you learned to breathe underwater —

[gasping]

WHO: caroline forbes & you!
WHERE: the safehouse
WHEN: october 10
WHAT: an impromptu birthday celebration.
NOTES OR WARNINGS: excessive cheeriness.

[ by mid-day, a new message appears on the network from a new user, @caroline.forbes: ]

It's my birthday, apparently, so I made cake. Please don't make me eat all of it!

[ it's a fairly short message, but it's at least accompanied by a few photos of a cake, surprisingly delicious looking for being made of everything but chocolate.

those in the safehouse will have likely heard caroline baking up a storm all morning, and may be aware that the photos show her fourth attempt at this extremely finicky futuristic cake. by the time she posts her photos, all the evidence has been scrubbed clean from the countertops (and dishes and floor and tabletops and trash cans) of the safehouse kitchen. ]

—

ooc note: feel free to have your character reply on the network, come by in person, or a combination thereof. this post is a combo pack because i didn't feel like making a network and log post on the same day. #lazy

Comments

[gasping]

[ oh, yeah, totally disgusting and not at all a thing she's pretty much constantly craving. she can at least play that off from memory, all too aware of how revulsed she had been by that first mouthful of thick, coppery blood from a hospital bag. ]

Yeah. Good thing. [ why is this her life ] Hey, do you want some more cake?

[ he seems like the kind of dude who can be distracted by offers of food ]

[thwipandrelease]

Uh. Yeah. [don't mind him as he helps himself to a generous slice. oh and also a swipe of that icing that didn't quite make it off the cake stand. he takes a bite, offers up a muffled thanks before considering...]

Aren't you gonna have some?

[he doesn't want to eat it all, okay? no matter how tasty it happens to be.]

[gasping]

[ should she eat some? technically, she's had some of the earlier attempts, but she hasn't had any of this cake beyond a small dip into the batter with a tasting spoon. not that she needs to. ]

I had some. Earlier. [ totally selling it! ] I mean, I tried to make it like three times before, and this is the only one that came out okay, but I'm good.

[ she gestures for him to help himself. seriously. ]

I don't want to get fat on my own birthday cake.

[ a great joke. ]

[thwipandrelease]

I've had my share of failed experiments. [no matter how smart he might be, every invention went through it's fair share of rigorous r&d, ample field testing, and tinkering before he'd been satisfied. he's eaten a lot of so-so cakes too.] But I always feel like you should at least enjoy the fruits of your labor a little.

[which is why he's grabbing another plate at cutting a much tinier slice for her.]

You just told me it's full of healthy things. And I'm pretty sure you could probably eat this entire slice and not gain an ounce. [she should trust that the guy in sweatpants is probably the expert here. he's very familiar with the effects of high caloric intake coupled with low activity.]

Eat. [#jewishgrandma motions and all] I'm not taking no for an answer.

[gasping]

Okay, okay. Relax, grandpa, I'll eat.

[ but she does smile a little, just the hint of one at the corner of her mouth, as she digs a fork in to pull a first bite.

and, honestly? it's pretty good cake. she's proud of herself for making it, and really pleased that everyone else seems to like it too. it's nice to have found a way to make herself useful, even if she's stuck here during the day. ]

[thwipandrelease]

Hey! Just how old do you think I am?

[don't actually answer that, caroline. his ego is fragile and the subject of his age is a sore one. peter takes one last bite of his cake.]

Thanks again for the cake. Give me a few days to ask around about a lab and we can work on the other thing, okay?

[gasping]

Yeah, okay. [ all she can manage out until she actually swallows down a bite, and then: ] I'll be here.

[ during the day, anyway. at night, she's started to explore. she could, in theory, be nocturnal — but caroline doesn't need to sleep, not really, and she's never gotten more than a handful of hours of it when there were better things to do. so during the day, at least, caroline will be here, easy to find. ]