Fox and the Hound

[Sparky]

[Refs]

    Blush fading with her words, the punk kept his eyes on the young woman. Almost innocently unaware, Luke tilted his head to the side. Blinked. Gods help Luna for having to deal with a man so fucking dense. The silence stretched out, to the point where even the staff were peaking over wondering what was happening. Hell, if they had popcorn they'd probably be chowing down. Patiently, quietly, the young punk waited for Luna to finish whatever thought she had. When it finally clicked that she was nervous about something, his reaction might have been construed as... less than stellar. 

    A gloved hand reached up... and slowly came down to pat the faunus on her soft head.

    "Yeah you're right, it's getting pretty late isn't it?" Was she right? Was she Luke? Is that really what she was insinuating? "The snow's all pretty and all but it's damn cold, innit? My bad for dragging you out into this. Shit, you probably have work tomorrow too, don't you?" Even the staff were a bit stunned by how dense one man could possibly be. But Luke was blissfully off in his own little world. While Luna seemed to have put all the pieces to the puzzle together, the young techie was stilly trying to chew the box open.

    The universe itself seemed violently disappointed in the young man as he turned away from Luna and began walking off. Turning back, his silver eyes met the girl's sparkling amethyst, and for a moment, there was a flash of something there. Confusion? Concern? Anxiety? Slowly the punk made his way back. Once more the staff began wishing they had popcorn. 

    "C'mon, let's head on home and get some rest." Once more they were disappointed. Luke's brain seemed to alternate between two different modes. The first was like a supercomputer, powerful enough to burn through lines of code at high speeds or break down the way someone fights and how to exploit it. The other mode was like an obese hamster trying to run on a rusty wheel. It was obvious which mode his brain was working in right now. 

    Guy didn't know what was going through Luna's mind, and at this point that was probably for the best. Putting him in leather? Tying him in chains? Gods Luna, how fucking repressed were you? If the young man could read minds, looking into the white-haired faunus's would have him red faced and wanting to die. With a sigh, the silver-eyed tech head turned away from Luna and waved for her to follow. 
    
    Quietly, he let his mind drift as he went to the door, leaving the staff wondering what they'd just witnessed. I probably made things way too awkward with how I was tonight. Outside the snow shimmered in the night air, reflecting in his eyes. Fuckin' hell, Luke. You just keep fuckin' up good things, don't you? The young man puffed a bit of hair out of his eyes and waited for the sound of footsteps behind him. Partly lost in thought. Mostly just trying to enjoy the warmth of the shop for just a little bit longer. Even through the door he could feel hints of the cold winter air leaking through. 

    He shivered, but the punk couldn't tell what for. 

    Doubt ran through his mind, whether or not the night was a good idea, if he had started ruining things between him and Luna, or if he'd just wound up making things awkward. By the gods he really hoped he didn't. The girl came back into his life only so recently, he didn't want to loose her again. Even if there were bitter wounds left from The City, being around her made them feel... less painful. Alone, life still felt stagnant. Maybe not as suffocating as The City, but still hard to breathe. When Luna was with him, he felt like he could manage. Like a massive weight had been pulled from his shoulders. 

    Even if she hit him sometimes. 

    At the same time, something tugged at his heart, and the poor boy had no idea if he was able to figure out why. It was some sort of... pang in his chest whenever he looked at her. Like the faunus's eyes had the power to steal the breath from his lungs. It was a feeling he genuinely hated. It's guilt. He thought with a huff. I left her and all the other Lost Boys behind. So of course I'd feel guilty looking at her. Even with the happy parts of her being around, why wouldn't there be bad memories left behind? Luke grimaced at the thoughts and grabbed onto the handle of the front door.
    
    I need some fresh fuckin' air.
    

[Luna]

[Refs]

“I- I didn’t-” She didn’t say that at all. She didn’t really say anything. Luna wanted to grab his wrist and tell him straight, but why do that in front of a crowd. She followed him out of the store, trying to figure out how to speak what the realisation was. Their steps announced with crunches of snow, some louder on spaces not stepped on yet, others more muffled as they crossed over footsteps previously placed there. There was an intense silence that at least laid over Luna. Light from street lamps fading in and out as they walked. Eventually, there was an abrupt stop from Luna as she was no longer walking behind Luke.

“Luke.” She started again, in case he didn’t notice that his footsteps were no longer accompanied by hers. She waited for him to stop, more importantly turn around so she could look him in the eyes. “This is a date.”, she said. She knew he’d immediately try to shut it down but the moment he’d start, she’d step up to him and grab his arms. “Don’t be stupid with me, this is more than anything you’d do for an ‘old friend’.”, she said as if calling out his thoughts before he could even try to use it as an excuse. She knew very well he wouldn’t go so hard for any of the Lost Boys, so it had to be exactly what she said it was.

She didn't look disturbed or bothered. The emotion she had was a mix of things. Confusion, a hard time understanding why, a hidden feeling of a crush she thought was long lost. It was a mess that glittered behind her eyes.

[Sparky]

[Refs]

    Despite the cold, the fresh air felt... comforting. It was crisp and helped clear the mind. The street itself had all but emptied out, save for a few other late night prowlers still wandering around. Time for people to finally start making their way home. While Luke was certain they hadn't been in the shop for all that long, they also picked a really late point to head out in the first place. Of course people would start heading home right about now, and the cold was most assuredly not doing anyone any favors. 

