fellas is it gay if you can magically read your best bros thoughts (OPEN)

[heerequeerandfulloffear]

Who: Rich and others
When: Morning and noonish, November 15
Where: Jeremy, Rich, and Michael's home
What: Rich and Jeremy's Bonding ceremony and celebration
Warnings: none



i. Bonding (Closed)

[Jeremy shows up at Rich's door bright and early the next morning. Despite how Rich claimed that suits weren't required, Jeremy still put together the nicest-looking thing in his wardrobe. His hair is slicked back, his skin is clearer than usual (where did he find concealer?), and he's used up a good chunk of his precious deodorant that he brought with him through the mirror.

The SQUIP had a lot of drawbacks, being an evil mind-controlling robot and all, but it taught Jeremy a valuable lesson: Jeremy cleans up good.

When Rich opens the door, Jeremy's waiting expectantly, hands behind his back and bouncing on his toes. It's clear that he's been there a while.]

You ready to go?


ii. Announcement (Open)

[To announce their Bond and to celebrate, Rich and Jeremy have opened the house up for any and everyone who wants to check it out--both quietly not mentioning how empty the space seems with Justine's recent disappearance. At Rich's suggestion, they've sent an open invitation out on the watch network to anyone who wants to drop by and offer congratulations.

Their budget isn't huge, but Jeremy's insistence on hospitality means that they've got enough finger food and drinks for people to try out. There's no alcohol.

Jeremy's still nervous even though the deed is done, so he's bustling around constantly to make sure that everything is perfectly neat, that they've got enough seats, and that nobody needs a refill. In his rush, bringing a hot tray of cookies from the oven straight onto a serving tray, he bumps into you. As he turns around to see who he's plowed over, he rushes to apologize. The niceties run into themselves before he even sees your face.]

Shoot--I'm sorry--thanks for coming!


iii. Wildcard (Open)

[Jeremy and Rich are both available to talk about their new bond with your character. Let me know if you want a specific situation!]

Comments

[faithlikeaseed]

I would.

[It's a counterfactual case that won't happen, from where Myr's standing, because L isn't the SQUIP. He does not know all his Bonded's secrets--suspects there are some that will break his heart to learn--but he knows that broadest stroke already about L. It grants him a quiet certain confidence that he will not have to walk away.

(Is it hubris on his part to think so? He believes not with every fiber of his being.)]

Should it come to that, he'd lose me. But I don't believe he will. For all that life has made of him, he still wants to be better than he is.

[firewalled]

[That might not have been the perfect thing to say. In some ways, at least Rich is calm enough to react with only a disgusted expression and a tension to his voice, though it's not too hard to tell whether it would get worse if they went down this route.

Myr may want to have an intelligent, understanding discussion about this, but Rich still isn't ready to accept someone's word completely.]

You only believe he wants to be better, I told you. He's made it pretty clear on my end he doesn't, that that would be too exhausting for him.

[faithlikeaseed]

[It would be much easier for Myr to simply throw L under the wagon on this one--much easier, and painfully, something he'd be forgiven in.

But he wasn't Made that way; his utter (and maybe foolish) devotion to the truth's as strong as that to his friends and loved ones.

He reaches up to rub at a temple, breathing out a rueful sigh.]

He is my Bonded, [he points out.] Even if it's new yet, I know how he feels about the matter. Which means he might be lying to one or both of us--or he's not certain on the truth himself.

[He drops his hand to his lap; his voice grows softer,] I know it's a great deal to ask, but will you trust me in my belief? As I trust you to tell me what he's said when I'm not about.

[firewalled]

[It's foolish in Rich's opinion, certainly. Anyone else would have let it go and either cut Linden off or left Rich alone. No one would have wanted to keep struggling to maintain an extremely fragile balance.

Rich wants to think that's brave, but he can't, not when his own attempts to be brave were called self-centred. He can't help the pointed glare he shoots Myr's way.]

I trust that you believe him. I just also trust that you're going to end up regretting that. If he wanted to be better, he wouldn't treat me like garbage every chance he got. Seriously. When you got him out of here, did he ever once say to you that he took it too far? Did he show even a little bit of remorse?

[faithlikeaseed]

[Knowing either of them could die if abandoned effectively bound Myr's hands, ... even if he'd have tried as hard for lower stakes to be here, to mend things.]

The card I gave you was from him. [It would have borne mentioning earlier, Myr knows, but he had not, as caught up as he'd been that first instant in Rich's dismay at the whole situation. That saying so might have defused more of this, sooner--any guilt for that accrues to Myr, settles heavily on his shoulders.

But there really isn't time or luxury for him to wallow in that.] He'd made it unprompted, after we Bonded.

[Though perhaps unprompted wasn't quite correct, but Myr hadn't asked, hadn't expected directly except insofar he'd made a space where L could do such a thing gracefully. Which perhaps made all the difference.]