A Dark and Quiet Corner
 

Chloe waited patiently in the corner that she could only assume was the one Asher had been referring to. She wasn't sure when Asher would be finished, so she simply stood there, leaning against the wall in partial darkness. Occasionally, she would stand up straighter, fixing her hair or clothes, but then she would resume her stance, leaning against the cold wall, waiting and feeling a bit nervous for some odd reason.

Asher stretched a smile across his face, knowing that Chloe was somewhere down the corridor outside of the Department of Mysteries. Aha, the corner. He smiled even larger as he inched forward quietly towards her. "Welcome to the Department of Mysteries." he smirked, knowing though that technically she wasn't in the department yet, that was on the other side of the door at the end of the corridor.

Chloe giggled as she saw Asher's figure approaching her, but she remained leaning against the wall, attempting to play it cool. When he got close, she pushed herself off the wall and stepped closer and whispered, "It's really quiet down here. And dark. It's a bit... eery." For a moment she just looked up at him, and then she reached down and took both of his hands in hers. His hands were so large compared to her tiny, dainty hands. His hands were so big that if hands had mouths, his could eat hers in one bite. She wouldn't say that aloud, though, because that would just sound silly. Looking up, still whispering, she asked, "How are you today?"

Asher nodded his head once and rolled his head around letting it pop back into place, that gravity sometimes got to you when you floated for too long. "It is the Department of Mysteries after all." Asher said quietly with a smile. He had long ago gotten used to the quietness and darkness of the department. Though not all of it was like that...but the majority of it was. He watched her face for expressions as she picked his hands up in hers. "Alright." Asher said shortly. That was all there really was, he couldn't talk about work and he hadn't been outside at all today so the weather was out.

Chloe raised her eyebrows as Asher popped his neck. She reached up, wrapping her arms around him, her hands on the back of his neck. "That's not good for your neck, you know, Healer Holden," she said in a quiet, teasing voice as she rubbed the back of his neck. And then she tilted her head slightly, considering his response. "Just alright?" she whispered, "How can I make it better, my love?"

He closed his eyes as she rubbed the back of his neck. "I know it isn't." Asher smirked, and left it at that, he couldn't talk about why his neck was hurting either. "Alright is better than bad, isn't it?" he asked raising and eyebrow at her opening his eyes. "I don't know, do you?" he asked. He was full of answering questions with questions today.

"Mhmm. Alright is better than bad, but I want you to be excellent!" she said, a light beginning to show behind her eyes. This wasn't the same light she got when she was angry or passionate. This was something softer, warmer... inviting. Her voice quieted again as she stepped even closer to Asher, wrapping her arms around his neck more tightly. "I believe I do, yes." Standing on her tiptoes because she didn't wear tall enough heels for this sort of thing she kissed him softly.

Asher nodded his head slowly, he wasn't sure if a day without Chloe could be considered, excellent. Asher smiled as she got on her tiptoes to kiss him, he almost wanted to bend at the knees to make it easier for her, but he thought it was cute when she had to get on her tiptoes. He kissed her back gently and pulled back softly, "Have I told you I loved you?" he asked, knowing that he hadn't yet. "Because I do. I do love you Chloe..." He trailed, momentairly forgetting her last name again, he wanted to smack himself for ruining the moment he told her he loved her. He should've just said Chloe and left it at that.

Chloe's eyes widened when the magic words came out of Asher's mouth. Chloe had been sure that she would have to be the one to say it first. After a moment of disbelief, she practically jumped on him and was kissing him again before he even got her entire name out. He didn't need to. It didn't matter. When she pulled away, she looked right into his eyes and said, "I love you, too, Asher!" She was grinning from ear to ear. Her heart felt as though it was about to burst from her chest, and her cheeks had blushed a deep shade of red. "I have never meant those words so deeply in my entire life," she said quietly, just smiling up at her Asher, her boyfriend, her love... who loved her back.

Asher watched her reaction and then was a bit suprised when she basically jumped on him. "Shh." he told her, "Don't want anyone rushing out here." He chuckled. He beamed down at her, "Neither have I, and I'm a truthful man." Asher smiled, confirming that he wasn't joking around with her.

Chloe giggled like a silly school girl and buried her face in his chest. "Sorry," she mumbled, a bit embarrassed, but too happy to care. And then she looked up at him again, biting her lips. "I know you're truthful. You're always honest with me. And right now, I'm especially glad you are." Chloe wanted to kiss him so badly. She just wanted to kiss him and kiss him and kiss him until she couldn't anymore. They were at work, though, and who knew who would walk by they're hidden little corner. Looking around them, she turned back to him, her hands moving down to rest in his chest. She tugged at his shirt a bit. "Let's get out of here. Let's... go somewhere! Anywhere!"

