Participants:
| Scene Title | As Normal As It Gets |
|---|---|
| Synopsis | Veronica gets her domestic goddess on and Brian and she chat about walls, Gillian, and Adam Monroe. |
| Date | August 13. 2009 |
Dorchester Towers — Veronica's Apartment
Veronica's in the kitchen — she's not sure if Brian will be home tonight, or not — it's not like they really have a normal schedule. Nothing in their life is what one could call normal. She's actually been cooking most nights, something strange to her. When it's just her, she'll grab a meal on the way home or just eat a power bar and some fruit. But Brian seems to actually appreciate home-cooked meals, which makes her want to make them for him. Talk about regression. Didn't she do the whole career thing because she didn't want to be Suzy Homemaker?
Shockingly, the meal contains no pasta — instead, it's a shepherd's pie. Once it's assembled, she sticks it in the oven to keep it warm, chooses a nice red wine to open and let breathe on the counter, and picks up her phone to call her mother. Something she only does once a month, if she can help it. The "family" picnic yesterday reminded her that it's been five weeks and she's over due. "Hey, Mom," she says when Mrs. Sawyer picks up.
Click click
The door knob turns, and the door practically flies open. One hand catching it before it slams into the wall, Brian steps in cleanly. Bringing the key out, he drops it into his pocket before kicking the door shut behind him with his heel. Then, he is practically on the prowl towards the kitchen. His suit jacket is taken off and as usual thrown haphazardly at the couch. His pace quick, the only thing that would make one think he is not angry is the huge grin he wears.
Heedless of phones, shepherds, or pies, Brian makes his way to Veronica, wherein he bends and swings his arms around her waist. Lifting her up so that their chests are level, he leans in and kisses her deeply. Not a particularly 'greeting' type kiss, and certainly with more tongue. If he cares that he's interrupting the phone call to mama, he doesn't show it. He's busy.
Covering the phone, Veronica kisses back, laughing a little before it deepens and grows more serious. "Mm, hold on," she says, breaking away to put a finger on his lips as she lifts the phone back to her ear. "Good. I'm glad to hear it. Look, I only had a couple of minutes before they started loading the plane, and looks like it's loading, so I gotta run. I'll call you when I get back to New York, all right?" She rolls her eyes at Brian a and makes "yapping" motions with her fingers. "Right. Love you. Bye." So she lies to her mother, too. He should feel better, right?
Continuing to hold her up, his mouth opens and applies a gentle bite to the finger that breaks away his business. Well if her mouth is busy talking, he'll just kiss her neck. Which he does while she talks. Then when she starts to hang up the phone, he holds her up against him with one arm and uses the other to take the phone and toss it to the side. Then it's back to business. Kissing her lips again, "Hi."
"Happy to see me?" she murmurs, her dimples appearing in either cheek. She tilts her head up, her hair falling away as she gazes up at him — if he has any doubts about her feelings for him, they should dim in the brightness of the look she gives him — utter happiness at seeing him. Right now, the various worries that usually cloud her face and mind are a million miles away. There's none of the fear or sorrow of the unhappy ending of last night's picnic.
"I guess so." He gives a shrug, going to set her down gently on the counter. His eyes return the admiration, the happiness of being with her. Leaning in, he brushes his lips against hers before beginning to speak. "I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable last night. But I'm glad you got to meet my sister. You, her, and Joe.. You three are all I have. You're the only family I have. I hope you can forgive me."
"Forget about it. It just made me sad that… what I do, it's always going to upset you. And what you do, and your friends, and her friends… they're people that are against the Company. I don't know how to deal with it yet." She leans her forehead against his. "We just need to not talk about it I guess. Just act like it's classified, which it is — and not mention it. I won't ever hurt you though, I promise." She kisses again softly. "I like Gillian. It'd be nice to meet her when she's not hurt and embarrassed."
"I'm really glad she likes you." He grins, meeting her kiss. "I was afraid you two would want to kill each other." His hands run up and down her hands smoothly. "It's not going to always upset me Vee." He murmurs, bringing the subject back. "I love you so much. It doesn't matter." Maybe it does a little. But for now, it's not going to effect him. "And I won't ever hurt you." He answers, with a small smile. "Are you okay? You seemed pretty upset. Talking about the Kat thing and stuff?" He glances to the bedroom. "We can go have a therapy session."
She smiles. "I'm all right. I just… I understood what Gillian felt like. Even though it wasn't her fault, and that she couldn't have done much to get away, it sounds like. The same thing happened to me, with the guy who killed Kat. It just sort of … brought it all back. I'm fine. I promise." She smiles brightly as if to prove it, that smile that's all teeth and death by dimples.
"Did they get the guy who did it?" He still seems to be very focused on overloading her with affection. Kiss after kiss is delivered, his hands not leaving her for more than a second. "You two are so proud." She and Gillian. "Have to be so strong." It's probably what he's attracted to. Being a much more openly emotional person, it might be the stoicism that comes so naturally to her and has to be constantly practiced by him. "You don't have to keep walls up. Not with me." One hand slides through her hair.
