beyondtheline | I sure like the feeling of an endless road

H-Hey! Wait up!

[He's not cheating, he's doing things the nice way. So she won't either. There's no effort to grab at him, she just pushes off the wall of the pool as hard as she can to launch herself as far as possible. From there it's good old fashioned swimming. She may not amount to much (except destroying the universe probably) but she at least can swim like her life depends on it. It doesn't, thankfully, but she still hustles like it does.

Johnnie wins at so much when they race or compete. She wants to kick his butt at this. She's so determined to try and win that she doesn't pay much attention to him, at least not until she slaps a hand against the opposite end of the pool and glances over to see if he's already beaten her there.]

Did I win?

[Man, there is a lot he is good at. And there's something to be said for testosterone giving him a natural level of muscle that he doesn't have to work too hard for. But at the end of the day, drinking and smoking and hanging out on bikes doesn't necessarily make him the strongest of swimmers and so even though he carried his lead as long as he could, somehow she still pulls even and slaps her hand down just a second before him.

She gets an exhausted groan when he realizes it.]

Yeah, babe. Yeah, you won, fair an' square. Even after you fuckin' cheated at first! Man, I guess I gotta do more swimming!

[Or not. The only purpose would be for racing her in hotel pools. Well, unless shit gets real weird in their future.]

[Okay, now it's safe to do her victory dance. She cheers and wiggles and dances, pumping her fists into the air and laughing. Winning at something definitely boosts her ego, but not so much that she can't move in close to him and drape her arms over his shoulders.]

I think I just decided that my prize for winning is a kiss.

[It's something she's sure he won't mind giving her, and she's grinning as she claims a quick one. A second later she's falling back to float in the water, and sighs contently as she looks up at the sky. This is really, really nice.]

I'm gonna be tired enough now for a really good nap. How about you, huh?

A nap? After that? That just got my blood flowin', I'm good to stay up all day an' night!

[He grins. Easy to say that now before night comes, but he's sure of it. Sleep is overrated, especially in a fun new city.]

But if you want a nap, I guess I could go look around, see what we can get up to once the sun goes down. Maybe get us some snacks to bring with us when we blow outta town.

[Pop tarts.

He doesn't know shit about the local gangs here either. That's probably fine? What are the odds that twenty years in the future and this far to the north, anyone here would have an issue with a couple World Enders poking around? He just wants to know who's selling what kinds of fun street drugs in this time and place that they could test out, maybe bring some home just to blow people's minds.]

I either sleep now or I crash when it finally is dark out.

[She sighs sadly, because she just doesn't have the same stamina he does. There's a lot of credit she gives herself, because she's gotten him to at least sleep every day. When they first met he didn't always do that.]

Let's swim a little more and I can go up and rest.

[Floating turns into flipping so she can tread water over toward him, so she's pressed in close once again.]

You can wake me up later once you get back with a hot shower. It'll be fun. Then we can go out dancing and end the night by taking whatever we want from wherever we want.

Mmm. Yeah, we're gonna have a real good time, you an' me.

[He loops an arm around her while the other holds on to the edge of the pool to keep him steady. He wants to sway with her like they're dancing to inaudible music, but the water makes that too tricky. Best to just float and let her huddle close, pressed against him.]

Maybe I'll look around, see what clubs are gonna have live music tonight. You guys got some crazy music here in the future, I wanna hear more of it!

[And then he lets go and pushes off the wall, but settles into a casual float on his back. That's enough like swimming for his tastes for now.]

[They float and idly swim for a little while longer before she gets out of the pool first. She grabs a towel and starts drying off, figuring it'll take her longer than it will for him. Her hair sure is a lot longer.]

You'll have to find all the Pop Tarts you can carry and bring them back with you. Oh! And cherry coke! I know we can go out for dinner somewhere later, but junk food sounds so good after swimming. It always makes me hungry.

[And on cue, her stomach growls and she laughs as she presses her palm against it like it'll actually make it be quiet.

Whenever it seems like he's ready to get out too, she heads over to the pool to hold out his towel for him.]

Yeah, I'll get those an' more, you'll see!

[Though what she'll see, who knows, he's just excited about future junk food. Because yeah, definitely it's the good stuff. The perfect stuff after swimming and the perfect stuff to keep him going all day while she has a rest.

