IC Inbox | Carlos Oliveira

[sendinthedelta]

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Carlos Oliveira ⬤ Resident Evil 3 (2020)
residential district ⬤ Level 2
moonblessing ⬤ Sanguis

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[sendinthedelta]

[He'll be here as long as he possibly can. The powers that be don't seem to be tired of him yet and he's actually hoping it stays that way for a while.

To his credit, he doesn't visibly jump. He hadn't expected her to come back so suddenly so there was a bit of surprise in his eyes, but he's not that easily startled. Kind of hard to be after the shit he's been through.

He's grateful for the help, though, because while most of the ingredients in Prismatica aren't that far off from home he hasn't quite learned the labels yet.]

Uh, yeah, we're gonna want... [he pauses then ticks off some things on his fingers so he hopefully doesn't miss any] dried chili pods, garlic, cumin, oregano, salt, pepper and onion.

[torsion]

[ She doesn't expect much. Although she doesn't believe in luck, she's also something of a pessimist. Good things don't often last a long time. She doesn't want to take any of this for granted -- especially knowing she may never see this version of him again if he goes away. ]

All dried? We have cumin and garlic -- and salt and pepper. If you want fresh garlic, we didn't have any I don't think. Or onion. I think I used the last of it in soup.

[ She looks around for the pods, though. That might be harder to find. Though Jill likes spicy food, she knows it's not always easy to come by in the average store. ]

[sendinthedelta]

[Look, sometimes you just gotta strong arm the world into giving you "luck". Not the most effective method but it gets the job done with only minorly messy results.]

Ground on cumin, fresh on garlic and onion.

[Also Lord help her if he finds out she likes spice as much as he does. He might just actually say something stupid like "Marry me" or "I like you as more than a friend".

Oh wait that comes later.]

[torsion]

[ She lives in a strong arm world, but has strong legs. :( ]

Alright. Would you mind if I grabbed a pineapple to grill? Or watermelon? I like chilis on melons, as well. [ It's not an uncommon thing, but it might be for someone who grew up in the midwest middle of nowhere. ] Spanish onion alright?

[ She hesitates but starts on her way to produce for the fresh.

Better get on that. She is getting older. ]

[sendinthedelta]

Oh man I haven't done chili on watermelon since I was a kid. Both sound awesome.

[Spicy-sweet is something he doesn't get to have often but when he does he devours it.]

Yeah, that works!

[He lets her go mainly because he's still searching for those elusive chilis. Eventually he does give up on that aisle and moves to another one, finding a small but usable bottle of them tucked in between some other items. Weird place, but whatever.

Time to find Jill again!]

[torsion]

Kinda hard to find the time when you're out and about, right? Not exactly a grab-and-go meal.

[ Which she has to admit, she's very guilty of at all times -- including here. Cooking can be fun, but when you work so much it can be pretty tedious. Back home, especially, it was just easier to get something premade or put together already. ]

No problem.

[ She calls, procuring the onion from close enough that talking to him across the way hasn't quite become rude or obnoxious yet (although it very well might still be to some).

Being that the store isn't absurdly large and they'd already gone around, it's not too difficult to find her inspecting melons with a pineapple in her arms (looks like she's going for both). Though some people have problems carving up a melon, Jill is good enough with a knife that she doesn't need to grab pre-cut spears. She decides on a medium-sized one rather than one too massive just because of everything else they have. She scoops it from the display up against her knee and rolls it up her leg, maneuvering it into her free arm with a bounce. ]

[sendinthedelta]

[... they should have grabbed a basket.

Carlos watches her for a moment before ducking around the corner quickly and grabbing exactly that, coming back to tap the melon lightly and lift the basket in offering.]

We still gotta get the meat so this is probably needed.

[torsion]

[ She didn't expect it to be a problem! And it isn't! Well, it might take a little effort to finagle everything, but it's fine.

Jill laughs, reaching her eyes, shoulders shaking a little as she takes him up on the offer and gently rolls the melon on in. ]

Okay, okay. You got me. But I could've carried it. [ But now she has a free hand to gesture with, so she lightly does so. ] Lead the way, partner.

[sendinthedelta]

[Look, maybe it could have been handled awkwardly, maybe not. This was just easier in the long run regardless. Besides, less chance of a terrible mess of a broken watermelon if it dropped.]

Hey, convenience is there for a reason.

[To check out!]

[torsion]

[ That would've been a riot, but she doesn't think on that too much! Instead, Jill just follows suit and accepts his answer, since it's pretty solid. If it were the other way around she'd have done the same. ]

Ahh, one minute, though. I'll meet you there.

[ She takes off without giving him a moment to protest and join her and without much though she heads down an aisle going for the hair dye. There's a thousand options for dark brown and at this point she just skims, frustrated, although she wished she could figure out the perfect one.

