xp_logs | Doug and Jubilee (backdated)

Backdated to April 27. Doug decides to get some work done at the coffee shop after returning from India, since Remy noted that the offices were closed. Jubilee happens upon him and refuses to take the unspoken 'go away' as an answer. They hash things out, and Jubilee gives him an early birthday present.

Doug hunched behind the screen of his laptop, occasionally peering over the top of it to watch the flow of the crowd in the coffee shop. Now and then he reached for one of the two very large mugs on his table to take a sip from it. It was clear by the fact that he was the only one at the table that both were for him, and anyone who had been at the coffee shop when he had arrived could have watched the baristas put a truly impressive amount of espresso in each. Even so, Doug looked...weary.

"You know, I'm told that if the wind changes your face will totally stay that way," Jubilee noted as she slipped into the empty seat at Doug's table and snagged one the mugs, taking a deep sip with a happy sigh. "Stolen coffee, always the best."

Doug cocked an eye at his coworker, wincing at the potential for chaos and property damage in Jubilee drinking the heavy espresso drinks he had ordered. He snagged the mug and pulled it back to his side of the table when she set it back down. "Can I do something for you, Jubilee?" he asked in a slightly cranky and annoyed tone of voice.

"Nope," she said brightly, and snagged the cup he'd let go of to grab the one she had, drawing it back over to her side of the table and taking another sip. "What'cha doin'?"

"Work." The short answers were somewhat antisocial, but Doug wasn't really in a mood to -be- social, so it worked out well. "Since Remy was all up front about the office being closed." His eyes flicked up to Jubilee, then back down to his screen.

"Really? What sort of work?" Jubilee asked, giving Doug back an entirely wide-eyed 'I'm just cute and innocent and clueless like a little fluffy bunny' look. As if she couldn't tell he was in a cranky mood, or wanting to not be disturbed.

There were times when her complete lack of feeling about other people's 'me time' worked out quite well, especially when they probably really didn't exactly want 'me time'. Of course, not caring tended to make that a touchy-feely-chancy-wancy ball of not very scientific mucking about.

"Work-y sort of work," Doug replied unhelpfully, continuing to peck at his keyboard and sip at his coffee. He was certainly not in a mood to be drawn out by a well-meaning, playing at clueless Jubilee.

"You, dude, are a tough nut," Jubilee noted, leaning back in her chair and smiling at the waitress who delivered her piece of cake and cup of green tea. "Now, if I were a complete bitch I'd make note of the fact that you're lucky I'm even talking to you after the little stunt you and Emma pulled. However, seeming as I'm a fuck up from way back, I figure that'd be somewhat hypocritical of me. That doesn't mean I'm going to take the silent 'I'm pissy at the world' treatment from you, Doug Ramsey. So quit it the fuck out, or you'll have one more person refusing to even look at you outside the office."

It was a long speech, but Jubilee felt it was a needed one. She could totally get the wanting to not be berated by yet another person, but going all silent Mr grumpy was so not shit she would put up with. She'd left that stuff back when she made it to China and she was fucked if she was going to let anyone treat her like a piece of crap they dragged off their shoe ever again.

"Quit it the fuck out?" Doug asked with a shake of his head. Trust Jubilee to turn a phrase completely on its ear, regardless of little things like grammar. He leaned back in his chair. "Duly noted, thank you," he said in a tone somewhere between sarcastic and actually thankful, and not even he was sure how far away either extreme was. "I got to have this same conversation with Amanda before India," he noted.

"So, quick review of the high points, because I don't really feel like going through it in depth a second time." Doug ticked off on his fingers. "Had reasons for the way things happened, did the best I could with the information I had at the time, and at least this way ended with Selene, and -only- Selene, in the ground and a threat that was previously at large in a place where we could keep a closer eye on her. And lastly, until the guy who hired me, that's Pete, shows me the door, I'll continue doing my job the best I can." He sighed, bone-deep weariness showing behind his attempts at crankiness for just a moment. "And that's going to have to be good enough for you."

"Defensive much, dude?" Jubilee noted, taking a bite of her cake as she reviewed what Doug said. "It's not about the results, least, not for me. Remy? Well, it's his ex-wife, dude. Gambit's wife even, and that's a whole bunch of 'let me mind fuck you sideways' to try and figure out, I'll tell ya. You gotta expect him to be pissed for a good long while about that. It's a whole trust thing, though. You and Emma, you didn't trust us to know what was neccessary, or to even agree with you that that was the best case scenario. You're so fucking ready to defend that decision you're not even thinkin' about what it is we're all really pissed about. Least, what I'm pissed about. The others, well, they can get in line, or have, whatever. But we're meant to trust each other, totally and you and Emma sure as fuck didn't. That's what has my panties in a wad, dude. But, apology accepted, just at least think about what the hell you're doing and be like, less 'I don't care how shitty you all are at me, I know what's best.' cause that shit don't fly."

Doug rubbed the bridge of his nose. And here it all went again.

"Telepaths queer the entire situation," he said. "I know you know that. And the Black Court has at least one capable telepath that we know about." The weariness returned again to his expression, this time to stay. "It was a calculated thing, and none of the options were palatable. But trust has to go both ways, too. Sometimes you have to trust that we're doing the best we can, even when the outcome is shitty."

"We might've found a way around that, if we'd known. But, you know, water and bridges and all that. Not much served continuing to go over the damn thing. Not why I came to see you anyhow," Jubilee replied, leaning down and fishing a medium sized box from her messenger bag and sliding it across the table to Doug. "Happy birthday, man, don't say I never get you anything."

"I..." Doug cleared his throat, remembering the birthday card he'd folded into the files he'd given Amanda, and leaving the painful and frustrating (for both of them) conversation before she'd gotten a chance to see it. "Thank you," he said huskily with a distant expression on his face.

"You're welcome," Jubilee noted, pushing the mug of coffee back toward him, and then taking a sip of her green tea with a hefty sigh of pleasure. "So, you planning on actually doing anything for your birthday?"

"Probably not," Doug murmured. Given that his girlfriend was sleeping anywhere but their shared apartment, and several others of X-Force had said extremely strong words to him, he rather doubted his birthday was going to be much of a celebration at the moment.

"Then you're doing something now, dude. You can help me investigate some new restaurants I've found in District X," Jubilee noted, grinning at him brightly.

Jubilee still believed he'd made the wrong choice, but he'd had what he believed was a good reason for it at the time. She could respect that, and no one should spend their birthday doing nothing but working, or playing computer games.