𝐓𝐀𝐋𝐈𝐀 𝐊𝐈𝐌𝐀𝐓𝐇𝐈

If the quickest way to a man’s heart was through his stomach, hers was through her kids, and Talia was a girl after her own heart it seemed. Xavier let out a short snort, one was clearly not like the other, before stringing out a series of ums like his life depended on making the ‘right’ choice. Slowly, his eyes strayed from the young woman to his sprained wrist, and he let out a worried little cry for his mother, “…ama…” “Go on, take your pick,” Mia encourages to take the focus off what she doing, and she carefully pulled in her little one to lean on her. “Okay,” he begins, soft as a mouse, “ummm, Spider-man.” “I thought Iron Man was your favorite,” she quirks a brow at him, knowing her son liked to pretend to blasts things like Tony Stark. “N-no, Spider-man is,” he doubles down, innocent in his act as if his mother wouldn’t be able to pick up that he chose Talia’s favorite. Too bad for him, she already did. “Oh,” she mouths to him, unable to stop herself from making it more obvious, and Mia looks to the other woman. “Ay, chico,” she breathes with mirth, directing it to her son. “To avoid sounding like a broken record, is there any way I can repay you?” Another thanks didn’t feel enough. “Have you eaten anything yet?”

     “ Ahhhh , that’s a really good choice . ” Talia smiled brightly and nodded , as she opened the Spider-Man bandaid . She listened to the child and his mother talk and a sot giggle fell from her lips as she heard them talk about Iron-Man being the favorite . “ Well , how about we put one of each on ? That way you can have both , hmm ? ” she said and wiggled her eyebrows , chuckling softly as she pulled out an Iron-Man bandaid as well . Hearing the woman talk , Talia lifted her head and looked at her as she asked if there anything she could do to thank her . 

     And , as she asked if she had eaten anything yet , her stomach growled and she laughed . “ I’m actually about to head off . My shift ended like thirty minutes ago or so , so I was thinking of just getting some take-away , ” she replied and smiled as she put both of the bandaids onto the boy’s arm . “ Ahh , look at that . You look so badass now , ” she said and grinned , nodding her head at the boy .

           ❝ it’s fine . really . take it , ❞ the petite woman insists . it’s not as if there wasn’t an ever flowing supply of more . for the kantawong’s money literally did grow on trees . so much so that malee grew up to believe it , but had the family not moved to the states , they likely wouldn’t have been so fortunate . it was not as if malee knew how to thank the girl anyway . manicured nails refuse to move away until the bill is taken , flapping it up and down . lips smoothed together , attempting to refrain from saying that the other could use it to replace whatever outfit she was wearing . she was being helpful after all .

     Talia swallowed and pressed her lips together , looking at the femme who seemed to refuse to take her hand away until she took the bill that she held in front of her . Taking a deep breath , Talia reached out and took the bill from her hand , giving her a weak smile . “ Thanks , ” she responded casually , taking a deep breath as she put the bill away . Honestly , Talia couldn’t help but feel like she had ulterior motives kind of with giving her the money , but hey , the money would help nonetheless . “ Maybe I need to set up a side job here , help people who haven’t turned on a washing machine themselves for cash ? Pretty sure I could get a decent amount of money for that . ” 

“ now , that’s a question .. “ it felt strange , to be able to gush about these topics without the other rolling their eyes or telling him to shut up . for the most part he kept his affinity for video games between himself and the voices on the other end of his headset in the evenings , when he took himself off to his little office to spend hours upon hours shooting , jumping from platform to platform and collecting coins to exchange for further downloadable content . “ my favorite superhero — well , set of superheroes — are the x-men , but the guy i love the most out of them is cyclops . i see a lot of myself in him , and he’s also totally badass .. i mean , i think x-men are killin’ it when it comes to disabled representation in superheroes , “ and if he had any artistic talent whatsoever , he would have loved to join the team responsible for bringing those beloved characters to life .

“ you’re right there . i’m pretty sure lara croft and kurtis trent were simultaneously my sexual and bisexual awakenings . i love myself a strong woman and and emo-looking man , “ the crushes that developed in his early teenage years had clearly stuck with him well into his adulthood . “ that would be awesome . i have my own little man cave , kinda .. well , it’s my girlfriend’s attempt at keeping all my nerd-isms safely tucked away , but i could totally show you red dead redemption two , “ he was so excited , in fact , that he had totally glossed over the fact he hadn’t caught the other’s name , “ although i’m a little apprehensive about inviting a total stranger over , “ 

