WHO: Beth & Tim. WHERE: Tim's house. WHEN: Backdated to shortly after Beth's arrival. WHAT: A little Storybrooke hospitality. (In which Tim lets Beth use his shower and feeds her.)
She'd triple checked the lock on the bathroom door after she'd dropped her clothes in a small, but neat, pile on the hallway floor outside it. Assured that the door was firmly locked, Beth inhaled deeply. Everything smelled clean and she buried her face in the soft fluffy towel Tim had given her. It felt new and smelled like laundry soap. The blonde actually had to stifle a giggle of giddiness. No walkers. Electricity. Clean towels. And what she'd been looking forward to more than anything else- a hot shower.
She moved over to the tub and turned on the taps. After a moment or two of adjustment, Beth Greene stepped under the warm spray of water and let it pour down her body. Muscles tensed from her jarring arrival and the stress of meeting someone new began to relax with the heat and steam. And after a while, Beth began to hum as she washed herself.
She didn't really want to get out once she was done and dawdled, wanting to enjoy the shower for as long as possible. (Just in case this all turned out to be temporary after all.) But eventually her hunger and curiosity drove her to shut off the water and wrap herself in the towel. She dried herself off thoroughly, and brushed through her hair before pulling on the clean clothes Tim had left for her. She assumed they were his, as they were far too big for her. But they were clean and smelled nice.
Finally she poked her head back out into the hallway and peered around as if expecting a walker to come lurching toward her from around the corner. When none appeared she padded barefoot down the hall in search of her host. "Tim?"
Oh Lord, she looked completely adorable in the sweats and (obviously) oversized t-shirt he'd left out for her. Tim had to smile when he saw her walking down the hall. He cleared his throat, looking at her from the kitchen.
"Hey. Hope you're not a picky eater... I didn't have a lot on hand, so I heated up a burger and some fries for you. If you're still hungry afterwards, I can call Liz over at Claudia's and order you something better..."
While he'd been a hero in his world (ward of The Batman, leader of the Teen Titans), here he'd become quite alone. He was young enough that most of the adults didn't take him seriously, yet due to his affiliation with the police, most of the people his own age weren't exactly chomping at the bit to hang out with him.
Beth turned at the noise, and found Tim standing in the kitchen. She gave him a somewhat tentative smile and moved forward to join him in the adjacent room. She couldn't help but laugh softly at his comments, however. As if anyone she knew could be a picky eater anymore. There wasn't room to be picky when food was so hard to come by. She gave him a soft shake of the head. "I'll eat whatever you got without complaint." Her southern drawl was pronounced and gave all her words a soft lilt. "Cross my heart." She smiled a bit more broadly as she entered the kitchen and the smell of the food reached her. "Oh lord." She inhaled with a deep satisfaction. "I forgot how good french fries smell!" She could already feel her mouth begin to water.
She crossed over to the table and sat down. Her still damp hair was tucked behind her ears and she continued to smile at him. There was still a part of her that wasn't entirely trusting of strangers, but Carl had said Tim was nice. And for some reason that Beth couldn't put her finger on, she felt safe around him. He wouldn't do anything to hurt her. "Thank you again," she said softly. "For all this. That shower was the best feeling I've had in years." She glanced around the kitchen curiously. "Is it just you here? Or have you got friends living with you too?"
"You're welcome. From the sound of it, you needed it." He opened the fridge, and grabbed her a bottle of iced tea, setting it on the table next to the food. Taking a second to process what she'd asked him, he let out a little sigh, and forced a smile as he replied. "Yeah, it's just me. None of my friends from back home have turned up here yet, and... I guess I'm not in a position here that leaves me with too many friends."
He wanted to ask about where she was from. If it was really as horrible as Carl had said. Part of him was hoping that maybe Carl was simply a young boy who was exaggerating... that there was no world that was really that bleak and terrible. But he felt rude to even consider asking her, at least right now. Let the girl relax and actually have some basic human privileges for a while.
Well, she couldn't exactly argue that, could she? A shower and food were luxuries to Beth by this point of her life. Not that she would ever complain about that. But somewhere safe to rest and kindness were in far shorter supply. And she was grateful for all of it. She murmured another soft "Thank you" as he set the drink down, then she dove into the food. She wanted to inhale everything on the plate, but she forced herself to go slowly. It had been a long time since she'd eaten food like this and she wasn't about to make herself sick by gorging on french fries- no matter how good they tasted. She set the burger carefully back down on the plate and chewed her bite slowly as she listened to him.
That smile of his was forced. Though why he felt the need to fake a smile, she wasn't sure. "Why's that? Cause you work with the police?"
