#gus is in both so maybe i could make something of that. idl

[daily-gustavo]

Day 120

[dragonnan]

Mega Multi-Fandom Rec List Part 2

DISCLAIMER!!!

I will miss certain people; probably a lot of people. It’s inevitable.  3 reasons.  I haven’t read every fic in every fandom.  2, I haven’t managed to bookmark every fic out there.  3, I am not involved with every fandom.  The fandoms in my list are the ones I personally and currently am involved in which have enough fics to rec that they are worth the time linking below.

So bear with me.

4-ish - I tend to cling pretty tight to both hurt/comfort (whump) as well as canon.  I’m not hugely into romance save for maybe 1 or two couples and, again, I lean hard on whatever is either canon or VERY strongly implied OTP.  I don’t rec porn (nothing against it I just avoid it when it comes to anything that might have an underage audience).

Finally, anything I rec that may contain triggering subject matter I will tag as well as I can so heed the warnings where appropriate!

Note: I have also included some of my work below.  For a complete collection of my stories you can find them at the following links:   dragonnan’s Psych fics dragonnan’s A03 fics

Sherlock (BBC)

Gen 

Redemption by sgam76 The Knight Shift by dragonnan for tunes84  5 Times Sherlock wanted his big brother to carry him + 1 time he wouldn't admit it by SailorChibi Scenes From Recovery by maryagrawatson for Boton Cold Comfort by maryagrawatson An Act Of Rebellion by afteriwake for GlowingMechanicalHeart, Dreamin  The Precipice by takethesky87 Road to Freedom by Ariane_DeVere English as a Foreign Language by standbygo  Proportionate Response by babydrache Landscape With The Fall Of Icarus by CaitlinFairchild (Warning: Rape/non-con)  Recorded by Morgan_Stuart (Warnings: Torture, Implied Character Deaths)  I've Got You Now by ready_to_kick_some_ass No Flowers by GraceHolmes  An Interesting Puzzle by awanderingbard When Your Belly's in the Trench by Morgan_Stuart  Idle Gossip by Arnie  Extraction by Basser Flinch by Salr323  Trust Thy Doctor by becausemycroft (Unfinished)  Of Monsters by Basser Dangerous Mould by Benfan  Never That Easy by Kerkerian No Incentive So Great by thisprettywren You Were Never Supposed To Leave by Ballykissangel (Character Death - Not Sherlock or John)  No More Miracles by whitchry9 (Major Character Death)  Appearances Can Be Deceiving by SailorChibi (Warning: Rape/non-con)  The Most Awful Thing by whitchry9 Wrong by impulsereader Triage by Morgan_Stuart Lessons Learned by Morgan_Stuart Croatia-Water-Blue by hollyesque (Warning: Rape/non-con)  Hopeless Wanderer by Cyane (orphan_account) The Triple Bluff by SarahKnight  Something Broken by GhyllWyne Fractured by radculas Constantly by thesignsofserbia  In Arduis Fidelis by Salr323 Rule of Law by thesignsofserbia  Sound of Silence by SailorChibi Never Have I Ever by awanderingbard  Lost for Words by awanderingbard Fallout by Salr323 Following On by Loopy456 Oubliette by CherryBlossomTide Unforgettable by tenderly_wicked A Cure for the Final Problem by Saasan (Major Character Death)  He's Had This Nightmare Before by mirroredLife  he Holiday by Scriblit (Warning: Rape/non-con)  Paying Back by Dayja  Harmless Things by J_Baillier  It takes John Watson to save your life. by Sparkypip  Comatose by Sparkypip Everything Will Be Okay by great_big_worm (Warning: Rape/non-con)  Seek Out The Unworthy by squire  The Shallow End by hollyesque War Crimes by mossologist (Warning: Rape/non-con)  Illation by hollyesque Crushing Fears by Amaya_Ramiel Pressure by Tammany Unthinkable by Lindentreeisle (Captainblue) (Warning: Rape/non-con)  A Smelly Affair by dioscureantwins for Yitzock  Do Your Research by dioscureantwins for CherryBlossomTide (Child Abuse)  Proxy by CherryBlossomTide (Child Abuse)  Pipe Song by Mistress_Siana (Warning: Rape/non-con | Violence)  It's Not The Violin by copperbadge The Tiger and the Shark by dragonnan (Warning: Rape/non-con) 

