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WHO: Beth Greene and Jesse Pinkman
WHERE: Jesse's mountain lodge
WHEN: 19th-23rd'ish
WHAT: Beth mentioned she liked being away from the city and in the country, and Jesse owns a mountain lodge far away from any city, so after Jesse returned from the new Moon Base…
WARNINGS: Disgusting cuteness most probably. Angst maybe, swearing maybe, but mostly just gross cuteness.

[ It's a good thing Jesse has been to this mountain lodge a couple of times already, to thoroughly look around the place. First time he'd driven out here had been way back when he'd first wound up back in this world; on a mission to try and figure out exactly what kind of life he'd been leading here, he'd driven a rental car all the way out into the middle of the woods where this lodge is located, and had been awed with bewilderment and how he owned not just a huge beach house but this place, too. Second time he'd come out here, it had been to properly search around for evidence of… well, anything. Dead bodies, meth, money, anything remotely incriminating. He'd come up empty. The only evidence of his previous life here was a wardrobe full of flannel shirts and clothes belonging to a guy way bigger than himself, fishing equipment, carpentry tools, a wardrobe of his own clothes. He'd clearly once upon a time possibly lived here with someone.

In any case, good thing he'd scoped the place out, because Beth is off exploring all the rooms and myriad nooks and crannies inside the lodge on her own, while he is in the kitchen. He'd wanted to bring frozen pizzas and easy meals for their several day trip out here, but Beth had insisted on no pre-packaged food, be that frozen or in cans. So, he's putting the final touches on a homemade pizza, sprinkling a disgustingly huge helping of shredded cheese all over it while the oven heats up. When he hears her excited footfalls finally making their way back to the kitchen, Jesse looks up, breaking out into a grin as Polly comes galloping into the kitchen ahead of Beth in a clumsy skidding thud of puppy paws. Man, as much as Jesse had loved being on the moon, during the moon base's grand opening… he's glad to be back on Earth, even if he was only gone for a few days. It had been so good to see Polly, and so good to see Beth. He'd spammed her phone with pictures of space, but when he'd returned to Earth, he'd contacted her almost immediately to ask if she was keen to head out to the mountain lodge he'd told her about for a few days. Beth had jumped at the offer. ]

Man, wondered where you two had gotten to. [ Jesse is calling this out to Beth while crouching down to beckon Polly to him with a piece of sausage between his fingers. ] Thought you'd gotten lost or something.

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Kind of did. This place is huge.

[She's still a little wide-eyed--it's a house unlike any she's ever been in. To be completely honest, she's not personally a huge fan of the stark design, but it's fun to visit. There's about a million bedrooms (Polly jumped up on all the beds), and outside, she can already see the steam rising off the hot tub. And then there's the huge field of snow beyond the house, and all the trees, and the mountains, and the expanse of sky above them all. It's already threatening to get dark, and the sunset'll probably be beautiful.

All of it is beautiful, even the sharp angles of the walls and the blocky tables and counters. And at the moment, Beth feels like she could take on the whole world and win without breaking a sweat; even the prospect of going down to the hot tub and pulling off her scarf along with the rest of her street clothes seems almost doable.

Eventually, hunger lures her back to the kitchen. She finds Jesse in the process of drowning an innocent round of pizza dough in cheese, and Polly finds a snack.]

That looks amazing. [She follows the puppy over to him and leans in to give all the ingredients a sniff. No regrets here, as far as insisting on fresh food goes. None at all.] It smells amazing, too. You want any help?

[ Polly gobbles the piece of sausage from Jesse's fingers, immediately sniffing around for more before she's even swallowed what she's already got. Jesse grins at the cute little thing, ruffling the top of her head with a pat, and stands tall to look at Beth with an easy smile. Seems Jesse has left all his problems and worries back in Heropa, with how relaxed he's been since they arrived here. Might be because they're far away from everything, might be because he's far away from everything with Beth. ]

No, I want you to chill, yo. [ He points emphatically at her, to stress that he really does want her to chill. Jesse is more than happy to spoil Beth by taking care of things like food and cleaning up while they're here. He steps across to the sink to give his hands a quick rinse. ] Kick back. Relax. Don't worry about a thing. Whole weekend is about you takin' it easy and being as lazy as you wanna be.

