[PRP] Freckles & Burns (Chester & Preacher)

[The Semblance of Unity]

It was hot, the sky was (mostly) clear - it called for rain in the evening, and the annoying bleat of seagulls split the air. It was perfect and Preacher was ready to tackle the beach. Bending over, she yanked a giant beach towel into place. Then yanked on it again. She'd eschewed even the idea of a hat and braided her hair into some strangely fancy french braid and wore an open shirt and short over her swimsuit. Chester might have found the shirt oddly familiar.

She plopped her little cooler and bag next to the towel and waited for him to come back. It was so warm, and it made her feel sleepy. Preacher started to nod off in seconds.

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[Smerdle]

Chester might have brought far more than he should have, but he carried it all with less difficulty than most would've in his position. It was all in the packing, a painstaking process that he had been running through all morning. Several towels, a hat, shovel, pail, food, drinks, sunscreen, and even a deflated beach ball fit comfortably on his back, while the largest item he had on him—a giant blue umbrella—was slung across his chest. He removed that first, quietly depositing everything in the sand before crouching close to Preacher.

"Is that my shirt?"

The sunglasses hid his eyes, but the amusement in his voice clearly broadcast his mood anyway.

The Semblance of Unity

 

[The Semblance of Unity]

Preacher was definitely a 'throw s**t together and go' person and Chester... was not. It was clearly evident in the way he'd packed, arranged neatly like stacking tetris blocks for the maximum usage of space. She kind of liked it - it meant she didn't have to worry later on. She shielded her eyes from the sun as she watched him unburden himself.

Her lips twitched at his question. "It's... mine now." Then Preacher grinned. "I mean you can take it back if ya wanna but what am I s'pposed ta wear?" She gestured to all the stuff.

"Umbrella first, then, uh, whatever ********' else..." She poked him in the shoulder. "Doncha need sunscreen 'less you've got magic skin I ain't know about."

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[Smerdle]

"Yours now," he agreed with a nod. At least until he needed it for something, which wouldn't be today. Chester got to work, propping open the umbrella and digging its end into the sand so it wouldn't blow away. He spread out one of the towels and lined his stuff up next to it. By the time he sat down next to Preacher, he already looked faintly cooked.

"Sunscreen, yes. Or eventually you'll look over here and find a pile of ash."

He squirted some onto his hands and started rubbing it onto his legs and the tops of his feet.

The Semblance of Unity

 

[The Semblance of Unity]

She grinned. "Mine." Preacher had appropriated (she thought the word steal was uncouth, and 'borrow' implied a verbal agreement that included giving things back) his things before - a hat here, there, one of those little mechanical dudes. It was pure luck that Chester was so easy-going about it all. She knew she wasn't the greatest roommate. But she also knew that he didn't need to know about the t-shirt she'd taken.

"Lemme help; ash ain't a good look for ya, even if ya tryna become a phoenix." Preacher leaned over and grabbed the bottle of sunscreen as well, squeezing out a rather generous amount and slicking her hands down his back. She rubbed in efficient circles, watching as the white cream was absorbed by his white skin. He was going to reflect light like the snow did in winter time.

She snorted. "Hello me, too? I freckle like a b***h even though I don' burn much." Preacher was already pretty freckly. She'd become one giant freckle if she wasn't careful. "Oh, by tha way, did I tell ya I think I know what m'eyes do? It's like a ********' 90s ring. Mood ring s**t. I think."

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[Smerdle]

He held in a wince as the sunscreen first hit his back, not because it was cold or he didn't appreciate the gesture, but because he'd never been one for slime. Even so, it didn't take Chester long to warm to it, mostly because it was Preacher who was doing the rubbing.

"Thank you. I'm that much further from bursting into flames."

He did make a face as he applied sunscreen to his nose and arms, but he was smirking again once he'd turned back to Preacher.

"I like the freckles. But I'm biased. And supportive of your skin safety." And more than willing to have a reason to touch her. When she mentioned her eyes, Chester paused in his ministrations, a stutter in his mind translating to his hands. He swallowed. There was no reason to feel guilty over this. While he'd had his suspicions, it was far better for her to come to this on her own.

"Oh? That's interesting. How did you figure that out?"

The Semblance of Unity

 

[The Semblance of Unity]

She'd shrugged off his her shirt to allow him access to her back. "Ya make it sound like ya part vamp, guero. Don' suck m'blood." It felt kind of weird to have someone spread sunscreen on her; swimming wasn't something she'd done often, and she'd never really used sunscreen. It was cold.

