Scars are souvenirs you never lose, the past is never far (completed over AIM)
WHO: Kia and Ken
WHAT: Ken is concerned, Kia is moody, they both drink and talk
WHERE: Kia's apartment
WHEN: November 28, evening
artiglio: Ken drove his bike to Kia's house. He had heard how bad Kia sounded. Granted, Ken wasn't feeling the best himself, considering it was his boss that had been the target of one of the blasts, but he was going to be a bit selfish by distracting himself with trying to make Kia feel better.
Once he was infront of the address, he dismounted and walked up to the door, knocking q uietly.
kia_on_top: Kia's bike was outside in its typical parking spot, but it was obvious he'd started attempting to work on it last night, right after things started to sound weird in the engine. He was home, since there was nothing better to do. He would've been asked to do something in the future anyway, he told himself as he sprawled out on the couch. And nothing he'd done had caused injury, he hoped. But he'd been part of the events that cost Ken his job, and maybe his boss.
When he heard a knock, he didn't know what to think. Had the police come already? Kia padded to the door, wearing nothing but a pair of loose black pants, and tugged it open. "Ken? This is a nice surprise." He forced himself to smile.
artiglio: Ken smiled, and held up a brown paper bag that he had brought with him. There were few things that gratitious alcohol drinking solved, but a little was powerful medicine. He didn't like this approach, but it sounded like Kia needed it. "Hey. I figured you needed this." He said, handing the bag over. "You didn't sound so good over the phone."
kia_on_top: Kia took the bag and stepped aside to let Ken in. Alcohol hadn't been what he expected, but it was certainly a welcome gift. "Thanks. I'm really not as bad off as I sound, I swear." He ran a hand through his hair, hoping Ken didn't notice the dark bags under his eyes, and sat down on the couch. With the younger man here, he had to ignore how he really wanted to distract himself right now.
artiglio: "I'm sorry about just showing up like this, but... " Ken stopped there, not wililng to admit that he was going crazy being by himself at home. Elena was still out, and everyone else was still in shock over what had happend to their boss. The lack of news was killing him. He was worried sick over Sogyo. He hadn't slept a wink since he found out what had happend, but spend the morning hours staring out the window.
"I totally understand if you don't want company right now, I can go if you want."
kia_on_top: "Please stay, Ken." Part of Kia wanted to say everything, but given the circumstances, he'd probably never see the soccer player again if he learned of Kia's role in the bombings. "I saw something that rubbed at my memories wrong and it's fucked with my head, so not being alone will help." Partially true. He'd seen white lilies as he passed a graveyard earlier, and that certainly hadn't helped his mood any, but it was mostly guilt that ate at him.
artiglio: Ken smiled. "Why don't you go sit down, and I'll find some glasses. That kind of bottle is awkward to drink right from." He had never tried, personaly, but he rememberd some of his friends attepmting to do just that one night after a game. It had ended with most of hte booze on the floor and the boys being soaking wet. Ken had laughed at them and taken pictures. He didn't know where they were now.
Leaving Kia to go sit, he ventured into the kitchen, and eventualy found two glasses in the back of a cupboard.
kia_on_top: Kia sat down and petted Tigg, who hadn't done much other than look up at Ken curiously. The dog seemed as lethargic as his owner today. "If you drink, you'll have to stay here longer afterwards. It would be bad if you got pulled over for riding your bike drunk." He sounded a little better now that he wasn't alone with just the ideas running through his head for company.
His kitchen was obviously well-used, and a bit of a mess at the moment from making dinner last night and not really cleaning up.
artiglio: Ken smiled and shook his head, coming out with the glasses. "I'll be alright. Open up the bottle. " He said, putting the glasses down at the tabel. He peered at Tigg, and smiled. He liked dogs. Usualy so full of energy and willing to play with you. Sure it was a generality, but one he found to be applicable in a lot more cases then it wasn't.
kia_on_top: Tigg wagged his tail, walked over to Ken, and sniffed at his legs curiously as Kia opened the bottle and poured each of them a glass. "It's kinda stupid that something like seeing white lilies can mess with my head. They're just flowers, after all. Silly to let them bother me." He touched the scar on his arm as he mentioned that, his mom's face floating in his mind.
artiglio: Ken smiled at Tigg, letting his hand dangle a bit so the dog could sniff that as well. "Its not silly Kia. Memories are brought up by the strangest things." He said, taking his glass. He tilted the glass gently, and let teh liqure burn its way across his tongue and down his throat.
