Dream A Little Bigger, Darling

They were both soaked by the time they'd gotten back to the hotel. Mr. Eames hair, always perfectly combed back,was now wet, and several strands had fallen out of place. DeLaney pulled her wet mass of hair into a sloppy bun and slipped Eames' soaking wet coat off of her shoulders. Both of them immediately went to their bags to find dry clothes to change into.
DeLaney was watching Eames comb his hair back into place, the girl sitting in a bundle of the comforter from her bed. "I want to go back to that little antique shop we passed on the way back here," she said. He glanced at her through the reflection of the mirror.
"What for?" he asked, setting the comb down and turning toward her. She smirked.
"What do you think? I saw something in the window that I liked. It could prove useful in the coming days," she said, watching as the man leisurely crossed the room and sat down on the edge of her bed.
"Alright. We'll go by there tomorrow, then, yeah?" he said. She nodded in response and the pair fell silent for a bit. DeLaney had her eyes fixed on the rain outside for a while, but a thought crossed her mind and forced her to look back at Eames.
"You're a secret, Mr. Eames," she said. Over the days they had spent together, Mr. Eames knew she was a peculiar girl with peculiar thoughts, but he was never expecting such a thing to escape her lips. He looked at her with surprise in his eyes.
"Well, we all have our secrets, don't we? I'm not any exception," he said, his gaze once again darting about as it normally did.
"Yeah, we all have our secrets, but you are a secret. I don't get it," she said, pulling her arms out from under her cocoon. He glanced at her again, a small grin on his thick lips.
"That's the point of a secret, darling, you aren't supposed to understand," he said, a touch of amusement to his coarse voice. She shot him a playful glare. "Besides, you aren't the easiest person to read, yourself, you know," he added.
"I doubt that," she retorted.
"Oh, but it's true," he started, his brows rising. "Imagine if you were in my position, for a moment. If you were going about your business and some strange person shows up out of the blue and starts spouting off your name and your past experiences when you have never seen this person a day in your life, how exactly would you react? Oh, and then there's the bizarre thought process to keep up with while you have this person share a hotel with you. It's a bloody wonder how that person keeps up with herself. It's safe to say that person wouldn't exactly be an easy one to read," he explained. DeLaney was quiet for a long moment.
"Alright, but imagine if you were in my position. You go on this mission to find this man with no first name as far as anyone knows. The name is a dead giveaway that he's hiding something. Upon meeting him, you find out he might as well be hiding everything under a clever tongue and English charm, and everything he does is an absolute mystery. He's impossible to read and you can't help but wonder if he's giving you a genuine emotion or if he's as good at acting in reality as he is in the dream world. It's intimidating to think he might be faking everything about himself. You're just a well dressed, walking secret, Mr. Eames," she explained just as pointedly.
"Then it seems as if we both have a lot to learn," he grinned.
"It seems we do, Mr. Eames," she said with a smile of her own.

"DeLaney, I think it's a good idea if we start putting you under in the simulations on your own a few times. It rarely happens, but sometimes you might not have a team to rely on," Arthur said after Eames and DeLaney woke up. Eames was quick to cast a suspicious glance at the Point Man as DeLaney agreed to go under in the simulation alone. As soon as she was under, Arthur turned to Eames.
"We need to talk, Mr. Eames," he said.
"About what?" the Forger asked, though he knew fully well the topic of the discussion.
"About you and DeLaney. I know you like her, Eames, don't even try to tell me otherwise," Arthur said.
"Alright, fine. I do happen to fancy the girl, but what's that have to do with anything?" Eames asked.
"You need to be careful, especially when she's finished training. You know the risks when it comes to getting attached to people in this business," Arthur warned. Eames rose his brows at the Point Man.
"You're ridiculous, Arthur, I hope you know that. You're sitting here telling me to be careful, when you're the one throwing yourself at Ariadne any chance you get. My God, Arthur, I thought you were smarter than that," Eames exclaimed, not even bothering to hide his irritation.
"You're not the most careful person out there, in case you haven't noticed. Neither is she, from what I can tell. It wouldn't hurt to thoroughly think things through on occasion," Arthur said.
"I wish you would give me more credit than you do, it's really quite disappointing that you don't think me capable of planning ahead on my own. I know the risks, and that's precisely why I haven't pursued anything with her. She's only here to learn, anyhow, it's quite obviously nothing more than that," Mr. Eames explained, casting a glance at the sleeping girl.
"No one ever said not to pursue her, Eames. I'm only telling you to be careful. A lot of bad things can happen, and you know it," Arthur said. Eames was ready to add his usual sarcastic remark, but for once he refrained when he saw the Point Man was showing genuine concern. Neither one got along particularly well, but they would both help one another if one was in a tough situation. It was a strange sort of friendship with its fair share of mutual dislike thrown into the mix.
"As I said, she's only here to learn," Eames said. Arthur sat down in the chair beside Eames.
"Don't wait until it's too late. Once she get's out in the field, there's no telling when you'll see her again," Arthur said.
"Tell me why I should take advice from you," Eames shot with that devilish little smirk. Arthur threw a sharp look at the Forger.
"Because I'm right. You know I'm right," the clean cut American retorted. "Take her to that park with that bridge over the water a few blocks from here. I think she would like it," he added thoughtfully after a moment of silence.
"I'll let you know the day I need dating advice from you, Arthur," Eames said in the cheeky tone he so often used with Arthur.
DeLaney found what she was looking for at the little antique shop, and spent a while at the workshop hollowing out some of the bottom to personalize it. It was a small, dark green Buddha figurine, fat and ever smiling. The girl held onto it for most of the day, learning every little detail she possibly could about it. She learned its weight, its behavior when dropped, knocked over, how it felt when it was rolled around her palm, anything she could think of.

