Writing Class

--One Week Later--

“Did you ever call Ryan?”

Finn doesn’t look up from the sketch pad, but nods his head. A small leaf falls from the tree they’re sitting below and lands on Finn’s head. He doesn’t bother to remove it and Miranda isn’t sure if he even notices it. He glances at his model periodically and adds more to the sketch each time, every once in a while erasing. Miranda looks over at the small girl and smiles. She wonders if she’s ever been drawn without knowing it. It’s a nice thought.

It was Miranda’s idea to feed the ducks at the park and now that they have run out of bread bits, they’ve been lounging in the shade of a huge tree. If she knew anything about trees, she’d know what it’s called, but she doesn’t.

“What kind of tree is this?” she asks absently, looking up.

“Weeping Willow,” Finn mutters, brushing the leaf from his hair.

“Tree expert?” she quips.

Finn chuckles softly, “We used to have one in the backyard, before my dad sawed it down to make room for his croquet game.”

“Real people actually play that?”

“Well I don’t know about real people, but my parents…yes.”

Finn grabs the pencil sharpener from his bag and gives his pencil a touch-up. Brushing the shavings from his pant leg, he puts it away and returns to his pad.

“You’re littering.”

“Just released the wood back into it’s natural habitat.”

“It’s dead.”

“United in death.”

Miranda laughs and pulls her socks off to set them inside her shoes. She puts her sunglasses on and rolls over onto her back. Remembering Ryan’s call request, she asks, “So what did Ryan want?”

Finn shakes his head absently, muttering, “Just too talk about this program.”

“What kind of program?”

“This abroad workshop thing,” he flips to a new page in his pad and begins a new sketch. This time he seems to be focusing on the pond.

“Finn,” she says, placing a hand on his thigh, catching his attention.

“Sorry, what?”

Sitting up, she raises her eyebrows and smiles crookedly, “The abroad thing…..”

“Yeah. There’s this writer’s workshop in Greater London. Ryan had the opportunity to suggest one of his students and I was who he settled on.”

“That’s amazing!” she launches herself into his arms, knocking the pad to the ground. He almost falls to his back, but manages to catch himself on the tree trunk. He starts laughing and hugs her back, kissing her temple softly.

“Thanks dear.”

She pulls away, but stays sitting up next to him, “How long is it for?”

“Semester length.”

“When does it start?”

“Same time this coming semester begins.”

Miranda is so proud of him, she can’t believe that something so great is happening for someone she cares so much about. She’s not shocked that it’s Finn though. He’s brilliant. She knows that his accepting this means that he will be in England for the entirety of next semester, but she refuses to think about that at this very moment.

“You accepted right?”

“How could I not?” Finn says with an almost pained expression.

“This is so amazing,” she says with a huge smile.

With a smirk, Finn says, “Vincent will go into a frenzy.”

“Why?”

“Vincent isn’t going back to school next semester, he’s planning on staying in England for a bit. His family’s house is in Kent, which isn’t too far from where I’ll be.”

“Perfect,” she laughs.

Finn turns around and scoots back a little ways. He grabs his sketch pad and begins immortalizing the likeness of the Willow tree.

“I’m not in this am I?” Miranda asks warily. He had originally wanted to draw her and she refused. She doesn’t want to have to sit still, knowing that he’s memorizing every bit of her, while trying to record it on paper.

Finn laughs, but doesn’t answer. Miranda grabs one of her socks and throws it at him, smacking him in the face.

He slowly lifts his head, wearing a blank expression, and gently retrieves the fallen sock from the middle of the emerging tree. He drops it on the grass next to him and makes a ‘tsk tsk’ noise with his tongue, shaking his head slowly.

“That just wasn’t very polite Miranda. Apologize, ” he reprimands softly.

She mock pouts, saying, “I’m soo sorry.”

“Try it again, this time with some sincerity.”

