Presents of the Birthday Sort

Who: Claire and Gabe
When: After school
Where: Gabe's house

Claire had managed to get a bunch of balloons taped to Gabe's locker before the school day started, although sadly she hadn't been able to find an embarrassing hat to make him wear either. While she had struggled to find the perfect gift for him, she was pretty sure she had done okay in the long run. She had finished his CD, and his gift was currently, well, not there yet. But she had the print out of her online order in his birthday card. She had only bought the thing after calling his mom the night before when she'd gotten home from Joshua's. Hopefully he would like it, and not find it cheesy or something. During history they had agreed to meet outside by her car once school was over, and after she got her things, she headed outside, zipping up her jacket and searching through her book bag for her car keys as he waited for him.

Gabe was glad to get out of school, where talk of the ghosts was beginning to drive him nuts. He'd under-estimated just how much he could hear and even the whispers of his classmates seemed to register as he walked through the halls. While he'd always been fine with crowded hallways, now he wanted to tell people to mind their own business and shut up. Unfortunately, he couldn't say anything since they'd barely been talking in the first place. On the up side, it was his birthday and an undercurrent of happiness seemed constant. The balloons on his locker had been a good way to start the day and he'd known they had to be from Claire. Seeing her in the parking lot, he jogged ahead to catch up to her just as she made it to her car. "Hey," he grinned. "Thanks for the balloons."

Turning she saw Gabe jogging toward her and she gave him a smile just as she pulled her keys out. "Hey. You're welcome. Happy Birthday Mr. Legal Adult.... again." She unlocked her car doors and opened her back seat to throw her book bag in the back seat. "Didn't get to ask you in class... how was your day?"

"It's been good," he said, throwing his bag in the back to join hers. "Nothing out of the ordinary, really. Except for the ghosts. But I'm not gonna let them ruin my day." The ghosts were definitely creeping him out, but he'd quickly discovered there was nothing he could do about them. Once he'd found out his mother wasn't going to work today, he'd been able to relax and try to forget about it. Apparently they'd been out last night as well, but he'd been too distracted to notice. "How about you?"

"I don't know what else you're suppose to do about them, you know? They're not hurting anyone, they're just... there. Though I am thinking people are going to start freaking out the longer they're here. I really don't have any answers." She didn't know anyone who did at the moment. Claire got in the car and pulled on her seatbelt, smiling at him when he joined her. "My day was fine. Just... same old stuff, you know?"

"Yeah, I know," he smiled. "I feel like I should be freaking out a bit more, but I'm just not up to it right now." Gabe was glad that everything seemed to be okay between them, since he wasn't sure if he'd fucked up last night or not. He'd been worried about it, but he didn't want to bring it up either. Reiteration that Claire wasn't interested in him wasn't something he wanted to hear on his birthday. "So, I was thinking bout your cape last night, and I was wondering-- would you want a hood?"

"You shouldn't have to freak out on your birthday," Claire pointed out, driving off toward his house. "And if there's no reason to freak out then..." She trailed off, as if that explained it all. The ghosts were harming anyone. It was just... creepy. Grinning, she glanced at him. "A hood? Wouldn't that be more like Little Red Riding Hood than Dracula?"

He was completely with her on this one, even if he didn't know the argument for it. He refused to spend his birthday freaking out about something he could do nothing about that wasn't actually hurting him. Now, if the ghosts started coming at them? Then they could freak. "Kinda, but the cape would still be long," Gabe said. His vision of Little Red Riding Hood always had her in a much shorter cape. "That way you can be all mysterious and hide and shadows and stuff. And it could be black with purple silk inside."

Claire laughed and nodded. "Okay, that makes sense. I like the idea of being the mysterious figure hiding in the shadows in her awesome silk cape! I bet I could freak a lot of people out." She chuckled and pulled down his street. "I miss your fangs though. Those were a big hit at the party."

The cape was something he'd remembered from a dream the night before and it just seemed so perfectly fitting. He was glad she liked it. Apparently his imagination got it right. "You wouldn't freak me out," Gabe smiled. Personally, he thought the cape was crazy sexy. "You liked the fangs? I've got 'em at home and can pop them back in, but then I might be tempted to bite you." And he was going to flat out ignore the werewolf issue with that for now.

