a case of l-o-v-e [zell]

[ashlyn louise lightwood]

I CAN TELL YOU BABY HONESTLY I’D RATHER HAVE YOU BE WITH ME
i know you can be my boyfriend

[/b][/i]
I CAN BE YOUR GIRLFRIEND WE CAN GET THROUGH ANYTHING & EVERYTHING.[/font][/size][/size][/size]

.....[/center][/b]

It had been a bizarre morning for the older Lightwood daughter, like she’d been plucked from her real life by a nasty tornado that dropped her down into a different one- still her life, but vastly different. She’d felt it as soon as she’d drifted into subconscious awareness, this hole where something had used to be. It badgered at her as she fully woke up, still tangled in her sheets and the sleepy warmth of her bed; pestered her as she groggily rolled out of bed and ventured downstairs for breakfast, mumbling tired “g’mornin’"s to any family members she happened to stumble past; nagged at her as she tripped back upstairs to make herself presentable for the day. It hit her, what this elephant in the room was, as she tugged a brush through her snarled hair: she was single. The sheer ridiculousness of the idea stunned her into a nonfunctional state of mind as she puzzled out how this had happened. Wait. Wait wait wait. She’d broken up with Julian last night. Her reflection in the mirror stared back at her blankly, offering no suggestions on how she could’ve forgotten something so vital. It seemed fitting, suddenly, how strange her morning had been, considering the gaping hole somewhere in her chest, ripped open by the lack of Julian filling it.

Her mind whirling, she remembered telling him that she didn’t love him as much as she’d used to. That she had another option she wanted to pursue. He’d gotten mad and unreasonable, which had sparked her temper; she’d thrown his ring back in his face before storming out of his apartment, fuming, leaving a baffled Jules in her wake. Ash looked at her fingers, suddenly aware of how light they felt without the weight of the promise ring her boyfriend- no, ex-boyfriend- had given her for their six month anniversary. It looked… odd. A slightly paler band of skin looped around her left ring finger, the only evidence now of the ring she hadn’t taken off for eight months. She’d broken up with Julian. She was single. Usually, she would’ve already snagged another beau. If not, she would’ve told Lils, and there’d be plans mapped out to go boyfriend hunting for her. No male would be safe.

But she hadn’t told Lillian. With a growing spark of excitement and a coiling bundle of nerves, the redhead realized that she’d had an idea of what she was doing when she’d broken up with her boyfriend. She hadn’t come straight home the night before; she’d stopped by the Institute. Asked Max to slip a quickly scribbled note under Zell’s door. Coney Island. Noon. By the ferris wheel. Don’t be late, Zellie. it had said. Glancing quickly at her clock, the nephilim realized that it was already almost eleven, and she still had to get ready and get all the way down to Coney Island. Shit. Scrambling, Ash clicked on her hair straightener before jumping in the shower. Fast forward twenty minutes, some steam, and a bit of cursing, she stood in front of her closet in her bra and panties, facing the dilemma of what the hell do I wear? She never thought she’d wish for Kael’s fashion guidance, but she suddenly did. With a heavy sigh, she grabbed at clothing, tugging and pulling and zipping and buttoning until she was dressed in something she thought Kael would be proud of and Zell would like. Lacey leggings under short denim shorts, a white tank top, her black hunting boots, and a couple of flowery rings, one on each hand with a chunky black ring on her right thumb. Pleased, the girl darted downstairs, calling good byes and be back laters as she hurried out the door, grabbing a leather jacket off the coat rack when she noticed the wet pavement outside.

-----

Glancing at the clock on her phone, Ashlyn swore softly. 12:09 pm. She was late. Stretching up onto her tiptoes to look above the heads in the crowd blocking her view, she found the ferris wheel easily. She noticed that Zell had beaten her there, and upon seeing him the butterflies rolling around in her stomach fluttered into a mad frenzy. Dropping down onto the balls of her feet, she loped over to the bench he’d situated himself on. “Hey sexy,”

[/b] she greeted, smiling apologetically for her lateness. Shoving her hands into the pockets of her jacket- grabbing which had been a wise decision, since the wind was blowing a cool breeze off of the Lower Bay and clouds were hogging all of the sun’s warmth to themselves- she shifted from one foot to the other. What should she say? ‘I just broke up with Jules because I think I love you. Wanna be my boyfriend?’? How was it that she’d ever managed to talk to boys before? Her tongue felt like a useless piece of rubber. Then again, she’d never really had to ask anyone to be her boyfriend; it had always just sort of worked out, an unspoken agreement a couple of days after they’d met at a party and made out, while they were holding hands and actually getting to know each other.

When she’d made the decision to meet him last night, Ash had had the intention of just marching over here and asking him to be her boyfriend. Simple, straight and to the point ‘Do you wanna be my boyfriend?’ But now that she was actually here, looking down at him with his blue, blue, blue eyes and adorable mess of brown hair, she couldn’t bring herself to do it. “About that ultimatum you made a couple of weeks ago,”[/b] she started slowly, averting her gaze to look over at a seagull as it pecked a t a soggy nacho. “Would that still apply if I was your girlfriend?”[/b] Hazel eyes glanced at him sheepishly, a slight pinkish tinge spreading across her cheeks. There. She’d asked. Indirectly, yes, but she’d asked.
[/justify][/size]

.....

tagged : zellie.
words : nine nine seven.
lyrics : “right here” by heyhihello.
outfit : leather and flowers.
notes. : whoa. didn’t mean for it to be that long.

[/blockquote][/blockquote][/size]

[zell price nitar]

Waking up to a slip of paper under your foot wasn't the most pleasant thing in the world, Zell had to admit. What if he'd gotten a paper cut? Those things hurt like hell, and he knew what hell felt like! He'd rather fight off a pack of raum demons than get one of those god-awful slices of revenge from the paper. Leaning down, he picked up the note and scanned over it. He'd have lied if he said he wasn't surprised. It was written all over his face, but luckily he was still in the comforting solitude of his room in the institute. That way, no one could see how vulnerable he actually looked in that moment. It was uncomfortable, even to himself. It wasn't like he didn't expect her to talk to him at some point after the incident that drunken night, but by note? And at Coney Island? That was spontaneous, and well, he kind of enjoyed it.

Glancing at the clock, Zell smirked. It was only ten in the morning. Grabbing a change of clothes, he went into his bathroom and took a shower. He made sure to use extra body wash this time to make him smell even better than usual. It was something called Axe. He'd bought it on one of his adventures through the American culture and thought it smelled like badass in a bottle. After he was all nice and clean, Zell dried off and got out to redress himself. He slipped his boxer briefs on and looked at himself in the mirror, running an unoccupied hand through his messy wet hair. There really wasn't a way in the world to tame that brunette mane of his, and he'd given up hope a long time ago. It always looked awesome when it was wet, though, because of how tamed and slick it looked. Maybe it was just him.

Zell slipped a long-sleeve shirt on and some jeans and looked at himself once again. Really, he thought this was a suitable outfit for the day's activities. Sure, it was bound to be hot, but Zell didn't like being exposed in public all that much. His aunt always told him it was from all that fighting, that it made him paranoid about how many potential demons or threats were around him on the streets. He just liked to call it being prepared. If it was going to be related to any sort of overrated mental disorder, then Zell was going to relate it to OCD. If he didn't feel like he could take on a greater demon at any point in his day, what kind of a nephilim would he be? After all, he was only in New York to help the nephilim out with their problems. If he proved himself to be useless, he'd walk himself back to Tokyo with nothing but his katana and half a canteen of water to whip himself back into shape.

That being said, Zell slipped a dagger into one of his pockets and his cell phone in the other, just in case. Just in case. He sighed and ran his hands over his face and through his almost-dried hair once more. He pushed it over to one side so it at least looked somewhat managed. Not giving a word to anyone, Zell made his way outside and on the way to Coney Island. He let Rhett sleep in on purpose so he wouldn't have to explain anything or get a lecture about how they were supposed to stay there until they were called out or whatever. Zell couldn't stay inside and Rhettie knew that. He proceeded down the sidewalk, almost eager to see why Ashlyn had wanted to meet him at Coney. He wondered why he'd even made a silent agreement to go in the first place, seeing as they hadn't interacted or even seen each other for weeks.

