Bad Karma - - - *

[brandon emmett larkin]

It was the heat of the sun on his eyelids that stirred Brandon awake the next morning. He groaned and then blinked repeatedly as he found his bearings and grew accustomed to the natural light that had slipped through the gap in his half closed blinds. He rolled over and was startled to see someone else in the bed with him. It took him a few more seconds to remember the events of the previous night and he let out a soft sigh, relaxing once again as he studied Ember’s sleeping face. It was the first time he had ever seen her looking so calm and relaxed. He smiled, taking in how beautiful she looked when she was glaring or scowling at someone who had pissed her off.
Propping himself up on his elbow, he gently brushed some of her hair from her face being careful so as not to disturb her from her slumber. To be honest, he was surprised she was still there. Brandon expected to come to and see nothing but crumpled sheets from where she had been and maybe an earring loose on his dresser or something. He didn’t think that she would stay through the night or still be asleep now for that matter.

Silently and slowly he moved from the large bed, once again careful so that he didn’t wake Ember up. He grabbed the first clean clothes that he found folded on the chair in the corner of his bedroom and then made his way into the rest of his apartment.
It really wasn’t much to look at. He had never really been one for interior design so the walls were still the same cappuccino shade they had been when he moved in and there was only one thing hanging on the wall and it was a collage that his sister had made for him when he moved out. She had said it was something to remind him of all the good times they has had as a family when he was younger and the photos ranged from his childhood all the way up to his high school graduation. Brandon wasn’t a sentimental kind of guy, but that was the one thing he felt he had to have on show in his apartment even if it was solely for the tough days that got him feeling a little down. The rest of the apartment was practically bare. He had an entertainment system and a decent sized TV set on the wall opposite the sofa, but his kitchen was so tiny it was hardly fair to call it a room at all. Two people could fit in there at most if they tried, but anymore and it was a sardine tin situation.

He turned the kettle on and moved to make himself a cup of coffee, pausing for a moment before pulling a second mug out of the cupboard. It was weird having company so early in the day and yet he felt quite content that the young blonde was still sleeping. He thought he would have felt awkward or a little out of his comfort zone when he saw her still laying there this morning, but it was almost the opposite. At least she hadn’t slunk off with the sunrise and found more trouble to get herself into. Granted, they were both adults and whilst sex did change things, it wasn’t like they needed to shy away from it and act like they had sinned or broken some strict rule that was punishable by death. It was nothing.

Maybe Ember would want some breakfast too. He pulled the fridge open and looked at the few contents he had left from the start of the week. There was enough to pull off a decent batch of pancakes so long as he didn’t burn any.

[/justify]

Word count of 640
Written for Ember
Listening to Rest in Peace by Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Outfit to come later.

[/size]

[Ember Thistle Grant]

Ember woke up in a bit of a daze. Her mouth was dry and her head was on the more gentle side of a hangover. The buzzing in her ears and the dull throb in her temples quickly had her retreating under the bed sheets, but the scent wasn’t the usual one she associated with her comfortable penthouse bed. She peeked out again and didn’t see any sign of the loyal Xander either who was always by her bed until she rose from it. The room was considerably smaller than her own and she shot up, her head spinning at the sudden movement. Looking around, it took her a few moments to remember where she was and how she had ended up here.
When it all came back, she swore under her breath and then again when she noticed Brandon wasn’t sleeping next to her still. She didn’t mean to be here still. She was resting her eyes for a few moments after he fell asleep and then…well, that was the last thing she remembered. Usually, she’d crawl away, collect her things and leave one her companion passed out, but this was the first time her nocturnal activities of late had caught up with her.

Looking down, she saw that she was wearing a cobalt t-shirt that definitely wasn’t her own. Where the hell did that come from? Slowly, she remembered Brandon offering it to her before he fell asleep, tossing it on her side of the bed and mumbling something about it getting cold. She put her feet on the floor and almost wanted to retract them back under the sheets. Now she knew what his cold comment had been about before he passed out in the space next to her. Wrapping her arms around herself she forced herself to her feet and glanced around the room for a mirror, but there was nothing more than scattered clothing and a wardrobe and chair. She just wanted to make sure she didn’t look a mess before seeking Brandon out in his apartment. It wasn’t like she could get dressed and sneak out when he was most likely going to catch her before she could reach the front door.

