Losing the Knack

[Existentially Odd]

James bit his lower lip coyly, looking at Ichabod's handsome face, at his pouty, delicious-looking lips.  Oh, he would certainly not say no to something like that, although soliciting kisses in a park was certainly not his thing.  This place was so far out of his pick up range as to be laughable - he generally went for frat boys, rich boys, privileged boys looking for a bit of fun that knew the score; discretion, discretion, discretion.  Men in the same position as him, who were looking for a long career in high-profile positions that couldn't afford anything tarnishing or reputation-skewing in their closets.  Such things always fell out, eventually.

At that moment, he wasn't thinking about his future, though.  He definitely wasn't thinking about how horrified his mother would be that he might be jeopardising his career (as President of the United States, if she got her way) by fooling around with some complete stranger in a park - a stranger that could be a reporter, a future colleague, a saboteur.  No, oddly he was just thinking of how good looking Ichabod was, how calm and relaxed he'd been feeling in his presence, how those lips would feel pressed against his.  It was dangerous, daring and all the more thrilling because of that.

"I think you should," he said thickly, his heart seeming to pound harder still in his chest.  "In the interests of science."

[pinkroses]

Ichabod stared at James blankly for a few seconds, unsure of how he should react. Maybe he should just do it, just kiss him. But he couldn’t help feeling like he was taking advantage of James – if he hadn’t fed from him he doubted James would be feeling this giddy and flirty. Who was he to know though? Maybe James was always like this, randomly coming on to strangers. After all, plenty of people did that out at clubs, how was this different?

He couldn’t help but let his eyes drop to watch James playing seductively with his lip. His tongue darted out to lightly wet his own lips and Ichabod found himself leaning forwards slightly. He hesitated for a moment before giving in and closing the distance, brushing his lips gently against the human’s as his hand slid around James’ waist. The heat was radiating off him so deliciously, but Ichabod stopped himself from deepening the kiss. He didn’t want to rush into anything and a one night stand had never got him anywhere good.

“I thought you were a lawyer, not a scientist,” Ichabod said with a smile as they parted, but he stayed close to James. There was a brilliant tingle in his lips, a thrill run through his body which he hadn’t felt for so long. “You going to black out on me again?” he added with a teasing grin.

[Existentially Odd]

That moment of hesitation just about sent James crazy, thinking it was going to happen then realising it wouldn't, his heart flipping around in his chest like a newly-landed fish.  It was torturous and it was wonderful, that eternal instant of 'will he, won't he?' and the relief that poured through him when Ichabod finally did was better than any high any drug could've given him.  There was just enough time to register the smoothness and warmth of the other man's lips, to tilt his head ever so slightly and press back at a different angle before it was over and Ichabod's face was once more coming into focus as he pulled back and James slowly opened his eyes.

Despite all this, his stomach gurgled, reminding him that he was hungry.  He hoped Ichabod hadn't heard it and he chuckled at the light tease.  "Well, at this stage I'm a bit of a jack of all trades," he joked back, the grin on his face so broad he could feel the intense pressure in his cheeks and the happiness of it twinkling in his eyes.  "But no, not going to black out from kissing you, I guess you didn't kiss me before, after all, because I would definitely have remembered feeling this good."  His gaze dropped to Ichabod's lips, wanting to kiss him again and marvelling at how fantastic he was feeling, completely out of nowhere.  He had no idea what had brought him to the other brunette tonight but he was certainly counting his good fortune and doing his best to stop his head from spinning off into all sorts of romantic ponderings that simply wouldn't come true.

A guy could dream though, right?  "You're delicious," he complimented sincerely, managing to drag his gaze back up to Ichabod's fathomless eyes.

[pinkroses]

Ichabod couldn’t help but smile at the sight of the wide grin on James’ face, but he ducked his head awkwardly at the compliments from a stranger he’d only just met. He’d never been good at taking compliments, even from people he was close to, and he never really knew how to react to them. And in his recent solitude (listening to Ash complain didn’t really count) he seemed to have forgotten how to respond at all.

