#jeez here i am set to travel tomorrow and an old friend pops in to say hi xD

[autumnalhalcyon]

heya lance, LONG time no see. it's me! doefuq! a SHIT ton have changed since we last talked huh.

Oh shit, yeah! It's been what, at least 5 years?

How've you been? What've you been up to? How has your channel been doing?

[themangoyogurt]

Clementine: Chapter 2

You cursed yourself as a ridiculous love ballad blared from Poe’s overpriced stereo system. All you had wanted was a night of relaxation. The marble tub in the master ensuite was already filled with hot water and a bath bomb that was so overpriced it was practically criminal. Next to the tub, a chilled glass of white wine patiently waited along the latest novel you were gobbling up.

You had stupidly decided that some calming music was the final piece to your self-care puzzle. Except, you had never used something as high-tech as what Poe’s place offered. One wrong button later, and you were ninety-percent sure that only twenty-percent of your ear drum would be functional after this fiasco.

To make matters worse, there was angry knocking at the front door. The aggressive sound was so furious that it somehow cut through the music, causing you to flush in embarrassment as you ran to get the door. You were so frazzled from breaking the sound system and subsequently upsetting your neighbor that you even forgot to grab a robe on your way out.

The door flung open to reveal a man so large and imposing, you lost your breath.

He was in nothing except a single pair of boxers and fuzzy slippers. Despite his distinctly disheveled (and frankly, sloppy) look, he was handsome. Handsome, built like a refrigerator, and angry. Ogling your neighbor would do no good if he murdered you.

Except, one moment he looked furious and the next, perplexed. Normally, you’d bristle if any man so obviously gave you a once over, but the way his mouth comically hung open made you less offended.

“Clementine,” was all he uttered.

The two of you stared at each other in silence, when the start of yet another pop song interrupted the moment. You startled to attention and rushed to explain, “I am so sorry about the disturbance. I can’t figure out how to work Poe’s stupid stereo and now the thing won’t shut off!”

The stranger peered around your shoulder and a hardened gaze returned to his face. He gritted out, “And where’s Poe to help you out?”

Your brow furrowed, and you could have sworn that he almost looked bitter at the statement. Deciding not to get into it with a stranger, you politely replied, “He’s flying right now. I’m just housesitting while he’s gone.”

The man softened ever so slightly at the response and straightened up. “I think we have the same system. I could help you turn it off.”

“Oh thank goodness,” you breathed in relief, quickly stepping aside to let him in. The stranger seemed to know his way around the gigantic apartment, and you assumed that his layout was either the same or he’d been here before.

Awkwardly shuffling behind him, you timidly supplied your name in an attempt to start a conversation. He merely grunted out, “Kylo.” He didn’t even spare you a glance as he busied himself with tapping at a seriously sci-fi looking box.

After a few minutes of strained silence, the music finally cut out. The sudden quietness was so strong your ears nearly rang from the lack of sound. “Uhm, thank you! Can I make you a mug of tea or something?” you ventured, politeness outweighing the sheer awkwardness as you realized you were two half-naked strangers staring at each other.

He shuffled a bit before giving a terse nod.

Jeez, nobody’s forcing him to hang out with me, you thought in response to his frosty reaction.

Speaking of frosty, you noticed his eyes zeroing in on your rather pointed chest, causing you to turn pink at the neck. Thankfully, you had left a sweatshirt thrown over the couch. Snatching up the thick fleece garment, you tugged it over your head and led Kylo to the kitchen.

Kylo followed with heavy steps, and made himself right at home as he settled on a stool pulled up against a bar area facing the kitchen. Two mugs were pulled from a cabinet and quickly filled with steaming hot water. The liquid reminded you of the bath now gone to waste, but one look at the handsome man gazing at you made it all worth it.

A mug of chamomile was slid across the marble top and into Kylo’s hands before you joined him on the stool to his left.

“Sorry again about the music,” you muttered.

Kylo ran a hand through his hair, dark locks falling like Fall leaves. “It’s fine. It was an accident. So...you’re a house-sitter?”

You laughed, “Unofficially. I just moved to town, and I don’t have a place yet. Poe’s an old friend from college, and he just started some sort of travel show that’s gonna keep him busy for at least four months. I get to stay for free, and he doesn’t have to worry about his house going to shit.”

