@hardlydead

[outerfringe]

[One day David simply stops appearing by the fire with the rest of them, and Jeff does his very best to be relieved for him. There are only two real possible reasons for that, right? Either he'd actually died for real, or he'd managed to find a way back home- and either way, it meant that he was out of this place. Jeff tries to be happy for him, and for the most part, he is.

He doesn't think about David at all the first day after he wakes up on the cold floor of the Ormond resort, back stiff and jacket crusted with frost. Instead he's too busy finding his way back to town, organizing arrangements to make it home. His apartment key no longer works, he recognizes none of his neighbors, but his bank account was still somehow in alright standing.

Jeff finds a new place. He does not find a new dog.

He feels weird about creating a Facebook account just to check for David, but he does it anyway. When that comes up fruitless, he thinks a lot about the conversations the two of them had while tucked close together in the dark. Wonders if David would even want to be found by someone like him, to be faced with a reminder of the time they'd spent doing everything they could to simply survive.

Jeff tries to paint but can't seem to pull himself out of severe blacks and reds. Tries to catch up on the music he'd missed from the bands he'd loved but it fails to soothe him the way it had before. He considers a therapist, and then decides that he'd be locked away the second he was candid enough for someone to actually help him.

So he packs some things, books a flight. Finds himself at his fifth seedy pub in three days without much hope - except this time when he says he's looking for David King, the big guy by the bar makes a point of sizing him up. Jeff sets his shoulders, frowns and promises that he's an old friend, but it doesn't seem to affect much the scowl on the guy's face. He says something (that Jeff completely misses, he can barely understand a goddamn thing when people here are drunk and loud), but seems to indicate for him to wait.

Which he does. He parks on a stool with a drink, assumes his most unapproachable aura, and waits. He doesn't know who he's expecting to appear, but it's not David.

There's not a chance it would actually be that simple.]

Comments

[outerfringe]

[It's a little fancier than Jeff had anticipated, but still not so much that they need to be worried about having a meal there in jeans. He's happy to let David take care of the small talk, mostly just smiling enough to make sure he doesn't come off as menacing while they're seated.

And, once the waitress has taken their drink orders, he bumps David's foot beneath the table with his own.]

Hey.

[hardlydead]

[ david's still looking around — at the décor, at the other patrons, etc. — when jeff bumps his foot. he's not necessarily trying to see if anyone's looking at them, but he's not not doing that either. either way, he looks up at jeff and offers a small smile. ]

Hey.

[outerfringe]

[David will catch a small girl staring with curious fascination at the scar she can see on the profile of Jeff's face, just until her father catches her attention and mouths 'sorry' at David. Jeff doesn't seem to notice.]

So, what, one plate? Get someone to play Bella Notte.

[hardlydead]

[ david shakes his head at the girl's dad, not exactly dismissive but it is what it is. a scar on someone's eye is unusual (and cool, even if david's never said it) and he knows jeff gets that a lot. at least it's just a curious kid instead of someone being weird and invasive. ]

[ at jeff's question he snorts. ] How am I gonna offer you the last meatball though? You're a vegetarian.

[outerfringe]

[To be fair, he thinks it's pretty cool, too. But to answer the question, he simply flips his own menu so that it's facing David, tapping the vegetarian meatball option, like it's a challenge.

It's not, but it's easiest to try to keep to lighthearted.]

[hardlydead]

[ what will people come up with next? david laughs, nodding, and if he were more comfortable he'd totally take that challenge, fake or not. as it is, he just takes it as the joke it is and smiles-- brief, but both fond and appreciative. ]

And here I was just planning to wow you with my impressionante Italian.

[outerfringe]

[Jeff is slightly stunlocked every time he realizes that he might have to get used to someone like David looking at him with an expression like that.]

That's still on the table. You know what you're getting? Maybe you can woo the waitress, too.

[hardlydead]

Sweep her off her feet when I ask for the wine menu like a school kid.

[ he says while looking at the menu to make a decision, nodding when he thinks he's made a choice. ]

[outerfringe]

[jeff chuckles quietly at that, ordering when the waitress drifts back over to their table. She's polite but clearly wants to be anywhere else on earth, businesslike even in the face of Jeff's awkward attempt at smalltalk.

He clears his throat when she's gone.]

She has to be like, nineteen. Why am I terrified of her?

[hardlydead]

[ david has none of the same problems, he's polite and gets to the point because she clearly doesn't even want to pretend to be sociable and that's fine by him. ]

Teenage girls are the scariest thing on the planet, that's why.

[outerfringe]

You know. I worried about Steve a lot more than I ever worried about Nancy.

[it's not breadsticks, but there's a few warm, crusty slices of bread on the table with some olive oil and spices, and jeff is just going to busy himself with those.]

[hardlydead]

[ god. that brings a rush of memories — mostly steve's total inability to sit on a generator with him without blowing the thing, versus every time he looked up from cleansing a totem and nancy was staring daggers at him. he wonders how they're doing, if he looked them up would he find some 50 year-olds with the weirdest traumas known to man or what? ]

Don't think I ever had to worry much about Laurie either.

[ running up to try and get the killer to drop her and seeing her just stab them in the neck sure does change your perception of a person. ]

[outerfringe]

[He can't help the way he snorts.]

Whatever. You worried about everyone, all the time.

[hardlydead]

Okay. [ rude ] I mean compared to the likes of Steve or Quentin.

[ to be fair both of them were also hardheaded altruists so, you know. it's almost like david knows people like him are a danger to themselves or something. ]

[outerfringe]

Yeah. Fair. Kind of feels like the entity had a thing for dumbass guys and competent women.

[It's not meant to be an actual burn, but, still.]

[hardlydead]

[ david pauses in dipping his bread in the olive oil to look at jeff with a raised eyebrow. ]

Are you counting yourself there too, or just the rest of us?

[ he's teasing, but also jeff please. ]

[outerfringe]

You kidding?

[With all the seriousness in the world.]

Wouldn't leave myself out of that.

[hardlydead]

Explains why you were ready to ask around all them seedy bars for me.

[ he is still amazed jeff came away unscathed from that. ]

[outerfringe]

[Jeff shakes his head, mock defensive.]

I look tough if I don't talk too much.

[hardlydead]

Lunatic behaviour. [ he shakes his head ] Not that I'm complaining, mind. Worked out for me.

[outerfringe]

David.

[jeff's laugh is a little surprised.]

What's the worst they could have done- beat me up? Terrifying.

[hardlydead]

Could've put you in the hospital and then I wouldn't have seen you at all.

[ so there ]

[outerfringe]

[He folds his arms on the table, leaning forward and pointing at David with a piece of crust.]

You think people are gonna put me in hospital for asking about you? Jesus, man. What an ego.

[it's such a soft deadpan, fully kidding.]

[hardlydead]

[ david laughs and covers his mouth so no errant pieces of chewed bread escape. ]

Next you're gonna tell me I'm not the centre of the universe and I don't think I wanna hear it.

[outerfringe]

[That shouldn't be attractive. Jeff shouldn't feel completely in love right now, but he does. He flusters hard and ducks his head, grinning at his own hands.]

I'd never say that.