[chapter_15]
Bella's first date with Masen Cullen might be the longest first date in the history of first dates. Or at least, it's the longest first date she's ever heard about. She isn't complaining. She thinks she could probably talk to - stare at - be around - Masen Cullen all day and never grow tired.
She isn't completely sure, because she is trying to learn the code to all his microexpressions, but she thinks Masen feels the same way. Otherwise - she hopes - he would have already ended the date, made up a reason to never spend any time with her again, and also would have formally ended their Dawn of Warcraft marriage.
Masen doesn't do any of that. Instead, when one cup of coffee turns into two cups, and those two cups turn into talking long enough that the summer sun begins to set, Masen offers to buy her dinner. Rather than seeing the natural end of a coffee date, Masen extends it with an additional offer, and Bella doesn't turn him down.
That has to mean something, right? Masen Cullen, she thinks, is a man who expresses himself through actions rather than words. He's stoic and intelligent and isn't free with his speech, but he doesn't seem the type to do anything he doesn't want to do. So even if he doesn't say as much with the kind of effusive enthusiasm someone else might use, she reads into what his actions are saying.
And his actions are saying that he doesn't want their date to end, either.
Because that is what it is, she reminds herself. It's an actual, real, very public date, and it is meant to be the start of something, make no mistake about it.
It's possible she's also on the most intentional date ever, in addition to it being the longest. The way Master Cullen - Masen Cullen - is, there can be no other reason except strategy to make sure their date is as public as it can possibly be. If he hadn't wanted it publically known that Masen Cullen, who had gone four years without so much looking at a girl, was on a date then he would have picked somewhere off-campus. The fact that he insisted on meeting for coffee at one of the busiest cafes around campus says something.
And, well. Bella may be flustered, but she isn't stupid. She's paying attention to everything he does and doesn't say. And right now everything Masen Cullen is broadcasting is pointing all fingers at the - frankly unbelievable - conclusion that he must like her. He must like her, as Swansong, quite a bit.
She hopes that's true. She hopes she isn't reading into anything, projecting her own desires and her own feelings onto him.
But she thinks that she's right. She feels like she is, way deep between her ribs, way back in her brain where feminine instinct resides. Masen Cullen likes Bella Swan as much as Bella Swan likes Masen Cullen. That's the only conclusion that can be drawn.
Please be true.
Masen asks her where they should go for dinner as they leave The Coffee Circuit roughly four hours after they arrived. She briefly entertains the thought about recommending a place that has a little class, somewhere they can sit and dine and she won't look like a total pig, but then her stomach growls - embarrassingly loud - and the thought flies right out of her mind.
"I know this great shawarma place," she says instead. "They make the best shawarma on this side of town, hands down the best you'll ever have."
Masen tilts his head, a twitch at his lips. "Lead the way."
"You're laughing at me," she accuses after a while, leading them both toward the little hole-in-the-wall restaurant she found during freshman year.
"You remind me of a friend," he says. "Peter, or rather Pestulent, also has strong opinions about food."
"Oh?"
There definitely is a softening of amusement on his face. "Your opinions are decidedly more PG than his."
Bella's eyes widen. "Oh," she titters, catching onto the implication. "Somehow, I don't find that surprising."
"Mm."
They continue the rest of the walk in companionable silence. Masen keeps his strides slow so Bella can keep up, mindful of their height difference. She hadn't noticed before, but walking side-by-side, she can now see that he is just tall enough that she can tuck herself neatly beneath his chin; if she were on her tippy-toes, she might be able to hook her chin over his shoulder. Her face heats up at the thought. Bella is used to casual touches like that - she and Leah, not to mention the boys in La Push and their roommates are all prone to draping over each other - but she isn't sure that Masen Cullen would welcome that kind of touch. He doesn't strike her as the type to do anything other than keep a clear bubble of personal space.
Although - well. He is walking awfully close, isn't he? Masen has made a point to put himself between her in the street, and each time they cross to a less-busy sidewalk, she wonders if it's intentional or not that his hand rises to hover near her elbow, her hand, her back - not touching, but ready, almost the way a parent hovers hands behind a child learning to walk. It's protective, she thinks, and still respectful.
