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Post by mika on Jul 4, 2011 23:47:31 GMT -5
The apartment was filled with the familiar scent of cupcakes as Mika decorated each one. They were red velvet cupcakes, except they had mini chocolate shavings in them to look like strawberries. And the frosting she had made tasted like vanilla, but it was green. She also cut small pieces of green licorice off and used them as stems. Mika had practice at making "frosting plants" so the leaves actually looked nice. She gingerly set each one to look like a little patch of strawberries on the plate and scooted them into the middle of the counter, as always. After that, Mika washed her hands and washed the pans that she dirtied. She also cleaned up her baking supplies, and then tossed her apron in the wash along with a load of her laundry. Mika disappeared into her room, and after a few minutes re-emerged from it with a big tub of her knitting supplies. She had her hair up in a careless bun, a few strands of hairs falling around her face and she wore very little make up. Mika had settled onto the couch and began to pull out a few knitting objects.
She started by pulling out the needles, the yarn and finally a big blanket, half knitted with a large pattern on it. It was a dark green and the pattern was so dark it almost looked black, but upon closer inspection it was simply dark green. It took her a minute to get going, but soon enough Mika had her little old lady glasses on, staring down at where she was knitting. She looked very focused, and sat with the lamp on, even though it was maybe 2 PM. The only sound was the occasional "click" of the needles bumping into each other, and another off-in-the-distance sound, which Mika later figured it was Mr. Tickles in his litter box.
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Post by liam on Jul 5, 2011 0:17:34 GMT -5
Liam quite liked his job, to tell the honest truth. He liked being surrounded by people and having things to do and being able to partake in friendly banter. However, after a few hours it got rather exhausting, which was why he also liked going home and chillaxing with Mr. Tickles. Oh, and Mika. He couldn't really count her out of the equation, he supposed. This morning had been a bit slow at the Live Lounge, as mornings usually were, so as soon as his shift was over he hurried back to the apartment. Food awaited him there, he knew. Food, and orange juice, and a nice, hot shower and a warm bed. Television and a fuzzy animal and a fairly good room mate. Life was good, to say the least. Feeling chipper in spite of the drag of a day, Liam waltzed along the sidewalk, enjoying the afternoon sunshine immensely.
As his home came into view, he slowed, taking a few last gulps of the summer air before turning his key in the lock. The smell of grass and asphalt was replaced by the scent of freshly baked cupcakes; a fair trade, in his opinion. Almost as soon as he walked inside, his eyes found Mika on the couch. Knitting, as usual. "Hey," he greeted her, dropping his things in a corner and heading straight for the kitchen. The moment he laid eyes on the cupcakes, he let out a breath. "Awesome," he complimented his friend, though she probably couldn't hear him from where she was. Then, without bothering to ask, he grabbed one of her creations and shoved it into his mouth. Now, these were delicious. It wasn't until he'd swallowed every last crumb that he realized they were supposed to be strawberries. How so very creative of her! He took another one, returning casually to the living room.
"These are good," he informed her, taking a rather large bite and eyeing the thing she was working on. "What's that?" he gestured to the knitting, though it was obviously meant to be some sort of blanket. Liam was too distracted by the cupcakes to really think about what he was saying.
ooc. I'm going to look back on this and just wonder why
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Post by mika on Jul 5, 2011 0:50:41 GMT -5
As time ticked by, Mika grew tired of knitting her blanket. She had been working on this one for a few months now. This blanket was a project Mika did when there were no other projects she had going on, and found this one rather tiresome. Luckily, as she was about to stop and put her knitting supplies away, she heard Liam unlocking the door. Which instantly reminded her of the project she wanted to do. Mika watched as Liam crossed the room, a smile brightening up her face as he greeted her. "Hey, how was your day?" Her eyes went back to knitting until he returned. Again, her serious, focused expression brightened up when he complimented her cupcakes. "Are they? I didn't follow any recipe, I just kind of winged it. " She let out a little laugh, raising the blanket up to show him the whole thing after he asked.
"It's going to just be a couch blanket, really. Just something I like to do between projects. Though I was thinking about making it kind of big so it'll cover like all of you when you lay down. Like maybe it can wrap around you and cover your feet and everything. It's kind of a lot of work, though. Baby blankets are a lot easier." Her hands continued knitting as she spoke, and she glanced at her work frequently. "Oh, that reminds me!" She set her knitting project down and reached into the open tub of sewing and knitting, even crochet supplies. "I wanted to make you that apron, but I need measurements and stuff." She pulled out a measuring tape and stood up, smiling over at him. "You don't mind, do you?"
