( he's gonna get dumped. that's it. this is the end. you meet someone nice, you try to keep him out of the way of all the weird shit that goes on in your life because only bad stuff ever happens to people who know, and then you fuck up and they find out anyway and now he's gonna get dumped. )
ok
( he's worrying himself stupid about it all day, but really, what else is he supposed to do? it's not like he can just... not turn up at Q's place and have the whole thing put off indefinitely. no use being someone's boyfriend if you can't even go to see them because the second you do they're bound to call it off.
he should have told him. no. bad idea. people end up dead that way. but if he'd just told him— nope. couldn't even entertain the possibility. but it would have been smarter— there's a point when it gets too late. like that bit in peep show where sophie sits on mark's hand on the bus and he should've told her the second she sat down but once you get past the thirty second mark it's just too weird to point it out, and there's nothing mark can do because if he doesn't say anything then she's gonna notice and it's weird because he should have told her earlier, but since he didn't tell her earlier if he told her himself it'd still be weird and— jesus, stop thinking about peep show, now is not the time.
at Q's place, he stands fairly awkwardly at the doorstep for a while, staring at the door and shifting his weight from one foot to the other. when he knocks, it's light, like he's trying to chicken out at the very last second. y'know, "you said you were coming over!" "well i knocked, it's not my fault if you didn't hear me, anyway here's that flashy stick jobbie from that film with will smith and let's just forget you ever saw the jumpsuit."
but he waits, all the same. and after a few seconds he knocks again. )
[ Q could understand the reluctance to tell him. It wasn't exactly something you went around broadcasting to future partners. But hadn't they been together long enough now the subject should have been covered? He realized the pot was calling the kettle black. But, in his defence, sharing certain aspects of his job would be treason.
He's made tea for the both of them. Because that's what you do.
The first knock is completely unheard. The second, however. This is going to be one hell of a conversation. Especially since his initial explanation made no sense. He gives a small smile when he opens the door to show he's not losing his mind. He wants this to be fixed. ]
( of course, the second Q opens the door, rudy is pulling a face like he's suffering through an awful bout of stomach cramps, and even the thought of what that means makes everything that much worse. the community service thing is bad enough. he will not let rudy too ruin this beyond even the chance of repair.
rudy rubs at the back of his neck, free hand fidgeting with the hem of his shirt, and trails inside. )
( he scratches behind his ear, standing a little awkwardly in the middle of the room. Q's even made conciliatory Sorry I'm Breaking Up With You, Here, Have Some Tea tea. it's serious.
his stomach twists again, and he clears his throat, hugging himself a little. )
Right. Yeah. ( a wince. he takes a step back. ) Actually, I'm just gonna run— to the— ( another few steps back, turning abruptly on his heel. he stumbles a little, flings a look over his shoulder, mind racing as he tries to come up with an excuse. ) —toilet. For a shit. ( awful. AWFUL. but he runs all the same, piling himself into the little bathroom, shutting the door heavily and locking it just in time.
from outside, Q will be able to hear a brief, loud fizzing sort of noise, like a lightbulb just before it pops, and then the distant, muffled sounds of what can only be rudy talking to himself. )
[ That was... an event. Q wasn't entirely sure what to make of it either. It took far too long for all of that to process so suddenly. The stomach ache he could understand. Junk food, stress, sure. He was also rather used to Rudy divulging far too much information.
The noises were what really caused such confusion. He shouldn't have been making those noises. Those were not the noises expected. And it sounded as if there were two people in the restroom.
( well, this is definitely the worst thing that could ever have happened at all ever. rudy talks in a very quiet mumble, grabbing rudy too by the shoulders, giving him a rough, loose shake. )
I told you to stay out of it. ( and louder, so Q can hear, ) Fine, everything's fine! Yeah, but— No buts! I told you! But you know he's gonna— Shut up! Fuck off, a'right? Nobody wants you here. Get back in 'ere. I won't! He's as much my business as he is yours. Oh, now, c'mon, that just isn't true. Yes it—
( rudy pushes rudy. and rudy pushes rudy back. and then rudy pushes rudy again.