It was the smell of the coffee that caught her attention first and she sighed contently. It was exactly what she craved right now, but she’d rather nip to Starbucks on her way home than have to socialise with Brandon after last night. There was a reason she didn’t usually hang around and it was to avoid the awkward conversation that was always bound to happen. Talking of things that she wanted, a shower probably wouldn’t go amiss either. She could smell last night and Sambuca on her skin and locked in her hair and it wasn’t exactly the best way to start the day, even if she was acting careless.
She heard movement in the minute kitchen and slowly made her way over to it, swallowing hard before slipping around the doorframe and stepping into the room, just a few feet away from Brandon was standing by the refrigerator. She swallowed again and licked her lips before she took a deep breath and greeted him soberly. “Hey. I‘m just going to get dressed and get out of your hair.”

[/color] Her voice was dry and cracked a bit with the roughness of the rather mild hangover she was suffering with. She did notice the two cups on the side and she smiled softly. It looked as though Brandon had planned for other things rather than her quick escape with some dignity in tact. It was a little sweet to see it after so many of the guys Ember associated with couldn’t give a rat’s ass about how she was the next morning.
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• • •

TAGGED! Brandon <3
WORDS! 556
OUTFIT! Rhythm over Rhyme
LYRICS! Bad Karma- - - Ida Maria
NOTES! <3 <3 <3

[brandon emmett larkin]

Brandon had to admit that he felt relaxed this morning, despite wondering for some time last night if he would regret the choice he made come daylight’s return. He didn’t though, and it did confuse him slightly, especially since it was something he never did usually and hadn’t done in the longest of times. Hell, he was certain the last time he’d brought a girl home at the end of a night that didn’t involve a date he was still in his rookie days with the NYPD. Still, he was concerned that Ember made a habit of this. It was dangerous and not just because she didn’t know the men she was going home with. What if she found herself pregnant or sick because of what she did without a care in the world? She was twenty-one and with what seemed like a promising future ahead of her now that she had ditched her old company of street gangs who often played her in the role of decoy in order to achieve their illegal goals. He’d never been able to prove that back when he was in narcotics, but it seemed pretty obvious that that was her role within the group.

She didn’t seem to care for now, but that had to come to an end soon, he just knew it, and then what would happen? He had seen far too many people lose their futures from stupid mistakes and it always seemed to play out as a downward spiral from there on. After Ember had come so far, he didn’t want to see her lose it again, even if she was still relatively a stranger to him. After the years of watching her grow and mature Brandon still felt a connection with her, even if it wasn’t a reciprocal bond between the pair of them.
He wanted to help her, but how could he do that without Ember feeling as though he was interfering with her life and sticking his nose in where it didn’t belong. He didn’t wish to alienate her, but he couldn’t sit her down and lecture her as though he was a cop again. He knew that would only drive her away and cause her to rebel more. Whilst he didn’t know Ember all that well, he had seen folk like her and knew how they usually responded to being told what to do or how they should be acting.

The sound of her voice startled him from his thoughts and he turned around and smiled at the blonde who looked a little on the rough side this morning. He took in her appearance and his cobalt shirt that she wore. It hung loose on her frame, but revealed an awful lot of her bare legs and he realised how naturally tall she was to begin with. He had only ever seen her in heels, but even now she barely had to tilt her head to look up at him. She still looked amazing and Brandon took a moment to wonder how a girl who had once spent most of her nights in dark alleys, climbing fences and walls and scraping her skin, bruising her shins and getting smeared in dirt turned into such a natural beauty. Maybe the money she came into when her dad accepted her had something to do with it, but Ember hadn’t changed enough to say that she saw herself as one of the many high society girls that roamed around the streets of New York. “Good morning. You don’t have to rush off, I made you a coffee and I’m about to cook some pancakes if you want some.” He pulled the ingredients out and placed them on the side before handing her the cup of coffee he had made for her. He wasn’t really sure how this worked or what he was supposed to do, so he just went with the same things he wanted right now. “The bathroom is just across the hall there if you want a shower or anything.” He offered, glancing over at her again as he sipped his own coffee.

[/justify]

Word count of 719
Written for Ember
Listening to Rest in Peace by Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Outfit to come later.

