Working Hard or Hardly Working (Open)

[masquerade]

Victoria sighed, glancing at the ridiculously long line of customers. Closing her eyes, she murmured to her co-worker that she would be out back to take a breather. Usually that meant to her co-workers she would be gone for about an hour and during that hour Masquerade would strike. Usually that meant to Toria that she would go steal something in the hopes of getting that stupid, bratty, annoying, adorable Teen Titan Speedy to come and try to stop her. Ah, like that would ever happen.

Her hand curled around the door knob and she swung open the door, stepping outside. She peered around the alley and sighed. Normally it being empty would be a good thing; she could escape and be Masquerade. But right now? Toria Napier just wanted someone to talk to. She wasn't about to call upon her angel and ask for a person; that was an abuse of power. How annoying. She didn't want to wait on all those people; she wanted to breathe, have a one-on-one discussion with someone about something. Toria leaned against the wall, folding her arms across her chest, not minding when her pink hair fell into her face. She was lonely.

[vamptai]

((Hey there! Hope you don't mind me popping in.))

To say that Wally West was tired would be a severe understatement.

He'd been running himself ragged out on the streets in his costume the past few weeks, and it was starting to show. His shoulders sagged slightly under their own weight, and he had very faint circles under his eyes. They would have undoubtedly been darker, had Wally not had access to the very abilities that made him Kid Flash. He had to build up calories constantly to function, he spent less time recuperating from injuries, and he also needed less sleep. It only served to show how little time he had, however, that his secret activities were cutting into his short period of required rest. With a great many of the Titans gone, he'd volunteered in picking up the slack; that was really his own mistake, and he wasn't about to admit it.

He was currently out in civilian clothes, wearing simply a pair of blue jeans, a black AC/DC shirt, and the hat from his job as a courier. The AC/DC shirt was really more of an inside joke with himself, though. Even if he didn't like the band, every time he rummaged through his closet and saw the lightning bolt emblem, a part of him couldn't help but grin.

He didn't feel much like grinning now, however: he'd almost fallen asleep on his feet twice while on route to his next job. Much as he would have liked to just down a cup of coffee, he knew he shouldn't - he loved the taste, but stimulants + a Flash = too many headaches for everyone else.

So it happened that he was casually walking down the street, fighting off rampant drowsiness, and failing pretty badly at it. He was so tired that he couldn't focus properly on his surroundings. The way he lived life, walking around at normal speed made him miss tiny details, blurred lines and obfuscated colors. He didn't have to concentrate hard to snap everything back into place, but he didn't feel like bothering with it right now.

He was grumbling to himself under his breath, wondering what kind of inane and insane task his boss would have ready for him when he walked back into the office, when he passed the alleyway. Out of the corner of his eye he spotted something pink, and he was so out of it that it took him several steps before something clicked.

Wait. Pink?

It wasn't just the color that caught his attention, it was the particular shade. He found himself backpedaling as he took a second look into the alley, thankfully avoiding falling over himself as he squinted.

Jinx, maybe? I mean, far be it from me to pass judgment on her, but I wouldn't really peg her as the kind who hung out in alleys.

Still, he clung onto the desperate hope as he took a tentative step away from the sidewalk and towards the person in the alley. Something clicked into place and he stopped squinting, rubbing the back of his neck uncomfortably. "Oh. Uh, sorry, I... I mistook you for someone else."

Smooth, Wally, real smooth. Now she probably thinks your a creep, checking alleys and dumpsters for a friend you misplaced.

He was, of course, disgruntled by the fact that his conscience could still berate him despite how utterly crappy he felt.

[masquerade]

Toria sighed. She hated being alone. She hated it. It hurt, sometimes, because she couldn't return to Gotham where her family lived. Turning, she curled her hand around the door knob when something caught her eye. Normally, she would have ignored it. Normally, it wouldn't have mattered that there was possibly someone else in the alley with her. But it did. There was a brief flash of red and that brat Roy Harper had red hair. She released the door and turned, pondering why and how Roy found her. Her face almost fell from the slightly cheery grin she wore but it didn't.

