By the Power of Ska (Rated T, 2/?)
By HazyConstellationss
Chapter excerpt:
Edwin must be proper annoyed annoyed at Charles this time. And Charles couldn't blame him — he knew Edwin didn't fancy physical contact, he knew Hell was a sore spot, and he knew it was a stupid, reckless suggestion to split up all willy-nilly like that. To top it all off, Charles just couldn't take a hint to keep his mouth shut and stop smothering Edwin.
Bloody hell, Charles might as well have been trying to tick Edwin off. His fingers tapping to the beat of The Who sped up agitatedly on the shelf rack, itching to take his Walkman out. Charles made sure to always keep it on him as a way to distract himself from— —from stuff. He just needed to occupy himself with some tunes from time to time. Who didn't when they were a little stressed? But he couldn't distract the two of them from the case again, let alone risk luring out or triggering anything in there with them. Talk about the final straw.
The thing was, Charles hadn't been that off the mark in ages. He'd been bang-on in instantly deciphering Jack's eye twitch at the mention of his girlfriend, Samuel's aggressive chortle when Charles got a better swing in, and he avoided those triggers like the plague. It was second-nature to him to just know how people were feeling and how to deescalate any dampened moods as soon as he realised them. Well, save for his dad.
Charles mentally switched to The Loafers. He shouldn't be sparing that old wanker any more thought right now. He didn't need to Bargain or feel like It's Not Enough anymore — not with Edwin. It was just hard to believe sometimes.
(Continue the chapter here!)
