Closed: And happiness is easy, it's a story that you tell

[magneticfields]

» WHO? Erik & Close CR (basically anybody he's managed to have at least one conversation with that didn't turn into an argument)
» WHEN? Second half of June
» WHERE? Around the station
» WHAT? It's been a rough couple of weeks. Erik has been gifted with a bottle of decent scotch and is doing his best to avoid his cast mates. Who wants to drink and commiserate? Plus getting a haircut from Frank.
» WARNINGS? Alcohol use. Will update if anything else comes up.



i. Hell, what are we gonna do Closed to close CR

[ Erik finds the bottle in his shower. Glenfiddich 12. Not bad. He doesn't think about what is says of the station's expectations of him that it's in the shower. He's not so far gone as that. He's not as bad as Charles and...

Better not to think about that. He shaves and puts on the newly-gifted suit as well and feels more like himself than he has in a while. The shave just reveals more of the bruise on his jaw, but there's not much to be done about that but wait until it heals. Staying in his room is not conducive to not thinking about certain people who have taken up residence around him without realizing that's what they've done. So he leaves, taking the bottle with him, searching for more pleasant, or at least distracting, company. His wandering takes him to the observation deck, among other places. If you're lucky enough to encounter him he will share some of the bounty and is very interested in talking about anything other than his own personal troubles. ]

ii. Am I an alien here? Closed to Frank

[ The shave helps but Erik's still feeling a little shaggy. He could try to cut it himself, he has before. But he decides to seek another opinion. Still with the bottle in tow, though a significant dent has been put in the contents, he goes Frank's room and knocks on the door. ]

Does this barber shop take walk ins or do I need to make an appointment?

Comments

i

[solarcharged]

[ Sitting cross-legged in a sunny spot on the floor (an annoying thing, considering how often it moves around the deck as the station spins and the orbit rolls on) Apollo is back at it with the card towers. He’s on his second row now, studying the way the cards stack neatly as he carefully, carefully, sets the next two cards in place. At the sound of the door Apollo looks up. ]

Hey...

[ And then his eyes widen in realisation as the penny (belatedly) drops and he notices what Erik is wearing. ]

Oh, shit.

[ Apollo is more impressed than surprised, the longer he looks at the suit. The bottle in Erik’s hands is completely ignored (for now). ]

Where did you get that from?

[magneticfields]

[ Erik feels more comfortable dressed as he is. And he expected some kind of reaction, simply because nobody likes the jumpsuits and wearing anything else always generates attention.

Apollo's reaction is a bit more than he was expecting. Enough to make him feel a little self-conscious. Maybe it would have been better to just leave the thing end keep enduring the jumpsuit. He smooths a hand over his torso. ]

It was in my cupboard. It fit. [ He shrugs. ] I've decided to stop checking the teeth of every gift horse I find squirreled away in my room. Fancy a drink?

[ He holds up the bottle and shakes it enough to slosh the liquid. ]

Finally found something worth the effort.

[solarcharged]

[ Don't worry, Erik. It's a good 'oh shit'. Because yes it fits (Apollo isn't blind, after all) but also -- he wants one. Half impressed, half envious, Apollo inspects the suit appreciatively. ]

Why does everyone else get all the good stuff?

[ Honestly -- the only thing Apollo has received since arriving just put the fear of God in to him. And then here's Erik with sweet new clothes and actual drinkable alcohol. As Erik gestures with the bottle, Apollo reaches out to take a closer look at the label. ]

The crazy space station gods took a liking to you, clearly...

[magneticfields]

[ He scoffs. ]

Hardly. More like they know that all sticks and no carrot get you a lot of dead lab rats. I'd offer to share, but...

[ He eyes up Apollo. ]

Think you're built a bit broader than I am.

[ He pulls the tumblers he liberated from the mess hall out of his jacket pocket and holds them out to Apollo so he can pour. ]

[solarcharged]

Just a little bit.

[ Apollo is painfully aware that he was built (literally) with superheroic dimensions. It's the kind of thing that makes it really hard to buy nice button up shirts. He carefully - almost reverently - thumbs open the bottle and pours a respectfully average amount of amber liquid in the first glass. ]

I think this is a great measure of your trust, by the way, [ He observes as he carefully pours out the second glass to match he first. Not too much so as to take advantage of Erik's prize, but enough so that they can enjoy it. ] Letting another man pour out your whiskey, I mean. Especially when it's probably the only good whiskey on the station -- hell, maybe even the solar system...

