Test Your Strength! [open]

She had a little ice cream on her . . . ?

You'd never seen a girl's face going from smiling to mortified to shocked so quickly. When he pulled away, her face immediately dropped to the table. Was it possible to get any redder? Evelyn fidgeted with her hands in her lap, crossing and uncrossing and crossing her ankles again. "Um... t-t-thanks..." she finally mumbled after a few moments of silence. That was tame compared to all the other things they'd done, but it still filled her with butterflies. Things were weird that way. She supposed not everything could be normal here. The girl lifted her head again, hand reaching out to where the ice cream had been. "I g-guess I'm p-p-pretty messy... heh..." Her hand reached out to one of the over sized cake pops this time, quickly scooping it up. lawd she needed dis. /bricked

As Jason pulled away, he'd thought that he would simply see her small smile again. Of course chances were she'd still be blushing, that much of her nature was obvious to him, but after their small time together and the things they'd done, he only imagined a small kiss or two wouldn't have left her so, well... flustered. His bad, he supposed, backing away a little further with a slightly uncertain look. The last time he'd seen her face like that, he remembered suddenly with a small stab to his temple, was the first time he'd tried something in the hallways. For a moment, he was a bit wary, subconsciously crossing one leg protectively and rubbing the back of his neck.

"Glad I could help." He laughed lightly, relaxing a bit when he saw her make a grab for the cake-pop instead of him. Even as the vague memories were leaving his mind again, Jace couldn't help but think that it'd been a while since he'd seen her like this, face tinted red and fidgeting around. Maybe it was bad of him, but he still thought it was pretty cute. "Do I get a taste of that too?" The Autumn teased, clearly not having learned his lesson and taking another bite of the gelato.

Her heart still fluttered. It was just a kiss. A stupid kiss, and it's not like anybody would see or care. After all they'd done, at Glacier and since then, that was minor. So what was the big deal? Maybe just because they were out in public... Even after everything, it still felt strange to do something like that so openly. Some alcohol would fix that, probably. Was he out selling today, Evelyn wondered? She took a bite, crumbs spilling out as she pulled away, and managed a teasing pointed look. "Hmm..." Evelyn swallowed and twirled it in her hand before pointing it at him. "I d-d-don't th-think so." That'd make up for her earlier awkwardness, hopefully. Hopefully. ;A;.

Jace held back a small laugh, setting his ice cream down in a small, cardboard bowl and pulling himself up a bit closer to her, eying the cake-pop as it was twirled teasingly in his face. "My girlfriend is so cruel." He near-sang back, letting out a melodramatic sigh and leaning on his palm over the table. As much as wanted to hide away his smile, he couldn't.
The blonde stood up a little, reaching for something out of his back pocket and sitting again, slipping it down unto the table. It was an envelope, a simple one, long and white; like you'd put old letters in (if anyone really bothered to send personal letters anymore). Whatever seemed to be inside didn't appear to be taking up much space, not making any creases or indents. Jason sighed, putting a finger down on the envelope, pinning it down almost tauntingly. "And I was so excited to give her this."

Girlfriend. Just the word made her feel awkward and embarrassed all over again. You'd think that after all they'd done, a stupid word wouldn't phase her, but it still brought out the red in her cheeks. It'd take some getting used to, for sure. Evelyn just took another bite, smiling at his theatrics. Still, it was hard to feel uneasy around him, even if he knew all the right ways to make her blush and stutter (more than usual anyways). It was a little sad to think about, but she didn't think she'd ever known someone she could talk so easily to... even if it still wasn't that easy.

Evelyn perked up when he put the slip of paper down onto the table. An... envelope? Huh? She reached out to grab it before stopping herself halfway, shooting him a quizzical, suspicious look. "...W-what's t-t-that?" she asked after a moment, with another glance down. This was some kind of trap, but her curiosity was already gnawing away at her. The Winter began to twirl the cake pop absentmindedly in her hand as she stared at it — and him, with eyebrows raised.

He knew very well how that certain word made her feel. It was completely obvious every time it slipped out; she'd start blushing and looking the other way, staring off in the other direction as she seemed to mull over the word again and again. To him, it wasn't a big deal. He had his fair share of girlfriends, some better than others, but to her it seemed to be so alien. And as off put as it left her in her seat, as bad as probably sounded, he enjoyed seeing her stumble over it. To him, it was adorable.