I can chill and wash dishes at the same time. [There's laughter in her voice as she says it--but not much argument. If he really wants to do everything, she's not about to say no. (Not tonight, anyway.) Cooking's never been her strong suit, and cleaning up is never going to be her favourite hobby. (It's nice, amazing even, to live in clean places, and she wants to keep them that way, but it's not exactly fun.) Jesse can have those for now, and she'll just...be lazy. Apparently.] Everything I do here feels lazy--even work. I get paid for singing, Jess.

[It's still amazing to her, not least because she doesn't have to spend a moment of her life worrying about her own survival. When's the last time she had to segment a night's sleep into watches?

She heads over to the fridge, digging out a bottle each of orange-mango juice and sparkling water. Her words are still teasingly light.] Can I make us drinks? Or is that too much work?

[Mocktails, but fun mocktails, right? She wants to enjoy this whole weekend completely herself, no substances between her and reality.]

[ Jess. Nobody ever calls him Jess. Once upon a time, he would have retorted that 'Jess' is girly, yo (almost as girly as his dumbass last name). Right now, the sentiment of Beth calling him Jess just makes the corners of his mouth quirk in a hidden but fond smile. He turns off the tap and plucks up the dish towel to dry his hands while facing Beth. ]

I guess you can make us drinks. [ Pretending to sound oh-so put out. He follows that up with a quick grin, and then his eyes light up. ] Know what'd be even better, though? You brought your guitar along with you, right?

Yeah. [She's still getting out glasses, because you know what'd be best, is drinks and guitar and maybe a fire in one of the ten thousand fireplaces in this house. Glancing up at Jesse mock-innocent, like she has no idea what his point is--] It's probably warm enough to take out of its case, too.

Well. [ Propping a hand against the edge of the counter, flashing an eager smile at Beth. ] You know what you gotta do, then. Live show, yo!

[She really does laugh, leaning against the counter as she takes a sip of her fizzy mango-orange drink.]

What do you wanna hear?

Uh, like, everything?

[ Duh. Grinning at her all the while. ]

[She's rolling her eyes, but her answer's still more flirtatious than anything.]

I don't know that one. You'll have to teach me.

Me teach you? Miss Bluetube star? Nahhh.

You could sing with me.

[She's got an idea, though, one that has a decent chance of getting her an answer to the question she's been pondering ever since Jesse invited her out here. Is this a friend thing? Or is this something else? Setting down her glass, she goes looking for her guitar case, so she can bring it into the living room.

Or nearest living room, anyway. This place is so big.]

Or I can sing for you, if you really want.

[ Does Beth really want to hear Jesse sing? Hell, no, no she doesn't. In fact, the thought of singing with someone who is way more talented makes him a little embarrassed. There was a time when Jesse thought he was the shit when it came to music, but Beth hands down puts him to shame on every level there, and he knows it. ]

Uh, like that's even a question. About you singing. [ He gestures to himself, followed by a "no way" cutting motion of his hand. ] You don't wanna hear me sing.

Edited 2018-01-28 01:20 (UTC)

Maybe sometime.

[It'd be fun, even if he doesn't think much of his voice. Can't be that bad, right? She sits down on a couch, pulling out her guitar and starting to tune it.]

I don't know if you know this one, anyway.

[ He stands at the kitchen counter, watching her on the couch with her guitar, and a small smile tugs on his lips. ]

Hit me.

[ He slides across to the pizza, eager to hear what she's going to play, and digs his hand into the packet of shredded cheese to sprinkle one last handful all over it. A pizza can never have enough cheese, okay. ]

C'mere.

[If this is going to go right, she's pretty sure he's going to need to be right by her.]

Hold on, gotta get the pizza going, yo.

[ He moves to open the oven after garnishing just a bit more cheese (do you normally have pizza with your cheese, Jesse?) and picks up the pizza on its tray to slide it in. He shuts the door and gives his cheesy hands a quick wash at the sink. Then he's exiting the kitchen. ]

Okay. [ He dumps himself down beside Beth on the couch, grinning at her. ] Let's hear the next American Idol, then.

