insteadofwords | (no subject)

It's been a few days and Keys feel like he's at least sort of starting to settle in. His apartment is still pretty sparse, but he's bought a few things to make it feel cosier, more like his. He still misses his place in Seattle, misses how like him it had felt, but it's not like he can blame the apartment in Dimera for still feeling like it's someone else's, not when he's been in it for less than a week.

His wardrobe is also still feeling pretty basic. He'd bought a week's worth of plain t-shirts in black, white, navy, as well as a couple of pairs of jeans, a few sweaters, a hoodie, socks, boxers. His wardrobe in Seattle hadn't been anything to write home about, honestly, but there are a few things he'll miss. He found a decent pair of combat boots in an army surplus store, which helps with the weather.

He's met a few people so far but really the only person he can think of as a new friend is Rapunzel. She's been checking in regularly and he's thoroughly grateful every time his phone lights up with a text. They text a lot, not about anything in particular, and it's been pretty much the only thing that's stopped Keys from spiralling into just feeling desperately, completely alone.

When Rapunzel invited him over for dinner, Keys had a brief panic about what he should bring with him. His parents raised him to be polite, and he knows that it's good manners to not show up empty handed. So, when he shows up at her door, he's wearing the coat she helped him to buy, a hat pulled on over his hair, and he's got pie and he's got wine.

He's doing his best, anyway.

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From:

insteadofwords

She puts her hand on his arm, warm on his bare skin, and Keys feels his face flush a little. Hopefully, he can blame it on the wine.

"Yeah," he says. "You're right. I guess I can be anything I want to be here." He covers her hand with his and squeezes. "Tell me about your business."

From:

fatesdesign

"It may not be exactly ideal, but it is a fresh start," Rapunzel assures him, because she has a stubborn habit of always trying to see the bright side. She smiles at him and rubs her hand up and down his arm before letting go to pick up her fork again, taking a bite of food as she ponders her answer.

"It's something that's kind of evolved over the years," she explains after she's washed down her bite with a delicate sip of wine. "Like I said, I started making clothes for myself and a few friends, because the sorts of options we were used to weren't really available here. Then they told their friends, and I started taking commissions, which branched out to more modern styles as I learned about them. That's how it started, and it just kept growing and growing."

She's modest, but pleased with what she's created. "I started selling some pieces in a friend's store, but unfortunately he's no longer here. Not long ago, I opened my own shop. It's very small, but it has some workspace in the back so I don't have to have bolts of fabric taking over my whole apartment."

From:

insteadofwords

Now he's definitely blushing. He clears his throat and picks up his own fork, focusing on his food and what she's saying to him for a moment.

"That sounds great," he says. "I'll definitely be a future customer." He reaches for his glass. "How would you style me?"

From:

fatesdesign

Keys looks like she's blushing, but Rapunzel isn't sure why he would be. Perhaps it's the wine giving him such rosy cheeks.

"I'm a seamstress, not a stylist," she teases, laughing a bit before sitting back in her chair to look him up and down. "But judging by what I've seen you in, I would guess that you like more casual clothes. Maybe I'd put you in a sweater and slacks, rather than a suit. Something warm to bring out your eyes."

From:

insteadofwords

"You know what I mean," he says, smiling, sitting back to give her room to really look at him. "Sounds pretty much like what I used to wear to work. I don't mind a good suit, honestly. Just never really had much chance to wear to them back home."

From:

fatesdesign

"Then I'll need to make you a good suit," she decides, smiling happily at the thought. "There are parties here sometimes, like the extravagant balls I used to read about. The pictures that I showed you were from New Year's Eve. It was a lovely night."'

She eats the last of her chicken and washes it down with another sip of wine, feeling pleasantly full. "Usually there is something for Valentine's Day, but I'm not sure that would be enough time."

From:

insteadofwords

"That would be pretty rushed, yeah," he says, finishing his food and setting down his fork. "That was...thank you." He grins. "I think this is the most settled I've felt since I got here, honestly."

