2013.10.12 - Weekend In New England

True to his word, Warren somehow managed to get reservations at a beautiful little bed and breakfast in Vermont, taking Fern up to see the fall foliage. It was already past dark when they arrived Friday night after work, so the pair spent the evening in their room, snuggled up and talking as the flames danced in the fireplace. There's been more openness from Fern, now that they've taken a new step in their relationship, and not a day went by last week that the pair didn't at least exchange a few texts in the course of the day. And, while she's always an affectionate person, there's a subtle change in the quality of the affection she shows to the young businessman. Their breakfast Saturday morning was in the company of their hosts and other guests, before everyone split up to do their own things. Wearing a t-shirt and jeans, Fern put on a hoodie against the light chill of the day, and the pair headed out for a walk. Leaves crunch underfoot as they follow one of many paths on the B&B's grounds, Fern's hand in Warren's. "I think they said there's a waterfall down this way," she ventures.

It's almost unimaginable at how different the vacation would be if they hadn't taken this step. This, this is cozy, comfortable, and romantic. Earlier, it might have been a bit more awkward and uncomfortable. Holding Fern's hand tightly, he walks with her along the path, "They did. If we can't find it, we can always take to the sky to find it," but with the dense forest, landing could be tricky. He's also wearing jeans, a turtleneck, and a suede jacket against the chill, his wings bright against the changing leaves of the trees. "I think there's a lake further up too, where they said you'd be surrounded by all the trees."

Fern's steps are light, as if all her cares have been left back in the city, and that's actually pretty accurate. They haven't talked about either of their work since leaving, finding much more to talk about. And time not to talk, as well. "Maybe we can fly later anyway," she says, a grin curving her lips. She might be angling for a little extra closeness, and what better way to get it? Plus, the view must be spectacular from above, because even from the ground it's amazing. She'll still assert that Fall in Ohio is beautiful as well, but the leaves do seem extra orange, red and gold. Or maybe it's the company that makes everything a little more shiny and special. "I'm glad we came up here," she says, after a moment's pause while they walk, giving his hand a gentle squeeze.

It's always interesting to see what happens when a relationship moves forward out of a static spot. He keeps Fern's hand in his and returns her squeeze, smiling at her. "You might need more than the hoodie as it'll probably be colder up higher, but just tell me when." He looks about at the leaves, "It really is pretty spectacular, isn't it? I mean, you come up here and you realize that Central Park really doesn't cut it."

"I'm sure you'll keep me warm," Fern says easily. A noise in the forest has her stopping, giving a gentle tug to stop Warren with her, and her head tilts as her eyes scan the trees. The sound comes again, the static rapping of a woodpecker, and Fern turns as she fixes in on it's source, lifting her free hand to point farther up the path. "There," she says, voice hushed to not disturb the bird.

Warren Worthington stops when there's the tug on his hand and his eyes try to follow Fern's. When she points in the direction of the woodpecker, he glances around a bit before, "Ah...I see it." He then points to another tree, "There's a nest up in that one...the fledgelings are trying to fly." Granted, to the naked eye, it might be very difficult to see the nest much less what's popping up in it.

For a moment, Fern squints up at the trees in the direction Warren points, then she steps in front of him, her back to his chest, and leans her head to directly follow along the line of his arm. "Oh! There, I think I see it now, alright. Jeez, you have good eyes," she adds, turning to smile up at him, not stepping away. She releases his hand, but only to bring both of hers up to rest lightly on his chest.

"Yeah, I do...it's a blessing and a curse. I guess it's so that I can fly and not be totally blind up there or something." It's why he has to wear glasses when he's reading things up close. Extreme far-sightedness. "Do you see the fledglings? And the woodpecker?" So much wildlife! Now, he recognizes the woodpecker, but the other birds...he has no idea.

Without turning away from Warren, Fern replies to his questions, "Hm... no, I think I've lost sight of them. Saw something I prefer looking at." While there's that rush of excitement at a new relationship, Fern also finds more comfort in the fact that they've been through things, and they're more than just two people who started dating this time. Their path hasn't been smooth, and the bumps have added an appreciation for what she almost let slip through her fingers. "Hey..." she starts, suddenly hesitant, her smile fading a measure as she bites her lip. "Does your family make big plans for Christmas?"

