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*_* MARMALADE MERCURY *_*EP 10a: JUST THE TWO OF US. AN UNSETTLING DISCOVERY! |
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Mrs. Mizuno gave her daughter a quick kiss on the cheek. "Take care now, dear. Here's a number for emergencies. Oh, and I'll leave you two my credit card in case of expenses - you'll probably need to buy some food. Saturday is when I usually shop so I'm not sure how much there is to eat in the house."
She pulled out the card and handed it to Greg.
"I think that's everything. Take care and don't do anything I wouldn't do!" With a final smile Ami's mom was out the door.
There was a brief pause. "She's really gone," Greg commented, glancing at the card in his hand.
"Ah, y-yes," Ami affirmed. She was now alone with Greg. Admittedly, there had been similar situations when the two of them had been alone together, but her mother had at least been available then. Tonight, it would be just her and... Ami blushed. No, she shouldn't think about that!
Better to take this an hour at a time and just pretend everything was normal - because would it be all that different? Her relationship troubles were almost becoming routine. Except would Greg act differently?
Ami turned to look at him. He was looking back at her curiously. Had he spoken?
"Sorry, what?" Ami asked.
"I said do you want to try for breakfast now or should we go back to bed?" Greg repeated.
"Oh, uh..." Ami suddenly realized they were both still in night attire, having just come down to see her mother off. She felt her blush deepening. "Er, you do whatever, I'm going up to dress," Ami replied quickly. She rushed upstairs, feeling self-conscious.
'Calm down,' she mentally chided when she reached her room. 'It hasn't even been five minutes yet. It's only Greg. What am I so nervous for?'
Glancing around, Ami caught sight of her medallion on her desk once again. She'd had it for over a week; Greg and Urawa had been in town for more than two. Ami pursed her lips. She was still stalling.
'Choosing Urawa means not choosing Greg. Why doesn't Greg act more seriously? Is there an answer to everything there?' she mused, recalling her analysis of a few days ago.
She still hadn't really formed any conclusions about him. He had seemed more popular at the arcade the other day than she had anticipated... but he'd still stayed distant and aloof from all the people he was helping.
Well, anyway, the idea of something romantic happening while it was just the two of them, that unnerved her. She should probably put all the analysis and angst aside for now, until they were through it.
'I'll take this weekend one minute at a time.' Ami decided, heading for the bathroom. 'For now, it's just like a regular day.' Hadn't Greg once said that there were times to deal with problems later? Thoughts of romance could wait until Monday.
*****
Downstairs, Greg started perusing the kitchen cabinets. Yes, they probably would need to go shopping at their earliest convenience. He finally sat, shaking his head slightly.
God, fate, time or whatever was really playing tricks on him now. He had never expected any of this to happen on a simple trip to Japan. And now alone in the house with Ami... was it only yesterday what he'd considered avoiding her? He supposed he'd better reject that idea. After all, he did like seeing Ami...
"Oh, stop denying it, you like HER," Greg muttered aloud. And she seemed to know this. But he had no idea exactly how to show his feelings beyond what he was doing.
Greg held his head in his hands and bit his lip. The best time to make a declaration would probably have been shortly after his arrival, before the whole Urawa thing started up. But would it have been too soon? And the kiss had complicated things... while actions spoke louder than words, that had been a little too loud.
So he'd backed off almost completely... and now things had grown even more complicated. Greg supposed that the main problem was that (aside from Minako) he had never been in any sort of relationship. He didn't have anyone he could go to for advice. And yet he didn't want to mess things up.
The other thing was that it never seemed to be the right time to really talk to Ami now. In a way, Greg envied Urawa's more outgoing nature... and that guy seemed to be a big hit with Ami's friends too.
"Do I even have a chance?" Greg sighed as he leaned back in his chair.
Truth be told, he was probably having as much difficulty working out the relationship angle as Ami... and he was stalling as much as her too. While keeping some things to himself. But on the other hand, if Ami eventually found out more about him... Greg paused.