Sherlolly

Down and Shaking When I Think I Lose by satin_doll for OhAine, GettingOverGreta A New Project by rachel614 (orphan_account)  Sherlollipops - Til Death by MizJoely Everything and More by rachel614 (orphan_account) I've Learned to Lose You by Ukthxbye for Writingwife83 These Scars We Kiss by rachel614 (orphan_account) (Warning: Includes discussions of self-harm)  A Vicious Motivator by darnedchild The Shadow of What Will Be by versarilaetus The Last Meal by theSapphireSky The Healing of Sherlock Holmes by honeycakes  Insomnia by katiebuttercup Chasing Paradise by Chibiness87 It's My Party by Mouse9 The Adventure of the Left Shoe by Jolie_Black TMI (Too Much Information) by GarudaDreamsOfRain  Handsome In Her Eyes by afteriwake Little Bird by Caffeine_faerie The Price of Sentiment by Mouse9 The Admirer by howterrifying  Dial M for Molly by dragonnan 

More Sherlolly recs can be found HERE

Series

Scheherezade ‘verse, A Felicitous Natal Celebration, and With a Little Help From My Friends Series’ by sgam76:   Sherlock is home, he and John are returning to cases, and all’s right with the world–right? But a series of minor mishaps and injuries makes two things very clear to his friends and family: first, Sherlock’s time away wasn’t the grand adventure everyone has assumed it was; and second, that time has left Sherlock with a legacy that’s bleeding into his life today. Sherlock is Not Okay, and it’s not going away. 

NOTE: These stories are not written in the order with which they occur.  They are all part of the same universe and dovetail amongst one another.  You can read them in whatever order you which - though I strongly advise beginning with Scheherezade as nothing else will quite make sense without that history.

A Felicitous Natal Celebration - Past fic

A Felicitous Natal Celebration Excursions and Alarums First Things First All Along the Watchtower TLS and the Sloane Ranger Happy Not Happy Christmas

Scheherezade ‘verse Scheherezade   A Pox on All Your Houses  Interlude in December - Note: Part 3 is a chapter taken from the org fic and posted as a one-shot.   [PodFic] Scheherezade by DefinitelyNotPie, sgam76   A Long Walk Down a Dusty Road  These Old Shades  Larceny, Lawlessness and Opium - Note: These events take place sometime during the ORG story

With a Little Help From My Friends - future fic With a Little Help From My Friends  Aftermath 

Reset Universe Series by maryagrawatson: After dealing with the Moriarty threat, Sherlock was still sent on his mission... Eleven Months Reset (Warning: Rape/non-con referenced as well as Attempted Rape)  Cracked

Sherlock Holmes (RDJ Movies)

Alive by Sharmain The Case Of The Drowning Evidence by StarkRogers Ability, Neutralized by PeaceHeather Buried Alive by drjohnhwatson Identifying the Ripper by WayWardWonderer (More of a Classic Doyle Style)  Eloquence in Motion by donutsweeper Damage by ancalime8301 A Most Belligerent Patient by kayliemalinza Associations by ancalime8301 A Matter of Precaution by moogsthewriter

Psych

Never could get the hang of Tuesdays by Liviapenn Snail Mail Sucks - Next Time, Send Me a Text by SydneyWoo I See Your Hubris...and I'll Raise You Fifty by SydneyWoo And Then The World Blew Up by SydneyWoo (Minor Character Death) Shall We Play a Game? by JR88fan Testing, Testing, One, Two, Ouch! by PapayaK This is not the Karma You're Looking For by eideann The Ticket by Kirei Latent by InsaneTrollLogic (Major Character Death) Exposed by Syncop8ed Rhythm

