name: you look at me, it's like you hit me with lightning
characters/pairing(s): hilly hindi/logan lerman, 'cause alexis, and rpf.
word count: itchy scratchy 2,614
summary: "for petrova's sake."
"Do you know how hard it is, to like, really pick a good theme for Tumblr? Really." Hannah says something from across the room, but Hilly's too busy making her roll-ups. They're not really roll-ups, though, but more precisely, like sushi -- except, the rice and seaweed and all is replaced by cold cuts and cheese and tortilla. Hilly makes them religiously, and sometimes she dreams about them, though it's never something she'll tell her sister; she just can't help her obsessions with things like this. Anyway, Hilly rolls her eyes subconsciously and calls, "Just stick to the one you have, Han. It's not like you pay attention to stuff like that, anyway." The verdict is called, the Tumblr tab of the ever-so-complex customization page is closed. Twitter is open.
Scrolling through the twitter feed is like folding clothes; you've done it for so long that you can basically do it without too much effort, and yet still find the heart to pay attention to any flaws -- or in Twitter's case -- is a trending topic. Silence isn't too much of an unfamiliar topic when it comes to the two sisters standing in the same room together, until one or the other starts a conversation, and in this case, it's Hannah who takes the upper hand. A little more, well, dramatic than usual. "Hilly! Come here, oh goodness, you gotta see this!" Hannah half-yells, which causes Hilly, in mid-slice, to jump, though not enough for her to cut herself. Hilly doesn't budge, and during her current slice, says, "It can wait, hold on,"
"For Petrova's sake, drop the roll up, and come. Here." Hannah's persistence is everlasting; Hilly walks over, wipes her hands on her pants' sides, and peers her head to look at the familiar blue background of Twitter. Havoc wreaks. Shrilly and totally-attractive screaming fills the kitchen, and their mother -- who is most likely sewing upstairs -- doesn't bother to rush down because she knows the drill: something incredibly life-changing has happened.
The story starts a couple of weeks ago, sometime in early November, when Hilly tweeted about going to the movies -- and more specifically, the movie she saw (in 3D, quite like there was no other way) was The Three Musketeers. Obviously, could you blame her? She was not only so deeply devoted to Orlando Bloom, but Milla and -- wow, Logan. I mean, Logan freaking Lerman, who she fell in love with after Meet Bill, coming on screen again. The big screen, too -- not the small screen in which she watched Percy Jackson on HBO at every chance she could get. (But, shh.)
Her tweet went along the lines of:
the very first time.
Then the second time around, which was probably, say, less than a day ago, her tweet went like this:
and then Logan's tweet:
But here's a little bit of insignificant information: it takes Hilly and Hannah Hindi a decent, oh, ten minutes to get over the fact that Logan Lerman tweeted, and another five minutes in contemplation of whether or not they should tweet back. They're always a little bit starstruck when a celebrity tweets them back, and yeah, there was that one time they met Ian Somerhalder -- but when Logan Lerman is aware of your existence, you can't help but fangirl. And fangirl quite hard. This is not just starstruck, this is a pure and otherwordly supernova that's washing over the galaxy that is called the Hindi Home, and everyone swears they never see Hilly Hindi frown for a good week or two.
"So, what are you going to do?" Hannah comes up with the question right before they sleep; they're in front of the bathroom mirror that stretches almost along the whole wall, brushing their teeth in their nightly routine. Hilly shrugs her shoulders and gathers her hair into a mid-ponytail. "I honestly do not know," she lets out a nervous laugh -- "Maybe tweet him back?"
Hannah sighs out of relief and places her hand over her heart half-dramatically; she sets her toothbrush down and smiles over at her younger sister. "Good, good. I was actually starting to get worried," laughter booms in the bathroom and from the outside, its a nostalgic and acoustic blur. Hannah goes to sleep first, retiring to her own room which is just across the hall from Hilly's -- they were a few steps away from each other, their parents' bed room in the middle. Hilly doesn't hesitate to take her time whilst finishing her pre-slumber routine, though if anyone could see her, they'd claim her guilty for stalling. Five minutes later, she takes a deep sigh and steps into her bedroom, seeping into the warm smell of magnolia draped upon her sheets.
