Who: Klaus and Ben Hargreeves What: They talk about speed dating When: Sept 1 [Backdated] Where: Klaus’ room Rating: low
Klaus wasn’t in his room at the moment, but Ben was. Ben was trying really hard to manifest or even to just do some sort of poltergeist thing and throw something across the room. He tried getting angry. He tried flexing his muscles, whatever that meant. He tried visualization. Really, Ben had tried a bunch of ways to go corporeal and it just wasn’t happening. He was well aware that Eve said it would take some time. The thing was that Ben had gotten a taste of what it could be like to actually interact with people here and he wanted more. Of course that night of speed dating and using the network so much had pretty much left them out of commission for a couple of days. Eve said that was normal, especially for a beginner. Still, Ben wanted more and wanted it quickly and was getting frustrated when it wasn’t happening.
Ben let out a frustrated sound with an exhale and ‘kicked’ the wall, which of course did nothing. “This sucks!”
–
Klaus had had an okay time with speed dating, lots of nice people again, maybe something in the works.. But something was still bugging him about why exactly he was doing the whole speed dating thing, especially when.. Well, it was pretty much a waste of everyone’s time, wasn’t it? Even though it had been amusing to see Five go about it, and see Ben struggling with the whole text thing.
Yes, he had seen a smile or three from his reserved lil’ Casper brother. Mhm, job well done.
Stepping into his room, Klaus was greeted with a declaration of ‘this sucks!’ Looking taken aback. “.... Uh, hey buuuuuddy?” He drug the word out, wide green eyes watching his brother. “You’re not going to go full on Poltergeist, are you?”
–
“What?” He’d have been startled if he wasn’t used to this sort of thing with Klaus for years. Ben always assumed Klaus was around. It did take him a second to realize what he said. “No. Well. I mean, it’d be nice if I could, I guess, but I can’t even manage that. Like, how hard is it to make the curtains rustle or something?” Apparently the answer was ‘yes’ because he couldn’t even make a little wind happen.
–
Given that Klaus had been consistently drugged up during the first few decades of his life and thus unable to help his deceased brother out on the manifesting part.. The involuntary detox from Reg after Klaus had met him in ‘heaven’ or wherever the barbershop had been, had gone a long way to helping Klaus figure out his powers. Then the setback in 1960 with Dave and Dave’s shitty uncle.. But Klaus liked to think he still had a grasp on the whole drug thing, at least more of a grasp than he had had a few years ago.
Cracking his knuckles, Klaus shook his hands out at his sides and hopped slightly on the balls of his feet. “Alright, Benny-boy, let’s get you manifested. Just like the old days.”
Old days, of course, meaning cheating at card games in dive bars.
–
Ben looked surprised this time. "What?" He blinked. He hadn't expected Klaus to be so willing to help, but then again Ben had been picking up that Klaus, here, had changed a little. How, he wasn't sure yet. Maybe this place was good for everyone.
"I want to figure out how to do it on my own. Not that I don't want your help… but if I want to go on a date or something, I'd kind of like it to be just me, you know?" And maybe there was already a girl he wanted to go on a date with…
–
Yeah, Klaus Hargreeves had done some growing since coming to Madison (and the whole 1960s thing had helped tremendously.)
“Yeah?” Klaus grinned, nodding slightly. “Atta boy!” Stopping himself from reaching over and patting Ben’s shoulder, Klaus straightened his shirt (a very fashionable Goodwill find ahthankyou.) “Totally I get it, man.. You don’t need a wingman!” Klaus sniffed. “They grow up so quickly, don’t they..”
Then a lightbulb moment, synapses firing at just the right angle.
“Wait.. Is there someone? Did you make a love connection at the speed dating thing?”
–
Ben didn't have a lot of experience with lying since for a very long time he didn't need to. He had definitely done more lying alive than as a ghost. After what happened with Julie, he thought he'd be suddenly fine with the sharing, but his initial reaction was still to blush and look a little sheepish. "What? I -" why did he feel the need to lie? Maybe it was because here he felt like maybe at some point he'd actually be able to kiss someone… though assuming he could kiss Brooke was definitely presumptuous of him.
He paused, then relented with a sigh. "Okay, fine. Maybe. But obviously I'm a ghost and she only met me through text so there's still a big chance she'll reject me once she actually meets me."
–
Klaus chuckled in delight and clapped his hands. “That’s fantastic, Ben! Looks fade! … Well, usually.. But personality sticks around for a few decades!”
Was he going to go all I-told-you-so? …Maybe, but not right this moment or this day.
“So who is she?” He puffed up, mock offended. “Are we going to have to go all sibling on her and make sure she doesn’t tarnish your honor? I’m totally ready to defend my sweet innocent brother against at least thirty percent of womanly wiles and bad influence.”
–
Ben blushed. How did a ghost blush? No idea, but he did and he did so because he knew that Klaus knew he was a virgin. It wasn’t by choice, obviously, but it was still a thing and Ben worried a little bit that it was going to be a deal breaker for most women his age. He didn’t say that out loud in case Klaus gave him advice like ‘have sex with a hooker and then you have experience’. Ben wasn’t sure he could do that sort of thing. He didn’t have anything against sex workers, but Ben wanted to have sex with someone he liked.
“... Her name is Brooke Maddox…. Do you know her?” Ben was really hoping Klaus wasn’t about to say he had slept with her, but that wasn’t a deal breaker for Ben.
–
Klaus knew smitten when he saw it, and his brother was smitten. Maybe it was puppy love, maybe it was just the first(?) girl to show an interest in Ben. Klaus also had a big ole Virgin-odometer. He knew his brother was… unpicked.. but it was a touchy subject, one he wasn’t about to bring up.
Ben wasn’t Luther. Luther had banged that girl from the club and he hadn’t married her. For shame.
“Brooke Maddox? Doesn’t ring a bell.” He was being honest. Once you spent two years in Madison, everything and everyone started to melt together. He could, however, say for certain that he hadn’t slept with her. “Good for you though, man. If you need any help with the manifesting practice, you know where to find me.”
–
Ben looked momentarily surprised, but then his features melted into a warm smile that was genuinely happy. Despite all their arguing and disagreements over the years, Ben loved Klaus very much. “Thanks, Klaus.” If this was a tv show or movie, there’d be sappy music in the background for sure. Since it wasn’t, Ben just held his smile before turning back to the mirror to try again.