A Very Risky Proposition by aakira Chest Pains by AmeliaReddy The Last Man At The End Of The World by watanuki_sama A Whisper to the Living by Xparrot (Major Character Death)  Where There is Wailing and Gnashing of Teeth by dragonnan (Warnings for Blood/Gore and Horror)  You Say My Brain's Bleeding Like It's a Bad Thing by Kansas42 Stuck in an Office with You by PeterPanic Hostage Taking 101 by Syncop8ed Rhythm  The Shassiter Friendship Club by NoirCat  Suffer the Night by dragonnan  Giving Shelter to Midnight Ramblers by JR88fan Happy Halloween by NoirCat  Fathers and Sons Felonious and Otherwise by Okapi  Grace by Silence  Statement Time by NoirCat   I Don't Know How to Say Goodbye by Psychrulz (Major Character Death)  Or Is It Trust? by windscryer (Crossover w/ SPN)  Father Figures by Kirei  You Give Me Fever by dragonnan  Shawn and the Friendly Neighborhood Stalker by Nixa Jane I Would Do Anything for Love; Even That by dragonnan for mortma1984  Lingering Chill by s_c (Major Character Death)  Metal So Strong Doesn't Last Very Long by Sky Pad  An Almost World by Oldach Dreaming (Major Character Death)  Obsession by dragonnan Through Moonbeams Softly by brightblue All Nighter by dragonnan  The Seed of Doubt by Collegekid06  The Five Stages of Henry Spencer by Collegekid06   101. Dead Man's Float by MusicalLuna  Fun in the Woods with Buzz McNabb by centipede  Don't Eat the Crab by Raych Better Off Decapitated by dragonnan 

More Psych recs can be found HERE

Series

Fractures Series by VampKira: (Warnings for Child Abuse, Rape/Incest, Violent Disturbing Imagery, and Horror)  The fun filled saga of the Spencer men’s warped family dynamic and dragging their friends, co-workers, and acquaintances along for the ride.  Fractures (Part 1)  Corpses, Curses, and Cops, Oh My (Part 2)  Scars (Part 3) (Incomplete)  

What’s The Chance? Series by lapsus_calami:  The bad guy from their recent case forces Shawn and Gus to play a game of Russian Roulette. It’s about as fun as it sounds. Which is to say not fun at all.  There’s A Sixteen Percent Chance That At Least One Of Us Is Going To Die (Part 1)  There's A Thirty Two Percent Chance That At Least One Of Us Will Need Therapy (Part 2) 

A *Really* Dangerous Mind Series by Psychrulz:  Everyone knows Shawn has a tendency to get distracted. When he misses a clue and a murderer almost gets away, Chief Vick has had enough. She orders Shawn to get help and fix the problem- or else. Naturally, nothing with Shawn is ever that simple. When the fix turns out to be worse than the problem, the lives of his entire team are put in danger.  A Bitter Pill (Part 1)  Pitch Black (Part 2) 

Moonlighting Series by Redwolffclaw:  Psych/Moonlight Crossover Series - Shawn meets vampire Private Eye Mick St. John in this series where Shawn has to learn to live unlife as a newly turned vampire. Who knew being a vampire, psychic, consultant, detective, boyfriend, and best friend would be so hard?  No Such Thing As Psychics (Part 1)  12:04 Wake Up Call (Part 1.5)  Out of the Past, and Into the Fire (Part 2)  Love Lasts Forever, but Sanity Has a Shelf Life (Part 3)  Click- To Catch A Vampire (Part 4)  Hard To Believe It Will Be Okay Series by silverluna:  Carlton Lassiter is having a horribly bad day, and it’s only going to get worse.  Hard To Believe It Will Be Okay (Part 1)  Where Do We Go From Here? (Part 2)  The Spencers of Santa Barbara Series by JR88fan :  When Uncle Jack comes to town, one thing is certain: life won’t be boring.  This particular visit is no exception.  Throw in some video games, a treasure hunt, a case of benitoite gemstones worth millions, and a pair of sinister brothers who will stop at nothing to acquire those gemstones, and the Spencer men quickly find themselves in over their heads.  The Spencers of Santa Barbara: The Curse of Benitoite (Part 1)  Jack and Jill Went Up the Hill (Part 2) 

