Words: 947 Genre: Fan Fiction / Drabble Fandom(s): Original / The Dresden Files Characters: Kristina Darling , Harry Dresden Summary: Krissy has a really bad case of the nerves on a first date. Oopsies.
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The poor kitten. She had been shooed, brushed aside, whined at, complained at, yelled at, and now was found cowering under an end table hoping that her owner didn't find her and start the cycle all over again. Poor little white fuzzball.
And if Minty was a bundle of nerves, Kristina Darling was worse. She had straightened the dining room table seven times (eight more should do the trick) and wiped down just about every counter she could think of cleaning at least twelve times. Her phone was a steady reminder of "calm down", "remember to breathe", "call if you need anything" from parents and a very insistent best friend.
Dates were natural and supposed to be easy. Of course, that's why she felt sick to her stomach and like she was going to have a panic attack and hide in her room. Totally normal. This is how normal people felt, right?
This was definitely not how normal people felt. Ever.
[ outgoing msg ; Mathew ] I am going to die before he even gets here. Are you sure I can't back out? [ incoming msg ; Mathew ] You'll be wonderful. Calm down.
Calm down, he said. He'd known her since she was three! Kristina Marie Darling did not calm down well.
At least the food was already cooked and prepared. Of course, that meant that her mind was free to roam and come up with insane sorts of daydreams of what could be, could happen, might have happened already, or that this was a cruel joke. Twitchy fingers tugged at her dress, while she sank her teeth into her lip. Mat was right. She needed to calm down, or she'd be a mess by the time Harry even got here. But it wasn't like she had anything to compare this to. She'd never been on a date, never been kissed, and never held anyone's hand. (Mathew didn't count. Best friend things never counted. But this could count, would count? Might count?)
The knock at the door made her jump and nearly dropped her phone on the floor. With a squeak, the redhead recovered and took a deep breath before shoving the device back on the counter. A moment to make sure she didn't manage to mess her dress up or her hair or anything else (perfectionist at heart was kicking in) and she crossed into the hallway to open the door.
Oh, thank god, it was actually him.
"Hiya," she managed to get out, before mentally berating herself on how dumb she sounded. "Uh, you can... come in, of course." A step backwards that was made too hastily and her hip collided with the end table closest to her and a vase of bright flowers fell with a crash on the floor.
She was as smooth as crunchy peanut butter kept in the freezer for five years. Gods help her.
"Ah... sorry, sorry. Just. Just go insi--"
"It's alright."
She could hear the almost laugh in Harry's voice and it made her cheeks flush dark red, and force her mouth closed. Shifting so he could actually walk inside, she closed the door quickly and took a deep, and hopefully calming, breath.
"You can set your jacket and stuff in the living room, if you want. While I clean this up, I mean." She gestured towards the archway leading into the sitting area with a smile. "Please. I made the mess, it's only natural I clean it up. It won't take long."
The urge to physically push him in the direction was overwhelming and her hands almost moved forwards, but her mental restraints kicked in and she shifted backwards. This was what she wanted. She suggested she make dinner for them at her house because it was her "bubble". She could control everything that came in, and everything was clean here. She knew exactly where all the food came from, so she didn't have to worry about chemicals (much.) Hopefully, she wouldn't be written off as one of those crazy, hippie organic-only women.
She had to do this. It was this or risk illness and death.
"Please."
There was a breath of hesitation before Harry complied and went where she directed. And, she was right, it took her no time at all to clean up the mess. Kristina even managed to keep herself from getting cut! Imagine that. Divines must be on her side tonight. And from that point on, the rest of the night went smoothly. Dinner was wonderful, and she lost track of time from that point to the point he actually left.
She managed not to screw it up. Imagine that.
It had to be after midnight when the night came full circle and once again, she was facing him in her doorway once more. Although, the nerves had calmed down and her brain was a much kinder place. It was wonderful, until he reached forward, and she instinctively stepped backwards.
"Sorry. It's a habit." Her apology came quickly and was paired with a smile. A breath of a pause passed before she stepped forward again, and before her mind could kick in and tell her that this was a terrible idea, she grabbed his hand and paused before squeezing it.
He might be a wizard, but she doubted Harry Dresden understood the significance of that one motion, that one action. There were so few people she touched willingly, let touch her willingly. And he could be on that list if he wanted--if he was careful.
"I had fun tonight. Maybe next time, you can make dinner for me and you can knock over the flowers."
It was a start, at least.