"'Cause if I'm gonna learn how to love you
I need to unlearn how to love too
Need to unlearn how to run when it feels right"
max mayfield x fem!oc
[SEASON TWO-FIVE]
cover by @hellfiresoulss
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Julianna sat at the kitchen table, the warm scent of freshly prepared food filling the air as she took another bite. She savored the flavors, chewing thoughtfully. The meal before her—well-seasoned, perfectly cooked—was a stark contrast to the bland, lifeless food she'd been fed in the sterile, clinical environment of the lab. There, everything felt like it had a purpose, even the food. But here, with Joey, it was simple, and it was good. She felt herself relax into the moment, the weight of her complicated life for a brief second lifting.
Joey, seated across from her, couldn't help but laugh softly as he watched her. She'd been devouring the food with such enthusiasm, he was half-convinced she hadn't eaten a proper meal in a long time. He shook his head, a small smile tugging at his lips. "You really like it, huh?"
Julianna paused mid-bite and looked up at him with wide, sincere eyes. She set her fork down and sighed in appreciation. "JQ... good food," she said, nodding as she took another bite. "Better than lab food." She looked at him again, this time with a playful glint in her eyes. "And I don't even need to inject it with... whatever they were calling that protein shake stuff they fed me."
Joey chuckled, shaking his head. "Glad to hear that." He leaned back, resting his hands behind his head, watching her with an amused expression. "I'm no chef, but I try."
"Well, I think you're a better cook than the people who thought lab food could keep me satisfied," Julianna said, her tone lighthearted. She smiled, genuinely grateful for this break from the cold, clinical monotony. "Thank you."
Joey's eyes softened slightly as he watched her. But then she took another thoughtful bite, and a curious look crossed her face. She tilted her head and asked, "Why are you a scientist? You a good cook, too." There was an honest curiosity in her voice, a simple question that was more about understanding him than anything else.
Joey's smile faltered for a moment, replaced by a hint of something he didn't quite express. He shrugged, leaning forward again, looking down at the table as if searching for the right words. "I'm not really a scientist, Jules," he said, his voice lower now. "I'm more like their handyman."
Julianna furrowed her brows slightly, her fork still suspended mid-air as she processed his words. She gave him a sideways glance. "Handyman?"
"Yeah, you know." He waved a hand in the air dismissively. "The lab just tells me what to do and I do it. I fix things, clean up, help out when things need setting up or tearing down. But I'm not in charge of any of the experiments, nothing like that. Just... the grunt work."
