Continued from: Alleys and Streets; Main Streets with Nick.
As they pulled into the gas station, Lynnette unfastened her buckle with a little click, and let it slide back against the side of the car, looking to her companion. “Well, I’ve never really seen you mad, so I’m almost curious, but it might be a little scary,” she teased, smiling to show the light-heartedness behind her words. “So… root beer, right?” She nodded her head, and slipped out of the car, checking the rest of the station before even attempting to the cross to the building itself.
She entered through the door, and went for the refrigerator, pulling out a root beer, and an orange soda for herself. She browsed the candy assortment for a while before snagging a bag of Reese’s. The female werewolf continued to browse for a little while, looking over the various treats and goodies, realising in the back of her mind that she was waiting for Nick to join her inside.
welcome to resistance, the tension is here between who you are and who you could be, between how it is and how it should be
To Lynnette’s comment about him maybe being scary when he was really mad, he had simply given a little shrug. Was he supposed to admit that, yes, it probably was a scary thing, or just keep that to himself? Since he didn’t really know, the shrug had seemed like a good idea and, as she got out of the car, he turned off the engine and slid out of the Beamer himself, pocketing the keys as he closed the door.
Nick was the sort who tended to pay for the gas with his credit card because there was something that he didn’t like about going into the stations themselves. He had never been able to figure out exactly what that was, but he had never really tried to. After all, it wasn’t like it actually mattered that much. This time, however, as soon as the tank was full, he headed inside, not even thinking twice about. All he needed to know was that Lynnette was inside and therefore, that was where he was going to be, too. On his way past a rack, he picked up a Snickers bar before joining her with a grin. That seemed to be something he did quite a lot when he was around her.
When Nick came along to join her, Lynnette had been humming to herself; some non-descript song that she’d used for practise about a dozen times in the past few years, and one she still favoured to this day. But right at that moment, she would be damned if she could remember what it was, or who sang it. She looked up to the other wolf when he joined her, and smiled, noting the Snickers in his hand.
“Ah, good choice,” she acknowledged lightly, poking at the bar. She looked towards the guy sitting behind the register, and saw his expression. Lowering her voice, she said, “Does he look bored out of his mind, or what?”
welcome to resistance, the tension is here between who you are and who you could be, between how it is and how it should be
Nick glanced towards the guy at the register before saying, his own voice low to match, “He does. I guess it’s a good thing that we’ve got plans or we’d have to do something to try and easy his boredom. As it is, I guess it’s his lucky night. Otherwise, I might have to howl again and something tells me that he wouldn’t appreciate that.”
She laughed, having to allow the sound since her hands were full, and she couldn’t cover her mouth to stop it sounding openly. The man looked briefly in their direction, and she quickly averted her eyes so it wouldn’t be so obvious they were watching him. She felt bad for the poor guy, working what was no doubt the graveyard shift at a place that probably saw no more than a dozen customers on a night like this.
But then, for all she knew, it would pick up for him later, and he was just enjoying the dullness this lull provided. “He’d probably call the funny farm. But maybe you’d fit right in at one of those places.” Her eyes sparkled with mischief, and she smiled at him.
welcome to resistance, the tension is here between who you are and who you could be, between how it is and how it should be
Nick gave a look of mock hurt. “How could you say such a thing? I’m perfectly sane, thank you very much. Maybe I’m the only sane one in the whole world and everyone else is just crazy. Ever think of that?” After that little act, he gave a playful grin and glanced around, trying to figure out if there was anything else he might want to snack on during the night. “Hey, beef jerky.” That sounded about right so he headed for the packages.
After a brief moment, he spotted his favorite and picked up a package of it, glancing to Lynnette. “Even though you were mean to me, I’ll be nice and pay.” He knew that she had just been joking. It had been easy to read in her eyes and her smile- That smile…
“Pfft, what’s the fun in being sane?” she asked, almost of herself, as they moved around the small store that made up the interior of the station. She couldn’t help but laugh at his, in her opinion, endearing exclamation about jerky, rolled her eyes good-naturedly, and followed after him.
She smiled at his offer to pay, deciding to play along. “You know, if you keep this up, I might think you’re spoiling me.” After she said it, she had to fight against widening her eyes. That had been a bit of a stupid thing to say, especially since she was pretty sure she’d been flirting with him back in the car. God, she was an idiot. But her smile never wavered. For all intents and purposes, she looked exactly the same as she had before she’d even opened her mouth.
welcome to resistance, the tension is here between who you are and who you could be, between how it is and how it should be
“When a lady is with a guy, the guy should always pay unless the lady has something to say against it.” And he was extremely serious about that, though he knew that it was likely that Lynnette had already figured that out. Now he gave a grin. “Besides, maybe I am trying to spoil you. I’m allowed to do that, right?”
When what he had said registered with him, Nick thought, Okay, now why exactly did I have to say that out loud? I could’ve kept that to myself… It was, however, too late now and, like Lynnette, he managed to look as if he had said absolutely nothing out of the ordinary.
The wolf in Lynnette perked up, sitting at attention almost, ears upright and cocked. It was an amusing mental image for her, considering how she really looked as a wolf; gangly and more human than animal… but that was beside the point. This was about, at least in her head, what Nick had just said… to her face. She couldn’t help but be intrigued, something she hid well… at least for the most part. If only subconsciously, she allowed some of it to show on her face, in her expression.
