Lunch Date

Alison nodded, accepting John’s offer and approached him hesitantly before lowering herself into his lap carefully. John supported her back with his left hand and opened his inventory, pondering which of his stored food would be best to share.

“Uhm, J-John? What are y-you doing?” Alison inquired, watching as the Gamer gestured in the air.

John shook his head, noticing Alison had repositioned herself, resting her head on his shoulder. He apologised, “Oh, sorry. Spaced out for a second. I was just trying to decide what would be the best for us to eat. Actually, let me add you to my party so you can actually see what I’m doing.”

Alison jumped as a screen appeared in front of her. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you,” John muttered. “If you click ‘yes’ on that, you’ll be added to my party.” Alison nodded and tapped on the blue accept button, gaining the ability to see John’s inventory screen.

“Okay, I have a few things we could have for lunch. I just grabbed a bunch of things from our pantry and fridge, so it’s kinda a mixed bag,” John explained. He ran through several options, including cup noodles, cereal and meal supplement milkshakes. “Oh, actually, I have a bunch of things we could probably cobble a picnic out of: chips, a salad bowl and fruit. Oh, I also have some snack-sized ice cream too.”

Glancing down at Alison, he smiled watching as she seemed fascinated by the screen. Eventually, she looked up and their eyes met, prompting her to blush and shyly smile. “A picnic d-d-date sounds nice,” she replied softly.

John removed the food from his inventory, placing one item at a time, and as he reached the ice cream, he paused. “Hey Alison, I know we were moving on from your powers and all, but would you be willing to indulge me in a little test?”

Perplexed, Alison tilted her head and asked, “I thought w-we were having lunch to-together?”

“Of course, I’m not suggesting we forget our date. I thought this could run alongside it without intruding,” John clarified. “You see, I’m just wondering if your pictomancy will put items in stasis like my inventory. I thought you could put one of the tubs of ice cream into the desk, then we’d continue our lunch together before coming back to it later. When you take it out of the desk again we’ll have our answer depending on if it’s still frozen or not.”

“B-but I don’t k-know how,” Alison replied. “It was an a-a-accident last time.”

John retrieved one of the small pots of ice cream from his inventory, humming in thought. “Were you thinking of anything in particular last time? You could try that,” he suggested.

Alison nodded and placed her hand on the ice cream. She then began to slide the container across the desk in a brushing motion, but nothing happened.

“I guess that doesn’t work… Well, it’s magic, right?” he pondered. “So maybe you have to focus your magic between the object and the desk?”

Hanging on every word, Alison looked adorable, her face was scrunched in determination and she focused hard on trying to accomplish what John said.

John ruffled Alison’s hair. “Don’t worry; you’re doing great. Okay, one more idea,” he reassured her. “Since the ability is art-based, maybe it’s a visual thing. Imagine the object merging with the desk and try actually pushing it into the surface, that could work?”

Alison placed her hand on the lid of the ice cream, scrunching her eyes tightly. Suddenly, it seemed as if the table had vanished and the container fell through it, only stopping when her hand landed flat against the wooden desk top.

John’s palm pressed against the image on the wooden desk. ’Hmm, still has the same wood grain. It isn’t cold either, just the same temperature as the rest of the desk, that’s good to know,’_ he noted internally.

After watching John’s inspection and seeing the approving look on his face, Alison beamed and cheered, “I-I did it!” before she wrapped her arms around John in a celebration cuddle.

John smiled, returning the hug. “I knew you’d get it, and even if you didn’t, I’m pretty sure a certain goddess would have made a snarky comment telling you how you should be doing it,” he reassured her.

[Alison is undeserving of sass, unlike a certain someone.]

John half-heartedly grumbled, prompting Alison to let go and focus on the pop-up, the odd interaction causing her to let out a small, slightly confused giggle.

“Oh, find that funny, do you? I’m being bullied and teased by a goddess and it’s all a joke to everyone?”John asked in a teasing voice.

