Chapter Text
-"And right after I saved Pakmar, he began complaining about how I didn't saved his truck from falling into the water, and how I ruined ANOTHER one of his business, even if most of the time it's not even my fault!"-Ben complained-"I mean, hellooooo?! I just saved your LIFE!!"
-"That's rough, buddy"-Hope responded, not taking her eyes away from Ben's fingernails as she painted them
The pair was in Hope's bedroom, on her bed, with the white-haired sorceress currently painting her boyfriend's fingernails, at Tennyson's request
You see, Ben always felt curious about getting his fingers painted. He thought it might look good on him. Unfortunately, his family didn't think the same way, especially his parents having somewhat of a "closed" way of thinking
But that didn't stop Ben from pursuing it, and when he saw Charmcaster doing her fingernails one time (and how marvelous they turned out), Tennyson knew exactly who to ask for such a favor
And Hope was more than happy to help
Hence why they were sitting side by side, with Tennyson letting out his frustrations about the week he was having, while Charmcaster just gladly listened to it all, managing to not get paint on his skin, even as Ben was dramatically flailing his other (already painted) arm
-"The funniest part is how Grandpa Max still scolds me whenever I'm goofing with the Omnitrix!"-Ben continued to yap-"I'M 19! I know exactly what I'm doing! I feel like we're forgetting who saved the universe multiple times!"
-"Heh, thank you, mister hero"-Hope rolled her eyes with a small smirk before resuming her almost-completed work
The brown-haired boy let out a deep sigh-"I love my grandpa, and I do appreciate everything he does for me, but...I don't know, it gets...frustrating, ya know?"
-"I understand it completely, Benny"-Charm replied-"Sounds like my uncle, and how he lectures me about how to take care of Legerdemain. I guess that's family for you"
-"Exactly!"-Ben smiled. He then looked down at his hand that his girlfriend was still working on-"Say, how much more for it to be done?"
-"Almoooosst theeeeerreeeeee......aaaaaaaaaaannnnnd DONE!"-Hope said as she concluded the painting-"Take a look, but be careful to not mess with the paint"
Tennyson brought his right hand closer and analyzed Charmcaster's work, impressed by how well-made it was. His pinky, middle finger and thumb were painted with his iconic green, while his "almost-middle" and indicator were painted black
-"Ooohhh, you made both hands equal. Nice!"-Ben commented, still amazed by Hope's craft
-"Wanna know the best part? I made it match with my fingernails as well"-She proudly pointed out as she presented her own hand
-"Damn, really?"
-"Really really. Look"
After adjusting their posture so that they wpuld be facing each other, Hope laid her fingers in front of Ben's hands. The brown-haired boy saw that the sorceress was indeed correct, as her own indicator and "almost-middle" were also black, while, instead of green, Charm used her favorite shade of purple to paint her thumb, middle, and pinky fingers (and that also goes for her other hand)
But suddenly, Ben saw Hope intertwining her fingers with his, now holding his hands firmly, and that made him blush
-"...I really walked into that one, huh?"-Tennyson said
Charmcaster then yanked Ben closer to her, their faces very close to one another
-"Like a silly duck"-Hope chuckled before gently planting her lips onto Tennyson's
As much as he felt embarrassed for falling into that trap, Ben opted to just close his eyes and melt into her kiss
They continued the kissing session for long minutes, occasionally breaking just to catch their breaths
-"...AH SHOOT!"-Ben suddenly jumped up-"I just remembered that my parents are going to kill me if I come home with these painted nails!!"
-"...How do you forget something so important?"-Hope asked, yet, not impressed-"But don't worry, I "blessed" the nail polish so that it's invisible to people who aren't mana users (with you being the exception)"
-"Oh wow, that is very handy"-Tennyson commented with a grin-"Thanks, babe"
-"Anything for you, Benny. I loved painting your nails, so maybe I can try some other colors with you"
-"I would love to try them with you"
With warm smiles, they kissed each other again