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Happy to see him so excited, she asked for a box for the cake and put the piece she hadn’t finished in there to eat later. In her mind she could already see herself straddling Jack’s sleeping form and rousing him gently to the sight of her covered in the cake for him to enjoy and blushed.

She really needed to stop that.

“L-Let’s go then…” she instructed when they were all packed up, leading him off to her friend’s building. She didn’t want to give away any of the surprise so she tried distracting him with talks of what to get everyone for Christmas and how Metro City had changed so much and yet stayed the same. And how much she was enjoying it here with everyone.

Once in the building, they took the elevator that would lead to a top, empty floor. “Surprise..” she whispered as the doors pinged open for Jack to see what she had prepared.

One of the walls were ceiling high windows that stretched out from one side of the room to the other, giving the room a ethereal glow with Metro City’s skyline as the lights in the room themselves were off. On another wall was a huge white canvas with paint buckets at their feet in several colors and white sheets to protect the floors. On them it read ‘edible paint’ so they could create a canvas. And lastly there was a TV in the corner with a DVD player and a big beanbag chair with blankets where she had Nightmare Before Christmas set up to play.

“I-I um..really wanted tonight to be special and didn’t want to do something cliche and Harrison was telling me about romantic trips he was taking Mets on and my plans felt a bit plain compared to that s-so..he helped me a bit to plan this and gave me the room but I did most of this myself and I du-dunno I just wanted it to be special and unique and make you happy and make it memorable.”

She was a bit worried at times that it was rather lame but she checked his expression to see if he liked it.

The distraction wasn’t really necessary, since Jack honestly had no idea what to expect. If they’d been heading home, that would be one thing, but the fact she’d reserved a special room meant almost anything could happen. Oh, he enjoyed their conversation very much, but it was a bit hard to concentrate, with his imagination running wild with possibilities of what she might have planned …

When the doors opened, he gasped. 

“K-Katelynn, I can’t believe …” His voice faltered. He had no idea how long this must have taken for her to arrange, not to mention setting it up. He knew she was trying to recreate the afternoon they’d spent in his apartment, of course, but this was far, far more. 

It was perfect. Everything was perfect. 

She was perfect. 

Jack’s mouth opened and closed a few times as he struggled to find words. But none came, so he simply reached out and gently pulled Katelynn close. He nuzzled his blue forehead affectionately against her peach one, then tilted her chin up and kissed her tenderly. 

Blinking in surprise at first from the gentle embrace, Katelynn soon melted against him as happiness swelled in her chest to curl around her body. Soon she was kissing him back, clinging to his shirt. So he did love it. It made all the effort of setting it all up worth it.

As she gently broke the kiss, she smiled at him and leaned her forehead against him. “…would you..like to paint then? I know you do it for a living and all…but I thought this way might make it unique and fun..”

To show him what she meant, she slowly got out of his embrace to slowly take off her shirt and skirt and sensually as possible, leaving only her support bra and panties on. Moving to one of the buckets, she dipped her hand and then chest into it to soak up some paint before beginning to splash it around the canvas, sliding her chest up against it as well. And since it was edible she turned to look at him and sucked some of it off her finger.

It was only then, as Katelynn made the suggestion, that Jack noticed the pots were of edible paint. Oh god, it seemed she wanted to do quite a bit more than just recreate their first evening together! 

The thought was almost painfully exciting. He would be lying if he said he’d never imaged what it would be like to use his paints on his girlfriend, to play and decorate her body like a canvas. It might not look it to an outsider, but making art was always a passionate experience for Jack – he would have loved to have Katelynn share in the joy of that, except that the oil paints he normally used didn’t work right on skin. This, though …

He stared, hypnotized, as Katelynn stripped off her clothes and began smearing the colorful, sweet-smelling paint on her skin. Jack licked his lips, and barely managed to hold himself back long enough to strip off his own clothes. Wearing only his soft gray boxers, he hurried over to join her. 

“Oh, I can d-definitely think of some fun we can have with this,” he laughed softly. 

will-never-be-a-swan:

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will-never-be-a-swan:

That made her giggle and she lay her free hand on her lover’s knee gently, looking into his eyes. “I never have to do anything with you love. I always want to do something with you and for you though,” she whispered so only he would hear.

“And the next thing I want to do with you is another surprise I have. Don’t get upset though but we have to go to Harrison’s building to do it.” Since she knew the two were not on good terms, she felt it was best to let him know ahead of time.

Jack was surprised, yes, but it didn’t bother him. He might not be fond of Harrison personally (and he did still envy him sometimes), but he knew he and Katelynn were friends, and he appreciated everything he’d done for her. Going to his building would be fine – if they had to deal with the man himself, Jack could easily be friendly for Katelynn’s sake. 

