Can't have nothin' nice.

[Deleted]

Kayla was going to have to do a serious cleansing when this day was finally over. She didn’t want Rory to end up with any random residual effects from her interaction with a guy who just screamed “bad luck”. Her luck manipulating sister could end up dead with too much in the wrong direction.

Did she have any sage in the car? Maybe in the trunk.

Which made her remember… “Oh, shit! I have to—“ Go to work. That’s exactly where she’d been on her way to when this whole debacle took place. Kayla looked at the clock on the radio…she was about 2 minutes from being late….oh well. She definitely wasn’t going to make it now, no point in rushing.

Kayla sent a semi-chilling smile over to the wanna-be Wolverine(which she really didn’t think suited him, so wasn’t going to use it as a nickname) who was obviously nervous about her driving abilities. Which irked her, of course. “Suuure! I know a place~” Oh, how she knew a place. Boy was she going to get her revenge, in the form of noisy kids running around a pizza arcade. I just so happened, they also served piss beer. Which was fine for Kayla, just don’t let her moms find out. Fucking health food nuts.

She backed the station wagon into the parking lot, then shifted to drive and rolled as casually as possible out of the lot, still paranoid that someone was going to suddenly appear from behind that lamppost or that mailbox and point fingers about how she was leaving the scene of an accident.

The pizza joint wasn’t too far from where they were, just a block or two down the street(which was where everything was in a town as small as Pilot Ridge), so it didn’t take long for her to pull up into a semi-large parking lot that was moderately full of others “jonesing” for a good lunch. “This work for you, Superman?” Yeah, that nickname was gonna stick.

[Jamie Mills]

Having forced himself to keep from making Kayla any more uncomfortable than she undoubtedly already was, Jamie kept his eyes forward, taking in his surroundings with only mild interest. His head still hurt a bit, as was to be expected, but his arm and knee seemed to be back to normal. Still, his first step once arriving where ever it was she was taking them would be to find a bathroom and clean himself up.

The woman’s sudden exclamation caught him off guard, causing Jamie to flinch ever so slightly. But he was good at recovery, and managed to keep from looking at her with too much of a scandalised expression. He wasn’t a jumpy person- at least he hadn’t been, and he figured it was only the events that had led to his meeting her that had put him on edge. Hoping that she hadn’t noticed, or that she at least wouldn’t say anything, and worried what she might think of him overall, Jamie saved face and looked on amusedly at her. Could freeze a heart, that smile… and was it him or did her reply sound more like some sort of threat? Not a serious threat, to be sure. No, that was the tone Smith had adopted a few times right before Jamie ended up being the butt of some joke.

The actual drive only took a few minutes, and Jamie cocked his head to the side to read the sign of the pizza place as they pulled into the nearly-half full parking lot. This hadn’t been here when he was a student at Hammel, or if it had, he hadn’t been aware of it. There was an awful lot of kids around too. He honestly hadn’t known there were so many in Pilot Ridge. Still, food was food and he was famished. Maybe she’d been here before and knew the pizza was good?

“Of course,” Jamie grinned, as if he’d couldn’t imagine going anywhere else, wondering what she was playing at and intent on going with it- as long as it gave him a chance to try and figure her out.

Pulling at the door handle to get out the car, and checking the seat surreptitiously as soon as he did to make sure he hadn’t left a smear of blood, Jamie was confident that he’d managed to keep her seatback clean and closed the door. He checked behind him for a moment to make sure there weren’t any children behind him before looking towards the pizza arcade and squinting, then placing his hand above his eyes to block out the sun.

“So uh...what were you ‘oh shit’ing?” he asked, swiveling his head towards her- hand still above his brow. He half expected her to say she had to go, and wouldn’t blame her as long as she didn’t mow him down on her way out. But he’d be lying if he told himself he wouldn’t be disappointed if that were the case.

[Deleted]

Kayla hadn’t been to this pizza joint in a long loooong time, actually. Not since she was in high school herself and she used to sneak her little sister there so they could get away from the crazy that was their parents for an afternoon. The pizza was a hot, cheesy, greasy POS, and it was glorious.

