[Open:Jack Benjamin] One slip, and down the hole we fall

[true_n_the_dark]

It's been two weeks. Jack knows because Jack's been counting. On the pillars of his bed, not too far from the ballroom, he started making a notch every night. Some were crooked, he has to admit. Anything involving a knife, that happens where you're solidly drunk, is bound to be a problem

Comments

[anonymous]

[cantplaygod]

He's likely under the watchful eye of the tall, vaguely menacing dark guy who's usually by the door. Not that the guy is staring at him, especially since he's minding the door and looking over the tables, making sure nothing's getting out of hand. But he'll definitely glance at Jack from time to time, perhaps with a concern that's a bit more than professional consideration.

It might get a bit annoying after a while.

:: crosses fingers that LJ doesn't eat this one::

[true_n_the_dark]

After a bit, Jack is going to simply raise the glass he's nursing with difficulty towards the bouncer.

Basically?

He's letting him know he's aware of being watched.

[4am_dreamer]

So we admit that last meeting didn't go so well, so Jack may actually run into the red-headed girl at the bar that he ran into when he arrived.

"Hey... you're that guy..."

She's calling him that guy because she still doesn't know his name.

[true_n_the_dark]

Ann, we must inform you: first impressions weren't for the best, and this is not helping.

"... I have no idea who you're talking about."

Since he doesn't have to deal with a cardboard beard here, he's not going to get one purposely.

He turns around to finish his drink, his back to her.

And FTB.

[aboveallpride]

We aren't sure if it would work out, but on the way to the bar, Jack might run into a sweet young lady?

"Hello there."

[true_n_the_dark]

Ah, great, a sweet young lady. Like the one he was locked up with and forced to have coitus with until he impregnated her?

We're sure the enthusiasm is unbound.

Jack nods, just once.

"Miss."

He'll try to go on his way.

It's 4 months old, no reply,so I will wrap it up.

[first_ranger]

Benjen isn't a frequent visitor to the bar, but he does occasionally wish a flagon of ale and a cup. There was more drinking at the Wall, but it was more to warm the blood than a path away from sobriety

[true_n_the_dark]

Misery loves company and Jack isn't lacking in the former - only the latter. He spotted the other man, mostly because of his out-of-period choice of garments, but also because let's be fair, Benjen is nothing to sneeze at.

He'll raise his glass at him, and say, "You're getting freebees. Lucky you."

A snort, for whoever is at the bar.

We never said he was a good customer.

[first_ranger]

Benjen glances up, somewhat surprised to be addressed. He doesn't recognize the man at all, though he might recognize the attitude of one dissatisfied with his lot. There were plenty of volunteers at the Wall much the same. "It is my understanding that all drinks cost no coin here. The Mansion has no system beyond trade, and even that is rare," he replies.

[true_n_the_dark]

"It's very strange," Jack agrees. He looks at his glass, considers downing it, thinks better of it, and sighs.

"If you could make that point to the guy behind the bar, that would be great."

One drink an hour.

Fffff.

[lifeinhallways]

Michelle's fear has greatly lessened, not because she thinks Jack has changed, but because she feels secure in her protection. She's never far from someone: it's a rule, and one she willingly follows. There will be no attempt to ditch her security as she did in Shiloh. Having now made it 7 months into her pregnancy, it's not as if she could outrun a small child, never mind security. Still, she's far, far more fond of her protectors here.

Perhaps that's why Michelle is thinking more about receiving blankets than running into Jack, as she rounds the corner.

[true_n_the_dark]

Jack was on his way to the bar, when he stops at the other end of the hallway, dead in his tracks.

Isn't that a familiar profile? Ever since he had that run-in with the girl who didn't think milk was good for you, he's been thinking of Michelle.

Trying to determine for himself if being reminded of her was a good or a bad thing.

And seeing that woman, that very obviously pregnant woman, at the other end of the hallway, who looks so very much like her....

He's completely torn, and his eyes are filling with tears.

He might be staring.

[lifeinhallways]

Instead of looking towards Jack, Michelle looks towards whence she came, realizing that she's momentarily lost sight of her security. How different it is to look for them, rather than looks to get away.

It's that sensation of being stared at, the chill up the spine, that has her turning toward whoever else is in the hallway. At this distance, she's far enough away not to be easily reached, but near enough that it would obvious she's intending to greet whoever it is with a smile.

That is, until she realizes it's Jack. Like a deer moments before Silas kills it, she stands still, absolutely still.

[true_n_the_dark]

There's no doubt after that: if he thought she was vaguely ressemblant, that smile, frozen, the response, the face, the eyes, everything spells out his twin.

Like it or not, they were the same flesh.

Brother and sister. Twins.

He's just as frozen as she is, and his mouth opens but no sounds come out. His lips tremble, even, and his eyes are stinging.

After that...

He manages to say something, and it's strangled in his throat.

"Michelle?"