Room 220, Sunday Afternoon/Evening

[swerval_zero]

The door was propped open by a brick Zero had scavenged from somewhere, and for once there was no loud music playing, not even over the headphones. Zero lay on the bed that was actually her bed, as opposed to the couch-like one, muttering to herself.

"'The king doth keep his revels here to-night:
Take heed the queen come not within his sight;
For Oberon is passing fell and wrath,
Because that she as her attendant hath
A lovely boy, stolen from an Indian king...'"

"Gremlin baby Jesus!"

"Quiet, Fish. 'She never had so sweet a changeling;
And jealous Oberon would have the child
Knight of his train, to trace the forests wild;' bloody little usurper. That's my job!"

Comments

[mparkerceo.livejournal.com]

A knock on the doorframe, and Parker was standing there, looking subdued. "How goes the afternoon, Puck?"

[swerval_zero]

"How now, spirit, whither wander you?" Zero asked cheerfully. "Pretty well, Your Majesticfulness. Something wrong?"

[mparkerceo.livejournal.com]

"I think maybe I fucked up." Parker folded herself down to sit in front of Zero, and gave her a rueful smile. "I'm just not sure where. I just have this creeping sense of doom."

[swerval_zero]

Zero sat up and crossed her legs. "What'd you do? It can't be that bad."

[mparkerceo.livejournal.com]

Parker toed the brick away from the door, and let it fall shut. "Uh. I kind of... not quite had sex with Lee Adama last night."

[swerval_zero]

"You probably want me to say that's bad, right? Um, I can do this. I know these words. You're a bad, naughty, dirty girl, and you should have waited until marriage. Was that right?"

[mparkerceo.livejournal.com]

Parker started to laugh, relief making her relax. "Wrong speech. And two years too late. Although I appreciate the effort and the delivery. Very heartfelt." She picked up the play from the floor, and waved it at Zero. "We were rehearsing, and... one thing led to another."

[swerval_zero]

"Well, it's a very sex-y play. What's the problem? Everyone had fun, right? And you--you did use protection, didn't you?"

[mparkerceo.livejournal.com]

"I had more fun than Lee-- we didn't get to a point where protection was needed." Parker sighed. "We fell asleep, after, and, well. When we woke up, he was having some severe second thoughts." She drew up her knees and hugged them. "Goddamn Kara Thrace."

[swerval_zero]

"Ouch. Well, at our age, boys are generally less mature than girls. Or that's what Mum always told Arsenal." Zero does not mention her flirtation with a sophomore, nooo. "He probably just doesn't have the emotional maturity to, y'know, discuss things in a rational manner yet."

[mparkerceo.livejournal.com]

"Yeah, I guess. Or maybe he's a nice but confused guy with a girlfriend, and I've been a bad, bad girl." Parker stretched out on the floor and contemplated the ceiling. "I should probably feel worse about that than I do."

[swerval_zero]

Zero frowned. "Adama has a girlfriend? Wait, when did this happen?"

[mparkerceo.livejournal.com]

Parker cocked an eyebrow at her. "October? There was a pool on it?" She closed her eyes and made a face at the ceiling.

[swerval_zero]

"Oh." Zero tried to remember and failed. "Did I bet on it?"

[mparkerceo.livejournal.com]

"I think so? Carter won. She got closest." Parker shook her head. "Which I guess is part of why last night happened at all, I guess. If you couldn't remember that a guy on our floor had a girlfriend." She sighed. "Thrace is going to try to kick my ass for this."

[swerval_zero]

"Well, that's if Thrace finds out..."

[mparkerceo.livejournal.com]

Parker sat up, and bit her lower lip. "I think he's going to tell her. I'm not going to lie about it, because I don't need any sneaking-around crap. So either he tells her, and she tries to kick my ass, or he doesn't tell her, and they stay together." She fiddled with the edge of her jeans leg. "I don't know what I want to have happen. That's the other half of the doom."

She glanced over at Fish suspiciously. "How likely is he to repeat anything he hears?"

[swerval_zero]

"He's pretty smart, but he has to hear things a few times before he picks up on them."

"ARE YOU MY MUMMY?"

"Unfortunately, he never seems to forget that one."

