With a nod, Seven hopped off the counter, grabbing a fork from where they'd stashed them(in the wrong spot, mixed in with the spoons), and fixed their meal before slowly making their way back toward the living room. When Mae spoke, there were those twinges again. It couldn't still be indigestion. Maybe they were just that hungry and hadn't realized it before. The mention of an ex made the hair on their neck bristle for some reason; maybe there was a draft somewhere.

"I didn't mean anything by it," they said flatly, shrugging lightly, then took a bite of their sloppy joe and chewed thoughtfully. "I can't say I've ever had a girlfriend. Or boyfriend. Or...any sort of significant other, really," they mused. "I mean, it was pretty much just sex. Until it wasn't and somebody moved on. For awhile I thought that's just how things work, right? Just like everything else. People use people, and then move on." Just saying that made them feel funny again; it was what they'd believed, but...something wasn't right. No matter, back to the food.

They spent the rest of their meal in silence, cleaning their plate, and even offering to take Mae's to the kitchen when she'd finished as well. Plates went into the sink, were washed, and Seven's beer bottle found the trash can. After they were done, they grabbed another beer and plopped right back on the couch, propping their bare feet up on the coffee table and taking a healthy swig.

Mae listened, rather surprised Seven was opening up a little. She chewed her food, trying to take it in. It was a little, awkward, to know their roommate was pretty much used to what she took to be sleeping around, but, maybe that was better? Was it harder to know someone you had a crush on had no lasting emotional attachments, or that they had never had one at all?

Crush...

Oh, sweetmotherof---

No, no no no. She continued eating, trying to do anything to distract herself. This was her roommate! For f*** sake. What was wrong with her brain.

She listened, trying to focus on the words. People used people and moved on. That was what Seven believed. Mae needed to understand that. "Someday you'll find the person that isn't going to use you though. You don't want that opportunity to pass you by because you were too busy assuming the worst."

Brain, what the hell. Mae felt the genuine comment slip out before she could stop it. She finished her own food, then went and got ready for bed.

People use people. She shut her eyes and tried to sleep. When Seven joined her she didn't object, but her mind wondered if she was setting herself up for another round of pain.

"That's pretty much all I know, Maeberry," Seven said as they leaned back against the sofa, taking another rather healthy swig of beer. "I mean, maybe it'd be nice to not have to worry about status quo and all that shit but...well, here I am."

After finishing their cleaning, Seven noticed that Mae had gone to bed, but they stayed up, having retreated to their room and downing another couple of beers. Then, they spent a few hours just zoned in on their TV, senses literally dead to everything else. They didn't know what time they finally turned it off, brushed their teeth, changed into an oversized shirt, and slid into bed with Mae again, but they did, making sure to get close enough not to freeze her out this time.

Their mind wandered to the conversation, trying to make heads or tails of it; why had they bothered sharing all that? After only a week, they felt they could trust Mae, and that was dangerous. But as they drifted off to sleep, a thought occurred to them.

What if it isn't?

The next day went like normal. Wake up, get showered, go to work. Mae came home early because it was a short day and finished her book in silence in the living room. The whole time she struggled with her thoughts that just didn't seem to behave. If her roommate knew what was going through her head, she was sure they would move out.

She made dinner (a casserole), and it was done by the time she finally heard Seven enter the house.

"Hey, tomorrow will probably be a late night again. I can keep some of this in the fridge though. We shouldn't eat all of it tonight..." she commented, spooning a plate for both of them.

Seven woke up before Mae, as they usually did, and they cast a short glance at her sleeping form as they began to get ready. Compared to the first few days of being roommates, Seven had been a lot more considerate. Making sure Mae had a towel, leaving at least one cup's worth of coffee in the pot, and leaving it on so it would still be hot when she got it. Make life easier on your roommate, and they'll make life easier on you, right? Yeah.

The workday itself went pretty well, actually. So well, that when Seven got home, there were no cuts or bruises, or even a scrap of clothing out of place.

When they walked in, Mae had finished dinner and was in the process of fixing plates for the both of them. That was...thoughtful, and it brought back memories of their conversation the night before. 'People use people,' and yet, here Mae was, doing all of this for Seven: Spending time with them, letting them sleep in her bubble of silence, making them dinner...and aside from the basic cleaning up after themselves or making sure the door is closed, she'd asked for nothing in return. Unless one counted paying their half of the bills, which was the agreement anyway. This other stuff was...unnecessary, but they weren't going to complain.

