Morning Coffee And Sweet Surprises (Closed to Poprockz)

[Poprockz]

The fact that she had Quint laughing warmed her heart, though she imagined that maybe he was laughing more at how true the statement about Niles was. He truly was a self-important, egotistical, arrogant, evil, narcissistic, cunt. She could go on with words to describe how hateful he was, but "cunt" was at the top of her list.

"Yuck. Thanks, Quint. Now I'm going to think of that every time I eat quinoa now." She gave him a playfully disgusted face before she continued. "Really? I thought I mentioned it before, but maybe it was Sabastian I was talking to. I have an older sister who is currently in Japan, she looks kind of like me but with longer hair and a lot more attitude. She had an arranged marriage, but it was like one of those where the two people are set up together and they see if they hit it off. They clicked really well so now she's hopefully living happily with him over there. I... I really hope so at least."

Sayori gave Quint a little smile before looking away from him. She would probably never find out what happened to her sister, nor any of the rest of her family. And they would never find out what had become of her either, seeing as how she would most likely spend the rest of her days at the end of Kuznet's leash as their pet. All of that made her sad, but she was a bit numb right now from the stress of the day, so she pushed it down for later when she was alone; it was just something she would have to grieve naturally for.

Reaching over, she picked up the soup bowl from the tray. It hurt just a little bit to lean over, but it wasn't enough to make her too uncomfortable. With that, she took a spoonful and put it in her mouth. The woman made a face, her body really not wanting to ingest anything at this time. However, she was able to swallow, taking another spoonful and starting to repeat the process. It tasted fine, it was just... not what she wanted at all.

 

[Drobabes]

He didn't have a whole lot to say as far as her sister went. Not that he wouldn't have liked to talk about it with her, but it was just more that he didn't want to bring the mood down any further than it already was. The day had been...extremely rough, for the both of them, so he was happy to simply let her talk and then the conversation die off.

When she started to eat, he reached around her carefully and took his own bowl. Quint recognized that look on her face and knew it was likely hard to get it down, but seeing as she didn't have much of a choice, he thought it might be a little easier if they simply ate together. Still, he was feeling much the same, and each spoonful of his own soup was just as slow.

About halfway through his meal, he caught himself spacing out again and forced himself to pick up the pace a bit. If Jonathon was taking him out to do some testing, he didn't know if it was going to be with the animals again, (perhaps this time seeing if he had any control over them, as he and Sabastian shared mental capabilities), or if it was simply going to be something physical. Either way, he wanted some calories in his body so he wouldn't tire out quickly.

It was just about the time that he was almost done with his soup that the door opened and Jonathon stepped in again, looking at the both of them expectantly. The blond man didn't comment on about Sayori, so it could be assumed that he was satisfied that she was eating.

With a little sigh, Quint sat his bowl down on the tray in front of them and then gently hugged her to his chest. He didn't know when he would be allowed to see her again, but for today at least, he felt more at ease and calm.

"I'll see you again real soon, yea?" he asked, smiling down at her.

And he meant it. He truly did want to see her again.

 

[Poprockz]

As they simply sat in relative silence, Sayori basked in the comfort of being held by him. She wished there was something she could do to repay his kindness, but at this point there was no gift other than gratitude that she could give. A thought drifted through her mind as to whether Quint ever received the shirt he lent her. Kuznet had taken it off when he redressed her in his own image of desire, so she wasn't sure what had become of his shirt. Not that it mattered, but she hoped it ended up back with him.

The woman was about halfway through her soup before Jonathan came back, her breath being held while he looked at them for a moment. He seemed satisfied though, as he didn't come over to them, nor threaten them to eat faster. Though the fact that he was back at all meant that it was time for Quint to go. She wanted him to stay with her, to chat and laugh with her because as soon as he left, that deafening silence would descend again and she would be all alone once more.

He had done a great job in stabilizing her though, the woman confident that she could hang on at least until she saw him again once more. She recognized his sigh as a signal that he was preparing to leave, his arms coming around her. Carefully hugging him back with the soup bowl in one of her hands, she tried not to be sad in the moment, resting her forehead against his chest and breathing him in once before looking up at him.

"I'll see you again real soon, yea?"

A smile came to her own lips, "yeah. Until I see you, I'll be trying to think of some good jokes I can tell you. I promise to come up with at least two good ones." Her arms came back from around him, waiting for him to set her back into the bed.

 

[Drobabes]

"Until I see you, I'll be trying to think of some good jokes I can tell you. I promise to come up with at least two good ones."

He gave her a big grin as he started moving both himself and her, and then, just as gently as he had before, he sat her back down in bed.

"Oh you're on, I got a whole stock pile of them in the back of my head that I've been dieing to practice on someone."

Once she was seated comfortably, he started to collect the tray and their bowls, along with the utensils they had used. The grin turned somewhat soft, but inside, he was a bit nervous and worried for her. Usually he would have just left the tray and mess for one of the other officers to clean up, but right now, Quint didn't trust her not to try and hurt herself somehow-even if it was only with a plastic spoon.

Very quickly, everything was collected. With one last little smile to her, the officer and the half zombie left to do whatever experimentation's that Kuznet had planned.

 

[Poprockz]

Sayori gave Quint a wider smile at that, the woman looking forward to hearing them. She imagined that half of them would be hilariously dumb, and the other would be cleverly witty.

