Jean-Phillipe and Haller - Smoke Break
Jul. 29th, 2023 09:26 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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xp_logsDuring the social at Harry's, Haller has had enough peopling for a bit, so he goes outside for a smoke break, only to find that someone else had a similar idea. But one-on-one discussion is okay, even if Haller's a bit perplexed by a certain topic...
The night air was as cool as could be expected in late July, which was to say, not very. Still, the porch offered a respite from other things. So many people. The new X-Men all seemed like good people, but the Danger Room hadn't been a tenth as exhausting as the subsequent socialization. Going out for a smoke was a good excuse to escape for a while.
Jim slipped a cigarette between his lips and paused to massage his forehead. Even though he'd kept the drinks strictly non-alcoholic he knew he was in for a headache tomorrow.
"Do you need a light, M'sieu Haller?" came a voice from the designated 'smoke spot' - a pair of benches, a canister for disposing of cigarette butts, and a few dim lights to keep the space illuminated. The voice's owner was obvious - Jean-Phillipe Colbert leaned back on one of the benches, taking a long drag and then blowing the smoke vertically as he stretched his legs in front of him.
At the voice Jim automatically straightened his posture and smoothed his expression to one less revealing of fatigue.
"Oh, hey Jean-Phillipe," he said, "Thanks, I've got one." The telepath extracted the lighter from his pocket and waved it vaguely at the younger man before lighting up. He inhaled deeply, the end of his cigarette flaring red in the darkness before he exhaled. "How's Angelo?" Jim inquired. "Sorry I couldn't make it to the party."
Jean-Phillipe smiled, as he usually did whenever the subject of his husband arose. "He is well. I seem to have somehow found myself slipping into domesticity and discovering it somehow suits me," he observed wryly. He doubted most of the mansion would have expected that of him when he had first arrived. "It was a small ceremony, but thank you for thinking of us." The amused look on his face grew more pronounced. "I told Erik I would have sent him an invitation the last time we confronted the Brotherhood."
Jim snorted despite himself. "Did he at least get you something from the registry?"
"It -would- explain the anonymous Amazon package we received several weeks after the mission," a chuckle accompanied Jean-Phillipe's reply. "Who can say?" He nodded to Haller. "How are you settling back in to the chaos that is the mansion?" he asked.
Unevenly enough that I'm getting benched by my inner sixteen year old so she could broadcast our collective lack of pitch in karaoke. "Decently. Sooraya's helping me with the transition. Or was put up to it by Moira." The telepath took another drag, letting the silence stretch for a few moments. "It sounds like you guys have had a rough few years here."
Jean-Phillipe couldn't keep an eyebrow from raising at the mention of Sooraya. "At times easy, and at times very much not," he agreed. "I hope that your time at Muir Island was...less fraught," he offered. He paused, not sure he wanted to engage in gossiping and the like. "You and Sooraya are quite the topic of discussion, according to what I've heard Angelo muttering about," he finally said.
Jim tapped ash from his cigarette. "Mm. We spent a lot of time together when she was doing research for her handbook. She's helping me set up for some volunteering at the community center after I get some other things sorted out. It's nice to see her again. She's really grown up."
It took everything for Jean-Phillipe not to snort. No one as oblivious as Haller had just been could possibly be carrying on the sort of torrid love affair that the younger residents of the mansion seemed to think he was. Of course, then the question was whether or not he should clue the other man in, or just let things carry on. He took a long drag of his cigarette to give himself time to decide. "I believe the topic was more speculation about if you are a couple or not," he offered. As funny as the misunderstanding was, he liked Haller, and it seemed mean-spirited not to at least give him a chance to be in on the joke.
His teammate snorted. "Where would I fit that into my busy schedule of allegedly dating Jean?" he asked. "People" and by people he assumed Jean-Phillipe meant Warren, since Jim couldn't imagine who else would be thinking that "have a tendency to read into any interaction between two members of the opposite sex. And sometimes the same sex. They forget platonic relationships are an option. Anyway, dating's been off the table for me for a long time." He took another drag. "It's just too complicated."
"I suspect some people also can't conceive of a person being content without a partner of some kind, and thus become meddlesome." Jean-Phillipe's observation included more than just Warren, though in the case of the younger residents, they certainly meant well by it.
"Agreed." Jim breathed out another plume of smoke, then seemed to remember who he was talking to. He gave Jean-Phillipe a lopsided smile. "Most people are capable of figuring out what they want all on their own, anyway."
