The Magic Touch [Gabe/Susan]

Doing a bit of cleaning in his house, Gabe was waiting for a confirmation text message on the reservations he made with Susan for a particular experience that he didn't tell her about beforehand. As a matter of fact, Susan probably thought something different of what they were going to do, with Gabe telling her that he would pick her up from work today to try to get off a little early. It was pretty surprised at that with Gabe making such a request for Susan to try to get off, what could he possibly have planned for him to make such a request of her?

"I wonder if she managed to get the time off?"

Gabe was keeping things under wraps as he waited outside of his car, leaning on it casually, but the waiting was getting him pretty hungry.

*Grumble Grumble*

Finally giving in, Gabe walked over to a hero cart and bought himself a sandwich, looking at it intently with happiness.



"Well, if she wants to take her time, it won't be so bad of an idea to get a quick bite to eat. "

Gabriel would find more than enough time to eat and a while longer. Try as she might Susan could not get any time off from her job although she did fight tooth and nail to leave at her normally-scheduled time despite her boss attempting to intimidate and guilt her into staying. With the Cadets eating into all her time with training, lectures, mandatory physicals and combat runs in the evening she was finding precious little time to actually do her work and it was beginning to take its toll. She normally tried to stay ahead but even that lead was now gone and she was falling behind and failing. On her worse days she considered quitting her job but the prospect frightened her, to have such an ugly stain on her otherwise impressive record. But there would always be time, she could squeeze it from somewhere. She would just... stop sleeping altogether. Th-that might work. Possibly.

But it was still earlier than she had told Gabriel she would have stayed, she did not anticipate leaving before 7 today instead of the "normal" end of business for the rest of the company. So she had told him her planned time of 7 as the normal time and intended to adjust, it was the least she could do to prepare for snags such as this and it proved necessary this time. But all and all it left her with a lot to think about. He was initially met with pushback at the insistence that this was a surprise. Where is this? What time? How late we will we be? What manner of event? and a slew of other questions of that nature before she realized how difficult to please she was being, accepted the responsibility for unknown variables and threw in the towel. She deigned to allow Gabriel to surprise her and she would take care of everything else. Or everything else she could possibly take care of, some of the responsibility would fall on his own shoulders, if she needed to change before this event she would be very cross.

But the stress was getting to her, this was an event she should be looking forward to instead of something for her to dread clogging her schedule but when you were a hammer... Susan left her office walking quickly, eyes unfocused and with coffee in hand as her mind fired on all cylinders as it had the entire day. Her equipment for her "other" job happened to be with her but she had to quickly think of what she were going to do with it. The best she had come up with so far was to disassemble the bolt mechanism and put it in her pocket but that didn't solve the entire problem. She would work it out along the way. With a brief look around Susan spotted Gabriel and began marching toward him in her energetic but frazzled demeanor, typical when she was in work mode.
"Sorry...!" she called out in a huff, approaching to stand closer to him, "I would have left earlier but something needed wrapping up with the algorithm and I've missed so many days already and there was a late discussion meeting about an upcoming project, my boss had some choice words for me and- Stop it, stop it. You are not at the office leave... l-leave work at work." Susan closed her eyes and took a deep breath. There was so much on her mind for her to vocalize in any way without it devolving into verbal alphabet soup. Start with the basics.
"*Hmmmmmph.......haaaaaaa....* How was your day...?"

After finishing his sandwich, Gabe still had a little bit more of some downtime when it came to waiting for Susan to show up. Even though he checked his watch occasionally, he knew that he was kind of asking for the impossible when it came to Susan maybe leaving out early and the like.

"Hm...... all right then..."

Gabe did what any other considerate boyfriend would do when faced with a long wait time, they would continue to wait patiently until the person they were waiting for would arrive. On top of that, Gabe already had it in his head to not even notice the amount of time that passed in the first place, he knew that Susan was committed to her work and probably was doing a lot for her to be here in the first place.