Edited (Lmao autocorrect) 2018-01-28 01:54 (UTC)

[She rolls her eyes, but--well, here goes nothing.]

Well, I hope that I don't fall in love with you. Falling in love just makes me blue...

[The guitar is simple, barely there. It's all her voice, or nearly so--even the illusion is more ambiance than anything. And it's all around them, Jesse included. The kitchen and living room fade away into an old bar, lamps lighting cigarette-wreathed drinkers whose faces aren't quite distinguishable.

She sings every verse to him, her gaze never leaving his face.]

...And I think that I just fell in love with you.

[After that, it really is all her, watching him as the world around them fades away. If this is supposed to be a friend thing, she might have screwed it up royally--how sincere is too sincere to play off as acting?--but if Justine's right, that won't matter.]

[ As the song begins, Jesse lets his head drop back against the couch, slouched comfortably, gazing a little dreamily at Beth. He loves listening to her music on Bluetube; her voice is always so sweet and soothing, and she's always so humble and cute about it. He could listen to her singing all day. But while listening to her now, he finds himself drawn into her ambience, noticing the way the room shifts, changes, how just the effect of her voice alters everything around them. His eyes stray away from hers, glancing around him in quietly surprised awe at the way the whole room has faded into a smoky bar scene, strangely old time and intimate, romantic almost in a noir-ish kind of way.

His eyes return to her. The dreamy way he'd been looking at her is falling away into dawning realisation. The meaning of what she's singing to him, why she's looking at him like that, hits him and... oh no. His stomach drops in dread for her, because oh no, Beth. Oh no, does she think him bringing her here for the weekend is because...? Oh, no.

But at the same time, his chest tightens and his heart skips a beat at how lovely she is, how beautiful her voice is, how sweetly innocent and romantic this moment is. His heart aches for her, at the thought that she's opening herself up to him like this, when she probably had nobody back at home to be this free and honest to feel something like this for somebody.

He swallows. Should he just pretend he doesn't realise what's happening here, as a way of gently letting her down? She definitely doesn't deserve someone like him, god only knows how much she doesn't deserve a scumbag like him. He can't bring himself to do that to her, though. He can't bring himself to fight back the tug of swelling warmth in his chest for her, and he can't stop the soft little smile that's a barely there tug on the corners of his mouth. And he finds himself hesitating for only a moment before reaching up a hand to gently brush away a strand of her hair from her forehead while she sings to him.]

Edited 2018-01-28 03:36 (UTC)

[Her talk with Justine has, perhaps, given her just a little more confidence than the moment really warrants. It finally seems so obvious, after laughing about stupid stuff all the way up here and flirting over an uncooked pizza: What kind of guy invites a girl to his remote mountain cabin without cell service or anybody else around, a few days up there, and doesn't plan on making a move? She knows that's just how Jesse is, but talking to someone else...it feels like it put the whole thing into perspective. An invitation like this looks like something other than friend date material.

While she's singing, she tries not to let herself get too caught up in guessing at Jesse's thoughts. An illusion this detailed, large enough that the two of them can both be in the middle of it, is still something of a challenge, and she's got the song to perform, too. The little shifts of Jesse's face are too much to read on top of that.

But whatever he thinks, it can't be that bad. Not with that smile, not with the tingling sweep of his fingers over her skin, pushing back one of the wavy tendrils of hair that inevitably falls around her face. She smiles back, letting the quiet fill the space around them, and tips her head just slightly toward his hand.]

[ Shit. Shit, this is not good. This is... God, this is so romantic. And sweet. Beth is so sweet. She doesn't deserve to ever be hurt. All Jesse ever does is hurt people, even when he doesn't mean to, when he's not even trying to. She's so sweet, and so lovely, and she's utterly misread this whole reason he's brought her here to his mountain lodge, hasn't she? Of course she has. He's so stupid, leading this poor girl on like this without even meaning to lead her on.