[mparkerceo.livejournal.com]

Parker blinked. "That never stops being creepy. Ever."

Then she turned back to Zero, and tried to smile. "So, promise no to laugh, or say you told me so? Even though you're going to have incredible grounds for it."

[swerval_zero]

"I promise to try, but that's about the best I can do."

[mparkerceo.livejournal.com]

Parker put her head in her hands, not looking at Zero. "You were all right about Jarod. And feelings. And it sucks."

[swerval_zero]

Zero leaned back. "Huh." That was all.

[mparkerceo.livejournal.com]

"Yeah," Parker muttered. "So you get the sense of impending doom, I hope."

[swerval_zero]

"Well, that does certainly put a different spin on things. Okay. Assuming you survive the wrath of Thrace, what do you want to do?"

[mparkerceo.livejournal.com]

"Hell if I know." Parker pushed her hair back and looked bleakly at Zero. "Stop feeling like this about Jarod? He doesn't feel the same way. Or he doesn't want to, same thing, I can't tell."

[swerval_zero]

"'M pretty sure you can't just turn feelings off, Parker. You've gotta deal with 'em. For good or ill."

[mparkerceo.livejournal.com]

"Maybe. But I'm thinking that avoiding him for almost two weeks is a good strategy." She shrugged, looking tired. "Helped by me being in England from Saturday through Wednesday of next week. I told him I was busy with the play coming up too." Parker hugged herself, looking miserable. "They'll fade after a while, right? I mean, how the hell do you stand this? I don't like it. Why would anyone want this? Ever?"

[swerval_zero]

"Oh, you can stand it. You'll just be miserable inside. An' if it's meant to be...it really doesn't fade."

[mparkerceo.livejournal.com]

"Meant to be." Parker snorted, but relaxed a little. "I don't see that happening. So maybe in a month or so, I won't feel like this? I can hold out that long." She sighed. "We had this phone call on Friday. And I just-- I couldn't keep kidding myself. That's all." She sighed. "Which is probably why Lee, and, you know. Everything."

[swerval_zero]

"Mm, yeah," Zero said noncommitally, because what she was thinking was, And de Nile's not just a river in Egypt, and she knew that wasn't what Parker wanted to hear. "I'm sure it'll just...blow over."

[mparkerceo.livejournal.com]

"Yeah." Parker went quiet. "But for now, it blows. And sucks. And bites. And I'd pay good money to have someone else suffer this instead." She put her head down on her knees, and sighed, closing her eyes. "Wake me when I'm over it?"

[swerval_zero]

Zero lightly bopped Parker on the head with her copy of the script. "Hey, now. If you're going to zuzz out for a hundred years or so until you're over him, do it in your own room. I can't be stepping over you for a week."

[mparkerceo.livejournal.com]

Parker looked up, and stuck out her tongue at Zero, then grinned. "Thank you. I almost went emo there, didn't I?" She straightened. "Right. Operation Avoid-and-Repress is now under way. Want to run lines? Hell, do we even have any lines opposite each other?"

[swerval_zero]

"I think you're pretty much unconscious whenever I'm onstage with you. 'Cept at the end. Sorry 'bout the donkey thing, by the way."

[mparkerceo.livejournal.com]

"Enh. Talk about bad mojo. Just help me get His Freakin' Majesty at some point, and we'll call it good." Parker grinned. "For instance, making him carry the 'changeling child' should be punishment enough."

[swerval_zero]

"That shouldn' be a problem. No way am I carryin' the little bugger. I'm a henchwoman, not a nursemaid!"

[mparkerceo.livejournal.com]

"Deal!"

[swerval_zero]

"Swerval. Er. You are goin' to get Gremlin Baby Jesus Changeling Boy a muzzle, right?"

[mparkerceo.livejournal.com]

"Hell yes. Even if I have to get it specially made. Anyone who questions Us on that," Parker said, working the Royal Highness vibe, "Can be assigned babysitting duty for Our little darling."

[swerval_zero]

"You're very good at that."

[mparkerceo.livejournal.com]

Parker grinned. "Thanks. We'll see if it holds up under stage lights, and audience, Lee glaring at me, and Gremlin Baby Jesus escaping. Art thou ready to cause mischief, Puck?"