Kayla wasn’t exactly sure what she was trying to do either, but the simple idea of taking the guy you hit with your car out to a pizza place full of loud, obnoxious, snotty kids was amusing to her. Though she was a bit disappointed that Jamie here wasn’t more astonished with her choice of flavors. Then again, if he really was into it, then she’d deem him as being a pretty awesome guy, in addition to the whole invulnerability thing. “Good deal. And this place is cheap too, so it’ll be easier on my wallet. We’ll get a pitcher of piss and a large pepperoni.” She sent him a red-lipped smirk as she stepped out of the vehicle and looked to him over the roof of the car. “Sound appetizing?” Kayla hit the button on the inside of the door to lock the car and then slammed the heavy door behind her.

Kayla, for whatever reason, had completely spaced on the fact that Mr. Incredible here was actually bleeding pretty profusely moments ago and would be trailing those fluids behind him wherever he went, including on the seat of her car. So it didn’t click for her in the least when he was lagging behind, checking the seat, before finally getting a move on.

“Hmmm?” Kayla waved her hand dismissively. “Oh, it’s nothing. I was actually on my way to work when I ran you over. But it’s fine, I’ll figure out something to tell that old hag. Pizza and beer take priority.” She made an amused, soury face to him. “Well? You coming?” she urged, holding her hand out behind her as if she expected them to frolic inside hand-in-hand.

[Jamie Mills]

“Sure thing, I’m not picky.” he replied with a shrug, “Buddy of mine said I had a black hole instead of a stomach.”

Well versed with the universe of cheap pizza, Jamie already had the taste she described in mind. What he was more interested in, besides getting food in him as soon as possible, was the fact that a girl like her would be the one to take them here where there were sure to be other pizza places in the area (even in a town as small as Pilot Ridge) that were a little less grease and a little more....Italian.

Jamie chastised himself silently. He hated doing those ‘not like the other girls’ comparisons and always tried his damndest to keep from comparing people to others in general. Unless they were pisspots and deserved the judgment. In the Army, it’d been a bit different- there really was no differentiation between the sexes, and they all did everything together, even adopted each other behaviors. That bond had been formed from years; of seeing the shit storm and being there for each other, and besides that was then. It was different now. Some he’d been close to were dead, and the others were just as messed in the head as him. Recently, he found himself watching people a bit more, seeing what they were like even though he never planned on seeing them again and wondering if all the things he'd done had been worth it.

Then there was Kayla- whom he’d known for less than an hour, if that could be considered knowing her, really. She was different. There was something about her that just made him... was it comfortable? Which made Zero. Sense. Literally, considering the circumstances. Maybe she’d scrambled his brains, and they healed back wrong, his mind jeered at him. Or perhaps his comfort came from his own naivety. All he knew was that she was enticing- and in more than just her ability to say the darndest things.

And now she was ditching her job for pizza and shitty beer. Jamie snorted and shook his head. Responsibilities be damned, right? “Of course I can come in and play the part,” he mused, motioning around his neck as he moved to catch up with her, “I think I could get a hold of one of those brace things. Tell this...old hag you saved my poor, sorry ass and demand she give you a raise...”

He slowed a little before having caught up to her, eyes flickering to her outstretched hand, and then back up to her quizzically, but he was smirking too. She really was something, wasn’t she. Still, his day was strange enough- what was a little more? Having only hesitated for the slightest moment, Jamie placed his hand in hers and let her lead him toward the building- where a family of three squabbling children came bursting from the doors, allowing a bit of the sights and sounds from inside to peek out.

“Ya know...” Jamie said casually, “You should be careful or else I might start to think this is some sort of date.”