She doesn’t say anything, challenging him with her lack of a genuine apology. When it’s apparent that she isn’t planning on saying sorry again any time soon, Finn sighs and sets the pencil and pad down next to him. He slowly gets to his hands and knees, leisurely crawling over to her, looking her in the eye the entire time. She feels a spark of excitement and anticipation, looking forward to his next action.

When he gets to her, he doesn’t stop. Instead he begins to crawl over her, forcing her down onto her back. She laughs and lets him do it. He stops when he’s crouching over her, and holds her hands up above her head, pressing them into the grass. His knees are on either side of her hips, holding her firmly between them.

“Apologize,” he whispers. His eyes are lit up and so bright. She shakes her head, not bothering to hide her enjoyment.

“Than you must be punished.” He releases her hands and places his hands on either side of her, sitting up.

“Like I was last time? Heavens no, not that!” she says sarcastically, leaving her hands above her head.

Finn quickly turns himself around, sitting on her thighs. Miranda pushes herself up on her elbows, wondering what the hell he’s planning on doing.

Without warning, he leans forward and begins to viciously attack her feet. She squeals loudly, drawing the attention of many fellow park goers. She tries to kick her legs, but he just releases his full weight down on them.

“Finn! Stop!” she chokes out between laughs, slapping her palms against his back.

“Say you’re sorry,” he croons, furthering his efforts.

She can’t take the tickling any longer and finally concedes and shouts that she’s sorry. He lets up and removes himself from her thighs, laying down next to her.

Breathing in deeply, trying to catch her breath, she absently asks, “How long have you known about the workshop?”

“Well I called him when I got a chance and that’s when he told me about it. I didn’t know if I was in or not till a few days after that. Ryan had to send over some samples of my stuff and some board had to decide if I was worthwhile. Apparently it’s a sought after workshop.”

“When were you gonna tell me?” she asks with a small laugh, trying to hide the fact that she’s a little hurt. She doesn’t know if she should think that he wasn’t planning on being around her by next semester or if he just hadn’t gotten around to mentioning it.

“I didn’t want to say anything until I was sure I was in. After that, I just didn’t want to think about it too much. As great as the opportunity is, it also brings in some unwanted variables,” he says with a dramatic sigh.

“Such as…?”

“You for one. I’ll be gone for quite some time and I don’t want to think about it. And my parents. I have to tell them tonight and they won’t be happy.”

Miranda glances over at Finn, noticing his blank face. The man can really be a steal trap when he wants to be. She can’t tell what he’s thinking. But the fact that she can’t, tells her that the thoughts are on the negative side. When he’s happy, the whole world knows. She’s enjoyed his constant happiness, but she doesn’t want to smooth over the unhappiness either. It’s all Finn.

“Well don’t worry about me. As for your parents, I’ll even go with you if you want. To tell them.”

Finn laughs openly, “No one volunteers for the Spanish Inquisition.”

“I doubt it’s that bad.”

“You’re right, it’s not that bad,” he consents. She has the feeling that he’s being sarcastic.


--Later That Evening--

After the park, Miranda made Finn drop her off at her place so she could get ready to have dinner with his parents. It took her a little while to get some serious agreement, but she got the feeling that he actually liked the idea of taking her with him. He seemed to be pleased with having some support. She thinks that he was speaking of himself, more than her, when he mentioned the Spanish Inquisition.

It didn’t take her very long to get dressed. He assured her that it didn’t matter what she wore because he was planning on wearing whatever is closest to his open hands. She didn’t fully believe him when he put it that way, assuming that he’d dress up at least a little bit. She met his dad, the type of guy who wears suits for fun, so she refuses to show up in jeans and a t-shirt.

She settled on a slinky black skirt that falls to mid-calf and a coral camisole. The bottom of the skirt is uneven and slightly ruffled. It always makes her feel older, almost sophisticated. So she thought that it would be a good choice.

She also almost forgot to shave her legs, which would have been mortifying. At the last minute she had to run in the bathroom and try her best to not get her skirt wet. She didn’t even think to take the skirt off, always making things more difficult for herself.