"Hey! You made it, and that's all that matters to me."

Gabe would open the door to his black car as a way to invite her in while answering her questions.

"Me? My day, it's just beginning really, i decided to focus all of my time on something for us to do together, and it took a lot of thinking power, and future planning and calls. Now that the day is finally here, I'm just hoping that you would like it. And yes, it kind of means that I took the day off or so in order to focus on the time we were going to spend together today. "

When susan went in, Gabe would go on over to the other side of the car and enter the seat, putting on the seatbelt and checking to see if hers was on as well.

"But no need to be concerned, it wasn't a grave sacrifice or anything. The complexities of choices are nothing more than a reflection of the one who makes it.  Some people can multitask, I just decided to divert my time and attention to other things if the situation demands it. Those demanding situations that I think are worth the amount of commitment are also I choose to deem so. "

With a big smile, Gabe would start the car.

"Are you ready? You might forget all about what happened at work for the past few days once we get started."

"Hey! You made it, and that's all that matters to me."

Amazingly with one sentence he was able to disarm her apprehension on contact. Gabriel was just so... sugary sweet and kind. Her shoulders relaxed and she sighed. Susan should not be worried about how this fit into her schedule, she should be focused on spending time with her boyfriend who she enjoyed being around.
"You are very sweet. And a sight for sore eyes," she admitted as she tried to transition out of work mode and into personal enjoyment time. It was... a difficult endeavor to say the least. She couldn't just turn it off, her gears had to spin down to allow her to do so. But he was making things incredibly easy for her.

"M-my, such a gentleman...!" she fidgeted. She couldn't help but be swooned by his charms and polite behavior, and she found it incredibly attractive that he had gone to such lengths to plan this encounter. Fielding calls, taking his day off... most women would be more enamored with the activity but not Susan. She was much more impressed with the time and thought he put into this. It meant that despite how she may feel personally biased at times of her own worth that he valued her greatly, he would not put in this much effort otherwise. Her face had taken a deep shade of scarlet and she found herself nearly climbing into the passenger's seat before her senses returned back to the business at hand.


He knew she was a Cadet already and she was glad she told him beforehand or it may be awkward. Still, Susan took to bringing her equipment with her nearly everywhere she went. She had no idea when she would be called in... or in the epicenter of an attack. And she would need to be properly equipped for an engagement.

If he would allow her this she would simply place her briefcase in the trunk and mark the roof of it with an Eye of Horus. It wasn't a complete prevention of theft but it would be a deterrent and she would know who stole it and when. Not that she was anticipating such. She was merely being cautious. Truly she should be dropping it off with the police but this would be a good compromise and allow her to do her job.

Soul Skill:

...if he did not she would sit in the passenger's seat with her briefcase in her lap, but she would not budge on this issue. Her weapon had to be protected, she could not leave it by itself. A car alarm would only do so much and she already harbored suspicions she was being watched if the hacker was any indication. If this was to be so she would allow her beau to politely get the car door for her and strap herself in for safety and to follow the laws. The short woman grasped her collar. She was nearly about to protest about taking the day off for her but she knew this was something that Gabriel had wanted to do and that should not be admonished. She thought twice and shifted gears. He had already answered her when she chose to shut her mouth besides, and he informed her that she was important and worth his time. Susan would not cheapen that in any way. She instructed herself to just go with it and took a deep breath.
"Of course...!" she sounded out, trying to shake away her mood and match his enthusiasm, "I am excited to see what this is if you have sunk so much effort into it."

She would wait for him to shift into drive before responding with a nod and attempting to smile herself, though a natural smile would likely come later. There was too much work to think about for the moment. But she allowed his enthusiasm to infect her and began to think, replying to his hearty proclamation with a quiet nod.
"May I guess?" she asked in a demure tone, a ghost of a smirk playing on her lips, "I have a few ideas already." That she did. Something that required several calls meant a reservation, that the two of them were in formal attire (or somewhat formal, she did not consider her suit formal attire). There were a few things rattling around in her brain on what this could be and she loved the mental work that went into figuring out the surprise.