“I’m not upset at all,” he assured her. “I can’t wait to see what the surprise will be!” And he finished his piece of cake quickly, eager to find out. 

Happy to see him so excited, she asked for a box for the cake and put the piece she hadn’t finished in there to eat later. In her mind she could already see herself straddling Jack’s sleeping form and rousing him gently to the sight of her covered in the cake for him to enjoy and blushed.

She really needed to stop that.

“L-Let’s go then…” she instructed when they were all packed up, leading him off to her friend’s building. She didn’t want to give away any of the surprise so she tried distracting him with talks of what to get everyone for Christmas and how Metro City had changed so much and yet stayed the same. And how much she was enjoying it here with everyone.

Once in the building, they took the elevator that would lead to a top, empty floor. “Surprise..” she whispered as the doors pinged open for Jack to see what she had prepared.

One of the walls were ceiling high windows that stretched out from one side of the room to the other, giving the room a ethereal glow with Metro City’s skyline as the lights in the room themselves were off. On another wall was a huge white canvas with paint buckets at their feet in several colors and white sheets to protect the floors. On them it read ‘edible paint’ so they could create a canvas. And lastly there was a TV in the corner with a DVD player and a big beanbag chair with blankets where she had Nightmare Before Christmas set up to play.

“I-I um..really wanted tonight to be special and didn’t want to do something cliche and Harrison was telling me about romantic trips he was taking Mets on and my plans felt a bit plain compared to that s-so..he helped me a bit to plan this and gave me the room but I did most of this myself and I du-dunno I just wanted it to be special and unique and make you happy and make it memorable.”

She was a bit worried at times that it was rather lame but she checked his expression to see if he liked it.

The distraction wasn’t really necessary, since Jack honestly had no idea what to expect. If they’d been heading home, that would be one thing, but the fact she’d reserved a special room meant almost anything could happen. Oh, he enjoyed their conversation very much, but it was a bit hard to concentrate, with his imagination running wild with possibilities of what she might have planned …

When the doors opened, he gasped. 

“K-Katelynn, I can’t believe …” His voice faltered. He had no idea how long this must have taken for her to arrange, not to mention setting it up. He knew she was trying to recreate the afternoon they’d spent in his apartment, of course, but this was far, far more. 

It was perfect. Everything was perfect. 

She was perfect. 

Jack’s mouth opened and closed a few times as he struggled to find words. But none came, so he simply reached out and gently pulled Katelynn close. He nuzzled his blue forehead affectionately against her peach one, then tilted her chin up and kissed her tenderly. 

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Swallowing the piece she had eaten, Katelynn leaned forward slightly to look at him seriously. “But love..if it hadn’t been for your birthday we wouldn’t be having an anniversary…why shouldn’t I want to celebrate the day my true love was born..?”

Wow that had come out with a lot more confidence than she thought because after she said it her demeanor shifted towards shy again as she took another bite of the cake to keep her from saying anything else.

Against her look, and those sweet words, Jack didn’t stand a chance. He swallowed his bite of cake, and said with a weak smile, “Well, if you really do want to, I won’t mind. I just don’t want you to feel you have to.” 

That made her giggle and she lay her free hand on her lover’s knee gently, looking into his eyes. “I never have to do anything with you love. I always want to do something with you and for you though,” she whispered so only he would hear.

“And the next thing I want to do with you is another surprise I have. Don’t get upset though but we have to go to Harrison’s building to do it.” Since she knew the two were not on good terms, she felt it was best to let him know ahead of time.

Jack was surprised, yes, but it didn’t bother him. He might not be fond of Harrison personally (and he did still envy him sometimes), but he knew he and Katelynn were friends, and he appreciated everything he’d done for her. Going to his building would be fine – if they had to deal with the man himself, Jack could easily be friendly for Katelynn’s sake. 

“I’m not upset at all,” he assured her. “I can’t wait to see what the surprise will be!” And he finished his piece of cake quickly, eager to find out. 

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“But the birthday boy gets first slice,” she argued softly though still indicated the small piece she wanted. “Sorry I didn’t celebrate it with you yesterday by the way but I really wanted today to be a surprise. Next year we can have two parties for your birthday and anniversary.”

Her present to him was also waiting in the room she wanted to take him to but that was still a surprise on its own.

“Hey, I’m the birthday boy, and I say you get the first piece,” Jack teased her back gently. He set the slice in front of her, along with a fork, and cut a slightly larger piece for himself (though not as big as he would have cut if he’d been alone, since he didn’t want to look like a pig, birthday or no birthday). “And you don’t need to do that, Katelynn. Our anniversary is a lot more special to me than my birthday. I’d rather just have one party, really.” 

