Isabela's POV
I really don't like dining halls. I was familiar with the concept. Grab tray, fill tray with various things from different stations, set tray down at an open table, return with drink. The procedure was comfortable, simple as it was. But the food was somewhat bland and poor Hawke looked like a nervous wreck. Eyes were watching from every corner, looking at me, of course. I didn't mind the attention. I had been stared at wantonly since middle school, when my breasts decided to show up overnight. But it was obviously making my shy little rugby player uneasy. You'd think these kids had never seen a lady before. As I followed her from line to line, she ignored me, pretending either that I didn't exist, or that I wasn't with her. I wonder… My thoughts were interrupted by someone bumping into my backside, leaving me to bump my companion. Hawke immediately switched places with me, practically roaring at the small Asian boy that accidentally touched me. I'll admit, I enjoyed that little protective gesture. Not that I had ever needed protection. The knife in my purse and my own bare fists usually took care of anyone dumb enough to try my patience. But I did enjoy peeling away at her geeky exterior, because there was definitely something animal underneath. And I was already practically quivering at her primal growl.
Aveline found a table in the corner of the room, obviously not wishing to be seen with me. Selfish prude. Kitten sat herself down across from Man-Hands, and I set my tray next to hers. Before I could protest (not that I would have, mind you), my knight-in-shining-armor pulled out my chair. I gave her a light peck on the cheek, pleased that her face grew a few shades redder. I even let her take my, well her, coat. I could get used to this.
"What do you want to drink?" Hawke grumbled as I slid into my seat. She was nervous, embarrassed, and absolutely terrified. Poor thing hasn't been on a date in a long time.
"Ginger ale will be fine. And…" I crooked my finger and she bent her head down to my level. I whispered directly into her ear. "Don't be so nervous. If I didn't want to be here with you, I wouldn't be." Which was true; I was not above walking out on a bad date. But I found her company refreshing, and I got a sick sense of pleasure from watching the butch red-head squirm. Hawke nodded quickly and stood upright.
"Thanks sweet thing." I pinched her ass as she walked off, eliciting a shriek as well as a cacophony of giggles from various onlookers, Merrill included. Aveline was rubbing her forehead, clearly unamused. What does it take to make her smile? Kicked puppies? I took a moment to observe my surroundings. The first thing I noticed is that Kitten was some sort of vegetarian. Other than a small piece of fish, her tray was consistently covered in greens, which she munched at daintily. Man-Hands had quite the opposite problem. Her plates (of which there were many) included a cornucopia of meats, pastas, and fruits. What kind of diet is that? I looked at my own tray. Chicken bacon pizza without sauce, sushi (because yes, they had it), French fries, balsamic Brussels sprouts, and chicken Kiev. Anyone with half a brain would question the nutrition soundness of my decisions, but I wasn't the least bit concerned about my girlish figure. I planned on working off every single one of those calories. In the most fun ways possible. Apparently Hawke was thinking the same, considering her large masses of fried rice and multiple slices of triple meat pizza. Even her salad was drowned in toppings.
"So… Kitten. My girl have any other visitors lately?" I asked conversationally, turning my body to better address her.
"Oh, no! Except on move-in day. Bethany and her mother were here." She shook her head as she chewed a little bite.
"Bethany?" I arched my brow and my fork froze in front of my mouth. I was aware that I suddenly tense, though I wasn't sure as to why. So maybe Ashley and I aren't the only ones to notice her physique under the geek costume. That's to be expected, I suppose. But why do I want to hit something?
Merrill nodded. "Her little sister. Though you couldn't really tell by looking at them. She's all girly and has hazel eyes, and long hair." She stabbed frustratingly at a piece of arugula.
After successfully completing my bite, I continued my line of questioning, body calm and curiosity not yet sated. "Girlfriend back home?" I slipped nonchalantly.
She scratched her head awkwardly, her whole face turning a new shade of pink. "I didn't even know she liked girls! It's just not something we talk about."
"What do you talk about?" I quipped.
"Classes, politics, the weather. We had a particularly intense debate on the Euro last week." She chirped happily as she grazed.
Aveline scoffed. "Not everyone spends all day talking about 'where are my pants' and 'whose the father'."
"First of all, I don't wear pants. Ever. Gave up on them the moment I hit puberty. Second, go ahead and judge me. Get it out of your system. We'll all feel so much better afterwards." I sat back in my chair, lacing my fingers like an attentive therapist.
The hulking warrior set her jaw. "Red asked me not to be rude."