"There's always gonna be something small, something that no one else sees, and it will set your head off, for good or for bad."
kia_on_top: And still, Ken asked no questions. Kia almost wanted to laugh at that. Being asked would force him to explain the things going through his mind, at least the things he could say without endangering their new friendship. "Do you want to know about my arm?" he wondered, gesturing at the scar before he took a slow drink. Even the burn of liquor felt good compared to how his conscience ached.
artiglio: "I'd be lying if I said no. I do want to know what happend to you Kia. But I figure you'll talk about it when you want to." Ken said, taking another sip as he sat down next to the other male. "You know alot 'bout me, but I know nothing about you." He turned his head and smiled. "But if you don't want me to know, thats ok too. I still like you."
kia_on_top: "When I was a kid, we couldn't afford a heater, only a wood-burning stove. One night, my dad was drunk as usual and something my mom said made him mad for no reason. He grabbed one of the half-burned logs and threw it at her. I stepped in the way to protect her. Had no money for a doctor, so it took forever to heal." Kia took another drink after that. He would never let himself drink as much as his father had, nor would he ever let himself or anyone he knew hurt those weaker than they were.
artiglio: "Thats horrible! well, not that you protected her, but that your dad would even do that in the first place." Ken said, looking at Kia. His expression was a mixture of surprise, horror, and a good amount of 'omg are you alright can I make it better'. It was just the way he was. He laid his hand lightly on Kia's wrist. Not gripping, just resting there.
kia_on_top: He relaxed a little more when Ken touched him. "He hit her a lot when he was drunk. I did what I could to protect her, but it never stopped until she got sick and died when I was ten. There were a lot of white lilies on her coffin..." Kia had to stop speaking then and closed his eyes tightly. It had been a while since he liked and trusted someone enough to talk about his childhood.
artiglio: Ken moved his hand to around Kia's shoulders, pulling him close. "I'm sorry." Was all he could say. He wanted so badly to comfort Kia, even though he knew it was probally fruitless, but never the less, the effort was there. Ken cared about him. Really. Even though he would not be able to make lillies beauitful again, maybe the thought would help.
kia_on_top: Kia let it happen and slid closer to Ken. "The bastard's dead now. Drank himself into an early, lonely grave. And I found replacement parents to take care of me. But I still wish she were around. I wish I could do more to protect the people and things I care about. I can't stand the strong abusing the weak."
artiglio: Ken held him tighter at these words. "I know. I know." He said softly, taking another shot. "You're a good guy Kia." He added, after a minute. Hugs and soothing words he could give with no probelm, if he was dealing with a kid. But Kia was an adult, whom Ken could talk to until he was blue about how evertying was going to be alright, but wouldn't believe a word of it. Too rational. to mature. too grown up.
kia_on_top: He didn't mind the calm reassurance, but hearing Ken say that he was a good guy, in light of recent events, made him laugh coldly. "I'm not as good as you think I am," he whispered. They were his bombs, after all. Someone else planted the one at the store after he spent the time to get supplies and make them. Ken's misery was all his fault.
artiglio: The laugh gave Ken chills, but he didn't let it show in any way that Kia could see. "Don't say that kia." He didn't want to think about what would make Kia say something like that. He knew that if Kia told him, he'd probally spill the beans about his other income source, and he didn't want Kia to think less of him, or be angry. "You ARE a good person. The degree is not in question here!"
kia_on_top: Kia couldn't say a word. He'd already ruined Ken's trust in one person without meaning to and to confess to his role in the bombings would shatter everything he'd hoped could happen between the two of them. When his mouth went dry, he took another drink. For now, he would have to keep that very secret. "There's more I want to tell you, but I don't want you to hate me." It seemed oddly convenient that this could also be the chance to figure out how to explain the work he and Louise had done in Berlin.
artiglio: "It would take alot to make me hate you Kia." Ken said, giving him a gentle poke in the shoulder. "Honestly, for alot of things, I am in no position to judge." There, let him make of that what he would. Ken drank his drink dry,and let go of Kia for a moment to refill. His body already felt heavy, but he wasn't buzzed yet, so he felt safe taking in more of hte booze.
