Post by BandGeek727 on Jul 25, 2009 14:52:28 GMT -5
...If anyone's at all interested...
I came up with the scene actually while writing the story - I never wanted it to be part of the fic, but I always thought it would make a cute little 'bonus' scene.
XR goes to pick out an engagement ring for Mira. Yes yes. 83
I pulled the description of the ring directly out of a FRIENDS episodes where Chandler goes to pick out a ring for Monica, for a few reasons. First, the ring had sapphires on it, and sapphires make me think of Mira. XD If you'd see this episode, you'd see... it looks like her.
Second, I actually discovered some awesome parallels that fed amazingly into the ideas I wanted to cover in this scene.
And any reason to compare these couples. XD
I was gonna just post this on my lj, but this just seemed more appropriate.
So, enjoy! ^^
~~
XR sighed heavily, slumping forward over the display case and rapping his fingers against the glass.
He couldn’t believe he was here. Doing this. For HER.
Sure, he’d imagined he’d be here, someday… But in his head they’d be dating, for real, and they’d be serious, she’d be crazy about him and he’d take her to the most romantic place he could find and he’d get down on one knee, and he’d have the perfect ring, and she’d always say yes…
“Excuse me, sir.”
XR jerked roughly, emitting a sharp squeaking sound as he was snapped out of his fantasy. His hands slipped on the display case, the metal making an awful squealing sound against the glass. The clerk who had just materialized in front of him was staring disdainfully down his long, thin nose, which was wrinkled slightly… as though he’d just smelled something very unpleasant.
“May I assist you in any way?” he asked, in a tone that suggested he would rather not have XR in his precious shop.
Well, that was fine, XR would rather not be here anyway. He straightened up and propped his helmet in one hand. “Just gimme the cheapest thing you got.”
The man raised an eyebrow at him. “She’s a very lucky woman indeed,” he said dryly.
XR scowled but said nothing. This guy had no right to judge him, had no idea the situation he’d found himself in…
The situation… XR considered this as the man flitted off to another part of the room. He’d never in a million years thought he’d be in a mess like this. Of course, if Mira needed his help, he wanted to do anything he could… But of all the things she could have asked for! If she had any idea what this was doing to him, she didn’t show it.
And why should she? She had no way of knowing… because he’d hidden it so well all these years, too well, and now they were friends, now she trusted him to be in a fake relationship with her, counted on it not to mean anything… because he was just like her little brother, wasn’t that what she’d said…
His frown deepened and he began drumming his fingers against the display case, his gaze absently wandering over the selection in front of him. This whole concept of engagement rings was beyond him. It was just so ridiculous… Why did women even need a ring, anyway? What was the point? Was it not enough that the guy was giving up all other chicks to be with her, with just one girl, for the rest of his life? Did she really need him to waste his savings on a rock? That was all a ring was, anyway, it wasn’t like it had any special significa…
His fingers ceased tapping as he froze, staring into the case.
There, tucked away amongst an endless barrage of what looked to XR like completely identical stones, was a modest little band of silver; not the simplest ring in the case, but not the flashiest either. It had a single diamond, and on either side…
His hand slipped away from his helmet as he straightened up, staring into the case. On either side of the diamond was a deep blue stone, sparkling up at him…
Just like her eyes…
And suddenly he could see it – they were there, at that fancy restaurant, all dressed up and he opened the case and she loved it, immediately, she said yes and she said it was perfect, it was perfect…
“Here you are, sir.”
XR jumped again, nearly losing his balance. The clerk was back, pushing a rather generic-looking ring across the counter at him and looking quite eager to have this exchange over with.
XR swallowed hard. “Uh… um, yeah, thanks, but… well, would it be okay… could I… could I see that one?” And he pressed his finger to the glass just above the perfect!ring.
The clerk raised his eyebrows. “Sir, that is hardly the least expensive item in our store.”
XR gritted his teeth to keep from spouting off some sarcastic remark. Instead he felt his face work into what was hopefully a convincingly pleasant smile.
“I understand,” he said, slowly and evenly as he could, “but do you think I could see it anyway?”
The man gave him a disapproving glance but complied (a bigger sale, why wouldn’t he?), reaching into the case and withdrawing the ring, holding it out for XR… who couldn’t help but notice the way it caught the light as it moved.
“Princess cut – a one-and-a-half carat diamond with sapphires on either side.”
XR actually shivered when he heard the heard. Princess cut… He’d never even known there was such a thing… He found himself reaching for it, automatically, and stopped himself. “Um, could I… do you think I could…?” He trailed off uncertainly, his hand still extended towards the ring.
The man looked as if he would very much have liked to object, but as XR hadn’t done anything to warrant being thrown out of the shop (yet) he reluctantly handed it over. XR held out his hand and the clerk placed the ring in his palm. He pulled it towards his face, then carefully took it between the thumb and forefinger of his other hand, holding it up to the light.