After he bought his ticket in, Zell glanced at his watch. 12:00 on the dot. Great. Now he looked desperate since he got there exactly when she told him to. It was coincidental! Chewing on his lower lip, Zell looked around idly for Ashlyn by the ferris wheel. Stupid ferris wheels. Once, when his parents took him to an amusement park, Zell was so desperate to ride one. That is, until the stupid seat rocked! Of course, his mother was holding onto him, but Zell peered over the edge and literally started screaming and kept doing so until they were off the ride. He's never been the biggest fan of heights, obviously. Swallowing hard, he decided to sit down for the moment being.

Raising an eyebrow, Zell looked up at Ashlyn, who was late. It made him feel better, though. At least she wasn't there to be so content that he looked so whipped with his timing. "And you told me not to be late?"

[/color] He teased, letting a small smirk beam at her. She looked... really good. Like, better than usual. If that was possible. Looking up into those hazel eyes, he did exactly what he did the other night. He measured her, tried to read her and her intentions. Then, she averted her gaze. Cheater. At the ultimatum statement, Zell fought to keep his eyes from widening like they wanted to. Was this happening? He didn't even think she'd remember that. And then she basically asked if he wanted her to be his girlfriend.

Whoa, back up. This was a dream. Zell didn't have girlfriends, he had hook-ups and one-night-stands. Commitment was the last legal form of slavery and he had no desire to urge it on. So why was he actually considering it for this girl? Why was she so damned special to him? Running a hand over his face in thought and leaving it on his mouth, he looked up at Ash to try and help him out. Looks like he'd won the chase, but had he wanted it to go this far? The sad part was that he did want it to go this far. He could only imagine the people back home making fun of him for this. Well, they wouldn't have to know until it was mandatory... Mentally groaning at all the thoughts going through his head, Zell glanced down at the seagull and grinned to himself, the corner of his mouth upturning from the side of his hand. "If this is some set-up to get your boyfriend to beat me up, I'll gladly accept the challenge."[/color] He said, only loud enough to be heard over the crowd. This was a landmark in the making. He was allowed to be in shock.[/blockquote][/justify]

tagged; ashie.
words; 1110
outfit; this!
notes; SLAM SLAM OH HOT DAMN AT MY WORD COUNT!

[/size][/font][/blockquote]

[ashlyn louise lightwood]

I CAN TELL YOU BABY HONESTLY I’D RATHER HAVE YOU BE WITH ME
i know you can be my boyfriend

[/b][/i]
I CAN BE YOUR GIRLFRIEND WE CAN GET THROUGH ANYTHING & EVERYTHING.[/font][/size][/size][/size]

.....[/center][/b]

Zell looked better than usual, even though he was wearing clothes no different from the ones she’d seen him in when they’d first met, or after that night in the greenhouse when their paths happened to cross in the Institute. Either way, she liked the way his long sleeved tee hugged against his chest, fitted but not clingy. She remembered how nice his torso had looked without the shirt, all hard muscle and soft, warm skin. Yeah, she’d been completely trashed, but no one gave her any credit; she remembered the majority of what had gone down that night in the greenhouse. Their hands had been all over each other, and his lips had tasted like vodka, and he’d politely prevented her from taking her cheating a step further by refusing to make out with her. Instead, he’d issued the ultimatum that they shouldn’t kiss again until they were both sober.

And now she was completely, totally and one hundred percent sober. Not only that, but she was also single, so if she kissed him again, she wouldn’t be cheating on anyone. “I’m only eleven minutes late!”

[/b] she countered, glancing down and embarrassedly scuffing the toes of her shoes against the wooden planks of the boardwalk. She glanced up through her lashes, smiling shyly at the brunette. “I overslept,”[/b] she explained, shrugging. Why did the idea of waking up cuddled against him in the late morning sunlight suddenly flit through her mind? Bad Ashlyn. Bad. You hardly ever spent the night at Julian’s, and now you’re thinking of waking up with another boy who isn’t even yours? But if he wasn’t hers, why did Ashlyn want to settle down on his lap so badly? To nestle her head under his chin and breathe in the scent of him as he told her about his day, or his life back before he’d jetted halfway across the world to wind up here, in lively New York City?

He wiped his hand over his face when she asked him about his ultimatum, if it would still apply if they were dating. Ashlyn felt the muscles in her shoulders tense, an instinctive reaction whenever someone took something she said and reacted to it by dragging a hand over his features. It rarely meant good news. "If this is some set-up to get your boyfriend to beat me up, I'll gladly accept the challenge." “I, uhm, actually just broke up with Jul-”[/b] she trailed off as her brain finished processing what he’d said, comprehending the message and then telling her mouth to shut up. He accepted the challenge? Ashlyn blinked at him, her eyebrows unconsciously knitting together in mild confusion. She felt her nose crinkle with the action, a physical habit that she’d inherited from her mom. Sure, there was no challenge, but he accepted? Was that a yes? Her eyes widened slightly. That had to be a yes. Right? “Wait, is that a yes?”[/b] The redhead knocked her head slightly to the side, gauging whether or not he was kidding, play a cruel joke when she’d just laid down her armor and made herself vulnerable to him. He couldn’t possibly know how difficult it was for her to break down and actually ask him, how far out of her comfort zone she was stepping just to take this chance before it passed her by. She was always the chance, always the one boys- and sometimes even a few girls- tried to catch before she passed them by. This situation reversal felt odd, foreign; she wondered how she looked, if he wanted to grab at her hips like he had the other night when she’d been drunk, or if he wanted to tangle his fingers in her hair and kiss her. If he wanted to walk down the boardwalk holding her hand as badly as she wanted to.

“You’ll be my boyfriend?”[/b] the redhead asked, though she couldn’t hide the smile that was spreading over her face. Ash plopped down on the bench next to him, beaming because he’d agreed! Honestly, she’d expected Zell to be a bit more of a challenge. A harder nut to crack. Pressing her thigh against his, she looked up at him, resisting the urge to get completely physical and hold his hand, or wrap her arm around his waist. They’d already been physical enough in their relationship, she decided. It was time for them to take it slow, to switch it up from all of her others. “I’m honestly a little surprised that you aren’t demanding to get to know me first. For all you know, I could be an emotionally needy chick who never lets her boyfriend out of sight.”[/b] The nephilim looked up at him, nudging him playfully in the side to reassure him that she was not, in fact, an emotionally needy, clingy girlfriend. The opposite, in fact. Most girls kept their boyfriends on a short leash; Ashlyn trusted her boyfriends enough not to even clip the leash on their collar, so long as they knew her name was on the tag hanging around their necks.
[/justify][/size]

.....

tagged : zellie.
words : eight five oh.
lyrics : “right here” by heyhihello.
outfit : leather and flowers.
notes. : twenty questions, anyone?

[/blockquote][/blockquote][/size]

[zell price nitar]

Zell liked how conservative yet revealing Ashlyn's outfit was. Without his realization, it was just his type of outfit. It proposed a challenge and a mystery all in one, like there was something behind the curtain. No one in Tokyo ever dressed like that. All the girls usually dressed in a revealing way. Well, the ones he encountered at the karaoke bars and other places. He tended to go to a lot of those karaoke joints and sing just to get girls to swoon over him. Not that he knew it, himself, but Zell had an awesome singing voice. It was sort of raspy with a twang of rock and jazz all at the same time. It went exactly with his image, that lady-killer kind of thing he had going for him. Not that that wasn't an accurate stereotype for him or anything. He did use his voice just to do more reinforcement of the label. Ah, well. It was all in the past.

Despite it all being behind him, Zell still couldn't get the thought of a girlfriend out of the con category. Then again, this was Ashlyn, the very girl who he actually wanted to be around for more than one day. For more than a night or two in bed. He wanted to walk down the streets holding her hand and take her to all the places she wanted to go. He wanted to make her smile and laugh with genuine happiness, not that phony shit that some girls pulled just to get what they wanted. This sudden sappy train of thought almost made Zell nauseous. If this all went through, Ashlyn was going to have to bear with him, because he was definitely one of the least experienced when it came to relationships or girls in general. He usualy didn't take the time to get the know them at all. He just made them fall for him and, sparing the details, left the next morning without a word just so he wouldn't have to deal with them.

