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l00katst4rs · 3 years

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Kiss Me Under The Artificial Lighting

Tom was sitting in his room and decided to open up his email, and saw one new email, from one of his old classmates...? He clicked it open and saw, Benjamin Taveras had invited him to a high school reunion.

"Hello, dear Classmates,

It's been a hot minute since I've seen you guys! So, I have helped to set up our high school reunion! You are allowed to bring your bf/gf/husband/wife But please don't bring any children! There will be alcohol and it will be running very late at night! So, McKenna, I suggest you hire a babysitter 😅

It will be at Bradford High, aka ✨Hell✨ On January 29th, Starting at 4:30 PM, and running until we get shut down 😎

Anyway, I hope to see you all very soon! And you aren't required to bring a date unless you made a bet, you know who you are *Cough* TOM ! *Cough* See You all very soon🥺🥰

-Benjamin T"

Tom groaned, he fucking hated Benjamin, and now the dickhead was going to make him stick with a bet he made in high school!? This was just plain dumb. How in the world was Tom, Tom of all people going to find a date to go to a crappy high school reunion with on such short notice, and he doubted he could pass Susan off as his date. He sat on his bed, glaring at the stupid email, from Stupid Benjamin, although he will admit, the part about McKenna did make him laugh a little, but still he had one week to find a date, or else he was in trouble...

Somebody knocked on his door

"Tooooommm!"

Tom laid down, recognizing the accent, of course, it was Tord, today was just not a good day to be Tom.

"Tommmm, I know you're in thereeeeeee," he called out to him in a sing-songy voice.

Tom groaned and glared at the door

"What do you want commie?"

Tord scoffed "I don't know, I'm bored, annoying you felt like a good option!"

Tom laughed a little, he was good at being annoying, that's for sure

"Can I come in?"

Tom quickly closed his laptop and put it on his nightstand

"Yeah, whatever..."

Tord smiled and flung open the door, before coming in, and plopping down next to Tom on his bed

"I'm bored, what are we doing?"

Tom glared at him " We aren't doing anything."

Tord looked at him with big puppy dog eyes "Please Tom, I'm boreddddddd"

Tom was quiet for a moment as if he was thinking. "Fine, What do you want to do?"

Tord was quiet or a moment

"I don't know...We could watch you lose at a board game!"

"I don't always lose!"

"Of course, whatever you say, Wanna play Settlers of Catan?"

Tom smiled, glad that he had chosen a game that was more based on luck rather than strategy, although it was always a good idea to have some sort of strategy.

"Sure"

Tord smiled, standing up, and left to get the game box

Tom sighed, and grabbed his laptop, and reread the message, before going back into his inbox, Oh, Yay! another message from a classmate

"Hey, Tommee! Remember that bet we made? I know you do! See ya at the school reunion, And your 'special friend'

-Jared"

He laid back down, and sighed, not sure how he wanted to deal with the situation...

"Tom! What color do you want to be?"

Tord was back, and he was holding a dusty box, smiling at Tom, and walked toward him, setting the box on his nightstand, and glancing at his computer screen

"Who's Jared?"

Tom groaned, and glared at the screen, closing his laptop, annoyed.

"Some dickhead that I used to be friends with, He wants me to go to our high school reunion."

Tord smiled and laughed at him a little "So you're going right?"

Tom glared at him "No. Why would I? And besides, he's holding me to some old bet we made..."

Tord smirked at him "What's the bet?"

Tom crossed his arms, pouting, and didn't say anything

Tord shrugged and yanked his laptop away from him

"Hey! Give that back!" Tom yelped and tried to grab it out of his hands

Tord stood up, and held the laptop above him, using his height to his advantage, and watched as Tom crawled off his bed, jumping trying to get it back.

"Tord! Give it back!" He whined and clawed at his arms, trying to get his laptop back.

Tord laughed and pushed Tom aside, reading the emails, before closing the laptop, and handing it back to Tom, smirking.

"So, Who are you taking with you?"

Tom closed his laptop, and put it away, looking down.

"Nobody. I'm not going."

Tord seemed surprised and sat next to him "Why not?, Aren't those type of things supposed to be fun?"

Tom huffed and glared at him, grumbling "If it seems so exciting, why don't you just go for me" Tom stopped and looked at Tord, realizing what he had just said, and cleared his throat. "Um, Tord..."

Tord Glared at him and shook his head. "Nuh-uh, Don't tell me you want me to go as your date-"

Tom sighed and stood back up. "Please, Tord! It's just one night!"

Tord looked at him one last time, before walking to the door of Tom's room "You have one week to convince me."

Tom groaned, well, at least he had sorta found somebody willing to go with him, now he just had to convince Tord that this was a good idea, that was going to be the hard part. He laid back down, he was most definitely not looking forward to this.

Tom wandered into the kitchen

"Hi, Tom!"

Tom turned his head and frowned at Matt, "Uh, Do you need something?" Matt smiled and nodded "Tord said you're taking him to a school reunion, or something like that"

Tom looked at him, trying to tell if he was being serious or not, although with Matt it was always hard to tell "What exactly did he say...?"

Matt stopped and was quiet for a minute as if he had to think about what Tord had said to him, and started whispering "He said I wasn't supposed to tell you..." he trailed off, playing with a thread hanging off his hoodie. Tom grumbled annoyed that he wasn't getting anywhere "Thanks for all your help Matt" He added sarcastically Matt beamed "Aww! Thanks, Tom!" Tom went into the living room, abandoning Matt, and sat down on the couch, flicking on a random show, not really paying attention to what it was, figuring it would be a good distraction, and he slowly fell asleep.

Tom woke up something messing around with his hair, and he followed his instincts and batted whatever it was away, not bothering to open his eyes. Tord smiled a little and kept messing with his hair. Tom, who was still half asleep, kept batting at Tord's hand, grumbling "Stop doing that."

Tord smirked, and kept doing what he was doing "Nahhh, your hair's fluffy, I think I'll stay like this for a while"

Tom opened his eyes after hearing Tord's voice and saw Tord sitting on the couch next to him, with a hand tangled up in his hair. Tom tried to sit up, but it was hard with Tord's hand holding him down. "Move your hand."

Tord smiled and ruffled his hair, before pulling his hand away, smiling slightly. Tom sat up, glaring at him. "What the hell was that about?!" Tord shrugged, and wiggled his eyebrows at him "Nothing!"

Tom sighed, annoyed when he realized what Tord was doing, he knew if Tom wanted him to go with him to the school reunion, then he could get away with messing with him like this. Tom muttered annoyed, "You're an asshole"

Tord smiled, and glanced over at him "Yep! Don't you just love me?" he asked playfully.

Tom blushed a little and tried to avoid his gaze, embarrassed

Tord gently shook his shoulder "Tom...? You alright? You were spacing out..."

Tom looked up into Tord's big gray eyes and nodded slowly "Yeah...I'm fine"

Tord nodded but didn't seem like he believed him. "Okay, if you say so" He ruffled Tom's hair before he stood up, and walked upstairs.

Tom glanced at the time and smiled weakly, 9:52 PM It was almost time for him to go to bed, he was fairly tired, and looking for an excuse to get away from everybody, as he was still a little shaken up by how flirty Tord had been acting earlier, but at the same time, he couldn't say he didn't like it either. He just couldn't get Tord off his mind as he walked back to his room, wondering for a second how the day had gone by so quickly as he climbed into his bed.

Tom opened his eyes tiredly, and stared at the ceiling, contemplating if he should stay in bad, or go downstairs and have breakfast, he figured he would go downstairs in a few minutes.

He grabbed his laptop, making sure he didn't have any new emails from his old classmates, thankfully he didn't and he closed the lid of the computer and went downstairs.

Edd smiled at him "G'morning Tom, I made breakfast!"

Tom smiled a little, he wouldn't deny that Edd was a great cook "Thanks Edd" He took a seat at the kitchen table and quickly looked away when Tord started making faces at him. Tord smirked, and leaned in closer to him, whispering "What's wrong Tom? Flustered?"

Tom blushed more, and kicked him under the table, mumbling "Stop that!" Tord smiled "Stop What?" He asked innocently, "I mean You were the one who just kicked me." Tom pouted, still refusing to look at him. Edd glanced over his shoulder, before turning to look at the two of them "What's going on with you two?" Tord's face reddened, and he sat back down, creeping away from Tom. Edd rolled his eyes smiling, "Whatever, I made waffles!" Matt smiled "Yay! Waffles!" Edd smiled and brought them a plate of waffles before sitting down and glancing between Tom and Tord, before taking a bite of his waffle.

Tord gently nudged Tom's leg under the table, smiling slightly when Tom nudged him back.

They continued their little game for most of breakfast until Tom didn't nudge him back, Tord looked up at him like 'You good man?' Tom squirmed, uncomfortable, he had gotten his for stuck in the bottom of Tord's chair, but he just nodded stiffly. Tord raised an eyebrow, not convinced, and glanced down, before looking back up at him with concern. Edd, who had been watching the two of them sighed, "What's going on?" He asked, a hint of annoyance present in his voice.