[Deleted]

“Just how many superpowers do you have?” she asked with severe incredulity. If Kayla could have more than just the flying thing, then hell, she’d take it in a heartbeat! There was no telling if any of her spiritual mumbo-jumbo was actually legit or had any sort of actual power to them(despite her going through the rituals anyway), but if they did, then she’d love to make the same claim. Premonitions, karma reading, empathy, oh baby, oh baby, oh baby. But no, she was boring. And had a normal stomach.

Though she could probably kick his ass in Area 51. And definitely win more tickets than him, maybe even enough to get a top shelf prize!

Kayla held up a finger, and pointed it at Jamie, as if she were just suddenly hit with his idea. “There, yes! Extortion. A hella lot better than what I was going to do, which was…feign Ebola, or something.” She shrugged. “Bet that’d get me out of work for a week….then again, knowing the hag, she’d probably be showing up at my door an hour later with a slew of healing tonics and miracle cure shit.” Kayla sighed and scratched her head. She could picture that scenario perfectly. Little ol’ Judy, hobbling up to her parent’s doorstep out on the farm with a massive Mary Poppins bag of oils, sage, and eggs…because she apparently forgot that Kayla lived on a fucking farm and they had their own stock of eggs. That woman was a kook. “I could use a raise too,” she mused, her finger stuck up on her chin. But probably wasn’t going to happen no matter what shit Kayla got herself in. Not with that store’s profits.

The hand thing was half a joke. It was…maybe to see what he’d do. Maybe a test of her own to see where he stood on whatever this outing had become suddenly? Or maybe she was just trolling, or trying to get him to smile again. He really did have a nice smile. And large hands. She laughed in her amusement, thankful that the scurrying kids delayed her response just enough for her to think of one. “Hey, if piss, pizza and snotty kids is your idea of a date, then…more power to you, Soldier.” She led him inside, giving his hand the tiniest squeeze with her own petite hand.

“So…you want piss or watered down piss?” All they had was Budweiser and Bud light. She pulled out her wallet as they approached the front counter, an awkward task with one hand occupied within another’s. She put in an order for a large pizza(he looked like he could handle most of it) they laid down another twenty for a set of arcade tokens. Finally, out came her fake ID, the one that said she was 22 instead of 20. And which said she was Martha Jo Hanson.

[Jamie Mills]

Of course she knew about Metas. She was in Pilot Ridge and he’d healed the various wounds inflicted on him in little less than an hour, whereas it would have taken a normal person a week or two (with a trip to the hospital). The thought had only briefly crossed his mind, but when she mentioned superpowers (eh?), he remembered that she could indeed have a superpower too. This was the whole reason he’d moved back to Vermont in the first place- to be around people like him, in the place he’d lived longer than any other place in his life. He wondered if it was considered rude to ask- if there was some sort of unspoken code about how to go about such things.

Ebola! Jamie laughed out loud at that, even if it wasn’t necessarily a topic to be laughed about. Perhaps it was the way she said it, or the speed that her thoughts traveled. He didn’t think he could be as sharp witted as she was, and wondered if she would find him dull once they actually had a chance to sit down and talk.

Her hand was small in his, softer definitely, but nonetheless there was some power in that tiny little squeeze she gave him as they walked into the noisy arcade. He wondered if she was that perceptive or if she’d just been calling him that. He supposed it wouldn’t be too difficult to put two and two together. It was hard to break habits after they’d been so ingrained- perhaps he stood differently. Though the tan lines had almost faded, perhaps it was still possible to see that his hands, upper neck and face were a little darker than...well, his arms and lower neck and the rest of him. It was a ridiculous thing- not so affectionately known as the army tan.

“Piss,” Jamie said, with a straight face and a nod. He walked up to stand next to her at the register, looking down as she pulled out her wallet and slowly retracting his hand from hers to allow her the use of two hands instead of one. Only mildly interested in her movement- mostly just watching what she was doing, he glanced at her ID- not necessarily meaning to eavesdrop, but it was obvious enough to see the name she’d given him wasn’t the one he’d glimpsed.

