[PRP] Not a Real Date (Elliot & Horace)

[The Semblance of Unity]

"Becaaaause," he said. "I like Oliver." That sounded the wrong way - or did it? Whatever. "And I know things." Like how Oliver was really in love with an Elliot who no longer existed. But that didn't mean this Elliot had no chance. It kind of made his stomach hurt thinking about it, though.

He took a sip of his coffee, then added more sugar. "Of course not." Horace forced a grin onto his face. "Is it about finding someone to lick your wounds?"

saedusk

 

[saedusk]

I like Oliver. Even if Horace hadn't meant it that way—or had, but hadn't, but had, feelings were a strange mistress—Elliot's eyes widened. It was only the continued and casual tone that eventually settled him back into his normal rhythm. The look on his face was even and calm. It was a mask that he and Horace seemed to share in common whether they realized it or not.

"You know things? That's awfully vague." Not that he'd ask him to explain. Eli was too proud for that. If Oliver had told him something, he didn't want to know. That's what he told himself.

Except he did want to know, because maybe Oliver actually liked him too or maybe Oliver had made it sound like he was some kind of desperate loser. Elliot's imagination was running away with him in the worst sort of way, his self-confidence plummeting, but he couldn't let it show. "Why in the world would I need that?" he asked, sounding defensive despite trying to sound like he was playing along.

The Semblance of Unity

 

[The Semblance of Unity]

"It does sound vague, but maybe you just need a guy on the inside. We've talked about you, you know." Horace felt supremely uncomfortable and he wasn't sure why.

"Why? Because life is lonely, I dunno. You tell me why you were flirting with me in a diner if you aren't amenable to jumping my bones." Elliot sounded kind of strange, almost defensive. Oddly enough, that was helping Horace keep his cool, even if his hand on the table was white knuckled. Wendy came by and dropped off their food, her face literally the 'eyes' emoji.

Horace set his fork on his plate. "How's the coffee?"

saedusk

 

[saedusk]

Life is lonely. They were honest words, ones that made sense. Those rare nights where Oliver crawled into his bed the way he used to—not for sex, but for comfort or safety or something—were precious gems dotting the landscape of stone built up since things had changed. The rest of them danced somewhere between average and awful.

Pascal was warm and good for snuggling, but he wasn't a person. Pascal wasn't Oliver.

"You've talked about me?" Eli asked, but it wasn't really a question as much as it was an attempt to sound like he wasn't concerned. "Only good things, I hope."

Except whether or not they were good wouldn't save him from the awkward idea of sleeping with someone else, with someone he wasn't emotionally attached to, the way he'd done in high school. It felt a lot like a visit from an old acquaintance he hadn't seen in years. Horace wasn't wrong per say, and Eli wasn't technically held back by any relationships, but still.

"I suppose you may be right," he finally answered noncommittally. "And I suppose I won't stop you if you really want to try and help. I can't promise you it'll do anything."

Then he set his coffee down, but only to take a bite of his eggs before they got cold. "The coffee is good. Very good, actually. Looks like you won our little bet."

The Semblance of Unityyyy

 

[The Semblance of Unity]

"Hmm, maybe good things," he said. Horace had noticed Eli didn't answer his probing about the blatant flirting. Maybe it was the same as it was for him, a kind of easy defense mechanism. Which meant Eli was someone safe to do it with. He also had the worse sneaking suspicion that Oliver had neglected to tell Elliot a great many things.

He pushed his omelette around on his plate. "Look, you're both attractive, you've both got a thing, it's complicated... It doesn't hurt, me trying to help out." Horace eyed Eli's coffee.

"I kind of forgot what the prize for this bet was, Eli..." He gave him a sheepish smile. "Oh and, uh, the shock thing. It's a thing I have. Sorry, I'm trying to work on it, but then I have to find people willing to help out with exposure therapy, so to speak. No one likes volunteering for that."

saedusk

 

[saedusk]

Whether he meant to or not, Horace did manage to weasel a smile out of Eli. Small and a touch smarmy, it was the first since their conversation steered in this sudden and unexpected direction. "Attractive and complicated, sounds just like me" he agreed, admiring his nails, still holding his fork. It was a joke without much oomph behind it, but it was a start.

Now he was eyeing his own coffee, but chose a few more bites of breakfast instead. "And here I thought it was a pretty good prize, too. I can't believe you already forgot. Though we might need to think of something else. It was, you know," he wiggled his fingers, "a hands on demonstration of my hair care routine.

"But, if you're still interested, a deal's a deal."

The Semblance of Unity

 

[The Semblance of Unity]

"Don't let it go to your head, okay? If you got a big... ego, I don't know what I'd do with you." Any joke was better than none, Horace thought. Being pensive and... almost sad didn't suit the man.

And then he was reminded of the bet's prize. It wasn't exactly something he was thrilled about, although Elliot's hair was in impeccable shape. "Oh, I'm interested. But... that little shock? It's out of my control so you can back out of the bet if you want to." He eyed Eli over the rim of his mug, clearly daring him to.

saedusk

 

[saedusk]

"You haven't seen anything yet," Eli was quick to assure him. Wait until he was back on his A game. That was a sight to see, all swagger and confidence. A lot of it was staged a lot of the time, but the persona wasn't entirely a false one. Sometimes it was just fun.

"How about this? We'll put it on the back burner for now, see how things go. I'm not taking the offer off the table." That wasn't how he rolled, especially not with that look he was getting. "But if we keep worrying about it, our food will get cold. I can't stand cold eggs." At least he had his french toast to fall back on, but Horace... Horace had an omelette. It would be ruined if they gabbed much longer.

The Semblance of Unity

 

[The Semblance of Unity]

"I have toast, too. Not fancy toast, though." He waved a piece of rye bread at Eli before taking a humongous bite of his omelette. It was damn good.

"How about you help me, then?"

saedusk

 

[saedusk]

"You're not going to have toast here in a second if you wave it at me again. I'll snatch it right out of your hand." It was a threat, but Elliot actually laughed. These sorts of threats were akin to the ones he'd sometimes pull at breakfast with Oliver when they had it. "But sure, I'll help you. You're offering to help me, after all. It's only fair."

The Semblance of Unity

 

[The Semblance of Unity]

He stuck his tongue out at Eli. He was grateful his tongue piercing had stopped hurting. "You'd have to be quick enough for that." Then he tore out a piece of toast and popped it in his mouth.

"Sweet, I... need to work on it. Should I apologize in advance for all the electric play you've signed up for?"

saedusk

 

[saedusk]

The matter of the toast was dropped without argument, but only so Eli would have the upper hand should the opportunity to snatch it truly arise. Let Horace drop his guard, he would be ready, willing, and able.

All this over a piece of toast. Ah well, it was amusing.

"No need to apologize," he assured, "Who knows, it might be fun. I'll keep an open mind."

The Semblance of Unity

 

[The Semblance of Unity]

Horace coughed, almost choking. "I'm not your personal violet wand, Eli."

saedusk

 

[saedusk]

An eyebrow shot up. "I'm going to assume that's a sex joke, but I'll be honest, I have no idea what a violet want is." There could be no denying Elliot had explored a number of questionable kinks in his life, but this wasn't one of them.

The Semblance of Unity

 

[The Semblance of Unity]

"Oh my god," he groaned. "Yes, it's a sex thing. It's like... electric shocks and it, um... maybe I'll take you to a club sometime." He looked at his coffee before glancing back up at Eli, almost slyly. "It's hard to explain without feeling it."

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