Tom looked down and mumbled something, Edd looked at him, "Could you please speak up, Tom?" Tom looked up at Tord, and muttered nervously "I got my foot stuck" both Edd and Matt stared at him, concern mixing on their faces "H-How did you manage that?!" He didn't seem annoyed anymore, mostly just worried. Tom gave a small shrug "I don't know, I was just messing around with Tord and..." He trailed off, embarrassed.

Edd looked between them, and hopped off his chair to see what happened, and couched down close to the floor, and sighed, not even wanting to know how this had happened. Tord slid off his chair and hugged Tom in an attempt to calm him down, whispering "Don't worry, you'll be fine..." Tom nodded and melted into the hug, grumbling "Of course I'll be fine" Tord laughed a little and smiled down at him.

Edd was still sitting on the floor, trying to figure out how to free Tom's foot.

Tom wrapped his arms around Tord's neck, not wanting to let go of him. Tord laughed at him a little and ruffled his hair "You are such an idiot." Tom stuck his tongue out at Tord.

Edd grabbed his ankle and tried to pull his foot out from between the two slats of wood, grumbling when he couldn't get it out.

Tord sighed, and put his head on top of Tom's mumbling, "Sorry..." Tom smiled, and laughed a little"At least now I have a valid excuse to not go to the school reunion!"

Edd looked up surprised "You were going to go to that?"

Tom shrugged, and rubbed the back of his neck "Yeah, I guess I was..."

Edd laughed a little "But don't you hate those type of things?"

Tom nodded "Yeah, but one of my old 'friends' is passively-aggressively bullying me into going to it because we made a dumb bet..."

Edd nodded slowly before asking "What was the bet?"

Tom sighed looking down, "That I could get a 'special friend' before him..."

Edd tried not to laugh "Then why bother going? No offense, but your the most single person I've ever met..."

Tom nodded, and glanced at Tord for a moment "I was actually hoping to go with Tord..." He mumbled looking down, blushing, embarrassed.

Edd raised his eyebrows, and smirked, making an "Oooohh" sound.

Tord flipped him off, and muttered, with a hint of sadness in his voice "We'd just be pretending, there's nothing between us..."

Tom sighed quietly and silently wished that they didn't have to pretend, that it could be real, even if it was just for one night...

Edd nodded, not quite convinced as the two of them had been acting rather... differently towards each other the past few days.

The next few days went by rather quickly, and it almost seemed as if they were all just the same day, all blurring into one giant day since not much was changing over the course of those 5 days. Tom and Tord casually flirted with each other, Edd's suspicion grew, and Matt, well Matt really didn't seem to give a shit about Tom and Tord's relationship.

Finally, it was the 29th, the night of the school reunion, and Tom was laying in bed wearing a ratty old blue hoodie and jeans, and he was contemplating sending Jared a "Fuck You." When he heard a knock on his bedroom door, and Tom glanced up, uninterested.

Tord sighed and let himself in, and sat next to Tom. "What are you doing? Aren't you supposed to go to that school thing with me in an hour?"

Tom looked up at him and realized he was serious. "Uh, yeah, J-just give me a minute or two..." He stood up, but he couldn't stop staring at Tord, and then it occurred to him. He had never seen Tord dressed up, huh, weird.

Tord looked at him, and laughed a little, standing up "I'll give you a minute"

Tom nodded and glanced at his closet, frowning. he grabbed a grey shirt, and a checkered tie, calling it good enough, before stepping out of his room to meet Tord.

Tord smiled and grabbed his hand, "You ready to go, babe?" He asked, playfully, smiling. Tom nodded, and intertwined their fingers, blushing slightly.

Tom looked up at the door of his old school, he wasn't so sure he still wanted to do this, he didn't want to be here, and have to see Jared again, it was bad enough seeing him when he actually went to high school, now he had to spend multiple hours with Jared, and prove Tord to be his 'boyfriend' He took a deep breath and got out of the car, standing next to Tord, and bit his lip, nervously.

Tord noticed the worried look on Tom's face and wrapped his arm around his shoulders "Hey, you wanna go home...? We don't have to be here if you don't want to be" Tom smiled a little, glad that Tord was being so nice to him. "Yeah, I think I'll stay, for a little while at least. I wanna prove Jared wrong."

Tord smiled at him and started walking toward Bradford High, keeping his arm around Tom, and gently drummed his fingers on Tom's shoulder as he used his other hand to pull open the old creaky door.

Tom glanced down the row of lockers, noticing some of his old peers, smiling a little, after all not all of them were assholes.

Tord smiled down at him, glad that he seemed happy "Recognize any of these weir-" He was cut off by a tall girl with long curly hair

"TOMMEE!!"

Tom glanced up at her, "Hey, Martha!"

Martha rushed over to the two of them, and threw her arms around Tom, smiling "Tom! It's been a *hic* been a while!" Tom smiled and laughed at her "I forgot how much confidence alcohol gives you" Tord laughed a little, and smiled at them, assuming they used to be friends.

Martha giggled and pointed at Tord "W-Who's thisssss?"

Tord pulled Tom closer to him "I'm Tom's boyfriend, I'm assuming you were one of his friends?"

Martha nodded "Yep! P-*hic* Practically almost a-all his other f-friends were du- *hic* dummies"

Tom stared at Martha, muttering "How much have you had to drink...?"

Martha looked up, and shrugged "Oh, I don't k-*hic* know! Somebody sp-*hic* spiked the punch bowl!"

Tom nodded, and glanced at her "Are you going to be able to drive home later?"

Martha nodded, "Yeahhhhhhhh, I'll j-*hic* Just stoOOop drinking for a little, s-*hic* sober up, ya know?"

Tom smiled, nodding slightly "Good luck with that"

Martha nodded, and waved at them, before stumbling over to the bleachers in the gym, needing to sit down.

Tord smiled down at Tom, wrapping both his arms, whispering "Hear that? I'm your boyfriend now!"

Tom blushed and looked down, mumbling into his chest "S-shut up!" Tord laughed, smiling down at him, and ruffled his hair. "I bet all your old friends are going to love me!" Tom laughed a little, "Nope. They're all going to hate you."

Tord smiled and rolled his eyes, "You wanna go find Jared?"

Tom glanced away, because honestly- He didn't even really want to be in the same room as Jared, but he only replied, "Not right now" and started fidgeting, playing with a loose thread that was hanging off his shirt.

Tord nodded and took his hand, dragging him towards the punch bowl, and grabbed a handful of pretzels, stuffing them into his mouth.

Tom smiled at him a little and grabbed a cookie, happily munching on it, while leaning onto Tord.

Tord gazed down at him, smiling slightly, just enjoying the moment, because, in the back of his mind, he knew it wouldn't last...

Tom heard a deep, rather sinister-sounding laugh, and looked up, already knowing who it was, Jared.

Jared walked toward the two grinning "Hello Tomothy!"

Tord looked up at him, and it took him a minute to realize that 'Tomothy' was a combination of the names Tom and Timothy.

Tom started walking toward Jared, dragging his feet, "Hi Jared..." Jared smiled, "Long time no see Tomothy, Sooooo where's your friend?"

Tom looked down and mumbled something, embarrassed.

Jared laughed, "I couldn't hear that, mind saying it again?"

Tom looked up, glancing at Tord, pointing "That's Tord"

Jared rolled his eyes and laughed, "I meant where's your girlfriend Tomothy"

Tord laughed and walked up behind Tom, wrapping his arms around him, "Who needs a girlfriend when they have me?" Tom blushed with how close Tord was getting, and how his hands were keeping a tight grip on him.

Jared stared at the two "T-That's very funny Tom... Where's your g-girlfriend?"

Tom leaned back into Tord's touch, letting out a small sigh of annoyance "I don't have one, Jared."

Jared laughed, relieved, "Great! That means That you owe me a-" He was cut off by Tord "You said 'special friend', not girlfriend, there is a difference" He said, glaring at Jared.

Tom smiled and stayed quiet, relaxing slightly in Tord's arms

Jared gritted his teeth, "But I meant a girlfriend! Not some weird guy"

Tom looked up at Tord, knowing he was getting mad at Jared "You say that as if I'm undesirable, and I have no idea why."

Jared rolled his eyes "I- I'm just surprised... I mean Tom's gay!" He started laughing "Imagine What your mother would say if she could see you like this Tom!"

Tom's face darkened, and he tried to hide, trying to disappear into Tord's chest, clearly upset.

Tord noticed that he seemed upset and sighed pulling him closer into him, and slowly taking him away from Jared

Tom tried to pull away from him, and swiped at his face, looking down, and mumbled "I'm fine Tord." Tord sighed, but kept his distance, looking down at him. "Alright... If you say so"

Tom abandoned Tord, and headed toward the bathroom, willing himself not to cry. He stared into the mirror, glaring at himself, muttering to himself, realizing that his crush on Tord was, hopeless. He slowly sunk to the floor, burying his head in his knees, tears now rolling down his face. He knew Jared was right, like always. He knew exactly what his mother would've said if she had seen how Tord was holding him, and Jared knew what she would've said too.