So, was he really the best candidate to be a boyfriend? Zell almost felt like he'd be the worst boyfriend known to man just because he fell under the category of troublemaker. Not only that, but all of his past history wasn't the prettiest. So what qualified him to deserve someone like Ashlyn? He knew she wasn't exactly the most innocent herself, but it still felt like he was dirt compared to her sunshine. This was one of the only times that Zell wasn't confident in himself, but he blamed it on the ferris wheel. The very threat it set by its existance was setting him off of his game. He just hoped he wouldn't have to ride it today. That was one thing he'd refuse to do, no matter how much Ash wanted to. Just, no. He'd buy her a bear or something to make up for it. That was what normal boyfriends did, right? Won stuffed animals for their girlfriend? That's what they did in movies. Zell was mentally groaning. Relationships were so mentally unstable that it was unhinging him.

"Only? That's eleven minutes of my time that I could've spent doing something productive like eating at McDonalds."

[/color] Zell smirked at himself and at his endless teasing. He couldn't help it! It just kind of tumbled out of his mouth with no warning. It seemed like Ash was either used to it or it was in her nature to retaliate. He felt kind of bad, though. She just seemed so vulnerable and here he was, trying to blow off that entire emotion that she probably fought to bring on. Shut up, conscience. He yelled at his little voice and looked up at Ashlyn, who was blurting that she'd broken up with Julian until she cut herself off. Why had she done that? They'd been together for a while, right? She couldn't be that infatuated with Zell to cut that off. Right? This was all so complicated. Zell looked over at the railing and debated jumping off.

When she asked if it was a yes, Zell looked up at her and then averted his gaze again, swallowing hard against the growing knot in his throat. This was it. If she'd accept that yes, that is. He didn't know if she'd take that as an answer or demand another one. In fact, he didn't know very much about her at all. Of course, he could read her personality well enough to almost predict reactions, but as far as the littler things went, he was lost. What was her favorite color? Animal? Ice cream flavor? He absentmindedly pursed his lips in thought. Well that would come with time, obviously. Or he could just figure it out in a game of twenty questions and have that over with, storing the information in a database in his brain labelled either "Ashlyn" or "Ashie." He couldn't decide which. Then again, that was completely unrealistic. Zell tended to get that way when he was lost in thought.

Brought back to earth, Zell looked at Ashlyn and her beaming smile as she asked again. He couldn't hold back a soft grin. When had he become such a softie? This just wasn't going to happen in an easy, dignified way, was it? He was going into the last legal form of slavery and he was actually willing. From that point on, Zell didn't really know how or what to think, so he just went with his instincts. Admittedly, those weren't always reliable, but it was all he had. He felt her thigh against his and the sudden body heat of the two of them mixed with the August weather of New York. And surprisingly, he felt fine. He laughed at her surprise and shook his head, "Then I take back my yes until after we know a little bit more about each other. I mean, look at where we are. These rides would be the perfect places to play an extremely elongated game of twenty questions."[/color] He said, friendly sarcasm dripping from his tone of voice. He felt a little more like himself now that he was back to his joker self that was always turning things into games. Of course, he hadn't actually revoked his yes, but games were always fun.[/blockquote][/justify]

tagged; ashie.
words; 1056
outfit; this!
notes; whoa muse calm down.

[/size][/font][/blockquote]

[ashlyn louise lightwood]

I CAN TELL YOU BABY HONESTLY I’D RATHER HAVE YOU BE WITH ME
i know you can be my boyfriend

[/b][/i]
I CAN BE YOUR GIRLFRIEND WE CAN GET THROUGH ANYTHING & EVERYTHING.[/font][/size][/size][/size]

.....[/center][/b]

Despite the inevitable rumors that flitted around the Downworld about Ashlyn Lightwood- that she was a skank, a slut, an insecure little girl with daddy issues who put out on the first date, an emotionless bitch who’d never felt anything for a single one of the boys she’d dated- she really was made of more girlfriend-y material than she was slut material. The mere thought of hooking up with a stranger rolled her stomach into uncomfortable knots and sent her skin crawling at the wrongness of it. Even if the stranger was one who jumpstarted her heart until it preformed daring acrobatic feats around her ribcage, one who radiated potential to be the one, to be her Prince Charming. To even consider sharing that raw, carnal pleasure for the first time, the male in question needed to be someone she trusted. She needed to know that it meant something more than just a quick fix to animalistic instinct, that she wasn’t just a convenient warm body. Zell had already proven to her that he didn’t intend to use her; he’d had the perfect opportunity to fuck and run. An attractive girl, drunk and willing, had allowed his advances on her despite the fact that she knew that he knew about her boyfriend. An easy target, Yet he’d declined and stepped away instead of taking advantage of her. Somewhere deep down, Ash knew that if it had been Julian she’d stumbled upon in the greenhouse that night, he wouldn’t’ have handled the situation anywhere near as gallantly as Zell had. Which is why the nephilim had broken up with him, despite all of his promise and potential to be the one.

So here she was. Trapped on the side of the road with her rotten pumpkin, flagging down another prince headed home from the ball. “If you’re that worried about eleven measly minutes, I’m sure I could think of some way to make it up to you.”

[/b] She shrugged, feeling her arm brush against his. Two layers separated them from full out skin on skin contact. Two admittedly decent sized layers on their arms, leather and cotton. Her lacey leggings barely counted, though, not compared to his tough denim jeans. “Y’know, if you do decide to be my boyfriend.”[/b] she added when he retracted his indirect yes. She couldn’t say she blamed him for changing his mind, even jokingly; she was one of those rare people who actually chose to date someone she barely knew, reordering the steps and getting to know them after they’d- silently- confirmed that it was indeed a relationship. Not many people plunged in headfirst like her, without bothering to test the waters first.

“ These rides would be the perfect places to play an extremely elongated game of twenty questions." Uh-oh. He’d just given her an idea. If he stuck around and maybe actually agreed to catapult himself from date status to boyfriend status, he’d learn not to suggest things around her that he wasn’t serious about actually following through with. She tended to latch on to ideas that piqued her interest or amused her with a childish determination; trying to convince her to change her mind usually resulted in an argument, pouting and coercing on her part until she got what she wanted. Hopping easily to her feet, the redhead turned towards Zell, catching hold of his wrist and tugging at it to get him off the bench. If she really wanted to, she could tug him off the bench and onto his feet, but gravity being such a fickle thing, they’d probably wind up sprawled out on the boardwalk in a tangled heap of limbs, battered and bruised. And as far as she was concerned, there would be no tangled heap of limbs this early on in their possible relationship, gallant or not. “Okay, but remember that you’re the one who suggested it.”[/b] she giggled, finally succeeding in getting him to his feet and pulling him after her through the crowd into the line for the ferris wheel. She’d seen him eyeing it earlier, and assumed that he’d never been in one and wanted to try it out.

Planting herself in front of him in the line, the girl stood facing the boy who would more likely than not be her Zellie by the time the sun sunk beneath the Hudson skyline that evening. She stuck her hand under her chin, her pointer finger extended to press over her lips in a classic thinking stance as she contemplated her first question. It all boiled down to what did she want to know about him? The answer: a lot. Possibly everything. But where to start? Should she dive right in with deep, personal questions such as his religious beliefs of previous relationships, or test the waters with easy questions like his favorite color or birthday? The female pressed closer to him as the crowd around them grew thicker, mere inches separating them instead of the comfortable foot and a half of space Ashlyn had started off with. So much for personal space. Not that the nephilim girl was a big fan of that when her boyfriend was concerned. He’d learn, if he hadn’t already caught on, that she was a rather physical person, up close and personal. “Question number one,”[/b] she said ceremoniously, like the Olympics version of twenty questions was about to commence and the entire crowd needed to quiet down and listen. “What’s your full name, first middle and last?”[/b] The redhead cocked her head to the side, eyes wide with curiosity as she stepped backwards, shifting with the rest of the line.
[/justify][/size]

.....

tagged : zellie.
words : nine four zero.
lyrics : “right here” by heyhihello.
outfit : leather and flowers.
notes. : she will make him go on the ferris wheel. it will happen, and he will enjoy it. or at least not be scared shitless.

