aubrey felt her heart kick up a gear against her ribs. Or, perhaps, imagined that she felt. Lifting two fingers to the hollow of her throat, it seemed that her pulse was normal, and the feeling of a racing heart was purely anxiety. Aubrey's default response to her anxiety disorder was to challenge it, which meant she couldn't just skate over the topic and hope Reggie wouldn't notice. "I like sex." Her voice was not as loud as it should have been, but the kitchen was quiet with only the two of them. "Just… not as often as other people seem to?" It wasn't something she'd talked about, to Reggie or to anyone. It wasn't a problem, right now. It only might become one if she actually did start to date.
–
"That would be the hope," Reggie agreed easily. He'd been teaching long enough to have a good feel for which of the "trouble" kids would benefit from getting more involved in drama and which ones would just spiral further. His predictions weren't always correct, but he thought he had a pretty good average.
He'd gotten to her, he could see that readily enough, but he wasn't entirely sure in which way, and that made him just a little nervous. Because it was Aubrey, and as much as he'd poked and teased her over the years, he'd never been quite so blunt about it. But then she actually answered, and he wasn't entirely sure what to make of it. "Oh," he said rather lamely.
Standing upright, Reggie went around the island counter and slung an arm over her shoulders, giving them a tight squeeze. "Hey, you're allowed to like what you like," he told her in a rare moment of genuine seriousness. The topic and their long friendship deserved that much; he certainly wouldn't have been so generous with most others. Reaching out with his free hand, he swiped a bit of sauce off the cooking spoon when she lifted it up, bringing it to his mouth for a taste. "Mmm, I love it when you come over to cook," he declared, giving her another squeeze before stepping back so she could move around the kitchen to finish cooking.
–
Sometimes, Aubrey really wondered how she'd managed to get a friend like Reggie. "So noble," she teased, but Reggie really was. He wanted to help others, and not just those close to him that he already cared about. Aubrey was far less altruistic, at least when it came to those not within her inner circle.
Reggie's tiny 'oh' hurt more than Aubrey would ever admit to him, and she immediately scolded herself for being irrational. First of all, Reggie wasn't disappointed, because it had no relevance to him. Second of all, even if he was, it had clearly only been for a moment before he transitioned into 'best friend mode'.
She leaned into the touch, appreciating the solidity of Reggie's side under her shoulder. "I know," she said, a little peevishly, "but it's not just about me, is it? The whole relationship thing is about being what somebody else likes, too." Some formless, faceless person Aubrey couldn't easily imagine ever seriously looking for, let alone finding. "This is why Camille is wrong. I shouldn't date, I'm not built for compromises." There, she'd managed to sound amused by her own small joke. That was better.
"And I love leaving you all the washing up," she lied. Actually, Aubrey quite liked washing up: watching things go from dirty to clean was very satisfying. Still, she let Reggie do it when she cooked, because that was only fair.
–
Noble was not a word Reggie had ever particularly associated with himself, but he knew better than to argue with Aubrey.
He knew better than to let that moment of prickliness get to him. It was rarely about him and more how Aubrey perceived herself and the world around her, and so he let it roll off him. "Eh, I think you're selling yourself short," he countered lightly, stepping back to lean against the island. "You should date if you want to. Even if it's just for the experience of meeting new people. Or if finding someone to spend your life with matters to you."
He had to wonder if the reason she'd never been interested in sex frequently was because she'd never been in a relationship with someone who could light her up with just a word or a touch. But then, he had always been the far more tactile of the two of them, and he'd known for a long time that a relationship without physical intimacy would never work for him, so he didn't bother dating anyone he didn't have that kind of spark with.
"Dating doesn't have to be about compromises, even if all relationships require them to some degree. But the process of finding that someone? Nah, you definitely shouldn't compromise. That's how marriages lead to resentment and divorce. You compromise so much while dating that you lose who you are, and eventually that catches up with you and you just can't keep it up." Huh, who knew he had such strong thoughts on this topic? But then, he'd taken on the role of unofficial counsellor to enough students going through parents divorcing to have picked up on a few things, he rather thought.
Reggie snorted a soft laugh at that, shaking his head. "Liar," he accused. "But it's only fair," he added, unconsciously echoing her thoughts.
–
Aubrey very nearly said that she had someone to spend her life with: Reggie. Not in the way he meant, no, but their friendship was much more important to her than any of the sex she'd ever had. Their friendship would be enough, she thought. For her. Not enough for Reggie, though, who did actually enjoy dating and who might, one day, find someone other than Aubrey that he wanted to spend his life with. He wouldn't ever cut her out, Aubrey was sure, but her role in his life would… diminish.
