𝕄𝔸𝔻 / 𝐌𝐈𝐍𝐃.

he  lets  out  all  of  his  frustration  and  the  prickling  sense  of  anxiety  in  a  single  exhale  once  the  door  opens  and  there  it  is,  that  typical  playful  smile  of  his  tugging  at  the  corners  of  his  lips,  but  right  now,  it’s  a  little  forced.  he  can’t  imagine  how  jaime  must  feel  at  the  moment,  having  just  opened  a  door  to  meet  someone  he’d  thought  to  be  dead  for  months  —  but  surely,  he’d  be  relieved.  hurt.  confused.  angry.  although  adan  has  forgiven  him  a  little  too  easily  for  the  most  stupid  decision  jaime  has  ever  made  the  night  of  the  return  of  the  vampire’s  humanity,  he  realizes  they’re  different  people  in  different  situations,  so,  all  he  can  do  is  hope  that  eventually,  jaime  can  bring  himself  to  understand  why  he  did  it.  that’s  all  he  can  ask  for.  it  took  them  a  very  long  and  rocky  road  to  finally  get  to  a  destination  where  both  of  them  were  happy,  only  for  DEATH  to  once  again  begin  meddling  in  their  affairs;  they’ve  strayed  off  that  path  now,  but  no  matter  what  it  takes,  adan  will  get  them  back  to  where  they’re  supposed  to  be.  “  miss  me?  ” 

there  is  a  quiet  thud  where  a  case  of  files  collides  with  the  mahogany  table,  announcing  adan’s  presence  in  his  typical  DRAMATIC  fashion  ——  that’s  one  way  to  turn  up  out  of  the  blue  when  your  funeral  was  just  a  couple  of  months  ago.  however,  there  are  more  urgent  matters  to  attend  to  at  the  moment  rather  than  some  hoax  he’d  pulled  in  order  to,  well,  organize  his  life.  things  are  finally  in  place  now,  except  for  this  one  little  piece  that  just  won’t  click  and  it  appears  to  be  none  other  than  maya  marceli.  imagine  his  surprise  upon  realizing  that  there  is  more  dirt  to  her  and  not  just  a  secret  stash  in  her  bra.  “  i  have  to  say,  i’m  impressed.  you’ve  fooled  all  of  us  long  enough.  ”  his  words  might  seem  light,  like  he’s  simply  poking  fun  at  something  innocent,  but  the  lively  spark  that  is  usually  present  in  his  eyes  has  been  replaced  with  a  stern  look,  so  cold  that  even  ELSA  would  get  bothered  by  it.  “  is  your  name  even  maya?  wait,  let  me  guess  ”  —  he  holds  up  his  hands  and  his  expression  morphs  into  one  of  faux  pondering  —  “  laura?  olivia?  marina?  ”

Keep reading

Keep reading

Keep reading

he should start to wonder just how much of his actions are intentional and how many of them are just accidents perfectly lined up with his chanting subconscious. maybe it should say something that he’s entirely forgotten why he even showed up to adan’s place to begin with. to check on him? the gift? the …  things drawn out of that gift? the domino effect surrounding everything? this is the curse of the painfully self-aware   —-   there is basically no room for ignorance or to feign obliviousness. he thinks his reasoning had about fifty layers to it ;  just like onions. and ogres. and shrek. ( read: there was something innocent in there at some point. ) not that it matters now. with the small goosebumps prickling his skin comes the comfort of adan’s arms around him, and adan’s fingers tangled in his hair, and the journey of adan’s gaze as his breathing stills between the beats of a frozen moment. it TRULY occurs to him that this matryoshka of intentions might NOT be riding on something innocent, after all, given the pure gladness that sweeps through him when adan reels him in and their lips connect. ( if he had the sensibility to make a comparison, it would be akin to getting a glass of water after days of wandering through sandy dunes, in the scorching sun. )