[/blockquote][/blockquote][/size]

[zell price nitar]

Raising an eyebrow at her suggestive reasoning, Zell nodded. That could make up for the eleven minutes that he'd lost. That is, 'if' he decided to be her boyfriend. Yeah, like there was an if involved at all. He'd already beaten himself up through mental decision-making processes to the point where being in a relationship didn't seem as burdening as it had the day before. Although it'd be strange, it wouldn't exactly be out of the ordinary for him. He knew one day that he would have to stop being such a prick in the area of girls, but he didn't think that day would come so soon and so willingly. That's the thing with feelings, though. Controlling them was nearly impossible if they were strong enough. Zell held back the urge to roll his eyes at himself. He was beginning to sound like a crappy romance novel or some Twilight spin-off. Luckily, he'd never say anything like that out loud. If he did, he'd just surrender himself to Lake Lynn's sickening grip.

At Ashlyn's sudden movement from the bench, Zell obediently lifted himself off as well at the tug of his wrist. Had she actually taken him seriously? Oh, no. He was never one to spill everything about himself on a first date, if that was what this was, now. He couldn't say no now, though. He'd been the one to suggest it. Dammit. Now he was a goner for sure. What if he said something she didn't like? What if she made him ride something? All of the rides were really high for the most part and Zell had never been a roller coaster person in the first place. His gut was telling him that this was going to be a total disaster, but for some reason, he went with it anyway. Now his logic was failing him, too.

His gut had been right. His eyes widened at the sight of the ferris wheel and he just about snatched his wrist back when she pulled him into the line for it. There was no way that Zell was going to ride this. Swallowing hard, he winced at the memory and looked at Ashlyn. Zell didn't have a lot of weaknesses and he hated showing them, but he already blew enough dignity today already, so why not blow it all out of the way and get it over with? He almost felt his face turning white at the thought of being on that ride again. The shaky seats and the creaking sounds from the ride plus the height and the constant fear of falling to his death swarmed his brain and he nearly choked on it all. He couldn't do this, but pulling away would be rude. Oh, great. Now he was considering manners in front of his interests. He was going to put an end to this undoing of himself at some point, he hoped, or he wouldn't know who he was anymore!

He tried to speak up, but the lump in his throat choked him out, so a sort of croak came out and he looked down at Ash, who was basically leaning on him because of how long and crowded the line had become. Not that he particularly minded those parts of the wait. He'd been too focused on his future demise to pay attention to her thinking stance, so when she asked a question, he was caught off-guard. That was a no-brainer though, so he kinda babbled it all out. "My entire name? Zell Price Nitar. It earned me the nickname 'Priceless' in a few situations."

[/color] He cleared his throat. He didn't want to admit defeat, but they were stepping closer and closer to the monstrosity and he was growing shakier and shakier by the second. "What's your... favorite... animal?"[/color] He said, straining to think of something besides himself and his fears. He never got this shaken up over anything. It was frustrating that the very thought of heights was making him go mental.[/blockquote][/justify]

tagged; ashie.
words; 669
outfit; this!
notes; ... my muse calmed down. lol.

[/size][/font][/blockquote]

[ashlyn louise lightwood]

I CAN TELL YOU BABY HONESTLY I’D RATHER HAVE YOU BE WITH ME
i know you can be my boyfriend

[/b][/i]
I CAN BE YOUR GIRLFRIEND WE CAN GET THROUGH ANYTHING & EVERYTHING.[/font][/size][/size][/size]

.....[/center][/b]

He winced as she dragged him into line for the ferris wheel, resisting slightly against her tugging at his wrist Uh-oh. Maybe Zell hadn’t been looking at the ferris wheel curiously, like he wanted to try it. Maybe she’d misread his expression. The closer the line moved towards the giant metal contraption, the shakier and more rattled the brunette seemed to get. He grew pale as he looked down at her, his eyes pleading some intent that she couldn’t quite decipher on his still fairly unfamiliar features. Ashlyn blinked, surprised, when her brain made the connection between his expression and the emotion it portrayed. Fear. He was afraid of ferris wheels? That seemed like a silly thing to be afraid of, especially for a shadohunter who no doubt jumped into the frays of battle with no hesitation. And they fought demons, for crying out loud! The guards of hell, the haunts of unimaginable worlds, didn’t scare him, but an amusement park ride did? Zell tried to say something to her, but his voice came out as a hoarse croak, and that’s when she realized just how terrified he had be.

Wrapping an arm around his waist and slipping her fingers under the hem of his shirt to rub small circles into his sweaty skin, Ashlyn felt the tremors shaking through his clammy body, and felt immensely bad for causing this reaction in the first place. Leading him gently out of line and through the weaving throngs of people, heading away from the dreaded ferris wheel, the redhead pressed herself firmly against Zell’s side until she felt his trembling decrease to a mild thrum against her side. “Sorry,”

[/b] she mumbled, rolling onto her toes to kiss his cheek briefly. “I didn’t know…”[/b] Her voice trailed off, because she had no idea what exactly she didn’t know. She couldn’t fathom where to start searching for how to fill in the blank. This wasn’t going nearly as swimmingly as she’d fantasized it would. Not that she’d really had time to fantasize about how the day would go after she asked him to be her boyfriend, aside from a gazillion different ways he could reject her. If she had had time, she certainly wouldn’t have imagined scaring her new boyfriend into a panic attack within the first fifteen minutes of their relationship.

He babbled an answer to her question as she led him through the crowd. “Zell Price Nitar,”[/b] she mimicked, testing how his name felt in her mouth. The letters rolled off of her tongue, and she kind of liked the way her tongue brushed against the back of her front teeth on the l’s, the way she had to suck in air to start his last name. Sidestepping to tow Zell toward the beach, Ashlyn contemplated his question before untangling herself from him- she didn’t want to get too comfortable with the close quarters until she was sure that he wasn’t going to mind her physical affections- and leaning against the railing separating the wooden boardwalk from the grainy sand. “Goldfish,”[/b] she decided. Realizing that most boys expected girls to answer the favorite animal question with something a bit fuzzier and cuddlier, she went on to elaborate. “Goldfish supposedly have a really short memory, only about three seconds or something. I dunno, I guess I just like the idea of everything always being new and unexplored, yet at the same time vaguely familiar, since studies have shown that goldfish can remember their owner’s face or that someone tapping the side of the tank means they’re going to be fed.”[/b] She shrugged, looking down from holding Zell’s gaze, as she had been. She flushed slightly, scuffing her boot against the boardwalk embarrassedly. “It’d just be nice if the unexplored felt safe, y’know?”[/b]

Snapping to attention, she held a finger warningly in his direction. “That was a rhetorical question, and doesn’t count as number two. Number two is…”[/b] Ash trailed off, her gaze falling on the ferris wheel stretching high above the kiddie rides like the merry-go-round and bumper cars. “Do you have any major fears?”[/b] Hazel eyes met blue sheepishly, proclaiming a silent apology for towing him into a situation that had been uncomfortable to him.
[/justify][/size]

.....

tagged : zellie.
words : seven oh three.
lyrics : “right here” by heyhihello.
outfit : leather and flowers.
notes. : i lie. my inner ash felt too bad to drag him onto the ride.

[/blockquote][/blockquote][/size]

[zell price nitar]

Zell knew that heights were seriously one of the more stupid things someone could be afraid of, but he couldn't help it. He remembered when he dragged Rhett to the top of a building to train just so he might be able to overcome it, but he ended up freaking out as soon as he got up there, running back down in a rush and leaving Rhett behind by a long shot. He felt like a buzz kill as she lead him away from the line, like he'd sucked all the possible joy out of this entire situation. He couldn't say he wasn't thankful that she'd realized before he had to say something, though. At least she could read him and save him the trouble of admitting defeat. He absolutely hated doing that. If anyone back home could see him now, they'd laugh their asses off. Zell always acted savvy and controlled around them, and look at him now.