With a tiny sigh, she drained the pasta and added it to the sauce already in the pan. "Maybe, but not online. If I meet someone new, then I meet someone. It's not as if I need to be in a rush." The benefit of inheritance from her fae father; Aubrey could meet someone at 100 and still spend a whole human lifetime with them, or more.
She shot him a sceptical expression as she plated the pasta. "Me? Lose who I am?" Aubrey certainly had anxieties about the concept of a relationship, of being someone's girlfriend, but losing her sense of identity was not among them. "How could I possibly do that with you there to remind me?"
–
Reggie didn't bother to hide how he rolled his eyes at that. "It's not about being in a rush; it's about the experience. If you're not worried about settling down, then there's nothing wrong with it being about having fun." It was pointless to keep pushing the point; their perspectives on the topic were simply too far apart. He wasn't so arrogant to think his was the only one worth having, even if a part of him did just a little bit.
"Wait, I thought I wasn't allowed on your dates with you?" he said, as if him being there to remind her obviously meant he would be there quite literally all the time. He smiled winningly at her before relaxing the expression a touch. "I just meant generally, though, not you specifically. Remember when I dated Dave? I didn't even know he was pretending to be okay with so many stupid little things until it all blew up in my face," he pointed out, shrugging faintly. "Best just to be honest with who you are from the start. And I know," he said, holding his hands up as if to head off her inevitable protest, "I know you are you, but…"
He paused, realizing that the train had left the station. "I don't even remember how I got on that." Laughing at himself, he shook his head. "Probably cause that looks amazing," he said, reaching out to take the plates and carry them out of the kitchen. "Table or tv?" he asked, not sure where she'd prefer to eat tonight.
–
Infuriatingly, Reggie was probably right, in his words if not quite in the way he meant them. Trying to one day jump into a relationship with no experience dating sounded… ill-advised. Which meant Aubrey really should at least try to do the dating thing: dress up nicely, make polite conversation, try to find the balance between someone interesting enough to talk to but not so interesting that she preferred talking to kissing. The problem was, none of that sounded fun. It all sounded like effort, in a way that coming over to Reggie's house and cooking him pasta did not. "I'll think about it," she promised. That would buy her some time; nobody who knew her expected Aubrey to make a quick decision, nor one that didn't include a pro/con list.
The idea of Reggie on her dates with her, in a very different way than they were talking about, made something flip in the pit of Aubrey's stomach. She ignored it. Even if she had been willing to risk their friendship, Reggie wasn't interested in her. "Of course," Aubrey agreed, because she did remember everyone that Reggie dated for longer than about a week. She remembered, at least vaguely, Reggie's description of their last fight. "But what if there are things that bother you in a stranger, which wouldn't necessarily bother you once you actually liked someone?" Goodness knew Aubrey's siblings had personalities which would have annoyed her if she hadn't been related to them.
"That depends, have you got any new shows to recommend to me?" Aubrey wouldn't have let them eat on the sofa in her apartment, except in very special circumstances, but Reggie was different, and she could adapt to his ways, at least when she didn't have to be the one responsible for his space.
–
If there was one thing Reggie knew he could trust, it was that she would truly consider something if she said she would. He had never known her to not know her own mind or to placate someone by playing along with no intention of following through. With that in mind, and the promise of good food, he let the topic go for the moment.
That was a rather specific question, and he couldn't help wondering if she had anything specific in mind with it. "Like what?" he asked. He had plenty of thoughts on the degrees of tolerance, but even he was capable of listening first sometimes rather than plowing forward with his own opinions.
"Hmm, not unless you want to give Futurama another go," he said, doing his best to hide his grin at the suggestion. What could he say? He enjoyed needling her. Just a little.
–
Aubrey pursed her lips, trying to decide which qualities she did mean, even though she probably could just have named her siblings to Reggie and he would have known what she meant. She was nothing if not precise, though whether that was the fae in her or just personality she had no idea. "Thrill-seeking. Impulsiveness." She frowned, because maybe that wasn't really what she meant. She put up with those in her siblings, but no relationship in which she was expected to join in was likely to work. "I suppose I mean… being more relaxed than me. The kind of thing that annoys me, until it doesn't."
Once more, it was on the tip of Aubrey's tongue to say 'things like that' when Reggie tried, again, to get her to invest in his animated sci-fi show. She knew he did it just to wind her up, she even knew that she reacted particularly amusingly to being wound up. If someone she'd just met had tried it, she'd have found it endlessly frustrating. Somehow, Reggie got away with it, maybe just by virtue of having known her so long. She caught the words before she could utter them. Safer not to make things weird, even though Reggie probably would have accepted the example without overthinking what she'd meant about their friendship. "No. I deal with enough lazy, immature man-children at work, thank you."
