In this part I'm beginning to do more from Sara's POV..Mostly because I
want to later in the story, and if I put some in earlier, it'll flow
better. I hope! Chances are this story will stay primarily from Gabriel's
POV, so no worries to all of you readers who like that.
On another note.. I'm glad that people are liking the take charge Gabe and skittish Sara. It's not how I meant to write them and it isn't particularly canon, but it's how they wanted to be written. I am trying to stick as close to possible to believable when it comes to characters, though, regardless of the skittishness and everything!
Gabriel grabbed a carton of leftover Chinese on his way past the fridge and absently took a bite of the cold food before popping it into the microwave to heat it up. Last night's dinner had gone better than planned; for the first time since he'd known her, Sara had seen him as himself instead of a tech buddy, or worse, a younger brother. They hadn't continued their pre- dinner conversation, but that was okay; they would eventually. They both not only knew it, but they knew the other one did as well.
Instead, they had had the getting-to-know-you discussion that they had basically skipped when becoming friends. No real discussion of the particulars of work, only why both had decided on their careers, no Witchblade, no theories. Just basic sharing memories of the past, letting them figure out what makes the other tick, why they sometimes react as they do. Gabe had told her about his family, what it was like to grow up in a gregarious family and how he was pretty much the odd one out being such a book worm. Sara responded with by sharing some of the memories she had of her father before he died, her eyes tinged with wistful sadness. Whether at the thought of a large family or wanting times long past, he wasn't sure. Perhaps a combination of both.
She had cheered up considerably when mentioning her chosen family, that of her police partner Danny. They'd been partners for years, were best friends on top of that. When confronted with Sara's obvious affection for Danny, Gabriel had been confronted by a confusing mass of emotions. He was grateful that Sara had someone, of course, and couldn't wait to meet someone else who loved Sara probably as much as he did. Therein lay the problem.
It was uncomfortable for him to admit, but he was jealous. Not of Danny exactly, or their relationship. The love that was easily seen in Sara's eyes was anything but sexual. Sara herself had told him that Danny was happily married and expecting another child. But Danny had been a part of her life for a long time, he'd had years of her friendship and companionship that Gabe hadn't had but now craved. Never before had Gabriel been jealous of any of the women he dated. Not while he was dating them or afterwards, since he had kept most as friends, when they dated other people. It was a new emotion to him and not one he thought was a particularly good one.
If he was honest with himself, that was one of the attractions of the Witchblade. Few people knew what it was, let alone that Sara wore it. It was a connection that bound them together. He was the one Sara trusted enough to tell him about it, who she trusted to let him help her figure out more of it's past. It was something he could and did do for her to help her out. That weapon she wore had brought together armies, united peoples against outside threats, killed and brought death to many. It was the reason he and Sara had met. Nowhere in any of the obscure references he had found had it said it only united countries of people.
It stood to reason that it united the Wielder in relationships with the same core group of friends and confidants. Any romances would come from within that core group, people the Wielder and the blade both knew they could trust. It stood to reason that just who was involved with the Wielder would switch from lifetime to lifetime within that group. That way each relationship would bring something new that the Wielder, or the Witchblade, needed.
This entire thing he had going with Sara was new to him. He hadn't been one of the most popular guys in school, but he'd had his fair share of dates. His humor and personality had helped him where he knew he couldn't compete with the guys who played sports. He'd also had more than his fair share of girlfriends after leaving school even if he had been busy building Talismaniac.com from the ground up. But none of them had ever affected him like Sara did. If he had a girlfriend or dates, he had them. If not, he concentrated on something else. No big problem either way.
With Sara, for the first time, he was fully invested in a relationship and they hadn't even gotten serious yet. Well, Sara hadn't; Gabriel was dead serious. He knew just what he wanted and every fiber in his being refused to accept anything less.
Last night might seem like a step back to most, but he knew what he was doing. He wanted to keep Sara just a little off balance, not floundering for sure footing. If he pushed too hard, Sara would retreat back into her shell and he'd lose the ground he'd gained. Patience was the key. Tinged with just the right amount of impatience.
Destiny was on his side; didn't mean he wanted to wait years, right?
Finishing up the heated food, he sat down at the computer system that dominated his desk. He wouldn't be able to get away from the shop during the day today: he had two shipments coming in and had inventory to do. Not something he normally minded too much, but he'd rather concentrate on his battle plans. Breaking out in laughter, he pulled up the florists website he had used yesterday. What to choose now?
Sara looked up at the sound of Jake's chuckles and groaned at the sight of the delivery person standing in the door that led to the office she shared. It wasn't the same person that came by yesterday, but it looked like they were from the same company: both were androgynous and wearing spandex bike shorts with oversize black and neon colored T-shirts, though this one had long hair that was gelled into spikes. On a completely incongruous note, both yesterday's delivery person and today's held beautifully wrapped boxes.
