Sean Murray

[seanxxmurray]

natebowen

“That’s progress!” Nathaniel was visibly in his teasing mode, referring to the fact that the other met someone important enough to be mentioned when talking about their love life, but the smile drops the moment the question is fired back at him, Nathaniel looks down to take a sip of his beer first. “Uhm, no. Well.. I’m not seeing someone.. but.. it’s just too complicated.” He’s shaking his head, his eyes quickly scanning their surroundings looking for their food order but that seemed to only be an excuse to clean the thought out of his mind as well.

“Yeah.. maybe. Small steps right..?!”, although there was a little smile on his face, Sean still wasn’t entirely convinced that you could really call this progress, but he wasn’t really in the mood to argue about it right now. Frowning at the others answer though, he gave him a questioning look. Especially as Nate obviously tried to avoid his eyes, something that normally was the other way round. “Complicated hm..?! In what way..?”, he simply asked. Maybe he could be some help for his friend for once, after he had already helped him so many times.

[seanxxmurray]

thejulianturner

julian laughed. “no that is actually true. I am in my final year of studying criminology actually. so it’s gonna get serious soon.” he replied with a small chuckle. “but honestly, if I turn out to be shit at solving crimes, which could still very well happen, I will not only hit you up for a puppy, but also for a job because that is probably that dream job you were just talking about.”

“Wow, impressive! I better not do something illegal then hm..?!”, he asked, chuckling a little as well. He had to admit, that it felt good to just joke around like that again, he actually didn’t even know the last time he had done that. Of course, those beers he already had, had certainly made him relax a little, but he still couldn’t deny that he liked the others company. “Pretty sure we’ll always have a puppy as well as a job, should that ever happen!”

[seanxxmurray]

nicole-lilly

It was still so surreal to Nicole to walk into Waterstones and see her novel, all shiny and new book smell amazing, on the shelf next to some of her favourite authors. Craftily she delved into her bag, pulling out a pen before glancing around to ensure no one was looking. When she was sure she didn’t have an audience she reached back, took a book from the middle of the stack and flipped open the cover before writing a cute, uplifting message on the title page and slotting the book back in place for an unsuspecting reader to find. The idea of someone opening her book and having their day made even a tinier bit better by her message brought a smile to her lips. Until she turned away and realised she had an audience. “Uh…it’s not what it looks like” she blushed. “I wrote it…the book I mean…you know what? Let’s just pretend you didn’t see that…”

It was his free afternoon and so Sean had decided to stroll through the city a little, eventually entering one of the book shops. Sitting around at home, reading a good book, had always helped him calm down a little and so maybe it was time for a new one. Walking through the store, the man stopped right on the spot when he saw a woman writing in one of the books. Slightly tilting his head, he tried to find out if she was working here but it didn’t really seem like it. Especially when she finally looked up and immediately blushed when she saw him. “You... wrote that book?!”, he simply repeated, as if it would make more sense if he said it out loud as well, “..what.... what did you write in there?”

[seanxxmurray]

aubrey-pierce

“It’s fine.” Sean seemed so easily shaken by her words, Aubrey biting back from saying anything for a moment. She wasn’t offended by what he’d said, though she didn’t think he was right - but that was fine, she could survive a difference of opinion. If not from her trauma, her job as a paramedic had given her some pretty thick skin, and not much really rattled her. Besides, he was more than entitled to his opinion, and she respected that. “Hey, thanks for the invite,” She finally spoke up, lifting her mug again. “Saved me from going home to a empty apartment for a little while.”

Sean simply nodded at her words before staying silent for a little while as well. They probably both needed a few seconds to get their thoughts in order again. “Anytime!”, he finally said with a little smile, “Pretty much saved me from sitting around here all alone as well so...” He slight grin on his face, the man shrugged a little. “Maybe we could do this more often..”, he suggested only a few seconds later, without really thinking about it, “I mean not as a date. Not that I wouldn’t want that it’s just.. I just thought it could be nice you know..”