Things were going well, for the time being, the date was off to a great start. However, Gabe was a bit taken back by the request of him opening his trunk for her to store her weapon, even more at the fact that she was armed.  

"What, you have a gun? A real gun?  Were you always armed? Wow. I never really noticed. I always felt that the areas that I frequented around were particularly safe, but I guess this is a reason to feel a little bit safer at the fact that you have something to protect yourself with. Maybe safer wasn't the word, more secure and relaxed, maybe?"

With that being said, Gabe popped the trunk and let her put her gun away. That wasn't going to affect him too much anyway, it was the path she chose for her job and Gabe felt that whatever reservations he had about it should have been brought up back then.

As they continued to drive on their way, Susan offered to try and guess where they were going, which excited Gabe to a degree to figure out if she could guess it.

"Oh, so you are a natural sleuth now? Give me your best shot, make a guess. "

His comments over her firearm did cause Susan to fidget and wring her hands, at least at first. She was already so accustomed to being armed that she did not feel as if it was anything to be worked up over. She was an officer of the law and her gun was her tool for the job, nothing more. But to an average civilian it was an instrument of killing and she had never considered this until now.
"Y-yes and... n... no, I have never been in your presence with it until now. I do not carry it always, but I need it in easy access in case I need to respond to an emergency. B-b-but you needn't worry, the streets are very safe in daylight hours, I merely need it with me if I do not know where I'll be once the sun sets." It was the truth... but it wasn't the entire truth, which she felt guilty of. Susan had never been compelled to take her gun with her before the incident at the bank. It reminded her that even if there were no demons around in the daylight similarly twisted individuals could get the drop on her anyway. She already believed herself to be targetted. The fear gnawed at the back of her mind and shied her away from crowds more than usual. But with her P90 in her briefcase she could feel more prepared, more confident in herself to handle things should the worst happen.

And it was just like Gabriel to be more concerned over her wellbeing than his own. Many would compliment a known Cadet for defending the city or being a silent protector or similar nonsense that provoked stock responses from the businesswoman. She did not find herself heroic, she was only dutiful in her responsibilities as everyone should be. "I will be just fine, Gabriel," her voice softened and dropped her nervous tones,


Her expression became melancholy and vacant for a few moments before she closed her eyes with a sigh and slow shake of her head. She detected underlying concern and went three steps farther than she probably should have
"haaaaa... I am sorry, I am doing that thing where you show me beautiful, wonderful things and I become dismal again. I suppose... it's because I too feel relaxed in a certain way. You are truly the only person I have to bring this up to." Open mouth, insert foot as per usual. She did not know what it was about Gabriel but she felt almost subconsciously compelled to allow all her troubles to show when he was around. As unfortunate as that was. Susan did not want to be someone for him to take care of or feel the need to, she wanted to give to him as much as he did to her. She desired to be useful and important. The meek little woman shook her head again and opened her eyes to gaze at the road.
"Aaaaaand I am doing it again. I am... *haaaaa* I am sorry, I have a lot on my mind. I am happy to be here, I should act like it."

Susan breathed in and out slowly to attempt to reset her mood, remaining silent for a time. She did need the silence, that may have been it. It had been a long work day and she had no time to decompress by her lonesome. But she would make an attempt to escape her dour exterior and latch on to whatever could keep up with Gabriel's enthusiasm.
"Well now, what made you think I wasn't always a natural sleuth?" she snarked back. Her smile didn't completely return but there was a rising playful tone in her voice and light in her eyes as the small woman became engaged. Susan adored any and all opportunities to show off how smart she happened to be.
"Let's see... given the fact that you needed to arrange this with phone calls and it required future planning I can surmise that this required a reservation of some sort. And with our current attire this must be a formal to semi-formal event. Knowing you as I do this will also be a more involved and special event, thus..." Susan counted out on her fingers and a soft smile did eventually return as she stared at the passing street signs before turning to Gabriel once more.