By the time they reach the tiny restaurant, Bella has reached some kind of internal settlement. She's still jittery and giddy in turns to find herself on a date with Master Culler Who Is Masen Cullen, but she no longer feels like jumping out of her skin for fear of scaring him off with her star-struck idol worship. Now, she is only excited and eager. She can't seem to keep a quietly pleased smile off her face, which widens each time she glances at him out of the corner of her eye.
He's here. He's really here, she thinks with muted awe, taking in the way the flickering streetlights highlight that straight masculine planes of his profile. She scarcely misses tripping over the door frame when he reaches forward to open it for her, the bell above the door ringing to announce their entrance.
Bella has been to this little diner enough that the matron, a lovely Middle Eastern woman who greets her in cheery Arabic, recognizes her on sight. Bella beams at her, and orders about half of her usual selection, catching the knowing glint in the matron's eye as she jots down the dishes. Bella blushes, but doesn't change her mind - she hasn't scared Masen away yet, but her appetite might do it for her if she doesn't watch it.
Bella steps aside so Masen can order, but he doesn't move from his spot, standing back from the counter and reading over the menu. She notices his phone in his hand, already rising with Google pulled up on the screen, and bites the inside of her lip.
"It's shawarma," she says, halting him before he can complete his Google search. He side-eyes her with a raised brow, waiting for her to continue, which she does promptly. "It's like a Middle Eastern folded sandwich. Kind of like a burrito, except not really? If you've had gyro or kebabs, they're pretty similar."
"Ah. Lamb?"
"Usually, but you can substitute it with chicken or turkey, if you want." She pauses. "The lamb is good though, and it's more authentic that way."
Masen dips his head in acknowledgement, then places his order. He orders the basics, nothing too unfamiliar, and Bella tucks this piece of information away for further study. Is Masen a picky eater? Is he like Seth, who will eat anything that is placed in front of him provided it doesn't look weird? Somewhere in between? She needs to know with a sudden sort of curiosity, but holds herself back - just barely - from asking. She settles for observing, because she's absolutely certain that his cerebral mind is observing her just as much, which is why she makes great effort to eat more slowly and more carefully than she usually does.
Masen watches her, something like amusement in the squint of his eyes, and Bella somehow feels like she isn't fooling him at all.
Well, it was worth the effort - at least she got delicious shawarma out of it, a fair trade for exposing her gargantuan lust for food. And Masen doesn't seem to mind, she doesn't think. Even Mike Newton had watched Bella eating and had wrinkled his nose in distaste, and he'd regularly declared his love for her on a weekly basis for an entire school year.
Masen merely copies the way she holds the shawarma and eats in non-judgmental peace, even when she meekly pops back to the counter to order an extra serving.
At some point, Bella has the gumption to ask about his company and their current projects - after she spends a solid ten minutes waxing poetic about Pagan Immortals, that is. Masen listens keenly and then speaks at length about their new project, allowing Bella to positively sink into the smooth baritone of his voice.
"We're partially through production of Menagerie, an action-adventure gothic horror," he explains patiently, wiping his fingers individually on a paper napkin, the plate in front of him empty. "The game is played from first-person, so players have no idea what they look like. The objective is to pass levels by collecting the artisan animals in the castle, who then help the player escape. The challenge with producing the game is keeping the first person view limited so players won't ruin the plot of the game too soon."
"What is the plot?" she probes, leaning over her discarded plate, her chin in her hand. "You said it's a gothic horror, so I'm guessing some kind of plot twist. Am I right?"
Masen lifts a brow. "Do you really want to know? It's a spoiler."
"I don't care about spoilers," she says eagerly. "Tell me."
Masen hums thoughtfully. "Let's just say, the player eventually realizes that escaping the castle is impossible."
Bella frowns, turning the idea over in her head. A first person gothic horror where players can't see themselves, and it's called Menagerie…
Her eyes widen. "Are the players part of the Menagerie?"
The corners of Masen's lips lift, a shadow of a smile. He doesn't confirm, but he also doesn't deny her logical leap.
