OOM-but-Not, Feb 13, 1991

[noteful]

Meg has a very bright smile when she arrives in the bar this evening. She's had a lovely birthday.

And it's not that she doesn't notice that things seem to be happening around the bar, it's just that she notices her sister on the other side of the room more.

She hasn't seen Kim since just after Christmas, and they have Something to discuss.

Looking around the bar can wait till that's taken care of.

Comments

[noteful]

Meg nods.

"Yes, it's been lovely."

She sits down.

"Though . . . it should be just about over where you are.

"You haven't been waiting too long, have you?"

[bannion_sight]

Kim shakes her head.

"Not too long, no. It's been ... pretty quiet here tonight."

She sounds oddly uncertain of that, but shakes it off almost immediately.

"Anyway. If you're not sick of presents," she teases, "here's another for you."

She pushes the package over to her sister.

[noteful]

"Who gets sick of presents, Kim?

"I'm getting married in five months. I probably need to practice with presents, honestly."

To say nothing of thank you notes.

Meg very carefully unwraps the gift.

(Meg last ripped paper off a gift sometime in 1977.)

[bannion_sight]

"Hopefully not you, what with the wedding," she agrees.

Kim takes a sip of her coffee as she watches Meg unfold the paper, and smiles at the glint of light from blue glass tile that peeks through.

[noteful]

The blue tiles are on a box that Meg has now carefully removed the paper from.

"It's beautiful, Kim.

"Thank you."

[bannion_sight]

"I thought you might be able to use a place to store keepsakes someday soon."

Kim's smile is warm.

[noteful]

"I'm sure I will," Meg says.

Funny how they start piling up, when you're finishing university and getting married all in the space of months.

[bannion_sight]

Kim takes another sip of her coffee, and sets the empty mug aside.

"How's Alain?" she asks.

[noteful]

"He's good.

"Muttering about students who won't read their assignments, but I think he's really happy teaching."

And just about recovered from meeting Edward Cullen.

[bannion_sight]

She laughs.

"Isn't that the age-old complaint for teachers, though? Students are always the greatest trial."

[noteful]

"Sort of like patients, for doctors?

"Unless it's administrators for both . . . "

[bannion_sight]

"Probably the doctors and the teachers are themselves the trial to administrators," she muses. "And round and round it goes."

She taps the side of her empty coffee mug and gives Meg a quizzical look.

"Want anything?"

[noteful]

Meg considers this for a moment and then says, "Yes, but not anything we can order from a waitrat."

[bannion_sight]

Kim blinks.

"... okay," she says, after a moment. "I could go up to the bar instead, but that wouldn't be much different..."

She's eyeing Meg a little suspiciously.

[noteful]

"Don't think that'll help, either," Meg says, smiling a little more broadly.

"Not without its all getting needlessly complicated, anyway."

[bannion_sight]

"Okay," she says again.

The suspicious look hasn't gone anywhere, but a smile of her own is beginning to tug at the corner of her mouth.

"So what would?"

[noteful]

"I suppose I could just come out and ask . . .

"It's simple and direct, and grand dramatic gestures aren't really my style, so . . . yes, I should probably just come out and ask," Meg decides.

Without, actually, coming out and asking.

[bannion_sight]

"You could," Kim agrees, helpfully. "And maybe you should. If you would."

[noteful]

"Will you be my maid of honor?"

[bannion_sight]

Kim gasps in a startled breath.

"Will I -- yes!"

Tears of emotion well, and laughing, she dashes them away.

"Of course I will. I'd love to."

[noteful]

"Good. Thank you," Meg says.

There's a moment's pause, and then she adds, "Even if I make you wear a horrible orange dress with a great big bow?"

(It would be more of a threat if she weren't smiling quite so much.)

[bannion_sight]

Kim wrinkles her nose at that.

"Well if you truly want me to look like a pumpkin on your wedding day..."

[noteful]

"Oh, see, I was thinking far too neon to be a pumpkin . . ." Meg says, and then laughs.

"We'll find something.

"Maybe you could come back to Montreal with me some time. We'll go shopping."

[bannion_sight]

"I'd like that."

A quick, mischievous smile.

"Even if you do decide to go with a neon theme."

[noteful]

"If I do, I promise it will be green, and not orange."

Probably.

"Good. Then once I figure out what I'm wearing, we'll figure out what you're wearing."

[bannion_sight]

"I think this sounds suspiciously like a plan. Or at least the beginnings of one."

[noteful]

"The beginning of one anyway," Meg says. "An outline of a plan.

"Plans generally have more details.

"And shopping plans have lunch."