Amanda, Angelo - Monday afternoon
Jan. 5th, 2009 02:07 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
xp_daytripper posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
xp_logsAt the office, Amanda gets a visitor.
Her desk was a mess. Beyond a mess, really, it was almost a maze constructed out of files and paper and books. As she methodically worked her way through things, Amanda fleetingly regretted coming in - after all, she'd only just gotten back in and there was the whole "magical exertion" thing that tended to give her days off when she needed. But sitting at home meant thinking, and thinking meant remembering and she'd done too much bloody moping already. Better to focus on her work again and use that as a distraction, in time-honoured Trenchcoat tradition.
The piles were towering enough that all that was visible, approaching the desk, was the top of a head of dark hair.
"Mark, give me a sec," she said after a brief glance at the approaching dark head before going back to leafing through a file. "'M just trying to work out what the fuck this is doing on my desk... says something about 'eaten by cannibals' here, but I don't remember any cannibals, so I'm wondering if it's one of 'Yana's things..."
"Mark's still out front", came a familiar voice. "An' if Yana's mixed up with cannibals, the world needs to be very scared."
That got her attention. "Ange?" A pile toppled over as she stood up, but she paid no attention to it. "Look at you, sight for sore eyes."
Angelo grinned at her. "You too, stranger. You eaten yet today?"
"Um." She actually had to stop and think about it. "I have no idea," she admitted eventually. She looked pale and tired, eyes circled from poor sleep, cheeks a little more hollow than they ought to be - classical ObsessedAmanda. "I think there was a granola bar at some point, but that might have been at the airport."
"Right, that's it", he said firmly. "You're comin' out for lunch. No argument or I'll get Doug to lock you out of the computer."
She opened her mouth to argue, but really, there was no point. Angelo had that look about him, the one he used with Nate a lot when Nate was being dumb. The one that promised to sling her bodily over his shoulder if needed. "Okay," she said almost meekly, and unslung her new leather jacket from the back of her chair to slip it on. As she came out from behind the desk, she paused, hands in her pockets and gave him a crooked half-smile. "I might have been doing that thing where I focus on just one thing again," she admitted.
"Yeah, I kind of figured", he said, returning the smile. "I heard what Kurt an' Meggan did."
"Wanda and Kurt set it up. Something about tricking me into taking some time off." There was perhaps a faint trace of annoyance, but not much - she knew she'd needed the break. "What about you? You been busy, what with Nate off and all?"
"Yeah." There was something tired in the lines of his face, suddenly, but not unhappily so. "I mean, I've got help, but it's still busy. Least I don't have to apologise when he insults people, though", he finished, amused.
There was too much distance between them suddenly, and she stepped forward, pulling her hands out of her pockets and wrapping them around him in a hug. "'M sorry for being gone so long," she said quietly. "And not writing. I was... too angry, I s'pose. 'Bout everything."
He hugged her back without thinking about it, pressing his chin to the top of her head. "I figured Wanda'd be lookin' after you best she could, or I would've made her send you back. Makes sense you'd be angry."
She made a soft noise, almost like a whimper, and pressed her face into his shirt, breathing him in. "She did best as she could, but then there was this mess with the magic users and these bastards using them to summon one of the Anansesem..." She stopped, realising she probably wasn't making a lot of sense. "Do you have anything else to do today?" she asked instead.
"Nothin' I can't put off." He looked down at her. "You sayin' you'll take the afternoon off?"
She lifted her head and nodded. "Yeah." Her eyes were glimmering with unshed tears, but she managed a small smile. "Need to get back to this whole having a life thing. Which includes you."
He saw the tears but didn't mention them. Not yet. "Then let's get goin'."
Her desk was a mess. Beyond a mess, really, it was almost a maze constructed out of files and paper and books. As she methodically worked her way through things, Amanda fleetingly regretted coming in - after all, she'd only just gotten back in and there was the whole "magical exertion" thing that tended to give her days off when she needed. But sitting at home meant thinking, and thinking meant remembering and she'd done too much bloody moping already. Better to focus on her work again and use that as a distraction, in time-honoured Trenchcoat tradition.
The piles were towering enough that all that was visible, approaching the desk, was the top of a head of dark hair.
"Mark, give me a sec," she said after a brief glance at the approaching dark head before going back to leafing through a file. "'M just trying to work out what the fuck this is doing on my desk... says something about 'eaten by cannibals' here, but I don't remember any cannibals, so I'm wondering if it's one of 'Yana's things..."
"Mark's still out front", came a familiar voice. "An' if Yana's mixed up with cannibals, the world needs to be very scared."
That got her attention. "Ange?" A pile toppled over as she stood up, but she paid no attention to it. "Look at you, sight for sore eyes."
Angelo grinned at her. "You too, stranger. You eaten yet today?"
"Um." She actually had to stop and think about it. "I have no idea," she admitted eventually. She looked pale and tired, eyes circled from poor sleep, cheeks a little more hollow than they ought to be - classical ObsessedAmanda. "I think there was a granola bar at some point, but that might have been at the airport."
"Right, that's it", he said firmly. "You're comin' out for lunch. No argument or I'll get Doug to lock you out of the computer."
She opened her mouth to argue, but really, there was no point. Angelo had that look about him, the one he used with Nate a lot when Nate was being dumb. The one that promised to sling her bodily over his shoulder if needed. "Okay," she said almost meekly, and unslung her new leather jacket from the back of her chair to slip it on. As she came out from behind the desk, she paused, hands in her pockets and gave him a crooked half-smile. "I might have been doing that thing where I focus on just one thing again," she admitted.
"Yeah, I kind of figured", he said, returning the smile. "I heard what Kurt an' Meggan did."
"Wanda and Kurt set it up. Something about tricking me into taking some time off." There was perhaps a faint trace of annoyance, but not much - she knew she'd needed the break. "What about you? You been busy, what with Nate off and all?"
"Yeah." There was something tired in the lines of his face, suddenly, but not unhappily so. "I mean, I've got help, but it's still busy. Least I don't have to apologise when he insults people, though", he finished, amused.
There was too much distance between them suddenly, and she stepped forward, pulling her hands out of her pockets and wrapping them around him in a hug. "'M sorry for being gone so long," she said quietly. "And not writing. I was... too angry, I s'pose. 'Bout everything."
He hugged her back without thinking about it, pressing his chin to the top of her head. "I figured Wanda'd be lookin' after you best she could, or I would've made her send you back. Makes sense you'd be angry."
She made a soft noise, almost like a whimper, and pressed her face into his shirt, breathing him in. "She did best as she could, but then there was this mess with the magic users and these bastards using them to summon one of the Anansesem..." She stopped, realising she probably wasn't making a lot of sense. "Do you have anything else to do today?" she asked instead.
"Nothin' I can't put off." He looked down at her. "You sayin' you'll take the afternoon off?"
She lifted her head and nodded. "Yeah." Her eyes were glimmering with unshed tears, but she managed a small smile. "Need to get back to this whole having a life thing. Which includes you."
He saw the tears but didn't mention them. Not yet. "Then let's get goin'."
