Fail!bowling for the win!
Who: Telyn and Adam Where: Her house and then the bowling alley When: Evening What: A date
She rushed home from work and jumped in the shower. There wasn't much time between when she got home and when Adam was coming and she needed to make sure she looked perfect. It was a good thing she'd picked out her outfit before work. Lucky was running around after her as she dried her hair and slipped into the dress. "I know you wanna come along, buddy, but this a date. One where we're going out. So I can't bring you."
He whined. 'Come on, Te. Adam likes me, remember?' She paused and reached down to scratch him behind the ears. "I know, Luck. I do, but tonight, can I please just be a girl with a date? I promise you can hang out with us after." He seemed to be okay with this and he trotted off to wait for Adam. Soon, she was ready, pulling the sweater over her shoulders as Lucky let out a bark. He was there.
Bright smile on her face and she headed downstairs, fluffing her hair for a moment before opening the door. "Hey," she said, grinning even more when she saw him.
Adam was nervous, for several reasons. There was the signing on Saturday hanging over his head, still unsure how it was that his agent managed to talk him into it on such short notice, but Kennedy insisted that it would be good publicity in the light of everything else going on. That paled in comparison to knowing that he was going on a date with Telyn tonight, and after the signing on Saturday.
If he was being honest, Adam didn't remember the last time he'd been on a date. Dinner out with Langston hadn't counted, not really. Even though this was pretty low key, he hoped the outfit he managed to pick out wasn't a complete disaster. It only occurred to him last minute that he should have stopped to get her flowers on the way back from the university. And, once she opened the door and saw her in that dress, he knew he hadn't been overthinking things again. This was a date, straight up, and Telyn was gorgeous.
"Hi," he said, grinning back at her. "I'm not late, am I?" He leaned into to give her a hug, "You look lovely."
"Thank you." Telyn was more than happy to get a hug. They had spent most of the evening snuggled up on the couch when she'd seen him last and it was a wonderful evening. She pulled back a little, keeping her hands on his arms. Lucky of course came up and rubbed against Adam by way of greeting. He didn't want to be left out but he knew what Telyn had wanted to do, a decision she'd made the day before sitting in the back of a fire truck.
"Ready for your surprise?" she asked softly.
After their dinner together, Adam had gone home that night and wondered if it was a date. He didn't want to assume anything, of course, but now, seeing how dressed up she was and that she had planned some surprise for him, maybe it kind of was. Not wanting Lucky to feel left out, Adam reached down to scratch the dog behind the ears as he kept one arm around Telyn's shoulders.
"Sure," he said. "Should I close my eyes?"
She laughed a little. "If you like." Of course Lucky lapped up the attention, happy to have been noticed at all. Once she was sure Adam had closed his eyes, she took a deep breath and leaned up to brush her lips softly over his. Yes, that had been the surprise she had planned for him, though there was a fresh batch of cookies in the kitchen too, if that hadn't gone over well.
Adam tried to wait patiently, he really did. He wasn't sure what to expect, but the kiss caught him off guard, a little noise in the back of his throat giving him away. Okay, that hadn't happened to him in quite some time. He didn't want Telyn to pull away so quickly, so he kept his arm around her and leaned into the kiss, keeping it short but sweet. "I like this surprise," he said when he opened his eyes to look at her.
Telyn looked up at him, smile still on her face. "Do you? Cause I had cookies as a back up." He kissed her back and she had a feeling it wouldn't be a problem. She put her arm around him a little more and bit her lip for a moment. "Maybe I could give you that surprise again?" she asked, voice still soft.
"Cookies are good too," he said, "but I think I like this better." He couldn't really remember the last time he'd gotten a kiss, a real one, but it was back in New York at least and this was tons better. Adam leaned down a little, she wasn't that much shorter than him, and grinned. "Sure, but what if I get to it first?" He stole another, little kiss, glad they'd crossed that bridge sooner rather than later.
There was a soft sound of contentment when he kissed her, this time his intiation. It was good, very good. Telyn's fingers played with the hair at the nape if his neck. "I like that you got to it first," she murmured. Leaning up, she kissed him one more time before biting her lip again. "Of course, we keep exchanging surprises and we're never gonna leave my house," she teased.
