pursuitofcappiness | inbox

[ The campsite and tent are modestly set-up but comfortable. There's a cake under a glass protective dome so it keeps, and a grate off to the side next to the fire pit for cooking. In the basket, among other things, there's also a loaf of bread that's more than it appears. ]

Happy Birthday.

[ Julia is dressed simply and for comfort in the heat, absolutely no complaints coming as he scoops her up. Kissing him, she takes her time to give him a proper welcome to the little camping area she'd set up. The light enchantments in the trees around them sparkle on their own with an almost gold hint of glitter to the naked eye due to how heavily they'd enchanted everything.

And if he had plans for the evening already, the perk of having this place reserved for a few days and still being so close to town made it easy enough to bounce back and forth between town and the campsite. ]

Edited 2020-07-06 17:06 (UTC)

Julia...

[ He's kind of blown away, actually, this is all really nice. It's much more than he'd expected today, and one of the most thoughtful gifts that he'd ever received. He's smiling ear to ear, and gives her a proper kiss, drawing her in, drinking from her lips, swallowing up the rest of the sunset. ]

Thank you.

[ He stays close, basking in this warmth they've managed to cultivate between them, not just in the moment but all days.

He feels so lucky, so blessed, like these days might be endless, like he might be able to see into forever. He supposes it helps that the recipient of his affections is a literal goddess, and he would think that even if she weren't. ]

[ The shift to being an official couple had swept over them like a tidal wave and she would blissfully ride it out and drown in everything it had to offer. The kiss is toe-curling levels of incredible and a reception she's already gotten very used to receiving and returning. Her fingers move up to trace his jaw lightly. ]

Of course, I'm glad you like it.

[ Not that she expected him to hate it, but it was a little over the top. Granted, that was also her style -- pouring everything into a task until every detail was covered. She tried to not flex the goddess card often, but that brief stint had taught her a lot about doing what she could, even small, to make a positive impact on someone else. She couldn't help everyone, but she could do something for the people around her. People she cared about and maybe even dipped into that L category. ]

Everything is warded so we shouldn't be disturbed by anything unwanted that's roaming around. [ Between the three of them, they'd basically made this location invisible. The power of two stabilizing gems. ]

I also hung up a sign on the shop closing it for the next few days for minimal interruptions.

[ It is maybe over-the-top, but he knew what he was getting into when he started dating Julia, who had gifted him with a basket full of art supplies when all he'd done was draw her a portrait. She had exhausted herself fighting, had cooked for him - from scratch - and all those things just. Of course he should've been expecting this, but it just overwhelms him a little in the nicest way.

He listens to her explanation, and he smiles. She's thought of everything. Of course she has. And naturally Steve isn't expected at work, so he's free as a bird. ]

You really didn't need to. I could help you out at the shop.

[ This is just... so sweet. So much. He's thankful for any of her time, or effort. Even if she had just told him happy birthday. But in the end, it's all her decision. He's just grateful. Humbled. He hopes she knows that. ]

Show me around?

It's okay, I was really bad about taking time off at the Library. So, setting my own schedule and being able to shut down when needed is a luxury I'm trying to take advantage of.

[ Her measly attempt to take a step back and try to relax a little. She didn't have staff she trusted fully yet to run things without her around. And the perks of the spells was that the plants could literally take care of themselves for a few days. ]

And I wouldn't ask you to come help me out over your break from school when we're supposed to be relaxing. Unless it was absolutely necessary. [ Besides, this month was her one year anniversary of being here. So, she could cite that as a reason if questioned as to why the shop was closed for a few days.

When requested, she'll happily begin walking him around the small campsite - showing off the details and ending at the tent, her own bag tucked into the side. ]

It isn't much, but I thought we could both use a few days away from the rumor walls and whatever's coming. [ It's her attempt at an opening to give him a chance to ask if he has any questions. She'd been pretty open with him about everything, but this place had twisted the truth in a way that was almost impressive. And terrifying. ]

[ Ah, okay. Honestly, Steve's not much to gossip or listen to gossip. Especially in a town like Deerington, because who knew what was up and down and what was just made-up or exaggerated or taken entirely out of context? Either way, he'd had vicious lies spread about him before, and he'd done some pretty shady things he's not proud of. He's friends with people who have done awful things in their past. ]

Whatever the rumors are, I don't care about 'em.

[ He wants to make sure Julia knows that. Whatever they say, he hopes that all their friends here, and anyone who really matters, and honestly anyone with half a brain would think twice before just believing it. Or maybe being susceptible to seeking out gossip and believing it is just part of the weirdness that is whatever's happening this month in Deerington.

Either way, he doesn't want any part of it.

Besides. It's his birthday, and what he really wants to do is be with his best girl and watch fireworks with her and curl under a blanket softly rifling through her hair.

So, maybe they should start on that. ]

S'more?

