LOG: Haroun and Alison - Skydiving

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Haroun and Alison go to see Unleashed, then they have dinner together. Plans are Made, and important things discussed.



Haroun grinned as he sipped at his mint tea. "Now that was an excellent movie." he said with a grin, snitching a dab of hummus off of Alison's plate with a stick of celery. Popping the celery into his mouth, he grinned at her. "It was nice to get out for an evening. And how could we go wrong with the Jet?"

Legs stretching out under the table and leaning against Haroun's by habit, Alison took a futile swipe at the hummus stealing celery with a carrot, then grinned and resorted to stealing some from his plate in retaliation. The answering gestures, which could easily be applied to several of the movie's more acrobatic inclined scenes served to show her enthusiasm about the entire thing as well. "Mmm!"

Haroun grinned and escalated the food-stealing war by swiping a hunk of bread and dipping it into the delicious sauce intended for their chicken. "He's actually turning into a real actor. Who'da thunk?" he laughed. "And I don't think you blinked once for the entire flick."

Well, she winced more than once at some of the more violent moments, but it was still Jet Li. "Mmnuh!" Carrot disposed of, what eyed the theft of sauce and pondered how to balance things. "You could see Besson wrote some of that script," she stated, then waved another carrot at him, interrupting another foray for the sauce as though the vegetable were a sword. "Sauce! For chicken! Bread isn't chicken!"

Haroun thbbbbted at her playfully. "Eat all we want, they'll make more." he laughed. He eyed her carrot-sword stance and speculated. Taking up his own carrot, he playfully fenced with her for a second before dissolving into laughs.

Laughter was indeed the only response to that, though Alison did manage to sneak in another theft of the remains of hummus on his plate in the process, wisely waiting until she was somewhat in control of the giggles before cheerfully eating it before he could protest. The waiter dared another run by their table to offer a new plate of hummus and crudités, with the hopeful look of one expecting a disaster at one point or another. "Ooh. Best way to get quick refills. Terrify the locals into thinking you're going to escalate things into a full scale food fight!"

Haroun gasped in mock-terror as she ate the last of his hummus. "You - dirty THIEF!" he scolded, and in retaliation swiped a forkful of couscous from her plate and ate it. He nodded at the waiter and sipped at his tea. "So I understand from a little freshly shackled bird that you're thinking of going away somewhere for a week or so sometime this summer? Given any thought as to where you'd like to go?"

"Ha!" Setting down the fork she'd been preparing to use for a return raid, Alison grinned and leaned forward a bit. "It would be nice, don't you think? And I'm torn. We could go somewhere hot, but we've already done hot. Even if it was a for a few days and we ended up doing all that sneaky stuff and well - it'll be summer here already. So, maybe we could do something else instead…" And snuggling up next to a fireplace after being out in the cold all day had its advantages. Alison grinned a bit sheepishly, since it seemed she had a preference after all.

Haroun shrugged. "I take it this means you want me to come with you?" he asked. "That would be nice. I could use a little time away."

"Well, I was gonna invite Santa Claus but he had too much work in the North Pole." A piece of bread bounced off his forehead. "Of course I want you to go with me." She paused. "And I was thinking of maybe taking Miles to Disneyland and Seaworld at one point this summer too. Be nice to have you there for that too," she added, a bit more softly this time.

"Sea World sounds lovely." he said. "Disneyland - well, on that one I think we're going to have to negotiate." he said calmly, sipping at his tea. "Because it sounds like my idea of Hell Itself. And while I love spending time with you and the Muppet, if you want me to do Disneyland you're going to have to make it worth my time." he said with a grin, to take some of the sting away.

A slow grin answered his and Alison nodded. "I think we can manage that. I'll see about getting programs and all that and we can work things out when the time comes, then. Negotiations and all." She leaned back and stretched out an arm, still a bit stiff from the morning's rather intensive training session, and considered. "Buuut, talking about negotiations. How'd you feel about a ski trip? Rent a chalet up in the mountains near a resort, maybe Val d'Isère..."

"Skiing?" he said, surprised. "I've never been skiing. Not much call for it where I'm from." he admitted. "But I'm not immediately set against the idea. I imagine, you being who you are, that you ski like a dream? Weekends in - what's the name of the city? Vail? Something like that. Anyway. I'd hate to embarrass you with my lack of skill."

"You would not embarrass me." That said, she continue. "Haven't skied in years but it'll come back quickly. That was one of the yearly trips my parents used to take me on, but the touring pretty much meant working on the road all the time," Alison pointed out, "as opposed to having fun." She blinked, then stopped to actually think of the last time she'd taken a real vacation, meant for that purpose alone and nothing else. "Huh. Right, Val d'Isère, or Tignes maybe. They're close enough anyway we could check out both. And they're resorts in the Alps," she added for his benefit. "And actually... I dare say you'd probably take to snowboarding in a scary way." Groaning a bit, she shook her head. "Remember me saying about something about potentially creating a monster, huh?"

