riverviewlogs | Open post for May.

[That challenge was, distracting. It pulled Richard's mind into directions he hadn't quite expected it to move to yet. The passing thought of moving his hand under Alex's shirt and running his fingers over her side directly.

A thought he didn't act on. Instead, he moved closer to her on the bed, wrapping his arm around to pull her closer.]

It is impulsive and reckless.

[Just like her.]

[Alex just wrapped her arms around his neck in return, and she laughed softly before she fixed him with what was obviously a mock glare. (He'd seen her real glare enough to know the difference all too well.) Her voice was definitely flirty when she prodded:]

Impulsive and reckless and pretty and delicate and powerful. In other words, very me.

[Alex Reagan bad joke time. Well, half of a bad joke? A third maybe?]

[He adjusted, pulling her back with him so he could rest against the head of the bed. It was just a bit more comfortable than holding both their weight without any support. It also gave him time to pretend to think about her comment. Not that he needed time to think about it. He already had a response the moment the words came out of her mouth.]

No one would ever call you delicate, Alex. Annoyingly persistent, but not delicate.

[Not for the first time he wondered if this was how they would have ended up that night. Curled together on his bed after having a good meal and good wine. He liked to think it was. But with Alex, as she was now, he didn't know if his supposition was correct. If he was causing what he wanted to happen rather than what Alex did. If that were the case, he wasn't sure he'd be able to recover from it, not to mention the guilt of having taken advantage of her.]

[Alex curled her legs behind her as she settled into his chest and smirked up at him once more. It was almost annoyingly perfect how well she fit there, and she was glad, not for the first time that she had Rey had fought enough so that Alex had needed to defend him so that she could realize that they would have been perfect if they ever did get their shit together, as she had put it.

Honestly, she should send Eddie a bottle of champagne as a thank you for putting up that anon post. But she didn't explain that to him anymore than he explained his reasoning to her. Instead she just laughed before she pouted at him.]

I can be both, I'll have you know, Dr. Strand.

[Richard let out what could be suspiciously interpreted as a laugh. It was a laugh. Alex Reagan was many things; a force of nature, persistent, even annoying at times, but no one would ever call Alex delicate. It was something he appreciated about her more then he thought he'd let on. A more delicate woman would have backed away as soon as things started to turn sideways. Alex, on the other hand, dove head first into it all, grabbing his hand along the way and refusing to stop to look back.

She probably should have, in retrospect. Everything she'd been through was because of Richard, but dwelling on that did nothing and would probably have annoyed her in the end. Alex made her own choices, and Richard would always respect that; unless she was about to get herself into trouble.

I can't think of a single mutual acquaintance who would say so.

[There were few things that Alex liked more than pulling that laugh from him when he didn't want to do it. It brightened her day when things were the worst between them, and it was especially good now that things were well... good. They were together and they were in bed together, and she didn't need to break out her stupid jokes in order to lighten some of the tension that was in the air. She just needed to be herself.

Honestly, she didn't even care about being called delicate or not. At this point, arguing was banter and it was second nature between them, especially when there was no real stakes involved in what it was that they were fighting about. It was just one of the ways that their relationship had changed and evolved over the last two years without Alex really thinking about it.

Snuggling closer to him and resting her head on his shoulder again, she announced in an authoritative tone of voice, but as so often was the case with Alex, one could actually hear the smile inside of it:]

I definitely am a small and delicate flower, Richard Strand.

[He could hear the smile in her voice, and it brought a smirk of his own to light. He was fully aware of the fact that Alex wouldn't care if someone didn't think she was dainty, and that she was also well aware that he would never think of her that way. To Richard, Alex was a strong-willed, independent woman who would let nothing stop her from getting what she wanted. It was something that he appreciated about her.

It was the reason why they had always been able to come to terms with their arguments; by brushing them under the rug when one of them came up with a new lead, or he came back with a new black tape. Over the course of the years, they'd spent together that began to change, but Alex's personality didn't. She was the same Alex Richard had first had the 'privilege' of receiving all those messages from, the same woman who had dug into his life and dredged up the ghosts of his past that he was trying to hide from her.

The same Alex who sat through night after night of terrifying-seeming black tapes with him.

He shifted in his spot, placing a foot on the floor as he hid a small smirk behind a raised eyebrow.]