somewhere at the back of his head, he acknowledges that this is definitely different  —-  not just through intent, but how it FEELS too. it’s acknowledged, but only built upon through the silent words of their language of physicality. namely, a hand that lifts and settles along adan’s jawline, a pair of eyes shutting so that sight is severed and leaves him to the thrills and sensations of a kiss that might just be a tad too ardent even for a couple of best friends that have made a habit out of having no boundaries. his other hand skims along adan’s torso and grabs a fistful of clothing, backing with every attempt made at pulling him a bit closer ( the brain-to-legs coordination isn’t in the best of shapes right now ). he ends up knocking into some desk behind him, quickly releasing the hold on adan’s shirt to grip its edge as an insurance of stability. even like this, while he’s refusing to break the connection ( and apparently gives little to no effort toward stabilizing the situation as opposed to escalating it ), he knows he’ll understand if adan wants to retreat instead ( neither of them is stupid ;  THIS FEELS VERY DIFFERENT ). but he’ll understand doesn’t mean he’ll work toward ensuring that happens. instead, his fingers rake through adan’s hair and curl into it just slightly. so, no   —–   he’s not stopping. 

          jaime  kisses  him  back  and  it  shouldn’t  be  surprising  —  it  isn’t  —  but  it  elicits  a  smile  anyway,  hidden  in  the  nooks  and  crannies  of  his  face  where  it  has  seemingly  become  one  with  jaime’s,  moving  with  such  FLUIDITY  that  it’s  almost  as  easy  and  natural  as  breathing  (  and  even  if  he  was  human,  adan  would  probably  crave  it  more  than  air  in  this  moment  ).  maybe  a  few  months  ago  something  like  this  would  be  written  off  as  their  mutual  desire  to  help  each  other  out  with  their  needs,  like  any  best  friends  do,  but  as  adan  crowds  jaime’s  space  even  further,  he  knows  that  he  needs  it  with  him.  it’s  no  secret  that  their  best  forms  of  communication  lie  within  strange  territories,  including  sacrifices  and,  apparently,  physical  contact  that  sometimes  goes  to  rather  extreme  lengths,  but  it  works  for  them;  and  if  they  have  any  possibly  unanswered  questions  ...  well,  they  might  as  well  try  to  find  them  in  different  ways  their  intimacy  has  begun  to  spread,  just  like  redness  on  a  flushed  neck.

nico: yeah, i should just save it. copy and paste is easier.

nico: yeah those 10 dead people must feel mighty embarrassed

nico: was it 10? i honestly don't remember

nico: people need to stop dying so much its hard to keep track

adan: that's their problem, not mine

adan: i'm a little impressed and disappointed the hospital didn't turn into a warzone

he wasn’t particularly worried about adan’s reaction regarding the pendant. the only thing that could realistically go wrong is adan finding it an incredibly stupid thing to put forward and turning it down on principle. he can’t say he hasn’t thought of that and he can’t say he hasn’t considered alternatives. because, yes   —–   he’s invested an awful amount of time into making sure the necklace would be something as aesthetically pleasing as it is practical. yes, he’s made use of all the little things that he’s picked up over the years ( hopefully he doesn’t delude himself when he thinks that this is just how he operates and that adan isn’t the only person he has a collection of details on ). but that doesn’t mean that, at heart, it’s not a gesture akin to a safety warranty. he can’t die. apparently. ( it’s still a bit in the works. ) but those around him are still open and vulnerable ;  somehow, that’s even worse.

“ are we? ” he questions, the corner of his mouth tipping upward as he finds himself especially enthralled with adan’s reaction and all the little shadows and flickers in his expression pertaining to it. “ i must’ve forgotten the magical necklace you gave me at home. ” it’s a jest, of course. he’s not good with receiving gifts ( not that he’s really had many exhibits of this caliber in his life to begin with ) and he’s quite content with having it stay that way. he finds value in other things, quicker to nourish the soul and the mind instead. he doesn’t know what path adan wants to tread with this pendant, but he does have the patience to find out, his gaze dipping toward the motions adan’s fingers bring about as his hand gently curls back around the necklace. at this point, he almost expects adan to reject it, but to be greeted with words that indicate otherwise isn’t that surprising either. 