I chuckled a bit, a satisfied grin tugging at my lips. Flattering and protective of my person as well as my honor? People have married for less. "Sweet girl, really. But you're creepier when you're quiet. Makes me feel like you're plotting my demise." I wiggled my fingers at her before inspecting my fingernails. "Your ice cold stare does nothing for me, by the way. Dry as a bone, I'm afraid. And I can't often say that."
"I'm sure you can't! And you'll end up in a ditch somewhere eventually. No point pissing off my favorite winger to put you there."
"Aveline! That's not nice at all!" The smallest woman scowled and kicked her friend in the shin. The red-head grunted, but took it like a champ.
"Don't worry about me, Kitten. I can handle a little tongue-lashing." I placed a tender hand on her shoulder and she blushed. Caught that one, did she? I looked back over to the brute, who was staring down my fluffy feline as if she had just swiped her lunch money. "So, did you know your darling Hawke is a skirt-chaser?"
Aveline took a moment to consider. "I suspected." She groaned, her arms folded over her chest.
"And yourself?" I propped my head on my hands.
"I'm not even going to dignify that with a response." If she were a witch, I would have burst into flame with the intensity of her angry scowl.
"Gayer than the Fourth of July," came a voice from behind. I turned to see my winger holding two drinks. She had a glass of ginger ale for me, and a glass of chocolate milk with a bowl of chocolate pudding stacked on top for herself. Pudding, really? She relinquished the items and sat down across from me, a smug look on her face. "Just needs to join the enlightened world, like the rest of us." I found myself smiling at her adorable tendencies. She's like a wolf cub. But sexier. And smarter. I think I'll keep her around for a while. She'll be quite the beast under the sheets after a little remedial. She blushed under my gaze and gulped her drink.
"Why didn't you tell me?" Merrill exclaimed, kicking her companion under the table again.
She clenched her fists on either side of her tray. "Because it's not true."
"Bullshit," Cassandra coughed into her fist.
Aveline growled at her teammate. "Just because I don't spread myself to the lowest bidder doesn't mean I'm secretly homosexual."
"Butch," I said plainly, and Hawke nodded agreement.
"What do you mean 'butch'?" Kitten tilted her head to me. Clueless.
"Definition: manly lesbian. Example: Aveline." I pointed at the woman in question, causing her to literally bite her tongue.
She recovered quickly enough, deciding to join the gauntlet. "If I am supposedly some butch dyke, what does that make Cassandra? She's the big gay geek!" She punched her teammate in the arm, almost causing a fork to the nose.
I laced my hands, my index fingers resting against my piercing. My focus was tunneled to the woman across from me. "It makes her my type." Hawke paused, setting her fork down and staring back at me. "Athletic. Intelligent. Unintentionally funny. And those damned sexy eyes… What more can you ask for?" I looked at Hawke with every bit of lust in my soul, halfway expecting her to break into a spontaneous nosebleed. But her pupils dilated and those baby blues turned to stormy seas. I fell headlong into them, hoping to never find the surface. Drowning in her every desire. And then it got warm. I was toasty all the way to my toes, and my grin was a mighty and wicked thing. What we were experiencing was, in a word, eye-sex. Hot, steamy, erotic, heart-pounding, body-throbbing eye-sex. I was definitely on top, but she was keeping pace, with her nerdy little smile and her irises giving away her every intention. Of which there were many. Oh so many. I could see the expert movements, smell the salt of well-earned sweat, hear the gasps and moans, feel her hands on every inch of me, and taste the tang of pure sex. I wasn't kidding anybody. In this instant, she was taking the reins, steering me toward the most delicious of destinations. But, for once, I didn't care. I could have baked in her radioactive heat for all eternity.
"She does have pretty eyes." Merrill mumbled, and I shut my own, stopping myself from grabbing my new play-thing by the collar and dragging her on top of the table, audience be damned. I sat there, my heartbeat completely erratic, and cursed myself internally for not taking her directly back to my place.
Hawke coughed hoarsely, taking a drink to relieve the choking. "You notice my eyes, but you don't notice my extreme preponderance for staring at women?" She rubbed her fist over her mouth, murdering the chocolate milk-moustache. And here I wanted to lick it off. Tease. I smiled brightly, licking my own lips. She caught the movement and gulped.
Kitten was unwittingly strolling right through our sexual battlefield, breaking our ranks at every turn. "You never said anything to me." She shrugged.
Red took a breath, calming herself. She arched her brow at her roommate and help up three fingers. Ok, she's doing that shit on purpose. "I have three posters on my ceiling, Daisy. Princess Leia in her slave costume, the female cast of Firefly, and Bo from Lost Girl. Are you telling me that you never once looked up?" The tiny woman just shrugged and continued eating.
