Nora’s immediate fight or flight reaction caused Cor to jolt, fully awake now though not completely coherent. He was barely able to keep himself from his knee-jerk reaction of reaching for his disc. “Sorry. I didn't mean to scare you.” he apologized once he managed to calm down and let Nora lean against him.
"It's all right, it's just - instinct," Nora said, splaying her hand against his chest.
“Ok.” he nodded, somewhat understanding that instinct. It may have been hypocritical of him but he did think that it was something of a strange reflex. But he remembered that she was trained by Zuse and Gem and had a similar reaction when Cyrus’s escape had been announced.
Bit floated out from the kitchen area and bobbed in front of Cor's face. Yes.
Cor leaned back a little when Bit approached but smiled. “Good morning to you too, little rascal.” he sighed, letting his eyes close again for a moment.
Yes, Bit said happily, zooming around Cor's head; Nora, despite herself, laughed softly.
Cor opened his eyes slightly and smiled softly at Nora, loving the sound of her laugh. Honestly, he was still more than a little awed that last night had really happened.
Nora, who was having a hard time believing it as well, reached for his hand under the blankets, brushing her fingers against his. Hand-holding was unfamiliar to her, and for a moment she felt awkward.
Cor froze for a brief moment at the light touch before gently adjusting his hand and returned the hold, entwining his fingers with hers.
Nora smiled and closed her eyes. She didn't really want to get up. It was a good thing that End of Line didn't open until late.
Cor leaned back against the couch, relaxing since he didn't really want to leave any time soon either. But realistically he didn't have the same luxury that Nora did. Fortunately, he didn't have any new searches yet.
"You don't have to go anywhere, do you?" Nora murmured, hoping he'd stay for a while longer.
“Not yet.” he smiled softly at her.
"Good," she said, rubbing her fingers absentmindedly against his hand.
Cor chuckled and rubbed his thumb against the back of her hand. “You don't want me to go?” he asked hopefully.
"No, stay," Nora said vaguely, leaning her head against his chest.
Cor smiled softly and held her close. “As long as I can.” he agreed, kissing her forehead.
Nora opened her eyes a bit and stared out the window. Far on the horizon, there was a group of much denser clouds than usual; here and there, lightning flickered.
"There's a storm coming," she said, pointing.
Cor followed her gaze to the window and nodded. “Yeah. Hope it's not a bad one.” he said softly. Riding a lightcycle in any storm wasn't fun but there had been times when it was necessary.
"What do you have to do for work today?" she asked softly, rubbing his hand.
He shrugged, giving her hand a gentle squeeze at her soft action. “Same as always. Wait for a search to come up, see if it's urgent, and get the right data for the search.” he simplified.
Nora nodded. She realised she had never really asked Cor about his work, his process, but now didn't seem like the right time to do that, somehow. Now, she wanted to be held and feel close, not talk about work.
Cor didn't mind that the topic of his work didn't come up since it was often boring for him to talk about. Searches weren't the most exciting or interesting thing to be programmed for. Messages were a bit more interesting but… Again, not much to talk about.
Bit zoomed around Cor's head. Yes.
Cor looked up at the Bit and chuckled softly. “Something you want to tell us?” he teased.