Now on the way to Finn’s place, she realizes that she never did anything with her hair and curses herself. Not that her hair is horrific, but it’s not fancy or anything. Although thinking about it now, she doesn’t know if her hair even has the ability to be fancy.

In minutes, Miranda is rapping her knuckles against the door, waiting for Finn to answer.

“It’s open!” Finn’s muffled voice comes through the wood. She smiles slightly and lets herself in to an empty living room. She walks down the hall, stopping in front of Finn’s open bedroom door. She giggles at the sight of Finn hopping around on one leg, trying to get his shoe through his pant leg.

“You do know that you can take the shoe off right?”

Finn growls in response and glares at Miranda, almost losing his balance. “There were grass stains all over my pants, probably because of you. I had to change.”

She laughs and points out, “I never asked you to attack me.”

Turning around, she walks into his bathroom and flips the light on. She uses his brush to try and make her hair look presentable. Sighing in annoyance, she walks back to Finn’s bedroom, “Have I ever left any hair clips here?”

Finn, having finally gotten his pants on, is filling his pockets with his car keys and a wallet. He looks at Miranda briefly, “Yeah, remember, I had it in my hair. It should be in the kitchen.”

She smiles at the memory of Finn strutting around his kitchen like Mick Jagger, and finds the small clip in his fruit bowl, of all places. Retreating to the bathroom, she manages to clip half of her hair up, making it look semi-decent. Happy with the results and knowing that it’s good enough, she settles herself in on the couch and switches the TV on.

Seconds later, Finn emerges from his bedroom and Miranda eyes his clothing choice, never having noticed before.

\"You make that yourself?\" she asks with a smile. He glances down at his shirt that reads Have You Seen This Man? with a photo of himself underneath. In the picture he\'s in his underwear and in mid-movement, she has to hold back a laugh.

\"Of course, you always have to make the good ones.\"

\"That\'s a good one?\"

\"When I write a novel about the American dream, you\'ll wish you had this shirt to sell on Ebay,\" he says arrogantly.

\"I thought Hunter S. already wrote that,\" she points out.

\"Jealousy doesn\'t flatter your features Rand. Now get up, we must be off.\"


--20 Minutes Later--

Standing at the front door of Finn’s parents’ house is slightly intimidating. The house is quite large. Frankly it’s huge. It’s like this looming white monster, just waiting to take her down. There are flowers and plants everywhere, which is apparently the handiwork of a gardener, according to Finn. She half expected there to be angel statues lining the huge circle driveway. For the life of her, she just can’t picture Finn growing up here. She is determined to have a good time, despite the constant sarcastic remarks that were made by Finn on the drive over.

Seconds after Finn knocks, the door is opened by a short, older man wearing a suit. She is immediately reminded of Bruce Wayne’s pal Alfred. Miranda also finds it extremely strange that Finn knocked to get into his own house. Finn grabs the man in a huge hug, which the man returns in kind, both grinning widely.

“It’s great to see you Eddie,” Finn says loudly, patting Eddie on the back. They pull apart and Finn turns to Miranda, grinning like an idiot.

“Miranda, this here is the only redeeming part of this entire property. Eddie, this is the very lovely Miranda,” Finn introduces.

Eddie smiles warmly and shakes Miranda’s hand, saying, “Very nice to meet you. And it’s not true, there’s some very nice topiary in the back.”

Miranda laughs, immediately falling in love with the small man. He looks to be in his late fifties, maybe early sixties. Miranda trails behind the two, who are animatedly talking, and is led through a large hall and into an even larger living area.

“Where are they tonight?” Finn asks Eddie.

“They’re in the sitting room,” Eddie answers, a smile forming.

“Moods?” Finn asks.