“Well, in that case, who am I to argue?” She didn’t know when they’d reached the counter, but now that they were beside it, she put her items on the desk beside Nick’s, and smiled at him sincerely.
welcome to resistance, the tension is here between who you are and who you could be, between how it is and how it should be
Nick returned Lynnette’s smile with a sincere one of his own as the man at the counter began to ring up their purchases. He found himself rather amazed at the fact that it seemed impossible for him not to smile when Lynnette was smiling, especially when she was smiling at him. He wasn’t entirely certain as to what was going on with him where Lynnette was concerned, but he did know that he wasn’t going to argue with it. The feelings he was developing towards her were new to him, but unlike most uncharted territory, he found it nice.
When the man named the price for their things, Nick pulled out his wallet and handed over the money, taking the plastic bag holding their snacks after putting his change and wallet away. Looking to Lynnette, he gave a little grin. “Ready to get back on the road?”
Nick had a wonderful smile, she noted internally, feeling a little flush of heat try to rise into her cheeks before she quelled it, pushing it back down where it belonged, out of sight and out of mind. She, like Nick, was entering uncharted territory. For decades, Lynnette had been frightened of males, especially those of her own kind. She bore the evidence of the cruelty they could unleash, physically and mentally, and it had scarred her both outside and in.
She remembered Riley, and how he had been the only male wolf in her life to treat her with respect and warmth. Nick reminded her so much of Riley, but it went beyond that… he had something else about him that she had never noticed before, or appreciated. She felt a kind of tingle somewhere inside of her when she was with him, especially when he smiled or laughed, and she could see a free and easy light in his eyes…
“Hmm?” She looked up at him, and smiled sheepishly. “Oh, absolutely.” Her eyes were lightly apologetic, embarrassed that she had allowed herself to get absorbed in her own little world.
welcome to resistance, the tension is here between who you are and who you could be, between how it is and how it should be
Nick tilted his head slightly but didn’t comment on her apparently having been a million miles away. Instead, he gave another smile and headed for the door, holding it open for her.
“I’m ready to find what we’re looking for.” I think I’ve found something that I didn’t know that I was looking for. While Nick didn’t outwardly show his confusion at that thought, he couldn’t help but wonder where it had come from. Although, he had to admit, he thought that it was true. Who knew, really? He supposed that he’d find out given a little more time but for now he really did need to keep his mind on the task at hand- finding a spot to go running- or something was likely to end up showing on his face. If that happened, he didn’t even want to think about how awkward he might get if questions were asked. It's not like he'd be able to lie to her. He knew that was out of the question. While he didn't mind lying when it was needed, there was no question that he'd never lie to Lynnette.
Thankful that her companion hadn’t called her on her ‘spacing’, she smiled appreciatively at him, offered a diluted version of the expression to the clerk, and then followed the male werewolf out of the store.
“Me too. We’ve got the soda, we’ve got the snacks, and we’ve got the gas… I’d say we’re set.” She even lightly clapped her hands together, as if that symbolised their readiness, when really, it almost made her want to laugh from the spontaneity and silliness of such an action. She just acted so strangely when she was with Nick; so random and carefree, speaking before she thought, and not considering her actions fully before they were carried out. If she weren’t so intrigued by the change, she might have been frightened by it.
“Okay, I shouldn’t have any more sugar tonight, clearly… but who cares?” She grinned, and laughed, shaking her head so that her blonde hair shuffled around her shoulders, caught in the soft breeze of the LA night time. “So let’s get out of here, and find someplace where I can burn off this wacky-energy, or something, before I embarrass myself.”
welcome to resistance, the tension is here between who you are and who you could be, between how it is and how it should be
“How’s this?” Nick asked, following her across the lot towards his car. “Whatever wackiness happens tonight stays just between us.” He gave a little shrug. “Not like I’d actually go telling anyone about anything anyway.” He paused. “I didn’t realize that it was possible to use three words with ‘any-’ at the beginning in one sentence. Did that even make sense?”
He gave a shake of his head. “Maybe I’m the one that needs to lay off the sugar for the rest of the night. I can’t seem to make sense to myself any more.” That’s it. Blame the sugar. It’s not like I’m descending into silliness because I’m out and about with Lynnette… He was going to have to start thinking about what he said first- something that he wasn’t used to doing- if he wanted to ensure that he didn’t leave her thinking that he was an idiot; if she ended up thinking that, he didn’t know what he would do.
He ran his free hand quickly through his hair and decided that he should stop talking for the time being. That would probably be for the best. Pulling out his keys as they approached his car, he hit the button to unlock the doors and pulled Lynnette’s door open for her, giving another smile.
For a brief second, Lynnette wished Nick wasn’t so cute in the way he acted, but then she banished it, realising how much she liked that aspect. Riley had been nothing like that; depressed and worried all the time, constantly looking tired and afraid, and after he’d taken a savage beating to defend her honour and save her from her fate as a breeder, it had only gotten worse.
Would you stop digging up the past and enjoy now?
She covered the shake of her head by laughing genuinely at Nick’s sugar-induced ramble, smiling brightly. As he held the door open for her as always, an endearing gentlemanly trait if ever she had seen one, she offered him an honest, soft smile, and sank back into the car, claiming her comfortable seat once again, actually glad to be out of his line of sight, if only for a minute, so she could breath out a heavy, steadying breath and let the heat briefly flush into her cheeks unhindered. She needed it out of her system.
welcome to resistance, the tension is here between who you are and who you could be, between how it is and how it should be