Then I'm in the wrong bed.

[He made a move to stand up.]

[Oh, that was most decidedly cheating, and Alex pouted when she felt him shift under her like that. Honestly, it was going to be hard to win any arguments with him when she kept letting him have all of the best weapons so far. Letting out a soft but nonetheless huffy sigh of defeat, Alex reached out and tugged him back into bed with a jerk of her hand before she looked up to him and sighed dramatically once more.]

Yes, yes, yes, fine. I'm not a delicate flower. Come back to bed, Richard.

[Still, she considered for a minute, the thoughts showing on her face as she tried to find a compromise, or at the very least another adjective that described her. Other than well, pushy, determined and generally being a giant pain in the ass to him.]

How about secret badass? I can be Alex Reagan, secret badass.

[He settled back in without effort, he hadn't planned to leave anyway. It was merely a gesture to cause the inevitable end that was Alex caving like an over baked cake, and it had done the job to perfection. But now she was postulating other titles, and the one she came up with was perfectly her. Not that he would ever tell her.

He let a brow raise as he asked:]

Secretly?

[He couldn't agree to that. There was no secret to Alex's prowess, but again, that wasn't something he would admit out loud. Not to her. Alex would, as expected, preen like a peacock if he did, and he had no tolerance for dealing with her in such a state.

Instead, he decided to counter. After all, the debate wasn't over if Alex was throwing out more adjectives to describe herself.]

Obvious poor judge of character.

[It wasn't baiting ... except it totally was baiting.]

Yeah, secretly. That way people underestimate tiny, pretty, feisty me.

[There, more adjectives, and while it had been on the tip of her tongue to add 'delicate' to that list, she decided to leave it off. At least for the moment, given that he'd caved when she had, and she didn't want him to get any more ideas about leaving again.

And of course he was baiting her, and of course Alex was going to rise to it. A bit anyway, because she just smirked at him and then shrugged, poking him lightly in the chest with her finger as she did it.]

Yeah, [She agreed with a drawn out sigh, this one intended for the drama of it all.] I suppose I can't really deny that one. But at least it went in your favor, huh? [Because here they were, with Alex's head on his chest.]

[He let out a puff of air that wasn't quite a laugh. Still, that description of Alex was completely stupid, and anyone who would think that about the woman currently lying in his arms was a complete moron. Tiny, he supposed would work, feisty was an understatement, but Alex wasn't pretty. There was no way that he could think of her as just 'pretty.' No, Alex was an exceptionality all her own. Alex was more expressive than anyone had any right to be, and it somehow fit everything that she was, encompassed her entirely in the only term that would work for her. Alex.

This assessment was another hidden thought. Pushed so many times into the back of his mind and locked away that he couldn't count anymore. Richard had always thought she was interesting, but it'd taken a few months to realize she was exceptional, and a few years to know she was more than extraordinary, she was blinding.]

Or poorly, depending on if you're trying to chase escaped confessed murderer and mental patients.

[He began stroking her back lightly as he thought of another way to bait her.]

How about reckless conclusion jumping Alex Reagan?

[Alex pouted quickly and she rolled her eyes when he mentioned Simon again. Honestly she was thinking more and more that he was jealous of Simon which is something that is completely absurd. Simon was a child and he was creepy and he always tried to be like some sort of James Bond figure waltzing in and out of her life (which yes she has thought about and was deeply hoping that he wasn't trying to emulate Warren because honestly that was the last thing she wanted or needed. One Thomas warren was more than enough.) But there was nothing to be jealous of. At the most, she cared about Simon as a sort of friend, and she trusted him, but never in the same level as she trusted Strand.

Besides, she knew Simon was only telling her about a third of the story at any time, and that was frustrating as hell. While he may have a crush on her, the only thing that she wanted from him was answers and ways to stop the world from ending and having it be their fault.

Knowing that next title was one that was fully intended as bait, Alex just shrugged half-heartedly, one of her shoulders moving up as she did it. Of course there was a grin coupled with it when she looked at him, one that was more than a little bit slum.]

Yeah. [The world was drawled out around her smile.] I suppose I can't deny that.

Then we're going with that then?

[It was a surprise that she had given in so quickly to it all. Of course, this wasn't a life or death conversation, or even a hypothetical life or death situation. They weren't arguing over demons or mythology. There were no rituals or black tapes involved. It was just, banter. Something that was typical for them but surprising when it held no weight to it at all. Like this, it was just relaxing.

