"Four score and seven years ago-"
"Please, spare me the speech," Erin muttered as she walked over to the enormous statue, gazing up at it in wonderment. He chuckled and watched her, biting his lower lip. The sun was just setting in the sky behind them and it cast a beautiful, orange hue over the stone. She dropped to the floor and pulled out her sketch book, intending to capture the beauty of the moment. If he had to admit it, he'd say it was rather pretty, but he couldn't take his eyes off of Erin.
"It's getting cold," Ian mumbled from behind her, sitting down and wrapping his arms around her waist to pull her into his lap. "How long is this gonna be?"
"As long as it takes," she murmured. He buried his face in her hair and took in a deep breath. If he was going to freeze to death, he may as well do it happily and he had to admit, holding her and smelling her hair like this definitely made him happy. So content, in fact, that he fell asleep almost immediately. After a decent nap, he felt her shake him to consciousness. Wiping his eyes, he glanced up at her smiling form. He stretched and got up slowly, taking her hand and pulling her to the steps.
"Where to now, Pip?" he asked softly, pressing his lips to her temple.
"The National Mall, then back to the van," she replied, stretching her legs. He was glad she was almost ready to head back to the van. They had only been here for roughly six hours, but Erin was definitely not going to waste any time. She wanted to see everything the capitol had to offer and he was going to let her. He was only along for the ride, after all, having seen Washington a few times before.
"Whatever you want," he replied, tugging her down the steps carefully and plucking the book from her hand. He flipped through the pages and studied the one she'd just finished. "Very nice. A+ for sure."
Erin snatched the book back, giving him a look as she stuffed it back into her bag. He grinned and stuffed his hands into his coat pockets in a weak attempt to warm himself. He knew she hated when someone touched her book, even him. He didn't quite understand it, but he usually respected her wishes. Until she went to bed, anyway. He had a knack for going through her songbook, too, which she also hated. He couldn't help it. It wasn't so much that he was curious, but more so that he liked the way she expressed herself. He loved her music and her drawings because they had been her escape from the darkness in her life for so many years. Or, at least, that's what she told him. He honestly didn't know much about Erin's past. He knew she was adopted and that she didn't ever feel quite at home until she came to McKinley. Whether that was him or her foster family he wasn't completely sure, but her books pointed towards him.
The sun had been down for a couple hours now, so the National Mall was dewy and cold. That didn't stop either of them from plopping down in the grass and getting comfortable. Ian knew this drawing wouldn't take nearly as long as the last, seeing as the Washington Monument didn't have nearly as much detail to capture, not to mention it was dimly lit at the base. He was surprised she'd wanted to come out here at all. It dawned on him as she set the book aside and laid back in the grass.
"It's beautiful isn't it?" she murmured, gazing up at the stars. "I mean, just everything about our capitol. It's gorgeous." He shivered and kept his eyes on her, making no move to glance up at the stars. It didn't matter what they looked like. The most beautiful thing that mattered to him was her.
"Beautiful," he whispered as she glanced back at him. He crawled over to her and pulled her into a soft kiss, making sure she understood exactly what he meant. From the way she kissed him back, the way her fingers gripped the collar of his coat, he realized that she not only knew, but had been waiting for it all day long.
