Iridescence

[Lucy Serrano-Blaise]

Dated: 13th February, 2014

Lucy was never a fan of Valentine's Day, and really, that should surprise no one. She didn't think it was a day with any real meaning. If you liked someone, why wait till a day in the middle of February to make a point of it? The Australian had never partaken in the holiday to any capacity, and that fact suited her just fine.

But that fact made her curious enough to warrant sending a message. Or a reminder.

[Redcoat: Hey]

[Redcoat: Do you have plans tomorrow?]

Grinning to herself, she leaned back in the chair at her computer, trying not to laugh as she typed along;

[Redcoat: Like, you bringing some hot girl back to your dorm or something?]

[Penelope Serrano-Blaise]

Penelope rarely used her phone. Sometimes, she wondered why she even had one. The only people she kept in contact through it were her parents and Michael, and even then, there were other means to contact her, but Michael had insisted she get a phone, so she did.

So when she heard it go off, the psychometrist immediately assumed it was her brother. Penny’s eyebrows knitted together at the display name, immediately knowing who had sent her the text. She rolled her eyes, picking up the phone to reply.

[That chick i’m banging: Hello.]

She held off any other response, quickly going into the contact info and changing it. No wonder Michael had been snickering when he asked to borrow it the day before.

[Lucy Serrano: I did not. Why?]

Penny was well aware of what day tomorrow was. She leaned back in her chair, staring at the screen for a moment before continuing.

[Lucy Serrano: Were you planning on doing something?]

[Lucy Serrano: How did you get hold of my phone?]

[Lucy Serrano-Blaise]

Regardless of the fact that Penny didn't really acknowledge the name change, Lucy was chuckling to herself anyway. She could just imagine the look on her face - the roll of her eyes, for sure.

Ignoring her questions tactlessly, Lucy chose to focus in on the final one instead.

[Redcoat: I know where you always keep your phone]

[Redcoat: and you're a crazy heavy sleeper]

[Redcoat: liek woah]

[Penelope Serrano-Blaise]

[Lucy Serrano: I’m not a heavy sleeper.]

Penny’s lips pursed at the third message. She wasn’t sure if she was more irritated because Lucy was trying to tease her, the lack of any sentence structure, or the misspelled word. This was exactly why she didn’t text.

[Lucy Serrano: What is that even supposed to mean?]

Still, she was well aware the Lucy ignored her question. Wasn’t that the purpose of her texting Penny in the first place?

[Lucy Serrano: What do you want?]

[Lucy Serrano-Blaise]

When Lucy got Penny's message in retaliation to the last one she'd sent, she was laughing. She knew it'd get some kind of rise out of her, and the message she got was a perfect reflection of that.

[Redcoat: liek means like]

She decided to press on with it anyway, because she couldn't help herself.

But even the ink manipulator supposed she should actually answer her question. In a round about way, of course. There were no direct answers here.

[Redcoat: I'm asking what you want. Or like, what you're doing tomorrow]

[Penelope Serrano-Blaise]

[Lucy Serrano: I gathered that much.]

Penny shook her head, letting out a sigh. Even through the phone, Lucy knew how to get to Penny. The idea drove the Brit nuts.

As she read the next text, Penny pressed her lips into a hard line as she stood. She paced slightly in her room, eyes remaining fixed on the phone in her hands. Valentine’s Day were for couples, and they certainly weren’t a couple. It wasn’t even a special holiday, in the pyschometrist’s opinion. Just an ordinary day.

[Lucy Serrano: I have no particular plans for tomorrow.]

It wasn’t exactly an answer to the question, but she wasn’t quite sure how to answer in the first place.

[Lucy Serrano-Blaise]

Lucy rested a hand against her desk, her fingertips drumming against the surface as she waited. It was always easier in her mind to push the topic back on her rather than actively giving a direct answer. Still, manoeuvring around this topic could easily become detrimental.

She twisted her mouth at the answer given. It wasn't really an answer. It was as much an answer as Lucy had given her just before. So Lucy took the time to construct the appropriate sentence - her choice in words meant everything.

[Redcoat: You don't want plans, right?]

There. Really, it was perfect. It was pressing the question to her while assuming the answer at the same time. Injecting her own belief was just a bonus.

[Penelope Serrano-Blaise]

Penelope paused in her pacing as the next message came through. It seemed clear to the pyschometrist that Lucy didn’t want to make plans either. Good. She glanced over to the orange hand print on her wall, her gaze lingering on it for a few moments.

She didn’t want to make plans. That was what couples did. They weren’t in love. Lucy wasn’t her girlfriend.

At least they agreed on it, or at least that was what Penelope had gathered from the text message she had received.

[Lucy Serrano: No.]

She hesitated momentarily before hitting send. She didn't care about seeing Lucy on Valentine's Day; she cared that she wouldn't be seeing Lucy for a whole day. The fact that she cared annoyed her. She shouldn't. It didn't make sense to.

[Lucy Serrano: I’ll see you Saturday.]

[Lucy Serrano-Blaise]

The more Lucy felt like she was waiting, the more she started to feel an unfamiliar sensation; she was a little nervous. For the answer, but not in the usual way. She hoped to tell Penny was going to say no. Not just because the Australian thought the day was - in simple terms - utter bullshit, but because asking to do something seemed too definite. It was defining. No definition would fit whatever they were doing.

Valentine's Day was an obligatory thing for couples. They weren't a couple. She was, by no means, Penny's girlfriend.

Lucy immediately exhaled the breath she held on a heavy sigh when she finally got an answer. Short. Concise. Just like Penny.

[Redcoat: Thank fuck]

And with that, the ink manipulator set her phone down on the desk and turned her attention back to her computer. She felt a lot less tense now, though honestly, she hadn't realised she was carrying tension in the first place. Still, her dark eyes glanced down as the little device lit up again. Saturday. It took a moment for Lucy to even realise that tomorrow was Friday. At least they'd managed to agree on more than one thing.

[Redcoat: Maybe]

But in the end, she was grinning. When it came to Penny, Lucy just couldn't help herself.