; it takes a village

Starter for@enzoricciardi

Corrine hadn’t seen her big brother all week, and even though they lived in the same town now, daily life tended to interfere with them hanging out as much as they used to. Regardless every Sunday was her family day whether it’s calling her big sisters, or getting lunch with Enzo it was basically tradition. She didn’t know if Enzo was awake or still sleeping when she started throwing pebbles at his bedroom window. It was a quiet neighborhood so her yelling was quite clear when she began to holler “ENZOO! It’s your FAVORITE!” She laughed referring to herself in her usual chipper morning mood.

Regardless of the fact that it had been years now since he’d been getting up early for his job at the hospital, he still hated mornings equally as ever. Abrupt noises tugged him out of his sleep induced haze, taking way too long to completely sober him up from whatever weird dreams he had that night. Grunting into his pillow, he took a deep breath before using his arms to prop himself up from the bed and walk to the window with his eyes barely open. The morning sun was rudely intrusive and he could all but squint at the pint-sized figure down below “You keep on waking me up every weekend like this and I’ll denounce you as my favorite.” he responded, rubbing his eyes groggily. “Come on in, it’s unlocked. And please, stop being so chipper, it’s way too early!”

Chana looked down at her phone when she heard it go off, sighing to herself. “Sorry about this. That might be my daughter.” She always hated checking her phone while working. It was so unprofessional but Meira came first in her life. At least the camera was still off.

“No prob. Even back in my highschool days, I was a pro at having to leave in the middle of the class, just to make sure none of my sisters choked themselves on cereal whenever I received a phone call. Before you know it, you’ll be worrying over who Meira is dating. Now that’s where the real fun begins.” he chuckled, remembering all the times he had to be dragging his way-too-undressed middle sister out of apartments of strangers. Or carry her drunk outside of bars. Or...well, the list could go on. “How’s she doing?”

The smile was cracking through, the man adorably flustered as he called a cab and avoided eye contact. Dylan had never had a one night stand before nor had she ever seen a walk of shame in real life, so her joy over the experience was coming off as rudeness in spite of herself. “ I’m sorry , it’s just…” And then she broke into a giggle. It was uncontrollable at first but she managed to dial it back to speak. “ I’m not trying to embarrass you, this is just a first for me and I wasn’t sure how to react.” She laughed, clearing her throat in an attempt to collect herself. “ I really didn’t mean to laugh, it’s your personal life and I’m not judging, you just… are a kinda naked stranger in my hallway…”

Enzo’s expression shifted from one of discomfort, through the one of amusement, to the one of mild entertainment because...”That giggle was so utterly adorable.” he let out a soft chuckle without taking his eyes off the girl that was getting increasingly flustered with each passing second. Which was understandable, if this indeed was the first time for her to see something like it. “Well, I guess you’ve got a valid excuse, but for the future reference, it’s completely alright if you just pretend that the walk of shame is not happening. Or that the person is not there at all. Unless they’re asking for help, like me. In that case, just pretend that I’m a resident to this building and I got myself accidentally locked outside of the apartment or something. Ya know, let your creative juices run. Anything’s better than this.” he rambled on humorously, not really mad that she’d reacted the way she had. At least the melodic laughter which passed her lips made up for the initial awkwardness and eventually cut the tension in the hallway. Lowering his head to take a glance at his lower part of the body, he uttered “Nope!”, popping the ‘p’ sound in the word. “At least got my junk covered so only half-naked, which is half-decent. Give me some credit, at very least.”

Ironically, Mina was on her own walk of shame. She’d, fortunately, made it all the way back to her apartment building. It was very early in the morning, but she was still silently chiding herself for staying the night at all. That wasn’t like her. She didn’t do that. Any sort of attachment wasn’t her thing, given the state of her life at the moment. “Oh!” Her melodic, high pitched voice echoed in the hall. She was so distracted by her own thoughts she very nearly ran into a man. A barely dressed man. “…sorry… uhm, yeah.. yeah..” Mina seemed surprised, but it wasn’t clear whether it was their near collision or the man’s bare chest that was disorienting her. “..it’s in here…somewhere….” She mumbled, while digging around in her bag for her phone. “..fuck, sorry.. it’s uhm-” Hazel orbs of jade and gold flickered up to Enzo but then away quickly. “-dead.”

