( Let him stumble a little, Quentin. His hesitation with everything comes from bad experiences and feeling like he’s just better off alone per Alice Deejay. It’d be a real shame to get close to you all - to make memories and have actual people- friends who want to support him in ways he’s so briefly had and some that were nothing more than lies, only to lose it all.
But the pinky promise seals the deal and he smiles some at Quentin’s eye rolling along with his thinking he’s above a pinky promise. )
As if you’d be any better.
( He gets the feeling none of them would be.
With the pinky promise made and a slow shake of their hands, he lets go of the other’s pinky then and drifts back a little. )
That means this goes both ways you know. I know you can handle yourself power-wise. But you ever have too many balls to juggle in anything else with your life, I can take some of them. Give you a bit of a break.
/Sure, sure, a friend in need is a friend in deed and all that crap./
[Quentin squints at Nate's sudden cheery turn. Hold on, wait, no. He's still salty!]
/Hold up, let's rewind just a second./
[He folds his arms and gives Nate a Very Stern look.]
/Look. You don't like people making choices for you, right? Well, neither do I. So do me a favor and don't decide for me what's gonna hurt me. I'm a pretty tough cookie, I promise. I know what I can handle, and if I miscalculate and get fucked up that's on me. Got it?/
[He pauses, thinks, then makes an addition.]
/And for fuck's sake if you doubt my intentions or whatever then man up and go rummaging through my skull like a normal intrusive telepathic bastard with trust issues./
( Not to say he hasn't or won't do it again himself, but. He's also just saying. )
But fine. If you really want me to give your brain a wedgie, I suppose I always could. ( At that he shrugs, still drifting there, smile faint on his lips. ) I don't doubt you though. I just wasn't sure. But that's on me and my own shit.
/Like I said, intrusive telepathic bastard with trust issues./
[He shrugs. Quentin's not saying Nate's whole "I just needed to know" stunt was as bad as Xavier. But he's also not saying it isn't the kinda shit Chuck would pull.]
/All I'm saying is you either trust me or you don't. This "I wasn't sure," testing me bullshit? Deciding for me when you need to save me? That ain't trust, dude. That's control./
[Quentin sighs, shifts his weight, and shoves his hands in his pockets.]
/Looking out for one another, that's one thing. But guys like you and me? We can't get into trying to control one another. With our powers or without them. That's a no-win scenario./
[He takes one hand out of his pocket and holds it out. A handshake and not a pinky promise because he's not seven years old.]
( Cut him some slack, Quentin. This is the first time he’s really choosing to play nice with another telepath so closely connected to him. The fact he even goes along with it says something, but. He figures if Quentin does cross a line or lie to him, he’ll break it off without so much as a second thought. He can’t deal with more people lying to him he thought he could trust and care for. )
Oh, and here I thought I was being considerate.
( Sarcasm, yes. It’s said with a roll of his eyes in regards to his not wanting to drag the other down with him if things go bad, but. In the end, he takes the other’s hand in his own and eyes him with a tilt of his head. )
[Quentin eyes Nate skeptically. Sure, the guy's acting like he's in full agreement with what Quentin is saying, but... well, call it a hunch, but he's not so sure the message is sinking in. And it's not like he doesn't get why. There's a certain stubborn idiocy that comes with having the type of power at the magnitude that he and Nate share. The urge to control people before they control you. The moral superiority of having the ability to scramble people's brains but choosing to just manipulate them with your own behavior, like that makes it better. Quentin had quite a few slices of humble pie shoved unceremoniously into his gob over the past few years, but Nate? Nate seems like the type of guy who's used to throwing his weight around. Because nobody's been around who could stop him. So far.]
/Good. And seriously? Never be considerate to me. Fake-ass bullshit./
[In case Nate was wondering about Quentin's whole... everything. He lets go of Nate's hand and crosses his arms.]
/Oh, and you are seriously linked directly to my brainstem. So I'd really appreciate you not, you know. Frying me in some way./
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But the pinky promise seals the deal and he smiles some at Quentin’s eye rolling along with his thinking he’s above a pinky promise. )
As if you’d be any better.
( He gets the feeling none of them would be.
With the pinky promise made and a slow shake of their hands, he lets go of the other’s pinky then and drifts back a little. )
That means this goes both ways you know. I know you can handle yourself power-wise. But you ever have too many balls to juggle in anything else with your life, I can take some of them. Give you a bit of a break.
no subject
[Quentin squints at Nate's sudden cheery turn. Hold on, wait, no. He's still salty!]
/Hold up, let's rewind just a second./
[He folds his arms and gives Nate a Very Stern look.]
/Look. You don't like people making choices for you, right? Well, neither do I. So do me a favor and don't decide for me what's gonna hurt me. I'm a pretty tough cookie, I promise. I know what I can handle, and if I miscalculate and get fucked up that's on me. Got it?/
[He pauses, thinks, then makes an addition.]
/And for fuck's sake if you doubt my intentions or whatever then man up and go rummaging through my skull like a normal intrusive telepathic bastard with trust issues./
no subject
( Not to say he hasn't or won't do it again himself, but. He's also just saying. )
But fine. If you really want me to give your brain a wedgie, I suppose I always could. ( At that he shrugs, still drifting there, smile faint on his lips. ) I don't doubt you though. I just wasn't sure. But that's on me and my own shit.
no subject
[He shrugs. Quentin's not saying Nate's whole "I just needed to know" stunt was as bad as Xavier. But he's also not saying it isn't the kinda shit Chuck would pull.]
/All I'm saying is you either trust me or you don't. This "I wasn't sure," testing me bullshit? Deciding for me when you need to save me? That ain't trust, dude. That's control./
[Quentin sighs, shifts his weight, and shoves his hands in his pockets.]
/Looking out for one another, that's one thing. But guys like you and me? We can't get into trying to control one another. With our powers or without them. That's a no-win scenario./
[He takes one hand out of his pocket and holds it out. A handshake and not a pinky promise because he's not seven years old.]
/We gucci?/
no subject
Oh, and here I thought I was being considerate.
( Sarcasm, yes. It’s said with a roll of his eyes in regards to his not wanting to drag the other down with him if things go bad, but. In the end, he takes the other’s hand in his own and eyes him with a tilt of his head. )
I don’t know what gucci is, but we’re good.
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/Good. And seriously? Never be considerate to me. Fake-ass bullshit./
[In case Nate was wondering about Quentin's whole... everything. He lets go of Nate's hand and crosses his arms.]
/Oh, and you are seriously linked directly to my brainstem. So I'd really appreciate you not, you know. Frying me in some way./
no subject
( He's kidding, but. He gets it, buddy. He'll keep it in mind and do his best to not let that happen. )
But fine. Neither of us will do something to endanger the other intentionally. If it happens by accident, well. I'm sure we can handle it.
( Omegas and all. )