Lily Didn't Even Have The Opportunity To Warn Him About How Hot They'd Be Fresh Out Of The Oven, Just

"I'm fine, don't worry... it's just a scratch. What about you? Isn't it a nope day? You should lie down..."

"I'm still going to worry," she insisted stubbornly, her eyebrows furrowed, "Sit down for now, I'll be right back."

As much as she knows she should listen to him and sit down, trust him to tend to himself, not over do it... She can't help but fuss. Is she going to pay for it later? Probably. But it's worth it to know he's okay now.

So she shuffled her way to the bathroom, grabbing a hair tie and messily pulling it back and out of the way for the time being. Once relatively satisfied with that, and once again dismissing the thought that short hair would be easier to deal with on days like this, she grabbed her first aid kit from under the sink and shuffled her way back to Xavier.

Franz Kafka, Letters to Milena // Alain de Botton, Essays in Love // Eden Robinson, "Writing Prompts for the Broken-Hearted" // Chloe Liese, Always Only You // Anne Carson and Euripides, An Oresteia // Two—Sleeping At Last // Studio Bones, SK8 the Infinity // Trista Mateer, "is it okay to say this?" // @moodylilac // D. H. Lawrence, "The Rainbow"

Lily was more than happy to listen to the ramble, lacing her hands behind her back casually as she listened to him, keeping her eyes on the flowers in hopes of not making him too anxious or flustered. She doesn't want him to risk accidentally drowning a poor plant if he gets panicky because she's watching him too closely!

His warning to not test the fire resistance inside earned an amused snort, turning her head for a moment as if trying to hide it, despite not actually trying to do so. "Noted." She commented, audibly amused. She can only imagine the shenanigans he must get up to, testing the limits of various materials.

Both he and Xavier seem to be men of many talents... far more than most people.

She distracted herself from that thought when he continued his rambles, humming to show she heard. "Thank you, Jeremiah." She beamed at him this time, adding on a playful "I'd probably make a lot of people jealous, having a personal tailor." She teased.

( Jump - sender jumps on receivers back - @lily-of-the-linkon )

Lily grinned when seeing Jeremiah wasn't paying attention to her, a mischievous little plan forming in her head.

Putting her training to the test, she carefully approached him from behind. She kept her movements as silent as possible, slowly lifting her arms to brace herself for step two.

When she was finally within reach of the (unsuspecting?) man, she lunged to jump on his back. While she was careful not to knock him over if she could help it, she was still dramatic.

Almost immediately after 'impact', she couldn't help but break into giggles, shifting to at least attempt to look at his face. "Hi Jer~" she greeted with playfully exaggerated casualness.

"What the- ah!"

The sudden surprise and sensation of warmth pressed against his back shocked him enough to let out a yelp in surprise, but the familiarity of the voice immediately calmed his instincts.

He adjusts his grip to ensure her safety but doesn't put her down.

"Stars, Lilyyyy! Where did you come from!? How did you manage to be so quiet!?"

Blinking up at him when he said her name, she found herself melting into the small affection.

Knowing better than to try and argue, she simply offered a small nod and leaned back against the couch, putting the ice pack on her head for the time being to help with cooling herself off some. She can clean up the medical supplies... later.

"I know I took my dailies... if I took my other ones they should be at the very front of the cabinet...," she called to him.

Perhaps fortunately, Xavier wouldn't have to search too hard, considering the pill bottle sitting on the counter right next to the medicine cabinet, with a water bottle sitting next to it, both unopened. Looks like she'd been about to take them, then got distracted.

"I'm fine, don't worry... it's just a scratch. What about you? Isn't it a nope day? You should lie down..."

"I'm still going to worry," she insisted stubbornly, her eyebrows furrowed, "Sit down for now, I'll be right back."

As much as she knows she should listen to him and sit down, trust him to tend to himself, not over do it... She can't help but fuss. Is she going to pay for it later? Probably. But it's worth it to know he's okay now.

So she shuffled her way to the bathroom, grabbing a hair tie and messily pulling it back and out of the way for the time being. Once relatively satisfied with that, and once again dismissing the thought that short hair would be easier to deal with on days like this, she grabbed her first aid kit from under the sink and shuffled her way back to Xavier.

