October 1st, 1888 - Honeyduke's

You can kiss like your heart ain’t ever been broke
The kind of lips that your lips get your eyes to close
I know just what you’re goin’ through
Cause I wanna kiss somebody, too
Kiss somebody like you, I wanna kiss somebody like you

Kiss Somebody - Morgan Evans

Quin had pretty much only paused working on the store over the last few days to eat, and that had mostly been on the go; and to sleep, but even that was minimal at best. After walking Felicity home the other night he still felt a little off about the whole thing. He was not a very intuitive person, but something about her had just been off enough for him to second guess his choices. He felt guilty and frustrated even now, days later.

He hadn't heard from her since either and that only confirmed that he'd screwed up. If she told Percy he was dead, plain and simple. Quin honestly had no idea what to do or if he even should. Maybe she was better off.

When the swinging door to the kitchen sounded someone's arrival, Quin was honestly expecting Gideon or Billie, so he was shocked to see Felicity standing there. He paused from where he was eating some semblance of dinner at the kitchen island, clearly surprised to see her. "Felicity-" He stood abruptly, though had no idea why.

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Felicity was mortified, that much was for sure. Three whole days she'd spent pining after Quin in an absurd way. It wasn't far from the truth but her actions and behavior had been borderline insane even if she'd managed to stay away from him since that first night when she'd surely made an utter fool of herself. In the meantime, she'd spent hours upon hours writing awful poetry and the like. She was just grateful she'd found all the awfully written items on her desk when she'd finally come around from the awful bout of amorentia induce infatuation. That meant she hadn't sent any of it to him.

And then she'd seen the edition of Witch Weekly talking about it all. She'd gotten off lucky, that was for sure, but she'd found the infatuation inducing letter stashed on her desk. She'd read it over again for good measure and was shocked that she'd believed such a thing. Not to mention the fact that it was nowhere near Quin's handwriting. Oh Merlin, what had she done.

Fearing she'd gone and ruined any possible chance the two might have at a future, she'd done what she had learned to do best. She baked up something for him. Then she headed straight to his shop, baked goods in tow as well as the incriminating letter and the Witch Weekly. She didn't know if he read it, he probably didn't, but she needed it all to explain. Hopefully he'd understand she hadn't been in her right might. While she had thoroughly enjoyed the kisses, the thought of them seared in her mind, she never would have done anything near so bold.

She let herself in, as she always did, and made her way to the back kitchen where he'd likely be. First sight of him saw her heart leaping into her throat and her mouth going instantly dry. Her cheeks flushed pink with embarrassment as she looked to him, totally unsure of herself in that very moment.

"I'm so sorry," she ended up blurting from the doorway, hands holding tight to the basket and making her knuckles white in the process. She didn't dare step forward though, not even though he'd stood up. She hated feeling so unsure about herself but she was and didn't know how to proceed.

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BEE-utiful Set!

Quin balked at her apology, his face now a mixture of hesitation and disbelief as he looked at her carefully. He wasn't sure what she had to be sorry for, shouldn't he be the one apologizing?

"I'm pretty sure I'm sorry too, but I honestly don't know what happened. Not really?" He didn't dare approach her and he resolutely shoved his hands into his pockets as a reminder to keep them to himself.

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The look on his face pained Lissy so much. She felt even worse as a result, knowing it was her fault for having put him in such a position. Well, not wholly her fault technically. But she still felt at fault and she hated that she had made him feel such a way.

Slowly, she stepped further into the kitchen and stopped at one of the counters to set the basket down. "You don't read Witch Weekly much, I'm guessing," she said, though she already knew the answer. Quietly she pulled out the edition as well as the letter, pink envelope and all.

"Apparently someone, no one knows who, got it in their mind to play matchmaker," she said softly, eyes focused on the letter and magazine as she pushed them forward on the counter unable to meet his gaze as she continued on, "And they thought to pair us. You must not have opened yours." Which, in hindsight, was probably for the best if her own actions had been any indication of what could have happened.

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BEE-utiful Set!

Quin stood resolutely where he was, even as she approached, sucking in a breath he held when she offered up the gossip rag and a little pink letter. Truthfully, he'd gotten one, but it was well, lost in the shuffle that was his living quarters upstairs. It was already a mess, even though it was barely renovated.

He looked at the magazine quickly, letting go of the breath he'd been holding as he read. Well. That would explain why he had thought something was off.

Holy fuck, he'd basically taken advantage of her when she was drugged.

He may as well just off himself and spare Percy the effort.

"I didn't," He stammered out, eyes wide. "Merlin's beard, Lis," It was nearly something far more unsavory than that, but remembered himself at the last minute. His hands made their way out of his pockets to run raggedly through his hair. Taking an unintentional step back, he looked up at her with sorrow filling his eyes. "I'm sorry, fuck," He slipped that time in his panic. "I knew something was wrong and I-" Well to be fair she'd kissed him first, but after that. Thank fucking Merlin he'd stopped when he had come to his senses. The things he'd thought about though...

