Smile Please

Lizzie hardly slept a wink.  Whether it was the excitement of meeting Tom, the lingering feeling she had that he might have been serious about wanting to see her again, or the final realisation of a dream to walk into San Diego in full Cosplay she couldn't decide.

Peter came knocking at the door sharp at 8am.  She smiled into the mirror and shouted for him to come in. He would be resplendent in Tony Stark get up, even down to the arc reactor under his t-shirt and a designer beard.  On the other hand, he hadn't seen her costume, not properly, and she wanted to give him the full effect.  As the door opened and he walked in she turned, arms out to either side, a large smile on her face.

"So Tony?  Ready to do battle with Reindeer Game's more superior Variant?"  

Peter stopped and stared - could this be his normally mousy little cousin?  Full black  leather body armour, gold horned headdress and a flowing cloak?  

"Sylvie Laufeysdottir  as I live and breathe!" he laughed "You look amazing!" he walked over and she twirled around, giggling like a 10 year old.

"I'm so excited!" she laughed "do you think he'll recognise me?"

Peter stopped and narrowed his eyes, smirking " what do you mean? "

"I did a thing Peter - I booked a photo op with Tom this morning. I know I said I wouldn't but after yesterday I couldn't resist!" She blushed and sat on the end of the bed. "I'm sorry, I know it means a long wait for you again, but..." she winced and looked at him sheepishly.

Peter smiled, if only she knew he'd done exactly the same for her.  He knew that she'd only agreed not to do it so he wouldn't feel left out again, but he just had to make sure she got her moment.  She was his favourite cousin after all.   He wouldn't tell her until the last minute then she would have the pleasure of 2 shots.

"Oh ok" he said with mock resignation "if we must" he rolled his eyes, keeping up the pretence.  This was going to be fun!

Tom sat in the car and looked out the darkened windows at the crowds.  For the first time in his professional career, there was somewhere else he would rather be.  Something else he would rather be doing.  He would rather be sitting on a rooftop, drinking cold beer with the petite blonde with the passion for Shakespeare. He sighed as he wondered if he would see her again.  It wasn't a given, even for him.  Sometimes it was just too much, all the attention, all the prying eyes.  Scared any potential girlfriend off in a minute.  He pulled himself up, girlfriend?  Already?  He hardly knew her.  He knew enough he thought with a small smile.  He wanted to know more.  The car pulled into the parking area and Luke jumped out to open the door.  Giving himself a mental shake, he went into business mode and smiled his best "Tom" smile.  Showtime.

Lizzie and Peter walked to the convention centre mingling with the hundreds of other convention goers.  Star Wars, Marvel, Anime and every other genre you could name walked together, all sharing the sunshine and the atmosphere.  Even now on day 3, she still couldn't quite believe it. They arrived at the main hall and she looked for the signs for Marvel photo ops.  Eventually, they found the queue.  The VERY long queue.  Lizzie sighed, poor Peter.  She felt a mixture of excitement and regret, here he was pandering to her obsession all over again.

Time passed quickly though, there was plenty to watch while they waited.  This was San Diego after all, the Holy Grail of Comicons.  As a result, everyone pulled out the stops.  Before they knew it, they were next.  It was at this point that Peter decided to come clean.

"Eh, Lizzie?" he sidled up to her "You know how you have a photo booked?" he said in a suspiciously sweet voice.  She frowned,

"Yeessss" her eyebrows furrowed as she looked at him, what was he up to?