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[burnyoudown]

[Kavinsky's white framed sunglasses covered his eyes, for no other reason right now than he felt like wearing them. They'd been the only thing to arrive with him, clothes aside, and though he would've preferred not to be here at all, having his sunglasses was better than nothing.]

S'up. So, I'm getting the impression there's not a big party scene here. Fair enough. Also fucking boring.

What do people actually do for fun? I think I'll lose my mind if all I've got to occupy me's fixing up a place to live.

[Fixing up his living area was good for a while, but it wouldn't last. Eventually, he'd run out of things to fix or clean or make. Probably not today, or tomorrow, or the day after that, but it would happen.]

Also, gotta say I'm a little disappointed. I get abducted by aliens [More or less.] and there's not even any UFOs?

[His smirk said he was joking- mostly.]

Comments

[Network Text]

[work_wife]

I KNOW! Like, we're OWED space ships!

[text]

[burnyoudown]

exactly!
all the stories we've ever heard and there's no space ships
and the city's a dump
not even one high tech cool thing

[Alright, so the last part wasn't entirely true, but he was still disappointed.]

[work_wife]

Woah no, this tech is cool. These little handheld phones that send messages are SO COOL.

[burnyoudown]

eh
have you never had a smart phone before?
they're pretty similar

[work_wife]

A smart phone? Is this what you call this?

[burnyoudown]

yea
not entirely sure why but that's what they're called
i mean
these are different than that
but close enough

[work_wife]

Huh. Okay. I'll call it that then. We don't have anything like this back home.

Video

[thelastechidna]

An unimpressed three-foot echidna appears on the screen.

"Fun?" That sounds like something Sonic would ask. "There's not a lot around here that's fun, unless you like exploring, keeping away from dangerous beasts, or knocking down broken buildings."

At least it's better than being trapped underground, but he's still not happy.

Video

[burnyoudown]

If he wasn't wholly sure he was sober, he'd be a lot more concerned right now. Maybe most people would have that the other way around, but not Kavinsky.

"Well, that sucks." A beat. "Wait, no one kicks up a fuss if we destroy some shit?"

That might be the closest to 'fun' out of any of those options.

Re: Video

[thelastechidna]

Knuckles grunts. "People ravage the old buildings for anything they can get out of them. Once they're done, what's left doesn't stay standing long." At least, he's seen a couple fall down after pipes and beams were removed. "I don't know if we'll be expected to rebuild all this stuff or not. No one seems to know."

[burnyoudown]

"Cool." Way less cool if they had to rebuild anything, though.

"I've always wanted to try my hand at some demolition. I blew up a tank once and that was cool. Taking down a building would be even better."

[thelastechidna]

"Heh. Well, you'll probably have a blast here then," Knuckles says dryly.

[burnyoudown]

Kavinsky laughed. "Maybe. I mean, there's no cars or street racing either so that fuckin' sucks, too. But I'm adaptable."

[VIDEO]

[reneggadetinkerer]

"Fun." What does 'fun' matter? You should be focusing on how to get off of this stupid, useless planet.

[VIDEO]

[burnyoudown]

And I'm...going to do that how? I'm not a rocket scientist.

[Sure, he had dreaming at his disposal, but he didn't think that was going to save the day in this case.]

Not that I'm not itching to get home, but I know zip about space travel.

[VIDEO]

[reneggadetinkerer]

Then you should use this time afforded to you to educate yourself. Or at least do something to help those with the necessary intellect to formulate a plan.

Honestly, this is why I prefer robots.

[VIDEO]

[burnyoudown]

[Welp. It was time. Time to heighten his usually vague Jersey accent and throw in a touch of cluelessness.]

I haven't even graduated high school, man. And I haven't seen a lot of opportunities to educate myself here.

[Yes, yes he absolutely had. He'd already utilized the engineering data point, he was just being a gremlin.]

You got any suggestions?

[VIDEO]

[reneggadetinkerer]

Is that from lack of ability or lack of trying?

[Eggman crosses his arms defiantly. Almost petulant.]

