Will Graham (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
empathicfault) wrote2023-06-18 11:04 am
empathicfault) wrote2023-06-18 11:04 am
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[Open for text/audio/action/whatever.]
[Open for text/audio/action/whatever.]
"Yeah," Will agrees, with a quiet nod. "See how you reacted to someone similar, but not the same. And since her similarity makes you think of that, it puts you on your guard." He stops for a moment, corrects himself. "More on guard."
He slumps forward in a sort of relief at the observation.
“It was going mostly well. At home. Before I came here. Being on a team as me. I… I do want to… to connect with people and I want to be part of things, but… there are at least seven people here who like me pretty well just… how I am. Seven. I have a best friend and a boyfriend. This is the most successful I’ve ever been at developing connections with people that I’ve ever been.” He presses his lips together. “Sometimes I forget that. Sometimes the chorus of negativity beats me down so badly that I can’t see it. But you’re always there when that happens.” He pauses. “I made up with Neal. Oh! And want to hear something weird? I was in the library and Laura was there and she asked me questions. About mental health. Pretty sure she punched me for sticking my nose in people’s mental health but…” he shrugs expansively. “Sometimes I take some getting used to.”
“It was going mostly well. At home. Before I came here. Being on a team as me. I… I do want to… to connect with people and I want to be part of things, but… there are at least seven people here who like me pretty well just… how I am. Seven. I have a best friend and a boyfriend. This is the most successful I’ve ever been at developing connections with people that I’ve ever been.” He presses his lips together. “Sometimes I forget that. Sometimes the chorus of negativity beats me down so badly that I can’t see it. But you’re always there when that happens.” He pauses. “I made up with Neal. Oh! And want to hear something weird? I was in the library and Laura was there and she asked me questions. About mental health. Pretty sure she punched me for sticking my nose in people’s mental health but…” he shrugs expansively. “Sometimes I take some getting used to.”
What?
[ A long pause, then a bit of a laugh and an unusually cheery- ] Congratulations, Shaw! I should've seen that coming. Who ended up asking?
[ A long pause, then a bit of a laugh and an unusually cheery- ] Congratulations, Shaw! I should've seen that coming. Who ended up asking?
Will chuckles, because he really gets that disgruntled feeling. "Yeah, she is. I thought she was better at hiding things, for a while. It's harder for me to tell when someone's not human, you know? But she's always been just as full of curiosity and wonder and glee as the day I met her. Which- she was a wolf, then."
It's one of the meetings he's had on the Barge that he remembers the most fondly.
It's one of the meetings he's had on the Barge that he remembers the most fondly.
Will grins to hear that Malcolm has so many friends- or at least generally-positive acquaintances. He has more here than he ever had at home, too. He's about to reinforce the positivity when Malcolm brings up things with Neal...and Laura.
"Or maybe she re-evaluated her reasons for hitting you or her recent feelings and knew you were someone who knew about these things," Will adds gently. "It's not always about something you do, right or wrong or different. I'm so glad, though. Both that she talked to you and about Neal. I knew things would turn out okay with him."
He finally (gently) pushes Winston off his lap and walks over to the couch to find a space next to Malcolm on it, so he can give his partner a hug. "You're doing good," he assures Malcolm. "And if you want to try little tweaks here and there to...I don't know, feel more comfortable, I can help with some of that. But I love who you are. You don't have to change anything about yourself. Not a thing."
"Or maybe she re-evaluated her reasons for hitting you or her recent feelings and knew you were someone who knew about these things," Will adds gently. "It's not always about something you do, right or wrong or different. I'm so glad, though. Both that she talked to you and about Neal. I knew things would turn out okay with him."
He finally (gently) pushes Winston off his lap and walks over to the couch to find a space next to Malcolm on it, so he can give his partner a hug. "You're doing good," he assures Malcolm. "And if you want to try little tweaks here and there to...I don't know, feel more comfortable, I can help with some of that. But I love who you are. You don't have to change anything about yourself. Not a thing."