"Oh, I'm sure your mom would love to know why you're wearing fangs at dinner," Claire joked. "Besides, I think with plastic fangs, you might just end up poking me." She winked at him and then reached over to open up her glovebox as she drove, trying to be suave enough that she didn't steer right off the road. She pulled out the birthday card, and the cd attached to it. "That's for you. Uhm... the CD isn't really your birthday present. Your birthday present is inside the card. You can't open it now, you have to wait until after dinner. That was always the rule in my house."

"I'd just tell her you like them," Gabe teased back. "Though you're probably right. If I can pop them out with my tongue, then I don't think they'd hold up against nibbling on your neck." He was pretty sure his mom had picked up on the fact that he had a thing for Claire, even if it was an unspoken rule that he didn't want to talk about it. He could talk about Claire till he was blue in the face, but the status of their non-relationship was not up for discussion. "Aw, come on, at least let me pop in the CD," he grinned, curious to know what she'd picked out for him. Or maybe it would be better to wait. If they were all songs about friends he might just stab his ear drums out with the nearest sharp object.

"No!" Claire insisted with a laugh. "I'd be embarrassed if we listened to it. So you have to just take it and listen to it later. I mean, there's no real theme to it. Just songs that I like, that I think you would, if you don't already have them." The CD he made her was, of course, still in her car where she listened to it often. "And something tells me your mom wouldn't believe you. I think she would totally know that you had a fang fetish." Claire poked him teasingly in the arm before she finally pulled up to his house and parked. "Are you sure she's okay with me being here? I feel like I should have brought something."

Gabe grinned, wondering if she had reason to be embarrassed, which made him want to listen to it even more. He wouldn't go against her wishes, though, so it just meant he'd have to listen to it after she left. "I'm sure I'll love it," he said, laughing as she poked him. "A fang fetish for wearing fangs? I don't want my mom thinking about any fetish I might have." And if Claire had figured them out for herself, Gabe hoped she would never bring them up in front of his mom! "Brought something?" Gabe asked, raising a brow as he unbuckled his seat belt. "Like what? I'm sure she's fine with it. We talked about it last night." Climbing out of the car, he turned to face the house, only really paying attention for the first time. "Oh, fuck yeah!" he shouted, spotting a car in the driveway. A car with a bow on top.

She hoped he would like her CD. It wasn't anything... revealatory. Just stuff that she liked, and a few things that reminded her of him for various reasons. "Okay, no discussion of fetishes at the dinner table." She got out of the car with him, smiling when he spotted the car. "Wow!" Rounding the car, she crossed her arms and gave it an impressed, approving nod. "Your mom's got great taste."

"If you wanna discuss fetishes after dinner, that's fine with me," he grinned. "Just as long as it doesn't go beyond you and me." Claire had enough blackmail material on him to get whatever she desired. It couldn't hurt to pile on more. "Bet your ass she does!" Gabe said, circling the car as well. The '94 Mustang GT was freshly painted black and appeared to be in pristine condition, as far as Gabe could tell. He already wanted to drive her around the block, but that would take getting the keys first. "You know this means I can pick you up now," he smiled over at her. "You can bum rides from me."

Claire examined the car with him, glancing in the windows and smiling at Gabe's excitement. "It looks great! And hell yes, I'll bum rides from you all the time! As long as you're not like, Speed Racer or anything," she teased. "You should probably go inside and thank your mother. I bet she has the keys for you." Claire had figured this is what her mom had gotten Gabe. When she'd called her the night before, his mom had been extremely receptive to Claire's idea for Gabe's gift. And it was so nice to see him so happy about it. "I would much rather drive around in a Mustang than my crappy car, so... prepare yourself for me mooching rides as often as possible."

