20. Your character walking in on mine trying on different clothes
The knock on the door startled her from her thoughts, but she quickly shook herself from her quiet contemplation to answer, “Come in!”
James walked in as soon as she held a dress up to herself, head tilting as she pictured what it would look like on her.
“Hey, Rox, what’re you doing?” The question was simple, but she stilled. Did she want to tell him that she was getting ready for a date, did she want to stir up that whole conversation?
“Planning a few outfits.” It was a simple enough answer, and it wasn’t a lie. Roxanne smiled and put the dress down. “One of these days, you’ll see I’m actually great at this kind of stuff and that you should let me pick you out some outfits.
She watched the small smile tug at the corner of his mouth. The slight teasing in the conversations was something just slightly normal, but also a slight reminder of how much had changed. Sitting next to him on the bed, she could feel her smile turning more into a curious look.
“Is everything okay, James?”
It took him a while to respond, but as soon as he did, her shoulders relaxed. “You know I love you, right?”
“Of course I know that.” Roxanne smiled warmly, wrapping an arm around his torso and squeezing him gently. “I could never forget that.”
“Good.” She watched him nod and they both seemed slightly at a loss for words. They had never been as close as some of the others in the family, but it never meant they didn’t love each other--they were just at different parts in their lives. Roxanne didn’t need to ask why he said it. Ever since Lucy had been kidnapped, telling each other they loved them was almost mandatory. “Good.”
When the stopped hugging, Roxanne watched him get up and head back to the door. “I love you too, James.” He stilled and she noticed his smile widen just slightly before he waved and stepped back out of her room.
It wasn’t a lengthy conversation, but it still made her smile. She hadn’t been able to tell him about Arabella yet, but at least they were making progress.