05-04-2020, 10:39 AM
Natalie watched him as he slowly began to find footholds. It was a familiar journey, though not one she could help with beyond the suggestion of grounding. She doubted he craved sympathy, which was fortunate because she had none to give, but she didn’t recoil either -- the very still way her hands rested, clasped on her thighs, the only indication she gave of her own distress at seeing him like that. Jay looked everywhere but at her. For the same reason she’d slammed the door in his face back at the casino, she imagined, but awareness of his discomfort didn’t make her any more inclined to look away. He’d judged her weak then, or couldn’t bear to witness the ugly side of that pain -- or maybe he’d never even realised the dark place she’d been in then. She’d never know, and she’d never ask. She lived her life under that armour plating.
Her lips twitched for the weak joke, though it only served to remind her of the tangled mess of family and duty she was avoiding. She’d been vaguely surprised when her credit hadn’t been declined at the roadside diner, given the hefty withdrawal she’d made for Jay’s last brilliant plan. Her mother was unlikely to leave her destitute while she was outside the safety of the Custody, even as leverage to draw her home. But now there was the message from her grandfather’s office.
“Might be the best I can afford now. I highly doubt I’m my family’s favourite person at the moment.” A brow rose, but it wasn’t like she hadn’t been cut off from her family’s finances before. Better he knew it wasn’t a resource they could rely on again, though.
There wasn’t anything to pack, just the gun and her wallet. The edge of his demons were still there; she saw it in the way he grabbed the keys, and in the way his gaze slid like the world was still slippery. He probably ought to get used to their company. She poked him in the stomach as she passed, sharp as the barbs of her humour. Or maybe just demanding that he look at her this time. “You should know your ploy failed, of course. I’m fairly sure it’s you who owes me dinner. But I’ll settle for tacos.”
Her lips twitched for the weak joke, though it only served to remind her of the tangled mess of family and duty she was avoiding. She’d been vaguely surprised when her credit hadn’t been declined at the roadside diner, given the hefty withdrawal she’d made for Jay’s last brilliant plan. Her mother was unlikely to leave her destitute while she was outside the safety of the Custody, even as leverage to draw her home. But now there was the message from her grandfather’s office.
“Might be the best I can afford now. I highly doubt I’m my family’s favourite person at the moment.” A brow rose, but it wasn’t like she hadn’t been cut off from her family’s finances before. Better he knew it wasn’t a resource they could rely on again, though.
There wasn’t anything to pack, just the gun and her wallet. The edge of his demons were still there; she saw it in the way he grabbed the keys, and in the way his gaze slid like the world was still slippery. He probably ought to get used to their company. She poked him in the stomach as she passed, sharp as the barbs of her humour. Or maybe just demanding that he look at her this time. “You should know your ploy failed, of course. I’m fairly sure it’s you who owes me dinner. But I’ll settle for tacos.”