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The pained looked on his face and the words to accompany his obvious worries only added to the pain Felicity was already feeling. She wasn't even phased by his coarse language. She was more worried about how he was more than clearly beating himself up f or what had happened that night. Which, truthfully, hadn't been that much but she knew he was a noble sort.

She quickly moved around to the other side of the counter where he was at and placed a hand on his arm, trying to do anything she could to help him to calm down.

"Quin, please," she said softly, blue eyes pleading up at him as she felt her lip quiver, "Don't. It isn't your fault. You didn't know. I didn't even know." She couldn't stand to see him blaming himself in such a way. Of course, she didn't know what was going on in his mind or what had gone on in his mind but despite it all, she had enjoyed herself that night. And, if she was being honest with herself, she was certain it would have happened sooner or later and she wouldn't have minded then in the slightest either.

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BEE-utiful Set!

Quin nearly flinched when she laid a hand in his arm, but he could see the regret clear in her eyes and it kept him from overtly panicking... Well at least for the moment. Later he could really tear himself up about it, when she wasn't around to stop him.

"Well it's not your fault," He countered quietly, finally meeting her eyes. Quin had been been the one with a clear head that night and he'd still managed to be an idiot about it. A complete and utter ass actually.

Gently he reached out to brush his thumb along her cheek, eyes on hers. "I would never, ever push you to do anything you weren't completely comfortable with." Quin had made it to thirty-one without so much as giving a girl an innocent peck on the cheek and in the course of one night had smashed through some carefully created boundaries in a mere matter of moments- all because she'd been under the influence of a potion and not herself. It was scary really, how quickly he'd reacted to the closeness and lost all sensibility, especially with somebody who clearly mattered to him.

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The concern and fear remained in Felicity's eyes as she continued to look up to him. While he wasn't entirely wrong, she still did blame herself somewhat. Of course, there was little anyone could really control in regards to amorentia. But as he brought a hand up to gently brush a thumb over her cheek, she brought her hand up to rest on his own.

Shaking her head just slightly, she offered him a small smile. "You could never," she said softly, making sure she kept her eyes on his before she continued on, "it was no one's fault. But.." She paused, unsure if she should even continue with the train of thought in her mind or not. She didn't want him thinking any less of her after everything that had gone down. Or obligated. It was a hairy situation, really.

"But I do remember that night," she decided to end up continuing on, "And it was.. nice. If it hadn't happened then, I would like to hope it would have happened eventually." And she did truly believe that. And, honestly, longed for it to happen again. But she didn't want him feeling any worse so she remained standing there, gently cradling his own hand still without making any sort of move for another kiss.

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BEE-utiful Set!

Quin breathed out a sigh of relief as she continued, though he still felt like the Worst Human Being Ever. The guilt was still sitting square in his chest, making it hard to breathe, but he took her words at face value. Oblivious as he was, with her looking right back at him, it was hard to miss the distress she was feeling over this and that forced him to take a deep breath and find some semblance of calm.

"Look Lis," Quin turned to face her completely, bringing his other hand up to frame her face gently. He knew what he wanted to say, he just wasn't sure how to say it. Taking a quick moment to just contemplate what she'd said and what he was thinking before saying, "This moves at your pace, however you want," Within reason, he had to remind himself before he got ahead of himself. "I may be a clueless idiot sometimes, but I'm not careless." Wasn't that the truth of it?

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Felicity was glad to see that he seemed to be coming back down from his own guilt, at least a little bit. Her words were true and he seemed to be taking them as such. It was a good thing, truthfully, but she could still sense the hesitation in him even as he brought his other hand up to cup the other side of her face. She enjoyed his touch and it brought a bit of a smile to her features.

Nodding slightly at his words, she turned her cheek slightly so that she could kiss the palm of his hand just slightly before turning back to look at him. Clearly they needed to have a bit of a discussion, as much as Felicity wasn't a fond of making anything too serious sounding or dramatic. But the night with him and the kisses shared had brought about concerns, that much was obvious.

"The end of the month marks half mourning," she found herself saying simply, "I should be in mourning three more months but.. I never really intended to." She doubted he'd like that idea much, most wouldn't, but she went on so he couldn't say much at first. "I've even talked with his family," she continued on, taking in a deep breath, "They accept it and hold no ill will. They want me to be able to move on my way as best I can. I talked to them before any of this happened though. I was going to do this regardless of where we were or what you decided."

