Jesse takes his glass and settles himself in on the couch with the two of them, remote in hand.
“Picked a good one, but not the best. It’s a strategy. You’ve gotta build up to that, and we’re in this for the long haul. And really—” He turns his head towards Chloe, “—you should’ve seen her hair back then. Was shocked it didn’t get caught on things in fights all the time, but nope, somehow I was the one getting’ snagged on things. If it wasn’t my jeans, it was my shirt. All my clothes were full of holes.”
He hits play and looks back at Ashe with a wink. “Would’ve been a shame anyway, somethin’ happening to that pretty hair of yours. Long or short.”
Chloe’s trying to picture it just as McCree starts going on about Ashe’s old hair lengths, the amusement on her face turning to actual interest fast; she liked to hear about their days in Deadlock, to learn more about the past that had been disrupted far too early. “And here when I saw your pictures I thought you just had shitty fashion taste.”
...Says the girl with her jeans full of holes.
She leans forward slightly to look at Ashe better, tilting her head. “Maybe you should grow it out again. I mean, not that it isn’t cool that we have like super similar hair cuts and whatever, but you’d look real pretty, Mama.”
"Naw, he does, but it probably stemmed from trying to make a fashion statement out of bein' a clutz. He had this one jacket, that he sliced the arm off of just to show off his tattoo after we got them." She rolled her sleeve up to about where he had cut the sleeve of the jacket, which allows her own matching tattoo to show. "Right to here. And sure you could see the artwork, but that poor jacket..." She was pretty sure that was why he had cut off the sleeve anyway, so much time had passed she couldn't be sure, but it made for a good story either way.
She grinned over at Chloe. "I still have a box of his old hole infested clothin' that I forgot to throw out." Or hadn't been able to, much like the pictures.
Between the way that Chloe calls her 'Mama' and the way Jesse winks at her, she feels her cheeks warm. She takes a couple more sips of wine in hopes that she could blame the alcohol. Her lips pinch together as she purses them while she thinks of how to play it all cool. Then again she doesn't have to worry about how this comes across, after all they are a family right? She leans her chin onto Jesse's shoulder. "What do you think Sweetheart? You wanna see me with long hair again?" She bats her eyelashes at him and offers him a coquettish smile.
“Hey, I was proud of that tattoo! Wanted to show it off. And it’s a good thing I did too, since it’s not around anymore. I got my money’s worth, and looked good doin’ it. You kids these days-” This again, back to Chloe- “just don’t got taste.”
Ashe can try and hide it, but it’s clear as day to Jesse what has her cheeks going pink. It’s sweet, and it’s sad, and he wishes it hadn’t taken all this for her to look the happiest he’s ever seen her on or around a holiday. But he’s grateful for it all just the same. ‘Tis the season and all to be grateful or whatever, right?
He grins at the teasing, tipping his head to one side as if considering it. “Long hair, short hair…” He reaches up to tuck some of Ashe’s hair behind one ear. “You’d look pretty as a picture whichever way.”
This is what you get for your encouragement Chloe—mushy, over-the-top, shameless flirting. No one to blame but yourself.
No regrets; in fact, she sees this as a complete win. Chloe had been chuckling at the bantering over his tattoo to begin with, but she feels a warmth at their flirtations that she wasn’t entirely expecting. Even if they’re being mushy she’s pretty sure to make her uncomfortable, it’s the honest affection behind it that leaves her hoping that maybe someday she’ll get someone to care about her like that.
She goes to her daughterly duties though and groans, giving McCree’s shoulder a shove as she wiggles her way under his arm to get comfortable.
“Save it for your room and show me some shoot outs already.”
It's hard to say whether she would feel as comfortable openly expressing her feelings if the situation didn't require they act like long married lovebirds with an adult child. Like the closet back in August, she could express how she was feeling, but quickly retreat into excuses if it started to feel unsafe.
However, her emotions are on the surface and it's going to be hard to box them up at the end of this. She'd never considered having a family any other way and yet it felt so obvious in some ways.
