meet me at a post-apocalypse

“Can you actually imagine me having children?” Right now that was probably about the furthest thing from Jaiyash’s mind and he didn’t know if it would be something he’d be good at anyway but thankfully he didn’t have to find out any time soon. “Sounds like you are encouraging unsafe sex.”

"I think you’re the only person who can answer this,” Calliope smiled at him brightly. She had her opinion of course, but she rarely shared it whenever she was asked about something important. “Well, it’s not unsafe if you wanna go for it,” she shrugged.

“Oh, I’m afraid I have already promised my firstborn to too many people, but I guess I could always add you to that list? You can then decide between yourselves who is going to win,” Nick smiled awkwardly. It was obvious to everyone around him that he had issues with telling people no so it was not surprising he had found himself in such situation.

“Sort of like Hunger Games but the price is your kid? It’s a bit much, but I could see how someone could be interesting in making a tv show out of it,” Callie chuckled in reply. Nick could easily make her laugh in any situation, even if things were still a bit weird between them.

“I will figure something out. Even take out a loan if I have to,” Peggy replied. She did hope nothing of sort would be needed since she had been trying to save as much as she could. She didn’t earn much as a Rosa Lee Teabag employee, but she also wasn’t starving so she couldn’t complain. She wanted to contribute as much as she could though, now that she was living with Alastair.

"We can talk about this later, but I am loving your dedication,” she grinned at her friend. Peggy always seemed to give 110% whenever she was passionate about something and Calliope loved that about her. She had never been interested in something enough to act in the same manner, but it was still nice to see.

“Man, you have no idea how glad I am that school is finally out for the summer.” Elijah spoke up as he hopped himself up onto one of the barstools. “But all those plants I gave out to them to babysit for the holidays… I know they are hardy but how many do you actually think I’ll get back that aren’t dead?” In theory it had been a nice idea but in practice not so much.”

Calliope blinked, trying to quickly remember what in the name of Merlin she did with her own plant. Had she taken in back home? Dammit, she needed to check. “Would you notice if someone bought you a similar plant in case yours met the inevitable end?” She asked, trying to sound innocent.

“While my brother and his fiancée seem to trust me with their child from time to time, I am much better at caring for dragon babies so I’m going to pass on that one,” she replied with a brief laugh, using her napkin to wipe the corner of her mouth after enjoying another bite of her kebab. “Can I interest you in some cool souvenirs from my next travels instead?”

"Dragon babies you say? They do sound like much less work than a human baby,” Callie said after a moment of thinking. And they could fly! Eventually that is, but it still counted. “Oh? And where are you off to?” She asked just in case she had already been to the place.

“Girl you can have whatever you want from me– this place is fire,” Willow replied passionately as she enjoyed the food as though she hadn’t eaten in days. “Okay but like firstborns and other promises aside, how did you find this place? It’s incredible.”

"And that’s what I’m talking about,” Calliope grinned. “I adore people who are equally passionate about food. And honestly? One day I decided I’m going to only eat kebabs for a month and then pick the best one. This place just appeared out of nowhere, so I guess it had to be fate.”

“Are you kidding? Do I look like I’d ever be able to look after a child?” Maddie asked. “I think I’d just rather get a dog, and I’m definitely not letting you have them, will you accept another food recommendation as payment?”

"Not a clue, but some parents need to be shitty to make others look better,” Callie shrugged. Well, no one needed to be shitty, but that was pretty much how the world worked. “What sort of food recommendation are we talking about though?”

“My firstborn? I guess I can make that deal, though you’ll have to be okay with the name Fred if he’s a boy,” he joked. “You know, you can just be a fun aunt without taking my first born.”

"And why another Fred? Are you planning to name each of your sons the same and will eventually make a Fred army or does it only apply to firstborns?” Calliope asked, sounding actually curious.

“So really you just want is to be an aunt benefits to my firstborn,” Alastair replied, chuckling, “You can have that anyway if you really want to but I won’t give you my future firstborn.”

“If you put it that way.. Sure,” Callie shrugged. She still preferred to be called fun aunt, but she was not going to argue about such minor detail. “Weeeell and if I was already promised the kid?” She raised an eyebrow and gave him a pointed look.

Matthew couldn’t help but laugh at that, shaking his head. “I mean, I’m not going to lie, this is a stellar kebab but I have had better in London. I’d be more than happy to educate you on that too if you’ve got the time at some point.” He told her in amusement. “And is this you putting your application in for Godmother when I eventually find someone daft enough to have children with me?”

Calliope gasped loudly and touched her heart. “The audacity,” she said dramatically. “I could count people who would dare to disagree with me on one hand, but I would never have thought that one day you’re going to be one of them. I don’t like it,” she shook her head, pretending to look devastated. “And please, everyone has already seen you with a hot blonde on your arm. Imagine those cute babies.”

“James and I don’t have any plans for that anytime soon– so maybe I could swap out the bargain for some drinks instead?” Verity offered through a chuckle. “As many rounds as you can handle,” she teased before picking up her food once more.

"That’s a very tough decision. On one hand I could just wait, but then multiple drinks sound much more fun,” Callie considered her options out loud. It was actually a very easy decision to make, but maybe Verity would add something extra if she kept wondering long enough.

“You know I’m more than thankful for introducing me to this deliciousness, but how about I invite you to some nice dinner instead?” Peggy chuckled in response. She took another bite of her kebab and moaned. “Make that five dinners.”

“Five dinners you say? They would have to be truly extravagant if you want me to believe you’re grateful,” Calliope teased. It was just like her to make it sound like it was a way bigger deal than it actually was. Of course people who knew her well were aware she was only trying to wind them up and was not being serious.