Feeling disoriented, Mina eyed her apartment door. She didn’t know what had her so flustered, just that she wanted to get inside. “You can, uh- come use our landline.”

Just when he thought it couldn’t get any worse, he had a stranger in front of him stumbling upon her words, making him feel like even more of an asshole for making her uncomfortable. He had to close his eyes tightly and lower his head in embarrassment, the grimace etched on his face emitting discomfort that mimicked brunette’s own to an extent. Reaching for the back of his head, he awkwardly scratched the place where some of his locks got tangled up during his last night’s endeavors and stole a glance sideways, everywhere but at the woman. “Wow. You’re just as bad as I. Couldn’t have let me off the hook. Pretended this is something you see every day and that I’m just an innocent passerby. Nope.” he joked, trying to ease at least a bit of the tension in the room. 

Mumbling to himself more than to the other, while following her to the landline, he spoke up “Jesus, if George could see this he’d tease me mercilessly about raiding the whole building. Just hopping from one apartment to the other.”

Spring cleaning for Dylan was currently getting all of the new clothes she’d gotten that were considered gently used and sorting them into two piles: donation clothes and consignment clothes. Her desire to buy more things secondhand had her currently trying to lug a large cardboard box to her car, reaching the hallway and setting it down to breathe when she locked eyes with a half-naked man. She was taken aback at first, but when it dawned on her what was going on she had to try her hardest not to laugh at his walk of shame. Picking up the word phone, Dylan wordlessly reached in her back pocket for the colorful case and unlocked it before handing it to the man with her lips pressed in a firm line.

The whole silence thing that was going on in between of them only made the whole ordeal even more awkward. He attempted to pull off a smile of gratitude while accepting the phone, but it came off as forced and...well, awkward. Wanting to get the hell out of this situation as quickly as possible, he dialed the first taxi number he remembered and arranged himself a transportation to his own apartment. After the call ended, while reaching out his hand to return the phone to the stranger, he spoke up “Come on. Say it. Whatever you got, take a shot at me. It’s fine.” 

          Regardless of how they’d first met and the way George had been certain he’d made an enemy for life, the friendship that’d been struck between the two men was something that George had sorely needed when first coming back to Northport. A clean ( even if at first bumpy ) slate with someone who shared the same ideals that he held. “C’mon man, you’ve still got to step up your duties – doesn’t matter if she’s a delicate flower or not. Else she’ll be calling me up about how I eternally tarnished her reputation and there’s no way in hell I want to deal with that.” The laughter on the tip of his lips breaks free, eyes rolling as he started making his way towards The Steam Room. “Coffee it is, plus – probably best to ditch before the chick comes running after you.” George had enough experience with one-night flings to know that was always more trouble than it was worth, irregardless of if they were upset or coming back for more. “But… are you sure it wasn’t the sex that left you exhausted? Maybe you’ve gotta work on your endurance. You know I don’t drink either – but one whiskey? C’mon man, there’s no way I’m buying that.” It was harmless teasing, the crooked smile brimming on his lips enough to tell Enzo that he wasn’t being serious.

“I can tell that you don’t read Vanity Fair.” he cleared his throat, not wanting to further elaborate on that remark. A month ago, his sister had given an interview for the magazine and when asked where did she find inspiration to play her heartbroken lead in the up and coming TV Show - she kind of referenced her thingy with George, kind of totally blowing their ‘relationship’ out of the proportions. He probably had a couple of nasty comments attached to his image on Twitter - and having been the one to read them - he was at least glad that his sister decided to leave George’s identity out of the story. Following the man into the room, he snorted at blond’s comment “I think both her and I were pretty clear about what last night was about. Also, fuck you. I had plenty endurance last night, alright?” At least he did if you count foreplay in. Alright, it was a solid performance for someone who has sex like...twice a month, and that’s at most. “Make out of it what you will. You’re telling me your sex life’s any better? Please. Admit it, you’re just as pathetic as me.”

