[Kaliko]

That made Nic smirk a little more than usual. "... I should get back to work," he told her gently after a moment. "I have a lot to get done before everyone else gets here."

[Rinrou]

Nic could feel Laurel nod, but not without a sigh. Reluctantly, she pulled away enough to look into his eyes once more. "It's perfectly simple, you know." she stated matter-of-factly, "I love you and you love me." and with that she leaned in and kissed him deeply once more. She didn't let loose like before though, he had work to do. So after a moment she reigned herself in, ignoring the protests of her heart, and started climbing off of his lap.

[Kaliko]

Nic nodded a little. He also seemed a little reluctant, but he turned back to his computer.

[Rinrou]

So Laurel took a seat on the couch, staring at Nic silently. She brought her legs up onto the couch in front of her, hugging them tightly. She continued to stare for a long time which would have seemed awkward to anyone but Nic. As her emotions started to settle down, her mind got to work and the overwhelmed look came back.

After about a half-an-hour of silence, a very soft sound could be hear from Laurel's direction. She had buried her face into her knees and seemed to be doing her best to muffle the sound.

[Kaliko]

And so Nic went back to work. For the first few minutes, he seemed a little distracted. But eventually that emotionless look came over his face, and he started working like normal.

Nic didn't notice Laurel at first, very absorbed in what he was working on. But after a few minutes it managed to catch his attention. And so he finished what he was working on and set the computer to run diagnostics by itself for awhile before getting up and walking over to her.

[Rinrou]

Laurel didn't seem to notice Nic's approach. As he got closer it became clearer that she was shaking slightly in her effort to keep quiet.

[Kaliko]

"... Laurel?" he asked quietly.

[Rinrou]

Laurel started, head shooting up and staring at him. Tear trails were evident down her cheeks but they were slow tears, one at a time. Her eyes were wide and very overwhelmed as she swallowed, "N-No... it's alright." she croaked quietly, shaking her head, "Don't l-let me dis... distract you."

[Kaliko]

Nic blinked, a little confused. He was already distracted. He stood there for a few moments before shrugging it off. "... Is... there anything I can do for you?" he asked, seeming a little helpless.

[Rinrou]

Laurel shook her head again out of habit before pausing, "Some water?" she asked quietly.

[Kaliko]

Nic nodded a little before pulling a water bottle out of the cupboard and bringing it to Laurel.

[Rinrou]

Laurel took a sip before sighing, "I'm fine." she reassured Nic quietly, "It's all... just overwhelming. This morning I thought I didn't believe in love anymore and then without warning... I've fallen head-over-heels." She leaned back on the couch, wiping the remaining tears off her face as she took another sip. "It's like I've had blinders on... for a really long time. And suddenly they were ripped off." she tried to explain, "I guess... I just need time to adjust." and she rubbed her eyes, trying to stop the tears.

[Kaliko]

Nic nodded a little. He rummaged around the room a little before he found some tissues and silently offered them to Laurel.

[Rinrou]

Laurel took them and managed a smile. "Alright... get back to work." she said with a small snort as she curled up on the couch and resumed watching him.

[Kaliko]

Nic hesitated a moment, but then he tried to get back to work. It took a little longer for him to focus on what he was doing this time.

[Rinrou]

Laurel noticed fairly quickly, "... Should I leave?" she offered quietly though she didn't really want to.