Possibly the End of the Mini-Series...?
Who: Chloe and Schuldich
Where: Schu's apartment
When: This morning...early afternoon?
What: Schu wakes up back to normal...The usual Chloe-n-Schu drama ensues.
Warnings: Some potty-mouth words D:
Schuldich, as a telepath, was familiar with every type of headache known to mankind. They came from stress, from overexerting his talent, from drinking too much (his personal favorite kind) and, of course, from having his shields overwhelmed by other peoples' thoughts. It took all of two seconds after he woke up to identify which this was. The worst kind, of course. Gratitude for being alive and sane was quickly overwhelmed by an intense desire to have remained blissfully unconscious. The aftermath of a telepathic break was the kind of headache that spread through his whole body and made thinking a chore. And, unfortunately, there was thinking that needed to be done.
Number one: there was another body pressed against his, holding him, almost protective. Number two, that someone was Chloe. The subtle scent of roses clinging to his skin gave it away. Number three, both of them were clothed. That was unusual. Number four, his hair was back, indicating that he was no longer an eight-year-old. But it dawned on him slowly that he very recently had been. And, number five, he was recovering from what had to have been a nasty telepathic meltdown.
Totaling the above, Schuldich came to the conclusion that being turned into a kid and nearly losing his mind (again) had somehow resulted in him cuddling with Chloe.
What. The. Fuck.
Chloe, still asleep, felt Schuldich tense a little with his awakening and wrapped his arms a little tighter, snuggling a bit closer. Even in his sleep, he could instinctively tell that Schuldich needed protecting and nuzzled his hair soothingly.
He was a late, sound sleeper. If Schuldich wanted the cuddling to stop...He'd probably have to wake him up.
Well, this was just great. Schuldich sighed as he took stock of his situation. Whatever had happened while he was a kid had apparently woken up Chloe's maternal instinct - even asleep, he could feel protective nurturance rolling off the blond in waves. And then there was the viselike grip he found himself stuck in. Annoyed by being held, he made a valiant effort to wriggle his way out of it. Unfortunately, he still couldn't make his mind send his body adequate instructions on how to go about it, so he quickly gave up and gave Chloe a rather rough poke in the shoulder instead.
"Nnh." Chloe made a sleepy sound of upset at the poke, brows knitting. He wasn't quite ready to wake up yet and was upset that some one would attempt to rouse him before he was ready.
He yawned, relaxing his hold on Schuldich, and stretched a little, rolling over and finally freeing the redhead. Another yawn, and his eyes slid open, gaze focusing on Schuldich's ceiling.
He glanced over to check on his companion only to find...Crap. He wasn't a kid any more. This was where things were bound to get *really* bad.
"Good morning, sunshine," Schuldich said sourly, in no mood for games. "Would you mind awfully telling me what the hell is going on here?"
For a moment, Chloe didn't move. There was an instant where it was almost completely devastating to hear that tone of voice again, but he recovered quickly. "You had a breakdown." Chloe said softly, "Somehow, you turned into a child...And you couldn't control your telepathy."
"That much I can tell," Schuldich groused. "There isn't much else in the world that can make me feel this crappy. But it doesn't explain what you're doing here."
That was the bottom line of what Schuldich wanted to know, really. If someone had told him he would manage to survive another telepathic breakdown, he would have expected to wake up with Brad. Or by himself, though the odds of him waking up at all without a calm mind nearby that he could anchor himself to were slim to none. If Chloe had been that anchor for him...well, things were about to get much more complicated.
"You were at my apartment...And you ran off." Chloe's voice was still low; he was trying to keep it even and keep emotion out of it. He was really, really glad Schuldich was okay, but...suspected this would result in the distance between them growing more. "I didn't know where you were...But Free told me I had to find you, or something bad would happen. So I found you here..."
"And decided to nurse me back to health?" Schuldich finished. "Thanks, Florence."
Free. Of course Free would have something to do with it. He just couldn't keep his cards out of other people's business. And no matter how hard Chloe tried to keep his emotions a secret, it wouldn't work. He really should know better by now.
"I'm glad you appreciate that I didn't leave you here to lose your mind." Chloe snapped, already growing aggravated that Schuldich couldn't even pretend to be thankful. He rolled over, facing the wall, and folded his arms, "Next time, I'll let you go crazy, then."