Suddenly, Alison looked wide-eyed at John, clearly shocked. “A go-go-goddess?” she asked.

“Oh, well, yeah… she’s the one who gave me my powers, and now yours too,” John explained.

“W-w-well, if magic e-exists, i-i-it should-dn’t be a surprise g-gods are real too,” Alison reasoned, though her expression didn’t fully reflect the acceptance of her words.

“Anyway, enough of that,” John said. “It’s time we enjoy our picnic date, right?”

Alison’s expression instantly brightened, her rosy cheeks and sparkling green eyes enhancing her shy smile. She glanced at the modest spread John had brought, but to her, it seemed like an extravagant homemade lunch.

“Unfortunately, we don’t have sandwiches. We can just make some ham and cheese wraps as the star of our picnic.” John chuckled nervously, using his free hand to pull the tortillas, ham and string cheese towards himself.

A hand gently rested on John’s, stopping him from continuing. “L-let me,” Alison insisted.

Alison took charge, placing ham slices on two tortillas. She reached for the string cheese, pulling it apart and layering it on top.

Finally, she pulled the salad bowl over. In a mixture of amusement and curiosity, John watched as Alison picked around the cherry tomatoes as she added the veggies to the pile. She tightly wrapped them both then handed the wrap with tomatoes over to John before taking a bite of her own, emitting an adorable hum of approval.

John started a playlist on his phone, providing quiet background noise as they enjoyed their food in relative quiet. “Oh, the st-strawberries are cold,” Alison remarked, happily nibbling on the juicy red fruit.

John felt warm and fuzzy as he looked down at Alison with a smile. “Yeah, like I mentioned earlier, my inventory keeps things hot or cold. I’m not entirely sure but I think it essentially stops time for the item. I have a feeling it will be the same story with the ice cream you put in the table.

“I should probably play with some of my powers a little, to test them out more,” John muttered, popping a grape in his mouth.

“I think there are some things we need to talk about,” John continued, rubbing the nape of his neck. “Are you really okay with me having another girlfriend? Not only that but one that’s actively encouraging me to… be intimate with other girls?

“Actually, there’s more than that. With all the magic nonsense, things spiral out of control a little, I mean I accidentally got married to a faerie dragon, and then I got married to Ellie. I’m not even entirely sure how the spell is triggered because it hasn’t happened to everyone. Are you truly okay with an open relationship? And would it be hypocritical of me to say I don’t want you to see other guys? Also, what are you hoping for in our relationship? What do you want to get out of it?” John babbled.

John’s expression tightened, clearly showing signs of his worries. ’Could she really be okay with all this? Any of this? She’s such a sweet and reserved girl; I wouldn’t be surprised if she was the type to wait for marriage before thinking of sex. A poly relationship just seems so far-fetched when I think of her. I’m being pretty selfish here, and everything is completely one-sided…’ he thought. His features softened slightly when Alison’s hand pressed against his cheek.

“I don’t c-care, I just w-want to b-be with you. A-as long as you have f-feelings for me and m-make time for m-me, I d-don’t mind w-who you care for,” Alison reassured John. She blushed harder as she spoke, and by the time she finished, she was hiding her face behind her hands.

“A-a-ac-actually, I, uhm, I-I,” Alison paused and huffed through her hands, “I im-imagined… uhm, w-well you see. Sometimes, w-when I’d th-think about how y-you would notice me… W-well… one time I had a d-dream where my cousin Meadow c-came to town an-and you f-fell in love b-b-but then y-you’d spend time with me…”

She paused before continuing. “A-another time… I im-imagined Erin brought you back to N-Nessa’s, and she ha-had to hide you in my room a-and-”

John interrupted Alison, pulling her hand from her face and kissing her on the cheek. “You are so adorable and I think I understand. As long as I love you, you don’t mind how my relationship with other girls works, right?”

