Warm

When Charlie arrived in the kitchen, she found Alastor leaning over the butcher block, flicking through the pages of a cookbook. When he heard the door swing open, he turned his head towards her with a wide smile.

"Ah, Charlie, dearest," he exclaimed. "Do come in! Dinner isn't ready yet, though, I'm afraid."

"That's okay," she said as she walked over to him. "I was just coming to pay you a visit, and was wondering if you could use some help."

"Most certainly!"

Invitingly, he stepped sideways so she could stand next to him, giving her a view of the cookbook. When she stopped, she realized just how close she had to stand next to him in order to fit on that side of the block. She could now feel her shoulder pressing against his bicep. He didn't protest to this. In fact, his smile widened as he glanced at their proximity, and then he looked away to continue flipping through the book. Smiling slightly, Charlie slowly leaned herself against him a little, wanting to be closer. Instantly, as if he'd been waiting for some sort of cue, he leaned against her in kind.

She giggled slightly at this. "So, um," she cleared her throat, earning a lighthearted chuckle from Alastor. "What're you gonna make?"

He gave a long-suffering sigh. "Haven't decided yet. Steel and Angel Dust are requesting New York-style pizza. And then earlier today Niffty said she was craving gumbo. Decisions, decisions." He took his attention off the book to carefully tuck some hair behind Charlie's ear. "And what about you, my dear? Craving anything in particular?"

"Hmm," she muttered thoughtfully. "Actually, I haven't had pizza in a really long time. So, that sounds good."

Alastor tsked disapprovingly. "Very well, then," he said anyway as he flipped through the pages. "Pizza it is."

"Not a fan of pizza," she asked.

"I like it just fine, but I don't like to cook it. Far too simple in my opinion." He finally found a chapter with dough recipes. He nodded resolutely when he found one to his liking. "Ah, yes, this'll do just fine. Do wash your hands, my dear, while I get started on the crust," he said as he turned towards the cupboards to get flour, yeast, and other essentials.

As Charlie turned the sink on, she asked, "Do you want me to make the sauce?"

He turned to her, eyes lighting up at her suggestion. "That would be splendid! Go right on ahead."

After drying off her hands, she got out a large saucepan and set it on the counter next to a small cutting board. She supposed she could just use the butcher block, but it was currently being occupied by the cookbook, plus they mostly just used that as a table anyway.

As Charlie searched through the cabinets for what she needed, she stole a glance back at Alastor. She stopped, and couldn't help but watch him for a second. Within minutes, he was already working with homemade pizza dough. After turning the dough over his knuckles to stretch it, he began tossing and spinning it in the air to get the shape he needed. Excess flour snowed from the dough, sprinkling back down onto the counter and even onto his red hair.

Charlie chuckled a little. She'd never watched him cook before. His movements were so fluid. Even though he said he didn't like making pizza, this was still cooking, and it clearly came naturally to him.

He didn't slow, but upon hearing her chuckle he turned his gaze her way, and he flashed her a smirk and a wink. The smirk was what made her blush and the wink was sent her heart into a wonderful frenzy. In an effort to have some semblance of control over herself, she turned back to the cabinets to try and focus on the task at hand.

She got out some fresh herbs and tomatoes and set them on the cutting board. She got to work, getting into the cooking mindset, while humming along to a tune from Alastor's microphone where it leaned against the butcher block.

Cooking wasn't just a hobby to Alastor, but an art form as well. A passion. Cooking contained memories, as well as the ability to spark new ones. And he held value in that. He would always gladly admit to anyone that he poured his heart and soul into everything he cooked. Normally, nothing could shake him of his rhythm.

Within seconds, though, his focus had been completely broken.

He stopped making the dough, letting it drape over his knuckles as he watched Charlie, who was working just a couple feet away from him on the long stretch of counter.

With precision, Charlie finely chopped the garlic, cilantro, and then the basil. Her knife skills weren't quite correct, given the way she crudely sliced it through the ingredients, but that certainly didn't stop her. She even used that same knife to clumsily scoop it all up in one go and dump it into the pot. She did the same with the tomatoes. She was so detailed that they were practically a pulp by the time she was done with them, and had tossed them into the pot as well. Her movements were slow as she took her time, but also calm and confident.

Entranced and unable to look away from her, the dough slipped from Alastor's fingers onto the countertop.

For some reason, his heart had started racing. A familiar thrill had returned. He felt like he was dancing with her all over again, even though he was standing there doing absolutely nothing in particular.

Unable to help himself, he crossed the distance in two long strides, pushed her hair out of the way again, and pressed a lingering kiss to her cheek.