"Go right ahead, I've been through worse," Schuldich retorted. Secretly, he felt bad about it. Despite all his recklessness and risk-taking, he really did have a strong desire to survive, and Chloe had helped him through a situation that could very well have killed him. Still, old habits died hard, and it wouldn't serve him well to show any vulnerability at this point. He couldn't let himself need Chloe.
"Whatever." It hurt. Chloe had spent the past few days worrying about Schuldich, looking after him, making sure he wasn't in too much pain or too sick. And this was the thanks he got, the same old attitude and ingratitude. Nothing ever changed and that hurt.
"What did you expect?" Schuldich sneered. "That I'd just fall into your arms and...Oh my god." He trailed off, his expression melting into shock bordering on horror as the full extent of Chloe's feelings toward him began to seep into his traumatized mind. Not good. Not good at all.
"You could at least be a little bit grateful!" Chloe rose in one swift movement, finding his shoes and shoving his feet into them, "I've been in the same clothes for three days, you threw up on me the first time I tried to get you to eat...You could have died! Even I know it was that bad!" He paced around the room a little, growing more and more angry by the second. He was tired of all this shit; why couldn't he ever have a moment's normalcy in his life? "And you don't even care that I kept you alive!"
"Stop trying to send me on a guilt trip, Chloe. Because I know what this is really about," Schuldich replied, his tone cold. "I don't do love. You knew that when you met me, you knew that when you got yourself into this, and you know it now."
Chloe stopped. Stared at him, expression unreadable. "I don't care how much you deny it," He finally began after a long silence, "I know you need me. You might not fucking love any one but yourself, but I know you need me somehow, or you wouldn't keep letting me get close and pushing me away, then making nice again. You can stop being an ass about it, or you can keep being a bastard. I don't care...I'm going home."
Schuldich rolled over to face the wall and ignored him. Ignored the fact that it hurt to do so. Ignored the warning in his mind that burning his bridges with Chloe could kill him if he found himself in the same predicament again. That he did need Chloe, whether he admitted it or not.
The thought crossed his mind that if events hadn't shaped him into the person he was, if he were capable of loving at all, he could have loved Chloe. He dismissed it. It, just like Chloe himself, was far too sentimental.
Chloe gave him one last somewhat incredulous look. Then he stormed out, slamming both the bedroom and apartment doors on the way. He was already fighting angry tears before he made it to the front door, but he didn't care any more. He just wanted to go home and forget all of this had ever happened.
Where: Schu's apartment
When: This morning...early afternoon?
What: Schu wakes up back to normal...The usual Chloe-n-Schu drama ensues.
Warnings: Some potty-mouth words D:
Schuldich, as a telepath, was familiar with every type of headache known to mankind. They came from stress, from overexerting his talent, from drinking too much (his personal favorite kind) and, of course, from having his shields overwhelmed by other peoples' thoughts. It took all of two seconds after he woke up to identify which this was. The worst kind, of course. Gratitude for being alive and sane was quickly overwhelmed by an intense desire to have remained blissfully unconscious. The aftermath of a telepathic break was the kind of headache that spread through his whole body and made thinking a chore. And, unfortunately, there was thinking that needed to be done.
Number one: there was another body pressed against his, holding him, almost protective. Number two, that someone was Chloe. The subtle scent of roses clinging to his skin gave it away. Number three, both of them were clothed. That was unusual. Number four, his hair was back, indicating that he was no longer an eight-year-old. But it dawned on him slowly that he very recently had been. And, number five, he was recovering from what had to have been a nasty telepathic meltdown.
Totaling the above, Schuldich came to the conclusion that being turned into a kid and nearly losing his mind (again) had somehow resulted in him cuddling with Chloe.
What. The. Fuck.
Chloe, still asleep, felt Schuldich tense a little with his awakening and wrapped his arms a little tighter, snuggling a bit closer. Even in his sleep, he could instinctively tell that Schuldich needed protecting and nuzzled his hair soothingly.
He was a late, sound sleeper. If Schuldich wanted the cuddling to stop...He'd probably have to wake him up.
Well, this was just great. Schuldich sighed as he took stock of his situation. Whatever had happened while he was a kid had apparently woken up Chloe's maternal instinct - even asleep, he could feel protective nurturance rolling off the blond in waves. And then there was the viselike grip he found himself stuck in. Annoyed by being held, he made a valiant effort to wriggle his way out of it. Unfortunately, he still couldn't make his mind send his body adequate instructions on how to go about it, so he quickly gave up and gave Chloe a rather rough poke in the shoulder instead.
