He wasn't a jerk, dammit.

Okay, so he'd put that stupid faery in the jar, and he'd kept him there for a while, but he hadn't meant any harm to start with, and then it hadn't been a very good idea to let him out--if Wick actually screwed up the theatre, he would have been out of a job, probably--and...

Sigh.

This is why there was a large bouquet of flowers on its way to Violet Vendredy's dormroom--he hadn't been doing a very good job of apologizing the other night, and maybe this would work better. He hoped.

Dave himself wasn't delivering the flowers; he was too afraid that she would take one look at him and shut the door in his face. (Okay, probably Violet would never do something that rude, but... better safe than sorry.)

Accompanying the flowers was a short note, which read as follows:

Violet,

I really, really, really am sorry about the faery and making you mad and being stupid. Really. Please forgive me? Please?

Dave

Also his phone number. In case she threw it out, because she was mad at him.

Can we say 'fingers crossed'?

Flowers?

Who the hell sent flowers? Violet frowned at the bouquet, fumbling with the card. People didn't actually send bouquets anymore, that was something from chick flicks. The delivery had been such a surprise that she'd forgotten that there was only one person who could possibly have sent them.

Her eyes flicked over the note, rapidly taking it in. She reread it once or twice, biting her lip. She startled to crumple it up, until it gave her a papercut. Then she dropped the note and let it flutter down to the floor.

...How can he just expect me to,-... geez... she thought, shaking her head as she retrieved the note and uncrumpled it. She frowned thoughtfully at the paper. Maybe I overreacted. No one got hurt-,... no one got hurt, after all. I ought to at least talk to him...

Vioet, scowling, reached for the phone and dialled his number.

He doesn't expect her to forgive him, that's the problem. Thus the elaborateness. Flowers.

The odd thing is that he probably would have done this relatively soon, anyway, just because. He likes to surprise his girlfriends--no, he never has more than one at a time--with sudden gifts and things.

He must have been sitting by the phone, because it only rang once.

"Hello?"

Please be Violet, please don't be mad at me anymore, please, please...

Something of his thoughts had to be in his voice.

"Hi. 'S me. Violet." In case you hadn't guessed.
She spoke in a monotone, but not a depressing one. It was her neutral tone - meaning this conversation could go one way or another, at the slightest provocation. Until then, she'd be civil and willing to listen.

Advice: tread softly.

"You sent me flowers," she said, the neutral tone tinged faintly with confusion.

"Um. Yeah. I did."

It is a mark of talent--or of being really really adorable--when the expression of puppy dog eyes on one's face is clearly imaginable, even via telephone.

"There's a note, too... Violet, I really am sorry. I'd apologize to Wick, too, except I haven't seen him since he left my apartment and I'm sure as hell not going to go looking for him..."

A pause. He didn't need to babble like that. At least try to stay in control, mister.

"Don't apologize," she said. Violet never liked apologies much, no matter who they were from. They meant that something had gone wrong,... anyway, 'sorry' was just a word. Most times, it didn't mean a thing.

She sighed.
"I haven't seen him either."
She sounded sad, but it was difficult to tell.
"I probably said things that I shouldn't have, the other day. I just,... why would you go and toss him in a jar? It's not like he's some kind of ... bug, or something. Sure, he needs to curb himself, but that was unnecessary."

Small voice.

"... I wanted to make sure I wasn't crazy..."

That's the simple explanation.

The complicated one involves a ghost that tried to seduce him, via a young man's body--and almost suceeded, too. Rose was a good kisser--which Violet already knew about (sort of) and a boy who turned into a red thing that wrapped claws around his neck and looked at him with a similar expression to Dave's when regarding chocolate cake.

Violet paused for a moment. She'd wondered if she was crazy for awhile, as well. She knew how that felt,... and while she hadn't bottled Wick as proof of her sanity, this confession did help her to relax a little.

She sighed, toying with her hair.
"Okay,... I understand that," she said gently, "...Just,... Wick's my friend, you know? Or was at least. I'm not sure anymore. Anyway, he just vanishes-"
She snapped her fingers to emphasize the point.
"-and I was scared that something had happened to him. And then I found out you'd been keeping him all that time?... It didn't help at all."

"I--" He stopped before he said 'I'm sorry' again. She'd said not to apologize.

See? The boy can learn!

A sigh.

"I don't know... I mean, the world just went... crazy... on me... There was Rose--that was the ghost. I, uh, told you about her--and then there was Keye, and then there was the appearing and disappearing paint and stuff, and then there was the faery... And him I could hold in my hand."

A shrug, even though she couldn't see it.

"I didn't know he was your friend... he didn't seem to be anything but a pest."

Another pause.

"'s not much of an excuse, is it."

"That's,... sort of how it's been for me, except without the ghost or the disappearing paint," Violet said, shaking her head and closing her eyes.

"No, it's not much of an excuse. But you couldn't have known he was a friend of mine, ... and he's not just a pest. though it seems like it. He's okay once you know him. And can keep him from destroying stuff..." she said. "..Anyway, if you wanted to check that he was real, you could have asked me."

Her tone was growing mollified and vaguely teasing.
This was a good sign.

"Couldn't've... I didn't know you knew the guy existed, let alone that you knew him." He was wandering around the apartment as he spoke--Dave has a cordless phone--and looking around at the almost-mended disaster.

He still hadn't replaced everything that the faery'd broken; he didn't have the money for it. He'd just gotten a few dishes and food--everything that the faery'd dumped out had been essentially spoiled, you see--and the rest would have to wait.

Destroying things was right.

