The Park, early Thursday morning

[allie-vamp.livejournal.com]

Allie was perched in on her usual bench in the park with her nose buried in a book. The was fairly certain she was missing a lot of the references, but she understood enough to chuckle occasionally.

Every once in a while a flamingo would ruffle it's feathers and shift position, almost as if she was disturbing its sleep.

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[not_a_whiner]

Kaidan had expected her to be here, really; he'd just fooled himself into thinking he hadn't for a while.

He slowed the pace of his jogging until he was walking, his hand rubbing at the back of his neck. "Hey, Allie."

[allie-vamp.livejournal.com]

And there was the reason Allie was sitting on this particular park bench at this particular time. Avoiding could only go on for so long.

"Hey yourself." Allie slipped her bookmark in place and set the book on the bench. "How are you doing?"

[not_a_whiner]

"Doing okay," Kaidan said, walking up to the bench-- before coming to a stop in front of it. "Trying to piece my head back together after the weekend."

[allie-vamp.livejournal.com]

"Yeah, that was was..." she paused, lips twisting in a smile that was only slightly bitter. "Let's just say I told Kitty I think I preferred the scary dungeon."

[not_a_whiner]

"I had a similar conversation with Dean," Kaidan admitted. "Can I sit down?"

[allie-vamp.livejournal.com]

That question earned him an eye roll of fond exasperation. "Yes. Of course."

[not_a_whiner]

So he did, and thankfully, not too awkwardly. "So that was weird, right?"

Kaidan Alenko: master of words.

[allie-vamp.livejournal.com]

"That's one way of putting it," Allie agreed. "Although personally I was thinking more along the lines of cruel."

[not_a_whiner]

"Bringing back the dead for a weekend was cruel," Kaidan said. "This... I have no idea."

[allie-vamp.livejournal.com]

Maybe it was because Allie had had so many years to get used to her mother being dead, but she was willing to accept that weekend as a gift.

"Yeah, well I got to sit in the sunshine and finally find out what a peppermint mocha actually tastes like." She glanced up at the brightening sky and shrugged. "And now I'm back to this."

[not_a_whiner]

Kaidan's eyes widened. "... Oh, right. I didn't think of that. Damn, I'm sorry."

[allie-vamp.livejournal.com]

Allie shook her head. "Nothing for you to be sorry about. You didn't make it happen."

[not_a_whiner]

"I know, but I didn't realize--" He cut himself off, seguing into the probably more useful, "That's rough."

[allie-vamp.livejournal.com]

"It's life in Fandom. Sulk, deal, repress, move on." Fortunately she was mostly over the sulking part of things.

[not_a_whiner]

"And don't take any of it seriously," Kaidan said. "I know."

[allie-vamp.livejournal.com]

Allie snickered. "What part? The random scholarship to an Ivy League school? My plans to be a surgeon? Whatever this was?" She waved back and forth between them.

Some parts of the weekend had been cruel. Others were just absurd.

[not_a_whiner]

"I was thinking the last part," Kaidan said wryly. "I mean... a year ago, this would've been awkward. More awkward."

[allie-vamp.livejournal.com]

"You make a very good point," she agreed. "If this had happened last fall, we probably never would have spoken again."

[not_a_whiner]

Kaidan shook his head and snorted. "It's something," he said.

[allie-vamp.livejournal.com]

"I suppose that's the polite way of putting it," Allie observed. "We're good though?"

[not_a_whiner]

"'Course we're good," Kaidan said, his mouth twitching.

[allie-vamp.livejournal.com]

Even though she'd been fairly sure things would be fine. It was nice to have it confirmed. Of course now that meant it okay to tease Kaidan. Just a bit. "Good, I was afraid you'd still want to hold my hand or something."

[not_a_whiner]

Kaidan let go of an awkward laugh. "Ah... no thanks. I mean, no offense, but. You get me."

[allie-vamp.livejournal.com]

"None taken. Now we laugh and move on. No pining allowed." Not that there should have been pining in the first place.

[not_a_whiner]

... well, there might have been some pining, it just a) wasn't something Kaidan really realized yet and 2) didn't involve Allie in any way shape or form, but technicalities, shmechnicalities.

"I still have no clue exactly what went down," he admitted. "Radio was... a mess."

[allie-vamp.livejournal.com]

She'd be involved only in the sense of being Kaidan's personal cheering squad because at least one of them deserved to be happy.

"I can only imagine. Or maybe I don't. Dealing with my own memories is enough. I'd be afraid to think about what everyone else was up to."