Warren Worthington turns back to Fern and grins when he finds her looking up at him, "Really?" He reaches both arms around to hold her close, "You look like you belong here. With your red hair and your bright personality...you're like some autumn woodland spirit that I was lucky enough to catch." His smile fades as hers does, "Christmas? Sort of...I mean, that's the one time we go to Church and there's usually a couple of parties or two. Why?"

Fern steps closer in the embrace, taking a moment to nod and say softly, "I think I do belong here." Even Warren might get the idea that she's not talking specifically about in the woods. But she gets back onto the topic she brought up. "I'll be going home for a little while around the holidays, I'm not sure when yet," she says, before pausing again. Her eyes drop, then raise to his face again. "I wondered if you might want to come visit for a few days. Meet my family."

"Meet your parents?" Warren's eyes widen some, "I..." wow, that's quite the invitation. "Yes...I'd like that. I've never been to Ohio, you can show me the sights." He thinks. He's never met a girlfriend's parents before. "What are you doing for Thanksgiving?" It only seems appropriate that he ask her. "Your parents won't be freaked out by me, will they?"

"They'll love you," Fern says quietly, no doubt in her voice. She could add more to that sentence, but she saw his eyes widen and what might have been a momentary panic flicker through them. Now wouldn't be a good time to add any more, let him digest meeting the family for a while. "There aren't that many sights around home, but maybe we can take a day trip to Cleveland or Columbus. That would be fun." Her smile is back, warming her eyes. "Thanksgiving? Probably treat myself to a tv dinner," she jokes, although there's some truth behind that jest.

Well, Fern accepts him...so maybe her parents aren't too different? "Well, if you say so...I wouldn't want to scare them or get you in trouble." Warren smiles back to Fern, "Well, why don't you come over to my parents' place for Thanksgiving then? They always do this big meal and I know they'd really want to meet you."

"Mom was the one who suggested I invite you," Fern admits, in that also indicating that she's told her family about Warren. And, bonus, her family has ham at Christmas, not turkey. "Though, you may have to bunk in one of my brothers' rooms," she teases lightly. "Daddy's little girl and all." His invitation in return probably shouldn't surprise her as much as it does, but she nods. "I'd like that, if they wouldn't mind. It would be a lot nicer than spending the day alone."

"Really? She was?" That...seems to make a difference. "A bunk? I...don't think I've fit in a bunk since I was fourteen. I can get a hotel room..." maybe? If it's not too late to book something. "Of course my parents wouldn't mind. I know that they'd want to meet you and it means we'll actually have stuff to talk about and I can enjoy how much you charm my family." They don't eat turkey at Thanksgiving either. It's usually some sort of roast beef. "You wouldn't be spending the day alone anyhow."

The smile turns to a grin, and Fern shakes her head, correcting Warren gently, "Don't worry, there are no actual bunk beds involved. And you'd have the room to yourself, my brothers all have their own places." Ducking her head, Fern glances down, then steps sideways, onto a rock that gives her an extra couple inches to put her on a level to give Warren a soft, lingering kiss. She rubs her nose against his, promising, "I will do my very best to charm them. I want them to like me." It's kind of important to her, actually. Her head tilts at his last words. "I wouldn't?"

"Ok," Warren starts, "What will your brothers think of me? They're not going to gang up on me or anything, are they?" Not that he couldn't fly away, but that's not very friendly. He's not used to siblings. Holding out a hand to help Fern get on that rock, he happily and eagerly returns the kiss, "You won't have to do anything to charm them. They'll just be charmed and I'm sure they'll love you." He grins back at her, "No, you wouldn't. I'd be spending the day with you regardless."

Fern's eyes narrow slightly, and she makes a show of thinking over Warren's question before saying, "No I don't think they'll gang up on you. Not when they see that you make me happy." She wrinkles her nose at him and steals another quick kiss. "There's no one I'd rather spend the holidays with. Thank you." It's a sincere thanks, that he wouldn't let her be alone when she's bound to be missing her family a lot.

"I'm going to hold you to that," Warren insists. "If they start to beat up on me, I'm blaming you." He then reaches out to take Fern into his arms so that they can fly. "Come on...let's go find that waterfall and lake...and look at the colors from above."

