Well if I'm in town with you I'm prepared to lose a little sleep.
[ John did laugh though. The line after maybe might have been a touch too far. ]
It's a protection charm over the jewel attached. Came from a set of crown jewels that were blessed by an old Celtic mage. That piece there was one of four that were part of a Carolingian cross. Said he never lost a battle the king wore it in.
[And fuck if that doesn't make him get more interested. How long has it been since John has been around anyway?]
That's--John. It should be in a museum.
[It's a more reasonable protest than completely refuting that Murdock isn't battling. What a mess. He reaches for the cross more than the charm. It's heavy, it hums the way neon does in a charged bulb. Though instead of radiating light or warmth.... it's something.]
Depends on how quick I can hit the daily double this time. My capromancy isn't as precise as I'd like it to be, Chas'll make me pay for gas.
[ Too long. It's an itch neither of them should really be scratching. Yet here they are, flirting with danger as it were. ]
Ta for that Indiana. It's not as if I knicked it from one. I save that for special occasions. An old friend of mine had one tucked away at his. I'm just reappropriating it to better hands. Wasn't doing any good sitting on a dusty old shelf.
Wait, I thought you said that you were working. Which would mean people gave you money for your services.
[Services. Expertise. It's still a transaction. English law, let alone law in Europe is not always as straightforward as American labor law. God, is he just going by verbal contracts?
Someday Matthew will befriend and entangle himself with a person that will not give him as many reasons to shake them and embrace them.]
With so much history in it, it should be in a place where it can be appreciated. I don't want to entertain the idea that you'd think that I would want you to liberate or re-appropriate anything.
For the record, don't ever steal anything on my behalf. You're better than that.
[ But please, tell him if there's a tax write-off or something he can use that involve petty dabbling and exorcisms. Sounds like a legal nightmare, all that.
And no, it isn't verbal contracts. It's magical ones. They're a little more binding than the regular old human kind. ]
History that's been buried and retold until only a handful know the full story of it. It is in the perfect spot to be appreciated and that is right around your lovely neck.
You didn't entertain it and I didn't steal it. My friend left it to me. I'm giving it to you. Balance and the like, figured that'd be right up your alley. Scales of Justice and all.
[ There goes Matt believing the best in everyone. He really isn't better than all that. ]
I think one of us is confused as to who among us is the upstanding citizen.
Unconventional, sure. You're entitled to compensation if you do something for someone. At least equal pay for travel? Food? Are you living off of lottery money??
[If John could work the system the way he works magic, everything would be wine and roses. Tax write-offs can work if it all comes back to employment in a logical way.]
If nothing else at all it makes me think of you.
[That same charged feeling without the smell of cigarettes, gruff laugh and sly playfulness.]
Your moral compass might be a bit broken, north is north.
That's a nice way of putting it. Besides, pretty sure the church isn't hiring nor would they bother with the likes of me.
My smoke reading isn't as bad as that. I do just fine. Most days.
[ The kind of compensation he'd want isn't the kind he's liable to get. He damned a little girl's soul to hell and that's what's waiting for him. No amount of upstanding work of any kind is going to erase that kind of a blemish.
It's not so bad as far as work goes though. Sending every bastard demon he can find back into the pit. ]
Certainly hope that's not the only thing that makes you think of me.
[ John is a man of action in all senses of the word and while he has lots of back and forth with many members of both sexes, there's something to be said about a good, steady partner sometimes. He knows Matt doesn't tell him everything, but his body speaks in ways the lawyer doesn't. Telling, if one can read it right. John is well-versed in a lot of things. ]
Not all the time. I ran into a creature once that could trick navigational equipment. Used it to secure his food.
None of that is reassuring at all. I hope you know that.
[John is his own man, he is an adult. If he wanted help he'd ask for it. Though what help could Matt honestly give when one: he's in England at present and two: that would further the entanglement. Friendship. This vague back and forth. Almost and not quite. Fitting and frustrating.
Matt prays for him as he prays for his city, for his sins and for redemption.]