"Uh, is there a Sara.. Pez-I-ni here?" the person in the doorway asked in what was definitely a feminine voice, managing to mangle her last name just enough for Jake to start chuckling again.
"Pezzini," she corrected automatically. "Yeah, I'm Sara."
The box was thrust into her hands "this is for you," she said and turned to go.
"Wait," Sara reached behind her for the wallet in her jacket's pocket.
"Already taken care of," was the breezy reply and then she vanished.
Danny left his seat to perch on the corner of Sara's desk. "Two deliveries in two days, Pez? C'mon, when're you gonna tell me about this guy?"
"It is a guy, right?" Jake chimed in, earning a withering glare from Sara as she carefully removed the bright blue ribbon and silver paper to reveal a box identical to yesterdays: white with flowing green script giving the store's name of Flowers and Showers surrounded by an elegant pattern in green just a shade lighter. "As soon as I figure out what's going on, I'll tell you, okay, Danny?"
"What, I don't get to know?" Jake mock whined.
Danny elbowed him into silence. "I'm the best friend. What is it this time? More roses?"
She shook her head and lifted out a bouquet of white snapdragons.
"Oh, those are Jenny's favorite. She likes to make them open their mouths," Danny laughed.
Sara gently touched one of the petals as she had yesterday with the roses. As much as it embarrassed her to get flowers at the station, she had to admit it pleased her too. Only to herself, of course. She was still staring at the blooms when a clear vase partially filled with water was placed in front of her. She looked up to see Danny smiling at her.
"Good thing this guy has vases delivered with the flowers; they'd be stuck in something from one of the fast food joints or the morgue otherwise."
Sara shuddered at the thought. "No thanks." Placing the stems in the water, she moved them next to her computer and stowed the box under her desk where she hopefully wouldn't kick it. "Thanks, Danny."
"No problem; this is making me wonder how long it's been since I got Leigh flowers."
"Romance all gone," Sara teased with a grin.
"Nah, but I do think I'll pick her up something special tonight. Thank the mystery guy for the idea, will ya?"
"I will, and I will tell you about him, Danny," she reiterated, correctly reading what was in his eyes.
He nodded, telling her he was willing to wait, and sat back down at his desk. "Speaking of Leigh. She's hitting the craving part of her pregnancy." he trailed off as Sara groaned.
"Same as last time?"
"Yep."
"I'll bring some in tomorrow for her."
"While you're at it, you might as well bring enough in for us too."
Sara nodded in acquiescence and refused to answer Jake's demanding to know what they were talking about.
TBC
Reviews are welcome! They make me write faster.usually LOL
On another note.. I'm glad that people are liking the take charge Gabe and skittish Sara. It's not how I meant to write them and it isn't particularly canon, but it's how they wanted to be written. I am trying to stick as close to possible to believable when it comes to characters, though, regardless of the skittishness and everything!
Gabriel grabbed a carton of leftover Chinese on his way past the fridge and absently took a bite of the cold food before popping it into the microwave to heat it up. Last night's dinner had gone better than planned; for the first time since he'd known her, Sara had seen him as himself instead of a tech buddy, or worse, a younger brother. They hadn't continued their pre- dinner conversation, but that was okay; they would eventually. They both not only knew it, but they knew the other one did as well.
Instead, they had had the getting-to-know-you discussion that they had basically skipped when becoming friends. No real discussion of the particulars of work, only why both had decided on their careers, no Witchblade, no theories. Just basic sharing memories of the past, letting them figure out what makes the other tick, why they sometimes react as they do. Gabe had told her about his family, what it was like to grow up in a gregarious family and how he was pretty much the odd one out being such a book worm. Sara responded with by sharing some of the memories she had of her father before he died, her eyes tinged with wistful sadness. Whether at the thought of a large family or wanting times long past, he wasn't sure. Perhaps a combination of both.
She had cheered up considerably when mentioning her chosen family, that of her police partner Danny. They'd been partners for years, were best friends on top of that. When confronted with Sara's obvious affection for Danny, Gabriel had been confronted by a confusing mass of emotions. He was grateful that Sara had someone, of course, and couldn't wait to meet someone else who loved Sara probably as much as he did. Therein lay the problem.
It was uncomfortable for him to admit, but he was jealous. Not of Danny exactly, or their relationship. The love that was easily seen in Sara's eyes was anything but sexual. Sara herself had told him that Danny was happily married and expecting another child. But Danny had been a part of her life for a long time, he'd had years of her friendship and companionship that Gabe hadn't had but now craved. Never before had Gabriel been jealous of any of the women he dated. Not while he was dating them or afterwards, since he had kept most as friends, when they dated other people. It was a new emotion to him and not one he thought was a particularly good one.
