"These ribs are SOOOOO good. SO, SO, SO good." Chun grinned, gracing everyone at the table with slobber. Ella's mouth shaped into something of disgust and she crammed a napkin over his mouth. Hebe muffled a laugh. Selina frowned.

"Ella, don't abuse your honey! I mean, with a face like that, it's too good to ruin!" She pouted. Ella snorted and ignored her.

"Can you pass the tea?" Aaron called from the other end of the table.

Hebe, who was sitting a seat away from him and in front of the teapot, picked it up to give it to him. She meant to pour it for him, but he meant to take it and pour it for himself, and that didn't end so well. In fact, it went something like this. Hebe's hand bumped into Aaron's hand, in which they both drew back sharply so as not to touch each other anymore. This, in turn, made Hebe drop the teapot onto the table, where the lid popped off and some of the china chipped off. After which the tea splashed onto Aaron's shirt, Hebe's sleeve, and the person-sitting-in between-them's chair (seeing as the person wasn't there).

A few minutes later, they found themselves back at the hotel in the washroom, where Hebe was vigorously scrubbing at the burn on her hand and Aaron was hosing his shirt down.

"This is all your fault," Aaron grumbled. It was, after all, his favourite shirt floating idly in bathtub water. The bathtub itself was deep and huge, like a jacuzzi or hot tub. "If it stains, I'll have to kill you."

"Sure, sure," Hebe frowned at the red rash going down her arm. This wouldn't go nicely with her dress at all.

"Are you even listening to me?"

"You sound like a jealous girlfriend," Hebe replied, not quite paying attention to him. At this, he made a face and picked her up. Hebe shrieked.

"What are you doing?!" She scratched at Aaron, her burn forgotten. His face was cracked into the wickedest of grins, and he turned back around and lowered her down slowly before slipping his arms from around her, dropping her down into the water. The splash wasn't too loud, but Hebe's scream was.

"AARON YAN!" She scrambled back up, clothing soaked and hair dripping. "HOW DARE YOU!" She took up her hair in her hands and squeezed, trying to get the water out. Aaron stood there, still grinning as wildly as ever, but his eyes were--

"OH MY GOD, OH MY GOD. GET OUT!" Hebe's face was the definition of horrified at the moment. "GET OUT, YOU FREAKING !" With Hebe flinging tiny complement shampoo bottles and wrapped soaps at him, Aaron made his retreat, slamming the door behind him. Hebe stripped down and grabbed a towel, drying herself off and throwing her clothes onto some hangers.

Once she came back out, peeping beforehand in case Aaron was still lurking, she got dressed in a gigantic teeshirt and some shorts, climbing into bed. She'd called the inside when they first got there, anyways.

--

Halfway through the night, I pop into the room. Honestly, I wasn't meaning to stay so late, but the people in the basement practically glued me to the chair so that they could challenge me to at least another four hundred fifty two games. Even I don't like Blackjack enough to play for a whole night.

I gulp and clumb into bed slowly. I'm wishing I wasn't so arrogant and buff now, because if Hebe saw me now, she'd definitely laugh at how pathetic I'm being, all shrimpy and clampy and trying to sleep as far from her as I can.

Another quarter of an hour passes. I turn over restlessly a couple times. Hebe actually DOESN'T snore, contrary to my belief. I mean, it's girls like her that always snore. Like, Selina--even when I was ten and she was twelve, she snored. Like a bear, really. Since then, I'd always believed that pretty girls snored.

Not that Hebe's pretty.

--

At four in the morning, Aaron woke up to find himself on the floor and sore all over. There was a kink in his neck, and his leg was positioned weirdly on the bed. Hebe's arm hung over where he could grab it easily, and he did. Pulling her down, he heaved himself up and onto his feet. He'd wanted the inside since they'd gotten to the hotel, but Hebe'd called dibs.

Wait. He'd called dibs before, and she took the swing anyways. He shrugged and jumped onto the inner part of the bed, nearly crashing into the wall as he did. He missed the wall, though, so that was good. He looked over at Hebe, who was half dangling off the bed, and tugged her back up.

He was a nicer person than she was, that was it. It wasn't like it meant anything else. And he didn't actually mean to move her closer to him, either. After all, Aaron, though good with girls under the sunshine, was just a regular guy with the mindset of a bashful twelve-year-old kid at night.

--

[[initially written & added may 11 09.