matchsticks

“Don’t give me a reason to shoot you, it’s been a long day and my partner got transferred.”

“ You should see the other guy. ” A small laugh bubbled up his throat at his poor attempt at a joke but that’s the only way he knew how to cope with pain. PHYSICAL pain. He pinched the bridge of his nose, hoping that it’d slow down the bleeding. “ I’m sorry. You caught me at a particularly bad moment. I’m not always like this. ”

Mitch smiled, even though he sensed the guy was nervous, intimidated or somewhere in the middle. “Yeah, you. Don’t worry, I wont sell you anything or steal from you. I know that isn’t a far stretch with people around here..” he started, looking around but keeping a firm grip on his camera. “You seem like a decent person who’s up for some please help me get a good grade questions.” he chuckled, trying to lighten his aura from complete stranger to ‘okay maybe he wont steal my wallet’ stranger. “First one’s easy. Your name, whatever you feel like sharing.” he clicked the camera once, then set it down, pulling out a notepad. “Then, what’s the first thing you think of when you hear the word ‘hope’? No pressure.”

It wasn’t often that any strangers with good intentions tended to stop you in this neighbourhood, maybe the place really was changing. He wasn’t sure whether it unnerved him, or made him cautiously glad. “Can never be too careful... sorry, man.” Teddy scratched self-consciously at the back of his neck with his good arm. “A decent person? You got all that from a look?” His eyebrows shot up at that, he never thought he’d been a guy who gave off decent person vibes. “Uh, I’m Teddy. ” The cigarette in his hand was still a social crutch ten years after his first puff, letting him organise his thoughts in a pause that was practical. “Well it’s not really a definition or anything but y’know... it’s like actually getting all my siblings’ report cards and no one got kicked out, Ned’s soccer team doin’ good maybe good enough for a scholarship, Allison still going to ma’s grave every month. S’like when I see that every day my arm is healing a little better, doesn’t mean anything in the grand scheme of things but it’s all good, ” he ducked his eyes embarrassedly. “Or something.” 

Mitch tapped gently on the bystander’s shoulder, gripping his camera from the strap around his neck.  “Hi, so sorry to bother but uh..” Smooth. He had to make sure he didn’t already lose their attention. “..I’m doing a project for one of my classes. Sounds kinda weird, but is it okay if I take your picture and ask a few questions? If not, no worries. But it’ll take just a sec.” 

Teddy let out a frozen puff of breath, he’d used Lonny’s buzz saw to take the cast off the lower half of his arm when he’d been making breakfast for them before school. He still couldn’t properly get to the itching that had been ruining his life for two weeks, the burns were still too tender but only a small patch of fresh bandage was visible. Much easier to hide. He lit up a cigarette, scanning the tracks to see when Allison’s train would come in on the L. At the touch to his shoulder he turned sharply, instinctively backing away and digging his hands into his pockets. He raised an eyebrow, a heartbeat away from telling the guy to fuck off and sell whatever it was to someone who cared. Or had any money to buy. Teddy watched him hold the camera carefully, he couldn’t put his finger on why but he was quietly surprised by it. “Me?” He hummed, bemused. “You sure?”

He worried. He often came off as an indifferent prick with no sympathy or capabilities for empathy, but he worried. Especially when it came to people closest to him, even those who weren’t related to him by blood— Theo being one of the prime examples. A fond smile bloomed on his lips at the thought of Chuck, short, fleeting glimpses of brown hair and the same eyes he saw in Theo, but he quickly shook his head. He might’ve made it out of this shithole, but he got lucky, that’s all he was. Although, he supposed that was all it took to move on from being a South Side piece of trash. “Good, I mean… at least you’re not in trouble,” he said, pressing his lips together into a thin line that resembled something of a crooked smile. “If I were famous, you’d definitely get more than 20k.” He would say he’d promise, but he didn’t believe in bullshitting him like that. It was all hypothetical talk, which they did more often than he’d like to, but it was really more of a joke than anything. “Of course I’m gonna care, kid.” He clasped his hand over the other male’s shoulder. “How’s work, anyway?” he asked as he got up to head to the fridge, fetching a beer for himself and Theo before plopping back down on the couch, handing one can over to him.

