the last train from the city

it's bad enough to see the sunlight through your seams
the thread of you and hem of me
it's bad enough in between

He doesn’t expect it to hit him quite as quickly as it does, yet as he scans Nate it seems he’s not alone in the swiftness that the drugs start taking hold. His gaze instead starts to scan the ragged umbrella, before dropping to the shaded ground beneath them and the little dots of sunlight that dazzle through and captivate him.

It almost works to distract him from the bluntness of Nate’s question, and where he would sit there and get sensitive about it otherwise, he finds himself not caring particularly one way or another. “They won’t. It’s why I’ve been working on it for so long.” He could have the specific spots where things were made or imported, but without any other information it would seem unlikely it wasn’t a trap. So he’d included observations, logos, insignias, whatever to try and plead his case further.

And before Sunjata has a chance to see what Nate’s doing, there’s a hand on his cheek, brushing the dirt away and his swallowed steel meets swallowed blues. It sparks a small flare of his cheeks to start, drifting along his neck, at odds with how to take the comment. So he opts for the first thing that comes to mind. “Sorry about your bed.” He admits, dropping his gaze back to the specks of sunlight coming through the patched up umbrella.

SUNJATA

you thought I kissed you just to borrow some lipstick?
go be a stranger at a party
reading lips across a room of empty space

Brows furrow, Nate’s head cocking. “Why would that make a difference? Like the more real it is, the more people will wanna see it?” Even if it’s full to the brim with the truth, even if Sunjata knows the location of a secret button that will launch the Plates into the distant ocean, it doesn’t matter. People have no reason to trust him. And some would discredit him no matter what, just because they could. Because it had always been done the opposite way.

Distracting himself before he gets too serious, Nate cocks his head, sweaty locks falling to the side. “It needed a wash anyway.” Nate murmurs, licking his lips as his fingers start to drag along Sunjata’s cheeks. “Maybe you should come see how it looks now.” He suggests distractedly, head cocking the other way. “Before you finish running away?”

NATE

it's bad enough to see the sunlight through your seams
the thread of you and hem of me
it's bad enough in between

Nate’s comment doesn’t relieve any of the stress of it all – if anything, it makes him feel childish in assuming that he could get away with it if he had all of his t’s crossed and all of his I’s dotted. “The more people would believe it.” He pauses, letting his voice drop slightly, as if he can’t quite keep the slight flare of shame and naivety from crossing his mind. “Believe me.” Because nobody did believe him. And it grew increasingly more difficult as his years went on, the things he was thrown into, the life that was expected of him.

Cookie cutter, perfect, not one hair out of place. Do what you’re told. Don’t you dare think of anything else. How dare you have dreams or thoughts.

At the very least, his apology for the bed is well received and he keeps looking at the patched holes in the umbrella, working his jaw slightly as Nate’s fingers drag along his cheek. The offer, though, has him stilling – head angling surprisingly abruptly back down toward Nate, letting his steel gaze peer at the other man as if he can see any lies within. “S’that a good idea?” He asks softly, perhaps a hint sadly.

SUNJATA

you thought I kissed you just to borrow some lipstick?
go be a stranger at a party
reading lips across a room of empty space

Nate stares for a few moments, then cocks his head and offers a slight smile. "S'not much, but... I believe you." There's still a difference between trust and belief, but so far there was no reason to think that Sunjata was looking to betray them. It just didn't make sense.

"Sure it is!" Nate proclaims easily, already moving to pack his things up in the rucksack he'd brought out. "You can come back, we can have a good night." It almost seems possible at first, though Nate clearly has no idea the turmoil waiting for them back in his apartment.

A hand reaches out to help Sunjata to his feet, Nate grinning wide now. "C'mon. S'not getting any cooler." They can pick their way through the trails with the help of the algae, arriving back in the shadow of the Plates sunburned and giddy.

~Done

NATE