st_igmatized (
st_igmatized) wrote in
strangetrip2018-05-15 12:18 am
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[GP/EP] Check-in Day
It was a musical day at the Madonna Inn, both inside and out. Curnen had taken her usual place up on the roof and was singing charms to the sky to keep any wanderers from getting lost (though that part of it was not immediately obvious). Unrelated to that, Sunny was on the dance floor in the bar, summoning songs of her own with her knife to keep her moving before she went to do her shift at the library later. It was one of those days where if she thought about it too hard she’d start thinking about that empty bed in her shitty room and the person she most wanted to be there.
This of course eventually seeped into her magic. She knew better. Maybe she’d even wanted that to happen.
Because just once, between different pop hits and dance beats came a rather unexpected French love song. She sighed and rolled her eyes, but the exasperation didn’t last. Before the lyrics started up she was waltzing. By herself and not caring how it might have looked. And for those three and a half minutes, she dared let herself hope for the slimmest chance that Orlu might come through that door.
She didn’t let herself hope too hard, though. There was admitting to feeling things and there was setting yourself up for certain disappointment. She’d lived too long with disappointment to do that to herself.
This of course eventually seeped into her magic. She knew better. Maybe she’d even wanted that to happen.
Because just once, between different pop hits and dance beats came a rather unexpected French love song. She sighed and rolled her eyes, but the exasperation didn’t last. Before the lyrics started up she was waltzing. By herself and not caring how it might have looked. And for those three and a half minutes, she dared let herself hope for the slimmest chance that Orlu might come through that door.
She didn’t let herself hope too hard, though. There was admitting to feeling things and there was setting yourself up for certain disappointment. She’d lived too long with disappointment to do that to herself.
Re: Alec/Corbie
Re: Alec/Corbie
Alec... was not good at this sort of thing. He was good at providing beer or sex or punching the shit out of something to distract a person from their pain. He felt like he was a complete loss here.
"...Can I fix it?" He wanted to fix it. Corbie wasn't allowed to be unhappy. It just wasn't a thing that was meant to happen.
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"I wanna go home," she said in a tiny, muffled voice.
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Alec actually felt his chest tighten at that and his lips pressed together. He couldn't fix that problem, not one bit. He didn't like feeling so useless. And he didn't like it when Corbie cried.
He gambled and moved around to sit beside her and put an arm around her back, though let her hide in her arm. "...I'm sorry."
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She was silent for a long moment before she said, "It's been a whole indiction." She pulled a face. "A year. What the fuck ever. Too fucking long."
Re: Alec/Corbie
Alec was a little thankful. That move could have gone one of two ways and he was glad it didn't go the way of yelling and storming off. He gave a little squeeze.
Out of most people in the Inn, Alec always thought Corbie had it together. That even though she wasn't back home, she was happy and had figured out a way to cope. This was news to him.
"Yeah... this place is a real asshole like that." He frowned slightly. "It's not as fair as people think it is."
Re: Alec/Corbie
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Yeah, she was probably right. Still, he held her. He was just so bad at this part. What was he supposed to say to help Corbie?
"I'm sorry... I'm really bad at this." Better off just admitting it, really.
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shoulder. "That's okay. You're trying. That means more than you know."
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Well, at least he got an almost-smile. Then he got an idea.
"Come with me? ... I'd like to show you something."
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He took her hand and guided her through the hotel quietly until they came to the space where the much unused piano was. He sat down, leaving space for her on the piano bench. He quietly lifted the cover off the keys and then began to play for her.
Re: Alec/Corbie
She of course couldn't play at all, pianos were things rich people had. This was the first time she'd even sat on a piano bench. But that only increased her wonder and fascination as she both listened and watched his hands move across the keys. The ennui left her face to be replaced by wide-eyed wonder.
Eventually, she even smiled.
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When he finished, he even surprised himself on his music choice. He tended to pick harder, faster songs when he felt the need to play. He looked at Corbie and realized she was actually smiling. It pulled a smile to his own lips. "...Did you like that?" After all, Corbie could have hated music.
Re: Alec/Corbie
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He didn't really play music for anyone, really. It might have been the first time ever in his life, actually. "Sometimes I play when I need to think." On occasion, Alec didn't go for the punching-a-thing route. It was rare, but it happened.
Re: Alec/Corbie
Corbie nodded. "And you do it very well. I mean, not that I've got that much experience to judge, but... I still really enjoyed it." She leaned in and gave him a soft kiss on the cheek. "Thank you."
Re: Alec/Corbie
He smiled a little at the kiss, but to Alec's credit, there was no leering involved that time. "You want me to play something else? I know a lot." Almost all the classics, actually, all stored away in his brain.
Re: Alec/Corbie
She didn't even need to think about that. Corbie nodded. "Would you? Please?"
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When he finished, Corbie actually applauded. And bounced. Just once.
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Alec actually smiled. It was, perhaps, the first time he ever played and smiled from the person's reaction. "I'm glad you like it." He'd do it for her all the time if she asked him too.
He wanted to ask her if she was feeling better, but he worried it would cause her to remember she was down in the first place. Instead, he leaned over and placed a simple affectionate kiss near her temple. And when he pulled back, he paused. "...sorry." He had acted out on impulse again.
Re: Alec/Corbie
The kiss, from someone like Alec who almost reflexively made interactions with women sexual, was a surprise. But it wasn't a bad surprise. Corbie blinked up at him for a moment, but her face softened into a smile. "No, it's fine. I think I needed that."
Re: Alec/Corbie
He cleared his throat. Out of everyone at the inn, Corbie was one of the few who made him unsure of himself pretty consistently. It was like he was worried about screwing up in front of her. He didn't want her disappointment.
"It's better when you smile."
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