Victor shifted; he wasn’t used to this kind of expression, or really he wasn’t used to talking about his childhood years at all. The water traveled through his hair and down his cheeks like small streams as he smiled down at her, his hands resting on her hips. “You’re incredible, you know that?” He punctuated his statement with a quick kiss before turning so that he could get some shampoo and start washing his hair.
Summer ducked her head at the compliment. “This is just what I do,” she told him, backing up a little to be out of range of stray soap. “It’s not really all that special.” It never felt special to her. Sometimes it felt like a weight, always listening and never heard. Really, all most people needed was a listening ear and someone to honestly believe in and care for them.
In the end, she’d learned, mostly that was all she could do; people had to heal themselves. They had to choose on their own to forget, forgive, remember, release — whatever was needed to be at peace with whatever had happened. It was never /easy/. But it was always /possible/, if you didn’t fully give up. Some days, all you could do was hold on to the ground you’d won.
Summer leaned against the shower wall and just watched Victor, as she so rarely got to do.
“Well this,” he gestured to himself and all around him, “isn’t something most people can do and I appreciate it.” Victor smiled a big grin as he lathered the shampoo into his hair then shook his head much like a dog would sending little clouds of shampoo through the air. He laughed then went back under the water to rinse his hair and begin washing the rest of himself. Victor looked back at her with a smirk, “You enjoying the show Summer?”
She blushed horribly and poked him. “Shut up, you dork. Or I’ll make you wash /me/.”
“Well all right,” she replied, a little puzzled. She cast around, looking for her hairclip, then fished it from the tangles of her shirt, quickly wrapping her hair up into a bun.
Victor led her to the joined bathroom where he started the hot water. Once it was hot enough he opened the shower door and stepped inside, beckoning her to follow him. A quick hiss came from him as the hot water hit his back but then he looked down at her and smiled a soft smile. “Y’know, I never thought I’d do something like this, Summer. Not just because of my dominant personality, but because if anyone else dared touch me like you did tonight they wouldn’t have been around for much longer. I was beaten, a lot, at the Institute. Yet, with you, it was nothing like back then, and I sure as hell didn’t have any flashback moments there. I don’t even know how to express this with words love, but I’ve never trusted anyone as much as I trust you.” Victor realized, with some dismay, that he was rambling and so rather than keep on rambling he pulled her in for an embrace and nuzzled her neck. “I love you Summer.”
Summer tucked herself under the showerhead, looking up at Victor. She laughed when he ran out of words, gently, and wrapped her arms around his neck. “I know, Victor darling. I know you do,” she whispered. “I won’t ever hurt you like that. If you had a flashback, I would stop, immediately. I would know. And I love you too.”
“God and you accused me of flirting,” Tony laughed. “You got yourself a deal Miss Summer.” He smirked. “Hope you’re ready to clean my apartment.”
She spluttered into her drink. “I suck at flirting. /If/ you win, I’ll be ready to do anything you say, Mr Irresistible. But false comments will get you nowhere.”
“Mr Irresistible.” Tony smiled rubbing his chin. “I like that. If I win you have to call me that for the entire month. “And I’ll tell you a secret. I am the king of flirtation. And I know quality flirting when I see it. And that was some five star flirting.”
Summer turned nearly the same colour as her hair, subsiding behind her cup. “Shut up, geekboy,” she mumbled. “First you have to win.”
“I’m from North Carolina.” She exaggerated her southern accent into a soft drawl. “We lived in Tennessee when I was small, though. I’m majoring in English with a minor in Philosophy — kind of by accident.” Shifting her shoulder under the bag, she added, “I do swim, but after one season I decided I’d rather focus on my schoolwork.” Summer eyed Tony up and down. “Are you even old enough to drink?”
“Am I old enough to drink? Yes. Am I old enough to drink legally? That’s an entirely different question,” he grinned. “Philosophy huh?” He scratched his head. “So you like to think about stuff and things like that?”
“I just end up thinking about a lot of things,” she said, self-deprecating. “Honestly, I didn’t mean to, I just picked up some classes that looked interesting to fill out my schedule and then my advisor pointed out that if I took the two basic philo classes I’d have a minor. I’ll pick those up when they stop conflicting with my writing classes.”
“I’m more of a science kid myself,” Tony said. “Engineering mostly. Biology bores the shit out of me.” He laughed, scratching his head. “Like who cares how cells work? As long as mine are alive and well and doing what they’re supposed to be doing I don’t care.”
“Eeeeh.” Summer opened the door to the coffee shop, flicking a salute to the girl behind the counter. “I like science a lot, but the math is overwhelming. I mean, okay, algebra is pretty simple, but eventually you get to a lot of rules that just aren’t that intuitive, and I’d /much/ rather work in concepts and leave the math to someone else.”
“I’m like the exact opposite.” Tony smiled. “I hate concepts; I like fact. I like things to be they way they are: no ifs ands or buts.” He laughed looking at the menu behind the counter. “So what’s good here?”
“You’re what I needed for that fucking Intro to Physics class. Ugh. The muffins are amazing. I’m having hot chocolate. SUGAR!”
“I think I’ll pass on the hot chocolate.” Tony smiled. “I like my coffee like my heart. Black and bitter.” He laughed.
Summer laughed so hard she choked. “That is /such/ a lie,” she finally managed, trying to smother her giggles in her hand. “Try again, Tony.”
Summer pressed herself against Humphrey. “Very tempting. But you know I don’t fear the darkness, Humphrey.” She leaned up his body, murmuring, “It would have to be very late indeed to prevent my return to the city. Perhaps your library will be interesting enough to distract me.”