A Road Through Abbadon Series by Am_I_Zombie: (Warnings for Major Character Deaths, Violent Disturbing Imagery, and Horror)  Shawn Spencer works out his place in a rapidly changing environment. It is apocalypse season after all.  A Road Through Abbadon (Part 1)  A Funny Thing Happened On the Way Into Hell (Part 2)  A Rest Stop at the Edge of Madness (Part 3) (incomplete) 

Choose It Or Lose It Series by Texasartchick:  Lassiter’s dream comes true when he accidentally obtains indisputable evidence that Shawn is a fake.  Fortunately for Shawn and Gus, Lassie doesn’t know what he has yet, sparking a desperate race against time.   Can our dynamic duo sneak the evidence away from Lassiter before he discovers that he literally holds control over the future of Psych - and possibly Shawn’s freedom - in his hands?  Choose It Or Lose It (Part 1)  It Can Happen (Part 2)  Stir Crazy (Part 3)  This Stalker Thing Kind Of Sucks (Part 4)  The Ties That Bind (Part 5)  Helmets Not Included (Part 6)  The Spencer Syndrome (Part 7)  A Very BAMF! Lassie Fic (Part 8)  Night of the Rodentia (Part 9) (Unfinished) 

Doctor Who

Creature Fear by goodbye2pisces (Tenth Doctor)  Xeno by Laurawrzz (Tenth Doctor) Then My Mind Went Dark by the_magpie (Tenth Doctor) (Warning: Rape/non-con)  How to Live by misscam (Tenth Doctor)  A Coward Dies A Thousand Times by sashet (Tenth Doctor)  let the echo shake it all apart by sequence_fairy (Tenth Doctor) (Warning: Rape/non-con)  Time With Mother by Laurawrzz (Tenth Doctor)  A Step in the Right Direction by flutterflap (Tenth Doctor)  Voiceless by Veldeia (Tenth Doctor)  Beneath the Midnight Sky by HiddenTreasures for badwolfrun (Tenth Doctor)  Novi et Veteris by IuvenesCor (Twelfth Doctor)  Spinach Shock by Goldy, mrv3000 (Tenth Doctor)  Were He Not Romeo Called by Butterfly (Tenth Doctor)  The Devil You Know by rosa_acicularis (Duplicate Tenth Doctor)  Canvassing the Limits of Domesticity by Queen of the Castle (queen_of_the_castle_77) (Duplicate Tenth Doctor)  The Difference by themuslimbarbie (Duplicate Tenth Doctor)  The Old Have Bad Dreams by kashinoha (Eleventh Doctor)  Transfixion by tardisjournal (Eleventh Doctor)  Family Emergency by sahiya (Eleventh Doctor)  Vacation, Interrupted by shyday (Tenth Doctor)  What Is Essential by eve11 (Eleventh Doctor)  Let Her Under Your Skin, Into Your Heart by starlingnight (Eleventh Doctor)  Balance of Power by eve11 (Eleventh Doctor) 

Part 1: MCU - Iron Man, Spider-Man, Doctor Strange, Avengers

[punknumbershasmoved]

Heist AU Exercise Part 2

Got another draft/outline/warm-up piece following my previous one from last week. Only one to go after this. Hope to get it out soon, as well as other writing prospects. Hope you enjoy~

Molly begins to unravel Numbers while Gus listens in.

Just as Numbers had suggested, the two returned to their original quested location, in which the owner was still absent from. Remaining patient all the while, they waited in that instance for the owner who was assumed to be sheltering them that night. Gus was not making said assumptions, but his partner was. Molly’s expression in the car had suggested dedication to not leaving Numbers’ side until she was filled in completely on his life’s journey for the past several years. Gus remained clueless, however, to whatever tension was reflected underneath the intel man’s skin. Yet Molly saw through him as if he were transparent, nothing but a wisp of wind caught in the turbulence of a tempest prepared to consume him whole until he was unified with its disastrous movements, which it already seemed to be succeeding at according to Molly. He seemed as weak as a wisp at least. Gus had managed to observe that from what words were already swapped between the two long lost friends. It had become clear then that while Numbers had mastered reading the underlying secrets of complete strangers, picking them apart with nothing but a couple of once overs and smirks, Molly had reigned in the area of recognizing trauma within her companions as to where Numbers appeared to be entirely oblivious. As oblivious as Gus as he stood on the curb fidgeting beside Molly, pondering over what had happened between the two, or, better yet, what had happened between Numbers and this Wes.