[magneticfields]

[ A smile hovers on his lips and he glances sidelong at Apollo when he talks about trust. ]

You should see what I do when I really trust another man. [ As for the whiskey, he shrugs. ] I don't like drinking alone. And my usual companion is a little overly fond of drinking alone at the moment, so I decided to share with more pleasant company.

[ He sips and nods appreciatively. He's had better, not long before he ended up here. And with Charles. But after the last few months and the unexpected arrival, this does very nicely. He looks at his drink, then at the planet. ]

And what would your wife say about you pouring whiskey for another man.

[solarcharged]

[ You should see what I do when I really trust another man. Apollo can't help but give Erik a look of amused disbelief at that. He sips at his drink slowly, carefully, as he decides how to reply...

Except suddenly that's not the thing that Erik says that throws him the most. Out of seemingly nowhere, there's something that's just so ridiculous (and so confusing) that Apollo chokes for a second on his drink. ]

She'd be pretty surprised, [ He replies hoarsely, covering his mouth with the back of his hand as he coughs his way through the whiskey that's suddenly caught in his throat. ] And so would I. When did I get a wife?

[magneticfields]

[ Erik sucks his teeth and shakes his head. He should have guessed the woman was lying. ]

You have a problem, then.

[ He pulls up the text conversation in question. ]

Somebody was able to gain access to your network I.D. I questioned them on it, they said it was with your permission. And claimed to be married to you.

[solarcharged]

[ It isn't until Erik brings up the network conversation that the penny finally drops. Apollo can't help the slow spread of a giddy - and slightly relieved - smile as he explains: ]

God. I see what's happened. Erik - I am married, you're right. [ He says this gently, carefully. It's not like Apollo is entirely unaware that the concept of legal gay marriage is a novelty to some. ]

But not my wife. To my husband.

i

[subplot]

[Karen comes across him and almost leaves him to his own devices. She's got a bundle of papers tucked under her arms and really shouldn't be distracted from her work. But he's dressed so nicely and carrying a bottle of something that looks tempting, so she sets aside her all work and no play mentality in order to take a break. As she edges in to stand close enough to him to talk, she can see the bruise on his jaw. The sight of it makes her frown, but she doesn't draw any further attention to it by asking him what happened.

After Frank getting in a fight with Amos, she figures it's better that she doesn't get involve in too may other fights here.]

You look nice today. [His suit makes her feel less like she's overdressed wearing one of her pencil skirts and blouses around the station.] Are you waiting for someone?

[magneticfields]

[ Erik glances at her sidelong, a hint of a smile hovering. ]

I look nice every day. And as a matter of fact, I was. But here you are.

[ He wasn't specifically looking for Karen so much as a friendly face. And she is friendly, and has a face (something that is not always a given in this place) and so he is satisfied. ]

Unless you're busy with... that. [ He gestures toward the stack of papers with his free hand. ]

[subplot]

I was bringing them back to my room, actually.

[There's a smile on her face as she's amused by his slight show of ego, pleased to see that he seems more at ease now than the last time they spoke.

The papers under her arm are shuffled and she steps aside to find someplace to safely place them. There's a fear that they might end up blowing away with the slightest movement from someone, so she slips off her heels and sets them on top of the papers. Satisfied enough with that arrangement, her attention shifts back to him.]

It's been a long time since I've let anyone distract me from my work.

[But she could use the company and the break. ]

[magneticfields]

[ He does feel more like himself, despite the extreme circumstances. Using his real name helps. His friends' arrival does, as well, though he would never admit it. Especially with the current state of affairs. He watches as she uses her heels as paperweights and considers mentioning the erratic gravity array but opts not to. If it fails again, they'll deal with the papers. ]

Is that so. [ The smile is definitely there now, and maybe a bit satisfied. ] I'll have to do my best to make sure it's worth your while.

[ He pulls two small tumblers out of his jacket pocket. ]

Liberated from the mess hall. We'll have to have it neat, which isn't exactly a hardship with something worth drinking.

[ He hands the tumblers to her and cracks open the bottle to pour the drinks. ]

Do you want to talk about what you're working on, or not think about it for the time being.

[subplot]

It's the doors. I'm working on trying to get more than just the chapel open. But Frank and I accomplished that much, so I know more will follow.

[She frowns a little, realizing that just the chapel in a month period really isn't all that much at all. But at least she's trying. The tumblers are held while he pours, and as he finishes, his is passed over to him before she takes a sip from her own.]

It's just a matter of figuring out the right access codes for each door.

[There's a pause and she glances down, ducking her head self-consciously.]

Which I bet is probably really boring to hear about, huh?

