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lady_mabthis is also from susie!!! love these future gfs!!!
Adaire wouldn't go as far as to say she is stewing, but she is definitely indefinably frustrated.
The feeling only increases when Adelaide passes, seemingly without noticing--only then to have the absolute gall to back up and come to a stop in front of the bench where Adaire sits, not stewing.
"Something troubling you, Adaire?" she asks, voice light and carefree, and that just makes it worse.
So she does the sensible thing. "No."
"It's no use lying to a god."
"I don't see what those two things have to do with one another."
Adelaide sighs and drops onto the seat alongside Adaire without asking. She fusses with her collar, her bracelets, her necklace--one that she bought from Ducarte's, one that Adaire remembers Hella selling her.
She does the next sensible thing. "What do you want, Adelaide?"
"Well, you see, I was on my way to visit Hella--" and when she says this, something twists in Adaire's stomach that she doesn't want to consider-- "when I saw you sitting here, so I thought I would come and keep you company."
"You don't have to do that."
"I don't," Adelaide agrees.
Adaire waits for the follow up, and when there is none, she presses, "So why are you?"
Adelaide doesn't respond right away. She seems distracted, digging through her purse, and Adaire wonders if she even heard the question. But then Adelaide produces an apple, a perfectly shaped and polished fruit that leaves Adaire's mouth watering just looking at it. "Let us both be honest: Your mood is one that you think means that you want everyone to leave you alone, but really means that you wish for someone to commiserate with you." She hands the apple over to Adaire.
The problem is that Adelaide is right, but Adaire isn't about to actually say that she is. The silence is confirmation enough, and that's about all that she can tolerate.
"And let us also both agree on that anyone else would not want to bother you because it is a shallow sort of paradise that my dear Samothes has created, and Hella is too dense to really understand." Her fingers are cool and precise as she takes Adaire's wrist--lifting her hand to press the apple into her palm.
Adaire's fingers close around the fruit on instinct, a little proud of herself for not swiping it from Adelaide's grip more out of spite than anything. "I hate that you're right."
"It'll get easier with time," Adelaide says and it takes a moment before Adaire realizes what the implication of that is.
She ignores it anyway.
Adelaide produces another apple and takes a bite out of it, settling back onto the bench--seemingly oblivious to Adaire's discomfort at her proximity.
But two can play at that game, Adaire decides, and she settles back as well and takes a bite from her own apple.
It's delicious, and that just makes her more frustrated.
They eat their apples in silence. Adelaide finishes hers first, as Adaire is somewhere between savoring hers and ruminating over what this whole exchange could possibly mean in the grand scheme of things.
Instead of getting up and heading on with her day, though, Adelaide remains where she is--relaxing after tossing the apple core into the conveniently placed rubbish bin right alongside their bench. "There's no seasons here, are there?" she asks suddenly.
Adaire lifts an eyebrow. "No."
"It's hard to feel any sort of joy of celebration like that."
She wonders what brought this on, but doesn't feel like prying. "At least we haven't seen a parade from Samothes in his own honor."
Amazingly enough, this gets Adelaide to laugh in delight. "No, at least we haven't had to suffer one of those."
There's a beat, and Adaire sighs, knowing she should at least put in the effort since Adelaide is honestly doing the same. "You speak like you have an idea."
"Oh, I'm so glad you asked," Adelaide says, even though it wasn't really a question. But she turns to Adaire, fluttering her eyelashes in a way that would probably make Hella lose her train of thought, but just makes Adaire purse her lips in a frown. "I think we should come up with some sort of holiday."
Adaire considers this. "What would even be worth celebrating?"
"Well, birthdays typically are. Arrival days, perhaps?"
It's hard to keep track of time in here, and Adaire can't honestly say she knows to the day the 'anniversary' of their arrival. "We were just making fun of Samothes throwing a parade in his honor, and now you're suggesting we should have a party for our arrival?"
Adelaide laughs again. "Oh, no, of course not. Come now, you're a smart business woman. Do you not think that holidays are an excellent way to drive business?"
Adaire opens her mouth, then snaps it shut and takes a stubborn bite of her apple. She knows this, of course, but it never seemed like a logical step to press for Ducarte's due to the nature of their location.
But perhaps that was only the ease of the day to day, the complications only arising when she makes them out of her own power.
Adelaide's idea is a decent one, a complicated one that would involve several steps to enact, and might only reap the benefits a year from now.
Good thing she is never one to back down from a challenge, especially one she knows she has the skills for. "Alright then, I'm listening…"
Adelaide gives a smile, and there is something a little wickedly sharp about it that Adaire appreciates. "
Adaire wouldn't go as far as to say she is stewing, but she is definitely indefinably frustrated.
