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Sara huffed. She wanted to learn lock picking because she liked picking up a partner's hobbies, and it was a useful skill that felt more necessary the longer she spent time with Neal. But it was very frustrating when the cuffs simply wouldn't budge.
She raised her cuffed hands and wiggled them in Neal’s direction until he crossed the apartment to check on her progress. “What am I doing wrong?” she asked. “Is my picking motion off again?”
Neal, clad in his silky sleep pants and his soft white undershirt, slotted himself in to sit behind Sara, who was already settled on the floor, bundled cosily in a blanket. He wrapped his arms over top of hers and minutely adjusted her grip on the bobby pin in her left hand. “You’re really close,” he praised before guiding her hand through the correct and incorrect motions. “Side to side, don't let it pivot in circles, remember that it’s not like a key.” After he'd demonstrated both movements a few times, he kept picking until the cuff popped open. “Do you feel the difference now?”
Sara nodded, leaning back in Neal’s embrace for a few lingering moments, then she reset the cuffs back onto her wrists to try again.
Not long after, Sara successfully applied Neal's pointers and sent the cuff clattering to the floor. “I got it!” she announced.
“You got it,” he agreed, pressing a featherlight congratulatory kiss to the back of her neck.
“No distractions!” She complained as she leaned forward to set up for another try. “I'm in learning mode, Neal.”
“Haha. I’m getting visions of a smaller Sara bent over her books, cheering in victory over the perfect quote for an essay.”
“I preferred research papers. A good predictor of the future. You can't get far in insurance recovery without finding the joy in digging through available information,” she answered before shushing him again.
It was already feeling easier, she noticed. She had already made great progress even if she wasn't getting her technique right every time yet. Some of the other parts of elementary lock picking had been even more natural , like the lesson where he'd shown her how to unfold a paperclip or bobby pin and then bend one end in a tiny hook, which was exactly the right shape to use as an improvised pick. Anyone who had put in long days, nights, and sometimes entire weekends in an otherwise empty office had gotten a little creative with supplies while combing for a breakthrough.
“Aha!” she cried triumphantly. “Got it again.”
“Still better than Sudoku?” Neal asked.
“I have always been a fan of hands-on learning experiences,” Sara answered, offering him the set of handcuffs.
Neal cuddled in close. “This is only fun when you’re the one in cuffs, but stop giving me ideas unless you’re ready to switch subjects, Top of the Class.”
"Well, I could go for some...culinary arts," she answered with a sly smile. "What were you planning for lunch?”