Carina watched as his arrow hit the target’s center. She turned her head to him with an arched brow, “Power dynamics? What ever do you mean?” The brunette asked, setting down her own bow and arrow. 

“Hmm… You know what I think? I think… You’re a little too… Tense. Here.” Carina stood behind Enzo and stepped into his personal space. Allowing herself to mold to the contours of the other man. She honestly had no clue what she was doing but any reason to stay close to Enzo was good enough for her. She felt like he both anchored her to the ground of reality; that this, whatever this was, couldn’t happen between them…

Right?

But also that every encounter with him lifted her higher than any mountain could. It was an odd battle she was facing. Torn between a man’s walls and her own, it was No Man’s Land and they were both crossing dangerous territory.

The vixen wrapped her arms over his own as she allowed her lips so brush against the shell of his ear. Her voice lowered to a mere whisper, leaving no space untouched by a woman on the hunt. “Just relax the arms, aim…” She lined up the arrow and a solid pull back before tapping his finger to release the bow. 

Bullseye.

Which shocked her even more because honestly what the fuck was Carina doing? Both in the game of archery and being so damn intoxicated by Enzo. 

“Don’t think about it too much.” She stated, wondering if she’d meant the archery, their relationship, or whatever else was going on in his head that she couldn’t quite decipher. Carina cleared her throat picking up her own bow and arrow again.

She lined the target and pulled back with confidence, this was how she did it last time right? Releasing the bow, the wind current drifted it slightly off center to the section just outside the center. Carina pouted, “Well we all have our off days don’t we?” She sighed, her unwavering look at the penguin, “But worry not. I’ve still got my eyes on the prize.” Carina turned to catch Enzo’s gaze, a smile curving her scarlet lips. She didn’t understand this feeling overcome up. But there was something more at play. Sometime later would she unpack it but for right now, she lived in the moment they had. Moments she could steal.

“And I swear to give him a warm, loving home someday.” 

With Carina realigning her body against his, he was finally allowed to close his eyes away from her watchful gaze and take a deep inhale in a valiant attempt of composing himself once again. He was hyper aware of her movements and felt like a pray within the reach of predator’s claws, which was good, because it meant his survival instincts were about to kick in. 

It was the very touch which guided his own limbs into another bullseye that gave him just the advantage that he needed to flee the scene, metaphorically speaking. A gazette could never devour a lion, but it could outsmart or outrun him. “I think you should quit while I’m only a bit ahead of you.” he proposed, lowering down his bow while glancing sideways at Carina’s relaxing posture, now that she’d taken her hit (and a miss). 

It was his turn again - and he wanted to make it count. Although there was little distance between them as they were, he closed whatever remained of it, using the fear coursing through his veins to muster up what little of courage he had brewing within him. If he was good at anything, it was maintaining eye contact in toughest of situations, which was probably a byproduct of his medical training - and this was much like that, with some readjustments. 

Crouching down only the slightest, so he could have the weaponry resting against the ground, he straightened his posture back again and without giving her so much as even the subtlest notice, he reached for the back of her neck and pulled her into a kiss. There was nothing about said kiss either; it was a hunger-driven, passion fueled promise of what was to come. A languid movement of his tongue against hers, exploration of her mouth that was equally driven by desperation and primal need. It seemed like years had gone by before he pulled back first, barely managing to catch his breath or keep his fingers steady, where they’ve ended up entangled in her locks. He was coming back to his senses, slowly and methodically, one by one - finally able to feel her breath against his own, and they way their bodies melted one into the other.

“If you surrender now, I’ll take that plushie wolf and give it to the mortified kid waiting in the line behind of us and I’ll be the one taking you home until that mouth is completely devoured - and incapable of uttering any witty remarks that aren’t my name. How about that?”