Or maybe it was just James making him feel that way.

“You’re quite the charmer, aren’t you?” Ichabod murmured, glancing sideways at James. This all felt so unexpected, one minute he’d been sat on the grass completely stressing out and now he had this human looking at him like he was some great catch. Ichabod knew he’d been so besotted with other people like that before, being on the receiving end was quite different.

“Can I walk you home? To make sure you remember to get some food?” And get your number, arrange to see you again, do something, anything, get out of the flat and kiss you again and again, feel good again, it felt amazing.

He couldn’t just sit at home moping forever and seeing James again sounded like the perfect reason to get out.

“Maybe, could I take your number? To see you again?” Ichabod asked, slipping his hand into the pocket of his jeans to grab his phone, but then frowning as he realised he’d left the apartment without it. “Oh, I don’t have my phone. I guess I’ll have to rely on you calling me,” Ichabod said, forcing the frown off his face and giving James a small smile, biting gently on his lower lip nervously. Would he call? After the effects of the bite had worn off would he be so intrigued? Would he have enjoyed the kiss and flirting so much? Or would he just put it all down to a weird experience in the park and forget about meeting up again?

[Existentially Odd]

James shrugged affably.  "Eh, I try," he beamed, blushing as he was also complimented, despite trying to behave nonchalantly.  Ichabod's next comments came before he could say too much; just as he was getting ready to make a quip about one thing, another was said and then it felt completely wrong to backtrack, since the topic seemed to have changed.  He waited his companion out, shuffling his thoughts and then suddenly finding himself thoroughly enamoured with the way he bit his lip.

"That can definitely be arranged," James agreed, standing up and moving aside his coat in order to reach into his side jeans pocket and extract his phone.  As he swiped it and typed in the pin code to unlock it, he looked sideways at Ichabod, attempting to regather his casual air.  "You know, you don't have to walk me home.  Not straight away, anyway.  You could come grab some dinner with me?  I mean, I was only going to get some Subway or something - I live at the Templar in the city and there's one about a block from my place - but I'd love it if you wanted to hang for a bit?"

He opened up a new contact in his phone and looked at Ichabod properly, ready to input his number but hoping his offer would be accepted.  Really, he should be going home to work on his assignment but what could a couple of hours of relaxation hurt?  All work and no play made James a dull boy, right?

[pinkroses]

Ichabod raised an eyebrow as James had said he would take his number, but then seemed to be rejecting his offer of walking him home. As James went on though Ichabod’s smile returned as he realised what James was getting at.

“Sure, that sounds great. I already ate, but I’d like to come along and… yeah, that’d be great,” he said, standing up to join James, giving his mobile number when James was ready for it. Weirdly it felt like a weight was being lifted, just knowing this boy wanted to spend some more time with him.

"I actually live right by there too, in the Capital," he said, raising his gaze from James' phone once his number had been programmed in properly. "So that's pretty perfect," he said with a grin.

[Existentially Odd]

James grinned at Ichabod as his plan was agreed to, asking for the other man's number and typing it into his phone quickly.  Just as he'd finalised the contact details and opened up a text message (so James would have his number) though, he was told that his mystery meet-up lived across the road from him??  He stopped dead and looked at Ichabod in awe, his jaw dropping open in surprise.

"You're kidding me, no way!" he exclaimed, his deep baritone voice becoming a bass as he expressed his shock.  "We're neighbours!" he said in delight, his mind already spinning with how convenient it would be for them to visit one another.  "Wow, we were obviously meant to meet up tonight," he announced jovially, paying attention to his phone long enough to send the text message he'd crafted haphazardly.  It said, 'This is James.  Now you have my number too '  "You live there with your folks?  I still live with mine, and my little sister."

