Laura & JPB | Sunday Night (backdated)
Nov. 6th, 2011 10:31 pm![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
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xp_logsLaura and Jean-Paul are working a pretty simple infidelity case when Laura tells Jean-Paul she's leaving.
Jean-Paul stood on the roof of the building across the street from the low-end motel their mark had entered a few moments ago and rolled his eyes as he took the camera case off and began to set it up. Glancing over his shoulder as Laura came up the fire escape, he lifted his chin in the direction of the room. "Why is it, do you think, that they never close the curtains all the way? It is cold outside, and they leave the curtains cracked. Infidelity - I do not understand it anyway, but I especially do not understand stupid infidelity."
"They like to feel the rush of possibly being found out, while being completely confident they won't." Laura let a little chuckle as she thought of that logic. "Of course, nobody thinks they will get caught. People are intrinsically silly sometimes, I swear." She gave the half closed window a look, but then turned to face Jean-Paul. "I kinda missed this, you know? Small, low budgeted crime surveillance."
"Oui," Jean-Paul said, nodding. "I did a great deal of aerial surveillance in Denmark, relaying information back to my counterparts on the ground. And my speed, it was convenient if we needed to get the client out of an area quickly, which happened twice, but it was all..." The Quebecois waved a hand. "It was not this. And it was not with friends. I cannot even think of the way things must have been here, searching." And he still couldn't believe he hadn't guessed that something was wrong. But there was nothing he could do about that, no recriminations now would make up for it - Vanessa had almost said as much. "And so... I think I will enjoy this simple work for a little while."
Laura listened in silence. In the end, it had been about that, making bonds, finding a place among a crowd. It had done her good, and it had done her bad. So, so bad. But she was grateful for all of that as it had helped her to grow. Sure she had taken her time but she somehow had changed. "I guess this could also be my kind of life. But...I need to leave." She suddenly looked away and back at the window, mainly to avoid his eyes. "'Nessa is safe and now I need to go after Kevin."
"Kevin is in Brook," Jean-Paul murmured, carefully resting the camera on the ledge before which he was now crouching. "Or Atlanta. Or somewhere else. And Vanessa... I am not so sure how 'safe' she is. Rather, perhaps... how well she is, now that she is safe. She does not necessarily believe that she is safe." The Quebecois snapped a couple pictures to make sure the quality was good so far as visibility was concerned, then glanced up at Laura. She wasn't looking at him, but he could see her expression if not her eyes. "Ah. But he is what you need now, oui?"
A short sigh was the first answer Jean-Paul got. Only a moment later Laura replied. "Is it a selfish thing? That I want to depend on him? I promised that I would find him once 'Nessa was safe, and by safe I mean here with us, and now that she is...I don't want to be the one person that ditches her for some happiness on my own." Even though she truly felt like she needed that happiness.
Turning back to the camera, Jean-Paul set his eye to the viewer and concentrated on the view through the lens for a moment. He tilted it to a slightly different angle and snapped a picture - they wouldn't be able to do much until things got further along and he could get closer to the window without having to worry about their mark noticing. "You are young," he murmured, voice soft. "If you are going to be selfish, now is the time to do so. And I think, truly, that it..."
The Quebecois stopped for a moment, looking back up at Laura. He knew that things after the brothel had been difficult. He'd been against sending her in there. And he knew what it was like to feel like everything was spinning out of control. He also knew precisely what it felt like when Kevin stepped into the room and all that outside noise, all the distractions and the barrage of emotions he didn't want to deal with... simply stopped. "If it is what you need, then it is not so selfish, you see?"
"It's to need and to be needed though, I can't balance that shit. But right now I think I need more than I'm needed." Laura shook her head as she gathered her thoughts. "Leaving shouldn't be this hard. I shouldn't be this attached to you all, heh. Not so cool and independent now, am I?"
Tipping his head to the side, Jean-Paul said, "You mean you are not so alone. There is nothing wrong with being attached to others, as you say. It is not easy, but... it is good, in some ways." He quirked a rueful smile, checked their mark through the camera lens to make sure nothing interesting was happening, then looked back to Laura. "Feelings - they make life complicated, do they not?" His own life always got difficult when he let his emotions get the better of him. "Just know that... you always have somewhere to come back to. Both of you. It is not a question so much of if, but when, oui? When you are both ready, you will come back. And until then..." He shrugged. "Until then, you will do what you need to do for yourselves."
Laura nodded, and by now she was making quite the effort to keep the tears back. All in all it wasn't going that good. At all. So when she looked up at Jean-Paul her eyes were already puffy; emotional stuff was seriously her weak spot. "It's not like I'm going to go away forever. I mean don't you think you won't get dragged over at some point to have some mingling with the Fords or whatever." She nodded quickly as she closed the distance with him, eyes set back on the target. Laura figured she would treat him to some cheap food and cry to her heart's content once they were done there.
"It's nice to have somewhere to come back."
Jean-Paul smiled a little bitterly, though he hid the expression by turning his face back toward the camera. Somehow, he didn't think the Fords would necessarily be pleased to meet their grandson's much older, quasi-former boyfriend, but he kept that to himself. "Oui, it is. I think the mark, things are far enough along that they would not notice me at the window. I will be back in a moment - tell me if you hear anything, mon ami."
