Room 324, Tuesday Afternoon

[vanillajello]

Kate was having a random day of wanting to do useful stuff for once.

... Well, useful by her standards, since she'd started out by painting her nails with dark blue polish. And then she'd had to spend a good long while waiting for it to dry while reading some trashy gossip site online. That was kind of like keeping up with current events, right? Totally useful.

But by now, she'd actually progressed to sorting her laundry while some music played in the background. The mix cd he'd made for Bod way back for his birthday last fall, in fact.

Maybe it was a day to be productive and a bit mushy. And humming along.

[ooc: Door/post is open for any and all visitors, but Bod's thread is chronologically last!]

Comments

[therewaslife]

Eventually, Bod couldn't keep looking at the letter from Silas any longer. He'd shoved it inside his desk and made his way downstairs. The sounds of music drew him closer to Kate's room until he was in the doorway, leaning against the frame and smiling at her.

[vanillajello]

One of these days Kate would get to be a little more observant about people showing up at her door. Alas, today she was all wrapped up in laundry sorting, and singing along to the music.

"-- released to the wild, with no one to tame, you need a shape for your -- oh, hi Bod."

She laughed, a bit embarrassed, as she noticed him there.

[therewaslife]

"Hullo," he said, very amused now. "Are you not going to continue singing? It sounded quite nice."

[vanillajello]

Kate snorted, and made her way over to him, to reach for his hands and tug him into the room. "They've been knocking at your door, lay down beside me..."

[therewaslife]

"This is like my own private concert," Bod replied, following her into the room and laughing. This was doing wonders to get his mind off the letter too. He kept smiling at her and squeezed her hands.

[vanillajello]

Too bad the song was just ending. "Lay down beside me, lay down beside me." But there'd be another one in just a moment. And right now? She was going to steal a kiss.

She wasn't performing for free, after all.

[therewaslife]

It wasn't stealing if he was willing to give it to her, was it? Bod returned that kiss, laughing into it and held her hands as he did. He wasn't planning on singing or dancing or anything but he did like listening to her acting like that.

[vanillajello]

And he'd get to listen for a moment longer. Barely stopping kissing him, Kate murmured the words almost against his lips. Faris Badwan was a different sort of vocalist from... whichever one of the Ladytron chicks had sung that last one; it didn't really call for singing, as such. "She's a special girl you know, the kind I'd hope to see, hanging on a wall, watching me cross the street."

It was... actually a song she'd kind of identified with, at one point in her life. A little weird to think about, now. She swayed her hips a bit to the beat in the instrumental part, anyway, nipping at his lip until the words started again.

"And I wonder how long it will be before I'm sick of her, and I no longer care where she goes or has been, because she's the new thing, she's the new thing, she is the new thing, she's the new thing."

[therewaslife]

Bod found himself wanting to answer the song but stopped himself when he realized that, yes, it was a song. Instead, he just kept smiling and put a hand on her hip, letting her move for the both of them since he was just gonna stand there and kiss her and smile and breathe in how good she smelled today.

[vanillajello]

"Once, she had me on my knees, enamoured with disease; now she fails to impress, a different sickness, a different kind of sickness, lacking any interest." No, seriously. She'd identified herself to both sides of the song like whoa. "And I, sunk in apathy, totally absorbed in me, sitting vacant on my own, my senses lying prone; she was the new thing, she was the new thing, she was the new thing, another new thing! Staring at her, alterior girl, I cast myself into whatever she brings..."

She rested her forehead against his, closing her eyes, reciting the last bits quitely enough that no one else could've heard them but him right now, because he was close enough.

"With sickness, it ends how it begins: First mine then hers, and then the cycle blurs as my actions reoccur through no fault of my own, through no fault of my own, through no fault of my own; I am the new thing, I am the new thing, I am a new..."

She chuckled as the song ended, went to rest her head against his shoulder. "I'm not doing the next one."

[therewaslife]

"That's all right," he murmured, wrapping his arm loosely around her and swaying them to the continued music even if she wasn't going to sing. "That was excellent. You're lovely."

[vanillajello]

"That was random," she snickered quietly, sliding her arms around his shoulders. "But thank you."

[therewaslife]

"You're welcome," he said and smiled at her. "You're having a good day, I take it?"

[vanillajello]

"Well, I've definitely had worse," Kate quipped. "I don't know. It just seems to be a good day."