"That's diabolical," she tells him. She shakes her head, huffing a laugh. "Oh, my God, and the players also have to deal with the fallout that they've destroyed the castle along the way, right? It's like…like destroying your past to reach your future, only to find out you can't destroy the past without destroying yourself…."
"We're considering marketing it as a psychological thriller," Masen admits.
"I bet! It sounds amazing, though. I can't wait to play it."
Masen stares at her, considering. "You really mean that," he murmurs.
Bella tilts her head. "Of course I mean that. Why wouldn't I?"
But Masen shakes his head, a warm glint in his eye as he notes the time and offers to walk her home - after, of course, he insists on paying for their meals, only for Bella to insist on going Dutch because he'd bought their coffee earlier, too. Masen relents, but only after he confirms that he can walk her back to campus. Bella realizes that that she's been swindled almost immediately - Masen's first offer was high so that she would accept the second offer with more ease, all while letting her think that she got her way through compromise.
Crafty. She'll have to watch out for that in the future.
It's dark out by the time they start their long, leisurely stroll back to campus. Masen walks closer than before, his hand brushing against hers, tingles of electricity skittering up her arm.
"So…" Bella casts a side-long glance, trying to ignore the heat in her cheeks, a blush that hasn't seemed to fade for hours. "Your mom teaches an interesting class."
As soon as the words leave her mouth, she wants to kick herself - talking about the family on the first date is too much, isn't it? Or is it only bad if he brings up his family? Alice had been nattering on about dos and donts, and Rose had thrown her two cents in on the group chat, but all the advice is blurring together now. Bella holds a lungful of air, resigned to the awkward silence that will surely follow.
But Masen surprises her. He doesn't seem bothered by the question at all. "I saw you earlier."
"Oh."
"Very studious."
"The class challenging. I'm a little out of my depth," she admits freely. "Marine animals are cute , but protecting them with technology is tough."
"Would you want to do that in the future?"
"I'm not an inventor," she says ruefully. "At least, not in that way. I have a joint major, graphic design and software engineering, but what I really want to do is animate."
"Any media?"
Bella purses her lips. "Games, preferably, but if Disney called I probably wouldn't turn them down."
"Not Dreamworks?" Masen says, almost teasingly.
"Disney has more capital. They even own Marvel and Star Wars now! Working at Disney would be a dream," she declares, then sends Masen a searching look. "But maybe it's someone else's dream. My real passion is with games. If Disney was making the kind of MMORPG that wasn't, you know, Toontown then that would be a different story…"
Masen doesn't say anything, but he does make a thoughtful noise. Another hum that she needs to decipher. Does he agree? Does he disagree? Is he neutral about her assessment? She has no idea, not really. He isn't particularly verbose, but he also isn't closed off either. If she could learn to understand Leah's sharp-toothed affection, she can learn how to understand Masen Cullen's many sounds of acknowledgement.
She believes she can do it, given time.
"I know a good arcade around here," Masen tells her as they near campus proper. There are still a fair amount of people, mostly students who are blowing off pre-midterm steam, and he walks a scant inch closer.
His pinky catches around hers - just for a second - and her heart flutters.
She's never felt like this before. She didn't even know she could, because most of the time touch to her is something neutral. Affectionate, sure, but ultimately nothing that causes butterflies to erupt between her ribs. This is new. This is, she thinks, what most other people feel when they are attracted to someone.
Is she attracted to Masen Cullen? Well, she certainly likes Master Culler, feels a great amount of fondness for him so strong the emotion is almost foreign, and she does think that Masen is objectively handsome, more good-looking than most other people. But she's always known Masen to be handsome and aside from being flustered that he'd paid her direct attention once - that wink from the end of last semester - it hasn't ever been anything more than remote admiration. Now, though, all she can think about is how much she would like to hold his hand and luxuriate in that closeness.
Her stomach swoops with the realization. Oh. She's attracted to Masen - not because he is good-looking, but because he is Master Culler, who she likes as something other than a friend. Now that both sides of the coin have met and she's reconciled his identity, she can't escape the fact that she's as attracted to his physical appearance as she is his mind. Or rather - and more accurately - now that she knows Master Culler's personality is within Masen's icy façade, she can't help but let her emotions cloud the way she feels about his physical self. She likes him, so she likes him in other ways, too.