If he was honest with himself, that was one of the attractions of the Witchblade. Few people knew what it was, let alone that Sara wore it. It was a connection that bound them together. He was the one Sara trusted enough to tell him about it, who she trusted to let him help her figure out more of it's past. It was something he could and did do for her to help her out. That weapon she wore had brought together armies, united peoples against outside threats, killed and brought death to many. It was the reason he and Sara had met. Nowhere in any of the obscure references he had found had it said it only united countries of people.
It stood to reason that it united the Wielder in relationships with the same core group of friends and confidants. Any romances would come from within that core group, people the Wielder and the blade both knew they could trust. It stood to reason that just who was involved with the Wielder would switch from lifetime to lifetime within that group. That way each relationship would bring something new that the Wielder, or the Witchblade, needed.
This entire thing he had going with Sara was new to him. He hadn't been one of the most popular guys in school, but he'd had his fair share of dates. His humor and personality had helped him where he knew he couldn't compete with the guys who played sports. He'd also had more than his fair share of girlfriends after leaving school even if he had been busy building Talismaniac.com from the ground up. But none of them had ever affected him like Sara did. If he had a girlfriend or dates, he had them. If not, he concentrated on something else. No big problem either way.
With Sara, for the first time, he was fully invested in a relationship and they hadn't even gotten serious yet. Well, Sara hadn't; Gabriel was dead serious. He knew just what he wanted and every fiber in his being refused to accept anything less.
Last night might seem like a step back to most, but he knew what he was doing. He wanted to keep Sara just a little off balance, not floundering for sure footing. If he pushed too hard, Sara would retreat back into her shell and he'd lose the ground he'd gained. Patience was the key. Tinged with just the right amount of impatience.
Destiny was on his side; didn't mean he wanted to wait years, right?
Finishing up the heated food, he sat down at the computer system that dominated his desk. He wouldn't be able to get away from the shop during the day today: he had two shipments coming in and had inventory to do. Not something he normally minded too much, but he'd rather concentrate on his battle plans. Breaking out in laughter, he pulled up the florists website he had used yesterday. What to choose now?
Sara looked up at the sound of Jake's chuckles and groaned at the sight of the delivery person standing in the door that led to the office she shared. It wasn't the same person that came by yesterday, but it looked like they were from the same company: both were androgynous and wearing spandex bike shorts with oversize black and neon colored T-shirts, though this one had long hair that was gelled into spikes. On a completely incongruous note, both yesterday's delivery person and today's held beautifully wrapped boxes.
"Uh, is there a Sara.. Pez-I-ni here?" the person in the doorway asked in what was definitely a feminine voice, managing to mangle her last name just enough for Jake to start chuckling again.
"Pezzini," she corrected automatically. "Yeah, I'm Sara."
The box was thrust into her hands "this is for you," she said and turned to go.
"Wait," Sara reached behind her for the wallet in her jacket's pocket.
"Already taken care of," was the breezy reply and then she vanished.
Danny left his seat to perch on the corner of Sara's desk. "Two deliveries in two days, Pez? C'mon, when're you gonna tell me about this guy?"
"It is a guy, right?" Jake chimed in, earning a withering glare from Sara as she carefully removed the bright blue ribbon and silver paper to reveal a box identical to yesterdays: white with flowing green script giving the store's name of Flowers and Showers surrounded by an elegant pattern in green just a shade lighter. "As soon as I figure out what's going on, I'll tell you, okay, Danny?"
"What, I don't get to know?" Jake mock whined.
Danny elbowed him into silence. "I'm the best friend. What is it this time? More roses?"
She shook her head and lifted out a bouquet of white snapdragons.
"Oh, those are Jenny's favorite. She likes to make them open their mouths," Danny laughed.
Sara gently touched one of the petals as she had yesterday with the roses. As much as it embarrassed her to get flowers at the station, she had to admit it pleased her too. Only to herself, of course. She was still staring at the blooms when a clear vase partially filled with water was placed in front of her. She looked up to see Danny smiling at her.
"Good thing this guy has vases delivered with the flowers; they'd be stuck in something from one of the fast food joints or the morgue otherwise."
Sara shuddered at the thought. "No thanks." Placing the stems in the water, she moved them next to her computer and stowed the box under her desk where she hopefully wouldn't kick it. "Thanks, Danny."
"No problem; this is making me wonder how long it's been since I got Leigh flowers."
"Romance all gone," Sara teased with a grin.
"Nah, but I do think I'll pick her up something special tonight. Thank the mystery guy for the idea, will ya?"
"I will, and I will tell you about him, Danny," she reiterated, correctly reading what was in his eyes.
He nodded, telling her he was willing to wait, and sat back down at his desk. "Speaking of Leigh. She's hitting the craving part of her pregnancy." he trailed off as Sara groaned.
"Same as last time?"
"Yep."
"I'll bring some in tomorrow for her."
"While you're at it, you might as well bring enough in for us too."
Sara nodded in acquiescence and refused to answer Jake's demanding to know what they were talking about.
TBC
Reviews are welcome! They make me write faster.usually LOL