As the shaking finally lightened up, Zell heard Ashlyn apologize. What in the world was the reasoning behind that? "No, I'm sorry. I'm acting like such a basket case."

[/color] He welcomed the kiss on his cheek with a soft smile and sighed a little, to himself. He felt like he was ruining her day more than anything. If he knew girls as well as he thought he did, she probably thought up exactly how this would go and outlined it accordingly, and he'd just torn down that outline with no sympathy without realizing it. She probably thought that they'd ride the ferris wheel like in old sappy romance movies and flirt, ask questions, hold hands like any normal couple would do. Well, there went that ideal. These cutesy things just didn't come naturally to him. Then again, why would they?

He nodded once, confirming the name that she repeated. It sounded like she was testing the name out. Odd, but Zell went with it. He had a nice name, so he didn't worry about exactly what her intentions happened to have been. He obediently followed her towards the beach, one of the more appealing features to this amusement park, in Zell's opinion. Plus, it was actually really pretty. The water was clear for the most part, apart from a few pieces of litter and some pollution, but this was New York. How clean could water really stay? There was already smog floating around in the air, but Zell was used to that. Hell, he'd lived in Tokyo, and it wasn't exactly the cleanest place, either.

When she untangled herself from his side, Zell felt a little disappointed, but he kept his straight face for the most part, apart from watching her walk away. That made him feel desperate, so he shrugged it off and kept walking. He leaned his back to the railing on the boardwalk and looked up at the blue sky. It was actually really nice weather today, so it wasn't as unexpected for this place to be crowded. In fact, it was never expected to be empty. He'd heard of Coney Island back home, too. He was one of the few, sure, but he'd heard of it. Now that he was here, though, it seemed less extraordinary. There weren't a lot of theme parks where he came from, and he was sort of glad for that now.

By the angel, he needed a cigarette. Smoking was a bad habit, blah blah blah. He knew, and he knew well. His aunt repeatedly went off on frenzies about it, but that didn't stop him. Zell started smoking when he was about sixteen, so it wasn't elongated by any means. He knew that didn't make it any better on him, but he liked to think it did just to block out the various bad outcomes. Raising an eyebrow, Zell was curious. A goldfish? He turned his attention to her, gaze and all as he listened to her explanation. It was a rather elaborate one at that. He hadn't known that goldfish were so appealing until that very moment. He just thought they were petty five year old pets that died within a week's time. Now he felt like there was a deeper aspect of them, as strange as that sounded. The newly found knowledge would probably be discarded by the next day, though, just because Zell didn't tend to keep things that didn't apply to his immediate interests. For the moment, though, goldfish were awesome little guys.

About to answer the rhetorical question to get out of another one, Zell snapped his mouth shut and grinned as she pointed a finger at him and told him not to answer. Blast. At the next question after following her gaze to the dreaded ride from before, Zell let out a light chuckle at himself. "Yeah. Heights. Ever since I was little, I haven't been able to deal with them. It all started with a ferris wheel."[/color] He shrugged and looked down, sort of embarrassed. "I know it's stupid. Like, oh I fight all the time and should have virtually no fears due to the things I've seen. You'd think that something as petty as being a few hundred feet in the air wouldn't freak me out to the point of a panic attack, but, there you have it."[/color] He turned, leaning down and setting his arms casually on the railing. "Apart from that, I don't have many fears. I used to fear my aunt's cooking, but that was a joke. Mostly."[/color] He smirked, glancing down at the sand contently before looking back up at Ashlyn. "Alright, question numero dos. What is your absolute favorite memory?"[/color] He asked, in contrary to the bad memories he had recently experienced. Zell wanted to bring in some bright ones instead.[/blockquote][/justify]

tagged; ashie.
words; 963
outfit; this!
notes; hey zell did you drop your arrogance somewhere or are you really a sap at heart?

[/size][/font][/blockquote]

[ashlyn louise lightwood]

I CAN TELL YOU BABY HONESTLY I’D RATHER HAVE YOU BE WITH ME
i know you can be my boyfriend

[/b][/i]
I CAN BE YOUR GIRLFRIEND WE CAN GET THROUGH ANYTHING & EVERYTHING.[/font][/size][/size][/size]

.....[/center][/b]

Ash chuckled, shaking her head slightly as Zell apologized to her for being a basket case. Rolling her eyes, she joked “I’ve been told I drive boys mad. I take full responsibility if you suddenly contract a case of lunacy.”

[/b] He went on to answer about his fear of heights and his aunt’s cooking; the first had spawned from an incident on a ferris wheel, the latter was mostly a joke. The redhead felt guilty for digging up the panic attack, stirring the long dormant fear of heights into a frenzy by suddenly putting the brunette in the middle of a towering jungle of skyscrapers and roller coasters. She almost apologized again, but he’d already told her that it wasn’t her fault, so with a frustrated sigh she let the matter drop. Coming to stand by his side, close but not close enough too close, the nephilim leaned against the railing, one elbow and one forearm pressed against the hot steel. Propping her head in her hand, she turned her head to look at Zell, one eyebrow slanting up into a curious arch as he asked her about her absolute favorite memory.

“Um…”[/b] Ashlyn trailed off in thought, tapping her fingernails against the metal railing. Dadarink. Dadarink. She could barely hear the hollow metallic sound over the roar of the ocean and the squeals of small children’s laughter. What was her absolute favorite memory? It was a good question, the kind that made her have to pause and think of an accurate response, one that she couldn’t just rattle off like the answer had been sitting on the tip of her tongue. Sure, she could easily prattle off about some memory with her family; the time they drove out into the country to spend a humid afternoon to pick strawberries when she was six, or the time they went off to Idris to spend the entire month of December with family friends, or even the day that she and her cousin had spent throwing ridiculous outfits at Carter just for the sheer joy of seeing him good naturedly try them all on. But he’d probably be expecting something about her family, seeing as how he’d seen how she acted around them during the few times their paths had crossed over the past couple of weeks. He’d seen her with Lillian and Max, Declan and Tor. Why not tell him something he couldn’t guess?

“I think-”[/b] She spoke slowly, still switching memories at a rapid fire pace within the chaos of her mind, ranking and re-ranking them to figure out which was her all time favorite. “-that I have three, actually. Three pretty equally favorite memories. And, uh, they all… kinda… sorta involve ex-boyfriends.”[/b] Ash glanced over at Zell sheepishly before continuing, always a tad bit uncomfortable when mentioning one or many previous boyfriends to the male she was currently dating. Looking down at the waves lapping against the beach, she ticked the memories off on her fingers as she spoke, too nervous to watch Zell’s expressions as she basically gloated about how great some of his predecessors had been. “There was this time with Jeffrey, this werewolf that I met when visiting my aunt at the Hunter’s Moon. We’d been going out for about a week, and he invited me over for dinner- Thai takeout with his family, nothing special. Afterwards, we snuck away from his family and locked ourselves in his room for some privacy.”[/b] Snuck. That wasn’t the right word. She made a face, waving her hand dismissively at her word choice. They’d excused themselves, really, but that sounded too proper, like they’d been at a fancy black tie dinner party or something. “And we just… talked. About the weather, and what we wanted to do with our lives; about puppy sized elephants and the pros and cons of the Batman movies. Lying side by side on his bed, looking at the glow in the dark stars on his ceiling that he’d put up when he was seven, there was no questioning anything- “do I look okay?”, “what if he kisses me?”, blah blah blah. It was uncomplicated. Nice.”[/b]

She caught herself smiling wistfully, transported back to the soft, worn comforter and flat pillows, the warm body pressed against her side pointing up at the plastic stars as he explained the fake constellations that he and his friends had placed them in. It had been a while since she’d thought of Jeffrey. Maybe sometime she’d ask Fae how he was doing, double check to make sure she hadn’t broken his heart too badly when she decided that he was too shy for her tastes. “Then there was the afternoon a couple years ago that JD and I spent carving pumpkins for Halloween. Somewhere in the middle of scooping out the seeds and stringy stuff, he got the idea that flinging some at me would be a good idea and, well, we ended up chasing each other all over the kitchen trying to turn each other orange. We slipped on a pile of the pulp, and both laid on the tile floor, laughing our asses off and complaining about how sore we were. And then he kissed me for the first time, told me I looked beautiful even though I had pumpkin seeds in my hair and my face was red from laughing so hard. We never did finish the pumpkins.”[/b] Last she’d heard, JD had gone off and found himself a nice mundane girlfriend. He deserved someone normal, someone to carve pumpkins with every Halloween who didn’t know all about the actually ghouls and ghosties that pretended weren’t scary for one night every year.

