WHO Theo and Kitane WHAT An argument WHEN Tonight. Last night? Very, very recently. WHERE Their penthouse at Turnberry Place WARNINGS Sad. So sad.
All week Theo had worked late, and later, until last night she'd finally had to go out. If he was going to spend the whole day and night working, Kitane was not going to stay cooped up in the penthouse waiting for him to get home. So she'd gone out, luckily caught by Aubrey before she'd left and came home in the very small, very dark hours of the morning, roaring drunk. Or giggling drunk, stumbling into everything, laughing, and unable to feel her lips.
She'd made enough racket that Theo had finally come out of the bedroom and ended up carrying her to bed after making one of the biggest grumpy faces she'd seen in a long time. It wasn't her fault. He needed to stop spending so much damned time at work. Even if they weren't in bed, she genuinely liked spending time with him, curled up on the couch reading, or going out, or even the very rare nights spent out on the balcony just talking were as much of an interest to her.
But no, it was work. And more work. And work some more. And Seven wasn't answering any of her messages so she'd spent more time on the journals as she'd grown bored with even Shark Week on Discovery. There she'd met Justine, which was awesome, and only got better once they'd started talking and realized how close they lived. She'd gone over for cookies (and brought some back for Theo) and it had been good. So good. She'd even forgotten to miss him a little bit and by the time she came home, she was in a great mood. Leaving the cookies on the counter for Theo, she headed for the living room to see what she had missed from Shark Week.
Theo was avoiding Kitane, simply put. He didn’t comment on what was said on the journals but he watched. He read the comments she made, telling strangers about their relationship. He didn’t like it at all but how many times could he tell Kitane the same thing? He didn’t want their relationship publicized in any way, particularly anywhere he could see. If she was going to talk to Ainslie and completely blindside him into a discussion about marriage because she didn’t understand what the Spanish woman was saying, there wasn’t much he could do about it. Pray, maybe, that she’d see sense and stop discussing it. What was so difficult about a private life staying private? How could she not understand that? Didn’t she know him well enough by now? He thought he knew her well but he supposed if he could be wrong, then so could she. Still, he didn’t like it and so he stayed later and later at work in the hopes that he could simply avoid dealing with her.
That plan only worked when she didn’t come home drunk in the wee hours of the morning. Theo had taken care of her, of course, but he slipped off to work before she woke up, leaving only a glass of water and two Tylenol for her next to the bed. It was becoming abundantly clear to him that she was nineteen and he was starting to think that maybe he’d made a mistake. He loved her, of that he had no doubt. He wanted her to be happy and safe, to have everything she could ever want and he wanted to provide that for her. All he wanted was for their relationship to be private, understated. He hadn’t told anyone about their vacation because that simply wasn’t how he operated. Theo was an intensely private man and it hurt him to know that Kitane was discussing their relationship so openly. He didn’t even particularly like the term lover. Seven was his lover, Kitane was his...well, he felt as though girlfriend was a little too young for him but they were together. Why couldn’t it just be that simple, that understated. They were together. Monogamously.
He was avoiding talked about it because he just didn’t know how to say it in a way she’d understand. He didn’t want people knowing his business and he certainly didn’t want her gossiping about him. Just knowing that she’d spoken to Ainslie had him wondering what else this woman knew about him. And just what was she telling Kitane? He didn’t like it. Theo had intended to stay late at work, but he’d been shooed home for working too much and he found himself back at the penthouse around 10pm, far earlier than he’d intended. Theo tried to quietly make his way into their - his? - bedroom so as not to disturb her in the living room.
Of course, she'd heard it when Theo came home, but the fact that he was trying to be quiet was just -- weird. "Theo?" She asked, unfolding herself from the couch. It was earlier, or at least much earlier than he'd been coming home the rest of the week and that was a good thing, right? She'd barely gotten to see him at all since their vacation and while she was sure that it was probably too late to go out to any of his favorite restaurants and get dinner, there was still stuff around here that they could do.
And while that guy from the journals was probably right, the stars weren't as visible here as they were out in the desert, Kitane was sure they could get a good view from the balcony. It'd be nice to do that with Theo since she hadn't gotten to see him. "I brought home cookies from Justine's," she said as she trailed after him, hopping from one socked foot to the other, waiting for him to slow down, or even to stop so she could give him a kiss.