He didn't really want her to pull back, but it was worth it to see her bite her lip like that. "We can have more of these later," Adam said, fully aware that he was blushing, and that they were, after all, still standing in her doorway. "While I'm not opposed to staying here, I do think we had decided on a night of fail!bowling, yes? And maybe even pizza?"
"Good." Telyn leaned up and kissed his cheek. "Come on. I intend to lose better than you," she teased, leaning in and grabbing her bag. "Ready?" She slipped her arm around his waist and kept beaming up at him. "Pizza is a definite. Suppose we can come back here when we're done."
"I approve of this plan. The coming back here afterward, we'll see who loses more in the epic battle that is fail!bowling." He could barely get the sentence out with a straight face. While Telyn got her bag, Adam pulled his car keys out of his pocket and was waiting by the door. "I didn't bother moving my car from my place," he said, "seeing as you only live two houses down from me. I did remember to clean out all of my papers from the passenger seat, though."
"Well, I appreciate that." After she locked up, they walked down to his house, her arm still firmly around him. Telyn liked how it felt to be close to him and now that she'd finally kissed him, she was happy. Her head rested on his shoulder for a moment before she looked back up at him. "You're going down. Not only will fail!bowling be epic, but I will be the champ!" she declared.
He led them down to his car, a little Honda Civic, nothing fancy, but it had been just what Adam needed when he moved back to Scarlet Oak. Living in New York City for grad school meant that he didn't really need a car, no point when he walked everywhere. Opening the passenger side door and hoping it open for her, Adam waited for Telyn to climb in. "I think I'll consider that a challenge," he said, chuckling. "You haven't seen me attempt anything even remotely sportslike yet."
Telyn laughed, blushing a little as he opened the door for her. Slipping inside, she waited for him to get in before replying. "Maybe, but I have full faith in my lack of bowling skills. Mini golf. That's my game," she teased. An idea of next time. She was really looking forward to this, to getting to spent the night hanging out with him.
"Oh god," he said, shaking his head. "Putting a mini golf club in my hands? Probably a bad idea." Adam paused, turning on the car, "Or a hilarious one, take your pick. I'd be willing to give it a go for you." And he was, thinking it would be a neat idea. The fact that he now knew that Telyn did like him back, suspected in yesterday's text messages and confirmed in that kiss, made him a little more confident than he might be otherwise.
"I'm leaning more towards hilarious," she said, laughing. They drove to the bowling alley and she continued to laugh and found that every time they talked, she liked him a little more. He was sweet and she was very glad she'd finally gotten the chance to talk to him, that it have evolved into this. At a certain point her hand had rested between them for him to take if he wanted. Telyn wasn't sure if he was the type to hold someone hand while driving but the offer was there.
Seeing her hand was left between them for him to take, Adam did just that, when he didn't have to shift gears, of course. He liked the fact that this seemed so simple between them, nothing forced, everything just falling into place. It had been a long time since anything like this had sparked in him and he was going to savor it. And though he might not tell Telyn as much, tonight when he got home, he was definitely jotting down some of these thoughts in a notebook before going to bed. It was the writer in him, a need he'd never be able to completely ignore. "We're here," he said, pulling into a parking spot. "Let the fail!bowling begin."
Though she had to let his hand go so they could get out of the car, it was slipped back in his as they walked into the bowling alley. "Maybe we should try and get an end lane so the rest of the world doesn't have to bear witness to the fail!bowling," she teased as they waited in line to get shoes and the like. She was fairly certain there would be more gutter balls than anything else from her but she was more focused on spending time with Adam than anything else. She leaned against him a little, liking how easy it was to be close to him, but the fact that he might want to write these things down didn't even occur to Telyn.