"I'll behave myself if you're in the car," Gabe said, then looked up at her, realizing different connotations to such a phrase. "Well, maybe," he grinned. "Let's just say I wouldn't do anything you wouldn't like." That was better. He certainly wouldn't go racing around if it freaked her out, and it was unnecessary on the way to school definitely. "Any time you want," he agreed, gesturing for her to follow him inside. He was eager to thank his mother and get the keys. Gabe held the door for Claire as they stepped inside, then called for his mom, dropping his bag as he headed towards the kitchen. He knew that's where she had to be-- he could smell the food cooking and his stomach growled in response.

Claire followed him and slipped her hands into her pockets. Her gift to him certainly wasn't as nice as a car, but hopefully he would liked it - when it was delivered. "Promise me you won't try to pimp it out with neon lights and flames emblazoned across the sides," she said jokingly. "Don't go all 'Fast and the Furious' on me." She doubted he would, as he didn't seem like the type. Though it would be fun to drive around in a Mustang a couple times. The house smelled really good, and when her own stomach clenched, she realized she hadn't eaten much lunch. Hopefully she wouldn't look like a pig during dinner.

"Naw," Gabe smiled back at her. "I like it classy, not trashy." Once in the kitchen he had to forget about Claire for just a moment, hugging and kissing his mom as she wished him a happy birthday. It was the kind of personal moment that he might have been nervous to have around his friends, but he wasn't concerned about Claire calling him a mama's boy after it. She greeted Claire with a smile and handed Gabe over the keys, telling them dinner would be ready in ten minutes if they wanted to go check out the car. "Let's go," Gabe grinned, taking Claire's hand as he headed back towards the door. "Wanna go for a ride?"

She certainly didn't think he was a mama's boy at all. Who wouldn't be ecstatic to get a new car from their parents? Claire had been pretty happy with her mom when she got the hand me down car. It was better than nothing! "Yeah, a ride sounds good. As long as you're insured," she teased, following him back out the door to the car. "I bet you're going to drive everywhere now, aren't you? Find excuses to go to the store, or the mall..." She chuckled at his enthusiasm. "I bet all your friends are going to want to bum a ride."

Gabe didn't care about insurance at the moment-- he was sure his mom had everything taken care of and, if not, he'd figure it out later. It wasn't like he was planning to wreck the car on the first drive out. "Most of my friends have cars," Gabe pointed out. He knew Kyle didn't, but Kyle didn't really like being in them. He'd figured that much out over time. "But, yeah, we'll have to go everywhere. Road trip, even! Anywhere you wanna go?" he asked, unlocked the car door. He opened hers for her, then circled around, climbing in the driver's seat.

"Uhm, Malibu?" Claire suggested with a small laugh. She got into the car and pulled on her seatbelt. It was clean! And smelled like new car. Well, newish car. Better than hers, at least. "That might be a bit too far though... so... you pick! I have no preference. You can just drive around a bit, if you want. Get a feel for it and everything. It'll be especially nice now that it's snowing to have your own car. You won't have to trudge around in the slush and freeze your bits off."

"I don't think we'll make it back for dinner if we go all the way to Malibu," Gabe grinned as he started the car up and proceeded to check out the interior. "But maybe we can find a warm beach to visit over Christmas break or something. Get away from the cold." He laughed, agreeing completely with the idea of not having to walk in the snow to school anymore. That was a huge plus. "Trust me, my bits are glad not to be threatened by the cold. Not the kind of thing you wanna explain to a girl-- oh, sorry, lost 'em in a winter storm." How awful would that be?!

Claire laughed at that, trying to imagine Gabe actually say that to someone. "Probably not the most romantic thing to say in the heat of the moment, right?" She stretched out her legs in the car and relaxed, enjoying that she was the passenger for once. "Christmas break... god, that'll be here in like two months, won't it? I'm surprised I haven't seen Christmas decorations being put up yet..." Though she knew it was only a matter of time. "I kind of like winter and snow around Christmas. Everything before and after is pretty sucky though."

"I've always sucked at romance anyways," Gabe laughed. That was the kind of thing he was hoping he'd get better at when he was older. He'd always been told he had a certain amount of charm, but he didn't think he was exactly smooth. In his opinion, they were very different things. "I thought you hated the snow and the cold," he said, looking over at her before backing the car out of the driveway. "If you don't mind it around Christmas, we should totally decorate together or something. Or build a snow man! Do you mind childish holiday fun?" he asked with a grin. There would be snowball fights. Oh, yes, there would be.

