Claire leaned into Damon's hug, following the sense of warmth and comfort his arms gave her. She barely knew him, that was true, but she felt safe and for some indefinable reason it seemed ok to cry her heart out. Claire wasn't used to that - neither the crying, nor being "allowed" to - not unless she was with one of her oldest friends.. except that she wasn't, this was a guy she'd met less than a week ago. Guys weren't supposed to do this sort of thing without some kind of ulterior motive, but nothing in the way he was holding her - nothing in his words - suggested anything but friendship, and wasn't that just what she needed? Too right it was.
She sniffled a little, furtively wiping her cheeks and nose with the back of her hand. "Yeah, but I'd like to think that I wouldn't jump off a bridge if everyone else did too, y'know? It's like.. I got so fed up of running away from him that it suddenly seemed ok when he actually agreed with me, even if it did mean leaving Oz."
Claire tucked some stray hair behind one ear but made no attempt to escape the hug just yet. However strange it might be, she felt safer now than at any time since.. well, since Thomas left - maybe even before. Always too busy putting on a smiling face to the world, being nice to even the most infuriating customers and dealing with her mum's perfectionism in the name of keeping the peace. Getting annoyed with day to day crap never seemed worth the hassle, not in public - not with strangers - but then it felt like she'd been short on friendly faces for months. The people on this island, people like Damon, the way they were all pulling together was like a breath of fresh air. Now though, here in this tent, even the baby felt calm - how she knew that was a mystery, but she knew it nonetheless.
"What am I like, eh?" Claire smiled weakly, finally lifting her head out from under Damon's chin. "Bawling my eyes out without a by-your-leave. Thanks though, I guess I really needed it."
She began to feel uncomfortable in a personal sense, not physically, pulling away slightly despite the feeling of loss it generated. For all that she needed the comfort he'd given, Claire began to worry that she was taking liberties by extending the hug - and she didn't want to force him to keep hold, not when he'd been kind enough to act the part of a good friend in the first place. Blokes just didn't tend to like that kind of thing, girls crying and all that. Even other girls weren't that keen on it, generally speaking.
Looking back at Damon through damp lashes, Claire took another sip of water to cover her self-consciousness and tried to turn the conversation to something less emotional. Her earlier suspicions did the job nicely.
"Mr Malkin - the psychic - d'you reckon he knew what was going to happen to the plane? He was dead-set on Oceanic 815 out of all the airlines flying Sydney to LA, said it had to be this one and nothing else would do. Was this his way of making sure I'd keep the baby, by stranding me on a tropical island?"
[Claire] Offering Comfort (tag MB, open)
She sniffled a little, furtively wiping her cheeks and nose with the back of her hand. "Yeah, but I'd like to think that I wouldn't jump off a bridge if everyone else did too, y'know? It's like.. I got so fed up of running away from him that it suddenly seemed ok when he actually agreed with me, even if it did mean leaving Oz."
Claire tucked some stray hair behind one ear but made no attempt to escape the hug just yet. However strange it might be, she felt safer now than at any time since.. well, since Thomas left - maybe even before. Always too busy putting on a smiling face to the world, being nice to even the most infuriating customers and dealing with her mum's perfectionism in the name of keeping the peace. Getting annoyed with day to day crap never seemed worth the hassle, not in public - not with strangers - but then it felt like she'd been short on friendly faces for months. The people on this island, people like Damon, the way they were all pulling together was like a breath of fresh air. Now though, here in this tent, even the baby felt calm - how she knew that was a mystery, but she knew it nonetheless.
"What am I like, eh?" Claire smiled weakly, finally lifting her head out from under Damon's chin. "Bawling my eyes out without a by-your-leave. Thanks though, I guess I really needed it."
She began to feel uncomfortable in a personal sense, not physically, pulling away slightly despite the feeling of loss it generated. For all that she needed the comfort he'd given, Claire began to worry that she was taking liberties by extending the hug - and she didn't want to force him to keep hold, not when he'd been kind enough to act the part of a good friend in the first place. Blokes just didn't tend to like that kind of thing, girls crying and all that. Even other girls weren't that keen on it, generally speaking.
Looking back at Damon through damp lashes, Claire took another sip of water to cover her self-consciousness and tried to turn the conversation to something less emotional. Her earlier suspicions did the job nicely.
"Mr Malkin - the psychic - d'you reckon he knew what was going to happen to the plane? He was dead-set on Oceanic 815 out of all the airlines flying Sydney to LA, said it had to be this one and nothing else would do. Was this his way of making sure I'd keep the baby, by stranding me on a tropical island?"