Christmas had never really been a huge ordeal in the Lalonde household so the fact that Rowan had spent a week decorating the house and started the morning by cooking a large breakfast (somehow managing to not burn the house down in the process) certainly had Rose surprised. She supposed the recent… situation with the boys was playing a hand. Maybe Mother felt bad for her book launch having kept her so busy. Roxy, on the other hand, was not one to look a gift horse in the mouth, and was, in fact, very enthusiastic about the whole thing. Rose shrugged and went along with it, only slightly more eager to get to the presents, as she'd taken the time to make Roxy a bi pride scarf. That was her theme this year; she'd also made an aromantic pride scarf for Jade, a gay pride scarf for Dirk, and a lesbian pride scarf for herself, only neglecting to make one for Dave since she wasn't sure if he'd come out as anything in particular, and therefore, wasn't sure of what the color scheme should be. Roxy was very much a fan of her scarf.
"Oh my Gooooddddddd, Rose, this is so sweet!"
Roxy said it with a genuine voice, and immediately wrapped the scarf around her neck. She pulled Rose into a hugh, which Rose begrudgingly accepted.
"I'm glad you like it." It was really refreshing, actually, to talk to Roxy like that. The girls hadn't really been close until recently, and frankly, Roxy thought her addiction had something to do with it. Rose was pleased to find her mother had gifted her two tickets to the Museum of Contemporary Art, and insisted that Rose take one of her friends.
Once those presents were done with, Rose attended to those from her friends. John had gifted her merchandise based off her Grimoire; The Wands of Oglogoth. Dave sent her a mixtape of "ill jams" and Jade sent a terrarium of plants from her tropical island home, accompanied by a figurine of of a small pink turtle. How cute. A moment later, her phone began going off.
gardenGnostic [GG] opened a memo in group: sex drugs and shrek
GG: merry christmas guys!
ectoBiologist [EB] responded to memo.
EB: christ, i forgot our group chat was named that.
GG: courtesy of mr. strider :P
turntechGodhead [TG] responded to memo
TG: you guys talking shit without me
GG: nooooo of course not
TG: sarcasm really isn't your bag is it
GG: i'm sorry we can't all be as cool as you mr. coolguy mcsunglass pants
tentacleTherapist [TT] responded to memo
TT: Ignoring my cousin for the moment, how is everyone's mornings going?
TG: up yours lalonde
TT: I trust you all received your presents.
EB: yeah! thanks so much, rose, it's super warm
EB: i actually just finished opening all three of the presents
Rose smiled. She'd made John a hat, seeing as a pride scarf wouldn't have been exactly appropriate.
EB: they're so nice!
GG: aw im glad you like it john!
EB: actually dave i haven't listened to the music yet but the note was nice
TG: jesus dude i give you the gift of sick ass beats
TG: something actually not dorky to listen to
TG: and this is how im repaid
TT: Don't be so melodramatic.
TG: you telling me not to be melodramatic is the highest point of irony ive seen in a month
TG: and coming from me that's a pretty big fucking deal
EB: i hope you guys like your gifts too
EB: i'm kind of terrible at shopping
GG: i haven't opened it yet, gram-gram said jake and i had to wait to open all our presents until grandpa gets here
TG: gram gram
GG: yes.
TT: Dave, I take it you and Dirk will be joining us here at the Lalondes' for dinner?
TG: jesus fuckin
TG: yeah
EB: have fun guys!
EB: my dad's gesturing for me to get off the phone now
EB: he probably wants me to pointlessly clean something
EB: so… merry christmas!
GG: oh gram gram is here so i gotta go too!
TT: Bye, Jade.
TG: catch ya later harley
Nothing much of interest happened until Dave and Dirk showed up just before dinner. Dirk looked mildly surprised at the table Rowan had set up; the settings were done very nicely, but the table was covered in Chinese food. She shrugged at the boys.
"I managed breakfast, but a ham was a little much for my skills." Dirk shot her a smile, and Roxy was very relieved to see him lightening up a little bit.
"Looks great, Aunt R," he said, and Rowan and the kids sat down. After dinner, Rose handed Dirk his scarf, and she was surprised to see Dirk receive it very well. He'd never really been one for titles. Dave shot Rose a look as the others talked.
"What the hell, Rose, you doling out gifts to everyone else?" He was joking, of course, and Rose surprised him with a genuine answer.
"In all honesty, Dave, I wasn't sure if it'd be appropriate to gift you a pride scarf if you weren't sure about—"
"Pan."
"What?"
"I think… I'm pan. Pansexual." Rose looked on at him in surprise.
