forum Glitches // OxO // Closed

Started November 27, 2019 by @ElderGod-Icefire

tune

Nyx was still grinning happily as he followed Jude, eyes flicking up to the sky happily to watch the rain come down on his head.

"Here, c'mon. We're almost there," Jude laughed, slowing his run as they neared the sheltered front of his apartment building. With a few remaining chuckles of giddiness, he turned to Nyx and took in his gleeful state in a quiet moment of adoration. Raindrops falling from his dark and dampened hair, bright eyes paired with that smile that seemed knowing of every wonderful and whimsical thing life had to offer. "You're so beautiful like, this, you know?"

Nyx grinned again, leaning over to kiss Jude's cheek happily. "Thank you!" He said, smiling again. "I think I like rain." He added after a moment, turning to look out the window and look at the rain pattering down on the pavement outside.

"Yeah? I'm glad," Jude said with a breathy laugh, wordlessly taking Nyx's hand as he turned to walk towards the elevators, away from the rain rolling down the windows of the building. "Are you cold, at all?" He asked, flicking a long dampened lock of hair from his view, "I'll make us something warm when we get up. That'll be nice."

Nyx shrugged a little bit. "Uhm…I don't know. But something warm sounds good!" He shivered faintly as they came inside, his shirt soaking wet from the rain.

Jude smiled, nodding to himself as they reached the elevators. "And we'll get changed, too. Put on some warm clothes so we can curl up and do something comfortable," He said, turning to Nyx with his smile of quiet content. Only with him, could he feel so joyful at the simplest of things. Drinking tea and perhaps reading together; it was a soft and homely feeling in his chest. "We can do whatever you like."

Nyx smiled happily. "That sounds great!" He replied, leaning over to kiss Jude's cheek, bouncing faintly on the heels of his feet.

Jude nodded, wearing a comfortable smile as he stepped into the elevator with Nyx. "Hmm, yeah. And hey, I just realized–" He said, running a hand through his wet hair as he glanced at Nyx, "You never told me about the book you stayed up late reading. What was it about?"

Nyx ducked his head faintly, remembering his earlier questions to Jude about said book and about, well, sex. "Uhm." he was again glad that he couldn't blush, because he would have been if he could. "People." he said, blinking at Jude uncertainly.

Jude laughed, nodding as the elevator travelled up the floors, shaking them a little as it passed the one jarring spot. "Yes, people, and what else?" He asked, wearing a curious smile as he wondered why Nyx was suddenly hesitant, "What happens in the story? Why did you choose it?"

"I don't know." he replied, making a face at Jude. "It looked interesting, that's all." he wrinkled his nose a little bit.

"Aye, don't look at me like that," Jude said with a soft laugh, nudging his shoulder. Nyx didn't talk as much as he did when they first met, and Jude missed the quiet remarks of wonder. "I won't judge you, if that's what you're worried about. I just wanna know what you think of all this stuff that's new to you; I wanna hear it."

Nyx stuck his tongue out for a moment. "I was curious about…I don't know. What people read. What…I don't know. What life is like, I guess." He said quietly, looking up at Jude a little uncertainly, studying him.

Jude hummed, slowly nodding his head as the elevator came to a stop. "That makes sense," He said, meeting Nyx's gaze with a gentle smile and nodding out into the hallway, "This world is so wonderful and abstract, and understanding it through art, movies, books and all that— I get what you mean. I'm curious too."

Nyx nodded a little bit. "Mhm. I just…I feel like there's so much that I'm not familiar with, and…" He trailed off, shrugging his shoulders and looking up at Jude with a soft, shy look.

(Fhdhgd Nyx hiding behind Jude when he sees Jude's friends)

"You'll have time to learn and understand how things work," Jude said, walking out into the hallway and smiling at the sight of Macy wandering the carpeted corridor. Looking down at Nyx with a fond look, he pressed a kiss on his cheek. "And we have time to enjoy the things we have now; all this stuff that's new to you should be celebrated, even if it's small."

Nyx clicked his tongue softly at the cat, then looked up at Jude with a faint smile. "Okay. Thank you, Jude.". Said, returning the kiss happily and leaning into him a little bit.

(Sure!)

"Sure thing," Jude said with a quiet smile, retrieving his keys from his pocket as Macy followed them to his door. As he pushed his key into the lock, his smile fell. Did I forget to lock it when we left? No, he couldn't have. Muffled voices sounded from inside his apartment, and with a worried glance at Nyx, he took a step back. Maybe RTI had discovered the empty pod back at the lab and figured them out. His heart was sending feverish thoughts crowding to his mind; telling him to run and get Nyx out of here before they were met by whoever had broken into his apartment. The door swung open before he had a chance to move, and a surge of terror and relief gripped him where he stood.

"Jude. Oh my God," Randall loudly remarked, glancing over his shoulders at the others, "Guys it's him. He's alive and shit."

Nyx hid behind Jude as soon as the doors opened, peeking out from behind him after a moment, blue eyes cautious and shy at seeing all these people that he didn't know.

"Fucking finally!" Steve said, coming over with a laugh. "Where've you been, asshole? You haven't returned any of my calls or nothing."

