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 Posted: Fri Jan 13, 2023 1:16 pm
Takes place after Cheesecake
They had normal deli sandwiches, which Michael paid for. After all, he’d been the one to suggest lunch to Jeremy. A voice in the back of his mind told him he was already coming in a little too heavy on the generocity, but another voice was desperate to keep his friends safe. To keep them close.
“I was told Myles saved the boys last night. He was there at the right time to help out,” Michael said before taking a sip of his coffee. Jeremy would know he was talking about Elliot and Atticus of course. He wouldn’t have been surprised if Myles already told him everything that happened.
“Glad I finally got to meet him, although the circumstances probably could have been better. He’s a good kid. Very polite. But I’m sure you knew that already,” Michael smiled behind his coffee cup.
“He said you were looking for a house in the area?”
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Posted: Fri Jan 13, 2023 3:38 pm
Jeremy was the sort to be suspicious of a free lunch, but not one to turn it down if the situation was right. Michael was trustworthy enough that Jeremy didn’t question it too much, and it’s not like he needed to assert masculinity or dominance or anything, so–fine. He could accept a sandwich.
Especially since this involved a conversation about Myles, so he assumed the sandwich must have been some sort of effort to butter him up. Or a friendly gesture! He just wasn’t used to people paying for things for him.
Myles had, of course, told him everything. In a jumped waterfall of words, the story hadn’t quite come out in order but he’d learned how to translate Myles’ train of thought.
“Oh, a good kid with a big mouth,” Jeremy said between bites. His coffee was half finished already and he’d downed it like it was water. “I told him not to get his heart set on any of these houses, not with the market how it is. He wanted to take a walk around the neighborhood at night and see if it was as friendly when the sun set. I’m glad he was in the right place at the right time. He tells the story a little differently, he left out the heroism. I was surprised to hear about the boys, that’s a lot of news to take in. I knew I should have checked in on you sooner to hear how things were going. It’s Atticus now, yeah? I’m glad he sounds like he’s doing so well. Myles was badgering me to get a place nearby so they can work on crafts together or something. There are a few around there that I like, I didn’t realize they were so close to you, though.”
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Posted: Fri Jan 13, 2023 5:34 pm
“Yeah, it’s Atticus now. Soleiyu drew up the paperwork so Devyn is officially his father. Which… would make me his father too,” Michael shared as he set his coffee down so he could also work on his sandwich.
“Devyn and I are getting married,” he clarified since he knew the comment had been vague. “At least it’ll give Atticus some more stability than what he was used to. He wants to see you again. He was excited to learn that Myles was your brother. I think he already looks up to Myles a lot, even though they just met.”
It was sweet. It wasn’t as though Atticus had many, if any, friends before Elliot. Having someone older to look up to, but not old enough to be a parent, was good for both him and Elliot.
“I’m not going to sugar coat this,” Michael continued after a moment. “Things feel like the calm before a storm. After earlier this year, not knowing what we’re up against… I would really, really like to keep people that I care about -- people Atticus and the Reids care about -- as close to me as possible. I can sense things,” he reminded Jeremy, although he doubted he needed to. “I can tell if danger is nearby. I would like it if you and Myles lived close by, and not just so Myles and the boys can do crafts together.”
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Posted: Fri Jan 13, 2023 6:18 pm
Jeremy raised his brow when Micahel announced his engagement, but beyond the subdued surprise he felt with that and the information that followed, he seemed to take it well enough. He shrugged, took another bite, and nodded. “Oh, well, congratulations on your engagement, first of all. Don’t let him look up to Myles too much, he’ll teach him to eat cereal and KitKats for every meal.” There was no malice in his voice, but Jeremy worried for Myles, constantly.
“Be careful, once they start the crafts you’ll never get the glitter out of your house.”
He watched Michael carefully, like he was still digesting some of his words. Like he was trying to figure out if there was something else he was supposed to be hearing in them. He knew they couldn’t talk about magic things in too forward of a sense, not out in public, but he thought he was following along pretty well so far.
“I’d like to see Atticus again, I’ve been worrying about him. I mean, I know he’s in good hands with you, it’s just everything from before you got him that makes me worry. Myles likes him, he said he liked him, he wanted to take him with him to his next craft fair. Myles doesn’t drive, so being close was an ideal for him. I like the area, there are a few houses I was interested in. I think it would probably be safer to live near to you, given your advantage. I mean, as long as you’re not out causing trouble and bringing it back to the neighborhood, but you don’t strike me as that sort. I figure you’re pretty careful about all of this. You might be a good influence on Myles.”