That wasn't Roy. Hell, how could she get the other man mixed up with this one? And it made it worse when the person at the end of the alley mistook her for someone else. It was kind of annoying. Honestly. How many people had pink hair? Not a lot, that was for sure. She smiled sheepishly at him, debating whether or not she should be snarky right off the bat or not.

"That..." She paused, still not fully decided. "Really? You mistook me for someone else?" She laughed, trying to keep the laugh she used as Masquerade out of it. "That's so weird." She took a step toward the other, her brow furrowed thoughtfully. She was somewhat honestly confused. She hadn't seen any people with pink hair like hers. So how... How could he have mistook her for someone else? That was what really bugged Victoria Napier.

(('Course I don't mind. Sorry it's not as long as your post. >.>))

[vamptai]

Wall was concentrating now and the lines of the world snapped together, although he could feel a small headache coming on and knew that he would regret it. He wished he had an aspirin with him. His uncle, Barry, had often cautioned him on using medications like that - the thinner the blood and the faster he ran, the harder his heart would pump .It wouldn't be hard to knock himself unconscious like that.

He caught a sheepish smile on her face, and wondered what that meant. Was she feeling as uncomfortable as he was, or was she trying not to hurt his feelings?

"That... Really? You mistook me for someone else?"

He opened his mouth to respond, but quickly shut it as she started laughing. Not exactly a reaction he'd been expecting.

"That's so weird."

She took a step towards him, a thoughtful look on her face. He stared at her, wondering what she was thinking about. I mean, usually when someone gets mistaken for someone else, it's not really an opening for a discussion on said mistake. Then again, he didn't know her, so what was he trying to do by reasoning with himself?

"Weird? I guess, but not really. I mean, now that I've had a good look at you I can see you don't look all that similar to who I was thinking of, but just walking by, the pink hair caught my attention." He considered explaining himself further, but caught himself and censored his words before they left his mouth; a great trial, considering how often he spoke without thinking. "My girlf-" He stopped himself, wondering which Jinx would be more angry about; him calling her his girlfriend, or him not calling her that. Women were always a mystery to him, but Jinx kept him guessing every second he was around her. "My friend's been out of town lately, so...yeah. Like I said, my bad."

He couldn't tell why, but this conversation made him feel a bit nervous. He felt embarrassed about this, and yet here he still was, making himself look like more of an idiot. He felt his cellphone in his pocket, wondering when his boss would call again to tell him to hurry up and get his ass back to work.

[masquerade]

She didn't like this. Not at all. He felt different. This person... Wasn't similar to the kind of people Toria was used to. She was used to... Well, people who wouldn't approach you unless you gave the signal, who hated being questioned with a passion so furious that one question would have you killed... He wasn't like that, at least that wasn't the feel he gave off.

"Weird? I guess, but not really. I mean, now that I've had a good look at you I can see you don't look all that similar to who I was thinking of, but just walking by, the pink hair caught my attention."

So her hair caught his attention. Toria didn't know why that annoyed her so much. It shouldn't have. Had it been anyone else, she would have flipped her hair and smiled coyly. But the way he said it... Annoyed her. Like she was just something to glance at in a candy shop before realizing you had a better candy in hand.

"My girlf-"


With a curious tilt of her head, Toria watched the boy catch himself. That was curious. Why would he do that? Really, why deny yourself a girlfriend?

"My friend's been out of town lately, so...yeah. Like I said, my bad."

His bad. Yes, his bad, yes, also his good. The pinkette just really needed a break. She glanced back at the pizza place. She thanked her angel that this boy had come along. He looked like he was waiting for something, maybe getting ready to leave. Damn, no. She couldn't let him leave. She couldn't let him slip away just when she'd found the break from reality she really needed, the company she craved. She needed to say something... Something... Oh. Duh. She smiled.