[/size]

[Ember Thistle Grant]

This was unbelievably weird. She was sober and still in the apartment of a guy she had slept with. This hadn’t happened since she had been in a relationship with Robert. She didn’t quite know why she hadn’t gotten dressed, faked an emergency or something and then bailed. Maybe the hangover had marred her usual quick thinking, but then again, this wasn’t something she was used to. She had reminded herself the night before that she never went home with guys she was already acquainted with, but that hadn’t stopped her then. Hell, she was even breaking her own rules now!
Why had she been stupid enough to think she had time for a quick nap? She knew that a night of drinking usually gave her the best of sleeps and she’d forgotten that for a foolish moment and now they were standing in the kitchen talking about coffee and breakfast like some married couple.

Ember felt the panic rising in her throat, but she couldn’t deny that what he said sounded good to her and she did have places to be today. If she went home first then she would bump into Andrew before he left for the office and she’d have to listen to another lecture from him. If she showered here and just popped home to change then he would already be out and she could slip in and out like a ghost and take Xander for a walk without any distractions or fights to ruin her day so early on. Of course, tonight would take her back to the club and Brandon was hardly someone she could forget about when she saw him so often. If she rushed out now then his cop nature would probably return and she’d be interrogated later. She concluded that it was probably better to spend an awkward hour or two in his presence now than have to live with it for the next month or so.

Slowly, she nodded her head and tucked her hair behind her ear, swallowing again before accepting the mug from his hands and sipping the hot contents. “Thanks. I could do with freshening up a bit actually.”

[/color] Her voice was quiet still, but the coffee eased the ache in her throat. Hopefully a shower would ease the pain in her head and help her think a bit more clearly about all of this. Her stomach did crave food and pancakes were something she hadn’t eaten in a long time now. She usually grabbed something on the way to the office or college and munched on it when she got there with her morning cup of coffee that she wasn’t supposed to have in the first place, but so long as Andrew never saw her with it then it didn’t matter and no one looked twice at a young student drinking coffee. “Not too many pancakes for me, thanks.”[/color] She was hungry, but she didn’t dare stuffing her face when a hangover was still hovering over her like a dark cloud. The last thing she wanted was to find herself clutching a toilet bowl when she was still in his apartment.

She downed the rest of her coffee and a quick pain hit her chest, making her wince as the liquid slid down her throat. “I’m gonna take that shower then. I won’t be long.”[/color] She padded from the room without another glance back at Brandon, her brain still telling her how weird this was.
There was a large towel already folded neatly in the bathroom and Ember turned on the shower as she checked her reflection in the mirror. There were a few dark smudges under her eyes from mascara and eyeliner, but she didn’t look too bad and the joy of purposely messy curls meant that they hardly looked any different now - just a little wilder. With a content sigh of not looking like total crap, she hopped into the shower, the hot water rejuvenating her and easing her headache enough for her to come to her senses again for the time being. She still couldn’t believe she was here, but there wasn’t anything she could do about it now but roll with it. She’d be out of the door soon enough and hopefully Brandon wouldn’t dwell on this anymore than was necessary.

Ember kept the shower brief and climbed out after ten minutes, wrapping the towel around her body before picking up the shirt he had lent to her and leaving the room, padding back towards the kitchen. “Um, where do you want me to put this?”[/color] She asked, holding up the t-shirt that was rightfully his.
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• • •

TAGGED! Brandon <3
WORDS! 1,047
OUTFIT! Rhythm over Rhyme
LYRICS! Bad Karma- - - Ida Maria
NOTES! <3 <3 <3

[brandon emmett larkin]

He was a little surprised that Ember didn’t bolt for the door the second that she woke up. He kind of figured that she would remember what had happened and try to sneak out before he could notice. He didn’t think that breakfast and morning chatter with guys she shared a bed with was part of her usual plan, but he wasn’t about to kick her out either just because he thought she wanted to leave. She seemed to be okay with sticking around and if Brandon was honest with himself, he kind of wanted her to stay a little longer until he could figure out a way in which he could help her. The law of averages stated that it was only a matter of time before Ember’s nightly rituals would land her in a danger she couldn’t escape from and Brandon knew that he couldn’t sit back and watch that happen.