          Early morning truthfully wasn’t George’s favorite time of day – but his newfound business had forced a change of habit. The necessity of answering emails, setting up calls, booking projects all prompting him to get out of bed with an inherent drive that had been missing whenever he’d had to do the same for the other jobs he’d carried. Regardless, his mood took a turn for the thoroughly amused at the sight that greeted him as he turned the corner towards his studio, all too well versed in sneaking out after a ( sometimes ill-planned ) encounter, but never having suspected of catching Enzo mid-escape. “Mmh, I don’t know – you judged me pretty hard when we first met. I think I recall a bunch of Italian curse-words and… what was it? The threat of potential death by murder? Maybe I should let you try your luck all on your own…” Barley disguised laughter bubbled on his lips, unable to help from teasing his friend, but finding it equally difficult to keep a straight expression. “But… I suppose, if you ask real nice, I could spare my phone – or, better yet, get you a coffee. You look like you could use one. Plus – I bet that’s a story.”

Funnily enough, considering their initial encounter, if stumbling upon someone after a night like this was inevitable and he had to choose a person to catch him in his misdemeanors, it would be George. Regardless of the tricky situation that his sister pulled him into, the two of them actually ended up being good pals...well, to be fair, him and majority of his sister’s romantic interests ended up being pals. ‘Cause...well, ‘cause his sister’s shit at romance. “Oh fuck off. Back then I was foolish enough to believe that my sister’s a delicate flower, ever blameless and naive. I was just doing my brotherly duties. You’d be surprised how often I get angry calls from her telling me I’m under-performing in that field.” he chuckled, taking a moment to fully button his shirt. “I’ll take that coffee. I think I slept like two and a half hours, man. The sun woke me up and I was like ‘shit, I wasn’t supposed to sleep over in the first place.’ I had one - one whiskey last night and it was enough to knock me out. That’s what you get when you don’t drink at all.” he snorted.

Adam stared up at the stranger with his mouth slightly open, his eyes glossy from hanging out with Mary Jane all morning. “Who the hell are you even hooking up with in there?” He had found it weird that he had woken up on the couch, but that wasn’t exactly unusual. A few weeks before he had woken up on the kitchen floor. Adam felt worse about the fact that two strangers had been screwing around in his bed all night. At this point his mattress was seeing more action than he was. “Man, I’m gonna have to do laundry now.” Sighing, he reaches for his phone and tosses. He doesn’t realize that the bills past due and it’s not going to work. 

What. “What.” he vocalized his thoughts, dumbfounded by the question directed at him. “I-” he started, flailing with his hand to gesture behind his back, towards the room that he’d only exited now. “She-” then, his brows scrunched up and mouth remained gaping open while he attempted to gather his thoughts. “The redhead girl, this is her place?” he didn’t mean to make the end of that sentence sound like a question, but for some reason, it felt like it should? What the fuck is going on. He was sober when he came here and though he’d entered the apartment without so much as breaking away from the girl or looking around them, plus it was dark, he didn’t notice this guy last night and...”Who are you?” he craned his neck to the side and reacted almost a tad too late to catch the phone, but thankfully, he didn’t drop the device.

His assumptions were entirely true and Brady nodded her head towards him with a soft laugh. “Yeah, it’s…yeah. Not for me,” she agreed. The idea of just going out and hooking up with a stranger was just something that Brady couldn’t see herself doing. Physical affection was something that she tended to shy away from, a nervous energy clenching in her chest whenever she tried to be somewhat intimate with someone. She had too much baggage to just let herself be open in that way, needing time to connect with someone before she started to open up. “Y’know, sometimes the wisdom you need comes from the weirdest places. This may just be one of them,” she joked, laughing along with the guy. Her attention had barely drifted towards the unclothed part of his body, less out of awkwardness and more just from the fact that there was no attraction there on her end, which at least gave him some privacy from wandering eyes. “But no, it’s…yeah. I guess I’d say I’d rather like…have someone special? Before doing…all of like. All that.” Her hands gestured vaguely in front of her before she half shrugged, her general awkwardness around the subject fairly clear. “Thank you, though, for your great wisdom this morning. It’s totally just what I needed.”

