A/N: Ain't a doubt in my mind that I was coming back to this.

Had to find the right time, though!


April isn't even completely sure what she's doing.

Her sister won't stop making fun of her about this. Sure, she took a phone call very quickly and with an excitement that didn't come forth naturally to her. Andy spoke up like he was unsure of his voice and that, too, was kind of great to hear - and it's the whole narrative she's building up in her mind for him that just works for her. April never had a relationship where someone cared about her, other than Natalie. She's never had a real boyfriend, in the strictest terms, and she's never felt like this, ever.

So she doesn't mind that he asks her out just four hours after they leave the parlor. What she does mind is that Natalie keeps making fun of her.

"So, what's your poison?" she asks, following April as she throws a pair of jeans and yet another white t-shirt on the bed.

"I really don't want to answer that, do I?" April smiles and it's great, because she doesn't really mind this. Nat's being open and laughing, so it's okay by her.

"Well, I mean, he probably already has condoms," she picks up the jeans and stares at the hole in the back of the leg. "If you're at some place with tables, you could probably just-"

"Holy shit, Nat, please," April chuckles and answers the ringing phone immediately. "Hey Andy."

When she shoos Natalie out of the room she's making another obscene gesture with her hand and pushing her tongue into her cheek. Okay, so even if she is laughing and having a good time she could be annoying but that's her kid sister, so she shakes her head. April points out of her room, smiling all the while, and remembers that she's on a call with Andy.

"Um, you're on for tonight, right? I mean, this is weird and I know I shouldn't call you to make sure," he stops and chuckles, and April's smiling all the while. "This is super weird-"

"Just pick me up at my apartment," she interrupts him, staring at the blank line art on her arm.

"Gotcha," he adds in. "See you then!"

"Later," and she hangs up, still looking at the art.

It's actually so weird, but not in the way that Andy thinks. She went there on a whim, expecting someone to just do her up and shove her out the door. Maybe Andy will be a sex-crazed lunatic - which, as long as it wasn't weird, wouldn't be a problem - or an asshole deep on the inside, but for now she likes thinking about someone that makes her smile. And it's definitely weird because he's burned parts of her skin with ink and metal, and he's going to color this in eventually. It's all surreal, really, that April stumbled into him in the middle of a shitty town like Pawnee, where the dating pool is so small and terrible that she sometimes wonders why she stopped in there.

Then Natalie comes in and asks her if she's going to pregame, and April remembers.

She doesn't, because she's not sure what they're even going to do, but she does take an oddly long time getting dressed. She remembers to wear a thin jacket just so that, if it was weird, Andy wouldn't be uncomfortable having her around wherever they went. She didn't even know where they were going, but it could be someplace where the ink on her would be gawked at, uncomfortably, all night. April doesn't hate her body, or even dislike it. On the contrary, the reason she likes the tattoos is because it reminds her that the skin she's in is beautiful and unique, and that everything she does to it is in the name of aesthetics but at the same time she's a person with a wonderful body. Not even that she's attractive - though April's not blind or stupid - but she's a person, and she's got the body she has, and she's going to work on that in whatever way pleases her.

So when she wears that jacket, it's because she's not sure who Andy is, really. It's almost a precaution or a defensive measure, ready to cover up anything he might be ready to use as a weapon against her.

When she hears a text alert and almost flies down the stairs, she doesn't know what she should have thought about him. She should have realized this was going to be the case, and she's not even close to complaining because there isn't a car greeting her. She heard it from a distance, but she didn't think the motorcycle was Andy's.

And, of course, it is. He looks strange with a thick, black jacket and a dumb grin on his face, but he throws her a helmet and she happily gets behind him without a word. He says something but it doesn't go over the roar of the hog and she's never been more pleased with a decision, ever. Save for when she wraps her arms around his stomach, which after the first few moments of hesitation doesn't sting or make her want to rip away from him. That's definitely a good thing, since she hasn't ridden one in so long it jerks her system when the stretch from her building to the next light is long enough to let him catch a decent speed.

All right, so he isn't a stereotypical biker. But, he does own a bike. That's a definite plus, she thinks, since if he's terrible she can steal it and hopefully sell it pretty quickly.

After a few blocks she realizes they're stopping at a diner with open, outdoor seating. It's kind of artsy, next to a coffee shop even, and has all manner of people there. It's nearest the warehouse district of Pawnee, where the real lower class is, and some of the neighborhoods that the middle-class, white suburbanites want nothing to do with.

He parks about a block away, and April steps off on jelly legs.

"Oh man," she laughs, hiking her knees up to her chest as she walks in place. "I haven't done that in forever."

"Sorry, I forgot to tell you," he plays with the strap on his helmet and looks down, almost embarrassed looking. "My car broke down and someone gave me this for some art."

"Woah, that's awesome," she looks down at the not-quite pristine Harley. Hell, she can only barely see that name on it, almost scratched off. "That must have been a serious tattoo."

