M glanced at Braith when he passed, taking the bottle. He took a tiny sip with his shaking lips, his hands starting to shake. He needed to go. Soon.
Neo sighed deeply. “I know. We’re just used to… someone… being here.”
“Don’t talk about her,” M managed to choke out, his chest now aching painfully.
(Thanks Lotus. Lmao.
Also I’m thinking about doing a solo RP on this Universe cus I like it so much.
steals Kat’s idea)
Braith didn't move a muscle, afraid to break the spell of whatever got them to start talking, but his curiosity was something he couldn't compete against. Gently, he flattened his hands against the counter, "Who?"
Neo shook his head. “It… we don’t like to talk about it.”
M busied himself with drinking gulps of the wine, staring intently at the wall. He seemed lost in his own thoughts and memories.
((I'm honestly surprised that no one else has stolen my idea….))
Braith arched a brow at his King, taking into account what he said but continuing on as if he hadn't spoken. "A past lover?"
There was silence in the room for about thirty seconds. Neo and M seemed to process the suggestion at the same time.
Neo burst out into laughter, slamming his large hands on the table as hysterical tears worked down his face.
M choked on his drink and hastily swallowed it, coughing and spluttering, grasping at his chest as he fought to gain hold of himself again.
Braith's mouth dropped open into a confused 'o'. "I'm glad you find me humorous." he sighed after a moment, rubbing a brow. He was getting emotional whiplash from these two.
Neo seemed to be the only one finding the suggestion funny. He calmed down a few seconds after Braith seemed to be so offended.
M, however, didn’t seem to find it funny, hence the choking. He leaned against the wall, still coughing lightly.
“No,” Neo finally breathed out, “they weren’t a lover.”
Braith made a little hum noise to let Neo knew that he had heard him, but he kept rubbing his eyebrow. Knowing his lover, he would say what he needed to when he was ready. Especially since he could hear Braith's curious unguarded thoughts loud and clear.
M set down the drink, shaking his head. “That's a ludicrous idea. She’s a close friend and—“
“Yet she was attracted to you, M,” Neo reminded with a laugh.
Braith couldn't help the smile that flicked across his face. "Oh…well this is…a surprise." He said slowly, glancing between the two. "Who would have thought?" He mused, the teasing lilt to his words softening the blow of the insult.
“Shut up!” M snapped across the kitchen at Braith. “I didn’t look this terrible as a kid, you know.” He shifted on the wall. “Just wait until you’re fucking six thousand years old.”
Neo hummed softly, tilting his head. “Oh, yes, four thousand was very bad for you, wasn’t it?”
Braith bristled again, casually dusting off his coat. Embers and a bit of ash fluttered to the floor. "I don't know what you mean. I look fine now and I will still look fine as a six thousand year old." His eyes glimmered at Neo. "Some of us have taste."
M shifted against the wall again, looking disgruntled and generally upset with the subject.
“You will. Eventually.”
Neo chuckled softly. “Despite how much I love to disagree, he’s right. It’s a miracle I don’t look as aged as he does.”
At least I will still have someone who cares for me. The thought zipped through Braith's mind before he could stop it, but it caused a whirlwind of doubt to shudder through him. If this mysterious woman could be so easily lost…would the same happen to him? Would he turn into a rancid memory within Neo's mind? "Who was she?" he asked instead ignoring the comments about age.
M clicked his teeth together, his eyes narrowing at Braith’s thought. He can just go fuck off.
Neo decided to answer the question. “She was a close friend of ours. She grew up in the orphanage we were in. M practically raised her.”
“We were best friends,” He remarked softly, his eyes softening at his memories.
Braith's expression softened completely. He understood the pain in Neo's voice and wanted nothing more than to hold him, but they were getting somewhere and he didn't want to break the spell. "She's not…with us any longer." He spoke carefully, aware that the emotions in the room were wild and dangerous, like an exposed nerve.
Neo nodded a bit, smiling at Braith. “She passed a while back. But we haven’t been the same since.”
Braith hesitated for a moment, unsure of how to continue. He was wildly curious but knew that both men could be volatile when upset. "Why?" he whispered
M shook the hair from his face and answered the question, “She was with us from the very start. We all even made a Universe together. She was a very near and dear friend, no matter how annoying.”
"I–I see." Braith said, voice still as soft as the dawn. To be someone that important to them… Braith couldn't identify the emotion that waved through him. "What happened to her?"
Neo chewed on his lip, his gaze flitting up to M briefly. “We uh… we don’t know,” He said this softly, almost in a whisper, as if he were afriad of M’s reaction.
Braith's gaze dropped to the floor as a soft, "Oh." escaped his lips. He wasn't sure how to feel or what to think. He was sure he would never be able to understand how they felt. He wasn't a god, and surely the loss of a fellow creator was…earth shattering.