[FIN] I Know a Guy

[TawnyAngel]

At about eight fifty-five in the evening Taavi sent a message to Abel and loitered outside the hospital with Valour and Swift.

//Hey! Hope everything was OK today. I'm outside right now where we mounted up last night. My guy came through he's got the kit for you to record on and he's expecting us about quarter past nine. I brought your guitar! Hope that was right.//

Once the message was sent Taavi yawned and rolled his shoulders, the sleep he'd had earlier hadn't done a lot to make him feel less tired. He could only imagine how tired Abel felt.  

[BlackFireKitsune]

After the good news around noon and Zev's good progress throughout the afternoon, Abel left the ICU in a much better mood than when he went in that morning, and once he left with Amigo and Isaac in tow he turned his phone back on to text his best friend... only to find a text from him before he could.

A bit more than five but less than ten minutes later Taavi would receive a response: //Just left ICU sorry. You're the best. Ask him what he wants for dinner, we'll pick up takeout on the way. Whatever he wants//  

[TawnyAngel]

As he read the text Taavi smiled and shook his head. //Lol, don't be sorry! I wasn't expecting a reply sooner than 9:02. It would take them a minute to get you out and a minute for you to text at minimum. I'll ask what he'd like! C u soon.//

Once he'd texted Abel Taavi sent another message to Gary, grinned again at the reply, and sent a message of confirmation back. He thought about messaging Abel but on second thought looking up a take out between here and Gary's place seemed like a smarter idea and so he did that instead.  

[BlackFireKitsune]

Abel smiled wryly at the text he received in response, but rather than reply he merely pocketed his phone and headed out to the main entrance as quick as he could without jogging. He reached it in just a few minutes, and after a quick glance around he spotted Taavi, smiled, and headed over to meet him. "Hey," he called once he got a bit closer, "did he say what he wanted? And thanks for organizing this, I really appreciate it."  

[TawnyAngel]

"Hey!" Taavi smiled back and nodded. "He wants Chinese, chop suey with fried rice and some prawn crackers. I've found a place on a flight path from here to his place, if you're okay flying with Valour? I have Scully with me too, so I can go with her." He would've let her out already but she'd been cranky lately outside of training, he suspected she was close to evolving and sensed it on some level and so didn't want to be doing anything much that didn't take her closer to it.

"Oh! And, um, how were things after I left this afternoon?" If all went well Zev might be awake tomorrow. Might be.  

[BlackFireKitsune]

"Chinese sounds good," the blond said with a brief nod, then aimed a small smile at the Braviary, "and I'm cool flying with Valour, yeah." With that said he gave the bird a fond pat, and was more than ready to get going but not yet, not without answering that question.

The smile Abel gave Taavi, though still more subdued than usual, was brighter than it had been since the night they'd left. Was it the night before last, or the night before that? His poor sleep schedule was going to catch up with him sooner or later and the days already seemed like they were running together, but that didn't matter. None of that mattered. "Better," he informed his brother, moving over to clap a hand on his shoulder and gave it a reassuring squeeze. "Things went well all evening, so I'm pretty sure they're still on track for bringing him around tomorrow. It'll take a while, like they said, so I'm not expecting him to actually be awake or aware enough to talk until late tomorrow, though earlier than that would be amazing." Things could still go wrong, of course they could; he could still take a turn for the worse, his progress could halt or reverse, any number of things really... but in the face of his slow but steady progress Abel was finding it harder and harder to be negative and anxious when it seemed like his boyfriend would be well enough to wake up tomorrow. If his condition kept improving, if everything kept going as well as it had been, then he'd be just fine. He'd be okay. Everything was okay.  

[TawnyAngel]

"That's awesome!" Taavi beamed, thought about giving Abel a back pat but then gave him a tight hug instead. "He'll be awake before we know it. Man, I bet he'll be cranky, he is so not a morning person."

Taavi was still grinning when he stepped back to activate Scully's pokeball, and he kept grinning even when she gave him a rather impatient look and flicked the end of her tail. "I know you're antsy but we really need your help Scully, for Zev okay? I know you like him."

Scully huffed and twitched her tail again but seemed to be more or less in agreement.

Valour meanwhile squarked, fluffed his feathers happily and nudged his beak against Abel's shoulder.

"You guys want to follow us?" Taavi asked as he moved over to Scully. "We can order ahead actually, um, and just collect. If you know what you want Abel? You have to eat! Need energy for tomorrow, to talk to Zev right?"  

[BlackFireKitsune]

Abel was quick to return the tight hug with his own, his smile broadening into a bright, hopeful grin. "Right? He will... though honestly for a while he'll probably be really out of it. Confused, they said, so I'm betting on something similar to before, when I brought him home that one time." Taavi knew which one time, he was sure. The only time Zevran had been completely out of sorts and confused.

But he pulled away just the same, his grin not diminishing in the slightest. "He'll be okay though, I know he will. Hey Scully," he offered to the rather vexed-looking Dragonair, then nodded to his best friend, "and yeah, we'll follow you since I've no idea where either place is, dinner or your friend's place. I don't know what I want but I'll be fine with almost anything, I'm sure," the blond added with a shrug before he stooped to scoop Isaac up in his arms, "so if you want to order whatever for me, go ahead."  

[TawnyAngel]

That was a good hug, and it was really good to know that Zev would wake up soon. It felt like just a moment ago he'd found out that he was in hospital and might die, but at the same time it felt like forever. Time was weird with emotional stuff he guessed.

