|
Post by neverlandlostgirl on Jul 3, 2017 6:19:31 GMT
A small silence fell between the two of them and Ralph began to worry that Elsa had indeed misunderstood what he was trying to say. He looked down briefly at the table before glancing up. And what he saw made him feel almost lightheaded.
Elsa was smiling, a sweet and gentle curve of her lips that transformed her face from that of the cold, hard and determined lawyer she so often was to a beautiful and radiant woman. Seeing her smile that way, the way she had smiled when he first asked her out so very long ago, made him feel as if a ball of warmth were spreading from his chest to the rest of his body. Even the small gesture of her pushing a loose strand of hair from her face made his pulse quicken and his thoughts temporarily leave his mind.
For a time, he could only stare at her. Indeed, the moment might have become somewhat awkward had not the waiter suddenly reappeared once more, this time holding a tray with their entrees steaming lightly on top of it. With a smile and a deft skill, the waiter placed the orders in front of them and asked that they enjoyed their meals before leaving.
"Um.... yeah, thanks."
Ralph blinked and stared down at his plate, trying to collect his thoughts.
|
|
|
Post by Zuyuri on Jul 7, 2017 23:26:30 GMT
The silence was one of the rare few Elsa could describe as pleasant. There wasn't much really that could be said. She had thanked him genuinely for his compliments, and she was had, well, never been compliment. She felt her heart...was it thawing? He was just sitting there in the warm glow and it...well..in a strange way it was making him look handsome. Handsomer than any prince charming or rich boy or wheoever was on the cover of a fancy magazine. That and after telling Jacque to get lost, she was glad to be around a man she could be herself aroumd.
Their food came next, landing with pleasant clicks. Ralph thanked the waiter, and she nodded up at them, smiling as they refilled their water.
"...Ralph...are you okay?"
|
|
|
Post by neverlandlostgirl on Jul 8, 2017 8:53:50 GMT
For a time the two of them merely attended to their meals, but it wasn't long before Elsa suddenly spoke. Ralph looked up from his plate, somewhat through off by her question.
"Me? Yeah, I'm fine. Just thinking over some things...."
He once again looked at his food but only took a few bites, not really tasting the dish. It was good and yet he couldn't fully enjoy it with so many things rolling around in his head. Finally, he couldn't keep quiet any more and spoke in low voice.
"I guess I just can't help wondering why you.... gave me a second chance, is all. I mean, after how things went that last time..."
He kept his face turned towards the table but his eyes looked up to the woman sitting across from him. She really was such an amazing person, gifted in ways that went far beyond her ability to control ice. She was beautiful, talented, determined, and would go far in the world if she desired. So why had she ever thought to give someone like him a second chance?
|
|
|
Post by Zuyuri on Jul 8, 2017 17:20:56 GMT
"Because of all the men I agreed to go out with, you were the most...genuine. That and I hated how I acted the first time."
She had been absolutely rigid that first time. He had gotten her to light up a few times. Now, she wasn't wmas on edge, Had that been from putting all her pent anger onto Jacque, who had...he mind froze just thinking of that afternoon. That chill had shot through her fork, too, freezing a mushroom in a block of ice.
"Oops," she dipped it into the still warm wine sauce, where the ice hissed as it thawed back to perfection.
|
|
|
Post by neverlandlostgirl on Jul 10, 2017 4:25:41 GMT
Ralph raised his head and gave Elsa a somewhat quizzical look. How she had acted that first time? What was she talking about? She hadn't been the one to lose her temper at words spoken by a cruel and vain man, she hadn't been the one to allow herself to be baited by something that could so easily be ignored, she hadn't punched the man several times and only just been stopped from doing worse.
He might have thought she was only speaking to be kind but her sudden flare up of icy power proved otherwise. She was speaking truthfully. And it surprised the Giant. He had always assigned the blame for what had happened, the near breaking of any interaction let alone relationship he might have had with Elsa, to himself. Now, however, it was clear that Elsa carried a sense of blame too.
"I don't understand... How you acted?"
|
|
|
Post by Zuyuri on Jul 10, 2017 5:49:27 GMT
Elsa messed with her food a little while longer, hunting for something to say. He was looking at her quizzically. She knew he was guilty for letting his temper get out of control, but she herself felt bad for doing nothing. Or rather, doing nothing then literally giving him the cold shoulder. It had been the coldest she had felt and been.
