Whatever interest she may have had in eating her tacos, whatever hunger or appetite, is all set aside when he looks into her eyes and holds her hand, saying all those words that she honestly would have never expected him to say…

Flirting and compliments are one thing, but this feels different.

It makes her heart flutter, and the soft smile on her lips is one she didn’t even intend for to begin with.

”I… There’s bad things about me too, you know?”

There’s a slight pout, but it doesn’t last long.

”Thank you, Lance.”

For what?

For seeming to see the best in her, perhaps.

LANCE VOLLANS

☉

”Lance.”

Of course he makes her go from smiling to pouting with terrible ease, and when his next words come, she can do no more than look at him.

’I think you're beautiful, Lia.’

It’s not like she has never been called things like those before, but there’s something about the way he says it that makes her happy, and as should probably be expected, it’s faintly that her cheeks flush – as they so often seem to do when she’s with him.

Maybe she should be thankful that it’s so late and dark.

”...You really think so?”

LANCE VOLLANS

☉

”Wow, I can’t believe you thought I was basic.”

She chuckles, obviously teasing him, because while in her own opinion ‘basic’ is far from what she is (although she can sometimes be a little basic, let’s be honest here), she also wouldn’t really be offended if he actually had assumed those things about her. People always assume things, don’t they?

In a lot of ways, she’s used to it.

”Thanks for agreeing that I’m cute, though.”

With this, she smiles brightly at him.

LANCE VOLLANS

☉

When he bumps into her, it’s almost without meaning to that she allows herself to ease into it, gently and ever so slightly leaning against him while they continue to eat their taco.

There’s this comfort that comes with his presence next to her, something that Lia can’t really explain but that is nice and enjoyable and that, for whatever reason, makes her feel safe.

Even when he teases her like this.

”Laaance… Did you think I was just a cute girl who likes sweets and can’t handle anything else?”

Naturally, it’s with a pout that she turns to look at him.

LANCE VOLLANS

☉

Delight.

As much as her expectations may not have been high or unrealistic, Lia has always been kind of picky about food, especially as a kid, and she’s not usually prone to trying new things. It’s perhaps out of trust or out of simply enjoying his presence that the decision to have dinner with Lance had come easily, and honestly, she doesn’t regret it in the slightest.

In fact, she chuckles too.

”It’s sooooo good... Could be a little spicier, though.”

A smirk, because she's mostly teasing.

LANCE VOLLANS

☉

It is romantic.

And, because it is, it’s once more that Lia finds herself wondering if this is simply them having dinner together as coworkers, or if it’s an impromptu date. She knows it’s better not to ask, because truly, she’s not even sure what she herself wants it to be, but that doesn’t stop the thought from still being there as they sit down on the sand.

She sits right next to him.

”Alright, but don’t be mad if I don’t like them.”

There’s a chuckle, and she does indeed reach for a taco, taking a nice bite after rearranging it a bit to make sure that nothing falls off…

”Mmmmm… Oh my god…”

Delight and nothing more.

LANCE VOLLANS

☉

Could he convince her?

Probably, since she wouldn’t have moved to Lilycove if she didn’t like it too, but instead of saying this and instead of agreeing with him, Lia simply meets his gaze, smiling as softly as ever.

”Then you better try.”

Challenging as the words may be, they’re said both sweetly and playfully.

In truth, Lia’s expectations aren’t nearly as high or unrealistic as she makes them seem.

”Sure, we can eat on the sand, that’d be nice.”

She goes along with him, rarely one to complain about things like those.

LANCE VOLLANS

☉

Biased.

Does he really like Lilycove that much? It’s not surprising considering it’s where he lives, and it’s definitely a much nicer city than Slateport, but he also hasn’t even been living in Hoenn all that long…

”Oh really? I’m not sure, I’m pretty attached to Slateport’s food – might take some convincing.”

She smirks then, obviously just teasing him even if she actually does have a certain fondness for Slateport after so many years spent there. It’s still not Rustboro, though.

When he bumps into her, she chuckles.

”Oh, now I have really high expectations.”

LANCE VOLLANS

☉

”Ha… Guess you have a point. I used to always go to the food trucks at Slateport beach back when I was in university, but I haven’t really tried any here… Until now, I guess.”

She smiles at him, and she doesn’t really bother with explaining her reasons for this. There’s no point, and the fact that she moved to Lilycove because she needed a change of pace and to be somewhere different probably wouldn’t make for the most fun topic of conversation...

So, she simply waits next to him, and when the greeting comes, she looks at him.

”Oh, so you really are a regular, huh? Now I’m curious to know what the usual is.”

Faintly so, she smirks.

LANCE VOLLANS

☉

’You won't be.’

As if he knows it will happen? As if there’s no doubt about it?

Honestly, it probably will, and she knows this, but it’s definitely better to just change the topic and not talk about all that right now, isn’t it? Especially considering that they’re in public…

Would sharing ice cream be a date? Is this a date?

The thoughts return when they’re queueing up to order their food, Lia smiling faintly as she looks up at him.

”Do you usually eat at places like these?”

LANCE VOLLANS

☉

”I didn’t say it was surprising, I just didn’t take you for a vanilla type of guy. Maybe I’m a little disappointed.”

She’s not, obviously, but teasing him like this is fun.

Even if the thought of sharing an ice cream with him distracts her because it’s way too adorable – almost unfairly so.

”Sounds like a deal, we should do that sometime.”

With these words, she smiles.

LANCE VOLLANS

☉

There’s something about the way that he places a hand at the small of her back that makes her look up at him as they cross the street, because it doesn’t feel like a simple gesture – even if involuntary.

For a second, she considers asking him if he’s alright, but that second passes all too quickly, and soon she finds herself confronted with the information that Lance’s favourite dessert is Banana Split of all things.

Naturally, she smirks.

”Oh really? Vanilla, huh?”

Can she really be blamed for teasing him?

”I like ice cream too, though… Usually chocolate.”

LANCE VOLLANS

☉

’How is it cute?’

At this, she looks at him, raising an eyebrow because he’s definitely being defensive and it’s also hypocritical when considering he refused to answer when she asked him something similar.

Adorable.

In response, she brings her index finger to her lips, giving him a wink.

”That’s for me to know and for you to wonder, but it’s really cute”

And then, she chuckles too, finding herself to be easily distracted with thoughts of candy and desserts.

’I’ll be sure to remember.

Will he really?

”You better. What’s yours, though?”

LANCE VOLLANS

☉