Sunny Days (Rome)

[Tsukiko Aoki]

Summer was on the horizon, which meant more time spent outdoors. Days that could be spent by the lake made her feel like a teenager again, and so she made special effort to roust Rome from the computer to spend time with her outside.

She had bribed him with the promise of food, just in case her lovely and wonderful presence wasn't enough of a reward, and as such had gone to the grocery store to buy a picnic lunch. The deli always had a nice picnic basket ready for those unable to cook for themselves, and she had thus outfitted them with baked chicken and potato salad and watermelon.

And, of course, a cooler with bud lite and strawberry flavored popsicles.

"You know," She commented as she unpacked all of this, placing it on the old blanket she had spread out across the grass, "it would be a nice day to fly a kite, if we had one. I haven't flown a kite in years, though."

[Dr. Roman Tilford]

It hadn’t been difficult to drag Rome away from the computer this particular day. Amid playing on Facebook and googling ridiculous memes, he’d actually been doing a bit of research for work. But research was interesting for only so long, so when Kiko had dropped the picnic bribe, he’d all but scrambled off the laptop.

Normally he would have been fine to make food for the trip, but the store was faster, as his lovely girlfriend had pointed out. So while she’d gone off to get the food, he’d dragged out the cooler and a bag of ice from the freezer. After stocking it with the Bud, he set it by the door to take to the car.

Once they actually arrived and the blanket was down, he flopped down and looked up at the sky. “It would. I tried teaching my nephews how once. It was a lost cause. Too absorbed in their PSPs.” He rolled his eyes. “Poor kids are missing out.” What color is the pot, Roman? Because last time I checked, you’re just as bad. “We could get a kite, if you wanted. A big one.” Because, face it. Kiko wants, Kiko gets, in his mind.

[Tsukiko Aoki]

Kiko raised an eyebrow at Rome's comments about his nephews, then slowly shook her head. Since Rome seemed utterly oblivious to the fact that he was the exact same way she felt it was necessary to fill him in.

"So they take after you."

Not that she minded that Rome wanted to spend most of his time indoors; she had to admit that after long days at the hospital vegging out sometimes seemed more appealing to going outside.

And he did sometimes agree to come out.

Fortunately for her boyfriend any further teasing was forgotten as he mentioned the possibility of buying a kite. She had only been idly speculating, but of course if Rome truly wanted to act on that she would never stop him.

"Oh! That would be great. We should buy one! But after lunch, I don't want to unpack all of this again."

[Dr. Roman Tilford]

Wasn’t that the fun of being with someone like Roman? Sure, he could point out the flaw in other people. But did he have a problem with video games? Nooooo. Not him. So when Kiko called him out on it, he just looked at her and blinked, giving off a clueless vibe for a moment.

“... N... no? I’m not as bad as them!” Actually, Romy, you are.

But not as bad, apparently. Because he’d agreed to go on the picnic, and hadn’t brought a handheld game with him. Unless you counted his iPhone, and the Angry Birds games he adored. But he wasn’t going to play them, because he had a beautiful woman with him.

And food.

And beer.

“Great! We’ll buy the biggest one ever.” While the idea of flying kids was the smallest bit childish, it could also be a lot of fun. Especially if they had a few drinks in them. “This was a perfect idea, Kik. Thanks.” He sat up a little more to kiss her cheek before reaching around to investigate the basket. “What’s for lunch?”

[Tsukiko Aoki]

Kiko definitely did not giggle.

Absolutely not, ever. She definitely did not giggle when her long term boyfriend kissed her on the cheek. Maybe daintily tittered, but giggling? Never.

She turned away from his kiss far too quickly, feeling somewhat bizarrely coquettish today. She didn't know what had come over her; maybe it was just how nice the weather was, making her feel like they were on a proper date.

And she got to provide food for Rome, without any of the effort of cooking. That was a win in her book.

"Baked chicken," She announced, moving the paper box of chicken out of her cooler and placing it in front of Rome. "Potato salad," which was in a plastic tub, "And watermelon."

Thank goodness the store had cut it up into manageable pieces, and also placed it in a plastic tub.

Rome already had the beer, and the Popsicles were for dessert.