"So you have a girlfriend," she spoke. She felt like an idiot. That was the worst topic ever. If a guy she'd never met before asked if she had a boyfriend there was a good chance she would punch him. Ugh. Could she be any stupider? But she was stuck and there was nothing to do but pray he wouldn't just up an leave without giving her a name to remember him by and possibly seek him out for company once more.

[vamptai]

He watched her glance back at the door behind her into the neighboring building - he'd walked by the windows but he couldn't remember what he saw inside. The location he was at practically smacked him in the face, and he realized with a slow start that oh, it's that pizza place. The one the Titans always ate at. Maybe I've seen her before as Kid Flash and I just can't remember her?

He was prepared to leave, convinced that she was going back inside, when she turned her head back around and smiled at him.

"So you have a girlfriend.

Wow. Wally felt himself drawing a blank, wondering what exactly his reaction should be to that statement. Why had she fixated on that slip-up in his explanation? He'd been called a 'ladies man' by some of the people who knew him, but this wasn't like how some girls said that; they always said that with a toothy grin, sometimes wrapping their hair around their finger. Okay, not always, but damnit, Wally was a growing boy. Sometime he got distracted by irrelevant things. Plus, although he hadn't exactly looked in any reflective surface lately, he knew he looked like crap.

He eventually came to the conclusion that she was just trying to carry on a conversation with him, which he thought was weird. Eh...why not? My job can wait a little longer.

"Yeah." A pause. "I think." He paused again, considering his words and fighting the urge to rub his neck again. "It's...complicated. We're in a relationship, but..." He raised his arms, palms up, in a half-shrug. He hadn't really had to explain this, and he was struggling to try and figure out how best to describe it. He felt ridiculous, and he ended up stuffing his hands into his jean pockets. "She's very independent." He said it with a lot of brevity, as if this was the answer to everything.

Oh yeah, it fits into any situation. "Why were you late?" "Oh, she's very independent." "What's with the smile?" "Oh, she's very independent." "Why is there a penguin napping in the freezer?" "Oh, she's very independent."
He hated it when he chided himself.

[masquerade]

With anxious pink eyes, Toria watched his reaction, preparing for two different scenarios. Either him to get defensive and ask why she cared or for him to hit her. When he did neither, it threw Toria for a loop.

"Yeah." He paused, leaving Toria to wonder why. "I think." He just... He just thought he had a girlfriend? That had to be difficult. Victoria knew from experience that women were... Difficult. Not just being one but when she had been bi-curious and dated a woman. They were hell to deal with and this poor kid... He looked like crap and Toria had to wonder if it was his girlfriend's fault.

She wanted to ask, she really did. But that would be rude and rude was Masquerade. Toria was snide and cynical, not rude.

"It's...complicated.We're in a relationship, but..." When the other shrugged, Toria sighed. 'We're in a relationship' and 'but' should never be in a sentence together unless you were planning to break up. "She's very independent."

The pinkette didn't know what to do. She really didn't. She hadn't expected him to actually tell her. Her mind was short on answers today, apparently. What had she wanted to say earlier? That would have to do... Now if only she could remember. All she could bear to think about, though, was that she was jealous he got to be in a relationship. Although it seemed like a tough one, he was with someone. Which would also bring up Stupid Roy Harper who, really, seemed to be avoiding Masquerade. She swallowed thickly, feeling tears of annoyance threaten their way out.

"She's very independent... Is she the reason you look like total crap?" She didn't smile that time. The thought that a woman made this young man look like crap pissed her off. No girl should be that difficult, even if it kills them. It killed Victoria to think that there was nothing she could do to make the other feel even slightly better. It should have been funny to her that a woman did this but it wasn't. She was exhausted and thus annoyed with every little thing. "God... She is, isn't she?" She didn't know why it mattered. She didn't want to care. So she blamed Roy Harper. She couldn't have him so she doted on the next available person.

[vamptai]

After finishing with his explanation, Wally stood there silently, moving around his keys with a hand that he didn't really have control over. If his hands had been free of his pockets he would have been twiddling his thumbs, but that wasn't really an option now, was it? He was aware that she'd sighed at some point while he was talking, and he was awkwardly aware that he had probably just shifted the conversation to a worse discussion point than "I thought you were someone else".