Once he had resituated her in the bed, she gripped the edge of the blankets, internally feeling a bit of her sadness creeping up on her now that the light of Quint’s brightness was about to recede. She was a bit curious as to why he was taking the soup since she only ate half of it, but she figured he just didn’t want an officer having to come and clean it up when he wasn’t there. She wasn’t hungry anymore anyway, so she supposed it didn’t matter.

She watched them leave. Once the door closed her smile dropped off her face and she sighed, laying back down and pulling the blankets up over herself once more, closing her eyes. If only she could sleep until she saw him again.

———————————-

While they had sat on a bench for a while, Robert and Genevieve had popped into the cafeteria for some ice cream. Apparently the military was trying to get people to eat the sweet treats so that it could create more space in the freezers for more nutritionally valuable foods. Of course there was a bunker somewhere that had an ungodly amount of MRE’s, but one always wanted to exhaust the fresh food first. Besides, it was a good morale boost for the survivors to have such a lighthearted treat.

Exiting the building, Genevieve led her “blind” husband as they simply enjoyed the evening together. Both of them enjoyed their vanilla soft-serve as they went. Robert was a bit sensitive to cold of course, but it seemed like his tongue was the exception to this rule (though he was certainly more susceptible to brain freeze they would find).

“Lord have mercy...” Robert said after one such brain freeze, holding his hand up to his forehead and squeezing his eyes shut.

His wife giggled slightly and shook her head, “you know, if I didn’t know better, I would say that it’s the lord’s way of telling you that you’re too sweet for that ice cream. Maybe you should just give your helping to me.” Her tone was playful as she smiled at him.

A playfully disapproving frown cane to his face and he replied, “you can have it when my brain freezes over.”

“I’m not sure I’ll have to wait long in that case.” She took a lick of her own ice cream, finding it amusing how stubborn he was being about keeping his dessert despite his disadvantages.

Eventually, they ended up in front of that military office, Genevieve pausing for a moment as he got another brain freeze. She brought him over to a bench and sat him down gently.

“Ah... thanks love. Here, let me rest on this bench for a while okay? I’m feeling a bit weak from all that brain freeze. I wish we had grabbed some tea- that would have probably heat us back up.” He looked a bit wistful as he said it, shifting to get a bit more comfortable. Robert wasn’t going to say it out loud, but he wanted the opportunity to be alone so he could concentrate on trying to contact Sabastian. Who would suspect a blind man sitting on a bench with a cone of ice cream in his hand?

Smiling Genevieve leaned over and kissed his lips, smoothing back his red hair a bit as she said softly, “wait right here, I’ll go grab us some. I have to use the restroom anyway, so that works out well.”

He nodded and called after her, “thank you, beautiful.” Waiting until her footsteps receded, he would soon be able to try his luck.

 

[Drobabes]

Francisco came walking through the compound slowly, taking his time. The sun wouldn't be setting for at least another hour, and he found that he was really enjoying the evenings cool breeze. While Niles was under the impression that the mission was a failure, Francis himself had filed it away in the back of his mind that it was actually a great success. Not only had he been able to torture Officer Niles for a little while, but he had also been able to destroy the evidence of his men having ever been down there in the first place.

Suddenly Niles walked by him at a brisk pace, and the look he shot him might have chilled any normal man right down to his very soul. But Francisco was not a normal man, and despite whatever Niles might have been scheming behind those cold, dark eyes, Francis simply knew too much about how he ticked for him to ever get away with it.

He gave him a grin, and then made a few kissy faces at him as the dark officer scoffed and continued on, his burning glare only leaving Francisco to look down at a man on a bench for a brief moment before he made his way into the office. Fran's own eyes traveled to him as well, recognizing that blind man, and suddenly his day seemed to have brightened even further.

Changing his course a bit, he kept his relaxed pace until he reached the bench, and then he sat down heavily with a groan before easing back.

"The evenings finally cooling down, it seems. I don't believe we've yet to meet, I'm Officer Francis Francisco."

His warm hand reached out to the man, and his light brown eyes watched him carefully as he gave him an easy smile.

 

[Poprockz]

Yes, he could feel Sabastian but he didn't seem active in a way. Perhaps he was taking a nap or something like that, as it almost seemed like he was defenseless mentally, Robert having the opportunity to delve further with impunity. Although, he wondered if that was really true; if he tried to probe further into the blonde's mind, would Sabastian put up resistance? Even in sleep he had to have some inkling that he wasn't alone in his own mind. He was about to test this out when he heard someone groan and sit down next to him, breaking his concentration.

His eyes had been closed anyway as he had reached out with his mind, but as the other man spoke to him, he kept them closed. If there was one thing he learned about pretending to be blind, it was that actually blinding yourself made the act much more convincing. Seeing things only made one react to things, even unconsciously.

Robert turned his head in the direction of the voice and smiled, completely unaware that Francisco was offering his hand. "Officer Francis Francisco? No, I don't recognize your voice, so I probably haven't met you before, though I'm delighted to make your acquaintance today. My name is Robert. Robert Anderson. I have to say, that point in summer just at the beginning and the end where it's warm with that touch of coolness- it's my favorite time of the year. Reminds me of Bible camp."