"Yeah, I don't think we will. I'll try and manage without you though," they teased lightly. "Hey, I haven't burned the house down yet." They gave a grin, still not showing any teeth, but it was a genuine smile that made Seven feel kinda warm and tingly inside. They weren't too sure they liked that.

Mae laughed, and it came out with a little snort that she quickly covered with her mouth. She had NOT meant to make that noise, but here she was, and heck if she wasn't embarrassed by it. She quickly crammed food into her mouth to avoid speaking too fast, almost choking herself in the process. Yeah, that was a quick way to look like a hot mess.

Swallowing successfully, she wiped her mouth. "I mean, that grilled cheese was a little borderline. The house was standing, but...there are some things you are better at than others." Mae smirked in a playful way, then caught herself. Stop it...

She finished her food, making occasional small talk. Would Seven like a certain meal for a dinner? Should they get a new shower curtain? By the end, she went to bed first, knowing her roommate would follow before long.

The only...problem, was by the time Seven came Mae was asleep. Like, dead asleep. Like, someone sleeps next to her, they suddenly became a giant teddy bear to snuggle, asleep.

That wasn't going to end oddly at all.

That noise...was that a snort. Seven felt the corners of their mouth tugging into a smile, and for a brief moment, there were teeth and a noise that slightly resembled a chuckle. That was choked down, then replaced with a look of mild concern as Mae almost choked, but that too was choked down.

"I asked about the state of the house, not of the food," they quipped dryly. "I told ya from the beginning I can't cook, didn't I?" The conversation faded into small talk, with Seven slightly explaining that they were by no means a picky eater, and would eat whatever Mae made without question. After all, there was a time where they only lived on their own cooking. They bid Mae goodnight, and stayed up a little while longer. One of the neighbors was arguing quietly over the phone, but Seven was able to tap into the whole thing from their perch on their own bed, with the TV off. Ooooh....man and his mistress having a good old fashioned verbal brawl? The plot thickens...

The argument ended anti climatically and Seven showered and dressed for bed, before going to the spot next to Mae that they'd grown so accustomed to. They pressed their back against the woman, as they'd always did, and very quickly drifted off to sleep. Mae seemed a bit more...cuddly...than usual, but they didn't mind. In fact, it was kind of nice. Warm. Besides, if this was how Seven was to repay Mae for everything extra she'd done, then that was just fine.

Mae was like a octopus that night. Not that she was aware of it. Something about the extra warmth and a desperate need for human contact unleashed a rather clingy version of herself that probably grabbed places she shouldn't have.

Okay, totally grabbed things she should have.

Mae woke up with one arm across Seven's shoulder, the other tucked under her body in a way that made all her muscles tingle with pinched nerves. Feeling groggy, she rolled away, trying to shut off her alarm clock with her powers and dreading getting out of bed.

"whhhrhtime'ssitt." She pulled her pillow over her head, trying to block out how much MORNING there was.

"Not time to get up, I hope," was the grumble that escaped Seven's lips. They sighed as their eyes opened and Mae rolled away. They knew full well what time it was. "Sure we can't both just stay home..." they groaned as they sat up in bed. Technically they were already hella late, but when you worked for yourself(technically) you could start whenever the expletive you wanted to. Shaking their head groggily, they stood to their feet, blonde hair strewn positively all over their head, with some in the back resembling a peacock from having gone to bed right after their shower.

But **** had to be done, so they went about their business. Coffee, brushed teeth, but on the way to grab breakfast, they noticed they hadn't seen Mae yet, so they walked back in and gave her a firm--but not too firm--nudge on the lower back. "Wakey wakey, Sunshine," they said dryly before pulling the covers back and removing the pillow. "One of us is late already. You have to be the responsible one." Then, they went back to the kitchen and made a bowl of cereal to go with their coffee. And while they were at it, poured Mae a cup of coffee and a bowl of cereal as well.

Mae grumbled when Seven nudged her, but begrudgingly got up and got ready for her day. It wasn't until she had the coffee somewhat in her system, and was working on the cereal when she started to resemble a functioning human being.

"I feel like I got run over by a bus. Are we sure you were drinking last night and not me?" she asked, rubbing her eyes. She yawned and tried to track down a clock, cursing under her breathe.

