InsaneJournal

Tweak says, "Why am I always Lois Lane?"

Chris Summers (cerebbro) wrote in nextxplayground,
@ 2009-03-29 21:42:00

Entry tags:

char: christian summers, char: tobias shaw, loc: near nyc, r: pg, stat: incomplete

WHO: Chris Summers and Tobias Shaw
WHAT: A speed bump on the trip home
WHEN: Sunday night
WHERE: JFK International Airport
RATING: PG

Chris stretched his arms and legs out, trying to shake the sleep away as he moved along the slow line of passengers disembarking from the jumbo jet. He'd just completed the last leg of his flight home. The weekend in the Swiss Alps had been nice, a needed weekend away. Now, too soon, things were getting back to hectic, unpredictable normality.

"Where are you?", Chris talked loudly into his cellphone. "What are you doing out there? You're supposed to be here! Accident, right. How long? An hour?" A frustrated sigh left his lips. "Fine as soon as you can get here."

Chris flipped the phone shut, visibly irritated. Some of the other passengers were staring. Let them stare. Taking a moment to think, Chris decided to make the best of the situation. He carried his carry-on bag through the terminal with him to the baggage pickup. Once he'd retrieved his other bags, he headed for the food court. He still had about a half hour to wait, may as well eat something. While getting food from Cinnabon, coffee from Starbucks, and a newspaper, he left his bags at a small table with two chairs at it. He did feel better once he had the cinnamon rolls, coffee, and paper in his hands and was walking back to his place. Maybe having a few moments to himself here wasn't such a bad thing.

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mutantnews
2009-03-30 01:56 pm UTC (link)

There was always something, or in this case, someone to ruin a nice relaxing moment. And who better than to ruin it than Toby Shaw himself. The mutant-gossip king had just returned from a short vacation away from NYC and had been heading from his terminal to baggage claim when he spotted Chris. Actually, while Toby would never admit it, he had fled NYC for a few days mainly because his pride had been dented slightly by Eli Worthington, which was never fun. But an opportunity seemed to always present itself to Toby when he needed one.

Toby smiled to himself and adjusted his maroon suit jacket before crossing the food court. He stopped at Chris' table, folding his arms behind him and looking at the Summers heir with a look that one could never determine as either a smile or a sneer.
"I would like to offer my apologies for my mistake on Mutant Media."

He didn't really mean it, but may as well make nice. He went on, "Sources and gossip get out of control. I'm sure you'll understand. I'll make sure to clear it all up in my next issue."

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(haha, AWESOME, was hoping Toby'd pick this up)

cerebbro
2009-03-30 02:32 pm UTC (link)

Chris wasn't one to believe in coincidence. Even the chance reacquaintance with Elijah a few weeks ago had been something he'd attributed to fate rather than luck. In this case, fate wasn't the right word. Bad karma, maybe? More than likely, it wasn't even that. Chris couldn't believe that Toby turning up here the same time as him could possibly be accidental. The parasite was undoubtedly out for a story.

Chris didn't bother to hide the dislike on his face as Tobias approached. It came natural, he'd heard enough stories of the bad kind about both of Tobias's parents from both of his own. There was bad blood aplenty among the families. Though Chris wasn't the type to judge on that alone, Tobias's actions did plenty to confirm what he'd been told. Chris had felt surprise, and not the good kind, upon recognizing Tobias there in the terminal. Chris thought to himself that the slime was better than Chris would have guessed at getting a story. Not only had he found out about Chris's vacation destination, but also had been able to meet him upon his return.

Chris's face changed to a blank expression upon hearing the more than likely insincere apology. "You don't need to clear it up. I'd rather be left out of your gossip altogether." Considering everything, it was a very civil reply on Chris's part.

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mutantnews
2009-03-30 02:53 pm UTC (link)

With our without an invitation Toby pulled out the chair across from Chris and helped himself to a seat. He pursed his lips a little before grinning a little. "I expected a tart reply."

It was true, The Saws and Summers never really got along...since they were mortal enemies as some point and Scott Summers was even wed to Toby's mother, the Red Queen. Sure there was bad blood but Toby was not one to dwell on that, after all, he had made a name for himself and only worried about that.
"I understand you'd rather stay out of my little news feed." Oh who was he kidding, Mutant Media wasn't little at all. It was read world-wide.