"Nope!"

Gabe made a small sound to signify that the guess that Susan had was pretty much incorrect while focusing on driving at the same time. However, he still maintained a small smile at the fact that she was trying to guess what they were going to do today.

"You got about one more chance to guess this time around, ok? And after that, guessing at the good time that we are making, we would be there in the next 5 minutes or so. So that's why you are going to see soon enough where I would be taking you. However, I really am interested in what you would guess next. Whatever you get wrong will just be added to the things I WILL be taking you to for later gatherings. So please, continue to give me all of these wonderful ideas I'll be spoiling you with."

At the very least, Gabe was trying to keep this lighthearted and fun.

"But believe me, it's special."

"Swing and a miss..." Susan frowned in thought and put her hand to her chin. Though she was far from disappointed, this was all part of the process of determining what the final result was. She merely needed to look at her approach again and restructure. Though he did get her thoughtful face, the gears spinning and whirring behind her intense expression, to break a smile as well with his explanation of using exactly what she brought up as possibilities to visit next. It was a common and well-used tactic for the giving of gifts, which showed that he was well-studied on this interactive school of thought much as she was. Though infinitely better at it most likely. Susan could never quite get the minutiae right nor the expressiveness so whenever she did such it seemed like a cop-out even if she gave extensive thought to her gifts. Except perhaps to Gabriel, who appreciated and understood the amount of mental effort that went into such ideas.

"Well now," she started mischievously, throwing her eyes toward Gabriel, "Perhaps I should guess that you are taking me to my house to read while you feed me chocolate covered cherries, mmmhmmm!" Susan stifled a giggle, it did bring ideas. She had to have him over for dinner at some point. The short woman enjoyed going out on adventures just as the next girl did but an evening inside could be just as fruitful and relaxing. She felt a little bonding time could be beneficial and she wouldn't need to be as "on", though she wasn't trying to present a front as much as she normally was.

Susan pursed her lips and closed her eyes so she couldn't "cheat", she could easily figure out where they were going if she only looked out the window and referenced what she knew with the area in what needed planning beforehand. Truth be told the fact that she only had 5 minutes to make a correct guess did weigh on her more than it should have. Perhaps Gabriel had been right in his assumption. She really didn't deal with stress well, she just had a higher threshold for it. Susan hummed as she continued to think. Their current attire was appropriate. It required reservations and at this time of day. It could really be anything, she had guessed the theatre for their mutual love of it sooo... in addition this would need to be something that Gabriel would choose. She did not factor that into her original guesswork. So he enjoyed being engaged and the classier aspects of culture, therefore...

"...fine dining? Particularly a lounge of some sort. You are dressed in your best and I am... a-adequate. Oh, if this is not it please note there is a jazz lounge on North Washington I may like to visit." It was a cozy, elegant place reminiscent of the '50s even after having been rebuilt after the Eternal Divide. Honestly the prospect of visiting all these luxurious and upper-crust places with her boyfriend tickled her pink, she was just as in love with the idea than the actual act of it but ideas were always something she enjoyed engaging herself in. Perhaps there was fantasy to it which is why she loved to read. But this engagement? Susan had no idea, only endless theorems. Well, not endless. There was criteria that needed to be met so... incredibly numerous theorems.

"Oh, never thought of you to be such a homebody. As a matter of fact, it is clear to me that I have never really see the inside of your place, or know how it even smells like? Not too sure what kind of infrastructure that you prefer, or maybe the small tellings of a room that tends to give a bit away about your partner. So believe me when I say this, I am looking forward to that very much."

Gabe was beaming with excitement. Maybe he would get a chance to do all of those things one day? But in the meantime, it was time for Susan's surprise. Since they were starting to get closer to the destination at hand, Gabe was about to tell her to open her  eyes so she can see where she was going.