"It's a good thing today is my later shift or I would be screwed...Sorry if I was a crappy sleeper..." she noted. If she was this tired, she must have tossed and turned a lot.

"Oh, I'm like 97% alcohol already, it's fine," they said slyly. "Oh you were fine. Cuddlier than usual but...it wasn't bad," they said with a shrug as they looked at her, taking all the dirty dishes and putting them in the sink. "You had your arm around my shoulder and..." they snorted. "Let's just say your snoring's even cuter when it's directly in my ear," they teased, delivery as dry as usual, but they were obviously unoffended.

They began washing what few dishes they had. After all, Seven was already running behind, and they didn't have anything pressing to tend to today, so they were just gonna mess around, and maybe leave when Mae did. If they left at all, at this point.

Mae was slow to process what was being said, then pink started across her face. It was gradual, until her whole face was crimson. "I....didn't. I am...I'm sorry, I didn't mean, oh f***!" she hid her face in her cereal, groaning to herself and downing the rest of her coffee as if that would save her.

"I just, seriously, not used to people next to me like that. Uh, thanks for helping with the dishes. I just...I should get dressed," she stammered in an awkward embarrassed way and hurried to find clothing suitable for work. It took effort to get her pants on right and shirt, then finally returned to the kitchen. She was surprised Seven hadn't left yet. In the end, after grabbing her keys, they awkwardly left together. Well, seven seemed fine. Mae was still totally dying on the inside.

That night, Mae came home and had mostly forgotten the incident. Mostly. She yawned as she went about heating something up to eat, noticing Seven wasn't in the main living space currently. She sat on the couch, trying desperately to process what was going on in her brain. She had caught feelings. A horrible, horrible case of feelings, and now she was doomed. What would she say? How could she sleep next to Seven without it going that way....

Oh dear god, why was she sleeping with her roommate at all?

Mae didn't notice Seven had come up in the middle of her thoughts, the bubble close to her side again. She needed to stop this, she needed to find a way to get a grip before this was out of control. Her heart couldn't take it. Not now, not like this.

"Hey, it's cool. I don't mind," they said calmly. "Besides, you didn't have a problem with it last night." A sly smirk played across their lips as they gave another shrug. They finished the dishes, and walked out with Mae, making sure the door was locked, as per usual.

After the day had wound down, and Seven came home, doctoring up a bloody nose; nothing too bad, this was literally a random nosebleed that happened from time to time. Must have used the teleportation-esque aspect of their powers too much that day. They didn't ruin any clothes, but they went through a lot of toilet paper because of this. After awhile, Seven came to the living area, a piece of tissue stuck up their nose. They could tell something wasn't quite right with Mae, but they didn't say anything. Just...plopped down next to her.

"Before you say anything, it was a random nosebleed. Happens when I use the other aspect of my power too much; I can teleport through certain electronics, is the simple version." They didn't think twice about the sleeping together, or any of that. To them it was just natural, and a way for Seven to get some peace and quiet.

You didn't have a problem with it last night...

Mae was fine. That was fine. She was fine. This was not embarrassing at all. That thought carried her through the day, and up to the moment when Seven sat next to her.

Mae felt the shift as Seven came into the dead zone. It was closer than normal, as if feeding off her feelings of confusion. She wanted Seven close. But that was bad. She shouldn't. But she did. Why was her brain having so much trouble today?

The nosebleed was a concern though, enough that she forgot the little flip flops her heart seemed to do today. "I'm glad it's not a big deal? Teleporting sounds useful at least. Can say a few times I would have loved to nope outta so place..." she would never admit today was one of those days. She wondered if her heart was beating loud or it was just her? She had looked over to make sure Seven was fine, then remembered what happened the night before. It was driving her crazy just thinking about it.

"Well, it's not a big deal by your standards. Because a big deal to me is probably a cataclysmic event to you," Seven teased, completely oblivious to what was going on in Mae's head. Not that they would have really understood it if they did know. Crushes were beyond them.

"It's a little more complicated than that. I need a device like a phone that I can touch. I always carry a burner phone or three for this reason. And I'm more or less...following signals from other devices. I'm going by hearing alone so it can get a little bit...hairy sometimes. And God ****ing forbid I lose signal while I'm in the process..." They shook their head slightly.

They took a breath, looking over at Mae. "Something's wrong with you today," they said pointedly, their way of showing concern or asking if she wanted to talk about it. If she did, Seven wasn't entirely sure what they were going to be able to do about it.