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Post by liam on Jul 5, 2011 1:21:56 GMT -5
"Good." Liam wasn't about to waste time on conversation when there were cupcakes waiting for him. However, after devouring a couple, he figured Mika deserved at least a little bit of attention. In fact, he didn't even sit on the couch and reach for the remote right away, though he kind of wanted to. At least she hadn't brought up her feelings since the whole Jason incident. "I guess you just don't need recipes," he raised an eyebrow at her words, taking another large bite of his treat. A bit of icing found its way to the corner of his mouth, though he quickly located it and licked it off; he was a relatively clean eater.
Though Liam didn't honestly care all that much about Mika's blanket, he smiled and nodded as she talked about it, pretending it was the most interesting thing in the world. "Oh, yeah, I hate it when blankets don't cover you all the way..." he responded, finishing off the cupcake and sucking a bit of icing from his finger. He really wanted another one, but figured it would be rude to just walk into the other room after getting Mika started. When she mentioned that baby blankets were easier, Liam shrugged. "Yeah, but baby blankets are only useful until the baby grows out of them. Adult blankets can be used forever." Besides, did she even know anyone with babies? Probably not. Hopefully not. Woman and babies were nothing short of unsettling.
When Mika was suddenly, apparently, reminded of something, Liam frowned, somewhat curious. "Okay.." he watched as she rummaged around in her tub, not sure whether he should stay and force himself to endure more of this or sneak away to grab another cupcake. Just as he was about to tiptoe into the kitchen, unfortunately, she began to pay him attention once more. When she told him what was going on, Liam couldn't help but laugh. He'd been joking about the apron... though, in a way, he thought it might be fun to have one. Why not humor her? "Sure, whatever you need," he agreed easily.
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Post by mika on Jul 5, 2011 13:35:41 GMT -5
Mika smiled, even blushed a little, at Liam's compliment of how she didn't need recipes. Really, she didn't. She knew how long to cook what and how to make a variety of frostings by scratch. Mika was even working on her own personal recipe book, handed down from her great grandma, and her grandma, then to her. There were chapters and chapters of recipe's Mika had never even made, and and was now adding her own personal recipes to some day hand down to her kids. Or grand kids. His comment on baby blankets and adult blankets made her tilt her head in curiosity. "I don't know. Baby blankets have a little more of a sentimental value than just a regular blanket. Like, my grandma has my baby blanket in a box of things i had as a baby. " She shrugged it off. Mika never liked talking much about anything that could connect back to her as a child. She had never even told Liam about her own parents, and how she ended up being raised by her grandmother.
After remembering she needed to measure Liam for the apron, she paused after taking a step closer to him, turned around and pulled out a little note pad. She also had a pencil in her hand, and set both on the short coffee table behind her. She smiled at him, wrapping the measuring tape around his mid-waist, holding it out just a little more than needed so he would have some breathing room. She paused, turned around, and wrote down the measurement. After that, she wrapped the tape around his chest, then wrote that measurement down. After that, Mika stood up with the note pad in her hand and smiled at him. "I kind of know how I'm going to make it, but do you want to come with me? It'll just be real quick." She closed the note pad and stuffed it in her pocket, setting the pencil on the coffee table.
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Post by liam on Jul 5, 2011 20:52:34 GMT -5
Liam frowned when Mika said baby blankets had sentimental value. He tried to think back to his own childhood, wondering whether he'd ever had one, but he couldn't recall owning such a useless piece of material. "What's the difference between the two? They both do the same thing." People didn't actually keep their childhood blankets, did they? The only person he could think of who had such an unhealthy attachment to their blankie was Linus from Charlie Brown, and he wasn't even real. Apparently, however, Mika still owned hers as well. Along with a box of baby things. "Why does she have a box of your baby things? My parents never kept any of that around," he scoffed, shaking his head. Some people were just straight up strange.
As Mika prepared her things, Liam eyed her impatiently, cupcakes still on his mind. Would she mind if he... oh, never mind, she already had the measuring tape out and was now advancing toward him. As she wrapped it around him, he automatically lifted his arms out of her way, wondering whether he should be more uncomfortable with the situation. He did smirk when she measured his chest, though - he was probably a bit ticklish. When she'd finished, he lowered his arms, casting a longing glance toward the kitchen as she spoke again. "Sure, I'll go," he agreed, not really knowing where or why, "just let me grab another cupcake first." Liam flashed one of his most winsome smiles before hurrying back to the kitchen. Once there, he grabbed not one, but two of the delicious treats, then returned to the living room. "All right, I'm ready," he informed her, already chewing on a mouthful of goodness.
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Post by mika on Jul 5, 2011 22:16:24 GMT -5
Asking what the difference between the two made Mika think for a second. "Well... Babies are a big thing to some people. They're very special and change more dramatically then adults do, I guess. Having their baby blanket I suppose keeps the memories more real." She shrugged, feeling his next question pulling her out of her comfort zone. "I don't know... I guess it all meant something to her." Mika gave a short, defensively toned answer, hoping Liam would take the hint and back off the subject.
