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[arcanegrasp]

Elias is often out and about, but he's always glad to hear out anyone who needs to speak with him. Visit him in his home within the lighthouse, catch him out in the bustling city streets, or leave him a letter! He'll get back to you as soon as he can.

((OOC: Gonna get a proper code for this later, don't worry about the format now!!))

Comments

[itsjustabaddream]

Neil hums his agreement. "...I have something, ah... ill-advised to ask you. Feel free to say no."

[arcanegrasp]

His pacing stops, and the hand that he'd lifted to idly run over the edge of his table as he'd passed it returns to his side.

"...Of course, what is it?"

[itsjustabaddream]

"...Would you be interested in--- keeping me company? I could come by for a while..."

[arcanegrasp]

Elias balks, looks around his messy home, and has to put in some considerable effort to get his voice back.

"I--- yes, certainly!" He leaps too quickly at the offer, and scolds himself internally immediately after. Don't get desperate, Coldwood. "I've got just a bit of tidying to do, would you be heading this way now, or...?"

[itsjustabaddream]

"Whenever you like," Neil agrees. "But I know your messes very well. It's of no concern."

[arcanegrasp]

"Well, feel free to--- come as soon as you like, then!" Elias laughs, a bit embarrassed. "Should I... expect to see you in a while?"

[itsjustabaddream]

"I'll be there shortly," Neil agrees. "See you soon, Elias. Thank you for getting me out of the house."

[arcanegrasp]

"I'm just happy to be able to help, even if just a bit. See you soon!"

The second the sending stone call has ended, despite being told to distinctly not worry about it, worry about it he does - he immediately stacks books and tools, trying to throw everything into a somewhat-more-organized chaos in the short amount of time he's got.

[itsjustabaddream]

About ten minutes later, Neil knocks at the door. His normally neatly styled hair has been left to its own devices, falling about his face in wild curls.

[arcanegrasp]

Elias opens the door within a few short moments, his smile losing a bit of it's shine at the sight. It makes sense that Neil would obviously look the downtrodden part, considering the situation... but it never made it any easier for Elias to see.

He wastes little time waving Neil inside, however, holding the door for him.

"Neil! Please, come in. I'd just put on some tea. The walk over didn't give you too much trouble, I hope. It looks like there's a storm on the way."

[itsjustabaddream]

"I noticed," Neil remarks. "No wonder my hair's untamable today. But I do appreciate the tea, thank you."

He sees himself in past Elias, looking around. "Quite a place you've made for yourself, Eli."

How long has it been since Neil's used that old nickname?

[arcanegrasp]

It's not a nickname Elias has heard in years; he couldn't count them, but it's enough to put that old ache back in his heart as soon as Neil uses it again. The old wound becomes fresher by the minute.

"Oh, it isn't anything too exciting. I wish I'd ever have gotten an organizational system in place, but I make due," He chuckles, closing the door softly. "It isn't too bad a spot to have gotten for simply having to tend a light every now and again, though!"

[itsjustabaddream]

"You've made a life," Neil remarks softly. "I'm proud of you. After all I put you through, it's good to see."

[arcanegrasp]

"Think nothing of it," Elias gives a short, dismissive wave, stepping over to the kitchenette connected to the living room space. The kettle is removed from the stove, and he starts to fuss with the small, plain teapot on the counter. "I mean... it wasn't without reason, Neil. I hadn't been in your corner when you needed me the most. I'm fortunate that you'd still wanted to even just be colleagues, with what I'd put you through."

[itsjustabaddream]

"It would have been a shame to lose you completely," Neil tells him earnestly. "You're an intelligent, skilled man, a dedicated researcher, and a good friend. I'm thankful that you're still open to working together."

[arcanegrasp]

"You flatter me," Elias jokes, lifting a hand to scratch at the back of his neck. His hair has only grown out just enough to hinder him hiding that nervous tick, sweeping waves of hair jostling gently, and does not help him hide it whatsoever. "I'm just happy to help where I can. And I feel like the island has made some considerable progress recently!"