The bathroom door creaked, as Tord opened it, and glanced around before sighing, he hated seeing Tom upset. He walked over to where he was, and sat down next to him, wordlessly. Tom peeked his head up from his knees and looked at Tord, not sure what to say, so he scooted closer to him, and wrapped his arms around Tord's neck, as he gently cried into his chest. Tord put his arms around him, hugging him as He mumbled reassurances into Tom's ear, holding him as he cried.

Tom slowly sat up, pulling himself off of Tord, and wiped away the last of his tears. Tord smiled at him weakly but didn't move, not wanting to upset him. Tom was quiet for a moment before reached for Tord's hand, Tord said nothing but gently took Tom's hand in his.

Tom stood up, pulling Tord up with him smiled at him gently, mumbling "Thank you..." Tord nodded, and glanced at the door, waiting to see if Tom was ready to go out, or not. Tom smiled, "I want to beat the shit out of Jared." Tord grinned, "I'll help you with that if you like!" Tom wandered seemed happy and left the bathroom, still holding Tord's hand, not quite sure where he was headed, still dragging Tord behind him.

Tom stopped in the old high school gym and gazed up at Tord, happily, dropping his hand. Tord smiled down at him, a light blush dusting his cheeks. Tom shuffled closer to him, and laid his head on Tord's chest, mumbling "Dance with me."Tord smiled, and laughed a little, thinking he was cute, and wrapped his arms around him, gently swaying across the old gym.

Tom eventually got lost in the music, leaning into Tord, quietly humming along, despite not knowing the song.

I'll be better than I was before

Despite every text of yours ignored

Will you call me still?

Just to hear my voice, I swear

Always, I'll care

Tord gazed down at him, a gentle smile on his face, as he brought his fingers up to Tom's chin, bringing him back to attention "Wh-What are you doing..?" Tom mumbled softly, looking up at him. Tord gave him a lopsided smile as he put a finger to his lips, shushing Tom, as his other hand cupped his cheek, gently mumbling "Just let me try something..." Tom gave a small nod of his head, not sure what Tord was planning to do to him. Tord's thumb gently stroked his cheek, as he shuffled closer to him, and leant down, gently pressing his lips onto Tom's.

Tom was surprised at first, but didn't pull back, for a few seconds he was just letting Tord kiss him before his eyes fluttered shut, and he kissed back, his hands reaching for the back of Tord's neck, letting his fingers play with his long, silky hair.

Tord slowly pulled away from him, and gazed down at Tom, "Who would've thought an old crusty high school gym would be so romantic?" Tom giggled, and shuffled closer to Tord "Can we just go home now?" Tord nodded, and led him out of the gym, stopping by Jared,

"Oh look, it's the freaks" Jared shouted, pointing at the two of them. Tord rolled his eyes, glaring at him, "Where's your special friend anyway, Jared?" Jared froze, staring at them. "Excuse you! My wife was too pregnant to show up." Tom giggled, "If She's your wife, shouldn't you have a ring?" Jared stormed away angrily, glaring at them, as Tom cuddled happily into Tord's arms.

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majiniesthings · 7 years

Note

¨i still have your phone number memorized even though i haven’t called you since we split and somehow i remembered it even though i’ve had like six shots of bourbon and hey, i know you’re pissed that you’re here at this dingy club at 3 in the morning to pick my drunk ass up, but you have to admit that’s pretty impressive¨ AU ~~ as frostiron. When you're finished I'll prompt you for more of those amazing au's :)

“I'm gonna write a quick angsty drabble”, shesaid. Now, 3294 words later... anyway. Hope ya like it, love, I don'tknow if I do, I'm tired, it's late, I need sleep.

Tony had deleted Loki's number from his contactsweeks ago so he wouldn't get drunk and tempted to do exactly what hewas doing now. Turns out his memory was better than he had givenhimself credit for, because even with Lord knew how many shots he'dhad and at oh-god-o'clock in the morning, he'd managed to type in thefamiliar numbers. It had seemed like a good idea, too, until Loki hadactually picked up.

“Hello?” Groggy, rough from sleep, a littleconcerned. Of course. It wasn't like he got calls in the middle ofthe night all the time. “Who is this?”

“Heyyy.” Tony greeted, drawn-out and a littlegiggly. “Din't think you'd be pickin' up. Din't think I'd get yournumber right, actually.” He slouched in his chair, chin propped upin his hand, and listened to the silence on the other end of theline. “'s 'cause I'm a genius,” he added. “Numbers are nice.Helluva lot easier than people, too.”

There was another moment of silence from Loki. Then:“How many drinks have you had, Anthony?”

Tony hummed contemplatively while he considered thequestion, eyeing the near-empty bourbon in front of him. After a fewseconds, he answered with absolute certainty: “All of 'em.”

Somewhere behind him, there was a crashing noise and laughter.

“Are you home?”

“Nahhh. 's kind of empty.” Tony traced patternson the wood of his table morosely. “Flat's too big for one person.”His words were slurring together as he spoke, but he couldn't reallybring himself to care.

Loki muttered something under his breath that soundedlike it might be Norwegian. Cursing, probably. There was the rustleof movement, fabric. “Is someone with you?”

“Nah,” he repeated, slouching down in his seat.“Jus' me. An' the bourbon. Tastes like shit, too.” He reached forhis glass, downed the last finger still left and waved an unsteadyhand in the direction of the bartender.

“Where are you?” Loki's tone was clipped, curt,hell, even to Tony it was obvious that the man was pissed, but hehadn't heard his voice in weeksand he'd missed it, damn it. He missed Loki. “Anthony.” Nobodyever called him Anthony. With anyone else, it would annoy him, butLoki made it sound different. “Stop. Tell me where you are, now.”Had he been talking out loud? “Yes, you have.” Loki groaned.“Gods, you're plastered. Anthony, I need to know where you are.”

“Oh,” Tony madeeloquently. “'s the bar– the one you din't like. Said it's got noclass.” He giggled, then hiccuped. “You were right, too, thisplace is a mess. I'm a mess. Loki, I'm a mess.”

“I can hear that.” Asigh, sharp, annoyed, short. “Stay.”

The line went dead.

Tony stared at hisphone for a few moments, letters and numbers blurring, before hedropped it on the table when the waiter placed another shot in frontof him. He snatched the glassimmediately, liquid sloshing out over his fingers when he pulled ittoward him and downed half of it. It burned in his throat and madehis stomach churn and he wanted to cry or throw up or maybe both. Hewas probably going to end up doing both.

He'd been doing both a lotthe past few weeks. Calling Loki, that was new.

“Stupid,” he murmuredunder his breath, dropping his head into his hands. “Fuckin'stupid. Idiot.” They'd kept up radio silence until Tony just had togo and drunk-call his ex. Genius indeed.

Tony wasn't sure how muchtime passed just sitting there, musing and feeling sorry for himself,a finger absently tracing the rim of his glass. He was about to liftit again to drain it, call it a night, go home and wallow in selfpity where he had a bed, when paler, slender fingers wrapped aroundit and set it down out of his reach.

Surprised, he lookedup. Met Loki's eyes, narrowed, lips pressed into a thin line, hairhaphazardly pulled back into a loose bun at the back of his neck,dressed in a loose hoodie andjeans. Looking pissed.

“You're here,”Tony heard himself say, or at least he thought that was what he said.His tongue felt heavy and clumsy inhis mouth, words slurring together.

“Astute as ever,” Lokiresponded. “Up. Come on.” He sounded just as clipped as on thephone, expression unreadable.

Tony beamed at him.“You gotta admit s'impressive,” he slurred while he stumbled tohis feet, steadying himself on the table. “Didn'tthink I'd get enough brain cells together to actually remember yournumber.” He took a step forward and promptly stumbled when theworld started spinning wildly. “You always told me I was smart,”he murmured, muffled by the fabric of Loki's hoodie.

“I'm doubting it rightnow,” Loki muttered, grabbing a hold of Tony's arm to sling it overhis shoulder. The other wrapped around Tony's waist and he leanedinto Loki's side heavily, inhaling deeply.

“I still gotta...”He waved his free hand in thegeneral direction of the bar counter, hoping that Loki could fill inthe missing words.

He felt more thansaw the taller man shake his head. “I covered your tab, just get inthe bloody car. If you throwup on my upholstery, I'm going to make you walk.”

Tony murmureda quiet “charming” beforehe fell silent, eyes half-closed while he let Loki lead him. Heconcentrated on keeping his liquor down. Hereally didn't feel like walking.

He made a quietnoise of protest when Loki more or less dropped him in the passengerseat of his car and went around to get to the other side. Tonyslumped in his seat, head tilted back to stare at the roof of thecar. They'd done thingsin this car, he remembered fondly, things that involved him somehowfolding himself into the space between passenger seat and back seatand Loki's hands in his hair, hushed, breathless praise andencouragement in the air.

The slam of the driver's side door closing jerked himout of his reverie and he looked over just as Loki glanced at him andheaved a sigh.