"I didn't see those either, truth be told, but you have good taste. I'm so pro-Doccubus." My smile was so vulgar in its objective that I could have caused a plague. I've got the lab coat, she's got the brawn.
Cassandra wore a cocky little smirk, glad that I caught on to her references. "I assumed as much. And yes, I think I have fabulous taste." She winked at me as she slid a spoonful of pudding into her mouth, releasing the utensil with purposeful slowness. I felt instantly bothered in all the right ways, but I shook it off and continued to eat. I need these calories! I kept telling myself that, but our table was awkwardly quiet and I couldn't stand it for long. I piled my empty plates on my tray and sipped at my soda.
"What about you Kitten? Should I hazard a guess?" I tilted my head to her, mimicking her usual curiosity.
"Oh, about… sex things?" She grumbled as she set aside her silverware.
I chuckled lightly against the rim of my glass. "Yes, 'sex things'."
She coughed weakly. "Can we… talk about that some other time? I… My mother wouldn't approve of such talk at the dinner table. And she'll… know. She's psychic, I swear." She scratched at her head.
I patted her arm. "Not a problem, sweetheart. I won't funk with any voodoo. Hawke, text her my number." I smiled as she complied, and Merrill's face lit up like a thousand Christmas trees. "Feel free to text me anytime. But… don't expect an answer tonight. I'm afraid I'll be… occupied." I shot a sideways glance to my new lover.
"Oh. OH!" Kitten's face turned blood red with recognition and Aveline groaned with a roll of her eyes.
Red cleared her throat, catching my attention. "Speaking of digits... I've had several lads and ladies asking me for yours, Isabela."
"Oh? And what did they say when they found out that I was with the handsome young Hawke, and thus unavailable?" I stroked my chin thoughtfully and she gave a deep chuckle.
"I'm not going to say that tears weren't spent." She gave what could only be called a diplomatic smile, with a hint of smugness. "But I believe you have three goats and a sheaf of wheat waiting for you in Kolkata. Might want to look into that."
I shrugged. "I don't like goats. Plus, I've already got 30 white camels waiting for me in Saudi Arabia that I don't plan on collecting."
Cassandra tapped her own chin and looked upwards. "What would one do with a herd of dromedaries in the Northeastern U.S.?"
"Can I have one?" Merrill squealed as she turned to face me directly.
"What would you do with it?" I asked playfully, my childish smile matching hers.
She clasped her hands together and set sail for Wonderland. "So many things! I'd ride it into town and make it carry my books! We'd go to the zoo and to all my classes. And it would also make fabulous fertilizer, don't you think? OH!" She poked me in the shoulder. "You should give one to Aveline, too! She could use it to break up parties!"
"That… may actually have merit, ridiculous as it sounds. They're supposed to be smarter than horses." The big scary red-head only gave a neutral shrug, her face blank.
I couldn't help myself now. "What would you name it?"
"Fluffy!" Kitten clapped.
"Charles." Aveline blurted disinterested.
"Humpty Dumpty, or Humps for short." Hawke sang with a smile.
The laugh that rumbled my entire body escaped in a choking motion. I bit my lip to restrain myself and saw Man-Hands do the same. Oh my lord, this is her amused face! "Ok, no camel for you." I shook my finger at her.
"Why not?" The winger gave an uncharacteristic pout.
"I just can't take you seriously when you say 'humps'." I almost burst into a fit of giggles on the last word.
"You could get a rhinestone harness and sing Fergie to her!" The smallest woman was primed to break into song when Aveline reached over and covered her mouth, well, most of her face, really.
"Come on, Merrill. Let's get ice cream." The red-head shot her a serious look and the little thing just nodded her head rapidly. With a stomp and a skip, they retreated from the table, leaving the two of us to fight back our laughter. They're fucking adorable!
"Would you like some ice cream, Isabela?" Red asked politely as she organized her dirty tray.
"I've got plenty back at my apartment." I chimed with a smile. Ice cream, whipped cream, whips…
She arched an eyebrow like a professor giving a student a pop-quiz. "What flavors?"
"Why don't you come find out?" I reached across the table and ran a knuckle over her hand.
She visibly shivered as she stood. "Uh. Ok." Despite the small amount of silent protest I could muster, she merged our trays, pulled out my chair, and helped me back into her jacket. As we exited the building arm-in-arm, Hawke pulled out her phone. "I'm just going to send Daisy another text. So she doesn't think we were kidnapped."
I gave a mischievous chuckle as we neared my car. "Tell her to tuck herself in. You won't be returning until very late."