"Right, uh, how about a chow mein?" Be decisive! "Yeah I'll get you that and for me... Home style spicy chicken." The options he was clicking through offered him 'medium' 'spicy' 'extra' or 'home style' in that order. Much accustomed to such menus Taavi picked 'home style', that was bound to be the hottest. After he added fried rice and a side of 'seaweed' aka fried cabbage for himself - and noted the price of his own items - Taavi tapped order to collect and clambered astride Scully's neck. "Okay let's go!"

About ten minutes later they touched down outside the take out; Taavi slid to the ground and walked over to meet Abel and Valour. "Honestly after we pick up the order we might as well walk or ride on the ground, it's like a block from here."  

[BlackFireKitsune]

Chow mein was perfect, and while Taavi ordered Abel accepted his guitar and mounted Valour with much less ease than his best friend assuredly did... though to be fair he suspected Taavi didn't normally ride with a guitar and two pokemon with him. Still! It didn't matter much.

When they alighted Abel slid off Valour's back carefully before giving him a pat, though Isaac stayed nestled up between the bird's shoulders for the moment; it was far more comfortable than the pavement below. "Walking or riding is fine by me," the blond said with an easy shrug, then gestured to the restaurant as he headed for the door. "If he's not more than a couple minute's walk from here that's fine, but if it's much more we should ride or something."  

[TawnyAngel]

Valour squarked softly again and twisted his head around in that exorcist sort of way birds can in order to boop his beak against Isaac's nose.

"Um, yeah," Taavi nodded and followed after Abel. "It's like, a block and a half? So I think we're good to walk, if that's okay? Um. And. Shall I pay you back for my share of dinner or do you want me to pay or -?" Things like this should be easy, he knew they should, but it felt really really hard. What if he said something wrong and made Abel angry so he shouted at him, or what if he forgot to pay Abel back and Abel just very slightly resented him for being so careless forever? Ugh! Why did his brain have to work like this?  

[BlackFireKitsune]

Isaac wrinkled his nose and made a soft noise in the back of his throat that wasn't displeased in the least.

"Ah, that should be fine, yeah," he agreed, nodding his head. He felt a little awkward walking in with his guitar in hand but he didn't have Sonia anywhere nearby to hold it for him, so whatever. "And nope, I'm buying, you're not paying me back. No arguments," he added with a small grin as he clapped his free hand on Taavi's shoulder.

Once he'd paid for they food and they stepped out into the cool night air again with bags in hand(s), Abel stepped over to Valour so Isaac could clamber across his shoulders and let the Braviary do whatever he wanted, to fly or awkwardly bird-waddle after them. "Alright, after you," the blond gestured for his best friend to lead the way.  

[TawnyAngel]

Oh no, he should pay Abel back! But he didn't want to be paid back!... That was... that was fine, Abel wouldn't say it if it wasn't. "Okay, sure... I mean thank you! Sorry! Sorry." Taavi laughed nervously and rubbed the back of his neck. "I mean, that's really kind of you. And. Sorry." Why was he such an idiot? Ugh! But Abel knew he was an idiot and still liked him so it was okay. "Let's get that food!"

And they did, and it was a relief.

When they stepped back outside Valour waited for Isaac to step onto Abel's shoulders before lofting lightly into the dark sky. Taavi meanwhile gestured ahead. "This way! Not far."

Indeed it was only a couple of minutes later that Taavi - carefully reading apartment numbers, turned left and headed down a set of stairs to a basement and knocked on the door. "Here!" he smiled back at Abel, and then abruptly looked mortified. "Gary! His name's Gary! Did I say that? s**t!"

"Pfh. Evening Taav." A pale lanky man whose half-shaved hair and eyes were the colour of a tangerine looked at them out of a half open window with a lazy smile. "And Abel yea? Hang on I'll get the door." The face disappeared but a few moments later the door opened and Gary waved them into the dingy hallway. "Welcome to the Ritz," he said dryly.  

[BlackFireKitsune]

If there was one thing he could always count on, it was Taavi being his adorkable self.

Indeed as Taavi said they didn't need to go far; a short walk brought them to the building in question, and an even shorter trip down some stairs left them at the right door. Or at least he assumed it was right, since Taavi seemed to be double- and triple-checking, though the figure that greeted them more or less affirmed it. "You're fine man, calm down," he said with a chuckle and a reassuring smile for his brother - his hands were rather too full to pat him on the shoulder at the moment - before his gaze shifted to Taavi's friend. "Yep, Abel; nice to meet you Gary. Thanks for letting us come over this late to use your stuff."

"Eon!" Isaac chirped at the stranger, offering his own greeting from his comfortable place curled snugly over Abel's shoulders.

"Oh, and before I forget, this is Isaac," the blond said, lifting the hand holding a bag of food to gesture vaguely at the Espeon, then to the Butterfree nearby, "and this is Amigo."  

[TawnyAngel]

Gary smiled and nodded in a relaxed manner as he led the group through into a cramped, rather cluttered living room. "Hey no problem, thanks for the late dinner. Nice to meet you Isaac, Amigo. That lump on the couch is Sunshine, say hey Sunny."

The lump was a chubby, rather orange-furred Flareon with three legs; it looked up with a yawn and chirped sleepily before curling up again.

"Hi again Sunny, long time no see!" Taavi greeted with a grin."No change there Hu? Um do you guys want to eat now?" While the food was hot!

"Sure, yeah, grab a seat," Gary gestured to a little table with three chairs crowded around it. "You guys want drinks? I got soda or hard cider."