vanillajello | Overland Park, KS, Monday Afternoon

Saturday had seen a very weird trip to the mall, and as a consequence, Sunday had been pretty quiet. Tara had woken up as herself again, and everything was a little awkward. It wasn’t as if Tara’s condition was a big family secret, but it was out now, and it affected the mood in the house. Everyone tried to do their own thing, and conversations revolved around trivial stuff. Kate’s family, in an effort to make light conversation, asked questions about life in Fandom and where Leto was from. They didn’t know how much editing went into answering them.

And today the house was empty apart from Kate and Leto. Max had gone to work, Tara had gone somewhere with Charmaine, and Marshall had gone to visit his best friend. It seemed like they were all maybe slightly running away, glad to put the weekend behind them.

Kate was holed up in her room for the moment. She had taken a shower, and after getting dressed and blowdrying her hair, she rummaged around her desk drawer until she found a lighter and a near-empty packet of cigarettes. She took one, and after opening her door a little to signal it was okay to come in, she went to smoke the cigarette by the open window.

[For the boy. NFB due to distance.]

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"I'm Kate's Aunt Charmaine," she said, introducing herself. "I'm the normal one in the family."

She gave Kate an apologetic smile. "I'll just... go see what Tara's doing in the kitchen. Catch you guys later!"

Which would be when Tara came up the stairs and stood behind Charmaine. "Kate. Leto. What are you guys up to?"

Kate was blushing, and bit her tongue to not say something about Charmaine's normalcy.

"Nothing, Mom," she said, shooting Leto a quick glance. "Just hanging out."

"It's an honour to meet you, Charmaine," Leto replied, inclining his head slightly. He wasn't sure how she wanted to be addressed, so he compensated by being a little more formal.

He returned Kate's glance and smirked a little.

"Why don't you guys come down and join us in the kitchen for a snack," Tara said, her tone indicating that it was more of an order than a suggestion.

"Geez, Tara, they don't wanna hang out with old folks like you," Charmaine said. "Leave them be."

Kate gave Leto an exasperated look, but smiled at her mother and her aunt.

"No, it's fine, I'm kinda hungry anyway. The kitchen's good, right Leto?"

"I have no objection to that," Leto said diplomatically.

"Great, we'll see you down there," Charmaine said, pushing Tara way from Kate's door and to the top of the stairs.

Kate took a moment before following them downstairs.

She turned to Leto and laughed, even though she was still filled with a mix of emotions, not all of them positive. "See? See? I told you they have a sixth sense!"

"It might just be a coincidence," Leto told her, laughing too, then nudged Kate's arm lightly as he followed her.

"Sorry, I didn't have time to bake anything," Tara said as they entered the kitchen. "But there's store bought cookies and I can make some hot chocolate."

Charmaine rolled her eyes. "Gee, how wholesome, Tara."

"We ate a wholesome breakfast," Kate told Charmaine with a grin. "And we're going back to school cafeteria food in two days. We deserve cookies and hot chocolate."

Because there wasn't any of either those in the dorms. Ever. Nuh uh.

"I have never had hot chocolate before coming here," Leto said, thinking this was probably a safe topic of conversation. "My people serve coffee or tea."

"Where exactly is it that you're from?" Charmaine asked, leaning on the counter and watching Tara pour the milk into a saucepan to heat it up. "I have never seen anyone with eyes as blue as yours."

Kate took a seat by the table and helped herself to a cookie. Leto had done fine with the questions before, and she saw no reason this time would be any different.

"My family is originally from Greece," he replied, smiling. "And I like coloured contacts. Do you live nearby?"

"Greece, huh? I've always wanted to go there. It seems like it would be a nice vacation spot," Charmaine said. "But, yeah, I live nearby. How could I ever leave good old Overland Park?"

Kate smiled at Leto. Good work, there.

"Leaving Overland Park is surprisingly easy," she smirked at her aunt. "All it took for me was a ride to the airport."

"And I'm glad you did, or I would miss your company at Fandom," Leto said, then looked at Charmaine. "But this is a pleasant place."

Charmaine laughed. "Yeah, it's pleasant if you visit for a few days. Try living your entire life here. If I lived in New York, I'd be like one of those girls on ~~meta for~~ Sex in the City."

"You wouldn't miss something you never even knew," Kate told Leto.

And Charmaine got a snort, which wasn't entirely connected to her next comment. "I don't think he knows the show."

"And some people enjoy making fun of compliments," he replied quickly, grinning. "And no, I don't know the show. I don't watch TV often."

"So Greece doesn't have TV or hot chocolate," Charmaine said, raising an eyebrow? Maybe it wouldn't be so fun. They have wine, at least?"

"His family does some things differently," Kate saw fit to remark. "Doesn't mean all of Greece is the same."

"They do have wine." They did! As far as Leto knew. "And I've just spent my time doing other things than watching TV, although Kate has been introducing me to some movies." One movie, to be specific.

"What kind of movies?" Tara asked, moving to the cupboard for the cocoa mix.

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