Haroun grinned. "Sounds like it could be fun. I'm no fan of the snow, but I imagine that the trip will have its ... compensations." he leered gently. "I keep hearing about this new idea called - snowbunnies?" And as he spoke he put his hands to his head like bunny-ears and waggled them at her sensuously. "Doesn't sound like that bad of a way to spend a few days."

This time, a few bits of bread peppered him, Alison laughing out loud. "You say that, but wait until you try snowboarding once time. Or even plain old regular skiing," she added, amused. The applications of his mutation to the sport left her wondering exactly how long it'd take before he was racing down the slopes. "But there will be a fireplace and a chalet and it'll be just the two of us for a little while. It'll be nice."

Haroun caught the last piece of bread and popped it into his mouth, chewing it slowly. "What, you don't like the notion of having your own personal snowbunny with very warm hands?" he said with a wink. "I'd thought you'd be all over that action." he smirked. "And fine. If we do this - IF - then I want something from you. Grant me my request, and not only will I go skiing in the Alps with you, but I'll go to Disneyland with you and Miles."

"I have you with very warm hands. And you are very much not the helpless snow bunny." The statement  was made firmly. "Hrm." She knew he'd go anyway, as he'd already said so, but he had her curiosity piqued now. "Okay. What did you have in mind?"

"I want you..." he said, reaching across the table to entwine an errant strand of blonde hair around his finger "... to come pop silk with me for a weekend." he finished. "It'll be fun!"

"Pop silk?" The only silk she'd ever had anything with either consisted of clothing or under things. Which Haroun usually very much enjoyed for the little time he left them on her…  A bit bemused she nodded at him in agreement. "Ok. Sure, just let me know when. But you hardly need to ask me for… that…" Another cutely puzzled blink followed.

Haroun grinned widely. "That's fantastic! I'll be gentle, we'll start at something reasonable. Say, twelve thousand feet or so? We can go higher if you'd like - you spend more time suspended that way, just you and God's green Earth." he mused.

"…" Closing her mouth slowly, Alison stared. And tried to digest exactly what he'd just said. "Twelve… thousand… feet?" The last worded ended on a small squeak. "What did I just agree too, darling?" she asked faintly, trying to reconcile herself with the concept of twelve thousand feet and her being up that high. In the sky. Oh boy.

Haroun grinned at Alison. "We're going to go pop silk. I'll even wear a 'chute, although I don't normally bother." he said by way of an explanation. Seeing the still-confused look on her face, he took a deep breath. "Skydiving?"

"Sky…diving?" She'd just agreed to go skydiving. Alison took a slow breath. SKY DIVING? "Parachute. Sky diving." At least she was saying full words. That was good. The expression on his face finally got her attention and she offered him a weak smile. "Gimme a second? I just agreed to go to skydiving." Another blink ensued, Alison trying to get her brain unstuck from repeating 'skydiving?' over and over again.

Haroun was no fool. "You hate the idea. OK, that's fine, I'll think of something else. Something a little tamer, a little more your speed. Just - give me a second, let me think." he added, racking his brain to try to come up with an acceptable substitute. "And I can't afford to go to the Alps." he added. "Not for a few months, anyway."

"Grrr." And she was out of bread to throw at him too. "Skydiving! Give me a few seconds to wrap my brain around my getting myself into that, okay? Something tamer…" she made a face at him, knowing he had her with that line alone, as sincere as he'd been. "I'll do it. You'll just have to talk me through it when we get up there, probably," she added  a touch sheepishly. "And we can hit the Alps when you're ready. I can probably talk to someone about the chalet, too."

"OK then." he said with a stretch and a laugh. "Give me a number when we get back - so I can know how much I need to sock away versus how much I'll need to borrow. And skydiving is simple. Gravity does all the really hard work. You're not the panicking type, so you'll be absolutely fine." he said with a charming smile. He then sipped at his tea. "Hey, dinner's just about here." he said, spying the waiters coming bearing covered trays. "I love the chicken dishes here, don't you?"

She knew he was sending the majority of his salary from the school to his parents in Morocco but Alison couldn't help but think they'd have to sit down and talk about that - or rather just money in general, at one point. Particularly considering it was often a point of pride for him. Now, however, was not the time. "I know gravity does all the hard work," she groused, not entirely joking about it though she did say it as such. "That's what worries me." She paused as plates were placed before them, looking at Haroun the entire time. "If you'd asked me to skydive five years ago, I'd have panicked." A wry grin followed. "But you'll be there. I can do that." She nodded to herself. "Skydiving. Who would have thought?"

"It'll be a blast, I guarantee it!" he said foolishly. "There's nothing quite like free-fall." he mused, getting a faraway look in his eye. "The feeling of freedom, of connection with all of God's works. It's intoxicating." he rhapsodized. "I can't wait. You're going to have such a great time! And, just so you know - there's lots of noise when you're falling at terminal velocity. Should be plenty to give you a little pick-me-up if you need it. And we could bring Miles, make a full outing of it!"

