law wasn't exactly avoiding conall.
it was more of a... selective appearance, taking note of where the other tended to linger and wander so he could make sure their paths rarely crossed. they still slept in the same room at night, though, which made it difficult for him not to gravitate toward the large man. no matter how much he tried to deny it, there was something about conall's warmth that soothed him.
but he couldn't. he knew the danger that lay in entanglements, especially when they were meant to work alongside each other. those threads, those connections, made it harder when difficult situations arose. and worse of all, they made severing ties so much more painful than necessary.
so law carefully made his way across the room after he was certain conall had left. opening the door, however, the familiar hulking form of the other greeted him and, god, he was going to kiss him if their bodies made contact, he was–
paris? that accent instantly transported him back home, rich and unmistakable, the moment he heard it.
he watched from the shadows of a chamber as three bodies entwined before him, sensually so. law’s eyes quickly picked up on the man with grey in his hair, guiding the moment quite deftly like a conductor as a stranger’s face and conall’s rapt features turned towards him as if they were drawn in. intimate, soft-spoken, delicate, the memory felt strangely personal. instantly, he was certain that it had come unprompted, flashing into life without warning.
when it faded into golden filaments, unraveling before his eyes, the scene quickly changed. law's eyes found the real conall beside him, a shoulder taller. “should we pretend i didn't?” he turned his gaze back to the new, unfolding memory before him. “maybe you can do the same with mine.”
they stood in a small bedroom, balcony doors open to the majestic view of the eiffel tower, with two figures sprawled out together on the bed across from them. law and another man, darker-skinned and broad-shouldered. “keizer, keizer,” he heard the law in this memory croon playfully. then, “i must leave paris for a month, darling.”
“another job?”
“yes.”
“you'll come back? to me?”
the memory of law did not answer.
then the memory changed to more faces, more goodbyes, more brief encounters that truly never led anywhere. men and women left waiting, disappointed, or simply abandoned to the uncertainty of another unanswered goodbye. one after another, the memories blurred together until they eventually faded, returning the pair to the room, face to face and inches apart.
“so,” law said after a brief pause. “what's your choice? pretend we didn't see that, or... can i ask who your two french companions were?” a small smile touched his lips.