"Maybe in between then." She smiles again at him, before turning her attention to Chloe's comment. "And just so you know young lady, these are all my rooms and I can do whatever I want in them." She gives Chloe a teasing, but rather immature look. Then she curls herself up on McCree's other side and tucks herself against him. She's not as sure of her movements as Chloe is, but she wants to be close and savor this pretend world as long as she can. Her head even comes to rest on his shoulder.
“You heard the lady,” he says to Chloe, smiling down at her before turning a similarly warm look to Ashe on his other side. Family. There’s no other word for what this is, their trust and their affection. He wraps an arm around each of them, then presses a kiss to the top of Ashe’s head. Because he can. Because even though this is something built on a lie, it’s real in this moment. He’ll treasure it for as long as that’s true.
“This one takes a minute to get to a good shootout, but it’s worth the wait.”
Like the grown adult she is, Chloe is quick to stick her tongue out at both of them, though it's a weak retort towards something that had clearly never actually bothered her in the first place. Later when her mind was back to normal, she might realize the comfort it all brought was from having missed the loving affection between William and Joyce that had been ripped away from her, but for now she just assumed it was a relief to have her parents not at odds with each other just in time for the holiday season.
"Think they'll get to it before B.O.B.'s done cooking that turkey?" Her tone's as sarcastically dramatic as always, and it's fully known enough that she'd sit through just about any kind of scenes for the movies she loved. She's comfortable anyway, feet tucked up underneath her and using McCree as a pillow.
Ashe's body relaxes and she sinks into the affection like a plant starved for sunlight. There is nothing she wants more than this, and she mirrors Chloe, making them mirror images of mother and daughter. If she could pick one con to live in, it would be this one.
As the movie starts up. "So what's this cowboy's life crisis? Wife die? Dad die? Lost the farm?" She's teasing of course and as the classic credits start up, it's so bad it's enjoyable. "Cue...man on horse...now.." She points to the screen just as he appears.
“You seen this one before?” Jesse jokes as the man on horseback appears on cue. He loves these predictable cowboy stories just as much as he appreciates the new, more innovative takes. There’s something familiar and relaxing about it. Predictability has never played a role in his life, and he’d be damn bored if it did; but if he ever does have a fix for something steadfast, there are these old Westerns and all their tried-and-true tropes.
“We can make a bet which comes first: turkey or shootout.”
Nevermind that he already knows the movie. He has less knowledge of how long a turkey takes.
Chloe lets out a small giggle she tries to muffle by biting down on her lip when Ashe manages to call the cowboy riding in to down. She doesn't know why it amuses her quite as much as it does, but maybe it just comes from how relaxed she feels. It's been a while, especially in a place like Deerington, and so everything feels that much funnier to her than it might normally.
"Mmmm." She shifts on the couch until she can throw her legs over the arm, slouching down until her head can rest more on McCree's stomach than his shoulder and she's more or less laying down. "If the staring part is as long as The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, my money's on turkey."
"You both have no idea how long a turkey takes then!"
As Chloe lays down, Ashe reaches over absently to run her fingers through her hair. It's surprisingly natural and she does it almost on instinct. The two of them being here with her, in her home...which is momentarily their home, is everything to her.
She chuckles softly at the comment about the staring. "I'll never understand those stand offs. Way over done. Enemies just don't stare at each other like that. " She glanced at McCree, a smirk on her lips as she joked. "Waitin' for the right moment to fire off your weapon. Who does that in real life?" She finished with a wink. It felt like so long ago that they'd been standing out by the wreckage of the train sizing each other up.
“I’m votin’ shootout. It’s a bird, how long can it take?”
Jesse really doesn’t know anything at all about cooking turkey, but he does know a thing or two about a good standoff. He sends a playful smirk Ashe’s way, trying to stifle a laugh after the wink.
“It’s like they’ve never been in a good Route 66 shootout before. Damn shame, since I hear they're a sight."
Chloe rolls her eyes at the both of them, though she’s got a smile that doesn’t seem to wanna leave her face now that she’s settled and comfortable. “You’re both such fucking dorks.” Something about that sounds very affectionate. Honest.
The way that Ashe is stroking her hair though and the safety she feels in this exact moment is enough to make her feel the most at ease she has in months. She feels beat, even, and she wasn’t even aware just how much tension she’d been carrying lately. It was enough to exhaust a person.
