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 Posted: Thu Feb 22, 2018 2:11 pm
While Valentine's had been relatively good overall, Paul had found some downs to go with the ups. Being out and about with his husband had been a treat - even moreso when Noah had found himself pleased by the date. Being surrounded by a bunch of snotty ********? Not as great. Managing to have his wallet jacked?
Well, Paul hadn't been terribly enthusiastic about that either.
Making back almost five hundred dollars hadn't been too difficult. There were enough men (and women) angry enough at their significant others to enlist the help of someone with brute strength and an ignorant eye to the law that he found jobs here and there quickly enough. Most involved beating up cheating spouses or the people they cheated on (dudes - he only beat up dudes, as a rule), which was great for letting off steam when it came to remembering the fact he'd been robbed of his own money in the first place.
Everything was going fine and dandy until one of the ******** had pulled out a knife on him. He hadn't expected such a wiry looking guy to be packing any sort of weapon, so letting down his guard had resulted in a nasty slash to his arm - <********> - before he was able to nevertheless finish the job requested of him. He'd already gotten bruised up in various spots from some of his other targets - what was a little blood to add to the mix?
His shirt was the next victim of the evening, being torn off to wrap around his arm. The towel in his backseat hadn't been replaced yet from his last mishap, so the grey top had to take the place of a bandage while he made his way home in the dark.
Keys fumbled by the dim glow of the porch light as he wrestled with the front door, opening it with a grimace. He was quiet in closing it - maybe if he kept quiet, he could sneak to the downstairs bathroom and patch things up without waking up certain individuals.
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Posted: Tue Mar 06, 2018 9:35 am
When Noah knew that his husband had a job, he had a tendency to stay up and wait for him. If the job was going to encroach into ugly hours of the night he would go to bed and attempt to sleep, but for the most part he stayed up.
Tonight was such a night, with Noah having taken a book to bed and was reading it by lamplight while he waited for the burly brute that he'd married to get home. He'd heard the door open but he didn't get up immediately, as he fully expected the heavy, lumbering steps of his spouse to tread up the stairs.
When they didn't come, the bookmark was slid into place and the book returned to the night stand. Carefully blankets were tossed off, folded in Noah's meticulous fashion compared to the haphazardness of his usual bedmate, and the lanky ginger had slid off the mattress.
Bare feet padded across the room, slender fingers tugging the door open before stormy eyes squinted in the darkness of the dimly illuminated hallway.
There, he waited for some indicator that Paul would be joining him. It didn't come and he began to head down the steps.
"Paul?"
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Posted: Tue Mar 06, 2018 9:52 am
Aw, <********>.
The voice pierced through the darkness and had Paul stopping dead in his tracks. He knew he looked rough; his hair was mussed, his body was grimy and sweaty from having tussled on the ground. He still remained shirtless, the grey fabric now stained a noticeable dark <********, ********, ********.
He didn't need the younger man worrying about him - which he inevitably would if he noticed him looking like a mangy street dog in dark jeans. He could already hear the creak of the stairs, weight being pressed into them as the redhead made his way down into the darkness that Paul remained hidden away in.
Clearing his throat, he finished taking his notes in the little notebook they kept near the entryway before closing the drawer.
"Go back to bed, kiddo - I'll be up in a few."
The larger of the two made a point to steer his way around the staircase as he made his way towards the bathroom across the room. The last thing he wanted was for the light upstairs to give away his hiccup of the evening. "I didn't mean to wake you, I'll be fine."
He paused, then cursed under his breath.
s**t.
Paul Jones was the absolute worst when it came to trying to dodge one Noah Jones.
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Posted: Tue Mar 06, 2018 10:09 am
He had made it down three steps, one hand holding the railing to keep him steady in the darkness. Noah cursed the fact that he hadn't thought to turn on the hallway light but was now far enough down the stairs that it would be more practical to continue on. With a furrowed brow he continued downward, blatantly ignoring the pleading requests for him to go back to bed.
