Disclaimer: I don't own anything.

This one is dedicated to SiSi4 for well, you know why. :] I also saw this prompt in otpprompts on tumblr. I hope you enjoy it! Sorry the title is kinda...eh. :[


Hugs

"Ariadne, it's your turn to make people happy," Mallorie says with a smile. Her all-around clipboard is facing the young girl, probably just in case she wants to make sure that it is her turn to be out in the cold and holding up the cardboard sign.

She checks the date tomorrow and then, there it is, her name written right next to it. She smiles and nod, letting the older woman know that she's okay with it. "I'll be there, don't worry."

"I'm not worried," Mal says to her as she pats her shoulder. "Tell Valeria that she'll be your partner. I know the two of you are inseparable. Maybe during her turn, you could be her partner."

Ariadne chuckles. "Yeah, I think that'll work."

She smiles again. "Okay, so I'll see you tomorrow afternoon? I won't be here early tomorrow morning, Phillipa has a parent-teacher conference so I can't see how the morning will be."

"It's fine. I've been looking forward to this." They separate ways and Ariadne sits on her desk which is also right across from Valeria's. "I'm on duty tomorrow," the brunette tells the blonde. "And you're my partner-in-crime."

She smiles. "Good, I'm getting cramped in this place. Do you know when it's my turn?"

"Sometime next week," Ariadne replies. "I saw your name below mine after some others." Then she smiles. "I'm so excited tomorrow."

Valeria smiles back at her. "I'm glad our kit has pepper spray, people would love to hug you."

Ariadne rolls roll my eyes. "We're in a very busy street, I think we can manage."

"One must never be too careful, mon ami."

"Maybe we should have worn better clothes," Valeria says as she looks at her jeans and t-shirt, "we're not striking enough."

Ariadne laughs, "And have people harass us? I don't think so, Val."

The two have been out on the street for about two hours and not one person has gone up to the brunette and asked for a hug. Ariadne is sitting under a bright blue sign that says Free Hugs with Valeria behind a table beside her with her favorite clipboard and a stack of flyers. They're lucky it's a bright and sunny day, not too warm either, allowing them to enjoy the outdoors. The three-storey building behind them is the organization but they'd prefer to be out instead of taking shelter (no one can really see them there anyway).

"Maybe that's why people are having a good day," Valeria starts, "the weather is wonderful and it really is a shame to waste it on such a bad mood."

Ariadne grins. "Wouldn't it be better if there's a free hug?"

Her friend laughs. "I suppose, especially from someone as pretty as you. And I'm here, too, I think we both work as a good team. We're attractive, why aren't we attracting people?"

"Maybe because they're not hugging you," Ariadne says with a wink.

Valeria rolls her eyes. "Your flirty lines don't work on me, Miss Belaire. Just because I play for both fields. Why don't you ever flirt with men?"

"I haven't had my fair share of practice yet," she says as she smiles at a little boy who had just passed them. "Unlike you, you can practice on both." Valeria sticks out her tongue and is about to say something when her eyes move up and blink at the person who had just arrived. Ariadne follows and sees a man; taller than her with dark hair and dark eyes. He's in a three-piece suit and Oxford shoes. A leather satchel is by his side. He makes her stomach flutter. "Hello."

"Are you the one giving free hugs?" he asks. His voice is deep and makes Ariadne weak in the knees.

"Yes," she answers.

"I need one," he says.

Ariadne stands and is about to open her arms but he closes his arms around her at once. Slowly, she brings her arms up and pats his back. "Are you okay?" she whispers.

"I'm having a rough morning," he answers quietly. "I don't normally do this but I really need it right now. And it doesn't hurt that you're very attractive."

She blushes and continues to pat the man's back. "You can talk about it, if you want."

He lets go and Ariadne doesn't like the feeling that's happening to her. The man looks at her from head to toe before smiling. "My roommate slash office co-worker is being a bastard again. I missed the train, I haven't had breakfast, I was almost mugged and I'm late for work."

"Oh," she gasps, "you're not hurt, are you?"

"I scared the guy off," he says, shrugging, "I think he's the one with bruises."

"I have a croissant," she says as she turns around, "you can have it. And my coffee," she presents them to him, "they're not fresh or hot anymore but it's something to fill your stomach." She pushes the pastry and drink to him and he hesitantly reaches for them. "I'm sorry, am I making you even more late for your job?"

He chuckles and shakes his head. "I'm always early, what's being tardy once in a while, right?"

She grins. "I'm sorry about your roommate...slash office co-worker. Is he always like that?"

"Well...yes," he admits, "but he thought that un-setting my alarm and not waking me up after a horrid two hour sleep would be funny. It isn't. I called my boss once I woke up and he said it was okay and he doesn't mind. I could hear the cause of my misery snickering from behind." He pauses and looks up at the sky. "He would have said that I have an imagination."

"If your roommate didn't tamper with your alarm then you would've woken up early. If you woke up early then you wouldn't've missed the train. If you didn't miss the train then you wouldn't've seen me," she says and then realizes what it had implied, "I mean, then you would've have gotten a free hug. Don't you feel much better now?" she tries to cover but know that it's too late since he's smirking.

"I do," he tells her, "so much better than I did five minutes ago."

She grins and rocks on her heels. "So, um...shouldn't you be on your way to work right now?"

"I'm already late, what's the point right?" He shrugs. "But I suppose you're right," he sighs and checks his watch, "I should get going." He looks at the sign again and asks, "I get out around five. Until what time will you be here?"

She quickly turns to Valeria and she holds up eight fingers. "Eight," she answers him.

He stays quiet for a while. "Perfect. I'll see you later then." And then he walks away.