"Wrong again, but at least you can finally see what I had planned all along.  You can open your eyes now Susan."

Once Susan opened her eyes,  she would see that they were in front of a castle of some kind.  From the perception alone, thirteen thick, round towers are low, but set firm and strong for a great defensive line and are connected by huge, massive walls made of light brown stone. Tall, wide windows are scattered here and there around the walls in seemingly perfect symmetry, along with huge crenelations. Well kept gardens with fragrant flowers, gorgeous trees and many bushes decorated the outside of the castle, with the huge sign above the main section engraved with neon light, SPA CASTLE.

"Welcome to Spa Castle, it's a little a spa-like establishment made with an Arthurian like architecture. However, the inside of them is supposedly modernized, with plenty of the toers representing different kinds of recuperation activities where we can participate in. You have been working hard, I get that. But I was really thinking about you this entire time, I felt like you deserved something, a time to really relax and be pampered. I don't know if you ever been here, but if not, it'll be a first for both of us."

After Gabe parked, he would start to escort Susan inside and show the prebooked pass he got for the both of them, putting hers around her neck.  

"So what would you like to do first?"

"I suppose I ca- wait, really?" It was an off-guard and honest response as Susan opened her eyes long enough to tilt her head at him. Her? Not a homebody? She who needed to spend copious amounts of time by herself who was shackled to work day in and day out? Well... she supposed he had only seen a more active, fun side of her if a little gloomy. Someone who is always out doing things, he likely thought her a high-flying woman of business always on the go and to an extent she was but at the end of what was required Susan preferred to shut the world out so she could have her peace and quiet. Though she was impressed to see what he was looking forward to was much how she behaved on an everyday basis. Looking at the small details, piecing things together from what you have to connect a much larger framework, putting together a puzzle. Perhaps that was why she was drawn to him and enjoyed his company, their minds worked in similar ways.
"Yes, I have been meaning to invite you for dinner at some point in time, I can just never get our schedules aligned. I... I-I may plan something at a later time." The short lady turned her head and closed her eyes once more, flushing slightly with the quaver of her voice. The realization had struck her a little too late. Dinner was innocent enough or so she thought, and Susan enjoyed the idea of a small evening together inside her own home where she could be comfortable, they could converse all night and perhaps watch a movie together or something else of that nature. But ideals led to worry and worry that certain things would fall through. What if her house was not clean enough? Or she burned dinner? Susan made peace with that enough however those thoughts led to other implicative thoughts of inviting her boyfriend to her home and where that may eventually lead. Susan was fond of the idea of romance but the practice terrified her.

Susan opened her eyes with a little bit of skepticism, admittedly just a tiny bit sore she hadn't been able to guess correctly which of course was her own fault but when her eyes filled with the castle her brow furrowed until they caught glimpse of the sign. Spa Castle. Her jaw dropped as he explained himself but her attention was divided between himself and her own inner calculations. But it was what he said that made her feel a twinge of guilt. He had been thinking about her this entire time. Susan had not been nearly as courteous, she had been focusing on the myriad of small tragedies and responsibilities in her life. It was she that had said that you dedicate time to what you felt was most important and... she had not been doing that. This was most important and she had failed to realize or be considerate.


She lightly touched his arm while gazing at the building and grasping at her collar, if ever she was animated it was now.
"I can't believe you would arrange something like this...! It is very sweet of you, I have been considering something like this for an odd holiday but this is... I-I don't know what to say...!" The shorter woman did not know what to say but she knew what to do. She had to do better. She had to appreciate this for what it was and him as he should be and enjoy this as he meant for her to. And to show appreciation in kind in her own way. No other individual would go to such lengths for someone such as her, she wondered if this was a karmic balance of sorts. All that happenstance and heartache for all of... this. It was truly magical. The timid woman bowed her head and allowed him to place the pass about her neck as she looked up at him, still spellbound.
"I-I am not certain yet, I have not even considered-"

And then the rest of it clicked. Gabriel characteristically would always pick something outside of her comfort zone as he often did. It did take a reservation but their attire didn't matter for this event because she wouldn't be... wearing... a-anything but a robe. If that. Gee.
"O-o-oh dear..." she stuttered, pulling at her suit, "I-I am going to have to get naked at some point a-aren't I-I...? I-I would assume more alcohol would be involved for this to happen but... h-h-here we a-a-are..." The short woman wrung her hands together for a moment before looking upward toward Gabriel for any sign of reassurance before knocking her head to the side with dull eyes.