As they started heading in the direction of home (it took James a moment to get his bearings though Ichabod seemed confident of the way they were going, indicating to him that the guy hung out in the park quite a lot) for both of them, James slid his phone back in his pocket and watched Ichabod's face carefully as they walked.  He wondered if the other man would look as good as he thought he did once they were in full light.  James certainly hoped so.

[pinkroses]

Ichabod laughed at James’ excitement at finding out where he lived. It was a bit of a coincidence and it would be nice to have a new friend close by, James seemed pretty enthusiastic about meeting up again as well. But with James so close by, he might decide to just drop by sometime. In the day.

Of course there were any number of reasons Ichabod could use for why he hadn’t been around to open the door, but if this was actually going to become anything more than two strangers walking home then James could find out what he was. There was no point worrying about that now though, they were just talking about meeting up and God knows how it might go on from there. They may never even see each other again so Ichabod wasn’t about to rush into telling James anything.

“No, I live alone, after I moved out for uni going back to my parents was never really an option.” Because I came back as a vampire. “It’s  more space than I need really, but the apartment was… it was a gift from a friend,” he said, his voice wavering slightly at the end. Well, that was one way to describe it. There was no way to explain what Kerr had been to someone who didn’t know about vampires, and even to those who did the whole thing might weird.

[Existentially Odd]

James gave Ichabod an incredulous look.  Even if the apartment was on the ground floor, getting one as a gift from a friend didn't seem logical.  "You got a whole apartment as a gift?" he asked disbelievingly.  "From a boyfriend?" he queried as casually as he could manage.  There'd been a flirty vibe between them that James didn't feel he could be mistaken about but seriously, 'friends' didn't give friends apartments; lovers did.  On the upside, it was usually part of a breakup settlement, which James sincerely hoped this was.  He could handle that.

[pinkroses]

“No, we weren’t together like that,” Ichabod said, glancing towards James. He’d been as amazed as James was now to find out the apartment was in his name, but he’d seen the deeds now and it was true, it was his. And Kerr hadn’t even told him when he’d done it, probably knowing Ichabod wouldn’t feel comfortable about being given something so huge. He’d got used to living off of Kerr’s money over the years, but Kerr had so much of it, it just didn’t seem to matter. It wasn’t like taking money from someone who might need it one day.

Even when Ichabod had been living there with Kerr, it had never felt like they were a couple. Not really. Ichabod had been his pet. So he wasn’t really lying to James about that.

“He left it to me. He died, not too long ago. And, yeah, he gave it to me. I guess gift was the wrong word, but, uh, yeah. Sorry, that’s not such a cheery conversation topic,” Ichabod said, lifting a hand to run through his hair and swallowing down the painful lump in his throat.

[Existentially Odd]

"Ohhh," James exhaled a descending lament of regret, blushing because he felt ashamed of his implications.  "I never thought of that, I'm really sorry," he mumbled, pulling a regretful face at Ichabod.  "I'm, uh, sorry about your friend, too," he added lamely, biting his lip as he gave up looking at his companion and simply watched the ground ahead of them instead.  He shoved his hands into the pockets of his coat and tried vainly to think of something else to say that would alleviate the awkward tension, but nothing was coming to him.

[pinkroses]

“It’s ok,” Ichabod said quietly, try not to let his voice wobble as he said it and give away that it wasn’t ok. He had a sudden urge to blurt out more, to tell James everything. He could explain that Kerr had been his protector from so many things over the years, his sire, his teacher, his best friend, someone Ichabod looked up to and admired more than anyone else in this world. The only person he’d ever loved, but who had never been his.

But James wouldn’t understand. The only person who might was Ben and there was no way he was going to go to him to spill his heart.

Ichabod realised he’d been staring at the ground as they walked and he forced himself to glance across at James, seeing the human doing to same thing. How did things manage to turn so awkward so quickly? His gaze drifted over James’ profile, focusing on admiring him for a few seconds and a small smile drifted over his lips. Yes, it hurt to think about, but he couldn’t let it ruin a small chance at maybe finding someone to distract him from the pain.

