Log: Haller, Betsy ~ Saturday Night
Feb. 11th, 2007 12:35 am![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
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xp_logsHaller comes a-grovelin' into the city after the events of this, this, this, this, and this.
The New York night had made each breath sharp and brittle on the short walk from his car to the front door; he should have worn a scarf. And, from the feel of his still-warming hands, gloves. Not much use thinking about it now. Jim paused in front of a particular apartment first to pinch the bridge of his nose. Focus. Okay.
He rapped on the door first, softly and in warning, then tried the knob. It turned under his hand. Jim slipped into the apartment and closed the door behind him, mismatched eyes on the room's lone occupant.
"Hey, Betts. Here."
With her head still braced against her hands, Betsy sat on the sofa cushion with back hunched over. "I'd ask you to leave but I doubt you'd actually listen."
"Yeah, you'd be getting selective deafness." Jim lay his shed jacket across the back of a char and moved to settle on the couch, his weight sinking into the cushion beside her. Leaning over to bring his face level with hers, he propped his elbows on his thighs.
The other telepath looked at Betsy for a moment, then said, "You realize this was all your fault."
"Oh, bugger off," Betsy said with annoyance, bringing her head up and shoving Jim forcibly in the arm. "It was completely your fault. You didn't have to post anything, you chatty bastard."
Jim took the shove and swayed back, completely unfazed. "My stupidity was about not knowing what women don't want to reveal about their grooming habits. You're the one who invoked the word girlfriend. And I'm going to ask Charles if mass-comas are contagious, because I know I never did anything like that before I met you."
"This isn't funny," Betsy whined. The realization hitting her again. "Oh god," she said, voice laden with embarassment. Turning toward him and then noticing his expression, she hit him again. "I hate you. You're always spinning me about, making me, breaking me, helping me, and I have no way to block you. Maybe I don't want to but... Bugger."
"Yeah," Jim said with a lopsided smile. "I've got powers. Like the ability to stick my foot in my mouth up to the ankle before realizing I've even bent my leg." The expression dropped for a moment with genuine regret. Then he raised one hand to rub his arm. "And okay, I know I deserve a couple of those, but ow. It's not like you make for the least stressful significant other, either. And now, abusive."
"Would you actually like to have sex ever again?" Betsy admonished. After long, a soft, sad smile broke across her face and she rested her head heavily on his abused arm. "You know, the trip home. It was harder this time 'round."
The young man was silent for a moment. He'd suspected as much from the phonecalls, even despite his own problems the past few weeks; not in what had been said, but in what hadn't. Jim sought out her nearest hand and laced his fingers over hers, working his thumb is slow, light circles against her skin.
"Just for you?" Jim asked her. "Or has there been a change?"
"For him, it's been a progression. He no longer has a hold on reality." Betsy tightened her grip on his hand. "He used to have cognizant moments, we could talk then. He's not the man who raised me and Brian. What's worse is that I can't do anything to make it right. So, I simply sit with him while I watch his mind disintegrate. Besides that, you know it was really a lovely holiday."
"I'm sorry," Jim said softly. For so much. Because he could understand what Betsy was going through, all too well.
Jim tilted his cheek to touch the side of her head. "They might still be able to find the right combination of meds for him. That can help, a lot. They just have to keep trying. But until then just you being there counts for him. On some level, anyway. I do believe that." His lips brushed her hair. "Please, babe. You need to find some sane men."
"I know," Betsy sighed, wiping hastily at her face. She lingered in his personal space, relishing the cold wafting off of him but finally pulled back and gave him a sardonic smile. "You do know that you're still not getting any tonight. Forever, possibly. There will be no bedding the supermodel regardless how dashing, compassionate, downright sexy, you may be. Is that understood?"
"I think you were safe from those options anyway, since nobody's ever accused us of being at least two out of three of those adjectives in my life." Jim moved across the cushions to follow her retreat, leaning in to support his weight on the couch-arm behind Betsy. His face drew close enough to graze the tip of her nose with his own. The slightest movement forward and to the side brushed his lips against her cheek. "You know, you're actually pretty cruel."
