Verona felt a bit giddy as Ezekiel had pulled her chair out for her, although she really had no clue why..

And the food looked amazing, and it smelled even better.
Waiting was killing Verona as she stared down at the food, ready to attack it as soon as she could.

"It looks amazing Helen," she said still staring at it.

Of course due to her incredibly good manners, Verona would never begin a meal without waiting for the others, or for anyone to start on their food, not even Eric, and that was saying quite a lot.

Of course, she was still itching to get into it, but patiently waited as snail Ezekiel took his time.

After Ezekiel had sat down Sebastian raced to his seat and began to eat. Despite the fact that he was in his late twenties he seemed to have the appetite of a teenage boy.

"Well thank you," Helen said before taking a bite.

Ezekiel ate a bit slower this time, enjoying the food as it entered his mouth and then went down is throat, and into the empty pit of his stomach. The goal was to fill that pit with this delicious concoction of food.

He was watching Verona out of the corner of his eye to see her eating patterns since he did not want to be rude and eat like Sebastian in front of Verona again, while Helen was watching them.

"It is so good," Verona said after chewing a quite large bite.
And good didn't even seem to graze the surface of this womans cooking.

And then seconds later, Verona shoved another massive bite of food into her mouth; never had she been this hungry before.
But then again, never did she really have to work, so therefor, she had never really been able to work up much of an appetite.

"Your cooking is simply amazing Helen."

Ezekiel gave up and starting eating a bit faster since he was hungry. There were glasses at each respective spot that were filled with water and he took a drink of one.

The water was delicious despite the lack of running water in the house. He was wondering something at that moment but it vanished as soon as he heard Verona speak.

"Thank you very much," Helen said again. "If you'd like I could teach you how to cook like this."

Ezekiel had stopped when he heard that and looked at Verona. There was a faint hint of excitement when he'd heard the offer. The fact that Verona may be able to cook this kind of food made it sound like it could taste even better.

Verona couldn't help but smile when Helen offer, "You know, I am a pretty fine cook myself, but never have I made anything this good. So yes, I would love that very much."

Taking another bite, Verona smiled a bit at Ezekiel, who seemed to be watching her.

And it had been true about Verona's cooking skills, she had always loved to cook when she was young, and the maids often helped her.

Ezekiel began to eat a bit faster though still maintained a certain level of politeness. He was listening to the two talk also though he was trying to focus on how good the food was.

"I didn't know you could cook," he said in Verona's direction.

Sebastian had finished eating now and he got up and left the table to take care of some things outside.

((sorry if it's short))

Verona smiled smiled when the cooking subject came up again. I guess you could say when someone looks like Verona, :idea: and acts like Verona, you wouldn't exactly expect her to cook, much less know how to cook.

"Yeah," she said with a smile. "I used to cook for my parents all the time, and then they found out it was me cooking everything, instead of the maids.. They wouldn't let me near the kitchen anymore, and they fired all of the maids that taught me how to cook."

Really there should have been no big deal with a girl like Verona cooking and such, but for some reason, her parents didn't want for her to do anything that made her an individual, rather than just another Byers child.

Ezekiel had nodded slightly, listening intently to every single word she said. In his opinion she should have been allowed to cook since frequently his parents made sure that Maria could do basic things. She was the youngest though and had no chance of actually inheriting the estate.

"Your parents seem a bit cruel," he said. "Though you turned out to be an angel. What do you think there reaction to you coming with me is?"

It was a genuine question but he wasn't quite sure if he wanted to know the answer. By now he was convinced that they hated him due to the fact that he'd 'attempted to kill his family.' He was sure that he could easily contradict that with the support of both Maria and Veronica if they were alive when he got back.

Verona hadn't really thought very much about her parents, because she knew that if they found out where she was, they would send out some sort of team to bring her back.

"Well, they don't really know I'm here... but if they did, surely they would find a way to bring me back."

Taking another bit into her meal, Verona chewed, then continued.

"I know that they went to that meeting of your fathers, and then Eric came by the house.. And then he asked their permission, and they said yes.."

Looking down, she pursed her lips, "I have no doubts that Eric told them that you kidnapped me or something.."

"That's most likely true," Ezekiel agreed. "Sounds like something that my brother would do."

Ezekiel had half-finished his food at this point and he looked down at it. He was thinking about what would happen to him when they found him.

Helen had been listening to the conversation and had almost finished the meal.

(sorry if it's short)

Verona was mostly finished as well when things were suddenly quiet.
She was now a bit wrapped up into her future, thinking about what Ezekiel had said about Eric.

That did sort of seem like something he would do.

It didn't take Verona long to finish, and soon after, she gathered up both Helen and Sebastian's plates, taking them over to wash.
Ezekiel had yet to finish while in his moment of deep thought.

After Ezekiel finished he picked up his plate. He walked over to where Verona was and handed it to her since he didn't want to get in the way.

"Helen," he said. "Have you heard any news from the city?"

Helen was silent for a moment as she thought over what she would say. She couldn't tell him tonight so she'd wait till she'd actually heard it from someone she knew was a trustworthy source.

"Not quite yet," she said in a caring tone. "I'll be going to town tomorrow to sell some of the vegetables that were picked today though."

Ezekiel just nodded slightly. He was worried about his family and it was beginning to show despite the fact that he was trying with all of his energy to not make himself look distressed.

Verona remained silent as she began to wash Ezekiel's plate as well.
She could feel Ezekiel's nervousness, or maybe it was just concern, she wasn't quite so sure.

