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[Needless to say, Meyer doesn't like Masseria, and he doesn't envy Charlie the fact that he's the one stuck with him. He has problems with Rothstein for personal reasons -- or rather, personal reasons that relate to the way AR had treated Charlie; he hadn't had any delusions that he had an attachment with AR himself, but Charlie had actually cared about the guy -- but at least AR isn't a creep. Usually.

It had been almost laughable, the way AR and Masseria had postured and compared Meyer and Charlie like they were their goddamn property. And it had taken all Meyer had had not to slap AR's hand off of his shoulder when he'd patted it awkwardly. It clearly hadn't been a sign of affection; it had been a sign of ownership, and he'd been able to get away with it because Meyer was quiet and well-behaved in meetings.

He knows Charlie's probably in an even worse mood than he is, but that doesn't mean he can shake off his own gloom. He just takes a long drag on his cigarette -- he's lot count of how many he's had, but there's more than one overflowing ashtray around the apartment -- and nods at Charlie.]

Hey.

[Looks like Charlie has some catching up to do. Challenge fucking accepted.

It has such torture, being in that room with Meyer, having not seen him the whole trip down, and having to pretend like they didn't even know each other. Which is probably why Charlie comes straight in to sit next to Meyer and lean his forehead into his shoulder.

It's always had a calming effect on Charlie - that familiar smell of smoke and the sweet scent of whatever Meyer ate last and something else he can't place but is just so distinctly him. He breathes it in, not ready to move just yet.]

[He's still jittery and can't stop his foot from tapping impatiently against the floor, but he's not impatient at having Charlie suddenly leaning against his shoulder. Far from it, really. He doesn't generally get close to people, especially not physically close -- which was part of the reason that sudden and unexpected way AR had patted his shoulder had made him want to get the hell out of that room -- but he's so used to having Charlie around that his physical presence is never a hassle.

He's just so used to spending his time with Charlie, to having him right next to him or in the next room whenever he needs him. More and more, these days, he finds himself working alone. He's always thought of himself as a loner, but he's starting to realize that his definition of "alone" had, at least for the last twelve years, always included Charlie by default.]

You okay?

[It's probably a loaded question. He leans his cheek against the top of Charlie's head.]

Better nows I'm here.

[Charlie is king of the cheesy line, it's true. But it's also completely genuine. He feels calm, in a way he hasn't since... well since the last time they were able to do this. He presses a kiss onto Meyer's neck, taking a last whiff before he leans up.]

Fuck I needed to do thats.

[He smiles, just a little, because dammit, even when he's in the foulest of moods, Charlie can usually coax a smile from him.]

I'm surprised you were able to sit through that meeting without getting angry.

[Or rather, without getting visibly angry. He knows he'd be a fool to think that there hadn't been all kinds of murderous thoughts going through Charlie's mind.]

Must be fucking growing as a person or some shit.

[Now that he's started, he's not going to stop touching Meyer. Just little touches, his fingertips running through the hair behind Meyer's ears. He'll stop doing it when it stops making him feel immensely better about everything.]

Makes me feel fucking sick, though. Sitting through Masseria's bullshit.

Yeah, me too.

[The touches are welcomed. It's like he's pushing the memory of AR's goddamned hand on his shoulder further and further away.]

I don't like him treating you like that.

[More than that, he doesn't like Masseria's hands on Charlie. It makes him nervous and uncomfortable, enough so that the thought of it has him catching Charlie's hand in his own as it runs through his hair, and give it a quick squeeze. Hey, so it's not exactly cuddly or demonstrative, but it's a start.]

You don't gotta gets all mother-fucking-hen abouts it, Meyer.

[Not that's stopping him from squeezing Meyer's hand back.]

You knows me. I puts with way worse than him.

I'm not allowed to be pissed off at the guy for being a creep?

[Well, he's certainly not in the mood for being polite today. He'd pretty much used up all his politeness keeping his mouth shut at that meeting and trying not to rip anyone's hands off. Why can't people just keep their hands themselves? That, of course, excludes Charlie, whose hand he holds onto for just a little longer than he really needs to.]

If that's how you wanna spend your energies, sure. You might as well be pissed at the ocean for being fucking wet whiles you're at it.

[Frankly, he's the kind of person that could be pissed at the ocean for being wet, but Charlie already knows that. Meyer doesn't like things to be out of his control, and he really doesn't like people like Masseria.]