Jean-Paul stood on the roof of the building across the street from the low-end motel their mark had entered a few moments ago and rolled his eyes as he took the camera case off and began to set it up. Glancing over his shoulder as Laura came up the fire escape, he lifted his chin in the direction of the room. "Why is it, do you think, that they never close the curtains all the way? It is cold outside, and they leave the curtains cracked. Infidelity - I do not understand it anyway, but I especially do not understand stupid infidelity."
"They like to feel the rush of possibly being found out, while being completely confident they won't." Laura let a little chuckle as she thought of that logic. "Of course, nobody thinks they will get caught. People are intrinsically silly sometimes, I swear." She gave the half closed window a look, but then turned to face Jean-Paul. "I kinda missed this, you know? Small, low budgeted crime surveillance."
"Oui," Jean-Paul said, nodding. "I did a great deal of aerial surveillance in Denmark, relaying information back to my counterparts on the ground. And my speed, it was convenient if we needed to get the client out of an area quickly, which happened twice, but it was all..." The Quebecois waved a hand. "It was not this. And it was not with friends. I cannot even think of the way things must have been here, searching." And he still couldn't believe he hadn't guessed that something was wrong. But there was nothing he could do about that, no recriminations now would make up for it - Vanessa had almost said as much. "And so... I think I will enjoy this simple work for a little while."
Laura listened in silence. In the end, it had been about that, making bonds, finding a place among a crowd. It had done her good, and it had done her bad. So, so bad. But she was grateful for all of that as it had helped her to grow. Sure she had taken her time but she somehow had changed. "I guess this could also be my kind of life. But...I need to leave." She suddenly looked away and back at the window, mainly to avoid his eyes. "'Nessa is safe and now I need to go after Kevin."
"Kevin is in Brook," Jean-Paul murmured, carefully resting the camera on the ledge before which he was now crouching. "Or Atlanta. Or somewhere else. And Vanessa... I am not so sure how 'safe' she is. Rather, perhaps... how well she is, now that she is safe. She does not necessarily believe that she is safe." The Quebecois snapped a couple pictures to make sure the quality was good so far as visibility was concerned, then glanced up at Laura. She wasn't looking at him, but he could see her expression if not her eyes. "Ah. But he is what you need now, oui?"
A short sigh was the first answer Jean-Paul got. Only a moment later Laura replied. "Is it a selfish thing? That I want to depend on him? I promised that I would find him once 'Nessa was safe, and by safe I mean here with us, and now that she is...I don't want to be the one person that ditches her for some happiness on my own." Even though she truly felt like she needed that happiness.
Turning back to the camera, Jean-Paul set his eye to the viewer and concentrated on the view through the lens for a moment. He tilted it to a slightly different angle and snapped a picture - they wouldn't be able to do much until things got further along and he could get closer to the window without having to worry about their mark noticing. "You are young," he murmured, voice soft. "If you are going to be selfish, now is the time to do so. And I think, truly, that it..."
The Quebecois stopped for a moment, looking back up at Laura. He knew that things after the brothel had been difficult. He'd been against sending her in there. And he knew what it was like to feel like everything was spinning out of control. He also knew precisely what it felt like when Kevin stepped into the room and all that outside noise, all the distractions and the barrage of emotions he didn't want to deal with... simply stopped. "If it is what you need, then it is not so selfish, you see?"
"It's to need and to be needed though, I can't balance that shit. But right now I think I need more than I'm needed." Laura shook her head as she gathered her thoughts. "Leaving shouldn't be this hard. I shouldn't be this attached to you all, heh. Not so cool and independent now, am I?"
Tipping his head to the side, Jean-Paul said, "You mean you are not so alone. There is nothing wrong with being attached to others, as you say. It is not easy, but... it is good, in some ways." He quirked a rueful smile, checked their mark through the camera lens to make sure nothing interesting was happening, then looked back to Laura. "Feelings - they make life complicated, do they not?" His own life always got difficult when he let his emotions get the better of him. "Just know that... you always have somewhere to come back to. Both of you. It is not a question so much of if, but when, oui? When you are both ready, you will come back. And until then..." He shrugged. "Until then, you will do what you need to do for yourselves."
Laura nodded, and by now she was making quite the effort to keep the tears back. All in all it wasn't going that good. At all. So when she looked up at Jean-Paul her eyes were already puffy; emotional stuff was seriously her weak spot. "It's not like I'm going to go away forever. I mean don't you think you won't get dragged over at some point to have some mingling with the Fords or whatever." She nodded quickly as she closed the distance with him, eyes set back on the target. Laura figured she would treat him to some cheap food and cry to her heart's content once they were done there.
"It's nice to have somewhere to come back."
Jean-Paul smiled a little bitterly, though he hid the expression by turning his face back toward the camera. Somehow, he didn't think the Fords would necessarily be pleased to meet their grandson's much older, quasi-former boyfriend, but he kept that to himself. "Oui, it is. I think the mark, things are far enough along that they would not notice me at the window. I will be back in a moment - tell me if you hear anything, mon ami."
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