LJ-SEC: (ORIGINALLY POSTED BY inthefreakdom)

Angel smiled across the kitchen table at Gray who was pretending to read the newspaper. "What's up today?" she asked sweetly over her cup of coffee.

His own cup of coffee was resting within distance to grab. He ruffled his paper a bit, set it down and took up the mug. "Nothing," he replied nonchalantly. There was nothing terribly interesting in the paper. He only bothered to read it because he couldn't write. He figured the words of others, or maybe the human condition in print might inspire him, but so far… nothing.

"Would you like to wander into the city for lunch?" she asked coyly. She didn't work at the asylum on Fridays, not unless she was called in. She'd be careful to "accidentally" forget her cell phone when they headed out. She liked to make sure her time with Gray was entirely uninterrupted when he was in a blue mood, which clearly he was. She knew he hadn't been able to write a word since they started their relationship. This led to frequent blue moods and heavy sighs.

"I suppose," he replied slowly. He took a long draught of his coffee and mused quietly over the liquid before speaking again. "Would you be wanting to meet your friends for lunch?" he asked slowly.

Angel's face broke into a smile, as if she couldn't hide the surprise. "If that would be ok?" she asked with a little shrug. She had only introduced Gray to Harper and Jon once before and Gray had come away with the distinct impression that they were both somewhat crazy (which was in fact true, though no one said it out loud). "You like them, don't you?"

"They're… different," Gray offered, though he smiled back at Angel brightly. "I suppose we're all pretty different."

She reached across the table and knit her fingers with his. "I'm surprised you didn't hit it right off with them."

Gray laughed lightly and shook his head. "I like them," he defended. "I'm just… Not used to that kind of crazy."

"Which is weird considering," she said warmly, squeezing his hand and swinging her arm so that both of their hands lay on the table. She opened up his palm and traced the lines there, gazing at them intently before looking up at him sweetly. "We can go solo if you really want."

"Have you already called them?" he asked knowingly. Angel had tried this ploy on him more than once.

She grinned and shrugged her shoulders a bit, tipping her head to the side. "No," she said, crossing her heart in a promise. "This time I didn't."

He smiled back, leaning toward her. "I suppose we can have lunch with your friends. If they want to come out," he added. Angel's last minute nature never seemed to stop her friends though, who also had professions that didn't run by clocks. It seemed like they could jaunt off whenever they felt like it.

She shrugged again happily and leaned over the table to give him a sloppy kiss, spilling her cup of coffee in the process. "Sorry," she giggled, moving to get a towel to wipe it up before it rolled off the table and onto his feet.

He rolled his eyes and laughed. "Suppose I should get dressed then."

"Suppose," she answered, a wet, brown mess in her hands. She moved to the sink to wring out the towel before she could soak up more of her spill.

He moved away from the table, his eyes on Evangeline as she cleaned up the mess, watching the way her fingers moved around the cloth to wring it dry. "Casual dress?" he asked at the kitchen archway.

She laughed. "You wear what pleases you," she said smartly and turned her attention back to the table and the coffee that pooled on its surface.