[seanxxmurray]

emrysdavies

“Oh, that explains it then,” Emrys offered another smile, “their coffee is amazing, so hopefully you’ll become a regular.” He noticed how unsure the other seemed and tried to be slightly less bouncy than usual, not wanting to spook the other man. Nodding in answer to the question, Rys took the vacant seat, “I’d like to join you, thanks.” Relaxing back into the chair, he took a sip of his coffee, eyes closing briefly as he savoured the taste. “I’ve been looking forward to that all day,” h said softly, by way of explination. “You made it home okay the other night?”

“It really is, so there might be a chance that I wasn’t here the last time..”, looking down at his coffee, which honestly was pretty good, he finally managed to return the others smile. Especially when he agreed to sit down at his table. Although he had to admit that this also made him slightly nervous once again. “Yeah, I did. It wasn’t that far away from home though”. Which was true, although he withheld the fact that he had still stumbled through the streets for quite some time to try and clear his mind. Because whether he lked it or not, he hadn’t really been able to get the man out of his head since then. “What about you, did you stay much longer that night..?”, he carefully asked.

[seanxxmurray]

thejulianturner

julian’s eyes widened when sean mentioned his jobs. he had always loved animals but none of his foster families ever had a pet. or at least none that was child-friendly. “god I wish! at the moment I am way too broke to take care of one but once I am a successful detective I will definitely hit you up!” he said with a nod.

Seeing the excitement in the others eyes after mentioning what he was doing for a living, Sean had to grin a little. “I’ll remember that!”, he joked with raised eyebrows before giving the man a questioning look, “So you want to be a detective hm?! Or is that just some kind of dream job and you’re actually doing something completely different?”

[seanxxmurray]

detectivebred

He could remember when the book came out. The image of his father on the front porch, cigarette in one hand, book in the other. Reading while the sun began to rise through the leaves of the single oak tree in their backyard. Those mornings the air would smell distinctly of hazelnut coffee, smoke, and lavender. His bedroom window was above the porch and he would wake up every Sunday morning to that scent.

“ My father had a beat-up French copy of it, ” Roy said, sidestepping the question for the moment.  “ I read it a couple of years ago and thought it had that same Lovecraft appeal. Written for the good of the genre , but not the best writing.”

Roy paused, taking a second to push strands of his dishevled hair out of his face. “ It put me to sleep. ”

Still pretty confused, which was probably more than visible on his face, Sean stared at the man in front of him as if he was speaking another language. Even though to him right now, there wasn’t much difference between that and the other talking about a book that he had never heard of his entire life. Which probably wouldn’t be that strange either, if he at least knew that man. But that clearly wasn’t the case. “So you’ve.. been reading that book over here and fell asleep..?”, he asked, not really sure if he was getting it right and even if that was the case, what he wanted to tell him with that. 

[seanxxmurray]

aubrey-pierce

Really, to her, it didn’t feel brave. And Aubrey shifted in her seat when it insisted it again. “I don’t know… My parents put me in therapy when I was young, it’s kind of just… a part of life.” Accepting what had happened to her, acknowledging that she couldn’t make her way forwards without surrounding herself with the right people. She wasn’t like some of the other people in the group, who had a traumatic event when they were older, and had to accept the change. Aubrey doesn’t really remember her life before the trauma, she’d been too young.

Realising that she obviously started to feel a little uncomfortable after he insisted on her being brave once again, Sean just swallowed. It hadn’t been his intention at all. On the contrary, he had actually tried to make her feel better but obviously that had gone wrong somehow. “Sorry I.. probably shouldn’t have said that.. I know it’s different for everybody, I just thought.. well, I don’t know what I thought actually..”, he muttered, trying to apologize while staring down at the coffee mug in front of him.

[seanxxmurray]

cleoarchibald

It was a good thing that Sean gave up because Cleo, on the other hand, could argue forever. And most of the time, she ended up with whatever she wanted. “It’s nice to meet you too! And no, you’re not being too curious, don’t worry,” She would definitely tell him if it was the case anyway. “But no, there is no reason. But I think that sometimes, we don’t realise how lucky we are and how happy we are until there’s nothing left. So I like to celebrate now and then, just for nothing in particular.” She explained quickly, grabbing her glass of wine when it was served, thanking the waiter. “But don’t worry, I’ll not actually be wasted. I wouldn’t want you to have to pay for me and take care of me afterwards.” She teased the other with a smirk. “So, what are you doing here, in London?” 