"I do," she said. "Except around Christmas. It makes everything look kind of pretty with the lights and everything. I don't really like it before or after Christmas, though. I don't mind childish holiday fun," Claire replied with a grin. "I'm all for childish holiday fun. Snowman building, Christmas cookie making... as long as I don't burn the cookies or anything. We're not too festive at my house around the holidays, although my mom does bake a lot."

"Maybe we can do the cookie making thing with your mom, then," Gabe smiled. Claire's mom was cool, and still deserved a witch hat. He'd have to watch for one, though he didn't know if he'd ever seen a white one before. There had to be one out there somewhere though. "I won't let you burn the cookies. All we have to do is keep watch, right? Any idea what you want for Christmas?" It was a long way off, but so what? He already had an idea of what he wanted to get her.

"Yeah, but then you sit there and stare at the oven for so many minutes... and that gets boring after awhile, doesn't it?" She had burned her fair share of cookies. And food. She simply wasn't a chef. She looked at him and grinned before shaking her head. "No, I don't really ask for things for Christmas. Most of the time my mom is pressing me for something the day before Christmas Eve. I like giving gifts more than getting them. What about you? Now that you've got your car?"

"Hmm..." Now that he had a car, the number of things he really wanted was greatly diminished. Everything else he could probably afford on his own, in time. Sure, he'd have to save, but it wasn't like buying a car. The next big purchase he'd make would probably be for a cage, but he refused to let his mind go there. Instead it drifted on to less material things. "How about a kiss?" he asked with a grin. He knew he wasn't going to get one, but a boy could hope!

"For Christmas?" Claire asked, arching an eyebrow in his direction. She hadn't really expected that kind of answer. "What kind of kiss? Like, an under the mistletoe kiss? A kiss from a supermodel?" She grinned teasingly. "That kind of request is just asking for trouble, you know that right?"

"No, a kiss from you," Gabe laughed, never once having had a supermodel in mind. "I suppose I would settle for a mistletoe kiss, but--" He cut himself off, his eyes darting over to her, then back to the road. "I know it is, but you asked. That's the danger in asking," he smiled. "And there's really nothing I'd want more."

Somehow she doubted Joshua would appreciate her kissing someone else, but... Christmas was two months away. "Well, we'll see how expensive kisses are in a month or two," Claire said jokingly, returning his smile. "Maybe I can save up enough to afford one for you." She pushed her hair behind her ear and glanced out the window. "You seem pretty comfortable in this car already... how is it driving for you?"

"That's the beauty of a kiss," Gabe smiled. "You don't have to save up cause you have plenty to spare." He realized that the issue was that they were saved for someone else, but he didn't want to talk about that either. Two months was a long time, but if he thought she might be willing to kiss him then, then he could continue to hope. It wasn't that far away in the grand scheme of things, right? "It's great," he said, overall very pleased with the way the car handled. "Now she just needs a name and I'll have my two favorite girls with me at once," he said, looking over at her. His smile faded slightly and he wondered if he should stop.

"I think that might hurt your mom's feelings," Claire pointed out with a smile, keeping her tone light since she didn't want things to delve into a weird situation. "But I think you need to drive your car around a bit longer and get a feel for her before you name her. You might name her like... something really sexy right now, and then in a month or so you'll find out she's really just a Bertha."

"Mom's different," Gabe said, rolling his eyes. "And if my car ends up being a Bertha, we're gonna have to have a serious talk, followed by some tweaks under her hood. Do you talk to your car?" he asked. He doubted she did if people were in the car with her, since most people didn't do it then, but he wondered if she did when she was alone. "Does yours have a name?"

"I only talk to my car if it's sputtering, or running low on gas. I figure a lot of flattery and petting will keep it running until I get to a gas station or something." She reached out to pet the dashboard, grinning at Gabe in the process. "Just no cursing or beating on the steering wheel and you should be fine! I've named my car Phil. I don't know why, but I know he's a boy. And he's a total Phil."