“For pity's sake, Anthony.” He leaned over andfor a second, Tony thought he was going to kiss him, tilted his headexpectantly, but then Loki just reached over him to fasten hisseatbelt and then dropped back against his own seat to do the samefor himself.

Of course.

Tony slumped into his seat, arms crossed and a pouton his lips. “I don't wanna go home.”

“Good, because I am not driving across town just todrop you off there,” Loki shot back while he pulled out of theparking lot. “Why did you even bother driving this far to getdrunk? There's enough bars around your block, this was hardlynecessary.”

“We met here.” Tony turned his head, watchedLoki's profile, illuminated every few seconds when they passed undera street light. “You were with Thor an' the other blond guy an' Ipicked a fight with Thor an' you told him he was...”

“I remember,” Loki cut him off, keeping his eyesso fixed on the road it must hurt his head. His knuckles were whiteagainst the steering wheel.

Tony watched for a few seconds, words bubbling up inhis throat, and he meant to keep them to himself, he really did, buthe found himself whispering an “I miss you” anyway.

If possible, Loki's grip seemed to get even tighter.“Don't,” he snapped, sharp, and Tony flinched and turned his headto stare down at his hands in his lap.

“Loki, I'm sor–”

“I said don't,”Loki cut him off again.

This time, helistened. They spent the rest of the brief ride in icy silence, Tonytwiddling his thumbs andpicking at his nails, eyes falling shut every so often before a holein the road made him jerk awake again. He was feeling tired andnauseous and ten more kinds of miserable, especially knowing thatLoki was right here and Tony had screwed up, he'd screwed up so bad–

He stayed silentwhile Loki got him out of the car and up the stairs to his apartment,half-dragging Tony along as he went, andonly when they were at thedoor to the flat and Loki was fumbling with his keys did Tony curlinto him further, burying his face in the other man's neck. He couldfeel Loki tense slightly, but then the door was clicking open and hewas being hauled inside.

“Alright, get onthe couch,” Loki commanded, attempting to dislodge Tony's hold onhim, but Tony just threw his other arm around Loki's shoulders aswell and breathed in deeply, face still tucked against Loki'sshoulder. “Anthony. Get off of me. Geton the bloody couch.”

“No,” hemuttered, slightly muffled, and then “no”with more determination, andhe wasn't sure whatbroke the dam but suddenly he was talking, babbling.“Look, Lokes, I knowI fucked up, I'm sorry, I didn't know how to– I don't know, Ican't–”

“Anthony, stop.”For the first time, Loki's cold, annoyed demeanour cracked, togetherwith his voice. “Quit it.”

Tony clung to hishoodie tighter in response, shoulders shaking and breath coming inshort, hitched gasps. “Please, Lokes, 'm sorry, really, I–please, lemme fixthis, I love you, I do, I swear, andI shouldn't've run, but I don't know how this, I don't know how to–”

“Shhhh,” Lokimade, and it sounded soft,almost sweet, and then he was wrapping his arms around Tony andslender fingers were carding through his hair gently. “Hush,darling. Shh.” He kept up the soothing, repetitive motion and letTony cry, messy andugly and with tears soaking his hoodie, while Tony chided himself forever, ever lettingthis go in the first place. “Let's get you to bed, come on,” Lokimurmured in his ear, quietly.

“Please,” Tony chokedout, not sure what he was asking for, tightening his grip. He turnedhis head to the side, pressed a kiss to Loki's neck and felt himfreeze. Placed another kiss right under his jaw, got onto histip-toes to reach his cheek–

Yelped in shock whenLoki shoved him away forcefully enough that his back hit the wallbehind him.“I told you tostop,” he hissed through clenched teeth. “You're drunk, I am nottouching you when you're like this, get in the bedroom.” With that,he turned on his heel and disappeared toward the kitchen.

Tonystayed where he was, let his head drop back against the wall with hiseyes squeezed shut. Stupid,he chided himself. Stupid, stupid, stupid. Heshould have never called Loki, he shouldn't have let himself betempted like this, shouldn't just have assumed that Loki wanted himback–

The way to thebedroom, achingly familiar, was made in small, stumbling steps andTony wanted to cry again when his face hit the pillow and he inhaledslowly, basking in Loki's scent while he blearily kicked off hisshoes and curled up on top of the covers. He was exhausted, had beenfor weeks now. He was ready to crash, already half-asleep a fewseconds after he'd closed his eyes.

Distantly, he heardLoki enter the room and set something down on the night stand firmly.“Drink,” he ordered. Then, quieter: “For heaven's sake.” Tonyfelt a hand on his shoulder, turning him around, then a glass wasbeing pushed to his lips and he obediently parted them, draining theglass and spilling surprisingly little of it.

He thought he feltLoki's lips pressing against his hair for a moment after he'd droppedback into the pillow, but it was probably his imagination, and hesuddenly felt too worn out to care.

…

Tonywoke with a low, pounding headache and a feeling in his mouth likesomething small had curled up and died there. He muffled his groaninto his pillow and considered rolling over and going back to sleep,but he spotted a glass of water and painkillers on the night standwhen he reluctantly blinked his eyes open, so he sighed and draggedhimself up, downing two of the little pills and emptying the glasscompletely.

Herubbed a hand over his face while he willed the effects to kick inquickly, swinging his legs out of the bed. Yesterday'sclothes,he noted absently. Classy.Far from being awake, he shuffled into the bathroom, and plucked histoothbrush out of its holder, determined to get the foul taste out ofhis mouth.

Itwas only halfway through brushing his teeth, staring at himself inthe mirror, that he realised thatwasn't his mirror.It hadn't been his bed, either.

“Ohgod,” he muttered, mouth full, and numbly bent down torinse. “Oh, god.” He splashed some cold water in his face, ranhis wet hands through his hair to get it into some semblance oforder, and then met his own gaze in the mirror, cheeks red withhumiliation. “You fucking moron,” he told himself.

Hedried his hands and face off with a towel and straightened hisclothes as best as he could. Fiddled with the buttons of his shirt.Stroked some more stray strands of hair back, washed out the sink,wondered why Loki hadn't thrown his toothbrush out two months ago.

Whenhe realised he was stalling, putting off the inevitable, he forcedhimself to straighten up and take a breath.

Hewas a fucking mess without Loki. It was pathetic.

Bitingthe inside of his cheek, he stepped back into the bedroom, gatheringup his shoes from where he'd kicked them off, and then slowly steppedout into the living room.

Lokiwas curled in his armchair, in the hoodie and pants he'd worn lastnight, hair let down and glasses perched on his nose. There was abook on his knees and a mug of hot chocolate, probably cold by now,on the table next to him. He didn't look up.

“Hey,”Tony greeted softly. Awkwardly.

“Morning,”Loki returned, still not lifting his gaze. His voice was quiet andguarded. “Did you find the painkillers?”

Tonycleared his throat quietly. “Yeah. Thanks.”

“Good.You know your way out.”

Heflinched at the clear, harsh dismissal, shifting on his feet for aminute. A great part of him was tempted to just turn tail and run,but he'd done that the last time and he could see where it had gottenhim. He needed to dosomething.

“Loki,look, I'm sorry for the way that I–”

“Idon't want to hear it,” Loki interrupted him, still not looking up,sounding strained, tight. “You know where the door is, Anthony, youhad no trouble finding it last time.”

Yeah,he'd probably deserved that one. “I know I wasn't being fair –”

“Youweren't being fair?” Loki echoed, and now he did look up. For thefirst time, Tony noticed the dark shadows under his eyes and hispaler-than-usual skin tone, found himself wondering if Loki had sleptat all after picking him up. The sound of his book snapping shutcracked through the room like a whip, making Tony flinch. “That'sone way of putting it, yes.” Loki got up from the chair, takingslow steps toward him. “You could have at least had the decencyto talk to me, you know, instead of just cuttingme offlikeI'm some... some...” He stopped halfway through the room, running ahand through his hair and shaking his head. “I'm not doing this.Getout.”

Tonystepped forward, a little defiant. “Come on, Lokes, you gottalisten to me at least.”

“Iwould have listened to you!” Loki snapped. “I would have listenedif you had talkedto me, instead of running off – you didn't answer your phone, youchangedthe keytoyour bloodyapartment,we had radiosilence.I resorted to asking your friends because I was worried sick. Thefirst sign of life I received from you in over two months was adrunkenphone call!” His voice cracked on the last word and he drew a shakybreath, turning away from Tony, who stood rooted to his spot, shoesstill in hand.

Fora few seconds, the only sound in the room was Loki's quick, hitchedbreathing. Then, Tony shook himself out of his stupor. He set hisshoes down gingerly and then padded across the room on his sockedfeet, approachingLoki and very carefully resting his hands on the other man's waist.When Loki didn't immediately shake him off, Tony stepped a littlecloser, fitting himself against Loki's back and wrapping his armsaround his waist completely.

Loki'ssigh sounded almost resigned.

