[attr="class","danny"]it's early morning when he's slowly roused from a well-deserved rest. he feels her warmth against him and he shifts closer without even having to open his eyes, because he knows this is what he wants.

"good morning, beautiful," he mutters, voice soft against her skin. he reaches a hand up to caress her hair, similar to how she had done to him at her place. relishing this moment, words escape him in a breath, genuine. "i like this."

[attr="class","noodles"]Serena Malcolm

[attr="class","danny"]her tease is met with a soft chuckle and a shake of his head. he wants to deny it, even opens his mouth to do so, but he's silenced by her hand on his thigh. for whatever reason, he wasn't expecting it.

but he welcomes it, meets her eyes, and leans forward to meet her lips. his hand reaches for her neck, gentle touch grazing, and pulls her into the kiss. his lips part to remember a taste he's been craving for weeks. when they pull away, he's searching for his breath.

"i missed you."

here, in the comfort and privacy of his room, his hands finally roam free, moving to places he so desperately wanted to before. he starts at her thigh, fingers slipping between fabric and skin as they roam, feeling. he places his other hand at her waist. it slowly travels up, brushing against her smooth skin.

he's tempted to stop at her chest, and he does for a brief moment, but he continues up to her jaw, then her mouth. his hand raises over, covering her mouth while his other roams lower and lower.

he leans in close, voice nothing more than a whisper.

"be quiet for me, serena."

[attr="class","noodles"]Serena Malcolm

[attr="class","danny"]his bedroom's simple in design but it evokes a sense of comfort which played a big part into why he was so homesick in galar. still by the door, he watches her settle onto his bed and he feels a strong urge to join her.

so he does.

"fuck i thought we were busted, too. i always trip on that one step as well. my clumsy ass." he's chuckle as he lowers to sit next to her. his mattress is soft, fluffy, and he almost sinks in. his eyes glance around the room at the compliment. "i missed it a bit when i was away. missed my family more so, but this as well."

he sighs, briefly reminiscing as he leans his weight against her.

"it's nicer with you in it."

[attr="class","noodles"]Serena Malcolm

[attr="class","danny"]he makes sure the door closes quietly behind them, even going so far as to guide it shut. it clicks, soft, and he turns the lock which makes an even louder click. he tenses, waits a moment, then turns.

placing both his hands on her hips, he guides her towards the stairs. framed pictures decorate the side of the walls leading up. they're mostly family pictures of them on vacation, but there are the rare few of him and his brother when they were younger.

he trips near the top of the stairs. he manages to catch himself but he tenses from the sound regardless. shit. he's nervous but he finds himself trying to suppress a laugh. they slip into the first room to the left.

even in the darkness it's hard to miss the large shape of the sleeping arcanine on the bed. fuck. he slips a hand into a pocket, fishes out a pokeball, and points it at the arcanine before recalling it.

it just makes him laugh even more as he closes the door behind them, leaving them to their own hushed privacy.

[attr="class","noodles"]Serena Malcolm

[attr="class","danny"]angelo's slightly sweaty palm meets danny's much sweatier back. his shirt's drenched but can you really blame the man? he ran a five k in about twenty-five minutes. that's some athlete shit right there.

"ice would be good...i hear there's good...ice cream..."

[attr="class","noodles"]angelo vestri

[attr="class","danny"]"no you're not."

he takes a moment to glance around in an attempt to remember directions. or where they even are, for that matter. but he sees a familiar bus stop and knows it's only a short four minute walk back home.

"my house. come on."

and sure enough, after a short four minute walk, they arrive. all the lights apart from the ones outside have been turned off, likely due to how late it is. where one would normally be able to peer through the large windows upstairs, the view is currently blocked, likely by thick curtains. he leads her to the front door and stops right outside it. he turns, voice dropping to a flirtatious whisper.

"remember to be quiet. can't go about waking up the whole house."

[attr="class","noodles"]Serena Malcolm

[attr="class","danny"]"hi chlo!"

danny offers the steel-type a friendly wave, remembering their last encounter. he turns his attention back to the battle, to his exeggutor, and he quickly thinks of a way they could survive this. their options are limited.

they could stall out with MOONLIGHT and REFLECT and hope for the best, but that would likely just prolong the inevitable. they could go all out and bombard it with EGG BOMBS and a LEAF STORM which maybe helps his next pokemon out a little.

hmm.