He sighed wistfully before taking a lick of his ice cream, thoughtfully warming it up in his mouth before swallowing and then repeating the process. The zombie wasn't sure why the officer was approaching him, but it didn't seem like he was hostile as of yet. Maybe he was just resting his bones. The man next to him smelled vaguely of sewage, but he seemed to have cleaned up as best he could without a shower. Still, it was a bit unpleasant for Robert, the zombie hiding the fact that he wished he could scoot away from him.

 

[Drobabes]

Francisco let his hand drop down before moving it back to his lap, his expression becoming inquisitive as he looked at Robert. He was trying to stare through his glasses, but his own eyes weren't what they used to be. At least, not without his contacts, but he tried not to put them in if he didn't need to. Contacts would not be an easy resource to find in the apocalypse, that was for sure, and he dreaded wearing actual glasses. It was much too easy for the butt of a gun to meet his face, perhaps leaving him permanently blind.

Speaking of blind-the man next to him was either truly blind...or a damn good actor. Though, he wondered...

"Bible camp, huh? I never went myself, and I doubt they would ever let someone like me into a chapel!"

He let out a loud laugh then, his hand coming up briefly and then swiftly falling back down to slap himself on the knee, as if he had made just the best damn joke all day. While he was doing this, he was very carefully, and very quickly, digging something out of his pocket with his other hand that he had hidden down by his side...

 

[Poprockz]

"Bible camp, huh? I never went myself, and I doubt they would ever let someone like me into a chapel!"

The "blind" man cocked his head to the side at that, a little smile coming to his face as he waited for the laughter to ebb. He had gotten that reaction before, and it always made him just a bit sad that people thought that they weren't worthy to be shown forgiveness or mercy by the lord. If only the church had a better reputation, most people thinking it was only something for the pious or snooty people who liked looking down on others.

Raising his finger, he began to speak, "Ah, but that's the thing. If people were perfect, there would be no need to go to church. Those who are lost, repentant, and seeped in regrets are the ones who are most welcome within the halls of a church for it is those people who need to be shown what true grace is."

"Many chose to stay away, thinking that they can punish themselves with their own devices, be it drinking, driving people away, physical self-harm, or many other things including denial. The thing they don't realize though is that God isn't there to chastise and shame, he's there to love and accept. Not to say that one's sins should be ignored or wiped clean, but who you chose to be going forward is important, it shows whether you're willing to honor those you've hurt by being better and putting as much light in the world as you can."

Suddenly the man paused and laughed, "look at me, going off on a religious monologue when we've only just met. I'm sorry, I just tend to get a bit carried away most times." He took another lick of his ice cream but swallowed too quickly. Immediately a pained expression came to his face and he put his hand up to his forehead. "Mm. Brain freeze. It always gets me..."

 

[Drobabes]

Francis was listening with a relaxed grin on his face, the object that he had fished out now hidden in his closed fist as he reached up to his shirt pocket and let his fingers dig around a bit. He found what he was looking for, but something that Robert said causes the smile to slowly drop off of his face.

"...but who you chose to be going forward is important, it shows whether you're willing to honor those you've hurt by being better and putting as much light in the world as you can."

A bit of a scowl came to his face as he stared off around the compound, his hand now paused with his fingers still down in his pocket. The mental spell that he was under seems to get broken only when Robert suddenly cringes from the cold of the icecream, and then Francis looks over at him sharply.

"And what about you, Robert?" he says, pulling a cigarette out from that pocket where his hand had been hovering. He brings the filter up to his mouth, and then uses the lighter in his hand to get it going while his eyes linger on the blind man's face. Taking a slow drag, he puts his lighter away and then puts one arm up on the back of the bench before exhaling and continuing.

"Who do you choose to be going forward?"

His voice was now lacking in the cheer it had just a mere moment before. Now the officer was a bit more quiet; his voice just a tad deeper.

"Do you choose to try and be a hero? Saving the poor souls around you?"

 

[Poprockz]

"And what about you, Robert?"

As soon as the sound of the lighter registered, the hair on the back of his neck stood up. Though he couldn't see it nor feel it, the fact that he could smell it and knew it was there made his body panicked. It was a reaction he knew he couldn't fight, as he and Genevieve had tested it out a little bit on their way over to the base. Zombies were terrified of fire, even the ones that no longer had any thoughts or will of their own. It was almost as though it was written into their dna at this point.

With immense self-control, Robert got up from the bench quickly and walked forward several steps, putting about six feet in-between himself and Francisco. While he was unable to fight his body's instinct to flee, he wasn't going to let himself give off a reaction that seemed out of place. He did his best to make it look natural, cringing and bending over to rub part of his calf. The zombie was playing it off as a muscle-cramp, letting out a little pained breath.

"Who do you choose to be going forward? Do you choose to try and be a hero? Saving the poor souls around you?"

He looked in the direction of Francisco's voice, still keeping his eyes closed. Why did it sound like there was a double-meaning behind the man's words? There was no way the man knew who or what he was, nor why he was here and what he was trying to accomplish. And yet, something about his tone of voice unsettled Robert, as though he was challenging him to think about what he was doing.

Robert gave Francisco a slightly pained smile. "Sorry, muscle cramps- I get them sometimes." With that, he paused and thought for a minute, trying to find an answer for the man.

"A hero? No. A hero is someone who rushes in on gut instinct and saves anyone and everyone they can, a beacon of hope who can never truly lose. I am... just a man. I have limitations and weaknesses. I have someone I love and friends who I need to protect. If I am in a position to help someone without endangering the people I care for, I will. But God knows that I can only do so much."

