explosion | OPEN POST.

Nonsense.

[ Wanda considers letting go of his foot and looking away from him, returning to ignoring him… but this is entirely too much fun. She hates that she can't stay mad at him—or, at least, ignore him. Pietro is a flame she constantly flutters to, but rather than being burned, he just… does this. Utter annoyance.

She glides her nails up and down his foot, from his heel to the tips of his toes. Up and down, uncaring if he moves or wriggles. This is his punishment for being exasperating for the day. ]

I can take my eyes off you, Pietro. See?

[ And she does just that, looking determinedly away from him. ]

[He can't stand it after only a few more passes of her nails. Once she makes it back to his toes for the fifth time, he breaks - squirming and curling a bit into the couch like it would help. It takes Wanda forever every time to drag her nails over the thin skin at the underside of his foot and Pietro feels every individual spark of sensation through too many interconnected nerves going on for far too long, too much constant stimulation that he wants to crawl away from. Words fail him on the first try, only managing a pleading whine that he hates himself for. He gets his comments out eventually, between too quick breaths, but it all runs together in a slurred stream because he can't slow it down enough to be very coherent right now.]

Alright. You have made your point. You're perfectly capable of ignoring me, Wanda. I'm sorry. I was being annoying, irritating, obnoxious, frustrating, insufferable, pick one. Just stop.

[He still won't pull his foot back himself, as if it's some kind of proof that he understands she was, or is, rightfully very aggravated with him and he deserves this.]

[ Wanda makes a point of looking at him. ]

I pick them all.

[ Perhaps it's unfair, but Wanda thinks she's in the right to declare that he's annoying, irritating, obnoxious, frustrating, and insufferable, and he's been all those things today when he should've been happy and content and at least a little exasperating.

She stops dragging her nails along the arch of his foot, although she does dig her thumb and fingers into it. She doubts he's going to tug his foot away. If he was, he'd have done so already. ]

Do you want to know what I wished for?

[ She hardly sounds angry. Wanda never tells him her wishes, not until the day is at least over. If it's a big wish, she leaves him in the dark, truly believing in the superstition that informing someone of a wish will see it never come true.

But she thinks he deserves to know, even if it leaves him feeling particularly uplifted. ]

[Of course she picks them all, he's not even surprised, though he scoffs and looks exasperated with that response. Wanda digs her fingers into his foot, and it's preferable, even it makes Pietro hiss and drags a nasally whine out of him. It's still a reprieve that he will gladly take, and that allows him to pay more attention to what she's saying. His first thought on the wish is that it had been along the lines of enjoying their birthday without his insensitive and juvenile badgering, which he's already made sure didn't come true. Only her tone implies otherwise, that it was instead something maybe still achievable.]

If you want to tell me.

[He says it like it's something risky to engage in and not meaningless superstition.]

I wished for us to spend it together. I know we spend almost every day together, but I still wanted to today.

[ It's very much along the lines of what he's expected. Wanda's not that unpredictable. She likes what she likes, and she often sticks to the familiar. All she wanted for her birthday was to spend it with Pietro, even though that's almost every other day.

She digs her fingers into his foot and considers leaving it at that, but that sounds like something pointed when she doesn't wish for it to be. Yes, he's been a terror, but Wanda's still gotten her wish. ]

Like this. [ She looks down at his foot, feeling a little sheepish. ] I like this.

[Pietro had been right after all, and he makes a quick 'hm' noise in a tone like he absolutely knew it and is somehow mocking her for being that predictable. He props himself up on his elbows, but has to squirm again as she digs her fingers into his foot. He sighs in annoyance, mostly tolerating it and not immediately complaining, because he has something important to say here.]

I always wish for that.

[The words are quieter and soft, with deeper meaning behind them. It makes him uncomfortable, the feelings that threaten to flood his chest at his admission, so he wiggles his toes at her for a distraction.]

Not this part.

Why not this part?

[ Wanda wishes to frown, but she smiles at him instead. It's like a cage of butterflies have been unleashed in her chest and threaten to carry her up and off the couch. Pietro's never as vulnerable with his feelings as she is, but in the instances that he is, she wishes to treasure them.

