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Just like bread, huh? I guess the flour and salt'd just get in the way.

[ He touched a hand lightly to the small of her back as he passed by Justine at the counter. Mixing the flour was a fairly simple task, so when the yeast started to wake up, he was able to watch with interest. ]

How about that for convenience? You can just buy as much as ya need. Think it's about ready to mix together?

[ Majima slid the bowl across the table for Justine. He sort of liked to watch her work; there was a skill in her fingers born of practice, and that was always interesting. ]

[Her eyes follow him as he steps around her and peers at the yeast. He's cute and Justine wonders if he realizes how he is in these private situations.] I think so. We'll have to let it sit for a bit after the dough is mixed but we can use that time to prep the toppings.

Yeast only rises while what your making is dough.

[Justine begins to gently pour the dry ingredients into the wet and mixes them together to create the thick dough pizza dough.]

Can you wet a paper towel for me?

[ Answer: no, not in the slightest. But he turned to duck the requested paper towel under the tap all the same, wringing a bit of excess water out before handing it carefully to Justine.

For all that he might look rough, Majima could be strangely conscientious about tasks that (for whatever reason) he decided had to be properly done. ]

Like this?

[ He reached over for the grocery bag, taking out some of the ingredients he'd picked up. ]

I asked around a little, and apparently it's better if ya shred the mozzerella yourself. Never actually had it fresh before, though.

[She unfurls the paper towel and gently drapes it over the rising dough.] This will keep the edges from drying out as it sits. [It also keeps bugs and dust off of the dough but that doesn't seem important enough to mention since the main job of the wet cloth was to keep the dough moist.]

Yes but fresh mozzarella is very soft. It'll be easier to use a knife if that's what you'd purchased.

[Justine takes a step next to Majima's side and looks into the bag with him.]

Have you ever shredded cheese before? [Her dark eyes dance with warm light as she watches Majima's chiseled features knot in confusion.] You're cute when you're trying really hard.

Wha...?

[ The comment caught him off guard. Though Majima made a show of looking a bit disgruntled about it, the truth, visible from the way he couldn't quite stop the corners of his mouth from turning slightly upward, was that he was sort of

kind of

secretly happy about the compliment. ]

Hey, c'mon, I'm tryin' to be serious! Pizza's not a laughing matter, I'll have ya know.

[ His fingers brushed against hers as he brought out a package of pepperoni. No doubt a complete coincidence. ]

For instance, whether ya like pepperoni thin- or thick-sliced.

[Justine's smile grows, the light of her expression reaching into her dark hazel eyes at she looked up to watch Majima get all affronted at her compliment. Honestly, that's cute too but she doesn't want to tease him too much.

They are here to make little mini-pizza's after all.

It's very serious business.]

Yes. Of course, what was I think laughing at a time like this.

[She takes the pepperoni from him and makes no effort to hide the way her fingers deliberately stroke his a half second before she takes the package.] Between thin and tick but as consistent as possible. [It's so difficult not to make the conversation sound like its sexual when they're talking about pepperoni.]

So in other words, just right.

[ He'd taken a moment to wash his hands to cover for himself as Justine watched him, but now he opened the package of mozzerella and broke off a piece of it, white and soft. Majima reached up and touched this morsel to Justine's lips in offering. ]

Wanna try some? Just a little.

[ Two could play at this game, Justine! Or rather, by his smile, perhaps he just felt like mixing a little pleasure with this business. ]

[Her lips part and she carefully takes the small piece of cheese, running her tongue along Majima's finger in the process.] It's good. [Her lips shape into a warm smile as she reached for the cutting board and began slicing the pepperoni. After a few slices she grabs one and turns towards Majima.

It's her turn to feed him now.]

Here, tell me if it's thick enough for you.

[Justine has a talent for being able to say such things with a straight face and an incredibly alluring tone that entices the mind to wander.]

[ If Majima was a better representation of his own national character, this would probably be the part in which he would have broken down and admitted this was too embarrassing. He wasn't, though... and it wasn't. He bowed slightly in toward her, taking the piece of pepperoni in his mouth in a gesture that was almost delicate -- but not before he gave her outstretched fingers a quick kiss.

A little show of considering the taste of the topping, then: ]

Hmm. A little salty, but it goes down smooth. In terms of girth, I'd say... just enough to satisfy?

[ He tilted his head back to swallow, baring the long curve of his throat as he did so. There was a glint of mischief in his eye as he reached for the olives. ]

[Her smile widens as he lightly kisses the tips of her fingers and she bashfully glances towards her feet before once again meeting Majima's gaze.]

