"Plain black is fine," she conceded. "But you have to admit the image of you carrying around a barbie phone for your girlfriend is funny." Zack's jaw drops comically at her suggestion, his expression shifting from threatening to utterly horrified. "Barbie phone?! Are you inside?" he points an accusing finger across the table at her. "I am not walking around with some plastic-pink disaster that plays music when you open it. Forget it." His indignation is clearly performative– the corners of his mouth keep twitching upward despite his attempts to look offended. The image of himself carrying such an obviously feminine accessory clearly mortifies him in a way that is endearingly masculine. "You are evil," he declares dramatically. "Pure evil for even putting that idea in my head."
Anna laughs happily at his reaction. Zack's dramatic indignation falters under the assault of her happy laughter. His scowl softens into something more amused as he watches her face light up with mirth at his expense. The sound draws a reluctant smile form him too. "Okay, okay. Laugh it up," he grumbles good naturedly, running a hand through his blond hair again. He leans forward again, resting his forearms on the table as his tone grows more serious. "Seriously thought, black it is. We can get those slim cases with minimalist designs so at least it won't look totally ridiculous when we are holding hands." His gaze drops briefly to their joined hands on the table before meeting her brown eyes again.
"Oh," Anna says suddenly as an idea pop into her head. "You know what could be cool, if we could get couple themed phone covers, like batman and cat woman." Zack's expression shifts from mock offense to genuine interest, his competitive nature perking up at the idea of coordinated accessories. "Batman and Cat woman? Now you are speaking my language." He sits up straighter, leaning forward with renewed energy. "I could get the dark knight logo on mine– it is dark and intimidating which fits my brand perfectly." His grin turns mischievous as he considers the implications. "And you can have Cat woman– it is still cool but had that whole mysterious bad guy, good guy vibe going on." Without waiting for her approval, he is already pulling out his phone and typing furiously into a search engine. "I am finding us the best quality custom covers available. Noting cheap looking." The cafeteria around them seems to fade away as he becomes completely absorbed in this new mission– finding matching accessories that will mark them as united front against anyone who dares to challenge their relationship status.
Anna stands up and circles around the table to go sit beside him so she can look at the options on his phone with him. "Oh, I like those," she said pointing to a split phone case design made up of two halves that come together to form a single scene when placed side by side. On the right half, there is a stylized depiction of Batman standing tall and slightly turned, his body angled toward the left half. Batman's cape drapes heavily around him, forming dark, flowing shapes. The colour palette is mostly grayscale– charcoal blacks, soft greys and muted whites– giving batman a stoic, shadowy presence. Behind Batman, faint outlines of a city skyline rise, with a few warm, yellow-lit windows adding contrast. Above and behind him, the iconic yellow crescent of the Bat-Signal glows against a dark sky. On the left half, there is Cat woman facing toward Batman, she has long brown hair flowing behind her. Cat woman's posture leans slightly forward as if she is caught in a moment of connection. The tones on the left half are warmer and softer– subtle pinks and purples contrasting with the darker background.
Batman and Cat woman are positioned so that when the phone halves meet, Cat woman is in Batman's arms. Zack follows Anna's pointing finger to the website displaying the couple cover. His green eyes widen slightly when he sees the particular design she is indicating. "That one is perfect," he agrees instantly, his competitive capture clearly satisfied by find something they both agree on. "That looks so sexy." He tilts his phone so she can get a better view from beside him on the bench. Their shoulders brush as they lean over the screen together, creating a comfortable bubble of intimacy amides the noisy cafeteria. "It comes in different material too," he points out scrolling down with his thumb. "Carbon fibre for durability or leather if you prefer something softer." His free arm drapes naturally around Anna's shoulders as they share the small screen– an unconscious gesture of claiming ownership while simultaneously collaborating on this joint decision. "I am ordering both right now," he said excited.
"See, who says being a couple can't be fun," Anna says suggestively. Under the table her hand moved to his upper thigh. Zack's breath catches audibly at the sudden contact under the table. His entire body goes rigid for a second before he forces himself to relax back against the bench. His free hand hovers over the 'purchase' button on his phone screen but freezes completely. "Fun is an understatement," he murmurs low enough that only Anna can hear him over the cafeteria's background noise. His thumb moves to rest on top of her hand on his thigh, pressing down lightly to encourage her touch. His gaze drops from the phone screen to her face, watching her reaction closely. The suggestive tone in her voice sends a jolt of electricity straight to his groin despite the public setting. "You are going to kill me before we even get to the electronics store," he whispers back with a mixture of accusation and raw desire. "My brain is already short-circuiting from the history test and now you are touching me like that."
"You always say I am trying to kill you," Anna says teasingly. "But I think you are tough enough to handle me…" a dangerous glint enters Zack's green eyes at her teasing remark. His fingers tighten around her hand on his thigh, squeezing possessively as his thumb traces slow circles against her skin. "Tough enough?" he repeats dangerously low, leaning in closer until his lips are almost brushing her ear. "Baby, I have been handing you since kindergarten. Our shared toughness is exactly why I can't stop wanting more."