day out of order - doing something ridiculous
Okay, I am basically just going out of order now, but whatever. I still hope to be done by the 25th. That's the goal. Here is something I wrote for ilovetakahana for the prompt "what's bringing you down?" FYI: There's no actual infidelity, but one of the characters is at the end of a relationship and thinking about hooking up with someone new. No actual cheating takes place. And it's Charles and a girlfriend, not Charles and Erik.
***
doing something together (~1000)
***
"I don't believe in a higher power," Charles says. He's lying on his back on Moira's bed, staring up as her ceiling fan slowly revolves above them. he can hear her clacking away at the keys on her laptop, but she's nothing more than a blurry movement in the corner of his eye.
"I know," she says without pause.
"But I feel like there must be some sort of...." He trails off and takes the unlit cigarette from behind his ear and rolls it between his fingers. "I feel like there comes a point where there are one too many strikes against a person. Where fate is telling you that you've made the wrong choice. And you have to decide if you want to listen."
"Or," Moira says, "over time, as you learn more things about someone, you begin to realize you're less compatible than you thought."
Charles flaps a hand dismissively in her direction.
"At first it's, 'well, you're into the sort of music that bores me to tears, but that's okay,'" he continues, "and then, you know, you go to a comedy show and they laugh at all the bits that don't impress you and you laugh at all the bits that don't impress them and all these little things pile up and all of that excitement you felt at the start just evolves into ennui. They become an obligation."
"I think," Moira says, still typing, "that this is a conversation you should be having with Gabrielle." She stops then and swivels in her chair. Charles turns his head to look at her. "I think that this is about that guy from the other night."
"Erik," Charles says. "His name is Erik. And no, it's not. I mean. Maybe it is, a little." He presses the end of the cigarette to his lips, but doesn't put it in his mouth and doesn't light it. He just taps it thoughtfully. "I've never met anyone like him before. I've never felt anything like that before."
"I'm pretty sure you've wanted to fuck plenty of people," Moira says.
"It's not that, though," Charles insists. "I've never--spent six hours just talking to someone and wished for six more immediately. I don't even know if I want to fuck him." That last part is a lie, but Moira doesn't need to know that. "I just want to...be around him. And the idea of spending twenty minutes with him in a coffee shop between classes is, right now, more appealing than going out to dinner with Gabrielle."
He feels badly about that. He wanted the thing with Gabrielle to work out, he really did. They're in similar fields and she's smart and pretty and they have interests in common. She should be perfect. But the sex started out adequate and has gone downhill from there and once they'd started dating for real, moved past flirty messages on the white board in their shared lab space and drunken lewd texts, Charles' interest began to wane. He still enjoyed their lab time and their discussions, but the rest? The dates and the nights out and even the nights in? All of that was stale.
He likes Gabrielle, but the mild attraction he felt when they first met is nothing compared to the wave of whatever it was that washed over him when he began to speak to Erik at last week's party.
"Love at first sight," Moira says.
"Or...something," Charles says. "I don't know that it's love. I don't know what it is."
He sticks the cigarette in his mouth fully and stares up at the fan again.
"If you're going to smoke that, you have to go outside," Moira says. "No smoking in my apartment."
"I know, I know," Charles says. He pushes himself up and grabs his coat. "I'll be right back. I just need to clear my head."
"Take my keys," Moira says. "I'm not going downstairs to let you back in."
"Thanks," Charles says, and takes her keys off the dresser, slipping from the bedroom and then through the living room and downstairs to the street. It's cold on the sidewalk, colder than it was when Charles walked to Moira's apartment from the T. He hates the unpredictability of New England weather, and shivers as he fumbles for a lighter. He doesn't smoke frequently, just when he's been drinking or when he's particularly stressed. Unfortunately, that means that when he smokes on a whim, he's frequently unprepared. He pats down his pockets for a third time and sighs around the cigarette still hanging from between his lips. He straightens up and turns to run back upstairs for a book of matches when a hand on his shoulder stops him. He turns and his lips curl into a smile when he sees Erik standing before him, holding a lighter.
"Need a light?" Erik asks, and flicks the lighter on, cupping one hand close to Charles' mouth to keep it from blowing out.
"Thanks," Charles says. He grins and pulls it out of his mouth, resting it between two fingers. "It's funny. I was just thinking about you."
"I had a feeling," Erik says. "I've been thinking about you too." He takes the cigarette from Charles and takes a drag. Something in Charles thrills at the presumption. "Listen--I've got a class in an hour, but do you want to get a cup of coffee?"
This is ridiculous. This is utterly ridiculous.
Charles grins.
"I'm in the process of breaking up with someone," he warns.
"I asked you to come get a cup of coffee with me, not to fuck me," Erik says. Charles reclaims his cigarette.
"I'm just saying," Charles says. He has to tilt his head back to look up at Erik, standing as close as they are. He inhales deeply and then breathes the smoke out at Erik.
"And I'm just saying," Erik says, "I can wait a week. Maybe even two. But probably not three."
"Good to know," Charles says. When Erik takes the cigarette again, Charles lets him keep it and lets him rest a hand at the small of Charles' back and propel him down the street towards the nearest coffee shop.