“Ifreaked,” Tony began hesitantly, murmuring into the back of Loki'shoodie. “I... you have more stuff at mine than over here, I knowthat for a fact, I've been wearing your hoodies, and I have enough ofmy things hereto last me a few days, and– and we basically live together most ofthe time and it is so fucking weirdto wake up without you and we can tell each other 'I love you'without freaking out and I guess I just... I realised how goddamncommittedweare and I got scared I was gonna fuck up because it actually meanssomethingthis time around–”

“Youdid,” Loki interjected, and Tony ground to a halt, blinking inconfusion.

“Huh?”

“Fuckup. You did. You fucked up.” His shoulders were shaking and Tonyhoped to god that it was with laughter.

“GuessI did,” he muttered, then cleared his throat. “I was trying toget to a point here.”

“Praytell, what was it?” There was a trace of his usual sarcasm inLoki's voice and Tony almost cried with relief.

Tonybreathed in deeply, closing his eyes while he leaned his cheekagainst Loki's back. “The point being, I thought it was gonna bebetter if I pull out of this before doing it gets worse and evenharder later and I realised it was stupid a few days into it but Ididn't know how to tell you what was going on, I didn't know if Icould face you without panicking again, and so I kept up the radiosilence which was a dick move, I get it, but...”

“Yourpoint, Anthony,” Loki reminded him gently, and Tony nodded jerkily.

“Yeah.Yeah. Well, basically, my point is that I was being stupid and thatI'd never, everwant to not have you in my life, and I know you have every right tobe pissed at me and if I fuck up again you can kick me out and I'lldeserve it but I'd like a second chance please?” He'd gottenquicker the longer he talked, words tumbling out of his mouth in whatwas hopefully the correct order, and now he was holding his breathwhile he felt Loki's chest shake with a silent laugh. God, he hopedit was a laugh and he hadn't made him cry.

Hefelt more than saw Loki raise a hand to wipe at his face while hetook a slow, unsteady breath.

“Youare buying me dinner tonight,” Loki announced eventually and Tonythought he was going to sob with relief. “And if I hear youcomplaining about your hangover, I'm leaving.”

“That'sfair,” he agreed immediately, a little choked up. “Yeah. Okay.Let's do dinner.”

#ironfrost #frostiron #tony stark #loki #marvel #human!AU #request #my writing #hikari-yumi

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u4bik · 5 years

Text

The Ex

Before he wakes, Jakadirek’s mind slips around the extremities of what he knows and feels. What he knows is jumbled and mixed, too many different colours in a vat to turn out a proper dye batch. Shysa is dead, Silt is dead, mother is dead, Vishiv is dead, Ilchathm is dead.

What he knows is useless, but what he feels is tangible. Cold. It’s cold. The plate is firm on his forehead, but much of his skin is bare. If Ilchathm were not dead, a lack of clothing would be no cause for alarm.

He should be alarmed but Jakadirek is drunk on something he can’t identify.

“I have some water for you, Ring-sib.”

Something terrible if he’s hallucinating Arsa’olakai instead of just picking up hauntings from Galokir’s mind.

Jakadirek opens his eyes to a confined area, dimly lit by sunlight through canvas. Arsa is no apparition. He’s as unmistakable as the scar that bisects his face from forehead to septum.

Arsa’s lips thin to accommodate a wide grin. “Yeah, I didn’t die. How’s Galokir?”

Arsa’olakai.

Jaka stares. How could this mongrel have survived? Seiyslos and Valthm were furthest from safety. Only four Ring members from Seiyslos and seven from Valthm made it out. Ashrei had the former executed for spite and Galokir weighed in on the latter and gutted them all, one by one.

For reasons Jaka still doesn’t understand, Galo has always hated the Valthm. He’d had to switch hands halfway through the executions because blood coated him to the wrist.

“Heh!” Arsa rocks back on his haunches as he is wont to do. He keeps his red eyes on Jaka while pouring the so-called water from a glass bottle into a steel cup. Watching one thing while doing another is one of Arsa’olakai’s peculiar traits. It distracts people from what his hands are doing. “Vendalot messed your head up, the water should help.”

Jakadirek splits his lips from their gummy seal. “We’re not Ring siblings. We’re not anything. Everyone is dead.”

“Whatever.” Arsa shrugs in a sloppy one-shoulder way that echoes Galokir. Or maybe Galokir echoes Arsa. He sets the bottle aside. “We’re alive. I’m alive and so are you and Kir. I’m here to talk about that, but me and you’re gonna keep that between us. This guy Vendalot can’t know.”

Jakadirek stares as Arsa holds up the metal cup. Arsa’olakai moves fluidly as ever: his long, attractive fingers swivel the cup left and right. Not even many Mi’iduor could claim manual dexterity like Galokir’s former partner. Arsa’s hand-massages were highly sought after in their Ring because he was the best at it. Better than Jaka. So many things Arsa’olakai is good at. All physical.

“You can have the water regardless if you talk or not, you know?” Arsa tilts his head and there’s a glint of something shiny and leather around his neck. It’s a wide leather collar like an animal might wear. Arsa’olakai is a servant here. Now that’s something Jakadirek is sure Arsa is terrible at. Does no-one ever learn?

Jaka says. “You first.”

Arsa scoffs happily. “That time I drugged you and was gonna fuck you? I drank the wine first, too, but okay.”

To prove his point, Arsa brings the cup to his mouth. To prove himself, Jakadirek throws every fibre of his being into an attempt to kick the cup. Any retaliation will be worth adding scars to Arsa’s face and knocking out his teeth. It feels good to be a body in motion, with power fueling his kick.

His ankle slaps hard and bare into Arsa’s free hand. It’s not going anywhere. Arsa has always been good at physical things.

Arsa’s grip is more tenacious a manacle than one of metal. Jaka can try to jerk his foot away, but he knows it will only drag him toward Arsa’s fully weaponised body.

Fortunately, the attack doesn’t seem to diminish Arsa’s good mood one bit. He smirks into Jakadirek’s eyes and takes a gulp of water, then another. And another. Rivulets of water escape the chapped corners of his mouth, flow down his chin, drips down his throat and under the pitted and scratched black band.

Arsa has chewed at the collar. He probably has yet to reach the hand that feeds him.

Arsa holds the cup out wide and yanks on Jakadirek’s ankle. Jaka skids across the floor on his ass and, as Arsa pulls his ankle up and high, he’s dragged straight into Arsa’s warm lap. It’s a self-fulfilled prophecy.

“Aw,” Arsa says with a chuckle, “I never thought you’d want to pick up where we left off that night, Jaka. I still owe you. You saved my life twice and I only saved yours once.”

Jaka closes his eyes and shakes his head. “I don’t want to have sex with you, Arsa’olakai.”

Soft, wet, pressure makes a mark against Jakadirek’s naked ankle. It feels like a kiss. It probably is.

“I know. I don’t really want to fuck you, either.” It must be true, because Arsa’s breath might be hot on Jakadirek’s foot but his penis is soft in his pants right against Jaka’s ass. “Though I guess it might give you a frame of reference for what Kir‘s used to. Do you do that kinky Mi’iduor stuff to him? The rope stuff?”

Is that what Kir—no, Galokir. Galo Galo Galokir.

“Your lips are moving, Jaka, but I can’t... oh.”

Jakadirek shuts his eyes tighter. “You’ve never had permission to shorten my name.”

“You’ve got feelings for him.” Hot breath bathes Jaka’s ankle in humidity. It feels disgusting. “A fucking Mi’iduor, noble by birth, has it bad for Kir. Fire and fury, Jaka, you’re slumming just like old man Vishiv!”

The words are horrible. Arsa’s breath is horrible on each name. How does this mongrel know so much? Jakadirek opens his eyes to look Arsa in his mongrel face. “What do you know about Vishiv?”

“Nahhh,” Arsa says with that strange breathy quality Jaka had associated with Arsa‘s lust. “I’m not here for that. It’s getting cold lately and I wanna know if Kir’s okay. Sometimes, when it’s cold and humid, he gets bitchy. I think it’s some old injury but he wouldn’t admit it. When he’d get that way I used stones from a fire to massage him. You can do that, too, yeah?”

Arsa’s words burn with unfamiliar anger in Jaka’s chest. “He’s fine. He doesn’t need you. He’s glad you’re gone.”

But then some of the muddle of his mind clears and Jaka stills, if not relaxes. “You want me to go back to him? You’ll release me?”

“Betrayal is what I do best,” Arsa says with another sloppy shrug. “If Kir comes for you, I’ll let you go. That’s why you gotta keep us talking a secret.”

It doesn’t make sense. Jakadirek studies Arsa’olakai’s face for clues. The corners of his mouth are chapped, his brow low, he doesn’t have any new scars, but the mongrel mark looks oddly irritated in the diffused light.

“You want to leave,” Jaka says. Looking at the black leather band, he feels even more irritated with the mongrel. “Galokir will never take you back.”

Arsa’s teeth make a familiar appearance; he gnaws his lower lip contemplatively. “Yeah, but I owe you. I’ve been keeping a secret for you and that’s worth one life, at least, but I owe you twice.”

Experimentally, Jaka tugs at his foot. Arsa releases him and Jaka lowers his foot to the center of Arsa’s broad chest. “Any secret you have about me is worthless without Ilchathm.”