"Oh, and I guess plates and napkins and forks are good, too," She realized, digging around for those.

"So what do you think? Delicious?"

[Dr. Roman Tilford]

Rome knew better. Kiko totally giggled. He also knew better not to point it out.

He didn’t mind her being ridiculous, because there was food involved. With the nice weather, this really had been a great idea. Only a few lazy clouds in the sky that could be fun to try to identify later. He could already see something blobby that could be a ship with a bit of creativity.

But first, food.

“Wooooow. Slaved over a hot stove all morning, did you?” He grinned and winked at her before helping himself to a piece of watermelon. “It’s perfect. Thanks, Kik.” This was great. And if she stayed over tonight, they could have a movie night, and make obscene amounts of popcorn.

He leaned back on his elbows and tilted his chin up so he could stare at the sky. “What should we do after kite flying?” There was a pause there. “... Is it a good idea to fly kites while drinking?” Well, a little bit more giggling and un-coordination never hurt anyone.

And hey, if Kiko was lucky, he’d just start singing Lady Gaga like the last time they’d been drunk.

[Tsukiko Aoki]

"Shut up, Rome," Kiko demanded automatically, aiming a light punch at his shoulder. She tried very hard to pretend she wasn't amused at his comment, but in reality she...was. But only a little!

The question about drinking and kites caused her to wrinkle her nose in concentration. Come to think of it, that could result in tangled up kites, and tangled up limbs.

Which automatically made it a great idea.

She might have already been a bit tipsy.

"No, no, it'll be totally fine," She insisted, laying out the plates and plastic wear. "And after kite flying we caaaan....I don't know, we can think about that then. If we're tired we can go crash at your place."

She had no qualms about inviting herself over.

"If not, I'm sure we can think of something picnic-y to do. Frisbee or sunbathing or something."

That said, she began forking food onto her plate, piling it up high. "The grocery deli is so great."

[Dr. Roman Tilford]

“Owwww. Oh owwwww. I’m wounded. We’re gonna have to amputaaaaaate.” Rome flailed his arm feebly. “What happened to ‘do no harm?’”

Yes, he was being a great big baby.

He stopped soon enough, however. Sitting up properly again, he continued to investigate the basket. “Okay, if you’re suuuuure. I don’t want to get arrested or anything. Not today.” Or ever, but that was beside the point. Not that kite flying while drunk was really a crime. Then again, Pilot Ridge was sleepy enough that it probably was. Somehow.

“Yeah, my place is fine. I can barbeque something for dinner, if you want.” He lit up in a grin. “I even got a new game you might like! It’s got rabbits in it!” It was also impossibly crude, and would pit them against one another, but c’mon. Rabbits. Rabid Rabbits, but that just made it ten times better.

“Or we could sunbathe naked.” He might have been a tiny bit buzzed from the minute amount of beer he’d already ingested, but it wasn’t enough to soften the blush that colored his cheeks. “I mean...” Come on, Romy. Think. “... Let’s eat?”

Smooth. Not.

[Tsukiko Aoki]

"That totally doesn't apply to non-victim...uhh...patients." Kiko retorted indignantly, not at all perturbed by his overly dramatic act. "Don't be a wimp, Romy."

His suggestions, however, caused her to snort in laughter. "Oh, what? You think we'll get arrested for flying a kite drunk, but not for naked sunbathing?"

She didn't allow time for him to reply before asking, "So is this game on the DS? Cause then we could sunbathe and play, whaddayasay?"

She nudged him with one elbow as she picked up her chicken, tearing into the skin with unladylike glee.

Soon enough the food was demolished, and the empty cans of beer tossed into the nearest trash receptacle. Kiko licked melted popcicle off her fingers as she inquired, "So, now about that kite?"

[Dr. Roman Tilford]

“Unfair,” Rome managed to say with a pout, still rubbing his arm. Yes, Kiko hit like a girl, but he was going to milk it for as much sympathy as she was willing to dole ou –

Yeah, she was ignoring him.

“Hey! Only my sisters are allowed to Romy me.” He stuck his tongue out, ignoring the fact that James often used the nickname on him too, just to bug him. It was actually worse than the usual ‘Kid’ he got from his best friend. Kid, he could handle. But Romy? Ew.