[Phone call, Xavier's voice sounds urgent] "I'm in great danger I need you to come downstairs right now. Please! You're the only one that can help. In fact, the entire complex may be in danger if you don't help me stop this right now."

As soon as she registered the urgency and he mentioned 'upstairs', Lily was rushing out of her apartment, only sparing enough time to grab her guns as a precaution.

"I'm on my way!" She reassured as she hurried upthe flight of stairs between them. Her thoughts were already racing a mile a minute, wondering what could possibly be causing Xavier of all people to struggle and call for help, especially without causing much of a ruckus.

By the time she reached his door her heart was pounding and she was braced for a fight.

Humming thoughtfully as she followed after Kaia, Lily ended up laughing with her quietly. “If they have a personal chef then yeah, food may not be the best of gifts unless it’s something you made yourself.” She mused, her tone playful as she followed the server to a table.

She nodded to Kaia explaining her train of thought, her expression soft. “I understand, don’t worry. You know they like receiving gifts, and you like to prove that they’re on your mind. It’s sweet.” She reassured as she sat down finally, setting her shopping bag beside her carefully and well out of anyone’s way.

"Oh, wait! Before you leave, what color do you think the jacket should b—" Not looking away from the clothing rack in front of her, she grabs the sleeve of the person nearest to her without thinking, and realizes a little too late that it felt... Different. She turns, blinking; the person she'd been talking to had left, and beside her instead was...

"Wait, you're—! Lily?! You're Lily, right?! Oh, my god, I am so sorry, I totally thought you were someone else! Gosh, and this is the first time I'm actually talking to you, too..."

—&&. @kaiakaya 🤍

Lily was more than a little startled to suddenly feel her sleeve grabbed while she was looking for a new jacket to replace her favorite one that has... been through it. It's getting a few small holes in it but she's already mended it so many times it's time to retire it.

She blinked in surprise at Kaia for a moment before she started laughing, keeping it relatively quiet for the moment so they don't draw too much attention.

"Yes, I'm Lily. You're Kaia, right?" She asked, hoping she doesn't make a fool of herself.

At Kaia's concerns about how this is the first time they're speaking, she shook her head with a smile and waved a hand dismissively. "It's alright, don't worry!" She reassured easily "Do you need help finding the person you're here with?" She offered, tilting her head slightly.

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Lily managed to avoid blinking in the photos, though it got close a few times from the urge to giggle at his determination.

When he held the phone within her reach she reached out to help steady it, nodding happily. "Send them to me, please?" She asked, looking up at him and making no attempts to move away.

Sure, photos are hardly perfect, they're even kind of blurry, but it's so him.

“I trust you” - @lily-of-the-linkon

"Huh? What are you up to?" He closes his eyes.

--

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Lily's clever, she'd figure it out! Plus the idea motivates her more to try and get strong enough to carry him, whether he's asleep or hurt.

She opted instead to let out a small laugh, letting him move her hands as he pleased. "Only for a moment, to not completely blind ourselves." She hummed, following him to the crosswalk. "Besides, I like a challenge." She teased with a grin.

She did get her phone out though to check her map, humming as she double checked their path, nodding to herself. No getting lost today!

After spending the morning doing research on places in Linkon City that offer milk tea, Lily finally found a place that seemed like it would be a nice place to visit and had the coffee milk tea that Xavier mentioned. Plus it wasn't far from a few good places to eat so they'd have options based on what they were feeling up to without having to go all the way across town. Perfect.

Lily finally sent Xavier a text in the late morning.

'I found a place that has that coffee milk tea you mentioned! And it has really good reviews.'

After a moment of thought, she sent another text as well.

'And thank you for walking me home last night. I really appreciated it. It was nice, looking at the stars with you.'

If not for the sporadic texts, Xavier would still be asleep. Outside the birds that often bickered over his balcony were squawking at a volume loudly. The combination of factors is enough to stir him, just barely. He knows its her before having to unlock his phone.

↪[ Audio: I'm awake. I'm up. I'm coming. ]

↪[ It was nice. Let's do it again sometime ]

In a flash he rinses off, takes care of basic hygiene, and is donning a favored hoodie in spite of the weather.

By the time he gets downstairs, he's already rubbing his eyes again as he knocks on the door.