"Welllll," Preacher drew out the word, tipping her head back to look up at him. "I started carryin' a pocket mirror wi' me n' checkin' it periodically. Concluded than m'normal borin' brown is a neutral feelin'. Anythin' else seems hooked to particular emotions per color- I ain't figured out all, though." She paused. "I'm surprised ya didn't notice afore me, since ya can see m'eyes more than I can." Preacher shrugged into his hands.

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[Smerdle]

He was quiet for a few seconds, not meeting her eyes as he finished applying the sunscreen.

"Pink and yellow are happy... jokey, kind of? And purple is... I already implied what that is." He finally looked at her, his expression apologetic. "So... I did notice a little, but I couldn't be sure. I didn't want to say anything in case I was wrong." He also didn't want to be the one to reveal that she had such an obvious tell. To be honest, he didn't think she would care, but if it had been him, he would have.

The Semblance of Unity

 

[The Semblance of Unity]

His unwillingness to meet her eyes seemed a little strange and she wondered if they were an odd color. Preacher felt kind of... normal-ish, so maybe they were brown or yellow-ish? (They were mostly orange, the kind she got when thinking about things.) Preacher reached around and pinched his side.

"Jus' tell me next time. I ain't mind n' it's more useful ta get someone else's eyes on mine. s**t, I ask people at tha station ta tell me." Preacher wasn't bothered by the fact that her eyes gave away things. Most of the time, she was pretty upfront with how she felt, anyway. She was a little concerned about them going purple at random, which seemed - as far as she knew - a bit too intimate for most situations.

She shimmied out of her shorts. "D'ya wanna go swimming or try n' go burble at people?"

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[Smerdle]

Chester nodded, straightening sharply at the pinch. "All right, I promise. They're orange now, mostly." He looked out at the water, watching it lap at the shore as he constructed a loose plan of action.

"Swimming first, then sitting around. And maybe some burbling if there's a good time for it. I don't want to be too weird, you know?"

The Semblance of Unity

 

[The Semblance of Unity]

"There's always time for burblin'." She snorted, flicking the end of her braid over her shoulder. "Ya can jus' go n' do it at, i.d.k, tha bar vendor or over there." She jerked a thumb to where some food stands had been set up. Preacher made a not not to pinch him unless he was pissing her off. She kind of wondered how he would see to swim without his glasses, but the ocean called her.

Grinning, she glanced up at him. "C'mon, I've never been in anythin' but a pool. Race ya." And then she was off, fulling expecting Chester to jsut follow at a more sedate pace. No one ever really raced.

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[Smerdle]

The answer was, he wouldn't see very well at all, and so he kept his glasses on for the time being, hoping that the zippered pocket in his trunks would keep them safe when the time came to remove them.

Something competitive sparked in him when Preacher hopped to her feet, the sort of feeling that might have served him well back when his parents were pushing him into every sport he could reasonably qualify to play. Even though he was also aware that no one ever really raced and he would look stupid trying, Chester darted after her anyway, running toward the water with rather decent form and speed. Track had been an activity he could tolerate, mostly because he wasn't expected to be a team player while training. He stopped at the water's edge, catching his breath as he looked out over the horizon. It was even cooler from here.

The Semblance of Unity

 

[The Semblance of Unity]

Preacher grimaced as Chester pulled ahead of her. His damn long legs. (Also, she'd never done track or anything like it.) He might have reached the water's edge sooner, but she brushed against him deliberately as she barreled straight into the water. No one could look at her scars if they were covered up with water. Or something. Quickly, the shore dipped out from under her feet and she stuck her arms out in what was honestly a kind of clumsy-looking breaststroke.

Turning back to the shore, she waved at Chester. "Why're ya still there?"

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[Smerdle]

"I'm... looking." That had been his original intention, just standing still and admiring the water. But the longer he remained in place, not braving the waves, the more he pondered the reality of going in.

"Is it cold?" he yelled over the rush of the water and the widening distance between them. He was almost touching the closest lapping waves and could have easily found out for himself, but he thought he'd ask anyway.

The Semblance of Unity

 

[The Semblance of Unity]

"Why doncha find out?" she called back to him. Honestly, it was kind of chilly, but she'd expected it. It made Preacher want an inner tube so she could just float on forever and soak up the sun part of things. He was looking.... at what?

Preacher looked out towards the horizon, seeing nothing, really, but flat water. Big and blue and wonderful. Or something. "C'mon, guero!" If he didn't she was just going to have to drag him in. She had already planned on trying to dunk him.

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