It's totally alien, but she doesn't want it to go away. She didn't think things would ever click for her like this, and now that they are, she can't suppress the giddiness the follows, or the cherries growing on her cheeks.
"Would that be a date?" she ventures, shy in the wake of her epitome.
"One of many," Masen replies coolly, casting her a considering glance as they pass beneath a streetlamp right outside the west campus entrance. "I have a lot to make up for."
"What?" Bella blinks up at him, bewildered. "No, you don't. What do you think you have to make up for?"
"I missed our final round," he says, seemingly bemused at her knee-jerk responses.
"I don't care about that," she says firmly, leaving no room for any misconceptions. "That was just one tournament. There will be others. We can just win next year."
"Next year…?"
"It's an annual competition," she reminds him.
Masen's eyes glitter, that steely grey-green hiding a thousand thoughts. "So it is."
Bella's heart blossoms.
Neither of them seem to be ready to stop talking by the time they reach Bella's residence hall. She bites her lip, looking at him with an open expression, and Masen tilts his head back toward the winding path. By a silent mutual agreement, they start a convoluted stroll through the various picturesque courtyards of the Stanford campus, their way lit by tall iron lights and the rising moon.
Masen takes her hand at some point. She isn't sure when. She wishes she hadn't missed the moment, but she relishes in the way their hands slot together so neatly. His hand is warm in hers, a little sweaty - betraying his nerves, maybe, she hopes. She smiles gently when he next looks at her and pointedly swings their hands between them.
Masen looks away, but she doesn't miss the pleased miniscule uptick of his lips, or the way his fingers tighten around hers, just a bit.
On their third circuit around campus, when they have bypassed her dorm for the yet another time and true nighttime has set in, it occurs to her to ask why he even approached her in the first place. Why did he message Swansong on Dawn of Warcraft and propose an alliance? Was it random?
It turns out it wasn't random at all.
Red creeps onto Masen's ears and he clears his throat. "Earlier this spring, I was with my brother at that café, the one we met at today, and I happened to notice you playing DOW…Playing better than anyone I know, actually. I was…curious. I wanted to learn more. So I did, and then took advantage of the first opportunity."
"I see." Bella breathes out, sucks her bottom lip into her mouth and releases it gradually as she thinks. She doesn't know what she was expecting to hear, but I saw you playing a game was at the very bottom of her list. But all the same, she's pleased to hear it. Masen noticed her for a skill that she has worked hard to cultivate, not just because of the way she looks. She can't help but preen, sending a beaming smile his way.
Masen lifts a brow. "Imagine my surprise when I learned that my roommates actually knew about you too, Swanning," he says pointedly, something sardonic in the twist of his lips. "There are a lot of interesting videos about you on YouTube. I wake up to a new one nearly everyday from Peter."
As soon as her elation came, it is swiftly replaced by a keen sense of embarrassment. Oh, God. He's seen Leah's long, ongoing documentary of Bella's life - even more mortifying, it seems like he's been amused by them. Which is the point, because Leah has a way of capturing entertaining moments, but to know that Masen Cullen has seen videos - some of which she knows are not exactly complimentary - isn't a source of comfort.
She squeezes his hand tighter and hurries to explain, trying to minimize the damage, if any. "I've been my sister's documentary subject since high school. It was originally to help her get into film school - into this film school, so I suppose it worked - but it never quite stopped. Leah kept finding reasons to keep filming, like practicing video editing and new filters and I…don't mind it as much as I used to, but there's something to be said about privacy."
Masen lifts the other brow, a silent question.
"Oh, but I do have to approve whatever she puts in the video," she hastens to add. "It's just, with a sister like Leah, you quickly learn that shame has no place in life. Otherwise I'd never leave the house, I don't think. It's helped me, in a way."
Masen huffs out a chuckle. "I can relate. Peter is…You have no idea."
"I have some idea," she disagrees. "I know what Pestulent is like."
"He's worse in real life," Masen says solemnly.
Bella giggles, leaning into his arm as they walk. They're nearing her dorm again, and this time she can't deny how tired she feels. They've been talking for hours and it's late now. Masen must notice, because this time he takes a step further, walking them right to the residence entryway.