She stares for a minute or two and then just grabs one, taking a light jog up to the front to look for him. She can see the flecks of blonde appearing at her roots and she's really not thrilled about it. She'll have to nip that in the bud before it becomes obvious. Damned if she doesn't hate it.

When spotted, she raises an arm and smiles sheepishly, almost embarrassed. It's not like he wouldn't find out just by the box present or her disappearing into the bathroom in her bedroom for a while. ]

[sendinthedelta]

[It's not like he doesn't know, and even if he didn't he wasn't going to judge. It's not like he's a paragon of good hair care anyway. He just waits patiently near the check out for her, moving into the lane properly once she's back and putting their items up on the small counter as he asks to add an order from the deli for the meat they need. While the total was being added he took his phone out to look up for one more thing.]

So it looks like I can get a wire rack and some ties up the road. Shouldn't take too long.

[torsion]

[ It's just a weird subject to broach. Were it grey hair, it would be one thing. This, though... it's something else, really.

She's sheepish when she ducks her head in thanks, eyes catching his along the way while she swerves around him in the tight lane in order to pay. He's still jobless and she really doesn't want to know how he makes chroma, so that's that. Plus, if he's doing the cooking? It's the rules that she foots the bill.

Looking to him when he speaks, she questions him. ]

Do you want me to go on ahead and meet you back at home, then?

[ She's looping bags around her arms before going for the watermelon. ]

[sendinthedelta]

[Oh.

Well, yeah, talking about how he's getting chroma without a job might be. Awkward. He is very much a red blooded 21 year old male so, you know, things happen but he's also not the bragging sort.

He had expected to pay for it himself yet she went through the line ahead of him and covered it before he could even really protest.

Well he can pay for the hardware then!]

Yeah. I shouldn't be too long.

[torsion]

[ Jill just doesn't want to think of him holding anyone else's hand, even if it makes her a hypocrite. But she's hypocritical about a lot of things, whether it's this or protecting others or her feelings or a hundred other things. It's never the same for her as them. ]

Okay. [ Hesitating, it's clear that this is a very new thing she's doing with him right now and for her, it's something major despite the simplicity of it. It's honestly just nice to have his company for something so mundane. So, with watermelon in both hands and bags on either arm, she dips in to nudge him with her elbow and leans in just enough that she can press the top of her head to his chin. ] I'll see you soon, in that case.

[ And without any other thought, she ditches the lane and is heading out the automatic doors. ]

[sendinthedelta]

[Something they should probably talk about.

Some day.

Eventually.

Maybe.

In any case he's not going to keep her waiting long back home, or at least he'll try not to. He does luck out in that the prismal worker he winds up asking about grill racks shows him a couple of large flat ones with collapsable legs already attached so he doesn't have to fashion some makeshift ones like he was originally planning, but it does take a few more minutes to decide on the right size.

Eventually he returns through the front door of the house with two of them, a small tactical shovel and a stack of precut firewood to make the fire pit with.]

I'm back!

[torsion]

[ He'll have to get her in an armbar to talk about her feelings. Or, maybe just approach her earnestly. Whichever comes first.

Jill is already outside when he returns, finishing off the watermelon in large rectangles where she can manage it based on the shape and discarding the rest in bite-sized pieces into a bowl. She might be doing a little taste-testing when she hears him come back, hands sticky yet she doesn't take motion to wash them up and instead takes another bite from a slice, nearing the rind. ]

Yard!

[ She probably should've told him she'd be back there before, but she's managing just fine now. ]

[sendinthedelta]

[Look, don't give him weird ideas, okay? He's already watched enough of those weird Asian dramas here to start thinking that doing a kabedon on her is a good way to get her to talk.

(More likely a good way to get him punched in the nards.)

But in food related things, that watermelon already looks yummy even before it's grilled, and he can't blame her for snagging some bites out of it. He nudges the door open the rest of the way with his foot so he can shimmy outside with his goods, setting the racks down carefully.]

Got a good spot for a fire pit I can get started on?

[torsion]

[ Jill doesn't exactly watch anything on any given day, but occasionally enjoys a martial arts action film. There's usually more punches than discussions in them. At the very least, she'd appreciate him being assertive. She often feels like she's the one being more direct... if only she was actually direct.

She's quick to notice and attempt to help, but he's already made his way over by then so Jill sort of just watches while she polishes off her slice. ]

Wherever you'd like. Your yard, too, you know. Just leave some room for training -- and let me know how I can help.

[sendinthedelta]

[Carlos has gotten into some weird TV since arriving here. Stuff he wouldn't ever consider before but just happened to be on during a really boring day.

The racks weren't too difficult to carry but he could probably still use some help with the fire pit.]