Swallowing the piece she had eaten, Katelynn leaned forward slightly to look at him seriously. “But love..if it hadn’t been for your birthday we wouldn’t be having an anniversary…why shouldn’t I want to celebrate the day my true love was born..?”

Wow that had come out with a lot more confidence than she thought because after she said it her demeanor shifted towards shy again as she took another bite of the cake to keep her from saying anything else.

Against her look, and those sweet words, Jack didn’t stand a chance. He swallowed his bite of cake, and said with a weak smile, “Well, if you really do want to, I won’t mind. I just don’t want you to feel you have to." 

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She squirmed in her seat as her skin darkened in a red hue, wishing to just move forward and kiss him since he was being so sexy now she could hardly stand it. “O-Of course..” she breathed, chest rising and falling. If he continued like that they would hardly get to the next part of the date.

Oh dear now she was at a loss for words because of how badly he was affecting her. She couldn’t take it anymore and let herself slump slightly in her seat, biting her lip.

“Love..why must you be so sexy..?”

The situation wasn’t any easier for Jack. The poor man was nearly purple in the face now. He hadn’t been trying to be sexy or seduce her, at all – why did it feel like it only came out when he wasn’t trying? 

“Just, um, natural talent?” he replied weakly. Nodding at the delicious cake waiting for them, he went on, “So, shall we eat?” 

The manager kindly lent them a knife, and Jack began slicing up his cake. “I know it’s my birthday, but I’d still like you to have the first piece,” he said to Katelynn. “How much … ?” 

“But the birthday boy gets first slice,” she argued softly though still indicated the small piece she wanted. “Sorry I didn’t celebrate it with you yesterday by the way but I really wanted today to be a surprise. Next year we can have two parties for your birthday and anniversary.”

Her present to him was also waiting in the room she wanted to take him to but that was still a surprise on its own.

“Hey, I’m the birthday boy, and I say you get the first piece,” Jack teased her back gently. He set the slice in front of her, along with a fork, and cut a slightly larger piece for himself (though not as big as he would have cut if he’d been alone, since he didn’t want to look like a pig, birthday or no birthday). “And you don’t need to do that, Katelynn. Our anniversary is a lot more special to me than my birthday. I’d rather just have one party, really." 

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She giggled softly, leaning her cheek against her palm to watch him for a moment. “How daring, inviting me back to your place already when we’ve barely met?” But there was a twinkle in her eye and she nearly broke character. It was just too much fun to pass up teasing him for a moment more in case he wanted to stop pretending.

But then she had to eventually since they were going somewhere private and doing something that she would never do on a first date.

Oh, right. They were supposed to keep pretending this was their first meeting. A purple blush of embarrassment rose in Jack’s cheeks as he thought how his words would have sounded a year ago. “Oh, I didn’t m-mean it that way! We could, um, split it. Or I could save some for next time.” Getting his confidence back, he leaned in a little closer. “That is, if you want a next time?” He hoped he sounded as softly hopeful as he was trying to. 

She squirmed in her seat as her skin darkened in a red hue, wishing to just move forward and kiss him since he was being so sexy now she could hardly stand it. “O-Of course..” she breathed, chest rising and falling. If he continued like that they would hardly get to the next part of the date.

Oh dear now she was at a loss for words because of how badly he was affecting her. She couldn’t take it anymore and let herself slump slightly in her seat, biting her lip.

“Love..why must you be so sexy..?”

The situation wasn’t any easier for Jack. The poor man was nearly purple in the face now. He hadn’t been trying to be sexy or seduce her, at all – why did it feel like it only came out when he wasn’t trying? 

“Just, um, natural talent?” he replied weakly. Nodding at the delicious cake waiting for them, he went on, “So, shall we eat?" 

The manager kindly lent them a knife, and Jack began slicing up his cake. "I know it’s my birthday, but I’d still like you to have the first piece,” he said to Katelynn. “How much … ?" 

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wrapped-in-shadows:

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Her love had definitely learned to be quite the romantic. As far as she knew men tended to make big gestures with roses and cliches but all Jack needed to do was tell her a few words and she was a pile of mush.

Watching him blow out the candles, she composed herself and took a little icing off. “Obviously not going to tell me your wish I presume..?” she teased as she planted it on his nose and sucked the rest off her finger.

“Of course not,” he teased her back, reached up to wipe the smear of chocolate off his nose. “If I do that, it won’t come true, and I’m not about to take that risk!” 

Still grinning at the silliness of it all, he politely pulled a chair out for her, before taking a seat himself. “I doubt we’ll be able to eat all this in one sitting. Do you think they can box it up for us to take home?” 