Was this what falling in love felt like? Was that what this thrilling feeling was? Or was it just unique to him? Either or, he loved every breathless moment of it.

As soon as she felt his lips against her face, Charlie squeaked in delighted surprise and the knife clattered to the counter. Then, she sighed, her eyes fluttering a little at the warmth behind his kiss.

When he pulled away, she asked with a goofy smile, "W-what was that for?"

His smile was equally as giddy, and his eyes half-lidded. He chuckled slightly. "I have absolutely no idea. I just felt the need."

She chuckled as well as she lifted the pot and brought it over to the stove. "Well, you can definitely do that whenever you want to."

"That was alright?"

She turned to look at him, still smiling. "Yup," she ineloquently responded, making him chuckle again.

"I didn't know you could cook, my dear. I take it you learned from your parents? Although, I can't see them as being food experts. I'd imagine they'd be far too busy."

"No," Charlie shook her head as she struggled to get at least one of the burners working. "I taught myself. My parents wanted everything handed to me, but I didn't. And with how often I was away from the mansion, I either had to buy my own food or figure out how to make it myself. I'm not perfect at it, especially tomato sauce. I gotta make sure I didn't leave big chunks of garlic in it." She briefly looked at him with a slight scowl. "I've done that before, and it tastes horrible."

"Of course it would." He waved his hand dismissively. "But I was watching you the whole time, and I'm sure it'll turn out just fine. If not, we can redo it."

She gave him an accusatory smirk. "Isn't there some sort of rule about watching people while they cook? Isn't it rude?"

He smirked mischievously at her. "Oh ho ho! And what were you doing earlier while I was making the crust, hmm? Enjoying the view, were you?"

His smirk widened when an embarrassed blush blazed her cheeks. "Y-yeah, well," she stammered, rapidly glancing around. Then, her eyes landed on something behind him. "Well, your pizza dough is all floppy now, so…yeah," she ended with an indignant huff.

He laughed at how adorable that was as he turned his attention back to the dough which was, as Charlie said, all floppy and crumpled. He would have to rework it. Plus, it had also dried out, but no matter. Only a slight setback that was well worth it.

He went over to the cupboard, grabbed an empty glass, and went over to the sink, which was right next to the stove. He filled the cup with water as he yet again watched Charlie. She was frowning deeply at the stove.

"I'm very happy that I'm not the only one who's noticed the burners aren't working," Alastor commented. "The other day I was having the same issue, but they sprang to life after a good moment."

Finally, after much fidgeting, one of the burners finally lit. It was one of the smaller ones. The sauce would cook, but for much longer than anticipated.

"After we figure out what the problem is on this, just say the word and I'll have it fixed posthaste," he said, raising his fingers to indicate that he would snap them to fix it.

"Yeah," she muttered with a nod. The stove, of course, was one of their biggest necessities, and she was grateful that Alastor had the ability to repair anything with the snap of his fingers. But it was once again a cold reminder that if he was not here, then she would either have to fix it or replace the stove herself.

And with no money.

Charlie rapidly shook her head, not wanting to think about that right now and, well, put it on the back-burner so to speak.

As Alastor got back to work on the dough, using the water from his glass to rehydrate it, Charlie opened the fridge.

"Any preference for toppings," Charlie asked without looking back at him. She cringed a little. "Please don't ask for pineapple, okay?"

She heard him hum thoughtfully. "I don't mind pineapple on pizza, but I don't have a sweet tooth to begin with. Do whatever you like, my dearest."

"What about Angel and Steel? Did they have a preference?"

"They didn't say."

"Hmm." Charlie glanced at the clock on the wall to check the time.

She went back over to the cabinet, got out some more basil and a tomato, and she also reached for a bell pepper and an onion. She laid them out on the cutting board. "Looks like it's a vegetarian pizza. No time to cook any meat. Dinner's supposed to be in a half an hour-ish."

"What a shame," he remarked with a scowl, but shrugged anyway. "By the way, did you know that everyone has begun to come to me with food requests?"

"Can you blame them," Charlie grinned. "You make the best food here."

"Yes, but still," he said in an odd tone. "I'm used to you having no fear of me. I'm not used everyone else doing so as well."

She paused her chopping with a slight frown, thinking back to her conversation with Husk. "Would…that be such a bad thing?"

He didn't directly respond to that. His smile was a little disturbed and he stubbornly kept his gaze on the pizza dough while he finished it. "I suppose," was his vague response, and it didn't even completely answer her question. She wanted to ask further, but she heard the sauce finally beginning to bubble.