Eventually what? Eventually she wouldn't want anything to do with him? Maybe he was just afraid that if she found out about his feelings, and more importantly about his past, that she *wouldn't* reject him.
Greg shivered. Being close to someone, that was the really scary prospect... because... well, no, this wasn't the time to think about that.
At any rate, their current living arrangement was probably going to preoccupy Ami's mind as much as his, if not more. He would need to relax her a bit to keep her from getting stressed out; falling back on his natural defence of teasing would probably distract her enough. Maybe she would blush in that adorable way...
Greg smiled slightly for the first time that day. And there were certainly worse ways to spend a weekend. Which reminded him: things the way they were, he'd better go make a phone call.
*****
Ami came back down, washed and dressed, as Greg went upstairs. Going into the kitchen, she realized neither he nor her mother had made any breakfast. With a shrug, Ami checked in the fridge and by the time Greg returned, he found two omelettes with what remained of the eggs, plus bacon.
"Well, this is a switch," Greg commented, having again put on an expressionless face to join Ami at the table. "You didn't have to cook while I was upstairs, you know."
"Oh, that's okay," Ami replied, smiling uncertainly. "As I said once before, I've learned how to make a few things."
"But I didn't get to see how cute you'd look cooking," Greg commented.
Ami's mouth opened, but she found she couldn't form a sentence. One minute at a time... this was just typical Greg. Hoping that she wasn't blushing again, Ami cleared her throat. "Well, it looks like we'll need to shop before we can have dinner," she diverted.
"Will you be cooking then also?"
"I... er, I guess..."
Greg nodded. "Great!" He took a bite. "And this tastes pretty good actually... maybe cooking skills do run in your family too."
Ami simply nodded. She wasn't sure what to say. She realized abruptly that until today, she'd never really cooked for any one person except herself or her mother before. Certainly never a guy! And she'd made him an omelette?? She should have made something better than that! Right?
Well, of course, she didn't want to imply anything romantic, but... maybe she could find something good in a cooking book for dinner.
*****
"Sage, seasonings and spices?" Greg summarized, swiftly scanning the shopping list. "I didn't realize you'd be adding so much."
"Er, I was looking through a recipe book and there were a fair number of things I couldn't find in the cabinets. So I thought we might as well stock up," Ami explained.
"Ahh," was Greg's only response.
'Was it too much?' Ami wondered. She should have called Makoto maybe, to get some advice: she was the best cook around. But both Ami and Greg had decided to go out while it was still morning - less crowds, plus Ami had figured she might get less nervous AWAY from confines of her home.
So Ami had just done a quick flip through some cookbooks, adding what seemed best to the basic list. She wondered what Greg's favourite food was. Somehow she didn't see simple sandwiches, her own preference, as being high up there. But you could never tell with him.
Even at the supermarket he still kept up his indifference and Ami ended up throwing even more things in the cart in her uncertainty. Shaking his head, Greg paid for it with Mrs. Mizuno's credit card, then offered to carry the bags as they set out for the return trip.
Departing the store, Ami ultimately let herself glance around, noticing there were a fair number of couples out, of all ages. Holding hands and that sort of thing. She wondered if this was something usual for the weekend or if it was just something always happening that she'd never payed too much attention to before.
Either way, it was almost unsettling, given how her walking with Greg could be misinterpreted. Ami supposed she shouldn't walk too close - Urawa, Minako, Sewaya or someone would probably pop up if that happened. She was sort of surprised it hadn't happened already, the way her luck...
"Ami-chan!" Greg shouted, grasping her arm. Ami blinked out of her reverie to see a car speed by inches in front of her. Ami could feel her heart hammering in her chest. Greg had kept her from walking out into the street against the light. "Ami, don't make me carry you as well as the shopping bags," Greg joked. "Pay attention."
Ami opened her mouth to retort but found she could only nod lamely. She chastised herself internally for not being careful, still giving romance such a precedence over everything else. She could have been hurt if it hadn't been for Greg! All right, from now on she would not worry about someone popping up and saying...