“Ilchathm is wherever Ashrei and Kir take it, Jaka.” Contemplation lifts from Arsa’s face. “Kiss me and I’ll tell you the secret.”

Jaka stares yet again. What could Arsa’olakai possibly know? The trade isn’t sex and it’s a low price if Arsa makes a guarantee. “Give me your word. One kiss and you tell me the secret you have for me.”

He watches as Arsa’s smile returns bit by bit.

“I give my word that if you kiss me like Kir kisses you, I’ll tell you the secret I’ve held for you.”

It’s always in Arsa’s nature to push the limits of what’s acceptable. Still, it’s a small price to pay. “Agreed. I want the water now.”

Arsa’s answering grin is uncomfortably bright and eager. Jaka lowers his foot and Arsa refills the cup. He makes himself comfortable in Arsa’s lap and thinks about the way Galokir kisses him.

There are different kinds of kisses between them and Arsa didn’t say which kind. If he wanted, he could give Arsa a simple peck on the nose. But no, something deep within, something hard to understand, has an answer.

Jakadirek takes the metal cup from Arsa and drains half. The other half he keeps in reserve to take the taste of the mongrel’s mouth off Jaka’s tongue.

“He usually takes initiative,” Jaka murmurs and sets the cup of water away from the jumble of their legs. Arsa looks more attentive than Jaka has ever seen.

Jakadirek doesn’t wait. He reaches past Arsa’s head and grabs the base of the mongrel’s long braid. Arsa jerks back, but Jaka is focused on Galokir: the passion that he unleashes, the way he seizes Jaka and envelopes him in sensation and consumes him with fire.

Like Galokir, he doesn’t lose his grip. He pulls Arsa down and opens his mouth to take over Arsa’s scarred lips. Arsa’s lips are dry, his mouth wet, his teeth more jagged than normal, but most surprising is the way he gives way under Jakadirek’s aggression. Arsa lets it happen and, unbelievably, allows Jaka the lead.

Keeping true to Galokir’s behaviour comes second nature: Jaka presses the attack. Arsa takes the invasion of Jakadirek’s tongue, the hints of teeth, and Arsa makes a low soft sound in his throat. He wilts back and Jaka crawls over him to keep the mesh of their mouths, the strokes of tongue, continuous and fierce.

When Jaka finally pulls his mouth away, he is crouching over Arsa and his mouth is wet and tingling. Beneath him, Arsa’s eyes are nearly shut and his thick lashes obscure the red. His lips are no longer dry, they’re swollen and wet, a tiny trail of saliva drips from one chapped corner.

Jakadirek immediately wipes his mouth with the back of his hand and sits back on Arsa’s thighs. He twists to grab the water and drinks it down, then takes the bottle of water and drains the rest.

Arsa remains lying on the floor, oddly languid, unusually quiet.

Jaka feels some disappointment in Arsa’s behaviour but he’s not sure why. He shakes a few last drops of water from the bottle and smears them across his lips. “Tell me the secret.”

“Yeah,” Arsa replies from the ground. “I know where Vishiv got Jadavei.”

Jakadirek’s heart seizes.

“New secret,” Arsa continues, “you kissed me willingly and passionately, in a way I bet Kir hasn’t ever had you kiss him. But I owe you twice, not three times. Letting you go counts for one, keeping the secret about your father’s origins counts for two, but this kiss? You don’t want Kir to ever know about that.”

Jaka acts without thought, he breaks the bottle to get a sharp edge and lunges for Arsa. But Arsa excels at physical things and the attack ends as swiftly as it begins, with Jakadirek crushed underneath the big mongrel both wrists held in one hand over Jaka’s head.

“I won’t tell him,” Arsa whispers in Jaka’s ear. “I’m sure we can come to an agreement. Kir’s really sensitive to betrayal, you know? You wouldn’t want to let him down the way I did, would you?”

#arsa'olakai #jakadirek mi'iduor

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the-art-of-suffering · 7 years