...more than a handful of things make me think of you.
[And this is the truth.]
Stop. You know what I mean. It's a compliment. Take it. It won't hurt you.
[ About that in England bit--- He's actually been staying in the States. Georgia. He brushes a thumb over the phone screen. He still remembers the last night they had together before John had to leave.
No, he didn't have to. He did. For Matt's sake. At least that's what he tells himself. He'll ignore the compliment for the moment to save himself some pain. ]
So if I said I was just a 13 hour drive away---
We could talk about that handful of things in person?
[ That went a lot better than he thought it would. Matt's still talking to him. Doesn't mean he might not end up getting punched for this trouble when he gets there though.
It won't stop him from going. ]
Give me an hour or two so I can sort the travel arrangements, and I'll be on my way so you can yell at me in person to your heart's content.
[ This is stupid. Stupid even for John who does that in spades. He shouldn't go there. The protective amulet is supposed to keep things that go bump in the night or worse away from Murdock so long as John keeps his distance.
If he goes back to New York, he may well invite all that right up to his doorstep. ]
try it, only for a little while. for a vacation or a breather. I don't know. What's so wrong with dull sometimes?
[Boy, typing that does make him a hypocrite. And he wonders why they're drawn together. They've got better natures about them and those should be enabled as much as the worst ones. Can anyone punch sense into a person? John would be the first to know.]
An hour? What would you have said or done if I said I was busy?
[Matt bites back on accusations of finding another person to roll in the hay with. That's not fair to John or to himself. He knows that there's more than a little fondness. Christ though, it won't end well. Though if they keep playing hot potato with affection and feelings, maybe it won't. Maybes are as bad as ifs.]
[ Mental hospital is dull for him. Garden variety lunatics and the like. He wanted to believe that the things he'd seen and done weren't real. He wanted to forget. Like he'd ever be able to forget Astra's screams or the feel of hellfire on his skin throwing him away as she was ripped from his arms.
Only followed in second by the Devil of Hell's kitchen himself. Not that John knows exactly what Matt gets up to, but he has an idea or two. ]
Be a gentleman and let you finish of course. I've still got 13 hours on the road. Plenty of time to sort the line of weeping men and women at your door.
[ Like he couldn't guess where that was going. Not that he'd mind. He'd be a hypocrite himself if he did. This is going to end badly, John already knows it. Hell, he can't be bothered to do anything different though. There's a draw there between them. Like some bloody invisible string of fate. ]
I can think of a few already and that won't even get us past your front door.
[Oblivious to just how bad and how dark the narrow hallways of the past wander and split from the present. See though, they speak so much about the now. About who they are and principles that looking over old scars is not yet an activity they've done much. What does Matt even say anyway?
For now he is trying not to grin, not to hope or believe any more than he has.]
Ever the gentleman.
[In his way.]
Tell me. Make sure I don't change my mind in 13 hours.
[ Ravenscar couldn't give John what he wanted. Nothing can, really. He can just dull the pain once in a while. If he's drunk enough. Or too caught up in good sex to really give a shit. The exhaustion after a job that requires a lot of magic almost does the trick. ]
Don't go blabbing that to anyone, you'll murder my reputation.
[ He has his moments. ]
Let's say I've got no intention of making it anywhere close to a flat surface before I begin my heartfelt apology to you. Though we may end up scandalizing your elderly neighbor if we aren't careful.
Color me surprised. I didn't think you'd try. I stand corrected.
[Or at least he can't outright peg it to be a lie here. And that would be telling too. Matt has tried not to stiffen or alter his reactions when he can tell a fib. No one asked him to listen to John's heart beat.]
I'd rather keep it all to myself.
[Oohh Murdock. Just stop. He considers putting away his phone for his own good.]
I like you different colors. That flush is a particular favorite of mine while we're on the subject.
[ He lies quite a bit. He'll say it's to protect others but it's mostly to protect himself. Hurts less than the truth. It's amazing that withered old thing still rattles away under his ribs honestly. ]
Well you are more the hands-on type. I'm appreciative of it.