There was a misconception from the outside looking in, or in most cases the Northside looking down. It was a study in extremes; keep your head down if it’s not your business, use any means possible to deal with your own shit and protect your people far more fiercely than most could even comprehend. “Right now, anyway.” Teddy couldn’t help but murmur wryly, no matter what happened trouble always seemed to find him. “What’s the catch?” He joked quietly, thinking of wealth he’d never even dreamed of that seemed so childish. “There’s always a catch.” The small moment of closeness was smoothly and cleanly broken by Soren pushing himself up from the couch and swinging the door of the fridge open, it hummed loudly and the light flickered a little. “I assume they’re doin’ okay without me, nothing’s burned down around here recently, at least.” He scrubbed his free hand over his face tiredly but brought it away with a grateful smile as he was given the can of beer. Sticking his tongue out in concentration he let it precariously rest on his propped up knee, using his good arm to try and pop the top without dropping the whole thing on the floor. “How’s your writin’? We haven’t talked about it in a while.”

🌟 what is my muse’s sexual/romantic orientation?

Teds is bisexual demiromantic. He just loves all his people and he has a (sort of) pretty healthy view of sex, it’s a stress reliever and as long as everyone’s cool with what’s going down it’s all good. Teddy is incapable of becoming romantically attached to someone without knowing them deeply and being able to trust them, he feels like his life isn’t really conducive to any healthy sort of relationship so it’s kinda tough for him to put all his eggs in one basket. 

💗  has my muse ever been in love?

You got the oldest one, came way ahead of the others when the Mom was still young. She was hot when she had him. Did you hear he ran off with some Northside chick? Never pegged him as the one to get out. Then there’s Teddy, a chip right off Big Theo’s block. Good kid, got a real sense of community and he’s at the Fire Department just like his dad. Ned’s got a face like a smacked ass, don’t know they’re born these days do they? He’s the first twin, they’re that type that don’t look the same. I heard the other one, Lonny, he’s dumber than a bag of rocks apart from some good scams, he’s got a good eye for ripping folks off. Then there’s Allison, never been a sweeter girl unless you cross her, then she’ll break your kneecaps with a tire iron. It’s true, happened to my cousin. Shame about the Murphys, shame about those kids. 

👠  what was my muse’s last serious relationship like?

Fucking catastrophic. They were really, really bad for each other but they just seemed to thrive on that? She’d swear up and down that she didn’t need anything from him then borrow money and then she’d accuse him of holding it over her head. Teddy isn’t good at staying in contact and he’d be gone for days with not even a text and that’d screw with her head and they’d fight all the time but that just meant that whatever nearby surface was subjected to hate sex that they SWORE was make-up sex. She knew all about what happened with his Mom and that’s why it shocked him so much when she threatened to burn his shit and then his apartment down with him in it. She looked like she’d have given anything to take it back, she looked mortified but... Teds had already snatched up his ratty gym bag full of clothes and was gone. He was really on edge for months after, Lonny and Allison wanted to beat the shit out of him for hovering at the house so much. 

💯  what is my muse’s ideal date?

💋  how many people has my muse slept with?

See, Teddy doesn’t actually know the number. That sounds pretty bad, he gets it but sometimes you get the look across the bar and then its the next day and you’re falling half naked out of their bedroom window when their spouse gets home and all you’re gonna do is try and forget about it while making sure you’re not gonna take the rap. Sometimes it’s not husbands or wives but just a whole lot of booze, a whole lot of getting fucked up. The two aren’t mutually exclusive. He’d have to know the exact parameters of slept with and how the alley behind a club, the backseat of a car and the disabled bathroom at Wendy’s fit into it and then he’d get back to you... Maybe. He was never that interested in math. ( The actual number is in the forties or fifties because... he’s my fucking garbage pail kid and puberty DID THAT™ )

👓 would my muse ever lie for sex?

He rolled his eyes at Theo’s sarcastic remarks, but the familiarity of it, the fact that this is how it’s always been, is comforting. This, here, where they were sitting on the couch in the living room, was like a fixed point among the constant shifting and turning of every other piece, but here. And so he couldn’t help but let his lips crack into a smile. It quickly faltered, however, when the other male mentioned the large sum of money. He wasn’t sure if he was serious or if he was just fucking with him, and so he had to ask, “What the fuck do you need twenty grand for? You in trouble or somethin’?” genuine concern slipping through his tone.

There were memories layered into the smoke stain of the wallpaper, in the fist-shaped holes in the drywall and the juice stains on the braiding of the dirty carpet. Teddy wondered idly what his older brother would think of this room now. “Dude, no, I’m not my Dad! If I needed the money that badly I’d do what Chuck did, find myself a bit of yuppie North Side tail. Though I guess he goes by Charles now.” Teddy chuckled but then chewed at his lip as it trailed off awkwardly, he could feel them chapping from the incoming cold. Just like he could almost feel Chicago’s first winter snow in the air. “I was just kiddin’ y’know? If you were actually famous I figure 20k would be nothing. ‘Sides, I’m lucky I’ve got a steady gig at the department. But uh, thanks... for caring.”