He looked a little sad for a moment, "as a Christian, we're rumored to be selfless, always helping those in need and thinking little of ourselves. I'll be honest though; I can be just as selfish as the next man. I pray to God and I strive to be a better man, but when it all boils down to it, sometimes one must ignore one's heart in the moment in order to protect it later." A weak chuckle left his lips as he straightened up and stretched slightly, "not sure if that makes sense or not, but that's sort of how I feel."

 

[Drobabes]

Roberts actions were just a little too few, too late. Were he not looking for signs of it, Francis might have believed him about the leg cramp. As it were, however, he had seen the way he had tensed before choosing to get up and move away.

"sometimes one must ignore one's heart in the moment in order to protect it later..not sure if that makes sense or not, but that's sort of how I feel."

He took his time smoking his cigarette. Now that he was pretty sure he had his answer, his eyes were no longer so keen on watching him, but instead, began to drift around the complex again. There was a pregnant women walking by with her husband, and even though they were still a distance from them, Francis went ahead and threw his cigarette down on the ground before stomping it out with his boot.

"That does make sense in a way. I have seen...more loss of life than I would ever like to fully admit, Robert. Men, boys, women, children...whole families on occasion. Sometimes I had a hand on the gun that saved them, and sometimes I had two hands on the one that ended their time here. Have you ever had to make a difficult choice like that, Robert? Have you ever been forced to play god and decide who gets killed, and who gets to wake up to another miserable day?"

He looked over at him then, wondering if the man could hear it in his voice. Quint had let him talk like this on occasion, if only so that he could point it out to him-where Francis's line was, so that he never fully crossed it. But just because he knew where it was didn't mean that it didn't still taunt him. Always whispering, always calling him to, just, step over it already. Give up on the charade of good and evil, because did it matter in the end? Wouldn't it just be so much easier to stop caring?

 

[Poprockz]

After Francisco had finally put out the death-stick, Robert meandered back to the bench as though it had been his intention to return regardless of whether he was smoking or not. Though with his eyes closed, he ended up bumping into it with his legs before he felt for the seat and sat down. Once seated, he carefully continued to eat his ice-cream, listening to the other man speak.

The things the officer said made Robert's face become a little more somber, his mouth a straight line as he "looked" out from them. The sun was still a bit warm, and he took comfort in that as he contemplated how to respond to such a deep conversation topic. It seemed like the officer's soul was heavy with shame, something that a lot of military personnel seemed to share. He had likely seen the brutality of war, as well as the desperation of the people in these current times. How many people had the officer had to look in the eye as he shot them before they turned?

"Sometimes I had a hand on the gun that saved them, and sometimes I had two hands on the one that ended their time here. Have you ever had to make a difficult choice like that, Robert? Have you ever been forced to play god and decide who gets killed, and who gets to wake up to another miserable day?"

"Only once have I had that opportunity to step in, and I chose to look away when the final blow was made. Did he deserve it? In the moment I was sure he did, but upon further reflection, I don't know..." The red-head ran his fingers through his hair and then adjusted his glasses slightly before replacing his hand into his lap.

"I haven't known you for more than five minutes, but I would assume that you took no pleasure in what you did. You didn't delight in snuffing out those lights and that given the choice, if there were no negative consequences in doing so, you would lower your weapon. I don't pretend to know what your circumstances were, but to do something like that, you must have been faced with something so much worse." He was quiet for a moment, his head turning more toward Francisco still with a very serious expression on his face.

"Everyone you saved matters. Everyone you've killed also matters. Why we do things is just as important as what we do. I personally believe that the way one pays respects to their own misdeeds is to make it so that that the misdeed wasn't in vain. Maybe the person whose life you had to take will save more lives in the future, or perhaps it will change you in a way that helps you change the world in a positive way. If one has to die, then I would hope that at least it is honored. If not... then why did you do it?" Robert sighed and nibbled on the ice cream cone, having finished most of his ice cream. He wished he could comfort the man, but he seemed to be haunted by the past in a way that only time could mend.

 

[Drobabes]

"...but to do something like that, you must have been faced with something so much worse."

He didn't move much except to adjust himself on the bench a bit, trying to get more comfortable. After that he was very still, and very quiet, contemplating what Robert was saying. About three minutes go by after the half zombie quiets down, before Francisco makes any kind of noise, and then, it was only a small sigh. That line was still whispering sweet nothings in his ear, but for today at least, Fran was feeling rather lazy. Even one step over just wasn't worth the hassle.

"Well Mr.Anderson, it's been a pleasure to sit with you, but I do believe they're about ready to serve dinner and I have a sweet little lady who I know has quite the appetite and sweet tooth. You have a good rest of you're evening."

He stood up then, pushing himself off the bench and hating the way his joints popped as he did so.
________

It had taken them a minute to figure it out, but between himself, Kyle, and Zac, Tommy finally figured out how to encrypt a message and get it ready to send off. He hated the fact that there was any physical proof of it, but it was the best he could do and he just had to pray that no one would think to take a blind man's bible before he had a chance to get rid of it.

He was just making his way through the complex, his expression a bit solemn as he held the bible securely in his hands, when he spotted Francisco getting up from the bench. It didn't alert him, however, as he was quite used to Francisco spending as much time as he could with any new residents that came through, and especially if it gave the older man a chance to sit down. It even brought a bit of a grin to his face as he watched the officer walk off, likely to finish off some paperwork before he retired for the night. Tommy even almost felt bad for him, because he knew he wouldn't be getting much sleep later.