Enzo could relate to that. It’s not often that he consciously took advice from strangers, but he had caught himself going back to words of nameless people in some crucial situations, remembering them and turning them into a future lesson. They worked well as reaffirming tools for his future behavior, so there was that. “Yeah, and sometimes it’s easier to talk to people who don’t know you rather than your friends, ‘cause...yeah, sometimes what you say to people closest to you changes the way they look at you and that kind of sucks.” Clearing his throat, he threw a glance behind his shoulder and slipped his hands into his jeans pockets “Well, um, I should probably go now. If somebody asks, you didn’t see me here. In the morning, at least. I did not sleep over. It’ll be our little secret.” 

               One night stands were definitely Winnie’s thing—though they had, admittedly, become pretty few and far between as of late. The previous night’s events had been a welcome fluke in her uneventful dating life. She hadn’t even gone out with the intention of taking anyone home, and yet there Enzo stood at the foot of her bed, seemingly lost in his own head. What was it people often said? Once you stop looking for something you get what you’re looking for… or something like that. In any case, what had started out as a typical night at the bar had ended in a night very well spent between the sheets with the dark haired man before her. “It’s no big deal, seriously.” Winnie replied absentmindedly, giving a subtle shrug of her shoulders. Under normal circumstances she probably would have preferred for him to be gone by now, but something about Enzo was different. He was nothing like any of the previous men who’d warmed her bed, and that alone intrigued her. She realized that, had he been gone by the time she woke up, a part of her would have been disappointed. Winnie sat up as he spoke, the mention of food perking her up considerably. If he was half as good in the kitchen as he was in bed, she figured she would be in for a treat. “I was actually offering to cook for you, but I’m definitely not gonna say no to being cooked for. I have a sneaking suspicion that you know your way around the kitchen.” 

“It’s not often that I have a woman offering to cook for me, so you’ll have to forgive me for not catching up on that. My shortcomings have just lead to me missing a great opportunity.” he remarked, dimpled smile stretching itself across his lips. “Yeah, actually - I love to cook. Mia nonna would spend her afternoons teaching me her recipes, which makes absolutely hated among my sisters when they want to learn them as well, ‘cause I don’t do anything with measurements and can’t write those down - and we live on different continents now, so it’s not like I can show them the approximate ones either.” Due to telling everything to his youngest sister, he shared with her that he’d occasionally venture off into the ‘one night stands’ ordeals - and due to her being 21 and already married and devoted to building a family - she didn’t quite understand it at first, but communication like this is what made her realize they’re not that bad on him. People think they have to be ‘fuck and dump’ kind of deal, but Enzo’s experiences usually end up in some nice conversations and hanging out time as well, which is probably why they don’t continue sharing the bed further than that night, but he does stay friends with majority of them. Maybe it’s weird for some people, but it worked for him. Winnie was easy to talk to and be around her, so he didn’t feel half as bad as he would during some other one night stands. “If you want to join me, I can show you some tips and tricks, but I’ll leave you to yourself now and go through all of your shelves and crevices of your apartment to see what dirty secrets you’re hiding around the kitchen.” he joked, taking steps backwards to move towards the kitchen, at this point familiar with the general outline of it because of that particular moment that they shared on one of the counters. “Besides the dirty secret from last night, I mean.” he added cheekily, raising her voice so she could hear him from the other room.

Tilting her head to reexamine the painting, Amelia nodded her head thoughtfully, enjoying the fact that it made her feel a tiny bit better. She had been to a fair amount of museums over the years, and a large part of her still didn’t fully understand what made something art and what made something.. a mess. But she was certain that at the end of the day, hers was more mess than art. 

