[Marco stops himself, and for the seconds that follow, his face goes on a little journey (along with his awkwardly gesturing hands). One that Fiddleford may be very familiar with by now, in fact. It's that look Marco gets when he's arguing with himself about something he feels guilty about but is trying very hard not to. It's usually a monster thing, and silly at it is, it's also a sign of progress, in a sense. He's been doing his best to take what Fiddleford has said about innocuous monster things to heart.]
I-- Okay, I know it's not... Of course the jewelry isn't the important part, but, but I mean... It would be nice to get the best we can afford- Sorry, I mean...
[Is he being superficial? Is he being greedy? Is he making SENSE?? It probably doesn't help that he's afraid the Ex-Millionaire Brain is enabling the Squid Brain.
How suddenly Marco can overthink himself into a loop!]
Honey. Listen. I didn't grow up with a lot, you know that. [Really that's putting it lightly.] So if I'm goin' to spend my money I want it to be on somethin' important, you know, and you're just about the most important thing to me.
[It's difficult to articulate. He never wanted to make money just to have money. He wanted the recognition, sure. The attention would have been nice. But ultimately what he really wanted was still just a screen door that wasn't broken. He wanted to be able to make the life of the family he always knew he wanted to have as good as he could possibly make it. And now that Marco is his family that still holds true. It's not a kid, a dog and a white picket fence but that doesn't make it any less the dream he had. Sometimes a family is a fish, a snake, and a couple of robots, and if the fish wants the most expensive ring their budget allows for who is the snake to say no?]
And I'd say the jewelry's plenty important. It's more than just somethin' to wear.
[There's a reason he still has his old wedding ring, hidden away somewhere safe. Even if he didn't have a penny to his name he wouldn't pawn it. It means too much. It's something near-sacred, and whatever rings he and Marco decide on he'll treat the same way.]
[The way Marco's inclined to think about it, Fiddleford's past is exactly why he needs to keep himself in check when it comes to these matters. Not everyone grows up with parents who can afford every single item on your letter to Santa, be it a modest one or otherwise; not everyone has good clothes and food and no need to worry about getting sick and a new phone every year.
But, well, he's not going to interrupt Fiddleford. And...
He's not sure if he gets it. He's not sure what it is that he's having trouble grasping, either. Perhaps it's the implication that he is what's important, not the jewelry. It might be that.
Although he feels strangely humbled, he ends up finding a few words.]
It has to be something we both love. A... [A deep breath. A smile.
Fiddleford McGucket is so incredibly important to him, too.]
[They see eye to eye on more things that one might expect. Despite the difference in their timelines, despite the difference in their upbringings, he and Marco really do come together in and incredibly harmonious sort of way. He almost expects they'll zero in on the same set immediately -- but they can't know until they actually go shopping.]
We just have to set aside the time. We'll make a day of it.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
[Marco stops himself, and for the seconds that follow, his face goes on a little journey (along with his awkwardly gesturing hands). One that Fiddleford may be very familiar with by now, in fact. It's that look Marco gets when he's arguing with himself about something he feels guilty about but is trying very hard not to. It's usually a monster thing, and silly at it is, it's also a sign of progress, in a sense. He's been doing his best to take what Fiddleford has said about innocuous monster things to heart.]
I-- Okay, I know it's not... Of course the jewelry isn't the important part, but, but I mean... It would be nice to get the best we can afford- Sorry, I mean...
[Is he being superficial? Is he being greedy? Is he making SENSE?? It probably doesn't help that he's afraid the Ex-Millionaire Brain is enabling the Squid Brain.
How suddenly Marco can overthink himself into a loop!]
no subject
[It's difficult to articulate. He never wanted to make money just to have money. He wanted the recognition, sure. The attention would have been nice. But ultimately what he really wanted was still just a screen door that wasn't broken. He wanted to be able to make the life of the family he always knew he wanted to have as good as he could possibly make it. And now that Marco is his family that still holds true. It's not a kid, a dog and a white picket fence but that doesn't make it any less the dream he had. Sometimes a family is a fish, a snake, and a couple of robots, and if the fish wants the most expensive ring their budget allows for who is the snake to say no?]
And I'd say the jewelry's plenty important. It's more than just somethin' to wear.
[There's a reason he still has his old wedding ring, hidden away somewhere safe. Even if he didn't have a penny to his name he wouldn't pawn it. It means too much. It's something near-sacred, and whatever rings he and Marco decide on he'll treat the same way.]
no subject
But, well, he's not going to interrupt Fiddleford. And...
He's not sure if he gets it. He's not sure what it is that he's having trouble grasping, either. Perhaps it's the implication that he is what's important, not the jewelry. It might be that.
Although he feels strangely humbled, he ends up finding a few words.]
It has to be something we both love. A... [A deep breath. A smile.
Fiddleford McGucket is so incredibly important to him, too.]
A perfect union of our tastes.
no subject
[They see eye to eye on more things that one might expect. Despite the difference in their timelines, despite the difference in their upbringings, he and Marco really do come together in and incredibly harmonious sort of way. He almost expects they'll zero in on the same set immediately -- but they can't know until they actually go shopping.]
We just have to set aside the time. We'll make a day of it.