[ And just like that, whatever anxiety she might've held about the literal writing on the wall was gone. The well of adoration and respect she held for him deepened with that single statement. While she tried to judge by the situation rather than rumors, some were easier to ignore than others. She wouldn't have been mad if he'd asked for an explanation, but he doesn't. And she's not going to fight it because she's had a chance to get to know him and this is on track with everything else he's shown.

The modicum of tension she'd been carrying in her body relaxes as she exhales, the weight lifting off of her shoulders. ]

Yes. S'mores. I may have gone a little overboard with supplies, but if you want to get a fire going, I can dig everything out. [ Going to one of the bags, she grabs the graham crackers, marshmallows, and chocolate bars. Once those are set out, she goes for the over the top additions from bags and the cooler -- some candied bacon, salted caramel sauce, peanut butter cups, regular peanut butter, a small Tupperware container of mixed fruit, toasted coconut flakes, and a banana.

Alright. Standing back and looking at it all, it's a bit much for two people. Good thing this will all mostly keep for the few days they're here. ]

[ It's not like he ever would've, but that trust, that automatic knowing that he would accept her, that he'd hear her out whatever it is she said if she chose to say anything at all - that came with time. But he wants her to know, that he trusts her.

He goes to wordlessly start the fire, which doesn't take long because all the materials are already here and he just needs to put them together. Not anything out of his wheelhouse, the boy scout.

And then, he looks back to check up on Julia once he's got a fire going, and-- Wow. She wasn't kidding. ]

I.

All that's supposed to go on a s'more? Think that's a challenge.

I mean, not all at once. But, it can make for some pretty interesting combos. [ And those combos could make for a pretty entertaining evening if they dipped into the other stuff she’d packed. While she didn’t have anything particularly suited to make full-on savory smores, the possibility for the sweet and savory balance on a more adventurous scale would be possible.

And while she didn’t expect him to struggle with making a fire, it’s still impressive to watch. Adding to the already cozy and campy ambiance. ]

We can start tame, if you want. And then build up from there. There are definitely some crazy combos that can be had.

[ He doesn't know how much sugar he can even consume that he'd want more than three s'mores in one sitting, but honestly, it's Julia, and he's here for a long time and the long haul, so he's sure that he'll be picking away at them through the night, and they can eat, cuddle, talk, kiss, and repeat.

He's never had a nicer birthday, he thinks.

Usually, something goes wrong. Or, usually, Bucky drags him on the Cyclone and then he pukes up over the side of the coaster and onto a poor victim walking around below. It's not like he minds those birthdays - he misses those birthdays, but he's not a kid anymore, so those don't compare. ]

You start tame. I'll start crazy so I won't have time for regrets.

Oh no, if you're starting crazy I can't let you do that alone. [ She is all for diving into the deep end. Don't worry. They have time to reel it back another day. Seems like a good start to the evening before the fireworks happen. Both literally and figuratively.

And she got it, the bad birthdays. The bad always outweighs the good for some people who've just been unlucky. But, there was always time to make up for it all. She was here for a no pressure good time. So, with that in mind, she breaks open the graham crackers and starts assembling her first s'more before toasting the marshmallow so it's ready to go. She lays down a bit of the caramel sauce, a piece of candied bacon, toasted coconut flakes, and one of the chunks of chocolate.

Girl Scout cookie with a twist. ]

Alright, not as wild as I'd originally planned. [ But it's going to taste amazing. And she is absolutely watching to see what combo he sets up before beginning to toast her marshmallow. ]

[ Steve, meanwhile, has somehow made a concoction of bananas, toasted coconut, caramel, hot fudge sauce, sea salt, and birthday sprinkles because he had to!

There's no theme here, and the graham cracker is almost not stable enough to take this, but Steve will will it so or get sauce all over his fingers. Overall, not a bad tradeoff, even if he makes himself look silly in front of Julia. ]

Hard to mess up a s'more.

[ He says, skewering a marshmallow to place over the fire. He likes his extra toasty, so if he sets the whole thing on fire only to blow it out a couple times, well. That's on purpose. ]

Ooh, that sounds like a challenge I don't know that I want to take on. [ Because she absolutely could find a way. Granted, it would take actual effort, but it's possible. But, Steve's combo definitely looks good and she's on board with it. After all, this is his birthday so she's happy if he's happy. Even if it means he's setting his marshmallow on fire.

Where he's having to blow his out, she's skewered one and is meticulously turning it so it gets lovely and golden as evenly as possible. Definitely takes a bit more time than setting it on fire. She wants it warmed up to the point that it looks like it's going to fall off of the skewer because it's so warm and gooey and the perfect level of toasty. ]

Maybe we should be making s'more bowls instead of s'mores as sandwiches.

S'mores bowls?