The vision flashed before his eyes again. The restaurant, the two of them, alone, together… And her eyes… her eyes as she said yes…
He gasped sharply.
When he looked at this ring, he saw her.
He saw them.
Together.
The clerk was now eyeing him rather impatiently. “Sir, are you at all interested in purchasing this ring?”
XR took one last, long look at it. There was no way around it. It fit. It was her.
It was perfect.
He nodded slowly. “Yes.”
~~
She practically bounced up to him in the breakroom, smiling widely.
Happy about getting her father to back off, he reminded himself. Not happy about him. About this.
She stopped just in front of him, looking down at him expectantly. “So, did you get it?”
The term ‘black market’ flitted briefly and inexplicably across his thoughts and he pushed it away. He nodded, reaching into an inner chamber of his storage compartment until his fingers brushed against the small velvet box. Something in his chest tightened and he swallowed, hard, closing his fingers around the box and withdrawing his hand.
The restaurant, the candlelight, the music… He had to resist a sudden compulsion to get down on one knee.
Instead he shoved the little box at her and turned away, unable to look at her any longer. He felt her fingers brush against his as she took the box and he pulled his hand away as though burned. He heard the small creak of the box’s tiny hinges and chanced a glance up at her.
Her eyes were wide, her mouth open slightly. For the longest moment she could only stare at the ring and he was hit by the wild hope that maybe she would love it, maybe it would be the perfect ring, in her eyes, and that she’d see he’d taken the time to choose it, just for her, that he’d put careful thought into this and she’d realize what a sweet thing it was he’d done…
“XR, this… this is really beautiful…” she breathed.
He leaned forward, his eyes wide and hopeful. What if this changed something, what if it made her realize that he saw her as more than a friend, that the two of them had the potential to be something great and if they were together he’d always take her feelings into account…
There was a sharp snap as she shut the case, rather suddenly, and he jumped, blinking.
“Thanks, XR, this should really convince my father,” she said brightly, the self-assured smile from before back on her face.
It really shouldn’t have surprised him. He’d known all along, known it was fake, it was just stupid of him ever to have dared think otherwise. He’d known it wasn’t really going to change anything.
It really shouldn’t have left him so hurt.
She waved and with a quick “Well, goodnight,” she turned, her long, flowy red hair swishing around as she practically bounced out of the room.
He watched her go, unable to move for a few moments, then he turned and slumped into a chair at the little round table in the middle of the room. With a low moan he doubled over in his seat, hiding his face in his hands.
Why did he do this to himself…
I came up with the scene actually while writing the story - I never wanted it to be part of the fic, but I always thought it would make a cute little 'bonus' scene.
XR goes to pick out an engagement ring for Mira. Yes yes. 83
I pulled the description of the ring directly out of a FRIENDS episodes where Chandler goes to pick out a ring for Monica, for a few reasons. First, the ring had sapphires on it, and sapphires make me think of Mira. XD If you'd see this episode, you'd see... it looks like her.
Second, I actually discovered some awesome parallels that fed amazingly into the ideas I wanted to cover in this scene.
And any reason to compare these couples. XD
I was gonna just post this on my lj, but this just seemed more appropriate.
So, enjoy! ^^
~~
XR sighed heavily, slumping forward over the display case and rapping his fingers against the glass.
He couldn’t believe he was here. Doing this. For HER.
Sure, he’d imagined he’d be here, someday… But in his head they’d be dating, for real, and they’d be serious, she’d be crazy about him and he’d take her to the most romantic place he could find and he’d get down on one knee, and he’d have the perfect ring, and she’d always say yes…
“Excuse me, sir.”
XR jerked roughly, emitting a sharp squeaking sound as he was snapped out of his fantasy. His hands slipped on the display case, the metal making an awful squealing sound against the glass. The clerk who had just materialized in front of him was staring disdainfully down his long, thin nose, which was wrinkled slightly… as though he’d just smelled something very unpleasant.
“May I assist you in any way?” he asked, in a tone that suggested he would rather not have XR in his precious shop.
Well, that was fine, XR would rather not be here anyway. He straightened up and propped his helmet in one hand. “Just gimme the cheapest thing you got.”
The man raised an eyebrow at him. “She’s a very lucky woman indeed,” he said dryly.
XR scowled but said nothing. This guy had no right to judge him, had no idea the situation he’d found himself in…
The situation… XR considered this as the man flitted off to another part of the room. He’d never in a million years thought he’d be in a mess like this. Of course, if Mira needed his help, he wanted to do anything he could… But of all the things she could have asked for! If she had any idea what this was doing to him, she didn’t show it.