He could tell that she was fighting something, some thought that she didn't want to dwell on. He'd gotten better on picking things up like that with all the time he'd spent with Jinx. Granted, he certainly didn't want to push the issue with this girl; he knew which buttons to push with Jinx to avoid being killed. He couldn't exactly say the same in this situation.

"She's very independent... Is she the reason you look like total crap?"

That brought him back to attention. He'd had no idea that that was the implication he'd given: of course she would have come to that conclusion, he hadn't exactly given her any reason to think otherwise.

"God... She is, isn't she?"

"Total crap? Ouch. I thought I at least had the kind of roguish charm that Johnny Depp had in those pirate movies."

The comment slipped with little more than a second thought. Generally as Wally, he was an easy-going guy who dropped the occasional joke, when around people who weren't his friends. This was a drop from the Kid Flash bucket, however, the personality that was utterly charming, confident, and a jokester.

His hands slipped out of his pockets and he waved them around, trying to correct the path that this talk was taking. "No no no, really, she's not! I get frustrated with her sometimes because she's so stubborn, but that's not the reason I look like-" He smiled slightly, not really being able to help it. "Okay, I'll agree with you there, I'm the picture of death right now. My boss has been running me into the ground." He left the statement ambiguous, wondering just which boss he meant.

"Uh...do you want to continue this somewhere else? If I stand around here any longer I might keel over, and you look like you wouldn't mind sitting down either."

He was very curious as to who this young woman was now. He'd figured out that he'd probably never seen her before; that aside, he'd never had this kind of conversation with many of the other Titans, let alone some random person he stumbled into on the street.

[masquerade]

She shouldn't have said that, should she? About his girlfriend. She felt like a bitch now. That made her inner Mask happy but right now... She wasn't happy. She should have felt proud, she should have been goddamn happy that she was being a bitch in some right. Ugh. She blamed her job.

"Total crap? Ouch. I thought I at least had the kind of roguish charm that Johnny Depp had in those pirate movies."

That made her laugh. Roguish charm? That was funny. Had he looked a little more alive and less crap-ish, she definitely would have agreed, she could already tell. But as such, he really just didn't. Well, if she got that kind of response, being a bitch wasn't so bad if he took it lightly.

"No no no, really, she's not! I get frustrated with her sometimes because she's so stubborn, but that's not the reason I look like-" His smile would have made her blush had he not been so... She returned his smile with a smirk. "Okay, I'll agree with you there, I'm the picture of death right now. My boss has been running me into the ground."

She waited for a moment in case he was going to say something else. She opened her mouth, preparing to ask him if he was going to be alright staying upright or if he needed to sit down when he spoke. She almost scowled; how annoying. She wanted to speak first. Rude.

"Uh...do you want to continue this somewhere else? If I stand around here any longer I might keel over, and you look like you wouldn't mind sitting down either."

Oh. That was fine. That was the gist of what she wanted to say. But really, did she look like she needed to sit down? She began nodding her head in answer to his question before throwing a hesitant glance over her shoulder at her job. If she left the alley again and wasn't there when her boss came to grab her, she was fired. She didn't want to lose her job. Finding a job was hard for her. She wasn't a people person... Well, she somewhat was but not really.

"Yes, somewhere else," she replied, still lost in thought. She faced the other whose name, she realized, she did not yet know. She shook herself. "Yeah, of course somewhere else would be nice. Just not..." She paused and reached behind her back with both of her hands, fumbling with the knot that held her apron around her waist. She sighed; her co-workers tied the stupid knots too tight. She put her hands on her hips and walked past her companion to stand on the sidewalk out of the alley.

She turned around and looked at the boy. "So. Where to?" She grinned cheerfully.