there's a silence where they both just stare at each other, scowling, and then rudy two darts past him before he can do anything about it, grabbing for the door. he spins as fast as he can, grabs two around the waist and yanks him back from where he's fumbling with the lock, and then proceeds to trip over his own feet, at which point they both fall flat on their arses ) Rudy! ( and lie there in a groaning heap. not for long, though, because two squirms out from under him and rackets towards the door again, and there's a moment where he really considers getting up to stop him, and then he just flops onto his back again, staring at the ceiling. if it's all gonna happen, it might as well all happen.
rudy two wrenches the door open victoriously, face to face with Q for technically the first time, just as rudy pushes himself to his feet, looking sheepishly at Q over two's shoulder. )
[ Those are definitely two voices. Two of the same voice. What the fuck was going on? There's a commotion and Q tries to open the door, despite knowing that it's locked. He calls for Rudy again just as he hears a crash. Did he fall? Oh god, what if he hurt himself. ]
Rudy--
[ But then the door opens.
And there is- are- two of him.
Two Rudys. In front of him. And he doesn't have a window so Rudy's... twin couldn't have popped up if such a twin even existed.
Q only blinks and looks between the two. What the fuck does one say to this? How could he? How could he ever react beyond looking for some answers, please for the love of God. ]
I... [ Another blink, and then his face scrunches in absolute confusion. ] What?
( rudy can hear two opening his mouth to speak, so he steps forward before he can say anything, elbowing him aside with a mumbled fuck off away. )
Right. ( he rubs the back of his neck again. this is his own fault. ) This is gonna sound a bit weird, but— you didn't hear nothing about a weird storm, a few months ago, did you?
[ And then it all clicks. MI6 was foreign, yes, but there were certain things that had to be mentioned dealing with home, as well. Who knew who actually had been affected by that strange storm. It certainly could have been a visiting terrorist.
Q looks between the two of them. ]
A great deal about it, actually.
[ He finally steps back to let both Rudys out. His eyes don't know where to look.
And that is not Q's invitation to stop talking. He knew the storm had strange effects but details would be greatly appreciated. ]
( rudy heads out first, and two trails after him. they fling almost-identical looks at each other; two's is a little more worried, and rudy's erring on the side of pissed off. )
Right. Well. ( it makes sense that he'd know, right? a lot of people heard. ) He's ( a vague gesture at two ) what happened. Cos of that. With all that — power bullshit goin' on. He's not my twin. And he's not supposed to be 'ere.
( the last is shot directly at rudy two, who scowls at him, scratches a spot behind his ear and clears his throat to catch Q's attention before he speaks. ) He's very insecure, y'know.
( rudy splutters. ) I'm not, don't listen to him, he doesn't know what he's talking ab— ( two makes a face. ) He's just trying to look good in front of you, when the unfortunate reality is that he's a mess. ( more spluttering. ) I'm not! ( a long-suffering sigh. ) Listen— ( rudy puffs out a breath, shakes his head. ) Nobody wants to. Just get back in here.
( there's a terse moment of silence, and then with a great deal of reluctance, two disappears, dragged back into rudy, and then it's just him. he heaves out another breath, reluctantly making eye contact with Q. )
I was gonna tell you about the community service. But— ( he pats his chest. ) —not that. If I could help it.
[ It's beyond bizarre to see this second Rudy. One was quite enough thank you. But it was so clearly another him. Different and yet exactly the same in the way he moved and spoke. It was eerie.
And he was saying very strange things. Rudy Wade? Insecure? Had they met.
Watching him go back was more bizarre than the first round. Q gives several more fluttering blinks as he watches him disappear. He's heard lots of stories about these but... To witness them. ]
Yes...
[ Finally he looks back to Rudy Prime's eyes. ]
I could see why you would want to keep that private. [ He softens his gaze and steps closer. He just-- Weren't they closer than this? ] But you could have told me. Especially about community service.
( rudy can't quite keep eye contact, so he drops his eyes to his feet. )
I didn't mean to keep secrets. ( well, technically, he did. but he knows what he meant. ) 's just. Y'know. You're— ( a vague gesture at him, glancing up. ) And I'm— not.
