Participants:
| Scene Title | Housewarming Gifts |
|---|---|
| Synopsis | Melissa comes bearing gifts for Abby. |
| Date | June 24, 2010 |
Le Rivage: Abby's Apartment
It's been a couple of days since Melissa came over to watch movies and get drunk. Well, okay, so she crept out of the apartment yesterday, but that's just getting picky. She's wandered back, and this time she doesn't just stroll right on in. She's not expected this time, and she has her arms full. So the knock is more of an awkward banging of her elbow against the door, but it works! It gets attention, just as it's meant to.
When Abby opens the door, she'll find a grinning Melissa, a brown paper shopping bag dangling from one wrist, a potted flower in one hand, and a box precariously balanced in the other.
The shotgun is once more, behind the door, likely to freak Peter out that it's made an appearance from her room and back in the living room. But a glance through the peephole shows that it's Mel and not someone else. So the door is opened, wide, to let the woman in lest she fall under the weight of all her possessions.
"Okay, Are you choosing to move in now?" A gesture to the things she's carrying. There's a bid made for the potted flowers even as there's a "whuff" from elsewhere in the apartment and the clatter of impending paws. "In, fast, before he makes a run for it"
Melissa laughs as she slips inside, shaking her head. "Nah, not moving in. Though I hope I'm as welcome as if I did move in!" she says, grinning again. "These are housewarming gifts. And thank you gifts. For you."
'Remind me again why you are bringing me thank you gifts?" Plant firmly in hand, it's set onto the coffee table, twisted in spot till it's how she likes it. Jean shorts, t-shirt, flip flops, Abigail turns to once again help Mel with her load. "House warming, well, lets hope that this is as warm as this place gets or I'm going to have issues" Tension easily settled into her body, she's not letting the days activities or the night before bother her. "How goes it skunk
Melissa gapes at Abby for a moment. "Skunk? Dude! Not cool!" she says, though she can't help but laugh and shake her head. "I'll have you know I'm going straight from here to get some more dye. Gonna add another black streak or two to cover up the white. And it's a thank you for helping me out the other day, with the cooking and all that. And giving me the idea of how to handle my skeleton problem."
An impish smile curves her lips as she hands over the shopping bag. "As for as warm as things get…This is just a present, for no particular reason. I hope you like!" Inside is what can only be a gag gift. It's a small purple fire extinguisher, one that's proudly labeled "Hot Flash Extinguisher."
"Cute" It's a gag gift for sure, appropriate, and as she turns the cylinder in hand and looks over at Mel, there's motions made as if to pluck the pin and just might spray it at Melissa. "Har har, Where's Peter to laugh at this, oh right, with the Vegan Today. Cruel and unusual punishment enough. I like it" IT's put to the side, tucked to one side of the couch even as Rhett comes plodding around the corner to take a sniff at it.
"Did you go and bury him or her already or still waiting?"
There's a bit of a giggle at Abby's reaction, then she crouches down, setting the box down and offering a hand to the puppy. Melissa glances up and gives a feigned look of horror. "You left him with the Vegan? The one who's so annoying and that you despise? Oh you cruel, cruel woman!" The comedy fades a bit and she looks back down to Rhett. "Still waiting. I was gonna do it myself, but I think that it's best if I have someone else there with me. Make the digging go faster, which means less chance of being caught."
"Peter despises him. It's because he has no coping mechanism for dealing with Trevor. I do. Trevor starts talking about the cruelty of eating meat, I start trying to convert him and to accept our lord and savior into his heart. Amazing how quickly he shuts up. Seems he doesn't like it when others push their lifestyles on him"
Rhett dithers, staying a bit away, cautiously sniffing then an experimental lick of Mel's palm before with a grunt comes forward to allow her to touch him. He's flourishing under Abby's care, gaining weight and fattening up. Still the runt, but not so runty.
There's a look on Mel's face, a clear 'awwww' when Rhett decides to let her pet him, though she's still moving slow, cautious. Can't scare the poor guy away! "Maybe Peter could come up with something outrageous for a coping mechanism. Talk about the flying sphagetti monster or something like that. I dunno. Never had to deal with someone like that. And if it were me? Well, I'd probably just be making a show of eating hamburgers and bacon and stuff around him."
Peter could do a lot of things, like turn to smoke in front of Trevor. She's sure that would work. "I do that too, when I'm particularly vicious. I eat a big ol burger in front of him in the car. He hates it. what's in the box?" Off towards the kitchen, to get drinks and start getting out the stuff to make for dinner. If Peter comes back, she'll make sure there will be a hot meal waiting for him as consolation for abandoning him and for freaking him out over not showing up at home.
Melissa looks a little…uncertain…when Abby asks about the box, but she gives Rhett one last pet and straightens, picking up the box. "I'll let you open this one," she says, following Abby into the kitchen. It's set on the counter, and Mel steps back, thumbs hooking in the pockets of her pants. Inside is a single piece of rose quartz, carved to resemble a simplistic angel. There are no markings to show facial features, just the broad shape of a body, head, clasped hands and wings. "I hope you like it."