"Am not," Betsy replied petulantly. Her eyes lowered and focused entirely on his lips. "I am a fair and impartial jury that has decided you are to be punished for impeding the judgment of this court. Meaning, no nookie for your very capable lips. No, I mean for your egregious actions against your world-weary paramour."
"Yeah. Okay. I confess there were crimes. But they were mostly male stupidity." Jim smiled and leaned forward into her neck, kissing her neck. One hand slid beneath the edge of her shirt to trace over her stomach. "There's no mercy in your soul."
"I have been told that I am one cold, heartless bi-" Betsy smiled, pulling back from Jim's hold on her neck. She looked back at her main doorway and exhaled. "So, what are we going to do about it - the rest of them. And I'm not too thrilled of the idea of you getting your way and walking out of here like a Cheshire cat either."
Jim shook his head. "I try to keep personal stuff personal too, but . . . okay. Honestly I don't think this is as big a deal to anybody else as it is to us. Either way, if it happens, it happens. Same as with anything else, if you really look at it." The smile returned as he reached up to lightly pull a finger over her lips. "This too. So when you think about it it wouldn't be me getting my way, it'd be you being Zen."
"Well remember, you asked for it, Mr. Haller," Betsy said as she pushed up from under Haller and pinned him to the other side of the sofa. "I never knew you had this side to you, all debonair and sauve." Betsy hushed, looking down at his lips, her eyes fixated once again. "And I wish I didn't find it so disturbingly attractive."
This evoked a laugh from Jim. "I don't know. I'm really not." He smiled and gently pushed Betsy back and over the couch, lowering his body and mouth over hers. He looked into her eyes and murmured, "You must just bring it out of us."
Betsy laughed throatily. "Oh do I now?" She huffed out, moving against him and letting her eyes flutter close from the sensations. She spoke again, this time her voice carrying a teasing tone to it. "Well, you seem to have me at your mercy. What now?"
"Um, I have a feeling we'll figure something out."
The New York night had made each breath sharp and brittle on the short walk from his car to the front door; he should have worn a scarf. And, from the feel of his still-warming hands, gloves. Not much use thinking about it now. Jim paused in front of a particular apartment first to pinch the bridge of his nose. Focus. Okay.
He rapped on the door first, softly and in warning, then tried the knob. It turned under his hand. Jim slipped into the apartment and closed the door behind him, mismatched eyes on the room's lone occupant.
"Hey, Betts. Here."
With her head still braced against her hands, Betsy sat on the sofa cushion with back hunched over. "I'd ask you to leave but I doubt you'd actually listen."
"Yeah, you'd be getting selective deafness." Jim lay his shed jacket across the back of a char and moved to settle on the couch, his weight sinking into the cushion beside her. Leaning over to bring his face level with hers, he propped his elbows on his thighs.
The other telepath looked at Betsy for a moment, then said, "You realize this was all your fault."
"Oh, bugger off," Betsy said with annoyance, bringing her head up and shoving Jim forcibly in the arm. "It was completely your fault. You didn't have to post anything, you chatty bastard."
Jim took the shove and swayed back, completely unfazed. "My stupidity was about not knowing what women don't want to reveal about their grooming habits. You're the one who invoked the word girlfriend. And I'm going to ask Charles if mass-comas are contagious, because I know I never did anything like that before I met you."
"This isn't funny," Betsy whined. The realization hitting her again. "Oh god," she said, voice laden with embarassment. Turning toward him and then noticing his expression, she hit him again. "I hate you. You're always spinning me about, making me, breaking me, helping me, and I have no way to block you. Maybe I don't want to but... Bugger."
"Yeah," Jim said with a lopsided smile. "I've got powers. Like the ability to stick my foot in my mouth up to the ankle before realizing I've even bent my leg." The expression dropped for a moment with genuine regret. Then he raised one hand to rub his arm. "And okay, I know I deserve a couple of those, but ow. It's not like you make for the least stressful significant other, either. And now, abusive."
"Would you actually like to have sex ever again?" Betsy admonished. After long, a soft, sad smile broke across her face and she rested her head heavily on his abused arm. "You know, the trip home. It was harder this time 'round."
