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waynecymraeg ([info]waynecymraeg) wrote in [info]finnigans_rpg,
@ 2014-09-29 19:49:00

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Entry tags:character: ernie macmillan, character: wayne hopkins

Who: Ernie and Wayne

What: Catching up dinner

Where: McDonald's, then other places possibly

When: Monday night, 9/29, around 4

Rating: TBD



Four o'clock Monday rolled around, as it does. Wayne had left when Dennis was asleep - scrawled his number on a scrap of paper, as was the custom - and had just enough time to sleep a couple of hours, shower, and change for work. Four A.M. shifts were no joke.

But many things are possible when you have endless coffee on demand, shit though it may be, and Wayne was plenty awake for his shift, and his afternoon of making money drops.

He checked the time on his mobile and looked around - Ernie should be here any minute. Then he could take his friend on what would be, if he imagined correctly, Ernie's first McDonald's meal.

The bar would be set either very high or very low, and it was probably going to be funny.


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[info]waynecymraeg
2014-10-02 03:08 am UTC (link)
"Wow. That sounds..." Fulfilling. Frustrating. Wonderful. "...that sounds really intense. And it seems like you're pretty well-suited to it, too."

Wayne opened the door for Ernie and followed him into McDonald's, walking them up to the front counter to order.

"So, when it comes to fast food, there really is no good and not good. Merely, different. The Big Mac is sort of...an international phenomenon. There's even an economic school of thought that shows the buying power of various currencies depending on the price of a Big Mac in a particular area. There are several ingredients." Wayne started to tick them off on his fingers. "Two all-beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles, and onions, on a sesame seed bun. Oh, and there's a bun in the middle. So obviuosly, you have to have that. I'll get one too."

Wayne stepped up and ordered their meals, paying in some wadded up bank notes from his pocket. "We get free chips. I got connections."

Fidgeting, Wayne grappled for something else to ask Ernie. Work was done, the war was off the table...what else was there...

"So it turns out you're into men? That's cool."

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[info]erniedtmac
2014-10-02 04:00 am UTC (link)
"I'd like to think so," he said proudly. "Plus whenever anyone asks if there's a healer in the house, I get to say yes!"

He grinned as he passed Wayne and through the doorway, then looked up at the board of items that might as well look like Mandarin to him. Not Greek because at least that was familiar. He looked at Wayne with a raised eyebrow. "A bun inside the bun? How the hell did Muggles ever think of that one?" He then quickly looked around. "Shite, I shouldn't call them that when I'm here, should I? I always forget, even when I go visit Justin's family. At least his aunt loves me." He chuckled at Wayne's 'connections', but then was too late to even attempt to pay, which was probably the best because he didn't have many Muggle notes on him (he always forgot to stop by Gringotts' for an exchange).

Ernie was just about to ask Wayne about how he was doing - job, life, and so on - when he asked that, which completely derailed his thoughts. He reached up to rub the back of his neck, a little self-consious at it being announced in a room full of strange Muggles. "Well, yes, I am," he replied tentatively. How did Wayne know? Did Justin tell him? If so, why? He remembered Justin's crush on Wayne all those years ago, had helped pick up the pieces... why would Justin send Wayne his way?

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[info]waynecymraeg
2014-10-02 04:52 am UTC (link)
Wayne grinned at Ernie worrying over calling people Muggles. "Trust me, mate, you are going to be fine with calling Muggles Muggles. The slang that's used these days is virtually indistinguishable from wizarding speech."

Their food tray was slid toward Wayne without a word from the employee, and Wayne picked it up and moved them to a table.

"In fact, you could probably talk about magic from now til Armageddon and Muggles will probably think you're talking about a book series, or video game, or comic books or whatever."

Without preamble, Wayne stuffed a wee fistful of chips into his face.

"Sorry, I'm just really hungry. And it's cool that you're into guys. Is it me or are there, like, a huge number of non heterosexuals in our age group? It seems like a lot. Go ahead, eat your Big Mac. See what I mean about the bun in the middle?"

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[info]erniedtmac
2014-10-03 12:22 am UTC (link)
Ernie shrugged, but was thankful he hadn't made a terrifle faux pas. He didn't want to get his friend in trouble, or worse, end up in a situation that would require obliviators. "I did hear that they still have a concept of magic, even if it's nothing like what we do. It's interesting - I've even gotten into reading some of their fantasy novels. Such imaginations!"

