Re: The Apartment: Jamie/Seven
Seven didn’t even think he was the same person he’d been a few years ago. Yeah, it went without saying that having a kid changed you, but it was so much more than that. Everything he’d been through with Marta, and with Sawyer getting sick, and Jude, and years and years of feeling really fucking lonely and having zero desire or will to change that - until all of a sudden he did. And yeah, he hadn’t set out for anything other than a one night stand, that first night. But it was like the world had shifted in infinitesimal degrees too slowly for Seven to notice, until suddenly he found himself in a different fucking timezone, yeah?
“I have no idea what Marta thinks about you, and honestly, I don’t care. I know you’re not in the way, and you know that, and that’s all that fucking matters to me.” He tapped his thumb against the side of Jamie’s palm, a little absently. “Maybe I should care what she thinks about other shit? But I don’t. I want her to be happy and healthy and that’s as far as it goes, and I don’t ever want you to feel like that part of my life is getting dropped on you.”
Which it had, obviously, with Marta continuing to keep at the guy after he’d made it pretty clear he wanted to drop it. And Seven understood that she was coming from a place where she’d wanted to apologize, but he was of the opinion that the spectacular degree to which she’d failed in that sort of outweighed the good (though were they good, or were they just people-pleasing?) intentions.
His grin spread wider and he blinked several times at Jamie, going for innocent and probably landing somewhere between shit-eating and smug. “But it’s so fun,” he protested, dipping his head momentarily forward so that he could nudge his temple against Jamie’s for a second or two. It was half for the added contact, half because the smell of the guy’s hair made heat unfurl at the back of his mouth. He pulled back a little and looked down to follow the slide of Jamie’s hand against his chest, then down and over his stomach to his belt. “Careful. You’re risking that family-friendly rating you’ve imposed on us.”
And he laughed softly, a huff of air exhaled through his nostrils and shoulders shaking just a little, as Jamie listed his demands. “Considering my five year old has asked me for most of the same things? I’m a little disappointed. I expected more of a challenge from you.” He let the deflection sweep aside the idea of Jamie having to answer the question with some actual reflection. It didn’t bother him, yeah? He was okay with not pushing his luck farther than was probably wise in one day.
“Hey,” he said after a minute, his tone still light but leaning back to level a more intent gaze at the guy - though he softened it with the smile that hadn’t ever really faded since sitting down. “I’m really glad that I get to see you, and that you’re okay.”