[There's so much he wants to pursue about that statement: I already told him. What was Jonas's reaction? Did the two of them work it out? If they did, then surely there's nothing in the way now, except Noctis's preoccupation with Eos. A woman named Luna he's supposed to marry even if he doesn't really want to. Has it come up yet? Have they discussed it, and have they grown closer as a result?
Then Noctis keeps talking, going to an extent that calls him out and draws a dark, furtive look that flinches off seconds later.]
So you never would have told him? If I hadn't done anything.
[There's a more important question he should be asking, but this one feels sore in a different way, wondering at intention.]
Our business... doesn't it involve him? You wouldn't have talked to me half as much if Jonas wasn't here.
Jonas is my friend. A close one, somebody I'm gonna' make sure is good no matter what it takes here.
[ His frustration is mounting but this time it's not directed at Cain, even when he suddenly turns to lock eyes with him. It's clear in the tight way he grasps at his own arms and the solemn line of his mouth, stare intent just as it had been before they fought but without any of the same aggression. ]
But tying everything we do to him is gonna' drag him down. Every fight's gonna' wear on him, and every time we patch things up it'll be for his sake. I'm talking to you. You just said we're friends too. Maybe we would've been friends faster if we'd finished our first fight, or maybe it never would've happened. Who knows...
Now I wanna' fix this for us too. I didn't say it before because I convinced myself you'd be an asshole about it, but now I'm not letting that stop me. I've been wrong about everything else.
I tried to like coffee. I tried to... like girls. I tried to be a hardass with you. But I figured out I can be "shouldn't" here, instead of just "should" all the time. I wanna' be around you for you.
[Unbelievable. Noctis is talking his mouth off in that stern, straightforward tone — looking him in the eye and refusing to back down — and it's any wonder Cain can concentrate enough to drum up a response. It feels like they might as well be fighting again for how it affects him; he sits up straighter, bracing one elbow on a crossed knee and pinching the bridge of his nose with gloved fingers. Then he rubs at his temple with a thumb. In the dark, his expression is half-hidden by that upraised hand, just part of his profile visible in a strip of bronze skin.]
God, you are... infuriatingly my type. Like, you're so hot when you get worked up.
[Maybe you don't want him to speak his mind, actually. 🤡]
Hey. I owe you five questions, right? Since you won. [Cain leans back and begins fishing around in the pockets of his pants for something — it becomes obvious when a hand-rolled cigarette and golden lighter are both produced.] Mind if we do 'em next time? We can still talk, I'm just saying. There's only so much of this I can take at once.
[ Reality sets in and the words Cain has formed with that foul mouth of his finally connect to their meaning in his short-circuited brain, and the color in his face that the darkness has done such a good job of hiding deepens substantially and all at once. No one has ever spoken to him like that in his life, and he isn't unaware of the fact that no one may ever again.
It's as frustrating as it is ego-boosting, heart rate quickening in this private moment, up high over a too-blue pool. ]
Oi, you– [ OMAE... ]
[ He leans over suddenly, leg jostling that heater when he delivers a hard smack to Cain's shoulder, one without intent to do lasting damage but that nevertheless has the heft behind it he deserves. ]
You are so annoying; I knew that kiss wasn't some big strategy... [ The words slip out with less self-censorship than he might've preferred, an indelicate way to broach that topic, but being flustered ironically gives him an extra dose of courage. They both acted on impulse. Pretending it was anything else is a pointless venture, and maybe if they let it sit between them it won't be as awkward. A hard argument to make when his face is this red. ]
I say all that, and that's your response? Not even "yeah, me too, Noctis"? I did the heavy lifting and you say the first thing that comes into your head... like I need a reminder that I won and that you owe me...
[Considering their record, that smack might as well be a gentle pat on the shoulder — Cain feigns annoyance with a hiss as he rubs the spot, but it's all for show.]
Ow. Already trying to beat me up again? It was a bitch to have to travel with my ribs messed up, never mind the questions I got about my face...
[At some point, he just started telling people a wild cat attacked him, even though as far as he's aware (and he'd know by now), there aren't any comparable animals on this planet.]
