[FIN] Broken Bonds

[BlackFireKitsune]

Aaaand there it was. Yep. He'd said it. Damn.

Abel sighed and sat back up again, once more rubbing a hand over his face. "...yeah. I guess I do have a crush on him now, yeah." Denying it wouldn't make it change or go away, so he saw little reason to attempt to do so. One arm dropped back down to the table to drum his fingers against it while he rested his chin in the palm of his other hand. "I know what you mean, I just... Uh." Had he ever told Taavi? No, probably not. "Um. I just.. I don't know. After I broke up with my last girlfriend and moved here, I'd decided I didn't want to date anyone again, but this kind of... throws a pretty big wrench in that plan, you know? So I.. don't really know what to do," he finished lamely, his gaze focused on the table in front of him. What was he going to do? Maybe it would.. go away on its own...?  

[TawnyAngel]

"Really?" Taavi gave Abel a slightly puzzled look and pulled a chair out to sit down again. "Why n-" Maybe he shouldn't ask, he was asking a lot of questions today. "I mean, forever is a long time if that was what you meant?" he amended, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly. "I ah... I don't know, I can't imagine going the rest of my life without a relationship. I guess... I guess you could ask him about past relationships? Bring it up casually somehow, you might find out how he feels about the whole thing." He had a pretty strong suspicion that Zev had feelings for Abel too but maybe he was wrong, Zev flirted with pretty much everyone after all but some of the things he had said and the way he had acted the other night stuck in Taavi's mind.  

[BlackFireKitsune]

"Yeah, I suppose it is, though that doesn't really change anything," the blond said with a quiet sigh. If he only lived as long as he expected to live - which definitely would not be into old age, if he even made it another five years - then it wouldn't be too long. It had already been - how long had it been? - three and a half years since he'd moved here, and he'd been alone all that time. He'd be fine for another few years...

...except he hadn't really been alone that whole time. Taavi had been with him nearly a year now, and he definitely hadn't anticipated to form a friendship so close he considered him a brother, but that had happened almost without him noticing. It had happened regardless of anything else too, given Taavi had no where to go with Alyssa - Patty - breathing down his neck, and he couldn't very well just kick him out onto the streets...

And now he'd met someone else he was forming an attachment to. Good job.

"Yeah, I guess I could, though I.. really don't know. It's presumptuous of me anyway," he added after a moment, leaning back and waving his hand a bit as if to clear the air of such a thought, "because he might not even be interested in dating either, I can't just assume he is. No, I'll just.. I don't know. Do... something," the blond finished lamely -- again. Man, what was he going to do...? Maybe just.. keep it to himself for now... Even though Taavi knew. Damn. Why did this have to be so complicated all of a sudden? He was too tired to puzzle this sort of thing out.  

[TawnyAngel]

"Well, I mean, you don't have to make it sound like you're asking because you want to ask him out, just like, general talk?" Taavi replied, but then found himself rubbing his neck again as he tried to figure out how you'd even word that. "I don't know. Um. Heh, just tell him he's adorable some more for now?" Maybe if Zev was interested he'd make the first move? He certainly wasn't shy about saying what was on his mind. "And a lot's happened over the last few days so maybe just take some time to relax and enjoy yourself, not worry too much about anything?" If that was possible, as somebody who tended to worry a lot about people-related things he knew it wasn't always.  

[BlackFireKitsune]

He hesitated for a moment or two before ceding, "Yeah, I guess that's true... All of that's true, actually. Yeah, I guess for now I'll just relax and think about other stuff.. Like what to buy now that I actually have money again," he said with a half-smile. Zev had suggested he look online while he was gone... That was a good idea. Abel turned to aim a proper smile at Taavi. "Thanks. You still feel up for watching a movie?"  

[TawnyAngel]

You couldn't just not think about stuff forever, but there was nothing wrong with not doing so for a bit especially after the two years Abel had just had. "Yep, I'm up for it!" Taavi got back to his feet and picked up the stack of plates. "I'll just take this stuff though, do you want another drink at all? I'm just going to grab some water."  