Lying in bed with Alex tucked inside his arms was the most relaxing thing he had experienced in a very long time. He still wasn't used to it, but he could certainly get used to it. The idea of them being together like this, of this being an everyday situation. That was the reality of them running away, wasn't it? Them being together, being like this if they chose to be.

If it weren't for the fact that this wasn't them running away, that it was Thomas Warren's way of keeping them contained within their own minds, it would have been almost easy to settle into this as being a reality. At least as far as having here in his arms was concerned.]

I suppose. Maybe I should change the about me on my friendr. Right now it just talks about me liking good stories. Maybe it should say that I'm 'impulsively recklessly conclusion jumping, secretly a bad ass, a bad judge of character, pretty, feisty, tiny...

[But Alex wasn't quite done as she listed off the qualities that they'd agreed on. Nope, instead she spoke the list like she would have if it was part of a story for someone else, or the way that she had when they were deciding upon what they wanted to look for an apartment.

Well, almost because Alex wasn't done with the list. Not yet anyway, he'd be able to hear the smile coming in her voice even before she added the words to it.]

A small and delicate flower and annoyingly persistent.

[Banter was fun and it was easy as she moved to rest her palm against his chest to plant her chin on it and look up at him with quite an obvious smirk.]

The ones I said were about right.

[He returned to stroking her side again, fingers running up and down the area of clothing that covered her tattoo. In the back of his mind, there was a little voice that urged him to move his hand under her shirt, but he ignored it. It wasn't as if he didn't want to do those things, and Alex herself had said that it was alright to do them. It was the missing time that stopped him. The days of understanding and the secrets that he now carried on his own. He couldn't put the burden of their relationship that she didn't know onto her any more than he could tell her about Coralee and Howard, or her black tape.

It wasn't fair to her to do so, and he knew that.

What he was doing now, this was okay, almost innocent even. At least it was innocent enough for Richard to delude himself into thinking it was.]

It's also too long.

[If Alex wasn't sandwiched between his body and his hand she definitely would have moved into that touch again. Instead she just gave him a lazy smile, and her fingers absently moved across his chest below them in small, slow circles. Earlier alex had described this to herself as annoyingly perfect, but now she was finding it just perfect instead. Maybe calling herself a delicate flower was making Alex lose her edge a bit.

She didn't particularly mind. After all, Richard had edge enough for the both of them honestly and someone needed to make sure that he didn't get punched even if he was on his best behavior at the moment.

She knew him and knew the best behavior wouldn't last.

Her eyes sparkled and she looked more than a little amused before she asked simply:]

Have you looked at my friendr lately, Richard?

[Don't believe that tone, Richard. It's a trap.]

[For a moment, he looked down, watching her hand as it moved against his chest. That was, different. Certainly not something he was used to or expecting. He probably should have. Alex was the sort of person who thrived on touch, and, while he wasn't, he'd grown used to her taking his hand and staying close. Even to the point of reaching for her hand by himself now. Still, the touch, the intimacy of it was surprising.

Then she mentions her friendr, and he was confused even more. She knew well that he didn't pay attention to that stupid thing. In fact, he wouldn't even have one if it weren't for her standing over his shoulder and forcing him to have one. If he hadn't made it, he knew that she would have, and it would have been horrifying in the fact that she would be trying to force him into having friends. Something he was just fine with not having.

Should I have?

[Alex definitely grinned up at him with a look that was half-flirting and more than a little bit of a dare for him to take a glance at it sometime even if she coupled it with a little bit of a shrug of one shoulder. She'd done it after she'd made him set his up because it was only fair, and because she'd thought that he'd laugh at it more than anything else. After all, he was the one who had put that he had an Alex on his first. Turn about was only fair play.

Well, in this case not so much as fair play as taking it up five notches because that was Alex did with her legendary lack of chill. But she was trying to play it cool, and she just snuggled against him and rested her cheek on his chest once more with a satisfied smirk.]

You should take a look at it at some point, Richard.