Glad that she wasn’t mad at him because of the question he had asked, Sean still needed to swallow at her explanation. “That’s a pretty good way to see it!”, he still replied with some kind of sad smile on his face. He hadn’t realised how lucky he had been until it was gone after all. And now he wished he had appreciated it more back then. But there was no going back. Realising that he was getting lost in his thoughts again, the man quickly shook his head, glad that her question gave him the opportunity to change the topic. “Working at an animal shelter”, he explained, even managing to smile a little again at the thought of the animals. It probably wasn’t some kind of dream job, but it still always helped him to calm down. And that was worth much more than making a little more money.

[seanxxmurray]

thejulianturner

sean’s smile had encouraged the young man so julian decided to return it. after ordering a glass of coke for each of them, he turned back to the blonde. “how about you tell me what you do when you are not spending with an embarrassingly drunk boy at a bar?” he asked.

Nodding at the man as a thank you for the coke, Sean eventually shrugged. “How do you know that I’m not doing that all the time..?”, he joked, realising that obviously those beer he had already had, made him a little more relaxed than he usually was around people he didn’t know that well. “I’m working at an animal shelter actually”, he finally added, his eyes immediately lighting up at the thought of the animals, “So once you’re sober again and decide you want a pet, you know who to call!”

[seanxxmurray]

thejulianturner

julian looked up at the other man. he hadn’t expected sean to ask him to stay which was probably visible in his face. he had already motioned to get up but decided to sit back down again. he looked around nervously, thinking about what to say next. “how about I buy you a completely non-alcoholic drink and we start over?” he suggested after a few moments.

Looking up at the others surprised face, Sean gave him an encouraging smile. Normally he was the one in a converation that was rather insecure and nervous, so he could imagine how the other was feeling right now. “Sounds good for me!”, he agreed with a nod of his head. The other seemed to be nice after all and it was good to not sit around all o his own for a change. “So, any particular random stuff that you want to talk about then..?”, he added with the hint of a grin on his lips.

[seanxxmurray]

aubrey-pierce

Bringing her mug to her lips, she took a long sip, watching him swallow and nod at her, seeming to accept her reassurance. “I wouldn’t say it’s brave,” Aubrey countered, cradling the coffee in her hands for a moment before setting it back on the table. “I have my triggers, and they’re not as obvious, but they’re there. When they flare, it’s…it’s hard when no one knows, they don’t understand. They think you’re just erratic.” Which is why she went to the meetings, to be around people who understood, to reassure herself she wasn’t crazy.

Taking another sip of his own coffee, mainly to keep his hands busy and to stop them from slightly shaking, he listened to what she said before taking a few seconds to think about his own answer. “Isn’t it even more brave then?!”, he finally asked, “Acknowledging that you have those triggers and trying to get help with it..?” Because for him that had honestly been the hardest. He had actually made it until the front door of the building where the meetings took place many times but had still turned around just as many times, before finally going inside for the first time.

[seanxxmurray]

aubrey-pierce

She could tell he was regretting asking her such a question, though honestly, he had every right to be curious. And while she wasn’t ready to give away any details, she wasn’t opposed to answering the question. “Don’t worry about it.” Aubrey tried to reassure him, shaking her head. He seemed to nervous, she wanted to settle that — if she could. The brunette wondered how much of that was just his personality, and how much was a result of the trauma. “You’re allowed to ask.” Maybe one day, she’d be ready to open up about it to a new bunch of people, but that wasn’t yet.

Glancing up at her again, Sean wondered if she was really fine with him asking or just said that because she didn’t want him to worry about it any longer. But quickly looking into her eyes, it seemed like she was being honest after all. Swallowing, he slowly nodded, glad that she wasn’t mad at him. “Pretty brave to still go to those meetings, even if you’re not ready to talk about everything yet!”, he finally said with a little smile on his lips, “I mean that basically took me ages just to admit to myself that I need them, let alone to finally attend them voluntarily and I still haven’t managed to talk about everything, you know..”