She looks up at him when he stops, reluctantly releasing his hand and taking a step back. She laces her hands together, feeling bashful. She knows there are eyes watching from one of the dorm's common areas, because someone is always watching on a college campus. "Thanks for walking me back…and for walking around so long."
Masen offers a smile, one that is soft and steadfast. "Can I have your number? I'd like to spend more time with you. Soon."
Bella blushes to the roots of her hair, but she takes the sleek phone he passes to her and inputs her number, saved as a simple B Swan. This time the blush doesn't recede until long after he has moseyed backward, hands in his pockets and eyes trained on her until she disappears inside - and then the blush stays, because there are a trio of curious freshmen waiting for her inside, and they have questions, and Bella is too frazzled to not spill the honest truth. By the time she extracts herself, she has a feeling that her face will never return to its normal shade of cream.
It's fortunate that Alice isn't waiting up for her when she gets back - surprising, but Bella isn't about to question her good luck. She darts directly into her room, jumps facedown onto her bed, and screams into her pillow.
She just went on a date with Masen Cullen. And has the promise of more dates to come.
Oh, God.
Unknown Number
This is Masen
Now you also have my number
B Swan
Hi
Thank you!
Unknown Number
Of course
B Swan
I had a great time tonight
Unknown Number
Thank you for agreeing to meet me in person
I realize it might have put you in an
uncomfortable position
B Swan
It was fine because it's you
And I trust you
Unknown Number
I'm glad
I promise to be worthy of your trust
B Swan
:)
Unknown Number
Goodnight Bella
B Swan
Night, Masen
Unknown Number - Add Contact
Name: Masen Cullen
Nickname: This Is Really Masen
Display nickname as contact name - Yes
Bella stares at the screen of her phone for a beat more, clutching it in a greedy sort of disbelief.
She has Masen Cullen's number. Masen Cullen is Master Culler and he wants to be worthy of her trust - and he even acknowledged how sketchy it can be for women to meet up with online strangers, to boot.
She's lucky. She's so lucky she can't believe it. This isn't really happening, is it? She's dreaming, right? Struck by the thought, she drops her phone to pinch the skin at her elbow, then hisses in pain. No. She's not dreaming. This is actually her life - the whole day hadn't been some kind of vivid hallucination at all.
Grinning madly, Bella plugs her phone in to charge and tucks herself into bed, sheets pulled all the way up to her nose as she kicks her feet beneath the blankets in near-hysterical excitement. Her hand still tingles, nerves remembering the firm pressure of his finger around hers.
Cardinal Trees ʘcardinaltreesblog
Phew! We've updated the story you've been following all night long - and can we just say, you're welcome? #doingGodswork #blessed #weshipit
Masen reclines on his bed, one arm bent behind his head as he fiddles with his phone, a smile tugged at one corner of his mouth. He feels particularly pleased, light as a feather, completely without anxiety and tension.
The date had gone even better than he dreamed, and then it had gone on and on and on until he could tell that fatigue was setting in for Bella Swan. After her excellence response to finding out who he is online, Masen had been reluctant to let her get away so soon; he'd been relieved when she agreed to catch a bite to eat, and profoundly glad that she seemed just as unwilling as he was to let their time together end so soon. He doesn't think he's ever walked around campus that much in the four years he went to the school combined. His feet have a pleasant ache that serves as a reminder of this momentously successful day.
Bella Swan, he muses, mind washing over how her slender hand felt in his own. She has long, delicate fingers, but they have a strength and a few patches of roughness that tells him she works with her hands frequently. Which, of course, he knows she does. She might have demurred at the idea of engineering technology, but he knows - from Leah Clearwater's videos - that Bella is mechanical, which is of course another layer of interest for him to take apart and analyze.
He likes her hands, though. And her smile, and the dimples that form when she's as happy as she is shy in the moment. And the intelligent, observant gleam in her eyes when she looks at him. And the consideration she puts into her words. And - well, he could go on for hours about all the things he likes about Bella Swan, and all the ways he could see Swansong echoed in each moment of time they spent together.