After considering acknowledging his slip of honesty, she decides to do so in a much quieter manner than outright speaking of it. She twists slightly to face him, no longer wishing to erect a wall between them.

She digs her thumb into his foot. ] This is a good part. You don't like massages?

[With the way she looks at him now, Pietro knows he's gotten her actual attention, her focus. She's not pushing away from him anymore, and he doesn't dare think about how that finally makes the squeezing feeling in his chest stop, one that had been present since he'd come home. It's irrational to think Wanda would ever really turn away from him in earnest, especially for minor transgressions, but Pietro is a difficult person to live with, even worse after HYDRA, and he is well aware of it. If anyone's walking away from this relationship down the line, he thinks it's going to be her. He'd been completely truthful about his wishes, every one since it had just been them alone in the world. He'd made them exactly as he'd said, because he holds as much fear as he knows Wanda does, of them being separated by tragedy or other means, and if Pietro doesn't wish for them to be together, it's his fault if it happens because he wanted something else for one moment.]

Is that what you call it?

[He makes a frustrated noise and presses his foot harder against her thumb.]

You're doing it all wrong. Do you know how much more insufferable I will be if you bruise my foot so much it hurts to walk?

[He shrugs exaggeratedly, holding his palms up.]

Maybe then you will finally sit still.

[ See? Her evil masterplan is at work here, although, Wanda's aware of how frustrating and annoying he'll be if he's immobile. That doesn't stop her from digging her thumb into the heel of his foot. He's not pulling away, and even if he did, she's not quite sure she'd let him anymore. (Of course, she'd show mercy on his feet, but he's not leaving this couch until she wishes him to. He owes her that much.)

Cocking her head upward, she arches her brow in challenge. ]

If you know how to do it better, then tell me.

[ She doubts it. She digs her fingers into his heel and foot, wanting to turn him into jelly. ]

[If he answers her as she wants him to, it will be worse. If he makes a suggestion, she'll go too far with it, or do the exact opposite, or pretend to misinterpret it. Wanda has the upper hand as long as Pietro can deal with it, and he's not quite ready to pull away and leave the couch. Not after today, even if it's very very tempting right now to run away. He squirms instead, more than he needs to, and makes sure his whiny growling noises of discontent are loud and obnoxiously pitched. If she gets too annoyed with him, it's her own fault. He starts poking at her hand with his other foot, no real effort behind it to get her to let go.]

I don't know, just not that.

Liar.

[ She says it fondly. While Pietro doesn't know everything all the time, she suspects he knows this. He's simply playing hard to get. Grabbing his other foot with her other hand, she digs her thumb into his arch to try and fight a two-front battle for as long as he'll allow it.

She continues to rub at his foot, liking the fact that he's squirming. Perhaps he'll lose this unspoken battle and bolt off the couch… or maybe he'll stick it out, ignoring his growing exasperation. She hopes it's the latter. Today has been a day where they've spent too much time turning their backs on one another. ]

It's your birthday. Tell me what you want if this is not that.

[Pietro never asks for lighter touches, usually the worst thing she can do to him, and he'll still be annoyed even then, but at this point Wanda has been abusing his arch for so long it feels like stepping on a sharp rock over and over, slowly. He bites his lip to avoid the yelp that tries to escape his throat when she grabs the other foot to start in there too. After more squirming and twitching, he finally asks for it - though it sounds more like a demand born out of desperation.]

Lighter, and stop sometimes. It's too much if you don't... space it out.

[His focus is back on the television, this is an awkward conversation to participate in while he can't stop writhing and digging his fingers into the couch, and he needs more distractions.]

[ She smiles, but she doesn't laugh. Sometimes she wonders if Pietro allows her to dig and poke and prod at him because she wants to dig and poke and prod at him. But she immediately makes her touch lighter and even removes her hand from the foot she's considered taking as her own. ]

You don't like it? Or is it simply too much?

[ Both are two very important distinctions. From what he's said, she imagines it's the latter.