Must I direct you myself? Find someone willing to teach you something of worth. Find out who needs a pair of hands unless yours are as stunted as your mind!

[VIDEO]

[burnyoudown]

[If he wasn't used to letting insults roll off his back, he might've been a little upset by now. But this was nothing compared to some of the things he'd dealt with.]

What counts as something of worth?

[Everybody's opinion on the matter was different, after all.

But then he smirked.]

And I dunno. No one's ever complained after I've gotten my hands on them.

>> action

[bluelilyblue]

[The door is ajar, so Blue doesn't bother knocking and just walks in and flops onto the bed next to him, scooching over so that she can bump her shoulder against his. Her hair is loose, with waves untamed by her colored clips. She's wearing an aqua spaghetti strap dress patterned with stars, and you can see the thick black straps of her spots bra in contrast. Were she to wear it out, there would be any number of layers both under and over before she wanted anyone to look at her. But this is home now, so it's just the dress and a pair of slouchy socks. Who she is when she isn't trying to make a statement.

She catches her hands around one of his, tugging at him with a look of good-natured mischief. She hadn't been out today, but thankfully she'd had some things stashed in her room for a rainy day. And with the door more properly open in her wake, there's the vague sound of Bulgarian hip hop leaking from the living room, probably from a stereo that Kavinsky had dreamt, but she had clearly been the one to turn it on.]

I know this place seems a little quiet, even compared to Henrietta, but.. we're not boring. So, c'mere.

[burnyoudown]

[He didn't mind a single bit that she didn't knock; if he'd been doing something private, he would have closed the door properly. Maybe even locked it. Maybe. After so long sharing a space with his mother, it was nice sharing a space with someone he actually wanted to be around. Which was a nice, chill way of saying he had nice, chill feelings about Blue. Aside from the part where Kavinsky wouldn't know 'chill' if it punched him in the face.

He wasn't sure what was better about this moment; the sweet, familiar sound of Bulgarian hip hop from the other room or the sweet, familiar feeling of her hands on his. Scratch that. He absolutely knew which one was better.

He couldn't help but laugh though- not at her, but the truth in her statement.]

A little quiet.

[He agreed.]

I can't even throw a party without probably raising a shit ton of questions, rendering the whole thing not worth it.

[But- she had a point and he wanted to know what she had planned--and he was assuming she did have a plan. That look and music and a cute dress, as if she didn't always look cute, combined to make him feel a touch nostalgic for the times before he'd fucked up everything.

He put his phone...thing aside and got up, head tipping to the side and fingers lacing through hers.]

Sounds like a party in here, though.

[bluelilyblue]

[Blue hasn't said it, but the truth is that there's something nice about living with Kavinsky, about sharing space together. Despite herself, she keeps being reminded of the fact that things between them had been good, once. She doesn't know how to talk about it, and so instead she was trying... she didn't know. To show him, maybe, in some small way.

Even if she knew better, she couldn't help being interested in him. Even if at the beginning she'd told herself that they'd just be friends, she couldn't help wanting more than that. She had always wanted more.

She grins a little bit impishly when he laced his fingers with hers and said it sounded like a party here. She uses the way their hands are twined to tug him with her, crawling off the bed so that she could lead him into the kitchen, where there were bottles and cheap red plastic cups. Two were premade, and she handed him one with a sly smile.]

It's sort of like a rum and coke.

[She took the other one, and playfully clinked their cups together before taking a sip. It tasted about the same to her, at least -- sweet, followed with the bite of the alcohol, and pleasantly fizzy. She sort of wants to pull him into the living room and ask him to dance with her, but hasn't quite worked up the courage just yet.]

I know it's not a real party. But I wanted to do something.

[She's been feeling it too, is what she means. Maybe not stircrazy just yet, but a little bit like she can see the shape of it on the horizon. For all of her earlier teasing, she wouldn't actually complain if Kavinsky wanted to set something on fire, as long as they went outside.]

