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Post by Arthur Duncaté on Jul 15, 2011 19:16:14 GMT -5
After a while of trekking blindly through foliage, Arthur just decided to get his Lanturn, Bessie, to illuminate the area. It was quiet between the two men as they walked, apart from the small chuckles that Arthur let out when he heard Zeke trip up on sticks and other stationary objects.
Arthur wasn't worried about Bessie being taken, he reckoned there were bigger and badder things out there to snag. Don't get him wrong, he loved his Lanturn, but it wasn't exactly rare. His Feraligatr on the other hand...
No! Had to focus on the reason they were awkwardly manoeuvring through the jungle at night, when the others were probably all snuggled up in bed. So when they had gotten to a distance that Arthur deemed far enough away from their makeshift campsite, he turned to his companion, and without any context he yelled. "What the hell, man?"
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Post by Ezekiel Sparrow on Jul 15, 2011 19:20:58 GMT -5
If he was totally honest, Zeke didn't know why this was happening. Usually he'd have just collapsed on the floor and fallen asleep instantly (because a day's stupidity meant a complete power-down at night), yet here he was, bumbling along after Arthur. There was far too much strewn around the floor to make it an easy walk, too. Instead of just trundling along, he had to trip over practically everything. The light wasn't helping much with his co-ordination, either. No one else would be this bad at just walking, surely.
He almost walked into Arthur after he stopped abruptly, blinking and catching himself just before collision. The lack of context in Arthur's yelling threw him completely. "Um... hello?"
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Post by Arthur Duncaté on Jul 15, 2011 19:34:26 GMT -5
Why did he say hello? Oh never mind, he didn't care at the moment. This boy had some explaining to do. "Back at the lab?" Arthur elaborated, flailing his arms to illustrate his point. At the confused look of his companion, he sighed angrily at having to explain. "Y'know when you left your damn ghost by my door so I couldn't get out?" Maybe he shouldn't of mentioned Esme, perhaps it was too soon. Oh well. Arthur carried on regardless. "When I finally hunted you down, and I said I hated you, and then you..."
He drifted off, slightly embarrassed. What if he was just overreacting and Zeke hadn't meant anything by it? He wasn't 'all there' mentally, so maybe if he brought it up, Zeke would just laugh at him? But that 'incident' had been playing on his mind, and he was a man of action, so he was sorting this out. Right now. "Then you kissed me." Ok, so that had sounded a lot less girly in his head, and it came out a lot more squeaky then he had wanted, but there! It was out there now. He just hoped that Zeke wasn't going to take the piss out of him eternally for this...
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Post by Ezekiel Sparrow on Jul 15, 2011 19:41:46 GMT -5
Zeke had flapped his arms slightly, as if asking Arthur to elaborate on each point. He wasn't making much sense, to him at least. Just spouting things. Zeke didn't do well when things were spouted at him. He'd usually just respond with something random, but as Arthur looked pretty serious at this point he should probably keep that in. No, he'd let him finish with his point and then comment. He tried to avoid looking too downcast at the mention of Esme, but that really wouldn't help. As a Trainer, he couldn't just break down at every little problem, that'd make him rubbish.
"Then you kissed me."
Zeke paused, watching Arthur carefully. There wasn't much he could say to that one. It was just... what he did. He hadn't really wanted to analyse it too much, considering he barely knew Arthur apart from as "the guy who lives next door who is a pirate and is scared of ghosts", so anything deeper at this point would be, well, silly, right?
"Um... yes? Is there a... should I not have? 'Cause, I mean, if it's that big a problem, or something, then I won't, again..."
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Post by Arthur Duncaté on Jul 15, 2011 20:03:07 GMT -5
"No, it's not that you shouldn't!" Arthur exclaimed, not really thinking the outburst through. Aware of how that sounded, he tried to amend his speech. "It's just" He tried to think of the correct wording this time, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "You don't just kiss people without any, erm, motive? Y'know? We're not French!" If they were it wouldn't be a problem, but they were not, so it was.
"I just want to know why!" He pleaded, he didn't care if he sounded a bit desperate, he wanted to know!
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Post by Ezekiel Sparrow on Jul 15, 2011 20:06:33 GMT -5
There wasn't really much of an answer Zeke could give. He hadn't realised it'd cause this many problems, and he wasn't one for thinking things through, as a general rule. So all this questioning was just leading him to short-circuit a little.