Jean-Phillipe nodded. "I do not think Warren understands anyone who does not want to be...as profligate as him, though."
The night air was as cool as could be expected in late July, which was to say, not very. Still, the porch offered a respite from other things. So many people. The new X-Men all seemed like good people, but the Danger Room hadn't been a tenth as exhausting as the subsequent socialization. Going out for a smoke was a good excuse to escape for a while.
Jim slipped a cigarette between his lips and paused to massage his forehead. Even though he'd kept the drinks strictly non-alcoholic he knew he was in for a headache tomorrow.
"Do you need a light, M'sieu Haller?" came a voice from the designated 'smoke spot' - a pair of benches, a canister for disposing of cigarette butts, and a few dim lights to keep the space illuminated. The voice's owner was obvious - Jean-Phillipe Colbert leaned back on one of the benches, taking a long drag and then blowing the smoke vertically as he stretched his legs in front of him.
At the voice Jim automatically straightened his posture and smoothed his expression to one less revealing of fatigue.
"Oh, hey Jean-Phillipe," he said, "Thanks, I've got one." The telepath extracted the lighter from his pocket and waved it vaguely at the younger man before lighting up. He inhaled deeply, the end of his cigarette flaring red in the darkness before he exhaled. "How's Angelo?" Jim inquired. "Sorry I couldn't make it to the party."
Jean-Phillipe smiled, as he usually did whenever the subject of his husband arose. "He is well. I seem to have somehow found myself slipping into domesticity and discovering it somehow suits me," he observed wryly. He doubted most of the mansion would have expected that of him when he had first arrived. "It was a small ceremony, but thank you for thinking of us." The amused look on his face grew more pronounced. "I told Erik I would have sent him an invitation the last time we confronted the Brotherhood."
Jim snorted despite himself. "Did he at least get you something from the registry?"
"It -would- explain the anonymous Amazon package we received several weeks after the mission," a chuckle accompanied Jean-Phillipe's reply. "Who can say?" He nodded to Haller. "How are you settling back in to the chaos that is the mansion?" he asked.
Unevenly enough that I'm getting benched by my inner sixteen year old so she could broadcast our collective lack of pitch in karaoke. "Decently. Sooraya's helping me with the transition. Or was put up to it by Moira." The telepath took another drag, letting the silence stretch for a few moments. "It sounds like you guys have had a rough few years here."
Jean-Phillipe couldn't keep an eyebrow from raising at the mention of Sooraya. "At times easy, and at times very much not," he agreed. "I hope that your time at Muir Island was...less fraught," he offered. He paused, not sure he wanted to engage in gossiping and the like. "You and Sooraya are quite the topic of discussion, according to what I've heard Angelo muttering about," he finally said.
Jim tapped ash from his cigarette. "Mm. We spent a lot of time together when she was doing research for her handbook. She's helping me set up for some volunteering at the community center after I get some other things sorted out. It's nice to see her again. She's really grown up."
It took everything for Jean-Phillipe not to snort. No one as oblivious as Haller had just been could possibly be carrying on the sort of torrid love affair that the younger residents of the mansion seemed to think he was. Of course, then the question was whether or not he should clue the other man in, or just let things carry on. He took a long drag of his cigarette to give himself time to decide. "I believe the topic was more speculation about if you are a couple or not," he offered. As funny as the misunderstanding was, he liked Haller, and it seemed mean-spirited not to at least give him a chance to be in on the joke.
His teammate snorted. "Where would I fit that into my busy schedule of allegedly dating Jean?" he asked. "People" and by people he assumed Jean-Phillipe meant Warren, since Jim couldn't imagine who else would be thinking that "have a tendency to read into any interaction between two members of the opposite sex. And sometimes the same sex. They forget platonic relationships are an option. Anyway, dating's been off the table for me for a long time." He took another drag. "It's just too complicated."
"I suspect some people also can't conceive of a person being content without a partner of some kind, and thus become meddlesome." Jean-Phillipe's observation included more than just Warren, though in the case of the younger residents, they certainly meant well by it.
"Agreed." Jim breathed out another plume of smoke, then seemed to remember who he was talking to. He gave Jean-Phillipe a lopsided smile. "Most people are capable of figuring out what they want all on their own, anyway."
Jean-Phillipe nodded. "I do not think Warren understands anyone who does not want to be...as profligate as him, though."