[magneticfields]

[ Erik laughs a little at the chapel. Not that they managed to unlock the door, but that such a thing exists at all. Gentiles in space. Amazing. ]

As topics go on this station? It's more interesting than the quality of the booze and less awkward than talking about our pasts so it's a welcome change of pace. Does there seem to be any sort of pattern to it? Or is it too soon to tell.

[subplot]

There isn't a pattern that I can decipher. It's a matter of luck at this point. But once I finally get another door open, we can start looking for patterns.

[He seems interested in genuinely talking about this, and she appreciates that. She knows people sometimes assume she's empty headed because of the color of her hair, so she enjoys getting to talk about the things here that interest her. Things like burying herself in working on door access codes.]

I keep hoping I'll find an area that has escape pods or transports. Anything that will get us out of here.

[magneticfields]

We have enough AI on board that they should be able to brute force it. But if we can figure out a pattern it will go faster.

[ He is genuinely interested. The fact that they've been brought to this station and don't have access to the entire thing galls him. His attention has been diverted from the things that actually matter as of late. A situation he intends to remedy. ]

There's a hangar bay on deck 6. That's probably your best bet for some sort of transport. I'm hoping for some sort of shuttle that can take us planetside.

mmm thank u for this

[oorah]

[ the knock startles him from his task that he'd been singularly focused on for hours now: his knitting. frank throws it down on the bed and gets up, his magboots clicking heavily all the way to the door. max barks a few times to let him know, but he doesn't sound concerned so frank must figure they know the man outside in the corridor. his voice registers for frank and he realizes exactly who it is, hitting the button to open it for erik. ]

It was open, brother. You want a tune up? [ he's all smiles, happy to trade one menial task for one that comes with erik's lended ear. ]

kisses!

[magneticfields]

[ Erik rubs a hand over his hair, which is feeling a bit shaggy at the moment, with a small, almost bashful smile as he enters. ]

Since I've given up the whole mill hunk routine, I thought maybe it time to do something that suits me better. Small town Poland isn't exactly up on Vidal Sassoon's latest.

[ He offers the back of his fingers to the dog so he can get his scent. He's not terribly fond of dogs in general, but if it doesn't harass him it won't be an issue. ]

[oorah]

[ frank snorts, waving him in. max gets a good sniff in and licks erik's hand once, but once he's sussed out the man isn't going to pay him any attention he hangs back a bit. but he follows closely on the man's heels to keep an eye on him anyway. ]

Fair warning: neither am I. But if you want a high-and-tight I'm your guy.

[magneticfields]

[ Erik exhales audibly in an almost-laugh. ]

Just so long as it's a little lower and looser, maybe. The jarhead look doesn't really suit me.

[ He looks at the dog again. ]

Is it wearing magnetic booties?

[oorah]

Gotcha. [ he holds up an ok👌 symbol and nods once. ] I'll see what I can do.

[ he rummages around in his desk for his clippers and drags the desk chair out into the middle of the floor for erik to sit in. ]

Yep. Naomi hooked us up after I complained to like, every space person I could find about him floating away. Poor guy. [ frank scratches behind max's ears as he grabs the spray bottle he'd fashioned out of an empty bottle from the bar and goes to fill it in the sink, looking at erik's shoes as he moves across the room. ] Why aren't you wearing yours?

[magneticfields]

Hair grows. If it isn't satisfactory I'll just find a hat to wear until we can try again.

[ It's not like he can be terribly choosy. And he doesn't want the man to get so worked up he makes a mistake he wouldn't have otherwise. ]

I don't wear mine because I don't need to. I made a network announcement about my abilities. Did you not see it?

[ The point of the announcement was to cut down on the number of times he'd have to repeat himself, but he knows some will have missed it. His penance for being misleading in the first place. ]

[oorah]

[ he snorts ] Hopefully it won't be that bad.

[ he's actually decent at haircuts ok relax son. he's actually kind of pumped someone finally took him up on this. ]

Oh. Sorry, I must've missed it. [ it's been a wild month for him ok erik. he gets to work spraying the man's hair and combing it into place. ] I can go back and find it if you don't wanna repeat yourself.

[magneticfields]

That's me. Ever-hopeful.

[ He takes a seat. ]

My real name is Erik Lehnsherr. I was using an alias because people with special abilities are persecuted on my world, and I wasn't sure if this was some kind of new prison they came up with for us. I can manipulate magnetic fields. This primarily allows me to do a lot of things with metal, but also means I don't need mag boots.

[ Small favors. ]