( @cain-douglas)
The little guy grabs him. Cain’s not expecting it. The guy is a bean pole, the same height but a third of Cain’s size. It’s like being grabbed by a very tall toddler for how threatened Cain feels by it but still, it’s a surprise. Cain stares at the guy as he continues to rant, jabbing now at his chest with one sharp little rat claw finger. It takes a second for what he’s saying to penetrate all the weed, but when it does, Cain can’t hide the raw twist of emotion that slides across his face. It all falls into place. The fact this guy knows where he lives and what he apparently smells like. The greasy, unwashed look to him. The weeby look of his vape. Cain reaches up and grabs the finger needling at his chest. Very slowly and deliberately he bends it backwards, not far enough to break it but just far enough to let this motherfucker know that he could. “You,” Cain growls low in his throat. “Don’t get to lecture me on apartment etiquette when you’re blasting your fucking bullshit anime music all the time.” He takes another long drag from his vape and blows it in one continuous cloud into the guy’s face. “Close your fucking window if you don’t like the way my shit smells you overgrown Artemis Fowl looking dick. “
The pain in his hand should be a sign to back down, take a hint, fuck off. Instead it triggers something feral in Jack, that part of himself always simmering just under the surface, ready to throw itself headfirst and spitting with claws out at the first hint of a threat. He pushes further towards the man, bending his own finger even further past the point of comfort, petulant and stubborn as ever. The sting just adds his anger, a cycle of spite. “Some dumb beefy fuck calling me a weeb, ooohh, I’m terrified. Not like I’ve ever heard that one before.” He gets up in the guy’s face. “Just try me, you prick. I can ruin your life.”
Jack pauses at the Artemis Fowl reference. He pulls back a step and glances up at the stranger’s face, brow furrowed, forgetting to be angry for a second. “Wait, what? Like... the guy with fairy powers who solves crime?” He narrows his eyes. “Are-- is that supposed to be some kind of fucking gay joke? From the guy who smokes watermelon weed?”
