Disclaimer: I own nothing to do with Lie to Me, sadly
Chapter Nine
They stood close together in near darkness for what seemed like an awfully long time to Cal. His hand was still resting on her arm, and her eyes were locked on his.
"Foster," he whispered, inching his face slightly closer to hers.
"The fridge," she suddenly blurted out.
"I beg your pardon?" he said, scrunching his face up as he looked at her in confusion.
"The fridge! And the freezer! If the power doesn't come back, I'll lose all my food!"
"Well, yeah, but it's only food, Foster, it's not like it's anything irreplaceable or…"
"My ice cream!" She hurried towards the kitchen, managing to avoid the furniture.
Clearly she was more familiar with the layout of her living room – naturally – as Cal found out when he awkwardly shuffled after her, banging his leg on the coffee table and hitting his arm on the doorframe. Reaching the kitchen, he could see her more clearly; a sliver of light from the moon shone through the window, and his eyes were slowly adjusting to the darkness.
She was sat at the kitchen table, a large tub of ice cream in front of her, already tucking into it with a spoon. A table spoon.
Cal shook his head, laughing. "What?" she said through a mouthful of ice cream. "Oh, er… there's another spoon in the drawer."
"I'm fine thanks, love." He sat down next to her, thankful that the dim light in the room allowed him the chance to study her without her really seeing. Not that she'd notice much at the moment though, the way she was devouring that ice cream as though a worldwide ban had just been announced.
She lifted her eyes to his, noticing his grin, and halted with a spoonful of ice cream halfway to her mouth. "What's so funny?"
"Nothing, Foster. Nothing at all."
"There's plenty more food in the fridge to be eaten, if you don't want ice cream. There's yoghurts, and cheese, and chocolate puddings – well, I'll have those," she amended hastily, and Cal's grin only grew. "I know you think I'm mad," she said, popping the spoon in her mouth. "But… mmm…" She closed her eyes and slid the spoon out slowly, letting the ice cream melt on her tongue before quickly swallowing. "But I don't want things going to waste," she said, opening her eyes and continuing her train of thought as though she hadn't just eaten a mouthful of ice cream in the most seductive way Cal had ever seen.
"There's milk, ham, fruit juice…"
"Lovely combination."
She giggled. "I can't eat it all on my own."
"Really?" He raised his eyebrows at her, and even in the dim light she caught the expression, and smacked him playfully on the arm. With a dramatic sigh he walked towards the fridge and opened it, realising as he did so that he had no hope whatsoever of seeing what was inside, as the light from the window wasn't shining in that direction. "I probably should have asked for this five minutes ago, before my shin became better acquainted with your coffee table, but have you got a flashlight?"
"If I did, do you think I'd be sitting here in the dark?"
"Frankly, yes, yes I do. You'd prioritise ice cream over essential items needed during a blackout any day."
She laughed. "Well… as it happens…" She stood up and scooted across the room, pulling a drawer open and whipping something out. A second later, a bright yellow light swept across the room.
"I bloody knew it!"
She handed it to him with a smile, then resumed her position at the kitchen table. Cal shook his head in amusement and reopened the fridge, scanning it properly now.
A minute later he sat down at the table again, his chosen items in front of him. A piece of blue cheese, a slice of tomato quiche, and a blueberry yoghurt. "What a feast. You're too good to me, Foster."
"Hey, it's not my fault the power went out before I could make you a proper dinner!"
"So you were going to make me a proper dinner then?" he asked lightly, biting into his cheese.
"I was thinking about it."
He directed the light towards her face, catching her mischievous smile before she hid it by taking another mouthful of ice cream.
"You sure you don't want some? I can be generous you know, even with ice cream."
"Nah, I'll stick with cheese and quiche love, you have it. I've got my yoghurt for afters, what more can a guy want?"
They sat in companionable silence for a few moments, when Cal suddenly burst out laughing.
"What's so funny?"
"Just… this. Sitting here, with you, in the dark, devouring the contents of your fridge." He laughed harder. "It's just… funny, that's all."
"I guess it is." She joined in his laughter. "It's been quite a day."
"That it has, love," he said, his voice a little quieter.
She returned to her ice cream, and suddenly shivered. "I'm cold."
"You've just eaten almost a whole tub of ice cream, love. Hardly surprising."
"The heating," she said, berating herself for her stupidity. "I wasn't even thinking… I should have had some hot water in flasks ready to fill a hot water bottle, just in case…"
"Who the hell would be that prepared?" he asked, but the look on her face gave him his answer. "You usually do," he guessed, and she smiled.
"Well… if there's a bad storm or something, and I think there's a chance of a blackout, I tend to get prepared."
"So what happened today then?" He finished off the last bite of his quiche. "You weren't expecting a power cut?"
"I guess I didn't really think about it, I was too distracted." It was a casual comment, but Cal felt a whirl of emotions at her words.
"Distracted by me?" he asked innocently.
"In a manner of speaking. You're often a distraction."
"Well, aren't you just the sweetest, no one's ever said that to me before."
Gillian stood up and dumped her ice cream carton in the trash before washing up her spoon at the sink.
"Just leave it in the bowl, Foster," he said, knowing as he said it that she wouldn't.
"Just because there's a blackout doesn't mean I can't still be tidy," she informed him, drying it carefully on a tea towel. She turned to face him, her hands now on her hips and that defiant look on her face that he loved.
"Now, if you're done laughing at my ice cream consumption and my need to wash up cutlery, we need to do something about the temperature before we freeze to death."
Cal sat back in his chair, his hands behind his head. "I'm all ears, love. What do you suggest?"