[Mohinder clears his throat as if he's about to start a lecture. He's propped his phone up against the wall and has seated himself at his desk, hands folded
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[Sam's message reminded him that he ought to be making himself available in other ways, and he's really missing... adults, but no -- he misses Mohinder. Maybe they've had enough space that things are okay now? He hopes so. Watching this video gives him a little pang.]
Hey, it's Bruce. Do you need any help? I could probably pry these kids off me long enough to come in.
[He still feels bad about it. Like, extremely bad, and he just doesn't know what to do to fix it. Mostly he just disappears, but he can't stay disappeared here.
He wrinkles his nose and ruffles his hair.]
I'm a poodle now? I thought I was a sheep. And... a rest, maybe, yeah. They're cute, but tiring.
[And he's better at kids when he's in better control of his temper.]
No, I'm afraid the jury came back and decided that I, once again, am the only sheep person here. You're a poodle. Don't feel too badly. It means that John won't force you to eat a constant stream of pizza bagels.
Oh yeah, Handy! I made him Purell his hands before he could touch my hair. Maybe that's why I'm a poodle and not a sheep. They were covered in chocolate and then spit, though, so I don't think I was out of line.
[No, he shares space with Bruce's not-a-boyfriend.]
Yeah... If you see him in there with my teammate -- Tony, right? -- make sure they don't... die. I'd appreciate it.
What? Really? When did this happen? I missed that!
[Maybe when he was tripping on stars with Loki or whatever he did the other day? Also Bruce is kind of the champion of soldiering through situations where everyone involved has weird feelings about him. It's better when he doesn't care what they think, but he cares what Mohinder thinks. That's why it helps that he's so sweet and soft-spoken. He puts Bruce at ease.]
Yesterday I believe. John's really very distraught about it, however and isn't speaking too much about it. He and Kenzi just left. They were helping me slides.
But what about you? How does it feel to be a teenager again?
[Soft spoken, yes. Mild mannered, yes. And just a touch lonely.]
[He frowns, worried now.] That's weird. I'll try to talk to one of them about it.
[Well, it'd been awkward and then terrifying and then amazing (unrelated to being a teenager) and then awkward again and now it's still awkward. He frowns, trying to come up with a better answer than that.]
I'm rather glad I got to stay myself. I was a dreadfully boring teenager. Then again, perhaps it might have been nice to try it again...despite the overblown hormones.
[Especially when your not-boyfriend's eight and your platonic snuggles with your best friend get weird and you can't jerk off because it's dangerous even when you aren't generally 10 times more volatile than you are as an adult.]
I wasn't a very exciting teenager, either. I was kind of cranky. And I spent a lot of time doing homework. You really aren't missing out on anything, trust me.
Hey, it's Bruce. Do you need any help? I could probably pry these kids off me long enough to come in.
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So now I see why they're calling you a poodle. Do you need a rest?
I'm actually pretty fond of them.
[And he misses you too, Bruce. He does. That... What happened? It's still raw.]
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He wrinkles his nose and ruffles his hair.]
I'm a poodle now? I thought I was a sheep. And... a rest, maybe, yeah. They're cute, but tiring.
[And he's better at kids when he's in better control of his temper.]
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Oh, he's the other engineer that shares a space with your teammate I believe.
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[No, he shares space with Bruce's not-a-boyfriend.]
Yeah... If you see him in there with my teammate -- Tony, right? -- make sure they don't... die. I'd appreciate it.
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[It's so easy to talk to Bruce, even Bruce at 16 or 17 or however old he currently happened to be.]
John and Tony, I mean. And they've split up the children. John took Clyde and Tony, Blue.
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[Maybe when he was tripping on stars with Loki or whatever he did the other day? Also Bruce is kind of the champion of soldiering through situations where everyone involved has weird feelings about him. It's better when he doesn't care what they think, but he cares what Mohinder thinks. That's why it helps that he's so sweet and soft-spoken. He puts Bruce at ease.]
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But what about you? How does it feel to be a teenager again?
[Soft spoken, yes. Mild mannered, yes. And just a touch lonely.]
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[Well, it'd been awkward and then terrifying and then amazing (unrelated to being a teenager) and then awkward again and now it's still awkward. He frowns, trying to come up with a better answer than that.]
Um... Surly?
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[He has to laugh.]
I'm rather glad I got to stay myself. I was a dreadfully boring teenager. Then again, perhaps it might have been nice to try it again...despite the overblown hormones.
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[Especially when your not-boyfriend's eight and your platonic snuggles with your best friend get weird and you can't jerk off because it's dangerous even when you aren't generally 10 times more volatile than you are as an adult.]
I wasn't a very exciting teenager, either. I was kind of cranky. And I spent a lot of time doing homework. You really aren't missing out on anything, trust me.
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But you're a smart man. I'm sure you'd be able to do a few book reports on evolution.
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[He wrinkles his nose.] Is it graded? If it's graded, then I'll feel 16, but if it isn't then I'll just feel like I'm doing research with you.
[Which would be nice. Suddenly a little shy, he darts his eyes away.]
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[Perhaps a flirt. Or it might be if Bruce was a child. So let's call it a tease instead. Since Mohinder had been Bruce's assistant for awhile there.]
I'm in our lab.
Or my lab. You've been noticeably absent.
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