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 Posted: Sat Jan 11, 2014 6:22 pm
Al woke with a startle, he was sprawled across his nest of pillows and furs. The fur that had been covering him delicately bunched around his form as he sat up in a cold sweat. He was attempting to catch his breath when he noticed the small slip of note stuck to his skin for lack of pockets. He peeled it off carefully and slow dawning realization lurched forward. It wasn't just any old dream. It was special. He was more confident, it felt, in who he was and where he was going. Powerful. Strutting. The power sapped right out of him in the here and now, the knowledge of how things truly were. Was he ignorant then, or now? Who knew.
He slid free and stumbled over to a clothes pile in a tired daze. He grabbed the pile and gave each article a testing sniff throughout. It was still good. He pulled on his underwear, trousers, and finally his shirt. He staggered onwards, barefoot, as he pushed the tarp aside to wander into the hallway.
Right. Better not let this fester and become more than it really was. Right? He ran his fingers through his shaggy hair, barely even trying to straighten it out.
He reached his destination and stared at the 151 with blurry hazel eyes. Now or never.
He knocked.
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Posted: Sun Jan 12, 2014 6:36 am
Something crackled in the pocket of Noah's sweatpants as he shifted restlessly in bed. The noise was enough to finish waking him, and he startled awake with a sharply indrawn breath, sitting up with a wince. The crackle of paper sounded again, and he fished the note gingerly out of his pocket.
It meant nothing to him. Nothing, except for the little postscript at the bottom. Don't dwell on what might have been. Did that - did that mean that the dream he'd been having had been, in some way, more than a dream? A slow burn crept across his cheeks as he remembered.
He'd been himself, but different, trained and prepared for his role since what had happened when he was 13. More knowledgeable, maybe more confident. But he couldn't remember much of that, like a dream that had slipped past knowledge. What remained vivid in his mind was the party, the feeling of Corbin's arm around his waist, the secret smiles they'd shared.
How was he going to look Al in the eye after this? Even if it had been more than just his subconscious guiltily speculating about something he hadn't let himself think about too much, maybe more so if it had been more than just a dream.
He wasn't getting back to sleep immediately after that. He scooted up in the bed and stretched over to turn on the lamp. He needed something to distract himself. A book, maybe, or maybe he should study something. At least Laz was still asleep. The weapon occasionally stirred or made soft grunting noises in his sleep, and Noah could sense him dreaming about something. Something else, because the other Noah hadn't been bonded to him. Noah couldn't decide how he felt about that. He wasn't always sure he liked Laz, but Laz protected him, made him more than human, and Noah had gotten used to the occasional comments Laz made, the questions he asked, the feeling of the weapon's presence just behind him and to the left, a dog waiting patiently at heel.
He'd started to relax, thinking about something else, when the knock came. Noah jumped violently and squeaked. He could only think of one person who would come looking for him in the middle of the night, and that might mean ... Maybe he should just pretend he was asleep? No, he'd turned the light on, it would be visible under the door. A little reluctantly, he climbed out of bed and went to answer it.
It was Al. Of course it was Al. Noah could feel his blush coming back in full force. "Um," he said, and realized abruptly that he'd been sleeping in the scorpion shirt, the one he'd borrowed, and froze.
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Posted: Sun Jan 12, 2014 9:19 am
Al was already turning a bit pink in the face, he was starting to second guess even coming at all. Maybe they could face it later? No... later never comes. Later was never the present, later was never something that was dealt with and moved past. He smiled uncertainly, not noticing the particular shirt that Noah had on - just that he looked comfortable.
"Hey man, I had this weird dream," he dove right into business.
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Posted: Sun Jan 12, 2014 10:08 am
"You -- you did?" Noah fidgeted a little and swallowed hard. "What was, what was it about?" He didn't know if he hoped that Al hadn't somehow had the same dream, or if he had.
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Posted: Sun Jan 12, 2014 10:24 am
Oh so coy and embarrassed, you just are not going to make this easy are you Noah?
"It was about you and me," Al still tried to prod the man further though. Did he really honestly expect Noah to delve into the details himself, or was he just winding him up to watch him sputter around like a broken tin toy?
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Posted: Sun Jan 12, 2014 11:09 am
Noah stared at Al for a moment. "Um ... about a party?" he hedged.
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Posted: Sun Jan 12, 2014 1:33 pm
"Yes," Al confirmed. "New years eve actually," he pressed details further and further. Biding his time until the hunter would start to turn violent colours.
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Posted: Sun Jan 12, 2014 1:38 pm
"Um," Noah said, and as anticipated, turned bright red. "Do you. Did I."
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Posted: Sun Jan 12, 2014 1:45 pm
Right on schedule.
Al gave a sharp nod with his head. "We did," he confirmed.
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Posted: Sun Jan 12, 2014 1:49 pm
Noah stared at Al. Then he made a little noise somewhere between a groan and a whimper and turned to walk back to his bed, flopping onto it face-down and loose-limbed.
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Posted: Sun Jan 12, 2014 2:11 pm
Al watched with distant interest from his spot in the doorway. At first, he stayed as he was not invited inside but.. well. This was Noah. Al let himself in and stole the spot at Noah's desk, turning the chair so he was facing him as he sat down.
"What was that?" Al asked with a concerned look on his face even though he knew damn well exactly what that was.
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Posted: Sun Jan 12, 2014 2:14 pm
"Just leave me to die of my embarrassment," Noah said, mournful and muffled.
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Posted: Sun Jan 12, 2014 2:17 pm
Al got back off the chair to go over and rub Noah on the back, "C'mon man, you're scaring me." No he wasn't.
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Posted: Sun Jan 12, 2014 2:28 pm
Noah turned his head to give Al a suspicious look from the corner of his eye. "You know what I'm talking about ... "
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Posted: Sun Jan 12, 2014 2:35 pm
"I do?" Al smiled at Noah. "I don't seem to remember anything to be embarrassed about..."
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