"Hey, Greg - I never expected to find you out here!"
Ami spun. But it was only Motoki. Of course, they were passing near the arcade. Still, Ami couldn't get her heartbeat to slow.
"Heya, boss," Greg replied with a grin. "Sorry about not coming in this weekend, but they were extra hours and I had some things that needed doing."
Motoki grinned back. "I see. You know, for a minute there I thought you'd called me this morning to skip work in favour of a date."
Greg gestured absently. "Nah, just decided to give Ami some help shopping while her mom's out of town."
Greg had given up work today? Ami glanced over at him.
"Well, we seem to be managing okay without you," Motoki replied. "Sailor Moon game attracting just enough attention, profits up..."
"Ah, you can't wait for my return Monday and you know it." Greg winked.
"Well, I'll let you believe that if it makes you feel better," Motoki returned playfully. "But anyway, I'd better be getting back inside. See you two later!" With a wave, Motoki departed and Ami and Greg were walking alone on the street again.
Greg glanced over to see Ami staring up at him. "Before you panic," he began, "I don't think you have to worry about Motoki spreading rumours."
Ami blinked and nodded. "Actually, I was just wondering... you gave up work to spend time with me?"
"I wasn't sure if you'd be strong enough to carry the shopping bags," Greg answered.
Ami made a face. There he went again. "What is your aversion to being serious?" she demanded.
"When I see your face, my brain gets paralyzed," he smiled.
Ami rolled her eyes - but she couldn't help but feel a little flattered. How did Greg do that to her?
"Hey, want to stop and grab a drink?" Greg continued. "It's fairly close to lunch and it's not easy carrying these bags."
"Too weak to make it home?" Ami found herself saying.
Greg made a face back in response and Ami giggled. Greg had changed the subject again... but Ami did feel a little thirsty.
"Okay, let's get something," she acquiesced.
*****
Ami absentmindedly stirred the noodles on the stove. She'd enjoyed the day so far. She and Greg had eaten out for lunch and tidied up the house a bit upon returning. So far so good.
Ami even felt that she was starting understand Greg a little better; anything to do with specific feelings or opinions was answered casually or with a diversion. And while he could appear cold, it looked like Greg was just trying to keep a certain amount of distance between them.
Almost like he had some secret... something he didn't want to tell anyone. Hadn't he mentioned a secret before? Maybe he hadn't been joking.
Ami brushed a little hair back off her forehead. She had read somewhere that intuition was a feeling with a basis in fact, something that was registered only by the subconscious mind. Ami supposed she had a good intuition about Greg. She only wished her conscious mind would figure it all out too.
But, she quickly reminded herself, with only the two of them in the house, romance was NOT the best thing to be thinking about this weekend! It just made her worry, which might lead to something like earlier today, with the car; the last thing she needed was for another incident to ---
"Ouch!" Ami shrieked as the pot tumbled from the range, splashing water and pasta all over the floor. She'd tried to pick it up without first putting on protective mitts. That had been HOT!
Greg ran into the room. "Ami? What happened? Are you all right?"
Ami gingerly touched her fingers. "I... I think so," she assessed. "Just a mild burn... I wasn't thinking when I moved..." Her eyes now registered the mess on the floor and she choked back a sob. "Oh no, the DINNER..."
Her face registered both horror and sorrow as she fell to the floor, trying to see if anything could be salvaged. What had she been thinking just before this? Was it some self-fulfilling prophecy of romantic disaster?
Greg bent down to try and reassure her, which meant that neither of them noticed the mixture still bubbling on the other heater. Not until it made it's presence known.
"The white sauce!" Ami exclaimed, almost in a panic as she jumped up from her cleaning efforts to switch off the element.
Light smoke drifted from the saucepan. The sauce did not look white anymore. Ami bit her lower lip, trying to keep her body from shaking. She'd let herself get distracted... and now everything was ruined!
<commercial break; Minako, Urawa and Sewaya skating, they trip over Ami's computer>
