The hum of the road beneath the tires did little to calm him, Sonny's mind occupied with the useless speculation about the situation. What would happen when Owsla took her first bit? Sonny's eyes couldn't help but drift to the rear view mirror every ten seconds. It was a new thing to him, to have something in the backseat so precious to him... well, something alive that is. He had transported precious equipment in the backseat before but this was different. This was his daughter, a small precious creature he was responsible fore the well-being of. He thought seriously as he watched the daughter in question. Owsla was sitting in the backseat, marveling at every new sight beyond the window.
"Wow..." Owsla's jaw was open as it had been for most of the ride. Currently, she was gaping at an impressively large building. "Hey mom? What is that?"
"It's a building."
Owsla looked confused as she stared out the window. "Then..." She pointed at another building. "What's that?"
"It's another building." Sonny smiled at Owsla who was narrowing her eyes trying to make sense of what he was saying.
"But they don't look alike." she argued.
Sonny laughed. "No, they don't." he agreed. "There's many different types of building. Where we're crashing currently is called a house, which is a type of building. There's shops, office buildings, and restaurants like the one we're headed to now."
After declaring that they should go to On the Border for lunch, Sonny had gotten down from the lab table (as Natasha had requested) and proceeded to make plans. Natasha had attempted to invite Phish along, who had stayed behind, but she didn't pick up the phone (as usual) so they continued without her. Currently, the gang was on the road to the restaurant, split between the two cars. Sonny, Joel, and Owsla were in the Laurie Family van while Natasha and Jamie tailed them in her car. Sonny had offered to drive but had been flat out refused by the mau5, pointing out he was injured and had a concussion so he was stuck in the passenger's seat for now. Though, the goblin was pretty sure Joel just wanted to hog the driver's seat to himself.
The ravenette sighed frustratedly. He still had yet to finish his conversation with Joel from earlier and it was putting him in a sour mood. He was no where near done chewing him out yet; he still had a lot of things he wanted to confront the mau5 about. Not saying anything with the mau5 right next to him was making him a bit fidgety. Should he bring it up again? No wait, Owsla was in the car. He'd have to save the discussion for later when she wasn't around. Probably tonight when she was asleep. They really shouldn't be fighting in front of Owsla, his cringed just thinking of the scene in Theodore's lab. What kind of parent makes their child cry? However, that particular incident had been his own fault and-
"Mom!"
"Uh, yes sweetheart?" Sonny snapped out of his inner monologues.
"If buildings are different only by their purpose, how come I haven't seen two identical buildings yet?"
Sonny laughed at bit at his daughter's misunderstanding. "well, buildings that serve the same purpose tend to look alike but get this, on earth? We have people called architects."
"Architects?"
"Mmmhmm. And these people, they go around designing buildings so like, every buildings looks different... even if they have the same purpose."
"Woah..."
"Well, except for like, restaurant chains and other trademarked buildings and stuff." Sonny rectified his statement.
"What does that mean Mom?"
"Uh..." Sonny pursed his lips. After thinking about it for a while, he opened his mouth again. "Well, you see..."
The rest of the car ride there was filled with conversation as Sonny tried to answer all of the curious little alien's questions.
OH LOOK PAGE BREAK!
Joel got out of the van right as Natasha's car was pulling into the parking space next to them. He ad stayed quiet the entire ride here, unsure what to say to his best friend riding along beside him. Not that it had mattered anyway since Sonny had spent most of the trip conversing with Owsla. Ever since he gotten here it seemed like there had been a dynamic shift in their friendship. It had been bothering him for a while but it hadn't seemed dangerous until now. The small initial crack he had felt was now more of a full sized rift. And speaking of that rift, he noted with bleak certainty that their argument in the viewing room was not over... all because of...
"That's one of the things I love about you!"
The words. HIS words, played through his mind like a prophecy of doom. Damn, he was stupid. he really needed to learn to keep his mouth shut. Then again, inability to keep opinions to himself was part of the reason he had a reputation for being a 'meanie' as Sonny so eloquently put it. How was he going to explain this one? I mean, how do you explain-
"Ow!" The mau5 yelped as something hit him.
"I told you to move like, twenty times." Natasha continued to push open the car door that had just hit him in the hip as he backed away. Standing up, she shut it, giving him a glance. "You okay?"
"Fine, why?"
Natasha promptly gave him a 'I'm-so-done-with-you' look. "I don't know, maybe the fact that you didn't hear me after I shouted at you repeatedly?"
"Natasha!"
Nat turned at the sound of her girlfriend's voice. "I'm coming!" Walking away from the passenger's seat, she came to stand across from her girlfriend on the other side of the car. Jamie had insisted on driving and reluctantly, Nat had let her. Instead, the brunette had chatted on excitedly about her latest video project while Jamie drove.