Ernie smiled and waved off Wayne's apology. "No worries, my stomach's practically rumbling itself." He tentatively took a chip and tasted it, and liked how it made a nice crunch when he bit down. "I suppose there are. Maybe we're just more open about it too. Or at least I am, not everyone's out. I can't blame them, really," he said distractedly as he tried to get a hold on the 'big mac', wondering how he would get it in his mouth - it was huge!

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[info]waynecymraeg
2014-10-03 07:25 am UTC (link)
Wayne grinned. "Oh, come on," he urged. "Just open your mouth as wide as you can. It makes good practice." Winking, he realized that was probably over-the-top, but whatever.

"You'd be surprised the limits of Muggle imaginations. On one hand, yes, aliens from outer space creating human colonies all across the galaxy, but on the other hand...no, you can't coexist with someone who has powers you don't have? Well, the X-Men metaphor is probably another can of worms for another day."

Wayne took a bite of his own Big Mac and continued to talk, not open-mouthed chewing, but politely talking with his mouth full.

"And there's this card game called Magic that is literally just a card game. Honestly, we could go on about magic in front of Muggles til kingdom come and no one would ever be the wiser."

Wayne had been called in to the head teacher with Llinos last year, when Rhys had been going on about the magic that his dad could do, and that he'd go to a magic school someday. The teachers were concerned about his attachment to reality and his overactive imagination. They'd taught him to hold back on the describing-the-magical-world stuff. The accidental magic he was occasionally performing, though, was less easy to dismiss.

Plus he kept getting in fights. Damn. And Wayne had him this coming weekend too. What was he going to do?

He didn't realize he'd gone so long without saying anything, and hoped Ernie hadn't been talking.

"What do you think?"

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[info]erniedtmac
2014-10-03 11:37 pm UTC (link)
Ernie rolled his eyes about 'practice'. He did get a little confused at the 'coexisting with someone who has powers you don't have' - was that something like werewolves and vampires living together? Because Ernie had always thought that would make a hilarious show for the telly - maybe they could even add a ghost in for good measure!

Ernie used Wayne's silence to take his first bite and chewed slowly, finally nodding. "It's not as bad as some people said." He took another bite, chewing faster this time. "It's actually pretty good. I'm glad you brought me. So, what have you been doing with yourself lately. You said you'd seen Justin?"

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[info]waynecymraeg
2014-10-07 12:37 am UTC (link)
"Not a lot," Wayne answered simply. "Mostly just work, these days. I work 4-2 four days a week, pretty mush sleep the rest of the time." He paused. "That sounds depressing, now that I'm hearing it aloud. I was just living with my mum until she heard about this Monument Alley thing and threw me out. Sure, the work is terrible, but it puts food on the table and buys shoes."

Seriously. Rhys outgrew shoes like it was his fucking job. And if he wasn't outgrowing them, he was wearing them out.

"It's just been about my family so long. Taking care of my family. Sorta..." Sorta forgot about me, he didn't say.

How does a person segue into oh by the way when I say family I mean the child I accidentally had at sixteen?

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[info]erniedtmac
2014-10-07 03:04 am UTC (link)
Ernie shrugged, trying to be compassionate. He knew he was luckier than some and usually tried his best not to shove it in people's faces. "Well, it's a start at least. You have to start somewhere, and it sounds like the only way to go is up. If you ever want to work somewhere else, there's always shops along Monument Alley who're looking for employees. Maybe you can look there? Would help buy some of those shoes you like."

Because Ernie naturally assumed the shoes were for Wayne, and he could empathize there - he did love a nice pair of leather shoes.

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[info]waynecymraeg
2014-10-07 03:29 am UTC (link)
Wayne laughed nervously at Ernie's sensible yet inaccurate assumption that the shoes were for him. It made sense to think that, after all.

Wayne bought himself some time by eating without talking simultaneously.

Well, he figured, he had been looking for a segue.

"Actually," he blurted, "not for me. There's, um. Someone who goes through shoes faster than me, who ah, happens to just look a lot like me." Wayne dug out his wallet, fished out the well-worn school photo from last year, and held his breath.

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[info]erniedtmac
2014-10-07 03:37 am UTC (link)
"Oh?" Ernie was curious now, and his conclusion-jumping brain jumped to yet another one, though nowhere near as bad as when he'd concluded that Harry was the Heir of Slytherin. "You have a brother I didn't know about? And why would he go through shoes fast, is he one of those sprinters I've heard about? Does he do competitions? That would be fun to watch, I bet."

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[info]waynecymraeg
2014-10-07 03:42 am UTC (link)
"Actually," Wayne began again, clearing his throat and blushing.

"He's, um. Mine. My son."