Jamie blinked, bit his lip and looked up and away as if he hadn’t seen anything- hiding a smile by purcing his lips and squinting. He saw the sign for the men’s room and nudged Kayla's elbow lightly, “I’ll be right back,” he nodded towards the bathroom, and refrained from saying her name when the cashier was right in front of them. 

[Deleted]

Yes, it was a hellofa lot cooler to call them “superpowers”. It made her feel like an X-man or something. Like one of the flying ones, like Jean or Rogue or Storm or something. She couldn’t do any of the secondary powers of theirs though, which sucked all sorts of nasty, hairy balls, but if since she was well versed in beating up boys since she was a young’n herself, Kayla would equate herself to be like the tomboy Rogue. Now if only she could steal other people’s superpowers, then she’d be set!

Steal this guy’s healing ability…wow, then they’d be just like Rogue and Wolverine, wouldn’t they? But she doubted that he was centuries old just because of that.

He certainly didn’t look that much older than her. Maybe a couple years. Definitely in his twenties. Then again, Kayla had never been good at judging age. She found herself eyeballing him without realizing it, panning her gaze up and down his form if only to get a better view of the whole picture. Was it bad that her hand felt strangely lonely when he let her go? “Piss it is then.” She told the cashier of their decision.

On another note, she was glad she was paying in cash, because none of her credit cards had that ridiculous name on it. They would’ve found her out real quick.

“You’re…okay,” Kayla said, sort of surprised that he was leaving. And a little worried that maybe she’d scared him away already, before she could have her fun with him. But…it made sense. Of course, he had to go clean up after being turned into roadkill. That wasn’t exactly the most sanitary state to be eating in…then again, they were at a kids’ restaurant. She watched as he walked away, staring at his back, which was still scuffed up something black from the accident. And there was still blood dried on his neck. Kayla had gotten so caught up in everything, she had almost forgotten. And even more that, yeah, just because he could heal, didn’t mean it probably didn’t hurt like hell. Her face dropped as she watched him for a moment longer, then turned back to the cashier to pay, taking in a deep breath and hoping to collect herself again before he returned.

A pitcher came out for her to cart over to one of the tables. The pizza would take more time, but she also got a side of onion rings and bbq wings to hold them over until it was ready. Too bad they didn’t have burritos. Or cigarettes. She plopped into one of the bench-tables, checking the seat first to make sure it wasn’t sticky from kid fingers. Then she listlessly nibbled on the onion rings, her chin resting in her palm, as she waited for her “date” to return.

[Jamie Mills]

Jamie made his way to the bathroom, dodging a child with a snot-covered face that must have been barely older than two running towards his mother with his hands out stretched. He’d almost gotten in the way, and the kid didn’t look like he’d stop. However, after his near run-in, his trip was uneventful. He glanced back in Kayla’s direction before he pushed the door open, hoping that she hadn’t seen the back of him. There really hadn’t been another way around it, and he figured it couldn’t be too bad if mothers weren’t gasping and shielding their children.

Crinkling his nose at the slightly overpowering perfumey smell that assaulted him when he walked in, Jamie glanced around, wondering if he should find a way to keep the door shut so someone walking in didn’t get the wrong idea. However, after a few moments of looking around and finding nothing, he figured it was pointless and that he was wasting time. He pulled off his shirt and studied the back of it. Most of the discoloration of his old dark grey shirt had come from the dirt and grime from the road itself, only a bit of the collar was darkened with his blood, which had started to brown as it dried.

Flipping the H-handle, Jamie waited for the water to warm up a bit, pulling paper towels one by one from the wall until he had a nice little stack on the counter next to him. Testing the water and rolling his eyes, muttering about the inability to even get it a little warm before going to work on the shirt- trying to keep it from getting all wet. When he was certain he wouldn’t be able to get it any cleaner, despite the still-dark staining, he set it off to the side and turned around, trying to take a through the mirror out of sheer curiosity. It wasn’t terrible, less so of course now that it was fully healed, and with a little scrubbing on the back of his neck and through his hair, the blood came out in a minute.