[ No please, continue. ]
So what do you say? We'll make sure we don't have an audience and I can show you my appreciation for taking me in on such short notice?
[Ohh Christ. Now it's being laid on thick on both ends. Bad. Very bad. The worst.]
You don't like crowds all that much anyway. So yeah, just me.
[No accomplices. When they're alone the focus is on John as he is. Good or bad. Truth and lies. If Matt wasn't so used to looking for the difference he'd likely not find it. John is so accomplished in illusions as much as incantations and the like.]
I'm an excellent host, you know that. And I'd like to catch up. Intimately.
[ It's all he can manage with such enormous distance between them currently. He's more than a man of words, though. Action is right up his alley and he makes good on what he does say. ]
Not since my punk rock days, no. Do my best work with little to no audience.
[ Not that John isn't against a little light voyeurism, he just knows when his bedfellows aren't. No amount of magick or tricks can hide enough from Murdock, not that he knows it yet. He's got an idea, but that doesn't give him all the details.
Plus, it isn't really a post-coitus conversation starter. Not a good one anyways. ]
Well, after I've greeted you properly, I'm sure a shower is in order. Stuffy car for hours on end and all. Good start?
[At times Matt had hoped that the distance would give him a chance to gather himself. They don't come from the same world, they don't operate with the same belief system. Though for all of the opposites those don't sum to be negatives. No, he's intriguing. Matt leans into him the way he'd lean into anticipating a punch.]
No audience is invited.
[Whatever happens to come through the walls happens to come through the walls.]
I'll lend you a hand, just in case. Don't want you to miss any spots because you're road weary.
[ Absence makes the heart grow fonder. John would say that his old, busted one doesn't count but he loves fiercely. He wishes he didn't. It would hurt less with what he does. He's walked the same kinds of paths that Matt has but they led him to different places once he met Annie. Opened a whole new world for him.
Being drawn to New York for that vile business before had ended with an unexpected bonus and also made it harder to leave. ]
All to myself then. Anything could happen.
[ Hopefully amazingly wonderful things. Lots of sex. Good food and a little booze. ]
Nothing self-serving in that scenario at all, yeah?
[Try as he might to be aloof, distant and unaffected, John has a charm to him. Matt is not immune. He likes the sound of his voice, the way he spins his sentences. The careful touch of his hand and the energy that hums on through him. It's not fair. A few laughs, a few smiles and before you know it a compromising position....]
Specific things will happen. You and I, no clothes.
[The stupidly expensive wine that Foggy bought him that he has had no reason to touch yet. Maybe the rest of his beer.]
I am absolutely looking out for your best interest alone.
[If Matt used emojis there would be a halo wearing smiley face here.]
[ Distant and aloof keeps the people he cares about safe. At least for the most part. Magickal items shore up the rest of it. It's simpler when he's around Matt. There's a right and a wrong and little bit of grey area. No question as to when John's past might catch up to him and who might be in the way. ]
I love a man who knows what he wants.
[ He'll bring over a few beers and some good scotch. They'll make a night of it. He can grab what he needs to cook after. Wouldn't be the first time he's fought a hangover after a night of really good sex on top of it. ]
Absolute Saint you are.
[ He can imagine. It suits. ]
You ain't got to wonder. Just think about the last time. We got out of your hall then. I've got no intention of that here.
[The danger that Matt faces is not the same as the danger that John faces. For now he believes it to be more of questionable people, racketeers. Folks that use the power of belief to manipulate and run businesses in darkness. John's connection to magic has been seen as just...a belief. And who is he to say that it's outright wrong when they have been respectable to the other's ideology.
They are put at odds there, push comes to shove. Matt wonders if they will burn and fizzle out the way that attraction does when it burns hot. His heart beats fast and his demeanor lightens at the possibility of the Londoner around.]
You can be more specific.
[As if there is any doubt as to what is in store. Desperate, messy kisses before alcohol is even involved. Eventually tasting whatever is on tap from one another's skins.]