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Posted: Fri Jan 13, 2023 6:47 pm
“I’ve lost too much to not be careful,” Michael nodded to reassure him. He wore a small smile, but it didn’t reach his eyes. Too much had happened recently for him to be happy about. And he wasn’t going to let himself feel overly confident about everything going on.
The idea of glitter didn’t bother him. Nor did the thought of Atticus having KitKats for every meal. There was a part of him that thought he might benefit from doing something unhealthy that normal kids would do. He didn’t have much of a chance to be a normal kid.
“Myles told you the boys were like him too, didn’t he?” he asked, wanting to make sure Jeremy understood how there were so many they cared about involved in this stupid magical war. “Not before, when we were asking you to help out, but after.”
He would have to get Jeremy over somewhere private to talk more openly, of course. But so far it seemed like he was following.
“I’m really stubborn,” Michael started, leveling Jeremy with a very serious expression. “I’ve also got more money than I know what to do with. I want to buy you and Myles a house and before you can say no, I need you to hear me out. I can’t have Myles running around and hanging out with my kid without knowing they’re both safe. And I know you’d want to make sure they’re safe too. You’ve been forced to pinch pennies to take care of Myles, worked your a** off to make sure he was safe. This isn’t just for you and him, if that makes you feel any better about it. It’s for me and Atticus too. I’ve already lost my dad to those assholes. Almost lost a sister-in-law. Almost my brother before that. This isn’t so much of a gift as it is security. But it’ll be entirely in your name. You can use whatever you’ve been saving up to do updates and maybe get yourself a new car. Or get Myles a car if he ever ends up wanting to drive.”
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Posted: Fri Jan 13, 2023 7:12 pm
Jeremy slowed in his chewing for a moment and just watched Michael. He let it sink in.
And then, he seemed to ignore it.
“Yeah, Myles told me. But don’t hold it against him. He is good at keeping secrets, just not with me. I know all his tells, so it’s no good lying to me. I’m starting to get a little jealous that I’m the odd one out,” he said, but it was impossible to tell if he meant it or not. He took another bite of his sandwich and leaned back in his chair, watching Michael.
He took his time, and it wasn’t so much looking at him as it was trying to read him.
He’d set the sandwich back down, and when he’d swallowed his last bite, he crossed his arms over his chest contemplatively.
“I like that you lead with the fact that you’re stubborn. Like maybe it’ll deter me from putting up an argument. But I’m stubborn, too. So, let me get this straight. You have so much money that you want to buy us a house. A whole house.” He couldn’t remember if he was the one who had said he’d been scrimping and saving or if Myles had just outed him about it.
Did it make him feel better to know it wasn’t ‘just about Myles and him’? Not entirely, because those were pretty words to pad an argument. He sympathized with Michael losing his father, but he wasn’t sure what sort of security he could offer by being close, or what security Myles could offer at all. Well–no, he was a Senshi. And a decent one, probably, all things considered.
And Michael and Devyn were obviously competent. There was probably a lot of security being around them, and if Myles did ever wind up in trouble–
If he wound up trapped underground again–
His eyes lowered briefly and he leaned forward to lift his coffee to his lips, and he downed the rest of it. It took a moment for him to look back up at Michael.
“That’s a lot of money to just spend on us. I mean, you’re not like–this isn’t some manic spell that you’re going to regret tomorrow, right? Because that might not be a lot of money to you, but that’s a lot of money for us. And I don’t think anything either Myles or I have done warrants you giving us a gift that large. And with the department how it is, someone might try to dig into it. I don't want anyone to start looking into you.”
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Posted: Fri Jan 13, 2023 7:31 pm
Michael probably wisely kept the comment about it not being that much money to himself. He knew he was lucky. Privileged. Just because he didn’t live in a multi million dollar mansion and instead preferred to live somewhere more modestly (in comparison) didn’t mean he didn’t have money. He was lucky in that he taught electives at a high school for fun and not because he needed the paycheck. It also kept him busy and something to look forward to, which was probably why his grandmother bullied him into applying in the first place.
He grinned a little to himself when Jeremy caught that he’d started off by saying he was stubborn.
“Soleiyu can figure out how to erase any papertrail,” Michael shrugged, because if Soleiyu could figure out a way to disguise Atticus until the Code magically finished the job, he could figure out a way to make sure the house wasn’t traced back to him.
“I took a look at the houses for sale. I have an idea of which one you’d be looking at. One of the ones that need more work than the others because it’s cheaper? And because you’re pretty handy with fixing things, I bet,” Michael pointed out.
“If you’re already looking for those houses, then it shouldn’t be a surprise that you’d live in one. It’s not like you’re being gifted a huge estate. Let me pay for the property and I’ll write any contract you want that cuts any ties I have with it. I swear I won’t use it as a way to ask for favors. If anything, I already owe you for your help with Atticus. But no. I won’t regret it.”