But Toby shrugged, offering Chris another half-smile, half-smirk. "You're news though, but I suppose I could cut back and focus on things slightly more important, like what Parisa has gotten herself into." It was sort of snarky joke on Toby's part but it may work.
"Consider my clearing it up a more solid apology." Frankly Toby didn't care if Chris accepted the apology or not, it was half hearted. Toby just needed more people on his side lately, and who better to make nice with than Christian Summers? Or at least pretend to make nice with...for now.

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cerebbro
2009-03-30 03:02 pm UTC (link)

The reply from Toby was a little unexpected, though Chris doubted that Toby really had a clue at how much he really wanted left out of the man's stories. It was perplexing that Toby seemed to be agreeing with Chris, though he was sure there was some catch to it. But he couldn't help finding even more agreement about the Parissa comment, though unfortunately, any news involving that skank would likely include one of his male relatives who insisted on chasing after that.

Toby really was playing nice. Chris was still skeptical, but his stone face did soften just a bit. "I'd appreciate that", Chris said neutrally, taking a sip of his coffee. "I really don't know what you get out of your 'Mutant Media'. Is it the attention? There has to be better ways of getting attention." But Chris had to admit, if Toby was being rotten to get attention, he did get that trait honestly.

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mutantnews
2009-03-30 03:12 pm UTC (link)

Toby sat back in his airport food court seat and crossed his leg over the other and gave a small shrug. "Someone needs to report these sorts of things. There have been hundreds of these sort of gossip media outlets over the years. E! News, Perez Hilton, The Soup, Access Hollywood. If not me then it would be someone else, Summers. I just happen to be one of them."

He shrugged with another one of his smirky grins. "If it happens to offend people...well." he shrugged.

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cerebbro
2009-03-30 04:11 pm UTC (link)

Chris had a skeptical look on his face as he took a bite of his cinnabon and listened to Toby justify his 'work'. "That's where I think you're wrong. Those sorts of things do not need reported. No one really needs to know who Parissa is sleeping with on any given night, or..." He stopped himself, not wanting to give Shaw any ideas. "Anything. No one needs to know anything like that." Of course maybe Parissa was a bad example. Unlike Chris, she seemed to thrive on the attention.

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mutantnews
2009-03-30 10:43 pm UTC (link)

Toby raised a finger. "But they want to." He smirked at Chris and folded his hands together and rested his elbows on the table between them. "Its business. You know all about that, Summers."

He tilted his head a little and offered Chris a little smirk. "Give the people what they want. People want to know our lives. People want to know what makes mutant celebrities tick. Because they want to know, because they want to be more like us." He shrugged his shoulders. "Its just business. I'm giving them what they want."

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	cerebbro 2009-03-31 06:47 am UTC (link)
	"It's bad business", Chris corrected. "Especially when you start making shit up just to get more hits on your website. Because that's what people want, isn't it? They don't want the truth, that I'm a normal guy with a good job. They want the sensational, so you start telling them I'm shacking up with a high-profile bachelor." (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

mutantnews
2009-03-31 04:14 pm UTC (link)

Toby chuckled a little and shook his head. "You're not a normal guy, thats the thing, Summers." The gossip king shrugged and unfolded his hands and sat back in his seat. "You'll never be, thats just fact."
He sighed and waved his hand. "I already told you, that was a misinterpreted source and I'm going to correct it, let it go."

He cast Chris a look. "I don't apologize very often," if at all, "So be glad that I'm saying it to you considering..." He paused, not wanting to bring their parents or family history into this. Toby spotted a bit of something that certainly wasn't supposed to be on his jacket sleeve and brushed it off. "Besides, it could be a lot worse. I don't understand why you people cant accept it and just get a good laugh out of it."

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cerebbro
2009-03-31 04:35 pm UTC (link)

Chris could at least concede in his mind that Toby did have a point. He knew he wasn't normal. But he didn't think that was good enough reason to have to live without privacy. He gave an almost imperceptible nod at the apology. He still wasn't convinced it was sincere, but wasn't going to be an ass about it, either.

"Not my brand of humor, I guess", Chirs conceded. "And sometimes it's not funny at all, no matter what kind of sense of humor you have." He was remembeirng something specific this time, the worst run in he'd had with Shaw's kind.

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mutantnews
2009-03-31 04:55 pm UTC (link)

Toby glanced at Chris again. He shrugged his shoulders under his maroon suit jacket. "Point taken. No, sometimes it isn't funny." He closed his eyes and waved his hand again. "But its business. Bad business. But business."