Sitting there with her, warm and comfortable and full, it's easy to forget that everything he's ever known is nowhere to be found.

From:

fatesdesign

"You're welcome anytime," Rapunzel assures him, but Keys is good company, and it's so nice to spend an evening with another person. Pascal is also wonderful company and she'd be utterly lost without him, but sometimes she just needs the companionship of another human being.

"Maybe I should get your measurements," she says as she looks him over again, suddenly wanting badly to know what one of her creations might look like on him. He has a similar body type to Peter, who she made so many things for, and while she knows the right thing to do would be to give them up so other people could get use out of them, but she can't bring herself to do it. They're all boxed up in the spare room, with a few pieces still in the closet alongside her dresses. "I do work very fast. Maybe I could whip something up."

From:

insteadofwords

"That would be deeply cool," he says, draining his wine glass and setting it down. "But I also really don't want to be a pain in your ass, so. Whatever you think, I guess. There might be a party for Valentines Day, but I think it's pretty unlikely I'm going to have a date, so."

From:

fatesdesign

“No promises, but I’ll see what I can do,” Rapunzel tells him as she reaches for the wine. There’s only a little left, so she pours a bit into each of their glasses and sets the empty bottle down.

“I won’t either.” She smiles a little wistfully and then takes a sip from her glass. “But you don’t have to have a date to go.”

From:

insteadofwords

"Well, if neither of us have a date, we can go together?" he says. As soon as it's out of his mouth, he wonders if he's misspoken, when she just mentioned her ex, who hasn't even been gone for a year. He reaches for his glass again, taking a sip. He likes Rapunzel, already likes spending time with her, but how much of that is the loneliness of being dropped a world away from anything he's ever known?

From:

fatesdesign

At the question, Rapunzel looks over at Keys with mild surprise. She hadn’t really been expecting that, but she doesn’t think that he means it like a date. He’s still so new, and Rapunzel has been showing him the ropes so far. Why not at a party, too?

“Sure, we could do that,” she says with a smile, nodding a little. “It’d be a good opportunity to introduce you to people like us. People that were brought to Darrow, I mean. Most of the locals are lovely, but they all seem to think this place is just a normal city.”

From:

insteadofwords

"It's going to get really tedious for you if you remain the only person I really know," says Keys, fiddling with his wine glass, idly wishing he'd thought to bring two bottles. "I have met a couple of people who live in my building. Oh, and there's apparently a guy who looks just like me? His girlfriend was pretty embarrassed when she kissed me by accident."

From:

fatesdesign

“Oh, I’m sure that I won’t be for long,” Rapunzel assures him as she stands up and gathers their plates. Keys seems like a good guy, if maybe a little shy, but she can’t imagine that he’ll have too hard of a time meeting people.

His story makes Rapunzel giggle in delight, nose scrunching, and she keeps on laughing as she takes the plates into the kitchen. She made a cake for dessert, but she grabs some plates and Keys’ pie instead, since he was thoughtful enough to bring it.

“Here for less than a day and already kissing girls,” she teases, thinking that it might make him blush. “Do you want something else to drink? I could open another bottle of wine.”

From:

insteadofwords

Keys drains what's left of his wine and then looks at the empty glass thoughtfully. "I don't have to drive or anything so, if you're happy for me to stay for a while longer, that would be great." She giggles and it's kind of amazing, actually. He does blush when she teases him, but he's smiling, too.

"And she absolutely kissed me," he says. "I'm a totally innocent party here."

From:

fatesdesign

"Well, you can't just eat and run," she teases, ruffling his hair again before heading back to the kitchen. She doesn't have a lot of wine on hand, but she does have a bottle of sparkling that she's been meaning to try, so she carefully pops the cork and brings it out to the table, pouring them each a glass before sitting back down.

