Vignette Summary: Diego accidentally lets slip that he loves Mia. Mia loves him too... she thinks.
Tags: Miscommunication
Word Count: 1,098
Date: Thursday, May 2nd, 2013
Time: 9:14 pm
Location: Diego's Apartment, Los Tokyo
Diego retrieved his apartment key from his briefcase and began unlocking the front door. However, as he did, his key met no resistance. The door was already unlocked.
"Hey, you're finally home!" Mia called out as he entered.
He walked over and kissed her. "I know. Sorry. Investigations always take so long, and I still have some papers to review for tomorrow morning."
Mia held up some highlighted pages. "I got a lot of it done for you already."
He smiled. "Thanks, you're the best."
"I know," she said cheekily. "Maybe I should have come with you though. We could have investigated and reviewed the papers together."
"If you're up for that, I won't say no. You know the file though. It's a murder case."
"Yeah…" Mia responded, her voice trailing.
Thinking of Terry Fawles, Mia wasn't sure if she'd ever be ready to go back to court or start investigating bloody crime scenes. For the time being, she was still working on criminal trial support for Diego, contracts, and doc review.
"You don't have to rush it," he said, and Mia nodded back. Diego cleared his throat and pointed to the entrance. "The door wasn't locked."
Mia resumed looking at her page, highlighting. "Oh, it wasn't? I guess I forgot."
"Well, try not to, okay?"
Mia snorted. "Okay, dad," she said sarcastically.
Diego sighed. "Okay, never call me that. You can call me 'daddy,' but not dad."
"Ugh, don't take my insult and make it weird."
"Then, don't call me that."
"Then, don't lecture me. If anyone tried to steal your TV or espresso machine while you were out, I would have shooed them away."
"That's not what I'm worried about."
She stopped what she was doing and looked up at him, incredulous. "You think someone would have kidnapped me from the eighth floor of your secure apartment building?"
He shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe it'd be an inside job. The point is, it takes two seconds, and it gives me peace of mind."
"You act like I'm doing it on purpose. I always remember at the end of the night or if I take a shower or something."
"Point stands. I don't want a repeat of our first date."
Mia tutted. "I had that guy handled. Before you got there, I was just about to kick him in the crotch. And if he tried anything else, I have all my martial arts training from the Village."
"Or, you could have let me walk you home like I offered."
"Even if you had, that still would have happened," Mia countered.
"We'll just have to agree to disagree on this one."
There was a silence as neither was prepared to concede. Mia wasn't even sure if she believed her own arguments, but she wanted to believe them. Living in Kurain, she had always been powerful and fiercely independent and carried those feelings with her when she left. She didn't like thinking that she'd need to rely on anyone but herself for support.
"Don't be grouchy," Mia finally said. "I got you a gift."
He smiled slightly. "Really? What is it?"
"You'll see. Sit down and close your eyes."
Mia moved her papers off the couch, and Diego sat down, eyes closed, as instructed. "Well, now I'm excited," Diego joked.
Mia scoffed. "You have such a one-track mind. It's not a lap dance, sorry."
"Damn. I don't know if I want it then."
"Hush." Mia found the gift, sat down, and handed it to him. "Okay, you can look."
Diego opened his eyes and saw a framed picture of the two of them from last week's hike in his hands. He chuckled. "You got it framed?"
"I did. I would have sent you all the photos, but I knew you'd pick the most embarrassing shot of me."
"I wouldn't do that. How can I brag to my clients about my hot girlfriend if I pick the worst photo of you to keep on my desk?" Mia sneered, but he ignored it and kissed her. "I think you just wanted to mark your territory," he teased.
"Never." Mia grabbed the frame and placed it on the coffee table before straddling him and hooking her arms around his neck. Not a lap dance, but close enough. She kissed him again. "I don't need to do that. Clearly, everyone knows that I'm the alpha in our relationship," she teased back.
He didn't respond to that remark. Technically, she was right, but he'd never admit it. Earlier argument notwithstanding, if Mia told Diego to jump, he'd ask how high. He was completely smitten.
"Thanks for my present," he replied. "I love you."
"What?" Mia asked, wide-eyed.
"Uh… I love it. The photo."
"You love me?" Mia got off his lap and sat down next to him.
Diego scratched his head, embarrassed for once. "Ah, shit. That kind of just slipped out."
"So, you meant it, but you didn't mean to say it?"
"Yeah, I guess." He exhaled. "I was sort of hoping you would say it first."
"Oh," Mia reacted. These words had clearly been weighing on him, but she hadn't even thought about them at all. She just sat there, thinking, processing.
After an agonizing number of seconds where Mia said nothing, Diego broke the silence. "Look, if you don't want to say it, that's fine." It wasn't actually fine, but he could pretend like it was. "I'm not going to force you."
This was another surprise for her. While Mia was simply thinking, he was waiting for her to say it back. She knew she should. She obviously felt that way, right? They saw each other all the time: before, during, and after work. She basically lived at his apartment. That wasn't just his doing either. She liked seeing him as much as possible and she missed him when he wasn't around. Why, then, was it so hard for her to say?
She saw him looking expectantly at her and realized that she had to say something. So, she said it too. "No, it's okay. I love you too."
"Really? All your pausing says differently."
"No, I'm sorry. I was just surprised. I wasn't expecting it. I do."
Diego looked at her face, scanning. Mia smiled shyly back. Gently, he tilted her chin up for one more kiss. "Okay, then." He grinned. "I love you."
"You too." They were just words; Mia thought. And, if she said it back to him enough times, she would eventually mean it.