Settling Dust

[Existentially Odd]

Kerr gave a half smirk, watching his fingers be played with and thinking how vastly different Jack was from Ben.  Not just because the newcomer had Ben\'s recent memories, either, in Kerr\'s opinion.  It was difficult not to respond in kind, and there was a playful twinkle in his eye as he teased back.

"You\'ll play nicely and not say anything about your memories in front of Ben... won\'t you?" he asked, nudging the other with his hip.

[Trillian]

"Why wouldn\'t I play nice?" Jack sulked, but it was just as playful as the tease within the question.  He grinned at Kerr before fussing over him and leading him to have a seat.  Once Kerr had sat, Jack started fussing with his hair.  "Do you like long hair?  Would you like me to grow long hair?"

Jack nestled himself as close to Kerr as possible, sharing his warmth and heartbeat, which had the giveaway rapid pulse of an attracted young man.

[Existentially Odd]

He cocked an eyebrow at Jack as the question was asked, feeling a lot more together with proximity and positive attention.  "I\'ve thought of cutting my hair, in fact, but I don\'t know whether I\'m sure yet.  Hrmm... yes, I certainly would like you to grow your hair, to see what it looks like," he finished decisively.

A glint in his eye would declare that he was thinking about more than just long hair.  "In fact, I\'d like to see you age a little more.  A couple of years, at least... to see how you fill out."  His lips twisted cheekily.

[Trillian]

Jack grinned back at him, not minding the implications for it meant Kerr wanted to be with him to watch him grow - his hair, his age, it was something he could live with.  They could bond, then Jack would again put forward his request - one that Kerr would find familiar.  Immortality.  Vampirism.  He didn\'t want to die and not remember this life again.  He wanted to walk the earth as long as possible.  He knew a promise had already been given, and because Kerr had given him his word on the matter, he figured a couple of years wouldn\'t be an issue - as long as there were no outside distractions.  Like Ben.

"That\'s not such a difficult request," Jack replied, deciding it wasn\'t enough to sit close to Kerr, he had to sit upon him.  Straddling Kerr\'s lap, he went in for an embrace, pressing himself to the vampire\'s hard, cool body.  "I like it when you visit me.  I\'d prefer it if you stayed," he whispered into Kerr\'s ear.

[Existentially Odd]

Kerr\'s eyelashes batted with surprise as Jack climbed into his lap and cooed wantonly at him, his body responding to the contact with tingles and a few little pulses of awareness.  God, it was insanely easier to be with Jack than it was with Ben and pangs of guilt hastily and solidly followed the realisation - though he also couldn\'t seem to stop flirting with the mortal

mortal, he\'s mortal now, I can drink from him
Like the old days
Better
We never had sex while he was mortal and I was drinking
Ohhh... too tempting

"I\'m sorry I wasn\'t in the right headspace for it last night.  Everything was too much.  You had me worried with that chasm in the road display and I was too overwhelmed with the splitting of his memories.  I\'ll visit you much more often when we\'re back in the city," he whispered his promise, his face drawn towards the curve of Jack\'s neck and shoulder automatically - but slowly, so there would be plenty of time to stop his lips making contact.

[Trillian]

Jack was very pleased with what he was hearing.  A kind of apology.  Until Kerr said a particular word that had him frowning and pulling back in order to look into Kerr\'s eyes.

"Visit?" he clarified, hoping Kerr didn\'t mean visit, just after he\'d made noises about asking Kerr to stay.  He wasn\'t staying if he was leaving after a visit, now was he?  "You don\'t want me near you all the time?" he said, again trying on the flirty, sulky pout but not pulling it off as well as he did the first time around, for he was truly concerned about the answer he\'d get.

[Existentially Odd]

Again, Kerr blinked, but more with consternation this time.  "I... well, won\'t you go back to living with Hannah?" he enquired, feeling somehow stupid because he seemed to have missed some vital bit of information.  "Won\'t I have to visit?"

[Trillian]

Jack frowned and shook his head, looking shameful.  First Ichabod, then Hannah.  He hadn\'t treated Kerr well at all.  This was obviously why they were having difficulties now, and who could blame him - but Jack was determined to prove himself.