Instead of rubbing his arch, she walks her fingers along his foot in an attempt to have him roll his eyes in exasperation. It's light, as he's requested, and it's silly, as she wants it to be. ]

[It's light, but it's too light, and not at all unexpected as a response. He sighs and huffs and rolls his eyes, but can at least get comfortable for a moment and not feel like his nerves are on fire. It will build back to that quickly once the lighter pressure stops feeling so dull in comparison and becomes aggravating again. While he can, Pietro pulls his other foot back and keeps his knee bent, pressed against the back of the couch. Wanda can't have both.]

... Too much.

[He's technically not admitting that some of her 'massaging' is above baseline tolerable.]

[ Oh, so he likes her massaging. That's good to know, especially since Wanda had every inclination to pull back. The last thing she wants is to cause him discomfort. Exasperation, irritation, and frustration, however…

She keeps her touch light as she glances at the foot that's escaped her for now. She'll grant it, especially considering Pietro's answered her question honestly. She doesn't want him to associate placing his feet on her lap with something unenjoyable. ]

You should tell me more when it's too much, Pietro. [ It's only a gentle scolding, one that she hopes he takes to heart. She looks down at his foot and sweeps her fingers along the top of it, giving his arch a break. ] I don't want you to feel uncomfortable.

I thought I deserved to be uncomfortable?

[It's a rhetorical and dismissive question he doesn't want an answer to. Pietro keeps his eyes on the television, but he's not watching it. Once she moves on to a difference spot for a change, the tension in muscles lessens and random twitches subside for the time being. After a moment, he elaborates on things, looking for the right words to explain without potentially making Wanda feel like she's done something that really bothered him as much as he's let on. It isn't torture, but it could be, so easily, and maybe she should know that.]

I do not tell you because... it is always too much, very quickly. After only a minute or two with some things, like you've been going at it for an hour without letting up. That is what it feels like for me.

[He picks at a frayed thread at the seam of the couch cushion, more incessantly than idly, because it frustrates him to admit to things like this. It's some form of weakness he doesn't need her to become overly concerned about.]

I don't want you to think I'm annoyed with you all the time. It's not you, it's me.

[The last part is lifted from Friends or Cheers most likely, he can't remember which, but it's fitting.]

[ She's quiet for a moment as she considers his words. There are too many examples of him being irritated and short-tempered with her and around her and at anything in general to latch onto a specific one as an example. She's always shrugged it off as Pietro being Pietro… but perhaps it's something more. Maybe it's like how she oftentimes begins to overthink and worry and wonder if what she's thinking about is actually hers to worry about or if it's someone else's thought that's slipped through the cracks. ]

So should I mix it up? Touch your toes for a little bit and then move to your ankle and come back to your toes again? Or should I leave the toes alone for good after?

[ Using his foot as an example is probably easiest, given it's what she had been touching to tease him with. Wanda doesn't physically act on it to demonstrate her question, though, not wishing to irritate him with her touch if he still needs a few moments to relax.

She wants to ask him about it more, but she doesn't want to press. Despite him being as quick as a bullet, this is something he's approached tentatively, and it's something she thinks she needs to explore at the pace he sets. ]

[He snorts, but it's with laughter and not derision, finally turning to look at her again. It feels ridiculous to use her chosen example, fitting as it is.]

Wanda, it's not really that big of a deal.

[Pietro waves one hand as if he hadn't just told her that it is sometimes.]

Yes. Mix it up. Not the same place for too long, not the same... pattern, repetitive touch.

[His stomach twists with the awkward embarrassment of continuing to address this topic, and it's somehow more uncomfortable to talk about than it would have been to let her continue the way she was going and never mention his problems with it.]

If you want to go slow with something, you could... it would be good if you stopped for a little? It can just be seconds, not long for you.

[He runs his hand through his hair in irritation, mostly with himself, because he needs to make a caveat or they'll have another discussion later.]

But I like it sometimes, when you don't. Stop. You know, when...

[During certain activities.]

[ It is a big deal. She doesn't want him to be embarrassed telling her what he wants or needs or dislikes. Even if she likes it, she doesn't want him to grin and bear it. He's done that too much in their life with everything else. She doesn't want him to do it with her. ]

You will tell me when to stop? During…

[ Wanda wiggles her eyebrows and smiles. It's completely immature, but she wishes to hear him laugh away some of the tension he feels. ]

So, like this, hm?

