2019-07-31 - Yoga and Gardening

When things are hot and gross outside the last thing most people want to do is be outside in the humid, hot weather. But Ash is outside wearing a pair of short gym shorts and a bikini top with her hair in a ponytail. On the ground is a yoga mat, and one might think she's doing yoga, but really she's just standing there on it with her phone in her hand, checking something.

Depending on how distracted Ash is by her phone, she may or may not have heard the back door to #7 opening and the sound of bare feet on patio, before silence again as those feet move onto grass. Then a thump, as something heavy is set down at the far end of the garden.

Straightening from putting down his box of garden tools and seeds, Corey - shirtless Corey, at that - takes a moment to glance over the fence, a brief grin dawning as he sees Ash, her phone, and her yoga mat. "Getting a good workout there, babe? Really workin' your inner zen?" It's clear he knows absolutely nothing about yoga.

There was no notice of the door, or the bare feet. Not even the thump of something heavy breaks her focus. It's not until he reaches the fence and speaks up that her concentration is broken. Ash jumps, her finger spasming on her phone and nearly dropping it as she gasps, taking a moment after her fright to collect herself.

"Holy fucking shit..." She raises a hand up to her heart, turning towards the fence and him behind it, "I was until you scared me to death." She moves off the mat towards him, "What're you doing out here?"

"Looked like you were really stretching your chakras," Corey teases, entirely unrepentant. "Just some planting." Assuming she comes within reach, he leans over to press a light little kiss to her lips, before heading back to his tools and seeds, crouching by the first planter and beginning to dab little holes in a line, using the handle of his trowel. "Thanks for the second date," he voices, once he's working. "Certainly made doing laundry a lot more fun."

"So much stretching." Ash agrees with her arms stretching out wards, which makes it even easier for him to lean over for a kiss. "You can take me to the laundromat any time." She leans against the fence, watching him as he moves to get his planting on. "So what are you going to plant there?" She moves a hand so that he knows that she's talking about that particular row that he's working on. "Did Alfie give your keys back?"

"Tomatoes in this row," Corey responds, opening a little airtight container which contains.. yes, seeds fresh from a tomato, still with some of the goop around them. He spends longer than he'd like trying to separate one of the seeds off onto a wooden lollipop stick, but eventually succeeds and then presses the stick-and-seed into one of the holes he's made, leaving about half the stick poking up out of the soil as a marker. "Oh no, babe. Next time we're going big. Foggy Bluffs." Yes, the strip mall. No, he's probably not serious. "Only the best for you." A cheesy, faux-doting grin accompanies the words.

"Be still my heart." Ash lifts her hand up, pressing the back of it flush against her forehead before she leans back like she's going to faint. Only she doesn't. Instead she drops her hand back down, leaning towards him, "We can go roam the mall like teenagers on a date again if you want. But I think that you said we'd go to the club, and we still havent gotten to go to it yet. So next date.." She lifts her hand, holding her fingers up, "Date three."

"Sure. We can make out like teenagers in the club just as well as at the mall," Corey agrees with a far more genuine grin, repeating the tomato-seeding-with-stick process, slowly filling each hole and patting the soil closed around it. "When's your next free evening?" he asks, vaguely recalling it might be this one, but checking.

"Tonight after work. I work lunch today." Surprise, he was right. Her very next free night is tonight. "All week I work the lunch shift, and then I'm not sure if this weekend or next is when I'm heading to Seattle..." She pauses at that, looking down at her phone, "Might be next weekend."

Nodding, Corey suggests, "If you're game, we could go tonight. Or tomorrow, or when you've next got a day off. Whatever works; I dunno how much energy you have after a shift." Finishing the row, he closes the pot the seeds came from and drops it back inside his toolbox, before making a row of larger holes in front of the planted tomatoes.

"I'm only working a single shift, so I'll have plenty of energy...and probably need to wind down." Ash tucks her phone into the waist band of her shorts, leaning against the fence, "You sure that you want to have date number three already? I'm a lot to handle, and I don't know how much energy you are going to have for me."

"Aw, shit. Maybe we should go for a run instead, for date three, to wear you out," Corey faux-worries, his grin returning moments later. "As for 'already', it isn't as if we don't see each other pretty much every day anyway," he points out, hard not to when they're neighbours. "Though if you want space, lemme know."

"I looked out your window, I know exactly the window from our house to look out to see into yours. By the way." Not creepy at all, Ash. "But no, I don't need space." She then starts to do lazy jumping jacks, "But I'll burn off some energy now, so you can keep up with me on the dance floor."

Taking a small cardboard tube - yes, that's the inner from a roll of toilet paper - Corey stuffs it down into the hole in the soil and fills it in a bit, before opening a packet of carrot seeds and placing one inside the tube, then filling it in fully. Tugging out his phone, he tells it, "Google, remind me to get some thick curtains later." The phone chirps with an affirmative, and then he looks back up and over to Ash. "Hmn? Oh yeah, You will school me on the dance floor," he acknowledges freely, amused.

"What, you don't want me staring at you when you bring a lady friend over?" Ash stops her jumping jacks with a laugh, pulling her phone back out of where she tucked it, "Plus, dancing at a club isn't about schooling anyone. Unless you're one of those people....It's about me getting to rub my ass on you to a beat." Which, no one is shocked when she starts to demonstrate, dramatically, and badly.

"Hell no; you want to watch, you pay, the same as everyone else," Corey deadpans in return, the slight tug at the corners of his mouth giving him away a few moments later. "Eh, I'm not one of those people, and I will happily stand in place and sway while you rub up on me, babe." Brief pause. "Though maybe a bit less violently? I like my balls located where they are."

"Corey...secret life of a camgirl...News at eleven." Ash spreads her hands out into the air, then she leans back against the fence, "I like your balls located where they are too, so we're in agreement on that. Less violent twerking."

Finishing the second carrot-planting, Corey straightens up and brushes bits of soil from his hands, coming over to the fence to loop his arms around Ash's shoulders from behind. "Really appreciate your restraint," he murmurs on the topic of twerking, dipping his head to kiss the curve of her neck as it joins her shoulder. "Is eight okay?" he then queries, with regards to when they're going out clubbing.

"I'm glad, it's a lot of work being this restrainted." Ash glances at him, an arm reaching back to slide her fingers into his hair, "Eight sounds good, should give me time to come home and change, maybe grab something to eat." She then starts to turn around so that she can face him, "Will you be done with your planting in time?"

"I can tell," the student chef replies, tone dry, exhaling contently as her fingers settle into his perpetually messy hair. "I can drop over some of the chilli I'm making for my lot, if you want to eat before going out?" So all it will need is reheating. Convenient! He nods a bit regarding the planting, musing, "Should be able to get two planters done. The other two can wait."

"I won't say no to being fed and taken out on date number three." Ash leans in to give him a quick kiss, ruffling her fingers through his hair before dropping them, "And you really should get curtains if you don't want creepy watchers." She rubs her nose against his, then gives him another quick kiss, "Tonight we can come back to my place."

There's a low laugh from Corey at that first comment, but he doesn't say whatever thought comes to mind, instead distracted by that little kiss and ruffle. "Will do," he promises on the curtain thing, squeezing his arms around her briefly before letting go. "So noted; hopefully your room is a bit more together than mine," he adds, releasing his hold and stepping back from the fence. "See you later, babe."

"Just you wait and see." Ash blows kisses at him before she starts to back up towards the back door to #9. "Have fun with your planting today." With the last thing said she turns to hurry away to get ready for work.