Work Text:
If there was any holiday that Gabriel Reyes took the most seriously, it was Halloween.
Every year they’d been friends, she had seen him go above and beyond with creating his costumes and decking out his apartment, where he hosted the annual Halloween party among their group of friends, with impressive decor that continued to get better and never ceased to amaze with every passing October. On the first of the month, Amélie had come home from a particularly exhausting night of bartending at Talon only to find the entirety of their shared apartment renovated in Halloween decorations, complete with a (turned off) fog machine in the corner of their living room and a few stickers on Pierre’s tank that she was surprised Gabriel even went near at all.
When he saw the look on her face, Gabriel had smiled and said: If you’re going to live with me, you better get used to this, manita!
Hence why Amélie had paid him ten euros to put on his most anticipated costume and jump out of their closet to make her girlfriend scream.
One might think it cruel. Lena hadn’t done a thing to deserve such a scare, after all, but Amélie and Gabriel both thought it an excellent prank in the spirit of their favorite holiday.
Perhaps that was why they were such good friends.
A source of innocent fun was all that it really was, and Lena always had a good prank or two up her sleeve for her endless Vine creations that Amélie had been on the receiving end of more than a couple of times. It was high time she’d returned the favor, and while she could think of a hundred more ways to really frighten Lena, she wasn’t exactly planning on traumatizing the woman she loved. She didn’t fancy much the idea of possibly going to jail for doing something potentially illegal either, which she and Gabriel had entertained the idea of once or twice.
It turned out to be a success, of course - oh, it had most definitely been a success. Amélie hadn’t doubted her best friends ability to scare the hell out of someone, considering he’d done it to Amélie herself more times than she was comfortable to admit, but she didn’t exactly expect that.
Lena stopped by their apartment in the early morning as she said she would, sporting her conventionally mirthful smile and a brown paper bag of freshly cooked egg sandwiches she’d picked up on her way, under the impression that Gabriel had already left for work. Amélie greeted her at the door with a quick peck on the lips, and had just enough mercy in her to let Lena put down her things before she texted her roommate the all clear.
He’d made it much more theatrical than expected, which should have came as no surprise. A few dramatic scratches against the door here, a quiet jiggle of the doorknob there, and that was more than enough to peak Lena’s interest, those expressive doe eyes of hers wide with unfeasible wonder and a little bit of dismay. Amélie played along, at least until her girlfriends back was turned as she went to investigate the strange noises, and couldn’t help but think that Lena was just so damn gullible.
Then, Gabriel quite literally kicked the closet door off of its hinges.
Clad in his impressively designed Pumpkin lord costume, one he’d been working on for months, Gabriel jumped out at an unsuspecting Lena with a mighty yell, the door bouncing against the wall - and Lena screamed so loud Amélie was worried her neighbors would call the police.
Better yet: she got it all on video.
And while Amélie and Gabriel had doubled over and laughed until their stomachs hurt, Lena’s freckled cheeks flourished an impressive shade of red. “Oh bugger off, you two!” She’d cursed. “That wasn’t bleedin’ funny!”
So began the cold shoulder.
After repositioning the closet door and getting appropriately dressed for work, Gabriel had left - however, not without fistbumping Amélie for a job well done and reaching to ruffle up Lena’s short hair on the way out, to which the shorter woman promptly smacked his hand away and pointedly turned away from him with a soft hmph. Neither of them had imagined that Lena, who typically loved pranks, would have been such a bad sport about it. Nevertheless, the two were undoubtedly proud of themselves for pulling it off so seamlessly.
When it became apparent that Lena was determinedly not speaking with her, although refusing to leave the apartment, Amélie left her to sulk in her living room to go out for a cigarette on the balcony.
Lena caved and gave up the silent treatment a lot quicker than she thought she would have for such a stubborn girl.
“Hope you don’t mind I brewed up a pot,” Lena announced as she slid the sliding door shut behind her, plopping down in the seat adjacent to the one where Amélie was sitting. She held out a dark purple mug for her to take, mouth quirking into a merry smile. “Lots of cream with just a dash of sugar. Just how you like it, yeah?”
Amélie took a moment to consider the action, smoke billowing from parted lips and eyes narrowed, before she gingerly took the mug from her. “Merci. Are you done being annoyed with me, now?”
Lena’s warm expression did not falter. “Don’t be silly,” she quipped, then turned, too quickly, to her own cup. “Now that I think about it, it was kinda funny. I don’t mean to be such a galoot. Just caught me off guard is all.”
“Mm, I noticed,” Amélie said. “You screamed quite loud.” She tapped the ash off of her cigarette into the ash tray and brought the mug to her lips, and caught Lena watching her very intensely from the corner of her eye.
She found out why very quickly.
The coffee tasted absolutely atrocious, as if a very short and spiky haired someone had mixed an outrageous amount of salt in it, more than was ever acceptable on anything, ever. Amélie bit back a grimace and forced it down, schooling her expression into its natural state of boredom, her pride getting the best of her. If Lena wanted to play it this way, then so be it. Amélie had perhaps an unhealthy amount of pride and tended to treat many things as a competition - and if she wanted to be petty, Dieu, she could be petty .
And she was going to make sure Lena understood that she would not win this one, even if it meant she had to drink the rest of this disgraceful excuse for coffee until it’s very last drop.
Lena, looking previously disappointed for not getting the reaction she likely would have hoped for, nearly choked on her own coffee when Amélie begrudgingly took another sip, allowing no room for revulsion to show on her face or in her actions. “Are you alright, chérie?” Amélie asked, pulling in a drag from her cigarette. It was enough to mask that awful taste the coffee was leaving in her mouth.
“Just peachy,” Lena giggled uneasily, taking a suspiciously long swig from her own mug and avoiding looking her in the eyes. She brushed her hair away from her face anxiously, looking unsure of what to do with herself.
Amélie raised the cup again.
“Oh for Christ’s sake, love!” Lena cried out suddenly, throwing up her free hand. “You’re really going to bloody drink that!?”
“Oui.”
“Wha-I just-” Lena blubbered with disbelief, mouth gaping. “I just poured five huge spoonfuls of salt in there and you’re not even flinching!”
Amélie quirked a brow, unimpressed. “Oh, je suis au courant.”
“Don’t do this,” Lena laughed humorlessly, pointing a finger at her. “You know I can’t understand you!”
“C’est dommage.”
“Amélie! C’mon, this isn’t fair!”
BONUS:
Amélie (+33 4 50)
She put salt in my coffee. She’ll be after you next.
Gabriel (+310)
oh wtf
Amélie (+33 4 50)
I drank it.
Gabriel (+310)
you-
you did what now
Amélie (+33 4 50)
I stared her right in the eye and I drank it.
Do you really think that I would let her win this ? Tch. Please.
You should have seen the look on her face.
Gabriel (+310)
you are the most petty person i’ve ever fucking met...i’m so proud