     Talia chuckled softly and nodded her head , as she listened to what Jaden had to say . She hummed and nodded , as she waited for him to give her a response . Tilting her head to the side , she giggled and bit her bottom lip at his words about how his favorite superhero was a set of superheroes . “ The X-Men ? Well , they are pretty badass so I totally get it , ” she said and grinned . “ And cyclops is definitely awesome . I  think my favorite is probably Rogue ?? I really like her for some reason . ” As he spoke about how the x-men are killing it when it comes to disabled representation in superhero , she nodded . “ Yeah , it’s pretty incredible to watch , I agree with you on that . I love that people all get to have someone to look up to , no matter what their background or story is . ”

James smiled and dropped the drinks off at the counter that lead into the kitchen, then walked over to drop the bag of movies and snacks by the tv. Slowly and meticulously, James got the movies and room prepared for their movie night. “Do you want to smoke?” He asked, opening up the window and pulling a pre-rolled joint out to show her. 

The car cruised through the city. Outside their windows an orange hue fell over the town as the sun started to set. Whirring came from his car engine and the song 40 hours by Kanye West rode them into the sunset. Life was good right about now. Simple, but good. “Boring can be a good thing, you know. It’s better than being stressed out.” He could remember being stressed about paying bills and making sure he had enough money for the family. James had gotten so much better at budgeting in the last few years. “But a little excitement couldn’t hurt.” The car pulled into the Greystone Complex and James hopped out. “You bring in the pizza and I’ll grab the drinks.” He explained as he walked toward his apartment.

“Maybe we should go out more; make more plans.” The suggestion felt loose, but he was being genuine. “I miss when we would hang out all the time.”

     Feeling the wind in her face , Talia turned her head around and looked at James as they moved through the city , with the song 40 hours by Kanye West playing in the background . “ I mean , sure . Of course boring can be a good thing sometimes , but it can also be really fucking boring , ” Talia responded and chuckled softly , moving a hand to brush her hair away from her face . “ A little excitement could definitely not hurt . I agree with you , ” she responded as they pulled into the Greystone Complex and once the car parked , she took the belt off and got out of the car .

“Always…” Seb’s head lolled back a moment and he flashed her a smile. He drifted off to the sound of the machines for a moment, right up until the sound of his finishing knocked him from his thoughts. Immediately he was up on his feet and grabbing everything, tossing it into the dryer a moment later. He glanced back to her then. “I’m Seb by the way, did I say that yet?”

“Oh, you’re a doll, thank you.” Without the need to be told twice, Mia took to her little one’s side once more on the bench and crouched down. “Sana, sana, colita de rana, si no sana hoy, sanarás mañana,” croons the Cubana, trying to keep Xavier’s wrist elevated in the meantime, and fortunately, it hadn’t been long before the young woman came to their aid with the items asked. “Ay, thank you, thank you,” she repeats in her gratitude before she begins to wrap the bandage around the small wrist of her son. While focused on the task at hand, there was a glance cast every so often at the first-hand account told by the girl, and she smiled to herself at the small gesture. “Eww,” the six-year-old sputtered in a laugh at the comparison made to the pooping pants and because she said butt ( as if he didn’t have glazed eyes and a red nose from the pain a second ago). He then turns to his mother to see if she was hearing what he was. “Uy, ouch,” Mia chuckles right on cue, finishing the final wrap to secure, “glad to hear you made it out of that one.” At the proposition of ‘really cool’ bandaids, he wipes his nose with a sniffle and challenges, “how cool?” “Ey, this isn’t cool enough for you?” she tsked in jest, talking about the elastic bandage. “No way Jose!” The mother just shakes her at this, smirking while she goes to sit on the bench properly to active the ice pack. Noticing the younger woman looking to her for approval, an appreciative smile rose to her lips. “By all means, I’m following you.” Still holding Xavier’s wrist in place to ice, she goes to razz, “Never knew hand wraps not to be cool but —” a shrug, “sure.”

     Nodding her head , Talia looked over at Mia and smiled . “ Me too , trust me , ” she said and laughed , shaking her head before she turned to focus on the boy who asked how cool the bandaids were . “ Oh , the absolute coolest . Trust me , ” she said as she opened the box , showing him the bandaids while Mia asked about the elastic bandage . While she wanted to make sure to have the older woman’s approval , she waited and when she got it , Talia turned her head around and focused on the kid again while Mia held Xavier’s wrist in place to ice . “ So , I have these , ” she said and held up the bandaids , that had a bunch of superheroes on them . “ There’s Spider-Man , who is my favorite . The Hulk , Captain America , Iron Man ... Ohhh , and spongebob squarepants , too . ”

Perfection. He liked the sound of that. If there was any way to get into James’ heart, boosting his ego is the fastest. His confidence was one of his favorite parts about himself. James drove through the streets. Green light after green light hit. Nothing could ruin this perfect movie night. Knowing the staff at Pizza Planet recognizes Talia made him smirk. A small laugh escapes his lips and he nods. “Must mean you’re a good customer.” He began to tease, “and you need to lay off the pizza.”