"Pretty much. I mean... I'm not employed by the police here, but I do help them out. Which... honestly? Puts me in a weird place, socially. The adults don't exactly thrill at hanging out with someone my age, yet most of the people my age obviously don't want a pseudo-cop at their parties and stuff... I guess I'm just not used to any of this. Where I'm from, I hung around people just like me." He started, before catching himself rambling. He blushed sweetly, a little embarrassed, and took a moment to quiet down.
"I get it though. I really do. It just... gets a little lonely here, sometimes." He admitted, grabbing another tea for himself, and popping it open. "I guess... in a way having you here is as much a favor to myself as it is to you. It's nice having someone to talk to."
"People like you?" Beth was genuinely curious now. "What kinda people are they?" She was suddenly very aware that she didn't actually know anything about Tim besides the fact that he helped police and Carl said he seemed nice. A bit of her ever present paranoia grew stronger and she wiped her hands on her pants. She still didn't feel threatened by him at all. He seemed to be all smiles and cute blushes when he looked at her, but her guard was still up.
"I don't really know what to call us, but... people here tend to use the word "superhero"." He explained, taking a few sips of his drink as he looked at her. Hm. She seemed a little skittish, maybe still scared. He knew not to take it personally, but also feared spooking her with what he was about to say. "Most of the people I hang around have powers of some kind. Things that make them... more than the average human, I guess. Me? I'm just athletic and a good detective. But my mentor is pretty much considered the world's greatest detective, so he trained me well enough to fit in well."
Even as he spoke, it hit him again how badly he missed his friends. Especially Konnor and Cassie, his two best friends. But damn, at this point he'd be excited to see Raven or even Rose's crazy ass.
Beth blinked for a long moment. Her first reaction was to assume he was teasing her with stories about superheroes. It was something her brother would have done back in the day. But he didn't much seem to be joking. Either that or he had a really good poker face. And again, she reminded herself that she'd just been magically transported to a town where the virus and walkers had never even existed. Maybe superheroes weren't the most far fetched thing. She took a sip of her tea and gave Tim a teasing smile. "I thought teenagers were supposed to like superheroes. You sure that's why no one wants to hang out with you?"
"Well... either that or maybe I smell bad or something." He teased, giving her a playful wink. He wasn't the sulking type. Even if he wasn't happy with how things were for him here... he'd joke about it before moping or whining. "Somehow... I don't expect you to have any trouble making friends around here. Like... at ALL."
There was something unique about this girl. Some how she was both absolutely gorgeous, and so precious you just wanted to protect her like a little baby deer or something. While, granted, he did have a thing for blondes apparently, this girl couldn't be more different from Stephanie and Cassie if she TRIED.
"Well, I wasn't gonna say nothin'. Figured it was impolite." she grinned at him before grabbing the burger for another bite. So she was eating a hamburger in the kitchen of a superhero in a town with no walkers. Beth felt like maybe she'd gone crazy. Maybe that hospital in Atlanta was too much for her and she just snapped and this was all in her head.
No. She decided after a moment's thought. If she was making all this up, then her daddy would be here. And her Mom. And Maggie and Shawn. This wasn't a dream. It was something else.
"Guess you're lucky you got me. I've smelled much worse." She wondered if it could be that easy. If she could slip back into regular life again where making friends was simple and uncomplicated. "I reckon we'll find out if that's the case, since I guess I'm stuck here for now."
"Hey..." He said, voice lowering to a more serious tone as he sat down across from her. He could see that she was trying to act "casual", and didn't want her to feel like she had to force anything. "I'm only gonna bring this up once, and then we don't have to talk about it again unless you want to. But... wherever you're from... I know you've been through some serious stuff. Stuff I probably couldn't even imagine without nightmares. I don't want you to think you owe it to me or anyone else to just... make yourself be happy, or laugh, or act "normal". You have every right to be scared, to be nervous, to be mistrusting if you want. Do I want you to trust me? Of course. But I'm ok with having to earn that trust, ok? Just remember that. You don't owe anyone anything. Meantime, if you need anything, even someone to talk to about any of this... I'm here if you want or need anything. And that's all I'll say about it."
He didn't want to make her dwell on anything in her past though, so he made a quick effort to change the subject. Again: if she wanted to talk about any of that? She would. In her own time.
"So anyway. Once you feel rested enough, I was thinking we'll go to the mall and get you some clothes. I'll take care of it. Once you get a job or whatever, if you want to pay me back, great. If not? No big deal."