And why should she? She had no way of knowing… because he’d hidden it so well all these years, too well, and now they were friends, now she trusted him to be in a fake relationship with her, counted on it not to mean anything… because he was just like her little brother, wasn’t that what she’d said…
His frown deepened and he began drumming his fingers against the display case, his gaze absently wandering over the selection in front of him. This whole concept of engagement rings was beyond him. It was just so ridiculous… Why did women even need a ring, anyway? What was the point? Was it not enough that the guy was giving up all other chicks to be with her, with just one girl, for the rest of his life? Did she really need him to waste his savings on a rock? That was all a ring was, anyway, it wasn’t like it had any special significa…
His fingers ceased tapping as he froze, staring into the case.
There, tucked away amongst an endless barrage of what looked to XR like completely identical stones, was a modest little band of silver; not the simplest ring in the case, but not the flashiest either. It had a single diamond, and on either side…
His hand slipped away from his helmet as he straightened up, staring into the case. On either side of the diamond was a deep blue stone, sparkling up at him…
Just like her eyes…
And suddenly he could see it – they were there, at that fancy restaurant, all dressed up and he opened the case and she loved it, immediately, she said yes and she said it was perfect, it was perfect…
“Here you are, sir.”
XR jumped again, nearly losing his balance. The clerk was back, pushing a rather generic-looking ring across the counter at him and looking quite eager to have this exchange over with.
XR swallowed hard. “Uh… um, yeah, thanks, but… well, would it be okay… could I… could I see that one?” And he pressed his finger to the glass just above the perfect!ring.
The clerk raised his eyebrows. “Sir, that is hardly the least expensive item in our store.”
XR gritted his teeth to keep from spouting off some sarcastic remark. Instead he felt his face work into what was hopefully a convincingly pleasant smile.
“I understand,” he said, slowly and evenly as he could, “but do you think I could see it anyway?”
The man gave him a disapproving glance but complied (a bigger sale, why wouldn’t he?), reaching into the case and withdrawing the ring, holding it out for XR… who couldn’t help but notice the way it caught the light as it moved.
“Princess cut – a one-and-a-half carat diamond with sapphires on either side.”
XR actually shivered when he heard the heard. Princess cut… He’d never even known there was such a thing… He found himself reaching for it, automatically, and stopped himself. “Um, could I… do you think I could…?” He trailed off uncertainly, his hand still extended towards the ring.
The man looked as if he would very much have liked to object, but as XR hadn’t done anything to warrant being thrown out of the shop (yet) he reluctantly handed it over. XR held out his hand and the clerk placed the ring in his palm. He pulled it towards his face, then carefully took it between the thumb and forefinger of his other hand, holding it up to the light.
The vision flashed before his eyes again. The restaurant, the two of them, alone, together… And her eyes… her eyes as she said yes…
He gasped sharply.
When he looked at this ring, he saw her.
He saw them.
Together.
The clerk was now eyeing him rather impatiently. “Sir, are you at all interested in purchasing this ring?”
XR took one last, long look at it. There was no way around it. It fit. It was her.
It was perfect.
He nodded slowly. “Yes.”
~~
She practically bounced up to him in the breakroom, smiling widely.
Happy about getting her father to back off, he reminded himself. Not happy about him. About this.
She stopped just in front of him, looking down at him expectantly. “So, did you get it?”
The term ‘black market’ flitted briefly and inexplicably across his thoughts and he pushed it away. He nodded, reaching into an inner chamber of his storage compartment until his fingers brushed against the small velvet box. Something in his chest tightened and he swallowed, hard, closing his fingers around the box and withdrawing his hand.
The restaurant, the candlelight, the music… He had to resist a sudden compulsion to get down on one knee.
Instead he shoved the little box at her and turned away, unable to look at her any longer. He felt her fingers brush against his as she took the box and he pulled his hand away as though burned. He heard the small creak of the box’s tiny hinges and chanced a glance up at her.
Her eyes were wide, her mouth open slightly. For the longest moment she could only stare at the ring and he was hit by the wild hope that maybe she would love it, maybe it would be the perfect ring, in her eyes, and that she’d see he’d taken the time to choose it, just for her, that he’d put careful thought into this and she’d realize what a sweet thing it was he’d done…
“XR, this… this is really beautiful…” she breathed.
He leaned forward, his eyes wide and hopeful. What if this changed something, what if it made her realize that he saw her as more than a friend, that the two of them had the potential to be something great and if they were together he’d always take her feelings into account…
There was a sharp snap as she shut the case, rather suddenly, and he jumped, blinking.
“Thanks, XR, this should really convince my father,” she said brightly, the self-assured smile from before back on her face.
It really shouldn’t have surprised him. He’d known all along, known it was fake, it was just stupid of him ever to have dared think otherwise. He’d known it wasn’t really going to change anything.
It really shouldn’t have left him so hurt.
She waved and with a quick “Well, goodnight,” she turned, her long, flowy red hair swishing around as she practically bounced out of the room.
He watched her go, unable to move for a few moments, then he turned and slumped into a chair at the little round table in the middle of the room. With a low moan he doubled over in his seat, hiding his face in his hands.
Why did he do this to himself…
I'm so glad you like it!
