Closed First Date

[Killian Owens-Lee]

Killian hadn't been on an actual date in years. He felt nervous. He wasn't sure if he was overdressed or not. He showed up to the coffee shop a bit early, snagging a nice table by the window. This should be nice, shouldn't it? He had brought a single rose. He had almost bought more, but this felt more casual and an entire bouquet may have been overwhelming. He sat in his chair, adjusting the blinds and opening the window just a touch. This should be interesting, to say the least. He sighed, trying not to worry too much and fussing with the hem of his sleeves as he waited.

 

[Teila Owens-Lee]

Teila couldn't help but feel nervous. She hadn't gone on a date with anyone since Marcus, and that was way too long ago. She tried to think of it only as lunch however, and just meeting up with a new friend. She tried her best to dress casual, but also nice, as she wanted to impress Killian and hopefully be able to see more of him after today. As she entered the coffee shop, the familiar smell of coffee wafted through the front door. It didn't take her long to spot Killian sitting by himself near a window, and Teila neatly patted down her outfit as she walked over to him with a big smile on her face. "Killian!" she exclaimed, leaning in to give him a kiss on the cheek to greet him. She then sat down in front of him. "Have you ordered anything yet?"

 

[Killian Owens-Lee]

Killian jumped a little, straightening automatically when he heard Teila call for him. He blushed as she kissed his cheek, giving her a shy smile. "Teila, hello," he settled back in his seat. "Um, no, I was waiting," He bit his lip, picking up the rose and offering it out to her. "This, uh, I picked this for you," he smiled gently, stuttering a little as he continued on. "I-it, ah, it pales in comparison, um, in comparison to your beauty."

 

[Teila Owens-Lee]

Teila nodded as Killian told her that he had been waiting for her. It was nice of him. She picked up a menu to have a look at it but became distracted as Killian pulled out a rose followed by a flattering compliment. She held her hand up to her heart. “That is the nicest thing anyone has ever done for me!” she exclaimed, before then taking the rose with a beaming smile on her face. The best part was that he had picked it himself. The woman had received plenty of roses in her lifetime, but none that had ever been picked with so much thought. She could tell he was nervous. “Where do they grow roses as pretty as this one?” she asked him, wondering if he had his own secret garden at his place.

 

[Killian Owens-Lee]

Killian smiled shyly, folding his hands together on the table in front of him. "Oh, ah, there's a greenhouse or something, run by this man named Chalcedony. I was out with my nephew earlier and Chalcedony let me look around a bit. He has quite the collection," He told her. He didn't tell her where it was, remembering that magic was supposed to be a secret to regular folk like himself. He offered her a menu then. "Order whatever you'd like, it's on me today," he told her, feeling like treating her was really the least he could do.

 

[Teila Owens-Lee]

Teila nodded and listened as Killian told her that he had retrieved the rose from a greenhouse. "Oh that sounds cool. I've always wanted a greenhouse of my own but they seem like such hard work. You have a good friend." she told him, thinking the greenhouse must have looked really beautiful. She set the rose down on the table next to her. "Don't worry about paying a knut. It's the least I could do after you helped me with Aiya." As she began looking at the menu, she realised she said 'knut' rather than 'cent', but brushed it off quickly as she pointed to the muffins. "The choc-chip muffin is delicious. I think I might go for one of them." she told him with a smile. "And of course, a latte." She wasn't too hungry, and also didn't want to miss an opportunity on eating one of their muffins.

 

[Killian Owens-Lee]

Killian smiled shyly, pleased that she liked the greenhouse. "Maybe I can take you to one sometime," he offered. His smile faded as she spoke of knuts, and it clicked in his mind. What, were he and his sisters just regular people that attracted wizards and witches? All of their children were magical, all of their spouses had been magical. His late wife had hidden it for a very long time, he had never known until the first letter had come for the boys. He blinked, quiet a moment as he tried to process what was happening. He pulled a small notebook from his pocket. Normally he kept it on hand to scribble down his thoughts through the day, taking notes of things he needed to get done and sometimes the odd bit of poetry. He turned to a fresh page and scribbled out a simple note, before sliding the notebook and the pencil across the table to her. The note was very simple: Are you magical?

 

[Teila Owens-Lee]

Teila was flattered that Killian was willing to take her to the greenhouse one day. She always thought about adding pretty flowers to her dishes, or even edible ones that would taste nice. She had seen the idea on a couple of other things she had looked at in the past and perhaps she should start trying it. She watched with a raised eyebrow as Killian took out a notebook and wrote something down on it, thinking perhaps he was going to show her something he had been working on, but instead, he turned the page to her, and her eyes widened as she read the message. Clearly she had let it slip and her brushing it off hadn't helped at all. She took the pencil and began writing a response: Yes. How do you know about magical folk? Are you magical?

 

[Killian Owens-Lee]

Killian waited a little nervously for the woman's reply, chewing on the inside of his lip. He accepted the notebook, keeping his face carefully schooled as he read over it. He picked up the pencil and spent a moment scribbling a response back: No. My sisters and I aren't. But they both married into it and all their children are. Probably. Kari's daughter is almost a year and Kami's pregnant again. But my late wife must have been, as well, both of my sons are. He slid the notebook back over, giving the woman a shy smile as he did.