"Your car's a boy? Really?" Gabe asked, surprised. He'd always seen most cars as girls, but then he hadn't driven a huge variety either. "Well, no wonder he's good to you, if you've been petting on him. That'll keep any guy going," he teased, turning the block and heading back to his house. "And don't worry, I don't plan on beating her up. I'm good to my girls."

"Well, I don't think I would be comfortable riding around on a girl," Claire pointed out with a soft laugh. "I don't think all cars are girls... that would be no fun! But then again, maybe they are and that's why so many guys are in love with them. Waxing, and petting and freaking out over the tiniest dinge." If only guys were that attentive to actual women. Not that all guys who were obsessed with cars were jerks, but still.

"If you think we don't pet and freak out over the girls we love, you're not paying enough attention," Gabe teased with a little wink. "No waxing, though. I don't know a girl that would like me to wax her, unless there's some other meaning there. And I'm sure there is if you wanna get kinky." While he had his own little kinks, none of them involved wax. "So, Phil. Phil won't be upset with you catching a ride with me from time to time, will he?"

"Nah, I'm probably not. I think most of that stuff is... I don't know." She rolled her eyes, not wanting to get into her theories on 'love' and stuff. She grinned though, at the mention of wax. "That is way too much information! I tend not to think about waxy kinks if I can help it. But I think Phil will be okay if Bertha takes me for a spin every now and then." Of course Claire didn't expect Bertha to stick as a name for Gabe's car. A mustang was too cool for the name Bertha, but it was fun to tease.

"You've never at least fantasized about hot wax and handcuffs?" Gabe grinned. He had the feeling the answer was no, but as a guy he'd fantasized about almost everything. Plus, it was fun to see if he could get her to blush. "Maybe that's what you need, a chance to let go a little," he teased, pulling the car back into his driveway. "When you're feeling a little wild sometime, then we'll really take my girl for a ride."

"No, not really," Claire admitted with a laugh. "Handcuffs remind me of prison and there's nothing sexy about that. Wax reminds me of pain since it hurts to wax your legs and stuff. Or candle wax, but that reminds me of magic, which reminds me of my mom and I don't want her coming up in a fantasy so... maybe I think about that stuff too much." She unbuckled her seat belt and nodded. "Maybe once there's less snow and ice on the road, then we'll do something fun with her."

"Anything that brings your parents into a fantasy isn't a very good trigger," Gabe agreed with a grin as he turned off the car and unbuckled his seat belt. "We'll definitely have to cruise sometime. We've got a long while before we're rid of the snow and ice though." Climbing out of the car, he shut the door, smiling as he looked the car over. He was going to take good care of her, that was certain. "So, are you hungry?" he asked, looking up at Claire.

"Hungry enough," Claire told him with a smile as she rounded the car to follow him inside. She didn't generally need to eat a lot - it wasn't food that kept her going - but that didn't mean she didn't like eating! "Is your mom going to make you blow out candles and everything?"

"Probably," he laughed, locking up the car and starting towards the house. "It's tradition. Doesn't matter how old you are. I make her do it on her birthday, so she'll probably do it too." The only difference was that he didn't put the full number of candles on her cake. He wondered if she'd do that for his, or if she'd eventually cut down the number. It didn't matter how many candles, so long as there were enough to make a wish. With a new car and his two favorite women there with him, Gabe wasn't all that sure what to wish for for once. Maybe he could do the world a favor and rid the world of ghosts, though he didn't think blowing out birthday candles would be enough to work that kind of magic.

~*~

Gabe was happily full of dinner and cake when he plopped down on the couch, Claire's card in hand. He'd been good and waited throughout the whole meal, but now he wanted to know what was in the card, since she'd indicated that's where the present was. He was also eager to see what was on the CD she'd made him, but it was clear now that he was going to have to wait till she left to listen. "Can I open it?" he asked with a grin.