That's--way, way too generous of you to say. I'm a lot of things. Not quite a saint.
[And not like any devil he has dealt with before.]
[ John is keen to let him believe what he will. Sighted or not the kind of world he deals with on the daily is not for most. He doesn't want to find out the category Matt falls into. He doesn't want to put him in the line of fire.
Distance makes him wonder what will come of them. He hopes that the moments they find in between miles will be enough. He likes being around the other man. Scrappy boy with scars that don't make sense for his day job. ]
What I've got in mind to start is going to murder my knees. Good thing the trousers will be out of the way.
[ Which of course comes after the punch drunk kisses between them. He can almost feel the charge in the air already. ]
More a saint than me at any rate.
[ Not in the least. The good kind. ]
They say it's a virtue. That's on the way to sainthood, right?
[ He's talked Chas into going along with this idea. Only because he'll give over gas money and pay for the hotel on top of it. Good thing his numbers the last few days have panned out. ]
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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[ John did laugh though. The line after maybe might have been a touch too far. ]
It's a protection charm over the jewel attached. Came from a set of crown jewels that were blessed by an old Celtic mage. That piece there was one of four that were part of a Carolingian cross. Said he never lost a battle the king wore it in.
Least that's the rumor.
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[And fuck if that doesn't make him get more interested. How long has it been since John has been around anyway?]
That's--John. It should be in a museum.
[It's a more reasonable protest than completely refuting that Murdock isn't battling. What a mess. He reaches for the cross more than the charm. It's heavy, it hums the way neon does in a charged bulb. Though instead of radiating light or warmth.... it's something.]
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[ Too long. It's an itch neither of them should really be scratching. Yet here they are, flirting with danger as it were. ]
Ta for that Indiana. It's not as if I knicked it from one. I save that for special occasions. An old friend of mine had one tucked away at his. I'm just reappropriating it to better hands. Wasn't doing any good sitting on a dusty old shelf.
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[Services. Expertise. It's still a transaction. English law, let alone law in Europe is not always as straightforward as American labor law. God, is he just going by verbal contracts?
Someday Matthew will befriend and entangle himself with a person that will not give him as many reasons to shake them and embrace them.]
With so much history in it, it should be in a place where it can be appreciated. I don't want to entertain the idea that you'd think that I would want you to liberate or re-appropriate anything.
For the record, don't ever steal anything on my behalf. You're better than that.
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[ But please, tell him if there's a tax write-off or something he can use that involve petty dabbling and exorcisms. Sounds like a legal nightmare, all that.
And no, it isn't verbal contracts. It's magical ones. They're a little more binding than the regular old human kind. ]
History that's been buried and retold until only a handful know the full story of it. It is in the perfect spot to be appreciated and that is right around your lovely neck.
You didn't entertain it and I didn't steal it. My friend left it to me. I'm giving it to you. Balance and the like, figured that'd be right up your alley. Scales of Justice and all.
[ There goes Matt believing the best in everyone. He really isn't better than all that. ]
I think one of us is confused as to who among us is the upstanding citizen.
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[If John could work the system the way he works magic, everything would be wine and roses. Tax write-offs can work if it all comes back to employment in a logical way.]
If nothing else at all it makes me think of you.
[That same charged feeling without the smell of cigarettes, gruff laugh and sly playfulness.]
Your moral compass might be a bit broken, north is north.
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My smoke reading isn't as bad as that. I do just fine. Most days.
[ The kind of compensation he'd want isn't the kind he's liable to get. He damned a little girl's soul to hell and that's what's waiting for him. No amount of upstanding work of any kind is going to erase that kind of a blemish.
It's not so bad as far as work goes though. Sending every bastard demon he can find back into the pit. ]
Certainly hope that's not the only thing that makes you think of me.
