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Posted: Sat Oct 21, 2017 8:32 pm
When Yuuri's shoulders slowly dropped and the thundering of his heart slowed, Lauri felt some measure of relief - largely in part to knowing he would be able to regain his personal space soon but also because it had worked and the coffee mouse was no longer terrified. Probably not crying, either. As Pasi, he wouldn't have apologized. As Pasi, he wouldn't have ******** up enough to need to do so. But he was Lauri now, so things were different. "It was my fault. I scared you." Lauri let Yuuri slip from his arms and looked down at him thoughtfully for a moment; he was wet again and would need to change himself. More laundry was a small price to pay - maybe he'd learn to think things through better from this. "I'll make some coffee. That will give you time to change." And privacy, which he seemed to want, which was fine. Lauri left Yuuri alone in the bathroom to change while he got fresh clothes to change into and went downstairs to brew two cups of coffee with the Keurig. He loved technology, plus they made the re-usable k-cups which was awesome and much less wasteful; not knowing how Yuuri took his coffee meant that the Finn returned upstairs with a tray that had creamer and sugar packets (very obviously taken from Starbucks or someplace like that) as well as the two mugs. Before stepping back in, he even stopped at the door jamb and peeked his head in, "Yuuri," The name rolled with rounded vowels and the r trilled in a strangely swallowed roll, "Are you dressed? I have coffee."
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Posted: Sat Oct 21, 2017 8:56 pm
Yuuri shifted back to put his weight on his good leg when Lauri let him go from the hug, his hands lifting to tug a bit nervously still at his wet shirt he still needed to take off. He didn’t know why he was surprised about Lauri admitting fault, perhaps because Lauri didn’t seem to be the type of person who made mistakes often, thus had no reason to apologize, but regardless, Yuuri shook his head, not wanting Lauri to worry too much about it.
The offer of making coffee to give him time to change was a surprise too, and Yuuri watched as Lauri turned to leave, that strange feeling of curiosity building. There wasn’t a lot of time for him to really think about it though, because he was given some time to change and he was going to take advantage of that.
His shirt and the rest of his clothes were quickly pulled off and the new, dry clothes pulled on. A towel over his hair helped to not just dry it some more, but to try and warm himself up. The extra towel was held in his arms for his own comfort as he settled back down onto the closed toilet.
He had only just finished folding up his wet clothes and set them aside when Lauri returned. Stupidly, the sound of his name said like that made his cheeks flush. It sounded nice like that. Adrien made it sound nice, too, like it was worth saying. Otherwise, he wasn’t particularly fond of his name.
“I am. You can come in,” he said and watched as his host entered with the coffee, and Yuuri eyed the mugs with continued interest.
“You’re an engineer?” he asked before he could stop himself. He was about to say that he knew an engineer, but that was like saying someone knew an artist, or hair stylist.
He nervously cleared his throat and shifted so he could reach for the sugar and cream. Only a couple packets of sugar and small amount of cream was used to make his coffee how he liked it. He liked the taste of coffee, but wasn’t a fan of the bitterness.
“Thank you,” he said with a relieved sigh, holding onto the warm mug, still sitting rather ridiculously with the towel over his head and held in his lap.
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Posted: Sat Oct 21, 2017 9:57 pm
"I...am. Yes." Officially, he'd been just short of getting his degree, but a bit of fiddling with records had fixed that. It wasn't as though he weren't perfectly capable. He just hadn't "officially" graduated as either Pasi or Lauri. "I converted this warehouse to a work and living space." Because wasn't that what one did? Offer relevant information? It wasn't as though the quiet between them was strained, it was more that he felt offering a small piece of additional information was warranted and right. Lauri took his coffee black, with vodka - though he did not have any vodka in his mug this time. The point really wasn't that he was going to drink the coffee, it was to give Yuuri something to warm and distract him while Lauri was working on his ankle. Which he was ready to start doing as soon as he got his very nice, very complete first-aid kit out from under the sink and knelt at Yuuri's feet. "I'm going to roll this side up to your knee, so it's not in the way." There was the briefest measure of hesitation, waiting to see if Yuuri protested, before Lauri gathered the worn fabric of the sweat pants and rolled it over the injured mouse's knee. The bleeding had stopped, but his ankle was swollen, the skin angry looking and bruised. It was not going to be a pretty sight in eight hours. "Are you allergic to ibuprofen? You should take some, this is going to swell badly." Yuuri's ankle was gently lifted until his heel rested on Lauri's knee; a medicated wipe taken from a packet but no astringent scent arose even though it was meant to clean - apparently this was some designer s**t. "This will sting, but not like alcohol. It's meant to debride wounds and you have much garbage in this, even with the rain." Lauri set to work like he'd been doing this sort of thing his entire life, which he might well have been.