[vamptai]

Her laughing made his smile widen into a grin. He always found it easier to talk to others once he introduced a bit of humor into the proceedings, and he was hoping that would work again today. Of course some people found his sense of humor annoying, but thankfully that didn't seem to be the case here.

Many of his friends would consider it flirting, and he would be inclined to agree with him. But it was all in harmless fun! There's nothing wrong with it, as long as no one gets lead on unfairly. Hell, he flirted with some of his female teammates sometimes. Although, he mentally flinched, I think I should cut back on that around Jinx if I want to lead a long life.

He watched as she nodded in agreement to his suggestion before looking over her shoulder towards the door. Wally drew a blank until his rampant thoughts caught up to him, filling in the gaps. Oh geeze, I must have caught her near the end of her break. "If now's not a good time-"

"Yes, somewhere else. Yeah, of course somewhere else would be nice. Just not..."

He felt bad for suggesting something now. She looked distracted, and Wally again found himself wishing he knew what she was thinking. He wanted to ask what she was going to say, but he felt that he'd talked too much for now, and he didn't feel right rescinding his offer just because he didn't think she really wanted to do it.

He felt a bit better, though, when she stepped out of the alley and grinned at him. Not entirely better, but every little bit helps.

"So. Where to?"

He decided to drop the line of thought momentarily, instead scratching the side of his nose. He could almost swear that he felt the small smattering of freckles under both eyes and across the base of his nose, but he chalked that up to delirium. "Well...there's a coffee shop right around the corner with outside seating. I was actually going to stop by, they make some good coffee. Or tea, if you prefer."

His mind raced (which, oddly enough, happened often) as he thought about what he just said. Wait, you just asked a girl you barely met out for coffee? And you just got done thinking to yourself that you had to cut back on flirting. Better hope she doesn't think what you're thinking right now. Damnit Wally, stupid stupid stupid...

[masquerade]

With her grin firmly in place, Toria waited for his answer. He answered while scratching the side of his nose.

"Well...there's a coffee shop right around the corner with outside seating. I was actually going to stop by, they make some good coffee. Or tea, if you prefer."

Tea. Now there was a delicious word she hadn't heard in a long time. She cast a haughty glare at the pizza place before nodding at her companion. She hadn't had tea in what seemed like (and probably was) years. She laughed cheerfully.

"Tea sounds wonderful." She paused, wondering if she should introduce herself or touch on the matter that just came to mind. She shrugged. "You haven't said who you are," she announced, giving him a haughty, teasing look. "Well, I am Victoria and I prefer Toria." She didn't bother offering to shake his hand; they were passed the niceties of normal people. Instead she opted to spin around while she waited for him to answer. She didn't want to be snotty just yet. Not until he wouldn't leave her companionship for a while.

She had to wonder, though, why he really did look like crap. If it wasn't his very independent girlfriend, who was it? Or what was it? And why wasn't he sleeping? The fool should have called in sick to work or -she stopped that train of thought. She didn't care. At least that's what she told herself. She never really had friends before and only knew how to be either a really big bitch or a really big slut, so being neither was new to her. She almost groaned and instead kept spinning, reminding herself to stop only when he spoke to her. She had to keep herself entertained if her companion was tired.

She exhaled slowly, finding that to be a bad idea because it made her head pound. With a reluctant frown, Toria stopped spinning, trying to focus on the red head instead of the world that was circling her. That was stupid. Oh well, she was entertained for a moment. She snapped her fingers in front of the others face, worried that he might have fallen asleep in the few seconds that the pinkette had been spinning. If she looked like he did, she would have.

[vamptai]

"Tea sounds wonderful."[/u]

Okay, whew. Guess she doesn't think it's a date. Think before speaking next time, Wally, or you'll wind up hexed into an early grave.

"You haven't said who you are." She gave him a teasing look, one which he was not wholly unused to. In fact, he'd seen it too many times to count, both among friends and in his particular line of hero work. "Well, I am Victoria and I prefer Toria." He waited for a moment, wondering if he should offer to shake her hand or something. In his experience, one should never attempt to shake a lady's hand unless it's offered first.