Kylo nodded, not surprised that the dashing pilot somehow landed himself a deal to host a travel show. He also came from money and had already made a name for himself jet-setting around the globe piloting his own private jet.

You gave him a cute little head tilt and asked, “And what about you? What’s your story?”

For the first time since he left the First Order, Kylo felt embarrassed. Deciding to fall back on vagueness he replied, “Ah, early retirement.” Women liked mysterious men, right?

He was surprised as you let out a low whistle. “Retiring in a place like this? You must’ve had one hell of a job to retire from.” You blew the steam away from your mug and took a long sip.

Kylo frowned and folded his arms across the tabletop. “And what about you? It’s a Wednesday and you’re blaring Taylor Swift near midnight.” You knew that he wasn’t being defensive, despite a slight accusatory tinge to his voice.

You turned to face Kylo, propping your head up on an elbow. There was something gravitational in your exchange, and your bodies had slowly inched closer and closer as you talked. By now, your knees were lightly touching, and you found yourself feeling electricity at the subtle touch.

He laughed as you playfully jabbed a finger in his chest. “I’ll have you know that I do, in fact, have a job! Have you ever heard of Hanna Hut?”

Something about you riled Kylo up, and he felt more alive than he had in the past month. Some teenaged boy part of his brain refused to admit that he had no idea what Hanna Hut was, hoping to impress the pretty girl sitting next to him. Instead, he rolled his eyes and scoffed, “Of course I have. And what’s it to you?”

His resolve slowly dissolved as a silent minute ticked by. He groaned as you finally broke the silence with a loud laugh. “A grouch who can see into the future. Amazing!” Kylo furrowed his brow, and bit back, “What are you talking about?”

“Hanna Hut doesn’t exist. At least not yet.”

Kylo furrowed his brow and pinked in embarrassment at being caught. You patted his thigh, ignoring how muscled it felt underneath your touch. His bare skin was warm and deliciously corded and taut. He stuttered out a non-reply, only earning a louder guffaw from you.

“Don’t worry. It will exist. Hopefully very soon! I’m opening my very own coffeeshop-slash-bookstore combo right here in town!” You couldn’t help but gush in excitement at your very new business venture.

It had taken years of careful planning and budgeting. Years of forgoing mimosas with the girls and squirreling away every dime. Literally. Years of accepting overtime, and years of enduring doubt from friends and family alike.

No more though. You had finally gathered together enough money to launch your dream business. The moment your bank account looked healthy enough, you threw up digits and peaced out of your tiny good-for-nothing town.

Finally, after years of grit and sweat, things seemed to be looking up. With free lodging for the next few months, you didn’t even have to stress about finding an apartment. Your deal with Poe worked out perfectly so that you could spend all of your time and energy looking for the perfect space to launch Hanna Hut.

Your excitement was infectious, as Kylo couldn’t help but flash a wide smile matching the one on your face. “And where can I visit this newfound ‘coffee-slash-bookstore’ venture of yours?” he asked, genuinely curious and interested in the concept.

“Well...I’m still looking for the perfect storefront. I think I might have found it, though! In fact, I’m meeting with the landlord tomorrow afternoon.” You quickly pulled out your cellphone to show him the airy space located in Greenwich Village. It was beautiful, but pricey. Still, you convinced yourself that the price tag would be worth it.

Kylo quietly listened as you continued to babble and swipe through photos.

“It’s a little expensive, but I think it’ll be worth it! The landlord said that if I signed a ten year lease, he’d cut me a deal on rent. I think that should help, especially since there are so many fees and he needs three months rent up front...”

The more you prattled, the more agitated Kylo became. A ten year lease? As cute as you were, cuteness didn’t necessarily equate to business acumen. He found your naiveté equal parts adorable and concerning. Although you were a stranger, he didn’t want to watch yet another out of towner get swindled and eaten up by the city.

He cleared his throat, and interrupted, “Ah, if you want, I could come with you to negotiate tomorrow. I hope I’m not overstepping, but I am a lawyer...”

You perked up and replied, “That would be amazing! But I don’t know if I could pay you. Judging by the fact that you live here, I don’t think I could afford your rates...”