"Robert!" he called out, jogging the last few steps to the bench before taking a seat.

 

[Poprockz]

Robert sat there, waiting for the other man to speak. The silence wasn't uncomfortable, being more of a contemplative nature to it. At last, he heard a small sigh and braced himself for a response, though the one he got was not what he had expected.

"Well Mr.Anderson, it's been a pleasure to sit with you, but I do believe they're about ready to serve dinner and I have a sweet little lady who I know has quite the appetite and sweet tooth. You have a good rest of you're evening."

Well, it seemed that the officer needed some more time to process, not addressing the points Robert had made. That was just as well though- sometimes with the bigger issues, one needed to reach their own conclusions after meditation or prayer. He could only hope that he had been of some help to the friendly man. it was possible that he was part of the corruption that Tommy seemed to fear, but Robert got the feeling that at his core, the officer was a good man.

His expression softened, getting the idea that by "sweet little lady" he must be talking about his wife or his daughter. At least the man had someone to call family, one of the most precious things one could have in these times.

"You as well, Mr. Francisco. I hope she likes ice cream." The blind man continued to smile, thinking to himself that someday he hoped to maybe have a family with Genevieve. They had been trying before everything happened, but hadn't been successful as of yet.

"Robert!"

Looking over toward the direction of the voice, he grinned, recognizing it as the young military man who had promised to help. For all he knew, he could end up played by Tommy, but he was willing to take a chance on him since his wife seemed to concur. "Timmy? No, Tommy! Sorry, I can be a bit forgetful at times, especially with names."

 

[Drobabes]

"Timmy? No, Tommy! Sorry, I can be a bit forgetful at times, especially with names."

He laughed a little as he adjusted himself on the bench, getting comfortable.

"That's alright, I was pretty bad at remembering names too. Well, until they started making me do more paperwork. Man you would not believe how many names, numbers, and places you have to remember. And that's not even including the ranks and...uh, anyway" he said, trailing off.

Tommy was completely lying in that moment, but it was one lie that he felt comfortable with because it was a lie that his father had always pushed on him. The young lad actually had quite a good memory. Photographic even, but his father had always feared for him, especially after he had learned that Tommy wanted to join the army one day.

"You keep it to yourself, Tommy," he had warned many times.

"You're smart, but you are young, and you are naive. People will try to take advantage of you and use you, so you keep that to yourself and you only ever use it when you have to, understand?"

His father had been a good man, and Tommy was grateful that he had heeded that advice. Already Kuznet was trying to push Tommy, to use his intelligence for his own sick games. How much more 'useful' would the boy have been to him if he knew?

"I have your bible. Thank you for letting me borrow it Robert, it...it helped a lot. More than you know."

The young man didn't have to lie about that. While Zac and Kyle had been bent over the paper, engrossed in creating that note, Tommy had taken a few moments to leaf through some of his favorite passages. The memories that those stories brought with them stung his heart, but it hurt in such a good way.

 

[Poprockz]

He smiled as he listened to Tommy rattle off about doing paperwork, thinking to himself that Tommy had such a bubbly personality for someone in the military. Maybe that was just a misconception that he himself held, thinking that most military personnel were serious and no-nonsense most of the time, but it seemed odd to him that Tommy himself sought a career in the military. He could be wrong though- Tommy could have simply enlisted because he thought it was his duty being that there weren't as many able-bodied men in the world now.

"I have your bible. Thank you for letting me borrow it Robert, it...it helped a lot. More than you know."

Robert could hear the sincerity in his voice and he had to admit that he was slightly touched. Of course he had lent it to the man with the intention of getting his help to rescue Sabastian, but the fact that Tommy had taken the time to through and maybe read it warmed his heart. It made him feel like he was giving back a little bit of light, even if it was just a spark of comfort.

"You are so welcome. I am so glad that you found comfort in the words of the lord. In these dark times, comfort is something so precious, faith being even more precious, you know." Robert reached out, haphazardly bumping his hand against Tommy's arm before finding his shoulder and patting him gently. His smile was soft and heartfelt, feeling very grateful to Tommy in more ways than one.

------------------------------------------------------------------

While Sabastian had napped for a while, he had woken up at some point and simply laid on the bed. He was slowly regaining the ability to move, but it was certainly slow. Jonathan had popped by at some point to drop off lunch, setting it just out of Sabastian's reach. He had paused, watching as Sabastian weakly tried to get it, only to fail several times. The sick fuck seemed to enjoy watching him struggle, though he only had the slightest hint of a smile on his face.

He didn't stick around for more than a minute or two though, walking briskly off to some other activity. Sabastian was glad to see him go, now taking the time to carefully make sure the soup ended up in his mouth and not on his face or the floor. It took a long time (long enough for the soup to get cold) but he eventually finished his meal and sighed.

Getting up still wasn't an option, so he daydreamed about Vin a bit, imagining what they do if they ever went on a real date. A bit later, he saw Niles stalk down the hallway, giving him a really poisonous look as he passed. He wasn't sure why he was in such a bad mood, but he wasn't going to poke the bear this time, glancing away from Niles until he was gone.