Eames couldn't get Arthur's damn voice out of his head. He didn't want to listen to the Point Man, but there was another tiny little voice in his head screaming that Arthur was right. The girl was in the bathroom, the water running signaling she was in the shower, and Eames had time to think.
In the end, he found himself losing to the annoying voice in his head, and was rummaging through DeLaney's clothing. It was rude, going through her bag like that, but he couldn't find it in himself to care. He was too sore that he was actually listening to Arthur. A flash of red caught the Forger's attention as he dug through the mess, and he pulled out a dress. It was soft, it was simple, and he liked it. He had always been more particular to red. As the man was holding it up to inspect it closer, the water shut off in the bathroom. He crossed the room and knocked on the door, waiting a moment for the girl to open the door.
"Put this on, darling. We're going out to enjoy the evening," he said, trying not to let his frustration with Arthur show. She gave him an odd look and a hesitant response before shutting the door again to change into the dress. Mr. Eames was making sure his hair was neatly combed when the girl exited the bathroom. He caught her reflection in the mirror and his anger at Arthur was washed away. It was all he could do to keep himself from looking awestruck. She was beautiful, as always, but she looked wonderful in red.
It was a simple dress, with a loose skirt that ended mid thigh. The dress fit her well, even without fitting snugly to her skin. Perfect for the warm Parisian evening.
"Where are we going?" she asked as she slipped on a pair of wedges. She bumped him to the side lightly with her hip to put on a few touches of makeup.
"We're going to have a few drinks at a pub up the road. After that, we'll just walk the streets of Paris. It's quite lovely here at night," he said, pulling his coat over his shoulders.
The pub was small, warm, and comfortable. There weren't many people there, the few customers scattered about and minding their own business. The pair had a few drinks, just as Eames had said, and soon enough, the both of them were giggling like teenagers in the carefree atmosphere. DeLaney couldn't help but adore the genuine smile playing on his lips as the pair of them laughed. She'd never seen him smile like that in any of the days she'd known him.
As the days passed, she had grown innocently attracted to the Forger. She hated to admit it to herself, especially when she was only supposed to think of him as her mentor, but there was just something about the secretive man that attracted her to him. She hid it well enough, and she knew she did, but it was a struggle every day to keep her composure around the Englishman.
It was still warm out by the time they left the pub. Maybe it was just from the alcohol. It was hard to tell, but they didn't mind it a bit as they walked. Eames led her leisurely down the city street, both carrying on light hearted conversation as they walked. They were just stepping foot into the park when Eames realized their fingers were loosely twined, and he smiled to himself when he did. They walked the path slowly, their light banter dwindling down to a comfortable silence as they walked. After a short while, he spotted the bridge, and the water reflecting the gently glowing street lights. He tightened his grip on her small hand and started leading her toward it.
Arthur was right. Eames could see it in her eyes that she liked it. She looked out at the water, seeming almost mesmerized by the gently rippling surface.
"Paris is beautiful," she said after she took everything in, and leaned against the railing as a gentle breeze blew her skirt lightly.
"Yes it is," Eames said quietly. After a moment, she perked up, catching his attention. He grew suspicious at the mischievous smile on her lips, and suddenly, she was pulling her shoes off and daintily padding down the bridge. He walked after her curiously as she disappeared around the side of the bridge, and when he caught up to her, she was waiting for him at the waters edge. "What are you doing?" he asked.
"Swimming," she answered, and she was in the water before Eames could question her further.
"DeLaney, I don't think you're supposed to be doing that," he called as she dipped her head back to wet her hair.
"I find it very hard to believe that you of all people would care about the legalities of swimming in a park. Get in here," she called back.
"Come on, darling. You're going to ruin that dress," he said, moving closer and squatting as he tried to coax her out. She rolled her eyes.
"Fine," she huffed, wading over to his out stretched hand. She tricked the man, and pulled with all her strength, knocking him off balance and pulling him into the water. Mr. Eames was shocked out of his senses for a moment as DeLaney laughed victoriously.
"I should have bloody known better than to trust you," he huffed, wiping water out of his face.
"Well, now that you're here, you might as well just enjoy it," she giggled, flicking water at his face. The small flick of water soon escalated into an all out war of splashes and squeals and laughter, and then close proximity, and strong, elegant hands on her waist, pulling her in, and suddenly the smiles grew soft and small as the laughter quieted. And she shouldn't kiss him, he was only there to teach her, but the space between them was so close to being closed, and she wanted to know so badly what those fantastic lips would feel like, what the man they belonged to would taste like, and she couldn't help herself.
The kiss was soft and curious, and DeLaney almost melted right then and there as his tongue barely brushed her bottom lip. But the kiss ended and DeLaney could partially regain her thoughts, and both of them were left feeling warmer than the alcohol made them.
They got strange looks as they walked back down the streets, and the cab driver didn't seem too pleased that they were getting the back seat of his taxi covered in water, but neither could be bothered to care. Showers were had once they got back to the room, and both were left rather sleepy after the evenings events, and were sent to bed early that night, both unable to keep from smiling like fools once the lights went out.