Cheap Rundown Blakeley House
All of Scarlett's patience? Well. It's been paying off. Now, not only is Hyde fighting away the fever for longer periods of time, but he's found the strength to get up and move - to tend to himself. He's due to make his glorious return to the garage on Wednesday. This gives him the rest of the day and Tuesday to fully recuperate. And, well…it's going fine. Whether it's because of his new werewolfness or her enchanted dog tags, Hyde's arm has pretty much completely healed up.
This has led to Hyde strolling around his home, this Monday night, shirtless and quite casually. His stereo - unused for the past week - has been turned on and is blaring the Distillers out loudly. And right now? He's in the kitchen. Messing around and pulling out some steak from the freezer to cook for himself.
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Scarlett has a lot of patience, and even moreso when it comes to Hyde, apparently. Caring for him has actually zoned her back in to who she used to be before the last few months have happened. The caring, mother-hen type who likes to make sure everyone is fine.
She's been out for a bit today, just checking in on the shop and seeing if she's got any major commitments that she needs to complete. Returning now, she's bringing with her a bottle of wine. A celebratory drink to cheer in his good health once more.
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Hyde can be found just outside, in the warm Texan air. Manning a quaint little grill onto which he happens to be cooking, for the first time in a week or so. The smell hangs throughout the air, beckoning to all around sweetly. And when Scarlett tries for it - she'll see that his front door is open. So trusting, this boy is.
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"Hyde?" Scarlett is about to open the door and wander in when she spies him. "What are you… are you sure you're well enough to.. I mean…" Looking a bit flustered, she's over at him in a flash, trying to make sure he's not going to faceplant into the grill.
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Contrary to Scarlett's beliefs however - Hyde is fine. Beyond fine, judging by how stable he is in holding himself up. Quirking his head in her direction, he ends up canting one eyebrow upwards as Scarlett flits over, all nerves and worry. "I'm not going to keel over and die, if that's what you mean," he deadpans. "I'm not quite that delicate." Beneath the starlit night and the flickering flames of the grill, his skin is glowing, practically, with a surprisingly healthy-looking undertone. "So you can relax, mother."
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"I'll relax when I'm positive you're absolutely fine," Scarlett retorts. The bottle of wine is set down on the porch momentarily and she leans toward him to place a quick kiss on his cheek. "I'm glad you're feeling better. I ran out of things to clean in your house."
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"Oh yeah? What do you want me to do to prove it to you? Or you can inspect me to determine if I'm still defunct. I wouldn't mind modeling for you." Hyde's talking. And even if it is in that easy drawl, slightly mocking, it's a good sign. The kiss lands on his cheek, and he doesn't move…up until, that his, his arm attempts to snake around her waist, dragging him closer to her and fixing her in place as his dark eyes rise to meet hers. "I'm convinced this isn't my house. It's a pain in the ass. I'm going to have to spend loads of my precious time dirtying it up again thanks to you, but…" Pause. "Thank you. Scarlett. For everything."
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"Yeah," Scarlett says, giving him a look. "I can wait until you're done cooking though. Then I'll drag you in and have you model for me. I'd love to see that musculature more clearly. Maybe do a nude painting," she says, semi-seriously. His attitude is definitely a good sign and it makes her feel that things are going to go back to being normal. That he's actually going to survive and feel better. "You'd better not dirty it up again, I was thinking of painting the walls for you this summer. I'm not a great hand with a hammer but I can likely help with renovations too…" She drops it though when he thanks her and just nods. "Yeah, sure, whatever. You're welcome."
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"Heh. Only if you have a big-ass precious stone to go around my neck, like in that gay movie." More would follow, but then Scarlett's ranting, on and on about painting and renovating and making all kinds of changes. This prompts Hyde to merely stare at her, almost oppressively so. Silence…silence…And when she's not silent? Well, he moves to try and make her silent.