She went over to the pot and stirred it. "So, speaking of 'everyone'," she said slowly, unsure of how he'll react. "Everybody knows we're…together."

He paused. "Niffty?"

"Yup."

He sighed, making Charlie look back at him. When she did so, she saw him shrug, but she couldn't see his face. "I suppose I'm not surprised," he huffed. "She's not adept at keeping things to herself."

Charlie bit her lip. "Are you…okay with everyone knowing?"

There was a pause again, both in conversation and in making the dough. Then, he got back to work, flattening it into a crust. "I would've preferred to have kept it private for much longer than a mere few days, but it can't be helped now." He turned around to look at her. His smile was a little tense, but there was nothing to hint at animosity. He just appeared inconvenienced and annoyed. "And what about you?"

Charlie shrugged as she turned off the heat of the burner. "Well, like you said, it would've been nice to have kept it to ourselves for just a little while. But," she exhaled. She lifted the pot off the stove and onto the counter next to the crust. "You know how everyone is, not just Niffty. They all would've found out sooner or later."

His smile eased into something mildly amused as he shook his head. "And they all opted for 'sooner', it seems."

With the sauce finally done, Alastor ladled it onto the crust. After adding a variety of shredded cheeses and the toppings, he slid the large pie into the oven.

"Hopefully that'll be enough to sate our gluttonous, nosy sinners," he commented as he brushed some excess flour off his hands and sleeves.

Charlie smirked at him. "So there're our sinners now? Not just mine?"

He rolled his eyes at her. "Slip of the tongue," he replied smoothly, and with a haughty shake of his head. Upon seeing that there was also flour on Charlie's cheek, he conjured a towel with a showy hand gesture. The flour had probably been from when he'd swooped in and kissed her there. He touched the towel to her face and swiped away the mess. "But yes. Your sinners."

She rolled her eyes as well. And Alastor's eyes widened when she exaggeratedly mimicked his head-shaking gesture. "Slip of the tongue, of course," she grinned at him.

He normally loathed the thought of anyone trying to jest him like this. Any other imbecile that dared to tease him always brought about a new opportunity for him to remind them just who they were dealing with.

With Charlie...He didn't feel offended in the slightest. In fact, he was so endeared by it he thought his heart was going to leap right out of his chest.

After Charlie's playful imitation of him, he couldn't even begin to describe how much he wanted to slam his lips to hers. But, no, that wouldn't do, given his current track record with that. She was clearly having fun and the last thing he wanted to do would be to interrupt it with his inexperience. So, he decided to try going about it a different way, and he hoped she would be inclined to allow him.

He tossed the towel unceremoniously into the kitchen sink. He closed the distance between himself and Charlie by slowly, hesitantly winding his arms around her torso. For a moment, Charlie's eyes widened at this and he almost stepped back in uncertainty. But a smile spread across her face, and then she moved to rest the side of her head against his chest, sighing against him.

Understanding the invitation from her loud and clear, and all too happy, he tightened his hold around her slim figure and pressed her to him, allowing no space between them. He sighed into her hair. He had never held someone like this before. She felt warm, like a lovely campfire he'd often enjoyed during cookouts with the neighbors when he was still alive. He'd always been so sure that if he'd ever held someone like this that it wouldn't even feel right, like an invasion of privacy.

But her…

She felt so wonderful in his arms. He didn't want her to ever leave.

While he definitely would be thoroughly content with just this, especially if this was all that Charlie desired, his heart was still stuttering, telling him that he still wanted to feel her lips against his.

"I don't suppose I could tempt you to a kiss, my dearest," he murmured against her hair.

There was a pause from her, and then she pulled back a little, just enough so they could see each other's faces. He selfishly didn't want to let her go just yet. She was smiling brightly up at him. She did that a lot more often now, especially after they had declared their affections for one another. And, goodness, he was addicted to her smile.

"Yeah," she said quietly. "Definitely."

Alastor was deliberately slow, but also wasted very little time. He tilted her chin upwards and leaned down. Stiffly, he moved his lips carefully over hers. He didn't dare to open his mouth completely, not wanting to expose her delicate flesh to his razor-sharp teeth. Charlie had told him later that he'd apparently almost done that when he'd first kissed her. Kissing was still new to him, but it would be a differently matter entirely if he wasn't careful and drew blood from her. He would…Good god, he would never be able to handle it if he accidentally did that to her.

He felt her raise herself onto her tiptoes, and for that he was grateful given how short she was compared to him. However, it wasn't quite enough. He slowly tightened his hold around her waist and raised her higher on her toes. She sighed blissfully against his mouth.