kia_on_top: He laughed again, then gestured at everything around them and petted Tigg when the dog jumped into his lap. "I didn't make enough money for this starting off with almost nothing before serving four years in the military. My friend Louise and I had something else going for us. Say you're a bartender and you know your wife is cheating on you, but you just want her lover humiliated. One of us would seduce him and make it so that the bartender's wife walked in on us with her guy on the side. She'd never hook up with him again and we'd get paid well." That was the simplest example he could think to give.
artiglio : "There....there are people who do that?!" Ken said, looking at Kia in surprise. That was the last thing he had expected to come out of Kia's mouth. No ,he wasn't surprised about the adultery. He wasn't that naive. Hell, he watched TV (and secretly ,some soap operas with his mother at two in the morning). But what Kia discribed, that was the shocking part. "You're kidding me."
kia_on_top: He'd been prepared for that reaction, and much worse. Kia shook his head as he kept looking at Ken. "I'm not kidding. I never picked a job where I had to take advantage of someone weak, and if I was supposed to get someone to care about me, I fell for them too. One of the targets died once...I later learned that he'd been the one to hire me by name after seeing me on the street and becoming infatuated. Never got to tell him that I cared." He expected Ken to leave him at any moment.
artiglio: Ken thought for a moment. "That...has got to be the oddest job I have ever heard of." He didn't sound angry, and he didn't get up, or even threaten to leave. He let Kia finish talking.
He knew Kia was expecting something. One of his freakouts, compleat with flailing and stomping off. But Ken couldn't leave Kia right now, and even in any other circumsatance, that stroy wouldn't have driven him off
kia_on_top: "There were white lilies on Eduard's coffin too," he whispered in German. Kia seemed very confused that Ken wasn't more upset. He'd been barely different from a whore, after all. "It was a weird job, but it was good money and it was fun. But because of that, I'm too used to getting to the physical part of things," he admitted as he took another shot. The liquor had him buzzing, he felt it. All it did now was help him stay calm.
artiglio: "That doesn't make you any less of a good guy Kia." Ken said simply, leaning back into the cushins. "You're not a monster, you're only human and thats ok." He said, using his free hand to push the hair out of his own eyes. The alcohol was starting to go to his head, so he slowed down on drinking his second glass. "admitedly, your choice of profession was kinda, well weird, but its not going to make me think you're evil."
kia_on_top: Kia never thought that he was evil. Perverted, sure, and after yesterday, he was certainly a criminal that people would want to hurt or kill. But not evil. The truth again formed again on the tip of his tongue and again he swallowed those words back. "I know I'm not a monster. Thank you for not being too bothered by what I used to do. I haven't done anything like that since I came to Italy." But what he had done was much worse.
artiglio: Ken snorted. "Aah, you're welcome." He took another sip. This was actual alcohol, not those bottles of beer he'd occasionaly consume. He would have to be careful, or else it would loosen up his tongue more then either of them would be able to cope with right now. "I'm not gonna abandon you over something like that Kia."
kia_on_top: Not over that, but Ken would certainly leave him if and when his last secret came out. Kia rested his head against the younger man's shoulder and kissed his neck lightly. "I like you and I don't want to fuck things up just because I'm used to thinking with my dick the moment I get to be alone with someone." The alcohol had him admitting things more freely than he felt used to. But he had to be careful not to say anything else tonight.
artiglio: Ken flushed slightly, pretending that he didnit feel the brush of lips against his neck. He chalked it up to the alcohol working through the angst that Kia was going through. "Have you eaten yet?" He asked, figuring he needed something to do. Besides, if they were going to drink, they may as well eat, and stave off the harmful effects of being buzzed.
kia_on_top: "I had a sandwich not too long before you showed up." Kia acted calmer, and for the most part he was. But he still felt that his words weren't enough to show how grateful he was that Ken hadn't rejected him as he'd feared. He wanted to do more while not pushing things as far as he had with his bet.
artiglio: "Alright." Ken said with a nod, settling back down. "Hey, if there's anything you ever wanna ask about me, go ahead. I'll probally answer you, i trust you." He said, after another moment and anohter infusion of booze. He closed his eyes and sank back against the couch more. "...this is a really comfy couch."
kia_on_top: He asked the first thing that came to his mind. "Does it bother you that I'm starting to care about you?" Kia would have asked that even sober. His heart was on his sleeve enough that he really wanted to know the answer between fumbling through this anymore. He lightly moved Tigg so the dog hopped to the floor and crawled easily onto Ken's lap.
artiglio: Ken's eyes locked on him in startlement, then he turned away, the blush starting to rise. "N-no, I'm glad you like me." He looked a little confused as to why Kia was in his lap. His first thought was that Kia was drunk, and making sure that they were still friends, until it hit him exactly how Kia had been using the word 'care', through out that entier conversation. Well, Ken, how are you going to solve this one, eh boy?