He guessed that she wouldn't do that, however, when she began to spin around. He idly wondered if she was going to get dizzy. "Oh, right! My name's Wally. Nice to meet you, Toria." He'd debated between calling her Victoria or the shortened Toria, but seeing as she said "I prefer" instead of "my friends call me", he decided to go with the second one.

Before he could realize it, his mind had started to wander. He found his thoughts returning to Jinx, as they often did when he had time to think. It freaked him out a bit just how much he thought about her; he'd often had women on the mind when he was dating his ex-girlfriends, but not to this extent. He actually found it kind of funny that he'd mistaken Toria for Jinx now; aside from the hair color, they didn't seem to have anything in common, really. And what would Jinx think if he told her about this? Would she find it funny that he was seeing her in place of others, or would she think it was his way to flirt with other girls without fear of consequences? He highly doubted it would be the latter; Wally wasn't exactly smart on how to deal with women, but even he knew that kind of lame excuse wouldn't work.

He'd let his concentration slip to ease the forming headache in the back of his skull, and he was vaguely aware of something snapping. He realized that it was Toria snapping her fingers and he blinked rapidly, focusing his vision to clear up again. "Ah, sorry. Told you I might keel over." He flashed her an apologetic smile. "Guess I'm really going to need a cup of coffee."
He really hoped that his exhaustion would balance out the extreme kick of caffeine, or that he could metabolize it before too long.

[masquerade]

"Oh, right! My name's Wally. Nice to meet you, Toria." Oh. He called her Toria. She hadn't expected that and that was the reason for the bright blush on her face. Even when she introduced herself with 'I prefer Toria', she usually got 'well, I'm so and so, nice to meet you Victoria.' It angered her but she didn't know how much of a surprise it would be when someone actually called her Toria. Crap. She didn't like him! She just... Enjoyed friends. He seemed unfocused when she snapped her fingers in front of his face.

"Ah, sorry. Told you I might keel over. Guess I'm really going to need a cup of coffee." His apologetic smile was the only thing stopping Toria from snapping at him that the only thing that would do him good was a good long rest and some Nyquil. That was what she wanted to say because it was true.

"Coffee is disgusting," Toria announced, turning her back on him. "How people like the crap is beyond me." She smirked and threw a dark glare at the boy that had slowed to stare at them. She turned back to her companion, Wally, when the creepy other boy ran off. She stared at Wally for a moment, her brows furrowed in thought. He needed Nyquil and a rest. That was something she could provide and she would force him to take some medicine and sleep but she didn't know how to bring up the topic without being even more of a bitch than usual.

With a cheeky grin, she grabbed his wrist. "Now! Where is the coffee shop, Wally?" Saying his name was nice. It sort of rolled off her tongue in a way that she wasn't used to. Hell, her own name didn't even do that. That was possibly because of the fact that there were four syllables in her name... Oh well, it didn't matter. "I'll treat, too. But there's just one eensey-weensey thing I want in return."

She held up her index finger to emphasize the point of 'one'. By god, she wanted this fool resting so she wouldn't feel so guilty. If he was a civilian (which he probably was from what Toria could tell) she was probably making his life living hell as Masquerade what with robbing things at all hours of the night, making sirens of cop cars go off at three in the morning... It would ease her guilty conscience. And him looking like crap might have contributed. She wanted to see Wally the Red Head look not like crap but like the handsome young man he should look like.

[vamptai]

It was probably a good thing that Wally had 'tuned out', so to speak, long enough to miss Toria blushing. If he'd noticed it, he surely would've teased her with some sort of comment, and that might have derailed the entire conversation. It was one of his quirks that was less than pleasant.

"Coffee is disgusting. How people like the crap is beyond me."

He rubbed the back of his neck again, looking past her at the guy. Man, I do this too often when I'm tired. The guy took off and Toria turned back around to look at him. "It's been my experience that some people who say that have never had a good cup, but since you said it, I'll take your word for it."