And that lead her to her main focus. She took a small step back just so he wasn't holding her face anymore. She didn't want him feeling like he had to, like she was his obligation, no matter how much she cared about him. "But it has never been about my pace, Quin," she added, looking at him with a bit of fear in her eyes but a determination as well, "I told you how I felt because I was tired of hiding behind my own fears but I never expected you to feel the same way. Hoped, yes, but never expected." She took in a deep breath again, realizing she was likely prattling on but she had to get it all out. She needed him to know that amorentia or not, she'd been his for years and he was the only one that could change that. "So, it has to be your pace, your decision," she began to finish, offering the best smile she could muster, "As much as I want for this to remain and go further, I only want it if you do yourself. And not because I want it but because you want it."

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BEE-utiful Set!

Listening quietly, nodding along with what she was saying, Quin knew she'd been serious that morning in her kitchen and he had been too. There were outside factors to consider and Quin knew that too. Navigating the mourning and her family would be tricky, if they decided to go ahead, but the other night had pretty much pushed Quin over the edge in that concern. He knew himself well enough to realize that he wouldn't have kissed her if he didn't want to.

As she pulled back, so did Quin, he took a few steps back to give her even more space if that was what she wanted and shoved his hands back into his pockets. What she said next was unexpected however and it just proved to show how far out of his depth he was here. Quin clearly had no idea what he was doing, had never been in this position before and to add in all of the external considerations he was going to really have to work it out in his own head.

"I wouldn't have kissed you the other night, or want to right now, if I didn't feel like it was a good thing." He pointed out with a small shrug. He'd been the one with with impulse control that evening and he'd still failed to engage it. "I respect you more than that." Merlin he hoped she knew that. "You're not just my best friend's kid sister to me anymore, if that's what you're thinking."

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The space between them was both a good and a bad thing. She was overthinking things, worrying, she knew. So his step back had her wondering if it was because he didn't want her near or if he was just trying to help her with her own confusion. All of it was frustrating. Feelings were hard even if she had harbored such feelings for Quin from the day she met him. Back then they could have easily been described as a little school girl crush but they'd evolved into so much more. And now, well, now they were having to navigate it all and figure it out together.

His words, however, gave her a bit of hope. Her heart fluttered slightly as she watched him. She nodded when he said he respected her though, even went on to smile at his final remark. Because, if she were being honest, she had been thinking just that. Worrying that maybe he really still did view her as such. She knew kisses weren't always the most serious thought in a man's mind but she had hoped, and thought, that it was different with Quin. It seemed that she'd been right, at least a little bit. She was still having a hard time with truly believing it all considering how long it had taken her to admit her feelings to him.

With a deep breath, she stepped back toward him just enough so that she could reach for his arm and rest her hand on it once more. "I'd honestly never turn down a kiss from you, Quin," she said softly, smiling as she said it, "I wanted that kiss for so long. The letter just helped push me into finally taking that plunge."

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BEE-utiful Set!

Quin felt like he was a little behind here, like he was a man a decade younger, but thankfully he had more sense than some at that age. She'd had more time to wrap her head around the possibilities than he had. As usual, Quin was flying by the seat of his pants.

Keeping his eyes trained on her, waiting to see if anything he'd said made things better or worse, Quin watched as she started forward again, almost afraid to move. He froze initially, though softened when it looked like she wasn't going to smack him.

"Ha, you say that now." He chuckled as he reached out slowly to place his hands gently on her waist. Quin had every intention of treating this situation delicately and would always put her first, but she had pretty much just given him an open invitation. "You must be forgetting how much of a novice I am, now that you're sober." He murmured as he leaned down to press his lips to hers.

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Felicity's lips pulled into a smile, almost a half smirk, as he didn't keep the distance and instead moved his hands to her waist. His words even had her laughing lightly. It was like a breath of fresh air considering how very badly the whole interaction could have gone. But, novice or not, she wouldn't change the feel of his lips against hers for anything.

The kiss was kept a bit shorter but not without testing some of the boundaries. And, as it was finished, Felicity smiled up at him. "The only way to no longer be a novice is practice, after all," she said, smirking all over again, "And I gladly offer to help."

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BEE-utiful Set!

While he was clearly inexperienced, he also respectfully doubted she had too much more herself. That put him a little more at ease with the whole thing, though he supposed he shouldn't have been any kind of relaxed in this situation. The kiss went as far as she would let him, getting enough of a taste to get him all hot and bothered.

When they finally came up for air, he chuckled at her comment. "That's almost too tempting Lis." Percy was going to kill him. That was going to be a conversation they would need to have sooner rather than later.

"This is where you tell me you should probably go..." He murmured as his gaze wandered between her eyes and her lips.

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Felicity echoed his chuckle, feeling far better about it all now. It was a bit of a relief, especially as she watched him look at her in such a way. She didn't think her fiance had ever really looked at her that way before. She knew she hadn't at the very least.

She brought a hand up to cup his cheek, running her thumb against the skin she felt there. She knew he didn't really mean what he said at the end, she knew she really didn't want to go even if she should. She just.. couldn't bring herself to go. Not yet. "And if I'm not quite ready to?" she asked, voice softer this time as she continued to watch his own features and gently stroke his cheek.

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