He smiled, noticing her morning appearance again and wondering if this was the real Ember. She didn’t have her own wardrobe to hide behind and the early morning fatigue was visible on her face, along with the signs of a potential hangover. Still, she managed to look like she’d stepped off a catwalk only moments before. Considering the stereotypical ideas most people had about those who grew up on the streets, no one would twice at the young Grant daughter and believe that she was one of them. “No problem, there’s fresh towels in there already.” He said, giving her a small smile before sipping his coffee and checking on the breakfast preparations. It had been a while since he had fed someone other than himself and his cooking wasn’t exactly gourmet level, so he kind of needed to focus on what he was doing before he ended up serving Ember charred remains.
There was a small knot at the back of his mind that reminded him that this wasn’t how he spent his mornings and it shouldn’t seem so normal for him to be here, with her, doing this, but he didn’t feel awkward about it either. It was puzzling to say the least, but there would be time for thinking this over later. “Don’t worry. I won’t try to ruin that figure of yours.” He smirked, accepting her request and making sure not to pour out too much mixture. He hated wasting food and would much prefer just to cook another batch a little later if either of them were still peckish.

Brandon noticed Ember wincing, but didn’t think too much of it. Hangover, scalding coffee, embarrassment…there were all kinds of causes that he could think of and none of them warranted concern or questioning. He may have been trained in observation, but he knew when it was best to hold his tongue too. “Take your time. There’s no rush, Ember.” He told her with another smile before focusing his full attention on the breakfast. There were very little recipes that the ex-detective knew and even the ones he knew well required his concentration to make perfect. He was patient, but he was always looking for something else to do and that very trait often led to burnt meals and a screeching smoke detector that he couldn’t quite shut up before the ringing was embedded in his ears.

This morning though, nothing seemed to go wrong and Brandon didn’t know if that was thanks to the good mood he was in or the added effort he was making to ensure that Ember got a least one semi-decent meal in her system today. He didn’t know her usual habits and routine, but there was something that told him she hardly sat still long enough to consider her own needs above her desires. It was the glimpses of her personality that he had already seen that made him worry as such and since she was so attracted to trouble and danger, he figured that his logic made sense.

Her voice caught his attention again and he turned around to see what she was doing now. He didn’t expect to see her still dripping wet and wearing nothing but one of his towels. It took him a few moments to pull himself together and control his desires, but he quickly lowered the flame on his stove and turned to serve up their breakfast whilst speaking with her. “You can keep it if you want. It’ll save you putting on your party dress again and I can lend you some jeans or sweatpants for today.” He had seen girls do the walk of shame before and if Ember put on her dress again she would be just like them. Plus, by the time she left now, New York would be busy again and she’d get more looks than she’d care for and that could lead to Ember mouthing off and maybe even getting a little violent.

[/justify]

Word count of 852
Written for Ember
Listening to Rest in Peace by Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Outfit to come later.

[/size]

[Ember Thistle Grant]

Ember felt strangely relaxed around Brandon considering their past differences and how little she really knew the guy who had once hidden behind a badge and a gun. Cops were usually her reason to put on the heaviest of armours and sharpen that already sharp tongue of hers, regardless of whether they were retired, had quit or still worked for them. They had a different set of ethics and morals to Ember and she believed fully that rules were there to be broken, especially if they were in the way of helping someone out.
The rules of survival on the streets and in the rougher districts of the city operated away from the law, not because it was fun to rebel, but because people needed to do whatever the hell they could do to survive, feed themselves and look out for each other. It was almost a different world and no matter how much money Ember had in her bank account or how fancy the apartment was she lived in, she would never forget that the streets were where she had come from and it was there she learnt the lessons that got her through more than sixteen years of her life. It was where her heart was loyal and no money, power or company could change that.

She smiled to herself as she looked down at her feet, the dark polish on her toes in a neat fashion. “I’m hardly concerned about my figure.”