The hours passed, and eventually the lights flicked off. By that point, he could move somewhat normally, so he used his goop to seal the cuts on his back. It wouldn't heal them, but it would keep them from bleeding more and keep them from getting infected (if they could even get infected). Since he had no way of stitching the cuts, likely the scar wouldn't be very pretty, but it wasn't like he was going to try impressing anyone around here anyway.

Closing his eyes, he slowly drifted off to sleep, not having felt Quint reach out much today at all.

The next thing he knew, his eyes were opening and Sayori was there, sitting on the ground and holding her stomach with that pained look on her face as though she was about to cry. He knew what to do because... it felt like he had already done it. In the dream, he hadn't yet been tipped off that it even was a dream, the blonde asking Sayori if she was okay and hearing from her that she was hungry and too weak to stand.

As he had done before, he got up and carried her over to her bed, trying to come up with a solution before it occurred to him what he could do. Breaking his brace off, he hesitated as he had in real life, letting her know that he wasn't sure if it would help. She hadn't cared, begging for him to do anything to help make the pain go away. Her eyes had been desperate,

"You can... drink."

She reached out and held his appendage, pulling it into her mouth as she sucked and squeezed it. It tingled something awful on his tip, feeling her tongue occasionally caress him. Sabastian looked away, cringing as he listened to the sounds of her voraciously drinking the nectar from his extra limb. Every now and then, he would hear a little "mm," desperate at first, but more to the end of the feeding her little whine sounded more satisfied.

 

[Drobabes]

That pat to his shoulder made his chest pinch with pain again, but he sucked it up, taking in a deep breath and letting it out slowly before choosing to speak again.

"My dad used to read it to me every night when I was little" he said with a bit of a laugh.

"Instead of regular kids books, I got stories from the bible-with a little flair thrown in for fun. He stopped doing it so much when I hit puberty, but, those passages always make me feel comforted."

He reached down into his pocket then, thumbing the bracelet that Jesse had given him.
________

After all that testing-which had indeed been on the animals, as he suspected, Quint was absolutely exhausted. Still, once he was taken back to his room, he fought against the sleep that he knew was to come. He so did not want to share memories and dreams with Sabastian tonight, having just barely made it through the day by the skin of his teeth.

Still, there was no fighting it, and soon enough Quint found himself nodding off while just leaning against the wall. With a big sigh, he gave up and went to bed.

...

It was cold, and the bed below him was no longer comfortable, but stiff and hard. Where was he? Back in the cell? But why would Ray have moved him back?..

"You can... drink."

Quint turned his head, blinking his eyes slowly and not really registering what he was seeing for a moment. Once it did start to make sense to him, however, he very quickly found himself frozen to that mattress, the shock of the sight making him awkward and unable to look away. Oh but the longer he stared, the more awkward he felt, until all at once he couldn't take it any longer.

With his cheeks heating up to an uncomfortable burn, he very carefully, and very quietly, turns himself over on the mattress and simply tries to face the wall and ignore it. It would not seem that 'ignoring it' would not be enough, however, as those little moans and sounds of satisfaction coming from Sayori's sweet lips...such sweet lips that were so lewdly wrapped around that soft appendage, were invading his ears and making his imagination run wild.

All of a sudden he felt his pants begin to tent, and with horror, he realized that it was turning him on.

Fuck fuck, stop! Think of something else! Uh, uh, video games! Mario! No, that stupid level in-

"Mm~"

He sucked in a breath, his eyes clenching shut and his hands going to cover his ears as he curled up into a bit of a ball on the bed. This was not happening right now.

 

[Poprockz]

"My dad used to read it to me every night when I was little... He stopped doing it so much when I hit puberty, but, those passages always make me feel comforted."

"Your father sounds like a good man. I always thought that the mark of a good parent was one who would read to their child- it's such a special time, knowing they're prioritizing your well-being and the friendship between you." Robert sighed with a smile, his own father having read to him in the afternoon before he would do his homework and chores. He had always said that the lord came first before any of his other activities, saying that if he didn't make time for the lord, then he wouldn't get the benefits of the lord's grace.

"Oh, it's Tommy, right?" Genevieve walked up to them, two to-go cups in her hands. She had gotten some tea from the cafeteria, though she had gotten just a bit lost on the way. A welcoming smile was on her face as she approached, reaching out and taking what remained of Robert's ice cream cone before handing him his tea.

He looked a bit surprised that she took his cone, though he was thankful for the hot beverage, "love, I can finish-"

A crunch was heard as his wife bit into the cone and chewed, swallowing before she answered, "this is the tea tax, I'm afraid." A playful look was in her eyes as he shook his head and admitted defeat, the man taking a sip of his tea and getting a contented expression. With that, he held out his hand to Tommy, palm-up.

"So I take it to mean that you're returning the Bible to me?"

------------------------------------

While Sayori was drinking, he started to feel a bit of... arousal, the man feeling his own cheeks turn slightly pink. It was the most bizarre thing to Sabastian as he had zero attraction to Sayori and found the situation to be uncomfortable at best. Turning around slowly, his eyes found Quint curled up on the mattress and he wondered to himself whether he was feeling turned on because Quint was getting aroused by something. His mind started to piece together that he was dreaming, knowing that Quint hadn't been there or he wouldn't have had to break the brace.