"Well im mean, I want you to keep being my friend and and...well..." Fuck, why did he have to do this half drunk?
kia_on_top: Kia had expected the awkwardness of both Ken's words and body language. He yawned and shifted, trying to get as comfortable as possible. "I'll still be your friend as long as I'm around. Anything more is completely in your court." He'd never actually had someone that was just his friend. Kia wasn't really sure he was capable of it, given how much he was used to things getting physical.
artiglio: "good, I dont want to loose any one else." He said. Pop quiz. How much of Kia's actions were a) the booze, b) products of his former profession, c) just Kia being Kia. Kia couldn't possibly actually want Ken. That would be ludicris. Even if he belived that Ken was innocent in the first place, didn't mean he still wanted what Ken had become (which he was becoiming very good at hiding i might add).
Ken let Kia shift and wriggle, his blush darkening as certain bits got rubbed, and a little squished, but he didn't say anything.
kia_on_top: He'd run out of things to say for now. Kia could blame his honesty on the alcohol and his rush to be physical on his innate appreciation for touch and old habits that refused to go away. But his fear at being hated and desire to stay close to Ken was all the beginnings of actual affection. Maybe he gave his heart up too easily, but he still cared.
"You're not going to lose me." Kia closed his eyes, rested his head on Ken's shoulder again, and fell asleep in moments.
artiglio: Ken sighed, and figured he may as well get comfortable. Kia was warm, but not really that heavy. He figured that if that amount of alcohol had sent Kia to sleep, he must have really needed it. No, Ken wouldn't wake the sleeper, not for all the tea in china.
Of course, the dog picked this time to jump up on the couch beside him, and helped its master pin him down.
Thank god he didn't have to pee.
WHAT: Ken is concerned, Kia is moody, they both drink and talk
WHERE: Kia's apartment
WHEN: November 28, evening
artiglio: Ken drove his bike to Kia's house. He had heard how bad Kia sounded. Granted, Ken wasn't feeling the best himself, considering it was his boss that had been the target of one of the blasts, but he was going to be a bit selfish by distracting himself with trying to make Kia feel better.
Once he was infront of the address, he dismounted and walked up to the door, knocking q uietly.
kia_on_top: Kia's bike was outside in its typical parking spot, but it was obvious he'd started attempting to work on it last night, right after things started to sound weird in the engine. He was home, since there was nothing better to do. He would've been asked to do something in the future anyway, he told himself as he sprawled out on the couch. And nothing he'd done had caused injury, he hoped. But he'd been part of the events that cost Ken his job, and maybe his boss.
When he heard a knock, he didn't know what to think. Had the police come already? Kia padded to the door, wearing nothing but a pair of loose black pants, and tugged it open. "Ken? This is a nice surprise." He forced himself to smile.
artiglio: Ken smiled, and held up a brown paper bag that he had brought with him. There were few things that gratitious alcohol drinking solved, but a little was powerful medicine. He didn't like this approach, but it sounded like Kia needed it. "Hey. I figured you needed this." He said, handing the bag over. "You didn't sound so good over the phone."
kia_on_top: Kia took the bag and stepped aside to let Ken in. Alcohol hadn't been what he expected, but it was certainly a welcome gift. "Thanks. I'm really not as bad off as I sound, I swear." He ran a hand through his hair, hoping Ken didn't notice the dark bags under his eyes, and sat down on the couch. With the younger man here, he had to ignore how he really wanted to distract himself right now.
artiglio: "I'm sorry about just showing up like this, but... " Ken stopped there, not wililng to admit that he was going crazy being by himself at home. Elena was still out, and everyone else was still in shock over what had happend to their boss. The lack of news was killing him. He was worried sick over Sogyo. He hadn't slept a wink since he found out what had happend, but spend the morning hours staring out the window.