He dries off and tugs his shirt back on, and leads the way back to the hotel room once they're both good and ready. And once inside, it's time to ditch the wet trunks in the sink so he can get dry clothes on again - the usual jeans and t-shirt and jacket. It's cooler here than it was back at home, and for a moment he contemplates long sleeves instead.]

You hungry now? We could always order us some room service, if they have it. This place ain't that fancy but I bet they got somethin'.

You don't mind sticking around for a little while?

[That's a definite yes to her being hungry now. It would be nice to order something to the room and enjoy it naked in bed. Because there's absolutely no way she's getting dressed. Her bikini goes right into the sink alongside his trunks, and she hurries to hop into bed and sprawl out.]

We could order a pizza if there's not room service. There's pizza places everywhere in the 80s, and they all deliver.

[Actually, she bets there's probably some kind of book or something near the phone that has a list of places to call. She rolls over onto her side to fish around on the bedside table and grabs a small hardcover book that has a room service menu and then some local restaurants on the pages after. This place isn't fancy, but they at least have common staple items that make her even hungrier just thinking about eating them.]

Yeah, let's do pizza! I'm not in a hurry.

[He just wants to stay up, and doesn't want to be cooped up in a hotel room bored while she sleeps, that's all. Food always sounds good, and especially right now.

His vote for pizza is backed up by seeing the room service menu. It's fine and all, but pizza is for sure the right call, so he hops over to the phone to dial the first pizza place he sees in the guide book. While it rings, he looks over at her.]

Hey, whatcha wanna get, anyway? Pepperoni? Hamburger?

[Or both? Just as long as it's not something gross like mushroom - which she wouldn't pick, surely, she's not the type. But it's true that this isn't exactly something they've sprung for much and he's not totally sure what her favorite toppings are.

Just not mushrooms, surely.]

Hamburger?

[Her nose wrinkles up as she laughs at the idea of it, imagining hamburgers sitting on top of a pizza. It sinks in a second later that he means ground hamburger meat, and she grins as she eagerly nods.]

Oh yeah, hamburger sounds good! We could do hamburger and pepperoni?

[Might as well pile up all the meat they can. Except anchovies. If he asks for those, she's not kissing him for at least a week. Or maybe only a day, but the point is she just really can't handle the thought of anchovies on her pizza.]

Just don't get anything weird. Like fish. Or mushrooms. Or those green peppers. They're too healthy to be on pizza.

You got it, babe.

[Great minds think alike, obviously.

He orders them a large pepperoni and hamburger - well, sausage is the actual option he's given but same thing - and grimaces a little at the price. He'll never get used to that. But he hangs up and bounces down onto the bed next to her.]

On its way! Can't fuckin' believe what they want us to pay for pizza though, fuckin' ten times as much as it should be. The future's too damn expensive. Anyway we got twenty minutes, they're real close.

[So he should probably finish getting dressed, he decides, and hops back up to his feet. Someone has to answer the door when the pizza shows up.]

[That someone will not be her, because she's absolutely sitting in the bed naked. Her eyes watch him as he goes to finish getting dressed, and she hops up out of bed like she might do the same. She doesn't, and instead goes to get the shower going so she can wash her hair really quickly.

The door is left open and she hops right in, using the little provided toiletries to get clean as quick as she can. There's no attempt to put on clothes after, she just wraps up in a towel and goes to hop back in bed.]

If the pizza actually gets here in the next ten minutes, and I sleep right after...I think I'd be ready to head out probably at about eight? Maybe nine. That would still give us time to go out dancing and go shopping around for things we want, right?

[Not that they're actually going to go shopping for real. But it feels better to call it shopping instead of stealing.]

[Showering to get rid of the chlorine does sound appealing, but he'll wait. She has the right idea to do it, and the even better idea to come back on out naked, and he gladly watches as she reappears looking all clean and perfect - and cozy in that towel. He combs a hand through his hair, figuring he'll at least let the water help him make it look presentable for now.]

Yeah! Plenty of time. Could even do later if you needed. If this city closes all its dance clubs an' bars at ten PM then it's fucking awful an' we better move on as soon as possible.

[He snickers to himself as he goes to sit next to her, and then gets his arms around her and pulls her into his lap.]

[Well, that's just her favorite place to be. She gladly lets him pull her over and grins as she settles down in his lap and relaxes against him. Her hand idly rubs at his thigh, and she enjoys a quiet second or two.]