“Then, early last year I’d been dating a vampire, Jakub. I’d gotten a cold while out hunting, or maybe from braving the snow for the good after Christmas sales on the new Pokémon games, I’m not sure. Either way, I was at home, sniffly and feverish and sick as a dog, when all of a sudden there’s a tap on the window. Jakub came over and snuck in to visit me, even though I’d told him I’d be out of commission for a few days. He braved my dad just to come hang out with me because he missed me, and, uhm, he kept kissing me even when I complained that I didn’t want to get him sick. He didn’t care. He spent the majority of the night with me, just because he wanted to be with me, sick or not.”[/b] She glanced at Zell, wondering if she’d just dumped too much information on him at once, because frankly those stories told more about her than she probably could’ve listed off the top of her head. She’d kissed at least two other guys before him, she had a weird attraction to boys with j names, she had a minimum of four exes for him to contend with. She’d let a vampire sneak into her room and spend the night, even though Ash meant it in the most innocent way possible and they hadn’t gotten beyond making out.

Gulping down all of her frantic thoughts about possible judgments he could be sticking on her, she looked down at his hands instead of at his face. “So, um, question number three. When you meet a girl, what’s the first thing you notice about her?”[/b] The nephilim found herself absently tracing the fearless rune onto the railing, like her subconscious was begging for someone to trace the mark onto her skin and dissolve away all of this nervous energy bubbling through her veins.
[/justify][/size]

.....

tagged : zellie.
words : one two six six.
lyrics : “right here” by heyhihello.
outfit : leather and flowers.
notes. : and that completes today’s lesson on the romantic history of one ash lightwood. and sorry that it’s monstrously huge.

[/blockquote][/blockquote][/size]

[zell price nitar]

Amelia's cooking wasn't all that bad. Zell always used to tease her about it, though, along with his cousin and her daughter, Cher. Cher always bickered right back at him for her mother, and that always ended badly. He and his family were so alike that they clashed, ultimately making the members in your age range into an enemy for the most part. That, or a partner in crime. His family was also full of cooks. Zell, himself, was an amazing cook. He enjoyed doing it, also. He supposed, although he couldn't imagine, if he wasn't a nephilim, he'd probably have ended up a chef at some point in his life. Amelia's cooking was just fine, but Zell just liked to see how far he could push her before she snapped back at him, and then his goal was more than accomplished. All of that was making him homesick, even the thought of his god-awful cousin. He glanced down at the water thoughtfully, accepting the fact that he was off his game today and choosing to just roll with what little game he did have.

Glancing down, Zell noticed that she'd migrated towards him a bit. This felt more comfortable to him. He'd never been a big fan of personal space anyway. His eyebrow arched and his eyes went to watch her fingers as they rhythmically tapped the railing they both were leaning on. Evidently, Ashlyn had a lot of good memories to sort through. He idly chewed on his lower lip as he directed his attention back to the water near them. Surprised, he met her gaze. All of her best memories involved ex-boyfriends? Oh, great. Something to be compared to and have to measure up against. He supposed it'd be better to hear the stories, though, since she said she had three of them to tell. That way he could beat them all out and have a little inner competition between himself and whichever boys she mentioned. He'd do it unconsciously, so why not declare it as a game and take the credit before the urges took over his nerves anyway?

Listening to her go on, Zell began to take mental notes. He needed all the help and back-up he could get. Number one: don't be complicated. He could do that. Zell wasn't all that complicated a person once you dug through him a bit, but that was to be expected with any human being that wasn't totally dull. Overall, boyfriend number one seemed easy to equal with. Basically, don't make Ash uncomfortable or over-conscious of things. Simple as that. The only thing he could have trouble with in that situation was the whole relaxing thing, though. Zell was never one to be able to just lay around and talk about things like Batman or X-Men or Buffy the Vampire Slayer, any of that. He had to be up and doing something productive every minute of every day. He guessed he was just raised to be that way. After all, with prestigious parents, you could only be so laid-back.

Boyfriend number two: pumpkin boy. Okay, so celebrate holidays? Zell looked over at Ash as she explained each memory, trying to absorb as much as he could from what she was saying. Every now and then he got distracted though, just by watching the way she expressed emotion through her dialect and how it was written in her eyes. Back to reality, Zell nodded at himself. Do normal Mundane things? He wondered if that JD kid was a mundane, himself. He adjusted himself on the rail, shifting arms and propping his leg a little more forward to brace himself better. Truth be told, all these tales were making him a bit jealous. It was to be expected, though. Teaching an old dog new behavior wasn't even doable, much less foretold.

The bit about Pokemon games made him smirk. At least that part of his original plan to brighten the mood had worked. He remembered when Pokemon games came out every year. They were released earlier in Japan, if he remembered correctly, and he'd always be in line. Sure, it made him look a lot less badass, but then he'd just pull out some lines of his own handy work, saying that he was getting the game for Rhett or one of his "many" girlfriends. And then he'd play the game for days until he beat it, and hand it off to Rhett for him to play. He remembered trying to beat it at the fastest pace possible so that Rhett wouldn't have to wait so long for it. The kid was a brother to him ever since they'd taken him in, and to put it bluntly, Rhett was a priority of Zell's, and probably always would be.

Note on the third memory: take care of her and/or visit her when she's ill. Simple enough. It got him to wondering, though. How much experience had she had in the relationship field of wonder? Did she have a fetish for boys with J names? This made him furrow his eyebrows and narrow his eyes for a second as he studied a wave and how it moistened the sand. Was he "against regulation?" He tried to meet her eyes when she asked the question, but his efforts were in vain. He pursed his lips in thought, as per usual, and tilted his head to the side a little bit as he sifted through all the things he noticed about girls to try and get to the very first thing. Glancing at Ash again, Zell smirked. What was the first thing he'd noticed about her? The fiery red hair, but he didn't count that. He didn't always notice a girl's hair first thing. Ah! The very minute he got close enough to her to actually look at her, the first thing he noticed was... Leaning in, Zell put his finger under her chin and gently tilted it up towards him. "Her lips."

[/color] And with that, he planted a gentle and warm kiss on her lips, no longer able to control the urge.[/blockquote][/justify]

tagged; ashie.
words; 1020
outfit; this!
notes; OH ZELL.

[/size][/font][/blockquote]

[ashlyn louise lightwood]

I CAN TELL YOU BABY HONESTLY I’D RATHER HAVE YOU BE WITH ME
i know you can be my boyfriend

[/b][/i]
I CAN BE YOUR GIRLFRIEND WE CAN GET THROUGH ANYTHING & EVERYTHING.[/font][/size][/size][/size]

.....[/center][/b]

She watched as he turned her question over in his head, no doubt mulling the one thing that he noticed upon first catching sight of a girl. Many possible answers zipped through the nephilim’s mind, from something honest like ‘her boobs’ or ‘her hips’- Ashlyn was rather endowed with both, though not in the outright, drop dead hourglass type way. Her curves were nice, she thought; sleek and slender, like the rest of her.- or something romantic in a sappy sort of way like ‘her smile’ or ‘her eyes.’ Again, she had a decent smile, and her eyes were killer, mysterious and piercing. Lethal, one of her artsy-er boyfriends had described them as. But as more time dragged on, measly seconds stretching into decades, the more she wished she hadn’t asked; her nerves jittered through her blood like they’d suddenly been injected with a high dosage of caffeine. She mentally compared herself to all of these unknowns, these things that he could say were the first thing he noticed about a girl, and wondered if she’d lived up to his normal standards. Was Zell into skinny, athletic girls, tomboys who ran around in jeans and t-shirts, boxy sweatshirts? Or did he like bombshells, girls with dramatic curves in all the right places, who knew what they had and flaunted these qualities to gain attention? Ash tried to place herself into one of the two categories, and couldn’t.