[ He raises an eyebrow at Julia and then goes to rifle for a bowl. That's going to be a lot of marshmallow - can the both of them even burn the roofs of their mouths? He didn't know what sort of state Julia was in from her Goddesshood. And he hasn't been able to burn his mouth yet. But with a whole bowl full of marshmallows...

There was a first time for everything, he supposes. They'll figure out soon.

Once he's done his marshmallow - melted all the way through but completely charred on the outside - he places it into the bowl and stacks on a few more marshmallows while he crumbles a graham cracker over this. ]

Almost looks like granola.

[ He's already going for it before she can explain the idea, so she stands back to watch. With the heat of the melted sugar, she would have recommended maybe using less -- Julia only going for a second marshmallow as she makes her own bowl.

And while Julia didn't often talk about her brief stint as a goddess, any perks she'd had from that was gone. She was back to being a regular human who could absolutely burn the roof of her mouth without being able to instantly heal. Although, this place probably wouldn't have cooperated with that even with the stabilizing gem.

Crumbling her own graham crackers over the top, she can't stop the laugh. ]

Looks like granola I could get behind. [ The granola bowls were fine, but not her first choice. Grabbing spoons, she hands one over if he didn't have one already -- ready to do a cheers with her bowl to his in a sort of s'more toast. ]

[ Cheers! This really is one of the oddest concoctions he's eaten, but on the bright side, isn't this how the smores was invented in the first place? He feels like they might be onto something, even if he's late and they've kinda of already bowled everything -- burritos, sushi, general other flavors that seem to go together.

He doesn't know all that.

He takes a bite of his and it's. It's okay.

He does like the smokiness that comes with charred marshmallow. He'll also steal a little bit of Julia's and, alright. He's not going to lie. She wins this round. ]

--I want a rematch.

[ Bowls were in right now. She was sure someone somewhere had made a s'more bowl shop or something along those lines. Or had a build your own dessert bowl. Who knows. Point is, she's happy they're doing it here and -- ]

Well, if I'd known it was a competition...

[ Then it's on like donkey kong. Stealing a bite of his, she's not mad about the combo. It's good. ]

You wanting a rematch right now or a bit of a break in between so we don't totally overload on sugar?

What else have we got?

[ He goes in search of some hot dogs, and finds some right where he wants them, as well as the buns. He's a simple man and he likes simple food, what can I say?

He skewers up two of them - one for each but honestly he could crush both easily if Julia doesn't want one, and hoists them over the flame. ]

But seriously, thanks for all this.

[ He says, in a moment of quiet. ]

It's the best birthday I've ever had.

Of course. It's the least I could do. It's so rare to actually have some fun here without having to look over our shoulders.

[ Even at her birthday, the rain was emotionally charged so dodging the showers had been important. And she will happily take a hot dog to balance out the sugar. Julia wasn't about to complain while he cooks them over the fire.

She'll just take the opportunity to clean up some of the items from the s'mores. Easy enough to pull out for a round two, but with limited surface space, she'd rather trade them out for hot dog toppings.

Julia pulls out ketchup, mustard, a small container of diced onions, relish, and jalapenos. ]

[ He'll take mustard, onions, and relish. Feels great to be able to just have some classics, not worrying about anything but how nice the stars are and how he's a whole year older and has seen so much in the time he's been given. ]

You know, I never could have imagined I'd see 2020. Or other worlds.

[ Growing up, he was such a boring little kid. Even Bucky was the main character in the comics he'd write about them, not Steve. ]

[ She loads hers up with the works, going easy on the jalapenos. ]

Yeah, it's got to be a little jarring. But, you seem to have adjusted pretty well to everything, all things considered.

[ On the upside, he hadn't been alone. And having Bucky back had to help a lot. ]

The other worlds part definitely would have been insane for me to even begin to believe 3 years ago.

Yeah? I feel that.

[ It had been so strange waking up in 2012 and there were all these aliens trying to invade New York and a pair of brothers calling themselves Gods.

Yeah, it was a weird time.

But now looking back... that seemed so far away. ]

Guess I've been lucky to live several lifetimes.

And I’m grateful you’d have the chance to live several lifetimes and find your way into my life.

[ Yeah yeah… She knows it’s his birthday, but she doesn’t want to conceal her gratitude. There’s something about him that she never would have expected and it’s lovely. ]

Thank you for letting me whisk you away for your birthday.

[ She adds a dramatic flair to the word whisk, laughing a bit. ]

Of course.

[ He smiles at her brightly, and finds himself very close to her. ]

If anyone could whisk me away, it's you.

[ She is physically very strong, after all. ]

Well, I am very persuasive.

[ She could also probably put him in a magical bubble and drag him along if she really wanted. But, she'd rather have his consent.

And then he's close by and any worries she'd had about him not being thrilled about her kind of hogging him melts away. ]

Any birthday wishes I can grant?

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