I want to bring something really nice home for your mom and brothers. It doesn't have to be here, but just somewhere along the way.

[She knows that it's probably a lot for him when his family has become her family. But she genuinely does care about them and wants to bring them something back to show she's thinking of them.]

And I gotta get something for Moonbeam and Rigo too.

[There's an edge of wishing she could give Rigo a call here to tell him that they made it somewhere safely. But if she tried calling right now, Rigo would be basically an old man.]

Yeah? Gifts for everyone, huh? Well, I'm sure they'll like whatever you think of. Don't gotta be much. Hell, snacks an' sweets from the future would go over great with just about everyone. Maybe not Mama so much though, I think that might be hard to explain.

[Harder than explaining that they're dead but alive? She took that well enough, as far as he can tell, though he doesn't know what she really privately thinks. It just seems like she's glad to have him back in any form and maybe that's good enough.

As for Moonbeam, well, maybe she won't fully understand or believe either but at least she's used to them saying weird shit all the time already, she'll just have to accept it. In fact, thinking about that, he grins.]

We gotta get Loonie somethin' that has a date on it, actually. From here or sometime else, but just somethin' to prove we're not fuckin' bonkers. She still won't believe we died.

[The sound of her laughter fills the room, and she guides his arms to wrap nice and tight around her. Feeling him all around her makes her grin, and she tries thinking of a great thing to bring back for Moonbeam that has the date on it. Maybe a newspaper or something. It's just hard to think of anything but him when he's close like this.]

I think she just isn't ready to admit she believes all of it.

[That has to be right.

Why would they both be lying about something like dying, or all the things they've seen and done?]

I'm gonna get you something too, though. I mean, it's not exactly a present. Your birthday is already over. But I want to find you something fun. Like a surprise.

[Which gives her an excuse to strike out on her own in one of the towns they end up in. He'll probably love that for her, because it means he gets to have his own space for a while. He's not getting that now though, because she wants him right where he is.]

Mmm, you can get me presents any time, baby girl. Don't gotta be a reason.

[He grins as he says it, presses a kiss to her forehead, then another to her lips. She's too damn cute. And maybe he'll think of something to get her, too - it's been a minute since he gifted her some little trinket. She does always love those little bits of jewelry and things he finds for her now and then.

Those couple kisses quickly turn to slow and easy making out, as he just can't resist the taste of her, and for a moment he forgets they're in a hotel waiting for pizza until there's a loud knock at the door. It makes him jolt in his seat, and he laughs as he nudges Chrissy off his lap.]

Must be dinner time.

[Or lunch? For everyone else, lunch. Must be why there wasn't much of a wait. He grabs his wallet and goes to get the door, and turns around a few seconds later with that hot box of food smelling of salt and grease. Perfect.]

Damn, I miss when people didn't see us sometimes. I hope we get to a time where they can't believe in ghosts so hard we're invisible, I coulda fucked with this guy enough to get him to run off an' leave this for free.

[As soon as the door is closed she's standing up in bed and lets the towel drop so she can give a bounce of excitement. Pizza time is always a good time, and right now she's starving. Her hands clap together before she hops off the bed, and lands flat footed as she trots over to take the pizza from him. There's a tiny table in the corner of the room that's calling the box's name.

It's opened as soon as she sets it down, and she contently sighs as the delicious smell hits her right in the face.]

Oh my gosh, it looks so good. It's worth every penny.

[Her head turns so she can glance over at him in gratitude, but of course she sympathizes with his desire for free pizza.]

Next time we order something, we'll have to try and be ghosts again. Then we can eat for free.

[She's pretty sure he did that back when they first met actually, and laughs a little at the memory as she grabs a piece and digs right in. Her cheeks puff up a little as she tries to devour half the slice in a single bite, and then spends a minute solid trying to chew it all without burning herself.]

Hey, I'm gonna go find some change and get us some sodas. There's gotta be a vending machine somewhere.

[The focus on getting something cold to drink is so strong that she forgets she's entirely naked and goes over to their bags to try and find some coins. She almost makes it to the door before she pauses and realizes, and then turns around to hold the coins out to him with a pleading look on her face. It's not like he'd want her to have to get dressed, right? Not when she's so comfortable and so nice to look at.]

[Johnnie is about to call out despite his mouth being full of pizza, but she realizes, and he has to cover his mouth while laughing. He holds up a hand for her to wait while he finishes his too-hot slice, too hungry to care about the burning of the roof of his mouth, then wipes his hands off on one of the paper napkins that had been shoved at him.]