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Posted: Sat Oct 21, 2017 10:20 pm
Ah! So this place was a warehouse. A converted one, which was pretty amazing to know that someone so young had thought to do something like that. It helped to know what this place was, at the very least. Yuuri hadn’t been sure what to expect to see on the other side of the door, but now at least he had a better idea.
Yuuri clutched at the mug as he watched Lauri prepare to work on his ankle, feeling guilty that he was spending time he could have used to do other things on him, but also incredibly grateful that he’d been rescued by someone who knew what they were doing. Or at least Lauri acted like he knew what he was doing, which was all that really mattered to someone who had no idea about how these things worked.
It was also… kind of sweet that Lauri was waiting to get his permission before doing things. Maybe he really did feel guilty about startling him earlier. More than the apology and hug, the consideration he was giving Yuuri was, well… kindness that Yuuri wasn’t exactly used to from many people.
“I don’t think I’m allergic,” he said, and bit back a hiss of pain as his leg was lifted to rest on Lauri’s knee. “Aren’t you uncomfortable sitting on the ground like that? Do you want a towel to sit on at least?” he asked, gesturing to the towel he held in his arms, just in case. Yuuri knew he wouldn’t be able to stand kneeling like that for very long.
He appreciated the warning about the astringent and nodded, his eyes squeezed shut as he gripped tightly to the mug in his hands, trying not to whimper from the pain, but not quite managing.
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Posted: Sat Oct 21, 2017 10:40 pm
Since Yuuri didn't think he was allergic, Lauri took a moment to give him a small sealed packet of Advil to take with his coffee. "Take them, it should help with the inflammation." The concern with his comfort was accepted but also passed over, it didn't matter he was fine. This really wasn't anything when one was used to contorting to build things...or to entertain. "It's fine, this won't take that long." Watching Yuuri try to stay quiet while debris was removed from an open and inflamed wound was...interesting in an offhand sort of way. Obviously he was used to being made to hold himself back - a family thing? No telling. "Yell if you need, my room is sound-proofed." Blood flowed freely from the scrapes, but it was clean now, no rust and nastiness to cause infection, gangrene. There were also two small pieces of metal stuck in the wound that required tweezers to remove, which Lauri did quickly before putting clean gauze over the whole space and pressing down to both stop the blood flow and ease the sting of removal. " Breathe." His own hands stung from it, but that was secondary. They just needed a cleaning, nothing doing there. Lauri could take care of that soon enough.
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Posted: Sat Oct 21, 2017 11:08 pm
There was no question asked as Lauri handed him the medicine to take, fumbling a little with the packet as he tried to get it open, and then took a quick sip of coffee to wash them down one at a time. If Lauri said that it was going to help, then Yuuri would just have to trust him.
A somewhat pained, humorless breath of a laugh escaped when Lauri gave him permission to yell if he needed, although the revelation of the room being sound-proofed was a little surprising. Probably because working on engineering stuff got loud and he didn’t want to bother the neighbors.
“I’m okay,” he mumbled weakly, blinking away the tears that built up from the pain once more. He was practically hunched over himself the whole time Lauri was working, too tense and holding his breath as best he could to avoid making any noises of distress, although it didn’t stop the sweat from beading along his brow.
He didn’t like pain, but he thought he did an okay job of being able to handle it at this point. He wasn’t at all strong or capable, but he could at least keep his mouth shut and endure it.
Lauri seemed to realize he was holding his breath, because the reminder to breathe had Yuuri opening his eyes in surprise. But he did breathe. Or tried to. He took in a deep breath and let it out slowly, lifting one of his hands to scrub at his face because he probably looked like a complete mess.
“Thank you. It feels better already,” he said, which wasn’t exactly true but wasn’t a lie either. He was sure the pain would dull once the medicine kicked in. Right now he just wanted to curl up and hide under some warm blankets, if anyone asked him.
“Can I help clean up any?” Since it was only fair to help out after Lauri had done so much for him.
