7/6 Instance: Hair-brained

[Svartfreja]

Timelined for a few days after [Instance]Code Blue.


<Jessica> Cleaning was theraputic, or at least it was when there was something to actually clean. Given that Jess had been cleaning almost every hour of every day for the past week, however, there wasn't a whole lot to actually clean so she was mostly just moving things around.

<Jessica> At least she'd gotten the showering down to only once or twice extra a day, it helped that she'd removed most of the triggers from the house - that being all meat and any food that was a bit red. She was evening out somewhat and finding that her appetite was slowly coming back.

<David> David made his way through the house, pausing when he saw Jess. "Hey Mrs. Shaw," he grinned, knowing the name would annoy her.

<Jessica> Jess threw the damp cloth she was using at him out of reflex. "Hey yourself."

<David> David caught the cloth, laughing at her. "How's she doing today?"

<Jessica> Jess gave a helpless shrug, "I don't know, I haven't seen her...." she went to the kettle to make them both tea.

<David> While that wasn't unusual, he had tried to get Hope to make an effort with Jess. He frowned. "So you don't know if she ate?"

<Jessica> "There was less on her plate when it came down than there was when it went up so... I assume so." She gave him an apologetic look, "I wish I could be more helpful..."

<David> David smiled softly at her, shaking his head. "No you are. She's like a... pet lion. You have to tread carefully or you'll get eaten." He smirked at his own analogy. She was, after all, a Gryffindor.

<Jessica> "Only if you're me..." she poured water in for the tea and leaned against the counter, "I'm just doing what I can... from a safe distance... and not trying to talk to her ever." Because that pretty much always resulted in her getting her head bitten off these days.

<David> "Been working on that," David admitted, sitting down at the table. "It's not as bad as you think."

<Jessica> "I don't know what to think... I'm just staying out of it... Between them, Sebastian and Shinobi can manage... sometimes I try and point them in the right direction..." she gave a helpless shrug, "I just... she used to be my best friend... I don't know what I did but I did something and fucked it up and it's never been the same."

<David> "She feels like she has to compete with you sometimes. That's part of the foster kid thing. She has had to compete her entire life. She's not really aware she's doing it. That's part of it. I've also been on her that you are trying to be a friend, not mother her. That's another part."

<Jessica> "She doesn't have to compete with me... I don't even know what she could think she's competing for." She put her face in her hands.

<David> "Because that's just how her life has always been. I thought she was doing better about that," he thought about that a moment. "She'll come around. I'm on her about that shit."

<Jessica> "Is there anything I can actually do that would help? Because all this 'wait and see' is driving me crazy... I've never been good at sitting and waiting..." she turned to finish up the tea.

<David> "Well, let's go find out." David got to his feet. "Got any coffee ready? I find approaching with coffee has a better result than going empty handed."

<Jessica> She shook her head, "I can fix that though... there may be a Starbucks next door but we do have a fancy espresso machine that I know how to use." She got to work on that quickly. "It's just as well, really... Carol keeps bringing us coffee. I think she's trying to drop hints."

<David> "Carol and Hope are similar," David laughed a little.

<Jessica> "Yeah... both as subtle as a truck to the face...." She went to get the milk from the fridge while she waited for the coffee to appear.

<David> David laughed, nodding. "Yeeeep."

<Jessica> Jess topped up the espresso with hot water from the kettle once she'd put milk in her tea, then picked up the cup of coffee and her own cup of tea, "I've run out of hands, that one's yours." She nodded to the cup, "After you, then..."

<David> "Tea!" David grinned, taking his cup, glad that Jess was taking Hope's. "Now, when we go... just kind of say hi and offer it out. If she doesn't take it, set it down and we'll leave. Not taking coffee is a sign of a very bad mood."

<Jessica> "I know... former best friend, remember?" she offered him a small smile, following him to the door.

<David> "Don't sass me missy," David laughed though, leading the way. "You asked for my help."

