IC contact for wethelost

[devoutish]

Solomons & Melborn
1108 Sweet Cream Street

[Feel free to use this space for letter/package deliveries as well as visits/knocks on the front door!]

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[devoutish]

[Alfie's eyes are still closed, face still resting against Royce's head. He's concentrating hard, wanting to make sure the right things come out and the wrong things stay in. Wanting to make sure that, despite all the complications and frustrations and uncertainties, at least this is clear and obvious.]

[bywolves]

[ Royce very cautiously lets Alfie feel a sense of - relief. Acceptance. He knows, and thank you. His grip on Alfie's hand is maybe tight enough to cut off circulation, and the breath he drags in is shivering and unsteady, completely off balance. ]

[devoutish]

Yeah?

[He says, almost inaudibly. It worked? It helped?]

[bywolves]

Yeah. [ It - helped. It doesn't completely make everything go away, but god, he feels it. ] I - I understand.

[ He's trying to hold back on overwhelming Alfie with everything at once, but a current of his own soft, fond and affectionate love slips through. ]

[devoutish]

[That makes Alfie smile, mouth quirking against Royce's shoulder.]

I understand, too.

[bywolves]

[ For a moment, he just stays quiet, trying to sort through his emotions. Bit by bit, Royce gives Alfie his good feelings. His relief, the calmness that he feels while he's here, side by side with Alfie. The appreciation, the comfort and the abstract feeling of being cared for, of knowing he has a safety net, that Alfie's got him just fine. The protectiveness, the overwhelming desire to look after him, to make sure that he is cared for just as much as Royce is. He shows him the ball of dread and anxiety dimmed down because of what Alfie shared with him.

Alfie makes him feel warm, and Royce tries to pass that on as much as he can. ]

[devoutish]

[Alfie takes his hand again, patting the back of it.]

It's all well and good to say it with words, but sometimes-- sometimes the words aren't enough, are they?

[bywolves]

Yeah. [ He murmurs. ] This is hard to deny. I don't... I don't have words for what you just gave me.

[devoutish]

But you've got the feelings, now. You don't need the words.

[bywolves]

I know, I'm agreeing with you.

[devoutish]

I know you are. I'm--

[Clarifying? He doesn't know.]

[bywolves]

[ He understands. He lets Alfie feel a bit of that understanding, and then shifts, pulling himself up and forward to sit on the edge of the chair, leaning over. He rests his head in his hands, sliding one hand up through his hair distractedly. ]

I'm - okay. I'm okay. [ He tells Alfie, because he knows it's a rough looking pose. ] I'm alright. Thinking. Sorting.

[devoutish]

[And Alfie scoots back a little more, putting some distance between them, even if it's only a few inches. He'll watch his back, letting him think in silence.]

[bywolves]

[ That helps. Royce drags in a slow, steadying breath, and his shoulders come down from around his ears. ]

Tell me what's going through your head? [ Royce asks, soft. ]

[devoutish]

Relief. Relief that this isn't going poorly, that what I showed you helped, and that it wasn't too much.

[bywolves]

It's a little much, but not too much. [ Royce tells him, closing his eyes. ] I don't think I could've comprehended how much you feel without feeling it myself.

Do - do you understand mine? The -- this. [ And he rubs at his chest, where the anxiety still lingers. ]

[devoutish]

Yeah, I do.

[He squeezes Royce's elbow.]

Would you wish it to be lessened? From me.

[bywolves]

What do you mean? [ Like an actual wish? He's unsure. ]

[devoutish]

Would you want my feelings to be less strong?

[bywolves]

No. I don't mind yours. I wasn't... I wasn't prepared. That's all.

[devoutish]

I have warned you.

[He says, a teasing note in his tone.]

[bywolves]

[ A laugh is surprised out of him, just a small ahah that he muffles with his hand. Another deep breath. ]

You did. You warned me. I suppose I didn't believe you when you said it was strong.

[devoutish]

Yeah, well, won't make that mistake again, will you.

[bywolves]

No, I won't. [ And he shifts, turning around to settle against Alfie's side again, resting his head against Alfie's shoulder. ]

This - this is the most... [ He pauses, and then, vaguely embarrassed: ] This is the most intimate thing I've done with a person, I think.

[devoutish]

You know-- now that I'm thinking about it, I think I'd say the same.

[He drops an arm around Royce.]

Funny world, innit.