Gleaming Onyx, Tarnished Lead

[Lesingnon]

"I was, ah, just joking with the Spring stuff. You know, try to put you a bit more at ease. Apparently I was really successful with it." About as successful as one would expect from an Elemental.

Then she finally looked back at him and, "Ah...there's the blush."

And then she...kept looking at him. So he found herself gazing back into her violets, as time started to stretch on. He'd, uh, never stared into her eyes like that. And he was pretty sure she'd never looked at him like this. Her words registered, but suddenly she wasn't the only one that was unsure. He didn't know what to say. And or one of the very few times inn Rick's life that uncertainty showed.

Though one thing he was suddenly very aware of was hat he was holding her. Well, more or less, at least. Aware of how close they were standing, the way her hair moved in the breeze, the glow that emanated from her skin.

"So...umm, see? Looking at me, doesn't seem to be all that hard. It's like we could do this all day, or something." His hands fluttered a bit, against her shoulders, as he spoke. But ultimately stayed where they were, as if he wasn't sure what to do with them.

[Lesingnon]

He heard her speak. But it almost seemed distant, somehow. Less important, in the moment.

He wasn't sure he'd ever seen her blush quite his much, or glow so brightly. He'd certainly never seen her lean in towards him like that. And he could almost feel his heart pound in his chest as she did.

For a few moments, as she leaned in towards him, he froze. This...this was so complicated, for so many reasons. It could, would, change so much. And a part of him worried about that.

But as he'd gotten to know her better over the years he'd found he enjoyed spending time with her more and more. He'd just never seen her in this light, it had never occurred to him to look at her in this light, until just now.

"Sasha..."

And she really was beautiful.

His hands slid down from her shoulders to her back as his arms wrapped around her. He took one step forward as she leaned in...and his lips met hers.

[Lesingnon]

It was different, kissing her. She was taller. He hadn't though it would be that noticeable. Or that that thought would pop into his head. But it did.

He felt the gasp, felt her stiffen in surprise. It sent a shiver of worry through him. Had he managed to misread her. It...wouldn't be the first time he'd completely misread someone since getting back from Arcadia. Maybe the most disastrously awkward, probably the most disastrously awkward...but not the first.

Then she relaxed into him, kissed him back, and that particular worry vanished. He wasn't sure how long they stayed like that Just aware of the press of her lips, the pressure of her body against his, the pounding in their chests.

Then it was over as she leaned back away from the kiss. But though that may have ended he tumult of swirling emotions and confusion that this entire situation raised certainly hadn't. For her or him, it seemed. Her eyes were glued to the ground again. She couldn't seem to figure out what to say. Which...certainly didn't make it any easier for him to figure out what to say. But at least it sounded like she'd enjoyed it.

Then she froze up again. And it seemed almost less like he was holding her, more like he was holding her up. And concern knifed cleanly through his storm of emotions to take the fore, for now at least. "Sasha...Sasha? Hey, come on...talk to me, are you okay?"

[Lesingnon]

"Oh, you didn't?" It was Rick's turn to look a little sheepish. "When I, uh, saw you leaning towards me I thought that was what you were going for." The corners of his lips quirked up in a slight smile, mirroring her own. As the sight of Sasha's smile certainly alleviated that rush of concern he'd felt. "You seemed to enjoy it, though."

He lapses into a bit of silence after that, listening to what she has to say as his hands subconsciously rub up and down her back. He could certainly sympathize with what she was saying there. It was...so very complicated. It involved things he hadn't realized, couldn't know...it had him about as off-balance as he could ever remember being. Whichever choices were made here, Rick realized, would ripple in ways that neither of them could fully forsee. It was terrifying in some ways, exciting in others. "Well I can hardly claim to be an expert at it. I mean...for a second there I thought I gave you a panic attack."

"Truth is that right here, this...I don't think anyone ever knows what to make of things here, at a beginning." He certainly didn't. And he was gazing into her eyes again, he realized. Watching the emotions dance and swirl in those violets. "I think, that all anyone can do, is take their best guess...and run with it."

[Lesingnon]

She had seemed to be more than just a little flustered...but it was probably better to keep that thought to himself. So he moved on to the the rest of what she'd said.

I meant run with...the best guess, you know? Because, I mean, this kind of thing...I'm not sure anyone ever really knows what to make of this kind of thing. Uncertainty is just...a part of it."

Her second question though, that one surprised him. Not because the direction of it was unexpected. But rather because she'd even felt she had to ask. "Sasha...we're motley mates. There are very few people I've ever met who are as close to me as you are. This, specifically, wasn't something I saw coming." He tightened his arms slightly; giving her a gentle, reassuring squeeze. Then brought one hand up to cup her cheek as he smiled softly. "But I've cared about you as more than just a friend for a while."