#theodosia bartow

"It's cuddling weather." Eliza explains, then frowns at the look Theodosia gives her. "I can fix it."

"Eliza," Theodosia says slowly, holding her hands together as if in a silent prayer. "We have to call the apartment manager. She'll send someone out here to fix it, and we won't have to worry about paying-"

"I want to do it." Eliza interrupts, "I can do it."

She really can do it, and she is sure she can. Theodosia knows she can, too, but they should call the apartment manager.

They should, and yet...

"I'll get my toooool belt?" Eliza sings, and Theodosia is sold. "Fine." Theodosia says. "But I know you only have like three things in that belt."

Eliza laughs but doesn't retort. She hurries to their closet to gather things she thinks she will need. She pauses.

Eliza has fixed a lot of things. She has fixed the leg on Peggy's dresser, Angelica's toilet when Alexander flushed God-knows-what down it during a house party, Burr's wall behind his bed which looked as if he'd rammed the frame into the wall more than once, and she had even ace bandaged Thomas's wrist when he jumped the picket fence trying to impress some girls.

She has never fixed a roof or ceiling. She thinks it will be similar to Burr's wall and realizes that means she needs to go to the store. She and Theodosia are not broke, per say, but they definitely cannot afford all that roofing... drywall?

Eliza realizes she is not completely sure what the roof and ceiling are made of. Or how bad it is from outside.

But she has already told Theodosia she can do it.

She looks it up online, then decides that it is better to just call the apartment manager on account of she could accidentally make it worse. It would be bad if they'd be forced to fix it themselves.

She sighs, makes the call, then returns to Theodosia.

Theodosia notices her defeated look, but she smiles softly. "You called the manager, huh?"

"Yeah." Eliza says.

Theodosia takes Eliza's hand, then kisses her knuckles. "You can still wear the belt?" She offers.

Eliza chuckles. "Teddy.."

"Or... It's still cuddling weather." Theodosia says, shrugging, but she is grinning so wide, Eliza can't help but grin, too. "Even if our apartment looks like we're making a bunch of different kinds of soup."

Eliza laughs, warmer. She holds Theodosia, then kisses her head.

Theodosia cranes her neck, standing on her toes to kiss Eliza.

Eliza kisses her, then lifts her to spin. She laughs into the kisses, spinning her a moment then steps in a pot of water on the floor.