"I totally understand if you don't want company right now, I can go if you want."
kia_on_top: "Please stay, Ken." Part of Kia wanted to say everything, but given the circumstances, he'd probably never see the soccer player again if he learned of Kia's role in the bombings. "I saw something that rubbed at my memories wrong and it's fucked with my head, so not being alone will help." Partially true. He'd seen white lilies as he passed a graveyard earlier, and that certainly hadn't helped his mood any, but it was mostly guilt that ate at him.
artiglio: Ken smiled. "Why don't you go sit down, and I'll find some glasses. That kind of bottle is awkward to drink right from." He had never tried, personaly, but he rememberd some of his friends attepmting to do just that one night after a game. It had ended with most of hte booze on the floor and the boys being soaking wet. Ken had laughed at them and taken pictures. He didn't know where they were now.
Leaving Kia to go sit, he ventured into the kitchen, and eventualy found two glasses in the back of a cupboard.
kia_on_top: Kia sat down and petted Tigg, who hadn't done much other than look up at Ken curiously. The dog seemed as lethargic as his owner today. "If you drink, you'll have to stay here longer afterwards. It would be bad if you got pulled over for riding your bike drunk." He sounded a little better now that he wasn't alone with just the ideas running through his head for company.
His kitchen was obviously well-used, and a bit of a mess at the moment from making dinner last night and not really cleaning up.
artiglio: Ken smiled and shook his head, coming out with the glasses. "I'll be alright. Open up the bottle. " He said, putting the glasses down at the tabel. He peered at Tigg, and smiled. He liked dogs. Usualy so full of energy and willing to play with you. Sure it was a generality, but one he found to be applicable in a lot more cases then it wasn't.
kia_on_top: Tigg wagged his tail, walked over to Ken, and sniffed at his legs curiously as Kia opened the bottle and poured each of them a glass. "It's kinda stupid that something like seeing white lilies can mess with my head. They're just flowers, after all. Silly to let them bother me." He touched the scar on his arm as he mentioned that, his mom's face floating in his mind.
artiglio: Ken smiled at Tigg, letting his hand dangle a bit so the dog could sniff that as well. "Its not silly Kia. Memories are brought up by the strangest things." He said, taking his glass. He tilted the glass gently, and let teh liqure burn its way across his tongue and down his throat.
"There's always gonna be something small, something that no one else sees, and it will set your head off, for good or for bad."
kia_on_top: And still, Ken asked no questions. Kia almost wanted to laugh at that. Being asked would force him to explain the things going through his mind, at least the things he could say without endangering their new friendship. "Do you want to know about my arm?" he wondered, gesturing at the scar before he took a slow drink. Even the burn of liquor felt good compared to how his conscience ached.
artiglio: "I'd be lying if I said no. I do want to know what happend to you Kia. But I figure you'll talk about it when you want to." Ken said, taking another sip as he sat down next to the other male. "You know alot 'bout me, but I know nothing about you." He turned his head and smiled. "But if you don't want me to know, thats ok too. I still like you."
kia_on_top: "When I was a kid, we couldn't afford a heater, only a wood-burning stove. One night, my dad was drunk as usual and something my mom said made him mad for no reason. He grabbed one of the half-burned logs and threw it at her. I stepped in the way to protect her. Had no money for a doctor, so it took forever to heal." Kia took another drink after that. He would never let himself drink as much as his father had, nor would he ever let himself or anyone he knew hurt those weaker than they were.
artiglio: "Thats horrible! well, not that you protected her, but that your dad would even do that in the first place." Ken said, looking at Kia. His expression was a mixture of surprise, horror, and a good amount of 'omg are you alright can I make it better'. It was just the way he was. He laid his hand lightly on Kia's wrist. Not gripping, just resting there.
kia_on_top: He relaxed a little more when Ken touched him. "He hit her a lot when he was drunk. I did what I could to protect her, but it never stopped until she got sick and died when I was ten. There were a lot of white lilies on her coffin..." Kia had to stop speaking then and closed his eyes tightly. It had been a while since he liked and trusted someone enough to talk about his childhood.
artiglio: Ken moved his hand to around Kia's shoulders, pulling him close. "I'm sorry." Was all he could say. He wanted so badly to comfort Kia, even though he knew it was probally fruitless, but never the less, the effort was there. Ken cared about him. Really. Even though he would not be able to make lillies beauitful again, maybe the thought would help.
