( he knows the response that comes after the first sample of wine is a playful one, but there's something that pangs within him regardless. jake doesn't do this sort of thing, never really been great at the whole dating scene, letting himself close to a woman when it meant sooner or later having to learn how to pull away. even before the outbreak, before the countless lives he hadn't been able to save, it always just seemed... better, to keep everyone at arms length.
and maybe it stings, watching the shift in a woman's gaze when he mentions he's an officer, when the assumption of protection soothes over them like a warm, lilac-scented bath. he couldn't protect everyone. he couldn't keep anyone safe. those kind of promises didn't belong here in the waking world, but god, if looking at her doesn't make him want to vanquish those rules. )
Never had the heart to tell him I'm not a wine sort of guy.
( a shrug, his own smile still beaming, uncharacteristically wide and seemingly eager to remain in place as he settles down beside her where she's perched on the floor, slipped out of her heels and let the tendrils of fire work to lick a warmth up along her legs. a light clink, and he's settling the brim of the glass against his own lips, taking back a small sip of the bitter-sweet liquid. )
Thank you for coming. ( a gentle counter, losing his sights momentarily in the rhythmic curls of the flames in the bricked fire place before he's searching for her again, noting the speckles of white that slowly, slowly begin to melt into bold lashes, the way that lipstick never fails to remain just as vibrant as the first moment he'd seen her. unoccupied fingers itch to find a lithe trail along her cheek, but he refrains; consent seemed to ring with all the more severity going through the academy.
instead his grin falls a little crooked, eyes falling to his lap where he cradles his glass, resting his back against the coffee table perched before the fire. )
I wasn't sure you would. Ah—... bar isn't the best place to meet a guy. So the story goes.
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jake is shy, my boy is SHY
and maybe it stings, watching the shift in a woman's gaze when he mentions he's an officer, when the assumption of protection soothes over them like a warm, lilac-scented bath. he couldn't protect everyone. he couldn't keep anyone safe. those kind of promises didn't belong here in the waking world, but god, if looking at her doesn't make him want to vanquish those rules. )
Never had the heart to tell him I'm not a wine sort of guy.
( a shrug, his own smile still beaming, uncharacteristically wide and seemingly eager to remain in place as he settles down beside her where she's perched on the floor, slipped out of her heels and let the tendrils of fire work to lick a warmth up along her legs. a light clink, and he's settling the brim of the glass against his own lips, taking back a small sip of the bitter-sweet liquid. )
Thank you for coming. ( a gentle counter, losing his sights momentarily in the rhythmic curls of the flames in the bricked fire place before he's searching for her again, noting the speckles of white that slowly, slowly begin to melt into bold lashes, the way that lipstick never fails to remain just as vibrant as the first moment he'd seen her. unoccupied fingers itch to find a lithe trail along her cheek, but he refrains; consent seemed to ring with all the more severity going through the academy.
instead his grin falls a little crooked, eyes falling to his lap where he cradles his glass, resting his back against the coffee table perched before the fire. )
I wasn't sure you would. Ah—... bar isn't the best place to meet a guy. So the story goes.