Well, if you're really gonna do this, do it now. Inner Hilly speaks rather loudly inside her brain as Real Hilly stuffs her head in a pillow, because honestly, she doesn't need to feel like such a teenage girl right now. It's a tweet, no big deal, but she is so in love with Logan that if she even opens the application on her iPhone, she'll post a status with random letters. Don't tempt her -- she will. She turns her body and lays on her back, looking up at the ceiling before reaching over towards her nightstand to grab for her phone. She presses lightly on Twitter, and sends a direct message to Logan.
Thanks! :)
----
A month has passed since the tweet was sent and it was treated like the Big Bang, though the hype of it all subsided eventually after the weight was lifted off of Hilly's shoulder. She's just finished uploading the Breaking Dawn parody alongside her sister, who is most likely fast asleep in her bed room. There's nothing left in the evening for Hilly, except for checking Twitter, Facebook, all of the social networks that make up a small-ish quarter of her life. Swiping swiftly through her feed, she comes across Logan's familiar and endearingly gawky user pic -- and sees that oh, he's done it again.
Breaking Dawn done by @TheHillywoodShow -- props for the short film, made me laugh my ass off!
There's an inward scream that doesn't wake anyone up but Hilly herself, and she dances in her bed room for the rest of the night.
----
"I figured you had to meet him soon enough!" Hannah says, her famous words, ringing through the restaurant like a distant blur; Hilly only looks at her with muted lips, distraught in a mix of surprise and why did you do that. "But you know I'm not, like, really good with surprises," Hilly chuckles nervously, pulling at her beanie. Her insides feel like they're crumpling up into a ball in this restaurant, where classic hits play in the background and waitresses smile with reckless abandon. They're at a hometown Chili's and the food radiates through the air, especially where they sit, close enough to the kitchen where Hilly feels like she's in her grandmother's house again.
"You'll do just fine," Hannah reassures, nudging her sister's foot beneath the booth table, while an encouraging smile is on her face. Seriously, Hannah's like a mother, playing matchmaker and setting her daughter up on a date with a ridiculously good looking (but still) man. Hilly doesn't know if she should be thankful or upset, though she smiles, too, in just a matter of seconds -- "Thanks, Hannah. You're the best. Now, will you be, like, staying here or --"
Hannah's eyes perk up and she sees Logan walk into the restaurant as he's greeted by the hostess. He raises his hand up and shakes his head rather politely before he makes eye contact with Hannah's familiar face and flashes a shy smile at her; the sort of thinned lips you give someone across the room. "There he is," Hannah cuts Hilly off in mid-sentence, and then darts away elsewhere, and Hilly doesn't know where she goes because she's far too busy shuffling in her seat, moving side to side for a possible escape route. There's no luck, because Hilly turns and makes eye contact with Logan and wow, is he gorgeous.
"Hi, I'm Logan," he holds a hand out as he stands on the side of the booth, like a prince asking a princess to dance. "Nice to meet you," he says with a respectful tone, looking at Hilly in the eye and wow, the red hair really does suit her. Here Logan thought that red hair never suited anybody, not even Hayley fucking Williams -- but then he sees Hilly and he's a little taken aback by how she is. She's presentable, in her gray beanie and black long sleeve, the kind of sleeves that you can pull to your hands and get completely cozy with. Hilly isn't in a fancy dress or extravagant heels, but a pair of Converse, and it's a taste of reality for a change.
Hilly takes his hand and shakes it, a small smile on her face because really it's all that her nerves can take right now. She can't move her feet because they feel as if they're stuck to the floor, and she can only move her hands to adjust her beanie, that seems to be so adamant on slipping off her head.
(Don't tell her, but Logan thinks it's cute.) "Nice to meet you, too," Hilly nods, and insists that he take a seat across from her. Logan scooches into the large booth, resting his forearms on the table and holding hands in front of him, keeping his eye contact on Hilly. He's not one to avoid eye contact because it's just disrespectful, and his mother taught him better.
"I've never been inside a Chili's before. This is pretty life-changing."
Hilly has to wait and step back for a moment because she honestly thought that, for the longest time, she was the only person to ever say life-changing, and here Logan is, being a life-changer. Christ, the boy was a beaut. "Well, they have really good food here, and there's a first for everything, right?" she grins now, full-fledged and warm. Logan chuckles, "What do you recommend?"
"I gotta say, the chicken crispers are pretty good. If you're into that kid stuff," Hilly laughs, "but I order it a lot. It's ultimately up to you."
"I'll have that, then," Logan's eyes graze over the menu and his eyes light up like a good idea when he finds her recommendation. "Crispy Honey-Chipotle Chicken Crispers. What a mouthful." There's a mutual laugh between them, and then the waitress comes over.
