The Samsara, Tuesday Evening

[okteiviakom]

There'd been dinner served on the Samsara tonight: Octavia had cooked. Sort of? She'd made something in a skillet on her tiny stove, anyway, even if it was just mac and cheese (which she had... little to no previous experience with, even just in terms of eating it) and then she'd served it to Duke, and it seemed like no bad side effects had befallen either of them. So, success?

Octavia gave her last forkful a quizzical look, tilting her head a little.

"This could have been worse."

Way to brag, Tavi.

[ooc: For the lovingly modded snogon.]

Comments

[okteiviakom]

Another nod.

"I had so little room to want anything for myself, and now I'm trying to fit what you want in, too."

[betterthanaplan]

Duke took a moment to swallow, reminding himself that wasn't a criticism. That she wasn't accusing him of asking too much.

This was probably why these conversations worked better with your therapist. They weren't emotionally involved in where you ended up landing on any particular subject.

"Yeah," he said after a moment. "I can see where that's tough."

[okteiviakom]

He wasn't asking too much. Neither was Lucifer.

That was part of the problem.

"It's like half of me wants nothing more than to build a future that looks like us," she said softly after a moment. "And the other half doesn't know how to build anything that doesn't look like me."

[betterthanaplan]

"Well. . . . Where do those two things overlap?"

[okteiviakom]

Octavia gave a faint, helpless shrug. "Well, I'm a part of us, so there's that," she murmured. "Which seems like a start."

[betterthanaplan]

“A good start,” Duke agreed, giving her a soft smile.

[okteiviakom]

Octavia's answering smile was small, and a little lopsided.

She gave his hand a little tug. "You're so far away," she murmured. (The table was tiny. That was still too far away.) "You wanna maybe move over to the bed?"

[betterthanaplan]

“I absolutely do,” Duke said, and slid away from the table in just that direction.

[okteiviakom]

Octavia followed, ushering him the towards the bed as if he wasn't already going there, and like he needed help finding his way when the distance was three steps at most.

It was possible she just wanted to crowd him a little bit.

[betterthanaplan]

Duke was more than happy to be crowded. He let her herd him, sitting on the edge of the bed with a soft thump and tugging her to his lap.

“I like this. We should do this more often.”

[okteiviakom]

"We should," Octavia agreed, settling sideways onto his lap, sliding one arm over his shoulders. "I mean, Lucifer and I are getting pretty good about doing the... date night thing."

Aww, look, she only hesitated a little over calling it that.

"We should try, too."

[betterthanaplan]

“I would love to do date nights with you.”

[okteiviakom]

There was nothing surprising about that statement. And yet Octavia's smiled widened and brightened some, right before she pressed a kiss to his cheek.

Then another to his lips.

[betterthanaplan]

Duke cupped the back of her neck, happily leaning into her kisses.

[okteiviakom]

Octavia spent a long moment just bestowing some more of those on him. Slow and languid and warm, like she was sealing the deal on the date night thing.

"I love you," she murmured. Sometimes she just felt like saying it.

[betterthanaplan]

“I love you too,” Duke said, turning his face into her hair. “More than I ever thought I could.”

[okteiviakom]

"And how much is that?" Octavia murmured.

It had a gently teasing note to it.

[betterthanaplan]

“More than . . . three whole universes full,” Duke said. That didn’t feel big enough. “More than all the stupid terrible shit we’ve been through combined.”

[okteiviakom]

"Oh," Octavia said softly, because that sounded... That sounded big.

She buried her face in the crook of his neck and breathed him in.

[betterthanaplan]

“Are you surprised?” Duke asked, amused by her reaction.

[okteiviakom]

"I guess I'm always a little surprised," Octavia admitted, turning her head until the side of it rested against his shoulder. She was looking down, towards his arm. "But it's a good surprise."

And silly, she knew.

[betterthanaplan]

“I am a little, too,” Duke admitted. “I didn’t know love could work like this.”

[okteiviakom]

Octavia's hand trailed down his right arm, then nudged his sleeve upwards just a little. Slow, but deliberate.

Just enough to expose a little of the ink.

And she murmured, "You loved me enough to put me on your skin."

[betterthanaplan]

Duke rubbed a slow circle on her shoulder. “And you put me on yours.”

[okteiviakom]

Octavia's fingertips slid under the edge of his sleeve, finding the shark she couldn't really see.

"Of course I did," she said, softly.