 A cab pulled up just alongside their shifting feet, the man of the hour rocking out from its back with no gracious grin to welcome them. Instead, he strode by as if they were ghosts lingering on his property, like most city bystanders tended to be. But unlike most loitering souls, they pursued him and he allowed it, shifting through keys early on to avoid looking back at those following in his footsteps. Molly reflected his manner and resembled that cold, cutting exterior as best she could, though Gus saw the gloss of worry running in her full, blue eyes. Though it didn’t need to be spotted to figure that she was concerned even long before stepping past the door and into Numbers’ loft.

While the apartment itself was very refined and rather spacious with luxury furniture adorning its open expanse, the complex’s state as a whole was more comparative to a disaster. Clothes laid any which way they had been originally discarded, some appearing to be piled like barricades for what could have been ages. Gus couldn’t help but notice that some didn’t come across as very fitting to his apparent style. Next to certain thin heaps, various food packages also found themselves scattered throughout like rejected wild flowers of the city. Pairing with them, and in much more of a mass quantity, were liquor bottles of every kind imaginable. Bottles of wine formed armies in the kitchen area while those of tequila invaded and ruled as overseers in the living space. Generals of decade old scotch made themselves scarce, but prominent and well established amongst their younger whiskey lieutenants. It seemed as though Numbers was waging a war, taking whatever resources and fire power he had available to battle with him. However, with the state of things as they were, Gus concluded that he was not currently the victor and perhaps even desperate. But maybe he was in no position to judge considering his present alliance.

Numbers became rigid just before speeding into the battle grounds and taking what weary assets he could back to base. He scrounged at clothes and heaped them into a collection elsewhere, far from prying eyes, and before too many questions could be asked he offered his own. “Do you guys need… dinner or anything?” He never paused in his effort even as Molly and Gus watched him curiously.

“No thanks,” Molly offered as politely and patiently as she could when observing his wreckage, “we’re covered.”

“Good, because I don’t have any food.”

“I’m not surprised.” What should have been a remark at muttered level was instead sounded to him clearly as a response. His muscles tensed promptly, even as he continued to pick apart the resting barricades. Gus found the cumbersome quarrel residing at his feet once more and twiddled anxiously, borderline desperately, to shoo it away. Numbers allowed him the opportunity.

“Grimly. Right?”

Gus fervently bowed his head repeatedly in affirmation. Numbers took no notice of his nervous energy as he was too preoccupied dismantling his battalion. He met his eyes and pointed upward.

“There’s an extra room up in the loft. Not the one at the end, don’t go near there. The one closest to the stairs.”

“Alright.”

“Do I need to show you?”

“No! No I’ll be fine, I can find it. Uh, thank you.”

“Mmm.” He was already turned away from him, rubble of clothes taken in his arms, and he fled upstairs hastily before Gus could take his shelter. Gus found Molly taking a heavy seat at his supposed dining table, her body weighed down by whatever gravity Numbers excreted over her.

Gus stuttered to break through the petrified air. “He’s… not okay.”

“No, he really isn’t.”

The space returned to stone bound around them both while the muffled shuffling from the loft sounded above their heads. It was severe and several sapping seconds long, before Molly smoothly cracked it enough in order to call to Gus.

“Why don’t you go up and get some rest then? We’ve been doing a lot of running around, you know.”

“Yeah.” Although agreeing he remained idle, looking to her and watching, almost waiting, but she remained as still as he, thinking as he was observing. But she rocked eventually and crooked her head to the stairs, Gus jolting with an “Oh,” before journeying to his room. He scaled the steps rather quickly, in hopes of avoiding Numbers in his passage, however, he was not one often blessed by luck and now was no acceptation.