“Ah, well I am retired so it’s not like I’ve got much going on for me. How about you buy me a coffee and we’ll call it even?”

He flinched in surprise when you practically leapt out of your seat. Clasping his hands in your own, you gushed, “Deal! Thank you so much, Kylo!” Kylo looked down at where your hands joined, marveling at how much smaller you were compared to him. Mustering up as much courage possible, he nodded and flashed you a smile.

Just like that, Kylo found himself looking forward to something for the first time in years.

[hamyheikki]

53. or 58. for Machiabilly!

Prompt list

Hey! I went with 53. “It’s lonely here without you”, and this dialog was a blast to write! Hope you like it.

While lying his drained body on top of the thick hotel mattress, Billy couldn’t help but throw a quick glance towards his phone on the nearby desk. He had set it to charge about ten minutes ago, and already he had an itching desire to grab it and go through his messages and missed calls just in case he hadn’t heard them at the first time. He had only been back in America for a day, and already he was missing the sounds of his own bedroom back in Paris, and more importantly, the man who occupied that said bedroom with him. Machiavelli had promised to keep a close eye on him via phones and skype, but it simply wasn’t the same as being physically close together. And even if Billy was truly enjoying the company of his old friends and their long-planned road trip across the States, he knew that something was missing.

For the first time in a quite a while, Billy felt lonely.

However, after a few minutes of quiet brooding, he managed to distract himself with a notion of a free cable TV, a courtesy offered to him by the hotel’s staff after they mistakenly had directed him into a room that obviously had housed a rather rowdy pack of people just before his arrival. Billy could still smell the odor coming from behind the closed bathroom door, the one even the staff had refused to open in front of him.

There were a number of channels to choose from, and after a moment of browsing he settled on an old movie from the 80’s. It was a comedy, from what he could tell, and with a contented sigh he pressed his back against the fluffy pillows and immersed himself into the film. It didn’t seem to be a long one either, so he’d have time to finish it in one sitting.

A perfect, quiet evening.

Calming, an excellent chance for him to restore his energy and get ready for tomorrow.

To just lay down and relax.

… He couldn’t take it! He had to see his phone, to make sure he hadn’t accidentally put it on silence and missed Niccolò’s calls. Or maybe the battery of his phone had actually died down completely, and he had forgotten to turn it back on before plugging it in.

Tossing the pillow he had been hugging, Billy jumped up and made his way to the low desktop beside the king-sized bed he had been resting upon. The screen of the phone was dark and the small, red light in the top corner indicated that the charging process was still ongoing as he pulled the wire off. He tapped in his code, starting to open up the message app as soon as the screen came to life. There seemed to be one unread text hanging on the upper line, but Billy had the feeling that it had been there for a while. Pulling the additional information of the message up, his assumption was confirmed; it was a text from his insurance company, the one he had been ignoring ever since he had seen it pop up first time.

It could wait a little longer. He slipped the text back to the “unread” category, now backing all the way back to the main screen where his call-button was.

He should just call to Mac. Even if they’d agreed that the older man was the one to contact him, Billy saw no harm in changing the plan around. After all, they were together. He had the right to call to his boyfriend whenever he pleased, especially since he was not able to see him face to face and was feeling more than a bit homesick at the moment, right?

He had the number on speed-dial, so a few seconds later the phone was tooting, the line cracking ever so slightly. Maybe it was because of the distance between them. Billy had never had much faith in modern telephone connections, and he’d noticed during his travels that they rarely worked as they should have been when the two people were on a different continents.

But after a couple of minutes, he heard a muted voice coming on at the other end of the line.

“Machiavelli.” The Italian sounded tired. In fact, he sounded half asleep.

Still, hearing him speak brought a smile on Billy’s lips. “Mac! It’s me. I was feeling a bit alone so I thought I’d call you instead!”

There was a moment of silence. “Instead of what?” The magician’s bewilderment was clear despite Billy not being able to see his frowning face.

“Instead of you calling me! Jeez Mac, we went through this twice before I left,” Billy said, glancing at the clock on the desk. “So, what’re you up to?”

“Billy, it’s 04:00 am here, what do you think I’m up to?”