The way she tilts her head just a little into his touch has his smile turning just a little crooked while all these thoughts reel through his mind, but at the same time, he can't stop gazing at her. He can't stop. The back of his fingers end up brushing against her cheek, sweetly apologetic, unable to let her down at the same time, though. Ah, shit. Beth, why? He's letting the silence go on for too long, far too long for him to back out and gently put a stop to this. The silence is so thick with this moment happening between them, and it makes his stomach knot up in alarm for Beth, and it makes his chest swell even more because Jesse is pathetic and so incapable of refusing the things people want.

So, what does Jesse stupidly do? He stupidly talks. He opens his stupid goddamn mouth. He stupidly says, soft voice, soft smile, with fingers softly stroking her cheek, because he can't bring himself to hurt Beth's feelings: ]

You're beautiful.

[Romantic is the idea, obviously. And it was the right one, if the look on his face is anything to go by. He's still smiling back, still touching her--and he calls her beautiful in the kind of soft, certain voice that makes her cheeks heat up. She's wide-eyed, biting down on a smile as she watches him watch her.

(She's going to owe Justine, big time, for convincing her to go for it.)

Beth's good at reading people, but everything about Jesse says I like you, too. The moment feels right in every possible way. So she leans in, stretching over her guitar and closing the gap between them, her lips brushing his.]

[ Jesse swallows again, his heart suddenly racing as Beth starts to lean in. Oh no, this is the moment to stop this, stop this, Pinkman, before it's too late, she doesn't deserve this. She doesn't deserve you, definitely doesn't deserve you jerking her around like this, even if that's not what you meant to happen. Oh, fuck.

But what is he doing instead? Tilting his chin up, gazing into her eyes, horrified with himself yet so full of affection for this poor, sweet, beautiful girl. He can't turn her down, he just can't. She deserves to feel loved, she deserves it so much, even if he is the last thing she deserves. His eyes remain fixed on her face as her lips brush his, and he's swallowing again while stroking his thumb down her cheek, again affectionately apologetic. His eyes drift shut, and he tilts his head, just a little, and brushes his lips against hers, a barely there kiss, heart hammering so hard, it's thundering in his ears and in his throat. ]

[She doesn't feel anything remotely apologetic in the way he responds. The kiss is hardly more than a breath against her mouth, a tantalizing hint of what it's like to be that near Jesse Pinkman: not bleeding or broken this time, no pain to be stolen away. It's just her, just him, and the slightest touch of his lips.

Another breathless moment, and she's drawing away to unstrap her guitar and set it safely out of the way. When her attention returns to him, it's with a coy little smile.]

Liked the song?

[She scoots a little closer, torn between waiting for an answer and kissing him again. The former wins out, but only just; having kissed him once, she has every intention of making it happen again.]

[ For the split second that Beth is turning away to set her guitar down, Jesse closes his eyes in despair. Oh, fuck. But that expression is gone, quickly returning to a gazing soft smile when she's facing back to him, and as Beth shifts closer with that adorable sweet coyness, Jesse's heart melts in even more despair and affection for her.

He stretches his arm around, sliding it around her shoulders despite how much his mind is screaming at him to put a stop to this, Pinkman, you goddamn asshole, and he pulls her to him with a boyishly charming little smile, looking at her with such a gentle, gazing dreaminess. Stop it, Pinkman, stop it. But rather than listen to reason, he's lifting his other hand up to her cheek, touching it, sliding his palm onto it. ]

Mm. Yeah. Had no idea you... y'know.

[ Felt this way about him. He can't bring himself to commit that to words, because god, he's such an idiot, why did he not see this coming? But he doesn't reveal he's thinking any of these wildly conflicting thoughts, doesn't give away he's hating himself for not knowing how to carefully turn her down. He's biting his bottom lip, matching her coyness, gazing at her so sweetly. God, he's an asshole. ]

[She gives him a look, a are you for real? kind of look--though it's softened by the way he's cupping her cheek.]

Really?

[But it's basically fair, she realizes. Had she even thought about it before New Year's Eve? There'd been that soft, quiet moment out at Magnus and Alex's place, but besides that... And ever since then, they've been texting and stuff. He hasn't seen her enough lately to realize just how much she's started to think about it.

She shrugs, the expression on her face turning softer yet.]

Guess I kind of sprang it on you. But... [She raises her eyebrows, beaming at him. Guess it worked out.]

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