She giggled softly, leaning her cheek against her palm to watch him for a moment. “How daring, inviting me back to your place already when we’ve barely met?” But there was a twinkle in her eye and she nearly broke character. It was just too much fun to pass up teasing him for a moment more in case he wanted to stop pretending.

But then she had to eventually since they were going somewhere private and doing something that she would never do on a first date.

Oh, right. They were supposed to keep pretending this was their first meeting. A purple blush of embarrassment rose in Jack’s cheeks as he thought how his words would have sounded a year ago. “Oh, I didn’t m-mean it that way! We could, um, split it. Or I could save some for next time.” Getting his confidence back, he leaned in a little closer. “That is, if you want a next time?” He hoped he sounded as softly hopeful as he was trying to. 

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“Y-Yes,” she squeaked happily, pleasantly surprised by the hug and the warmth it brought from the outside chill. She was hesitant to get out of his arms but noticed several patrons watching the scene play out, some of them with stars in their eyes.

Growing embarrassed, Katelynn pulled away to lead him over to the cake – devil’s food as he had told her his favorite. “Happy birthday Jack,” she told him tenderly in and out of character at the same time, pushing the cake towards him. “I know it’s a day late and all but..I’m sure you weren’t forgotten by any loved one and now I can celebrate it with you properly. Go ahead and make a wish.”

He nodded softly, trying not to drool at the sight of the cake. Jack didn’t usually care for sweets much, but cake (and hot chocolate) was a different matter. There weren’t many bakeries in the city that could make devil’s food the way he liked, but this one looked perfect.

“It was worth waiting for, Katelynn,” he said, reaching over to take her hand. “Just like you.” 

With that, Jack leaned in, took a deep breath, made his wish, and blew out the candles in a single long puff. 

Her love had definitely learned to be quite the romantic. As far as she knew men tended to make big gestures with roses and cliches but all Jack needed to do was tell her a few words and she was a pile of mush.

Watching him blow out the candles, she composed herself and took a little icing off. “Obviously not going to tell me your wish I presume..?” she teased as she planted it on his nose and sucked the rest off her finger.

“Of course not,” he teased her back, reached up to wipe the smear of chocolate off his nose. “If I do that, it won’t come true, and I’m not about to take that risk!" 

Still grinning at the silliness of it all, he politely pulled a chair out for her, before taking a seat himself. "I doubt we’ll be able to eat all this in one sitting. Do you think they can box it up for us to take home?" 

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wrapped-in-shadows:

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Because they had been acting out the first meeting again, she was getting so lost in the moment and memories that his question made her blush to the roots of her hair, lips pursed together to avoid smiling too much.

“I-I would love that. Actually I know a little cafe that serves the best holiday hot chocolate if you’d like to go? They add mint and frosting and chocolate shavings so it’s..really delicious,” she ended nervously, tucking some hair behind her ear.

Not only would the same waitress of last year not be there but she had a surprise waiting for him there. How she hoped he would love it.

Although it was what he’d been expecting to hear, it still made him smile. He remembered how good the drinks there had been last year – getting to enjoy it again, with Katelynn, sounded absolutely perfect. 

“Of course.” Like a gentleman, and with much more confidence than he’d had this time last year, Jack offered his arm to her. “If you’ll point the way, I’d be happy to escort you, Miss Foster.” 

“O-Oh my,” she gushed, feeling herself fall in love with Jack all over again just from everything he was doing and the way he was looking at her. Taking his arm, she led him down the street to the familiar pink building as the wave of nostalgia hit her hard. The smells of the bakery in the distance, the man at her side and the snow on the ground took her back to a more naive time.

Yet she knew that that beginning, she was getting a wonderful future.

As they approached, she smiled as she spotted his birthday cake sitting on the reserved counter in the front where customers could sit and watch the city pass by with ease. One of the worker’s must have just finished lighting the candles because she could see the gentle glow from where she stood.

When they went inside, the manager who had been there a year ago approached the two, smiling happily. “Sir,” she directed towards Jack, nodding off to the cake. “Someone called us anonymously telling us it was your birthday yesterday so happy birthday.”

“Oh!” Katelynn played out a gasp as if it wasn’t her who had planned this out. “It was your birthday?”

Jack couldn’t help it – he gaped. Taking him to the cafe again was one thing, but actually calling ahead, and arranging for him to have a real birthday cake … ?

To hell with keeping in character. He slid his arms around Katelynn and hugged her close with a little sound of happiness. “How did you know? Yes, it’s my birthday.” Well, it had been yesterday, but as far as he was concerned, this occasion was far more important to mark. “Thank you so much. So, will you have some cake with me?"