The only time Paul didn't come up or tell him where to find him when he came down was if something was wrong and he was trying to hide it.
"What happened?" Noah managed to keep his tone light enough, suspicion still evident in his tone despite his effort. He was willing to play it off, to ignore it, until Paul purposely avoided the staircase to avoid him.
This time, his irritation wasn't masked at all. "Why are you avoiding me?" His voice cut sharply across the house as he moved to intercept the man before he could get to the bathroom
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Posted: Tue Mar 06, 2018 10:44 am
"Nothing. One of the guys just decided to fight back, s'all."
He could have swallowed his own tongue out of spite - Noah wasn't satisfied with anything he offered as a bypass, choosing instead to continue his trek down the stairs. A stern looking face appeared for a brief flash before the ginger turned into a shadowy silhouette in the darkness, joining Paul's.
"I'm not avoidin---it's not a big deal, christ."
The tall shadow was beating him to the bathroom, long legs traveling at a terrifying speed to get Noah to where he wanted to be. It was unnerving, to say the least.
One hand reached up to absentmindedly cover the wound, violet eyes staring up at the glaring, stormy ones.
"Look, I didn't want you to worry, a'ight? It's not a big deal, baby."
Tossing out the pet name was a last ditch effort at pandering to his nicer side - mostly because an angry Noah was a scary Noah.
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Posted: Tue Mar 06, 2018 10:51 am
The light of the bathroom allowed him to see the way the shirt was soaked and Noah's expression hardened. His jaw worked back and forth, nostrils flaring and there was a slight tremble to his being.
"If it wasn't a big deal and you weren't trying to hide it from me, you woulda come to me to get cleaned up." He pointed out, immediately smacking the hand away. "Don't ******** baby me." His head shook, red locks falling across his forehead.
"Why are you acting like this?" His tone demanded an answer from Paul and he made it a point to block off the bathroom with his tall, lanky frame. Arms were folded across his chest and he made sure to keep his gaze fixed on the older man.
If Paul hoped that Noah would look elsewhere, he would be disappointed. "What aren't you telling me?"
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Posted: Tue Mar 06, 2018 11:05 am
As his meaty hand was shoved off his arm, the line across Paul's face grew into a grimace from the sudden jolt of pain. The blood hadn't been enough to stain his palm but removing his fingers now gave a better view of the blood-stained shirt.
"Look..."
Words were a struggle to form as he felt his tired, exhausted body sway slightly as he stood there in front of his refuge, the ginger blocking him from the first aid kid below the sink. It was time to 'fess up, it seemed.
"... I know you hate stitching, so I figured I could just do it myself and not bother you, okay?"
Moving his hand up, the make-shift bandage (formerly known as Paul's shirt, RIP) was unraveled, revealing a particularly nasty looking cut. The wound was hard to see from all the dried blood congealing and crusting around the site... well, and from the way Paul shifted his shoulder to keep as much of himself in the dark as he could.
"The guy had a knife. Didn't see it in time."
Admitting it made him feel like a failure, so eyes left Noah's and stared at the wooden door frame. For a long time.
His voice went quiet, tone perturbed at himself. "I slipped up."
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Posted: Tue Mar 06, 2018 1:05 pm
He didn't know what he was expecting when the makeshift bandage came off but the cut was a gnarly thing and his nose wrinkled despite his efforts not to recoil. "******** Christ Paul."
One hand lifted to rub at his face, thumb and forefinger spreading across his brows before pressing against his temples. "I hate stitching because of what it means."
Because it means that Paul got hurt bad enough to need it. Because it meant he wasn't as careful as he should've been. Because it meant there was a chance he might not have made it home.
All of those things make Noah feel vulnerable and he hates it.
"Don't ******** hide s**t from me." He barked, reaching for the wrist of his injured arm to tug him into the bathroom where the yellow-white light would let him see it better.
"Christ."