 

[Teila Owens-Lee]

Teila watched as Killian read her note and returned her another one. She read it, nodding as it explained that he had magical folk in the family. She didn't want to write anything anymore and so resorted to speaking again. "Oh that's cool! So I guess people like... me... are very attracted to your family then." she said with a cheeky smile, glad that she didn't have to explain what the wizarding world was to him. She liked Killian and was just thankful that she could be very honest with him now as there was nothing to hide anymore. "So how about we order some food then? Is there anything you fancy?"

 

[Killian Owens-Lee]

Killian blushed as she said people like her were attracted to people like him. In an effort to maybe fluster her a little bit as well, he gave her a shy smile. "Well, I certainly fancy you, but I don't think you're on the menu," he tried to sound more charming than he felt. "So I suppose a buttered scone and a hot chocolate would be alright." He teased her gently, smiling.

 

[Teila Owens-Lee]

Teila couldn't help but look up after Killian's flirty comment, sitting more on the edge of her seat. She rested her elbow on the table and placed her chin on the palm of her hand as she kept eye contact with him and gave a flirty smile back. She couldn't help but really like this man. "Well, a buttered scone and hot chocolate is definitely a close second." she agreed jokingly with a slight chuckle. "I will stick with my original and go for a chocolate chip muffin and a latte." With that, Teila stood up to go and order the food, before quickly returning. "So, Killian, tell me more about yourself. How did you become a sailor?"

 

[Killian Owens-Lee]

Killian smiled shyly. He should've known his flirty comment would fluster him more than it did her. He cleared his throat, blushing deeply. He smiled as she came back, thinking over her question. "My twin sister and I got an apartment together. She was in school studying to be a nurse. There was a job opening down at the docks, and it paid well. I picked it up to help pay the bills while she was in school." He told her. "I worked my way up from there. I'm still with the company, eventually made my way up to captain." He explained with a shy smile. "What about you? What do you do for a living?"

 

[Teila Owens-Lee]

Teila nodded, impressed that Killian had picked up a random job to help him and his sister and still really enjoyed it. The woman had trouble with picking careers and was still admittedly a little confused as to what she ultimately wanted to do. As he returned the question, Teila shrugged, figuring her life wasn't as interesting as his but happy to answer him nonetheless. "I currently work in an orphanage in America. I cook them their meals and do some housekeeping. I get to interact with the kids still though, and that's how I met my son Dominic. He's seven." she told him, hoping Killian somehow found that interesting. "I went to cooking school a few years back and even had my own business, but I rushed into that much too quickly I think. It was good while it lasted but it just didn't work out in the end." Teila sighed. Despite this, she was still happy that she had chosen to work at the orphanage as she was really enjoying it.

 

[Killian Owens-Lee]

Killian listened to Teila go on, admiring her more and more the more she spoke. Feeling shy, he offered out his hand. "You know, um, Teila..." He smiled nervously. "The more I get to know you, um... the more I er... like you," he blushed and rubbed the back of his neck. "You, ah, you're very kind. And fun. And generous. You're very... er, you um..." he swallowed loudly and looked away, his voice much gentler as he spoke. "You're just... you're such a beautiful person, inside and out. I, er... I'm glad I got the chance to meet you," He peeked back at her, smiling shyly.

 

[Teila Owens-Lee]

Teila listened with a smile on his face as Killian seemed to find it hard to formulate a sentence. He was admitting how he felt about her, and Teila couldn't help the butterflies in her stomach as he did so. "I like you too, like a lot." she told him truthfully, still unable to help her bright smile. "And don't get me wrong, you brush up pretty good yourself." She winked at him, before then putting a hand up to her heart at his next compliment. "I'm glad I met you too Killian. You're so kind and gentle." she told him truthfully. It wasn't long before their food arrived and Teila was quick to bite into her muffin. "Oh, isn't the food here just so good!?" she exclaimed, glad that they had gone there together.

 

[Killian Owens-Lee]

Killian blushed as she complimented him. He peeked up as their food arrived, taking a bite of his own and chuckling at her response. "It is very good," He agreed. He let them eat in amiable silence, offering out his hand for her. When he had finished, he took a long sip of his drink. "Would you like to go out for dinner, Teila?" He asked. "We can go to Chal's greenhouse and I'll show you around like I promised, then go out for something to eat?" He asked.

 

[Teila Owens-Lee]

Teila was happy to eat her muffin in silence, and took Killian's hand when je offered it out to her. There was nothing awkward about the silence, and that's when Teila knew that se really liked Killian and was happy to enjoy his company. As he asked her again for dinner, she smiled, glad that it seemed that he was enjoying her company too. "Of course." she replied, excited to see the greenhouse he had been talking about. "And maybe I can find some more roses to add to the collection." Soon enough, Teila had finished up with her food too, and pushed the empty plate aside. "It was so nice that you came here with me Killian. How long does it take to get to the greenhouse. Maybe I could apparate us there?"

 

[Killian Owens-Lee]

Killian smiled shyly as she agreed. He nodded. Chal did have some beautiful roses. He set his plate aside as she did, and finished his drink. "It's in Obsidian Harbour." He told her. He was vaguely aware of what apparition was, but he wasn't positive and he was too shy to ask.