[Richard frowned at the thought. Even the idea of having to look at that stupid thing again was distasteful. He had set his own up because of her insistence, but his plan had never been to follow through with the thing. In fact, Richard had planned to never look at his friendr again, to never answer a comment (should he ever get one). The fact that she was trying to get him to use the damned thing was vaguely annoying. Especially when she dangled mysteries in front of his face, and she knew it.]

I never wanted to go back on that ridiculous thing.

[It was a bait that she knew he would take, so he let go of her to lean over and grab his phone, quickly making his way to her friendr. The status caused him to raise a brow and smirk slightly. Strandsexual, was it?]

You realize there is more than one Strand, right?

[Technically that would include Charlie as well, which was a bit disturbing, all things considered.]

[Alex looked rather amused when he finally gave in and did it, and then when he smirked in response. Of course, the amusement faded a bit and she gave him a huffy sigh in response to that comment about being more than one Strand, and Alex just detangled from him enough to reach over and grasp her own phone from the nightstand on her side and start to type on it.]

You do realize when I say Strand, I actually only do mean you, right? I mean that's what I call you officially when I'm talking about you on the show or to people or whatever when I'm in a professional context.

[When he's just supposed to be the subject of her podcast and not you know, the man she loves and all of that. But she still does finish editing and then just says quickly:]

Okay, reload the page now, Dr. Strand.

[He smirked slightly. Richard knew exactly what Alex meant, but tormenting her was far more enjoyable than telling her how endearing it was. In fact, he would go to lengths to make sure that she didn't know just how charming he actually thought it was.

He doubted Coralee would have done something so silly, she was, without a doubt, a far more logical woman than Alex. One who could apparently easily leave her family without looking back. The fact of it would never cease to sting him to the core, but he didn't want to think about Coralee right now. Not when he had Alex in his arms. Even if not doing so would always be a struggle. Coralee had been a part of his life, his soul, for over twenty years after her disappearance. She was a large part of the reason he was the man he'd become.

He flicked back to her friendr profile and smirked.]

Very clear of you.

Edited 2018-06-08 02:51 (UTC)

[Alex was silly, and she was impulsive, and she was the sort of woman who did this sort of thing without any sort of thought beyond it and whether or not someone she loved would be amused by it. After all, it would take someone all of three seconds to read Strand's profile and realize that she was the annoyingly persistent woman who was forcing him to do it, so, she thought it would make him feel slightly better about the whole thing.

Besides, Alex had gotten a fairly good bead on when he was doing something to drive her mental after so long, and she knew that this was just one of those things that he would do. If nothing else, there was the smirk that was mirrored back at him quickly. Coralee would never wear her heart so openly on her sleeve, and Alex carried it around with practically a giant sign pointing to it. She couldn't help it, it was just who she was and she didn't want to change it.

She was fairly certain he wouldn't change it either, which was why she bumped him with her elbow a bit.]

Come on, it's at least worth a full on smile, Richard.

[Richard resisted the urge to roll his eyes at her prodding, at least until the second elbow to the ribs. then he rolled his eyes. Alex was, beyond a doubt, the most insistent and irritating woman he had ever met. That was including his Charlie, up to the point where she decided it was better not to have him in her life.

Even so, he knew he was more stubborn than her - most of the time. There was a battle of wills that worked between them that was tantamount to flirting for them, and, if he were frank, he relished it with a joy he hadn't felt in years. Her faces and tone was always a joy to watch come from her. The look of frustration was always just the beginning before it slowly dawned on her what he was doing. Then came the smirk that matched his own and, soon after, the battle of wills.

Fighting with Alex was, for Richard, almost like foreplay.

So he sighed lightly and looked over the friendr again before shaking his head and hooking it back over her shoulder.]

It's concise, at least.

[Alex would argue with that most of the time he was thinking that he was more stubborn than she was. At the most, it was maybe sixty percent of the time, but she was thinking that it was somewhere more akin to fifty/fifty. Besides, someone need to keep his ego in check, and considering the amount of time that she spent building it up, she needed to at least need to help bring it down into some sort of manageable level for her.

Even if her manageable level tended to still be a far bit higher than everyone else's.

But she knew how much he liked fighting her, at least when it wasn't over things that were important. But for things like where to get fast food on the road, or who to drive or stupid things like this one right here, those were fights that she actually liked as much as he did. Which is why with his head hooked over her shoulder she just smirked at him for a long moment.]

I suppose it's passable.

Open post for May.

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