"Did his whole back," he laughs.

"And you don't have to apologize, this is... cool," she nods.

"I just mean, you had to, y'know, touch me," he laughs again and stows away the helmets. "I thought you were weird about that."

"Only when other people touch me," she explains, uncaring how personal this is. Andy's like that, and makes her want to say stuff like this. "It's weird, but I can do it the other way."

"Well, I hope you can let me touch you eventually," he says and before he can say anything she breaks out into a grin and shakes her head. "No, wait! I meant-"

"I know," she keeps chuckling all the way to the outdoor seating.

They get there and it's cheap, thankfully. Sandwiches and tea, and it's all so stupidly bohemian and small that April really likes it. There isn't anything flashy here, no bar or concert or other den of iniquity, and it's all so against April's expectations from people - and how fucking awful they are, for the most part - that she takes her jacket off and sits there with him. Some people look, but that's fine. That's one of the positive points, after all. Thankfully not everyone ogles her and Andy doesn't make a show of it, or ask her to put the jacket back on, or even say a word about it.

When their waitress comes over, she eyes April carefully and then greets Andy with a warm smile.

"Hey Ann!" he says jovially and for a second she thinks they're going to hug. "I forgot you worked here. How's everything?"

"Dunno, serving people food," she laughs and glances at April again. "Here on a date?"

She looks at April pointedly and there's something there, but April can't quite make it out. Ugh, if she has to have a rival over Andy then this is too much. Too boring, too high school, and she might just leave. But then that look warms up and April realizes that this Ann isn't looking at her like she's mad Andy's here with someone else. It's different, and she can't quite put her finger on the source.

"Yeah, this is April," he gestures and April gives her a nod. "She's-"

"He's doing ink for me and we're out here," she waves around as she speaks. "Apparently on a date."

"Oh, so you didn't know that?" Ann asks, smirking.

"No, she knew... you knew, right? Oh shit, I'm sorry-"

"I'm just fucking around," April smiles and Andy laughs loudly, his eyes squinting into little beads. He actually found that funny, she realizes. April can't stop smiling at that.

"So, what'll you guys have?"

They order and when Ann returns they eat little turkey sandwiches in silence. Andy asks her a few things, minutia about her day and how absurdly boring it is, but they don't have any big questions or answers or discussions and it's nice. Something about the already comfortable aspect here is nice, just like Andy.

"So what do you do?" Andy takes another bite and starts talking through the chewed food, making April laugh. "Thorry... ugh, do you and your sister, like, what do you guys do?"

It's hard to explain that. Oh, I steal and my sister is a part-time hooker.

"Not much," April shrugs. "Sometimes people pay me for their designs on stuff, but we kinda just... do our own thing."

"Sure," Andy nods, and he must get it but maybe he doesn't. Either way, he doesn't ask about that. "Um, do you guys... do you want your money back?"

April looks up at him, confused. "Why? I paid you for the tat-"

"Dunno, I just... it could be like a rain check," he suggests and takes a drink of water. "Not like this, it's not weird. I don't mean anything, y'know, weird."

"Like I'd do that," she says despite thinking, somewhere in the back of her mind, that she probably would.

"I just mean if you wanna wait until you're doing something and pay me back, that's cool," he says.

"I don't want charity," she replies, a little angry. Though, honestly, a little charity every once and a while is what gets her a warm bed and isn't all bad.

"No! Oh, I'm sorry... I didn't, ah I'll just shut up," he leans back and chuckles. "God, this is terrible."

"Really?" April asks, because she's enjoying herself.

"Yeah, I'm not talking or asking you anything and you're getting mad and now I'm a jerk, but yeah duh," he taps the table as he talks, all agitated and, honestly it fucking burns her tongue to even think it, cute. "God, I'll do your fill and then you can forget-"

"Woah, woah, woah," she starts laughing a little thing, just a bit of a chuckle because holy shit he's going overboard. "I just meant that the money's yours. No need to go hyper on it."

Andy looks down and nods. "Um, but, you and your sister... you guys are close, right?" he asks, playing with a napkin in his hand.

"Yeah," she nods. "She's all I've got and I try not to forget that."

"You really love her, don't you?" he asks in the weirdest, most poignant way that she never expected from him.

Then again, he's picked up things about her already. He's realized that she doesn't like unwanted touches, and that she's got history that she'd rather not talk about, and that she cares about her sister more than just about anything in the entire world. It puts a real dent in her suspicion that Andy's a piece of crap on really, really long stilts. He says it a little softly, too, like she doesn't want to have it out loud and screaming. And, really, that just makes Andy even better in her eyes.

"Yeah," she nods and smiles. "Do you... is there anyone like that for you?"

She pointedly looks back at the diner and Andy looks at her, confused. After a more harsh nod in that direction, and eventual a sigh of disappointment Andy's eyes light up.