No, not that. I know it's not. It's just— ( a beat. ) Well, y'know. You're one thing, and I'm another. And you're you. And— ( rudy makes a face. this isn't going very well. ) Thought you wouldn't be interested if you knew. About any of it.
[ This is an awkward conversation to have with the bathroom door open. Yet the world is drowned out save for Rudy and his worrying. ]
Having two of you is hardly a deal breaker.
[ He moves closer. ]
And I'm not nearly as judgemental as all that.
[ He's mildly disappointed Rudy would think so. He still isn't entirely following the train of logic. If the LOL tattoo didn't give away how very different they were, what would. ]
( it makes sense, hearing Q saying it out loud; he makes it sound obvious. but rudy can't think how he would have convinced himself of the fact without hearing Q say it first. )
It were him that trashed the car. Not me. I just took the blame. ( on an exhale, he sums up the will to actually look at Q properly. ) And— I'm not tryin' to shift blame or, or make excuses or nothin', but— I don't even know your name. Doesn't bother me. You have your reasons. 's just, if you can, y'know, ( a loose hand gesture ) extrapolate your reasoning onto— onto me...
[ The text made sense. He'd almost forgotten about it with the commotion. Q nods and almost says something else, but.
But.
It's the first time they've made eye contact in a good while. Now Q wants to hide. How could he have forgotten something as important as that. ]
Y-you don't know my name?
[ You are a fucking idiot, Q. Going on about how he shouldn't have been keeping secrets and he doesn't know your bloody name. Q blushes despite himself, looks away, then looks back trying to appear serious, sincere. ]
I am-- beyond sorry, Rudy. It isn't a secret. I've been so used to the nickname--...
No, no, that's not what I meant, I wasn't tryna— ( shit. this is awful. ) It don't matter to me. ( he makes a face, looking away for a moment. ) Well— it does. A bit.
[ Right. He's restrained his affection as much as he can. Q reaches for one of his hands. ]
My name is Jonathan Fredric Bell. I was born September 10th, 1987. My favourite colour is purple.
[ He tries to grin, to make light of the situation. He's explaining all of these calmly as he can. Casually. He should have been presented with this information ages ago. How ridiculous that his own boyfriend didn't know his fucking name. ]
I have a twin sister named Lydia. I once had a severe talking to from the CIA when I was 14. Should I go on?
( jonathan. jonathan bell. jonathan and rudy sitting in a tree. etcetera, etcetera. Q's hand is warm and solid, just like the rest of him. rudy waits for a pause and when the pause comes after a question, he shakes his head to answer it and steps closer, stooping a little to kiss him , free hand lifting up to slide to the back of Q's neck. he'll stay Q out of habit unless he can shake it soon, but that's the last thing he's thinking of now. )
[ Finally. He'd wanted one since he first saw Rudy at his doorstep. He wanted this resolved. Better. Rudy meant a lot to him. This made him realise how much.
The kiss lingers gently. He'd rather it be more heartfelt than steamy. He wants to appreciate this moment. The two of them fucking up and then making it better. His own spare hand rests on Rudy's chest. ]
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[ One advantage to all sorts of strange hours meant situations like this worked perfectly. ]
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that's it. this is the end.
you meet someone nice, you try to keep him out of the way of all the weird shit that goes on in your life because only bad stuff ever happens to people who know, and then you fuck up and they find out anyway and now he's gonna get dumped. )
ok
( he's worrying himself stupid about it all day, but really, what else is he supposed to do? it's not like he can just... not turn up at Q's place and have the whole thing put off indefinitely. no use being someone's boyfriend if you can't even go to see them because the second you do they're bound to call it off.
he should have told him.
no. bad idea. people end up dead that way.
but if he'd just told him—
nope. couldn't even entertain the possibility.
but it would have been smarter—
there's a point when it gets too late. like that bit in peep show where sophie sits on mark's hand on the bus and he should've told her the second she sat down but once you get past the thirty second mark it's just too weird to point it out, and there's nothing mark can do because if he doesn't say anything then she's gonna notice and it's weird because he should have told her earlier, but since he didn't tell her earlier if he told her himself it'd still be weird and—
jesus, stop thinking about peep show, now is not the time.
at Q's place, he stands fairly awkwardly at the doorstep for a while, staring at the door and shifting his weight from one foot to the other. when he knocks, it's light, like he's trying to chicken out at the very last second. y'know, "you said you were coming over!" "well i knocked, it's not my fault if you didn't hear me, anyway here's that flashy stick jobbie from that film with will smith and let's just forget you ever saw the jumpsuit."
but he waits, all the same. and after a few seconds he knocks again. )
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He's made tea for the both of them. Because that's what you do.
