That Space Spa That Summer Never Shuts Up About, Monday, June 19

[stykera]

Stark had, somehow, managed not to spoil this birthday surprise for Summer despite wanting to several times. He was good at keeping secrets. This was just one he wanted to tell someone about and Summer was the person he told most things to. Still, she'd been surprised. He thought she was happy with everything so far. He hoped she was.

They'd arrived and checked in. He'd dropped off his bag to be delivered to the room later. He'd worn his leather pants as requested though he'd changed out of them and into one of the very lovely robes provided by the spa.

The only issue so far had been that while he'd scheduled two massages it had somehow been recorded as a couples massage with the two of them in the same room. Stark, extremely flustered, had stammered out that they were friends and not a couple. The spa staff had been unimpressed and pointed out that they really didn't care about the nature of their relationship (or lack thereof) and there were not any single massage rooms available so it was this or one of them would miss out entirely. Summer, naturally, objected to the idea that Stark was just going to go mope in a hallway or something and told him to stay.

After that massage that had been somewhat less relaxing for Stark than anticipated they'd headed to the strawberry-scented mineral pool for a soak. Stark was trying not to give Summer too many nervous glances. He wanted this all to go well but it wasn't about him. It was about Summer having a day where she had people to take care of her every need and whim.

"Have you decided what you want to do next? Whatever you like, remember. Anything they have. It's your birthday and you should have what you like." Stark had said similar things already today. He would likely say them again.

[For that gently modded birthday girl and NFB for distance]

Comments

[stykera]

"Are you hungry? I can have someone bring food if you are." Because, again, anything she wanted.

Stark offered a hesitant smile. "Or are you too relaxed for food?"

[somethingwithturquoise]

Summer smiled back, albeit incidentally, since her eyes were closed as she just settled in with a happy sigh and a deep breath because even the air at this place had its own sort of influence. "I'm too relaxed to even think right now, honestly," she said. And not thinking about anything? A rare feat indeed. "This is great."

[stykera]

"I'm glad," Stark told her, deciding that maybe it was safe to scoot a little closer in the water. "That was the idea. Let you be relaxed. Let other people take care of you all day. You deserve it. Whatever you like."

[somethingwithturquoise]

"Thanks, Stark," said Summer, still just sort of happily floating in her relaxation bubble. "This was a great idea. And you're right. It sure beats working today, by a long shot."

Would Apu have even celebrated her birthday? She'd probably be taking a back seat to orange cartoon cats and Oreo's today, or something.

[stykera]

"You're happy?" Stark asked quietly. He was pretty sure he knew the answer. "I...I thought you'd like this. I know you like this place and I didn't think I could do a party but I knew I could do this. As long as you came with me instead of going to work."

Apu might have offered birthday hats? But it wouldn't have been nearly as good as this!

"And the day isn't over yet. Far from it. Plenty of time for more relaxation or food or nails or whatever you want."

And then he'd booked a fancy suite for the night, too. Had he mentioned that yet?

[somethingwithturquoise]

It may have come up, but there had been leather pants and space seaweed wraps to distract Summer (and a near disaster where a certain seaweed that ran the risk of actually leaving their limbs paralyzed for a good week, give or take, was almost used, but Summer'd been here enough to recognize it and mention it and might have gotten some poor Gromflomite college student fired or at least on shaky terms with her employment), and so it just sort of existed in the general ether of things in her head right now.

"I'm very happy," she assured Stark, sinking down into the water just a little bit more, knowing if she didn't say it, he'd only just flail and second-guess himself and that was, like, the opposite of relaxing. "And we'll figure out what to do next when we get there. Right now? Kinda big on just living in this moment, you know? God, this place is the tits."

[stykera]

The leather pants might even go back on again later!

"Good. That was all I wanted, for this. A good surprise that made you happy. Because you deserve something that makes you happy."

Content, for the moment, that he'd achieved that goal, Stark let himself relax a little further. He even closed his eye for a moment.

"This is a good moment. Isn't it? I like it."

He was (mostly) relaxed. He was with his favorite...person. She was happy. He couldn't ask for much more than that.

[somethingwithturquoise]

"Could probably be a little quieter," Summer couldn't help remarking with a faint grin. But there wasn't any real heat or annoyance to it; it was kind of hard to be annoyed at anything right now, even Stark's near-steady stream of reaffirming babble. And it being hard to be annoyed at anything much right now also meant she didn't mind reassuring him just that little bit further, because she figured it would eventually buy her some time until the next resurgence of doubt in him.