[therewaslife]

"Good," he said and brushed his hands across her cheeks and back through her hair. "Good days are good. There should definitely be more of those for you."

[vanillajello]

"Not just me," she corrected, smiling at him. "You, too. And everyone, but I only really care about myself and you."

[therewaslife]

"My day's been good too," he said, deciding not to bring up his letter and spoil this. He'd think on that later. "I've done little and it's been nice to just relax. I think you've been more productive than myself."

[vanillajello]

"I painted my nails!" Priorities: she had them. "Oh, and I was sorting my laundry just now."

[therewaslife]

"You're being very productive," Bod replied, laughing. "I read through mail and ate breakfast so I do think you have me beat in the productivity department. Keep smiling. I like it."

[vanillajello]

"Well, I can't keep smiling on command," Kate pointed out, laughing. "You need to keep giving me reason to smile."

[therewaslife]

Bod leaned in and kissed her again, hoping that brought out another smile or two from her. "Reasons like that?"

[vanillajello]

"Exactly like that," Kate murmured, snagging a kiss of her own. Happily. "See? Totally smiling."

[therewaslife]

"Yes, you are," he said and laughed quietly. "It's a good smile. I just really enjoy seeing it when it's there."

[vanillajello]

"What, you don't like it when I'm all... depressed and crying and stuff?" she teased with a snicker. "I'm shocked."

[therewaslife]

"No, I don't like that at all," Bod said, shaking his head. "I prefer this look on you where you're happy and at peace with the world and enjoying your day."

[vanillajello]

"'At peace with the world'," Kate repeated, amused. "How... grand."

[therewaslife]

"I know it sounds trite but it seems to fit," Bod said sheepishly. "Sorry."

[vanillajello]

"Don't apologize," Kate murmured, and kissed him again. "It doesn't sound trite. I was just surprised you think that fits."

[therewaslife]

"It fits more today than it has recently," Bod clarified, mumbling the words against her lips. "You just seem at peace. You seem lighter."

[vanillajello]

"Mm, I feel lighter too," she admitted. "A bit."

And she was going to be feeling much, much lighter physically soon enough. But not quite yet.

[therewaslife]

"Good," he said and kissed her again, lightly but lingering. "Did you want me to help you sort your laundry?"

[vanillajello]

"I don't know," she said, smiling again as she pulled away from him. "Can you separate the whites from the color stuff?"

Not that she had a whole lot of white clothes.

[therewaslife]

"I think even I can manage that," Bod said, nodding. "So yes, I can separate the whites from the colors like a professional."

[vanillajello]

"Like a pro," Kate snickered, as she turned towards the bed where her piles of clothes were.

And then suddenly, she could no longer see the clothes. In fact, she was having to look up at the bed. Because she was small, and fluffy, and in possession of four paws and a tail.

//...Fandom, you suck.//

[therewaslife]

Bod's eyes widened and he couldn't help the surprised laugh that slipped out. "Oh dear. You're a cat again, Kate."

[vanillajello]

Kate turned around and hopped her way back to him, then meowed pitifully up at him.

//It's not funny, Bod.//

[therewaslife]

"Oh, don't do that," Bod said, reaching down to scoop her up and smile. "It's not so bad. You've done this before. It'll be all right."

[vanillajello]

She pawed at his chest (without the claws, thankfully) once he'd picked her up.

//But this is the first week in like two months that I was actually kinda looking forward to going to work tomorrow!//

And she was a chatty cat.

[therewaslife]

"It's all right," he said and stroked her head and ears. "You know this will wear off eventually and you'll be fine. You're fine. I'll be sure to watch out for you too."

[vanillajello]

//But I can't do shit on my own!// Whine, whine, whine. //Ugh, I'll just sleep for like a week, I guess.//

And occasionally chase her own tail. Sometimes she confused herself for a dog.

[therewaslife]

"You'll be fine," he soothed, kissing the top of her head. "Come on, let me take you up to my room and you can get settled on my bed. I know you like it there."

[vanillajello]

Sigh. //Guess so,// she meowed, settling in his arms. //Take me up to your comfy bed, human.//

[therewaslife]

Bod would have laughed if he could spoke cat but since he didn't, he just carried her out of her room so they could go up to his and she could take over.

She was good at that as both a cat and a human.