Masen thumbs through his phone, scrolls down his contact list, and pulls up B Swan. The name wouldn't do. It's not demonstrative of the kind of relationship he intends to share with her. He goes to edit the contact information, swiftly and decisively changing B Swan to The Missus and saving the update.
That's better.
Masen breathes out and finally allows himself to feel the exhaustion that weighs down every inch of his body. He doesn't regret it - never would - but he truly didn't intend on forcing his still-recovering body to do so much activity so soon while still concussed. But it's worth it, because in the end he thinks he's made a lot of headway into winning Bella Swan over. Anything he does will be worth it fit it means that he can make the name he saved as her contact into a reality.
He doesn't want her to just be The Missus on his contact list. He wants her to be his missus in reality. He wants to marry her, one day.
If he doesn't marry Bella Swan, then he won't marry anyone. She's it for him, and there is nothing he is more certain about in the world.
Bella Cullen has a nice ring to it, doesn't it? And her hand would look so much nicer with his ring on her finger.
Masen is still smiling, even when he falls asleep.
Piping Hot Tea (Group Chat)
Paparazzi
Bella
You are not actually having your first bf
when I'm not even there to vet him
Tell me that's not whats happening
Sleep Talker
He's not my boyfriend
Short Cake
Lolololol
Sleep Talker
He's not!
Paparazzi
God damn it
I fucking knew it
Thorny
I feel so emotional
My little virgin has left the nest
Sleep Talker
I feel like that metaphor doesn't
work here
Also
Not my boyfriend
Short Cake
Lol
Sleep Talker
Omg Alice srsly
Paparazzi
Listen
Ali I need you to do a thing for me
If you see this Mfer
This so-called "not my boyfriend"
I want you to tell him that I will yeet his
ass into outerspace if he hurts our Bella
Sleep Talker
Omg don't tell him that!
Thorny
Cool your tits Leah
But also Ali
Tell this guy his assets will also be yeeted
into outerspace if he hurts our Bella
Short Cake
This all sounds v violent
I'm not sure I want to be involved?
Thorny
Too late
The FBI agent monitoring our messages
already knows
Paparazzi
Yeah
You're like idk
An accessory or something
Short Cake
This isn't the kind of accessory I like
:(((((
Sleep Talker
OKAY
Everyone just chill
I don't have a boyfriend
Thorny
Suuuuuure
Sleep Talker
Also
Are we not even going to mention
"yeeted"?
Thorny
Yeeted is correct
Sleep Talker
Is it tho?
Short Cake
I'm with Bells on this
Yeeted doesn't sound right
Paparazzi
Are we seriously discussing grammar
right the fuck now?
There are more important things!
Thorny
What should I say?
Yote?
Short Cake
Maybe yoot?
Sleep Talker
Does yeet even have a past tense?
Thorny
For fucks sake
Someone Google it
Paparazzi
I can't believe you guys are ignoring me
But
Now I have to know or I won't be able to sleep
So Google that shit so we can get back on
topic
Masen wakes up exactly as satisfied as when he went to sleep, which is why he isn't the least bit perturbed to walk into an all-too-common conversation where his friends blatantly talk about him as if he is a wondrous alien marvel. They have all seem to have decided that the best place for these discussions is the common space on the second floor. Masen lurks in the third floor stair well, amused and unapologetically listening in.
"Masen has game," Peter is saying. "Like, a shocking amount of game. Look at that! He's holding her hand! He's like a real person!"
Masen peers around the corner, sees that they are all converged around whatever Peter is showing them on his phone, and rolls his eyes.
"I'm honestly shocked," Emmett says seriously. "Suckerpunched. How the fuck is it that Masen got the first date out of all of us? He's, you know…He's Masen. I don't understand the appeal."
"Apparently Swanning does," Alistair says dryly.
"He's holding her hand waffle style," Peter points out. His tone is somewhat confusing, as he sounds both happy and horrified by this knowledge.
Alistair stares at Peter, but it is Emmett that croaks out a confused, "What the fuck are you talking about?"
Peter huffs at them, as if they are being deliberately difficult. "You know, waffle style! It means…" Peter trails off, sees that he has an unenthusiastic audience, and groans. "Ugh. Whatever, okay. It's like a thing. It means a thing to, like, people who are dating."
