flirty starters | @holylcst said: “Can I keep you?”
Truth be told, by this point he had kind of gotten used to Panty’s way of speaking. She almost constantly said crude or flirty things, and that didn’t necessarily mean anything -- because most of the time she was just kidding. Considering the fact that they had gotten off to a rocky start when they first met, too? Yeah, safe to say he didn’t assume much most of the time.
But in the dead of night, humming engine of the car slowed to a silent stop, stars overhead? It was surprising enough to hear her speak, break the silence -- much less to hear that. It was...oddly vulnerable sounding, compared to any of the other things she’d so routinely teased him with. He blinks, feels a small flush of pink dust across his cheeks.
“Ah...?” He murmurs, clearing his throat slightly as it wanes between a rumble and a whisper. “I’m here, aren’t I...?” There’s a chuckle to his tone, but gives way to a bit of anxiety -- a pickup in pulse that felt slightly unfamiliar. The kind that says, are you really going to make me catch feelings out in the middle of nowhere at 4 in the morning? To which she’d undoubtedly do as she always did, and take the unexpected route. Damned if you ever expected anything routine from Panty Anarchy, she’d almost certainly make you regret that within seconds.
Not that he’s really complaining, either. It’s part of the reason why, despite how difficult she could be at times, he’s always felt a certain sense of comfort riding alongside her, too. There was a certain familiarity to the unfamiliar now, that had built up the longer he rode shotgun -- a sort of warmth that satisfied his need to roam and to not be alone while doing so.
Still though, performance anxiety. He’s definitely going to overthink this. He’s already overthinking it. What should he say? Or do? Was this the moment he should have already said something? What if he fucked it up already? As it turns out, talking to girls, even girls you’ve had a ghost hunting road trip with for what seems like months, is actually pretty hard.
