âMmkays babe, itâs a date.â Giseleâs lips curled into a knowing smile as she found their conversation quite amusing. âOh, is that so?â she rhetorically asked with an arched brow. âIf I had known itâd be this easy to get you roped in a class, I would have done it sooner.â The dancer shrugged innocently as she looked away and preoccupied herself by viewing some items. âYou know, my pole dancing class is quite a hit. Iâm gonna assume you have upper body strength from being in the Marines and owning a gymâŠItâs clearly a perfect match.â Evidently enough she was teasing him, but she did want to see his reaction for the time being. Tilting her head slightly, it took Gigi a moment to catch on at his inquiry towards his program that she even hummed Ciaraâs hit song and did the actual one, two step. âI meanâŠShe did say âI love it when you 1, 2 stepââŠSooooâŠâ It should be fine right? Her voice trailed off as she plastered on a sheepish smile and giggled, âIâm in good hands and I trust you. It should be fun! Itâs been a while since I sparred.âÂ
âOkay now thatâs absolutely adorable!!! I know sheâll definitely be the cutest fairy of them all, brownie points if she has the sass like Tinkerbell.â Having worked with kids, she knew how much of an influence companies like Disney had on them that it was impossible to detach them from their excitement and imagination. It was no surprise that Julianna gravitated towards it. âYes! Of course, Iâll send you tons. May or may not dress him up, but that entirely depends on his behaviour.â replied Gigi. Spot was practically her child and so, giving him his own experience to bask in such festivities was a must. âAh, I seeâŠWell Iâm sure whatever you come up with will be fine. Youâre creative after all.â When Aaron asked about going as Pan, Gisele squinted and used this moment to picture him as the Disney character. âWell since you aim to please, it would make sense if your daughter wanted to match. At the end of the day, it is kinda about herâŠPlus the two of you together would definitely be a dynamic duo racking up all that candy. Besides, I think youâll look good in greenâmake your eyes pop or something.â She was boosting his ego at this point.Â
Eyeing a skeleton display, Gisele walked up to it and placed her basket down, before toying with its limbs. âThe Winter recitals. Itâs a little hectic seeing as many of the students have different ideas, wants and needs. Iâm trying to find a common ground.â Some of them wanted it to be holiday themed, others wanted Frozen to come to life and then there are those who wanted a classic like The NutcrackerâŠThe list went on. Putting a stop to refiguring the skeleton, Gigi had it do the peace sign before picking up her basket and returning to Aaronâs side. Glancing up at him, her gaze softened slightly as she replied with, âI donât know if my mother made it out alive from her lifestyle or is actually dead, but I put her up there hoping that sheâs at peace. When youâre in the cartel and I mean really inâŠThose people are your family. Take away their purpose, theyâre still human beings and they do have hearts. So there are some of them that I do pay my respects toâŠâ She sighed as decided to also give him the other reality of it. âTradition is tradition, so the rest of the altar will be those associated with my father and his peopleâthe ones who were loyal of course. Iâm not sure if heâll be in that week, but his people are, so we are hosting a gathering.â Seeing him try on the plastic glasses, she held a thumbs up of approval before observing his demeanour as he spoke about Julianna. She knew him enough to pick up on his quirks and behaviour, and so on instinct, she gently took his hand with hers once he adjusted her crown and gave it a reassuring squeeze. âHeyâŠI donât mind talking about her, even if I hadnât met her. Iâm absolutely fine with that. Sheâs the light of your life and I like seeing you go all dad mode and speak highly of her. But what I also want you to know is that I can stop mentioning her if itâs too much? Just, let me know and trust me, there are no hard feelingsâŠI completely understand.â She wanted him to feel comfortable and not feel the need to walk on eggshells when it came to talking about his daughter. A gentle smile soon graced her lips as she shrugged and proceeded to answer his question about her costume ideas. âI havenât yetâŠWho knows? Maybe this year I will. HmâŠIâll let you know.â
âIâm a simple man.â A casual remark. He even conjured up a sweet smile for her to close, but the statement was laughable in itself considering how much he over thought things. Simple. He wanted to be. There was a moment he paused what he was doing when she brought up the pole dancing classes to look at her. He then turned to face her with one steady sweep of his tongue along his lower lip. Skeptical in nature, he eyed her, but he wanted to see if she could get to her point without laughing since he saw where this was going. âUh-huh...â In a way, telling her to go on. A perfect match, she said. He opened his mouth to say something before closing it with an impressed look. His mind was already thinking of a way to flip it on her. âYou know,â he started, practically imitating her as he went to look at the products again, âif you want me to strip for you, you couldâve skipped the extra steps and just asked.â Stripping and pole dancing mightâve not been synonymous, but he took a bit of leeway for the fun of it. He kept scoping the place for any cabin vibes before he looked over at her, thinking she was reluctant to answer when, in fact, she got stuck on his reference. He didnât say anything, though. Instead turning back to the task at hand, smiling to himself when she spoke, âSo?,â he wouldâve waited patiently for her finish, but he liked the back and forth they had going. Â âI like to hear that...but letâs rewind, youâve sparred before?"