Noah sighed, pushed his husband towards the toilet to sit and fished out the first aid kit. "He got you good."
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Posted: Tue Mar 06, 2018 7:32 pm
There was a wince and a sharp intake of air as he was yanked into the bathroom by his bad arm, being scolded like a stern mother to her naughty son.
Taking a seat on the closed toilet, he did his best not to sulk as he watched the younger man start to dig through their cabinets for the supply box.
"You shoulda seen how I left him." The retort was childish, he knew, especially coming out of the mouth of a twenty-eight year old who made a habit of carrying a concealed weapon on himself at all times... and yet he still didn't get the jump on a guy he'd been hired to harass. "This is just a scratch, alright. It only looks bad."
And stung like hell, but Noah didn't need to know that much. The less pain he suspected, the better off Paul would feel about the whole mishap.
Reaching over towards the towel rack in front of him, he grabbed the older of the two on the rack and offered it towards his "nurse" for the evening. His voice was softer, guilt setting in. "Wasn't trying to worry you, s'all."
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Posted: Wed Mar 07, 2018 10:19 am
"Stop talking." The demand was curt, with Noah barely glancing up as he examined the wound. With pursed lips, he fished out the alcohol bottle and dispensed some onto the towel he'd been handed. Once it was damp enough he sought to make eye contact with his spouse.
"This will sting." It was a split second warning and then the redhead was cleaning the wound so that he could see how "bad" it truly was. Once it's cleaned, he prepped the needle, breathing deeply through his nose because Paul is right.
He hates this.
But his stitches are careful and steady anyway. "You worry me more when you try to hide s**t, you know that." His voice is quieter this time, brows furrowed as he works. The trembling in his frame has steadied but he gaze stayed down.
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Posted: Wed Mar 07, 2018 11:17 am
His mouth snapped shut at the order. It didn't matter that he had a good fifty pounds on the lanky man next to him - when Noah said shut the ******** up, Paul shut the ******** up.
His jaw clenched and he let out a long exhale through his nostrils as the alcohol burned the surface of the wound. Pain receptors tingled and Paul felt the increase in his heart rate at the sensation. Closing his eyes, one thumb pressed deep into the side of his index finger, blunt fingernail doing its best to dig into the skin.
Though it wasn't a knife, the sharp needle that traveled in and out of his skin had his breath hitching regardless. It was hard, not to focus on the presence of pain but the knowledge that he was also contending with an angry spouse had Paul feeling more guilty over what would probably be the newest of scars for his collection as opposed to reveling in the moment.
He wanted to speak, wanted to apologize again but was hesitant at the same time. Words had never been his forte but... what other option did he have? He'd never been able to master the pitiful, dejected look that Noah always excelled at when he was feeling neglected and the ginger never seemed willing to put up with any attempt he made at trying to look like the kicked puppy he felt like after being reprimanded.
At the risk of incurring even more wrath, eyes opened to glance over towards the wall as he finally dared to open his mouth again.
"Nothing's gonna stop me from coming back home to you, y'know that right?"
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Posted: Wed Mar 07, 2018 11:43 am
His stitching was neat and quick, something he'd learned to be good at with the frequency of how often he needed the skill and he was tying it off soon enough. The needle was dropped near the skin and he had picked up the tube of antibiotic ointment. Squeezing out a dollop, he carefully ran his fingers over the newly mended skin.
"You know that's not what this is about." His reply was quiet and he didn't look at the burly man. Instead, he found the gauze and applied it to the skin before he began to wrap it.
"Don't hide s**t like this from me Paul." His husband got hurt, often, because that was the nature of his job and because he was a glutton for punishment some days. Noah understood that, he didn't like it but he understood.
Paul hiding that he got hurt this bad? That wasn't acceptable.
Now that his spouse had been cared for, Noah moved to the sink to wash his hands before meticulously returning items to their homes in the kit.
