J.J. didn't answer for a bit, rubbing his forehead gingerly as he pulled a face. She's just worried, he thought as frustration began to creep behind his mind. You should be happy that she cares so much. Well, she seemed to care a lot when they were dating. Look how that turned out.
That wasn't her decision.
Was it?
"Yeah, yeah," he repeated, keeping his sleepy mind from continuing down that road anymore. "I'm good, I promise. Might not go to bed again, but my head's fine."
Her eyes lingered on the bruise for a moment more, before she nodded. "Good. If you decide differently, tell me, and I shall get you something cold to help." Manon promised, standing. Instead of going back to her bunk, she sat down on the edge of his, one leg folded neatly over the other. "You know, you missed some of the weirdest happenings these past couple of years. The entire internet had a fight over the color of a dress in an image, for one. There was a women's march in 2017 that had so many people participate. That wasn't weird, just…worth mentioning." She mused, figuring a change of subject might be good for him. "Oh! And you missed the legalization of same-sex marriage, nationwide here."
"'Bout time that happened," J.J. said, raising an eyebrow at the news. "It honestly feels like I was dropped into a….jus'….new world. People walkin' around without wires on their headphones, phones bigger than this fuckin' bed…man, even the music is different. I was listening to the radio an' the only thing I fuckin' heard was this chick named Billie."
"Ah yes. Music has changed quite a bit in such a short but also long time." Manon said, nodding solemnly. Her lips twisted up into a slight sneer, something that was no new expression. "I am not fond of some of it. But things are not all that different. People are not very different, even if they pretend to be. I will just have to help you find the familiar things to start with."
J.J. let out a small "hmph," rubbing hands on his knees to dry out the sweat. Then, after a moment of consideration, he slowly laid back down, this time setting his head in Manon's lap.
I'm falling into this trap again. It was her father that forced her. They split apart, just like she said. Yeah, but what happens when she needs some money and calls up her pop to get some? That isn't her. Are you sure?
His conflicted feelings showed on his face as he tried to settle into a comfortable position, although it could've passed off as a look of discomfort.
(bump?)
"What is on your mind now, mon coeur?" Manon asked, voice soft in the relative quiet. She looked down at him, a bit surprised by him laying his head on her lap, but not so surprised she couldn't tell something was bothering him. Reading people, especially those she knew, was something she was a bit too good at. She had to be, when it came to her father and his sudden mood swings. "You look like you are worried."
"I am," he admitted, rubbing his face once again. This time, though, was to try and clear out the oppressive feelings in his head. "I'm worried of…getting connected again." He was always honest with Manon, no matter what the situation. "I wasn't in a good place after we broke up, but if that happens again, I won't have a deserted island to keep me distracted."
She took in a breath, holding it as she thought that over eyes on the window in the compartment and a slightly distant look to her face. "I did not tell you why we broke up. Why I broke up with you." She started, exhaling. "I gave you, instead, a half truth that allowed me to pretend everything was my decision. The truth….the truth lay in fear. And the choice was my fathers', not mine."
"That….helps, I guess, but….doesn't change much. I've been disconnected from the world for 5 years. I was basically feral when they found me. An' you got college, and probably a job, and who knows what else." He began to sat up as he spoke, like he didn't think she would want to touch him. "I'm gonna impede in almost all of yourlife. Are you sure you're okay with that?"
She reached out, gently placing a hand on his shoulder. She didn’t do anything else, letting him decide what to do, but letting him know that she was okay with him there. “You do not-when you were gone, I worked. I did nothing but work. Everything I have now, I gave myself, but it….I did not have you. You were the one thing I ever wanted, the one person I wanted to keep around. You were the only good thing in my life, and I chased you away because I was scared. But now-now you are here. You are here, and I want to do everything I can to convince you to stay again.”
His body hovered over her lap, half-slumped over as he processed everything she just said. She….wanted him. It was hard to believe, but he heard it with his own two ears. Her expression was genuine, from what he could tell.
"I'll….need time," he ultimately said, lowering himself back on her lap. "Time to get adjusted to….well, everything. An' to get the skeletons out of my closet. But…" he let the sentence trail off, leaving the idea of dating again open.
“When it comes to us, we have all the time in the world, mon coeur.” She said, nodding once. Her expression had regained that strange softness, blue eyes light and warm. “I am making sure of that. You get to have all the time in the world.”
"Why you always gotta look at me like that?" he mumbled, turning his head away from her to hide the blush on his face. "You always get this….like, weird gentle look whenever I start talkin'. It's really distracting."
"Would you like me to stop, then?" She asked, voice carrying a tone of amusement and laughter. She had yet to remove her hand from where it was resting on his shoulder, just letting it stay there. "If it is that distracting that you cause that, then I shall."