Jamie pulled his shirt back on, washing his hands for good measure and splashing a little of the cold water on his face. He studied his reflection for a minute, knowing that enough time had passed that he really should be getting back. Despite his hair being very short, he still patted at it, trying to make sure it looked fine. Teeth? Check. Eyes? Maybe he looked a little more tired than he wanted, but a little food would fix that. Did he smell? Eh...not bad.

It only took him a moment to place Kayla when he stepped out of the bathroom. He caught sight of her hair and made a beeline for the table that she’d chosen, happy that she hadn’t high tailed it out of there as soon as she’d lost sight of him. He sat down opposite of her, straddling the bench so that his back was placed against the closet wall and smiled at the woman in front of him- who had her eyes closed and seemed to have fallen into a sort of doze.

“Good to go, Kayla,” He said amicably, placing a bit of emphasis on her name out of curiosity to see if she’d say anything, while plucking up one of the wings and taking a bite. He had more questions for her- a whole list of things he wanted to know about her, but he refrained for now. “Thank you for lunch.”

[Deleted]

What time was it? She should probably call her boss and give some cockamamy story to cool her shits…but Kayla didn’t have the motivation. It was strange. Without someone in front of her, Jamie in particular, she couldn’t really think of what to do with herself. And she sure as hell wasn’t going to talk to any of these annoying kids skedaddling about, with their grimy hands and disease infested boogers. Why did she chose this place again?

Her forehead hit the table and her arms circled around it. What the hell was wrong with her today? First she’d gotten up late, then was late to everything else, then fell asleep at the wheel only to ram her bumper into some random guy she was now taking out for pizza and beer. It was insane! Apparently, Kayla was insane! So what else was new? But this was just a little more insane than normal…

Kayla slowly rose her head up again and rested her cheek heavily within her palm. She sighed out a trill of her red lips. It was boring….being without him was…

Kayla didn’t notice that she had nodded off slightly until he suddenly returned, speaking out friendlily to the snoozing girl and emphasizing her name. Kayla jumped and slapped both hands on the table. She stared forward, her sapphire eyes wide and staring straight ahead, slightly dazed. Kayla blinked several times, trying to refocus them and reorient herself.

“Jamie…” she said, still somewhat asleep. It took only a moment for her to pick right up where she left off. “…good god, what the hell kind of primping were you doing in there that took you the better part of the century??” she chided, her eyes sharpening like a dagger. “I thought you mighta hightailed it right out the bathroom window, trying to escape this cesspool of pestilence.”

Disclaimer: this was the nice way she said ‘you’re welcome’.

[Jamie Mills]

Another inward flinch as she hit her hands on the table, but Jamie was aware enough that he had kinda seen it coming. He was more focused on the amusing way she blinked at him. In silent reply, he chewed at her thoughtfully, holding the little bbq wing with two fingers as he bit at the fingers on his other hand that had too much sauce on them.

It made sense, then; that her exhaustion had been the cause of this whole fiasco- that she might have fallen asleep at the wheel He was almost tempted to ask her, but thought better of it as she in turn asked what the hell had taken him so long. Jamie barked out a laugh, setting his half eaten wing on a cheap little kiddie plate he’d been provided and going for the pitcher of beer.

“Hey, it was you that picked this cesspool of pestilence,” he looked at her pointedly, but he really didn’t have a problem with it at this point. Good company made even the worst places bearable, and this was nowhere near the worse place he’d ever been. Although the spontaneously screaming children were like to put him on edge after a while.

He poured the piss-beer into one of the scratched up, plastic mugs and gently nudged it towards Kayla before filling up the second one, setting the pitcher down, taking up his own beer and raising it slightly in her direction as a toast before taking a long gulp. It was a familiar beer, something he’d started drinking before he was even of age, and definitely not one he'd had at any point recently. Still, any beer was fine by him.

“So.” He said, eyes still fixed on Kayla as he wondered where he should start on his ever-growing list of things he wanted to know about her, “What’s this job of yours that you’re willing to miss for the likes of this place?” and me, he meant to say, but cut himself off and grabbed up the remainder of his chicken wing.