Appetite paused, he picked at his chips and looked away.

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[info]erniedtmac
2014-10-07 03:55 am UTC (link)
"You have a son?!" Ernie's face showed full-blown shock, but that quickly melted into a strange mix of happiness and envy. "Merlin, you have a son. How old is he? Where is he? I bet he's adorable. Does he eat all his vegetables? Because that's really important, you know."

Though as he babbled, one thought kept running round and around in his mind - Justin's going to go spare.

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[info]waynecymraeg
2014-10-08 06:11 am UTC (link)
"It's crazy, right?" Wayne took back the picture and tried to figure out how to word his responses to the eight thousand questions Ernie asked.

"That's last year's school picture," Wayne began. "We don't have this year's yet. Um, he's with his mum, unless something has gone horribly awry," he joked, resuming chip consumption.

"His birthday's November 27th." It wasn't that he was trying to keep Rhys's age from Ernie, exactly, but it rather stated the entire story right there.

Actually, that might get him out of telling the story. In that case...

"He's nearly eight. So, yeah."

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[info]erniedtmac
2014-10-08 06:06 pm UTC (link)
Ernie looked at the picture and definitely noticed the resemblance to Wayne. "Crazy isn't the word I'd use, but it fits enough," he joked. "You weren't kidding when you said someone who looked a lot like you."

He handed the picture back and nodded when Wayne mentioned his son's date of birth and age. "Eight years already, so much happens in eight years. I can barely remember what I was doing eight years ago..." It took several moments for Ernie to think on that, and when he did, something about the math didn't seem to make sense until a figurative candle lit in his mind. "Is that why you left school?" he asked bluntly.

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[info]waynecymraeg
2014-10-09 12:25 am UTC (link)
Wayne shifted uncomfortably and darted his gaze around. He'd been hoping he wouldn't have to say it in so many words.

Not to misunderstand: he was proud of Rhys and loved him. He just never really banished the idea that he was a mistake.

"Yeah," he sighed eventually. "It was over the Easter hols fifth year, and when I got home for the summer...I knew I wouldn't be coming back."

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[info]erniedtmac
2014-10-09 03:15 am UTC (link)
This was one of the few moments in Ernie's life where he was truly at a loss for words. What could he say? "I'm sorry it happened that way," he started when he eventually found his voice again. "But I can see you're proud of him. I hope you're happy, at least, with the way things turned out. You are happy, right?"

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[info]waynecymraeg
2014-10-09 08:17 am UTC (link)
How could he possibly answer that? Wayne had to stop and think a moment.

He wasn't happy, not exactly. But he wasn't unhappy about it.

"Yeah," he said, even sounding unconvincing to his own ears...until he looked at Rhys's photo again.

"I think so, yeah." Probably.

"What about you?" He asked, glad to be able to shift the focus away from himself, finally. "You seem pretty chuffed with your career and everything. Are you happy?"

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[info]erniedtmac
2014-10-10 12:16 am UTC (link)
Ernie's concerned eyes never quite left Wayne's face. He hadn't seen Wayne in years, but even then he could tell the other man was lying from the sound of his voice. Ernie didn't want to prod him too much, not when they were only just getting reacquainted, so he allowed the subject change - though that didn't mean he reserved the right to address it again some time in the future.

"I'm happy with most things, yeah," he replied after another bite of his hamburger. "I've still got my mates, and a job I love. And my Mum is brilliant, checking on me and all. My Dad and I haven't spoken in years, he doesn't care for having a queer son, but other than that, I'm happy."

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[info]waynecymraeg
2014-10-10 06:34 am UTC (link)
Wayne winced. "Sorry about your Dad. He's missing out on having a kickass son, for what it's worth," he told Ernie.

It was easy to be unhappy if you didn't think about it that much, Wayne had discovered, but having it brought to light like that, even obliquely, made him sorely want a drink.

Dammit.

"Well, here's to all the queer Hufflepuff guys suddenly living on top of each other again," he improvised, raising his coke and 'clinking' rims with Ernie's matching paper cup.

And as is custom with toasts, he took a long drink. It had less rum than he'd like for a coke, but whatever. He'd resolved to try the wagon thing again.

"May the powers that be have mercy on all of our souls."

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[info]erniedtmac
2014-10-10 02:49 pm UTC (link)
"Hey, don't get too far ahead of yourself," Ernie teased. "No getting on top of me until you've bought me a drink first. I'm not that easy."

He tapped his cup against Wayne's and chuckled. However the last few years had gone, it was nice to have Wayne around again.

"May they indeed."

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