"Well… in that case, I will have one for you soon."
Dave spent the rest of the night tapping away furiously on his phone, Rose doing her best to decipher his facial expressions and his ticks and she took a guess that he was talking to Karkat, something that was rewarded with the satisfaction of being right when Dave looked up at her, his face pale (paler than usual, anyway) and his expression unsure. He simply said; "Karkat just asked me on a date." Not only did Rose look at him in surprise; so did everyone else in the room.
"Did he?" Dirk asked, leaning over a bit to look at Dave's phone screen.
"Yeah, dude, check it out."
Roxy was immediately envious. She really wanted to go out with Callie. That girl was just so totally adorable, but Roxy hadn't been able to do anything about her feelings. That moment with Dave was all the rest of the motivation she needed, so she sent a message to Callie.
tipsyGnostalgic [TG] began pestering uraniumUmbra [UU]
TG: yo callie
TG: u busy tomorrow?
UU: Not that I'm aware of.
UU: Why?
TG: because
TG: im gonna take u on a date
TG: 3
tipsyGnostalgic [TG] ceased pestering uraniumUmbra [UU]
Roxy logged off quickly to avoid the inevitable insisting against it from Callie. Callie would say that she wanted to, but couldn't for some reason, and Roxy would insist and it would go on like that, so all Roxy could do was shrug about it. Welp. That was done. Roxy would pick Callie up, and they would go out, and that would be the end of the conversation. Well, hopefully not literally the end of the conversation, but Roxy wasn't prepared to fight Callie about it.
Much to her surprise, Callie protested very little when Roxy picked her up the next day. They got to their movie with very little bickering, but rather very pleasant conversation and light smiles, and Roxy blushed every time their hands met on the armrest, or in the popcorn bucket, and god she was so so glad she just got to be there with Callie at all, because she had been infatuated with that girl and here they were on a date and how was this real life?! By the time Roxy went to drop Callie off, they'd spent the whole day together; seen a movie, gone for dinner and ice cream and wandered around the mall holding hands, and Roxy was as happy as she could possibly be.
"I've had a wonderful day, Roxy," Callie said, her voice soft. Roxy walked her up to the door and everything about it felt so cliché.
"I'm glad you had a good time, Callie. You deserve it." Callie smiled up at her and Roxy felt warmth flood through her cheeks. And then Roxy took a breath and she leaned in for the kiss. It was just a peck, but she and Callie were both a bit embarrassed. Not in a bad way, just… surprised and blushing, but Callie was the one who'd pulled away. Roxy looked at her longingly.
"Roxy, I… I can't, I just… you see, I…" Wow, even when she was struggling to find the right words, Callie was just so adorable. Callie's brother stuck his head out the window as she stood there with Roxy and he shouted at both of them.
"Hey ugly! Stop being so utterly depraved and get your ass in here! And you! Skank!" Roxy scowled at him. "Get off my porch!" Callie looked at Roxy apologetically before rushing inside, whereas Roxy just wanted to get into her car and cry. Or drink. No. There had to be some kind of explanation. Callie wouldn't just be an ass like that. Roxy took a breath and steadied herself, pushing the idea of drinking out of her mind. It would be fine.
Rose was further encouraged to pursue something with Kanaya first by Dave's declaration of a date with Karkat, and then by seeing Roxy head off on her date with Callie the next morning, so she decided to send a message of her own.
tentacleTherapist [TT] began pestering grimAuxiliatrix [GA]
TT: Hello, Miss Maryam.
TT: I trust you had an enjoyable holiday.
GA: Oh
GA: Yes my uncle is quite the cook
GA: Its really just a nice meal and some family time for us though
GA: Well I mean for the Maryams anyway
TT: Right.
TT: Sorry, I didn't mean for that to come off as though I was assuming.
GA: Oh no its quite alright
GA: If you're worried about me missing out on presents you should know that Solomon insists on getting us gifts regadless
TT: Ah, I see.
TT: He seems like a good guy.
TT: I've heard much about him.
GA: Yes he is.
TT: That is not why I messaged you, though.
TT: I messaged you because I have been infomed that Karkat finally asked Dave on a date.
GA: Oh?
TT: Yes.
TT: And
TT: Well, you and I have spent a fair amount of time fretting over them, but not only has that happened, but Dave has also gotten out of Braiden's apartment.
TT: So my suggestion is that we stop fretting over those two and worry about ourselves.
TT: Would you like to accompany me to lunch tomorrow?
TT: And, to avoid any confusion, I do intend this to be a romantic outing.
GA: Oh
GA: Uh
GA: Well I would be honored, Miss Lalonde
TT: Excellent.