Text

Cherish Chpt 1

The drizzle of the day slowly warped into a downpour, sending people scurrying under eaves and over hangs or shuffling stiffly under their umbrellas, eager to find holes to hide in. Chernobyl was no exception to the rule. Pulling his backpack to his chest, hunched over it like an old man he half jogged, half shuffled across the street, eagerly pressing into the Coffee house, and sighing as the central heating engulfed him. Trying to draw as little attention as a drowned rat can, he sidles himself to the back wall and plops into a seat. Hoping against hope he rummages about in the bag, pulls out an older model smart phone (sans a case), and sighs in relief as he begins texting passively while he eyes the rest of the shop, this might be a solid place to camp for a while, dry his bones, and if it ain't too pricey, grab a bite. He had little to his name, but probably enough for something warm. Ace didn't exactly dislike his work here, but it was nowhere near as lively as his work at Wonderland- the club just down the street. He really didn't like people, and he certainly didn't like talking to them. Ironic for a barista. He, as many others, had that usual 'can you order for me?' anxiety, but working at the coffee shop was helping. Not that it was the reason why he was there, but it was a bonus. Still, he much more enjoyed the comfort of his phone. While he didn't do anything of interest on it, he did use it as a bit of a social escape, even when working at the counter. He'd put it away if someone wanted to order of course, but he still fled away to its safety throughout the day. Which was what he was doing when Chernobyl slipped into the shop. Ace looked up from his phone, brows raising slightly. After a moment of contemplation he slipped his phone into his pocket and leaned forward against the counter, calling over to him. He didn't have to speak too loud, considering it wasn't loud nor crowded there. A fairly peaceful environment, really. The most peace he ever found. "Heya," Ace blinked at Chernobyl, head tipped slightly. He offered a weak sort of smile, one that looked a bit sympathetic "Escapin’ the rain, huh?" There was a brief moment of lag, Chernobyl ignored the voice that chimed through the cozy buzzing background noise; people didn't usually go out of their way to chat him up. All the same the gears worked around the concept in his head and finally clicked the realization into place, and he lifted his head. His eyes danced over the scenery briefly until he noticed the male behind the counter, his smile, and his soft countenance. Chernobyl quickly, sloppily brushed his hair from his face, even as it stuck and matted to his skin from the damp and gave a nervous smile that showed too much teeth and looked queazy at best. He wasn’t necessarily an ugly fellow, but he was unkept, scrawny, built lanky and underfed. His hair was damaged and utterly fried, dyed too many colors over and over. Currently it was a multi-hued mess; mostly a pale mossy green, but with strips of violet, bits of blue, and longer than he used to keep it. It fell down to his shoulders, just a bit passed them and long enough to always be in his eyes. Peeking up out of the mess of his hair sat two dingy grey canid ears. Well. One and a half really. The top half of his left ear was just...gone. Behind him a matching tail, shaggy and matted fur, but very wolfish, just like the rest of him, right down to the intensity of his bright blue eyes. Briefly he broke his gaze, just to give one final sweeping glance to assure that, yes, the Barista, or what ever, was in fact speaking to him. Satisfied that it must be so, he swallowed hard and gave a wavering laugh. His voice came out rough, starting as a near whisper, clearly nervous, but steadied out by the end of his sentence "Oh, yeah, it really just hits outta nowheres sometimes, and if yer in it, yikes, ya know?" Ace grinned, looking relieved his words had not only been acknowledged, but replied to. His ‘devil-like’ tail swished a bit behind him in satisfaction- something people usually assumed was fake, along with the horns. He went with it. He did have a bit of a unique look to him though; his skin was pale, freckled across his nose and around his eyes, which were an aqua green sort of color. Around his eyes his skin was a bit darkened, he was probably lacking a solid week of sleep. Just cause. At least his hair was nice; it was messy but a nice deep red, and fairly soft to the touch. He also had two thin, darkened lines down either side of his neck, but the collar of his jacket mostly hid those. Forced to wear the usual apron for the shop, he still wore his usual outfit beneath- just a simple jacket and some skinny jeans. And some high-tops. He was fairly short without them. Ace drummed his nails along the counter with a hum and a nod "For sure." He gestured up at the hanging menus "You don't have to like, buy anything.. but you totally can. That's sorta, why we're here." His brows raised and he offered another hopeful grin at him. While he wasn't a particularly impressive salesman, he was honest and simply just trying to make sure he had something to do. Before Chernobyl could even answer, he added on another quick comment "Your hair is awesome, by the way." As he sat listening, he eyed the hanging menus and half hearted had nodded along. Yeah he could definitely order something, the whole shop was swimming in the rich aromas of cocoas and coffees and he couldn’t deny that a warm drink sounded nice. Especially on a day like this. But then that compliment hit him and his face took on a pink hue, and his expression stiffened. Compliments, even simple ones didn't really.... happen to him. You see, unlike Ace, Chernobyl wasn't well kept, or straightened up. His jeans clung to his boney hips awkwardly, as though they were tempted to slide right off any moment. Sure they seemed to be tight enough, but they weren’t quite long enough in the in-seem, perhaps. They could be riding up at the ankles too, but the ends of them vanished behind the muddy army surplus boots that tied loosely up his shins; mismatched laces and all. The only part of his outfit that seems to actually fit him was his crop top. Black, hanging off one shoulder, and emblazoned with a faded band logo. In an awkward, nervous sort of way he pulled his lip ring into his mouth and sucked on it for a moment as he attempted to formulate a reply. Finally after another nervous laugh, he swayed himself to stand and shuffled up a bit closer to the counter, his hands beginning to fidget. "Uh uhm, Thanks man, yers too. Uh hair, Yer hairs a great color." He chewed at his lip again for just a moment, then blurted out "Uh could i get a..a chai latte? Oh shi, uhm Vanilla chai...latte?" Ace smiled, laughing a bit at the hair comment nodding "For sure. And thanks!" He turned, starting to make the drink for him. On one hand, he wondered if this guy really was just.. utterly poor and genuinely in bad shape. On the other, he didn't want to be rude or intrusive. He usually was, but he was trying not to be. He spoke some more as he made the drink, mostly to fill an inevitably awkward silence "So you don't like the rain, huh? I have a couple friends who love it, but god damn.. I'll pass." Something in the way Ace spoke, or maybe just the way the coffee shop was like a port in the storm, seemed to put Chernobyl a bit as ease, he dug around in his back pocket, issuing forth a few folded bills. As he craned his neck down, counting the stray cash, a small smile slowly eased across his face, and a smoother, far less nervous laugh tumbled out of him. "Nahhh. I'm not big on the rain. It smells nice by itself, but buddy, you have no idea how hard it is to get the wet dog smell outta stuff." his shoulders bounced a bit at his own little joke, and for the first time since he had bolted into the building, his own tail untucked itself and gave a gentle wag. Ace finished the drink and spun around about as quick as he could without spilling it. He set it onto the counter and leaned forward on his elbows, watching Chernobyl intently "So tell me about that." He said, "Cause thats all totally real, right," he paused for a moment, adding on "Four fifty by the way." His own thin, black tail swished from one side to the other, his head just slightly tipped in curiosity. While any super natural wasn't exactly unheard of, it wasn't quite common, either. Well, it was for Ace, in a way, that was just sort of the crowd he hung with. With a perk of his one good ear, Chernobyl doled out a wrinkled fiver, sliding it across the counter. He gave a bit of a shrug as he dropped a couple beyond crumpled ones into the tip jar. "Dunno what all to tell ya. Guess I was just born this way. None too many of us left up this way I guess. Seen more vamps, than dogs truthful." he seemed almost wistful as he spoke, a soft sort of sadness slipping in underneath the over casual way his words tumbled out. He grinned, carefully took the chai in both hands and felt the warmth of it ebb into his fingers and palms. He did lift his eyes again after a moment, a subtle quirk to his eyebrows. " You though. Ain't really sure I’ve ever seen one like you before. Maybe I just ain't been lookin’ too hard." He seemed relatively relaxed, encountering a supernatural of unknown ilk. Maybe he just didn’t think anything working as a barista could be that deadly, maybe he just lacked a sense of self preservation. Maybe he just didn't care. Which ever the case, He took a sip of his drink, winced at the heat, and began to blow on it a little. Ace took the five and pushed back two quarters in return. He nodded, shrugging to himself "Me neither, not really. What goes on with you though? I mean," he reached a hand out "Are your ears more sensitive and stuff? Can you change fully?" He would have apologized for being so nosy but honestly, he didn't care anymore. Maybe he would have a couple years ago but he'd just given up. The sheer matter of factness in this guy's questions really threw Chern for a loop. He gave a crooked grin and pocketed the quarters as he coughed out a laugh that was more air than voice. There was a brief pause, long enough for him to take another sip of his drink, before he shrugged and decided that, really, what harm could it do? As he set the drink down he adjusted his hips and leaned against the wall of the counter a bit as he spoke. " Well, I used to have pretty good hearing, not as much now, least on this side." He was becoming a more and more animated speaker, clearly more relaxed. His shoulders bounced a bit as he flicked at the base of his left ear. The ear seemed like it had been a clean cut, but the fur grew ragged around the scar tissue. He didn’t seem to be too bothered by it though, easily moving on in the conversation. "As for turnin’, yeah it's possible, takes effort and energy though. And it ain’t bout the moon at all. Just adrenaline an willpower. Sometimes fear'll do it too, those ain’t fun though, ya ain’t got any control." He shifted again, checking the room, maybe a bit worried about eaves droppers, but continued never the less. "What about you? Demon? Fae? I've heard of some changling folk what can't quite get the glamour down to look fully human." Ace hummed, chin resting on his hands "Mmm, yeah somethin’ like that.." he bit his lip, perhaps a bit more seductively than intended. Or maybe exactly so. His eyes lidded slightly, green eyes focusing on Cher "But if I told ya, you might think I'll put a spell on you. Might make things weird, y’know?" He giggled slightly, shrugging as he sat back, arms crossing casually. "What happened to your ear? Now I'm curious.." The boy shifted his weight onto his hip, gaze still locked intently on the male before him. Beyond just having fairly pretty eyes, despite the tired look, there was something about the way he looked at someone that was almost.. tempting. While his words were casual, his aura was a bit more alluring. Not too noticeably so, at least at the moment. He wasn't really trying. Cher bit at his lip again, trying not to smile. He wasn't usually this chatty. He took a sip of his drink to try and hide just how wide the smile wanted to be. He liked talkin’ to this guy. And yet... It was a strange cocktail mixing up in his guts. He felt a strange charisma drawing him in, but it set off his trigger happy paranoia as well. A little voice in the farthest corner of him mind seemed to whisper a warning that, that pretty face, that smooth voice, that everything about this man and the silky way he moved... was the cleverly arranged bait on a trap. He laughed again, but there was almost an underlying bit of a whine to it. He was enjoying himself far, far too much, and talking far too openly. If there was anything that he had learned growing up homeless, it was that usually honeyed words lead to stings, or worse. He was always shit at staying outta trouble though. So he ignored the red flags, and swallowed down the want to step backwards and instead, leaned inward, resting his elbows on the counter. Nothing ventured, nothing gained... right? "Look, now... If I told ya, you would prolly think bad of me and lets face it, I gotta work hard enough to make a good first impression. " Ace practically purred at this, watching him for a few moments longer. He stood back with a somewhat satisfied sway of his hips, his tail following rhythmically. "Tell ya what," Ace said, tapping his fingertips across the counter, a smug smile taking his lips "My shift ends within the hour. You can make your good impression today, and by the time you leave, I bet I'll get that story.. mm? How's that sound?" He pressed his hands against the edge of the counter, leaning in