He stopped for a very brief moment when he heard her call his name, knowing he was caught. He hoped to whatever god there might be that she not ask him any questions about anything anyone might’ve said to her about him or them. “Hi,” Theo replied, continuing his way into the bedroom. He stopped at the little table they had in the hallway to get to the master bedroom and took out his keys and wallet, just like he did every night. From there, he walked into the closet and shrugged out of his jacket, immediately hanging it up. “Thanks. That’s the girl you were talking to earlier on the journals?” He undid his cuffs and started to change out of his shirt while he waited for her answer.
"Justine? Yes!" She laughed a little, but still found it weird that he hadn't stopped for a kiss, not even a hug. "She's a dancer too, and lives over at Turnberry Towers. She lives with a guy named Mike, who looks after her or something, but now he just follows her around and she came here because her brother, Ben, was missing for four years and she finally found him." She took a breath as she came up behind him and finally threw her arms around his waist. "And she knows Ainslie!"
It seemed like this Justine girl was at least another friend for Kitane to have and it seemed like there wouldn’t be too many chances for any misunderstandings or things getting lost in translation. Maybe he’d get Kitane that Rosetta Stone or any other program that came highly recommended so that she could have a better grasp of the English language. Getting it for Ainslie would be out of the question, he was sure. “Well, it seems like you two got to know each other well then.” He pointedly didn’t ask about what the new girl knew about him, but he doubted that Kitane would keep it private, particularly if Justine and Ainslie were friends. Maybe he should just talk to Ainslie directly. Theo was distracted from his thoughts when he felt her arms wrap around him. Despite being annoyed at her, he turned and hugged her back, kissing the top of her head briefly before pulling away. “Did you have dinner yet?”
"We did!" Kitane said, grinning when she finally felt the kiss to the top of her head. "And I did, hours ago, since you said you were going to be working late tonight." Working late every night. She tried not to make a face about that because she knew already that it wasn't going to help. "Are you done working this week yet? You've been there for hours already." She knew it'd been at least twelve hours every day and closer to sixteen and she was trying not to be petulant about it because Theo loved his job and spent tons of hours there on a good week, but there were some nights when she was already in bed by the time he got home.
“Good. I was supposed to but it turned out I had less work to do today than I anticipated.” It was a lie, but a harmless one. He moved over to the dresser against the side wall and pulled out a worn tee and sweatpants, intending to take a shower before changing. “I’m busy for the rest of the week at least. The weekends are always busier too. You know that.” He made his way into the bathroom and started the shower but instead of undressing further, Theo turned to face her. “I’m just going to take a shower and go to bed. I’m exhausted.” Plus, he didn’t really want to talk about Ainslie and he didn’t really want to fight with her about how open she was being with everyone. It was a struggle though, to not say anything.
"But --" Kitane started to object, stopping fully when she realized he was dismissing her. He didn't want to talk while he was in the shower, didn't want her with him, and he'd already spent hours at work for the entire week. Didn't he want to see her? A feeling started to settle in her stomach and it didn't feel good at all. She took a step back, her hands restless at her sides. "When do I get to see you, Theo?"
He really should have given her more credit. “You get to see me. You’re seeing me right now.” Theo knew it wasn’t what she meant but what if she went and told people what they did together? Their private moments weren’t private apparently and that didn’t exactly make him want to have those moments. He sighed and shook his head. “It’s just busy right now. I’m sorry, but I can’t just avoid the work. It needs to get done.”
"Right." She got to see him for not even three minutes before he was kicking her out of the bathroom so he could shower alone and go to bed because work exhausted him. "I know. Your work is important." He could always make time for his work and Kitane knew that it paid for the bills and this huge penthouse and all the things that Theo wanted, the vacation they just took to Tahoe, and all the food in the refrigerator, but why couldn't he find time for her in there? The last couple of nights he'd even told her not to bring dinner by, that he had business meetings or he was too busy. That ugly feeling felt like it was going to climb up her stomach and strangle her.
Theo desperately wanted to just leave it at that, to close the door, take his shower, and go to bed, but he couldn’t. It was obvious that she was upset and even though it wasn’t fair that she apparently couldn’t see that he was upset, he couldn’t just shut the door in her face. “It is, but you’re important too. It’s just...” But he didn’t know what to say or even how to say it. Better to just say it and get it over with, right? “I’ve told you already that I don’t like you talking about us, especially where I can see it. What happens between us is private. It’s no one else’s business. At all. I don’t like it, I’ve said I don’t like it, and still, you do it. Why? Why do you have to go talking about our personal life to everyone?” He was frustrated and it was obvious.