There's a soft laugh at Warren's statement, and Fern makes a promise, "They'll touch you over my dead body. No one beats up on my boyfriend." She doesn't think about the words, and they slip out before she can catch them. Instead of acknowledging them, she slips her arms around Warren's neck, holding securely without choking him in a way that's becoming more familiar.

Warren Worthington doesn't mention the word even though he definitely caught it. He merely smiles, scoops Fern up in his arms, and takes off into the skies. It helps that they have a decent clearing to take off in and before long, they're flying just a few feet above the treetops -- not so high to affect the atmosphere, but high enough to get a greater vantage point and not get smacked by tree branches. "Keep an eye out for that lake."

Fern snuggles against Warren, more secure in his arms than she feels anywhere else. Tilting her head so her lips are closer to his ear so that the wind doesn't snatch her words away, he can surely hear the grin in her voice. "Says the man with much better vision than me?" When she looks out over the trees she draws in a breath. The area around the bed and breakfast is a riot of rich color, deep gold and blazing red, a little green still peeking through from trees that haven't caught up with the change yet. Releasing one arm to point, not at all worried that she could be dropped, Fern asks, "Is that the lake there?"

"But I'm distracted," Warren points out as he flies. Once she points out the lake, he starts to head in that direction, catching the air currents and building up speed as best as he can. "It's amazing up here, isn't it? I'd forgotten...and it's so different every year."

It's in her nature to not just let the comment about him being distracted pass by, and while Fern doesn't comment on it, she reacts to it in her own special way. By pulling in close to him after she's pointed out the lake, to leave a trail of warm kisses along his neck, up toward his ear, so she can agree, "It is amazing up here. And the trees are nice, too."

"Do you want me to fall?" Warren teases her a bit, dipping close to one of the trees before regaining altitude. "You know, we can go back to the Bed and Breakfast..." is sort of teased again but he continues heading towards the lake. "Not that I don't like it..."

"Hey!" Fern squeaks softly, her arms tightening a bit with the dip as she giggles. "It was difficult enough to get out of bed for breakfast and leave, we better stay out while we can. I can't promise we'll leave the room once we get back to it." Now that they've broken that barrier, Fern has proven to be less than shy about her desire for him, a genie let out of the bottle and eager to explore the world. While her feelings for him go much deeper than the surface physical, she can still wade in the shallow end from time to time.

Warren Worthington grins at the squeak, but he holds her closely so as not to drop her. He certainly hasn't minded the additional level of affection and he seems very eager to explore that aspect of their relationship. He's not an expert, by any means, but he's a quick learner. He also seems less awkward around her and there are definitely less eggshells being trod upon. "Wait, you're going to make me sleep out here? I'm terrible with camping...haven't I told you that before?"

They've both been more comfortable, and it's something that Fern has noticed. It's a side of Warren she likes, when they banter together without worrying that one of them will say something 'wrong'. "No," she says with a laugh, "I'm not going to make you sleep out here. Although I might have to teach you a thing or two about camping next summer." She pauses, pulling back as much as she can to look at him. "Unless you really hate it?" she asks, concern in her eyes. She hasn't been camping since leaving home, but she always liked the chance to connect with nature. Still, it's not something they couldn't find a compromise for.

"We went camping once, when I was at school. I hated it. The only good part was flying about with abandon...but I hated sleeping in a tent and eating food from a campfire. Except the marshmallows. I liked those." Warren wrinkles his nose, "If you like camping, I...guess I could go. It would need to be a really large tent." And have a catering truck nearby.

Fern loosens her grip on Warren enough to bring one hand up, index finger out, to lightly run down the bridge of his nose and smooth the wrinkles out. "You're cute when you do that," she says, then gets back on topic. "We'll find something we both like. And maybe I can think of some ways to make you not hate camping quite so much. Like, maybe, skinny dipping in the moonlight." And, of course, sleeping isn't the only thing to do in a tent.

"I'm cute when I look disgusted?" Warren counters, smirking. "If you can bring bathrooms, showers, and a full kitchen outside, sure. Otherwise, can't we find a rustic hotel somewhere?" Blue eyes glance out towards the lake, "Isn't it kind of cold to be swimming?" Such a spoiled little rich kid.