Emmett takes that at face value, stepping away from the phone and stretching his arms over his head with a yawn. "Man, is it just me, or has this news made anyone else famished? Waffles sound so good right now."
Alistair grimaces. "You Americans and your sugary breakfast."
"Oh, sorry we don't all like fried tomatoes or whatever," Emmett sneers. "Also, fuck you. I've seen the groceries you bring home, Al. You're a Toaster Strudel fiend. You even eat the blueberry ones. You're practically a sugary breakfast criminal."
Alistair rolls his eyes.
Masen, having heard enough of this nonsense for the morning, decides to step in. He takes the final step from the stairs and enters the common area, smiling placidly at his friends. "I'll buy breakfast," he offers.
Immediately, Peter abandons his phone and lets out a great whoop of excitement. "Is this because you're in a good mood? I'm not questioning it!" he hurries to say, waving his hands in the air. "I just want to make sure it happens more often! Is it because of Bella Swan? Is it because your date went well? I mean, we know it did, because Cardinal Trees got all the highlights, but -"
"Mm."
Peter blinks owlishly at him. "Mase. My dude, that's not an answer. I mean, I'm taking it as an answer, but just for the record it's really not."
Masen snorts. He can't quite manage the smother the pull of his lips as he continues on down the stairs to the first floor. Behind him, the others tromp along, exchanging more cross-talk.
"Fuck, is he smiling?" Emmett demands.
"He is," Alistair confirms.
"Can cyborgs even smile?" Peter wonders.
"They do now."
"Didn't Data smile?" Emmett asks.
"Data was an android," Alistair corrects lightly.
Peter, meanwhile, has gasped in outrage. He spills out onto the first floor right behind Masen, the office area empty at this hour, and stabs a finger at Emmett. Masen watches on, one brow raised.
"You heathen," Peter accuses. "I can't believe you'd even bring up Next Generation in front of me - in - in front of my salad!"
"Next Generation is better than the Original Series," Emmett says patiently, checking Peter's shoulder as he walks by. "Everyone knows that."
Peter jabs at Emmett's back with his finger. "Everyone the fuck does not know that. In fact, everyone the fuck disagrees!"
Emmett snorts, shakes his head. "One episode, dude. The Trouble with Tribbles. I rest my case."
"That's a classic!" Peter cries.
Alistair squints. "Is it, though?"
Peter throws his hands up. "What am I even hearing?" he demands, right before he looks at Masen, searching for some kind of validation. "Masen! Masen, are you hearing what I'm hearing? Are you really going to buy this delusional philistine breakfast?"
Masen's placid smile turns into a smirk. "I'm in a good mood, aren't I?"
Peter sputters and Alistair scoffs. Emmett lopes his arm over Masen's shoulders, towing him through the lobby and out the front door. "Happy looks good on you, Mase," he says with more sincerity than usual. "Keep it up."
Masen intends to.
Google Search
What does waffle hand holding mean
Little Things - The Way You Hold Hands Reveals Secrets About Your Relationship
Interlocked Fingers AKA The Waffle
Couples who typically interlock all of their fingers while holding hands tend to have a deeper connection. They have clearly surpassed mere physical attraction toward one another, and feel profoundly for each other on a more substantial level. With this handhold, the partners are showing that they care for one another immensely, and that they are comfortable with being quite vulnerable and honest with each other at times.
A/N: Here! Just have, like, an entire chapter dedicated to a first date. These kids are so cute. They hold hands! Ah, but is it just me, or is handholding one of the more intimate things that can be done with a partner? I totally get all the Vulcan hand stuff - the way we hold hands says so much. Body language is cool like that, it says all the stuff we can't communicate with our mouths.
As to the update schedule, since it keeps being asked, I've done pretty well with weekend updates, usually on Saturday. Stay tuned on my Facebook for news on the updates, since it could change. There are also memes and Buzzfeed quiz match-the-results-to-the-characters on Facebook!
As always, be brutally honest. I can take it. Stay safe, stay smart, stay inside, and don't trust restrictions that are being lifted now!
~Rae