“How come the outlaws in these movies are never badass ladies?”
"Certainly are. Nothing in that area goes down without a big explosion. You just gotta hope you aren't on the receivin' end of them." She finished up the glass of wine she was drinking and set it down, before moving to lay her head against McCree's shoulder. The wine had built up a nice soft buzz and she felt relaxed and safe.
Glancing down at Chloe, she smiled, which turned into a laugh at her question. "Misogyny. Just you wait though, someday they'll make a movie 'bout me. Jesse here 'll be a side character though."
Jesse huffs a laugh and rolls his eyes. “Me, a side character? There’s no chance. Whatever handsome devil they hire to play me better steal every scene, or it won’t be true to life at all.” He turns his head and kisses the top of Ashe's head with another quiet chuckle.
“You’ve got it right about the movies though. Think I’ve seen more Westerns with omnics than with badass ladies in the starrin’ role.”
She hums, expecting those sorts of answers. Badass ladies won't ever get their deserved honor and glory.
"Someone should... fix that." The words are stretched out around a yawn she tries to stifle. She's... definitely gonna fall asleep here. Sorry, McCree. You're comfy.
Every little touch and kiss he gives her makes her feel warm and safe. She doesn't say it, but it's there in the little smile it always earns. She glances down at Chloe to turn her attention to their momentary daughter and gives a nod. "I'm workin' on it. Because people have very little respect for Omnics in our world and women are still comin' up short."
She could tell that Chloe was tired and the way she mumbled suggested she was likely going to nap through the epic length of the cowboy showdown. Meanwhile, she lets herself lean into McCree again, pretty sure the warmth in her body is more the situation and less the alcohol.
“Fallin’ asleep already?” Jesse chides, teasing rather than actually admonishing her for it. “You’re not gonna know then which comes first, the turkey or the shootout.”
He settles in between them, thoughts more on the moment in its wonder and absurdity than the actual movie. He’s seen it before anyway. But a moment like this… he’s not had this before. Maybe he won’t again when things do inevitably change. At least, right now, he can enjoy it while it lasts.
“If anybody can change Hollywood, it’s Ms. Elizabeth Caldonia Ashe. Even the name sounds ready-made for the movies.”
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“Picked a good one, but not the best. It’s a strategy. You’ve gotta build up to that, and we’re in this for the long haul. And really—” He turns his head towards Chloe, “—you should’ve seen her hair back then. Was shocked it didn’t get caught on things in fights all the time, but nope, somehow I was the one getting’ snagged on things. If it wasn’t my jeans, it was my shirt. All my clothes were full of holes.”
He hits play and looks back at Ashe with a wink. “Would’ve been a shame anyway, somethin’ happening to that pretty hair of yours. Long or short.”
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...Says the girl with her jeans full of holes.
She leans forward slightly to look at Ashe better, tilting her head. “Maybe you should grow it out again. I mean, not that it isn’t cool that we have like super similar hair cuts and whatever, but you’d look real pretty, Mama.”
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She grinned over at Chloe. "I still have a box of his old hole infested clothin' that I forgot to throw out." Or hadn't been able to, much like the pictures.
Between the way that Chloe calls her 'Mama' and the way Jesse winks at her, she feels her cheeks warm. She takes a couple more sips of wine in hopes that she could blame the alcohol. Her lips pinch together as she purses them while she thinks of how to play it all cool. Then again she doesn't have to worry about how this comes across, after all they are a family right? She leans her chin onto Jesse's shoulder. "What do you think Sweetheart? You wanna see me with long hair again?" She bats her eyelashes at him and offers him a coquettish smile.
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Ashe can try and hide it, but it’s clear as day to Jesse what has her cheeks going pink. It’s sweet, and it’s sad, and he wishes it hadn’t taken all this for her to look the happiest he’s ever seen her on or around a holiday. But he’s grateful for it all just the same. ‘Tis the season and all to be grateful or whatever, right?