"Because... because I wanted to?" Taking a second to organise his thoughts into some sort of discernible order, he carried on. "That's pretty much the only reason I can give. Because I kind of really wanted to and then you said you hated me and I really didn't want that. So I did."
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Post by Arthur Duncaté on Jul 15, 2011 20:14:50 GMT -5
Wait, Arthur sifted through what Zeke had just said. He wanted to and THEN he said he hated Zeke? So, he wanted to kiss him before that? Arthur was very confused right now, which showed on his face. He averted his eyes and ran his fingers through his hair, tugging at the strands before letting go.
"What do you mean you wanted to?" He asked softly, eyes looking at anything but Zeke. He knew he shouldn't be as affected as he was, but he couldn't help it. He also knew his face shouldn't be burning up right now, but it was. He just didn't know how to deal with this.
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Post by Ezekiel Sparrow on Jul 15, 2011 20:23:49 GMT -5
"I-..." Oh God, he'd said too much, he always said too much and this was not how things worked out, things never worked out, why was this even happening I mean it was just, just some stupid impulse in the first place. He was never doing that again. Acting on stupid impulses. That was just for idiots, now, Zeke decided. "Well, I mean, maybe?" That didn't even make sense, that, this, this all was not going well. "I mean, I mean" What even did he mean.
Why are words so difficult?
"Yes." Even less sense, now. "No, no, look, I mean, I don't know, I wanted to, of course I wanted to, look at you, I mean, oh no I'm shutting up now I don't want to keep talking because I'm saying rubbish things and you're going to run away now and I'm sorry!" He flapped with each word, hoping to convey something apart from his babbled gibberish. "I just... I like you?" That was probably the most coherent thing he'd managed so far. He didn't really want to see Arthur's reaction.
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Post by Arthur Duncaté on Jul 15, 2011 20:42:48 GMT -5
Wow, that, what? Arthur had to admit, this guy's awkward babbling was sort of... cute. no, no, not cute, it was adorab- pathetic. Sort of. Arthur didn't know what to think anymore, this guy was obviously as confused about that little incident as Arthur was. That didn't bode well. Arthur blushed quite spectacularly when Zeke had said "Of course I wanted to, look at you." Did that mean he found him attractive? For all his boasting, Arthur never really thought of himself as attractive. sure, he's gotten compliments before, but they were usually from people who had had one too many drinks. This was different. And again, Arthur didn't know how to handle it.
He especially didn't know how to handle that bombshell at the end. "Oh." He started, again, voice higher than he would have preferred. "Erm, I guess I like you too..." He knew that much was true, but to what extent? Zeke looked miserable, as if he really thought Arthur was going to run away. He couldn't say he didn't consider it for a moment, surely it would be easier to run. But Arthur didn't think he could at this point. Arthur's fingers twitched as he thought of embracing Zeke to comfort him. But he just wasn't brave enough.
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Post by Ezekiel Sparrow on Jul 15, 2011 20:53:29 GMT -5
If he had less control (and really, Zeke didn't have much control as it was), he probably would've squeaked. Or something similar. Instead, he channeled all of his energy into flapping. Would it be bad if he just, oh, tackled Arthur? No, that probably would be very bad, all things considered. This was enough of a nerve-wracking experience as it was. There should be training as to how to navigate these types of situations, with many courses into the specifics and how not to flail. He'd attend every single class.
Zeke broke into a wide grin, fighting to control it and failing spectacularly. Oh well. "You... you do?" He was still rather tentative. And it was taking a lot not to just hug Arthur like some sort of squeezy toy. People like him should not be allowed in these kinds of conversations. So Zeke settled with shifting closer, not being very subtle about it.
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Post by Arthur Duncaté on Jul 15, 2011 21:06:33 GMT -5
Oh God, what has he done. He had not expected Zeke to react like this. Arthur couldn't help but feel a bit like Frankenstein when he had just created his monster. He had created a very, very happy Zeke. Zeke was looking at him with a large amount of giddiness, and it was kind of overwhelming. Arthur wasn't used to people being quite that happy around him. Zeke looked like he was about to jump him, although, Arthur wasn't sure if he would object to that or not...
Arthur did feel some smug satisfaction at being able to illicit these types of emotions into another human, especially as Zeke was so bummed out earlier due to the whole 'Chandelure was stolen' incident. He didn't seem very upset about that silly ghost now did he? Hehehe. Zeke's reaction did manage to calm the tense air though.