"Uhm." She sat down next to him, also stuffed and wishing she hadn't eaten such a big piece of cake. Damn. She eyed the card, and then him and sighed. "Okay... but if you don't like it, I don't think it's too late to return it." Or put a stop delivery after all. "It's not a car!" Claire felt kind of embarrassed by it, but he had said he wanted one and she couldn't think of anything else to get him.

"I'm not expecting a car!" Gabe laughed. "Besides, I've already got one. What would I do with two?" He really didn't expect anything much, even if he knew he would go completely overboard when buying a gift for her. That was him. Gabe opened the envelope and read the card to himself before unfolding the sheet of paper inside-- it was a picture of an acoustic guitar with an order confirmation. His eyes widened as he read over it twice, just to make sure he knew what he was seeing. "Awesome! Thank you!" he grinned, leaning over and wrapping his good arm around her in an impromptu hug. "I can't believe you got it! Now I have to get me some lessons."

"Well, you said you wanted one... though I didn't know what kind. I was up pretty late googling guitars." She laughed and returned his hug cautiously, as not to hurt him. "Uhm, I figure acoustic was probably more calming than an electric one. But it should be here this weekend, or Monday at the latest. So... happy birthday." And he seemed to like it! Which was awesome. She had been thinking maybe he wouldn't... though she didn't know why. "But you're not allowed to get all rock god diva on me and like, smash the guitar around."

"No way," he smiled. "I'll take care of this baby. You know, she might need a name too. I've got a lot of new girls in my life. Think you can handle the competition?" he teased. He just couldn't believe that she'd bought him a guitar. That was, like, the most awesome present ever! He'd have to get her something nice for Christmas, that was certain. Or maybe just for the hell of it, since Christmas seemed so far away. He'd been planning to spend his birthday money from his dad on a guitar, but since Claire had gotten him one, maybe it would be the time to get her something instead. Plus lessons for himself. That was a must.

"More girls than you can handle, I think," she teased. "Between Bertha and this? I don't know! Maybe if I started dispensing one hundred dollar bills out of my mouth or something." Claire grinned, ecstatic that he seemed to really like the guitar. "I would have pitched in for lessons, but I figure you should find someone you're comfortable with to help you out."

"You'd be like a Claire-shaped pez dispenser!" Gabe laughed. "Except with one hundred dollar bills instead of pez. Nice as that might be, I like you better like this," he said, adding a little wink. "Besides, you're the only one who's actually there for me. A car and a guitar can't do that. Don't worry about the lessons; I'm sure I'll figure something out." He really was excited about it, both owning a guitar and the fact that she'd been the one to give it to him. Now he really did have to write a song for her, or at least learn to play something he could dedicate to her. "You'll have to come see her when she comes in-- or do you want to wait till I can actually play something?"

"I think as a one hundred dollar bill pez dispenser, I would be so much more popular." She laughed and thought the image of it was pretty funny. And creepy. "I think I'll want to see the guitar when it's delivered... make sure it's what I ordered. And it's not cracked and everything. You'll have to play me something when you learn too... that's all part of the deal, didn't I write that on the card?" Claire teased, looking over the paper. "I totally expect a calm, mellowed-out Gabe now, you know."

"I'll totally give you a call when it comes in," Gabe grinned. "And hopefully you'll start to see a calm, mellowed-out Gabe immediately, even before I learn. I'm trying, but it's not like it's easy with everything that's going on." It was bad enough being bitten by a werewolf, but there was also Chrissy's death and the sudden appearance of ghosts all over the world. That made it a little harder to remain calm than usual, but he was working at it the best he could.

"I think it's even more important now to try and stay calm with everything going on," she said. "It all kind of hit at once, you know? But I think if you can teach yourself the important things about this, you'll be okay. You have a temper, but I know you've got a stubborn streak too...determination." Claire smiled at him. "I think you're going to be fine coming out of all this."

"Thanks," he said, his hand taking hers and squeezing it once. It was nice to hear she had faith in him, since Gabe wasn't exactly confident in himself, not when it came to being a werewolf and all that came with it. He still had a lot of questions and a lot of insecurities, and he didn't even know how to start addressing some of them. It was easier, though, when he knew he had the support of his friends. With them, somehow he'd get by.