âLucky for me, she does,â he breathed out sarcastically in a weary chuckle but showed no true bitterness to the fact. Still, he wouldâve thought a sassy toddler wouldâve been cute too had he not had one. Julianna had been turning her nose up at many things and was starting to put her foot down with him, so he was trying to get it out of her. The picture he had of Spot in costume was one that brought about an airy laugh, and though it wasnât a thought that occurred before, the seed was planted. âOh, that I have to see in person.â If there was a possibility she was going to dress him up, he had to. Then, she threw his words back at him, and he knew she was right. His little one mightâve not specifically asked him to be Peter Pan. She didnât have the vocabulary for that, but he knew her eyes would light up if she saw him as the character. He just needed to hear it from someone else to give him that push, and it was nice of her to continue on by trying to butter him up to the idea. It was in her roundabout compliment when he really saw how silly it all was. It was just one of those things. âI do look good in green,â he said in a matter-of-fact as if to correct her. Green camouflage was one of his uniforms in the Marines, after all, and that led him to a conclusion on the matter. âAnd, you just gave an idea.â He closed the space between them to give her a quick peck as a thanks. âRobin Williamâs Pan it is.â
In the midst of deciding whether or not to get the fog machine, he got a bit distracted and watched her fool around with the skeleton, smiling. âI see...Is the recital going to be an open event?â It was only this year he ever really stepped foot on The Studio, so he didnât know of its traditions. Her talking of the dead and family, he had to wonder if there were people she left behind in Mexico or Cuba that were still living. People that she held close to her heart. The gang life was known to be short-lived with the lives lead. Aside from the people that were at the top, it was rare to find a member reach an old age, but that wasnât to say there werenât any, which took him to another thought. It had him asking himself if she ever was in a serious relationship before. Nevertheless, he let her finish her thoughts and words. It wasnât the right time or place to ask as he kept going through the Halloween decorations. Really, he didnât need an explanation of why she put the people of her father up there or the people in the cartel she saw as family. By now, he was able to grasp the position she was in, and he knew first-hand the intricacies and nuisances that life offered with his background in the military. Not to mention, growing up in Olympus. âMm...Looks like itâs going to be another one of those full house kind of nights, hm? You know, Iâd like to hear about them someday...." the ones she left back in her hometown. "Save me a plate?â He asked in good humor. In him being careful whenever he brought up Julianna, he didnât realize he mightâve been making her feel that way in return, and it wasnât until she held his hand when he realized he wasnât as cunning as he thought. A reminder that time had a way of revealing truths between them, whether they liked it or not. He searched her eyes as if she had the answer to his worries with Julianna, but it all fell on him. There were still a lot of things he was still learning on what it meant to be a good father, so the threat of Giseleâs father weighed heavy on him. Caressing the back of her hand with his thumb, his downcast eyes fell on their hands with a heavy breath. âNo,â he met back with her, âyou donât have to stop talking about her. I like that youâre making the effort.â Itâs what he wouldâve wanted from anyone he was in a relationship. â...I donât know how you do it, Gisele,â he blurted out in a soft mumble before raising their hands to plant a kiss on the top of her, trying to make light of things with her having the crown on. Again, Spirit Halloween wasnât the place for this. âSurprise me, then,â he answered after taking of the plastic glasses to put them in the basket and mustered up a smile to give, tenderly chucking her under the chin.