More slight protest than outright refusal, Susan was more disappointed that she was outwitted again but she must admit... it was incredibly slick. He had her right where he wanted her.

"The fact that you were already thinking about this kind of helps me as well ...because I was really hoping that you would like it. It seemed like something you would do with a few other females, so I wondered if getting your tickets for you and a few female coworkers that you work with would be smart? Maybe some people in the class zero that you are trying to get on their good side, you can say it came from you and it would definitely boost your status, that was my original plan. Then I got a little curious as to whether you ever went to this place, and wanted to see the reaction you had myself.  I kind of went back of what I originally wanted to do because I wanted to spend this particular time with you first, but after it's all said and done, it can still be a place that you can recommend to others."

Gabe thought about it to a degree, but when it came to him possibly planning this for some kind of way to see Susan naked, he would have a rather shocked but playful look on his face.

"Oh, my dear Susan, did you ever expect me to do such a thing? My intentions are indeed genuine, it just so happens that some of the services provided would require you to strip. However, the robes and the towels are put over in some instances, so you won't have to worry about me seeing everything so bare.  For instance, I was going to warm you up a bit by bringing you to the Hand & Foot Reflexology section.  Believe it or not, there is a focus of massages in plenty of areas, with some of those being connected to your overall health and stress reduction. "

Gabe continued to lead her until he went on to the area, showing his pass and pointing at hers. After taking his shoes off Gabe sat back in the chair, looking over to the empty seat next to him. His shoes were promptly placed in the cupboard as the masseuse prepared themselves.

"But for a more simpler translation, the first thing that comes off is your shoes. "

Unfortunately for Susan she had no other coworkers with which she could share an experience like this with. Within her own office she was mostly kept to herself, and it could be seen as inappropriate within the Cadets. Not that she had anyone to invite out there either. Susan had tried once and failed once to bond with her coworkers, it would take her a while to open up to them once more in that regard. Even if it would raise her popularity among her teammates, though the businesswoman did not care for such things. If she were to be favored it would be because of her competence as a leader and a strategist, not because she was likable. Being likable was irrelevant, she would rather be effective. Though... it was very sweet of him to be thinking of that, she had not considered that angler herself. And thankful again that he would want to take her out himself, it would be embarrassing if he had given her a few appointments and she had to attend alone. Which she was fine with and would likely have done. And would have slightly preferred to do so. Nothing against Gabriel of course, but Susan would have preferred to not be in various states of undress with people she happened to know. The spa workers were fine, it was their job, but now she had to feel self conscious over the entire ordeal.
"I'm not surprised you possess that sort of foresight given your own successes. That is very thoughtful of you Gabriel," she complimented. An honest and sincere compliment, being how much she valued that level of strategic thinking. The idea that he was this ambitious and with his own ability to formulate things in advance had gotten her to wistfully smile at him, without her own awareness of course. He was such an impressive and intelligent man...

But her face fell back into her judging glare as he continued to explain how this was not as horrible as she thought it was, nor as revealing and the benefits of such. Which were valid points. But she didn't believe him for a second. He was a charmer and a good one, she could read between the lines.
"Uh huh," Susan sounded out skeptically as he took her by the hand and led her into Spa Castle. She maintained her vaguely unimpressed look as they walked except for the color of her face, which happened to be neon red. It had got her thinking of things. Like expectations which frightened her. She shouldn't be offended by the implication, it was what was expected. It meant that he found her attractive. But it introduced worry from several different sources. She was not sure if this relationship was moving too quickly or too slowly, or if she was approaching it in the correct way or in the right order. She was more vexed with herself than she was with Gabriel. But still a tiny bit vexed at Gabriel. She would have liked a little more advanced warning before she were to be expected to remove her clothing and have strangers put their hands on her.

