@thatwarmtoastyfeeling just HAD to get me thinking about cannibabies again
***
“Hey. Heeeeey. Nigel? Hello? Earth to Nigeeeel!” Nickie waved a hand in front of his brother’s face.
“...ah. Sorry, Nickie. What were you saying?” Nigel tilted his head in his direction, a quick smile tugging at the corner of his lips.
“You okay there?” Nickie leaned back against the wall. The lights of the Strip shone over the gates of Freeside like a beacon; Nickie raised an eyebrow and jerked his head towards them “You know you can put off going back, right?”
“Mm.” Nigel took a pensive drag on his cigarette. He lowered the hand holding it in one smooth motion and dropped it to the ground and ground his heel into it. “Yes, well, I’m certainly aware that is one of my options.”
“You know what I mean!” Nickie shook his head, “C’moooon. No one would blame you for putting this off! You got dumped--”
Nigel grimaced, “I can hardly be dumped if we never saw each other in th-that...that capacity at all--”
“...and you can put this off.” Nickie shrugged and grinned, “Or I can sneak you in the back. Everyone’s gonna be too drunk at the party to notice if I do!”
“That would be a cowardly move on my part.” Nigel turned his head in the direction of the Strip, “...and I hardly think it’s necessary. Morris is likely...busy. Tonight. According to this, at least.” Nigel pulled out the folded schedule Nickie had slipped him earlier that day.
“I’d hardly expect him to be called to the doors when he has a rare night off on a holiday. That would be quite rude of Marjorie, and I trust Layla to have whisked him off to some party of her own given the chance.”
“‘Night off’ doesn’t mean he’s not around!” Nickie pushed himself free of the wall. “But, hey, you do you. I’m off to ring in the New Year by myself if you’re not going to stick around.”
“Yes. Well. Have fun.” Nigel shook his head with a smile, “And. Ah. Stay safe.”
“You too! Good luck, and Happy New Year!”
***
It hadn’t been that long, really, since he’d been gone.
Nigel sighed and ran a hand through his hair, then down the back of his neck. The Strip was much the same as he’d left it when he’d left with Amber, hoping to mend the pieces of their family. He certainly hadn’t needed the space to do that, really, but she had insisted. Likely out of some misplaced need to apologize for encouraging him to be honest with Morris in the first place.
She needn’t have worried about him. Morris was never going to respond to his feelings, no matter when he told him or the circumstances around it.
The casinos were full of noisy revelers; New Year’s Eve was always particularly boisterous. That meant it was far too loud for Nigel to hear his own footsteps as he walked, let alone his own thoughts. It was probably better that way.
Morris hadn’t said anything when Nigel told him he loved him. It was best not to dwell on that. He’d had weeks to make his peace with his broken heart, to wipe the memory of the stunned silence Morris had filled the room with after Nigel muttered his final apologies for burdening him with his feelings and closed the door to his office.
The best thing to do might have been to stay, but no one could accuse Nigel of bravery. He likely would have backed out entirely if he hadn’t been able to retreat from the Ultra-Luxe for an extended leave of absence following his confession.
That was fine. This was fine. Everything was fine.
Nigel slid his hands into his pockets and fingered the box of cigarettes he had slipped there. He wasn’t back to smoking, not really, but sharing a house with Ada had been a bad influence. A bit of a smile tugged at the corner of his lips--Morris certainly wouldn’t have approved of him sharing cigarettes with someone as troublesome as his sister while he visited, but it had been an olive branch he had enjoyed employing to stop fights while visiting his family.
He could have another one now. Should, maybe, to calm the pounding in his chest and head.
By now he was nearing the fountain outside of the Ultra-Luxe. Nigel paused, shut his eyes momentarily, and drew in a breath.
He opened his eyes and peered around the fountain. Nickie had been right; Morris was nowhere to be seen. Nigel curled his lips into a smile, withdrew his hands from his pockets, and took a confident step around the fountain and towards the casino.
“Nigel?”
He almost hadn’t caught the low, quiet voice over the rushing water from the fountain, but it was still enough to stop him in his tracks. Nigel knew that voice. He’d always recognize it--now, ten years from now. Twenty.
Smile frozen on his face, he turned and faced Morris. “...ah. Hello. I can’t say I was expecting you to be here today.”
Morris didn’t move, didn’t say a word. Nigel raised his hands in the air and gave a defensive little wave, “Not that I shouldn’t have! I’d heard you might be busy. Somewhere. Not here. Ahahaha. Um.”
How he wished Morris would just say something. How he wished Morris would do anything, just walk away, or tell Nigel to leave, or something that didn’t involve leaning ever-so-slightly forward, staring. But of course he wouldn’t. Of course. It wasn’t in his nature, even now, with Nigel sputtering like he’d lost every bit of composure he’d ever had.
“...I’ll just. Ah. Well. I’ll let you get on with your night! Really.” Nigel shook his head and took a step back, touching the back of his neck with another of those ridiculous smiles plastered across his face. He turned his face back in the direction of the fountain, just to have something else to look at. “I mean it. We don’t have to make this...awkward. Please.”
“...Nigel.” Nigel snapped his head forward; Morris had reached out and brushed one of his outstretched hands with his own. He folded his fingers between Nigel’s own; not firmly, but enough that a every nerve in Nigel’s hand felt like it was on fire all at once. If Morris’s goal had been to trap him in place, he couldn’t have accomplished it more efficiently if he had tried.
“Morris.” The word came out more an exhalation of breath than anything. Nigel’s eyes flickered up, meeting Morris’s for just a moment.
“Stay. Please.” Morris grasped Nigel’s hand in both of his. He studied his face quietly for a moment.
They stood like that for...minutes? Hours? It certainly felt like the latter. Nigel gulped nervously but didn’t move, didn’t speak. Hardly dared to breath, though the more time passed the more he felt he should say something. Anything, really.
Morris unclasped one hand from Nigel’s. Held it out, froze for a moment, then reached forward and ran the tips of his fingers through Nigel’s hair. Nigel’s eyes darted away, half closed, heart hammering out of his chest.
He shut them the rest of the way. Leaned just a bit up, despite every logical synapse in his brain firing at once to tell him he was wrong, wrong, wrong, he was misreading this so very badly, this was certainly not what it looked like, and--
There was a bit of rustling and Nigel felt Morris’s warm breath tickled his cheek, and he felt his face flush. “...may I?”
Nigel’s eyes opened, just a bit, to take in the sight of Morris’s face close to his own. He nodded, slowly, pressing his forehead to Morris’s and nodding again. “...y...y-ye...yes...”
Morris closed the distance between them and pressed his lips to Nigel’s.
Star Wars AU Gautier enjoys scamming/pickpocketing Imperials, because he low key hates the Empire. He meets Trader because he tries to pickpocket an officer and gets in over his head, which ends in Trader having to help bail him out/adopting him.
Gautier is force sensitive and grew up on Coruscant. He escaped by stowing away on a ship Trader was working on. Trader was the one to find him and covered for him, which is how they ended up traveling together.
Mando? Vicente?
Gio and Gracie are smugglers. Leo is part of the underworld on their home planet.
Cat is a Twi’lek or a droid
Tobias might be a bounty hunter, but I’m not settled on it yet. What I do know is that he hates the Empire, in large part because his dad was involved with them.
romaincrisis
theartofmadeline
origamiaround
2087
germansingergirl
areudirty
dededos