"Nnh." Chloe made a sleepy sound of upset at the poke, brows knitting. He wasn't quite ready to wake up yet and was upset that some one would attempt to rouse him before he was ready.
He yawned, relaxing his hold on Schuldich, and stretched a little, rolling over and finally freeing the redhead. Another yawn, and his eyes slid open, gaze focusing on Schuldich's ceiling.
He glanced over to check on his companion only to find...Crap. He wasn't a kid any more. This was where things were bound to get *really* bad.
"Good morning, sunshine," Schuldich said sourly, in no mood for games. "Would you mind awfully telling me what the hell is going on here?"
For a moment, Chloe didn't move. There was an instant where it was almost completely devastating to hear that tone of voice again, but he recovered quickly. "You had a breakdown." Chloe said softly, "Somehow, you turned into a child...And you couldn't control your telepathy."
"That much I can tell," Schuldich groused. "There isn't much else in the world that can make me feel this crappy. But it doesn't explain what you're doing here."
That was the bottom line of what Schuldich wanted to know, really. If someone had told him he would manage to survive another telepathic breakdown, he would have expected to wake up with Brad. Or by himself, though the odds of him waking up at all without a calm mind nearby that he could anchor himself to were slim to none. If Chloe had been that anchor for him...well, things were about to get much more complicated.
"You were at my apartment...And you ran off." Chloe's voice was still low; he was trying to keep it even and keep emotion out of it. He was really, really glad Schuldich was okay, but...suspected this would result in the distance between them growing more. "I didn't know where you were...But Free told me I had to find you, or something bad would happen. So I found you here..."
"And decided to nurse me back to health?" Schuldich finished. "Thanks, Florence."
Free. Of course Free would have something to do with it. He just couldn't keep his cards out of other people's business. And no matter how hard Chloe tried to keep his emotions a secret, it wouldn't work. He really should know better by now.
"I'm glad you appreciate that I didn't leave you here to lose your mind." Chloe snapped, already growing aggravated that Schuldich couldn't even pretend to be thankful. He rolled over, facing the wall, and folded his arms, "Next time, I'll let you go crazy, then."
"Go right ahead, I've been through worse," Schuldich retorted. Secretly, he felt bad about it. Despite all his recklessness and risk-taking, he really did have a strong desire to survive, and Chloe had helped him through a situation that could very well have killed him. Still, old habits died hard, and it wouldn't serve him well to show any vulnerability at this point. He couldn't let himself need Chloe.
"Whatever." It hurt. Chloe had spent the past few days worrying about Schuldich, looking after him, making sure he wasn't in too much pain or too sick. And this was the thanks he got, the same old attitude and ingratitude. Nothing ever changed and that hurt.
"What did you expect?" Schuldich sneered. "That I'd just fall into your arms and...Oh my god." He trailed off, his expression melting into shock bordering on horror as the full extent of Chloe's feelings toward him began to seep into his traumatized mind. Not good. Not good at all.
"You could at least be a little bit grateful!" Chloe rose in one swift movement, finding his shoes and shoving his feet into them, "I've been in the same clothes for three days, you threw up on me the first time I tried to get you to eat...You could have died! Even I know it was that bad!" He paced around the room a little, growing more and more angry by the second. He was tired of all this shit; why couldn't he ever have a moment's normalcy in his life? "And you don't even care that I kept you alive!"
"Stop trying to send me on a guilt trip, Chloe. Because I know what this is really about," Schuldich replied, his tone cold. "I don't do love. You knew that when you met me, you knew that when you got yourself into this, and you know it now."
Chloe stopped. Stared at him, expression unreadable. "I don't care how much you deny it," He finally began after a long silence, "I know you need me. You might not fucking love any one but yourself, but I know you need me somehow, or you wouldn't keep letting me get close and pushing me away, then making nice again. You can stop being an ass about it, or you can keep being a bastard. I don't care...I'm going home."
Schuldich rolled over to face the wall and ignored him. Ignored the fact that it hurt to do so. Ignored the warning in his mind that burning his bridges with Chloe could kill him if he found himself in the same predicament again. That he did need Chloe, whether he admitted it or not.
The thought crossed his mind that if events hadn't shaped him into the person he was, if he were capable of loving at all, he could have loved Chloe. He dismissed it. It, just like Chloe himself, was far too sentimental.
Chloe gave him one last somewhat incredulous look. Then he stormed out, slamming both the bedroom and apartment doors on the way. He was already fighting angry tears before he made it to the front door, but he didn't care any more. He just wanted to go home and forget all of this had ever happened.