[BlackFireKitsune]

After hesitating a bit more, Abel nodded. "Yeah, I'll take some water, thanks. Ah, I'll go get stuff ready," he added after a moment. With Zev buying groceries to make them dinner, and Taavi cleaning up after breakfast, he had to do something to feel helpful. He couldn't just do nothing, so with that thought in mind the blond headed into the living room to gather comfortable pillows and a blanket or two for both the couch and the armchair, set his laptop on the coffee table, and grabbed the remote so he could set up the TV for a movie. While he had a couple ideas in mind for what to watch, he felt it better to let Taavi pick what he wanted to watch instead.  

[TawnyAngel]

"H'okay!" Taavi nodded and headed into the kitchen, where he gave the dishes a quick rinse before grabbing two glasses of water and heading back through. "Right, movie time!" When had he last just sat down to relax and watch a movie? It felt like forever ago.

_______________

Considerably later on Taavi groaned and slumped back in his chair. "Sweet Arceus I have never been so full in my life. That was all awesome Zev, thank you. The crab was my favourite I think, it was.... Full of crabness. I think food's been pushed right up into my brain."

Zevran chuckled at Taavi's colourful imagery and sat back himself with his glass of wine held lazily in one hand. "I am glad you enjoyed, and that I checked the timing calculations before I started. If I had not it would all have gone terribly wrong for the crab and the lobster." Mixing up ounces and grams was bad for something as delicate as shellfish.  

[BlackFireKitsune]

The movie had been nice - or what he'd seen of it before falling asleep, at any rate - but what had been nicer was waking up with his favorite blanket draped over him.

Dinner was beyond excellent, and the blond leaned back in his chair and chuckled a bit at Taavi. "Yeah, that was amazing. Thank you again," he added, shooting the shorter blond a warm, grateful smile. Man, he was stuffed.. Though not so stuffed he had shellfish in his brain like someone else did. He idly swirled the contents of his own wine glass before taking a sip, then lowered it and said, "I think the lobster was my favorite. D'you have a favorite?" He asked as he shifted his gaze back to Zev. While he knew his friend was flexible - in every wonderful sense of the word - he was rather curious if he had foods he preferred over others.  

[TawnyAngel]

Zevran made a thoughtful noise in the back of his throat and studied the platter of discarded shells. "The tiger shrimp was my favourite I think... Although I am also a big fan of mussels of course." Zevran winked at Abel and took another sip of wine, it was true that Abel wasn't in peak physical shape at the moment but he felt that the spirit of the comment still worked.

Taavi grinned and shook his head slightly. "You're bad Zev, so bad." And back to being winky and flirty instead of shy and blushy.  

[BlackFireKitsune]

Abel's smile promptly morphed into a smirk. He appreciated the sentiment, even if he wasn't exactly in the best shape at the moment. Maybe he could eventually feel somewhat normal again after a few months of eating properly and not living with monumental stress every waking moment of his life. Regardless, he filed the tidbit away for later as he chuckled a little, then took another sip of his wine.

Sounds of thunder rumbling in the distance and rain splattering against the glass, accompanied by his friends' voices and the warm satisfaction of enough good food for all of them to eat served to relax him quite effectively, and he couldn't help but think that today was a wonderful day indeed. It was hard not to think so with Patty gone and with his friends here -- even if the voice lingering on the fringes of his mind kept reminding him that he didn't deserve them. He pushed it away for now though and hummed thoughtfully. "I have to figure out presents for everyone before we go visit them for Christmas," Abel noted aloud as he swirled his glass again. "Though I'll need to get extra presents for my nieces; their birthday's right after Christmas." What should he get them though... Hopefully by then he'd have saved up enough money both to go visit and to get everyone at least some small gift.  

[TawnyAngel]

As the thunder rumbled Taavi turned to peer out of the window, not that there was anything to see by this time in the evening but it was still satisfying to listen to the awful weather while he was warm and safe indoors. "I need to shop for presents too," Taavi said as he turned back to the others. "I usually send my half sister a card and some stickers or something on her birthday and for Christmas but I thought maybe a present this year.... s**t." Taavi smacked a hand against his face. "Her birthday is in like, two weeks. Well I'm glad I remembered now, I can buy something on Friday when I get paid and it'll arrive in time. I'm not sure what to get her though, she's going to be seven so... a pokemon plush maybe? That'd work right?"