“Umm…”

“You do remember that there is a seven hour time difference between Paris and Texas?”

“Yeah, sure…”

“You forgot.”

A nervous laughter was the only answer Billy came up with. He had, indeed, forgotten that while it was only an early evening for him, for his partner it was nearly a morning.

No wonder Mac sounded so exhausted.

“Well, it’s lonely here without you. I wanted to hear your voice.” Which was true, but Billy doubted it would do much to level out Niccolò’s temper. The man was rather precise about his sleeping schedule.

“And now you’ve heard it. Does that mean I can get back to sleep?”

A small lump formed in Billy’s throat when he heard the words. “Uhh, I guess. But don’t you miss me at all?”

“No.”

“Mac!” He was getting whiny, and he knew it.

“It’s quite calming, to be honest. I have this quiet, clean house all for myself. And it even stays that way once I leave for errands.” Now the muffled voice carried a teasing edge. “One might get used to this kind of luxury every now and then.”

Billy huffed. “You didn’t get much hugs when you were a kid, did you?”

He caught the end of a deep chuckle through the static line. “More than you’d think.” After a small pause, Machiavelli continued: “I can talk for a moment, but no more than few minutes. I need to sleep before my alarm goes off.”

The wide grin was back to Billy’s face in a heartbeat. “Yeah, sure. Whatever works for you, man.” He was just glad Niccolò hadn’t hung up already. With a practiced ease, they slid into a conversation, started by Billy’s absurd mutters as usual.

“So, earlier today I saw this cute little poodle padding down a street with his owner. He had such a pure white fur, and when I talked to the guy who was walking him I found out that he was a poodle/havanese mix.”

A sigh was audible despite the crackling of the bad reception. “Is this story going somewhere, Billy?”

“I’m getting to that! Anyway, we talked for a while and I pet the dog. But once I left, I started to think about dogs in general. Mac, how come when we domesticated dogs from wolves, they ended up looking so different now, but cats have stayed pretty much the same? Isn’t that weird?”

“I am not immensely fond of either of those species, so forgive me but I sincerely have no idea, nor am I too keen to find out,” Machiavelli said dryly. “Furthermore, biology has never been my strong suit.”

Billy smirked at that. It was rare for Niccolò to admit he wasn’t expert on something. Just goes to show how tired the man must be. Billy always enjoyed their late-night talks, but over the months he had noticed that his older partner offered very little betting in midst of these conversations compared to when he was actually awake.

“Huh, point taken. So, what kind of animals do you like then? I bet snakes are pretty high on the list,” Billy said as he lied back on the bed and let his gaze roam across the ceiling above.

“They are, but I wouldn’t take them as pets. Too much of a hasle.”

“Then what would make a perfect pet?”

Once again there was a few seconds of silence before the answer.

“I’ve always been intrigued by parrots.”

Billy’s eyes widened. “Parrots? As in those big-ass birds that can talk?” He never knew Niccolò found them interesting. But then again, he couldn’t help but relish the surprising nature of their relationship. He was learning new stuff about Mac all the time, and he loved it.

Over the line, Niccolò spoke out: “Not every individual can talk, Billy. But yes, I would like to have one of them as a pet.”

��Aah, because they’re smart like you?” He had to tease. It felt like it’d been too long since he had last poked fun at the older man.

“No, they remind me of you, actually.”

Well, that was surprising. “Oh yeah?”

“Yes. They constantly want attention, they have a tendency to repeat your speech back to you without adding much insight to it, and the only way to shut them up is to throw a blanket over them.”

Should have known.

Glancing quickly at the clock, Billy noted that it was steadily creeping past the half-ten already. They’d have to say goodbye soon, but not before he’d had a final jab at his lover.

“Hmm, I don’t know Mac. I can think of a few other ways to shut me up.”

He grinned as the silence went on, seeing in his mind the way Niccolò’s ears would burn red, as they always did when he began to tease him like this.

A sound of a throat clearing followed the quiet period. “Yes, well, we can see to that once you’ve returned safely from your travels.”

The simple sentence forced Billy to slip his eyes shut, a serene smile replacing the cocky grin he had worn a mere seconds ago.

He really missed his darling.

“I’d like that.”