Ariadne sits on her chair, a little surprised and a little giddy. "I wasn't dreaming, right?"

"Nope," Valeria answers with a smirk, "you and that very hot guy just had a good conversation and you got to hug him and he wants to see you again later this afternoon."

She smiles. "I never even got his name."

"He didn't ask for yours either. Maybe he wants to have an excuse to come back. I would've totally done that if I was attracted to the one manning the booth."

And so for the rest of the day, Ariadne only hugged five people. It seems that everyone really is having a good day. A lot of adolescents and some adults have begun to inquire about how to become a volunteer in the Special Hands org. Valeria gladly informed them how. At around five, Mallorie stopped by to say hello.

Time passes by and it's already eight, time for the two volunteers to pack up and go inside the building. But the mysterious man earlier that morning hasn't shown.

"Maybe he had to stay late," Valeria offers. "You saw how he looked like. Suit and all. And he said he was always early. And maybe something came up."

Ariadne shakes her head, a small, sad smile on her lips. "No, I don't think so."

"Ari, I really think he meant what he said earlier. I'm sure if he knew that he couldn't come this afternoon, he would've asked you out already," Valeria continues. "Really."

"Thanks, Val," Ariadne says. She helps her pack the materials they used inside a bag. "Thank you for trying to cheer me up with those words of...excuses. I really appreciate it."

"Don't be so hard on yourself," the blonde huffs.

"I'm just a little upset, okay?" The brunette frowns. "I was really looking forward to seeing him again and he doesn't show and we'll never know why he didn't. I'd like the possibility of your words but it sucks that we'll never be sure."

"If he changed his mind then it's his loss, Ari," Valeria says. "You helped start his morning, you gave him your favorite croissant and mint coffee and he didn't even bother to pay for it. He's a real gentleman, Ari, a real gentleman."

Ariadne smirks. "You're right, he isn't worth it."

"He isn't." Her friend nods. "And we have to bring this back in right away if we want Robert to take us home. It's too late and he's the only one with a car that actually passes by our route."

The first three days of working back inside the building is a little tough for Ariadne. She constantly checks the window outside, just in case the man would return. She sees men in suits with dark hair every day and she can't help but hope that one of them is the man whom she had given a hug to.

And maybe for him to run to her and apologize and explain to her why he couldn't come and he'd take her to dinner, they'd kiss, he'd propose and they'll get married and happily live in a nice house with two dogs and a son and a daughter.

"Fantasy, fantasy," she murmurs as she looks at men with dark hair in suits in the internet.

Valeria had told her to forget him, constantly reminding her that they don't know each other, to which the brunette replies, "We could've." This frustrates the blonde even more.

On the fourth day, Valeria brings her out to a club. On the fifth day, Ariadne wakes up in her room with a huge smile on her face. Valeria had slept over so that they could both wake up on time for their shift in Special Hands. "How do you feel?"

Ariadne smiles. "Ready to take on the world with force."

Unfortunately it's raining outside. Not too heavy but there is no trace of sun. And even more unfortunate that it's Valeria's turn to stay outside and give anyone free hugs and Ariadne is her sidekick. Luckily, Mallorie had a beach umbrella tucked away during days like this and the two had set-up in the same spot.

"This will really get us some attention," Valeria retorts as she puts up the bright rainbow umbrella on the table.

"It's a gloomy day," Ariadne says, "maybe people will need more hugs. People are more likely in a bad mood during this kind of weather."

"Ugh," Valeria groans, "it's when it's raining but the place is so humid and my hair is sticking all over my neck!"

Ariadne was right. More people had lined up to get a free hug from her best friend. At noon, too much people had come that Ariadne had offered to help her best friend and volunteered to hug the people as well. By three, the sky was clearing up and the water falling had become drizzles.

"You have no idea how happy I am now that I'm seeing the sun," Valeria tells her after a lady she had just hugged left.

"Everyone's having too much of a bad day that they didn't even inquire about joining the org," Ariadne says as she looks at the stack of flyers she has on the table that haven't been subtracted since the start of the day.

"I'd like to inquire," someone says.

Ariadne looks up and is sees the man she had been obsessed with for the past few days still dressed very nicely however this time, not with a three-piece suit but a sweater vest over a blue dress shirt and a tie. He has a sheepish grin. "Oh."

"Or is too late?"

"No," she shakes her head, "not at all." Grabbing the clipboard from the table she hands it to him and asks him to fill out the needed requirements. "And then we'll call you for an interview," she says when he gives her back the clipboard.

"This is her," another person with an English accent says, "no wonder you were too chicken to come back." The man who had just spoken is grinning at her. "Hello, love, I'm the reason why this coward met you in the first place."

"You're the one who tampered with his alarm!" Ariadne exclaims.

"And you should be thanking me," the man says, "I'm Eames."

"Hello. I'm Ariadne, and that's my friend, Valeria."

Eames looks at the blonde. "Well aren't you beautiful. Would you like to have dinner with me?"

Valeria's eyes widen. "Really?"

The other man smirks at them and then looks at the brunette. "I'm sorry I didn't get to come back last week. Something came up and I was let out the office at ten and I went here and the building was closing up. I tried to come back but I didn't know what you'd think, he," he pointed at the man talking to Valeria, "fed my insecurities, which rarely happens. We didn't have work today and I wanted to try my luck."

Ariadne can't help but grin. "You'll be even luckier if you tell me your name."

"I'm Arthur," he tells her, "and I'd really like to invite you out for dinner."

"I'd enjoy that, thank you."

"Do I still get a free hug?"

She laughs and hugs him.


And there's another one. Please tell me what you think of it!