A DRABBLE FOR THE-NEW-VAN-HORN
Nick was not used to confiding in others for advice, given that he was generally adept at being honest enough with himself and sticking to his guns at any given moment to live a rather self assured life. Arguably, a terrible and foolish way to live but, for the longest time? He enjoyed that ignorant bliss. Very little rattled him and even less confused him, particularly in the emotional attachment area. Inanimate objects were so much easier to handle, he was free to invade past history as he pleased. People were different, Elijah was different.
The bell that hung off a small metal latch rattled a brief little jingle, announcing his entry into the quaint Cafe he would admit to not visiting nearly enough. It wasn’t long before a small voice held a lilt that matched the jovial nature of the bell itself.
“Uncle Nick!” His eyes fell onto Olivia who had hopped off a chair and ran over, taking hold of his hand. “I’m making bracelets, come see!” Nick had humored the young one with moseying on over to have a look, well before she began to tug.
“Nick, it’s good to see you.” Elise began as he’d reached the table, Olivia abandoning his hand and retreating back into her seat. Nick obliged the other by sitting a chair over, eye contact lifting to meet with Elise to acknowledge her greeting but doing little to fully reciprocate. “Sorry, she learned how to make friendship bracelets and has been obsessed with it since. She’s quite good at them though.” Elise complimented before gesturing towards the bar. “Tea?” She offered politely.
“Sure.” Nick finally spoke, and Elise couldn’t help but smile. The gesture only made Nick feel all the more guilty that he didn’t stop by more often, even more guilty that he was really just there for ‘advice’.
“Uncle Nick, let me teach you! Dad says he’s not good at this stuff but he doesn’t even want to try.” Olivia pouted innocently, her tiny hands settling on a vast array of colored string before sweeping them towards him. “Here, choose colors you want to use. I pick ones I think the person I’m giving it to will like. If you’re their friend, you know what colors they like.”
“Hm…” He hummed thoughtfully and quietly to himself, examining the colors. Truth be told, Nick couldn’t place a finger on Elijah’s favorite color, mostly because he seemed to like all of them. However, the fact that Elijah was the first person he thought to give such a silly thing to, only made him more sullen. “These two.” He settled on the red that was just as bright as the jacket he first ‘met’ Elijah in, and black because it seemed a nice neutral compliment to anything and if he were to go about choosing a personal favorite color, it would very well be that.
Olivia showed him the ropes and he stepped to it quick enough, working at it quietly as he sipped at the tea Elise had brought over. She sat across from the two of them, her cheek leaning into the palm of her hand as she examined Nick. Generally, he caught her doing this, but the task at hand had him distracted and before he knew it? She was ‘interrogating’ him.
“Something on your mind?” Nick couldn’t help but correct Elise within the confines of his own mind. It wasn’t something, but someone was constantly invading what was a safe space for so long. He wasn’t sure why he was so hesitant now in sharing when this was what he had planned to talk about when he walked in. Instead, his eyes only darted to look up at Elise for a moment before focusing on tightening yet another knot in the braid. “That’s a resounding yes.” She cooed, partly teasing but with an underlying hint of concern.
“How long have you known Elijah?” Elise’s hand fell from her cheek gently at the question, the true cause for concern now lying in the fact that she didn’t seem all surprised about the subject of conversation.
“Not too long, not as long as I’ve known you. Maybe a little after he moved here? In the beginning he was really just a face at the bar but you know how it is when you become regulars. A while before either of us could really call the other a friend. Why?” Elise inquired as she watched Nick work at the bracelet at hand, he’d picked up on it rather easily and he was more than half way through.
“I slept with him.” Elise’s eyes widened at this loaded answer before her mouth fell open.
“Ol–Olivia.” She stuttered on her daughter’s name, though the young one seemed to not have heard the other’s rather blatantly inappropriate comment. “Do you mind if I speak to Nick alone?” Olivia shook her head and took what she was working on and skipped to the small office in the back. When she was out of sight, Elise allowed herself to give a more ‘adequate’ response.
“Okay—I’m sorry. You slept with him?–Nick, you said–”
“–I know what I said.” He interjected, “–and no, I mean the power was out in our part of town and I went over and we just – fell asleep together.” Nick stated this like this was entirely normal behavior.