    Luke watched his breath as it came out in a visible cloud, wafting up from his lips like trails of smoke. Only the sound of crunching snow was enough to break the silence, and even then it was so monotonous that it might as well have not even been there at all. Just distant white noise to loose yourself to. The young man kept his eyes locked on the ground as the silence carried on. It just... felt too awkward to be the one to break that quiet. Especially seeing as the poor boy didn't even know what he'd done to upset Luna. Normally the young woman was pretty vocal with what was wrong. Or, you know, physical. 

    The hot springs incident was the first thing to come to mind. 

    Her voice broke over the white noise, soft, but with a weight to it. Enough to make the young man stop in his tracks. It was then that he noticed the other set of footsteps had stopped, likely long before him. Luna's voice echoed in his mind and froze his veins. Here it comes. The young punk worked his jaw and nervously turned. Slowly, doing his best to maintain composure. This is where she tells me she doesn't want to be my friend anymore. Good job Luke, you fucking id-

    "Wha-?" Okay. So. First things first. Not what he expected to come out of her mouth. Secondly, was it really? No, no way. Luke cleared his throat and looked to her, preparing to argue. "I-" only getting cut off as she continued, grabbing onto his arms in such a stern fashion that it almost made him jump. 

    Those ever empty silver eyes stared down into her shimmering amethyst gems. Something in his chest jumped. She wasn't... upset by that idea. There was a tug at his heart, and a growing warmth on his cheeks. Luke felt something as he looked at the faunus. Her beautiful eyes, soft hair, the gentle voice. A sensation he didn't recognize stirred in his heart. A... yearning. Mixed with embarrassment, and an inkling of a crush he thought he'd left behind. With the backdrop of glittering snow...

    ...Luna was beautiful...

    Pursing his lips, the young man pulled from her grip and laughed it off. "Don't be an idiot, as if I would ever take anyone out on a date. C'mon, Luna, it's me of all people." Fair was fair, the guy played it off like a champ. Even though he was mentally trying to convince himself as well, it didn't reach his words at all. "Sure, fine, I may be trying harder than normal, but the last time we really hung out was when you nearly killed me at the hot springs. I'd rather not have that be the last time we did anything major, and maybe I want to make up for it a bit. Y'know?" 
    
    Flashing the shaka sign, the young punk grinned at Luna. Though the words came out smooth, and his argument made sense in that context, the smile definitely could have been better. It certainly lacked his usual shit-eating confidence. The boy hoped, wished that  he had done a better job at convincing the faunus than he had himself. Because despite everything, that tug at his heart was still there and... truth be told, he... wanted to kiss her. 

    Maybe it was how lonely he'd been bubbling up to the surface, or maybe it was that the old crush had never actually died. But Luke wanted to kiss Luna, he wanted to pull her close and feel... something with her. He trusted her more than anything, she'd been in his life for so long. The young punk's heart yearned and he absolutely hated it. "C'mon, it's fucking freezing out here, are we just gonna keep standing around?" 

[Luna]

[Refs]

“And like I said, you wouldn’t be this extra for any one else.” As far as she knew. Luke was a fairly closed off guy, especially after the incident that was his ex. But she doubted he was actively seeking someone to be with outside of acquaintances or friends after his stunt back at the city.

She stared after him, eyes slightly narrowed. He was being dense on purpose. Perhaps he was denying it as hard as she was and still giving himself reasons as to how this wasn’t a date. It almost felt like she saw straight through him, but that was in part because he was still largely the same person he used to be for a number of mannerisms. He was a bad liar when it came to his feelings still.

She sighed, he’d probably realise it later anyways. She started walking, brushing past him. An arm lagged slightly behind to grab his. At least they’d walk home like this. That’s what she hoped for anyways. When they did return and she placed a jacket on the hanger is when she next spoke. “I’m going to take a shower.” Luna ducked into her room for some pajamas to change into after. She made her way to the bathroom and paused, leaning out of the doorway. “Thanks for the date.” Though maybe next time, she’ll lead the next one so it wasn’t as awkward.

[Sparky]

[Refs]

    Luke tried to argue. He wanted to, but it felt like she wasn't really giving him the chance to. Sure, the guy could bitch to hell and back, but Luna wasn't really having any of it. This was... abnormal to say the least. When she grabbed onto his arm, the young punk tensed up. A lot. How gentle it was... how soft she was being in that one moment alone, he was unused to it. It was new, and he immediately wanted to yank himself away. But then part of him clicked on and stopped him from doing so. Luke didn't want to hurt the girl. 

    Expression shifting several times, the young man tried to sort out how to feel in that moment. Through the tension and the fear and the anxiety, the boy found some sort of footing. Enough to calm down, at least. It was like Luna had just grabbed onto a snarling dog. Ears pulled flat against it's head, nothing but fear and confusion in it's eyes. And yet the gentle perseverance won out in the end. He may not have been comfortable, but... some small part of him admitted that the way she held onto him felt... nice. 

    A blush remained on his cheeks the whole walk back. Every glance down at the faunus clinging to his arm tugged at his heart. She was so... cute? Luke had to shake his head out. No, I'm past that point in life. We're just friends now. Just friends. But... The silver gaze flicked back down to her. Fuck, no, Luke, stop! 

    When they got home, the punk threw himself down onto the couch. Face first, buried into the fabric. Gods he was so tired now. This was where he slept anyways, given Luna had the one and only bed room since moving in. Might as well just slowly ease himself into-

    "IT WASN'T A DATE!"