Bixanna Week – Beautiful Soul

Day 2 – Gift

In contrast to the cliche nature of day 1, I promise this day 2 story will be much more original and lighthearted.

"What… is this?"

"It's a mask," Lisanna said.

"I can see that," Bixlow replied cautiously. "What I mean is, why are you handing it to me?"

So far, this exchange was not going as planned. When Lisanna imagined herself giving Bixlow the present she had been preparing for over a week, she thought he would gratefully accept it and they would walk off with smiles on their faces. Instead she was stuck with this awkward silence and the distinct feeling that maybe this wasn't such a good idea.

"Because it's for you," she said patiently. "Aren't you gonna take it?"

"You want me to wear this?" He asked, pointing to the object.

"Uh, yeah. You know, usually when someone tries to give you a present you should do that person a favor and accept the gift," she said. "Seriously, just take the thing already. I'm starting to feel offended."

Bixlow ended up taking it, albeit hesitantly. Lisanna watched him, more than a little miffed at his reaction. Yup, this was definitely not how she imagined things going. Still, it was amusing to watch him handle the mask, turning it over as if he were checking for traps.

"So…" he drew the word out. Lisanna got the sense that he was trying to figure out how to say something without hurting her feelings.

"If you hate it, just say so," she said. "I won't mind. Too much. Okay, actually I would mind, but I'd rather you tell me than continue to make this awkward. Seriously, I can feel myself age waiting for you to finish that sentence."

"I don't hate it, Lis," he said. She wasn't convinced.

"I just thought maybe you'd like to try something different," she said, feeling more and more dejected by the minute. "Look, just give it back. Even if you don't say so, I know you're not thrilled. We'll just pretend this whole thing never happened, okay?"

She reached out to grab it, but Bixlow held it up above his head. Lisanna jumped in vain, but he was annoyingly tall and she couldn't quite make it. She sighed in exasperation. "Are you trying to be difficult?"

"Did you make this yourself?" He asked.

She frowned a little. "Yes, I did. And I'd prefer that you give it back if you don't like it."

"But I do like it," he said. He cracked a small smile when he saw the look on her face. "Okay, I admit, my reaction earlier probably wasn't the biggest clue."

"You think?"

"Sorry," he said. "To be honest with you, I was surprised. And kinda touched. Nobody's ever given me something like this, much less put in the time to make it themselves."

She blinked in surprise. "Really? Freed and Ever never gave you presents?"

"We're not really the gift-giving type bunch," he said with a shrug. Lisanna had a fleeting image of Evergreen handing out neatly wrapped presents to the other two, and had to stifle a laugh. "But I could get used to this. Hand-made things really do have that special feel to them, yeah?"

"Well, that's kinda what I was going for," she said. "So you do like it?"

"Yeah," he said. "I really appreciate it, Lis."

She smiled for the first time since they started the conversation. "I'm glad. So you'll wear it?"

"No."

The smile disappeared. "Wait, but you just said –"

He took off his visor and held the mask up to his face. "Not the right size, sweetheart."

She opened her mouth to retort, then closed it when she saw that he was right. The ends of the mask extended at least two inches past his ears and the eyeholes missed his eyes completely. "It's cause I was comparing it to your visor!" She shouted in realization.

"Sorry, what?"

"Your visor," she explained impatiently. "I needed a sizing reference, so that's what I used when I was measuring how big to make the mask."

"It'll make a sweet wall decoration, though."

She stamped her foot in frustration. "Dammit!"

"Language, Lis."

"Oh, like you should talk!"

It's gonna be a good week.