The young man was silent for a moment. He'd suspected as much from the phonecalls, even despite his own problems the past few weeks; not in what had been said, but in what hadn't. Jim sought out her nearest hand and laced his fingers over hers, working his thumb is slow, light circles against her skin.
"Just for you?" Jim asked her. "Or has there been a change?"
"For him, it's been a progression. He no longer has a hold on reality." Betsy tightened her grip on his hand. "He used to have cognizant moments, we could talk then. He's not the man who raised me and Brian. What's worse is that I can't do anything to make it right. So, I simply sit with him while I watch his mind disintegrate. Besides that, you know it was really a lovely holiday."
"I'm sorry," Jim said softly. For so much. Because he could understand what Betsy was going through, all too well.
Jim tilted his cheek to touch the side of her head. "They might still be able to find the right combination of meds for him. That can help, a lot. They just have to keep trying. But until then just you being there counts for him. On some level, anyway. I do believe that." His lips brushed her hair. "Please, babe. You need to find some sane men."
"I know," Betsy sighed, wiping hastily at her face. She lingered in his personal space, relishing the cold wafting off of him but finally pulled back and gave him a sardonic smile. "You do know that you're still not getting any tonight. Forever, possibly. There will be no bedding the supermodel regardless how dashing, compassionate, downright sexy, you may be. Is that understood?"
"I think you were safe from those options anyway, since nobody's ever accused us of being at least two out of three of those adjectives in my life." Jim moved across the cushions to follow her retreat, leaning in to support his weight on the couch-arm behind Betsy. His face drew close enough to graze the tip of her nose with his own. The slightest movement forward and to the side brushed his lips against her cheek. "You know, you're actually pretty cruel."
"Am not," Betsy replied petulantly. Her eyes lowered and focused entirely on his lips. "I am a fair and impartial jury that has decided you are to be punished for impeding the judgment of this court. Meaning, no nookie for your very capable lips. No, I mean for your egregious actions against your world-weary paramour."
"Yeah. Okay. I confess there were crimes. But they were mostly male stupidity." Jim smiled and leaned forward into her neck, kissing her neck. One hand slid beneath the edge of her shirt to trace over her stomach. "There's no mercy in your soul."
"I have been told that I am one cold, heartless bi-" Betsy smiled, pulling back from Jim's hold on her neck. She looked back at her main doorway and exhaled. "So, what are we going to do about it - the rest of them. And I'm not too thrilled of the idea of you getting your way and walking out of here like a Cheshire cat either."
Jim shook his head. "I try to keep personal stuff personal too, but . . . okay. Honestly I don't think this is as big a deal to anybody else as it is to us. Either way, if it happens, it happens. Same as with anything else, if you really look at it." The smile returned as he reached up to lightly pull a finger over her lips. "This too. So when you think about it it wouldn't be me getting my way, it'd be you being Zen."
"Well remember, you asked for it, Mr. Haller," Betsy said as she pushed up from under Haller and pinned him to the other side of the sofa. "I never knew you had this side to you, all debonair and sauve." Betsy hushed, looking down at his lips, her eyes fixated once again. "And I wish I didn't find it so disturbingly attractive."
This evoked a laugh from Jim. "I don't know. I'm really not." He smiled and gently pushed Betsy back and over the couch, lowering his body and mouth over hers. He looked into her eyes and murmured, "You must just bring it out of us."
Betsy laughed throatily. "Oh do I now?" She huffed out, moving against him and letting her eyes flutter close from the sensations. She spoke again, this time her voice carrying a teasing tone to it. "Well, you seem to have me at your mercy. What now?"
"Um, I have a feeling we'll figure something out."
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no subject
Date: 2007-02-11 10:01 am (UTC)Some of "anybody else" basically missed that the embarrassment was supposed to be about the revealed relationship. So yeah. ;)
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Date: 2007-02-11 04:30 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-02-11 09:09 pm (UTC)Although given how aggressively private both parties are Jennie's response (http://x-legion.livejournal.com/2432.html?thread=8832#t8832) sure as hell felt like armageddon.