He looked at Chris, Toby being able to tell the Summers heir was thinking, or reminiscing about something or other. Toby could guess what it was, after all, he knew 'everything', but he kept quiet for a moment. Again, his original scheme to get Chris on his side, even if he had to go so far as to actually be nice and make friends with him!

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cerebbro
2009-03-31 05:07 pm UTC (link)

Shaw was playing nice, and Chris wasn't sure why. He was feeling a bit of frustration. He was at the tail end of his vacation and didn't feel like playing mind games. At least the man's reaction to Chris was making him quickly forget his unpleasant memory of the paprazzi taking photos that they had no business taking of him.

It was in this brief oment of quiet as Chris ate a bit more of his snack that he noticed something else. He'd made a wrong assumption about Shaw. From the looks of him, he was travelling as well. After a moment of paranoia, Chris realized that he would have realized it if Shaw had actually tailed him on his vacation to the Alps, so that must mean that Shaw had just come in from somewhere as well. Was their meeting actually a coincidence, and not Shaw trying to get a story?

"Been travelling?", he asked, curious all of a sudden. And not being able to stop the comment that followed, he added, "Don't worry, I won't tell anyone."

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mutantnews
2009-03-31 05:50 pm UTC (link)

Toby looked at Chris. Ah, the Summers heir had probably thought Shaw was tailing him. While that would have been a good idea, which Toby would kick himself for not thinking of it sooner later, he nodded and drew his boarding pass from his earlier flight from his jacket pocket and placed it on the table between them, sliding it over to Chris so he could see that no, Toby had indeed flown in from somewhere else, Dubai to be exact.

"Yes. I need a small vacation." Toby said, but he would never say why. There wasn't a person on other, other than maybe Toby's mother, that he would confess to running away because an ex had matched him in a battle of insults and snarkiness and he needed some time away. Eli Worthington was certainly not going to have the pleasure of ever knowing.
"Besides." Toby crossed his legs. "The Atlantis Hotel there has been holding a room for me since I gave them a review on MM. Figured I would abuse it."

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cerebbro
2009-03-31 06:02 pm UTC (link)

Chris leaned forward slightly, giving a polite glance at the ticket. He did see that it was real, that Shaw had apparantly been to Dubai. Chris certainly couldn't begrudge the man needing a vacation. He tended to take enough of his own. If Chris had a vice, it might be travel. He listened to Toby tell about the trip, waiting to hear the 'and how were the Alps'? But the question never came. It was another surprise to Summers. Did Toby actually not dig and find out? If he had, he was playing ignorant and doing a good job of it. Maybe he could give Shaw the benefit of the doubt more than he had in the recent past.

"The Atlantis", Chris said, nodding in approval. "Nice." He had been there himself only last fall. Deciding to let down his guard, he actually moved into the territory of polite conversation. "Was it the break you needed? I was off in the Alps myself. The cool air and skiing is a nice getaway from the worries of the week."

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mutantnews
2009-03-31 06:12 pm UTC (link)

Bingo. Toby had lured Chris into talking about travel and politely exchanging stories and things like that. Just what he wanted. He wouldn't act now.Wait for a while. Chris could certainly be valuable to a gossip writer like Toby. No need to chase him away.

Tobias nodded and gave another small shrug. "I just needed a small break. Everyone does now and again." He then offered that half-smile half-smirk grin of his. "Alps? Nice this time of year. Good vacation from, what was it? Worries of the week?"

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cerebbro
2009-03-31 06:26 pm UTC (link)

"True", Chris said about needing breaks. He still felt a little unsettled by the predatory looking smile on the other's face, picking up his coffee and taking a long drink of it. "It was a good time", he said of the weekend. He did hear the comment about worries, but wasn't going to bite. That wasn't the kind of thing he'd talk about with just anyone anyways, especially not the king of trash media. "Yeah, something like that", Chris agreed, deciding no more details needed said.

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	mutantnews 2009-04-01 01:17 am UTC (link)
	Toby didn't think it would work that easily, but it was worth a shot to try and weasel some 'worries' out of Chris. Still though, Toby reached out to take the boarding pass he had shown to Chris and slipped it back into his jacket. "Well like I said, everyone needs a break now and then." (Reply to this) (Parent)