“So you simply spent the night… Nick, when people say they’ve ‘slept’ with someone, it generally means they were intimate.”
“That’s called sex, sleeping is sleeping.” This had Elise bring a hand to her face, partially in embarrassment for the other and just general surprise.
“Okay–fine.” She reoriented herself so some sense of composure would return. “So, you crashed at his place. Friends do that all the time, I’m confused.” Nick’s hands paused before he looked at Elise with a rather dull expression, and Elise’s eyes fell closed with a mouthed, ‘oh my god’. “Alright so you, crashed at his place and slept next to him. Holding him?” Nick hadn’t resumed, leaving Elise to lean across the table and swipe up the tea Nick had been chipping away at to take a hefty sip, like the beverage magically turned itself into some heavy liquor.
There was silence for a moment that weighed so heavily that Nick’s gaze fell towards the table, zoning out past the incomplete bracelet at hand. “You like him then.” Elise put the idea on the table, seeing if the other would bite.
“Maybe.” Nick answered haphazardly and this only made Elise’s expression soften into something a bit more somber. She realized then that Nick didn’t know or couldn’t tell because it was a new concept. She felt horrible, given the other was a good friend and she didn’t have ample advice to give or had any immediate amending words to offer.
“You feel you’re affecting or influencing his grievance?” Nick went back to tying at this, an opportunity to thwart a strange sense of anxiety brewing. “I don’t think you can control who you fall for.”
“I haven’t fallen for him.” Nick stated flatly, but it was Elise’s turn to burrow her eyes into him with a straight stare.
“You’ve clearly been spending quite a bit of time together, enough to fall asleep with him. I think that qualifies as falling for you, I’m just sorry that you’re having a hard time seeing it for yourself.” Nick grimaced internally, he hated when Elise was so quick to call him out, turning pages like he was a goddamn book. You get too close to people, and they were able to pull these kinds of moves. “I think it’s endearing though.” She bounced back a bit more positively, folding her arms and leaning back in the chair she occupied with a soft and genuine smile. “Give it time, it’s fair to you and Elijah to see if his feelings are genuine too. I imagine he’s trying to figure that out.”
“You’re terrifying, you know that?” Nick stated, finishing off the bracelet, using his own wrist as one last resort of verification on fit.
“Maybe I ought to bring a crystal ball into the shop, or start reading tea leaves.” She smiled and laughed, Nick returning it with a smirk of amusement.
He’d stopped by the small store to grab the necessities needed to make dinner to repay the other for dipping out as he had. Nick had settled with what was moderately safe, steak and fresh vegetables for a side; though a side of him wouldn’t admit that he predicted the other couldn’t bring themselves to show up empty handed, casually supplying wine that would compliment the meal perfectly. Now, he was no five star chef, but he did take pride in his cooking if and when he applied himself to it; so he was colored pleased when Elijah was rather surprised.
“You know, for someone that can order Chinese take out twice in a week? You’re cooking does not disappoint.” Elijah jest, a closed lip smile as he chewed. Nick stabbed at one of the pieces of vegetables on his plate, deciding to meet the other half way.
“You’ve yet to see my baking, they live up to those standards.” They both chuckled a bit at this before Nick finally brought the food from plate to mouth. He began to replay the events that had happened right before he arrived home, suddenly becoming extremely aware of the piece of braided string in his pocket. When it became overwhelming, he extended a hand across the table.
“Give me your wrist.” Elijah’s brows furrowed, but he decided to cooperate, albeit inquisitively. During the time spent contemplating, Nick removed the bracelet from his pocket and tied it to the other’s wrist. Releasing the other the moment he was done. “Olivia was making bracelets when I stopped by.” He explained as Elijah had taken his wrist back to look upon the work.
He ran a finger across the tightly wound knots, almost as stoic as the person that had made it. Nick mentioned that Olivia was making bracelets and he felt a bit bad that with how things were, the other felt the need to vaguely state or hide the true creator. “Tell her I said thank you.” Thanking Nick through the same protective distancing he applied earlier.
The other must have known that he was a shit liar in that moment, because he hid behind the stout glass, drowning the truth with wine.
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