InsaneJournal

Tweak says, "Scooby Doo, where are you?"

Rosalie Belvedere (beaute_endormie) wrote in bellumlogs,
@ 2010-01-09 08:19:00

Entry tags:

sleeping beauty

Who: Rosalie and Ed
What: The reuniting of two old flames
Where: Outside R1
When: Backdated to Thursday, after this
Warnings: Unhappiness

Waking up Thursday morning, Rosalie immediately got dressed, hurried along by a sense of urgency. Grabbing a granola bar from her kitchen, she headed up the stairs to R1, muttering curses at Vlad under her breath. This was supposed to be his job. That was the point of Jude giving him the keys to Daniel's apartment. She quickened her pace as she passed the eleventh floor. Since she had seen Ed the other night, she had begun checking stairwells and hallways nervously before she entered them, hoping to avoid any and all conflict.

She made it to the penthouse floor without incident though, and although she glared at the doors to P2 and P3, she didn't stop. For the third time in about a week, she headed up the stairs to the roof hall. Being new, the door to R1 didn't quite fit into the design of this hallway, but at least it was closed. She tried the door, and scowled slightly when it swung open. Rosalie stepped cautiously over the threshold, entering the dark apartment with some reservation. One hand searched the wall for a light switch as her eyes slowly adjusted to the dimness.

There it was! No light flickered on though. Rosalie moved further in, trying not to fall or knock anything over. She found a working light in the living room, and the apartment was suddenly visible with all its clutter, which (unsurprisingly) neither she nor Jude had done much about. It looked nearly the same as the last time she had been here, and nothing suggested that a nosy tenant might have broken in.

Although Rosalie knew that she should probably leave now, she found the bag that she had brought up here on her last visit instead, and started combing the apartment for the remaining alcohol. Daniel would have to come back at some point, and when he did, she didn't want all of this available to him for relapse. She dug bottles out from cupboards, from under newspapers and broken furniture. There were traces of whiskey everywhere, even lingering stale in the air, evidence of a long steady downward spiral.

It was nearly an hour before she was reasonably certain that she had cleared out all of the liquor. Not knowing what she could do about the locked room, she left it alone for the time being, hoping that it was locked because Daniel never used it. Or because he didn't want to stumble in there drunk. Making a mental note to bring more food up, she also put away the boxes and cans that were lying around. Deciding that it was good enough for now, Rosalie picked up the bags of whiskey and made her way out of the apartment, locking the door securely and heading for the stairwell.

(Post a new comment)

fond_affections
2010-01-09 05:28 pm UTC (link)

After another sleepless night, Ed restless paced the stairwell smoking a cigarette and flexing his aching left hand. In an effort to distract himself from well everything he cast about for something to to think about. He gave a bitter smile as he thought that all the drama in the building certainly provided a lot to think about...

He glanced up the stairwell, his thoughts settling on the night in the lobby. Boyd had been there, standing over a man on a stretcher. Rumors around the building were that someone living on the Roof was...well, who knew. It was none of his business and he was pretty sure Boyd wouldn't welcome his meddling. Exactly the kind of thing he needed.

Without thinking further he crushed out his cigarette and climbed the stairs to the roof. He heard the sound of someone moving around--the sound of clanking and crinkling suggested maybe it was a maintenance person. He kept climbing and pushed his way out of the stairwell exuding a confident "I belong here, what's it to you?" smile. He stopped just inside the door as he caught sight of her.

Not Boyd.

"Rosalie?" he couldn't help it, his voice took on the rasping purr that had once been synonymous with her name.

(Reply to this) (Thread)

beaute_endormie
2010-01-09 05:45 pm UTC (link)

He materialized at the door to the stairs like a very very bad nightmare. Rosalie couldn't help dropping one of the bags in her shock, wincing as at least one bottle broke. Her mind automatically flew to her hair, her clothes, her face, because she wasn't wearing any make-up. She had come up here first thing, why had she done that? A million insecurities flickered behind the inscrutable mask she had quickly put in place. "Oh," escaped her mouth in a soft, unintentional breath. She didn't bother looking around because she knew there was only one way out of here, now that she had locked Daniel's apartment, and he was blocking it.

