#Also this was supposed to be platonic but damn... Theo is pining like WOAH

[defenestram]

Theo didn’t understand how Imogen had managed to festoon the entire restaurant that she worked at with little eggs filled with candies for the little ones without stooping to thievery. She knew what waitresses tended to make, and she knew that Imogen’s boss sometimes stuck his sticky fingers into what she made in tips from her regulars, if only because he graciously allowed Imogen and her ailing father to live in the crummy apartment above the shop.

The restaurant itself was also a bit of a hole, but Imogen had managed to make it cozy during her years of work. Every instance of decor -- from the paintings on the walls to the carefully-hemmed cushions of the atrium’s couch -- screamed of a certain dark-haired woman who could control plants. Today, the children toddled to and from the restaurant while their parents enjoyed coffee at the tables, and every once in a while, there was a squeal of glee as a child found an egg filled with candies hiding in a potted plant, or near a window trimmed with nearby ivy.

Theo shot her friend a glance, and received a wink in return. So, even the plants were in on the tricks today. Theo laughed and pushed her glasses onto her head before sinking onto a stool near the counter. No, she didn’t know how Imogen managed to make ends meet, but she was glad that she did. She was obviously enjoying herself, and even with the heavy tray of plates on her hip, Imogen’s smile was radiant enough to wash over everyone and brighten their day.

Theo often thought of kidnapping her friend and running away with her on an adventure. They could sing for tips each night, stay in a new city each week, and Theo would be happy to watch the lines of worry drift away from her friend’s face.

But Imogen would protest. She had a father to care for, and she had to make ends meet, and she had to make sure that Bryn and Saint Jon didn’t murder one another in a pissing contest… or that Saint Jon didn’t just off himself doing whatever it was he did each night that had him tumbling into Imogen’s house reduced to a bloodied mess.

Theo cursed him for it, if only for adding extra stress into the life of someone who didn’t deserve it. So concentrated was she in her thoughts that she almost missed Imogen’s presence until she noticed her fingers on the bartop.

“Coffee, black, and a short stack with enough syrup for two plates, right?” Imogen recited Theo’s order with a beaming smile and didn’t hesitate to scrawl it down on an order sheet before turning around to plaster it for the chef to make. Finally free of customers and orders to deliver, Imogen leaned against the counter and sighed in relief.

“Busy morning?” Theo asked with a knowing grin. Every morning was a busy morning for Imogen, but now that she had made Easter Egg hunt Sunday with a special on Eggs? The place was hopping, and although there was something happy in the business, Theo couldn’t help but feel sympathy pains in her feet for the friend who would be up on hers all day.

“Always is here,” Imogen replied, her lips still curved in a cheery smile. “Oh, you’ve got a message by the way.”

Theo frowned, only to realize that the leaves of a hanging plant were stretching down towards her, with the offering of an egg. Wary of the patrons who might notice, Theo snatched the egg away from the plant, only to catch Imogen’s look of warning, prompting her to turn her head and murmur a thanks before she looked at the gift in her hands.

The egg was plastic, but it had been painted a dusty rose pink. Theo turned it over and over in her hands so that she could see all the tiny, delicate paintings across the surface -- musical notes, a tiny Les Paul, a little recreation of the pack of postcards and letters her mother had left her, the car she drove, her favorite aviator sunglasses, and at the bottom there was a tiny drawing of a blonde in a leather jacket standing hand-in-hand with a brunette in flowing skirts. There were no words -- Imogen would have misspelled them and literacy was not her best suite -- but Theo didn’t need them to know what her friend meant by the gift.

Imogen had already left to attend to another table, so Theo could only watch her friend from a distance as she smiled at a customer, as she stood haloed by the sunlight of the nearby windows, as she leaned down to offer crayons to children who had tired of hunting for eggs.

Theo wanted to take the weight from her shoulders, wanted to steal her from the life she’d been dealt and let her laugh, even if it was just for a weekend, even for just a day.

“Come run away with me,” Theo wanted to say, but she knew Imogen would shake her head with that sad, sweet smile.

“I’m needed here, but thank you, Theo, it’s sweet of you to ask,” Imogen would say, even as she dreamed of meeting new plants or drawing unfamiliar horizons, or singing the melodies of songs while Theo plucked a tune for her on a guitar.

Girls like Imogen needed stability… their love needed roots to flourish and grow, and Theo? Theo was inconsistent as a breeze -- here today, gone tomorrow.

It could never be, but Theo held onto the egg she’d been gifted as if it were precious as jewels, as dear to her as her mother’s letters.

#character: Theo Potter #character: Imogen Elliot #I originally wrote Theo as bi and Theo has had a relationships with men before but I think her preference is shifting more towards women? #Also this was supposed to be platonic but damn... Theo is pining like WOAH #the gods project