❄️

"I get that, trust me." Lily reassured, shaking her head with a chuckle. "I can't count the number of times I've defaulted to neutrals for others, but it hasnt failed me yet!" She snickered.

With the questions, she nodded with a sheepish laugh, putting her hands of the white jacket. "Mmhm! It's really comfy and not too heavy, but it's not trapping heat as well as it used to, and the pockets are hanging on with a prayer." She admitted, even showing her.

Kaia's offer for company earned another nod of agreement "Sure, I don't mind!" She answered easily. "Plus then we can both tease the person who oh-so-cruelly abandoned you in the middle of the store." She teased lightheartedly.

"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.

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.

Lily shook her head affectionately, running her hand over her ponytail. "He's something, alright." She agreed playfully.

She nodded to his offer, standing a little straighter. "Of course! I'll try not to distract you too much." She teased playfully, stretching out carefully. "Though speaking of, I should probably get out of your hair. Once I'm home I'll let you know when I'm supposed to be free so we can try to coordinate a day to come over."

( 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!?"

Lily was absolutely doing her best to get photos of his reaction, beaming when seeing she managed to see she was doing a decent job at capturing the shenanigans.

When he retaliated with a boop of his own, Lily scrunched her nose up playfully and even wiggled it a little. "What can I say, you're fun to mess with?" She hummed, looking up at him.

“I trust you” - @lily-of-the-linkon

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

--

Ask meme

Lily couldn’t fight the flush as Xavier went on about all of the little things that make her excited, her pout disappearing completely. Honestly, it made her heart skip a beat in a good way, to know that he paid such close attention to such little things. She really shouldn’t be surprised that he was so observant, but it was touching all the same.  

The affectionate train of thought was derailed by the teasing, her cheeks turning even deeper pink in embarrassment as she shifted to lightly elbow him in the side. “Oh, hush.” She ‘scolded’, even as she turned her attention up towards the menu.  

Fortunately, she did manage to decide before they made it up front, figuring she’d go with a fruity tea, something on the sweeter side. Once she had finally decided on a drink, she honestly seemed rather proud of herself.

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.

Lily took to quietly humming when he stayed quiet, wanting to fill the silence in hopes he wouldn't feel quite so awkward about the embrace. She was half tempted to start swaying them a little as if they were dancing, but that might be a bit too much, especially with how exhausted he seemed. While she wouldn't blame him for falling asleep like this... She's not entirely sure she could support his weight properly or move him anywhere more comfortable.

When he finally stepped back, she stretched out her arms so they wouldn't get too sore. Her smile didn't falter though as she looked up at him, biting back giggles. It's kind of cute, seeing such a big strong guy get awkward over something as simple as a hug.

Perking up slightly at the offer of chocolate, she did accept a piece, but gave him a very gentle nudge as she unwrapped it. "You don't need to repay me or anything, honest." She reassured. "I enjoyed it too, and I'm just glad I could give you a moment to relax, as short of a moment as it was."

Her eyebrows furrowed for a moment, wishing there was more she could do to comfort and support him, but she couldn't think of a single thing... Hopefully that hug will help at least a little bit for now.

( from @lily-of-the-linkon )

Lily holds her arms out slightly towards Dawnbreaker, hoping to make it so he won't feel bad if he refuses her invitation.

"Would you like a hug?"

His eyes light up briefly at the prospect of physical comfort.

"...Yes, I would."

He steps towards her, enveloping her in a gentle embrace to avoid causing her any discomfort, despite his wishes. He leans his forehead on her shoulder, closing his eyes.

Lily brought the bowls over at the request, offering him a reassuring smile. "I know that you didn't mean to cause the panic. But the way it sounded, I thought you were being attacked or something." She explained, finding a cloth to start cleaning up the batter from... everywhere.

"Red velvet cookies, hm?" She hummed thoughtfully. "Well, we can give the recipe a try after we clean up, but let's read through all of the instructions before we try it." She suggested with a lighthearted laugh.

With the initial panic subsiding, she was back to finding his kitchen struggles endearing, her expression softening. "And if you're ever struggling with a recipe, you can call me for help."

Yes, he's done so by calling her today... but hopefully he'll call her before his apartment explodes next time-

[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.

Despite trying not to be too obvious with it, his insistence that he won't go falling asleep during the race still made her giggle to herself, ducking her head slightly in an attempt to hide it.

Though, when she noticed him select the wrong floor, her amusement faltered, replaced with concern. Was he that tired? Maybe they should go with a movie or something instead so he could rest... She found herself reaching out to select her floor at the same time as him, accidentally bumping his hand in the process with a small "Oop, sorry!" before letting him press the button.

His request earned a nod, since that's a good point, even if she ended up a bit flushed again when he pointed out how warm her cheeks had been earlier. "That's a good idea. I have plenty of water and juice and stuff, so we have options."

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.

( from @lily-of-the-linkon )

Lily holds her arms out slightly towards Dawnbreaker, hoping to make it so he won't feel bad if he refuses her invitation.

"Would you like a hug?"

His eyes light up briefly at the prospect of physical comfort.

"...Yes, I would."

He steps towards her, enveloping her in a gentle embrace to avoid causing her any discomfort, despite his wishes. He leans his forehead on her shoulder, closing his eyes.

Once Xavier leaned down within her reach, she hummed affectionately and worked on gently wiping the flour off of his face, ever careful not to be rough. Deciding to continue the playfulness, she grinned and reached up to tousle his hair to get any flour out of it, but she had the forethought to ensure she set her hand above his eyebrows to keep any of it from getting on his face again.

"Is that so?" She asked, somehow surprised that it sounds like he's never ended up with flour all over the floor and counter in past baking endeavors. Her surprise only grew when he placed the flour on her nose, prompting her to go cross eyed trying to look at it. "Very special indeed." She agreed with a soft smile, leaving the flour on her nose as she turned her attention back to measuring her own ingredients and ensuring that the oven was preheating properly.

To his question, she shook her head. "No, I was working on a new yarn project, actually."

[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.