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Posted: Sat Oct 21, 2017 11:23 pm
Sure he was okay, sure. Yuuri was hunched over and tensed, the lines of hi body tight with pain and the effort of keeping still and quiet with it. But Lauri wasn't going to correct the mouse's statement. That would have been very rude and even less useful than his earlier blunder of ordering Yuuri to undress had been. Tougher than he looks, or tries to be. Lauri had to give him credit; it put a hint of a smile on his mouth. "Unlikely, but it will soon." He wrapped up the ankle quickly, expertly, using medical tape and gauze; Yuuri's ankle was so small in his hands, the bones delicate under the skin; his heel so light against Lauri's thigh. At the question, he looked up at Yuuri, brows drawn slightly, "You should rest, I think mine will be fine with just a cleaning." But he did turn one hand over to look, noting the angry redness, the raw spots - his estimate was correct, there were a couple small tears where the rough, rusted edges of the metal had torn open some of the burn scars and callouses, but mostly it was just a long scrape across the length of his hand. "See, it's not so bad. I have had much worse, with working."
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Posted: Sat Oct 21, 2017 11:46 pm
Yuuri could see the raw spots of red on Lauri’s palms as he turned them over to take a look, and Yuuri frowned with concern, but he didn’t push the subject. Lauri said he was okay, and Yuuri would just have to trust him. Lauri knew what he was doing much more than Yuuri did.
“Those look like they were painful,” he nodded to the scars along Lauri’s hands. It was no wonder why he knew how to bandage injuries well; he was probably used to wrapping his own injuries.
Carefully, Yuuri pulled his bandaged foot away from Lauri’s thigh so he could get up if he wanted, and Yuuri made to carefully stand, placing his coffee mug and the towels on the counter before making the attempt. He knew he shouldn’t put any pressure on his leg, but it was going to be a pain getting home. He was sure it was still storming.
“Thank you. I’ll make sure to rest,” he promised, figuring he should probably find his things and get out of Lauri’s hair. Ah, but of course he needed to change back into his wet clothes. He was starting to get into a habit of taking clothes from his hosts when they offered him something to wear.
“Do you know if we’re near a bus stop? I think they might be still running,” he mumbled, trying to figure out if he had enough cash with him to get a cab home. He didn’t want to bother Adrien with this, especially since it was his own fault.
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Posted: Sun Oct 22, 2017 4:09 am
"They do, don't they." Not that he could remember how it had felt anymore, but he wasn't an idiot. And perhaps someday those memories would come back to him - or some would. Many skills were returning, albeit slowly. Axinite had said they might, since he had come willingly and the trauma of the corruption had been quite low. Lauri watched the mouse try to stand and took one of the more astringent packets of cleaning wipes for himself, tearing it open set the space smelling like alcohol and burning. "Yes, good. Ah-- ******** burns-" Low Finnish swearing followed, dark muttering as the raw meat of each hand was brusquely cleaned and then patted dry with far less care than had been afforded Yuuri's ankle. "You may want a tetanus shot. My last should cover me, but I do not know about you. The fence was poorly kept. "Hmm? Ah...no. I'm way out on the edge of the industrial section. It's half an hour, at least, to the nearest stop. And I think it only runs a few times a day." Lauri dabbed Neosporin on a few of the more painful looking spots, then re-wrapped the whole of his hand in loose gauze before repacking and putting the whole kit back, mentally noting he'd have to replace many things. HE was wholly unconcerned about Yuuri's newest predicament.
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Posted: Sun Oct 22, 2017 6:39 am
”I got all my shots last year,” Yuuri said off handedly as he tried to figure out what he was going to do. It was okay, he could just maybe call someone to come pick him up. Who? Adrien? Adrien would probably get lost trying to figure out where he was, especially at night, and then his flighty boyfriend would be lost out in the city on his own.
“M-maybe the bus has one more run to make,” he suggested, mostly to himself, his breathing becoming a little more shallow as panic started to set in. He could maybe make it to the stop, but if the bus never came, what was he supposed to do then? Hobble the rest of the way home? Power up? But then the bandages would disappear and he would have to worry about bleeding all over the place.
Testing out his ability to walk, he lowered his leg with his injured ankle all the way to the ground, but even the smallest bit of pressure had him hissing. Lauri was busy working on fixing up his own hands, and Yuuri didn’t want to concern him about even more of his problems.
He would just… call a cab and have it drop him off wherever his money ran out.
“Thank you - for helping me,” he tried to say as calmly as possible, one of his hands lifting to clutch at the borrowed shirt over his heart. “I… I should get out of your way now. I will just… Um… W-where’s the front door?” Okay, he was already stumbling on his words, and he hadn’t been able to take a single step. How he was going to accomplish this, he had no idea. But he was going to try.