Hazel eyes fluttered timidly to look at the brunette by her side, then widened fractionally in surprise when she caught him studying her, smirking easily. He’d moved closer, invading her personal space in a way that sent her heart thumping madly in her chest. The good way. Flushing a pale pink under her freckles, Ash glanced away, embarrassed and flustered and caught in the labyrinth of “am I good enough for him?” She’d never explored that question before, never felt that unease with any of Zell’s predecessors. The question had always been are they good enough for me?, and thus far, none of them had been. Which was why she dumped them, moving on in search for someone who was worthy of her. But Zell was different: she’d knocked him off of his game, thrown him for a loop, and it made her consider that maybe it wasn’t him, it was her. The thought that she would never be compatible scared her a little, terrified the anxious little piece of her heart that was utterly and irrefutably convinced that there was a bright future waiting for her with this boy.

Her teeth had just captured her bottom lip in a nervous nibble when he lifted her face, almost tenderly, so that she had to look at him. “Her lips,” he answered, leaning towards her in a way entirely familiar to Ashlyn. Grinning impishly, relieved by the certainty of his intentions and the way that certainty grounded her uncertain mind, she rolled onto the balls of her feet to meet him halfway. “How convenient,”

[/b] she purred just before he kissed her. The kiss was soft, but hot. Not hot in the ‘ohemgee, he’s so hot’ way, but hot like there was a fire in his belly, and all the fuel to make this kiss something intense and passionate and x-rated lay just beneath the surface, just waiting to be ignited into a full blown inferno. A quiet sound of pleasure bubbled to the tip of her tongue, something close an “mmm,”[/b] and the female pressed her lips against his. She shifted, slipping easily between him and the railing, squeezed into the comfortably small space with the railing pressing against the small of her back, his body shoved against hers. Her fingers looped habitually through his belt loops, tugging his body ever more closely against hers.

Before things could get too heated and unstable, the redhead pulled back just far enough that she’d be able to dodge him in the event that he tried again. Usually, she wouldn’t complain, but this time was going to be different; they were going to go slow, even if she had to remove herself from the situation to enforce this rule. “Zell,”[/b] Ash breathed, liking the way her insides flip-flopped around at the way it felt to say his name. The flip-flopping became uncomfortable as she looked at him, held his blue gaze and realized that she’d have to tell him to back off, at least a little for now. She withdrew her fingers from his belt loops, instead resting her palms gently against his stomach. “I…”[/b] She glanced down at her hands, her brow furrowing in frustration. How could she say that she didn’t want him to kiss her without sounding like a lunatic? She’d given off the complete opposite vibe a couple of weeks ago, and now that she was allowed to throw herself at him, she’d wouldn’t? It wasn’t fair to him, but- “Not yet, okay?”[/b] she asked lamely, peeking up at him and selfishly hoping that he would interpret her reasoning though that simple little look. Anything so she didn’t have to explain how things always fucked up when she dove into a relationship headfirst, without checking to see how deep the pool was.

Swallowing nervously, she redirected them to their previous conversation; it felt safer, even though her last question had gotten them into this situation. “I’m going to assume that not asking a question means that you forfeited your turn, and you also just kinda answered my next question, I think, so…”[/b] She trailed off, sifting through her towering stack of compiled questions, sorting through them until she found one that she thought seemed important. Two stuck out as things that needed to be asked, and she deliberated for a second whether she should just be forward and get the messy one out of the way first, or lead up to it with the other question first. “Um… are you a virgin-”[/b] Ashlyn had the decency to blush, and the willpower to not avert her gaze self-consciously as she broached the personal topic. Hurrying on, she added “-and if no, how long since you were?”[/b]
[/justify][/size]

.....

tagged : zellie.
words : one oh two two.
lyrics : “right here” by heyhihello.
outfit : leather and flowers.
notes. : screw leading up to it with “ever had a girlfriend?”. that’s boring. WE NEED DRAMA!

[/blockquote][/blockquote][/size]

[zell price nitar]

Zell didn't usually look at the normal things on a girl. He didn't look at her eyes first. He didn't look at her figure. He looked at her lips. Why? Because that was what he would be working with if he liked the rest of her as well. And he wasn't talking just body. If a girl was annoying and/or a total drag, then Zell wouldn't even hook up with her. Personality was just as important to him, but it was widely known that appearances were noticed first. It was a common sense sort of thing. No matter what philosophical and inspirational person tried to preach, Zell would be the buzz kill who remained rational. At first glance, did you notice that they liked to read?! No! He hated people like that. Why would you fill people's heads with false hopes when it came to relationship stuff? Oh, right. To have something to go off of in case you were in Zell's situation and had no idea of how to go about being with someone for more than a night or a few days max.

As he caught her gaze, Zell noticed her face flushing. As much of a spitfire that Zell thought she was, Ash still had a softer side of her. Well, that was stupid not to assume. All girls had that side if they were remotely sane, which Ash was, Zell was almost certain. Her soft purr of words before the kiss gave him the adrenaline he needed to continue what he was doing. He wasn't sure if she was still holding onto his ultimatum, but he'd just taken advantage of it and now it was expired. They were both sober, and they were kissing one another in a very heated manner, to boot! His body ignited on contact, something that rarely happened with the first kiss (that counted.) It was odd, but Zell went with it and chose to ignore it for the most part. Who could blame him? She basically just modestly moaned against his lips, for Christ's sake. How stable could his body be at this point?

After all the belt loop pulling and the intensity of the kissing, Ashlyn pulled away, not at all to Zell's surprise. He calmly met her gorgeous hazel gaze and tried to figure out just how she was going to tell him what she wanted to. "Back off." "Take it slower than that." "That was hot, but slow your roll." He'd heard it before, but he always got annoyed with it. With other girls, Zell didn't want to go slow. He wanted to hook-up and then get his ass out of there before they woke up and/or saw him leave. She finally got the words out, and Zell nodded, moving the hands that were once on her face to putting one casually in his pocket and the other one on one of her hands that rested against his stomach. Somehow, and weirdly, it wasn't annoying this time. Probably because if Ashlyn was going to be a hit and run, he'd be done by now.

"Sure thing."

[/color] Zell said, as casually as he would say "hey" or "go away" to his parabatai. It's not like he really minded. As far as he knew, couples didn't even kiss on the first date. They didn't in the movies his cousin watched back in Tokyo. They always took a different route around that and waited until the twentieth date to even make out. Zell wasn't that patient if patient at all, but he could wait until she was ready. Because when she was ready, it would be twice as intense and that would be so worth the wait. He was pretty sure those people in the movies were superhuman, though, because if anyone could control their hormones that long, they either didn't have them or they had superpowers having to do with controlling them. That was the only way he could even see that working out for them. Not to mention, how was the girl even able to wait that long? Girls are usually more frisky than men are with kissing. She must've been an alien.

Shit, I forgot to ask a question. Zell scrunched his nose in defeat when she made him remember. That was a downfall of trying to get the kiss in, but hey, if a question was what it took, then so be it. He could just ask her later and figure out whatever he wanted to know. After all, if he was going to be the best boyfriend she'd ever had, he was going to have to do things like that. Just little things to win her over. Then again, Zell was actually curious, and genuinely. Ash wasn't exactly an open book, and he liked having to dig through the pages to hit the highlights. Ashlyn went on to ask the next question, and Zell's eyebrows both raised in surprise at how blunt the question was. Well, at least she didn't beat around the bush. That always annoyed the crap out of Zell when people did that. Why not just be done with it? Anyway, she said the last part of the question, and he thought about it. He knew he couldn't lie, but at the same time, he kinda wanted to. What if the answer wasn't the one she wanted to hear? "Well, no."[/color] He said, cautiously and looked over at the water in his line of vision. How long had it been? It wasn't like, a decade, but... ah! "It's been almost two years. Let's just say I had a creative sixteenth birthday present."[/color] He chuckled a bit at his own joke and shrugged. It was an awkward topic, and truthfully, he didn't talk about the details until asked, so he just went on with the next bit in the conversation. "Okay, my turn."[/color] Taking her hand, Zell led her away from the railing where they had been standing, mostly because he was bored. He casually walked, holding her hand since that was customarily what boyfriends did. "What..."[/color] He glanced around for inspiration to fuel the question, and saw a stand that he saw displayed every flower you could think of. "... is your favorite flower?"[/color] He asked, a big grin on his face as he approached the stand.[/blockquote][/justify]

tagged; ashie.
words; 1054
outfit; this!
notes; OH ZELL.

