[March 27] [Pacific Rim] Across a Crowded Room
Title:Across a Crowded Room
Day/Theme: 27. let's play hide and seek with the world
Series: Pacific Rim
Character/Pairing: Hermann Gottlieb/Newt Geiszler Rating:
Hermann hadn't been able to stay away from the presentation. He didn't know why he was tormenting himself. Was he really hoping Newt would be too upset to do it? Of course not. Hermann knew how upset Newt really was. He could still feel it through the Drift. It had taken Hermann most of the next day to realize that the heartbreak crushing him wasn't entirely his own.
So now he was lurking outside one of the doors, not quite ready to see Newt yet. Listening to his voice helped a little bit, and finally Hermann snuck a peek. Newt was in his usual haze of noisy brilliance and only Hermann would have been able to detect the strain.It was in his posture and the set of his eyes. He was also clutching his silly bright pink phone with the rabbit ears sticking off the case. Why did he have his phone out? He wasn't looking at it. The screen wasn't lit, but he was clutching it like a lifeline.
Hermann realized that he had no idea where his own phone was. It might still be in the lab, on his desk. His cane was still there too. He was using his spare, but it wasn't quite right. Someone in the crowd shouted an actually relevant question and Newt shouted back the answer. His eyes were flicking over the people, but he wasn't looking for the questioner.
He's looking for me, Hermann thought and he saw Newt glance again, maybe picking up on that thought. If Hermann was going to avoid him much more, now would be the time to duck back out into the hallway and go wherever it was he thought he could hide. If he stayed there much longer, Newt would know it, would see him.
I want him back more than I want to punish him, Hermann knew. He wrestled with it for a few more minutes. He was beginning to be aware of a sensation in his head. Newt knew he was there and thinking about him. He would track me down through our connection eventually. If he wanted to. And I want him to want to. So Hermann stepped completely into the doorway and stood there.
The place was packed. Standing room only, but it only took a moment for Newt to look straight at him. Hermann wondered if he should smile just to be encouraging, but his lips weren't cooperating. They trembled and wobbled and he had to look down to get a grip on himself. Newt's lecture didn't even stutter, but his expression was entirely different when Hermann managed to look up again. There was anguish there and hope, even while he went on and on about biostructures being able to withstand dimensional portals.
Their eye contact was overwhelming even across such a crowded room. Hermann finally couldn't bear it. He raised pinkie and thumb to his ear in the traditional 'call me' pose, and held it until he was sure Newt saw it. Then, he went to go find his phone and wait.
Day/Theme: 27. let's play hide and seek with the world
Series: Pacific Rim
Character/Pairing: Hermann Gottlieb/Newt Geiszler Rating:
Hermann hadn't been able to stay away from the presentation. He didn't know why he was tormenting himself. Was he really hoping Newt would be too upset to do it? Of course not. Hermann knew how upset Newt really was. He could still feel it through the Drift. It had taken Hermann most of the next day to realize that the heartbreak crushing him wasn't entirely his own.
So now he was lurking outside one of the doors, not quite ready to see Newt yet. Listening to his voice helped a little bit, and finally Hermann snuck a peek. Newt was in his usual haze of noisy brilliance and only Hermann would have been able to detect the strain.It was in his posture and the set of his eyes. He was also clutching his silly bright pink phone with the rabbit ears sticking off the case. Why did he have his phone out? He wasn't looking at it. The screen wasn't lit, but he was clutching it like a lifeline.
Hermann realized that he had no idea where his own phone was. It might still be in the lab, on his desk. His cane was still there too. He was using his spare, but it wasn't quite right. Someone in the crowd shouted an actually relevant question and Newt shouted back the answer. His eyes were flicking over the people, but he wasn't looking for the questioner.
He's looking for me, Hermann thought and he saw Newt glance again, maybe picking up on that thought. If Hermann was going to avoid him much more, now would be the time to duck back out into the hallway and go wherever it was he thought he could hide. If he stayed there much longer, Newt would know it, would see him.
I want him back more than I want to punish him, Hermann knew. He wrestled with it for a few more minutes. He was beginning to be aware of a sensation in his head. Newt knew he was there and thinking about him. He would track me down through our connection eventually. If he wanted to. And I want him to want to. So Hermann stepped completely into the doorway and stood there.
The place was packed. Standing room only, but it only took a moment for Newt to look straight at him. Hermann wondered if he should smile just to be encouraging, but his lips weren't cooperating. They trembled and wobbled and he had to look down to get a grip on himself. Newt's lecture didn't even stutter, but his expression was entirely different when Hermann managed to look up again. There was anguish there and hope, even while he went on and on about biostructures being able to withstand dimensional portals.
Their eye contact was overwhelming even across such a crowded room. Hermann finally couldn't bear it. He raised pinkie and thumb to his ear in the traditional 'call me' pose, and held it until he was sure Newt saw it. Then, he went to go find his phone and wait.