He grins at the teasing, tipping his head to one side as if considering it. “Long hair, short hair…” He reaches up to tuck some of Ashe’s hair behind one ear. “You’d look pretty as a picture whichever way.”
This is what you get for your encouragement Chloe—mushy, over-the-top, shameless flirting. No one to blame but yourself.
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She goes to her daughterly duties though and groans, giving McCree’s shoulder a shove as she wiggles her way under his arm to get comfortable.
“Save it for your room and show me some shoot outs already.”
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However, her emotions are on the surface and it's going to be hard to box them up at the end of this. She'd never considered having a family any other way and yet it felt so obvious in some ways.
"Maybe in between then." She smiles again at him, before turning her attention to Chloe's comment. "And just so you know young lady, these are all my rooms and I can do whatever I want in them." She gives Chloe a teasing, but rather immature look. Then she curls herself up on McCree's other side and tucks herself against him. She's not as sure of her movements as Chloe is, but she wants to be close and savor this pretend world as long as she can. Her head even comes to rest on his shoulder.
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“This one takes a minute to get to a good shootout, but it’s worth the wait.”
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"Think they'll get to it before B.O.B.'s done cooking that turkey?" Her tone's as sarcastically dramatic as always, and it's fully known enough that she'd sit through just about any kind of scenes for the movies she loved. She's comfortable anyway, feet tucked up underneath her and using McCree as a pillow.
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As the movie starts up. "So what's this cowboy's life crisis? Wife die? Dad die? Lost the farm?" She's teasing of course and as the classic credits start up, it's so bad it's enjoyable. "Cue...man on horse...now.." She points to the screen just as he appears.
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“We can make a bet which comes first: turkey or shootout.”
Nevermind that he already knows the movie. He has less knowledge of how long a turkey takes.
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"Mmmm." She shifts on the couch until she can throw her legs over the arm, slouching down until her head can rest more on McCree's stomach than his shoulder and she's more or less laying down. "If the staring part is as long as The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, my money's on turkey."
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As Chloe lays down, Ashe reaches over absently to run her fingers through her hair. It's surprisingly natural and she does it almost on instinct. The two of them being here with her, in her home...which is momentarily their home, is everything to her.
She chuckles softly at the comment about the staring. "I'll never understand those stand offs. Way over done. Enemies just don't stare at each other like that. " She glanced at McCree, a smirk on her lips as she joked. "Waitin' for the right moment to fire off your weapon. Who does that in real life?" She finished with a wink. It felt like so long ago that they'd been standing out by the wreckage of the train sizing each other up.
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Jesse really doesn’t know anything at all about cooking turkey, but he does know a thing or two about a good standoff. He sends a playful smirk Ashe’s way, trying to stifle a laugh after the wink.
“It’s like they’ve never been in a good Route 66 shootout before. Damn shame, since I hear they're a sight."
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The way that Ashe is stroking her hair though and the safety she feels in this exact moment is enough to make her feel the most at ease she has in months. She feels beat, even, and she wasn’t even aware just how much tension she’d been carrying lately. It was enough to exhaust a person.
“How come the outlaws in these movies are never badass ladies?”
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Glancing down at Chloe, she smiled, which turned into a laugh at her question. "Misogyny. Just you wait though, someday they'll make a movie 'bout me. Jesse here 'll be a side character though."
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“You’ve got it right about the movies though. Think I’ve seen more Westerns with omnics than with badass ladies in the starrin’ role.”
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"Someone should... fix that." The words are stretched out around a yawn she tries to stifle. She's... definitely gonna fall asleep here. Sorry, McCree. You're comfy.
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She could tell that Chloe was tired and the way she mumbled suggested she was likely going to nap through the epic length of the cowboy showdown. Meanwhile, she lets herself lean into McCree again, pretty sure the warmth in her body is more the situation and less the alcohol.
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He settles in between them, thoughts more on the moment in its wonder and absurdity than the actual movie. He’s seen it before anyway. But a moment like this… he’s not had this before. Maybe he won’t again when things do inevitably change. At least, right now, he can enjoy it while it lasts.
“If anybody can change Hollywood, it’s Ms. Elizabeth Caldonia Ashe. Even the name sounds ready-made for the movies.”