[Deleted]

Kayla was dizzy for the better part of a minute before she finally started spouting her usual verbal lashings. And so far, Jamie was a fucking champ for taking each and every single one of them with hardly a complaint.

At least, that’s how it was until he opened his mouth just now. Wait, was this technically a complaint? He was right, it was Kayla who picked this cesspool, and even came up with the offending name for it. “Well, fuck, guess you got balls of steel to go with that “man of steel” vibe you got, to put up with a place like this.” Kayla served her Superman with a smile and a slight bow. “I commend you, sir!”

Her superman who had sauce all over his face now. Kayla picked up a napkin and reached over to wipe it off from the side of his mouth. “Geeze…didn’t your mom ever teach you how to eat properly? You’re like a five year old.” Kayla surprisingly didn’t mind it much. Especially not since he was serving her a nice mug of beer. She tossed the napkin to the side and picked up the mug, raising it to him in response to his own silent toast. She drank it like a fish, though, pulling in as much as the horrible tasting piss as she could in one bout before releasing it from her lips with a refreshing “ahh”.

“So?” she repeated like a parrot, picking up one of the wings and nibbling on it herself. The pizza should probably be getting ready sometime soon. “Oh…Mm,” she started, taking a brief moment to swallow the meat of her wing and wash it down with more beer. “Nothing important. Just one of those fucking New Age stores. You know, the places that sell candles and oils and books on how to connect with your “inner spirit” n shit?” Kayla smirked. “I’ll call my boss, give her a good story, and be off the hook, no problem. The loon will practically buy anything you give her.” Kayla would have continued talking shit about her boss, but just then their order came up on the loudspeaker. “Ah…that’s us.” She flit up the receipt. “You wanna get it, or should I?”

[Jamie Mills]

Jamie tried to keep a straight face, honestly. But it was easier said than done with Kayla looking at him like that. Were her eyes actually gleaming? He didn’t even know if that was a thing eyes did, or if it was just some florally language he’d seen tossed about in a book he’d read. When she picked up a napkin and reached over the table to wipe off a bit of the barbeque sauce from his face, Jamie froze with his lips just slightly parted and his eyebrows raised. His mouth involuntarily upturned, and it was all he could do not to start laughing. When she tossed the napkin and picked up her beer with a grace he didn’t think was possible, Jamie exhaled with a hitched laugh at the end.

“OK, maybe it’s not so bad,” he said, with a slightly over exaggerated air of seriousness, and went to nursing his beer again.

He definitely didn’t expect her to say she worked at a New Age shop. Hell, he didn’t know Pilot Ridge had one of them either. Seriously, either he really hadn’t gotten around as much as he thought he had when he was at Hammel, or else the town had really made leaps and bounds in new (and odd) establishments. Those were the types of places that did psychic readings too, wasn’t it? And in a place like this, there could be actual psychics to spill all sorts of secrets. Wouldn't that be a trip.

What if Kayla was a psychic? Didn't necessarily make sense, but the thought crossed his mind nonetheless. It would at least explain why she worked in a place like that, since he really couldn't see any other reason. Though, now that he was thinking about it, he really hoped she wasn’t. He didn’t want her floating around in his head when she'd only known him for an hour or two.

“Uhh...Me and my inner spirit’ll get it,” Jamie said, plucking the receipt as soon as she held it up and getting up from the bench, rolling his eyes at what he’d said once he wasn’t in view of Kayla anymore and giving the cashier his receipt once he got to the counter.

The pizza was exactly what he was expecting. Big, greasy, and damn, it smelled delicious. He maneuvered around a set of kids, setting the pan down next to their wings and beer and sliding back onto the bench, picking up their conversation as if he hadn’t just gotten up, “Nah, that’s cool...sounds like a decent job,” he laughed, grasping at straws a little. “How’d you end up working for a place like that anyways?”