But if Quint was turned on, what was there to be turned on about? Looking back over at Sayori, his eyes widened in realization, knowing that Quint had probably seen her sucking on that tentacle, hearing those little sounds she made. Was he picturing her sucking... something else? God, he really didn't want to think about Sayori with a dick in her mouth. It made Sabastian shudder, wanting nothing more than to take back his tentacle.

Wait a second, this was a dream. He could take it back at any time. Sabastian pulled the appendage from her, the tip coming out of her mouth with that little pop he remembered from the first time. She sighed and snuggled back into bed, once again asking if he would stay with her until she fell asleep.

"One minute Sayori, I'll be back in just a minute to sing for you." With that, he slowly walked over to Quint's side of the cell, standing there and crossing his arms while looking down at Quint with a raised eyebrow.

"Are you... hard right now?"

 

[Drobabes]

Tommy listened quietly, content to simply sit with the man and his own memories. When Genevieve approached, he gave her a polite smile and nodded in confirmation, then chuckled at her swiping the man's ice-cream cone. Mm, ice-cream...man, he really missed Jesse, and he hoped he got to see her sooner rather than later.

"So I take it to mean that you're returning the Bible to me?"

His cheeks became a bit flushed as he suddenly sat up a bit straighter, putting the bible into Robert's hand.

"Oh, right, sorry" he laughed. He had gotten distracted again; daydreaming. He really needed to stop doing that.

"Well, thanks again Robert, Genevieve. I need to get back, but, you two have a good night."

With that, he stood from the bench and gave them both that polite smile once more before walking off towards the direction that he had come from.
________

Michael Jackson in a pink speedo, wait! Ew! Gross! Too far!

Pop!

A tingle went up his spine and he felt his cock twitch. What the hell was wrong with him?! Sayori didn't even know he was laying over in his cell! If she found out...

"Are you...hard right now?"

Quint's eyes flew open, and then he jumped up on the bed, flipping himself around so that he was hugging the wall as he faced Sabastian with a look of fear and utter embarrassment.

"What?! No! Am I hard? No I'm not hard!" he huffed, trying to roll his eyes at Sabastian, as if the very suggestion of it was absolutely ridiculous. However, just as quickly as the words left his mouth, he happened to look down and notice the, very obvious, bulge in his pants. His eyes go wide with horror, and then he bends down very quickly and grabs the flimsy pillow, using it to cover himself as his whole face turns a shade darker.

"Wh-hat are you doing over here Sabastian?!"

Completely flustered, and seemingly completely unaware that he was actually dreaming, Quint suddenly throws the pillow in the little blonds face, his hands and all four of his tentacles coming down to feebly hide the evidence of his erection.

"Go back to your side!"

 

[Poprockz]

Both he and his wife waited for a response, the young man's eyes seeming to glaze over for a moment before he snapped out of it and gave the Bible back. Based on the fact that his cheeks were pink, he wondered if he was thinking about bringing some ice cream to someone special similarly to the officer who had been there earlier. He sure hoped so, hoping that he had someone to hold close like he did.

"Goodnight Tommy!" Robert smiled as the man left, Genevieve also wishing the man good dreams. Once he was gone, they turned to each other and his wife sat down.

"Did you have a nice chat?"

Nodding, Robert took a sip before replying, "well, unfortunately we hadn't gotten the chance to discuss any particular teachings of the lord, but he returned my Bible. I think maybe I might check up on how he's doing tomorrow. He almost seemed a bit sad at times, so I want to make sure he's doing okay."

She thought for a minute before taking a sip and reaching out, taking his hand and running the bad of her thumb over the smooth nail of his own thumb. The smaller woman leaned against him affectionately. "I think that would be good. Can you come with me for a moment? I found another bench where we could watch the sunset perfectly."

In all his years of being her husband, he didn't think he would ever lose the way she made his heart fluttered when she did romantic things for them like this. "Yes," he said softly, "let's go."

-----------------------------------------------------

"What?! No! Am I hard? No I'm not hard!"

Oh shit, it was hilarious to watch Quint squirm like this, Sabastian thinking to himself that this must have been how Quint felt when he had barged in on Sabastian's kinky dream with Vin. His eyes went down to Quint's crotch when he looked down too, both of them taking note of how erect he currently was. Seeing Sayori sucking on an appendage must have hit one of Quint's kinks to get that kind of reaction. While Quint seemed to only have had a platonic friendship with Sayori, perhaps not even Quint had known that given the right circumstances he would be attracted to the doe-eyed woman, her sweet lips, and that soft voice of hers.

"Wh-hat are you doing over here Sabastian?! Go back to your side!"

The fact that the pillow had been pressed against Quint's boner, even in a dream was not lost on him as it hit him in the face. Sabastian glared down at him for a moment before his lips suddenly turned up into the most shit-eating grin he had ever given Quint. It seemed like Quint didn't realize he was dreaming, telling him to go back to "his side."

Ooooh, it was time for a dollop of sweet, sweet payback.

Leaning over so that Sayori could see his reflective purple eye in the darkness, he called over, "you know what? Quint actually wants to sing you a bedtime song. He's just being a bit shy. Are you able to come over here for a minute?"

The creak of the other bed was heard as the dream Sayori got up and started blindly walking across the room. "Quint? You came back?" Her voice sounded hopeful and excited, just as Sabastian knew she would be in real life as well.

 

[Drobabes]

Quint's eyes were still wide as he watched Sabastian suddenly lean over, but before he could figure out what he was doing, the little blond had already began to call out to Sayori. With a sudden gasp, Quint jumped down off that bed and flew up behind Sabastian, wrapping his hands around his mouth just a moment too late.