And how do you suggest I spend my energy instead?

[That could almost be a flirtatious tone, if taken in the right light. Or it could be a genuine question.]

[Charlie chooses flirtatious. But then again, he usually does.]

I ain't got nothing to say to thats ain't fucking obvious.

[He leans in to kiss Meyer, which he's sure is also obvious but enjoyable anyway.]

[It's probably a better choice than talking, anyway. He could've worked himself up into a real frenzy, talking about how much he disliked Masseria and how much he hated being apart from Charlie. It's not like he can't handle himself on his own, but Charlie's as much a part of him as anything else. Having to pretend not to be working with him is difficult.

Kissing back communicates all of that, though, if it's possible to speak through a kiss. It's like making up for lost time, although they really hadn't been separated that long, in the big scheme of things.]

[It's long enough apart, especially for them. In the past few years especially they've rarely spent more than a day or two apart.

He takes his time kissing him, one hand wound around the back of his neck. But he can sense there's still a lot between them, the events of today hanging over them as a dark cloud. When he pulls back it's with a hint of a smile on his face, although it dissolves again quickly.]

You knows I hates it too, Meyer. They was they was today, like I was his fucking trophy or some shit.

I'm certain he only made me goes, he knew you and AR would be theres.

AR treated me like his trophy, too.

[He says it quietly, but matter-of-factly. He hadn't really expected either Masseria or AR to behave any differently, but somehow he's still disappointed. It all strikes him as so juvenile somehow, the way everyone in that room had felt the need to act like they were more powerful than the rest. In his opinion, true power would mean not having to make such obvious displays, and he doesn't particularly like being paraded as a potential source of AR's power, either.]

Both of them wanted us to question each other. Question our allegiances.

[That had to be part of it, too. He leans against Charlie for a brief moment, taking a deep breath.]

Sick fucks, huh?

[He brings his forehead in against Meyer's, hand around his neck still holding him firmly.]

Pretty fucking idiotic, too, if they thinks they got us split up for goods.

They have a certain perception of the way things are. It may not necessarily correlate with reality.

[Another tiny smile. The hand on his neck feels good; as uncomfortable as unwarranted touch usually makes him, Charlie's touch is almost never unwelcome.]

Unfortunately, we have to play along for now.

Yeah, yeah. Lucky for us we're good at secrets, huh?

[They've been hanging onto this one for a while, after all. He lets his fingers wander up and down along the column of Meyer's neck for a little bit, cataloging the little minute expressions on Meyer's face as he does. Call it information gathering.]

Just another thing to add to the endless list of things we don't talk about.

[Another person might have said that in a bitter way, but he's not bitter about it. He's pretty much accepted that their lives are going to be largely lived in a way that keeps most things hidden. It's okay by him -- he's had a lot of practice at keeping secrets.

If he's leaning into Charlie's touch a little, well, that's just because he wants to completely erase the memories of the meeting from his mind. Too bad that's nearly impossible.]

I don't feels like talking so much, anyhow.

[Which means that yes, he pulling Meyer in for another kiss now, he is predictable.]

[He'd been pretty sure that'd be Charlie's response, and there's a certain charm to the predictability. They live in an unpredictable world, after all, where allegiances change at the drop of a hat. It's nice to know that Charlie's here, and very much his partner, not anybody else's.

This time his hand goes to the back of Charlie's neck, too, mirroring Charlie's movement, holding him as close as he possibly can. Although he still holds his cigarette in his other hand, it's all but forgotten now.]

[It feels nice - secure and symmetrical like this. His fingers are still playing with Meyer's hair - this time the little stray wisps at the back of his neck.]

Your smoke's burning out.

[He pauses to take a final drag on his cigarette, and then stubs it out in the ashtray, smiling a little.]

There. Not burning out anymore.

[And now he has two free hands, which can only really be a good thing.]

[Definitely only a good thing. Charlie grins at him, and pulls him in closer with both hands on his ass.]

C'mere.

[He's happy enough to be pulled a little closer, hand still on the back of Charlie's neck so that he can pull him down for another kiss. It's strange, how comfortable he can be with Charlie, how damn well he can know him and just about everything about him, and still find it so exciting just to kiss him.]

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dowhatisays - 2013-09-11 22:47 (UTC) - Expand

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recognize_an_opportunity - 2013-09-11 23:04 (UTC) - Expand