there’s a beat of unwavering silence, perturbed only by the sound of tires rolling along the pavement as a lone car passes by outside. it’s not that he doesn’t want to, but there’s definitely something …  curious in the layers of that request. jaime is sufficiently attuned to his own feelings and thoughts to recognize an agitated elephant in the middle of a china store when he sees it. so, in a less pretentious, less metaphor-filled way of putting it    —-    he knows his sentiments toward adan have overstepped the line of friendship a tiny bit and this …  is definitely not going to help it. ( survey asks: should it be helped? tune in to find out. ) he offers a nod in response and, at the very least, knows they’re not going to do the whole troy and gabriella, titanic thing, but beyond that, he doesn’t pour much thought into it. he releases the clip at the back of the chain and encircles adan’s neck with it, twisting it toward the front so he can actually see what he’s doing. there’s nothing particularly intimate or magical about trying to clip the chain and not quite managing ;  it’s annoying. and it requires a bit of his focus as he tries to close the damn thing, not really aware of how much closer he’s gotten to adan in a bid to get upclose and personal with the clip at hand. or, well, he’s not aware at first  —  since that tide is quick to turn when he feels adan’s breath paint along his cheek and, all of sudden, it does become really intimate. ( somehow, more than all the other times they have literally danced the devil’s tango. to put it nicely. ) he manages to successfully secure the clip, an unknown kind of morbid curiosity lifting his gaze for a peer through his lashes. “ there. ” he sighs out  —  heavily. “ if you lose it, i’ll sell all your clothes. ” he takes a much needed step back and twists the necklace around until the pendant is finally to the front.

          they’re  back  to  normal  ...  as  normal  as  they  can  be  for  two  best  friends,  a  vampire  and  some  kind  of  immortal  witch  who’d  seemingly  go  to  the  ends  of  the  earth  and  above  the  mortal  planes  of  existence  just  for  the  other.  and  yet  ——  it’s  not  quite  the  same.  they’ve  been  through  a  lot,  fighting  tooth  and  nail  to  find  their  own  place  in  this  life,  perhaps  more  so  surviving  than  truly  living,  and  it  would  only  make  sense  for  their  dynamic  to  change,  develop,  and  mature.  though  it  seems  like  it  has  jumped  a  few  steps,  diverting  them  off  the  path  they’ve  been  so  accustomed  to  all  their  years  spent  together,  and  adan  can’t  quite  recognize  where  they’re  going,  but  it  feels  familiar.  safe.  he’s  grown  to  understand  that  it’s  the  default  feeling  of  their  relationship  and  he’s  already  past  the  point  of  being  terrified  of  letting  people  in  —  right  now,  it’d  concern  him  more  if  he  had  to  let  him  GO.  

nico: hey

nico: you're not deader than usual, are you?

adan: are you going to start conversations like this from now on?

jaime: that only leaves about a thousand other things that could go wrong

jaime: i'm alright. i'm kind of used to freezing

jaime: you tell me about it

jaime: spades had me murdered in my flat a few nights ago

adan: i love many things about you, but your optimism is definitely my favorite

adan: what?????

adan: why are you only telling me about this now?

adan: does he know you're still alive?

nico: i guess. not much thou

nico: so its useless is what u mean. sucks

nico: yea that one.

nico: u were taking forever and i got bored

nico: plus it smelled good so

adan: why are you complaining?

adan: we basically live in bars, this is your moment

         so in her defense, this was meant to be the  S M A R T  option; get snowed in, where better than a hospital..right? NO. the wrong choice and now she was gonna suffer because it seemed like EVERYONE had made the same call. although there was something at least partially redeeming about the amusement that had set in, when she’d come across the last person she’d ever expect to see in a lab coat; there’s always a subtle irony to the things she finds amusing ( it’s this or dumb people ). “ sure, go right ahead…— Dr. Valez, ” she’d play along because she had nothing better to do but that didn’t mean her tone wasn’t sparked with the amusement she was feeling. one set of nails tapping on the desk as she held her other arm out.