She stilled as he steered the conversation to more serious waters. Her shoulders dropped and she started at her drink while she considered what to say. After a moment's silence, she looked up and met his gaze again. There was determination there now. "I'm all right, Tim. Really. I'm not pretending to be normal. I know I'm not normal anymore. Or my normal is just different from everyone else's. But I'm not gonna pretend for anyone's benefit. I've seen a lot of really bad things and I don't always trust people easy or ask for help, but I'll be okay. That's just how I am now." She took another sip of her tea. "And shoppin would be nice. Thank you."
"Are you kidding? It'll be nice to have someone to hang out with. So it's a win-win." Tim said, giving her a friendly smile. Damn if there wasn't something about her that just made you want to protect her and take care of her. "If you need a place to stay until you can get a place of your own, I have plenty of room here..." He offered, partially for her, and partially because quite honestly, he liked the feeling of having someone here to eat with, to talk to, and spend time with...
She gave him a shake of the head. "I gotta find out where Carl has been stayin' first. I haven't seen him in awhile, and I need to stick close. He's the closest thing to family I've got now." She scooped up several french fries and chomped them in a single bite. She savored their flavor for a minute before she swallowed then smiled. "But I'll come by to visit."
"I'd love it." He admitted, before adding, "Heck, bring Carl if he wants to come. Sounds like you could both stand to have some fun for once, you know?" He raised an eyebrow then, teasingly lowering his voice to a faux scandalous tone. "I mean, if I plan ahead... there could even be ice cream involved next time."
She laughed. "If you are tryin to buy my friendship, Tim Drake- it is working. I am such a sucker for ice cream. Especially when it comes with hot fudge. Just in case you need to plan ahead." She took another bite of her food and looked thoughtful for a moment. "What kinda things do you usually do for fun?"
"Well, it's good to see my bribery skills aren't fading over time..." Tim replied with a smirk, making a mental note to get some ice cream the next time he bought food. He found himself taken aback a little by her question though... good lord, when had the last time been that anyone actually showed an interest in what HE liked?
"Honestly? Maybe it's because of how little I get time to relax or unwind... or at least how little time I had for that back home... when I have time I like to do simple things, like watch movies, or play video games... maybe catch a baseball or football game on TV... how about you?"
Beth nodded along as he spoke, smiling slightly. Her burger was just about gone at that point, so she finished it off with two large bites. Her stomach felt pleasantly full and she mused about the days when she'd gone to the movies and pestered Shawn while he watched baseball.
"I always liked going to the movies too. And reading. I grew up on a farm, so I love horses and ridin. And I love music too. I play piano and guitar and I sing."
Tim gave an impressed nod at her talents, walking over to grab a light jacket for her to wear, handing it to her. "You'll want to wear this when we go out. It'll be huge on you, but... at least it'll keep you warm. It's a little chilly today." He grinned, just being completely able to picture her on a farm. "And for the record, I'm more than likely going to pester you to sing for me sometime. I love music too."
Beth accepted that jacket and hugged it to her chest. The weather would take some getting used to. She was used to Georgia heat after all. Even their winters were pretty mild. She had the feeling things wouldn't be the same here in Storybrooke.
"For the record," she smiled back. "I'd be happy to. Least I can do after everything you're doing for me. "What's your favorite song?"
"You know, I don't really have one..." Tim realized with a bark of a laugh, having never really thought about that before. "I know that recently I've really gotten into listening to old Johnny Cash albums. I've just gotten to love his stuff." He knew if Conner was here, he'd laugh his ass off, and tease him about listening to "old person music", but dammit, you like what you like, right?
Normally, he might've asked to hear her sing right there, out of curiosity. But he knew right off the bat that he was very attracted to this girl, and if she ended up having some beautiful singing voice, he'd end up crushing hard on her right there. And with everything she was going through, the last thing she needed right now was some guy hitting on her. So... nope. No sir. No singing request for today, thank you.
Well that did it. Beth's whole face lit up at the mention of the man in black. "I love Johnny Cash! Ring of Fire was one of the first songs I ever learned on the guitar." She beamed at him.
Oh, that smile was gonna be the death of him. He just knew it. "You are seriously too adorable, you know that?" He asked, unable to hold that part in. The girl was just charming as hell, and he was very lonely. That made for a potent combination at times like this. "C'mon. Let's go get you some clothes. We'll stop for coffee on the way... I'm gonna guess you haven't had a good hot cup of coffee in an age."
A blush crept up her cheeks at that and she glanced away, suddenly feeling bashful. The smile on her face stayed right where it was, though. He was nice and handsome and if she wasn't careful she'd end up developing a crush on him. But maybe that wouldn't be so bad here?
She finally met his gaze again and shook her head. "Nope. But it sounds perfect right now." She pulled the jacket on and went in search of her cowboy boots. Once she had pulled them in, she flicked her hair out of her eyes. "Lead the way, Mister Superhero. "