Thank you, my dear readers. Also, I'm writing on a system that has no spell check, so sorry!

*)O(*

He felt bigger than his shell. Squeezing through the familiar window had him almost falling and cracking his shell. There was a laugh at his expense, but he couldn't see the culprit.

He reminded himself that he was here for a reason. Imagining this whole thing as a mission was his current coping mechanism. His objective was to obtain her as his girlfriend, and should that fail, he was to ensure that they could remain friends.

When he finally caught sight of her, his plan went out the window. Her hair was done in a hundred or more little braids, the top half of which was pulled away from her face. She had on some make-up, but besides the unusual brightness of her eyes and red of her lips, he almost couldn't notice.

An uncomfortable warmth spread across his body as he took in her dress. There was a shimmer to the fabric, but it was still a nice shade of dark blue. The top half was shaped like a tank top while the bottom puffed out with ruffles. He chewed his lips and looked away quickly. Say something, he chided himself.

"Hey, look, my dress had pockets!" Tabitha put her hands in said pockets and spun about. He wasn't about to miss an opening like that, silently thanking her for her help with his helplessness. "You look wonderful," he blurted. That sounded far too forward to himself, so he tried back peddling, "And the dress is nice, too."

Tabitha seemed to trip over her feet while trying to stop her spin, so he reached out for her elbow to stabalize her before she fell. Those gorgeous eyes stared up at him, all warm and easy to lose himself in.

Tabitha let out a little, "Oh," which sounded so surprised, he was almost worried for a moment. When she was stable she smiled at him with something he didn't understand. "You're good." She pulled away.

He was confused. What was he good at? Why did hearing that make his heart pound against his shell?

"Are you hungry?"

"I know better than to come here on a full stomach," he laughed. The soft smile he gets in return made him fell like he was melting. Damn, he realized, I really do like her.

Tabitha went about pulling two plates from the oven. "It's not my forte, but I tried, and if you laugh-" She started to warn, but he just put his hands up in a surrender gesture. A disk of breaded meat and white rice sat new to each other. Plates tink down before she's swirling to the fridge, her skirt following after with a swish. "Katsu," he guesses firmly as he looks at the plate before him, only to be surprised when another is set down as well. Sushi, rather poorly wrapped and nearly falling apart. "You've mentioned that you like Japanese and Chinese foods, so I thought..." She trails off as she sits down at the table as well.

"Thank you." He tried to stop the large smile from splitting his face, but found it difficult. He felt cared for. It was so odd to him.

"Right, food, let's eat." She ushered.

It took a few minutes before either of them spoke and when they did it was food related. He felt a bit stuck. How on earth was he supposed to get to asking her out?

*)O(*

She moved them from their dinner to the couch and turned on the TV. She'd done a quick memory sweep and made sure she had on something he would like. Criminal Minds started playing and she nestled into the corner of the couch. Leo started the episode relaxed against the couch, but he kept leaning forward. She watched him more than the episode.

When they'd finally caught the culprit, he fist-pumped the air and sat back again. She couldn't help the small chuckle that she let out. He turned towards her and she laughed again at his confusion. "You're cute, you know that?" The maroon shade his face turned was plesant to see. "I thought you were going to jump off the couch."

"Sorry, I tend to get a bit caught up in the show." He rubbed the back of his neck and looked away. Reminding herself of what tonight was for, she took a deep breath. "Leo?" She asked, sitting up a bit taller. When his blue eyes met her's she had to take another breath. "I have a question, or some questions for you."

"Okay," he nodded, turning to face her better. His hands fidgitted with each other in his lap, but he gave her his full attention. "I have a question for you, too." He paused and she could tell there was something else he wanted to say. "I just want to say, before that, that I am glad to be your friend. We, no, I- I don't have many friends, so, please, don't get too mad?" He looked away again, but kept his body towards her.

Tabitha felt something blocking her throat and swallowed. She'd never seen this on him before. He looked scared. What could someone like him be scared of? Without thinking, she reached out and took one of his hands. The texture of it was refreshing, grounding. She tried to rationalize the feeling, but came up empty. It wasn't human, but it wasn't so much of something else that it was unpleasant in any way.

She turned it over, the size dwarfing both of hers, and ran her fingers against his palm. She watched as the muscles and callouses moved under her fingertips. Hazarding a glance, she looked up at him to see his eyes half closed and just watching her in return. Darting her eyes back down to his hand, she finally spoke.

"I like you." She said as clearly as she could.

"I-I like you, too!" His voice was loud in the silence of her apartment. His hand grabbed one of hers and squeezed softly. "I like you as more than a friend, Tabitha." There he was, sounding scared again. She looked up to see hope in those blue eyes. "So you wouldn't mind dating me?" She smiled.

"Really?" He whispered.

"Really," she laughed. The wide, bright, almost blinding smile she got made her heart pound against her ribs in an almost painful way. She must have been smiling just as much because her cheeks started to ache when she tried to smile wider, but couldn't. "Can I kiss you?" His face turned suddenly serious.

"You better." She warned. The hand that wasn't holding hers came up to touch her face. Sweet and soft was nice, but she wanted this. She leaned up and pressed her lips to his, waiting for him to react after surprising him. It was awkward when he did. His mouth was too big, lips too wide. So she waited and gave him a moment.

They slanted their lips together again and again, each time with improved results until she felt like she was in junior high again, getting her first kiss. Her fingers gripped his shoulder as she kneeled to be the same height as him while he sat. His hand had been attached to her face and neck, but he moved it to her waist, pulling her closer to him. She almost slipped, her back bending almost too far to make up the distance between them. Both his hands fit under her butt, lifting her and pulling her flush against his chest.

She'd never been man handled - turtle handled?- like that before and she didn't like it. "Don't do that. If I want to be somewhere, I'll move myself." She scolded from his lap. She could feel him stiffen and his hands pull away, but she wasn't actually mad, so she kissed him again. "Or I'll tell you to move me." She murmurred against his lips. Just because she didn't like how she got here didn't mean she was going to move now. It was much easier to kiss him like this. Both of his hands came back, gentle little whisps against her hips. She pulled away from him and rested her forehead against his -collar bone? She scolded herself and reminded herself to look up what to call these things later. "I should warn you, I can be a bit bossy." She laughed as she let her body cool for a moment. He laughed, too. A hand came up to carefully run through her braids. "I know."

"Are you going to be okay with that? You are the leader, after all." She asked, curious.

"A good leader must also be a good follower." He spoke with a grin. She wanted to kiss him again. She leaned up once more only to feel vibrating on her thigh. Startled, she pulled away.

"Fuck," the groan he amitted also startled her. Had she ever heard him curse before? The cell phone was in his hand and she could tell his grip on it was bruising. "What?" He grit out. "Yes, I'm fine." He paused. "Yes, I'm still at Tabitha's." He didn't even wait for the other person to finish speaking. "Mikey, so help me, I'll pull you out of your shell."

She laughed.