[Deleted]

“Damn, guess I’m gonna have to try harder,” she said, pouting out her lower lip in her ‘disappointment’.

Kayla honestly thought that that was half the reason why Judy started the shop here in Pilot Ridge instead of somewhere else. Because there was a high concentration of people who may be psychic. Actually, Kayla didn’t know too much about Judy and her private life other than that she was a kook and followed the practice religiously. Like creepy cult, religiously. She briefly wondered if there was some reason why the woman had such a radical faith in the supernatural and spirituality. Theories included many a thing, including that she thought that Pilot Ridge was some sort of Nexus of Spiritual Power that explained why such a high population of meta-beings convened there.

Kayla was pretty certain that Judy was oblivious to Hammel though. And to the true nature of Kayla’s meta power. Actually, she wasn’t even sure the Judy knew she was a meta….or maybe she though she was actually a psychic?

It was ridiculous enough for Kayla to roll her eyes until they hurt.

She held up her hands, relenting to his “offer”. “Huh, cheating on me already, well, I see how it is,” Kayla ‘pouted’. She wiped a “tear” from her sorrow-filled eye and waved him off.

Kayla reflected again once he was gone. What was she doing? And she wondered briefly if he lived close by so she could sleep on his couch.

She didn’t fall asleep this time, during his absence. Instead, she plucked up a wing and gnawed on it, slurping up the meat and picking away at the bone in all it’s processed poultry goodness. When Jamie returned, she wiffed in the smell of greasy pizza and let out a very refreshing “ahh” before grabby hands reached over the table for a slice of sin. “Mmm, muh mommas,” she said, her words muffled by a cheek full of delicious. “Ser rully in’oo it, rike rerijusly, so…I jus’ kin’a groo uph wi’h i’.” Hopefully, he could understand the non-coherence pouring from her mouth, though it wasn’t likely. "'N so..." She swallowed. "So...momma Nattie asked one of her hoodoo friends to spot me a place and...well...I'm pretty sure Judy thinks I'm magic or blessed by the gods or something insane like that, so...was a snap to get the job." Was that cheating, maybe? Oh noo, not at all!

[Jamie Mills]

Jamie snorted at her ‘disappointed’ remark about trying hard, and gave her a looked- single eyebrow raised that said good luck with that. He wondered how corny it’d be to tell her he didn’t really care where they were, that this woman he barely knew had his full attention and they could be stuck in a ditch somewhere and he’d probably still be having a good time. He also wondered when he’d turned so damn sentimental.

He’d only just put the pizza down, continuing their conversation, and Kayla was already grabbing a piece. He pushed a small pile of napkins in her direction as he sat back down, and took a quick drink of his beer before following Kayla’s lead as she attempted to talk with her mouth full. He was able to follow quite well, given the noises coming from her that he had to work with.

“Your mom is really into it, so you grew up with it?” he repeated, then taking a bite of his slice and reveling in the taste, surprised when she mentioned that the old hag thought she was magic or blessed by the gods, once again wondering if she was psychic.

“So what is your magic?” he asked, with a little hesitation, before taking another bite.

[Deleted]

Oh, good. She hadn’t scared him away with the old “talking with her mouth full” trick. Not that she was trying to scare him away, but she was kind of interested in finding his threshold. Like, how much would he put up with and endure before he decided that it just wasn’t worth it to stick around anymore?

But if he stayed….then what?

Kayla smiled, thinning her red lips as he reiterated the gist of what she’d garbled. Apparently he hadn’t caught the part about her “mommas”. Plural. That had a tendency to throw people sometimes. Oh, well. He’d find out eventually.

Which made her subconscious whisper, oh, so you’re planning on seeing him again already?

Guess so.

Her smile didn’t fade when Jamie asked his question. Her “magic”. Kayla set down her pizza and dabbed her lips and face of the grease, then leaned forward flirtatiously. She paused. “I’m a witch,” she said simply. Then she wiggled her dainty nose. Or snout, as her sister would call it.