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Posted: Fri Jan 13, 2023 7:44 pm
Jeremy squinted at Michael and his detective skills, not because he was wrong but because he’d figured it out fairly easily and Jeremy wasn’t sure that he liked being so predictable.
“Well, first of all, you don’t owe me for helping with Atticus. Even if it isn’t my job, it’d have been the right thing to do. But I am glad he’s doing well, and Myles was excited to have something in common with someone. He doesn’t have a lot of friends. He’s friendly, but I know he’s careful when it comes to the whole,” he gestured absentmindedly when he couldn’t say ‘Senshi things’. “He doesn’t want to let the wrong thing slip or make an enemy. But.”
He was quiet again, and mulled a few things over, and then he couldn’t help but shrug. “I guess I’d feel better knowing he’s in good company. Your boys seem like they’d be good for him.” And he knew Myles was an adult, but he was still his little brother so he couldn’t help but worry about him, even if it was in his own gruff way.
“I don’t like feeling like I’m in someone’s debt or like I can’t do something myself,” he prefaced, because he wasn’t saying no, but he wasn’t going to make it easy and just accept it without getting his thoughts out, first. “I worked hard to get where I am. So I just need a minute to digest all of this, I guess. I’m not used to things like this. Honestly, if you were anyone else I’d probably tell you to ******** off. Pride, you know.” He shrugged it off. “But I suspect by the time I could call my bank, you could already have a full cash offer in. And it’s not like I couldn’t use the money on something else. I don’t know what, but. Put it into Myles’ business or something. I’m not swapping out my car yet, I’m not ready to give up on it. I don’t know. I want the house, I like it. I told Myles not to get attached because of how bad the market is, but the truth is, it’s my favorite out of all of the ones we’ve looked at. There’s a lot I could do there. And there’s space for him, for his business. For our guest. It’s a good neighborhood. I guess,” he shrugged, and sighed heavily as he leaned back in the seat and looked at Michael. “Good neighbors already trying to look out for us.”
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Posted: Fri Jan 13, 2023 7:58 pm
“I get it,” Michael promised, even though it probably didn’t seem that way with him throwing money around as Peter liked to say.
“If anyone was trying to do something like that for me, I would want to reject the offer. I can do things myself, I don’t need help… things like that. But I appreciate you considering me helping you out. I don’t want to make it so you feel like you haven’t done anything yourself. I’d be happy to help with repairs and any updates you want to do with the house. I’m pretty good at putting up and patching drywall and painting.”
He knew it was a matter of pride. Jeremy seemed like he’d done a lot in his life to get to where he was. He’d obviously had to make sacrifices to take care of Myles, and Michael didn’t want him to feel like he was negating any of that work. He just wanted to give him a break.
“But if you ever did want to retire…” Michael hummed vaguely and lifted his mug to sip from once more.
“I’ll feel better knowing Atticus and Elliot wouldn’t have to go far to meet up with Myles. And with Soleiyu around… hopefully Myles will get the support that he needs. I’ll make sure he gets to meet others. My brothers, for example. Ah, I’ve got to keep an eye on my niece too. She turned seven in October and I guess the cosmos decided she was going to be involved as well,” he sighed, wishing that Abby could have been a shy kid instead of one who wanted to run around fighting monsters.
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Posted: Fri Jan 13, 2023 8:20 pm
Jeremy scoffed instinctively when Michael suggested retiring. If he ever retired–he couldn’t imagine it, he didn’t know what he’d do with himself. He didn’t have magic to rely on to try and make the world a better place. But, he supposed he did also get paid for doing his job.
“Seven?” he questioned. “They can rope you in when you’re seven? I mean, I’ve met young ones, but I’d be finding a way to complain to whoever’s in charge if they got Myles when he was that young.”
He hadn’t touched his sandwich in a moment, but as the conversation moved on, he relaxed a bit–enough to have another bite, at least.
“I guess I have to agree, I like the close proximity. I wouldn’t worry about them if your boys were going back and forth from your house to another house in the neighborhood.” They were fourteen, they were growing up. He was still going to fuss. They could be kids for a little longer.
“Myles is pretty good with kids. Maybe because he hasn’t wanted to grow up all the way. I don’t blame him. He didn’t get much of a childhood worth bragging about, so I guess maybe he tries a little harder when kids are involved. Hope you like candles, he’s already got a bag to give to Atticus. He’s trying to figure out if you’re a sandalwood kind of guy or a gardenia guy, but now he’s got vetiver in mind and I’ll be surprised if he’s not mixing up a new batch of smells to find out if it works by the time I get home.” He shrugged, because this might as well have been another language to him, but he listened to Myles.