Dipping through the city, now armed with their drinks and pizza, they finally drove towards their home. “What have I been up to?” The question felt broad. He could give so many answers. “Not much, honestly. Working at the flower shop is nice and I’ve been trying my best to be an adult and do all my chores.” He shrugged. “Honestly I haven’t had much time to go out and have fun, which I kinda want to. Being an adult takes up too much time.” James explained. “I dunno.” The thought was wavering and he shrugged it off. “What about you? What’s new in your life?”

     Talia laughed and looked at James , shaking her head as he drove them through the streets . They were lucky enough to hit green light after green light . Honestly , Talia was excited about their movie night . They always had a lot of fun together , after-all . When she called the pizza place ,  the staff recognized Talia . She rolled her eyes and laughed gently , shaking her head at what he said . “ I’m definitely a good customer . And you know , I definitely need to lay off the pizza , but that is something I can start next week . ” 

No pressure or anything. The words almost come out sounding humorous to Cali, although they recognize the fact that she was just trying to be courteous; they don’t really partake of this sort of smoking very often, if at all. Still, they aren’t opposed to it at all, and while they were just itching for a cigarette, they may as well give it a go. Reaching to accept the joint, they take it between their fingers and draw it to their mouth. A hit is taken, slow and deep, before they hand it back. It’s a few seconds before they start to cough the smoke out of their lungs, raising their arm to hide their face in the crook of their elbow. “Shit.” It’s not that the product itself is necessarily any harsher than expected, but more that their lungs just aren’t used to it. 

After a little while, they manage to draw a free breath, a look of amused sheepishness set to their features. “Might have taken on a bit too much there. The last time I smoked a joint must have been… fuck, I dunno. Five years ago, at least.” Since before they came to Roswell, so go figure. “But this is for the aliens, yeah? No way extraterrestrials aren’t going to be interested in earth’s greatest herb.” It makes perfect logical sense. 

     Tilting her head to the side , Talia looked at Caliban excitedly . She didn’t want them to feel pressured into anything , and definitely not when it came to smoking . Nibbling on her bottom lip , Talia looked at Cali who reached to accept the joint , taking it and placing it between their fingers . Licking her lips , Talia blinked and looked at them as they took a hit , before handing the joint back to him . A soft chuckle fell from her lips and she giggled as they started to cough the smoke back out of the lungs , raising their arm to hide their face in the crook of their elbow . “ Hah , you okay ? ” she questioned them with a smile on her lips .

          shes about to say something - about why talia know’s she’s never used a washing machine , or even been to a laundromat before . but it was hard to say something when the other female had done malee a favor . it’s been a long time since anyone out of her friend group or family has done her any sort of favor , and the whole situation has her feeling a bit displaced . ❝ thanks , ❞ the simple word uttered as if it takes a lot out of her . unsure of what to do , malee reaches into her clutch , handing the other a crisp bill . a fifty . ❝ for helping me .❞ she attempts , the bill offered out between them . 

     “ No worries , ” Talia responded , shrugging her shoulders casually while looking at the other femme , who looked a little surprised .  When she reached into her clutch and handed her a crisp bill , Talia raised her eyebrows as Malee said it was for helping her . Looking down at the fifty dollar bill , she shook her head and laughed . “ No , no . You don’t have to pay me , ” she replied and bit her bottom lip , moving her hand to hers so that she could push it away . “ You don’t have to pay me , I was just helping you out . You don’t have ot pay people who help you , you know . I’m doing it because I wanted to . ”

“the more the merrier, until someone causes a ruckus and someone else in the trailer park complains about me. don’t get my living situation taken away from me, talia.” it was said in jest, a smile clearly on elliot’s features as they turned back to the racks next to them. they had plenty of clothes at home to put together some type of costume, but what fun would that be?