Perking up slightly as he continued to talk, Amelia took another swig of her wine before nodding along. “That sounds great, though since mine are covered in maps, I’m not sure just how much help I’ll be in that department. But I will do my best as I pretend that I know what pyro.. whatever you said are.”

“Maps? Why maps?” his expression turned into a confused but curious one alas. He took a couple of steps forward to make himself comfortably seated closer to the brunette. He observed the ease with which she poured her drink into her body, wondering why people dulled moments like these with liquor. But also, she seemed completely in control over her actions, just slightly more at ease and open than she might’ve been sober, and that had him in awe - because in his family, and in past in general, people usually struggled with alcohol, which was why he stayed away from it. He’d drink a glass or two in a week, or even a month, but that’d be it. Could probably never allow himself to overindulge in it like this. 

A chuckle passed his lips. “Pyrotechnics. It’s an umbrella term for fireworks and stuff alike. You like ‘em?”

         “Mean? I’m just being honest.” Josie folded her arms over her chest, leaning against the wall of the corridor, quite amused by the image he presented. “Oh, your blood on my hands? Now I’m really scared.” She put a hand to her chest as if shocked by his words, but after a moment of letting him suffer, she extended her hand with the phone in it. “Here you go. Believe it or not, I’m not that mean.”

Enzo huffed, amused by the theatricality both of them were pulling out on one another. Accepting the phone, he shot her with one of those ‘under the lashes’ looks and allowed for the single corner of his lips to tug upwards into a smirk “But you like to stir some trouble, admit it. I can see it in your eyes. There’s no way you never have.”

❛      SOUNDS  LIKE  YOU  AND  I  ARE  CUT  FROM  THE  SAME  CLOTH    ❜  it’s  probably  not  a  true  statement  ,  but  a  polite  one  nonetheless  .  he’s  been  defeated  by  the  finger  painting  monster  and    was  now  playing  simon  says  with  a  grown  adult  .  one  he  swiped  away  at  the  blue  in  his  hair  ,  he  let  out  a  laugh  ,  head  shaking  ,  ❛      oh  yeah  ,  that’ll  be  great  ,  single  dad  ,  single  mom  —-  they  should  make  a  dating  app  for  that  sort  of  thing  ,  right  ?      ❜  it’s  spoken  sarcastically  ,  the  truth  is  that  james  is  hardly  a  single  father  considering  the  au  pair  he’s  since  hired  to  help  out  .  ❛      start  our  very  own  brady  bunch  ,  you  think  that’s  a  strong  selling  point  ?      ❜        

“Oh!” his brows shot up upon discovery of this man actually having a child and being a single father. He didn’t know why it surprised him that much. The man was obviously in that age where it made sense to father a child, at least in Enzo’s opinion, but it’s just that he didn’t see a lot of single fathers around these days. He could tell that the idea will resonate with him once this day comes to an end and he’s unable to fall asleep before 5AM - and that’s when all the existential crisis’ happen. By the age of 29, he really thought he’d be a father until now but that didn’t seem to be happening any time soon. He felt as though the ideal picture-perfect family that he’d dreamed of was slipping underneath his fingers with each passing day, so maybe...”Is that hard? I mean, of course it is, it’s a stupid question and I know it’s intimate and you don’t know me but I’ve always wondered what’s it like, ya know? Being a single dad.” he couldn’t but interrupt. “I mean, it’d probably be a good business idea for someone, ‘cause single parents probably think alike and they’d have a lot in common, but hey, what do I know? The closest I’ve come to lone parenting was raising my three sisters on my own but I don’t think that’s quite the same thing”

Carina could tell by Enzo’s waving white flag that this was her opportunity to take the win. It would’ve been so easy to chalk up her actions to wanting some victory in this battle. But she wasn’t sure what she was fighting for. In fact, when she went into conversation, she didn’t imagine an endgame. Although, Carina knew best that to tug the heartstrings of Enzo Ricciardi would only make her the cruelest of composers. 