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Posted: Sun Oct 22, 2017 6:59 am
Lauri pushed up to his feet and looked down at Yuuri as the little mouse did a rather impressive amount of mental gymnastics trying to figure out how he was going to get...wherever it was that he was thinking he needed to get to by bus or whatever. It was quite plain to the Finn that each option was a non-starter for various reasons and that there were really only a small number of options that should even be considered at that point. "It doesn't." Surety filled those two words, there would be no further discussion of Yuuri hobbling to the bus stop that day. The little mouse settled on what he was sure was a stupid solution and Lauri sighed and scooped him up so that he could carry him very carefully out of the bathroom and into the bedroom, whereupon he would set his injured captive (there really wasn't a better word, was there?) on the bed. "Sit a moment, we will talk. It's more comfortable here. I will get the coffee." He was as good as his word, fetching both mugs from the bathroom, nudging the light off, and returning to sit on the bed near Yuuri before offering his mug again. "You cannot walk. A cab costs much from here. Uber and Lyft are similarly expensive in this area, though likely less so. We could check if you want. I could take you on a bike, but not in the storm." Lauri sipped his black coffee, frowning a bit as he'd forgotten - no vodka. Ah well, nothing's perfect right now. "You can stay here until the buses run again. I would not mind." Not really, anyway. He kind of wanted to get to know this person he'd known as Pasi - it was odd and Lauri did wonder if the wont to re-connect with one's departed past was endemic to those like himself, or if he were simply being nostalgic. Maybe it was something that would pass with time. Definitely something to monitor and keep notes on, that was for sure.
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Posted: Sun Oct 22, 2017 7:35 am
Mentally preparing himself to take the first step towards the door ended up being for naught, because suddenly he was being scooped up as though he weighed nothing, which was both impressive and embarrassing, and taken from the bathroom to a bedroom to sit, all the while Yuuri gaped wordlessly at Lauri for just -
Like really? Did he have a sign on him that said ‘yes I’m helpless, pick me up’ or something crazy? He supposed it was better than the alternative of being left to waste away in an alley in the rain stuck in a fence. And carrying him was probably much less of a hassle than trying to help him hobble anywhere.
So he didn’t comment on it, and just sat somewhat awkwardly on the bed, looking around at the rest of the room until Lauri returned with the coffee.
“Thank you,” he mumbled, still somewhat flustered, but a little calmer now that he knew Lauri just wanted to talk where it was comfortable. And of course all the options that had been running through Yuuri’s mind were voiced by Lauri with reasons why it wouldn’t work.
More surprising was the offer to take him on a bike, but Yuuri quickly shook his head, knowing that the rain would make it too dangerous, and he couldn’t put Lauri out more than he already had.
“I don’t want to be a burden,” he quietly admitted as he stared into his mug of coffee. Even if Lauri didn’t mind him staying, he would surely cause his host more stress than just kicking him to the curb to figure things out on his own.
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Posted: Sun Oct 22, 2017 7:44 am
"Then, you should just stay. It's going to be easiest and safest at this point." Straight and direct seemed the best way to deal with Yuuri, who was calmer sitting in the blues and earth tones of Lauri's bedroom. "There is room here, and Netflix. It's not much extra effort to cook enough for two." No more effort really than had already been gone through, which was unspoken because the Finn was pretty sure his 'guest' already felt the weight of that pretty heavily. "It would be heartless to kick an injured man to the curb. I'm Finnish, not heartless. You will stay."
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Posted: Sun Oct 22, 2017 8:10 am
Yuuri stared at Lauri, his face still somewhat flushed because it seemed all too simple and easy. Lauri wasn’t heartless, of course. He’s said so himself. But this was still more than Yuuri thought he deserved. He’d already caused enough trouble. The least he could do was make things as easy as possible for Lauri from now on.
“Okay,” he said, his voice somewhat weak, knowing he should probably at least let Adrien know that he was okay and would just make it home in the morning or something. Maybe it would be one of those nights that Adrien went out on his own and wouldn’t even notice that Yuuri was gone. They did their own thing still, at least.
Which was good, because Yuuri didn’t know how he would be able to collect enough energy or starseeds without being able to sneak out without Adrien worrying all the time.
“Just… let me know if I’m in your way or… making things difficult,” he requested, clutching tighter to his mug as though it was a lifeline.
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Posted: Sun Oct 22, 2017 10:05 pm
"Your bag was drenched, I dumped your stuff in a bag so yours could dry. I will bring your things, you need them, yes?" Lauri finished tapped the sides of his coffee mug thoughtfully; there were more things to consider as well - dinner. Did Yuuri have anything he wouldn't eat? Allergies? "What do you eat?" No, that's hard - too many choices, Yuuri was already overwhelmed with things and trying very hard to not cause problems. "If I make spinach and potatoe pierogies, will you eat them. It's just frozen food, so not a big deal."
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