juststopped | for Krem

Entry tags:

ig,
krem

for Krem

It isn't the first time she's ended up somewhere she didn't necessarily intend. In private, she's done her fair share of crying over Flemming - she misses her daughter like a part of her, even after so many years - but in public, she's decided to put a brave face on it. After he'd delivered her to her apartment, Krem had told her that he'd be happy to take her for dinner, once she felt more settled. Adaline's done a little bit to make the apartment her own. She's gone back to the place that Sam bought her and put together a capsule wardrobe that's a sad shadow of her guest room back in San Francisco. She is, in short, trying. And that has to count for something.

It's the middle of the afternoon when she texts Krem.

Dinner would be nice - Adaline.

They arrange to meet at a place that Adaline's walked past a few times. It's not a particularly showy place, but she does make an effort, putting on a dress with a full skirt that reminds her of something she might have bought new in the fifties. She does her hair and make-up. She considers heels for a long time and then decides to wear them anyway. Krem strikes her as someone who doesn't lack for confidence, quiet though it seems to be.

She's a little late when she steps into the restaurant, shrugging out of her coat to let the hostess check it for her.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

"Certainly," he agreed, delicately licking his spoon clean of the chocolate still on it, merrily content, before washing the rich bite back with some of the port.

He watched her bite into the strawberry and he to look away from that as well, feeling impulsive and giddy, having to remind himself that he just said he needed time and she just said she'd left someone behind.

"Do you mind if I have another bite?" He chuckled softly. "I'm going to have to make sure my lemon cake is very good."

Adaline gets entirely distracted watching him lick his spoon and she decides she's clearly had too much to drink, which doesn't stop her taking another sip of her port. It's got a warmer, richer taste to it than the wine. She enjoys the feeling of warmth that spreads through her chest.

"Help yourself," she says. "I'm in a very giving sort of mood all of a sudden."

"I certainly appreciate this giving mood," Krem said, taking another bite from the chocolate and humming softly. He stole one of the strawberries as well, chasing the chocolate with the tart sweetness of the berry.

"And I do hope that I can do more to inspire other giving moods, as well."

She's definitely drunk. She has to close her eyes for a moment, press the back of one hand against her heated cheek.

"Oh, I'm sure the opportunity will come around."

"...is that a face that I shouldn't refill your glass again?" He was refilling his own, feeling pleasantly flushed and a bit punchy for it. He took another bite off the chocolate, contemplating if they ought to get their check soon so that he could see Adaline home.

"You should absolutely fill my glass again," she says, holding it out without opening her eyes. "I'm old enough to make my own descions where that's concerned, thank you very much." A smirk lifts the corner of her mouth.

Krem laughed, bright and happy, glad to fill her glass again, with a soft and affirmative, "Yes ma'am," that thrummed with just a little bit of contentment to hear such an authoritative tone. It was, most definitely, just the soldier in him. But he allowed himself the privacy of his flush while she had her eyes closed.

"Oh, I like that," says Adaline, opening her eyes again as she takes another sip of her wine. "Too many boys these days don't have good manners. It was different when I was a girl. Everything was different."

"I'm nearly thirty," Krem playfully grumbled, narrowing his eyes just a touch as he gestured with his wine glass and spoon in combination. "Don't let the height and young face be deceptive. And you can't be hardly older than me, if you are at all."

He hummed though. "But you're right. Some of the younger generation does have a certain lack of manners. And there are an awful lot of teenagers in this city."

Adaline makes a moue of distaste with red lips, taking another spoonful of chocolate and taking her time eating it.

"A lady never tells her age," she says. "But you're right - you do look younger than thirty." She smiles. "Well done."

"Oh, that wasn't...wasn't meant to..."

Krem's voice squeaked, just a little, in part because it just did that sometimes these days, and in part because he was staring a bit more than he ought to. He looked down at the chocolate bashfully and cleared his throat, sipping his port.

"Sorry if I offended."

"I'm sure you'll make it up to me eventually," she says, but she can't keep her face straight for long and it bursts into a grin. "You didn't offend me. It's fine."

"Maybe I'll pick up dessert," he said, mild contrition even as he began to smile again to match her bright, brilliant smile. "Just to make sure you don't hold a grudge. I wouldn't want to ruin my chances to share that lemon cake with you and taste your bread, after all."

God, she hopes that's as much of a euphemism as it sounds. She manages to keep her face straight, for a moment, and then she collapses into helpless, drunken giggles.

"Oh, God," she manages to get out once she's got her breath. "I'm so glad I met you."

Krem's smile stayed a bit bashful, even as Adaline laughed. He watched her dimples and the way her eyes crinkled, and he looked down a bit, tugging at his earlobe, when looking at her too long became a bit like looking too long into a fire, too bright and brilliant to stand.

"I'm glad I met you as well, Adaline."

It makes it easier, losing Ellis, leaving Flemming behind. She lets herself be distracted so that she can pretend that none of it matters. That her heart isn't broken.

She takes another sip of her port.

"I feel like this could all have been so much worse."

Krem hummed speculatively. There were a lot of things that could have made it much worse, he was sure, and Krem didn't want to mention any of those, lest he imply that Darrow were, fundamentally, bad. It wasn't, for the most part. Strange. Odd. But not bad, he had found.

"It's true," he said, and then sniggered a little. "You could have come during Valentines, and this chocolate cake might have made is spout poetry at each other like imbeciles."

Both of Addie's eyebrows raise and she pauses with a fork almost, but not quite, to her mouth.

"That happened?"

"Well, I don't know if it was all chocolate," Krem admitted. He shrugged a little and laughed, soft, polishing off the last of his port. He checked the bottle, but it was empty already; not surprising, they'd each had two fairly full glasses of it each.

"But there was all sorts of shenanigans going on around the city. A friend of mine proposed to his girlfriend. Another had some sort of run about with his girl that they didn't speak to each other for a few days after. I made some silly mistakes of my own. It only lasted the day though."

Adaline makes a thoughtful noise in the back of her throat and drains the last of her drink.

"Time for the bill?" she asks. She finds a reluctance in herself to leave the table but she knows that dinner can only be drawn out so far.

"I suppose it is that point of the evening, isn't it?" He couldn't help but keep smiling though, and not just because of the pleasant buzz of a bottles worth of wine sitting pleasantly in him. It had all been good company and laughter and a surprising bit of contentment. It had been easy. And he liked that.

The waiter made it easy to split the check between them, making no fuss about dividing it as they explained they'd like it--Adaline with the appetizers, Krem's entree and the dessert, and Krem with the wines and Adaline's entree. It came out about evenly.

"I'd like to walk you home, if that's alright?"

Counting out dollars, Adaline sweeps her blonde hair over one shoulder.

"Honestly?" She says, glancing at him through her eyelashes. "If have been disappointed if you hadn't offered."

"I didn't want to seem presumptuous," Krem said, handing over his bank card when the waiter came back for the bill. He rather liked the ease with which the bit of plastic worked.

When everything was taken care of and they collected their coats at the door, he offered her his elbow, smiling brightly at her.

Adaline slips her arm through his, wondering at how easy that is.

"You don't have to," she says. "If you have better things to do. You've made the gesture - I'm suitably impressed."

"No, I want to," Krem assured with a nod. "I wouldn't have offered if I didn't want to. I don't say things I don't mean, and don't offer things I don't want to. I just didn't think I should presume you'd want me walking you home, is all."

He smiled, easy and simple.

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject