Devil's Nest Monday, 7/29

[bitten_notshy]

It had been One of Those Weekends, and Jack was more than glad it was over. Jaina's Stockholm Syndrome theory didn't seem so far off. Jack knew he was staying where he was, but he still daydreamed about moving back to London as he organized the bottles behind the bar.

The DJ, who thought he was funny, was playing a fire-themed mix of '80's songs.

[OOC: Open club, no OCD.]

Comments

[not_a_whiner]

Kaidan wasn't so much horribly traumatized as horribly confused, as evident by the expression on his face when he entered the Devil's Nest.

"Hey," he said, to Jack. "Has your weekend been as crazy...?"

[bitten_notshy]

"I was a firefighter-slash-barista with a hopeless crush on Derek Hale," Jack said in a strained voice. "So I'd guess that it has. Yours?"

[not_a_whiner]

"...Crazy," Kaidan settled on. "I don't even really want to think about it, but... uh. That's rough."

[bitten_notshy]

"It was one of those weekends where I wonder why I stick around," Jack admitted. "I hate losing control."

[not_a_whiner]

"I'm not really a big fan of it myself, but I'm stuck here until the brass tells me not to be," Kaidan said. He blew out a breath. "One of these days, this is going to turn ugly."

[bitten_notshy]

"Hasn't yet," Jack said cautiously. "I used to worry about it too, until I realized every story ends with everything being fine in the end."

He rapped his hand on the counter behind the bar as he said this. He wasn't superstitious, but some things demanded you knock wood.

[not_a_whiner]

"I don't think I'll ever be able to get used to that," Kaidan said, sinking into a seat. "Everything has consequences."

[bitten_notshy]

"Normally it does," Jack agreed. "I wonder about it sometimes, you know. If someday all the bad things we avoided by staying here are going to blindside me because this place has trained us out of being cautious."

[not_a_whiner]

"Beer, please?" Kaidan asked Tiny, then turned his attention back to Jack. "You could go soft in a place like this," he agreed. "But... jumpy, too. It's a different kind of on your guard."

[bitten_notshy]

"Soft and jumpy," Jack mulled. "That's about the worst shape we could be in if things really did go wrong."

He watched Tiny pull the beer, making sure he got a decent Canadian lager for Kaidan.

"Sorry. I'm sure you didn't come in here for me to worry at you."

[not_a_whiner]

"I came here to get a beer and check up on you," Kaidan said, taking the bottle from Tiny with a quick 'thanks'. "I mean... radio sounded pretty crazy."

[bitten_notshy]

"It was all absolutely mad," Jack confirmed. "There was a strip club, half the island was making coffee, and -- was there something about Emma and Specialist Traynor in there?"

The afterthought wasn't an afterthought at all, of course.

[not_a_whiner]

"Did they?" That came out... a little too quickly. Look, shut it, he was a romantic, not a dead man. "Huh."

[bitten_notshy]

Jack snorted out a soft laugh. "Haven't asked her yet. Even if they did, somehow I'm not too jealous."

Maybe a little jealous he hadn't been able to watch...

[not_a_whiner]

"I'm... definitely not asking Specialist Traynor," Kaidan said, rubbing the back of his neck. "I mean, not that I'm interested."

[bitten_notshy]

"Besides, that would be the most awkward conversation," Jack pointed out. "'Did you kiss my housemate's girlfriend when the island was mad? It's a research project' wouldn't go over smoothly."

He waved a hand. "If Emma picks up we're interested she'll tell us all about it."

[not_a_whiner]

"I'm not interested," Kaidan said. Quickly. "Seriously. She's my subordinate."

[bitten_notshy]

"... and somehow I don't think you're her type," Jack said, tilting his head.

He had a decent idea Kaidan wasn't talking about that at all, but sometimes going for the funnier answer was irresistible.

[not_a_whiner]

"No, I'm pretty sure she's a le--"

He paused and shot Jack a look. "Seriously?"

[bitten_notshy]

"No, but admitting I know what sexual harassment is and why it's bad would have been boring," Jack said easily. "And if that woman's not gay, she's completely immune to me."

[not_a_whiner]

"And that clearly couldn't happen if she was otherwise oriented," Kaidan said, settling into the light sarcasm a little more comfortably than... well, the rest of the conversation.

[bitten_notshy]

"Obviously not," Jack said, just as comfortably. "I'm very attractive, you know."

[not_a_whiner]

"Not universally," Kaidan retorted.

There was only one AU where they had banged.

[bitten_notshy]

Jack rolled his eyes. "You're too old for me."

Yeah, he went there. (And we will pay no attention to the vampire behind the curtain.)

[not_a_whiner]

"And you're practically fifteen years old," Kaidan replied. "Overconfidence isn't that attractive."

All meant fondly.