(no subject)

[amicably_absent]

Glitch had swum for hours, chasing fish and insects and bubbles and sunbeams. Eventually, worn out and tired, he had swum to shore and curled up on the bank on the sun warmed pebbles, grumbling about his lack of coat until he fell asleep.

He woke up with Rennie shaking him, a scolding voice telling him he had to come in, he was all wet and dirty and needed a bath and clean clothes, and was she going to have to strap him in the chair.

Glitch reacted predictably.

He screamed at her, judo flipped her while sitting down, dove into the water, swam to a far edge and took off.

Rennie asked Cain to go find Glitch and bring him in before he froze or hurt himself.

Glitch had retreated to the rotunda, sitting on the seat and swinging himself back and forth, watching the sun setting on the lake. He was soaking wet again, but his trembling didn't seem to worry him at all.

Comments

[amicably-absent.livejournal.com]

"Oh. That." Minor, unimportant details.

He snuggles in, but then he realises he's going to be left alone to do this. And that's always just that little bit scary, because he tends to forget things. "Clean feet. Right."

He snuggles in, arms around himself holding the towel and then stepping back to eye off his feet. "Right. Clean."

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"I'll be back before you know it."

He feels odd, dimly, as if something is sparkling or bubbling inside. "I'll even leave the door open so you can hear me rummaging, okay?"

[amicably-absent.livejournal.com]

"Okay. And you can hear if I hurt myself." He sits down on the tiled floor and starts rubbing at his feet, pouting when it hurts but keeping on anyway.

"Wyatt...?"

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"Yeah, Glitch?"

He turns around at the door.

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He pauses and the thought leaves again.

He huffs. "Can't remember."

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"It's okay." Cain smiles bravely, struck by the chilling thought that Glitch may not remember what happened in here beyond this very moment.

What if he won't--

"You know what I do when something slips away?"

[amicably-absent.livejournal.com]

"What?" He looks up to Cain in the doorway, wrapped in the towel and rubbing at his feet.

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"I try to think of something completely unrelated, and it pops right back. Nothing to it."

He smiles before stepping outside. "I'll be right back."

[amicably-absent.livejournal.com]

"Huh."

He sit for a long moment, not doing anything. Then he starts drying off his back then body. His legs, then his feet.

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For a while, Cain does exactly what he said he'd do. He goes rummaging through the former Advisor's closet looking for something that Glitch might choose to wear. Something soft and casual; and he ends up with just that. Perhaps the items themselves are a bit mismatched, but he doesn't care enough about such things to notice. The clothes look comfy, that's that.

A short while after the clothes are laid out on Glitch's bed, he stands transfixed by the window, looking up at the waning twin moons.

He'll only be a moment. Just one moment more.

[amicably-absent.livejournal.com]

Glitch has a lot of new clothes that he's never worn, preferring to wear the same ratty clothes day in and day out.

But, regardless of that, Glitch finally dries off and comes padding out with the towel wrapped around his body and favouring one foot. "Wyatt?"

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He hums acknowledgment, but takes a moment more to turn around.

Which is when he sees the foot, and starts walking over. "Yes?"

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"Are you okay? Just thinking?" He keeps standing there, wrapped in the towel and hair still wet.

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His expression softens, and he nods, coming to stand in front of him. "Just watching the moons.

"You?"

[amicably-absent.livejournal.com]

"I like the moons. They're just bright enough that I fall less." He looks to the window. "Um, oh! I remembered what I was going to say! My foot's all scratched up."

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"Then we'll fix it." He helps Glitch to one of the armchairs. "Sit down, let me have a look."

[amicably-absent.livejournal.com]

Sitting down, Glitch stick out his bony leg, wriggling his toes. The sole of his foot has several long scratches that had scabbed over until the vigorous drying and plenty of smaller ones. Nothing serious though.

Glitch hugs the towel around him more. "Did we eat?"

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"Not yet. Rennie's bringing up food within the hour." Holding Glitch's foot in both hands, turning it to the side gently but firmly to make sure it's just scratches, he glances up.

"I'll get the medicaid box, clean the sores, wrap them up nice and good." He gets up, heading for the bathroom.

[amicably-absent.livejournal.com]

Glitch nods and stays still for about two seconds before a new thought comes. "Hey, Wyatt, who's Rennie?" He stands up, for a tiny moment, the towel forgotten.

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He doesn't get far; turning his head mid-step to repeat what he swears he's said a dozen times already; all thoughts of Rennie vanishing at the sight of long legs leading up to narrow hips and a dark patch of h...h...h--

He tears his eyes away by sheer force of will, his face fast approaching the shade of a ripe red plum. "Glitch. Towel. Towel, or clothes."

[amicably-absent.livejournal.com]

"Towel?"

Things click back into place. Glitch shrieks and dives for the towel, wrapping himself up into a virtual knot in it, knees in front of him and cloth tangled around. "Oh my goodness, oh my goodness." His face in buried in his knees.

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And Cain responds by doing the only thing he can do. He gets the Medicaid box, makes a detour by the bed for the clothes, and then crouches down in front of Glitch with a soft sigh.

He places his hands on those pale, bony, covered knees. "Hey, Sweetheart, it's okay. I'm not embarrassed by you, or the fact you forgot. I'm embarrassed because I couldn't stop myself from looking. You have nothing to be ashamed of. I forget what happens to white clothes when submerged into water, you're so comfortable around me, you forget about context. No big deal."

That's enough of a ramble for one day, but he's got one more little thing left in him that needs out. "As long as you don't forget kissing me in there, we're good."

[amicably-absent.livejournal.com]

Glitch peeks out over his knees and over Cain's hands, cheeks red. He nods rapidly, scrubbing at his cheeks with his hands. "Forgot I wasn't dressed," he admits.

"I don't think I'll forget that. Ever."

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"You'd better not," he teases, eyes glinting with ill disguised humour. "But if you do, I guess I'll just have to remind you."

He picks up the sweater he found, holds it out. "But first..."

[amicably-absent.livejournal.com]

"Clothes." He reaches his arms out, sliding into the sweater and dragging it on over his wet head. "Feels funny... it's so loose."