Pushing aside tissue reveals the rose quartz, the stylized angel nestled within. Not something that Abigail would have ever figured that Mel would have picked out for her, but then again, it's not a crystal cross with the lords prayer in minature inscribed upon it's surface. "It's beautiful Mel" Smile widening, showing perfect teeth as she lifts it out of the box to hold in her hands. "Now to just have some place to put it is the problem. But I have shelving coming soon" So for now, it's going in the kitchen, centerpiece of the island. "Maybe a year ago I would have had you take it back, saying I'm not an angel but… I'm learning to accept things when they're given, and graciously"
There's a pause.
"Except for corsets"
Melissa lets out a breath she hadn't realized she was holding, and she smiles at Abby. Then she laughs and says teasingly, "Whoever said it meant I thought you were an angel?" A grin as she leans against the counter. "To me I figured, it's you. Not like, you you, but it suits you. The angel 'cause you're religious, and 'cause you need someone watching over you. And the pink to show warmth rather than heat blazing out of control." Who knew Mel would think like that?
"And here I thought the pink was because it matched my hair!" The angel held aloft next to her curls, head tilted and a hand held Vana white like to showcase the similarity in hue as she smiles all ditzy like towards the other woman. It's set back down gently on the counter. "It's beautiful Mel. I love it and you chose well."
"Though, I have wings on my back, so, angel is pretty apt at times. Sooooooo. How's the opening going. Need any help setting stuff up at all or should I just show up?"
"Oh, that too," Melissa grins. "I'm just glad you like it. Besides, your place is so empty! I have to help fill it up! And since I've got my place pretty well settled now, I've got the time to look for little pieces like that for my bestest buddies." She hops up on the edge of the counter, lightly swinging her feet back and forth. "The opening's going pretty well. You don't have to help out though. That's what the employees are paid for. So just show up! Oh, and I got delivery of the raffle items too, from your boyfriend's boss no less. Gave me a hell of a shock."
"Mr. Linderman donated stuff?" Shock. She knew Mel was going to ask Caliban to auction himself off, but still… "what on earth did he donate Mel?" She could ask Robert but Mel was right there in front of her. "I bet it's interesting. And generous of him. But this is the Linderman group and for all that they are… questionable, they are charitable."
Melissa nods. "Mmhmm. He did. He donated 3 paintings done by Isaac Mendez. I took a peek at them when they got delivered and they're awesome. I want one for myself."
Hello. Say what.
"Isaac Mendez?" That has Abigail's interest. That's something that Cardinal might be interested in, and it's because of Magnes that she even has a hint of who that is. "Three of his paintings? Don't tell magnes or he just might want to take them all. Richard too. He was a really good painter though"
Melissa grins and shakes her head. "Doesn't work like that. It's a raffle. Gotta buy tickets, and three of those tickets will be drawn to see who gets the paintings. Trust me, if it was just a matter of buying them, I'd have already shelled out the cash for one of them. It's this picture of two people on a rooftop at dusk. It's just beautiful."
"I'll have to buy a lot of tickets then" Abigail grins at Mel. "So will you, though I suppose you'll have to have someone else buy the tickets for you, because if you won't, being the, you know, runner of the whole deal, there might be cries of foul. I think this is good. Opening the bar while donating proceeds to charity. Can't say I ever thought of doing something like that with Old Lucy's"
"Oh, I'm already planning on seeing if I can sweet talk you into doing that for me," Melissa says with an impish grin. "And it took me a while to think of it myself. Then one day I was out at the park, and it just made me…sad…So I figured, why not kill three birds with one stone? Open the club, do charity, and bring in more people to the club than would normally come."
"Get me the money, I can do that for you Mel. Jsut hope if you win it's the one that you want" She offers kindly, more than happy to do so. She turns to the fridge, pulling out the milk so she can pour two glasses of the liquid, putting on in front of Mel, one slid to the side for herself. An honest to god cookie jar dragged up from the back counter, a package of oreo's dragged out from a cupboard. Nothing home made today.
Melissa looks skeptically at the milk…right up until she sees the cookies to go with it, and she grins like a kid. "Oooh. Do you know how long it's been since I had milk and cookies?" she asks, grabbing one and dunking it in her glass. "And really, I'd be happy with any of 'em. It's just the one that I really like is all."
"You know, I've been looking forward to this almost since I got the job at the club, but the longer it takes to get to tomorrow night, the more I just want it done. It's a lot of stress planning something like this." But she doesn't seem stressed, not really. She seems…light. Happy. Happier than she's been in some time.
"patience grasshopper" Abby murmurs. "Tomorrow night will come soon enough. Eat your oreo's, then come grocery shopping with me, it's my Thursday to go shopping. Deal?"
Melissa looks amused. "You guys take turns who goes shopping each week?" She thinks for a moment then nods. "Yeah, guess I can see how that would work. And yes, it's a deal," she says, biting into the milk-soaked oreo.