Numbers could be seen shifting within what Gus connected to be the master bedroom. He flicked about like a shadow, possibly even a poltergeist, in some futile need to organize and reconsider. Gus did not notice his own staring until Numbers came to acknowledge it himself. His eyes pierced through Gus easily like two ebony daggers and the intruder could do nothing, but freeze within his very own skin even further. More rubble was thrown aside beyond the walls of the master bedroom just before the master himself began to make his way out, shutting the door rather harshly behind him as he exited swiftly. Gus threw himself against the wall as he passed, not even a poisonous glance his way as he slid by him. The predator was already exhausted, wounded previously by something fatal, and now was its moment to find a tranquil clearing to accept its own last moments. This clearing was at the dinner table and Gus watched as he made his way to it reluctantly. Gus could practically envision a limp as he stalked over to Molly, but he backed away before he could confirm its existence. He opened the guest bedroom and made his way inside, though the door stayed open, his own curiosity getting the better of him in the end. The voices echoed their way into his chamber clearly.

The wooden creak of a cabinet opened just below him, a chorus of clinking and clattering from glassware following its verse.

“You want anything to drink? You like bourbon, right? I think I have some around.”

“No, Grady, thanks.”

“Figured you’d say no, but I hope you don’t mind me having my own glass.”

“No I guess not, but it’s not good for you.”

“Even better.” A single glass was sent knocking against wood as rattling caps came twisting off of whatever poison Numbers had plucked for the evening. “I’m too sober to be having this conversation anyway.” Gus could hear the bitter smile oozing from his lips as he took a seat with Molly, their consultation ready to begin. Though despite the conversation opening, it remained stagnant for several minutes. Gus could feel Molly’s searching eye picking her old friend apart like a bird at decrepit bones. Numbers let her pick away, pulling at his drink every few minutes.

She fell away from picking at his interior only to follow through with more verbal prying. “What happened?”

“You want the whole story? You could be here for days.”

“Well I have all night, at least. So. Go on.”

A heavy sigh breathed out, almost collapsing Gus’ chest with its connection as he honed in closer. Suddenly, he was a child listening to his parents speak in adult language to one another from a different room. He was on a separate plane of existence, but it only made it that much easier and that much more provoking to eavesdrop upon. He may not come to understand in the moment what they were discussing, and how much of an impact it truly had, but he would listen in despite himself. A child on the stair step with nothing but curiosity.

Finally the words returned to him, splitting the air neatly, yet only filling it with more tension as they did so. “Well. You know about my parents. How they try to marry me off every chance they get.”

“Yeah. You’re always complaining about it.”

“You know how Wes, how he hates it. You remember.”

“Uh, yeah how could he not? It’s not like you two were together or nothing.”

Wait. Gus was receiving information quicker than he could predict and puzzle together.

“That’s the issue, the whole problem right there. You summed it up, Sher, now can I go to bed? Your room is over there.” His chair was already scraping against the floor beneath it, almost as unwilling to let him escape as Molly herself.

“Tell me what happened, Grady.”

His footsteps clattered, but as they sounded they were eventually tied up with another chorus of tinkling glass and warm liquid pouring forth like eager, comforting arms for those who drained it. He knew that there was no liberation from this, he’d been living with that fact for a month or two now it felt. And he wasn’t handling the prospect well.

“Wes was angry. Not angry, he was emotional. I don’t know-“

“He was hurt.”

A long pause and an audible gulp was the only reply to hang in the air for several seconds. “I guess. Yeah, sure, he was hurt. Because I wouldn’t tell them.” His voice crumbled into a groan and Gus could feel his restless hands raking over his face, unapologetic in force and unforgiving even as they tugged through his hair. He picked up the pieces of his tongue in order to continue. “It’s not that I didn’t want to, I wanted to. I was just…” He tumbled for the emotional language once more, Molly an appropriate aide to his loss.

“You were scared. You’ve been scared.”

“Sure. Sure we’ll say that. Point is, though, I just flat out didn’t feel like it. And Wes, I guess he didn’t feel like waiting any longer.”

“So that’s what happened.”