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

fond_affections
2010-01-09 05:53 pm UTC (link)

One of the bags dropped to the floor, the sound of bottles rattling against each other filling the small space. Ed couldn't help but grin at the sight of Rosalie's golden perfection clutching garbage bags. Her face gave nothing away, but the sound of a single breath told him that she remembered all too well.

He leaned against the door that had closed behind him, his own face composed in a look of familiarity as he smiled at her. "This is a surprise...how've you been? Still as beautiful as ever, I see..." but his eyes went to the trash bags with curiousity. She had never struck him as the building-custodian type.

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

beaute_endormie
2010-01-09 06:05 pm UTC (link)

He was smirking at her, in that uncomfortable, I know you kind of way. Ed knew that he bothered her, Rosalie was almost sure of it. "I've been divine," she responded icily, a bit of sarcasm in her tone. The last time she had seen him, she had been wavering on the edge of total self-destruction. And she had fallen. His gaze settled on the bags but like hell was she going to tell him about Daniel.

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

fond_affections
2010-01-09 06:10 pm UTC (link)

"Divine, huh?" his raised eyebrow and gently incredulous tone suggested that he remembered pretty well, too. Remembered her. Remembered them. Remembered just how she had been when they last saw each other. "That's good to hear..." He looked around the stairwell and at the door to R1, then back at the bags. "You live here?" he asked in a casual way that suggested it would never dawn on him that he was entitled to the information.

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	beaute_endormie 2010-01-09 06:17 pm UTC (link)
	Rosalie didn't care at all for the incredulity in his tone. "Yes," she answered shortly, taking his question to refer to the apartment building. "I moved back from Paris a few months ago." She want to ask what he was doing back, but that would involve more words than she had already given him. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	fond_affections 2010-01-09 06:22 pm UTC (link)
	"How was Paris?" he asked still casually as if the conversation were perfectly normal. "Looks like New York is treating you well...that must have been some party..." He was trying to put the pieces together. Boyd nearly hysterical. The man from the stretcher suffering from god knows what. Rosalie taking out trash. Yes, this was all very distracting. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

beaute_endormie
2010-01-09 06:47 pm UTC (link)

"Paris was refreshing," she answered politely, wondering how long he wanted to torture her. Ed was never the type to converse with ex-girlfriends in deserted hallways. "But you know how I love New York." Rosalie deliberately ignored the comment about the party, choosing to let him think whatever he liked. She straightened a little, raised her chin to look at him directly, trying to ignore the frantic whispers in her head that kept reminding her that he had left her, that she hadn't been able to keep him, even at 18 and as a beautiful, Ivy-bound musician.

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	fond_affections 2010-01-09 06:56 pm UTC (link)
	He gestured around the stairwell. "This is hardly the same New York you're really used to, is it?" He raised an eyebrow at her. God she was still beautiful and he remembered that lift of her chin from before. He glanced down again, not at the bags this time, but at her hands and made himself remember why he had given her up. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	beaute_endormie 2010-01-09 07:09 pm UTC (link)
	Rosalie didn't know what kind of New York she was used to. Ballrooms and penthouses? Dark clubs and strange apartments? She had been through the city so many times as so many people now. Her uncertainty made its way onto her face, and she didn't answer him for several seconds. "It's hardly the slums." (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

fond_affections
2010-01-09 07:12 pm UTC (link)

He watched her, enjoying the sight of her almost as much as he used to. Her hesitation raised his interest and his eyes narrowed. "True...it's hardly the slums. But it's hardly grandmother's drawing room and Tavern on the Green, now is it? How'd you get here Rosalie?" He didn't ask the question that would have left him vulnerable to the why that forced him to refuse any semblance of regret.

