She really didn't feel like slapping him, it had just been something that needed saying. The kiss really hadn't been okay... but it had been more than okay. That right there was the problem. This needed to be decision made by logic, not hormones, and logic needed information. Like why he hadn't called.

There it was again, that absolutely disarming surprise that indicated anything other than a lie. Nobody was good enough to fake the look of surprise painted all over Stephen's face. He really hadn't known to call her.

Quin shook her head and ran a hand through her hair, shaking out the loose strands that clung to her fingers after, " Space doesn't mean pretending like I don't exist." she said, not even concerned by the fact that they were stuck in a subway tunnel in the dim half-light of the subway card. "How does anything get resolved?" He hadn't thought that she was going to make the first move.

"I miss you too More than I should." she said with a frown, "But I really don't know where to go from here." It was truth, real truth. The question was, how would he react when he couldn't distract her with things like kisses?

She was right: space did not mean pretending like Quin did not exist. He assumed it meant behaving as though Nate did not exist. It was now apparent that in their situation, "space" did not mean space in any sense he knew before, which was honestly frustrating. "It's not like I didn't want to call. Hell, I missed your voice." Boy, that sounded kind of pathetic outloud. "I don't know, I thought not seeing me would let you make a choice without me influencing you."

Nate had to give some sort of explanation for his actions. "Cut me some slack, I've never done this before. You're the first person... well, you're the only one I've ever wanted to keep around."

Where did they go from here? "Honestly? I have no idea. Could you even take me back at this point?"

His eyes were adjusting to the dark,. Looking at Quin, Nate could not help but believe there was one perfect thing to say that would win her back. For the life of him, Nate could not figure out the perfect movie-quality line to save his relationship. "I love you, Quin, and I want this to work again."

Cut him some slack? Oh? She was supposed to cut him some slack? Quin looked at Stephen with raised eye brows and just kind of let that sink in. She was already cutting him slack by sitting here and talking to him. She didn’t say that though, she leaned back in the seat and sighed.

Could she take him back at this point?

Quin just sat and listened to him speaking, eyes on his as he continued to speak and she tried to sort everything out in her head. Could she take him back at this point? Could she not take him back at this point?

"I...don't know." she said finally. "But I think time could involve time together." She paused, wanting to make herself clear.

"But no lies. I don't know if this is even a second chance, but it will be nothing if you lie to me again. I don't care what it's about."

So now time to think could possibly include time to think together. If he were in Quin's position, that would sound like a bad way to think with a clear, uninfluenced mind. Nate would do everything he could to make things work, since he had little reason to think about their situation objectively.

It sounded much more fair to continue leaving a wealth of space between himself and Quin, but the more his body readjusted to the sensation of being in her proximity, the harder it was to think about what was fair. "I miss time together," he admitted.

Quin made herself absolutely clear: she was still wary about trusting Nate, and he had a long way to go before they could be considered better. "No lies. I'm done." It was hard enough keeping secrets from her before; he would not be able to handle it now.

So they were somewhere between being together and not being together, and they had a long way to go. "Can I take you out for dinner tomorrow, or are we not there yet?"

Dinner.

Was it too soon for dinner? Quin frowned and studied Stephen seriously. He said he missed time together, and she knew she did.

Was there any harm in letting him buy her dinner? Talking? Seeing where things went? He said he was done with the lies, but unfortunately that was exactly what a liar would say.

All of Quin's cop instincts, and a fair number of her girl instincts were screaming at her to say no. Walking around now would be easier, because the break had already basically been made. Then again, she'd basically just told him he had another chance. This whole situation was so confusing...

"I could do dinner." she said, "Dinner out though." They both knew that proximity was the direct opponent to rational thought.

The redhead smirked as the train started moving.

"Text me the time and place."

Nate had never spent time in limbo, but if he had to venture a guess at how it felt, he would compare it to the eternity it seemed to take Quin to contemplate dinner. Nate had said his piece, and Quin had his fate in her hands.

His eternal waiting did finally come to an end, and somehow, he managed to earn himself dinner. It was a dinner with clear boundaries, (for good reason since they had just made out on a subway.) It could have been a dinner where he had to remain shackled to his chair, but he was just happy to know he would get more time with her.

"I agree to your conditions," he replied with a grin. "And this time, I'll be sure not to keep you waiting."

The car churned back into action, and Nate was pleased with what had to be the most successful subway ride he had ever been on.