[/color] Ember did have a large appetite, but it was the possibility of throwing up from the mild hangover that she was worried about. When it came to her figure, Ember didn’t really care about calorie counting or any such nonsense that other girls she knew did fuss over and frown about. She was an active woman, the gym was her salvation most days of the week and she took kickboxing classes on a Wednesday afternoon to help release her frustrations of the week. If she didn’t have HCM she would probably still be playing as many sports as she had done in her freshman year of high school before she was diagnosed. Today, it wasn’t so easy, but it still worked with keeping up her reckless lifestyle. If Ember really wanted to push herself and risk damaging her heart and health more, she simply stayed on longer at the gym, raced harder on the treadmill at a higher slope or took to the cross trainer with the highest resistance and the fastest tempo songs on her ipod. As bad as it was for her, Ember got a strange satisfaction from feeling her heart pounding in her chest, the lightheadedness and the dyspnea; it made her feel alive and not many people got to actually feel their mortality like she did. It was a strangely wonderful sensation and it was what Ember needed to know that she could gain control of her life and do what she wanted. When Andrew said she didn’t know when to stop, she threw it back in his face. She did know when to call it a day on her reckless spirals, though it was usually when Andrew was just as close to cardiac arrest as she was.

A small flutter hit her heart when she saw how Brandon was looking at her. Ember hadn’t come from the bathroom with any seductive intentions and she simply didn’t think that this would be such a big deal considering they had spent the night together. She hadn’t had breakfast with a guy other than her brother in the longest of times and it had been even longer since she had randomly spent the night too. It was something she wasn’t prepared for, but seeing Brandon look at her like that when they were both entirely sober was a little unnerving and at the same time a little exciting. It had been a while since Ember had had a guy look at her like that without them being drunk or deliberately perverted. “I’m not worried about putting my dress on again.”[/color] She said, enforcing her independence again. Truthfully, the shirt was so comfortable and she really could spend some more time lounging in it rather than her skin tight dress. She was far too stubborn though and hated depending on anyone for anything; even borrowing some clothes to go home in.

She took a seat at the small kitchen table and looked at the food in front of her. It looked edible, so that was a good start. Slowly, she picked up the cutlery and cut a small bit off before dipping it into the puddle of syrup she placed on the edge of her plate and raising the breakfast to her lips. She was pleasantly surprised by the cooking and swallowed before looking across at the rugged Brandon. “I’m impressed, Larkin.”[/color] She admitted, cutting off another bite of the delicious meal.
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• • •

TAGGED! Brandon <3
WORDS! 821
OUTFIT! Rhythm over Rhyme
LYRICS! Bad Karma- - - Ida Maria
NOTES! <3 <3 <3

[brandon emmett larkin]

Brandon did some thinking whilst Ember was in the shower. Last night for her was probably just another night, nothing unusual about it, but that was the very fact that worried him most of all. It wasn’t healthy for anyone to do what she did and now that he was part of it, he didn’t want her to carry on. It wasn’t that he had fallen in love with her overnight or any other such nonsense, but he still remembered how far Ember had come since he had first met her and the last thing he wanted for her was for it all to come crashing down again now when things seemed to be so good for the feisty blonde. He wanted to help her, but he knew better than to come right out and say it to her.
He had offered her help once before when she was younger and in a more dangerous situation and she had responded with a tirade of swearing and an angry look in her sapphire eyes. He didn’t want that to happen again now, but he did want to help her.

The idea came to him when he saw Ember standing in his doorway wearing only a towel. He couldn’t deny that he had enjoyed the night before and if he was honest, he didn’t mind if it happened again. That was how he could help her! If she was only sleeping with him then she wouldn’t be following dangerous men home or landing herself in the kind of trouble she couldn’t easily walk away from. It still wasn’t the greatest idea, but it was much better than Ember making her way around the men in the city like they were tourist attractions. How would he word it to her though? He was fairly sure that if he asked her out it would go down like a lead balloon. He didn’t know her well enough to date her and whilst she was attractive, he wasn’t looking to actually start a real relationship with this girl. He didn’t think she would be too keen on the idea either considering her attitude towards cops and the amount of secrets she carried in her past. It would have to be something casual, something simple and something that wouldn’t get out of hand. Brandon was sure he could work with that and there was really no logical reason for Ember to reject the idea either.

There was a small voice in his mind telling him that it was the stupidest plan he had ever thought of and Brandon had to agree with it. It was a potential recipe for disaster and a no-strings-attached bedroom relationship was hardly going to be good for either of them in the long run. He knew Ember was not an easy girl to reason with and it was all he could think of doing to keep her from winding up dead in a gutter. For now, it was a temporary solution to the problem until she calmed down or got over whatever was making her act like this.