"Perhaps," Adam pondered that thought for a second, "but it only looks worse if some really good team is next to you. Maybe we'll just have to hope the people around us are as bad as we are." Really, if Adam got a score over 50, he'd be happy. He wasn't sure when the last time he'd actually gone bowling was and how much he'd remember of the rules, but they had computer things to keep score for them, so that was one obstacle down. Knowing him, he'd just make up his own scoring system and go from there. One hand still rested on the small of her back, liking that he could have her close to him. "Two, please," he told the attendant. "And a guy's size ten shoe for me." He glanced over at Telyn, completely unable to guess her shoe size.
"Ladies eight for me." She turned to Adam when the attendant got their shoes and she smiled more. "Think we'll just have to hope then." Okay, this was more than nice. Telyn couldn't remember the last time she'd had a nice date like this one. Adam was really sweet and very cute and she liked behind with him, how he touched her, just a little, just enough for her to know he liked it too. They were handed shoes and asked for one of their own to put in place of the bowling shoes they were given. She toed off a sneaker and bent to pick it up, handing it to the attendant.
Adam would never be the guy who wanted to push on a date. These little touches, the simple kisses they'd shared, it was enough for him. And now, he'd found someone who would go bowling with him, not because they were good at it, but because they were terrible at the game. It was the way to experience sports, in Adam's opinion. Trading one of his sandals for the bowling shoes, they got their lane assignment and headed over. For a Thursday night, it wasn't that busy yet, which was good in his book. "You want to go first, or should I?" he asked, taking a seat in front of the keyboard in the center.
"Completely up to you." She sat behind him and put on her shoes and tied them. Once she was ready, Telyn stood and went to choose a ball. This one was blue, and yes, chosen to go with her outfit. Hell, she didn't know better. She stood behind him, holding the ball in her arms. "Ready to lose epically?" she asked, grinning at him.
A minute later, he had both of their names inputed into the system, hers before his. Which was good, because he'd yet to put on his shoes and she already had her ball picked out, ready to go. "Oh yes, epic fail here I come," he said, shaking his head as he put on his bowling shoes. They never fit quite right, but then again, no one's shoes did when you went bowling, unless you were fancy and owned your own pair. When it came down to picking out a ball, Adam didn't go for one that matched, but rather one that was just a touch lighter than the others, so it would be easier for him to roll.
"Here we come." Before she went to bowl, she leaned in and kissed him softly. With a wide, easy grin on her face, she bowled her first, a gutter ball, laughing as she watched it slowly roll down to the end. Yeah, fail is a perfect word for her bowling skills. She turned to him and hid her face for a moment as she waited for the ball to come back. "This is going to be beyond epic." Telyn laughed more and winked at him before rolling her second ball, this one going a little further down before rolling into the gutter. "Score!"
A kiss in her apartment, or in his car, was one thing. A kiss out in public was something entirely different. It meant that there was definitely a future here, that she didn't mind letting everyone know that they were together. It had him grinning from ear to ear as he watched Telyn roll two gutter balls, one right after the other. "Epitome of fail!bowling, right there," he said, letting his own ball loose. It curved off to one side, only to turn around and clip the very corner of the pins, knocking over two. "Think you might be better at this than me, truth be told."
She couldn't help but laugh again, sitting behind the keyboard for a moment while he bowled. "Apparently I am queen of fail!bowling. And I'm very proud of myself." Telyn grinned and waited for his second roll of the ball. "I'm pretty sure that not only is this the best game ever, but I'm fairly certain this is my favorite date by far and it's only just started." She bit her lip for a moment before standing and moving over to him. "Hope that's okay to say, but I just feel insanely comfortable around you."
Adam's second roll was particularly epic - rather than just glide, it almost hopped for the first half of the trek, and then made a beeline straight for the gutter. He winced and looked around to see if anyone but Telyn caught that. Then what she'd said caught up to him, "Favorite date already?" He turned back to her, retrieving her blue bowling ball and passing it to her. "I would think you would want to be comfortable on a date," he said, reaching out to touch her hair, just softly. "And we've got that. I'm glad - glad that you let me take you out after all."