[ John is a man of action in all senses of the word and while he has lots of back and forth with many members of both sexes, there's something to be said about a good, steady partner sometimes. He knows Matt doesn't tell him everything, but his body speaks in ways the lawyer doesn't. Telling, if one can read it right. John is well-versed in a lot of things. ]
Not all the time. I ran into a creature once that could trick navigational equipment. Used it to secure his food.
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[John is his own man, he is an adult. If he wanted help he'd ask for it. Though what help could Matt honestly give when one: he's in England at present and two: that would further the entanglement. Friendship. This vague back and forth. Almost and not quite. Fitting and frustrating.
Matt prays for him as he prays for his city, for his sins and for redemption.]
...more than a handful of things make me think of you.
[And this is the truth.]
Stop. You know what I mean. It's a compliment. Take it. It won't hurt you.
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[ About that in England bit--- He's actually been staying in the States. Georgia. He brushes a thumb over the phone screen. He still remembers the last night they had together before John had to leave.
No, he didn't have to. He did. For Matt's sake. At least that's what he tells himself. He'll ignore the compliment for the moment to save himself some pain. ]
So if I said I was just a 13 hour drive away---
We could talk about that handful of things in person?
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[Except he does. And he likely always will.
Like right now.]
I'd say you're a fucking tease and that we might talk about a few of those things.
If holds more weight with you than I ever believed it would, John.
[And it's dangerous. So dangerous.]
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[ That went a lot better than he thought it would. Matt's still talking to him. Doesn't mean he might not end up getting punched for this trouble when he gets there though.
It won't stop him from going. ]
Give me an hour or two so I can sort the travel arrangements, and I'll be on my way so you can yell at me in person to your heart's content.
[ This is stupid. Stupid even for John who does that in spades. He shouldn't go there. The protective amulet is supposed to keep things that go bump in the night or worse away from Murdock so long as John keeps his distance.
If he goes back to New York, he may well invite all that right up to his doorstep. ]
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[Boy, typing that does make him a hypocrite. And he wonders why they're drawn together. They've got better natures about them and those should be enabled as much as the worst ones. Can anyone punch sense into a person? John would be the first to know.]
An hour? What would you have said or done if I said I was busy?
[Matt bites back on accusations of finding another person to roll in the hay with. That's not fair to John or to himself. He knows that there's more than a little fondness. Christ though, it won't end well. Though if they keep playing hot potato with affection and feelings, maybe it won't. Maybes are as bad as ifs.]
Try and give me reasons to not yell at you.
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[ Mental hospital is dull for him. Garden variety lunatics and the like. He wanted to believe that the things he'd seen and done weren't real. He wanted to forget. Like he'd ever be able to forget Astra's screams or the feel of hellfire on his skin throwing him away as she was ripped from his arms.
Only followed in second by the Devil of Hell's kitchen himself. Not that John knows exactly what Matt gets up to, but he has an idea or two. ]
Be a gentleman and let you finish of course. I've still got 13 hours on the road. Plenty of time to sort the line of weeping men and women at your door.
[ Like he couldn't guess where that was going. Not that he'd mind. He'd be a hypocrite himself if he did. This is going to end badly, John already knows it. Hell, he can't be bothered to do anything different though. There's a draw there between them. Like some bloody invisible string of fate. ]
I can think of a few already and that won't even get us past your front door.
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[Oblivious to just how bad and how dark the narrow hallways of the past wander and split from the present. See though, they speak so much about the now. About who they are and principles that looking over old scars is not yet an activity they've done much. What does Matt even say anyway?
For now he is trying not to grin, not to hope or believe any more than he has.]
Ever the gentleman.
[In his way.]
Tell me. Make sure I don't change my mind in 13 hours.
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[ Ravenscar couldn't give John what he wanted. Nothing can, really. He can just dull the pain once in a while. If he's drunk enough. Or too caught up in good sex to really give a shit. The exhaustion after a job that requires a lot of magic almost does the trick. ]
Don't go blabbing that to anyone, you'll murder my reputation.
[ He has his moments. ]
Let's say I've got no intention of making it anywhere close to a flat surface before I begin my heartfelt apology to you. Though we may end up scandalizing your elderly neighbor if we aren't careful.
