it hurts less than he expected it to.

not stormy taking months to respond to his offer — no, he'd expected as much — but the end of his relationship. if anything, it just makes him more aware of where his priorities lie.

with himself.

it's a nice restaurant, and he dresses appropriately.

i'm here, five minutes early.

the text sends back, and he waits by the entrance.

Stormy Silph

☉

Scattered, overwhelmed, and suddenly agitated by the amount of people that crowd around to get inside, Stormy doesn't have a chance to look at his response.

Why?

Because just as the screen flicks to life, someone bumps against her and she fumbles the device. It slips past the end of her fingers, leaving her to watch in muted horror as it somersaults to smash against the pavement. Quickly, she squats down to reach for it, pulling aside the wispy pieces of her evening dress to avoid it or herself getting stepped on.

Even despite her efforts, however, when she rises back to her full height, she wipes her phone screen off on her dress before looking at it. THe motion is instinctual, leaving behind the gritty, muddy smear.

"Damnit.."

Try as she might to bring the menu down, it doesn't budge. Something's broken.

"What name was it under again?"

She speaks mostly to herself, only to realize that Cian is no more than a few steps ahead of her, waiting by the entrance. Just as she goes to step forward, however, people bustle their way past her. She shrinks back, recoiling from their accidental touches, appearing.. most unlike herself.

CIAN MAHER

☉

they both seem like ghosts of their former selves.

he blinks, almost not recognizing the person behind him just because of how she shrinks away from people — a trait she has never really shown before. he offers her a gentle smile as he approaches, shrugging through people to get to her.

"stormy!"

he pockets his phone.

"looks like we're both early. are you okay?"

Stormy Silph

☉

Agitation creeps across the surface of her skin, giving her the appearance of a cat on edge, fur spiked along its spine to indicate its fear.

And when she spots Cian and sees the gentle smile he offers, she recoils from that too. Does she see.. pity? Does he pity her?

But he parts the sea of people, commands a presence that encourages them all to walk away and disappear. It gives her breathing room, if only for a moment. Her stiff, tense shoulders begin to relax just slightly, but she makes no effort to approach him further. The space between them is almost not enough.

"I'm fine."

She is aggressive, defensive, lashing out for no reason other than the ones whispering in the back of her mind. Did she not look okay? Did he think something was wrong with her? Where once heat would flash across her skin indicative of her mood, only the cool breeze is felt.

"What are you looking at?"

CIAN MAHER

☉

not pity, no. but sympathy and understanding than anything. but he's not privy to her thoughts, nor is he particularly insightful beyond what's on the surface. which, in her case, is a lot, because stormy's always been one to wear her heart on her sleeves.

"i'm looking at you, dummy."

he takes a step closer, smile growing.

"you look good."

Stormy Silph

☉

Her face.. trembles, brows quivering as she strains between haughtiness and embarrassment. She opens her mouth to say something, but nothing comes. Cian steps closer and she notices his smile, and she swallows.

"I--" she hesitates, glances away. "Thanks. Uh-- you too."

Before more awkwardness from her end could continue, Stormy inclines her head toward the restaurant entrance. She chews on the inside of her bottom lip, at war with her feelings and comfort level.

"Can we go inside please? I'm tired of being pushed around out here."

CIAN MAHER

☉

this is not the stormy he remembers. time has changed them both, he imagines. too much, perhaps.

"sure thing."

he extends his arm out for her, though doesn't linger even if she decides not to grab it. without much delay, he enters the restaurant, and they're led over to their reserved table under her name.

"you really had to pick an expensive ass restaurant, huh?"

Stormy Silph

☉

The Stormy he knows died that night at the Soiree.

Or she should have.

Cian extends his arm to her and she blanks, staring at it without moving. But he begins to walk away, not waiting for her to decide one way or the other. It is loneliness and fear of being left behind that encourages her to react. She reaches forward and pinches the corner of his shirt, right at the elbow, before her fingers crawl to find purchase.

The table is reserved under her name, and she is awkward and clearly rattled as they ask her questions and sit them down. It takes her a moment to even catch her breath, and she glances back at Cian when he speaks up.

"'Loser buys dinner', your own words. You never specified limits on how much to spend."

She brushes her fingers over the wrapped up silverware before fitting her hands back in her lap beneath the table.

CIAN MAHER

☉

"that's fair."

with a smile, he accepts the menu from their waitress, and flicks it open to idly scan.

his gaze flicks up to look at her, ignoring the food choices for now.

"took you long enough, though. i was starting to think you forgot."

Stormy Silph

☉

Stormy glances at their watress with some degree of aversion, but takes the menu and pulls it up to hide her face from the man across from her. At first, it isn't intentional, merely an instinctual attempt to shut the world out.

But when his attention lingers, when his voice carries over the lip and causes her to let the menu hang loose, she stiffens her fingers and pulls it up tighter. What brief glance upon her blank, shocked expression he might have seen is quickly hidden.

Behind her closed door, Stormy swallows and dips her head.

"... No. I hadn't. I have just had a lot on my mind."

And admittedly, seeing Cian brought uncomfortable feelings of grief. He was a reminder, a painful one, and she was a coward.

CIAN MAHER

☉

shunted and closed off, he almost decides against prying, but for her sake, he says:

"if you want to share, then i'm all ears."

but he has suspicions. after all, news of what happened at the soiree quickly reached his ears. again, it's not pity he feels.

Stormy Silph

☉

He would see, if he were watching, her fingers tighten around the menu. It's faux-leather binding squeezes within her grip, protesting.

"There's nothing to talk about that you probably haven't already heard."

News travels quickly, and her sudden absence from society had been abrupt and painful. She'd cut herself off quickly - though she can't fathom a reason why Cian of all people would have noticed. Still, he would have known what happened.

Everyone did.

"What are you ordering?"

CIAN MAHER

☉

cian's not one to preach about sharing when he barely does so himself. so he lets the topic shift with ease, dipping his head in response as he also notices her grip tensing around the menu.

"the ribeye. i think it's what this place is known for."

their steaks, at least.

he smirks, lowering the menu to look at her more.

"the minor gym pays well."

not really. it pales to the paycheck he gets from devon.

Stormy Silph

☉