He finished his coffee and poured them both out another mug, sliding Ember’s across the table to her. “I was just thinking you’d be more comfortable without the dress.” He said, smiling at her to show that he meant no malice in his previous comment. He picked at his own breakfast, wondering how he could do about this before finally deciding that the only way to go about it was to be blunt and just come out with it. It was Ember’s usual attitude to life so it had to have some validity when trying to have a conversation with her, even an awkward one like this. “So, I don’t suppose you want to do this again sometime?” He asked, getting the words out quickly enough before he could stammer over them. He held her gaze though as he drank from the mug again, needing her to see that he was serious about this. Well, as serious as he could be about a meaningless love affair.

[/justify]

Word count of 645
Written for Ember
Listening to Rest in Peace by Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Outfit to come later.

[/size]

[Ember Thistle Grant]

It was strange to be sitting in Brandon’s kitchen after last night, but what was stranger was how nice he was being to her. No one cooked her breakfast, offered her a shower and considered her wellbeing. He had offered to lend her clothes simply because he wanted her to be comfortable and it was tempting to accept his offer. Guys clothes were always so much more comfy for lounging about it and she didn’t really fancy having the seedy businessmen eyeing up her legs as she made her way back home. She would stick out like a sore thumb if she wore her dress home, but that wasn’t really something she cared about; if someone said anything she’d let them know how to mind their own business and they would think twice about checking her out again like she was some cheap hooker or a piece of meat.

Slowly she nodded her head and swallowed the mouthful of pancakes that she had, smiling gratefully as he slid another cup of coffee towards her. She was happy that Brandon didn’t know about her HCM because no one gave her coffee like this without pairing it with another warning and a lecture about her health. It was a nice change, even though the shallow heart palpitations were trying to tell her otherwise, but they didn’t have a voice and she had the natural ability to ignore them by now and pretend they were just heartburn or a result of a decent workout. “Thanks, that might be good actually. I’d prefer jeans if you have some to spare.”

[/color] She had to put her shoes from last night on again to go home and sweats might just look weirder than she would already do in Brandon’s baggier clothes.

Her eyes widened a little and she looked at Brandon as though he had sprouted horns and wings. Was he asking her out?! Surely he knew her better than that. He saw her leave the club most nights with guys she hardly knew and last night she wasn’t exactly asking him for a relationship or even breakfast this morning. Ember didn’t date. She hadn’t since Robert’s death and she had no intention to date now, let alone date a ex-detective who could throw her right back towards handcuffs if she said the wrong thing to him or he saw something peculiar in her past. No, she wasn’t going to make Brandon her boyfriend or let him buy her flowers or chocolates. It was supposed to be a one time thing and now he seemed to have some delusions about what last night meant. They weren’t from opposite worlds, in fact they were closer than Ember would care to acknowledge, so he couldn’t be under the misconception of what usually happened in the Marquee. Girls got with guys who bought them drinks and they usually ended stumbling home before one of them stumbled shamefully back across the city with shoes in hand and tell-tale hair. “You better be talking about breakfast, Larkin.”[/color] She said warningly, pointing at him with the butter knife in her hand. “I don’t do dating, I don’t do relationships and I don’t do any ‘love at first sight’ nonsense.” She clarified, staring him down and almost daring him to take another shot at her. The morning had been running strangely smoothly so far and now this guy was going to make something out of nothing and put her in a foul mood that would throw the rest of the day out of sync and lead to nothing more than another night of parties.
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• • •

TAGGED! Brandon <3
WORDS! 604
OUTFIT! Rhythm over Rhyme
LYRICS! Bad Karma- - - Ida Maria
NOTES! <3 <3 <3

[brandon emmett larkin]

He smiled across at Ember and nodded his head quickly. “I’m sure I can fix you up with some jeans, no problem.” He guided her back to the bedroom before they settled for breakfast and pulled open a drawer in his dresser reaching in to pull out a pair of plain jeans that he’d owned for some times. They were quite tight fitting on him and would probably fit Ember the best out of the pairs that he owned. “Here you go.” He handed them to her and then left the room to allow her to get dressed. He didn’t want to linger for too long and come across as some creepy pervert.