"That's very funny," she admits, laughing again as she cuts and serves them each a small piece of pie. "I have someone who looks just like me too, apparently. Aside from the hair, of course. Hers is a reasonable length."

From:

insteadofwords

"No intention of it," he says. She ruffles his hair and he's so touched starved that he almost leans into it and purrs, it feels so good. He takes a deep breath, trying to get a hold on himself as she moves around in the kitchen.

"I'll keep that in mind," he says. "Reaonable hair." He pushes his own back from his face. "Your hair is very pretty, by the way."

From:

fatesdesign

"Oh. Well, thank you," Rapunzel replies, pleased by the compliment. She reaches up to run her fingers through her hair, pulling it back from her face, and she feels the sudden urge to tell Keys all about it-- why it's so long and golden and what it can do, but she doesn't. It isn't as if he's done anything to make him seem untrustworthy, but she's gotten so into the habit of not telling people about her magic just to keep herself safe. Too many people have tried to hurt her because of it, and it doesn't seem like magic existed where Keys is from. He's already processing enough as it is.

"It takes a lot of work, but I'm used to it," she tells him. "It's-- it's very important to me."

From:

insteadofwords

"It must be if you've spent that long growing it," says Keys, once again thinking of the story and thinking how baffling it is that he didn't make the link right away. He must have been in shock or something. He sips his wine, the bubbles fizzing pleasantly when he swallows. "Mine kind of just...is. I spent most of my life trying to stop it standing straight up, to be honest."

From:

fatesdesign

"It does seem to have a life of its own," Rapunzel says with a fond laugh, pulling herself to her feet and holding her wine glass in one hand as she steps in front of him, reaching out to run her fingers through his hair, combing it back and to the side. "I don't really have any hair products because mine hates it, but maybe you could try some of that wax stuff?"

She's a little tipsy, so that's probably why she keeps playing with his hair, fluffing it up and then tucking some behind one ear before she realizes just how much that she's touching him. She blushes a little and then giggles before sitting back into her chair. "It's good hair, is all I'm saying."

From:

insteadofwords

"Pretty much always has, yeah. It used to drive my dad crazy." She stands in front of him, ruffling her fingers through his hair and Keys is suddenly intensely aware of how close she is, how good she smells, how much she's touching him. And, when she bends forward a little, he can definitely see down her shirt. He quickly averts his eyes, blushing.

And there's that giggle again.

"Good is a strong word," he says. "At least I'm not in any danger of a receeding hairline."

From:

fatesdesign

"Neither am I," she replies with a musical laugh, setting her glass down so she can take a bite of her pie. It's not as good as hers, if she's being honest, but she'd never say as much. It's still a good pie.

"Getting a haircut seems like it would be very nice," she muses, sucking on the tines of her fork before setting it down. "I wouldn't know, obviously. But they wash your hair, right?"

She lifts her hands to make little clawing motions with her fingers. "Massage your scalp and all that? That sounds wonderful."

From:

insteadofwords

Keys takes a bit of his pie, glad he went for strawberry because it's pretty good. The question makes him kind of sad, actually - that she's so wistful for something she's never experienced.

"Yeah," he says. "It's pretty nice. Except for when you've got someone with, like, pincers for fingers or something."

From:

fatesdesign

"Well, no," she replies with a grin. "In that case, I imagine not."

Once they're done with their pie, Rapunzel gathers the plates and takes them into the kitchen with the others. The dishes can wait until later, maybe even tomorrow.

"Let's move back over to the sofa." She picks up her glass and the bottle on the way by, setting the latter down on the coffee table before sitting down on the middle cushion, legs tucked underneath her. "I was going to get your measurements, but I'll do that another time. When I've had less wine."

From:

insteadofwords

She sits in the middle of the couch so Keys tucks himself into one end, back against the arm, one knee folded up on front of him so that his leg touches hers. He takes another sip of his wine.

"Yeah, that's probably for the best," he says. "Don't want to go to the trouble of making me a suit that doesn't fit right, right?"