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Posted: Wed Mar 07, 2018 12:52 pm
As Noah turned to tend to the first aid kit, Paul's attention drew back to his arm. The cream had been cold and he knew the gauze wouldn't last long, itchy, annoying piece of s**t that it normally was. Still, infections were a b***h that he didn't feel like dealing with - not to mention the expense and the questions he'd get at the ER - so he put up with the crap for the time being. One he'd worn it for a few hours, it would mysteriously find itself unraveled... but he'd behave, for now.
Flexing his arm, he made a face as he worked out the stiffness in the muscle. The pain was a soft throb, a reminder of his first ******** for the evening. The reminder of his second ******** still stood at the sink, organizing the remaining pieces of the emergency kit as stormy eyes made a point to avoid his.
Rising from his seat, hands slid around the abdomen of his spouse, arms securing themselves as his head found its home on his shoulder. He smelled clean, the faint scent of soap still lingering as rough stubble nuzzled against the smooth skin of his partner's throat.
"I'm sorry."
Words sounded as haggard as he felt, Paul briefly letting his lips brush against Noah's neck as he pulled away - fully aware that his aggravated spouse would probably jerk his way from the larger man's grip anyhow.
Hands fell to his side as he shuffled backwards, giving them space as he stared at the ginger's face through the mirror's reflection before letting his gaze drop to the tile beneath them. "Thanks, by the way."
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Posted: Thu Mar 08, 2018 7:53 am
Noah tensed up when strong arms circled his middle, eyes flicking up to look at the man's reflection. He stopped breathing when the chin settled on his shoulder, knuckles pressing against the counter top to keep him from reacting. His stomach twisted and he exhaled a slow, shaky breath through his nose.
"Yeah, well," he looked up, gaze sharp even in their reflections, "sorry doesn't cut it."
Luckily, Paul knew when to back off and Noah turned to give the man a leveled stare. Despite the harshness in his gaze, there was concern in those gray eyes. "I'm going back to bed," he announced, right before shoving his way past the broader man and stomping up the darkened stairwell.
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Posted: Thu Mar 08, 2018 9:28 am
Like a gust of icy wind, Noah blew through the bathroom and into the den before Paul could squeeze a word in edgewise. Not that he was about to - arguing with Noah was never productive, usually landing Paul on an uncomfortable sleeping surface like the floor or the couch.
Violet eyes cast a long look towards the furniture piece in question, the large couch shrouded in the shadows of the dark room. He had half a mind to just give in and sprawl out on it now, save him the snaps and cold looks of an angry husband.
Still, stubbornness got the better of him and he took his time ascending the staircase, heavy boots forcing the wood beneath them to creak with each step. At the landing, he turned and paused, debating his options before quietly shaking his head.
Taking a deep breath, he lowered his gaze and made his way into the bedroom, only stopping for a brief moment to tug his wallet out of his back pocket and thumb through the billfold. Out came a few large bills, all of which were dropped unceremoniously on Noah's side of the nightstand before the wallet was returned to his jeans.
Without a word, he continued his trek towards the bathroom, closing the door just in time for the bright light of the room to illuminate the slit at the bottom. The sound of the shower being turned on followed afterwards, the glow of the bathroom's light soon muffled by the fabric of discarded clothing.
Ten minutes later, both the water and light were turned off before a damp looking Paul Jones - the gauze only partially soaked - shuffled his way out of the bathroom and towards the dresser. The towel was exchanged for sweatpants, violet eyes glancing in the mirror back towards the redhead in bed as he made his final, last debate on where he was going to at least attempt to sleep for the night.
Crawling under the covers, he kept his distance from the angry dragon lurking on the other side of the california-king sized mattress. Stubbornness had him wanting to say <******** it and just drag the big baby over to him but the older man resolved to keep the peace and leave him be. Instead, he simply rested his head on his pillow and stared at the shadowy lump of blankets and Noah, exhaling softly.
God, he was such a ********, sometimes.
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