The chicken chose that moment to go down wrong. And then some. What was meant to be protest was replaced by a strangled sound as Alison coughed, trying to dislodge whatever had gone down wrong and managing to do so after a few seconds. Barely. "Ha." Hand to her chest, she coughed a few more times, trying to regain the ability to speak.

"Hey, you OK?" he asked with concern. "That didn't sound so good."

"Fine." She claimed her glass of tea and took a careful sip, waiting until the worst of it had passed. "I think maybe Miles will stay at home for the skydiving thing," she finally said. "Not keen on being that high up and him that down below on his own, and all." Setting the glass down she smiled at him to show she was all right.

"So who said he should stay on the ground? I was thinking of taking him up myself." he laughed. "Be a good experience for him."

She'd been hoping he wouldn't say that. "Nooo. Bit too young yet for my taste yet." Heaven forbid Miles hear about this and decide he thought it would be brilliant fun. She'd have a head of white hair far before it was her time to achieve that if so. Then again… "Though I have to admit that with you there, it'd be likely just about the safest way for him to try that. Later." She blinked. "Unless you just meant to take him up with you while flying?"

Haroun hrmmed. "How's his control? I'd hate to have the cruel mistress Gravity take control because Miles got overexcited and slipped." he admitted. "OK, so we leave the squirt at home. This time."

The unimpressed look she gave him told Haroun exactly what she thought of that and the only reason it didn't earn him a kick under the table was mostly because it would be more likely to dent Alison's foot as opposed to his shin. "Not funny. And yes, I think we will."  Whatever she might have been about to say next was interrupted as the waiter did a bread run and refreshed their glasses of water.

"You even fallen six hundred feet in four seconds?" he asked conversationally. "I have. It's not fun. So you'll forgive me if I'm not very keen on doing it again. I ... I thought it'd be good for him. Fun, educational, a real learning experience. You disagree. He's your son, so that's fine. He can stay at home."

Alison set her fork down and leaned on the table. "I understand that's what you thought but he's still eight years old. Approximately. Skydiving is still dangerous. And for all that he's resilient I'd still rather not expose him to that chance, even knowing you were there to catch him if something went wrong." She still hated that part of things and likely always would. With a small sigh she shook her head. "And you know I wasn't belittling what happened to you, right?"

Haroun didn't answer her question, but instead sipped at a glass of tea and took a few more bites of food. "I know that's not what you meant but that's what it sounded like." he said quietly after a few moments. "Anyway." he said, trying to shake off his suddenly darker mood. "How's the music thing treating you?"

"I'm writing again," she said distractedly. "It's what all the late night poking at the guitar lately has been about." Still leaning on the table to stretched her hands forward, palm upwards on the table top. "Haroun? I don't want to brush this off. I was not belittling what happened to you. I never would. I saw the-" Videos in his files, she wanted to say, only her voice chose that moment to fail her. "I saw."

Haroun took a deep breath. "Well, you're still here, so that answers that question." he said quietly. "I should have died that day."

"And I'm not going anywhere," she added, because it had to be said. Her hands twitched, briefly, but remained where they were nonetheless, Alison hoping he'd give her his for at least a moment. "You didn't. You didn't and you're here and I'm very glad for that fact. Very much so," she added quietly.

Haroun shrugged. "Sorry, it's a sore subject with me." he said, finally allowing himself to put his hands in hers. "Especially this time of year."

She threaded her fingers through his carefully, almost meticulously. "You said it would be." Before she'd ever even suspected that he might have an interest in her that went further than the team or friendship. It was more than the accident, too. This had to do with what had happened to Brainy and the others... Her fingers started one of those slow hand massages by reflex, trying to work away tension and she made a mental note to treat him to a serious massage that night, more than the usual back massage therapy.

Haroun nodded. "I'm sorry." he said, putting his teacup down. "I think that we should go. I've sort of lost my appetite." he said apologetically. "We can always bag it up and take it back to eat later..." he offered.

"Nu huh. S'okay." Alison gave him a quick, small smile, knowing she could always scrounge for snacks later on if either of them got hungry. But seeing Haroun obviously upset was cutting off her appetite as well. She dug out enough money to pay for the meal and dropped it on the table, not caring if the tip that would result would be on the rather generous side for now. "Let's just go." She rose to her feet, the one hand still holding his tugging at his hand gently. "We can do that."

Haroun looked back at the table. "But..." he said, and then sighed. "OK." he said, and obediently followed her out of the restaurant. "You want to drive home." he said, not making it a question.

"Would you rather fly?" she asked softly after a moment's hesitation, though she would have far preferred they head back in together. She reached up to touch his cheek briefly, not sure why she felt like apologizing.

Haroun shook his head. "No. I just don't want to drive right now."

Coming from Haroun, that was both oddly reassuring, and yet not. "Okay." Hand still in his, she angled her body in the general direction of where the car was parked, matching her pace to his as they headed off, trying not to look up at him too worriedly as they walked.