"Now you listen here you little shit," he had started to growl, his shock and embarrassment being momentarily pushed aside as he tried with everything he had to send a vibe of dangerous, seething, anger through their bond.

"If you say one more wor-"

"Quint? You came back?"

Oh god, her voice was so soft and precious, and so full of hope. What was he going to do, hide from her? He was certainly tempted, and in his panic to not be caught, his eyes momentarily looked up at the bars, wondering if he could use his extra limbs to hold himself up there-Spiderman style.

Just as he started to move one of his appendages, however, he saw her come in. Of course, being in a dream, he wasn't quite thinking straight and thought that perhaps she could also see in the dark, and in turn, see his...predicament, going on down there. So with another sharp inhalation, he quickly let go of Sabastian and swooped down to grab that pillow again, awkwardly holding it over his pants as he looked up.

"Hiiii sweety. Yup, I sure did."

His eyes traveled down to Sabastian, glaring daggers into the little man.

 

[Poprockz]

Holy shit, he was fast when he wanted to be! Sabastian was shocked at how quickly Quint had been able to fly behind him and silence him with his hand. It was too late though, Sabastian grinning smugly as he felt the pure, unadulterated ill-will that was being directed toward him. If they weren't in a dream, maybe he would have been more concerned. As it was, this was simply too hilarious to be intimidated.

He could feel the panic bubbling up in Quint as he realized that Sayori was on her way, wondering what the man would do. It seemed as though Quint was simply not fast enough to escape those hopeful brown eyes as she passed into the cell. He actually snickered as Quint let go of him and grabbed the pillow again.

"Hiiii sweety. Yup, I sure did."

Sayori followed the sound of his voice and threw her arms around him, laying her head on his chest for a moment as she pressed her body against his. "I missed you," she whispered softly. "I was really happy when Sabastian said that you asked about me."

Sabastian's expression changed to one of surprise. Why was the dream-Sayori bringing this up? He felt a bit bad for having lied to her, but at the time he knew she had been broken down and needed something to cheer her up. Avoiding Quint's eyes for a moment, he shifted and scratched the back of his head, hoping that Quint wouldn't pick up on it.

Her expression changed to confusion for a moment before she started to say, "Quint, why is there a pillow on your... groin. Are you okay?" The woman's cheeks flushed slightly as though she didn't really want to draw attention to it, but was concerned about him nonetheless. It seemed as though she hadn't noticed yet that he had a boner, but had simply felt the pillow itself.

The blonde put his hand up to his mouth and bent over slightly, trying really hard not to laugh out loud at the face Quint was now making.

 

[Drobabes]

He really would have thought, with how fucking nervous he was, that that little bastard in his pants would have calmed the hell down. It would seem, however, that now that it had been made aware of the presence of an alluring women nearby, it's was ready to rise to the call of it's one purpose in life, and dear lord did it want to fulfill that calling as Sayori pressed her warm little body up against him.

"I was really happy when Sabastian said that you asked about me."

Luckily for Sabastian, Quint was either too nervous, or simply didn't care that the man had told a little fib, as he all but skips over it with "I-I missed you too. Um...Sabastian said you wanted me to sing-"

"Quint, why is there a pillow on your... groin. Are you okay?"

His eyes were all but bugging out now, and suddenly he was struggling like a cat to get free out of a child's death grip. His spine straightened out and became stiff as he leaned back away from her, and try as he might, he couldn't help but rock from side to side a bit. That was, at least until he remembered that he had extra arms now.

Two tentacles came out to lay gently over her shoulders, and then with the same gentle pressure, he started to push her back and away from him, his adams apple bobbing up and down as he tried over and over to swallow. Just a bit, just enough to at least wet his mouth.

"Sa-sing! Sabastian said you wanted me to sing? Are you having a hard time going back to sleep? Here, why don't you come over here and lay down in my bed?"

Before she could argue, he led her over to the bed and picked her up, pulling the flimsy blanket back with an extra arm before laying her down, and then tucking her in like a small child. All the while as he did this, he kept that pillow, that small shield, over his crotch.

 

[Poprockz]

He couldn't fucking help it. Sabastian sank down to the floor, his body shaking as he laid on his side and stifled his laughter with his hand. God it was so funny to see the way Quint floundered under Sayori's touch, the man trying so hard not to alert the woman to the situation going on downstairs. The nervousness radiated off Quint, but it only fed Sabastian's smugness and mirth. This was the best thing to happen to him since he got to this place and he would be damned if he ever forgot the bulgey-eyed look on the other man's face.

Leaning back hadn't helped Quint at all, only pulling her tighter against himself before he realized how to detach the woman. "Are you sure you-" Sayori couldn't finish her sentence as he peeled her off of his body and was able to wrangle her into the bed, securing her with the blanket. She seemed a bit confused with all of this, but ultimately as a dream usually was, she was very adaptive.

Once in the bed, she looked up at him and smiled, "yes. If you could sing me a song, I would be appreciative. I... think I would have a hard time sleeping without something of comfort."

Over where Sabastian was laying, a snort could be heard when Sayori said the word "hard." Though he was able to calm down enough to say in a barely-controlled voice, "I think she needs a pillow though, Quint. You don't happen to have one, do you?"