The gondolas are in view, and she just has this… This feeling in her stomach that oh, god, something bad is going to happen.
They're in Venice. And Hero's birthday is tomorrow.
"Look at them. How can you not love them?" She asks Bumpkin, realizing her faux pas a moment too late.
"Oh, God! I'm sorry, Bumpkin! I had totally forgotten!" She worries, pouting and begging for forgiveness.
"It is totally fine, Gen. Don't even bother about it. I'm fine." Bumpkin is reassuring, sweet, and totally horrible at lying as she waves her hand nonchalantly about the whole thing.
Because it isn't like Bumpkin hadn't told her that she and Professor exchanged virginities in a gondola. It isn't like after that, in Paris, she got dumped. And it definitely isn't like she was worried absolutely sick when she thought she had been pregnant after that.
Pfft. Not at all.
"Bumpkin, you're an awful liar. But that aside, I'm going to distract you as best I can. So, we're going shopping." She is grinning, yanking at the girl, ignoring her protests of not having money and oh, no, we can't do this or that.
It's about fun right now.
.0
"Whoa. I had no idea we could buy this much –"
"Don't you dare say it, Bumpkin. If you say it, I will return every last piece of what I bought. I can't believe I did this!" She exclaims, burying her face in her hands as they laugh, sitting down at a cute little café for lunch.
"What do we need it for, anyway? It isn't like we have anyone to impress or anything. Well, I don't know about you, but I don't, at least." Bumpkin sighs sadly, and Geni pouts for her.
Poor little heartbroken farm girl, just wants her nerd boy back.
"I don't have anyone, either. I mean, there's someone I want, but we could never be." She sighs in her own sadness, thinking of Hero. Oh, God, it hurts to think of him.
She needs a cigarette.
"Bumpkin, hey, can we get back on the boat? I… There's something I gotta do. I love being in Venice and shopping with you and whatever, but I need to do something on the boat." She says softly, hand shaking as she stands up, carrying her bags. Bumpkin nods, following her as she almost runs off to the ship.
"Uhm, I guess I'll see you later, then, yeah?" Bumpkin asks when they reach the sky deck, parting ways.
She needs to go. Now. Like, right now. Or else she's going to implode.
"Yeah, you will. Later. So we can come up with things to do with our new… Purchases." She smirks when Bumpkin blushes, rushing into her room. She doesn't even look at her roommate as she throws her bags onto her bed, steps into the bathroom and opens a porthole, lighting up a cigarette and taking a drag.
Relax.
.0
"Oh, Hero, you'll never guess –"
She barges into his room. Again. When he's just coming from the shower. Again.
She squeaks out an apology, red with embarrassment, shutting the door as he laughs, quickly throwing on some sweat pants, deciding to dry his hair before putting on a shirt. He opens the door with the towel around his neck, running it through his hair.
He doesn't miss the way her eyes flash from his eyes, to his lips, to his chest, back to his eyes again.
Oh, okay.