"set up our defense and send a storm their way!"

it shimmies a REFLECT that surrounds it, lessening the impact of the first STONE EDGE. it's rattled, it shakes its heads, and it continues dancing. from behind them, wind starts to pick up, gathering, flowing, before it gradually transforms into a powerful LEAF STORM.

alas, it's not enough to survive the final STONE EDGE. it shoots out from the ground, smacking against exeggutor's middle head, and knocks it out cold. he recalls it soon after, thankful.

"to be honest eggheads did more than i thought he could, so i'm proud."

replacing exeggutor is his grimmsnarl. the dark-type darts its head around, looking left and right, up and down, as it takes in its surroundings. it looks to danny, waves with both hands, then turns to face the steelix, understanding.

"okay grimster buddy i'll need you to do that thing where you clap your hands."

a somewhat vague order, but it's one grimmsnarl understands. it waves at the steelix then starts clapping in applause, FLATTERING it only for its expression to morph into one that's more sinister. it then waves a hand, beckoning for it to attack as it TORMENTS it.

[attr="class","noodles"]Greyson Connors

[attr="class","danny"]oh, how cute of her to be thinking of all these different scenarios but missing the one that he had been trying to hint at. finally, after a few attempts, she gets it right; he knows by the smug and teasing grin on her features.

"i might have been," he replies, mirroring her expression. with her hand still in his, he tugs her closer and turns so they're facing each other. he peers down, eyes unabashed in the way they roam down her body. "only if you want to, of course."

"we'd have to sneak in but it could be fun." he pauses, thinking. "you'd have to be quiet."

[attr="class","noodles"]Serena Malcolm

[attr="class","danny"]he was half-kidding about the gift and it was the other half that was serious that stops him from denying the gift. he nods, suddenly excited.

there's a short lull where she thinks about her gift and then a burst of energy follows. she beams and he falls for it, falls for her more than he already has, and by the end all he can do is nod and return a bright smile of his own, equally genuine.

"and you'll get it."

he accepts the cigeratte in one, then reaches out for her hand with the other. he stands and slips his fingers between hers, holding on as he takes a final drag before exhaling. he nods, then tugs her in the direction of the trail, completely forgetting about the bottle of beer on the floor.

"let's."

they've both had quite a lot to drink. she's drunk and he's almost drunk, and the two of them sway back and forth, teetering as they stroll through the park they were in earlier. a thought pops into his head as he nears his house.

"serena, how are you getting home?"

[attr="class","noodles"]Serena Malcolm

[attr="class","danny"]"heal! heal! heal!"

danny shouts the repeated order so loud that his voice cracks by the second. but it pays off because exeggutor understands, nods, and does its best to battle the CONFUSION to channel the forces of nature.

its leaves fan out as it begins to draw in the sun. the first attempt fails, and danny can tell by the way its leaves droop slightly, but the second attempt to suck in the MOONLIGHT succeeds. exeggutor feels revitalized just in time to survive the HYDRO PUMP.

the impact sends it out of the cup-shaped ground. it flies for a bit then smacks into the ground, but it stands not long after that, still conscious.

"looks like that's one zero to me! who's next, grey boy?"

[attr="class","noodles"]Greyson Connors

[attr="class","danny"]he finally exhales when she turns away, not realizing he had held his breath in the first place. fuck. he'd really like to kiss her again. his eyes turn and follow hers to peer out into the darkness.

to his surprise, she offers him the cigarette. he takes it between his fingers and brings it to his lips, nodding as she speaks. one drag later and he's extending it back over to her. he exhales smoke off to the side, away from them.

"april thirteenth. it just passed, sadly. but it's not too late for you to get me a gift." he leans into her shoulder, relishing her presence. "what would you like for yours?"

[attr="class","noodles"]Serena Malcolm

[attr="class","danny"]guess that makes us both boring huh?

"guess that does."

and he's okay with that.

he nods at her birthday, making a mental note to remember it. november sixteenth. he's about to open his mouth to respond with his before she interjects. he laughs, nodding, then sways back the moment she leaves.

yeah, she's drunk. and while danny's had about three drinks as well, he's nowhere near her level. he's getting there, though, as he waltzes over to robbie and orders a bottle to go. he pays whatever and tells him to keep the rest. waving goodbye to them, he breaks out into the open as well to see her sat on the steps.

"oh i didn't expect to see you here," he jests and chuckles, tipsy. he takes a step forward then lowers to sit next to her. her unlit cigarette catches his attention, and so he places his bottle on the ground and reaches over.

"come here."

his hand slips into hers to retrieve the lighter before bringing it up to her lips. his finger scratches, igniting the cigarette between her lips.

"i got you."

he's unaware of just how close he is; shoulder leaning into hers, face hovering close to hers.

[attr="class","noodles"]Serena Malcolm