Sitting at the table, he slowly began to realise how stupid his idea was. One look at Ember’s expression was enough to tell him that his bad idea was hovering closer to terrible than he had first thought. She certainly didn’t look impressed with what he had said and he realised how his words had been misunderstood, though he could hardly blame Ember when his proposition had been so vague in the first damn place. Quickly, he sat back, shaking his head before she launched the butter knife at him or worse, the plate of pancakes. “I didn’t mean either. It’s just that, I’ve noticed you look for guys at the club a lot; a lot more recently, anyway and I just figured that after last night it might be easier if we did something.” He groaned and shook his head. “Ignore that. What I meant was how about we do this again as in a no-strings-attached deal. It would save you wasting time at the club so much with guys who have too much wax in their hair.” He braved another look at her and then shrugged. “I’m not looking for a relationship either and if this was love at first sight then I would have fallen in love with a fifteen year old with the mouth of a trucker and dirt across her face.” He said, raising his eyebrows and acting like the whole thing was no big deal.

He didn’t agree with this sort of thing normally and never before had sex been a way to help someone as far as he was concerned, but then Ember was exactly like other girls. He had been forced to think quickly before she left his apartment and whilst it wouldn’t be entirely unpleasant, it also wouldn’t be how he liked to treat girls, regardless of their past. It probably wouldn’t even matter. He had made such a mess of asking her in the first place that she would probably laugh in his face if she didn’t throw the cutlery at him.

He had been trying to help her for so many years and failed at every approach he tried. Right now it was the only thing he thought might have worked, but the more he thought about it the more stupid he realised how this was going to be and how pathetic and needy he probably came across to a girl so confident and intimidating as Ember.

[/justify]

Word count of 539
Written for Ember
Listening to Rest in Peace by Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Outfit to come later.

[/size]

[Ember Thistle Grant]

Ember managed a small but tight smile as he handed her the clothes and left the room. She looked at the jeans he had given her and chuckled to herself. For some reason, seeing jeans that weren’t designer reminded her of times gone by and she sat on the edge of the bed, touching the denim and wondering what the hell was the difference between these and designer ones. These seemed a hell of a lot comfier just to look at and she hadn’t even put them on yet!
She sighed and dried herself of, pulling on what she could of her own clothes before slipping into the jeans and putting the t-shirt back on again. It had been a ridiculously long time since she wore guys clothes and she sighed in contentment at how comfy they were. Even her lounge clothes weren’t as good as this. Leaving her shoes and dress neatly by the door, Ember walked back to the kitchen, pausing only once to pull the jeans up again. They were loose, but settled on the low of her hips neatly enough and covered her feet dangerously close to tripping her up. Without the heels, Brandon had a nice bit of height over her, though it was hardly something to mention in conversation or get excited over.

Wow, the guy had a way with words - not. She was about to get up and walk from the apartment with every intention of burning his damn clothes the second she got home. It wasn’t like she was easy like he seemed to be implying, or desperate either. She just like the challenge of seduction and it was something that she solely could control.
She furrowed her eyebrows and looked at him with a puzzled expression. “Friends with benefits?”

[/color] She asked sounding sceptical about the whole thing. She thought for a moment that she was dreaming, because never in a million years would Brandon Larkin suggest such an idea to her of all people. “You also would’ve been breaking several of the laws you were supposed to be enforcing at the time.”[/color] She said, raising her eyebrows, but not looking amused at the joke. She chewed up the remainder of her breakfast and then flicked her eyes to meet his again.

If he was serious, then it could work out well. Brandon was someone who she knew, but who didn’t know her well enough to try and tame her like Andrew and Zoe did, or like guys in the past had done whenever they had known her before flirting with her. She could still live recklessly and use Brandon as an out whenever Andrew got on her back too much about something or anything. Plus, it would save her time each night, wasting precious minutes flirting with brainless idiots who only wanted to tell his friends about her. She looked Brandon up and down and then bit her lip. “Okay. I’m game for that. No-strings-attached, friends with benefits it is. Just don’t go around sharing it with the world, because then it’s a relationship and neither of us want that, remember?”[/color]
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• • •

TAGGED! Brandon <3
WORDS! 524
OUTFIT! Rhythm over Rhyme
LYRICS! Bad Karma- - - Ida Maria
NOTES! Fini!<3 <3 <3