kia_on_top: Kia let it happen and slid closer to Ken. "The bastard's dead now. Drank himself into an early, lonely grave. And I found replacement parents to take care of me. But I still wish she were around. I wish I could do more to protect the people and things I care about. I can't stand the strong abusing the weak."
artiglio: Ken held him tighter at these words. "I know. I know." He said softly, taking another shot. "You're a good guy Kia." He added, after a minute. Hugs and soothing words he could give with no probelm, if he was dealing with a kid. But Kia was an adult, whom Ken could talk to until he was blue about how evertying was going to be alright, but wouldn't believe a word of it. Too rational. to mature. too grown up.
kia_on_top: He didn't mind the calm reassurance, but hearing Ken say that he was a good guy, in light of recent events, made him laugh coldly. "I'm not as good as you think I am," he whispered. They were his bombs, after all. Someone else planted the one at the store after he spent the time to get supplies and make them. Ken's misery was all his fault.
artiglio: The laugh gave Ken chills, but he didn't let it show in any way that Kia could see. "Don't say that kia." He didn't want to think about what would make Kia say something like that. He knew that if Kia told him, he'd probally spill the beans about his other income source, and he didn't want Kia to think less of him, or be angry. "You ARE a good person. The degree is not in question here!"
kia_on_top: Kia couldn't say a word. He'd already ruined Ken's trust in one person without meaning to and to confess to his role in the bombings would shatter everything he'd hoped could happen between the two of them. When his mouth went dry, he took another drink. For now, he would have to keep that very secret. "There's more I want to tell you, but I don't want you to hate me." It seemed oddly convenient that this could also be the chance to figure out how to explain the work he and Louise had done in Berlin.
artiglio: "It would take alot to make me hate you Kia." Ken said, giving him a gentle poke in the shoulder. "Honestly, for alot of things, I am in no position to judge." There, let him make of that what he would. Ken drank his drink dry,and let go of Kia for a moment to refill. His body already felt heavy, but he wasn't buzzed yet, so he felt safe taking in more of hte booze.
kia_on_top: He laughed again, then gestured at everything around them and petted Tigg when the dog jumped into his lap. "I didn't make enough money for this starting off with almost nothing before serving four years in the military. My friend Louise and I had something else going for us. Say you're a bartender and you know your wife is cheating on you, but you just want her lover humiliated. One of us would seduce him and make it so that the bartender's wife walked in on us with her guy on the side. She'd never hook up with him again and we'd get paid well." That was the simplest example he could think to give.
artiglio : "There....there are people who do that?!" Ken said, looking at Kia in surprise. That was the last thing he had expected to come out of Kia's mouth. No ,he wasn't surprised about the adultery. He wasn't that naive. Hell, he watched TV (and secretly ,some soap operas with his mother at two in the morning). But what Kia discribed, that was the shocking part. "You're kidding me."
kia_on_top: He'd been prepared for that reaction, and much worse. Kia shook his head as he kept looking at Ken. "I'm not kidding. I never picked a job where I had to take advantage of someone weak, and if I was supposed to get someone to care about me, I fell for them too. One of the targets died once...I later learned that he'd been the one to hire me by name after seeing me on the street and becoming infatuated. Never got to tell him that I cared." He expected Ken to leave him at any moment.
artiglio: Ken thought for a moment. "That...has got to be the oddest job I have ever heard of." He didn't sound angry, and he didn't get up, or even threaten to leave. He let Kia finish talking.
He knew Kia was expecting something. One of his freakouts, compleat with flailing and stomping off. But Ken couldn't leave Kia right now, and even in any other circumsatance, that stroy wouldn't have driven him off
kia_on_top: "There were white lilies on Eduard's coffin too," he whispered in German. Kia seemed very confused that Ken wasn't more upset. He'd been barely different from a whore, after all. "It was a weird job, but it was good money and it was fun. But because of that, I'm too used to getting to the physical part of things," he admitted as he took another shot. The liquor had him buzzing, he felt it. All it did now was help him stay calm.
artiglio: "That doesn't make you any less of a good guy Kia." Ken said simply, leaning back into the cushins. "You're not a monster, you're only human and thats ok." He said, using his free hand to push the hair out of his own eyes. The alcohol was starting to go to his head, so he slowed down on drinking his second glass. "admitedly, your choice of profession was kinda, well weird, but its not going to make me think you're evil."