The first knock is completely unheard. The second, however. This is going to be one hell of a conversation. Especially since his initial explanation made no sense. He gives a small smile when he opens the door to show he's not losing his mind. He wants this to be fixed. ]
Hello.
[ And and offering to enter he gives. ]
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rudy rubs at the back of his neck, free hand fidgeting with the hem of his shirt, and trails inside. )
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I made tea if you'd like.
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his stomach twists again, and he clears his throat, hugging himself a little. )
Right. Yeah. ( a wince. he takes a step back. ) Actually, I'm just gonna run— to the— ( another few steps back, turning abruptly on his heel. he stumbles a little, flings a look over his shoulder, mind racing as he tries to come up with an excuse. ) —toilet. For a shit. ( awful. AWFUL. but he runs all the same, piling himself into the little bathroom, shutting the door heavily and locking it just in time.
from outside, Q will be able to hear a brief, loud fizzing sort of noise, like a lightbulb just before it pops, and then the distant, muffled sounds of what can only be rudy talking to himself. )
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The noises were what really caused such confusion. He shouldn't have been making those noises. Those were not the noises expected. And it sounded as if there were two people in the restroom.
Q went to the door and knocked. ]
Rudy? Rudy are you alright?
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I told you to stay out of it. ( and louder, so Q can hear, ) Fine, everything's fine!
Yeah, but—
No buts! I told you!
But you know he's gonna—
Shut up! Fuck off, a'right? Nobody wants you here. Get back in 'ere.
I won't! He's as much my business as he is yours.
Oh, now, c'mon, that just isn't true.
Yes it—
( rudy pushes rudy.
and rudy pushes rudy back.
and then rudy pushes rudy again.
there's a silence where they both just stare at each other, scowling, and then rudy two darts past him before he can do anything about it, grabbing for the door. he spins as fast as he can, grabs two around the waist and yanks him back from where he's fumbling with the lock, and then proceeds to trip over his own feet, at which point they both fall flat on their arses ) Rudy! ( and lie there in a groaning heap. not for long, though, because two squirms out from under him and rackets towards the door again, and there's a moment where he really considers getting up to stop him, and then he just flops onto his back again, staring at the ceiling. if it's all gonna happen, it might as well all happen.
rudy two wrenches the door open victoriously, face to face with Q for technically the first time, just as rudy pushes himself to his feet, looking sheepishly at Q over two's shoulder. )
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Rudy--
[ But then the door opens.
And there is- are- two of him.
Two Rudys. In front of him. And he doesn't have a window so Rudy's... twin couldn't have popped up if such a twin even existed.
Q only blinks and looks between the two. What the fuck does one say to this? How could he? How could he ever react beyond looking for some answers, please for the love of God. ]
I... [ Another blink, and then his face scrunches in absolute confusion. ] What?
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Right.
( he rubs the back of his neck again. this is his own fault. )
This is gonna sound a bit weird, but— you didn't hear nothing about a weird storm, a few months ago, did you?
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Q looks between the two of them. ]
A great deal about it, actually.
[ He finally steps back to let both Rudys out. His eyes don't know where to look.
And that is not Q's invitation to stop talking. He knew the storm had strange effects but details would be greatly appreciated. ]
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Right. Well. ( it makes sense that he'd know, right? a lot of people heard. ) He's ( a vague gesture at two ) what happened. Cos of that. With all that — power bullshit goin' on. He's not my twin. And he's not supposed to be 'ere.
( the last is shot directly at rudy two, who scowls at him, scratches a spot behind his ear and clears his throat to catch Q's attention before he speaks. ) He's very insecure, y'know.