But whatever it was that Ezekiel was fearing, it must have been bad.
It was like she could feel the tension in the air now, and it was quite unnerving.

"Ezekiel," she said after a moment. "Are you okay?"

Stepping over to him, she placed one of her hands upon his arm, as if reassuring him that she was there.

(responses may be shorter and slower due to some injuries i sustained from an auto accident)

Ezekiel acknowledged the placement of her hands on his arm and smiled. He felt a slight amount of relief but it did not completely subside.

"I'll be fine," he assured. "I probably just need to lie down soon."

In reality he just wanted to go home and make sure everyone was alive and uninjured.

(Oh my God! What happened!?)

Smiling, Verona wrapped her arms around his full body, seeing the white imprints from his tan, sunburn, whatever it was.

"Would you like company," she asked him.

Holding to him, she hoped that in some way she would be able to help him feel better, and comfort him, telling him that everything would be fine.
Thats what she wanted for him.

(nothing is broken but my left arm is sore and my neck kind of hurts. They just hit the right front end of the car but it could have been worse. My mom was a few minutes behind me though so she helped a lot. I might go to the doctor)

Ezekiel hugged her back, letting her scent take over him for a moment. When her voice broke the trance like state he was in he paused slightly.

"Of course I would," he said gently. "Besides I don't think anyone could calm someone down faster than you can."

(oh wow! That's good, yes, I think you should go to the doctor. If you want, we could take a break from the roleplay.)


Moving her grasp back to Ezekiel's arm, Verona began to tug him with her towards the stairs.

"Goodnight everyone," she called.

Even though it was only Helen and Sebastian, Verona had a habit of saying everyone, when really it was only two or three people.

(i need distraction right now, still a bit distressed)

Ezekiel allowed himself to be led up the stairs. When they were up there he actually put a shirt on rather than staying shirtless for more comfort.

He usually did this type of thing whenever he felt anxious or stressed. His self-image was actually quite poor despite his level of arrogance.

"I'm sorry if I may seem to be a bit out of it," he said after he was sure the door was closed. "A bit stressed really... just thinking. It's odd though, once I have the capacity to feel happy or excited there is no real excitement or happiness to feel. I do feel happier around you though. It's just Maria I'm worried about."

Verona pursed her lips at Ezekiel's words.
"So I make you happier, but I don't make you happy..?"

Verona sat on the bed, arms crossed, lips puffed out, and face in what one could guess to be her puppy-dog face again. Only this one looked a bit more angry than her last.

"So I don't make you happy?"

Blinking, she fell back into the bed, and hid her face under one of the pillows.

(Mm-kay.. I'm so sorry about your accident still.)

(thanks, it'll take a while to get over [emotionally])

Ezekiel looked guilty when she pouted slightly. He approached her slightly.

"You do make me happy though," he said in a concerned tone. "I wouldn't be happy if you weren't here. It's a break from all that nasty brooding and I can finally be myself."

There was a look in his face that was an attempt to convey an emotion, for the most part unidentifiable, that he'd never truly felt before.

Still hiding her face, Verona shook her head, "Apparently not so."

Now she was just teasing him, but still, she felt as though maybe he was really unhappy with being where he was. That maybe he preferred to be back home, drinking, and doing whatever.

Of course, that was not true.

Peeking out from under her pillow, Verona smiled at him a little bit, she couldn't be so mean for very long, whether she was only kidding him or not.

"Come lay with me," she said tossing the pillow at him. "I'm bored."

(Oh I know, it really must have been a bit unnerving..)

(I'm so glad I put my foot on the break because it could have easily been a t-bone. The speed limit on that road was about 55 mph. It just... I can't even describe how frightening it was)

Ezekiel laid down next to her when he was told. He stared at her for a moment before taking her hand and placing it on his face again.

"I like it when you touch my face like this," he said.

He seemed almost childish at the moment, like the change had brought it back to him. He had closed his eyes for a moment and when he opened them he seemed unnervingly delicate.

"Your skin is very soft," he commented. "It makes me want to protect you from whatever beast crosses your path. I've never truly felt that before."

(Aw.. I can't imagine. Well let's not talk about it so you won't think about it.)

Moving onto her stomach, Verona set her chin on Ezekiel's chest, and began to stroke his face and hair as he had liked.
Humming now, she began in what sounded like a childhood lullaby, soft yet incomplete yet..

And after she had finished humming the tune, she smiled at Ezekiel, twirling her fingers into swirls in his hair.
Really there was nothing to say, it would only ruin the quiet moments of peace they were having, and she liked them.

(sounds good)

The rush of the thoughts that were overwhelming him, seemed to at once flee when the soft music came to him. The humming was calming him and he smiled slightly and kept his eyes shut.

The movement of his hair didn't bother him in the least bit and he seemed to move his head slightly towards Verona's hand.

His breathing was deep and steady, almost as if he were sleeping but he wasn't.

"You asleep," she asked him in a soft tone.

If he was, she would probably go downstairs, to change into some clean clothes, maybe wash up or something.
She could use a nice, hot, relaxing bath.

Even though he seemed to be asleep, Verona still stroked his head and face, her gaze off into the distance, staring at something in the shadows on the other side of the room.
She wasn't sure what it was, but she would find out as she stared at it intently.

Shifting her weight a little bit, Verona stretched her legs, then resettled back onto Ezekiel, who seemed to be drifting off, if he hadn't already..