[seanxxmurray]

thejulianturner

julian closed his eyes for a second. “wow, sorry. I fucked up twice in a matter of minutes” he felt even more embarrassed. how was it that he managed to mess every situation up? why did he even try? “I should probably leave” he mumbled. he didn’t want to make this conversation even more awkward.

Starting to feel pretty bad for the young man in front of him, Sean quickly started to shake his head. “No seriously, it’s ok!”, he insisted. It wasn’t the others fault that his behaviour was a little... weird.. sometimes. “Honestly, stay please!”, he heard himself say, without even thinking about it much. He had never really been someone who was particular keen on talking to people he barely even knew, but he also didn’t want the man to go because of him.

[seanxxmurray]

emrysdavies

“That’s right,” Emrys smiled as Sean confirmed where he knew him from, and his name. Glad that he hadn’t been forgotten, despite neither of them thinking to exchange numbers. He’d enjoyed the other’s company that night, the conversation a welcome distraction after a long day at work. “I don’t think I’ve seen you in here before?”

“No, it’s the first time I’m here actually..”, he admitted, grabbing his coffee mug with both hands as he hoped it would stop them from slightly shaking once again. Out of all the cafés on his way home from work he seemed to have picked just the one the other was frequently visiting. Not that he didn’t like that somehow but it still made him slightly nervous to see that man again. “You want to sit down?”, nodding at the empty chair opposite him, he gave the other a questioning look.

[seanxxmurray]

detectivebred

that was a question that Roy asked himself very rarely and he knew no one else well enough for them to bother doing so.  If he was honest with himself, he hadn’t been alright since his tenth birthday, when his dad decided that he was getting too old to indulge in the fantastical. Of course, he never let himself think about that when he wasn’t on the brink of a coma. At least, that is what his body shutting down to sleep had always felt like.

Bracing one hand on the bench, Roy pushed himself up into a half sit. The sleeplessness in his eyes had vanished for the moment and he chose instead to ignore the question thrown at him in favor of one of his own. “ You ever read Snow Crash? ”

Still staring down at the other man, Sean buried his hands in the pockets of his jacket. It wasn’t really cold actually, but he just felt more comfortable this way. Like he could hide inside his own clothes somehow. When the other man suddenly asked him another question though, he frowned. That really wasn’t the kind of conversation he had expected to have at night in a park with someone he didn’t even know. A few seconds he thought about just leaving but that would probably be just as weird as the others question. “Not that I could remember, no..”, he eventually answered, still looking pretty confused, “Why?!”

[seanxxmurray]

detectivebred

Rationally, Roy knew that in order to fuction as a human being one needed to sleep a great deal more than three hours a night. And while on most days he thought with a clear and level headed mind, there were moments when the detective pushed aside all that his father had taught him in favor of the mystery. In favor of solving the little puzzle his latest client had given him. Despite knowing that he had enough waking hours and that his brain, which thought a hundred possibilities her minute, could work faster with rest, he wastes the night away behind his desk. Durng weeks like these, his turnover can be less than twenty-four hours.

Ad that, that is the reason why on warm nights such as these he could be found on a park bench, imitating the homless. Half asleep, he’s almost peaceful for the first time in years. The harsh lines on his face have softened and a vulnerability settled in his eyes. He’s aware that he’s being watched, but all the energy in his body had drained. He was going to be there for a while.

“Are you going to keep staring? Need a business car and my picture to keep?”

Hearing the other man’s words, Sean jumped a little. He always enjoyed being out that late when the citys streets were almost empty, especially on such warm nights as tonight. Walking through the park though, he had immediately seen the man lying on one of the benches, wondering if he didn’t have another place to sleep. Quickly lost in his own thoughts though, he hadn’t even realised that he had obviously been staring for that long. “Sorry, I was just...”, Sean stopped in mid sentence, as he actually didn’t have a proper excuse. Instead he just nervously ran his hand through his hair. “Your alright though..?”