–
Even if she'd not said names, it wasn't difficult to connect the dots, and he chuckled softly, shaking his head. "I don't know if those are the sorts of things that could or should be deal breakers? I mean, you know what they say about opposites attract," he pointed out, his grin widening a bit. He was more relaxed than her, and he was sure it still had moments of annoying her. The optimist in him wondered if that was a hint that she'd want to give a relationship with him a go, but no… If that was something she wanted, she'd have just said so, wouldn't she? Aubrey was like that. Direct. It was one of the things he'd always loved best about her.
Reggie snorted at her response. "You just aren't built for appreciating absurd comedy," he said with a rather exaggerated long-suffering sigh. "Let's just sit at the table tonight." Simpler that way rather than debating the TV guide while their food got cold. Making his way to the table, he set their plates down. He went back for their wine before sitting down.
"So, when are you taking a vacation?" he asked, sure he knew what she would say but still wanting to ask anyway.
–
Aubrey knew very well what they said about opposites attracting, but she'd never really believed it. Surely there was such a thing as too different? "Do you really think that's true?" If Reggie did, she supposed she'd have to believe him since he was the only one of the pair of them with actual relationship experience. "I can't imagine Barrett or Camille happy with someone like me." About 40 percent of the time, Aubrey wasn't convinced Barrett or Camille were particularly happy to have her as a sister, let alone anything else. "Possibly I should stop basing my opinions on dating on familial relationships," she admitted, in a lighter tone. It just felt less scary than openly basing her dating decisions on her friendship with Reggie.
"I'm built for appreciating your comedy, and that's all you're getting," she teased. Even that, Aubrey wasn't really built for it, but she'd learned to appreciate it. She did genuinely enjoy when she could tell that Reggie had improved, when he'd found the right form for a joke or story or one-liner. While he fetched the wine, she collected the cutlery and set it out, smiling at him as he joined her. For all her qualms about dating, she did genuinely like this, the companionship of a many-year friendship. She'd be stupid to risk all that for a romantic relationship that was probably doomed.
Though a perfectionist while she was at work, Aubrey did actually take breaks. Admittedly, not to vacation on sunny beaches or exclusive resorts like most of the people she worked with. "Actually, I was wondering whether you wanted to go somewhere." When she'd asked about the top three things Reggie might want to do, it had been one of the first thoughts to pop into her mind.
–
It would be all too easy to brush off the question with a joke, but this was Aubrey, and he knew she would appreciate a genuine answer. "Hmm, to a point," he said after a moment of thought. If two people who were so far apart in every way tried at a relationship, he didn't think it could realistically work, but two very different people who still had common ground? Why not? He chuckled at her admission, nodding. "Yeah, probably. It would be weird if you wanted to be with someone just like your sibling." Not that he had any himself, but in general, he thought that was a strange thing.
Reggie huffed a small sigh, dramatically of course, but a part of him stood a bit taller at the reminder that he was the exception for her. In how many ways, he couldn't say, but there was a point of pride to being that person for her.
A vacation with Aubrey meant he wouldn't have to actually plan anything himself. He was perfectly capable, even if she was the queen of planning, and likely would plan a little something during any they might take, but it was definitely a perk of their friendship he enjoyed. "Ahh, I see! You were using me to fish for ideas," he accused, knowing it wasn't entirely what she meant but not able to stop himself from needling her just a bit. "Let's see, all that's popping in my head are sunny beaches. San Diego, Hawaii, the Bahamas. Maybe I want to try surfing again." It had… not gone well the last time he'd tried, but he'd had a blast failing at it.
–
Aubrey hummed back. The trouble, in her opinion, was figuring out where the point was. Where, exactly, did someone become too opposite? She would've liked if someone could've given her a nice defined answer, perhaps with subclauses, a points-system to measure against and a list of exceptions. Sadly, interpersonal things rarely involved precision, much as Aubrey might have preferred if they did. "I don't want to be with anyone just like Barrett or just like Camille." She didn't even want to be with someone 'just like' Reggie, because it wouldn't be Reggie, and what would be the point of that?
Naturally, Reggie chose to needle her just as she'd raised a forkful of pasta to her lips, which meant she couldn't respond immediately, except by rolling her eyes. "I think you know I was wondering whether a vacation with me would be something that interested you." Somehow, it wasn't really something they'd done in the five years they'd been living in Tarrytown. They'd both gone back to Pennsylvania at the same time to visit family, but never away somewhere just the two of them. She paused, genuinely not sure what she would do on a beach vacation. If Reggie had been more like her, she might've suggested he beach while she went to museums and they could meet up in the evenings for drinks and dinner. But Reggie was much more social; he probably expected his vacation companion to actually provide company. So, Aubrey asked, genuinely curious, "What do you picture me doing on a beach?"