She sighs a little and shakes her head. "No, we didn't catch him," she says with a little bit of a bitter laugh. "It was Adam Monroe. You know who that is?" she asks — his file wasn't common knowledge at their clearance level when he was around, but with his re-emergence and killing Kat, wounding Minea, the lower-level agents of course learned about his existence. "It's not enough he killed my … Kat… he had to humiliate me a few weeks later." Her throat catches. "I have to keep some walls up, Brian. The walls… I'm leaning on the walls, you know? If they come down, so do I."
Adam Monroe. Brian pauses. A brief moment of hesitation before he remembers where he is. Another kiss is planted. "Yeah. I know who he is." He admits, trying not to let the surprise he is feeling betray him through his voice. Adam killed Kat. Adam hurt Vee. His hands clench instinctively.
Clearing his throat he looks into her eyes. "You don't need them with me, Vee. They come down, you can come down on me." Brian suggests softly. "I'll always be here to catch you." He pauses for a moment before exhaling sharply. A little laugh.
"That was corny."
She gives a very small, almost imperceptible shake of her head. "I can't. I don't even think there is a me, without the walls, Brian. And if I fall apart, if I'm not the person I am, you don't even know if you would like me. The old me? The me before my dad died, before I went to school to be a cop, before I was Company? God, Brian. I don't even know what that person would be like. Probably someone we'd laugh at. A doctor, probably, but clueless and naive and altruistic." She frowns a little and brings her arms up around his neck. "Monroe. He took me at gunpoint and took my tranq gun and my badge and tased me with my own taser. Your sister… let her try to be strong, and act it, and if you watch out for her, try not to let her feel like you think she's weak at all, because it's worse that way. It's worse when people feel sorry for you."
Leaning in, his lips press against hers tenderly. One day, one day, Monroe will face a reckoning for all his sins and for all his foolishness. And he will be there, delivering the judgement. It's a day that will come, but first there has to be more work done. More ass kissing, more tasks done. Until that day, Brian will be the lapdog.
"Ah, I don't care about your personality. I only love you because what you look like." He murmurs, going to pick her up once again. "Fine then. I won't feel sorry for her." He grins.
"You like to carry me around a lot…" Veronica says as he lifts her again. "And god. Your sister and the looks thing. Like she's not gorgeous. She made me self conscious — going on about how much prettier I was than she thought. You must have told her I have a great personality, so she thought I must be fat and plain." She grins up at him - Adam Monroe forgotten for the time being.
"I guess I forgot to say how amazing looking you are." Brian explains as he carries her towards the couch. "You're prettier than her." He affirms, flopping down on the couch with her in tow. Going to lay on his back, he tries to pull her down with him. "I'm really glad you like her, baby." He smiles warmly. "Really. You two are my family. I mean it. I'm not just saying that."
"I'm not prettier, but it's good that you think so, because it's creepy otherwise," Vee teases him, snuggling comfortably on top of him. "And thank you. It's nice to be … cared about." She closes her eyes, her head on his chest rising and falling with his breathing. "She doesn't hate me because of what I do? Because I'm with the Company that did whatever to you guys?" she says quietly. "How could she like me?"
"You are. Don't argue with me." He growls, loopin his arm around her back. He gives a shrug. "I think she likes you because I like you. I know she hates the Company but.." He gives a smile. "She has an odd ability to love despite serious problems with the relationship, I feel like. She may act tough. But she's incredibly loving. She has a big heart. And so do you, my heartless ice queen."
"That doesn't even make sense. I'm heartless, and I have a big heart?" Veronica says with a grin. "Make up your mind, silly man. But I'm sure it's mostly because you like me. And she's your sister. Anyone else probably would have shot me, right?"
He grins at his own contradiction. "Maybe. Who could shoot you?" He arches a brow before glancing in at the kitchen. "Did you make me dinner?" He asks with a warm grin. His hand that isn't on her back plays with the hair that falls to the side of her face. "What did you think of me? When you first met me? For real?" Adam Monroe and his doom is put on the backburner for now.
"Yeah, I made dinner. It should come out or the potatoes will be all dry," she says, sitting up and standing to go get it. "What did I think of you… that you were young and altruistic and naive and cute." She grins over her shoulder as she heads to the kitchen, opening the stove to get the shepherd's pie with an oven mitt on one hand. Domestic goddess, she isn't, but it smells good.
"Naive and cute. You make me sound like a thirteen year old." Brian harrumphs, going to sit up after she gets off of him. He leans back on the couch, staring at the TV for a moment then glancing to the DVDs. A content sigh is let out. His eyes then follow her to the kitchen. Genuine admiration practically twinkles in his eyes. "Is it spaghetti?" He asks, happily.
"No. We've eaten nothing but pasta!" she calls back, spooning out some of the hot food onto two plates. She then pours two glasses of wine, and brings the plates first, then goes back for the wine, before flopping back on the couch. It would look like something out of the fifties, but that she's in a pair of his gym shorts and a cut off Cal t-shirt. "Shepherd's pie."
"There's nothing wrong with that." He argues going to take his glass up and take a little sip. It's then that he remembers how much he hates whine. But rather then let her ever know that, he always drinks it. Just slowly. Setting the glass back down, he picks up the plate. Leaning back, and sinking into the couch he lets his head rest against her shoulder. "Thanks." He murmurs, beginning to eat.
"You're welcome." She smiles. It's almost normal. And it's the best they can do, for now.