MHA # 2 | Tuesday Afternoon

[knife_bender]

For all of his outward confidence, there was a little part of Diego that was nervous for Annie today. He knew she had everything to be part of a big superhero team, but her universe had some weird ideas of what a superhero should be. So, yes, he might have been doing some anxious pacing around the apartment waiting for her to get back.

At least with this audition over he could stop feeling guilty when he ate something that wasn't kale around her.

[For the girl!]

Comments

[knife_bender]

"That is also true," he said. "And if you broke a pair I'm sure there's tons of them around at work."

...

"If you ever ended up in them for some reason."

[defenderofdesmoines]

"For some reason," Annie echoed, and now her ears were blushing. "I mean, I don't know that for sure. I've never been handcuffed."

Like, shock of shocks, she had never been arrested, but also any other applications of handcuffs -- like so many things they did together -- would be brand-new to Annie, too. But she was curious, anyway.

[knife_bender]

"I have." Which was probably the least surprising confession ever.

[defenderofdesmoines]

"No way." Annie was trying for deadpan, but wasn't able to keep the smile off her face. "A nice boy like you?"

[knife_bender]

"I know, I know, it's shocking," Diego said with a laugh. "I've been in the back of a cop car and a jail cell too."

And would be again!

[defenderofdesmoines]

"B and E?" Annie guessed, softening a little. "Or did you get into a fight or something and the cops weren't as interested in your side of things?"

Both seemed likely.

[knife_bender]

"The last one," he said. "Also I've been cuffed a couple times for investigating crime scenes while not technically being a cop."

[defenderofdesmoines]

"Well, that shouldn't be a crime if you're there to help," Annie decided, like that should make a difference. "I've actually never put them on someone, either. Any time I've had to make an arrest, I just put them in an arm lock. Or knock them out."

Annie's universe was pretty lenient when it came to official superhero procedure.

[knife_bender]

"Yeah, my universe doesn't really view hero'ing the same way as yours." To be fair, Diego did come off like some random butting into police business rather than an actual superhero.

"I would love to see you put someone in an arm lock." That'd be hot.

[defenderofdesmoines]

"If we hadn't needed to get out of there so fast on Valentine's Day, I would've then," Annie admitted. Instead she'd just gone right for broken bones, which was certainly not hot at all. "I could put you in one pretty easy if I wanted, I bet."

But she'd rather cuff him, honestly.

[knife_bender]

He smiled. "I mean, we've pretty thoroughly established that you could overpower me whenever you wanted to."

[defenderofdesmoines]

"I mean, we do have a significant mass difference, here," Annie said agreeably, finishing her pizza and pretty much immediately deciding that post-pizza cuddles were going to be a thing. "Bet you could throw me off of you most of the time if you wanted to."

Which was why she liked the arm lock for unruly, bigger-than-her crime-doers! Good thing everyone here liked it when she overpowered him, anyway.

[knife_bender]

Oh no, not post-pizza cuddles. Anything but that. "I can't picture me ever wanting to do that."

[defenderofdesmoines]

"What if it's a bad time?" Did a bad time even exist for them? "Like you're on the phone or something?"

Still probably an okay time for her to climb on him. It would just be a challenge.

[knife_bender]

"When am I on the phone with anyone but you?" he asked.

[defenderofdesmoines]

"I mean, maybe you'd have to take a rare, important call," Annie suggested, though that was a good point. "What if I was holding you down for, like, not-sexy reasons. Like what if I was tickling you or something?"

Annie, who had not grown up with siblings, did not know how foolish it was to warn someone they could potentially be tickled instead of just going for it.

[knife_bender]

"I find it hard to believe that non-sexy reasons wouldn't eventually turn into sexy reasons," he pointed out.

[defenderofdesmoines]

"You know us well," Annie teased, pressing a light kiss to his neck. "We're pretty good at that."

They were coming up on six months of near-constant physical affection, after all. Annie was vaguely worried that that might start to taper off now that they'd been together awhile (what if he got tired of her??) -- though, really, if she got this job, it probably would be more of a case where that affection was reduced from near-constancy and instead concentrated in short, intense bursts over weekends and visits.

[knife_bender]

That was one thing Diego hadn't been worried about at all. If anything he was worried she'd find someone with less daddy issues to be attracted to. He knew his family was a lot, even when he wasn't speaking to the majority of them.

"We are," he agreed. "Good thing too, 'cause I have the feeling I'm going to need to distract you until Vought calls you back."

[defenderofdesmoines]

Psh. Everyone she knew had daddy issues as it was, including Annie herself. She'd said it before, and she still believed it -- it would take a lot more than that to scare her off.

"They didn't say when they would," she admitted, curling closer with a little smile. "It might be weeks. Are you up for distracting me for weeks?"

Oh no, the hardship.

[knife_bender]

"I believe I'm up to the task," he said, leaning in for a kiss.

[defenderofdesmoines]

"I'll believe it when I see it," Annie teased, pressing closer to return the kiss.

Spoilers: she already believed him.

And kisses when she was deliberately not looking like she put any effort into her appearance were a great way to allay those vague, physical-affection-tapering fears.

[knife_bender]

Well, Diego had a thing for her in yoga pants and sports bras, he clearly did not mind her in casual wear at all.

He didn't necessarily need to kiss Annie to prove he was good at distracting her, but he was going to put his all into it anyway. Just in case she had any doubts.

[defenderofdesmoines]

You know, she really didn't have many doubts, but Annie was -- for some reason -- totally willing to accept as much proof of this as Diego was willing to put forth.

"I can help distract myself, too," she murmured between kisses, and look at her just move right into his lap. See? She could back up her claims, too.

[knife_bender]

"I thought you were tired," he teased, putting his hands on her hips.