kia_on_top: Kia never thought that he was evil. Perverted, sure, and after yesterday, he was certainly a criminal that people would want to hurt or kill. But not evil. The truth again formed again on the tip of his tongue and again he swallowed those words back. "I know I'm not a monster. Thank you for not being too bothered by what I used to do. I haven't done anything like that since I came to Italy." But what he had done was much worse.
artiglio: Ken snorted. "Aah, you're welcome." He took another sip. This was actual alcohol, not those bottles of beer he'd occasionaly consume. He would have to be careful, or else it would loosen up his tongue more then either of them would be able to cope with right now. "I'm not gonna abandon you over something like that Kia."
kia_on_top: Not over that, but Ken would certainly leave him if and when his last secret came out. Kia rested his head against the younger man's shoulder and kissed his neck lightly. "I like you and I don't want to fuck things up just because I'm used to thinking with my dick the moment I get to be alone with someone." The alcohol had him admitting things more freely than he felt used to. But he had to be careful not to say anything else tonight.
artiglio: Ken flushed slightly, pretending that he didnit feel the brush of lips against his neck. He chalked it up to the alcohol working through the angst that Kia was going through. "Have you eaten yet?" He asked, figuring he needed something to do. Besides, if they were going to drink, they may as well eat, and stave off the harmful effects of being buzzed.
kia_on_top: "I had a sandwich not too long before you showed up." Kia acted calmer, and for the most part he was. But he still felt that his words weren't enough to show how grateful he was that Ken hadn't rejected him as he'd feared. He wanted to do more while not pushing things as far as he had with his bet.
artiglio: "Alright." Ken said with a nod, settling back down. "Hey, if there's anything you ever wanna ask about me, go ahead. I'll probally answer you, i trust you." He said, after another moment and anohter infusion of booze. He closed his eyes and sank back against the couch more. "...this is a really comfy couch."
kia_on_top: He asked the first thing that came to his mind. "Does it bother you that I'm starting to care about you?" Kia would have asked that even sober. His heart was on his sleeve enough that he really wanted to know the answer between fumbling through this anymore. He lightly moved Tigg so the dog hopped to the floor and crawled easily onto Ken's lap.
artiglio: Ken's eyes locked on him in startlement, then he turned away, the blush starting to rise. "N-no, I'm glad you like me." He looked a little confused as to why Kia was in his lap. His first thought was that Kia was drunk, and making sure that they were still friends, until it hit him exactly how Kia had been using the word 'care', through out that entier conversation. Well, Ken, how are you going to solve this one, eh boy?
"Well im mean, I want you to keep being my friend and and...well..." Fuck, why did he have to do this half drunk?
kia_on_top: Kia had expected the awkwardness of both Ken's words and body language. He yawned and shifted, trying to get as comfortable as possible. "I'll still be your friend as long as I'm around. Anything more is completely in your court." He'd never actually had someone that was just his friend. Kia wasn't really sure he was capable of it, given how much he was used to things getting physical.
artiglio: "good, I dont want to loose any one else." He said. Pop quiz. How much of Kia's actions were a) the booze, b) products of his former profession, c) just Kia being Kia. Kia couldn't possibly actually want Ken. That would be ludicris. Even if he belived that Ken was innocent in the first place, didn't mean he still wanted what Ken had become (which he was becoiming very good at hiding i might add).
Ken let Kia shift and wriggle, his blush darkening as certain bits got rubbed, and a little squished, but he didn't say anything.
kia_on_top: He'd run out of things to say for now. Kia could blame his honesty on the alcohol and his rush to be physical on his innate appreciation for touch and old habits that refused to go away. But his fear at being hated and desire to stay close to Ken was all the beginnings of actual affection. Maybe he gave his heart up too easily, but he still cared.
"You're not going to lose me." Kia closed his eyes, rested his head on Ken's shoulder again, and fell asleep in moments.
artiglio: Ken sighed, and figured he may as well get comfortable. Kia was warm, but not really that heavy. He figured that if that amount of alcohol had sent Kia to sleep, he must have really needed it. No, Ken wouldn't wake the sleeper, not for all the tea in china.
Of course, the dog picked this time to jump up on the couch beside him, and helped its master pin him down.
Thank god he didn't have to pee.