This was different though, she wasn’t playing a sad song with his heart for her own was on the line. 

Carina closed the space between them, her body pressed against his in a tight hug. She couldn’t support herself from the weight of his gaze. More than that, she couldn’t stand the separation between heir bodies. Wrapping her arms above his shoulders, one hand threaded fingers into the tousle of soft curls. “This was never a game. You…” She emphasized, taking a step back to look into whiskey colored. “Were never a game.” 

Because it was important for Enzo to know that when it came to his emotions and feelings, she was the last person who’d ever toy with them. A small chuckle escapes her as she steps up into the game stall. “Alright. So tonight then?” She confirms, running her fingers over the bow and arrow. 

“Regardless of who wins the plush animal, you’ll take me back to your place and we’ll have our wicked ways with each other.” 

“By that I mean, I can count on you to make some finger, licking...” She slowed on the words to allow the image formulate in his head. Or perhaps in her own head. “ … good Italian food.” Carina winks as she fumbles with the bow and arrow arrangement. 

If anyone had known the naughty thoughts racing through her mind, she’d probably be condemned. She was a woman but even saints have their off days.  

“I question why you couldn’t have picked an easier game to play.” Carina mumbles as the arrow hangs off the bow’s string. “I was always more of a shotgun kind of gal.”

The last time a woman had touched him, held him tight against her body, behind such action lied the intent to drown one another’s desires out and then bid each other a goodbye by the time sun hits the high skies. And before that, the last time woman had touched him like this, she’d been the one he called “amore della mia vita” and whose face he wished to see the first time in the morning, until his dying breath. But on her tip-toes, she was just underneath his chin and her hair smelled strongly of apple and cinnamon. And when he’d kiss her against the pulse point of her wrist before moving on to her knuckles, especially the one of the ring finger, where he’d promised himself to her for the eternity with a silver band, there she smelled of butter, cocoa and vanilla. Or when he’d skim his lips against hers before devouring her whole being within the confinements of their shared home, her breath would taste of freshly brewed coffee. 

This...was nothing like that but in all ways that mattered, it was so much more terrifyingly resembling of that rather than of one his latest endeavors. And that had him weaker in his knees more so than the words which were to pass her mouth. And they were, admittedly, terrifying in their own sense because he didn’t know what that means. In the event of everything, in the given night’s context, how was he to take those words or deal with them. Doubt had anchored itself deep inside his hollow bones, taking a permanent residency there and he felt backed against the wall of his own carelessness. 

The overwhelming desire to flee - and not only confine himself inside of the home that he’d made for himself here, but also to pack his suitcases and leave to a far away land without telling anyone where or why - tugged onto him like he was a puppet on strings guided by the ghosts of his past. He quenched that desire, though, along with his discomfort and took the feeble peace offering as an opportunity to play pretend for the time being - and deal with the consequences later, when alone with his thoughts. 

He could not deny her now, regardless of whether he wanted it or not. Putting one foot in front of the other, one hand over the arrow, the other one over the bow - every movement, every breath he’d taken, took a conscious effort but he still felt detached from his very being throughout the whole ordeal. It reminded him of a panic attack, the way he felt in that moment - with the rest of the world around him completely dulled out, sounds coming through as though they were being vocalized from under the ocean, light but a dim and blurry background while the only thing he could focus on was himself and moving his limbs in as normal fashion as he could muster. A taught trick. 

“Your way. Always your way.” he could hear his own voice ringing clear in his head and it sounded unusually put together, not at all that different from what he’d usually talk like at her. He was good at this. At keeping things at bay. Lifting the weaponry up, he closed his left eye and aimed for one of the higher points spots on the board, aware that he lacked the skill to hit the bulls-eye, but whenever his brains and skill decided to part their ways from him - luck seemed to weasel its way in, and he actually hit the center without even going for it. “Well, I guess you could say I like having an upper hand in some things, if I can’t have them in others. You’ve already made your move in shifting the power dynamics for the night  - it’s only fair that I balance things out.”