“You are very tempting, like a sweet blueberry pie laid in front of me for supper,” Humphrey said, pulling her close to him. “The one with vanilla sugar on top. Yet, I must ask you to dress, and we shall join the household for supper.”
“I am sure you are not fearless, Summer. No one is,” he added, before he planted a light kiss on her forehead, “Dress, love. Let us find out what the hunters caught in the woods while I was hunting you down.”
“Yes, my lord,” she sighed, drawing away. It was probably fortunate that she’d done most of her undressing herself. It made it simple to locate her dress and relace it, though she wasn’t sure what had become of the blue velvet. “Do I suit your desires now, sweet?”
“Plainly speaking, no… you suited MY desires without the garment.” Humphrey said pulling her into a hug. He sensed a change of mood. “Sadly we need to care for other things than my desires… and mayhap we could talk as you feel as cold as wind in winter, so tell me what it is I may have insulted you? I meant no offence.”
Summer leaned her head against his chest, sighing softly. “I am not insulted, only disappointed. I wished more of you, and you put me off.” Deliberately, she looked up and smiled. “Come, kiss me again and we shall go into supper. We may talk, though not of insult.”
That meant she had to get dressed. Bother. Dislodging Phoebe, Summer rolled herself off the couch to pull on a long skirt and long-sleeve shirt, then stuffed her feet in running shoes and went to sit on her steps.
Victor had run his fingers through his hair and put his dark grey flat cap before jumping into his black Audi A8. He sped off to her house, the car taking his speed easily. As he drove he put some music on, apparently Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata was playing; it was good enough so he left it on. By the time he arrived to her house the song ‘Secrets’ by One Republic was on. As he pulled up he saw that she was sitting on the steps and he quickly parked the car, left it running and went out to greet her. “Hey Summer, you ready?” he asked as he pulled her in for a hug and a kiss before staring down at her with adoring eyes.
“Ready as ever I’ll be, unless you want me to grab some of my movies.” She cuddled into his warmth, wondering again how a vampire came to be so warm. “I hate winter,” she grumbled. “Cold, damp, nasty.”
”Then don’t,” she mumbled, half aware of what she was saying. “Stay.” Slowly, she dragged her fingers down his back, revelling in the muscled feel of him.
“/Six/?” Summer gaped at Victor. “You fucking IDIOT. You — you — ” She couldn’t even find the wherewithal to swear at him, she was so shocked. “That’s not a problem, Roth, that’s practically suicide. Gods give me strength, /why didn’t you tell me about this sooner/?” Her voice vibrated with suppressed emotion.
She put her hands down on the floor, bracing herself while she took deep breaths. Heat moved under her skin, begging to be let out. “Get up.” She moved smoothly to her feet in one motion. “Get up, and lean on me. I’ll — I’ll deal with that later. Right now, you are getting in the bath, and I am sobering you up.”
Victor cringed a little at the use of his last name. He realized how pissed off she was, and honestly it hadn’t been this bad in a while but it scared him that a memory could do this to him. He clawed at the wall he was slouching against until he was leaning heavily on the wall. He reached a hand out for Summer’s shoulder, a sudden wave of light headedness overcoming him but he managed to stay standing. Victor took a few more steps, still bracing a good portion of his weight on her. “Bathroom’s up tha stairs, firs’ door on tha lef’.”
“Right.” Pressing her lips together, she maneuvered the two of them up the stairs, and into the bathroom. “Do I have to undress you, or can you do that?” Summer planted her hands on her hips, eyeing him narrowly.
Summer sighed. “I haven’t been home in months, Victor darling. I’ve got to go down for the funeral, though. The funeral, the wake, the viewing, god. The only way I’m going to survive it is drugs.” This sigh was bitter, and she blinked another tear away. “Tell me you love me, Victor,” she whispered. “Tell me how much you love me.”
Victor was surprised for a moment but leaned in by her ear, “I love you, Summer. I love you very much and I’ll never stop.” He punctuated each word with a tender kiss to her jaw. “I’d offer to go with you for support but I don’t want to intrude on something like that.”
Even now, under the weight of it all, his voice still shot a shiver down her spine. “Having you there would be more appreciated than I can express. Please come with me. Come with and keep me sane. And hold me. Just,” her voice cracked again, “hold me.” She felt like she was falling, wished she was falling, flying, anywhere but here. “Make me not think.”
“Ok, love, whatever you want. I’ll be there for you Summer, I’ll do my best to keep you sane.” Victor planted a kiss on her nose, forehead, jaw, cheeks and eyes. “What do you want me to do? What can make you not think about it, love?”
“I don’t know.” It was nearly a wail. She struggled to keep from breaking down a third time. “God, Victor, I don’t know!”
Summer stuffed her braid down the back of her shirt, buckled the helmet on, and climbed quickly onto the back of Steve’s bike. “I’ve always wanted a motorcycle of my own,” she confessed to him, trying to figure out where her feet should go. Hands were easy; disdaining shyness for safety, she locked her arms around his waist, muffling shrieks of glee into his shoulder.
Steve put his own helmet on and hopped onto the bike, smirking as he heard her little shrieks of glee that came with her getting on the bike and putting her arms around his waist. “Yeah? I’ve been riding one for a long time now. I haven’t driven a car in years,” he admitted with a little laugh. Making sure she found a place for her feet, he started the motor before pausing. “Ready to go, then?”
“Yes!” Summer’s response was enthusiastic. She leaned forward, looking over his shoulder. “What do you do when it rains, then, Captain? Use your shield as an umbrella?” She laughed.