The feeling only increases when Adelaide passes, seemingly without noticing--only then to have the absolute gall to back up and come to a stop in front of the bench where Adaire sits, not stewing.
"Something troubling you, Adaire?" she asks, voice light and carefree, and that just makes it worse.
So she does the sensible thing. "No."
"It's no use lying to a god."
"I don't see what those two things have to do with one another."
Adelaide sighs and drops onto the seat alongside Adaire without asking. She fusses with her collar, her bracelets, her necklace--one that she bought from Ducarte's, one that Adaire remembers Hella selling her.
She does the next sensible thing. "What do you want, Adelaide?"
"Well, you see, I was on my way to visit Hella--" and when she says this, something twists in Adaire's stomach that she doesn't want to consider-- "when I saw you sitting here, so I thought I would come and keep you company."
"You don't have to do that."
"I don't," Adelaide agrees.
Adaire waits for the follow up, and when there is none, she presses, "So why are you?"
Adelaide doesn't respond right away. She seems distracted, digging through her purse, and Adaire wonders if she even heard the question. But then Adelaide produces an apple, a perfectly shaped and polished fruit that leaves Adaire's mouth watering just looking at it. "Let us both be honest: Your mood is one that you think means that you want everyone to leave you alone, but really means that you wish for someone to commiserate with you." She hands the apple over to Adaire.
The problem is that Adelaide is right, but Adaire isn't about to actually say that she is. The silence is confirmation enough, and that's about all that she can tolerate.
"And let us also both agree on that anyone else would not want to bother you because it is a shallow sort of paradise that my dear Samothes has created, and Hella is too dense to really understand." Her fingers are cool and precise as she takes Adaire's wrist--lifting her hand to press the apple into her palm.
Adaire's fingers close around the fruit on instinct, a little proud of herself for not swiping it from Adelaide's grip more out of spite than anything. "I hate that you're right."
"It'll get easier with time," Adelaide says and it takes a moment before Adaire realizes what the implication of that is.
She ignores it anyway.
Adelaide produces another apple and takes a bite out of it, settling back onto the bench--seemingly oblivious to Adaire's discomfort at her proximity.
But two can play at that game, Adaire decides, and she settles back as well and takes a bite from her own apple.
It's delicious, and that just makes her more frustrated.
They eat their apples in silence. Adelaide finishes hers first, as Adaire is somewhere between savoring hers and ruminating over what this whole exchange could possibly mean in the grand scheme of things.
Instead of getting up and heading on with her day, though, Adelaide remains where she is--relaxing after tossing the apple core into the conveniently placed rubbish bin right alongside their bench. "There's no seasons here, are there?" she asks suddenly.
Adaire lifts an eyebrow. "No."
"It's hard to feel any sort of joy of celebration like that."
She wonders what brought this on, but doesn't feel like prying. "At least we haven't seen a parade from Samothes in his own honor."
Amazingly enough, this gets Adelaide to laugh in delight. "No, at least we haven't had to suffer one of those."
There's a beat, and Adaire sighs, knowing she should at least put in the effort since Adelaide is honestly doing the same. "You speak like you have an idea."
"Oh, I'm so glad you asked," Adelaide says, even though it wasn't really a question. But she turns to Adaire, fluttering her eyelashes in a way that would probably make Hella lose her train of thought, but just makes Adaire purse her lips in a frown. "I think we should come up with some sort of holiday."
Adaire considers this. "What would even be worth celebrating?"
"Well, birthdays typically are. Arrival days, perhaps?"
It's hard to keep track of time in here, and Adaire can't honestly say she knows to the day the 'anniversary' of their arrival. "We were just making fun of Samothes throwing a parade in his honor, and now you're suggesting we should have a party for our arrival?"
Adelaide laughs again. "Oh, no, of course not. Come now, you're a smart business woman. Do you not think that holidays are an excellent way to drive business?"
Adaire opens her mouth, then snaps it shut and takes a stubborn bite of her apple. She knows this, of course, but it never seemed like a logical step to press for Ducarte's due to the nature of their location.
But perhaps that was only the ease of the day to day, the complications only arising when she makes them out of her own power.
Adelaide's idea is a decent one, a complicated one that would involve several steps to enact, and might only reap the benefits a year from now.
Good thing she is never one to back down from a challenge, especially one she knows she has the skills for. "Alright then, I'm listening…"
Adelaide gives a smile, and there is something a little wickedly sharp about it that Adaire appreciates. "