"Did ask that guy if he could see Wick--and got informed that, no matter when I let him out, there was going to be a disaster area on my hands. Can't afford to have him destroy the theatre; I'd be out of a job."

Put that way, it does make a bit of sense, doesn't it.

"Yyyyeah," Violet sighed, "I can see how that would be a problem..."
She did. Really.

"I still don't think you should have put him in the jar in the first place, though."

"Prob'ly not. Didn't think, didn't plan. It was stupid." And he's certainly paid for it, too. Wick is expensive when angry. Or rather, his messes are expensive to clean up...

"I didn't want him to disappear on me and leave me with just another memory of seeing things go crazy."

Well, if nothing else, he's certain that Wick was no figment of his imagination now...

"..."

Well,... he sounds sincere enough,... as much as I don't like it, he has a pretty good reason... she thought, stifling a sigh.

"I understand,..." she said, after a long pause, "It's okay."

Oh, he's sincere all right. Quite, quite sincere. Wouldn't you be?

A pause.

"... does that mean you forgive me?"

Please, please, please say yes.

He's hesitant to ask her out again, though. He's mildly nervous that she'll be angry with him if he does.

The last time a girl walked out of his apartment, she cursed him out when he tried to make up for what he wasn't sure that he did. Confused? So was he. Jetta has that effect on guys.

She shook her head. He had to have it officially stated?

"Yes, I forgive you," she said, "You won't do it again."
That wasn't a 'Promise you won't do it again?" it was 'You won't do it again, or else'. Violet didn't know what the mentally tacked-on 'or else' was, but it definitely didn't involve forgiveness. One time, she could forgive. Twice? No. Not a chance. Violet didn't like to take those kind of chances.

"No, I won't."

That's a bit like Jetta, only she doesn't forgive. At all. Oh, she says she does, but she remembers, and the next time her boy does something she doesn't like, she brings it up again... Violet's not like that, is she?

Awkward pause.

"... can I ask you out again, or do I have to start over?"

Violet didn't dredge up past mistakes in arguments, once they'd been forgiven. She never forgot, though. If she remembered what had gone wrong, she could be ready for it if it happened again, and save herself a little hurt by telling herself that she could have seen it coming.

She sat on her bed, frowning. Does he have to start again...? Is it all that bad that he h...

Her gaze fell on the furry paw of Jojo the Second, who she'd stuffed under the bed upon arriving home that night. She drew the bear out, holding it at arm's length and frowning thoughtfully.

"...No..." she said slowly, after a long moment, "No,... you can. It's alright."

He grinned that boyish, goofy grin of his--which of course she couldn't see, but I'm sure she could imagine it. He did grin a lot, when he was around her. Unless he was being scolded, of course--though there was definitely more relief in there than usual.

"... do you still want to see that movie?"

Thank god that the faery hadn't actually broken his television. It was one of those nice, big plasma screen ones--it had taken him months to buy it, because he had to set annoyingly small parts of his salary aside to pay for it.

She couldn't help but smile a little, herself - it was easy to tell that he was happy, and it reminded her how much she liked his smile.

"Yeah. Sure," she agreed, "...As soon as you get your place cleaned up."

Violet sounded somewhat guilty. She'd gotten into the habit of blaming herself for the messes the small faery made, whether she had anything to do with them or not. Certainly she'd never helped him make a mess (though he'd tried to coax her into it once or twice while playing the shoulder-devil). She just ended up taking responsibility for them.

"How bad was the damage, by the way? He didn't break anything important, did he?"

"Well... he didn't screw with the expensive stuff" too much "so's not that bad. Just a royal mess."

Which he's been spending the day cleaning up--most of the broken bits are gathered up and thrown out, and most of the things that Wick ruined are (eventually) replaceable. All the food's cleaned up, etc...

He's been a busy boy.

"I dunno; I think I'll have it cleaned up soon... Tomorrow evening?"

"Yeah, sounds good," Violet agreed, then added timidly, "...Unless you'd want me to come over and help you put everything in order..."

Wick's messes were her messes, usually.

Considering what she'd seen, Dave probably could use a hand cleaning, anyway.

"You'd want to?"

There's a combination of relief, pleading, and sheer surprise in his voice at that. Of course he wouldn't expect her to want to come over and help him clean up the mess that he did bring upon himself.

But he's absurdly pleased that she'd even think of it.

"We could watch the movie after, if you like..."

"Yeah, sure," Violet said, giving a little shrug (invisible to him through the phone), "Why not."

It wasn't that she wanted to, no... but she felt she should, and when Violet felt that she should do something, she'd generally follow her feelings. She had a conscience that quite made up for Wick's occasional shoulder-devil imitation.

"Umm... I can be over in,... about an hour, at latest. 'Kay?"

"'kay." His relief was definitely audible. Cleaning the rest of this up on his own wasn't something he'd been looking forward to, you see. (Even after a show, there are generally at least a dozen people striking, which is why they go so quickly.)

He's going to try to get as much done before she gets here as he possibly can, though. He doesn't really want her to have to do that much; it is his fault that the faery made the mess.

"I'll see you then. Thanks, sweetheart, you're a lifesaver."

"You're welcome," she smirked. "I'll see you in a few."

Click

Well, better get ready to do some tidying up. Get on some old clothes, and whatnot... any old thing would do, really.

Violet dug out a pair of old jeans with the knees worn out of them, and the first shirt she put her hand on - it was faded teal. She changed into them, and tied up her hair (making sure this time that it would stay in place). She put on her sneakers, slipping her jacket on as she went out the door.

She'd take her time walking there. She wasn't in any enormous hurry.