"Oh. Right. Sorry, long day." Babbling. Not that it was babbling by any normal standards, but considering Jess' track record with complete, coherent thoughts, this was cutting it pretty damn close. As for the difference in town--well, she couldn't hear it. She couldn't hear much at the moment outside the pounding of her head. "Um. So, odd question. Say no, actually, before I ask. Probably easier."
A pause, and a click in his voice. Hemming and hawing; the sound of pondering before he finally said, dryly, "Well, if it's easier: No. So what is it?"
At least that was out of the way. She only felt half again as idiotic as she had in picking up the phone. How to word this? God, but she hated asking for these kinds of things. "Couch free tonight?"
A small pause of relief there. Strange relief, anyway, as she was quite certain he was just being ironic. If the couch actually wasn't free, they'd be having words later. Much later. She couldn't quite wrap her mind around that at the moment. "Just checking."
Another short pause. Jess draw in a breath as if to say something, and stopped. Shit. "Carol came back from Europe early. House is kind of--quiet, is all." Oh, and by the way, she'd just had her son taken away on fucking Mother's Day, just in case you were wondering.
Carol. He let that fact sink in for a moment, absorbing its implications. He knew what day it was now, of course; today's earlier events had cemented its significance in his mind. Reynard just hadn't considered the fact that others might have had difficulty tackling the holiday as well.
Still, it distracted him from his own problems, and a small, lonely woman was easy enough to comfort if you knew how.
"Ah. It's quiet here too."
A considering pause, and then Reynard continued, the grin almost evident in his tone.
"That in mind, apparently the couch isn't free. But the bed is. Just so you know."
Crash. Why, Jess, have you just dropped the phone? Yes, yes she had. There was a significant amount of swearing and scrambling on Jess' end as, despite her valiant efforts, the handset slipped out of her suddenly very frozen fingers and clattered to the hardwood floor. "Shit--fuck--Jesus--" Good Christ. How the hell was she supposed to come back to that? Jess stared at the phone for a good long minute after picking it up.
And another.
And another.
Somewhere away from the mouthpiece, Reynard could probably hear a decidedly unsure, "Um."
Deep amusement turned into a patient sort of waiting as the phone clattered. When the silence stretched out (Jasper: 1 -- Jess: 0), Reynard tossed his things aside in order to stroll into the kitchen and fetch a glass of water. By the time the slight click and sound of her voice signalled that she'd returned, Reynard started laughing again.
"What are you, Jess, sixteen? I doubt very many people would have pegged you as the blushing type."
Sex is comforting. It is base and normal, and a far more likable option to contemplate, rather than a lonely night sulking in the aftermath of Mother's Day.
"You're used to having people around. You want a place to sleep, so it'd make me a terrible person not to offer." Reynard's tone is wry, but even he seems to be trying to tiptoe around the subject of Matty. Having him taken away can't have done wonders for his g-- well, for Jess' mood.
No, Reynard, it can't. But on the topic of sex--well. Yes, it's preferable. Not a cure, but preferable. Even with her legs sewn shut, Jess knows that much.
"Not like I sleep much anyway," she said after a beat. True enough. Not having had any plans of sleeping that night might have been more accurate. "Need anything on my way up?" That's right. Make it casual, easy. The less this seems like supporting her, the less she has to think about it being exactly that.
"Oh. Right. Sorry, long day." Babbling. Not that it was babbling by any normal standards, but considering Jess' track record with complete, coherent thoughts, this was cutting it pretty damn close. As for the difference in town--well, she couldn't hear it. She couldn't hear much at the moment outside the pounding of her head. "Um. So, odd question. Say no, actually, before I ask. Probably easier."
Reply
Reply
At least that was out of the way. She only felt half again as idiotic as she had in picking up the phone. How to word this? God, but she hated asking for these kinds of things. "Couch free tonight?"
Reply
"Well, I already said no, I suppose it isn't. Why?"
Reply
A small pause of relief there. Strange relief, anyway, as she was quite certain he was just being ironic. If the couch actually wasn't free, they'd be having words later. Much later. She couldn't quite wrap her mind around that at the moment. "Just checking."
Another short pause. Jess draw in a breath as if to say something, and stopped. Shit. "Carol came back from Europe early. House is kind of--quiet, is all." Oh, and by the way, she'd just had her son taken away on fucking Mother's Day, just in case you were wondering.
Reply
Still, it distracted him from his own problems, and a small, lonely woman was easy enough to comfort if you knew how.
"Ah. It's quiet here too."
A considering pause, and then Reynard continued, the grin almost evident in his tone.
"That in mind, apparently the couch isn't free. But the bed is. Just so you know."
Reply
Crash. Why, Jess, have you just dropped the phone? Yes, yes she had. There was a significant amount of swearing and scrambling on Jess' end as, despite her valiant efforts, the handset slipped out of her suddenly very frozen fingers and clattered to the hardwood floor. "Shit--fuck--Jesus--" Good Christ. How the hell was she supposed to come back to that? Jess stared at the phone for a good long minute after picking it up.
And another.
And another.
Somewhere away from the mouthpiece, Reynard could probably hear a decidedly unsure, "Um."
Reply
"What are you, Jess, sixteen? I doubt very many people would have pegged you as the blushing type."
Reply
"Not blushing." Nice cover, Jess. Real smooth. "Just propositioned me over the phone, Jesus Christ."
Well. That's one way to pull her out of her funk. Not entirely successful, but at least she isn't a fidgeting mess.
Reply
"You're used to having people around. You want a place to sleep, so it'd make me a terrible person not to offer." Reynard's tone is wry, but even he seems to be trying to tiptoe around the subject of Matty. Having him taken away can't have done wonders for his g-- well, for Jess' mood.
Reply
No, Reynard, it can't. But on the topic of sex--well. Yes, it's preferable. Not a cure, but preferable. Even with her legs sewn shut, Jess knows that much.
"Not like I sleep much anyway," she said after a beat. True enough. Not having had any plans of sleeping that night might have been more accurate. "Need anything on my way up?" That's right. Make it casual, easy. The less this seems like supporting her, the less she has to think about it being exactly that.
Reply
Casual and easy is the ticket, indeed. On Reynard's tongue, the sentence sounds more droll and matter-of-fact than romantic and sappy.
Reply
Leave a comment