As she was led through the serenity of the lobby with its soft music Gabriel would take the lead much as she had asked, though this was a good start and she likely would not have chosen much different. She tried her best to forget the reality of the situation and look toward the more romantic aspect of it, as difficult as it was. Her boyfriend had taken her out to a day spa after a long week of work stress, which was simply wonderful, a dream come true. She did not have to focus on things such as... h-how she would be expected to reveal herself in different circumstances. O-or how strange people would be touching her with someone she was close with present. I-it was a nice and loving gesture and she should not react as she was. When Gabriel invited her to also remove her shoes he would be met with a beet red face entwined with both a level of disdain underlain with embarrassment. She stood shivering in this mix of feelings she did not understand before closing her eyes and letting go a shaky sigh.
"......I-I can do this..." she stammered as half a statement to his prompt. Hesitantly she removed her sneakers and socks and put them away, and went a few steps further to remove her coat and untuck her shirt. Well if she was going to do this it wasn't going to be in half measure.

Smoothing out her button-up she would release her tension with another sigh before placing her things neatly within the shoe cupboard and adjacent coat rack before taking her seat next to Gabriel. Her eyes were squeezed shut and twitching with discomfort as the masseuse began to work massaging the pair's feet. Stubborn as always Susan resisted at first but would find herself relaxing over time. It only came apparent to her how much her body hurt when it presented to her, her arches were beyond sore after nights of patrols and running about without being accustomed to it. Whether or not she would admit it or not she desperately needed a relaxation day. If she would allow herself to relax or not was still up in the air.
"......I'm getting you back for this. Don't think you're getting away with it that easily," she spoke up playfully while turning to him, her face its usual neutral restfulness. She spoke it as both a warning and a promise. It was true, she did need to repay this grand and touching gesture with something equally thoughtful. Just as true was how sorely she needed to put him in an uncomfortable position just as she was in. The short woman would begin plotting away to embarrass Gabriel for once.

As the masseuse did their thing, Gabe would try his best not to laugh at the fact that his feet were being touched. As a matter of fact, one thing about Gabe would have been apparent at that time, which was the fact that his sense of touch was pretty sensitive.  But from how it looked, Gabe was also laughing at the fact that his girlfriend vowed to get revenge for this trip when in all honestly, Gabe was just happy to be there for her.

"Well, maybe i'll give you a handicap then. Next time you have something planned for me to throw me off my game, you don't have to tell me about it beforehand."

As the massages continued, the hand and foot massage portion were already done and Gabe was itching to get to the next session that he wanted to take her.

"Next up is going to be a little bit tricky, but I heard its really good for you. "

Leading her off to walk a bit to the next session, it was a different kind of room with chairs that can be pushed back a bit.

"This is something i looked into when booking this place, a Detoxifying Mud Wrap for your face. The first thing they do  is a  body exfoliation which will leave your skin smooth by eliminating the dead skin cells and impurities allowing the easy absorption of any moisturizing agent for healthier skin. They top it off with a  detoxifying algae body mask. I wanted to give you the good stuff first, but there is more than....well..."

Whistling as Gabe went to take a seat.

"Might involve you to expose your back, all of it...."

Gabriel's laughter had a strange effect on her temperament. It was honest laughter and it was part of a relaxing environment, which would do well to soothe her but other factors were in play. She did not think she was being laughed at, at least not on the second thought but such uproarious giggling set her nerves on fire. As her eyes remained closed she could picture dashing through mirrored hallways with the sound of echoing laughter, joining in this laughter against her own will as people in white face sought to kill her. The scent of burning entered her nose seemingly without source. She inhaled sharply as her heart rate began to climb.