TT: Meet me at Le Petit Chateau at 1 tomorrow.
GA: Sounds like a date
tentacleTherapist [TT] ceased pestering grimAuxiliatrix [GA]
Rose was surprised that had gone so smoothly. She and Kanaya were not exactly the smooth type, and while they'd been mildly flirting, they still seemed to stumble around each other. She tried not to let her nerves get to her too much as she prepared for the date the next day; tried not to let herself overthink things or dress too fancy or mess herself up too badly, and she was still managing to maintain composure even as she sat at Le Petit Chateau. She decided to take a seat outside, hoping Kanaya would see her on the way in, and then took out her book to keep her pulse steady as she waited, a bit anxious despite not really being the anxious type. After a few minutes, Rose glanced up to see Kanaya—who looked stunning in a sheer white top (with a tanktop underneath) and a jade skirt, complimented by gold jewelery—approaching the table.
"Ah, Kanaya, good to see you," Rose said, tucking her book away as to not appear rude.
"I do hope I didn't leave you waiting too long."
"Oh, no, not at all."
"So, may I ask what you had in mind for this afternoon?"
"Yes, I thought we could have a bite to eat here, and afterwards, I have tickets to the MOCA, if that is something that interests you." Rose had a feeling her mother had been being passive aggressive when she said to share the tickets with anyone, and had actually wanted to go with Rose, but Rose took her words at face value, and she was glad to have done so, because Kanaya looked very excited at the prospect of visiting the museum.
"Oh, yes, that sounds wonderful. I hear their botanical gardens are simply divine."
"Personally speaking, I am a bit curious about their current exhibition."
"Decadent Rubbish: Defying Misfortune," Kanaya said verbatim. Rose blinked at her in surprise.
"Yes, with a title like that, my curiousity could not help but be piqued. I believe it's about—"
"The adaptability of household items and channeling creativity to create high-end fashion from what others would refer to as garbage," Kanaya said, and then she looked very embarrassed. "My apologies, I didn't mean to interrupt. I am just very, ah, enthusiastic about fashion." This was a fact that had not been lost on Rose.
"No need to apologize," Rose said, smiling softly at Kanaya.
The two girls enjoyed their lunch at the small French café, before hopping on a bus to get across town to the museum. Their hands brushed each other as they looked at the art together, and Rose fought the urge to claps her hand around Kanaya's as they made their way towards the gardens. Rose paused at one of the plaques, taking a moment to read it.
"Rosa Chinesnsis. White, pink, yellow, red, and mixed-color roses from China and Burma." Rose glanced at the remaning description, and felt her face drop when she spotted the name "Rowan Lalonde". Kanaya moved closer, reading it for herself.
"Donated to MOCA by Rowan Lalonde. Oh."
"It's… from her book proceeds," Rose said, the words lingering on her mind. "She told me once that she saw these… these lavender ones while she was pregnant with me and she thought they were so beautiful, so hse named me Rose." Rose paused. "I had no idea she donated these." Was there a reason she'd given Rose the tickets? So she'd know her mother loved her (or her namesake, anyway) so much that she wanted these flowers to last somewhere the world couldn't destroy them? It all seemed odd to her, and she tried to piece it together as she leaned forward on the fence. Kanaya matched her position.
"Well, I don't think they're nearly as beautiful as you." Rose glanced up at Kanaya in surprise. Nobody—well, nobody except for Mother—called Rose beautiful. She was that weird, pseudo-gothy girl, usually. Rose wanted to say something, but sadly, was interrupted by her phone ringing.
"Oh, uh," Rose glanced at the screen. It was Roxy. Rose pursed her lips in frustration. Roxy knew she was on a date; why would she be calling now of all times?! "Excuse me for a moment." Rose wandered off a bit, away from Kanaya before she answered the phone. "Roxy, I don't—"
"Rose! You haven't seen Frigglish lately, have you?"
"No. Why?"
"Uh, 'cause he showed up today so I let him in and I walked by your room just now and he's chewin' on a broken violin string."
"Why do you…" Rose let out a frustrated sigh.
"I'm real sorry, Rose, but I'm worried he ate it or something! Can you come back and help me? I swear I'll make it up to you for messin' up your date."
"Okay." Rose hung up anf then sighed again, looking at Kanaya apologetically. "I hate to cut this short, but, uh, that was my sister. Something about the cat and my violin, so I guess I need to get going."
"Oh, I see."
"I'm sorry, Kanaya."
"Please, don't apologize. I had a wonderful time."
"Then… then we should do it again sometime," Rose said, smiling softly at Kanaya just before she left.