Yeah, sure. Probably be faster with two sets of hands.

[He'll put it further back in the yard so the smoke doesn't billow inside and doesn't block too much off from being used for training.]

[torsion]

[ He sure is a guy. That's something Jill knows now.

She's already on her way when he's answering her, following suit after he lifts one up and uses her legs to help hoist again. Without too much observation, he may notice that she relies on the strength of her legs for a lot of things. While her arms are perfectly shapely, she still doesn't lift nearly as much as she can be found in the house's mini-gym on the adductor machine.

Jill hasn't really done something like this before, so she defers to him along the way, holding it upright against the ground while watching him. If he needs help otherwise, she waits for more directions. ]

I've only really half-assed a bonfire grill before. Kind of a staple of what Chris and I would do with camping.

[sendinthedelta]

[Some people just prefer leg day.

As long as she's not hurting herself doing so he won't judge.]

You live outside long enough you learn to do things like that more efficiently.

[It's said lightly but there's something in his posture, in the tone of the words. A resignation decades old at this point.

He knows his life has never been normal.

It doesn't linger, though, and he quickly pokes several thin holes in the soft ground, creating a rectangle roughly 2x3.]

Dig out about two inches down. Helps protect the fire from any wind that might kick up but isn't too low for heat.

[torsion]

[ Some, indeed, do. Most days she can be found in the small gym they have in the house on the absolutely essential adductor machine. That's usually when she finds herself looking on the network at posts, too. ]

You do. [ She says like she understands, though perhaps not as well as he did. Without finality to the way he's said it, she digs in a little. ] You... the you I knew, anyway, he didn't have it easy. Grew up as a mercenary and traveling. I suppose it's too much to hope you had it any more comfortable than that.

[ Jill watches him and goes to grab a shovel. Maybe a gardening spade would be better, but she doesn't consider it much and instead gets to work, tossing aside any of the extra dirt. She'll figure out where to put it later or haul it out. ]

Makes sense. Like putting a rock wall around a bonfire.

[sendinthedelta]

[The faster they get it dug, the faster they'll be chowing down on some good spicy meats.]

Nah, but I don't hate that it happened. Gave me a lotta good skills. And hey, I got to meet you, so that's a net positive in my book.

[He looks up with a grin and a bit of dirt already on his cheek. The words could have easily come off as flirtatious but he's being honest with her. As awful as Umbrella was, if it hadn't been for them he never would have encountered Jill on that awful night.]

[torsion]

[ FAST ENOUGH, Jill's plenty speedy. It's more her height and ability to stretch and move which makes it slower than she might be any other time.

He's always flirting, so she always assumes he is. But, much like herself, she takes none of it seriously. She teases in the same way at times. One of her particular techniques to keep people at an arm's length.

When she thinks it's good enough, she looks to him for approval or disapproval, but for now gently lets the shovel fall just as she walks over to him and wipes at his cheek. She stares into his eyes, soft and pooling, more intimate than she's been with him before. After a moment she gently pulls him down for another hug, down to her shoulder where her fingers dip through his hair to his scalp and spider it. Just a little. ]

You never give yourself enough credit. But I'm happy that you're familiar still, that you're just as strong.

[ A rare moment for her. Careful so as not to go too far or pull him in too close past her walls, but utterly failing in that intention. She doesn't acknowledge it because she's not aware how far she's been letting him in. ]

I really can't articulate how much it means to me that you're here. I know I've said it before, but you don't... of all people, I'm so relieved to see you.

[ She tugs away slowly, hesitantly and lifts his head with her hand and rubs at the spot on his face again. Lingering, looking him over like she hasn't seen him before she just lets her hand fall to her hip. ]

...anyway, tell me what you need from me now, will you?

[sendinthedelta]

[It's fine if she takes it that way. He's never going to go any further with it unless she gives him a very clear green light to do so.

He likes her, but he's not hopeless. He's absolutely capable of pining for one but not obsessing.

He was inspecting the hole and getting ready to pat some of the dirt down before going to grab the wood but was stopped by her approach, the gentle thumb on his cheek and being so close he can feel the warmth from her breath, different from the low summer heat around them.

Even as close as they were the hug was surprising, different than the one in front of the store. It made him wonder what was going through her head right then, what was going through her head all the damn time, to constantly have him on this weird yo-yo of emotions.

Weirdly, though, he didn't mind. Just as much as she was grateful for his presence at all, he was grateful for hers, regardless of what the future held for both of them.

He didn't respond to her but there was a lopsided grin when she pulled away, and a faint darkening of his cheeks that had nothing to do with being out in the sun.]

Uhm. Oh, go grab the firewood. I'll pat the dirt down a bit and we can get the fire started.