imprudency: (011)
ᴋʟᴀᴜs | ɴᴜᴍʙᴇʀ ғᴏᴜʀ ([personal profile] imprudency) wrote in [community profile] trashbinned 2020-11-29 01:19 am (UTC)

Failing to be there when Allison needed him most feels like a betrayal, in a way, to the years and years of her life she's spent helping him. Seeing her injured, laid out on a infirmary bed, is something that haunts him as clearly as the dusky grounds of Vietnam, of the mountain, of Dave's vacant eyes.

He couldn't save Dave. He couldn't save Allison. Is Vanya next? Who else will he fail in his stumbling journey back home? And as much as he wishes they had never gotten on that plane, he knows better. He knows that the outcome would have been much, much worse had they not.

"Oh, you know," he sighs, something lilting and playful on his tired voice. "Could really go for a burger the size of my head, some curly fries, maybe a milkshake, all tucked in with a side of whiskey, but who wouldn't? It's a real winning combo. A number four, in fact," he smiles, eyes never leaving Allison's sleeping face, occasionally flicking to the bandage at her neck. But their knees knock and he turns to look at Diego again, the airy, pomp and circumstance facade falling in favor of a small, soft smile.

"And leave her with you? The family bulldog?" There's nothing sharp or biting in his tone and in fact, he leans into Diego's side for a moment, hand still on his shoulder. They're strangers, really, but underneath it all they're still the two, scrambling children trying desperately to stay afloat. Two kids who traded cigarettes and knives and toys and notes under the table, just to see how long they could get away with it.

"I'll take the hint, but five minutes only," he says in a stage whisper and leans away, hands dropping back into his lap. He fidgets with his hands, picking at the multi-colored nail polish left over from a night of playing dress up with Claire. "It just feels wrong to leave her. It's been me and Al for... oh, I don't know, six years now? Seven. Shit. This shouldn't have happened. None of it. Not to her."

Post a comment in response:

This account has disabled anonymous posting.
If you don't have an account you can create one now.
HTML doesn't work in the subject.
More info about formatting