That pulled her up short, her backwards progress into the bedroom halted for the moment. "I don't --" She shook her head. After she'd talked with Ainslie that one time and Theo made it clear he didn't want her saying things, she hadn't told anyone else the same amount she'd said to her friend. She'd limited the things she said and didn't give out any details, not even where he couldn't see them. "I haven't!"
He honestly couldn’t believe that she’d lie like that. “You don’t what? Remember? You used those squiggly lines and asterisks talking to Justine about our vacation. Then you told this Silver character that I’m your lover.” If there was ever a time for Theo to be grumpy, this was it and it showed in his tone and on his face. “And god only knows what you’ve told Ainslie about me. About us.” He was more annoyed about that, he supposed, but that wasn’t the point of this conversation. “Our business is just that. Ours.”
That feeling was definitely coming out of her stomach to strangle her. "I was -- why is that wrong?" It hadn't been anything like what she had told Ainslie that had made Theo so mad before, but he was definitely mad again and worse than before. It only made her more confused about what he thought she had done. "I didn't tell them anything more than that!" Why was it private that she had a good time on their vacation? They'd done other things besides have sex -- not much else, but there had been other things that she had enjoyed too. And she'd never considered that she shouldn't tell Silver. Why was it a secret?
“It’s none of their business, Kitane. I don’t know how else to say it so you’ll understand.” Now he was just disappointed. Sev had understood his need for privacy and no one knew they had been sleeping together, not unless one of them said something. Kitane wasn’t like that though. She had to share everything and there was no filter. Had he really not considered that about her when this started? What else hadn’t he considered? Theo shook his head and turned away from her, facing the mirror that was fogging up because of the steam from the shower. “I don’t want to argue with you, Kitane, but I don’t like it. In fact, I can honestly say I hate it. But that doesn’t matter, does it?”
He hated it. Something she had done, not once, but a few times and she still didn't understand what he didn't like about it. She got that it wasn't their business, it was theirs but why did it have to be private? Why did she have to keep it a secret like it was something dirty and wrong? Her arms wound around her as she took another step out of the bathroom, no longer even looking at him. "Of course it does. I'm sorry, Theo. I'm sorry." Her eyes stung.
She was sorry, but somehow he felt like she was just trying to placate her. If it really did matter that it bothered him, then why was she still doing it? Theo just shook his head and looked at her reflection in the mirror. He knew he looked tired, like the fight had gone out of him. It wasn’t worth arguing about. She’d apologize, do it again, he’d get mad, and then she’d just apologize and they’d just go around in circles. He was done for tonight. “Fine. It’s fine. Just...I need a shower.”
Theo wanted a shower. He wasn't touching her, hadn't kissed her when he came home -- he'd tried to sneak in like she would miss him coming home and she got it then. He was avoiding her. And then he was dismissing her again. It hurt more than she had words for. "Yes, Theo," she whispered, not even a quiver in her voice as her eyes went blurry. She walked away then, out of the bedroom and down the hallway that led through the closets. She couldn't stay in here, couldn't scarcely breathe as she turned to the room that had been her bedroom. There were still things of hers in there and she quickly tugged a gray hoodie off one of the hangers. She threw that on as she walked quickly through the apartment, her cheeks wet. As soon as she saw her journal though, she picked it up and threw it into the trashcan, staring at it for a moment, her entire body shaking before she ran for her sneakers. It took her a minute to get them on, fumbling as she was, but as soon as they were safely on her feet, she was out of the apartment, in the elevator, then racing across the lobby and out into the night.
Theo shut the door quietly once she disappeared out of the doorway and stripped, going through his nightly shower routine. He took his time, trying to relax and let go of the stress and tension that was accumulating in his shoulders. By the time he was done, it’d been at least an hour and all he wanted to do was go to sleep. He changed into his pajamas and got into bed, assuming that Kitane was either in her room or back in the living room watching television. Theo woke before dawn and slipped out quietly, not wanting to fight before he went to work. He didn’t even notice that she wasn’t there.