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[Or at least he can't outright peg it to be a lie here. And that would be telling too. Matt has tried not to stiffen or alter his reactions when he can tell a fib. No one asked him to listen to John's heart beat.]
I'd rather keep it all to myself.
[Oohh Murdock. Just stop. He considers putting away his phone for his own good.]
That sounds very, very promising.
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[ He lies quite a bit. He'll say it's to protect others but it's mostly to protect himself. Hurts less than the truth. It's amazing that withered old thing still rattles away under his ribs honestly. ]
Well you are more the hands-on type. I'm appreciative of it.
[ No please, continue. ]
So what do you say? We'll make sure we don't have an audience and I can show you my appreciation for taking me in on such short notice?
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You don't like crowds all that much anyway. So yeah, just me.
[No accomplices. When they're alone the focus is on John as he is. Good or bad. Truth and lies. If Matt wasn't so used to looking for the difference he'd likely not find it. John is so accomplished in illusions as much as incantations and the like.]
I'm an excellent host, you know that. And I'd like to catch up. Intimately.
[Sweet talking, gifts, intimate rendezvous...]
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Not since my punk rock days, no. Do my best work with little to no audience.
[ Not that John isn't against a little light voyeurism, he just knows when his bedfellows aren't. No amount of magick or tricks can hide enough from Murdock, not that he knows it yet. He's got an idea, but that doesn't give him all the details.
Plus, it isn't really a post-coitus conversation starter. Not a good one anyways. ]
Well, after I've greeted you properly, I'm sure a shower is in order. Stuffy car for hours on end and all. Good start?
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No audience is invited.
[Whatever happens to come through the walls happens to come through the walls.]
I'll lend you a hand, just in case. Don't want you to miss any spots because you're road weary.
13 hours is a long, long time
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Being drawn to New York for that vile business before had ended with an unexpected bonus and also made it harder to leave. ]
All to myself then. Anything could happen.
[ Hopefully amazingly wonderful things. Lots of sex. Good food and a little booze. ]
Nothing self-serving in that scenario at all, yeah?
I'll have a kip in the car.
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Specific things will happen. You and I, no clothes.
[The stupidly expensive wine that Foggy bought him that he has had no reason to touch yet. Maybe the rest of his beer.]
I am absolutely looking out for your best interest alone.
[If Matt used emojis there would be a halo wearing smiley face here.]
And me just left to wait and wonder.
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I love a man who knows what he wants.
[ He'll bring over a few beers and some good scotch. They'll make a night of it. He can grab what he needs to cook after. Wouldn't be the first time he's fought a hangover after a night of really good sex on top of it. ]
Absolute Saint you are.
[ He can imagine. It suits. ]
You ain't got to wonder. Just think about the last time. We got out of your hall then. I've got no intention of that here.
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They are put at odds there, push comes to shove. Matt wonders if they will burn and fizzle out the way that attraction does when it burns hot. His heart beats fast and his demeanor lightens at the possibility of the Londoner around.]
You can be more specific.
[As if there is any doubt as to what is in store. Desperate, messy kisses before alcohol is even involved. Eventually tasting whatever is on tap from one another's skins.]
That's--way, way too generous of you to say. I'm a lot of things. Not quite a saint.
[And not like any devil he has dealt with before.]
I have to play the patience game.
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Distance makes him wonder what will come of them. He hopes that the moments they find in between miles will be enough. He likes being around the other man. Scrappy boy with scars that don't make sense for his day job. ]
What I've got in mind to start is going to murder my knees. Good thing the trousers will be out of the way.
[ Which of course comes after the punch drunk kisses between them. He can almost feel the charge in the air already. ]
More a saint than me at any rate.
[ Not in the least. The good kind. ]
They say it's a virtue. That's on the way to sainthood, right?
[ He's talked Chas into going along with this idea. Only because he'll give over gas money and pay for the hotel on top of it. Good thing his numbers the last few days have panned out. ]
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