Swooping in, he doesn't even wait for her to finish speaking before looking to press his lips against hers in a powerful kiss, comanding and demanding in nature.
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Scarlett tends to babble a lot when she's around him, for some strange reason. Whether it's because she has a lot to say, or he still has the ability to make her a little nervous she couldn't tell anyone. The kiss shuts her up in quick order, cutting off the next word that is about to leave her lips. In fact, she returns the demands of the kiss with an intense sort of fervor, pressing her body against his a little. After a long moment, she starts to draw back and whispers, "Stone. Sure. Whatever you want…"
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There is a low groan of protest when Scarlett pulls away, although Hyde allows her her space. Slowly, he begins to lick his lips with relish, dark eyes still fixated on hers with surprising intensity. "…Stone? What?" Clearly, he's forgotten what they had been talking about. He's just distracted. "What're you babbling about?"
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"Huh?" Scarlett snaps out of her momentary lack of smarts, and laughs a little. "You. Nude. Painting. Your steak is about to catch fire," she says nodding toward the grill. "You might want to grab it, and come inside. I think you're feeling juuuuust fine." She'll grab a yogurt from the fridge or something, since he's only cooking for one. No biggie on her part. Not like she's a voracious eater.
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"What're you talking ab- SHIT!" Hyde exclaims violently, jumping away from Scarlett and turning to his foodstuff to drag it off of the grill and on to a plate. Frowning down at it, he proceeds to turn off the grill before trudging inside. "Fuck. I blame you." There's no reservations about 'blaming' her. Once inside and well, the steak, large as it is, is transfered onto a chopping block so he can try and carve off the burned bits. Once there, he can't help but flash her a look out of the corner of his eyes…before begrudgingly splitting the steak in half. This is what he gets for not thinking ahead and grilling two of them.
"Here." He grunts, once he's got the food on a plate for him and her and has prepared everything.
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"I'm talking abou— " Hyde worries about the grill, and Scarlett snickers at him. She'll take the blame for distracting him. She doesn't mind in the least. Scooping up the bottle of wine, she moves into the house and starts looking for glasses. When he cuts the steak in half, she eyes him for a really long moment. "You sure? I don't mind grabbing something else." Then she's uncorking the wine and pouring two glasses. Yeah, they generally drink beer but she's having her own celebration.
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"Yeah. I'm sure. If I'm still hungry afterwards, I'll order take out or something." Hyde is decisive when he makes this call, nodding his head twice firmly. But then, there's wine. And after settling himself down and tearing into his food already - not bothering to wait for her to start eating first - then he pauses mid-chomp to look at her curiously. "S'it your birthday or somethin'?" He inquires through a mouthful.
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"Not for another eight days," Scarlett says in an off-hand manner. "Mostly, we're celebrating you feeling better." She carries the two glasses of wine, and her own plate toward the table and then gently cuts the non-burnt portion of steak and takes a small bite. This is washed down with the red wine, and she grins at him. "I'm happy that you're back to your old self. Much as I loved coddling you, I missed the abrasive personality."
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Hyde lets out a snort of slight amusement as he washes down his current mouthful eagerly. "Please. You loved having me out for the count. Giving me sponge baths and feeding me soup… admit it. It turned you on." There's a curious pause, before he quirks his shoulders into a shrug and continuing. "I bet you did miss my abrasive personality. You do strike me as the masochistic type."
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Quietly eating, she says nothing. She just eats, drinks the wine and listens to him. Eventually though, Scarlett laughs. "Truthfully? I did. I enjoyed taking care of you, since you seem like the type that really doesn't like it that often." Though is a big baby when seriously ill. "It's not masochistic to miss something like that. You're hardly abusive."
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"No?" Hyde peers over to Scarlett, narrowing his eyes speculatively.
"Huh…you're probably the only person in the world to have that opinion. But alright." And with that, he falls silent in favor of eating and drinking and being more or less merry.