Arthur shrugged in what he hoped was a nonchalant way and replied, "Sure, I do, are you calling me a liar?" He asked, his voice portraying the amusement his words lacked. He grinned slightly at the now, very close, Zeke.
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Post by Ezekiel Sparrow on Jul 15, 2011 21:21:27 GMT -5
"Sure, I do, are you calling me a liar?"
Really, you couldn't open with that and not expect anything. Carefully (well, carefully as can be, it's Zeke) he pulled Arthur into a hug, smiling widely. This, this made him happy. "No, why would I do that? I wouldn't call you a liar, except pirates are known to lie a lot, and considering you don't want to be a good pirate, and I'm talking a lot I'll be quiet." He was bad at quiet moments. Zeke just wanted to kind of, stay in this moment. Of course, that'd be bad, just staying in one moment forever. Need adventure and things and... other stuff. But still, this was a pretty good moment, if he had to pick a moment.
"But I won't, I mean, I won't call you a liar or anything, because, things. And stuff. And other... miscellany. Didn't know I knew that word."
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Post by Arthur Duncaté on Jul 15, 2011 21:40:27 GMT -5
Oh God, Arthur was suffocating. Not that the hug was entirely unappreciated, but Zeke was a very strong hugger. After easing the man away from him slightly, just enough so he could actually breathe, Arthur hesitantly put his hands around the (only slightly) taller man's shoulders. He then rested his chin on Zeke's chest and closed his eyes.
The soft material of Zeke's shirt smelled like washing detergent, surprising the black haired man. For some reason he thought that Zeke wouldn't wash his clothes because he wouldn't know how to work a washing machine. Instead, Arthur always assumed he would throw clothes away when they got dirty and just buy new ones. Then he could just not the use the washing machine at all, but he would spend a lot of money on clothes. And what if he really liked a shirt, but then he had to throw it away? ok, so he was the one rambling now. In a way they complement each other perfectly, one babbles out loud, the other babbles in his head.
Arthur moved his head so that it was planted in the crook of Zeke's neck. The grey haired man's skin was hot, and his pulse was hammering as Arthur breathed out the words. "Zeke... Just shut up." After all the stressors from today, he was glad to finally just, be with Zeke and relax.
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Post by Ezekiel Sparrow on Jul 16, 2011 10:37:57 GMT -5
Zeke just couldn't stop smiling, truth be told it was beginning to ache a bit. And yet, he kept smiling. Still, he did what he was told, going quiet for a while, just keeping Arthur close. This was more than he expected, really, usually he'd go into a complete stupid lock-down and babble and then people would leave and things would happen. Instead, here he was, hugging Arthur. He liked hugs. Hugs were nice and warm. Arthur was warm, actually. It was probably the pirate-y coat. One day, Zeke would have to steal it and examine its heating properties.
"You're very warm," he hadn't meant to voice his thoughts, but there you go. Zeke pursed his lips, trying to remain silent, as asked, but he'd never been good at that one. There was quite a lot he wanted to say. "This is... this is really nice. I like this."
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Post by Arthur Duncaté on Jul 17, 2011 17:58:11 GMT -5
"This is... this is really nice. I like this."
Arthur was enjoying it too. But what was 'it' exactly? Arthur had to admit that he rushed into this, and he didn't know what he was doing. Typical Arthur, always leaping before he looked. He couldn't deny that something about him and Zeke just felt 'right', but he didn't know what that thing was, and it was starting to scare Arthur a bit. He's only known this man for a while, and yet, here they were, standing in the middle of a forest, embracing each other, even though danger was lurking around them.
Arthur was a jumble of emotions. He was pretty angry at the other people in their little justice league, he knew they hated him too. So maybe, he was just using Zeke as some sort of stress relief. He was a selfish man, and he wouldn't be surprised if he was just acting like this to gain sympathy or comfort on an unconscious level. If that was true... Arthur wasn't sure whether he would just end up tossing Zeke aside after he's back to his usual, dickish self.
"Zeke..." Arthur spoke with his face still buried in Zeke's shoulder. "What is this to you?" Maybe if Zeke knew, he could help Arthur to understand. Arthur sincerely hoped Zeke knew what he meant in regards to the question. He knew the other was quite slow, but he hoped the taller man would answer honestly. Arthur was already considering just heading back to camp, at least then he and Zeke would be on neutral grounds. But out in the forest, with just the two of them, Arthur has never felt so vulnerable.
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