Suddenly she grabbed his wrist, displaying one of those grins that had been traveling across her face in the short span of time he'd known her. Even Starfire wasn't this spontaneous, although to be fair one one expected Starfire to be spontaneous, so her spontaneity wasn't as...spontaneous? The line of thought made his head hurt just a tiny bit more.

"Now! Where is the coffee shop, Wally?"

"Oh, it's the first building on the left around the corner. You can see the awnings from here." He pointed at it with his free hand, drawing attention to the side of the building and one section of awning from it. Green canvas stretched over the windows, and one could catch a bit from the door frame - it was a dark green, a color that most would call 'puke green'. "They have an...interesting choice in colors, but really, that's not why anyone goes there."

"I'll treat, too. But there's just one eensey-weensey thing I want in return."

The inner-gentleman in Wally wanted to protest this, he was taught by his aunt and uncle that the man should always (or at least almost always) pay for things, but he got the inkling that Toria probably wouldn't budge on it. And that stipulation she added, the one thing she wanted - what was that about?

"If you insist...I'll be happy to do it, whatever it is. So long as it's not crazy. I once lost a bet with a friend and he forced me to streak across a beach in the afternoon." Another Kid Flash moment. And even now, he flushed red with embarrassment just recalling the event. It was the last time he'd ever honored a bet with Dick without first wanting to hear the terms. No-one at the beach even saw him, one second he started running and the next FWOOSH, big dust cloud and everyone was dragging their stuff off the beach. He hadn't stopped until he'd reached the other end of the coast line...and then, of course, he had to sneak back for his clothes.

[masquerade]

"It's been my experience that some people who say that have never had a good cup, but since you said it, I'll take your word for it."

Victoria wondered if he was saying that just because she was a girl or because he meant it. Ugh. She didn't want to think about it. Especially if he was doing it just because she was a girl. She didn't like exceptions being made for her gender which would be why she was Masquerade, to prove women could kick some ass too and weren't just there for looks. She sighed and perked up at his answer of where the coffee shop or whatever was.

"Oh, it's the first building on the left around the corner. You can see the awnings from here. They have an...interesting choice in colors, but really, that's not why anyone goes there."

Following where Wally pointed, the pinkette grimaced. She didn't like green. Any shades of green. Ever. Green was a gross color. But if Wally suggested it... It at least had to be fine, but she could only hope the red head wouldn't suggest a place that was total crap to a nosy stranger. She stared contemplatively at it for a moment before proposing to treat. She sighed, waiting for his answer. Whatever he said, she was going to have her way. He needed to sleep. Yes, no, he. Would. Rest. She was bound and determined to make sure it happened. She turned her gaze back to the coffee shop that was only a short distance away. She wondered, briefly, why she'd never noticed it before and had to chalk it up to the color green.

"If you insist...I'll be happy to do it, whatever it is. So long as it's not crazy. I once lost a bet with a friend and he forced me to streak across a beach in the afternoon."

She grinned at his answer. Not the streaking part; that was awkward and had to suck for Wally. No, she grinned because he agreed. That made her happy. That also kind of annoyed her. The only people that complied to her every whim were the men she fooled around with. She was going to fool around with Wally, that was for sure. Especially not when he looked like he did. So, without looking at the red head, she began walking toward the coffee shop, keeping her hand around his wrist.

"All right, roguish Johnny Depp," she teased, "what I want is quite simple." Well, it was simple for her to say but for him to do, hell, for him to actually cooperate was a long shot. Sure, he said he would but that was before he knew what it was she wanted from him. She scowled for a moment, realizing he might really have a problem with what she wanted him to do. "Alls I want is for you to, after coffee of course, go home, take some Nyquil, and rest. And if you don't, trust me. My apartment isn't far from here, savvy?" Well, she thought pleasantly, glancing back at her companion to see his reaction while plowing ahead. She'd done a check for anything that would make her trip. Her grip on Wally's wrist would (hopefully) keep her from tripping over her own two feet so she could only hope nothing in front of her would be a cause for klutziness.