chapt 1

[smackenzie]

He made it to their apartment at eight, as promised, and the whole place smelled like chili.

"Oh thank god," Aidan said, exaggeratedly relieved, as he let Val inside. "I was about to die of hunger."

"I'm sorry I'm so late," Val apologized. "But I said I didn't think Catherine would let me out on time."

"You did say that, yeah. I had some cheese and crackers, don't worry about it."

"You make it sound so civilized," Stella called from where she was doing something on the computer. She was probably online.

"Ok, I had Triscuits and Kraft slices," Aidan told Val. "We have shredded cheddar for the chili, too. Sit down, we'll eat. You want a beer?"

"Yeah, a beer would be good," Val said. He took off his coat and his suit jacket and loosened his tie, and Stella got up from the desk and came over to where he stood kind of awkwardly holding his outerwear. He'd been to their apartment a number of times and felt very comfortable there, but he still couldn't bring himself to just throw his coat over the couch, which was what Aidan did any time he was over at Val's place.

"You're so funny," Stella said, taking his coat from him and hanging it up in the coat closet. "You know you can just throw your stuff around here. God knows Aidan does it enough in your house." She grinned, then stood on her tiptoes to kiss Val on the cheek. "We missed you last night."

"I was blindsided by a nap. I think I went swimming too late in the day. The pool was full of people and it was kind of tiring swimming around them. I don't like sharing a lane." Generally the Y tried to discourage people from sharing lanes in the pool, but sometimes there were just too many people in the water and too few lifeguards paying attention. Val thought it was a recipe for disaster but so far he'd managed to escape a racing collision.

"Sit." Stella pointed to the kitchen table. There were three places set, along with a basket of cornbread and a big bowl of salad. "Dish the chili," she told Aidan. "And get out the cheese. I'll get the drinks, you sit." She gestured to Val. He sat.

Aidan ladled chili out of a big pot on the stove, filling three bowls and putting them on the table. Stella filled glasses with ice and water and got Val a beer, since Aidan seemed to have forgotten. She dished out the salad. She sat. Aidan sat. Val's stomach growled. He blushed, embarrassed, and the other two laughed.

The chili was a little spicy but very good, full of beans and meat and tomatoes, and the cornbread was crumbly and moist and not sweet, and the beer was cold, and the company was good. Val really liked Aidan and Stella. He liked spending time with them. They were very easy to be with.

"How was - " Stella started to say, but Aidan cut her off with a raised hand. It happened to be the hand holding half a piece of cornbread, which meant he shook crumbs on the table.

"Stop," he said. "No work talk. The first rule of Caswell Velez Malcolm and Simonson is that you do not talk about Caswell Velez Malcolm and Simonson. The second rule is that you finish your dinner." He grinned.

"I don't think that's going to be a problem," Val said. "Work's busy," he told Stella. "As usual."

"What did I say?"

"I'm finishing my dinner." Val grinned. Aidan sighed. Stella giggled.

"We have ice cream for dessert," she said.

As they ate, they talked about things not related to the law firm - Val's roommate Kirk, the school where Stella taught kindergarten, some of the crazy parents she had to deal with, Aidan's mom, Val's mom, Aidan's younger sister, Stella's brother, the weather, traffic, the people who lived upstairs from Val, and the bus driver he'd had on the way over to their apartment.

"He almost drove by three stops," Val said. "Where people were even waiting."

"Must've been in a hurry to finish his shift," Stella suggested. "Or he wasn't paying attention."

"Or he could've been an asshole," Aidan said.

"He could've."

"I don't think he was paying attention," Val said. "Is there more chili?"

"Is there more chili." Aidan snorted. "Didn't I mention that the freezer's full of the stuff?"

"Yes, but that doesn't mean I can eat it now."

"There's more on the stove," Stella said. "Help yourself."

Val pushed his chair back, stood up, and did just that. It really was very good. He always felt a little weird taking other people's leftovers, but this time he didn't mind possibly getting some chili to take home and put in his own freezer. Well, assuming his freezer wasn't full of quorn nuggets or veggie burgers or whatever Kirk had latched onto as part of his new health kick.

After dinner Val helped clean up and Aidan scooped them all out some fudge swirl ice cream.

"Chocolate syrup?" Stella asked. "Whipped cream?"

"Yes and please," Aidan said.

"I was talking to Val. I'm not letting you near the whipped cream ever again."

"Do I want to know?" Val asked.

"No," she said, at the same time Aidan answered "It was 'Fun with pressurized dairy products' night in the McInerney-Arbor household." He leered first at Stella and then Val. Val tried very hard not to think of Aidan covered in whipped cream. It was a bit of a losing battle.

"I know what you're thinking," Aidan went on. "It's ok. I'm thinking about me covered in whipped cream too."

"You're both disgusting," Stella said, but she was smiling. "Just for that, no one gets any." Aidan pouted. "And don't pout at me. That might work with sweet little old ladies and your sister, but I can resist fifty-five small children giving me the puppy dog eyes. I can resist you."



words: 989
total words: 6383

Comments

[wesleysgirl.livejournal.com]

LOVE this. You write this domestic kind of scene so well. :-D