“oh, i’m definitely not busy right now. anything that will get me out of this store is probably going to be a positive change.” taking a step back, elliot gave talia their full attention, gesturing towards the door. “lead the way, miss. i do much better when i can be a baby duck following someone else.”

the saying ‘ opposites attract ‘ was accurate when it came to his and juniper’s relationship . somehow it worked , even if they seemed to be total opposites on the surface . although they had totally differing hobbies it meant that they had time to themselves , and jaden was still dedicated to teaching his girlfriend how to play a video game one day , even if she had to be practically forced to do so . there had to be something out there , in the thousands of published games , that appealed to his partner ; he had already attempted animal crossing , so maybe he’d try something like stardew valley next . “ i’m gonna have to come and do our laundry out here more often , then . “ jaden chuckled , kicking his real leg against the machine as his other hung , rigid , careful not to accidentally swing and damage the washer beneath him .

as talia listed off her favorite games he gave soft little hums of approval . “ all solid options . while spider-man isn’t my favorite superhero i think he has the best games . they always seem to do my favorite heroes dirty when it comes to games . see , this is a huge question .. i’m always playing something , but if i had to pick my ultimate big three i’m gonna have to say crash bandicoot , ‘cus that’s seen me through years at this point . then i’m a sucker for the tomb raider games , and it’s not just because i want to stare at lara croft’s triangular boobs when i’m raiding tombs .. “ maybe that was half the reason , but he loved the gameplay too , “ then maybe red dead redemption . when the second game came out .. i mean , that whole month is a blur in my mind . i think my southern accent came back in full force playing that thing . “ 

     Talia smiled and nodded , laughing softly along with what Jaden said . “ Absolutely ! This can be our headquarter from now on ! ” she replied and wiggled her eyebrows , before a laugh fell from her lips as she watched him kick his leg against the machine , while the other leg hung . She hummed and nodded as she listened to him speak about how Spider-Man wasn’t his favorite superhero , but how he definitely had the best games . “ Which superhero is your favorite then ? ” Talia questioned the male curiously . 

It took very little for James to understand exactly what Talia meant. He felt this telepathic connection with her whenever they were together. Maybe it was because they were close. Or maybe she was just good at expressing how she felt. Either way, James always felt better around her. It was nice not having to try and guess what the other person was thinking. “Studying movies is entertaining.” The rebuttal was fast and prepared. “Besides, we both know you like to watch movies because you like spending time with me. I mean, who wouldn’t? I’m great.” His face was glowing with a childish and teasing smile.

Pizza did sound good. “Pizza Planet!” James’ eyes got wider at the thought. “I can head to Starlight to grab the drinks. Can you call Pizza Planet and place the order now? Then we can drive by to pick up the pizza on the way to my place.” The closer they got to watching these movies, the bouncier and more light James’ personality got. He loved watching movies with others.

Watching a movie with someone else was a beautiful experience. James felt that there was very little that people could do that was more intimate than watching a movie together and sharing that time experiencing the rollercoaster of emotions that a movie could bring. Mix that will alcohol or any other mind altering substance and you’ve got yourself a bond for life. That’s kind of what it felt like to watch movies with Talia. Though, James was always known to over romanticize things. He found the trait thoughtful and fun.

     Talia smiled brightly at James , her pearly white showing off as she did . Tilting her head to the side , she looked at the homme and she had to admit , he always knew how to make her feel better and safe in his company . Honestly , he had that kind of aura around him that could probably make anyone feel safe . That was because of what an amazing person he was . She laughed and hummed , nodding her head as she listened to the words coming from James’ lips , about how studying movies is entertainment , which she understood that he thought . Because to him , it was entertaining . Talia looked at him , raising a brow at him when he said that he was great and how who wouldn’t like spending time with him . “ Ohhh yeah , you’re perfection , J . Absolutely , ” she answered and rolled her eyes , before a smile appeared on his lips . 

“I’m not saying they should, but I’m saying by tomorrow I want to be an expert at stealing.” Movie nights with Talia were always great- when he could remember them. Countless times they’ve said they wouldn’t drink too much and he’s ended up blacked out and woke up with both of them splayed on the couch, with the tv still on.

Seeing the way she looked at him when he placed the movie on the pile was a look he knew all too well. “You know you love me. That’s the last one. I promise.” Once they checked out and stepped out, James checked the time on his phone. One must calculate a good movie night properly, that way they could fit everything in. “Where should we go for snacks? And what are we drinking tonight?” He smirked.

     Talia laughed and shook her head , her curls bounced slightly , covering her face . She lifted her free hand and pushed it behind her ear , while looking over at James . “ Well , I’m just saying , from the get-go that I am not apart of any of this and you are not allowed to drag me down with you when you get caught , because we both know you will be , ” she said and let a small chuckle fall from her mouth .  Sinking her teeth into her bottom lip , she hummed . Talia loved movie nights with James ; they always had a lot of fun . Sometimes , actually , most times , they said they wouldn’t drink much and then ended up blacked out on the couch , with the TV still on . “ I’m just watching the movies for entertainment , ” she added and smirked mischiviously , nodding her head .