"But, yes," she confirmed, "it is a good moment, and a good surprise. And it's a very good day."

So long as no one ruined it by constantly checking to see if it was, in fact, a good day.

[stykera]

"Good," Stark said again with a relieved little sigh this time. He let himself sink a little deeper into the water.

"Just let me know when you're ready for something else."

He was trying not to babble. He just wanted so badly for everything to go well today.

[somethingwithturquoise]

"I could literally spend the entire rest of the day right here," Summer said, with another happy sigh. They could just fish her out as a strawberry-scented human prune after a while, for all she cared. "Pretty sure it'll be a while before I can recover from that massage, anyway."

Her limbs felt like wet noodles and her back was so free of knots and tangles that it might just completely unravel, and it was the best feeling ever, especially following so closely on the coattails of the stress of dealing with her family for Father's Day yesterday, and all the working out she'd been doing lately.

God, she needed to do this more often.

[stykera]

Stark had opened his eye and was watching her with a very soft smile on his face.

"As long as you come out of the water eventually. There are other things to see, later. And it would be difficult to get your nails painted while you're in here. I'm sure they could manage though."

Especially the way Stark tipped, let's be real.

[somethingwithturquoise]

"Mmmm." Summer hummed thoughtfully as if genuinely considering the possibility. And maybe she was! She was pretty fucking comfortable right now, thank you very much. "It is my birthday. And you did say whatever I wanted..."

[stykera]

"I did," Stark told her, still watching her with that same very soft expression on his face. "And I meant it."

[somethingwithturquoise]

"I guess we'll just have to wait and see," Summer decided, "how I feel in about ten minutes..."

She might just want to take a nap or something before they hit up the nail salon here. A nap also sounded pretty good right about now.

[stykera]

"Take your time," Stark told her. "I can wait. I have nowhere else to be today. Your birthday was my only plan."

[somethingwithturquoise]

"Yeah, and how convenient for you," Summer noted with a smirk. "No other plans except conveniently coming along for the birthday present at the spa. What a sacrifice."

[stykera]

"I wouldn't want you to be all alone on your birthday," Stark told her. He was reasonably sure she was teasing him. Reasonably. "And this way I can make sure everything goes well."

[somethingwithturquoise]

"Oh, yeah?" asked Summer, cracking an eye open and smirking over at Stark with an arched brow. "What are you going to do if something doesn't go well?"

They were in her space right now, after all, there was no telling what might happen, even in the space spa.

[stykera]

"Try to fix it," Stark said simply. "Or take you somewhere else instead. And I did say I didn't have to stay for any of these things if you wanted to be alone..."

He would have been so sad though and she certainly knew that. She knew him very well.

[somethingwithturquoise]

"Hmmm..." Once again, Summer looked a little thoughtful, as if considering it, but she ultimately shook her head. "Nah," she said, "it's more fun with someone to share it with. But it can't be all what I want to do."

Even if her tone seemed to suggest it most certainly could. Still, she considered Stark speculatively.

"Is there anything you might be hoping to get in? While we're here?"

[stykera]

"I wanted to surprise you with something nice for your birthday," Stark told her. "I think I would like to have my nails painted? Something sparkly. And there's something else to show you once you're finished for the day."

He had hinted at chocolate and fruit and wine, hadn't he? Or had it been cheese and fruit and wine?

[somethingwithturquoise]

Cheese and wine for sure. And they'd just been possibilities, really.

"Ooooh." Summer sounded impressed. "A second surprise?"

[stykera]

"More of a continuation of the same surprise," Stark said after thinking it over. "I did say there might be wine."

He had a bottle of something sparkly coming later. Once they'd finally made their way to the suite he'd booked for her.

[somethingwithturquoise]

"And possibly cheese," said Summer, with a faint smirk in remembering. "Definitely more invested in the idea of wine than cheesee at this point, not gonna lie. A little wine after all of this sounds perfect."

[stykera]

"Possibly cheese," Stark agreed. "Perhaps even dessert. It is your birthday..."

There was definitely cheese coming. A fancy little charcuterie board to go with the sparkly wine. But that was for later.

"Do you think I should have sparkly nails?"