"I was a coward. I thought if I just...stayed out of the way, it would resolve itself. I was stupid. I should have said something and instead I did nothing and left because..." she sighed, "because I was afraid. That's the other reason I wanted to try again. I'm not afraid anymore."
|
|
|
Post by neverlandlostgirl on Jul 10, 2017 6:11:17 GMT
It seemed it was Elsa's turn to toy with her food and keep her gaze lowered. For a time she didn't say anything as he stared across the table at her, the only sound the low hum of others talking, the light chink of forks on plates and the music playing in the bistro. The silence between them stretched for so long that Ralph thought Elsa wouldn't reply and, with a small sigh, started on his own food again.
However, a moment later she did speak. And what she said was the last thing the Giant expected to hear.
"Afraid? Of what, Elsa?"
Suddenly, an unpleasant thought passed through his mind and made his stomach turn. When she said she had been afraid.... was she referring to him? Had she been frightened by the terrible anger that he had shown, the shortness of his temper and what could happen if he was driven to rage? The thought was terrible and yet he couldn't seem to shake the feeling that this might indeed be what the young woman was talking about.
And if that was the case... What hope did he have of ever being anything more then a distant friend to her?
|
|
|
Post by Zuyuri on Jul 10, 2017 6:46:48 GMT
"I was afraid of starting a relationship with someone who made me happy. It had nothing to do with your rage, honest. It was my own fear. I still hold onto it from time to time."
Elsa finally was able to stab a mushroom that was trying to escape from her plate. She took a bite and chewed, swallowing it. Hopefully Ralph got that his rage was the same as her fear. It was something she was ashamed of and, on occasion, it would come up and make that should have been great worse. She continued eating, just grateful to get something to fill the growing void in her stomach. Once it felt fufilled, she continued,
"Because I...well..." she blushed. "I like you. More than a friend. I tried dating someone else, but all he cared about was stealing and his voodoo crosshairs. I ran into him earlier and, well," she laughed hollowly. "when I told him I was seeing you, he got jealous. He kept touching me. I felt something I knew you would relate to. I felt...absolutely enraged. I slapped him, told him to leave me alone, and left him to thaw off on the curb."
"And I remembered you. You...actually wanted to know me, and not just the ice-queen lawyer. You...gave me something I didn't think I wanted, yet I yearned for...you made me feel safe."
|
|
|
Post by neverlandlostgirl on Jul 11, 2017 5:07:32 GMT
Dumbfounded. That was what the Giant felt in that moment, dumbfounded.
It stared with wide brown eyes across the table as Elsa paused a moment to eat before continuing. She spoke of her fears, how they had held her back in seeking out a real relationship. She spoke of a person she had dated before and how she had run into him. And she spoke of how he was the only one that she genuinely liked because he had tried to learn about who she was. Who she really was.
He didn't speak or touch his food or even move much as he tried to absorb all the things she had just told him. One thing seemed to keep coming back to him, and that was the fact that she like him. However, when he finally processed what she had done to the guy she had once dated, the one who had gotten jealous and kept touching her, he let out a sudden bout of laughter.
It was a rich and deep laugh, a warm sound that only seemed to make the surroundings that much brighter.
"Surprised you let him get off so easily! Maybe he'll learn his lesson and treat you with respect you deserve once he's done being an ice statue."
He let out another low chuckle at the image, but couldn't deny he also felt a small amount of anger towards this previous boyfriend. If a woman didn't want to be touched, you didn't touch. Heck, there had been plenty of times where he himself wanted to touch Elsa, to push a strand of hair out of her face or lightly trace the line of her cheek or even kiss her..... but he'd known she didn't want that and had respected her choice. Clearly this guy hadn't grasped he concept but Elsa had taught him a cold lesson on it.
|
|
|
Post by Zuyuri on Jul 11, 2017 5:17:35 GMT
Elsa's blue eyes twinkled in merriment at hearing Ralph's laugh. She had heard every kind of laugh you could imagine. Wild, hysterical drunks ones, quiet and subdued ones, and the ones that always got under the skin, the insincere high pitched titter that was fake laughter. This one, well, the balance of volume and crinkling of the eyes made her know it was fine.
And she joined with him.
