#thread. diana and caleb 001

[diana-goodwin]

@ caleb ashmore's residence

with @caleb-ashmore

Despite every one of Louise's shortcomings, the former southern beauty queen had instilled in her daughters the same southern manners she'd grown up with. Saying "yes sir" or "no ma'am" (although the ma'am hadn't stuck in a place like Michigan), the proper way to introduce people to family and friends, and being a good houseguest were just a few of the rules Louise had for her daughters. And as much as Diana was loath to admit it, they often were an asset in her adult life. Among these was the rule she still followed most often: never show up to someone's home empty-handed.

So when Caleb answered the door, Diana held the case of pale ale up that she'd purchased earlier and hauled across the neighborhood. If nothing else, sharing a car and not having her own was going to make for some killer calf muscles from all the walking she was doing. "Brought you a gift," she cracked, looking up at the man who had been an extension of Grace in her mind for the past ten years or more. "Thanks for letting me stop over. You busy?"

[diana-goodwin]

Diana listened, one eyebrow raised, as Caleb divulged more about his family to her in this moment than he had in the entire time she'd known him. She picked at her thumbnail, uncertain if she was supposed to acknowledge that she'd just learned something personal about Caleb, or if she was supposed to encourage him to keep going. "Yeah, she's good at getting you to be nice to people you don't necessarily like, isn't she?" she asked, thinking of all the times her elder sister appealed to her better nature. "We should send her to DC and see if she can make any headway there."

She let out a good-natured chuckle when she learned Grace had already planned sleepovers. They were so rarely in the same place, that any occasion was occasion to celebrate. Diana thought fondly of the nights when Grace would make popcorn and force them to watch a rom-com that Diana would roll her eyes through. "I'll definitely let you know," she repeated. "Depends on how crazy Bobby and Louise make me, you know what I mean?"

"You must really love my sister," she said after taking in the mental image of Caleb giving Bobby a bath. "Because I wouldn't even do that for my dad. I don't even think my mother would." It wasn't glamorous, nor was it something that Louise could mention to win sympathy and attention from others, so of course she wouldn't want to provide a sponge bath to an ailing man. She let out a small sigh, thinking of how hard Grace worked to take care of every other Goodwin. "She takes too much on," Diana said quietly. "She gives and gives to everyone and I don't know if she takes enough time for herself. And now that we are family," she added, "we have to make sure she doesn't burn herself out."

Caleb listened intently to Diana, thumb fidgeting with the label on his beer bottle as he did so. "Oh, sure. That's why I joined the Marines." He nodded along. "And then they just beveled me down from a square to a circle. Did wonders." He joked with a half smile. "I always knew it wasn't a good fit, though. Except your sister forces me to play nice with my half brother, and I uh... Well, I do what she says." He tipped the mouth of his beer towards Diana before taking another swig.

"Think about it, don't think about it. Split your time, whatever. The room will be there, there'll be a bed in it. You can use it or not use it. Grace already told me that I can expect to be kicked out of my own bed for uh... sleepovers, so." He was amused and endeared by Grace and Diana's relationship, though it never moved him to want to be closer to Gabriel. No, Caleb had his brothers, the ones he'd been molded into a man alongside, and that band of brothers was more than he'd ever need.

"I think it's great you're here, y'know." He offered with a glimmer of appreciation in his eyes. "Grace will probably never say how much she needed it. You're her, uh... Well. You're kind of like her baby, or whatever. I think that's how she put it. But I know she really needed you around. I can't fill that gap, y'know. I can give your dad a sponge bath, which I have, but uh... You know. You're her sister. It's different."

[diana-goodwin]

"Oh, I'm sure she does," Diana replied quickly, thinking of the way her mother ooh-ed and ahh-ed over Caleb each time she was home. Louise wasn't subtle about her fondness for the much younger man. "You know you can still ask Grace to be a buffer, though. For your protection, not hers." She was only half-joking. Who knew what Cougar Louise was capable of. They weren't friends, exactly, as Diana felt the age gap between them had prevented any real closeness for years. But she'd always viewed him as a part of Grace, given how important he'd been to her sister since they started dating all those years ago. There was a sort of camaraderie in loving the same person beyond measure.

