detox.

observations.

the soft rumble of my stomach growling broke the long, palpable silence that filled the room. i laughed lightly, and a half smile graced marshall's face.

in all honesty, i was somewhat grateful for the sudden interjection. without it, part of me didn't think i could've refrained from slowly leaning over and completely closing the space between us.

woah, there. let's slow it down a bit, me.

"haven't eaten anything since breakfast," i murmured, managing to tear my eyes away from him for a second. i glanced at the small clock that was mounted on the wall to the right of me and realized how much time had passed. "shit, nine already?"

he cleared his thoat, pulling my full attention back to him.

"you, uh..you like taco bell?"

i gave him a small nod. "mhm."

"aight, well, they're open twenty four hours 'round here.." he trailed off as he set the pages of his writing aside, stood up, and threw his jacket on.

i attempted to get out of my chair as well - however, i stumbled and began to trip over my own feet.

of course.

much to my suprise, marshall quickly lunged in front of me, placing his hands firmly on my shoulders and gently pushing me back up until i was standing steadily.

"you okay?"

i froze.

talk, damnit.

"yeah, fine," i assured, "thanks." my gaze wandered to his arms, making me notice that he was still touching me. he seemed to pick up on this, too, because he blinked and pulled his hands away with an apologetic expression.

---

"you have dimples," i said under my breath between tentative bites of my bean burrito.

the thought wasn't exactly meant to be said out loud, but i supposed it was harmless enough.

"i do, huh?" marshall replied, vaguely amused. he gulped down some more of his mountain dew, having already finished the abundance of double decker tacos he'd ordered. i'd always been a slow eater.

he didn't seem to mind.

"yeah. i can kinda see them.." my tone grew more affectionate than i intended, but it did reflect something about how i felt at the moment. "..and your little button nose," i finished playfully.

for the first time ever, i heard him chuckle. it made my heart skip a beat.

"you just gonna sit there an' stare at me all night?"

for once in my life, a good comeback came to me on the spot.

"sure am..just like you did to me at the studio," i countered smugly.

i couldn't believe my eyes. his cheeks were tinted a soft shade of pink.

"i didn't," he protested, looking down at his hands.

"yeah, you did," i teased, finally finishing off the last of my food.

he only huffed in response.

i sipped the remains of my pepsi before rising out of the booth to throw my trash away. when i headed back, he was standing as well. i stopped in front of him.

"hey, it's okay.." i began, continuing my statement from moments before. what i did next was something i didn't think i had in me.

i stood on the tips of my toes, and left a tender kiss on his cheek.

"..i was staring, too."