<Jessica> "I did... but, I'm sorry, sassy is my default setting. I can't turn it off."

<David> "I've noticed," he smirked at her. "I'm on her about sassing you, so you have to watch the sass with her too," he gave her a look.

<Jessica> "Pfft, I have also got a self preservation mode, there's no worries there." She shook her head, "Never sass Hope when she's in a bad mood. Bad things happen. Things get thrown."

<David> "Especially with her new power... things go flying and she didn't even aim it at you," he grinned and opened the bedroom door, a bit baffled. She wasn't in there.

<Jessica> Jess peered over his shoulder, "Hope...?"

<David> Silence was never a good thing. He walked in before Jess, going to the bathroom and stopping short. He found her alright.

<Hope> Hope was in her bathroom, where she had been all day. She was fighting with her curling iron, trying desperately to do her hair as she always had. She looked up at first David, then Jess as David stood aside, helpless. How had she done this?!

<Jessica> Jess wrinkled her nose a little at the smell of heated hair and offered Hope the coffee, "Take a break."

<Hope> Several seconds passed while Hope considered this offer of coffee. She took it and, in turn, Hope offered Jess the curling iron. "Help?"

<Jessica> Jess set her tea down and took the curling iron, "I'll try..." she glanced at David.

<David> David just grinned, leaning back against the door and taking a sip of his coffee.

<Hope> "I was trying to do my hair...."

<Jessica> "I see that..." Jess tried to work out which bits had already seen the curling iron. "Where's your hair brush?" She'd just start over.

<Hope> "I don't know..." she dug through some things on the counter, finally finding it and handing it over to Jess.

<Jessica> Jess set the curling iron down somewhere safe and dampened the brush under the tap to take out the curls while she brushed. "Don't tell Paige I know how to do this."

<Hope> "If you don't tell her I forgot how to do this," Hope bargained.

<Jessica> "My lips are sealed," she promised with a small smile via her reflection.

<Hope> Hope smiled softly back in return, taking a sip of her coffee.

<David> David just smirked.

<Jessica> Jess chewed her lip while she carefully curled sections of Hope's hair, wondering if she should try and start a conversation or just work in the slightly awkward silence and quit while she was ahead.

<Hope> "Why didn't anyone tell me my hair looked terrible?"

<David> David about spewed his tea. "You think we're brave enough?"

<Jessica> Jess nodded to David, "That..." she paused for a sip of her tea.

<Hope> She smiled a little, looking down. "Sorry..."

<David> "I think Paige offering to trim it for you was her nice way of saying it."

<Jessica> "Probably... maybe we should have got Carol to tell you?" Jess offered, "She'd have told you."

<Hope> "But she's meeeeean," Hope whined.

<Jessica> "Nooo, she's tactless, there's a difference," Jess nodded sagely, "Mean would be asking Viper to tell you."

<David> David nearly spewed his tea again, laughing at that one.

<Hope> "Heeeey," she threw a lipstick at him, which made him laugh harder.

<Jessica> "He likes it when you throw things at him," Jess added helpfully.

<David> David wagged his eyebrows at them.

<Hope> "You're so weird!" She laughed though.

<Jessica> "Careful, I'm armed only with a curling iron and a hairbrush," Jess warned him, "Well, and a mug of tea but that would be emergency ammunition only. Tea is sacred."

<Hope> "I'd throw that tea first," Hope teased her. "Nasty leaf water."

<David> "What do you think your coffee is there Stark?"

<Hope> "Deliciousness."

<Jessica> "Nasty bean water," Jess countered.

<David> Grinning, David nodded. "You're outnumbered. Surrender."

<Hope> "Never." Hope stuck her tongue out at him, but smiled.

<Jessica> Jess shook her head, "She won't surrender, she's a Stark, daftness is apparently in their DNA."

<Hope> "Hey!" She went to poke Jess when the curling iron wasn't near her head.

<David> David, however, was laughing heartily.