...but this was a safe place, far and away from the horrors of psychopaths. There was comforting music playing, her feet were being eased of their tension, the cramps of her hands from long days and evenings at the keyboard erased at a gentle touch. And she was with someone she was comfortable with. Susan breathed out slowly. She would try to let go. This was supposed to be a calming, romantic experience together and she was ruining it by being uptight. That was why he had brought her here. To calm her anxious mind, to allow her to let the stressors of life slip through her fingers like water. Her shoulders would relax and she would make an attempt to turn off her self-defeating brain, at least for a few moments at a time.
"No need..." she sighed gently, "I could tell you exactly what and where and you would still never see it coming. And when you least expect it..." A smile twitched at Susan's lips. She had begun to think of loose ideas to shock him with. But benevolent surprises, ones that would need to be both uncomfortable yet touching. She briefly thought about adopting a dog for him with his love of animals. She could think of several contingencies in case that was not feasible and the positive impacts of such. But yes, it could also be a bit of a monkey's paw. It meant now he would need to look after a dog. This would be her dastardly scheme, giving a wonderful man a shelter puppy to save and nurture. Her face eased away from calm amusement and into blank contentment, eyes not opening once.
"This was very sweet of you..." Susan softly breathed.

After all was said and done Susan dutifully followed Gabriel toward the next area, enjoying the feeling of her bare feet stretching on the hardwood after the massage. Her dull eyes would scan around as she attempted to figure out what was next on the list although Gabriel would end up telling her. She listened intently at his knowledge about health and wellness, he had certainly done his research, furrowing her brow as he mentioned "algea body mask". Until he confirmed her suspicions. Her face grew scarlet as her jaw hit the floor with an involuntary scoff. He had caught her off guard once again.



This was... something to ease herself into, sh-she could do this but NOT at the breakneck pace that Gabriel wanted to travel at. For once she was less concerned about the implication of things and more on the immediate and immediately she was NOT taking her clothes off with him in the same room!
"Oh nooooonononono do not get comfortable! You are going out! Out out out out out out OUT so I can change...!" The tiny woman would grab Gabriel by the arm and begin pulling him toward the door. This was fine. Ultimately this was fine. She would wear a robe for him, he could get to see her backside, but for the love of God he did not get to learn forbidden knowledge of what underwear she was wearing. THAT would be saved for special occasions many MANY months away and likely involving roses and candles and heavy intoxication.

"Purpose? Well, yes and no, I would like to think that I'm trying to be mindful of my own desires of getting a reaction out of you at times. To be honest, this is all a new experience of seeing you in such a bewildered way, and I'm kind of enjoying the moments as they come. However, I can see that I might have flustered you a little too much...."

Laughing a bit, Gabe tried to get control of the situation, even for a moment. He didn't want to risk spoiling Susan's mood with her thinking that Gabe had some lecherous thoughts of bringing her here, everything happening now was mostly for the sake of her enjoyment.


Mostly..( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°).


"Well that's somewhat of the point here... got you in a.... heart trap. You like?"

However, getting kicked out of the room wasn't apart of the plan.

"Aww...alright...i'll go and get changed into something else in the meantime then. You can get started, ok? "

Gabe would say this as he was out of the room and the door closed. Afterward, he went off to another corner section to get himself a kimono-like robe of some sort that he could wear throughout the duration of the rest and relaxation activity he was sharing with Susan. Knowing that Susan was a bit of an introvert, he wanted to give her a little bit of time in order for her to gather her nerves. He also wanted to check on the qualifications of the other room as well in order to see if he can turn down the surprises for her.

It was going to be a little bit of work to deviate from it, but Gabe cared about Susan and thought he should limit his playful jeers towards the poor woman.



"Now then... I should have a word with the people about the mixed bath...looks like our passes need a bit of an alteration..."