"Hannah\'s not you.  I love you, I don\'t love her.  She was a... distraction," he said, much like Ben was a distraction to Kerr now, so he felt quite a bit more confident moving along this vein.  "You\'d already left at this stage.  I did the wrong thing getting her.  I should\'ve gone straight to you.  I just... didn\'t know how.  I\'m sorry."

He breathed a closed-mouth sigh, letting air out through his nose and signalling his own disappointment with himself.  "She\'s not another Ichabod," he attempted.

[Existentially Odd]

Kerr simply stared at his lover for a few moments, struck dumb by all the easy confessing and familiar names.  Having come from the time warp and constriction that was Ben, it was both a relief and something astounding.

"Ichabod?" he eventually frowned, his mouth stalling to give his brain time to catch up.  Could he keep Jack with him all the time?  It was certainly tempting.  The beach house was huge and Ben seemed determined to take as little space inside it as possible.  He\'d also been crystal clear on not needing Kerr in his life... but did that mean Kerr was clear to pursue anyone he wanted?  The thought of Ben doing it was... God, too painful to follow through with, but feasible.

Anything was possible, with the way Ben was in denial and being spiteful.  Taking a lover and moving on with his life to prove that he could certainly seemed on the cards, to Kerr.

"You mean she\'s not someone you\'re... going to victimise?" he asked in confusion, not quite seeing Jack\'s point with comparing Hannah to Ichabod.

[Trillian]

Jack was caught between what he\'d meant and what had happened with Ichabod.  He couldn\'t deny what

Ben

he\'d done in his past, but at the same time he didn\'t want Kerr to think that was what he\'d meant.

"Cheating on you," he clarified, then had the sense to look bashful.  It was an embarrassing thing to admit, a scary thing to admit, and these two emotions had him worried.  His heart seemed to skip beats and grow very loud in his ears.  Would Kerr forgive him Hannah?

[Existentially Odd]

"Oh," Kerr said intelligently, his mouth closing with a little pop.  He hadn\'t thought of it that way.  It took a while longer for the wheels in his brain to turn so that the cogs would engage, but he got there eventually.

"So... you\'re anticipating that you and I would... be a couple?  No-one else for either of us?  And... Hannah... would you want her to stay in the penthouse or will you want her put somewhere else?  Or are you just going to... let her go?"

He wouldn\'t have minded it if Jack freed up the apartment in the city - it would be convenient to have a safe haven closer to work, should something ever go wrong.  By the same token he felt mildly guilty about turfing the mortal girl onto the street - even though she meant nothing to him - if she had nowhere else to go.  Best for Jack to make that decision.

[Trillian]

"She lives in a caravan near the fair.  She kept it, so she likely anticipated she would be returning to it," he said, not wanting to reveal his dislike for her decision.  He\'d insisted she leave it, that she leave her job at the circus, but she\'d laughed him off and he\'d not pushed the fact, but only because he\'d been pursuing Kerr.  Samuel would work on keeping her as a devotee however.  He could explain the situation to Hannah on Jack\'s behalf - while glossing over certain details about the relationship Jack was going to be in.

In case things went wrong here, he didn\'t want to be stuck without coming back.  Samuel at least was dependable for that.

[Existentially Odd]

Kerr\'s eyebrows lifted, showing his surprise.  "So you\'ll be sending her away and you\'ll live in the penthouse?  What about Samuel?" he asked, overthinking the situation and ending up with it muddled, simply because Jack hadn\'t made explicit where he intended to live - if he was allowed.

[Trillian]

"I\'ll live wherever you live," Jack said, inviting himself into Kerr\'s house with a cheeky grin.  It faded slightly when Kerr asked about Samuel.  "He has his own place.  Why are you worried about everyone else?  They\'re grown up, they have their lives.  Let us have ours," he pleaded, leaning forward again to nibble on Kerr\'s ear lobe as he knew Kerr liked.

[Existentially Odd]

The sensation was unexpected and doubly sweet because of it, momentarily stripping Kerr of a response as his hands slid along Jack\'s thighs to automatically cup his rear end, squeezing it.  He gave a little moan, his eyelids drooping before he forced them open again and tried to fight it off.

"What if Ben doesn\'t like that?" he asked through a suddenly-constricted throat, fairly certain that his words would be as effective as ice water in this situation.