<Jessica> Jess giggled and dodged the poke, "It's okay, we know it's not your fault. It's Tony's fault for passing his dumbassery on to you... but you should be largely immune because you're female."

<David> "Except you both picked Shaw men. So clearly you are both dumbasses."

<Jessica> "Pfft, he picked me," Jess waved it off, "He knows he's got a free ride - chef and cleaner all rolled into one."

<Hope> Hope, however, fell silent. Why had Shinobi picked her? Her thoughts were interrupted by David's scoffing.

<David> "You know I'd look just as cute in a maid costume. I can cook and clean too!"

<Jessica> "But you don't have something I have - boobies." Jess pointed out, "So you'll have to go elsewhere."

<Hope> Taking the opportunity to jump off of her own depression, Hope spoke up. "Yeah but you know how Sebastian is with Tony... maybe David has a better shot that you do!"

<Jessica> "Not if he wants to keep his balls he doesn't."

<Hope> There was a tense moment of silence before Hope started laughing uncontrollably.

<Jessica> "That's what I thought!" Jess waved the curling iron at a retreating David.

<David> David backed up a bit further, making sure Hope was between them.

<Hope> Hope continued to laugh.

<Jessica> "Let there be no more talk of how good you'll look in a maid's outfit," she went back to calmly curling Hope's hair. She was even almost done!

<David> "Next time I'll just show you."

<Jessica> Jess laughed, "Okay but you have to let me take a picture so I can send it to Viper."

<David> "Hmmm.... ok deal." He grinned.

<Jessica> She laughed again, shaking her head, "That would make her day." Mission complete! She set the curling iron down, "And your hair is all curled, well done me, not a single burn!"

<Hope> Hope took a minute, touching her hair and inspecting it. She smiled softly, looking up at Jess. "Thank you, Jess."

<Jessica> "You're welcome," she returned the smile, "It's way easier to curl someone elses hair than your own.... If you want, you can curl mine until your hands get used to the motions again... just not so many curls because I have a lot of hair and we'll be here for a week..."

<Hope> "What else do you have to do? The house is already spotless," Hope teased a bit.

<Jessica> "I have to make dinner..." Jess pouted, "But yes... that's pretty much it.... I really need to get a job or something."

<Hope> "Can always order pizza," Hope pointed out.

<Jessica> "If I order pizza, will you help eat it?" Because she wasn't sure she would - there was red on pizza. "I only ask because I keep making Sebastian help with leftovers and I'm worried he'll get fat."

<Hope> Smiling softly, Hope nodded. "I could eat some cheese pizza."

<Jessica> "Okay, let's order pizza and the other two can fend for themselves... David, phone..." she gestured vaguely to the door and picked up her tea, "I don't know where I put it."

<David> David just grinned and handed his flip phone over to Jess.

<Hope> "Oh my gosh is that your phone?!"

<Jessica> ".... How old is this thing? I bet you could prop a door open with it..." Jess shook her head, "Hope, we need to fix this."

<Hope> Hope grabbed the phone, opening it and inspecting it. "You have Snake on this phone!" She started laughing at him, reaching over to unplug the curling iron as he stole his phone back.

<David> "You leave my phone alone. Bullies!"

<Jessica> Jess laughed, "If you don't want us to mock your old man ways, you have to not act like an old man. Start with getting a new phone."

<David> "I'll get a new one when this one breaks. I swear I will smack you if you throw my phone, Stark!" He backed away quickly from her reaching hand.

<Hope> That made her laugh harder.

<Jessica> "Distance won't save you!" Jess reminded him, "She has freaky mindpowers."

<David> "Throw it and you don't get pizza!"

<Hope> "My daddy will bring home pizza. And beer."

<Jessica> "Because he's paying for the pizza," Jess nodded sagely, "Your threats are empty, hand over the phone. It'll be quick and painless."

<David> Sighing in frustration, David handed over his phone. Why had he wanted to fix their relationship? Biggest. Mistake. EVER!

[Slarti]

Hehehe

Sebastian is not fat!