restroom | ( open general rp post )

No, I'm not worried.

( he was nervous. there was a difference. he sighs, leaning forward on the counter top and trying not to look right at her. )

Are you worried?

Do I have a reason to be worried?

[ no, she's not worried. she's not worried about him possibly leading her into a trap and she's not worried about not having a good time here. what she is worried about is her having read what's been left unsaid between them all wrong.

there's a reason why he's invited her out here without anyone else, and she doesn't think he's invited anyone else to appear much later in the evening. ]

No.

( he shakes his head and then finds himself at a loss. he doesn't know what to say or do right now so he just...stares at her. )

I have no idea what I'm doing. But I'm not worried.

What do you want to be doing?

[ her brows furrow together as she looks at him. that look doesn't last for long—katherine glances down and taps her nail against her glass. she hates that she's feeling nervous. a stefan who doesn't know what he's doing is definitely a stefan she's come to know lately, but he's always had some motivation behind meeting up with her. ]

Did you invite me over here to have a movie marathon?

[ she's decided to throw him a bone. ]

I don't know if...saying what I want to be doing is going to cause problems.

( because he knows there's tension and there's...something else between them. there always has been. it's sometimes simmered and sometimes exploded but it's always there. )

I don't know what you want.

[ oof, that makes her heart begin to race. she thinks she knows what he's referring to, but given how difficult he has been to read over the years (and how deep in denial he often is in), she doesn't want to ruin any of this by telling him what he thinks and feels. ]

You can ask me. [ she says as teasingly as possible, ] That's usually a good way to start.

I could.

( he knows he hasn't because he's worried about the answer but he has to think that her teasing him like that means she's not going to say anything that hurts. )

What do you want, Katherine?

( he smiles, trying to hide any nerves he might feel. )

In general?

[ he only has himself to blame for her answer. she scrunches up her nose as she gives it a moment of thought. ]

A really nice pair of shoes. Maybe even a nice handbag and a bracelet.

[ she shakes her wrist which has her lapis lazuli braclet on it. she's nothing if not materialistic. ]

( stefan sometimes wonders if she enjoys making it hard on him. he hadn't meant in general but he hadn't specified either. he sighs, shaking his head. )

I didn't mean in general. I meant right now.

( here with him. not in general. he doesn't want to hear about shoes. )

[ ftr, she does, especially now that it doesn't earn his ire.

resting her elbows on the countertop, she leans her chin on the back of her hands as she eyes him. so, it's not that answer he wants. he's fishing and she refuses to be baited so quickly and easily. ]

Are you looking for a particular answer, Stefan?

No.

( stefan shakes his head and then shrugs. )

I just want...you to answer honestly. Whatever that might be.

( that's it, that's all. )

What do you want to be doing?

[ she arches her brow and looks at him pointedly. really, she could just come out and say it, but he invited her here and she thinks it's only her duty to encourage him to answer.

besides, she's been wrong before. it's rare when it comes to katherine pierce, but it happens.

with a sigh, she glances down. she ensures to keep her tone a deadpan. ] Drinking? Skinny dipping in the lake? Playing naked Twister? None of the above?

( stefan sighs, frustration edging into the sound. he shakes his head and starts to wonder if he should have approached this differently. )

I didn't ask you here to just talk and drink wine.

( look, he'll get to what he wants to say. just give him some time. )

So, what did you ask me here for?

[ while she doesn't say it as gently as someone else might, it does lack a lot of her usual teasing and goading. it's clear that he's struggling with this, but she has a feeling if she's the one to say it, then he won't feel as good as he could if he's the one who voices what he wants. ]

Naked Twister? Skinny dipping? [ katherine smiles mischievously. ] You didn't refute those.

You always have to make things hard, don't you?

( maybe that wasn't the best choice of words to use considering what he thinks they're both here for.

he doesn't know if he even has the right words so maybe...maybe, he'll just act.

in a second. give him one more second to deal with his internal conflict. )

[ resting her chin on the back of her hands, she shrugs a shoulder as she gazes up at him with a smile. she's katherine pierce, the ultimate survivor, wildcard, and difficult person. making things easy isn't part of her suite of skills.

granted, she has been taking it rather easy on stefan. he just doesn't know it. ]

I don't agree. I think I'm being rather nice.

I don't think you are.

( without a word, stefan reaches over and tries to take her hand. he knows he could be bolder and do more but he starts here with a simple touch. )

You're making me work for it.

[ she lets him. katherine sits back and rests her other hand on the counter, looking a little surprised. it's not a bad reaction—she simply thought he'd stall a little more… or perhaps prove she'd been reading this all wrong. ]

You're not friends with me because I'm easy to talk to.

[ if he wanted someone easy to talk to, he has elena, caroline, damon, bonnie... he doesn't want that. ]

So, we're friends now?

( he slides his fingers against the backs of her fingers, looking down at her skin. )

Do you want to be friends with me?

[ she glances down at their fingers, watching his with a slight suspicious narrow to her eyes. what is he planning? what does he intend to do? even though she knows she can trust him now, she can't help her paranoia. ]

Do you not want to be friends with me?

[ she glances up at him with a small smile, very telling that she knows she's being cheeky. she knows that answering a question is a question's bound to annoy him, but it's his getaway house. he should answer first. ]

Do you always answer a question with a question?

( it's a very good but sometimes irritating defense mechanism, he knows. )

I asked you first. But you should know my answer anyway. Why would I invite you here if I didn't want to be friends?

[ katherine shrugs. ] Intense masochism.

[ look, that's not answering with a question!

resting the elbow of her free arm against the countertop, she leans her chin against the knuckles of her hand. quietly, ] Why did you invite me here, Stefan? For a friendly game of Twister?

I invited you here because...I wanted to see you.

( he thinks he's said that before. he rubs her knuckles gently and then brings his lips down to kiss them.

he's trying to be a little bolder now. )

I invited you here because...because I want you.

[ without moving her chin from her hand, she shifts her wrist so that she can cover her mouth with her fingers. she doesn't want him to see her smile, even though he'd easily be able to tell.

she could be annoying and ask him how. how does he want her? to watch movies? but she thinks it's only fair that she picks and chooses when she's difficult. ]

You invited me over to have sex.

[ she shifts her hand away and looks up at him with a smile, still resting her chin on her hand. ]

And I came over here to have sex with you.

[ even if that's not what he means, it's what she means. ]

( stefan blushes because he hadn't expected her to be quite so...straightforward about it. but that's stupid because this is katherine and it's what she does. he clears his throat and then ducks his head. )

Maybe.

( it was kind of what he was hoping for, yes. )

No, definitely. It's definitely why I invited you over.

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