Re: [Climbing: Patrick & Newt]
Yes, the dude-interest thing had become especially overwhelming, and Newt could tell. More and more, it mounted, the weight of it on Patrick, and the more Newt tried to reel himself in. It could be desperately difficult, given the gulf between what he wanted and what he should do—enough so, that when Patrick took his hands the night before, or when Patrick'd kissed him before marching off to near-certain death, he took and without thinking twice. But, still, he did try to let the younger man initiate. It did mean he did an awful lot of staring, in the meantime. And the last two times they'd talked in person, after the visit to the club, Patrick had been terribly, terrible sad. To see him smiling was—well, it was nice, and Newt didn't notice at all if it was attractive or not. "You're telling me to assimilate? Never." He smiled, and he shook his head at the wink.
He did roll his lips together as he moved onto his toes, just for a moment, as if to inspect Patrick's ears, and he grinned, all cheekiness, as he dropped back to the soles of borrowed shoes on wood. "When they're pink, then, it must mean something else." And he might've tweaked a tip, some other time, some other place. For now, he huddled close to Patrick as they moved from Repose to—somewhere else. Newt wasn't at all bothered by the topic being Adrian. As mentioned, it helped him better remember himself, if anything. "What would you tell him?" Newt asked, when Patrick offered to inform Adrian, to answer what seemed to be Adrian's most burning question. And he looked at Patrick, through skew of fringe, at the next statement. "Yes. As if I'm so terribly tempting." He was teasing, but there was something twinging in his expression. "If it's what you want, Patrick, to keep your word, I can make myself behave better." It was all he could offer, really. It wasn't as if he was a martyr enough to offer to leave.
Inside, Newt paused. He'd never been somewhere like this and it was... it was... large. It smelled strange, like chemicals and sweat and chalk? And Newt was gazing about most curiously as he trailed behind Patrick. He watched the few people scrambling on colorful foot-and-handholds, and he smiled a little. They looked like insects, not so small, but swarming and moving, each with purpose communal.—The tossing of the bag drew Newt's attention back, and he blinked. He bounced on the floor, finding it had some give to it, before he actually did as he was asked. He took hold of one of the bright green ropes. He inspected it. Then, thinking of it only last minute, he went back to Patrick's bag and tucked his wand in with stones and satchel. Back to the rope, he waited expectantly for further instruction, wondering how they fit into carabiner and whatever else there was.