She was a bit taken back at how easily Liam agree'd to come. That was relatively easy. She smiled back up at him, really how could she not smile back at him? If he tried hard enough he could probably get any girl he wanted. And here was Mika, his roommate. His friend. Even if they slept in the same bed together. Even though they had two separate rooms. Mika liked sleeping beside somebody. It made her feel like they were there for her. When Liam returned she laughed a little. "You're immune to stomach aches." She said quietly, grabbing her keys and the note pad and walking out the door.
Upon entering the craft store, Mika let in a deep breath. She had been here so many times, she was on a first-name basis with the owner of the small family-owned store. It was a bit of a condensed store, what with almost too many crafts and displays and too little space to put everything. Mika made her way through to a small area that was more roomy than most. There were a few other people in the store, all much older than Mika and Liam's ages combined. She grabbed a roll of fabric and held it up to Liam's torso for a second, then tucked it under her arm. After doing this with a couple other fabrics Mika found herself browsing other things. She distractedly looked at the typed of new buttons and beads made, curiously being eyed by the people who knew her. They obviously didn't expect her roommate to be a guy, and didn't hide their curious old eyes.
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Post by liam on Jul 7, 2011 18:43:17 GMT -5
No matter how thoroughly Mika described peoples' apparent love for babies, Liam was still having difficulty understanding. Everyone had to be a baby at some point; it was a fact of life. It wasn't rare, or special. Sure, babyhood was fleeting, but so was toddlerhood, and childhood, and teenagehood, and... well, adulthood lasted a bit longer, but could still technically be divided by the decade... it was all very complicated, and in the end, he decided to blame the whole thing on the general nature of women and the natural appeal of infants. "Well, I don't really see the point," he shrugged, "if it's not useful, why keep it around?" He'd never had more than he needed. He'd certainly never kept things once he grew out of them. At her second reply, however, he quieted down. It seemed to be a reoccurring theme, people keeping their baby's things because it meant something to them. What did that say about his parents' lack of memorabilia? He didn't want to think about it. They'd travelled too much to worry about blankies and shit - they hadn't had time to carefully store every token of his childhood away.
Fortunately, a trip to the craft store provided a welcome distraction, and Liam stuck his tongue out at Mika's words. "My entire digestive system is made of steel," he informed her matter-of-factly. He followed her out the door, chomping happily on his cupcake.
Almost as soon as they arrived at the store, Liam became inexplicably bored. It smelled like old ladies and potpourri, and was far too quiet for his liking. If he hadn't already confirmed that Mika needed more excitement in her life, this was extremely compelling evidence, and as he followed her around he began brainstorm ways in which he might improve her fun factor a bit. By the time she began looking at fabric, he got an idea. An awful idea. Liam got a wonderful, awful idea. He grinned to himself, pulling out his phone as Mika began to wander through the store. Then, when she had become quite occupied with buttons (or something equally dull), he slipped away, nodding to the shop owner before quietly exiting the store.
After a brief adventure (of sorts), Liam made his triumphant return, calmly surveying the store until he found his wandering room mate. He also noted some canvasses in a corner. Hmm.. painting would be a good way to pass all his extra time, he decided, planning to come back later and purchase one when he had money. Then, he strode over to where Mika was. "Are you done yet?" he asked, trying to sound more bored than excited.
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Post by mika on Jul 9, 2011 20:22:23 GMT -5
Mika hadn't even noticed Liam had left. If she did, she would have turned and followed him. Mika was in her own little world, looking at all of the fun crafts. She was always amazed at how small some beads got, or how much color one small button could capture. Her favorite, though, had to be how small some of the paint-it-yourself sculptures got. They were so intricate yet so tiny. She smiled as she went through a box of bagged beads, only then realizing Liam was gone as he approached her. She smiled at him, noting the boredom in his question and pulling the fabrics that were under her arm up against her chest. "Yes, let me just buy these and then we can go." Without further ado, Mika walked over to the counter and the old lady checked each individual item out. More slow than anything. Even Mika got a little impatient. But you would never be able to tell, especially because she was smiling. Instead of being upset with the speed of the woman she thought of how she was going to make Liam's apron. After the woman checked each fabric out, Mika paid her and then took the bags and stepped out the small shop, the little bell chiming as the door opened. She put the bags in the back seat of her car and drove back to the apartment.
"I can't wait!" Mika exclaimed, "I have such a nice apron in mind for you, I know you'll like it." She smiled and closed the back car door, her hands full of bags full of fabrics. "And then maybe we can bake something if you're in the mood to." She added, hoping that Liam would continue surprising her by agreeing to her suggestions.
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