She was not sure what made her look up at that instant. Until then she had been sauntering along the beach, unrestrained and unknown, really, aside from the haunting of the gulls, and the slight awkwardness to her gait, as the boots cut into the sand, making her "walk wobble plonk", in little indents, as she plodded along.
She did, now, though, stopping dead in her tracks.
He was standing about twenty feet away, hands jammed deep into his jacket, a wild flush high on his cheeks; the hair flopped about his head in an impossible shock of newly clipped and failed decorum.
"You're late", he growled at her, from somewhere very strange, deep within his chest cavity.
"I can't possibly be late; we haven't actually met yet", she shot back, setting her lips, and narrowing her eyes at him. She cocked her head to one side, giving him her twinkly cheeky look. When in doubt, go for the injured supervisor look. Supervisor of someone else, obviously, she thought resolutely.
"Besides; you're much too nasty." She stood there, trying to decide if she might have to drop kick him.
"You look like a mad elf", he said, relenting. She looked like a human cactus. He was suddenly unsure of himself for the first time in his life. This was definitely NOT the reaction he had expected.
"I am a mad elf", she said, simply. "It was very rude to sub in a dwarf, you know." He coughed, trying not to laugh. "Look at you!" she trilled, sarcastically. She didn't hold out her arms.
"Come here,' he said, quietly, with exasperation.
"I'm not a dog", she said, sticking out her chin and glaring at him. And then, "You're quite cheeky for such a large, slightly bossy man. It's not very attractive".
He could see she had absolutely no fear of him at all, and blew out his breath, exasperatedly.
"Especially since I made a point of shocking you back to yourself, after you were done acting like a total asshole."
She jammed her hands into her jacket pockets, her cropped head
poking out of her turtleneck and canvas coat with a windswept defiance. "Mr. Snarky."
He did laugh, then, standing there, twenty feet away from her, feet planted in the sand, on a freezing Saturday afternoon of a New England beach - facing off against each other, really, both of them with their hands jammed into their pockets, like two very strange Marines.
"We're quite far away from each other, still", she blurted out, unnecessarily. "It's slightly awkward."
He was coughing, and trying to breathe. He wiped his eyes with one of his hands, and jammed it back into his pocket. "Shit", he said, hating his own guts and then feeling ridiculous, since he really wasn't, he decided objectively, an asshole at all.
"Also" she continued, "then you CALLED me, like a DOG. You're a rather odd man, aren't you, as far as first meetings go.....?" He was quite perplexed as to what to say next. "In this part of the planet human beings do not salivate and come running up to be led about with a leash. Got it?"
"Not until now", he blurted out, exasperated with his own reply. His face went beet red.
"I have that effect sometimes; sorry", she said, cocking her head to the other side, and staring at him, relenting slightly. "I took assertiveness training. You look cold."
"I hadn't really planned on a walk on a freezing beach, pre-tornado", he said, drily.
"It's rather nice, isn't it?', she sighed, cheerily. "Invigorating." Her hair was stuck to her head, like a sort of flat brillo pad of wet growth. "I think my hair is stuck to my head", she said, describing what he was looking at, matter-of-factly.
She jammed her hands into her jacket pockets, her cropped head
poking out of her turtleneck and canvas coat with a windswept defiance. "Mr. Snarky."
He did laugh, then, standing there, twenty feet away from her, feet planted in the sand, on a freezing Saturday afternoon of a New England beach - facing off against each other, really, both of them with their hands jammed into their pockets, like two very strange Marines.
"We're quite far away from each other, still", she blurted out, unnecessarily. "It's slightly awkward."
He was coughing, and trying to breathe. He wiped his eyes with one of his hands, and jammed it back into his pocket. "Shit", he said, hating his own guts and then feeling ridiculous, since he really wasn't, he decided objectively, an asshole at all.
"Also" she continued, "then you CALLED me, like a DOG. You're a rather odd man, aren't you, as far as first meetings go.....?" He was quite perplexed as to what to say next. "In this part of the planet human beings do not salivate and come running up to be led about with a leash. Got it?"
"Not until now", he blurted out, exasperated with his own reply. His face went beet red.
"I have that effect sometimes; sorry", she said, cocking her head to the other side, and staring at him, relenting slightly. "I took assertiveness training. You look cold."
"I hadn't really planned on a walk on a freezing beach, pre-tornado", he said, drily.
"It's rather nice, isn't it?', she sighed, cheerily. "Invigorating." Her hair was stuck to her head, like a sort of flat brillo pad of wet growth. "I think my hair is stuck to my head", she said, describing what he was looking at, matter-of-factly.
"I was thinking it needed a towel," he said, quietly. He closed his eyes, sucking in his breath forlornly, realizing the continued, unfortunate, dog reference.
She sighed. He walked towards her, slowly.
"You're shorter than I thought", he said, stopping two feet away. She looked up at him, hands still jammed into her pockets. She could probably take him out at the knees without too much trouble.
"You look very aggravated. Are you annoyed with me?" She said the last part very softly. She hadn't moved an inch. It was worrying, he decided, that she sounded so hopeful.
"No", he said. "Yes", he said. He put his hands around her face, stepping towards her, and moved his hand around her back, pulling her gently against him, as her hands came out of her pockets, and up and around his neck.
"You have to decide which one", she said, against his mouth, finally, and staring into his face, sternly.
He kissed her then.