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	beaute_endormie 2010-01-09 07:30 pm UTC (link)
	“Tavern on the Green is closing, did you hear?” Rosalie asked idly, trying not to think of his comment as a jibe in any way. “Did you really think I was going to live with my parents forever?” She didn’t know how he could show up and make her second-guess everything she had done in the last two years in the space of five minutes, but he managed it. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

fond_affections
2010-01-09 07:37 pm UTC (link)

"I hadn't heard...it's not really one of my favorite places..." He gave her a smile that full of memories--memories of the places they had gone together, off the beaten path, edgy versions of high society's reservations-only venues. When she mentioned her parents he shrugged, "I don't know...you hardly seemed ready to strike out on your own at the time... And it's not like you had it rough with them..." The words were harsh around the edges, despite the fact that his face never lost it's casual smile.

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	beaute_endormie 2010-01-09 08:12 pm UTC (link)
	Rosalie decided that she hated him. "I guess you missed a lot while you were away then," she gave him a pretty grin that was decidedly cold underneath. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

fond_affections
2010-01-09 08:17 pm UTC (link)

Cold he was used to. Cold he knew how to handle.

He grinned at her. "I guess I did...too bad, I bet it was all very interesting..." He looked her over, much as he had the first night they met. "Want to fill me in?" It wasn't quite a leer.

His eyes dropped to her hands again, picturing them moving over ivory keys--the movements he'd felt even more keenly than the ones over his own body. Cold was good. It was better if she was cold.

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	beaute_endormie 2010-01-09 09:17 pm UTC (link)
	How long had it been? A little over four years? "Uggs, a financial meltdown, and the rise and fall of Eliot Spitzer. Ted Kennedy died. And the Yankees are back on top." Rosalie made sure to give him absolutely nothing. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

fond_affections
2010-01-09 09:21 pm UTC (link)

He made a soft "tsk" with his tongue and raised en eyebrow. "You can do better than that Rosalie...at least you used to do better than that..." He watched her carefully, grudgingly impressed with her composure and more than a little resentful for some reason. The throb in his left hand making him clench and unclench it, reflexively trying to ease the tension there.

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	beaute_endormie 2010-01-10 01:01 am UTC (link)
	"I used to do a lot of things," Rosalie said pointedly. Things that she had gotten past, she hoped. "I'm not going to play catch up with you, Ed." (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	fond_affections 2010-01-10 01:07 am UTC (link)
	He shrugged, indicating that it made no real difference to him. "No? Not even going to tell me what's going on up here? I saw the guy being carried out on a stretcher...he lives up here, right?" He looked toward the apartment she had clearly just exited. He was guessing, of course, but he sounded confident. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	beaute_endormie 2010-01-10 01:13 am UTC (link)
	Rosalie narrowed her eyes at him, a tiny bit of emotion he could grasp at. "It's not your concern," she said, channeling her grandmother as best as she could. "I don't think he's married, so you don't have to worry that you've slept with his wife." Since Ed had left, she had heard even more rumors, rumors that she had ignored while they had been together. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

fond_affections
2010-01-10 01:22 am UTC (link)

He noticed the change in her and cocked his head. "One my neighbors is carried out on a stretcher amid rumors of suicide...and other things... and it's no concern of mine? Why, Rosalie you make it sound like I have no empathy at all..." He looked at the garbage bags again. "Let me guess, not suicide..accidental OD?" he pushed on relentlessly.

When she mentioned a wife he gave a harsh laugh, "Honey, why would I worry about sleeping with this man's wife... I never worried about it before..." He didn't bother to deny that. He had no interest in changing her mind about him--better that she stay cold and angry. Better for him at least.

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	beaute_endormie 2010-01-10 01:30 am UTC (link)
	Rosalie's face involuntarily paled at his mention of an accidental overdose. That wasn't Daniel, though, she reminded herself, taking a shaky breath. "Wrong," she told him sharply, throwing back up her walls with impressive haste. "And you can guess all day, but I'm not going to tell you." (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

fond_affections
2010-01-10 01:34 am UTC (link)

He saw her pale and his grey-blue eyes sharpened. He thought about the last time he saw her and wondered. "Suit yourself--it's not like the whole building isn't buzzing. Word will get out eventually. After all you can't be the only person who knows what's going on... Just what is your part in all this, I wonder?" The last part was low purr, half curious and half cruel.