He was still blushing when Kiko questioned him on the naked sunbathing thing, so he was glad that she changed subjects. “No, it’s on the Wii. The DS version is crappy, because it’s not two player. But the Wii one is awesome. You’ll love it.”

He watched Kiko for a moment, grinning wide before getting his own chicken.

Once they were done, he was content to lie on the blanket, his head almost in Kiko’s lap as he finished his popcicle. He was a little more tipsy now, and happy that way. “RIGHT! We need a kite!” He sat up to look around the area. The only toy stores he knew of weren’t too close to the lake. “... Is it wrong to steal them from kids?” Yes, Romy, it is. Don’t. “Ooooooor. I think there’s a store close by with like... summer stuff? They might have some?” He didn’t really care what it came from. He just wanted to play.

[Tsukiko Aoki]

"Ohhh." Well, so much for sunbathing at the same time as playing. "Okay, Wii first, sunbathe later."

She thought that was fair. Sunbathing was best done when completely worn out from other activities, after all; otherwise they would have too much energy and might get distracted teasing one another.

Or they might just do that anyway; teasing Rome didn't really take too much effort.

Chicken bones were less than delicately discarded with the trash as her boyfriend brought up actually going to get a kite.

"Really? So are we gonna go now?" She asked, beginning to clear away the food in preparation for their trip.

[Dr. Roman Tilford]

“You think so? We’re here now... Wii after dinner tonight? I can barbeque.” Because, yes, that was the easiest way to get Kiko to come over. The promise of grilled meat. No, he was not above bribery.

Back to present activities.

“Yeah! We need one. A big one.” Because kite searching and buying was such a good idea when a little tipsy. Kiko, why did alcohol have to be involved? He got to his feet and offered his arm out to his girlfriend. “I bet we can find one...” He scanned the immediate area. “At the dollar store? Maybe?” They had summer stuff, the last time he’d been in there for anything. “Or should we just suck it up and go to the toy store?”

Of course, there were distractions in the toy store. They’d be lucky to leave with just a kite.

[Tsukiko Aoki]

Kiko scrunched her face up as she considered Rome's logic, then his promise of barbecue. One of those comments was influential in her decision to say, "Yeah, okay. That sounds like a good plan to me."


This was followed by a very definitive, "Toy store."

Even tipsy she was well aware that the toy store would result in multiple unrelated purchases, but the dollar store was equally likely to yield ridiculous junk they didn't need.

"Last thing I bought at a dollar store was bubbles, and they wouldn't blow. Might as well splurge on a kite that'll actually fly than be cheap on something that might not even do what we want."

She accepted his hand, allowing him to pull her to her feet. As they cleaned up their picnic area she added, "Besides, we might want to use it again."

[Dr. Roman Tilford]

Score! In Rome’s mind, he’d just won. Her answer made him grin like a little boy. “I thought you might say that,” he cooed innocently. He knew how to work her.

He was even more thrilled with the notion of going to the toy store. While Kiko was usually good at keeping him on a short leash when they had to go to the toy store, with both of them being the slightest bit tipsy? The chances of them getting things other than a kite were pretty high. “We’ll get the best kite ever, Kik. Promise. And the biggest!” This was going to end in disaster, but he was happy about it.

His only real motivation to help clean their picnic up was that the sooner it was done, the sooner they could go to the store. “We can use it all the time. Every weekend!”

Nothing about this screamed ‘good idea’, but Rome was happy, he was pretty sure Kiko was happy, and that alone was enough to make this all a fantastic idea.

[Tsukiko Aoki]

"Oooh, yes! Every weekend!" Kiko agreed, too buzzed to remind herself that some weekends she had work. Right now this idea sounded wonderful.

As wonderful as heading back to the car, fully prepared to get behind the wheel while tipsy. Alcohol lead to some very poor decision making skills at times. If she were sober she would have demanded Rome's keys; drinking herself meant she was pulling out her own keys, ready to drive to the toy store with inhibited reflexes.

"Maybe we could even get two kites! One for each of us!" She added as she popped open her trunk so they could deposit the cooler and other salvageable elements of the picnic.