Keagan rolled their eyes as they joined the others, leaning against the doorframe. "Long time no see, stranger." They said with a laugh, cocking their head. "And you've got a little friend, too. Who's this?" Their eyes had landed on Nyx, who hid behind Jude again at the attention.

"Jesus Christ!" Jude gasped, resting his hand on his forehead in relief. He let out a few long sighs, bracing a hand against the doorframe for a moment as his heartbeat slowed. "I can't believe you— God. Gimme a moment." Farrah's hurried footsteps rounded the corner of the hall and she stepped into view, wearing a look of pure annoyance. Randall playfully ruffled up Jude's light hair, towering over the rest of the group as he shook his head and collected a ten-dollar bill from Farrah on his way to the kitchen. "Told you he'd be fine." Jude was hardly processing the situation, shaking his head as Keagan and Steve appeared.

"I'm sorry, man, I was—" Jude began, looking one way and then the other, "I was—"

"With him?" Farrah interrupted, pushing past the two as she peered over Jude's shoulder. She shook her head, taking in the sight before her. A timid thing; seemingly good-looking but so easily spooked by strangers. He's not from New York, that's for sure. "You'd better come in, Judy. You got some explaining t'do, don't you think?" She tossed a few braids over her shoulder, sighing as she nodded inside, "And this guy, too. If he's got to do with you bailing on our plans and disappearing off the face of the Earth."

Nyx stayed quiet, sticking very close to Jude as he followed the other man inside the apartment, blue eyes bigger than normal as his gaze flicked from person to person. He hadn't been prepared for so many people all at once, and he looked almost exactly like a startled animal. He knew Jude had talked about his friends before, but still. So many people all at once, that were all loud and curious…it was a lot for him.

Steve and Keagan followed into the apartment, Keagan sitting down on the arm of the couch and looking at Jude and Nyx. "He's cute, but you don't get to just abandon us at the drop of a hat for a cute piece of ass, you asshole." They remarked. "Some of us were worried about your addiction issues, y'know. Steve was sure you were going to turn up dead at the side of the road."

Steve cuffed Keagan on the shoulder. "I said it once, you asshole!" He hissed. "Once! When I was drunk! Piss off, I did not think Judy was dead."

Randall wore a mixed look of relief and quiet annoyance as he walked out of the kitchen with beers, joining them in the living room. Farrah muttered something bitter and incoherent, wordlessly accepting the beer that Randall offered her. The two had always been the most serious of the group, and though they would never admit it, growing up in foster care together had made them nervous about losing people they cared for.
With so many people gathered in his living room, Jude was just short of being overwhelmed. People were moving all over the place, speaking to him and the others and waiting for him to respond. Jude opened his mouth to speak again, but he could feel himself blush at Keagan's remark, and was suddenly reminded of their situation. They won't figure it out. I'll tell them what I need to, they'll forgive me, and everyone will be happy again. With a nervous breath, he cast a shy glance at Nyx, who seemed twice as anxious as he was. He reached out for his hand at the moment of Steve and Keagan's distracted bickering, giving it a reassuring squeeze as he met Nyx's blue gaze with his own.

"Hey. This is fine. Don't worry about them. You wanted to meet them, right?" He quietly said, offering a faint smile.

Dragging two chairs away from the dinner table, Randall set them to face the rest of the group. He placed a few other beers on the coffee table, letting out a long, drawn-out sigh as he took a seat with the rest of them.

"Go on," Randall said, tattooed hand reaching for a beer, "Siddown." Farrah nodded at the chairs. "Explain yourself."

Nyx pressed closer to Jude shyly, looking around at the group with an uncertain gaze. "Yeah, but…I wasn't ready." He replied quietly, shaking his head faintly at Jude and looking rather overwhelmed and anxious about all of this.

Steve's eyes flicked curiously to Nyx. "Your friend looks a little overwhelmed, Jude." He commented, shifting a little bit and raising his eyebrows. "Where have you been?"

Keagan picked up a beer, opening it up and taking a sip, still looking inquisitively at Jude and Nyx.

Jude nodded to himself, timidly taking a seat in the intervention-style conference in his living room. He nodded for Nyx to take a seat next to him. A moment of silence held the room as Jude thought of what to say; how to start, where to begin? His friends exchanged a few impatient looks, and Jude bit his lip.

"Right, yeah…So," He tried, running a nervous hand through his hair. Drawing a blank. How could he tell them a version of the truth that was believable? And Nyx? How could he explain Nyx? "First of all, I'm sorry, right? I didn't mean to ghost…everyone. Honest. I haven't been out of town or anything. I…started working with my dad—" Farrah choked on a mouthful of beer; Randall's brow twitched into a frown.
"—Your dad? Wha– Why?" She questioned, coughing as she shook her head. His father was all but the villain in the stories of his childhood, and his friends had managed to pull countless stories of neglect and disappointment out of Jude; drunk, high, or sober.
"Yeah. We'll talk about that, but that still doesn't explain why you're with him," Randall said with an air of coolness, pointing to Nyx with the mouth of his bottle. An icy grip of panic held Jude for a moment, and with a nervous sigh, he glanced around the room.
"…I know. But a lot's happened this past week or two, and we—"
"No-no-no," Randal interrupted, dark eyes flickering to Nyx, "I want to hear it from him."