–
"Then what type of person do you want to be with?" Reggie asked, mentally kicking himself as soon as the words were out of his mouth. That wasn't really any of his business, was it? And wouldn't it just feel like a blow to hear what her ideal person would be like? There was no way it could be someone like him. Their friendship probably worked so well because there weren't any of those layers to it, having kept his feelings for her to himself for so long.
The question put all sorts of images in his head that he was certain she hadn't intended, and his lips twitched as he held back a grin at the thoughts. "Hmm, sunbathe in an itty bitty bikini while reading a book?" he suggested, not quite able to keep all of the thoughts to himself. "Unless you'd expect me to be wearing the itty bitty bikini?" he added a beat later, as if the joke could brush over the first bit.
–
It was genuinely difficult even to give the question the kind of contemplation that she usually would. Trying to picture a kind of person she could imagine being with had never come easily. "I'm not-" she started, then stopped. She didn't want to lie to Reggie. (And there was a difference, in Aubrey's mind, between not sharing every thought and actively lying.) She'd have liked to say she'd never met anyone she could imagine being with, but that was only almost true. She could imagine being with Reggie; she just struggled to imagine it working out, from his side, more than from her own. After a sip of her wine, she shrugged. "If I knew the answer to that, maybe it would be easier."
The itty bitty bikini took her by surprise. Aubrey didn't think of herself as someone men pictured that way. Sure, she had no trouble attracting partners when she wanted them, but she put that down to being willing to make the first move. Fortunately, the image of Reggie's broad chest in a tiny bikini top was surprising in a whole different way, making Aubrey snort a laugh into her wine glass. "I'm quite sure they make you wear a wetsuit to take surfing lessons, but don't let that stop you while we're apparently reading books on neighboring sunloungers."
–
Although he really wanted to know what she was going to say, maybe he didn't. Maybe it was better not to. Reggie wasn't going to push. Not this time. "Yeah, I get that," he said instead when she finally completed a thought. It wasn't like he was any better at sorting out his romantic life; he just tended to put himself out there more.
That short burst of laughter was precisely what he'd been hoping for, and his smile held just an edge of smugness at having surprised her with that mental image. Sighing gustily, he said, "You're probably right." She usually was in matters of fact. "But I promise I won't forget to pack one should you let me drag you to a beach." It wasn't like either of them were drawn to sunny beaches by nature, but he was human enough to enjoy it despite his Winter Court heritage. "Maybe we should find somewhere in the southern hemisphere to go snowboarding instead. You'd think since I can do that, surfing would be a breeze." He tutted and shook his head at himself.
–
Aubrey wasn't sure whether Reggie meant he understood where she was coming from, or if he felt the same. At first, she wasn't going to ask, in case Reggie told her exactly what he was looking for, but she quickly realised that if she'd been advising anyone else, she'd have told them to find out now, rip the band-aid off. She could hardly hold herself to laxer standards than anyone else. So, ignoring the sudden thrumming in her chest, she glanced at Reggie across the table. "Do you know what you're looking for? You at least have enough experience to start narrowing it down."
In truth, Aubrey would probably let Reggie drag her almost anywhere. Well, unless he suggested somewhere actively wartorn, but she couldn't imagine that Reggie would. On the other hand, skiing did sound rather more Aubrey's style. "Only trouble with that is, not a lot of ski resorts have theatre or comedy for us to go to in the evening." There were, on the other hand, beaches with cities near enough for them to enjoy both. "But maybe you want a break from theatre; it is what you do all day."
–
He probably should have expected the question, and yet he hadn't. He blinked at her, his mind going momentarily blank before racing as he tried to figure out just how to answer her. "Uhh, not really? I mean, I kind of feel like I'm not really particular about that sort of thing? But you know I've always been pretty easy-going." Basically, he just couldn't tolerate people who were dicks to kids and animals or who were so shallow that they only gave a shit about shopping and reality TV. But when it came to people's quirks, he didn't find himself easily irritated.
That was a good point, not that he was surprised. Aubrey and good points with planning kind of went hand in hand. "Hmm, I don't necessarily want a break from theatre or not want one. How long do you think you'll be able to get away for? Oh! We could go to Sydney," he suggested. It had been a while since he'd gone out of the country for a vacation, and he hadn't yet made it to Australia, but they were known for the arts, so there would be plenty of options for them to explore.