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[ashlyn louise lightwood]

I CAN TELL YOU BABY HONESTLY I’D RATHER HAVE YOU BE WITH ME
i know you can be my boyfriend

[/b][/i]
I CAN BE YOUR GIRLFRIEND WE CAN GET THROUGH ANYTHING & EVERYTHING.[/font][/size][/size][/size]

.....[/center][/b]

Eyelids fluttered closed and then back open in a rapid, puzzled blink, narrowing fractionally, pushed by furrowing eyebrows. His casualty in accepting her request to cool down and back off surprised her. It seemed both uncharacteristic of Zell and of the hetero male species as a whole. Then again, she didn’t necessarily know the nephilim all that well, so any calculations she could try and work out about his reactions would be skewed until she untangled him, figured out his personality and the way he reacted to certain prompts. And, well, her knowledge of male reactions to being told to back off were limited, considering she seldom issued such a request. From past experiences, guys were more understanding when they were dipping closer to riskier situations, intimacies that necessitated the removal of clothing. Either way, she was grateful that he accepted it so gracefully, not throwing a hissy fit or probing to figure out why she wanted to go slow. Not that slow was exactly turtle-paced for Ashlyn; she enjoyed the physical aspects of a relationship far too much to withdraw herself from them for large portions of time. Zell probably wouldn’t be waiting all that long for her to give him permission to get physical, if only because she loved the feeling of someone else’s body pressed flush against hers, coursing with electricity and sexual tension; he just didn’t get to do anything like that right out of the gate, while they were still figuring out how to act around each other with their new boyfriend and girlfriend titles in place.

“Well, no. It’s been almost two years. Let’s just say I had a creative sixteenth birthday present.” Zell told her, chuckling at some blast from the past that played across his mind. Ashlyn frowned slightly, wondering what memory he was remembering. It probably involved a naked girl, possibly more, maybe whipped cream or handcuffs. She wondered briefly if she’d compare, if she decided to have sex with this boyfriend instead of waiting to give her virginity to the next one, or the one after that. Maybe there wouldn’t be a next one. Maybe Zell would turn out to be her Prince Charming, and she’d never have to pick and choose boys at a party, with Lillian at her side making suggestions and disqualifying hers for being too lanky, or too drunk, or too bad a dancer. He was going to have to meet her family, she realized. Her whole, big scary family. She wondered who was going to rise to the occasion and prove the mot overprotective of her, Dad or Carter or Theo. She wondered how long it would take for her to stop wondering about all of these things that she’d never considered on a first date before. Ash swallowed all of her unraveling thoughts, pressing herself against Zell’s side. His hip pressed just above hers, and the familiar feeling calmed her suddenly haywire nerves. “I guess that means you’ll get to teach me the tricks of the trade,”

[/b] she said, glancing to gage his reaction to this information, indirect as it may be. She immediately regretted her wording, because it sounded more like a done deal, a made decision that she was, at least eventually, going to have sex with him. Realizing something, she added “Wait, you’re eighteen? Why do I keep picking guys that have to consider me jailbait?”[/b] The latter question was directed to no one in particular, frowning in frustration.

He declared that it was his turn, grasping his hand in his and tugging her into the crowd. She smiled softly, instinctively twining her fingers through his, pleased with the warmth that seeped into her palm. “I guess that answers my question about holding hands in public,” she said, not unhappy with the fact that he kept snatching the questions off of her list and answering them before she had the chance to vocalize them. It just meant she’d have to think up new questions. Her favorite flower? The girl rolled her eyes as Zell towed her towards a flower stand, positioned awkwardly in the middle of Coney Island. “Okay, so Zell Nitar is a sappy romantic.”[/b] She grinned, eying all of the flowers spread out on the table. “I don’t think anyone’s ever asked what my favorite flower is,”[/b] she admitted. “Or gotten me flowers on the first date.”[/b] Spotting something pink and white and pretty, Ash pointed to it. “That. I have no idea what it is, but that’s my favorite flower.”[/b] The woman behind the counter scoffed quietly, and the nephilim shot her a look. “Those are stargazer lilies,” she said matter-of-factly. If she hadn’t said it in such an “I can’t believe you don’t know that,” way, Ash would have thanked her. She purposely snuggled closer to Zell, as if to say to the woman “sure, you know about flowers, but I know about boys, and how to pick the ones who buy flowers on the first date, so nyeh.”

[/justify][/size]

.....

tagged : zellie.
words : eight three two.
lyrics : “right here” by heyhihello.
outfit : leather and flowers.
notes. : this feels short...

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[zell price nitar]

Her obvious surprise to his compliance made Zell smirk. It wasn't the first time he'd been told to back off, and he'd learned that doing what was told/asked was much easier than trying to have your way if you actually wanted something to work out for you. It was much better if you waited anyway, and "it" meant more than just one thing. He looked up at the sky with a weird sense of being content with what he just did as Ashlyn was still in shock. Surprising people with behavior was becoming a game for him, especially this particular person. She wanted to know more about him? So be it, but twenty questions wasn't going to be the only game being played. And that was a promise. Plus, Zell could be patient. Yes, he was used to getting everything he wanted at the wink of an eye, but he could wait. Not for an ungodly long time, but he could sit back and give it time.

Not an elongated period of time, but some time.

Oh, that sixteenth birthday was a fun one, that was for sure. Zell couldn't help but smirk and chuckle at the mere mention of it. It was an adventure not yet traveled, a journey if you will! Of course, no details are going to be explored, but let's just say that it was the best gift ever. Even by thinking such thoughts, Zell felt a bit guilty. Was he basically mentally being unfaithful? Dear god, this relationship stuff was tricky and weird. He could do it, though. He knew he could. He just had to give himself somewhat of a censor. That couldn't be so hard... right? Well, it had to be done whether it was hard or easy. He wasn't going to go around doing idiotic stuff and just ruin his chances like a total ass hat. Then this whole chase was a waste of both their time, if he was going to throw it away like that. Nope. Not happening. So why not try to woo the girl, who was pressing her hip to his in such a familiar way that it stopped his train of thought completely?

What, what was I just rant-thinking about? He squinted his eyes as he looked back down from the sky, just in time to hear her talk. Raising both of his eyebrows, Zell figured that she'd just basically guaranteed that he was going to do exactly what she'd suggested just then. He knew she probably didn't word it correctly, because she seemingly proved to be bad at wording what she was thinking in a way that couldn't be misunderstood, but it still fueled his humor. "Hey, no."

[/color] He cracked a smile and shook his head, "My birthday's this month. I'm not eighteen yet. We're still safe for like, I don't know, another three weeks."[/color] He teased, imagining himself being in jail for dating someone a little younger than he was. Silly Mundane laws.

Zell rolled his eyes at her declaration of his romanticism. "Can I back myself up by saying that I was trying to find something to ask you that didn't have to do with fears or which stuffed animal you'd like me to win? Because I am. You're stealing all the good questions."[/color] He teased once more, trying to measure how playful Ashlyn could be. If this relationship was going to work, she was going to have to return the playfulness. If she took it seriously, Zell would throw in the towel, because he's one of the most sarcastic and joking people that anyone could dream of meeting. Watching the bickering at the flower table, Zell hid a grin as he purchased a bouquet of stargazer lilies for Ashlyn, handing them to her in a gallant fashion. "For you! Now, another question. What's your favorite kind of music?""[/color] He asked, a bit more confident with that question because it seemed a lot more useful. Why, you ask? Because if Zell could do something besides fight, he'd be a singer.[/blockquote][/justify]

tagged; ashie.
words; 677
outfit; this!
notes; this is short... :c

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