Taking the ball, she bit her lip. "I just always feel comfortable around you, Adam. I like that feeling. A lot." Telyn liked that he was playing with her hair a little. She thought it was the little things like this, like him holding her hand. She stepped up and bowled, knocking down a pin. A whole pin. She laughed and grinned at him. Her arms found their way around him and she smiled at him. "I'm thinking you can take me out a lot more," she said softly. "Or not take me out. I liked hanging out and watching the movie the other night."
"So do I." There wasn't any harm in admitting that, not when Adam was having such a good time. It was always about the little things with Adam, the details, and when it came down to it, he'd rather this to some epic romance any day of the week. Quiet moments suited him better, anyway. "Hey, you're still beating me by one point," he said, giving her a hug, keeping her close so he could look down at her. "I'd like that. Either going out or just staying home. Whatever you'd like."
He was too cute and she grinned. Adam was definitely a good guy and she was more than okay with the idea of seeing him more often. "Suppose we'll have to play it by ear. See what kind of mood we're in," she offered. After a long moment, Telyn let him go so she could bowl her second, this one looking like it was going to hit something, but veering off at the last moment. "Apparently I still hold the title of queen," she said with a laugh as she turned back to him.
He nodded, "I can agree with that." Nothing forced, nothing contrived, just letting it all grow organically; Adam could use a relationship like that. And it didn't seem like Telyn would be the type to mind when he got caught up in his writing and didn't want to interupt the flow of words, just as he wouldn't begrudge her the need to go out with her fellow firefighters should the need arise. He chuckled, watching her role, "And so you are."
"Maybe I should get a crown. It could go in the library." That where her childhood trophies were, but there weren't very many of them. The bigger ones were at her parents. Besides, she liked the smaller horse ones from when she was little. They meant more to her because she worked hard, even then. Telyn grinned and him and leaned up for a kiss, liking the way this whole evening was going so far.
"Like a crown from Burger King?" he asked, sure there was one on the way home and they could easily swing in to grab one for her. Adam probably even had a Sharpie or two in his car to decorate said crown with, making it more appropriate for his fail!bowling queen. Kissing her back, Adam grabbed his bowling ball and went to roll again - straight for the gutter. It would be funnier if he was actually aiming for said gutter, except that he wasn't. It was all lack of skill on his part.
She laughed. "Actually, that could work." It seemed appropriate for the fail!bowling and she knew she'd treasure it more than if it was made of actual gold. His ball landed in the gutter and she laughed from her spot behind the keyboard. Not at his failure but more so at how terrible they were together. "Might have to get you one too. Don't think I'd mind sharing the title with you," she teased.
While he waited for his ball to come back up to them, Adam turned and looked over his shoulder at her. "Guess I know where we're stopping after this, then," he said, chuckling. "They're going to look at us funny when we go in and only ask for two crowns. Unless you want to get actual food there?" Granted, Adam was a bachelor and he was guilty of getting fast food every once in a while, but it definitely wasn't date material. At least, not food wise.
"Um, up to you but I was thinking pizza." She didn't care much if they looked at them funny. Telyn was having a lot of fun with him and what other people thought when they saw them goofing around or hugging and kissing didn't phase the elemental. For the first time in a long time, she was perfectly happy. That meant a lot to her. It felt good. "I saw we just ask for them anyway and sit in the parking lot and decorate them. I'll write on yours if you write on mine."
"Pizza sounds good to me. Definitely better than a Whopper." No offense meant if Telyn liked that sort of food, of course, but Adam wasn't in the mood to have his arteries clogged in one go, thank you very much. Everything about this evening was going well so far, Adam was enjoying himself, and he was glad to see that Telyn was, too. Fail!bowling had been an awesome idea, hands down. "That'll work. I think I have two Sharpies somewhere in my car. Or at least a few dozen pens." Being a writer, they tended to breed around him, but that could just be because of how disorganized he was.
She grinned. "Perfect. I think we've planned the perfect evening, Adam." When it was her turn again, she leaned up and kissed his cheek before tossing her ball down the alley. This really was the most perfect date she could have imagined. Laughing, little kisses, hugs. Gutter balls and pizza. Cardboard crowns that were more special than ones made of gold would have been. Telyn was perfectly happy with him and she felt like everything was right with the world.