"What i it?" she asked the blonde who was staring at the backseat confused.
"Where did you put my hoodie?"
Opening the backseat door, Natasha realized a certain yellow hoodie appeared to be missing. Upon closer inspection however, she saw a piece of mustard yellow in all the mess. "It's fallen under my equipment..." Like most cars that usually carry one passenger only, Natasha's backseat had become a common storage space. As a student of the visual arts, her car was constantly in disarray including among the clutter, camera bag, tripods, audio equipment, lighting equipment, costumes, ect. Jamie's poor hoodie had slipped beneath it all. Natasha bent down to retrieve it for her, being closer to where it currently resided.
"Natasha, when's our anniversary?"
"May 5th... why?"
"When's my birthday?"
"March 20th?"
"Is that an answer or a question?"
Natasha stood up, the hoodie in her hands, giving it to her girlfriend with an odd look. "An answer... what's with the questions?"
Jamie shrugged non-nonchalantly. "Just seeing if you remember... my assassin needs to keep her skills sharp."
Natasha rolled her eyes but her smile refuted her annoyance. "My skills are plenty sharp."
"Oh really?" Jamie smiled mischievously. "Do you remember word for word the first valentines you sent me?"
By the blush on Natasha's face, Bucky knew she did. "Say it." She demanded. "Word for word."
Natasha's jaw dropped a bit. "Now?" Jamie nodded. "Out loud?" Jamie nodded. "Here?" Jamie nodded. "Why!"
"Because I want you to reaffirm your love fore me."
"What!" Natasha stepped back a bit, thrown off by her girlfriend's apparent seriousness. "No way! I'm not going to say that here of all places!"
"What? Do you not love me enough to say it?"
"N-no, that's not-"
"Then say it!" Jamie insisted, her eyes completely serious and unwavering.
Natasha glared at her girlfriend stubbornly for a long moment before conceding to her wishes, muttering the phrase quietly.
"Louder."
Cheeks burning ablaze, Natasha blurted it out louder. "Are you the Skrill to my Mau5? Because I'm in wub, wub, wub, with you!"
Bucky smiled at her girlfriend who looked like she wanted to die. Though, despite Natasha's fears, it didn't seem like either EDM artist had hear her, currently taking residence on the other side of the van. Still, that deserved a kiss she supposed. So, coming around the car, she leaned over and kissed her partner to make up for her bullying.
"Oh no, you're gonna have to kiss me a lot more to make up for that, get back over here."
So Jamie did, pushing Natasha against the car this time to kiss her more firmly.
"You're so... mean... to me." The brunette complained in between kisses, wrapping her arms around the other.
"I know... but... I wub you too." Jamie smirked.
"Shut up!" Natasha glared as she leaned in again.
"Nattie? What does that mean?"
Jamie backed off Natasha who jumped, startled by the sudden intrusion from the blue teenager.
"What does what mean?"
"The thing you said earlier. Are you the Skri-" Owsla was quickly forced to shut up as Natasha covered her mouth to prevent the alien from saying anything more. She had already gotten lucky no one heard her the first time, she couldn't guarantee she'd be so lucky if it were repeated.
Joel, appearing from behind the van, looked at them curiously. "What did you say?"
"Nothing! I said nothing. Right Owsla?"
The little alien could only nod in confusion with a hand clamped over her mouth.
"Where did my brother go?" Jamie asked, looking beyond Joel but failing to see a certain brown-eyed goblin.
"Sonny? He was right- turning around, the mau5 quickly realized the goblin was NOT right behind him. Instead, he was almost to the restaurant door. "SONNY!" Joel screamed across the parking lot, a dangerous look on his face. "What did I say about wandering off alone?"
Sonny turned around at the shouting, seeing clearly a very irritated Mau5. Realizing his mistake, the goblin sprinted for the restaurant door to find sanctuary before Joel could catch up to him. And, in turn, that only spurred the Mau5 to run off after him.
Watching this new development, Natasha turned to her girlfriend. "Shouldn't we-?"
Jamie shook her head. "Just let them sort it out, getting between them is never a good idea."
Sonny knew Joel had told him to wait for him, but he hadn't taken him that seriously (and apparently he should have). He was a capable young man, he could handle putting them on the waiting list by himself. But, somehow, he had pissed off Joel and now he was running for his life. Entering lobby area, he used his size to his advantage, maneuvering between the other patrons with ease to the podium. Leaving no room for light conversation, he blurted out only the essential information. "Tim. Party of five."