once more. He looked hopeful, almost innocently so. After all, his curiosity was genuine. If more were to come, whatever that may imply, then so be it. Ace was quite used to the unexpected, he knew full well that nothing was ever simple as it was intended. Maybe, even, he enjoyed it. Perhaps that's why nothing was ever so simple for him. He always had been the root of his own troubles. For just a brief moment, Cher was smiling, wholesome, and his eyes seemed filled with the light of a giddy satisfaction. This was an unexpected surprise. He grinned, ear to ear, and had a light honey-glow. It's not everyday someone seems so interested. All those red flags vanished under the rose colored glasses of a childish sort of infatuation. That voice in the shadows inside him tried to tell him this was a bad idea, tried to warn him that when something looks too good to be true... it is. It always is. But Cher just shoved it away, like he always did. What's the worst that could happen? This silken man before him, with his movements, like liquid gold, would probably eat him alive, but what did he care? He figured nothing this guy could do to him would be worse than what's already been done. So he let the honey glow, and he let his smile light his face and his tail wagged just a bit harder than normal. "I can't think of anything I'd rather be doing, so sure, I'll take that bet. My plans were kinda cancelled by the rain anyway...so I uh, I'd like that." Oh, the way he spoke almost sounded genuine. In spite of himself, he hoped for something different. How naive a silly, stupid 24 year old could be. He hoped like this every single time. Ace snapped his fingers and crossed his arms, mirroring the wide grin. "Awesome." He glanced to the clock, then turned his attention right back to Chernobyl "So good and bad news, then," his fingers tapped thoughtfully against his bicep "Bad news is it's raining still, and unless we're gonna hang around here, we gotta go out in it. Good news, I don't live too far. We could hide in a street shop or kick it at my place," he rocked on his heels, looking just a bit awkward. He sounded it too, as a slightly unsure laugh left him "Not that my place is.. any nicer than anywhere else 'round here." In fact Ace's apartment didn't even have heating. And his fridge had been.. stolen? It was lacking a fair amount, but he had made it his home and it was good enough for him. Cheap, too. Things were evolving quickly, but Cher was pretty used to that. After all, how else do things like one night stands and 'business transactions' go? It's an in and an out. Two people get what they want, goods and services are exchanged, and then the people become strangers again. That's just how people worked and Cher had no inclination to assume any different from this new person. But Cher had to wonder... what could this guy think Cher could offer him. His childish heart mused it could be attraction, but he had to quiet those hopes and look at it logically. Maybe the barista thought he was carrying? Maybe he thought Cher could cut him a good deal if he flirted? And he wouldn’t be wrong, Cher was easily swayed. As he mulled the possibilities over he stared out the door, watching it pour, sheets of hard, cold water howling down at the concrete streets. His voice seemed a little distant as he spoke " Well, there's a record shop down the road, and I think that fifties diner burger shop whatever stays open pretty late... but we can hit up your place if... that’s more your thing?" He probably wasn’t being as subtle as he thought he was, but he wanted to legit get a gauge of where Ace's head was, maybe a hint at his intentions, because, while Cher had no intention of backing out, he did kinda wanna know how deep the water was he was jumping into. Ace hummed, head tipping as he thought. "Mmm... how about.." he shifted his weight onto his other him, tail swaying "Let's hit my place for a bit, and since the burger joint is open late, we'll go later. I love that night life." While this was true, it wasn't because he found the lights pretty. It may have been partially that, but a large portion of it was the adrenaline. He lived in a sketchy part of town and shady shit happened, all the time. He was no stranger to this. The fear fueled him, he loved every second of the nightlife. Between joyrides on his motorcycle in speeds far too high, and playing games he should never play with gangs he should have never met, he always found himself in less than favorable situations. And even still, he always found a way out, more or less. Well, there was his answer. Private places out of the light, away from peeping and prying eyes. This might be a fun night after all. Absently Cher wondered, could this guy be a murderer? Aren’t serial killers usually charismatic and shit? He laughed a bit and looked back at Ace with that thought in mind. Well he was definitely charismatic...Cher bet he probably lifted is some swanky hipster artist loft and everything. He slowly meandered back over to the booth where his bag was. He knew he was holding, but wasn't sure how much was left, so he kinda wanted to take inventory, ruffling lightly through the main pouch as he spoke over his shoulder. "How romantic, taking me home to meet the parents already? You must really like me." It was spoken lightly and clearly in jest, but he was also prodding for a bit of information, seeing what he could get Ace to reveal about himself and his intentions. Ace laughed lightly at this, casually checking his phone as Cher stepped away. He was the type to always have to check it every few minutes, but the only reason was purely a momentary anxious escape. "No parents, just a dog." He said simply, carelessly eying over any notifications he had received. "And a raccoon. Lil baby one, he's livin’ in my closet right now." Ace said this casually, but he soon paused, as though actually remembering he had a raccoon at his house. A grin stretched across his face as he looked back to Cher "Holy fuck I love raccoons.. I found this guy crawlin’ around outside of," his voice gave the slightest pause- work? Night job? Club? Wonderland? He finally settled with one, as quick and casually as he could manage. Didn't want to weird this guy out too soon. "Work, and he was all dirty and ugly and alone so I took him home. Been takin care of him ever since." Clearly along the way of the conversation Ace had gotten genuinely distracted. No escape mechanism, no subtle diversion. He was simply honestly excited about his new pet. There was this momentary pause where Cher just sorta stared off into space, a confused, almost dumbfounded expression. This guy couldn’t be seriou- oh.. he...he was. A raccoon. Cher tilted his head, a crooked smile on his face, that something along the lines of 'wow you dork'. With a slight clearing of his throat he sat down next to his bag and closed it, giving a little nod. "Nice a uh, raccoon, huh? That’s cool. I once lived with this ma possum and her little babies, pretty cute. Never really been up close with a raccoon though. Is he hard to care for?" Ace nearly slammed his hands against the counter, eyes wide. It likely drew some stares, if the few patrons weren't already staring. "Shit! I love possums too!" He reached his hands out, fingers wiggling "Like they both have the little grabby hands y’know?" After another moment of his demonstration he collected himself enough to answer. "And not really, they eat literally anything so I get him some grapes or crackers or cat or dog food. Y’know, basically whatever." Dang. This guy. This guy was cute. Cher hated himself for thinking that. He hated that he felt anything even close to that kinda sappy shit, but he still couldn’t help that his heart made a little bit of a 'doki doki'. His smile softened, and he just kinds tilted his head endearingly. "Yeah? That’s cool. I bet he's real happy to have someone caring for him. How's the dog mind the lil' guy? And uh, what kinda dog? Sometimes the big ones don't like me too much. Guess they think I'm competition or somethin’ heheh." Ace chuckled at this, giving a brief lift of his shoulders "She's a Doberman but she's nice. I'm sure she'll love you. She's trained really well so even if she doesn't for whatever reason, she won't bite or anything. As long as you don't stab me or some shit, she'll just lay around." He hummed, one brow lifting slightly. He said this as honest information, but perhaps also a subtle warning in case Cher had any tricks up his sleeve. After all, Ace had taken plenty of people home. While the action in itself may have been foolish, he wasn't stupid. He knew how quickly things could go south. Not that he usually tried to stop it, though. "And yeah, she actually really likes him. She's really gentle, I think she thinks he's a puppy or something.. she'll clean him and carry him to his closet if he gets out, thank god cause I can't keep track of him all the time. Lil brat.." he spoke with a happy fondness in his tone though. He was just so happy to have a raccoon. Cher lifted his brows in surprise. Somehow, doberman just fit. This guy looked like he would have a doberman. But also like he sound have like, maybe a Pomeranian or something. Guess thats where the raccoon came in. He nodded a bit, thoughtful as he lifted his gaze to the ceiling. "Doberman huh? Nice. Smart dogs." Then Suddenly, a thought. "Oh, I just realized, I'm going home with ya but I don’t think we ever did the whole... intro thing. We could do the name swaps and shit, if thats your thing? Or I guess we could leave an air of mystery to our late night rendezvous." Ace couldn't help but laugh at this "Fuck you're right, oh my god.." he laughed again, shaking his head, grinning once more "Im Ace. Clearly not an ace at introductions.." he then gave a very dead inside expression and a drained, 'kill me' sort of laugh. The haha... ha... I'm so.. funny.. kill me. "Oh my God. Did you...Did you really..." His ears wilted to the sides, his face twisted in a sick sort of delight. This guy really did it, he really went for that pun. Amazing. He took a sharp inhale and drummed his fingers on the table. "Wowww. Mad, mad props for just jumping right off that cliff. I'm Chernobyl. But ya can use Cher, Cherno, Shithead, what ever pulls yer trigger, Ace." Ace's brows raised, his grin turning into a bit of a smirk "Pulls your trigger, huh? Never heard that. More of eh, whatever tickles your peach. Maybe that's just me though." He shrugged, hands shifting into his pockets "Chernobyl. I like that. Never met a Chernobyl before. Pretty fancy, eh?" Cher waved his hands about a bit as he spoke casually, with a little bit of a toothy grin. "Pulls yer trigger, pops yer cherry, threads yer needle... ya know..heheh..." The laugh sort of subsided and ended with a sigh and a little shrug. "I dunno about fancy. But it's the only one I got, and I guess I kinda earned it... but I do get laughed at once in a while for it." Ace tipped his head at this "Really? I like it. I think it's cool." He glanced to the clock again, huffing out a breath "Fifteen then I'm free." He glanced around, lips pursing "I could literally just leave.." Ace nodded to himself, pulling his phone out. He sent out a text, pulling off his apron with his other hand "Fuck it. Let's get outta here." He said, kicking the apron under one of the shelves. He'd find it again later, he always did. He quite literally hopped over the counter, straightening out his hoodie a bit. Now no longer behind the counter, one could see he was actually fairly lean, though most of his muscle was hidden away beneath his baggy sweatshirt. He was fairly small, really, despite his attempt at gaining a couple inches in his shoes. His tail was probably longer than as he was, if it ever straightened out. Though usually it swayed or swished back and forth, and towards the end it had a kink in it, causing it to jut out to one side a bit before returning to its normal snake-like sway. Eagerly, Cher stood and hefted his bag over his shoulder. He was excited. It had been a while since something ...else... something like this made his blood race and his entire body tremble just a little bit. He moved to follow Ace, almost submissively. He was a follower, it's what he knew, he was just a dog after all. Absent minded-like he began chewing at his labret as he watched that serpentine tail. Was he really following this guy into a den of vipers? And why was he so excited thinking about that? " So uh, h-how far is it to yer place? Do we need to uh c-call a cab or anythin’?" Ace waved a hand, stopping at the door "Nah, it's close. We just gotta deal with the rain." He pulled his hood up, which was just barely big enough to fit over his horns, "It's walking distance. But we're gonna walk fast, cause I hate the rain. Sound good?" He looked from the windows and the rain they sealed off, to Chernobyl, brows lifting. Cher gave another one of those dumb toothy grins and nodded. "Ya don't gotta tell me twice, I'll be right behind ya all the way. I'm not about that standing in the rain and catchin’ my breath B.S. So lead the way Maestro." His tail tucked up close to his butt, and his ears were pinned back, but otherwise he ready to bolt. "Aight, sick." Ace pushed open one of the doors, peering around to see if there was any cover he could retreat to. Fortunately, just down the sidewalk, there was an overhang from one of the nearby buildings that could provide shelter, at least for part of the way. And that was his target. The downpour was heavy and grey, threatening to soak any who dare linger in the open for any more than a second. But Ace seemed to have it figured out. "Cmon, let's go."

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