[itsjustabaddream]

"That it has!" Neil smiles briefly, but it dims. "...I'm sorry, Elias, I--- have to confess I didn't really come to talk shop, as it were. Not that I'm not delighted to catch up, but I should come clean that I had... other intentions."

[arcanegrasp]

That clearly catches him off guard, and he finally glances back from his pouring of tea into cups - just long enough to spill some on the counter. His attention snaps over, and he hurriedly snatches a rag from beside the sink, tending to the spill as quickly as possible.

"Oh, damn it, I'm sorry, I..." Elias looks back up, leaving the rag to tend to the mess itself, finally fully looking up. "What were you looking to do?"

That hollow ache in his chest only grows deeper. There's no way he means what his heart wants to think he could mean.

[itsjustabaddream]

"I was... hoping to seek out some comfort of a more physically intimate nature," Neil explains plainly. "I'd rather not spend the night alone. But I do understand if that's not what you want. As I said, it's ill-advised and not the most emotionally healthy choice, but..."

[arcanegrasp]

Elias knows this is a bad idea.

Deep down, he knows. There's every chance that Neil just needs this to move on, to feel someone that isn't Jon, to be held for a night while he mourns what he has, and then go back into the world. It's something people do all over the place, it's not unheard of. Were that to be the case, that old ache of Elias' would be deeper than it's been in years upon years, and he'd have to nurse that wound all over again.

And yet, his hopes, so desperate to reach to any chance, beckon for him. Their serious relationship had started with a few trysts, hadn't it? Why couldn't this be the same?

"My home is yours," Elias interrupts gently, and finally steps away from the counter, the tea abandoned for now. "And... my bed is yours to share, as well. Perhaps I could, ah... use some physical comforts of my own. It has, er. It has been... some time."

[itsjustabaddream]

"Mmm, it has for me as well. It wasn't really Jon's preference to engage in that way, aside from rare occasions. Not that I begrudge him that, but, ah. Well. It would certainly be nice..." Neil takes a step toward Elias. "If you're sure."

[arcanegrasp]

Elias steps closer, tentative, but clearly willing to close the last bit of that distance.

"I'm sure," He murmurs, lifting one of his hands, as worn as they've ever been, brushing his knuckles affectionately over Neil's cheek. Every notion of this being a horrible idea has gone sufficiently out the window - he wants this so badly. "Should we relocate to somewhere a bit more comfortable...?"

[itsjustabaddream]

Neil leans gently into the touch. "Lead the way, dear."

NSFW Warning Impending

[arcanegrasp]

Elias nods, and only just remembers to take one final look at the stove, just to be certain that he hadn't left it on. Once he's checked, though, he wastes little time, a gentle hand linking his first few fingers with Neil's own.

Careful to keep the hold--- offering no practical use, but direly emotionally needed--- he leads Neil up the stairs.

His bedroom, out of the one-story house portion and into the first level of the lighthouse itself, is modest. Plants flourish in large, round windows, baubles hang from where the stairs continue to curl around the towering building, and bookshelves are nestled wherever it seemed that he wanted to create a "corner." A woven rug sits neatly in the middle, sparing the first contact of the day with the floor from being cold concrete.

Elias finally turns Neil loose as soon as he's joined him off of the last step, and he starts shuffling his coat off, abandoning it on a nearby chair that seems to be simply designated for laundry. He gestures, a bit sheepish; the confident bravado of his youth has eroded with time and solitude.

"Please, feel free to get as comfortable as you like."

cw: old man yaoi (NSFW)

[itsjustabaddream]

Neil cannot be bothered with awkward formalities. The uneasy sit down on the bed, fully clothed, as they consider where to begin or if the time is right--- those are for sheepish near-strangers and first encounters.

No, this is a man he knows. This is a body he has touched.

Reaching out to grab Elias by the front of his shirt greedily, Neil pulls Elias into a fiery kiss, a hand hooking around the back of his neck. The other finds its way to the fly of Elias' trousers.