"Well, I didn't mean now," Fern laughs, giving him a quick kiss. "I think we can do a rustic hotel somewhere." She'll give him a bit to mull it over, maybe he won't be so disgusted by it next summer. And if he is... she'd rather spend the time with him, so wouldn't really miss camping all that much. "For now, we can go skinny dipping in the jacuzzi when we get back to the room." It's out on the patio outside their room and, while it's private, it's large enough for at least six people. The cool night air won't even matter, with the heated water.

Since the jacuzzi seems big enough for his wings, Warren considers. "Won't we get...uhm...scorched?" as he's never been skinny dipping in a jacuzzi before, it would seem. "But that aside, I think that would be...uhm...very nice." There's another little dip before Warren catches himself and gets back on his flight path. It isn't too long before the lake is beneath them and he finds a place to land along a narrow strip of beach.

Although she quickly regains her two handed hold on Warren, Fern giggles at the dip, unafraid that he'll send them plummeting to Earth, but still making a mental not to tease him less while they're in the air. "I promise, we won't get scorched." It's just like a big bathtub, right? But with bubbles. She behaves herself as they head for the lake, waiting for his feet to be solidly on the ground before she gently turns his head with her fingertips, lips there to meet his in a kiss that's long and unhurried.

The kiss is quite the pleasant end to the flight and Warren isn't quick to pull away. Once he can breathe, he continues to hold her close but asks, "Thank you, but what was that for?"

Fern's finger stroke Warren's skin lightly, tracing the line of his jaw, and down the side of his neck. "I need a reason?" she asks. She doesn't attempt to pull away either, fitting against him almost perfectly. If she's going to need a reason every time she wants to kiss him, she's going to have to start thinking. Of course, there is a reason. "It was just because I like kissing you."

"That's a good reason," Warren admits. "Works for me." He's perfectly happy to keep holding her close as this is what he's been wanting pretty much since he first met her. Looking up, he tilts his head some, "Hey...look around." They're at this rather secluded lake which is ringed by trees of all the blazing colors of Autumn.

Since she did spend about twenty minutes in the middle of the night watching Warren sleep, Fern is able to tear her eyes away from him to look around. "Oh," she breathes, "It's beautiful." As lovely as the colors were from the sky, it's even more majestic here by the lake, with the colors not only blazing in the trees, but reflecting in the water. "I... I'm really glad you brought me here," she says, looking back to Warren. Again, there's a hesitation in her words, changing what she was going to say in mid thought.

Warren Worthington smiles back at Fern, "I'm really glad you came and I could share this with you. You're really the first person I've shared with this...I mean, since my parents took me up here as a kid. I don't think I'd want to share it with anyone else but you."

And he does it again. It seems like every day there's a moment where Warren surprises Fern, even if they're only talking by text. Something he says. Something he does. Even just a way he looks at her, that says more than words could. She tried to resist it so neither of them would get hurt again, but there's always been something about Warren. "I think," she starts slowly, choosing her words, "That I care more and more about you every day." It's not an easy thing to put out there in the world, but it's only them and the trees and the water to hear it now.

"Is that a bad thing?" Warren asks, actually earnestly. "I've cared about you since the first moment I saw you...and I count myself so lucky that you chose me and you were willing to give me a second chance. I'm trying really hard not to mess it up this time."

"No, it's not a bad thing at all," Fern reassures gently. Her tone matches his, "Warren, it's not you that messed it up the first time, it was me. I'm lucky that you chose to give me a second chance." It seems that no matter how many times they have this conversation, Warren still comes away thinking that what happened to split them up before was somehow his fault. "You aren't to blame for that, I am."

Warren Worthington just isn't going to be convinced...since everything always to be some fault of his. He won't dwell on it, though, since they don't need to argue any of this right now. "Either way, second chances are a good thing." He twines his fingers in Fern's, "Want to walk around the lake some?" Then they might be chilled enough to head back to the Inn for that jacuzzi.

Fern fits her smaller hand into Warren's, "They are. And it doesn't matter to me how we got here, just that we're here right now." She nods to his suggestion and turns to walk with him, saying lightly, "Where you go, I go."