Asher smiled, and grimiced, "I'd love to get out of here..." he trailed, "But I still have a lot of stuff to do." he said nodding his head down the corridor, he knew Chloe would be upset, but he couldn't just leave, and especially not unannouced when they were busy.

Chloe sighed, but didn't frown, though her ecstatic expression did fade. Just as smitten as she had been moments before, though, she wrapped her arms around him tightly in a hug. Her head rested against his chest and she closed her eyes, taking in his smell. "Okay," she said quietly, but she didn't budge. She wasn't going to stop him from leaving, but she definitely wasn't going to tell him to just go either.

It hurt Asher to see her ecstatic expression fade as quickly as it had came on just moments before. He wrapped his arms around Chloe's waist and kissed her hair. After a few minutes of standing there he figured that he was way past the time it took for a short break. "I need to get going." he told her with a sorry looking face. "I'll see you later though, right darling?" he asked.

Chloe nodded and stepped away from him, flashing him one of her sweet smiles. "Mhmm! You'll definitely see me later!" she said cheerily. Looking up at him, the same warm light appeared in her eyes and her stomach turned over again as she remembered the way his voice had sounded when he said those words. "I hope your day is much better than just alright now," she whispered.

Asher continued to smile, trying to draw out their time together before he had to return to his department for the rest of the day. "It's a bloody fantastic day it is." Asher told her kissing her once more. "I've got to go darling." He told her before he turned around and walked down the corridor to the department door.

Chloe happily returned yet another kiss. "I'm glad your day is fantastic. Mine is, too, now." And then he was leaving, and Chloe tried not to frown. As he walked down the corridor she waved at him and, inspite of her attempts to stifle it, practically yelled, "I love you!" down the corridor at him.

Once Asher opened the door, she peeked around, trying to get a look inside, but no luck. He had disappeared behind the door, and Chloe turned and walked away, practically skipping with happiness.

Ethan took large strides to the one area he'd only heard about through the grapevine, the dark corner. As soon as he arrived, the first thing he began to do was pace the floor. Back and forth, back and forth, his hand roaming through his rather long strands of dark hair. He did it. He finally snapped and not only did he snap in front of his boss, the person who gathered his interest the most and made him...all confused but his best friend as well.

OH and Fiji letter man...SIGHS!

"Why? Why? WHY?" It may have been a simple question for some but for Ethan, it was more confusing than anything. She was a beautiful woman with men all around her. Why did he have to feel this way towards her? His fingers grasped the ends of his hair, slightly tugging then letting go with a groaning grunt of frustration.

The sound of her voice was like music to his ears. He had to be dreaming, there was no way that she would end up here, same spot as him. Slowly, his dark eyes followed the sound of her voice while his hands gently let go of his hair as they fell to his side. The only thing he could do was stare at her, even after the words she spoke. This was it. She could be THE ONE but that was just a silly thing to discover, but one thing was for certain, he was finally jealous over someone and knew that there was more than just a simple fling between a man and a woman.

His feet felt like concrete, bolted to the floor of the Ministry. He knew where he wanted to be, what he wanted to do but the only thing he could do at this very moment was stare with a slightly opened mouth. "I...errr...ummm." Shut up boy and do what ya gotta do! And with that thought, his feet finally unstuck to the flooring as, yet again, he took large strides towards Antigone, scooping her up in his arms as his lips immediately attached to hers.

Ethan closed his eyes as Antigone pulled back from him. The smell of her sweet breath tickled his nose and caused his eyes to open and stare at her once again. She was beautiful in so many ways, some which he couldn't explain even to himself. His eyes traveled to just below her neck as he began to think of the words she spoke, something he didn't know how to do.

"I...you are the only one," he began with half sentences as it was hard enough to even remotely speak what was going through his mind at the moment. "I've never...I...don't know how." But he was certainly learning. He lifted his hand, brushing his fingers along the smooth skin of her cheek. "Teach...me."

A gently smile formed to Ethan's lips while his eyes captured hers once again. Normally this would have been the time he would pick up and leave, dust in the wind, but he couldn't do that to her. "You...don't know how different you are from the others," his fingers brushed against her cheek again. He then leaned down to place his lips against her cheek and pulled back.

She said the L word. OHMYGAWD! His heart began to beat faster, the palm of his hands forming moisture while with a free hand he reached to unbutton the top button to his shirt, exposing slight skin to help him breathe better. "L-l-l-l." Crap. "Llllllluuuu..." OH just forget it. "That's...a strong word and one that is not meant for use unless one means it completely." Wow. This was calm for him. She was more to him than he realized.

"We....need to talk. Alone. Quietly. Somewhere other than here...the Ministry."