"What'll you have to drink?"
"A rootbeer," the two say in unison, and then look down rather embarrassed, though the waitress only smiles adoringly and nods. "Two rootbeers. I'll be out with your order in just a few."
"You know, most people don't like root beer. I have a cousin, she's pretty little -- so into the fact that root beer will get her, well, drunk." Hilly mentions first, and then the whole room starts to get more comfortable: the booth they're in, sitting in front of Logan Lerman. It gets easier, though she can't make eye contact for too long before blushing.
"It's a pretty defined taste," Logan says, "but being fond of it runs in the family. We'd have it brewing in our blood if we wanted." So charismatic.
Hilly laughs whole-heartedly and shakes her head, somewhat preoccupied with the mini menu that hid on the side of the table. There's always something about these menus -- the drink, the advertising, the ridiculously groovy fonts. She played with them ever since she was a kid. A second later, though, the silence gets a little too unbearable, and Hilly looks back at Logan to find out that the stare's mutual.
There were never eyes so blue.
"So, how has your stay here been?" she asks. She knows what her hometown's like: a little dull, though able to live in, and honestly she could kiss Logan's feet for even considering to go to such a small place. The real miracle, here, though, is how on earth he got away with it. His name is household, because let's face it, everyone in the world has seen Percy Jackson, and there's got to be not one place he can go without a face recognizing him. Or maybe he's just quite lucky, having fans that don't acknowledge him, though flash him a smile and he waves. Regardless, the supernova, it's happening again.
"I just flew in yesterday night, you know," Logan nods, lifts a hand up to graze his forefinger just lightly against his nose, which is a habit he does every time he speaks. Secretly he hopes that Hilly can understand that he's a human being, and he has quirks, things that she may or may not get annoyed with. "It's pretty small here, honestly. But it's pretty. I saw the cheese factory the other day. It's cool that you guys have that!"
"You saw Billy Bob's Cheese Factory?" The name sounds as ridiculous as Hilly says it, a little beguiled. "That's amazing. I'm jealous, 'cause I haven't been there since I was a kid. Did you like it, did you go inside?"
"Cheese is.. exciting." Logan replies with a laugh, settling his back against the booth, which is warm against his skin.
It's when he settles back that Hilly can actually notice how even more charming he is in real life. His jaw, it's got such ability to be pretentious, smug -- but it isn't. And he's wearing a light gray hoodie, with a charcoal t-shirt inside, because that sort of thing is normal around here, with boots a little unlaced and everything. It's then that Hilly realizes, "You must be trouble."
----
The night goes on rather Instagram-worthy, because Hilly's never seen a better walrus impersonation than the one that Logan does, where he sticks two fries to his gums and makes a sound that attracts the attention of the family behind them. He has Hilly cracking up, which isn't unnatural or anything, but it's new. Because really, Logan's such a comedian, and who cares if they only knew each other for forty five minutes, because it feels like they've known each other for years. Logan says he'll never touch on a cliche like that ever again, because his mind can't deal with the strangely teenage saying.
But like all things, it came to and end, where Logan walks Hilly out and even hands her his hoodie and insists that, "Hey, you keep it. Thanks for dinner."
"We split the bill," Hilly looks back at him with a little smile, as if in reminder. They stop at the entrance of that motherfucking Chili's and for a moment, Hilly thinks that they're about to kiss, but that only thing happens in movies. And even if Logan Lerman is a movie star, he will not go about kissing random people, no matter how stunning she is under the streetlights like that.
Logan takes her in for a hug though, and boy, does he give great hugs, and Hilly can tell that when he pulls away, it's a little unwillingly. "It was nice to meet you, Hil," he smiles warmly and adjusts the beanie that's slowly slipping off her hair. "And here's a tip for you -- buy a smaller size." Laughter, again.
"I'll look into that," Hilly says confidently. "See you around?"
"See you around."
And in that night, there was nothing better than reaching into her back pocket and reading over his number, in such boy-ish penmanship, behind a Chili's advertisement.
so there that little baby is. it's kind of, like, short to me, but i do like it. it's filled with adorableness imo but i could've done better but i'm just lazy. this took a significantly shorter time than that hunter fic 'cause i kept procrastinating. and less tea! foar alexis because my bby needs to feel better, too, like, pronto. happy spring break!