"Oh, Ann? No, no!" he assures her and has a total honesty in his voice. Or, at worst, he's a damn good liar. "She's my ex, and um, we had a weird one. So, I dunno. If that makes you feel weird or-"

"You've gotta stop asking me if I'm comfortable," she buts in.

"Oh, um, sorry," he fidgets with his napkin and puts it down.

"No, it's really sweet, actually," April says and, God, what is she doing? Why is she being so open? Andy seems to almost pull it out of her, though. "Just don't do it all the freaking time."

"Gotcha," he smiles wide, that grin of a grin that only he has.

She loves it. There, she thought it. She doesn't just like that grin, because it's warm and says to her that she's welcome to talk to him and be herself and show him her art - her innermost thoughts. She doesn't just like the implication that he's smiling because of her and that's not the norm for April. Maybe in some way she's totally charmed by it, but she loves it. She loves that grin and all of the things it means.

"But, do you? Y'know, have anyone?"

Andy thinks on it before he speaks. That's definitely new. "My mom and my brother's don't talk to me much anymore, and my dad's super dead-"

"I'm sorry," April says without hesitation, all too familiar to her.

"Thanks," he says, nodding. "Are your...?" and he trails off, April shifting uncomfortably and picking at the skin of her right arm where the light hits a windowpane made of black ink. "Y'know what, nevermind. Um, I don't have anyone really I guess. It's weird, never thought about it like that. I guess I just do my work and talk to people there and at shows and stuff."

He's sweet and thoughtful when he talks, and April feels a pang in her chest when he avoids asking her about her parents. She realizes, way too late, that she's in over her head with this guy. He's cute, he's funny, and he's charming, and he's an artist kind of. Not to mention he senses things about her and avoids them like an actual freaking person and not some terrible piece of shit trying to get between her legs. And that, really, is refreshing.

Not to mention it's so alarming to figure that out, in that second, that she excuses herself to go to the bathroom.

Inside, she laughs into the mirror and looks at herself. She's short, and her fringe is all untidy and gross, and she's not cute or funny or charming though she guesses she's an artist. But, whatever, she likes him. A lot. So, she splashes water on her face and dries off. Walking out, she's met by Ann. She's staring her down, arms crossed.

"Hey," April greets her, uncomfortable with the sudden introduction of a person in her face.

"Look, I don't know what you think you're doing with Andy," she starts off and this conflict is so unexpected April shakes for a second. This woman's a little taller than her and is probably much stronger than her, judging by the way April saw her handle a series of trays for a huge party. "But, I really don't want to see him hurt."

"Gross, I'm not going to," April tries to brush past her by Ann steps in the way.

"No, I mean it," Ann repeats. "If I hear him talk about some short girl he worked on breaking his heart, I'll figure it out. I'll find you."

"Why are you so weird?"

"Because that guy's a sweetheart..." she says, trailing off like Ann's only realized that recently. April won't ask her, or Andy, but their history must be strange. "He really is, and I don't want anyone to hurt him. Just, please, remember that."

"Sure," April nods and before she passes her up, she sighs. "He is, though. A sweetheart."

Ann looks at her, nodding, and smiles. Their awkward exchange over, she heads back outside to greet Andy. Okay, she realizes, he's a bundle of awesome things put together into a package that's pretty great to look at. All in all, she could have made worse decisions. Sitting down, she half expects her phone to ring and Natalie to need her for something or for Andy to go on a rampage at someone at another table. None of that happens though.

Instead they ask each other stupid things, and start playing a game where they try and figure out what some of the other patrons' jobs are. And, when she scoots her chair closer to him, she doesn't mind what it looks like as she bumps into him and takes a drink, giggling as he points at someone with a large moustache and the guy looks over at them. Andy waves and the other guy shakes his head, making April laugh a little bit. She doesn't mind that she puts her arm next to his and that she's seconds from taking his hand when they realize they need to pay their bill.

On the way back to her apartment, April lays her head on his back and likes the feeling. She reminds herself to remember what Ann said and to remember that it's okay to like some people every once and a while. Maybe just one person, but it's okay. It's definitely okay when they stop at her apartment and he plays with his helmet again, nervous.

"Um, so, do you... wanna, y'know, do that again?" he perks up, hopeful. God, even his eyes are happy.

"Totally," she nods and there's a blank, dead silence between them.

"So, I'll call you-"

She moves forward and kisses his cheek, leaning up on her toes to do so. It makes him stop talking and his face explodes into the widest, dumbest grin she's seen on him. It was something a teenager did, and something so small, but he looks so thrilled that she can only smile back. Feeling her lips on his face, rough on facial hair, is maybe the best she's felt save that game at the diner.

"Don't make it too long," April says, smiling and walking backward to her building. "I get impatient."

"Of course! I'll... um, yeah, I'll call you and stuff, and we'll go on, like, fifty dates," he starts working himself up and she laughs, turning around. "Or not! I mean-"

She opens and closes the door in a hurry because her face is on fire and smiling is happening so frequently now. She loves it, too. It's, of fucking course, nice.