The lady blinked a bit before writing it down, probably a little overwhelmed by the goblin's urgency. "Alright, here's your buzzer it will buzz when your table is ready, the current wait-"
Sonny stood there trying to be nice by listening to what the lady had to say, but as soon as he saw Joel open the door, beginning to push through the throng of customers, he knew it was time to go. "Thanks, bye!"
"Sonny, get back here!"
"EEK!" Scurrying away from the podium, Sonny ran off into the main part of the restaurant, making his way through the rows of tables. "'Scuse me, sorry, pardon me ma'm..." he muttered off apologies as he ran through the restaurant. Looking behind him, he had managed to put some distance between him and Joel but not much. The mau5 was barreling towards him, narrowly avoiding a collision with a waitress as he flew past, not even saying sorry! That jerk face... he needed a lecture on manners apparently... but not now because for some reason the nature had gotten it backwards and the mau5 was chasing the cat this time.
"Sonny, stop running for fuck's sake!
"Stop running? Stop chasing me!" Like hell he was going to stop running. If Joel caught up to him, who knows what was going to happen!
By now, customers had begun to laugh at the two of them, chasing each other wildly, weaving through the tables, ducking from each other's grasps. Which was just great! He was supposed to be laying low. WHAT PART OF THIS WAS LAYING LOW? Not to mention to fact that now his face was red because he was being humiliated in front of an entire restaurant full of people! But Joel kept chasing, so Sonny kept running faster, so Joel ran faster, so they ran faster, and faster, and faster until-
"HEY! RUNNING!" A very menacing looking employee barked at them, un-amused at their antics.
Like scolded kids, they immediately froze on the spot. Sonny looked around uncertainty, .feeling like a cornered animal. Well, if he couldn't run... he continued his escape in an awkward fast walk. You know, that fast walk we all do when we get caught running in the halls but don't really want to stop running? So we walk with strained stick legs, trying to be as fast as possible without bending our legs so we aren't technically running? And in this manner, Sonny continued to walk-run through On the Border. As followed in a similar fashion, a pretty picture was painted before us. Two grown men, stick walking like children, through a crowded restaurant... safe to say there were some customers laughing their asses off. But back to the chase.
Sonny was quickly realizing his disadvantage: his short legs. Not being able to bend his legs meant he was no longer able to propel himself forward. Joel, being tall, covered more distance per step than he did, gaining on him quickly not that they're speed was about the same.
"SONNY!"
"I have so much to live for!" the ravenette protested.
Reaching the front lobby area once again, the goblin used his smaller stature, which seconds before had been a hindrance, to his advantage. Although the lobby area was crowded, he was easily able to slip through the small spaces between the people thanks to his small frame. Joel however, who had been a hair pull away from catching him, was now stuck, struggling to et past because he was bigger.
Sonny watched his best friend struggle out of the corner of his eye with a smirk as he escaped to the outside world.
When Joel finally managed to push past all the people in the lobby he huffed frustratedly. That damn idiot... storming across the parking lot, he glared at said idiot who was cowering behind his sister.
"Ah! Jamie, help me! Joely is scary!"
"He's your bestfriend!"
"Don't... you ever... do that again!" Joel shouted out between panted breaths, finally standing a few feet away.
"Huh?"
"Doesn't your arm hurt now! You've gone and re-injured it!"
Sonny flinched a bit when he realized Joel was right. Tightening all the muscles in his arms in order to fast walk had revived some of the pain.
"And don't run away from me!" Joel burst out.
Sonny took a step back, not from fear, but from surprise. He had expected a flurry of things, insults, screaming, gritted teeth, anything but... this.
"How am I every supposed to help you when you keep distancing yourself from me!"
The goblin was at a completely loss for words. "I'm sorry, I didn't realize-"
"You didn't realize I was your friend? Is that it?"
"N-no!"
"'Friend' isn't just some fucking label you know!"
Sonny opened his mouth to speak but seeing Owsla out of the corner of his eye, stopped, bitting back a harsh reply. He had a lot to say, but again he reminded himself 'Not now. Later.' In his hand, the buzzer began to vibrate, indicating that their table was ready. "Okay," Sonny conceded. "I'm sorry. Why don't we go eat now, okay?" he said calmly, forcing his face to smile for Owsla's sake, the little alien looking ready to cry, fearful eyes switching back and forth between the two of them.
There was a long pause before Joel agreed. "Yeah, okay."
"Okay!" Nat jumped, putting on an excited smile, attempting to break the awkward atmosphere that had settled upon them. "Let's go eat all the Mexican food we can!"
"Yeah!" Sonny cheered in agreement. "Let's eat!" And, grabbing Owsla's hand, lead the gang into the restaurant to do just that.