“L-lo-l-l-love?” Alison spluttered.

John suddenly felt nervous. “Oh, well, yeah? I mean, maybe it’s a little early to be saying that, but I am your boyfriend now and… uh... Oh hey, what’s this I hear about you having tattoos?” John very unsmoothly switched the topic.

“Oh…” Alison started, hiding behind her hands once more. John smiled and pulled her into a hug. “Uhm, w-well, when w-we were younger… w-we, uhm, N-Nessa and I were on vacation at the c-cliffs.”

John eagerly listened, looking down at Alison, stroking her hair comfortingly. She cleared her throat and sighed. “Our hair began f-floating, a-and there was a crackling sound a-as well as the feeling of st-static in the air. Nessa d-didn’t know what was ha-happening, s-she was p-playing but I ran at her and knocked h-her down. Then the l-l-lightning hit me. I d-didn’t die or anything though,” she giggled, “but now I have sc-scars on my arm.”

“Scars? I didn’t see any scars when you modelled the other day at June’s place,” John said, staring into space with a thoughtful expression while he remembered the modelling session. “And that doesn’t explain you having tattoos.”

Alison continued to blush and let out a peep just at the mention of the modelling. “I can’t believe I di-did that… Uhm… I don’t h-have tattoos, I just d-draw on my arms or sometimes have f-friends draw on me,” she explained. “A-and y-you didn’t see them the other d-day because I usually use ma-make-up when I haven’t dr-drawn on my arm.”

“I see, that makes sense. So you drew on your arm today?” John asked. “Can I see?”

Alison nodded, staring down at her lap as she began to pull her sleeve up. “I let E-Erin draw on me today,” she said, revealing an arm full of very cartoony doodles.

“Those look really good, actually,” he praised. Curiosity got the best of him, and he gently took hold of Alison’s arm, bringing it up closer to his face. Erin had done a great job using the markers to hide Alison’s scars but being so close John could spot the root-like markings. “Oh, wow. I didn’t expect it to look like that and it goes all the way up your arm.”

Alison didn’t say anything, and just nodded. John smiled and gently pulled Alison’s sleeve back down. “Hey, I was a little flustered earlier and got derailed from what I wanted to say… I don’t want you ever to think you’re some kind of consolation prize or like an extra. I promised that I wouldn’t hurt you, and that I’d be open with everything, and because of that, I have something to confess…”

John took a breath, mentally preparing himself for what he was going to reveal. It made him more tense than just telling Alison that he had a girlfriend or that he was in an open relationship. Eventually, Alison’s hands lowered, and she looked up at John expectantly.

His nerves wouldn’t calm down, no matter how much he tried to calm down until finally he couldn’t take it anymore and he just blurted, “I had sex with Erin!”

The outburst shocked Alison, but the sudden reveal helped relieve all of John’s tension and allowed him to speak a little more calmly. “She made me promise to tell you… She didn’t want to be kept a secret. Oh, but she’s not like a girlfriend or anything, I’m pretty sure she might want us to be, uh, friends with benefits, though.”

John took a couple of deep breaths to further calm himself down before continuing. “I know she’s your friend, and that might be a dealbreaker kind of thing, something you want to put your foot down for. You are my girlfriend, so just say the word and I’ll let her know that-"

“It’s fine. I don’t m-mind, really,” Alison cut in. “Also, Erin is really nice. Other than N-Nessa, she’s pr-probably my best friend. I’m ac-actually jealous of her; s-she expresses herself ef-effortlessly.”

Alison’s panic was interrupted by a knock at the door, causing the couple to freeze. “W-who could that be?” Alison whispered.

“I don’t know, does anyone usually come to the studio on Wednesdays? And why would they knock?” John asked.

“No, the st-studio is usually ab-abandoned on Wednesdays. Should I g-get off your lap? W-what if it’s Nessa?” Alison asked. Before either of them could do anything, the door cracked open and the couple froze.

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