“So have you been at a study group or something tonight? Got a test or assignment coming up soon?” he asked, grasping desperately at a change of subject to lighten the mood.

[Existentially Odd]

James was thoroughly relieved that Ichabod managed to change the subject and he leapt upon it gratefully when it arose, smiling broadly at the other man.  "Yes to both, actually," he laughed.  "Group assignment that I was working on at the library - don't you just hate those? - and another essay due next week.  I should probably go home and devote a good three or so hours to it but... I'm way too tired for that," he laughed ruefully, pulling his right hand out of his pocket in order to reach up and rub his neck pointedly.

"Right now, I'm looking forward to just relaxing with a sub and a drink and hanging out with you.  In fact, we could go to your place, if you want, since you live so close to me.  If you don't mind me inviting myself and my takeaway food into your apartment to take advantage of the fact that you don't have a noisy family hanging around so you could actually hear yourself think while you watch TV or something, that is," he laughed, finding himself blushing as the implication of what he'd just said actually sank in past the speed of his mouth.

He'd just invited himself into a virtual stranger's home, just because they were practically neighbours.  And because the guy promised to be insanely good looking, in the light.  Was he nuts?

[pinkroses]

“I don’t have to do those, thank God. I’m not actually at the uni here, I’m registered where I started the course, but they let me carry on doing distance learning when I came back here. I get my assignments by email and post and stuff,” Ichabod explained, watching as James rubbed at his neck, wondering if he had healed him properly. He was sure he had done though, Ichabod had done that as a nervous habit after he’d been drunk from – even when it was healed there was still that knowledge that something had been there. He began to wonder whether James was mentioning being tired as an excuse to cut this short, but then suddenly James had another suggestion.

“Uh…” Ichabod glanced sideways at James, hesitating as the human invited himself over to his flat. How had dinner and a chat at a take away joint suddenly turned into them going back to his apartment? He didn’t mind especially, he wasn’t imagining anything much would happen other than chatting, maybe another kiss – but there were a few things in the apartment which might give James reasons to think again. Like a fridge full of blood bags.

But what were the chances that James would be rooting around in the fridge? And if he saw something he shouldn’t Ichabod was hopeful that he would be able to deal with it when it came to it. It wasn't like he could refuse without sounding like a weirdo though.

The sight of James’ cheeks colouring quite adorably as he realised what he had done decided Ichabod and his face relaxed into a smile.

“No, that’s fine, that’s great. Better than just sitting in Subway, yeah. There’s not much food in my flat so taking food back is better than you showing up expecting to be fed,” Ichabod said with a grin, moving closer to James and nudging his shoulder playfully against James'.

[Existentially Odd]

James pulled a pretend shocked face.  "Expect to be fed?  How rude!" he joked, knowing that they were both aware how forward he'd been inviting himself over in the first place.  Ichabod had taken it surprisingly well, though and he'd scored some extra time to see if he could like this guy as much as he thought he could.  It was weird, because he definitely wasn't the type to pick up random strangers and he now had no idea what to talk about with him, where to guide the conversation so that he could establish their points of difference or commonality but it was very exciting because of that.  This had to be the craziest thing he'd done since coming out to his family two years ago - which just went to prove how rigid his life generally was.

They'd finally reached the edge of the park and the conversation lulled as they negotiated crossing the roads that would lead them to their destination in the inner city.  It was also not all that easy to talk because there were a lot of people out on the streets and they kept having to break apart to accommodate pushy businessmen and women in suits determined to get home after a late finish at work.  James had lived his whole life in the bustle so he was an expert crowd wedger (slipping himself into all sorts of shapes to wedge himself into gaps to get past or between people heading towards him) and he watched Ichabod instinctively to see how he was coping.  He seemd just as experienced, though it occurred to James he'd said things about 'coming here' or 'coming back here', which prompted more questions as they walked.

"So, you said you came back here, where are you from, originally?" he queried, watching Icabod's face become clearer as he was illuminated by streetlights and the lights coming from the buildings they were walking past.