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	beaute_endormie 2010-01-10 01:41 am UTC (link)
	"You think I can't handle a little gossip, Ed?" Rosalie laughed at him. "Clearly you've forgotten how things work around here." The tone with which he made his last comment made her skin crawl, so she ignored the question. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	fond_affections 2010-01-10 01:46 am UTC (link)
	"I haven't forgotten anything... I seem to recall a time when you went out of your way to avoid a little gossip... And the fact that you seem quite determined not to tell me anything suggests that you aren't nearly as in control as you'd like to be..." quietly relentless he kept on--enjoying the sound of her laughter, enjoying the game that they played. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	beaute_endormie 2010-01-10 01:52 am UTC (link)
	"I was thinking handle as in...control. And the fact that you think I would tell you anything, suggests to me that you've forgotten a little more than you realized." Rosalie arched an eyebrow. "Old money likes to enjoy our privacy just as much as we always did." (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	fond_affections 2010-01-10 01:55 am UTC (link)
	"Yes...but sometimes even old money can't afford the price of privacy..." he shrugged. "And don't forget, Rosalie, I used to be very good at getting you to...talk..." the purr was back along with a heated gleam in his eyes. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	beaute_endormie 2010-01-10 03:04 am UTC (link)
	"Things have changed," Rosalie reminded him again, with a lot more certainty than she was feeling. "I'm not 18 anymore." (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	fond_affections 2010-01-10 03:09 am UTC (link)
	He smiled then, barely chuckling under his breath, "No...I guess you're not... But since you don't want to play catch up, I guess you expect me to take your word for the fact that things have changed..." his tone said he wasn't convinced of that as his eyes wandered over her body. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	beaute_endormie 2010-01-10 03:24 am UTC (link)
	"I don't." Rosalie responded immediately. "I don't expect anything from you." She kept her voice and face carefully neutral, not shrinking away from his wandering gaze, or acknowledging it at all. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	fond_affections 2010-01-10 03:26 am UTC (link)
	He nodded then. "Smart girl. I guess some things have changed..." he said in a not-quite mocking tone. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	beaute_endormie 2010-01-10 03:36 am UTC (link)
	Rosalie hated this, hated how he was making her feel like she was under his personal microscope, hated how he was getting to her. "Like I said," she told him shortly. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	fond_affections 2010-01-10 04:00 am UTC (link)
	He leered again, taking his time as he looked at her. "So...this guy living up here. He must be one hell of a fuck if he's got you taking out his garbage for him... I'll have to meet him, find out what else you're willing to do these days, see if that list has changed as well," he smiled at her and it was a poisonous smile. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

beaute_endormie
2010-01-10 04:17 am UTC (link)

Rosalie's control over her careful facade fell to pieces around her as she flinched, first at the harshness in his voice, then at the words, the indistinct shadows of memory playing through her head. "You can bet that you're not on it," she snapped.

Gathering her bags, including the one she had dropped, she forced her way past him and down the stairs. Not wanting to be exposed, she risked the elevator, which thankfully took her directly to the seventh floor. Depositing the bags right inside the door, she hastened to take a scalding hot shower, staying in there until she was sure that she had cleansed herself of every leer, every poisonous look that he had sent her way. Then, feeling completely drained, she fell asleep again, not waking up until the sky was nearly dark.

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	fond_affections 2010-01-10 04:22 am UTC (link)
	"Whatever you say, darlin'..." he said as she pushed past him. Then he took one last look at the door of R1 and turned, walking back down the stairs knowing that for a short time the restlessness would be subside, held at bay by the taste of cruel words and regret as they mingled on his tongue. (Reply to this) (Parent)