“If Atticus is really interested in selling his crafts, Myles is a good enough teacher. Not the best with his taxes, and he should probably count his change a little better, but he’s gotten pretty good at the other stuff. I’m proud of him. And I’m glad Atticus is doing better. Myles said he looked happy. Him and Elliot. I think him winding up with you and Devyn was better than anything the system could have done for him.”
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Posted: Fri Jan 13, 2023 8:27 pm
“Yeah, my brother and his wife aren’t too thrilled about it, but they already have the kids in self defense classes. They figured they’d be in danger no matter what, since both of them are involved,” Michael explained. He wasn’t happy about it, but he was glad they were at least trying to prepare for what could happen.
“Myles is a good kid. We’ll have to all get together for dinner or just to watch a movie or something,” he suggested with a smile. “Your brother is a pretty good guesser. I like both of those scents. I guess you gotta be good at knowing what people might like if you’re going to be good at selling. I don’t mind candles. Devyn had to make his own candles -- where he’s from. Maybe Devyn can give him some ideas for more products.”
He was glad that Jeremy wasn’t outright refusing his offer. It definitely made things easier for him. He wouldn’t have to do too much behind Jeremy’s back with him knowing already.
“I’m glad things worked out. Things were a bit questionable for a while. And I know Atticus is still anxious about things. Sirens at night usually means he ends up hiding under the covers next to Devyn. But he’s at Azure, so the Reids and I can keep an eye on him and he seems to be doing well with meeting other kids. He’s getting more confident too. And Devyn adores him.”
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Posted: Sat Jan 14, 2023 7:00 pm
“Good,” Jeremy said, to everything Michael had spoken of. He didn’t comment that Michael must have trusted him a lot to tell him so much, and he’d always gotten the impression that he kept things close to his heart, so if it was a subtle play to butter him up, it was working. It was harder to resist a guy who seemed genuine in his offer. Although, Michael was probably clever enough that he could have been up to something, anyway. Jeremy didn’t often let his guard down, but he had before. It was easy to talk to Michael, even in vague terms.
“Myles would probably like to see what Devyn’s doing, he’s always interested in new things like that. He’s a bit jumpy sometimes, you know. Doesn’t like the fireworks, doesn’t like doors slamming, loud noises. But he’s pretty good at laughing it off afterwards, maybe some of that’ll rub off on Atticus if they spend some time together. I’m looking forward to seeing him again. I’m going to guess he’s looking healthier and happier. A new school, a fresh start. I know that can make a hell of a difference. He needed a fresh start, a better one. Maybe could do well without all that extra stuff, but.” Maybe having some magic gave him some confidence and a little extra protection, and something
“I guess, one fair warning, we’ve got a, uh. A guest. He’s not really like you or me. Practically,” he shrugged, “From another world. I’m not really sure how else to put it. He’s strange. He’s like Myles, but different. Everything here is new to him. I’m letting him stay with me for a bit, a favor to a friend. It’s this whole complicated thing, I don’t really get it, but I’ll fill you in some other time. But, he sticks out a lot. I’m sure that won’t bother Atticus, he’s a sweet kid, but I figure I should give you a heads up if you’re going to let your kid come over. Anyway, yeah, I want the house. I don’t want someone else to get it, so if you’re dead set on being involved, I’d rather know we had it than play the waiting game of back and forth with the bank and realtor and everything else. I want to move before the lease is up where we’re at, and ideally I’d like to move before someone tries to rob us. Again.”
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Posted: Sat Jan 14, 2023 7:50 pm
“Trauma can do that,” Michael nodded, and he didn’t miss that this was probably the first time in a very long time that he was acknowledging his own trauma. Maybe, given time spent together, he could help Myles figure out ways to cope better, just like he wanted to help Atticus figure out a way to ground himself that didn’t rely on Devyn wrapping him up in blankets and holding him. Not because he thought Devyn minded, but because there might be a time in which Devyn wasn’t able to help.
He frowned a bit, his brows furrowed when Jeremy mentioned someone trying to rob them. It only made his decision to help them get a house more solid because the sooner they were out of that apartment, the safer they would be. Michael would make sure of it, one way or another.
“Thanks for the heads up. As long as you trust this guest of yours to not do anything to hurt Atticus or Elliot… well, I’m sure you would have kicked him out if he was a threat to Myles,” he sighed, because of course he was a bit anxious about Atticus being around strange people, especially those from other worlds.
“Yeah, we’ll get you that house. Let me make a call,” he nodded as he picked up his phone and scrolled through his address book for the right number.
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