Yeah, you gotta keep the show for me only, I'll get 'em.

[Poor girl. He snickers as he swipes the change and then gives her a playful swat on the ass as he steps past to slip his feet into his shoes.

Vending machines aren't hard to find at all - there are a couple lined up near the entrance to the hallway, right by the pool and lobby doors. There's a family in the pool now, with two young boys splashing around, but he doesn't pay any attention beyond that brief notice as he picks their drinks and heads on back to their room.]

There you go babe, one for you, one for me.

[He sets down her cherry Coke on the table, then sets his mysteriously-labeled New! Coke next to it with a grin.]

I gotta know what the hell this thing is. You had one a' these?

Oh yeah, those things came out last summer.

[She pauses as she cracks open her cherry coke and gleefully takes a sip.]

In 1985, I mean. I haven't tried it, but I remember some kids from school used their family's camcorders to record themselves drinking it and talking about it. Like anyone would ever want to watch that junk.

[Now that she has soda though, she's more than happy to go sit on the bed with her piece of pizza in one hand and her cherry coke in the other. As she finishes off her first piece, she hops up to go grab a second.]

It's kinda weird we've never seen it in the future, but I guess we haven't looked that hard at their drinks. Do you like it?

[Picturing kids recording themselves doing drink reviews like anyone would watch it later is pretty funny. What, they think they're on TV or something? But hell, he'd be on TV if he could be so maybe that's universal. He'd rather be on there for music than talking about soda, though.

Chrissy getting up for another slice makes Johnnie decide to just bring the whole box with him to the bed. Fuck it. They'll try not to get too much grease where they're sleeping but he doesn't want to run around the room every time either. He braces his soda can on his knee, then, to pop it open before having a taste.

Hmm. He has another sip, then shrugs.]

It's not bad. But it's like... Parallel world coke. Kinda the same, but kinda different? Like if someone tried to copy coke from memory. It's fine. I don't really get it, but I'd drink it again. Maybe I gotta do a side by side.

You need to just drink cherry coke, baby. That's good no matter what.

[She grins, leaning over so she can kiss him. It tastes like pizza on his part, but more importantly, she thinks she tastes like cherry coke since she just took a drink. Even if not, it's just nice to sneak a kiss. It's not like she's trying to make out or anything, they have pizza to focus on.]

Mmm. You taste like pepperoni.

[That makes her giggle as she leans back to her own space, and works on finishing up her second piece.]

You know, it's a little weird they have that here. Like...I was pretty convinced this version of Earth isn't the same one I lived in. Not everything is the same here. But I guess Coke is the same no matter where we are.

Yeah? I dunno how you'd tell half the time anyway. The time difference fucks shit up enough already.

[Like yeah he's vaguely aware that her time and his time are probably not just separated by time - there's more to it than that. She knows music he's never heard of, and vice versa, even when one should have existed in the other, just in another decade. But also, they're pretty damn close so who cares about the details? Does it even matter? There must be hundreds of Earths just next to each other with coke and pop tarts.

He briefly mulls this over while working on a slice of pizza, then looks around for the remote and turns on the room's TV, flipping idly through the channels.]

This is all pretty fuckin' foreign to me no matter what. I guess if we wound up in another version of the 60s, maybe I'd be able to tell better. But I dunno how much it matters. I guess if it does matter, it'd be that you could blow up Papa in one world an' I'd still be okay though!

[He doesn't really want that, though. Dude's an asshole but he has plenty of ways to die that don't involve her tearing a hole in spacetime specifically to destroy him. He feels a little bit weird about that, that's all. Maybe he shouldn't.]

[She laughs a little and reaches over to wipe some grease off the side of his mouth.]

Do you really think you'd be able to forgive me if I did something like that?

[To his Papa, to someone else he knows and maybe even cares about. It's hard to believe their relationship would survive. In fact, she could easily see herself becoming some kind of threat that the Enders feel obligated to dispose of. Not through actual fault of her own, but not being able to control her emotions and what she does when she loses control is kinda her own fault. She never wants to hurt someone, but it definitely happens more and more often these days. Eventually, someone she cares about is going to be hurt.

She just hopes it isn't Johnnie or anyone he cares about.

Seeing him look at her like she's a monster or a dog that needs to be put down would destroy her.]

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