Disclaimer: Inception does not belong to me.
Ariadne opened her eyes, and looked at the ceiling. Turning, she glanced at the clock - 6.30am.
She sighed, turning onto her side. Arthur's proposed visit was not a prospect she was looking forward to. She swung her legs out of bed, and began to stand up. Grabbing her robe, she headed for the shower.
As she stood in the warm steaming rain, her mind flashed back. During the Fischer job, they'd found themselves spending a week at the first level. She'd looked at Arthur as the van, still containing Cobb, had begun to sink further into the water.
"He'll be ok," Arthur had reassured her, reaching for her hand, and squeezing it. "He will be ok."
She'd looked at him, grateful for his reassurance. He'd squeezed her hand more tightly, and she'd moved towards him. "It will be ok," he said, gently, letting her lean her head on his shoulder.
She reached for her shampoo, soaping her scalp with the fruity scented liquid. After they'd woken up, they'd moved towards a courtship. She remembered waiting at the airport, watching as Cobb had moved through immigration to the exit at LAX.
"Well, it worked."
She looked up. Arthur, still looking impeccable despite the fifteen hour flight, was standing next to her. He was smiling. "Cobb gets to go home," he said, his gaze falling upon her large, heavy bag. "Would you like some help with that?"
"Oh." She blushed slightly. "Would you mind?"
He raised an eyebrow. "If I minded, I wouldn't have offered." He reached over, and grabbed the handles, carefully laying it onto his luggage trolley. "Where are you heading?"
"Oh, just a hotel." She swallowed. "Until I can head back to Paris."
He nodded. "Me too. Until I can get back to New York."
"You live in New York?"
"Some of the year." He nodded. "Listen, why don't I meet you at 8pm. Outside your hotel."
"Oh?" she blinked, momentarily confused. He smiled again. "Dinner."
"Oh!" she gasped, slightly taken aback. "Oh, well-"
"I'll see you at 8pm. Your hotel?"
"Excelsios," she almost whispered. He nodded. "See you then."
Before she could move, or even utter a sound, he'd hailed a cab, and disappeared.
It was only after she'd checked into her hotel, and gone to her room, she'd realised that he had not even asked her if she wanted to go to dinner.
Ariadne blinked, shampoo was in danger of dripping down into her eyes. Rinsing her scalp, she began to turn off the faucet. As she walked out of the shower, she reached for her robe, tying it round her waist.
As she stepped out of the bathroom, she heard a knock on the door. Frowning, she approached and peeped through the spyhole.
She began to unlock the door. "Arthur." She stood, in her robe. He was fully dressed, his hair slicked back. He raised his eyebrows.
"I didn't realise you meant this early," she said, her tone unsettled. Arthur frowned and looked at his watch. "Its half seven."
"Yes, early." She began to take a step back. "I mean, you-"
"Ari, are we going to start arguing the minute I turn up?" his voice was almost a command, and she felt herself falling silent. "No, we're not, I-"
"Good." he nodded, and began to step over the threshold. She swallowed, allowing him to walk in.
"I'm going to make some coffee," she said, almost timidly. "I-"
"I'll make it," he interrupted. "You go and get dressed."
She looked at him. "Arthur-"
"Ari, you're dripping." He smiled, but it didn't alleviate the tone of his voice. Nodding, she headed for the bedroom. As she began to open drawers, pulling out her clothes, she stopped.
Turning, she walked back into the kitchen. Arthur was tipping filter coffee into the machine. "Arthur."
He looked over. "Yes?"
"Arthur, please don't give me orders in my own place." Her voice was firm, and she decided to stand her ground.
"I didn't." He shook his head. "You were wet. You needed to get dressed. That's all."
"Arthur."
"You're still not dressed."
"Arthur-"
"Ariadne, please don't make me talk to you like I'd talk to a child. Go and get dressed!"
"But-" turning, she walked back into the bedroom. He'd been so calm, so reasonable. And, she admitted to herself, he had made sense. As she sank down on the bed, she felt her head swirl with conflicting thoughts.
After a few minutes, she walked back into the kitchen. Arthur had made fresh coffee. "Have a seat," he instructed.
Ariadne frowned as she sat down. "Thank you."
"Now, the reason I came over," Arthur began, "is to try and work out what's going on."
"Well, I-"
"You just seem so tense," Arthur interrupted. "What is it?"
Ariadne took a deep breath. "Arthur. You need to stop trying to control me-"
"I don't try and control you!" he almost shouted. "I just -" he stopped, shaking his head. "Listen, I think we need some time out. We'll go our own ways for a while, ok?"
"But-"
"No, listen to me. We are not getting on at the moment, and I don't know why. But you seem to think that I'm trying to control you!" He shook his head. "So let's just go our separate ways."
"Do you think we'll-"
"At the moment, Ariadne, let's just leave it, ok?"
Stunned, she watched him turn and stalk angrily out of the apartment.
Ariadne tried to keep herself composed as she walked down the pavement, towards the warehouse. But the thought of seeing Arthur there, tense and angry, made her stop. Shivering slightly, she reached inside her pocket for a tissue.
"Are you allright, Miss?"
She blinked. A young man in a dark blue suit was looking at her, his face concerned. She tried to compose her features.
"Oh, I'm fine," she insisted. "Excuse me."
She began to hurry towards her destination, leaving the stranger to look after her, a thoughtful expression on his face.
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