Eddie laughs and Miranda breathes in deeply. They are not helping her nerves at all. She wanted to be confidant, but actually being in the house is different. She takes a step away from the two and takes in her surroundings. It looks like a museum. The furniture doesn’t even look like it’s used. Glancing at Finn, she realizes that his family is very wealthy and little by little she’s finding out what makes Finn who he is. The more she discovers, the more enthralled she is with Finn.

“I must go. Make sure to find me before you two leave,” Eddie says sternly, pointedly looking at Finn. “It was lovely to meet you Miranda.”

Miranda laughs, smiling openly, “It was nice to meet you too.”

She watches as Eddie disappears through a door after calling out, “She’s going to hate that shirt Finley.”

Finn wraps his hand around Miranda’s wrist and leads her through the house.

“You grew up here?” Miranda asks.

“Yep.”

“And Eddie?”

“My mom hired him when I was a kid. He was supposed to be a butler type, but he became more of a father figure.”

“Oh…” Miranda trails off. In seconds the sounds of voices drift to her ears and Finn stops walking. He turns to Miranda, placing his hands on her shoulders and stoops to look in her eyes.

“Alright. Robert, my dad, you know. My mom’s name is Nora, she’s sort of lost her own opinions,” Finn says quickly. Nodding, Miranda feels like she’s being debriefed for a top-secret mission.

“Wait, what’s your last name?” Miranda shoots out, suddenly realizing that she’s never asked his last name. She can’t believe that she never picked up on it in class. But by the time she cared enough, Ryan was calling everyone by their first name and his last name wasn’t uttered.

Finn seems taken aback by her question, so she adds, “It’ll be weird meeting your family and not even knowing your last name.”

“Yeah…it’s MacGowan.”

Miranda laughs outright, “Like Shane MacGowan?”

He nods, the corner of his mouth twitching up into a half smile.

“You are unbelievable,” Miranda says in awe.

“You want me bad,” he says with sympathy. She jabs him with her elbow jokingly in response.

“Did you tell them that you were bringing me?”

“Was I supposed to do that?”

Before she can question him on whether or not he’s serious, Finn takes her hand in his and leads her through an open doorway. They step into the sitting room and Miranda realizes that it actually seems homey, having the appearance of people actually in it often. She assumes that the house just has certain rooms that no one ever uses just for the lack of a reason. On the far side of the room there are glass doors that lead out to a patio. She can see sprawling grass behind the patio and she wonders just how large their property is. There are flowers and plants everywhere, making the backyard look like it’s maintained by Martha Stewart. There are two couches and a few arm chairs set up around a small glass table with a huge rose centerpiece. Actually, the inside looks like it was decorated by Martha as well. The people in the room immediately stop talking and look over at them.

Miranda gets the feeling like she’s being studied. She recognizes Finn’s father, Robert. He’s in a suit…surprise. She can’t quite decipher his facial expression. Sitting across from him, Miranda assumes to be Finn’s mother. She’s wearing a soft blue dress that contrasts brilliantly with her bright blue eyes and a frown. Finn obviously got his eyes from her. The frown isn’t all that inviting and Miranda feels like leaving suddenly. She doesn’t think Finn told them and she could just kick him in the balls for it.

Finn leans his head down to whisper in Miranda’s ear, “I forgot to tell you how beautiful you look tonight.”

A huge smile breaks across Miranda’s face at his whispered compliment. She mouths a thank you at him. Not only for the compliment, but for the effect it had. He had immediately put her at ease with just a few words.


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AN: Thank you to everyone for the amazingly kind responses. I am very glad that the story is being enjoyed. This chapter had to be split up into two, it was around twenty pages and that is pretty long. So splitting them up will give me a bit more time to fix up the second half. I hope everyone likes the new chapter. Keep reviewing!

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AN #2:

Thank you to tia_blue for pointing out my repeat error. When I rewrote the chapter earlier to change it from the original, where instead of the club it was the parent meeting, I accidently left that scene in. Thank you so much for pointing it out. I reworked it a bit and changed the shirt to something I was going to use later in the story. Thank you again!