"I think I've always known I was the square peg," she admitted, letting out a small sigh. "I think I held the record for most interruptions during Sunday service as a kid. But yeah, the distance can really bring some clarity. How much was me, and how much was them, and what was in the middle." His insight to being the black sheep made Diana wonder if he was speaking from experience, as well. Perhaps they were more alike than she'd thought.

His offer to host Diana for the foreseeable future in the home that Caleb and Grace were building together was so thoughtful that it took Diana aback for a moment. She blinked, processing the offer, and then tilted her head slightly as she pondered why on earth he would extend such a kindness. His love for her sister must be so big, Diana thought, that it somehow extended consideration to her as well. "That's really kind of you," she replied, and took another sip of her drink. "I'll think about it, and let you know." Not an automatic acceptance, but not a refusal, either. She couldn't deny having the space from her parents would be beneficial, but it did seem to defeat the purpose of coming back here at all.

Caleb watched Diana carefully, hanging on every word she said. He looked to her to see the things she shared with Grace, the same way he might when he and Grace had children together. To find the pieces of her that he loved in her sister, to learn why Grace adored Diana so. Personality-wise, they seemed like oil and water. And yet... There was a beautiful symmetry to them, a sisterhood. He saw all of this, and by proxy, felt a great sense of loyalty to Grace's sister. "I have been in the picture for a little while now." He agreed with a small, amused smile. "She said she likes a... 'strong man' around the house. So I stopped going without Grace as a buffer."

Tilting his head to the side, Caleb nodded along with Diana's observation of life at home without Grace. "When you leave home, you get perspective. It just uh... You know. You don't fit the same way you used to. Like you're a different shape. You know, square peg, round hole." He could sympathize with the concept, though he'd always felt as though he'd not fit into the Ashmore clan. "I can teach you anything you want to know." Caleb replied before taking another swig of his beer. "But, it'd be a hell of a lot easier if you just moved your suitcase into one of the spare bedrooms here. I'm sure Grace has offered. You don't uh, need to answer now. But you should think about it."

[diana-goodwin]

Caleb talked about the finer points of home renovation, and Diana looked around the room she stood in, taking in the proof of his hard work and skill. That his labor could produce something tangible and meaningful stood in such stark contrast with her own work, hours spent in front of a screen to create something that lived on a data server. What she made served a purpose, it did help her clients succeed in a digital age, but it wasn't necessarily going to stand the test of time like a hardwood floor. She shoved her free hand in her back pocket and rocked back on her heels, unsure what to do with herself.

She busied herself with the beer she gifted and brought the drink to her lips, savoring the flavor. His description of her father was painfully accurate, and Diana snorted in amusement at the observation. "That's a hell of a way to put it," she agreed, tilting her drink at him. "They're both the main character in their lives, and everyone else is secondary to their goals." Which, quite frankly, was a horrible trait for a pastor to have, but Diana supposed people with that grandiose view of themselves were drawn to the spotlight. "Not surprising Louise thinks she can recruit you." She paused, and then added, "maybe it's because she already considers you family so it's not really asking for a favor."

Diana made a weird shoulder shrug and looked sheepish at Caleb's question. "A little bit of both," she admitted. "Being at home without Grace is .... a lot," she said, letting those two words do some heavy lifting for the oppressive atmosphere in her parents' house. "And I figured since I'm here I should try and reach out, you know ... get to know my future brother in law better. But I wouldn't mind a tutorial or two so I can impress everyone in Asheville."

Caleb felt that he knew Diana very well, but functionally, he could count on one hand the amount of conversations he’d had with her in the entire time he’d been dating Grace. Still, he felt a sense of gratitude by extension that she was back in Ann Arbor. Grace would never complain, but their father’s health weighed on her, and while Caleb helped out whenever needed, he imagined it was different to shoulder the burden with a sibling. Still, it was an odd position to be in, to know her and still be a stranger to her in the same measure. “As opposed to no floor, it’s a big improvement.” Caleb took a sense of pride in the job he was doing with this home. It felt restorative to his soul, to put the home together piece by piece.

