How Taweret kept her avatars warm in the middle of a New York winter, that was beside Jake. It was all he could think about the entire night, even as he and Layla wrapped up with their rescue mission. His eyes kept sneaking glances at her exposed arms, the way the moonlight glimmered off of the copper-colored wings… And then he found himself noticing the way her curls sat on her shoulders, gravity-defying and vibrant. He didn’t ever realize how pretty her curls were until he’d spent so much time looking at them.
Something told him that it was wrong to look at her like that, and he suppressed the admiration just as quickly as it had come on as they abandoned their suits and walked towards the diner he’d suggested for dinner.
Layla being taken shook Jake more than he cared to admit, and now that she was back he had a renewed desire to protect her however he could. She was important to Marc and Steven, and so she was important to him. There was nothing more to those feelings. Right?
The walk to Gena’s was short, and Jake held the door open for Layla as the bell chimed above them. He barely even made it two steps before Ricky and Ray were stumbling across the restaurant to hug him at his knees, the impact nearly toppling him over. The grin he gave them was wide as he ruffled their hair a bit and patted their backs. “Ay, ay, it’s nice to see you guys too.” He hadn’t been by in about a week, but judging by their reactions he would have thought it had been a month. “Where’s your mom?”
Gena came out of the door to the kitchen then, a tray balanced on one hand as she huffed a loose curl off of her forehead and gingerly set the platter down so she could come hug him herself. “Jake! Why didn’t you tell me you were stopping by?” Huffing, she pulled back from the hug and straightened his jacket a bit.
“I would’ve had a pot ready and everything. You—Oh? Who is this?” The smirk she gave him when she finally spotted Layla by his side made him practically want to combust as he shot Gena a look. “A friend, Gena. Just a friend. Layla, this is Gena. She owns the place.”
It’s hard to surprise Layla El-Faouly. It has been ever since she was a child. That’s not to say it’s impossible. There were times that her father was able to get the upper hand and truly take her by surprise. Harrow had done so when he revealed that her very own husband had been present during what she would find to be the darkest day of her life. That day hangs heavily in her mind, even though it’s been years. It’s not just about Abdallah bleeding out on the sand. It’s about the hours Layla spent not knowing he was gone. Her life had felt normal but it wasn’t. It would never be like it was before.
But that’s the past. It’s not 2015 anymore. It’s 2026 and Layla has learned to deal with the trauma. She’s healed a lot to the point where it’s no longer on her mind first thing anymore. The reason it has been plaguing her thoughts at all is the Marc revelation. Her father’s death has been thrown into her orbit once more, but this time with a twist. It’s hard not to resent Marc, but Layla is making a concerted effort. She’s making an effort in other places as well. Case and point: Jake Lockley.
Marc. Steven. Jake. Everyone has layers and Layla always knew that Marc had his secrets. She didn’t really consider two entirely different people to be one of them, but the cat is out of the bag now. Layla and Steven click. They had from the moment she had begun to believe that he wasn’t just Marc making excuses for attempting to blow their lives apart. Layla loves Steven; for a while it wasn’t something she was sure about, but she is now. The same can’t be said about Jake. She’s warmed to him, sure, but she isn’t sure how he fits into her life yet.
Today may be changing that.
“Gena.” Layla takes a step forward, one hand extending with a smile. “It’s nice to meet you.” This isn’t what she expected. The diner is warm, the air thick with various fragrances. Layla works to isolate the sickly sweet strains of cherry pie over the bitterness of the boiling black coffee. It’s not the kind of place she’d ever expect to see Jake Lockley in, let alone the kind of place he’d ever appear to be at home in. The entire picture is surprisingly endearing.
Dark eyes slide to Jake for a moment. There’s an unfamiliar softness to his face that smooths out the hard lines that are normally present. Maybe it’s just the brightness of the diner, but there’s a moment where she can almost swear that it’s possible to see him in a different light. Just as fast as the moment comes, it passes. Layla blinks once before refocusing her attention on Gena. “How long have you two known each other? This place is wonderful, by the way.”