I'm glad to hear it.

[She's also very happy that he's playing along with their little game. Her eyes follow the motion of his throat as her teeth gently bite into her lower lip. Justine wants to kiss his throat, to run her teeth down the curve of his neck and nip at his shoulder.] We should slice the olives thinner. They'll roll right off the pizza if we don't.

[Justine takes a small step forward, pressing her body against Majima's as she skillfully plucks an olive from the package and presses it between her lips.]

[ He was in the midst of slicing them just so, when he felt the press of Justine's body against his. She felt warm, her voice sweet in his ear.

Oh? Was that an invitation? Majima was going to take it as such, dipping down to see if he could sneak a nibble off of Justine's olive. But regardless of whether he could or couldn't, he'd take a slice of olive between thumb and forefinger and hold it out for her so she could give the quality of his work a sample. ]

That's a good point.

Here, taste this. I'd love to hear what more ya have to say on the subject of toppings.

[ Mmhmm. ]

[Justine tries not to smile as Majima takes a nibble from her olive. If she does smile then the topping will tumble from her lips and she doesn't want to break their little game with a fit of giggles.]

You want to know?

[She lightly bites her lower lip before leaning forward, wrapping her lips around Majima's finger. She sucks gently and then takes the olive as she pulls away.]

Salty but I like it.

[She is not going to clarify what she's talking about.]

[ Majima applied himself to keeping as straight a face as possible, maintaining a manner of proper decorum even when she dropped that line about being salty. Or he did for at least a second before he was forced to turn away, shoulders shaking in silent laughter.

Justine had prevailed. ]

Okay, okay -- I admit defeat.

[ He was still trying to master his smile as he picked out some more ingredients from the bag, but he could do nothing to hide the warmth with which he regarded her. ]

Anythin' else you want to try? Bacon? Green peppers?

[Justine's smile widened as a sense of warmth and pride swirls in her chest.]

You put up quiet the challenge. [She raises to her toes and lightly kisses his cheek before returning her attention to the toppings and their task.] Do we need to cook the bacon or is it pre-cooked? [It needs to be cooked before it can go on the pizza and it'll take bacon a little bit of time to cook so that's its crispy enough that it won't get soggy while on the pizza.]

I don't need to taste the green peppers but thank you.

Definitely needs to be cooked ahead of time.

[ He supposed he could have gotten the bacon pre-prepared, only it never did taste quite the same when it was reheated. Now, where did Justine keep the pans? Ah.

Majima slipped around her to pick up the frying pan and set it up on the stove, fingers trailing lightly around Justine's waist as if she were the grounding from which he'd temporarily strayed. ]

Say, Justine -- how'd ya get into baking? And cooking, too, I guess.

[ While he waited for the pan to heat up, perhaps he could indulge a little curiosity. ]

[Bacon doesn't take very long to cook and she honestly doesn't mind having her apartment smelled like delicious cured meats.] We can cook it now. [Her dark eyes follow him as his fingers trail around her waist. She'd planned to move and help him but she likes it when he touches her and decides to remain standing slightly in the way in order to feel the soft pressure and light touch of his hand against her back and side as he moves around her.]

It kept my mind busy when I was alone.

[She shifts and stands next to Majima, watching as the bacon sizzles and spits.]

Thomas would leave for long periods of time and I had very little to do during that time. It's dangerous speaking to others in the court so I found things that I could do on my own; cooking, cleaning, crafts.

I enjoy the distraction and the focus involved.

[Thomas would be risking his life with his brother or off to see his father and with Justine's fate so wrapped up in the young white court vampire, she found herself worrying until he returned. Books helped from time to time but they rarely kept her thoughts occupied for long.]

I draw too.

[Among her other random talents. Justine doesn't perform all of her hobbies well but she isn't ever afraid of messing something up.]

That's pretty amazin'. Will tried to teach me how to draw once, but I never did keep going with it.

[ The sounds and smells of sizzling bacon soon filled the kitchen, mouthwatering and savory, as he listened to her speak. He turned the heat down after flipping the bacon, neat as you please. As it crisped, he stepped back. One hand was still lightly pressed against her back.

A life speaking to few people, occupying herself with hobbies where she could... it brought to mind something she'd asked him once. ]

...Was it lonely?

I don't know if it's amazing.