( rudy splutters. ) I'm not, don't listen to him, he doesn't know what he's talking ab—
( two makes a face. ) He's just trying to look good in front of you, when the unfortunate reality is that he's a mess.
( more spluttering. ) I'm not!
( a long-suffering sigh. ) Listen—
( rudy puffs out a breath, shakes his head. ) Nobody wants to. Just get back in here.
( there's a terse moment of silence, and then with a great deal of reluctance, two disappears, dragged back into rudy, and then it's just him. he heaves out another breath, reluctantly making eye contact with Q. )
I was gonna tell you about the community service. But— ( he pats his chest. ) —not that. If I could help it.
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And he was saying very strange things. Rudy Wade? Insecure? Had they met.
Watching him go back was more bizarre than the first round. Q gives several more fluttering blinks as he watches him disappear. He's heard lots of stories about these but... To witness them. ]
Yes...
[ Finally he looks back to Rudy Prime's eyes. ]
I could see why you would want to keep that private. [ He softens his gaze and steps closer. He just-- Weren't they closer than this? ] But you could have told me. Especially about community service.
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I didn't mean to keep secrets.
( well, technically, he did. but he knows what he meant. )
's just.
Y'know.
You're—
( a vague gesture at him, glancing up. )
And I'm— not.
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I'm... what, not effected? That's hardly your fault, Rudy.
[ He could not, in fact, control strange storms that gave people powers. That they knew of. ]
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( a beat. )
Well, y'know.
You're one thing, and I'm another.
And you're you.
And—
( rudy makes a face. this isn't going very well. )
Thought you wouldn't be interested if you knew. About any of it.
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Having two of you is hardly a deal breaker.
[ He moves closer. ]
And I'm not nearly as judgemental as all that.
[ He's mildly disappointed Rudy would think so. He still isn't entirely following the train of logic. If the LOL tattoo didn't give away how very different they were, what would. ]
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It were him that trashed the car. Not me. I just took the blame.
( on an exhale, he sums up the will to actually look at Q properly. )
And—
I'm not tryin' to shift blame or, or make excuses or nothin', but—
I don't even know your name.
Doesn't bother me. You have your reasons.
's just, if you can, y'know, ( a loose hand gesture ) extrapolate your reasoning onto— onto me...
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But.
It's the first time they've made eye contact in a good while. Now Q wants to hide. How could he have forgotten something as important as that. ]
Y-you don't know my name?
[ You are a fucking idiot, Q. Going on about how he shouldn't have been keeping secrets and he doesn't know your bloody name. Q blushes despite himself, looks away, then looks back trying to appear serious, sincere. ]
I am-- beyond sorry, Rudy. It isn't a secret. I've been so used to the nickname--...
[ It's a terrible excuse and he knows it. ]
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( shit. this is awful. )
It don't matter to me.
( he makes a face, looking away for a moment. )
Well— it does. A bit.
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My name is Jonathan Fredric Bell. I was born September 10th, 1987. My favourite colour is purple.
[ He tries to grin, to make light of the situation. He's explaining all of these calmly as he can. Casually. He should have been presented with this information ages ago. How ridiculous that his own boyfriend didn't know his fucking name. ]
I have a twin sister named Lydia. I once had a severe talking to from the CIA when I was 14. Should I go on?
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jonathan and rudy sitting in a tree. etcetera, etcetera.
Q's hand is warm and solid, just like the rest of him. rudy waits for a pause and when the pause comes after a question, he shakes his head to answer it and steps closer, stooping a little to kiss him , free hand lifting up to slide to the back of Q's neck. he'll stay Q out of habit unless he can shake it soon, but that's the last thing he's thinking of now. )
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The kiss lingers gently. He'd rather it be more heartfelt than steamy. He wants to appreciate this moment. The two of them fucking up and then making it better. His own spare hand rests on Rudy's chest. ]
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To be fair, I should have told you my name.
[ He reached up to hold his hollow cheek, letting his thumb brush against pointed cheekbone. ]
You do know that I'm with you for more than your incredible taste in men?
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