“Mostly myself, yeah. I’ve got a pretty good handle on the electrical stuff, plumbing stuff… All the stuff, really. I will definitely be hiring a guy for the HVAC, but, uh, yeah. Sometimes my grandfather comes over. Or I have a YouTube video going. But a lot of it is pretty straightforward if you uh, take the time to do it right.” Caleb took a swig of his beer as he settled into the camping chair, knowing now that he’d sat down, he wouldn’t be resuming work for the day.

“Yeah, I get it. Your dad is uh… Well, only slightly less of a character than your mom. Louise likes to call me when she’s got a new pet project. She is a hard woman to say no to.” Not that Caleb ever would - to any of the Goodwin women. He felt it was his solemn duty as Grace’s partner to abide by her family in whatever they needed, or wanted, too. “No, you’re a pretty good excuse to not do anything else after this. I’m kind of getting to the point where your sister can come in and pick out her paint colors and tell me where to put what.” He smiled at that statement, amused and endeared by Grace’s dreams for the home they’d share together soon enough. “You interested in home improvement or are you just humoring me?"

[diana-goodwin]

Diana took a moment to look -- really look -- at the man to whom her sister had promised to spend her life. Between the age difference and both of them being victim to circumstance, Diana hadn't spent much time with Caleb in person, beyond facetime with Grace or the occasional holiday. He was her very own ghost, in a sense -- she'd been aware of his presence for years, and had even connected with him time and again, but it was his absence that took up more space in her life. So now, face to face once more, Diana eyed him curiously, this man who had won her kind, warm, loving sister's heart.

"A whole floor, eh?" she replied curiously, peeking over his shoulder to see what it looked like. "Grace told me about the place. That you're fixing it up. Doing it all yourself?" Diana hadn't thought about what it really took to flip a home, or at least renovate it. How involved were they in the restoration? Was he doing every repair by hand, or was he bringing in help when warranted? She followed him through the front entrance into the side room and admired the fact that she was now standing on a floor where once there was, presumably, nothing.

She took the beer with a murmur of thanks and twisted the cap. "Yeah, I wanted to make it out here," she asserted, eager for him to know that she was making an overture of friendship. "I also needed to get out of the house for a bit. Even on a good day, it's ... not great to be cooped up all day." It was easier to get out and about in Asheville, where the climate was milder, but even in Ann Arbor Diana tried to stick to a rule to step outside the house once a day. "So ... you going to take a break after this or are you moving right to the next thing?"

Caleb relished his time working on the house. When he’d bought the gut job, he knew what he was getting himself into. The bones were good, and Caleb could renovate the house to his standards and Grace’s dreams. It was less than they’d been raised with, but it would be home. And home on your own terms would always trump any other sense of materialism. Caleb had known to expect Diana at some point, but after putting his phone back down he’d quickly gotten lost back in the mix of final touches to tiling in the kitchen and bathroom, checking the grout lines when he’d heard a knock at the door. Climbing off of the floor with more effort than he’d have preferred for only being 37, Caleb made his way to the front door, swinging it open to find the beloved younger sister of Grace presenting him with the greatest gift of all. “Oh, you shouldn’t have.” He stepped aside, allowing Diana through the doorway.

“Not really… If you had shown up yesterday I would have had a different answer, but, uh, floor’s in now, so.” Taking the beer from his hands, he waved her into one of the side rooms, where a cooler was situated and a radio was quietly playing a classic rock station, which he muted. Peeling away two beers, he stuff the rest into the icy cooler, where it looked like he’d opted for a shittier light beer as his work companion for the day. Conveniently, there were two camping chairs as well, mostly because Caleb’s grandfather liked to come and watch him work from time to time, or, more accurately, tell him how he would do it. Handing one of the beers back over to Diana, Caleb sank into his chosen chair with a sigh of satisfied exhaustion. “You just wanted to see the place, or…?”