They finally separated their mouths for a few seconds. He rested his forehead against hers so they could catch their breaths. He realized that Charlie had moved her hands up to his shoulders at some point to hang on to him.

Then, he felt Charlie's lips brush questioningly against his own. Who was he to deny her? They pressed their lips back together once more. Charlie shifted a little, her brows scrunching slightly in discomfort.

Alastor immediately pulled back, loosening his hold around her waist as well. "Something wrong?"

Charlie exhaled slightly when she lowered herself onto the flats of her feet. She shook her head with a small smile. "Just need a break. Feet hurt a little."

He glanced behind her once, and said, "Allow me, then." He tightened his hold around her waist, lifted her straight up, and placed her onto the counter. Charlie gave a startled little gasped as she involuntarily flung her arms around his neck.

He…couldn't really describe what it felt like to have her arms around him like that. It was restrictive at its surface, but there was also something underlying there. Perhaps it was her, perhaps it was her touch in general, or perhaps it was because he was beginning to crave her closeness more and more. He enjoyed feeling her arms wrapped so trustingly around his neck, but was also grateful when she sheepishly slid them away to rest on his shoulders again.

He inhaled and exhaled as he stroked his thumb over her jaw line. How? How did she know when he was getting overwhelmed? He couldn't be wearing his emotions on his sleeves so obviously, could he? Either or, he stared at her lips, compelled to convey his affection, and now his appreciation, once more.

"May I," he murmured as he pressed their foreheads together.

Charlie smiled, nodded, and waited for his lips to find hers.

His grip around her torso hadn't faltered since placing her on the counter. As they kissed once again, he couldn't imagine letting her go just yet. Their kisses today weren't rushed or frantic. They were slow, careful, warm, and so very lovely. Alastor felt like he was flying, or melting, or one of the two, or even both, he couldn't decide. But all good things, he supposed, must come to an end.

Alastor heard the kitchen door swing ever-so-slightly.

His hand instantly covered the back of Charlie's head, as if doing so would protect her modesty. Most people didn't find kissing to be too intimate, but he did. And even if Charlie would've been fine with someone accidentally walking in on them, he could imagine she would still be quite startled and flustered by it.

He, however, did not like it in the least. And even though the kitchen could, to some extent, be considered a public area of the Hotel, he was still incredibly offended by the intrusion. He released Charlie's lips, snapping his gaze over her shoulder to glare at whoever had just walked in.

But by the time he'd looked up, all he was able to ascertain was a woman's quietly harsh gasp, a flash of a pink bow and white hair, and then the door swinging closed, as if no one had even been there to begin with.

The shrill timer on the stove shamefully made him jump.

Panting slightly, Charlie looked over at the oven. "We…We should get the pizza out before it burns."

He finally looked away from the door to look at her, breathing heavily as well. She was staring up at him with rosy cheeks and a shy smile on her glistening lips, all the while self-consciously fixing her hair. And what a sight she was!

Alastor smiled softly at her and stopped her hands. He placed a kiss on one of her knuckles. "You look lovely."

Her blush burned brighter. "I – Thanks. Y-you do, too."

"I take it that was better," he asked hopefully.

She nodded. "Definitely better. Yeah."

Then, she squinted her eyes as her sights fell on his hair. She lifted a hand up, but stopped and looked at him. He raised a brow at her questioningly, but he wasn't tense. Gently, she ran her fingers over a tuft of his hair, flicking away some excess flour that was still stubbornly clinging to him. After she took her hand away, she was thinking about how soft his hair felt. Her thoughts were broken by the timer sounding again.

"Um," she said as she tried to halfheartedly wiggle off the counter. "We should really check on the pizza right now."

Alastor looked down, and quite awkwardly realized that he had placed himself in between her legs. He immediately backed off, and needlessly took her hands to help her off the counter. As soon as her feet were on the floor, he turned away towards the oven in what he hoped was nonchalance, because he could feel his face mysteriously heating up.

When he took the pizza out of the oven – which came out perfectly, the sauce and the crust especially – Charlie began cutting it into neat slices. As she did so, Alastor looked back over at the kitchen door. He hadn't fully seen who had walked in on them, but he knew exactly who it had been.

"While I take care of this," Charlie said, getting his attention. "Can you go let everyone else know that dinner is ready?"

It occurred to him that Charlie hadn't seemed to have noticed their almost-visitor.

He stared at the door again, a mischievous smirk splitting his face. Well, now…

As an opportunist, this would certainly be an interesting opportunity.