"For a person of impeccable logic, you're making absolutely no sense!"
Camille's voice commanded the lab space as the duo strutted out of the elevator.
Kirsten, speaking at a much more appropriate volume, replied, "I'm making the most sense between the two of us. You just don't like it because it doesn't benefit you."
"Exactly!" the brunette threw her hands up like she didn't see what was confusing.
Unable to ignore the raucous, Linus spun around in his office chair, ready for battle.
"Do I want to know?" he said cautiously.
Before either of them could answer, Cameron materialized behind the desk to offer a quick, "Nope."
The women glared at him before returning their attention to Linus.
"Camille's upset with me." Kirsten said at the same time her roommate shouted, "Kirsten's being ridiculous!"
"Alright, ladies," Cameron chuckled, moving to stand beside Kirsten, "one at a time."
Without hesitation, Camille raised her hand.
"I'll go first! Okay, so as you know, our lovely Kirsten Clark was originally Kirsten Stinger."
Kirsten gasped and placed her hand over her heart. The boys snickered.
"Anyway," Camille continued, "the Stingers were super successful scientists responsible for developing their own super-secret technology for super important security purposes."
"Okay?" Linus glanced between his friends, sure he'd missed something.
"Kirsten is also the receiver of her late guardian Ed's inheritance."
Camille let that sink in. The three colleagues stared at her expectantly.
Camille huffed, "Guys, it means Kirsten is loaded."
"I don't like that word." she said.
Camille continued, "She has enough money to buy a city and she won't even let us get a hot tub!"
Kirsten groaned, "I do not have enough money to buy a city. And besides, I didn't say we couldn't get a hot tub. We'll just pay for it together using the money we earned from Stitchers."
A tiny smile tugged at Cameron's face. He understood better than anyone wanting to only spend money you worked for and having everyone question you for it. He was proud of her.
"But that takes patience, which I don't have." Camille whined, "You could literally go out today and buy one and it wouldn't even make a dent in that pile o' cash!"
Kirsten sighed, fully prepared to defend her case, when Maggie emerged for her office. Her gaze landed right on the quartet. That was all that was needed.
0o0o0o0
A few months had passed since that dispute. Camille would send Kirsten dirty looks from time to time, but other than that the subject was forgotten. That's why Cameron was completely awestruck.
"What am I looking at?" he said after he'd managed to pick his jaw up off the floor of the parking garage.
"A bike." Kirsten said simply.
There was, in fact, a motorcycle sitting in the space in front of him. Two helmets that seemed identical sat atop the seat. When she noticed him staring, Kirsten grinned and picked one up.
"This is my favorite part." she said tossing it to him.
His arms were practically frozen, but he somehow gained enough brain power to catch the helmet. He scrutinized it for a moment. It was the same dark blue as the bike, with small white text on the back.
"Captain Big Hair?" he read in disbelief.
Kirsten nodded, "It was either our superhero names or Stretch and Girlfriend. I figured you'd like this a little more. Oh, did you notice the color?"
Her voice climbed two octaves at that question. She bounced on the balls of her feet and fought the smile that was creeping across her face.
Cameron narrowed his eyes. It was a rich blue, probably something he'd have chosen himself.
When he didn't say anything, Kirsten let the smile spread.
"It's Tardis blue."
She watched like a child waiting for a firework to go off. She could see the light bulb turn on, his eyes widen, his smile mirror her own. After another moment of processing, he closed the space between them in a single bound. He pulled her in for a big bear hug. Kirsten laughed as her feet left the ground and he spun them around in giddy circles.
When he set her back down, she could see that his entire face had flushed red.
"You're welcome." she giggled, grabbing her own helmet, "Now we should go. Camille's probably going to find her present soon."
Cameron blinked, glee subsiding enough so that he could process that statement.
"You didn't…" he said as Kirsten climbed onto the bike, "You did?"
Kirsten shrugged and patted the seat behind her. Cameron shook his head but climbed on.
"Wait," he held her arm, "do you know how to ride one of these."
"Well of course. I got my license last month." she slid the helmet over her head, "Which, by the way, you have to get before I can let you drive."
Cameron narrowed his eyes, putting on his own helmet.
"There's always a catch."
"Hey, it's yours when you convince myself and the state of California that you're not going to crash into a tree your first time out."
Before he could counter, the chiming of their cellphones echoed around the parking garage.
"Ah," Kirsten said, "that would be Camille. Alright, Captain, hold on."