The warm laugh just made the whole bistro a little bit more jovial. Summertime in Louisiana ranged from being unbearably hot to about the right temperature. Now here, with food in her mouth and a great person laughing with her, everything felt at peace.
Her laughing fit dissolved into quiet chuckles, and she was pretty sure she had spat some of it on the table. She cleared her throat, but even though the physical laughter was done, the glitter in her eyes and the smile on her face didn't disappear.
"Oh, I learned that men like him don't deserve my respect. Or really being frozen solid. Although I do find his face in terror frozen solid priceless."
|
|
|
Post by neverlandlostgirl on Jul 11, 2017 5:31:32 GMT
When Elsa joined in with her own laughter, a light and happy sound that made her eyes twinkle, he felt a deep rush of feelings so strong that he wasn't even certain there was a name that could capture them. The closest one that he could bring to mind in that moment was... love. Yes, love.
Once the laughter had subsided, he watched her for a moment. He took in every little detail of her he had come to appreciate and adore, all the small things she did that made her different and unique.
"You know, when you're at court or on a case you really do fit the name ice princess. You're so cold and focused, so intense and determined and simply implacable, but when you laugh.... I don't think I've ever seen a face with more beauty or kindness or warmth."
|
|
|
Post by Zuyuri on Jul 11, 2017 6:00:23 GMT
"Oh, please, Ralph, I'm a queen, not a princess,"
But even with the correction, she was rolling her eyes. Even her tone of voice was light and teasing. He was complimenting her with things she had heard before, but when he said it, she knew he wasn't sarcastic or making fun of her power over ice. He was being absolutely sincere.
She ducked her eyes down in shyness as he looked at her. There was something in his brown eyes she couldn't put a finger on. Was it...well, she had seen lust, but not love like he was look at her with. Setting her fork down, she reached over for his hand. Compared to his, hers looked so dainty and delicate. Her French manicured hands just touched the base, and she looked up at him.
"I could say the same thing about you fitting the mold of Giant, you know. You can be brash, coarse, and willing to break down any and all obstacles. But, well, when you care about someone, and you...well, you're inner gentleness is charming."
|
|
|
Post by neverlandlostgirl on Jul 12, 2017 4:16:56 GMT
Ralph had finished his meal by that point and was just toying with the small bits of beef that floated in what remained of the sauce. However, when Elsa suddenly reached across the table and put her slender hand over his, his fidgeting stopped instantly. Despite her ice powers, her hand was gentle and warm resting on top of his own massive knuckles.
"Is that supposed to be an insult or a compliment?"
The Giant's teasing tone made it clear he knew, but his voice had grown softer as he spoke and his brown eyes seemed to be lost within the blue depths of Elsa's gaze. He felt like he could stare into them forever and yet always find something new within them, some tiny detail or thing he had yet to discover.
Without realizing it, he had turned his hand over so that he was holding her own in his much larger grasp. And yet the touch bespoke of the very gentleness that Elsa had only just spoken of.
|
|
|
Post by Zuyuri on Jul 12, 2017 5:05:31 GMT
Elsa gave a shy smile. She liked this side of him this softer side. He was looking at her, brown eyes to blue.
Suddenly, a slightly warm pressure fell onto hers. The pressure was reassuring, but more importantly, it was friendly and amiable, Ralph had taken Elsa's hand and was holding it. She had allowed him to as well. She smiled at him. If there was any indication she had ice powers, it was gone now.
She used her free hand, her dominant hand, to scoop at her meal. She scraped the last remains of the wine sauce and the flecks of chicken and potatoes. As she swallowed, she found her voice.
"I'm glad you decided to give us a second chance."
|
|
|
Post by neverlandlostgirl on Jul 12, 2017 5:18:40 GMT
"Yeah, you too."
And suddenly before he lost his nerve, Ralph leaned forward across the table and kissed Elsa. It was a small thing, really, only the barest pressure of his lips on hers. Some might have just called it a graze and not a proper kiss, but he knew that the young, ice-wielding woman he had come to love would understand everything he was trying to convey to her in that one touch.
He only hoped that she would return his affections. If she left it at that and didn't say anything, if she merely stared at him or even turned away from that smallest embrace, he would know that this couldn't go any further for them. It would mean that she wanted to be friends and nothing more.
But if she returned the kiss....
|
|