[ Wanda removes her hands from his foot and sweeps her fingers along the arch of his foot a few times before gliding them to the top. She slides her hand to his ankle before gliding up to his calf and returning to his ankle again. Perhaps what she has to do is not focus solely on one area. It's what she does best, focusing on thoughts, and trying to dig into them until she finds what she needs. But for Pietro, perhaps she has to expand it to much more. ]

[Her eyebrow wiggle is too much, and does earn her a laugh, and another eye roll. They should be talking about it like mature adults, but they don't. He can fuck her, but he can't talk about fucking her, even in the privacy of their apartment. It's euphemisms and implications and half-finished sentences, only more evidence that Pietro's continued flirting with other girls in public holds no real intentions behind it. If it did, he couldn't be so bold about it.]

You know I can stop you.

[Physically, easily. Presumably. He never does, and he's not actually answering Wanda's question, moving right along to focusing on her touch. It lingers, as always, but not to a degree where Pietro feels like his skin is too itchy and constricting and he wants to escape it. Slow traces of her fingers just long enough to drag sparks of electric sensation through nerves, sensations that fade before they're overwhelming. He may shift a little, but there's far less squirming, and his voice holds no hint of whining or discomfort.]

Like that.

[He moves his other foot again, to press against her thigh, meant as a comforting gesture of trust and proof that Wanda isn't upsetting him and he's just lying about it.]

[ She smiles, pleased that he's not disgruntled or hiding the fact that he is annoyed. Picking his other foot up and placing it on her thigh, she does the same, trailing her fingers down his toes to the top of his foot, slipping to his arch and then back to his ankle. She watches his face as she simply traces his foot, gliding her hands up his calf until she brings her hand down again. ]

You have such long legs.

[ Unsurprising, really, given how long legs are advantageous for moving so fast and for being so tall. Despite them looking lean and twig-like to her, she likes that she can feel his strong muscles. ]

Is this what I should have done in the park? Touch you all over?

[ Rather than in just one spot. While she's not entirely sure how she would've done that, she's bold enough to ask now. ]

[Touching certain spots make his muscles twitch under her fingers, or his toes curl, but the momentary tension doesn't last, and as she watches him, he never looks at her in irritation. Pietro's movements on the couch are now for getting more relaxed, if possible, not forcing himself not to run. He snorts at Wanda's comment, poking at her again. She likes to call his legs bony, but Pietro will refute that claim every time.]

Oh, you like them now, do you?

[He shrugs at her question, raising an eyebrow and biting his lip in thought, making a show of it. The park hadn't been too much for him, as far as they'd gotten.]

I don't know. You may have to experiment with that the next time I spill jam.

[ It's not a no, which only inspires Wanda's boldness. She looks at him without her gaze wavering as she continues to move her hand along his calf, ankle and foot. ]

I can still see jam.

[ After a moment, she ducks her gaze to his pants. It hardly matters if the imaginary jam is there or not. It's there for the sole purpose of this, although it's up to him if he wants to venture there again. With him open and sharing, she wishes to learn more. Who knows if the next time she touches him if he'd be as willing to give her guidance on where to touch him and when to stop to prevent him from feeling overstimulated? ]

Can you?

[There's laughter in his voice that he tries not to make too obvious. Wanda is extremely transparent, he wasn't even wearing these pants earlier. Pietro looks down at his thigh as if searching for that imaginary jam, though. He fingers a spot along the top of his inner thigh, as obvious as he can get.]

Oh, there it is.

[His playing along sounds more light-hearted to him, and he's starting to think he may have been more irritated by the things Wanda does than he'd thought, or irritated with himself for never bringing it up and continuing to get exasperated over what he could have so easily fixed.]

You are so messy.

[ Transferring it from pants to pants—not that Wanda's particularly realised. She's detail-oriented, but sometimes even things like putting on a new pair of pants slip through the cracks of her attention. She doubts it really matters. There's imaginary jam on his pants and he's playing along with her ruse. ]

Move. I can't reach from here.

[ She lets go of his foot despite not wishing to part from him and clicks her fingers impatiently. ]

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