Malcolm smiles back at him, leaning against him, wrapping his arms around him. Practically radiating affection.
“I love you so much,” he murmurs. “I’m… I think I do want to figure myself out before I… tweak things. I can do that without it meaning that I think I’m perfect, right?”
“I love you so much,” he murmurs. “I’m… I think I do want to figure myself out before I… tweak things. I can do that without it meaning that I think I’m perfect, right?”
By accident?
Were you just thinking about it and blurted it out? That's how Molly did it.
Were you just thinking about it and blurted it out? That's how Molly did it.
And Will basks in the glow of that affection. That and the lean, the warmth at his side- it's all perfect.
"Of course you can. Other people might say you can't- or you shouldn't- but you always, always can. And I think it's a good idea. This is a good place to learn how to get comfortable with yourself."
"Of course you can. Other people might say you can't- or you shouldn't- but you always, always can. And I think it's a good idea. This is a good place to learn how to get comfortable with yourself."
There's more chuckling from him, mostly because- "She had a tag on when I met her, that said she was a warden. But I didn't read it until I'd already thrown some toys for her and- well, I guess it's good I don't babytalk with my dogs."
“I like who I am when I’m with you,” Malcolm admits. “It’s a weird new feeling.”
And instead of that, you went the opposite direction.
How'd she take it? Excited, I'm guessing?
How'd she take it? Excited, I'm guessing?
"A good one, I hope," he half-jokes. He reaches up, smoothing his thumb lightly over Malcolm's eyebrow and down his cheek. He's just enjoying being able to touch, appreciating and being appreciated. "I'm so glad. I hope you get used to liking who you are. You've worked so hard for it."
Malcolm melts a little at the touch, his eyes fluttering closed for a moment.
“I tried to explain… about that. About how far I’ve come and how hard I had to work. It’s… hearing that dismissed as an excuse not to put in more effort was the worst part.”
His eyes open.
“That wasn’t what I meant.”
“I tried to explain… about that. About how far I’ve come and how hard I had to work. It’s… hearing that dismissed as an excuse not to put in more effort was the worst part.”
His eyes open.
“That wasn’t what I meant.”
"I know it wasn't," Will says, hugging him close. "I got that. The things you've both had to work on and through are entirely different, and I- I don't know if she understood that?" He shakes his head. "But it's not on you to explain it any further, either."
"You know what was the weirdest part, though? When she said something about me being taught to communicate by manipulative people, like we talked about. Except... we've never talked about that. I don't know where that even came from," Malcolm muses.
He shifts to curl up against Will's chest, so he can hear his heartbeat.
"But she seemed to think I should know how to overcome it."
He shifts to curl up against Will's chest, so he can hear his heartbeat.
"But she seemed to think I should know how to overcome it."
None whatsoever.
[ His smile is in his voice. ]
Have you made any plans yet? Gonna do it while you're in port and Root can go somewhere...assuming it's not a cave again?
[ His smile is in his voice. ]
Have you made any plans yet? Gonna do it while you're in port and Root can go somewhere...assuming it's not a cave again?
"Ah...that's my fault," Will admits. "A hypothesis I had. It came up while she was talking to me about both of your troubles communicating, and it shifted into my relationship issues and more...wardening-type things."
And he'd sort of avoided going into it with Malcolm because he was fairly sure Malcolm had plenty of people armchair-diagnosing him in his life. Unfortunately, that meant he was hearing about it this way. "I'm sorry," Will says, quietly. "I should've brought this up with you directly after."
And he'd sort of avoided going into it with Malcolm because he was fairly sure Malcolm had plenty of people armchair-diagnosing him in his life. Unfortunately, that meant he was hearing about it this way. "I'm sorry," Will says, quietly. "I should've brought this up with you directly after."
"You don't have to apologize for thinking about me," Malcolm tells him. "Did you talk about that because you were trying to smooth things out? Because I literally asked you to," he points out, drawing patterns on Will's knee absently with one finger.
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