[burnyoudown]

[He followed easily, and it was just as easy to let some of his restlessness fade away. He recognized the song that was currently playing, even, but of course he did; he'd dreamt the stereo and the songs included on it. The ability to be honest about that part of him was freeing. He didn't think he was about to go around and tell everyone, but Blue knew and that was the part that mattered.

He smiled when they reached the kitchen and she handed him one of the cups. There was definitely something pleasant about sharing a space with her, where he could be barefoot and comfortable and- it felt sort of domestic, and he had to remind himself they were only friends now. And yet-

He made a thoughtful noise before taking a sip, himself. It did taste pretty similar to rum and coke. Close enough to make him nostalgic for all of the parties he'd ever thrown in Henrietta.]

You're too good to me.

[It was a simple gesture but it meant a lot to him, especially from Blue. He had friends who did nice things for him, on occasion, but this felt different. It was different. He'd never deserved Blue, but he was glad she didn't hate him.]

This feels like home.

[Not his actual house, but- Henrietta, parties, hanging out with people he cared about.]

You feel like home.

[Oh no, that wasn't chill or casual at all but it was too late to take it back and he didn't feel particularly like he should, anyway, so he just took another sip.]

[bluelilyblue]

[She blushed at his words, her heart racing in her chest, feeling like the world was suddenly tilted, and she hadn't had nearly enough to drink for it to be from the alcohol. But no, it was more complicated than that. It was the fact that on some level, Blue had thought that home would always be 300 Fox Way: mom and Persephone and Calla and Jimmi and yes, even Orla. But being here, like this...

When he said that she felt like home, she understood what he meant. Because more and more, Kavinsky felt like someone she could make a home in, no matter how much her heart ached for the people she'd left behind. She knew that he probably understood how she felt. Not because of his mother, but he was sure that he missed Proko and Skov and Swan and Jiang like he was missing an arm.

There had been a time when she'd been around enough that his friends had almost felt like her own, so if nothing else, she sympathizes -- she understands why they're special. She takes another sip of her drink to steady her nerves and then sets it on the counter. She reaches out, touching against the sides of his ribs, and then letting her hands slide down the line of his body through his tee-shirt.

The way that she looked at him was all yearning, for a moment. Because she wanted to kiss him. She wanted this to be simple, where she was a girl who could laugh at the openness of what he'd said and kiss him for it. So instead, it comes out like this- slow and sensual and a little more suggestive as her hands rest on his hips and she takes a step in closer.]

Dance with me. I'm terrible, but there's else to see it, and I... I want you. I still want you.

[Dancing was at least.. the hum of music, bodies pressed together, an excuse to have his hands on her. Something that potentially felt like intimacy, even if it wasn't lips sealed together, mouths and tongues and feelings. But maybe she just romanticized it because of so long spent knowing that she couldn't have it.]

[burnyoudown]

[He wished he could kiss her, that he didn't know all of the reasons why he couldn't--or rather, that those reasons didn't exist. He wanted things to be good again. Not that they were particularly bad right now, getting abducted by aliens aside, but the gulf of what he'd done separated them. He'd done what he could to make it right since finding himself stuck here, but he didn't know if it was too little, too late. He wouldn't blame her for still being upset.

Except then she said she wanted him. Still wanted him, and it was enough to have his pulse tripping. As if her hands on him hadn't had that same effect on their own. He was sharp and crude and most of the things his reputation said he was, but at the same time- he wanted to be able to be soft with someone. He wanted to know what it felt like to be loved, to know someone really cared about him.

Without looking away, he reached out to put his own cup on the counter, nearly missed, and tried again, managing to get it where it belonged without spilling anything. Then, with a gentleness that said he cared, he slid his hands around her waist.]

I'm terrible too.

[His tone was light, a little joking, but it was true all the same; if it wasn't slow dancing or grinding, he didn't know what to do with himself. He enjoyed music; it spoke to him, deep in his soul. He just didn't know how to get his body to move to match the beat, most of the time.]

And I never stopped wanting you.

[Not even when he'd fucked things up, or after that, or- he'd just never stopped wanting Blue or missing her.

With a soft sigh, he ducked his head to lean his forehead against hers and closed his eyes.]

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