[She lightly leans against Majima's side, staring at the bacon as it sizzles and pops in the pan. She doesn't think that there is a single human alive who doesn't like bacon.] I should get us a plate to put the cooked pieces on. [With her intensions known, Justine slowly breaks away from Majima and grabs a plate with a paper towel on top to catch the grease.

His follow up question isn't surprising but it does cause Justine to pause and consider.]

It was. In more ways than one. I always felt anxious when I was alone. [Likely because of her dependency on the supernatural drug that Thomas emitted.] But even when I was younger, I never enjoyed being alone.

[ Majima turned the stove off and plated the bacon as he listened, then moved to the sink to clean off the pan. He could sort of see it, even though he'd never known Justine in those early days. As he placed the pan quietly back, he looked at her in that oddly serious manner he had about him sometimes -- the one that slipped, often unnoticed, in the gaps between the rough speech and street attitude. ]

I'm glad ya ended up here, Justine.

[ And not only because of the obvious, selfish reasons. He'd gotten to twenty-four without a shoulder to cry on; he supposed he would have been good for at least that much more. ]

This town might be full of weirdos, but they're pretty decent to talk to.

[ And yes, he was including himself in that weirdo category. ]

[Her head turns and she froze for the span of a heartbeat.]

Me too.

[She's seen his serious expression before but she's never been able to figure out what it means. Justine wonders what wheels might be turning in his head or what memories flicker to the forefront of his mind.

Her expression relaxes and she smiles as she raises up on her toes and lightly kisses Majima's cheek.] I'm lucky. In more ways than one. [She means him though she isn't ready to express what she's feeling into words.]

What's after bacon? The dough might be ready to roll out.

[ He smiled back at her, glad to know that she did consider herself lucky, even with all that had happened. And if he should be included in one of those ways? Well... maybe he wouldn't worry about that at the moment. Wouldn't it be avaricious to ask for more than he already had?

Majima did, however, make a show of considering the question. It was no contest, though ]

Hmm. After all this preparation, I vote getting to business with the dough.

[ Look, he was patient, but he totally wanted pizza! All these little tastes were starting to make him hungry. ]

[She steps towards the rising dough and cuts a piece of the fluffy concoction free. Her fingers roll it into a 4 inch ball before placing it on the cutting board that's already powdered with flour.]

Have you ever rolled out dough before?

[Justine steps behind Majima and moves him in front of the cutting board with the dough.] First you want to cover your hands with flour. That prevents the dough from sticking to your fingers. You want to touch the dough as little as possible as well, there are oils on her fingers that will flatten it when it cooks. [Her fingers intertwine with his as she covers them both in flour and then puts his fingers over the dough.]

First we're going to push out the edges like this. [Justine guides his palm against the dough so that it's a perfectly rough circle.] Now we use the rolling pin. [She lifts her chin to look up at Majima, enjoying the closeness of the act.] Make sense so far?

Never.

[ The dough looked so strangely soft and fluffy whenever he watched Justine handle her own baking, and though he'd watched with interest and even tried mixing or simple tasks, he'd been fairly sure he wouldn't have the same knack. (He was kind of tempted to poke the ball, actually.)

Now, he followed her instructions as best he could, first dipping into the flour, then in rolling out the dough. ]

Hmm, so ya can't overhandle it, huh? I'll try and give it a lighter touch.

[ So now their roles were reversed, and Majima had the distinct impression that Justine enjoyed this. The touching, the proximity... it was a different kind of intimacy. Maybe even vulnerability, which he would have shared with few others. He was tempted to kiss her, but resisted just this once. ]

How long did ya have to practice at this?

With bread? More than a few times. The first time- [She smiles down as the roller pushes into the dough.] -well, I got the dough stuck to the roller and what I made came out shaped a little bit like a frog. [It'd tasted fine but it hadn't risen properly nor has she rolled it well.]

Okay. Now you want to roll it evenly between sides to make sure it's coated in flour and even.

[Justine flips the dough over for him and spins it once to show him what she means.]

Think you got the hang of it? once it's about a half inch thick we can add the sauce and toppings.

Yeah, think so.

[ And indeed, Majima was a quick learner; that time he'd spent watching Justine hadn't been in vain, it seemed. The dough became steadily thinner, and though it wasn't completely even, it was pretty close. ]

It's hard to imagine that happenin' now. But I think I'd like to see one of those dough frogs. Bet they're pretty cute.

[ Kind of like Justine. But it was getting harder and harder not to think of how nice it'd be to sample the taste of pizza that didn't come out of a freezer for once. ]

So, about that sauce... for real pizza, you don't have to put on as much, right?

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