Apartment Above Needful Things; Tuesday Late Morning

[totalwildcard]

Harley had spent most of the weekend on the mainland. Not just Baltimore, either - she'd taken the kid out on a little road trip. Yanno, for life lessons! Most of them criminal, of course, but that was sort of how their mentorship worked, so someone else could handle the boring stuff. Anyway, they'd had fun!

So much of it, in fact, that Harley had only landed back on the island late on Monday evening. Technically probably Tuesday? Which meant that after she'd passed out and slept her fill, the day was already well on its way. She rolled groggily out of bed, shambled her way into the living room --

And groaned when she saw the glitter bomb still waiting on the coffee table, and not downstairs attached to the front door ready to explode on Frenchie if he showed up again this week. Whether he'd already shown up or not, Harley was not in a state to go set it up now.

She shuffled around some more, in search of her phone, which she found discarded on the kitchen counter. No calls, no messages apart from Cass informing her she'd ordered breakfast delivery on Harley's account. Harley looked at the phone for a long moment more anyway, tapping her thumb against the side of it in thought. Groggy, still sleepy, not yet caffeinated thought.

And pulled up a number she'd had for a while but never actually texted before.

(Successfully, anyway. There was that time on her birthday.)

You awake yet?

(expecting one but can be open for other stuff as well!)

Comments

[totalwildcard]

"I thought I might be too far into 'not normal', even," Harley admitted. "You put all your effort, your entire back into tryin' to become exactly what you think one specific psycho wants outta ya..."

Was that a little sigh? Maybe just a conspicuous exhale.

"It doesn't leave you with much when it ends, I can tell ya that much for free."

[hasaknightjob]

"Do you like the way you are now?" Marc asked. "Do you wanna change it now that he's gone?"

[totalwildcard]

"I have changed," Harley said, but looked past his shoulder and wrinkled her nose a little. Taking the question seriously, even if he was unlikely to get a complete answer. "But... you know how snakes do? Like, they shed their skin, make way for the new one?"

She shrugged again.

"Might still be doing that. Like I'm just a little snake, wrigglin' around, or whatever it is they do."

[hasaknightjob]

"Makes sense," Marc said. Because it did to him. "I like being along for the ride. Whatever you're figuring out."

[totalwildcard]

Harley's gaze flicked back to him. His face, his eyes. Just taking in all the things that made her feel like he meant it.

Something was wrong with her chest again. She ignored it.

Her fingers stroked through his hair.

[hasaknightjob]

Marc leaned into her touch. "I like you. As you are. Whatever you're gonna be."

[totalwildcard]

"I might become something else."

That was unlikely, which made it a weak warning. It was quiet, too.

[hasaknightjob]

"You already warned me about the unicorn," Marc said.

Teasing a little. To show he wasn't worried in general.

[totalwildcard]

Well, it made Harley snort, so... Good job. "That's not gonna be by choice."

Let's face it, though, she operated more on instict than conscious choice otherwise, too.

[hasaknightjob]

Marc was proud of that reaction, thank you.

"I'm not worried about you changing," Marc said. "Be weirder if you didn't. Boring."

[totalwildcard]

"You could also want me to change," Harley pointed out. "To better suit ya."

She didn't really feel a worry he would. He'd already said the opposite in ways both in words and not.

Maybe it was a roundabout way of courting reassurance, anyway.

[hasaknightjob]

"The fuck I'd do that for?" Marc asked. His incredulity was probably answering a lot on its own. "If I wanted something I could make up myself I'd stay home and jerk off."

[totalwildcard]

Harley made another one of those helpless noises of hers, in her throat.

And surged forward to kiss him. Like it was a sudden need, most of all.

[hasaknightjob]

Marc was taken aback. He didn't think he'd said anything that remarkable.

But, yanno, Harley kisses. He could suffer through kissing back even if he didn't know why he'd earned it.

[totalwildcard]

Harley could tell him. After a moment, when she pulled back only just enough to press her forehead to his. "That's one of the nicest things anyone's said to me," she murmured.

She was aware that was a little sad.

[hasaknightjob]

It was, but Marc wasn't going to call attention to it.

"You're good," he told her. "I'm interested in you. Nobody like you, remember?"

[totalwildcard]

"I know," Harley said, "but a lot of people say that part and they don't mean I'm worth leavin' the house for."

She wrinkled her nose with a little huff.

"Actually it mostly seems to mean I should get outta their house. The assholes."

[hasaknightjob]

"My house likes you too," Marc told her. In case that helped tip the scales at all.

[totalwildcard]

"That's just unfair," Harley replied, not sounding like she actually minded that bit of unfairness in the slightest, "they haven't got houses with feelings!"

[hasaknightjob]

"Guess I'm cooler than they are," Marc said.

Because as she knew, he cared so deeply about being cool.

[totalwildcard]

"You're the coolest," Harley told him, regardless of whether he cared or not. "And you're here instead of jacking it at home!"

[hasaknightjob]

"Looks like you're worth leaving the house for," Marc said. Which was obvious by him being there but he figured maybe she'd like hearing it anyway.

[totalwildcard]

Judging by the way Harley beamed at him, and the way he'd gotten kissed for saying it the first time around? Hell yes she did.

"Aw, and so're you!" she said. "Though don't let that fool ya into thinkin' I'm not still indulgin' in plenty of me time as well." Not every thought needed voicing but that alone never stopped her. "Ya just feature heavily in that, too."

[hasaknightjob]

"Long as it's what I am," Marc said. "And not what I'm not."

[totalwildcard]

"... What?"

Yeah, Harley didn't follow.