–
It was oddly reassuring the way Reggie stilled at her question, like maybe he didn't have all the answers either or a list of attributes he was definitely looking for. Not that Reggie would make an actual list. Maybe she should've known that, it wasn't as if Reggie's previous partners had followed any particular pattern as far as she could tell. Even so, Aubrey felt her pulse slow back to normal, a genuine smile touching her lips as she raised her glass. "Well, then cheers to being very nearly as clueless as each other." Maybe it was a good thing they didn't only have a human life span to figure this out.
"A week?" Aubrey answered, which hardly seemed long enough to fly all the way to Australia. "Maybe two." It would be tricky to organise that now for this summer: but Aubrey was sufficiently efficient that she actually anticipated the challenge with some pleasure. She was almost certain she could do it. "And I could always fly back before you, if you want to take advantage of having all summer off." She smiled again, pleased as always by how well they did work together despite their differences. Sydney was a good suggestion: with culture and beaches, both of which could be enjoyed even in the southern hemisphere's winter. "I like it as an idea."
–
Reggie snorted out a short laugh at her toast, lifting his own glass to clink gently against hers gamely. "Cheers," he said, enjoying the ridiculousness of the moment.
That fell in line with what he'd been imagining. "Not sure I'd be able to take more than a week or two, myself," he admitted. He did have the drama camp to help run, after all, and that was right in the middle of the summer. "Maybe Australia toward the end of summer, after drama camp. We can do a shorter trip somewhere before drama camp, if you want. Something more local? We could go up and tour Toronto, pretend we've never been there before. I know you'd be perfectly capable of planning Australia on short notice, but I feel like it'll be more rejuvenating as I get ready for the new batch of freshmen in the fall."
Those first year drama kids were almost always an entertaining bunch, as if plucked right out of an 80's teenage drama movie. He loved it. "Or, you just make the plans and tell me where to be. That's worked for us before," he pointed out with a chuckle as he twirled some pasta on his fork.
–
She raised an eyebrow when Reggie suggested two trips. It wasn't that she thought he'd want a break from her, but he did have other hobbies, other people in his life. She hadn't expected that he'd block off two separate times to go and be away from all that with just her. "If two of your top three are 'vacation with Aubrey', of course we can do that," she agreed, "but I won't be offended if you want to stay here and do comedy, or plan something with anyone else." Unless Reggie left Tarrytown, Aubrey would be around anyway, so it was hardly as if she wouldn't see any of him unless they went away together. "You know I'll help out with sets for camp."
Reggie didn't have to decide right now. "As a first step, I'll make sure I can get the time off work and look into flights and hotels. The boring stuff. Then we can make decisions together about what we might want to do while we're there." If they decided on Toronto, they could definitely plan that at short notice. Or, as Reggie said, Aubrey could plan and just tell him where to turn up. She smiled more broadly. "See - I came over and you couldn't think of a single non-work thing to do with your summer, and look how efficient we've been!"
–
Ahh, he was rather commandeering her time with these ideas, wasn't he? He took her words to be a gentle brush off, as if she wasn't so inclined to spend two separate vacations with him, assuming it was because she didn't want that much time away from her work and everything else. He should have known better than to assume that, as Aubrey tended toward directness, but that was still how he'd taken it. "Ahh, I mean, we can play things by ear for Toronto, but we should definitely plan on Australia later in the summer," he said with a decisive nod. There, that gave her an out if she really wanted it while still leaving things open enough if he was reading the situation wrong. "I know you will," he said with simple warmth. She'd always been reliable that way, after all.
The boring stuff, indeed, Reggie thought with a small nod. "Yeah, sure. I'm pretty sure it is, but I'll have to double check if my passport is current," he said, rather proud of himself for remembering that important detail. If there were any issues, he'd need to see to them right away, as he knew from experience that the process could take weeks. He chuckled at her declaration, waving his fork at her. "I know, right! I really should just let you plan everything."
–
Playing by ear wasn't Aubrey's skill set, but she didn't argue. If she was going to plan Australia, she could let Reggie take the reins for Toronto, including if there even was a trip to Toronto. "Think about it and let me know," she urged. Personally, she expected Reggie would find something else he wanted to do with his time, but in the case that he didn't, she wasn't offended if she was the fall-back option.
Her smile when Reggie remembered to think of his passport was genuine. She would have reminded him, eventually, but it was nice that she didn't have to. (That certainly wasn't true of everyone in her life.) "Not everything. Your comedy shows would go very badly if you let me plan them." Aubrey was many things, but she did not think of herself as funny. "Now that I've planned your summer for you," she teased, "I will leave off organising and you can tell me what you've got coming up this week."