Who: Gabe (Groot) and Nina When: June, during the musical plot Where: Gabe’s place What: Just an average at home date night, at least until the busting out into song Rating/Warning: Low Status: Complete
Gabe didn’t know what was going on in the OC, he only knew something was up when he’d randomly burst into song with what sounded like some Broadway tune. He’d been in the shop alone, thankfully, and it’d ended before a customer came in. After that embarrassing episode, he’d perused the message board on his phone, still red-faced with embarrassment, despite a lack of audience. It seemed people were randomly bursting into song and posting about it. After that discovery, it’d happened on and off to him for the past few days and it was as bewildering as it was embarrassing. His latest song? Something from Hamilton, while on line during lunch. So far, Nina had seemed untouched, and he hoped it’d stay that way. The last thing she needed was something as absurd as belting out random tunes in a hospital of all places.
Now he was in his kitchen, stirring the pot of tomato sauce he’d made from scratch from the vegetables and spices in his garden. Pasta was boiling in a large pot next to it. By the smell of things it was almost done. He grabbed a freshly washed tomato and started to chop it for salad. He’d gone the whole day without an episode, and was grateful for it.
“I cannot wait for this crap to be over with.” he called to Nina from the kitchen.
Nina was incredibly lucky that she hadn’t been affected by this singing thing, she wasn’t keen on singing in public anyway and at the hospital it would have been incredibly inconvenient. There were a couple of people at work who had so they’d been assigned to the childrens ward so they could entertain while working.
Poor Gabe wasn’t quite as lucky, though she did truly think he had a lovely singing voice so it wasn’t as bad as it could have been. She had to admit she preferred it when she knew the songs so she was happy he hadn’t started on Hamilton around her, she’d only heard snippits from a couple of those songs.
“I’m sure it won’t be too long, you know what this place is like” she called back as she finished setting the table.
“Yeah, this place is nuts.” he snarked, quickly slicing the tomato and tossing them into the big bowl of salad greens. “But at least it gave me you.”
And that’s when he felt it. The urge bubbled up in his throat like laughter, but Gabe knew the sensation by now. He clenched his jaw tightly, set his teeth, tried a breathing exercise he’d looked up on YouTube.
It lasted all of ten seconds before he couldn’t stand it anymore. Gabe opened his mouth and his deep voice sang out, “I met this perfectly marvellous girl, in this perfectly wonderful place as I lifted a glass to the start of a marvellous year.” And then as if the musical had decided to invade his body, Gabe abandoned the food and found himself grabbing Nina and twirling her around the dining room into the adjoining living room as he sang. God help him WHY NOW?!
“Before you knew she called on the phone, inviting. Next moment I was no longer alone, but sat reciting some perfectly beautiful verse, in my charming American style. How I dazzled her senses was truly no less than a crime. Now I've this perfectly marvelous girl in my perfectly beautiful room, and we're living together and having a marvellous time.”
And then, it stopped. Or so he hoped anyway.
“You are such a romantic” she called back, not thinking much of it until he began singing. Luckily Gabe had a lovely voice so it was rather pleasant to be sung to by him but then he grabbed her and began dancing them around the house. It was very sweet and romantic but kind of odd too. She had to applaud his song choice though, “Cabaret” she said when he was done, and they were slightly out of breath, “You haven’t seen that one either have you?” she asked him with a grin, pressing a soft kiss to his lips.
Gabe was grateful for Nina’s understanding in this newest wave of OC bizarreness. He had a feeling she was actually enjoying it in the sense that she didn’t think he was half bad at singing. The kiss helped too, and helped him feel like less of an embarrassing dork. “No.” he said, shaking his head. “I grew up in the city but we never had money for musicals. I haven’t seen a damn one. This is insane. I’ve never heard of Cabaret.”
He heard a soft hiss coming from the kitchen and Gabe’s eyes went wide. “Shit!” And he bolted, getting there just in time to see both the tomato sauce starting to boil over and the pasta water roiling as it too boiled and splattered onto the range. “Nonono,” he groaned. He twisted both knobs off frantically, the gas flames disappearing from beneath their respective pots. Frowning, he grabbed some paper towels and quickly wiped at the outside of the sauce pot. He took a spoon and tentatively tasted it. It wasn’t ruined, but he didn’t like the idea that it could have been had the singing taken any longer. With a sigh of relief, he turned the heat back on for the pasta and covered the sauce. “Well that was close.”
Nina was definitely understanding, after all she’d been around doctors and nurses who had burst into song too. It was kind of amusing and she did truly enjoy Gabe’s voice so she didn’t mind being sang to at all. She did find it amusing she knew the songs better than he did though, she’d always rather enjoyed a good musical. “Well it’s impressive that this latest craziness is also expanding your musical knowledge”
She followed him to the kitchen and winced when she saw the sauce bubbling over, “It could have been worse” she agreed, “I didn’t even notice but then that probably would have happened if I was cooking and I don’t have a singing excuse” she said trying to cheer him up. Of the two of them Nina was definitely lacking culinary skills.
Gabe smiled over at her, reaching out with a big arm and tugging her against his side. “That’s why I cook.” he teased, grinning that Groot grin of his before planting a kiss on her lips. He stirred the pot of pasta with his free hand and procured a steaming single string of linguini for Nina to taste test, handing it to her on the spaghetti spoon.
“It definitely is” she agreed returning the kiss happily, she really did love that smile of his. She tried the pasta and nodded, “Perfect” she said, not hard and not overly soft either, “As always” she added with a smile.