[But clearly Cain's not worked up for another fight by the way he reclines on the ground, one hand back, cigarette burning between his lips where he lets it perch. Inhales, exhales a plume of smoke, ashes it with his fingers.]
You wanna be around me, this's all part of the package, sweetheart.
[One hand gestures to... well, the entirety of himself.]
... but, look. I'm just not that good at saying it. All right? You and Jonas — it's easier for you. Or you make it seem easy. I guess I'm not that trusting of people. I don't like being open. You two are the only ones I give a shit about right now that's not out of some obligation to whatever role I'm playing on this mission.
So listen up, because I'm not gonna say it again: I want to fix this too. As long as you don't pretend to be something you're not around me, then we'll be okay.
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no subject
Then Noctis keeps talking, going to an extent that calls him out and draws a dark, furtive look that flinches off seconds later.]
So you never would have told him? If I hadn't done anything.
[There's a more important question he should be asking, but this one feels sore in a different way, wondering at intention.]
Our business... doesn't it involve him? You wouldn't have talked to me half as much if Jonas wasn't here.
no subject
[ His frustration is mounting but this time it's not directed at Cain, even when he suddenly turns to lock eyes with him. It's clear in the tight way he grasps at his own arms and the solemn line of his mouth, stare intent just as it had been before they fought but without any of the same aggression. ]
But tying everything we do to him is gonna' drag him down. Every fight's gonna' wear on him, and every time we patch things up it'll be for his sake. I'm talking to you. You just said we're friends too. Maybe we would've been friends faster if we'd finished our first fight, or maybe it never would've happened. Who knows...
Now I wanna' fix this for us too. I didn't say it before because I convinced myself you'd be an asshole about it, but now I'm not letting that stop me. I've been wrong about everything else.
I tried to like coffee. I tried to... like girls. I tried to be a hardass with you. But I figured out I can be "shouldn't" here, instead of just "should" all the time. I wanna' be around you for you.
no subject
God, you are... infuriatingly my type. Like, you're so hot when you get worked up.
[Maybe you don't want him to speak his mind, actually. 🤡]
Hey. I owe you five questions, right? Since you won. [Cain leans back and begins fishing around in the pockets of his pants for something — it becomes obvious when a hand-rolled cigarette and golden lighter are both produced.] Mind if we do 'em next time? We can still talk, I'm just saying. There's only so much of this I can take at once.
1/2
2/2
It's as frustrating as it is ego-boosting, heart rate quickening in this private moment, up high over a too-blue pool. ]
Oi, you– [ OMAE... ]
[ He leans over suddenly, leg jostling that heater when he delivers a hard smack to Cain's shoulder, one without intent to do lasting damage but that nevertheless has the heft behind it he deserves. ]
You are so annoying; I knew that kiss wasn't some big strategy... [ The words slip out with less self-censorship than he might've preferred, an indelicate way to broach that topic, but being flustered ironically gives him an extra dose of courage. They both acted on impulse. Pretending it was anything else is a pointless venture, and maybe if they let it sit between them it won't be as awkward. A hard argument to make when his face is this red. ]
I say all that, and that's your response? Not even "yeah, me too, Noctis"? I did the heavy lifting and you say the first thing that comes into your head... like I need a reminder that I won and that you owe me...
1/2
Ow. Already trying to beat me up again? It was a bitch to have to travel with my ribs messed up, never mind the questions I got about my face...
[At some point, he just started telling people a wild cat attacked him, even though as far as he's aware (and he'd know by now), there aren't any comparable animals on this planet.]
2/2
You wanna be around me, this's all part of the package, sweetheart.
[One hand gestures to... well, the entirety of himself.]
... but, look. I'm just not that good at saying it. All right? You and Jonas — it's easier for you. Or you make it seem easy. I guess I'm not that trusting of people. I don't like being open. You two are the only ones I give a shit about right now that's not out of some obligation to whatever role I'm playing on this mission.
So listen up, because I'm not gonna say it again: I want to fix this too. As long as you don't pretend to be something you're not around me, then we'll be okay.