Zevran shrugged expressively as he reached for the bottle to refill his glass. "I am not sure, I have no experience of buying gifts for small children." Or really for anyone but no need to go and say that. Zevran sipped his wine again and looked over at Abel because no doubt he would have something useful to add, that and he just liked looking at him; his currently dishevelled blond hair, his stunning eyes, the soft curve of his lips and the line of his jaw. It was the lips where Zevran's eyes lingered however and as he sat and gazed he unconsciously brushed his thumb over his own lips. If Taavi wasn't here right now... but he was here, so he would just have to behave.  

[BlackFireKitsune]

Buying presents for little girls was something he'd had plenty of practice in, both due to his sister and more recently for his nieces. Abel nodded approvingly. "Pokemon plushes are usually good, yeah, especially if you aren't really sure what she likes. If you are then that helps narrow down which one to get for her. I might get a plush for each of my nieces for their birthday, maybe," he added thoughtfully, scouring his memories for what they might like and didn't already have. It got difficult to keep getting them things they liked when they kept getting more and more of what they wanted. There were only so many plushes, after all.

As he pondered this his gaze drifted around the table, beginning at his glass, shifting to his plate, then to Taavi, then to Zevran, then to the table-- then back to Zevran when he realized the shorter blond had been staring. Abel's thoughtful expression evaporated immediately, replaced by a brief but suggestive smirk. A moment later it smoothed back out into his usual, easy smile lest Taavi catch him - not that it particularly mattered if he did - and hummed a little. "I'll think of something," he finished with a shrug. Humm.. He was fairly certain he knew when Taavi's birthday was - in spring, definitely, maybe March? April? - but Zevran's... Casting the shorter blond a curious glance, Abel couldn't help but ask, "When's your birthday?"  

[TawnyAngel]

As he'd just taken a sip of wine Taavi made a vague noise shrugged, he could have waited the second it would take to swallow but replying as soon as possible was a reflex. He wouldn't want anyone to think he was rude, or uninterested. "I don't know her that well really, she was only two when I left. I keep an eye on mom's social media and stuff but that only tells me so much. I guess something traditionally cute is a safe bet though? Like a Pikachu, or a Vulpix? Maybe a Vulpix, then I could send her a note with it and a picture of Swift and Aurelia." That seemed like a good way to start getting to know her, if that was a thing he wanted to do?... Yeah, it was, hearing Abel talk about his family made him want to reconnect with his own.

"A Vulpix sounds like a fine choice," Zevran agreed, and then he turned back to Abel and looked blank for a couple of moments. "Ah... September?" he said eventually, though he didn't sound very sure of the answer at all. It was September wasn't it? Yes, he was fairly sure it was now he considered it and that made him twenty six not twenty five he supposed. Twenty six. How had it made it more than half way through his twenties?  

[BlackFireKitsune]

"Ahh, okay. That would make it a little harder to know what sort of stuff she likes, yeah," Abel agreed with a nod. When was the last time Taavi had seen her? Had he visited his family since he left? Speaking of that, if he kept tabs on social media... did he not hear anything from his mother directly? While he was curious to know more, he wasn't entirely sure it would be a good idea to ask. For all he knew it could be a more sensitive topic that Taavi didn't really want to talk about, and he hated making his friend uncomfortable. Instead he nodded again and smiled. "Yeah, I think Vulpix is a good bet too. They are pretty cute." He kind of wanted one, but it was a passing desire. His apartment was already fit to burst with how many pokemon - and people - it contained on a regular basis, he really couldn't afford more...

...actually he could now that Patty was gone, but that didn't change the fact that he shouldn't.

Setting the thought aside for the moment, he seized another thought - or rather, a fact - and that fact was that Zevran did not seem even remotely sure when his birthday was. While he could understand not really remembering how old one was, given he forgot exactly how old he was sometimes, he found it hard to believe someone could simply not remember their birthday. It was an important date, one you really shouldn't forget. Or... was it that he forgot, or that he just didn't know for sure? Should he ask? If he didn't then Taavi probably would... "What day in September?"