“Hmm?” His lips were occupied by the enticing company of alcohol.

“He left you.”

A quick gulp and a hissing recovery as the drink corroded the back of his throat, insulted it seemed by its sudden rejection. “No. Not exactly. But I thought he did.”

“Uhuh.”

“So, I um,” a nervous laugh cracked like a whip. Gus could recognize it effortlessly he had heard and felt it rattle from his own mouth enough. “I called this girl, the one that my parents had currently set me up with.”

“You did not.” She was becoming shrill.

“After a few drinks I did.”

“Grady!” The loft practically shuddered as Molly snapped out, Numbers shuddering with it Gus could only assume.

His voice rose to its own sharp level to combat the accusation. “What?! He walked out on me!”

“You seriously thought you’d lose him, him, over some dumb, very, very dumb mistake-“

“You weren’t there.” His voice was tender then, spilling like oil into an ocean and faltering within its crashing waves. “It was a bad fight.” The silence that drew forth then was cruel, almost lethal in its severity. Gus found himself shifting, needles sticking into his anxious legs as he waited painfully. The mournful voice was a savior then, but it spoke no words of comfort. “I had said to myself ‘I don’t need him.’ I said, ‘I could do just fine without the guy.’ Thing is, I got to that point and I, I realized…”

Molly didn’t give the pause any time to suffocate him. “What?”

“You know,” his voice had transformed into an aged and exhausted substance then, as if he no longer thought this bout of storytelling was worth the effort. “Why am I telling you this? You just want me for a fucking job.”

“Grady.” Nothing, but heavy footsteps drawing closer to Gus as Numbers made his way for the stairs, the prowling predator fighting onward if only to avoid confronting his own turmoil in the jaws of certain death. Hearing the stumbling approach, Gus stumbled himself, lunging up and back to the guest room, only catching a glimpse of Numbers downing the rest of his drink and balancing the glass on the railing as he progressed upwards, nothing given to Molly in reply besides a small, unenthusiastic wave thrown her way. Gus shut the door as swiftly and as silently as he could manage, not that he thought his host would mind too much by this point in time. As he peeked at the top of the stairs, Molly did not cease. “Grady!”

“God damn it, Molly, I don’t want to relive this can we just settle it here, huh?”

Molly must have known that there was no hope in bringing him back down to her, no possible lure that would only hook him without puncturing him mercilessly. If she pushed any further, he wouldn’t accept this job offer at all. So she rested, left to seethe and simmer at her own pace.

“I’ll tell you what the funny thing about all of this is, though.” Gus was slung back to attention, Numbers’ voice so close to his own residing space it was as if he were telling him personally, looking through the barrier between the two of them, acknowledging his snooping and giving him a singular secret to hold onto, to cherish as his treasure from his own personal hoard. “I didn’t even cheat on him. I could never do that. I just had her over. I was too drunk and distraught to do a god damn thing about it, so I let her take my bed and I slept on the couch.” His rueful smile painted itself precisely with every word that tumbled lazily over the balcony. “I’ll see you in the morning.”

He had whittled Molly to somberness and all she managed was a quiet, stunted “Goodnight.” The words went to bed for the night and Gus supposed he should follow them to rest. He slipped into the bed smoothly free of any further disturbances. He lay alone with the questioning of “What did I get myself into?” before sleep readily clutched at his mind, the first welcoming thing he had come into contact with all day.

The next morning, Gus slid into the rear seat willingly, not one to counter Numbers’ own approach to the passenger side. He was already dragging from a cigarette, maybe his fourth that morning, and made absolutely no move to douse it despite Molly’s arduous gaze. They rocked into the car together smoothly, Gus once more like a child in the backseat, but too afraid to argue his position. They were setting out again. Gus could figure who they were working towards next, however, this did not keep him from piping up with the question.

“So, uh, where are we heading off to now?”

Molly humored him with a humorless smile. “A garage. Only a little ways from here.”

Numbers set forth his huff again. “A chop shop actually. For the most part. Hey, listen Grimly.”

“Um, yeah?”

“You happen to know any sign language?”