Lunch, and get Jane that laptop too!

You're having lunch with Jane at a busy McDonald's, her bright and shiny new yellow jeep parked right outside the window. It seemed the best way to celebrate.

"Should've let me buy you lunch," says Jane, flashing you a guilty smile above her two big macs.

You take a sip of some kind of fruity ice lemonade. "Why am I going to make you pay when I can get us both lunch for free?" you ask.

Jane smiles more but, self-conscious, ducks behind her sandwich to hide. "Heh heh, yeah," she says.

"I'm serious," you say. "I said I'd get you a computer too, right?"

Jane's eyes bulge out of their sockets. "No, Chase, the car's already way too much," she says.

"Nobody will mind," you assure her. "You wanted a laptop. We can get you a nice gaming one, too. Something that'll last you through college."

Your friend becomes bashful and blushes, like she's embarrassed someone might overhear your plans to acquire more things for her. "C'mon, quit it. I shouldn't have asked for the jeep in the first place."

"Don't be like that. It's so ridiculously easy for me," you say. "You deserve a good computer. I've seen that toaster you use, you're better than that."

"The toaster's my dad's old laptop," Jane says guardedly, with a shrug. "It works fine."

What's she so embarrassed about? What's holding her back? Almost nobody's asking questions about your powers.

"Jane," you say. "Do you want a new laptop?"

Another shrug. "Yeah, but -"

"Then I'm getting you a new laptop," you say. "No excuses. What's the point of me having powers if I can't use them to take care of the people I care about?"

Jane turns a furious shade of red and seems to shrink three sizes in her seat. When she speaks, it's in a very small voice. "... Okay."

After finishing your food, you hop into Jane's new jeep (it smells of pine thanks to the previous owner's taste in air freshener) and head to the local Best Buy.

While there's probably better computers and better deals online, you want something you can see in person and walk out with. Claiming things through the internet feels like it'd be a hassle.

Again, Jane is weirdly conservative about which laptop she wants you to claim for her. Only repeated insistence that she should stop looking at the price tag and start looking at the computer she wants gets her to move onto the fancier machines.

You're looking at the movie section when Jane comes to get you. Without words, she grabs your wrist and leads you over into one of the laptop aisles.

She comes to a halt in front of a black and red Asus gaming laptop, and points furtively at it. "I like t-this one," she stammers.

Your usually confident and self-assured friend's been acting totally out of character all day, and it's only getting worse. It has somethinig to do with how she perceives your powers, you think, but you're unsure how.

Pearl gets your powers are powers for the most part, even if she totally accepts them as an unmutable fact.

Jane, though, acts sort of blase when you discuss the possibiltlies your powers afford you. You wrote it off as a total comprehension, but maybe that's not quite what's going on?

Jane's red as a beet when you show the cashier the claimed laptop case.

"For inventory purposes," you say.

Jane hides here face in her hands.

The cashier, meanwhile, is apologetic. "Let me get the skew real quick," she says, scanning the machine and taking down the number. "I'm so glad you were able to find your laptop, sir. I have no idea why it was on our shelves, next time we're taking stock we'll have to make sure there's no other lost items mingled in with the merchanise."

"It's really no problem," you say, going with the flow.

Everybody really does seem to have a different idea of what exactly is going on when you claim something. What's Jane's take?

Jane's awkward all the way back to the jeep, where you hand her the brand new laptop.

"All yours chief," you say, giving it over.

Jane hugs the box to her body and, swallowing, forces herself to meet your eyes. "Chase?" she asks.

"What's up?" you ask.

Jane becomes embarassed again. Quickly, she pops open the door of the jeep and puts the laptop in the backseat, then glances at you and shakes her head. "Um. Nevermind."

She doesn't say another word to you all the way back to your house.

Except you miss the turn that goes to your house. Instead, Jane drives off onto a side street that winds around the hills into a dead end.

"You missed the turn," you note.

Jane swallows again, hands tightening on the wheel.

The air between you feels off. You decide not to push the matter - it's not like you had any plans today anyway, except maybe meeting up with Pearl again. Ooh yeah.

Fantaszing about what you and Pearl will get up to when you see her next, you're not paying attention at all when Jane pulls over under the shade of a lonely tree and parks the jeep.

"Why'd you stop?" you ask, looking over at Jane.

She gets out of the jeep.

Confused, you step out too. The air is warm under the shade of the tree. Wind sweeps through the tall grass of the hills around you. It's quiet here.

Jane comes around the front of the jeep at you, wearing a weirdly determined expressoin.

"What are you doing?" you ask.

Jane ignores the question. She opens the rearward door of the jeep and sweeps her new laptop onto the floor.

"Jane, what's wrong?" you ask. "Look, if this is about me using my powers -"

Jane grabs you and twists around. You're spun about and hit the side of the jeep.

Before you get your balance, or figure out what's going on, Jane mashes her lips into yours.

"Mmph?!" you say.

Jane winds her fists in the front of your shirt and kisses you more fiercely in answer.

It takes a second, but you get with the program. It feels super awkward with Jane just grinding her mouth against yours, but once you start kissing her back, then it starts feeling super ridiculously hot.

You've had a crush on Jane for years. And now she's forcing you against the open seat of a jeep on the side of the road, and kissing you.

In your wildest dreams it never went like this.

Jane's tongue swirls urgently around your tongue for a long moment while your brain spins in circles, and then she breaks off with a sharp intake of a breath. Jane's lips taste like sweet mint.

"What are you doing?" you say, putting your hands firmly on Jane's shoulders to control the situation.

"I know you have a crush on me," says Jane, her cheeks very red.

Your stomach drops. "That's crazy."

"I'm sorry I never - I didn't think about it. I should've. I've been such a bitch and you didn't deserve it," she says, laying a hand on your stomach through your shirt.

"You've never been a bitch to me," you say, in disbelief. "What are you saying?"

"It was so obvious you liked me," says Jane, sounding distressed. "You basically won the lottery and the first thing you do is think about me. I've been so fucking selfish. All you wanted was to take care of me, and all I cared about was myself."

You don't follow the logic. "I can claim anything I want," you say. "You don't need to repay me. Getting you a car and a laptop was the easiest thing in the world."

"Not to me," Jane says, fixing you with a meaningful look. "Look, I know you're just being you and that you don't think it matters, but it does. I owe you, Chase. I'd feel like shit if I just let this all go one way. I... I don't have money or powers or any of that, b-but you like me, right?"

You can't deny it. "I do."

Jane nods, as if making up her mind for sure. "Then, let me take care of you. Please? Just - just this once."

You know you should turn Jane down and explain to her that claiming material items is not the same as buying her things with your own hard-earned money. It's just a quirk of how your powers interface with her perception.

Then again, you also knew you shouldn't dress Pearl like a slut, claim her consent, and fuck her silly.