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Scarlett is just special like that? But she falls into the comfortable silence while eating, then pauses mid-bite to look at him. Really look at him. "Yeah, well I'm probably the only person in the world to get past that abrasiveness and get to see parts of the real you too." Then she finishes off the steak in silence.
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Soon enough, red wine is sloshing down his throat and finishing off his meal as well. And then, and only then, does Hyde get to his feet, moving to collect his and Scarlett's plates to let it sit in the sink. "…What's the 'real' me, then? Shouldn't it stand to reason that, if I act like an asshole 98 percent of the time, that I am just an asshole?" He provokes, looking to her for the answer.
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"It's a mask. A way to protect yourself." Scarlett shrugs, she sees sort of the same thing in a lot of magic users in her brother's sphere too. Illusion is great for masking oneself. "It's the illusion you show the world while being a deeper person beneath all that crap."
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"Or maybe the illusion is that I'm a 'deeper person'? And who's to say I can't be an asshole and deep all at the same time, I'm sure there are shallow nice guys out there." Once his verbiage is thrown out there, Hyde lifts a hand to run through his hair, all the while looking her over rather carefully. A moment passes, followed by another, before finally… "…So. Were you serious about your birthday?"
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"That it's in eight days? Yep." Scarlett gets up, starting to clean the plates and glasses up. "Want a refill?" She's honestly not making a big deal about her upcoming birthday, just trying to pass it off as a 'thing'. As she cleans, she watches him, "Maybe it is. Guess it all comes down to perception in the end."
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Hyde frowns to himself, his brows furrowing in thought. "I see…" But then, there's the sound of running water. This alarms him out of his thoughts, and soon enough he's moving - trying to still her hands. "Hey - hey." He lets out, disapproving. "Stop it. Let it sit, I'll take care of it later." They're more commands than they are suggestions. "C'mon…lets go sit down and watch television or…something. Your productivity is killing my vibe."
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"Fine." Scarlett's hands are immediately out of the water and she's drying them off on a nearby tea towel that she bought for him the other day. Tossing it onto the counter, she smiles at him. "But only if you feel up to it. If not, I'll clean them before I head out." He's feeling fine now, so there's no point in her staying another night.
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"Heading out?" Hyde is surprised by this, no doubt about it. A certain light flickers in his eyes, before he masks it with his usual indifference. "…Oh. Right." Cue a casual shrug of his shoulders, during which his dog tags jingle on his bare chest, brushing past one another. "You need to get back to work, I suppose."
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"You don't need me anymore," Scarlett says quietly as she joins him. Resting a hand on his shoulder, she goes to spin him toward her. "I should get back to the shop and finish a painting, but I can stay the night if you want me to." She can always do the walk of shame in the morning.
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Damn it. "…You're going to make me say it, aren't you?" Hyde realizes with a stubborn grunt, his lips curling into a purse of slight distaste. "God damn it… Alright. Don't go. I…I might wake up with a fever or something." This isn't why he wants her to stay around and he knows it, and he's pretty sure she'll know it, but he has to lie. For his reputation. Slowly - almost furtively, he ends up flexing his fingers before allowing them to barely touch at her waist.
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The single word of 'Liar' is on the very tip of her tongue, but Scarlett doesn't actually spit it out at him. Instead, she grins and then moves in against him. A gentle hug, her head resting on his bare shoulder. "Well alright then. In case you wake up with a fever. But if you're fine in the morning, I'll go open the studio for a little while." Then she'll come check on him in the evening and see how things go from there.
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Damn her. Damn her for being soft, and accommodating, and…smelling good… Despite his best wishes, Hyde finds that he can't quite remain as stoic as he would like when she presses her warmth against him in a hug. Slowly, and a little bit awkwardly, as Hyde isn't exactly a hug officianato, he ends up wrapping his hands around her person. "Hn. If you want." He calls out, pretending like it wasn't him that had to ask her to do so. It's all her fault for being around and becoming a familiar figure in his every day!
