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No matter how hard she thinks, Braeden can't remember how long it's been since the last time she went on something even remotely resembling an actual date.
Sure, there'd been times where her job had called for her to butter people up, wine and dine them and extract as much information as she could before they got suspicious, and there'd been a few occasions where she'd shared coffee with someone as they sat in a stakeout for twelve hours straight.
But, enjoyable as the outcome of some of those things were (mainly, money), they definitely didn't count as dates.
What Kira's done for her, on the other hand, definitely counts. Maybe not in the traditional sense of the word, but Braeden's life has never exactly been anything close to traditional.
So she's totally counting it as a date.
It's a warm, sunny day, without a cloud in the sky, and Kira has spread a blanket out underneath the trees in her backyard. The blanket is dotted with different kinds of food; hand-rolled pieces of sushi, a bowl of cut-up veggies and dip, a container filled with chocolate chip cookies for dessert. There's even a large thermos, filled with fresh coffee by the smell of it, and even though Braeden's travel mug is still half-full, the gesture still makes her smile.
"What's all this for?" she asks. Kira jumps slightly but when she gets to her feet, a wide grin spreads across her face.
"You're early!" she says. "This is lunch! Or maybe breakfast, I guess. When did you wake up?"
"About half an hour ago." She'd been up late, Skyping with a potential client who wanted her to acquire an old statue carved from mountain ash. By the time they'd managed to agree on terms and payment, the sun had been peeking over the horizon. Realistically, Braeden could have gone for at least six more hours of sleep, but when Kira's text woke her up, she'd pulled herself out of bed.
The thing between her and Kira is still blossoming, still mostly undefined, but she wants it to be something. Sure, Kira's going to be leaving for college in just over a month, but that doesn't dissuade Braeden in the least. She wants to spend time with Kira while she can, wants to get to know her a little better at the very least.
And if that means getting up after only three hours of sleep and drinking a massive cup of coffee just so she's awake enough to make the drive over to Kira's, well, she's willing to deal with it.
"I could have waited," Kira says. "If you need some more sleep-"
"Kira," Braeden says, reaching out and taking Kira's hand. It's starting to get calloused from her continued training with her katana and nunchucks, training that Braeden has been partially supervising, and she can't help the rush of pride that goes through her. “I’m fine. Really. Besides, I'm too hungry to wait."
&.
The sushi is absolutely delicious, way better than the store bought stuff Braeden usually indulges in. By the time they start on the chocolate chip cookies (which are warm and slightly melted from the heat of the day), Braeden is pleasantly full and completely awake.
“Did you make these too?” she asks, breaking off a piece of a cookie.
“I wish,” Kira says. She’s laying with her head in Braeden’s lap and she cranes up to take the piece that Braeden offers her. “They’re from the store. They’d be way more burned if they were mine.”
“I could teach you, if you want.” There are crumbs resting on Kira’s lips and Braeden absently brushes them away with her thumb.
“Really?” Braeden nods; she can’t remember the last time she baked, let alone made cookies, but she’s sure that it would come back to her if she had a recipe book and the ingredients in front of her.
“That would be awesome!” Kira says, sitting up and curling her fingers around Braeden’s. “Seriously, the last time I tried to make some, I nearly burned the house down. Someone called the fire department. It was mortifying.” Kira’s face has turned red as a fire hydrant just recounting the story and Braeden can’t help but laugh a little as she leans in to kiss Kira’s warm cheek.
“Well, if we manage to start a fire when we make cookies, I’ll take the blame. Promise.” Kira opens her mouth to say something, but a rumble of thunder interrupts her. When Braeden looks up, she’s surprised to see that the sun has nearly vanished behind a thick group of iron grey clouds. She can see a fork of lightning jump between two of them and a few moments later, it’s followed by more thunder.
“We should get inside,” Kira says. They immediately start gathering up the picnic supplies, but Braeden has just slipped the container of cookies into Kira's basket when the sky opens up. There’s no preamble; the rain comes down in absolute torrents, soaking Braeden’s hair in seconds.
“Damn!” Kira says, voice nearly drowned out by another thunderclap. “It wasn’t even supposed to rain today and now everything is soaked-“
“Kira!” Braeden calls out. She drops the picnic basket to the ground before stepping forward and taking one of Kira’s hands. “This is the sweetest thing anyone has done for me in a long time, rain or no rain.” She can feel her cheeks flushing and she hopes that the rain disguises it. Kira is staring at her, eyes wide, lips curved into the shape of an O. The longer she stays still, the warmer Braeden’s cheeks get and doubt creeps up her spine. Maybe she said something wrong. Maybe she totally misjudged the situation, misjudged what Kira wanted from her.
Before she can voice any of these doubts or simply turn and run, Kira drops the soaked blanket in her arms and kisses Braeden. Her palms press against Braeden’s cheeks and Braeden swears that she can feel a slight tingling in her skin, like electricity is just barely brushing against her. She can feel Kira straining slightly on her tiptoes and she wraps both her arms around Kira’s back, pulling her close enough to feel the curves of her body pressed against her own.
By the time Kira pulls away with a gentle brush of her tongue against Braeden’s lip, Braeden is hopelessly soaked. Water is streaming from her sodden hair into her eyes and her fingers feel cold and clammy. Her cheeks, on the other hand, are definitely burning and she swears that she can still feel Kira's fingers lingering against her skin.
“So,” Kira says. Her eyes are faintly glimmering orange and her hair looks black as night, plastered to her cheeks. “I’d like to do that again. But maybe inside, if that’s okay with you.”
“Are your parents home?” Braeden asks. Kira shakes her head, causing water droplets to fly through the air.
“Nope. They won’t be for a few hours. Should give us plenty of time for our clothes to dry.” Her hand is dangling loosely at her side and Braeden slips her fingers between Kira’s, squeezing tightly.
“Well then,” she says, stooping down to gather up the picnic basket with her free hand, “lead the way.”