âYou donât need to, Iâm actually good for my word,â he said, tooting his own horn. It was awkward, what heâd done, but he couldnât take it back so he just took another fucking sip. âOh I⌠I⌠I didnât know,â he stammered, barely able to get anything out. Thank God he hadnât choked on his lemonade. Wouldnât that be something, spitting acidic drink into her face. Great.Â
âNo sheâs great she uh⌠Well⌠uh, both my parents died, at different times, and sheâs the funeral director, so she always like, brings us food around the anniversary or checks up on us, you know? Sheâs just⌠I dunno what weâd do without her is all. I just⌠there should be more people like her, I guess.â He nodded profusely, then stopped abruptly. âSweet people, as you said.â And then he blushed. Good God did he blush, so embarrassingly, and he dropped his gaze and he took another sip of his drink, hand so close to shaking.Â
âYeah⌠The original Grudge. The Shining. The Exorcist, Poltergeist, Paranormal Activity. Blair Witch Project, um⌠Thereâs a lot. I could keep going,â he grinned, pushing some hair behind his ear, and then pausing. âOh I uh⌠I never said anything butâŚâ he took a sip and gestured to her before placing his glass on the table, not wanting to hiccup from gulping down so much at once. âI like your hair change. Color. I just think⌠like, youâd look good no matter what. Even if it⌠shavedâŚâ He made a face. What was he saying? Yikes, Xander would rip him a new one. âI just mean. I know its wet right now but you always, like no matter what⌠Youâre just⌠yeah. You look nice, I guess.â He cleared his throat. âAnyways uh⌠That beer⌠still on the table?â he asked, voice cracking, but he smiled it away with that goddamn toothy grin and dimples galore.Â
He was painfully cute, so genuine and sweet. It was so different than the flirty man that had helped her with her tire all that time ago, and she had to wonder if sheâd found what he was really like under it all. She hoped so. Avery bit her lip as she watched him speak about Brynn, reaching over to cover his hand lightly with hers. âIâm- I donât know if we ever really talked about -- But Iâm sorry that you had to go through what you did.â She hesitated briefly before pulling her own hand away from his, her palm suddenly feeling painfully empty without the feeling of his skin against it.Â
âBut, I really am glad then for Brynn. Sheâs a good woman from the sounds of it, maybe one of the best. I think Terra and I both would be really lucky to meet her.â She watched him blush as he took another drink and her breath actually caught in her throat. When was the last time that she had felt this kind of softness for another person? This specific kind where you want to take care of them and kiss them breathless all in the same moment? It had been a long time, she knew. âThen, yeah. We should- We should have a classics night sometime.â Her eyes went to his face as he spoke, and her own cheeks warmed despite herself. Somehow, the fact that nothing that he was saying would really qualify as smooth, made it feel so much more personal and real and she pressed her lips together as she nodded her head slowly, his words having more of an effect than sheâd want to admit but he could see it, couldnât he? She looked up at him and her breath caught in her throat and-- Fuck it.Â
Avery brought a hand to his cheek and leaned up, hesitating just an inch away from his face. Too late to back out, too late to do anything but to follow through and really, she didnât want to do anything else except for follow-through. So she wrapped her other arm around his neck and kissed him. It was sweet, chaste, but also determined and wanting. She made herself pull away from it what felt like much too soon and looked right into his eyes, refusing to let herself back down now. Her lips were still millimeter's away, barely not touching his, as she breathed out, âBeerâs still on the table if you want it.â