*
the rest of the days:
1. Holding hands
2. Cuddling somewhere
3. Gaming/watching a movie
4. On a date
5. Kissing
6. Wearing each others’ clothes
7. Shopping
8. Hanging out with friends
9. Making out
10. Eating icecream
11. In a different clothing style
12. During their morning ritual(s)
13. Spooning
14. Doing something together
15. In formal wear
16. Dancing
17. Cooking/baking
18. In battle, side-by-side
19. Arguing
20. Making up afterwards
21. Getting married
22. On one of their birthdays
23. Doing something ridiculous
24. Doing something sweet
25. Doing something hot
***
doing something together (~1000)
***
"I don't believe in a higher power," Charles says. He's lying on his back on Moira's bed, staring up as her ceiling fan slowly revolves above them. he can hear her clacking away at the keys on her laptop, but she's nothing more than a blurry movement in the corner of his eye.
"I know," she says without pause.
"But I feel like there must be some sort of...." He trails off and takes the unlit cigarette from behind his ear and rolls it between his fingers. "I feel like there comes a point where there are one too many strikes against a person. Where fate is telling you that you've made the wrong choice. And you have to decide if you want to listen."
"Or," Moira says, "over time, as you learn more things about someone, you begin to realize you're less compatible than you thought."
Charles flaps a hand dismissively in her direction.
"At first it's, 'well, you're into the sort of music that bores me to tears, but that's okay,'" he continues, "and then, you know, you go to a comedy show and they laugh at all the bits that don't impress you and you laugh at all the bits that don't impress them and all these little things pile up and all of that excitement you felt at the start just evolves into ennui. They become an obligation."
"I think," Moira says, still typing, "that this is a conversation you should be having with Gabrielle." She stops then and swivels in her chair. Charles turns his head to look at her. "I think that this is about that guy from the other night."
"Erik," Charles says. "His name is Erik. And no, it's not. I mean. Maybe it is, a little." He presses the end of the cigarette to his lips, but doesn't put it in his mouth and doesn't light it. He just taps it thoughtfully. "I've never met anyone like him before. I've never felt anything like that before."
"I'm pretty sure you've wanted to fuck plenty of people," Moira says.
"It's not that, though," Charles insists. "I've never--spent six hours just talking to someone and wished for six more immediately. I don't even know if I want to fuck him." That last part is a lie, but Moira doesn't need to know that. "I just want to...be around him. And the idea of spending twenty minutes with him in a coffee shop between classes is, right now, more appealing than going out to dinner with Gabrielle."
He feels badly about that. He wanted the thing with Gabrielle to work out, he really did. They're in similar fields and she's smart and pretty and they have interests in common. She should be perfect. But the sex started out adequate and has gone downhill from there and once they'd started dating for real, moved past flirty messages on the white board in their shared lab space and drunken lewd texts, Charles' interest began to wane. He still enjoyed their lab time and their discussions, but the rest? The dates and the nights out and even the nights in? All of that was stale.
He likes Gabrielle, but the mild attraction he felt when they first met is nothing compared to the wave of whatever it was that washed over him when he began to speak to Erik at last week's party.
"Love at first sight," Moira says.
"Or...something," Charles says. "I don't know that it's love. I don't know what it is."
He sticks the cigarette in his mouth fully and stares up at the fan again.
"If you're going to smoke that, you have to go outside," Moira says. "No smoking in my apartment."
"I know, I know," Charles says. He pushes himself up and grabs his coat. "I'll be right back. I just need to clear my head."
"Take my keys," Moira says. "I'm not going downstairs to let you back in."
"Thanks," Charles says, and takes her keys off the dresser, slipping from the bedroom and then through the living room and downstairs to the street. It's cold on the sidewalk, colder than it was when Charles walked to Moira's apartment from the T. He hates the unpredictability of New England weather, and shivers as he fumbles for a lighter. He doesn't smoke frequently, just when he's been drinking or when he's particularly stressed. Unfortunately, that means that when he smokes on a whim, he's frequently unprepared. He pats down his pockets for a third time and sighs around the cigarette still hanging from between his lips. He straightens up and turns to run back upstairs for a book of matches when a hand on his shoulder stops him. He turns and his lips curl into a smile when he sees Erik standing before him, holding a lighter.
"Need a light?" Erik asks, and flicks the lighter on, cupping one hand close to Charles' mouth to keep it from blowing out.
"Thanks," Charles says. He grins and pulls it out of his mouth, resting it between two fingers. "It's funny. I was just thinking about you."
"I had a feeling," Erik says. "I've been thinking about you too." He takes the cigarette from Charles and takes a drag. Something in Charles thrills at the presumption. "Listen--I've got a class in an hour, but do you want to get a cup of coffee?"
This is ridiculous. This is utterly ridiculous.
Charles grins.
"I'm in the process of breaking up with someone," he warns.
"I asked you to come get a cup of coffee with me, not to fuck me," Erik says. Charles reclaims his cigarette.
"I'm just saying," Charles says. He has to tilt his head back to look up at Erik, standing as close as they are. He inhales deeply and then breathes the smoke out at Erik.
"And I'm just saying," Erik says, "I can wait a week. Maybe even two. But probably not three."
"Good to know," Charles says. When Erik takes the cigarette again, Charles lets him keep it and lets him rest a hand at the small of Charles' back and propel him down the street towards the nearest coffee shop.
*
the rest of the days:
1. Holding hands
2. Cuddling somewhere
3. Gaming/watching a movie
4. On a date
5. Kissing
6. Wearing each others’ clothes
7. Shopping
8. Hanging out with friends
9. Making out
10. Eating icecream
11. In a different clothing style
12. During their morning ritual(s)
13. Spooning
14. Doing something together
15. In formal wear
16. Dancing
17. Cooking/baking
18. In battle, side-by-side
19. Arguing
20. Making up afterwards
21. Getting married
22. On one of their birthdays
23. Doing something ridiculous
24. Doing something sweet
25. Doing something hot