His smile grew a little when he saw her pull her hand back away from the small envelope, shooting him a curious glance. Should he go ahead and tell her what it was now? It'd wreck with his original plans, but admittedly, he was way too excited to see her reaction. "Just a surprise for you," He said, almost nonchalantly, tapping his fingers over it. "Probably doesn't seem like much, but it cost something hefty at this time of year..." Jason leaned back in his chair, not taking his hand off the envelope, but simply wondering if he should just let her have it.

A... surprise? That didn't help anything. Evelyn was more confused than ever, and even more frustrated. Was it a present? But what could cost so much that could fit into such a tiny envelope? She was trying to find the right things to say, but nothing would come. Come on. You're smarter than this. That smug smile of his was taunting her. Finally, she gave in and reached out, putting a finger on the envelope. After a moment of debate, she opened her mouth. "J-just t-tell me w-w-what it is."

He honestly wasn't even sure if she noticed it herself, but that familiar look of exasperation was creeping up on her face. Of course it hardly bothered him in the least, only adding to his amusement. It felt nice to leave the Winter stumped, and he couldn't say he didn't feel bad in the least when she finally gave up, reaching out for the envelope and demanding an answer or two. He watched her closely for a few moments before shrugging and taking his hand off the envelope, reaching for a treat to snack on instead.
"Alright, then..." Jason's warm gaze trailed around for a few moments before resting on her, then down at the envelope again. "You can just go ahead and see for yourself if you're really that curious." A few train tickets for more than one stop, vacation allowances, a hotel receipt. He honestly couldn't be sure how she'd react.

Did he have to tease her like this all the time? Evelyn pursed her lips to keep herself from smiling, doing her best to keep her gaze leveled with his as he finally lifted his finger, releasing the envelope. She couldn't help but feel like this was some sort of trap. When she opened it, it'd be some sort of prank or a bait-and-switch. Was that paranoia talking, or cynicism? Evelyn chewed on the inside of her cheek and dropped her eyes to the envelope again, finally succumbing to her curiosity. What could cost so much that could fit into something like this?

Evelyn opened the envelope with a neat swipe of her slender finger under the parchment. With one last fleeting glance at Jace, she reached in and pulled out the slips of paper.

Her expression shifted from confusion, to surprise, to a beaming, childish joy and excitement within the space of a heartbeat. She looked like a little girl on Christmas day as she pulled it all the way out. Train tickets and a hotel receipt for... Evelyn looked back up again, looking almost lost in her disbelief, before leaning over the table to try and hug him. Try. The best she could manage was a quick and awkward "embrace"... if you could call it that, really, before falling back in her seat. Her face was burning now, and her hands were balled into fists in her lap, but that smile hadn't faded in the slightest. What could she even say? "T-th.. T-this is... t-that's... th-than..." No, that wasn't right. Really, what was she supposed to say? Her blush deepened as she stumbled over the stream of words leaving her mouth. "I... it's... Um, w-well, I r... you're..."

Jace honestly couldn't have hoped for a better reaction, taking full enjoyment in watching as the realization of his gift overwhelme her. Really, the only thing more he imagined she could do in that moment was cry, but he never counted on that in the least. (He wasn't sure why, but she didn't seem like the type to tear up easily. Maybe it was a Winter thing.)
He managed to get his hands gently around her for a mere second as she leaned forward to quickly hug him - or try to give a hug-like embrace, anyways. For a second he glanced back at the teddy bear with a smile of achievement. "Hey, you're welcome." He laughed lightly, setting his food down and leaning closer. "Consider it a Christmas gift." The tickets and hotel were for late December after all. They'd miss the formal, but eh, oh well, right?
"So, you're happy then?" He asked in a warm tone. It sounded almost teasing, but the question was sincere.

To be honest, Evelyn had imagined (or fantasized, maybe, just a little) them going to the Formal together as an actual couple, as terrifying as that notion was. But this was a thousand times better than anything she'd had in mind. Their trip to Glacier had been... well, it was something. "Magical?" That sounded stupid. "Awkward?" True, but that made it sound negative. Maybe it was a bit of both. Whatever it was, it'd been nothing like she'd ever experienced, and now maybe they'd actually talk. And maybe it was a bit... debauched... but that other stuff would be fine too. It was never wise to get your hopes up, but for a second she was envisioning the best week of her life.

"Y-Yeah," Evelyn said, almost faintly, still beaming at him from across the table. That stupid grin on her face cracked a little brighter. "Th... thank you."

...Was that it? Just a simple thank you? That felt a bit underwhelming.

"...M-merry Christmas."

Her blush deepened and her gaze dropped immediately to her lap. Idiot.