WHO: Jeannie and Hansel WHAT: She tells him about her new master...and then something unexpected happens. WHEN: May 22nd, the day after this. WHERE: A205, Hansel's room RATING: PG-13, for language
Jeannie had a bad feeling about this. Actually, she had a very bad feeling about this, because she knew how Hansel could get. She knew how protective he was of her, and she knew that he only had one wish left, and that he was probably saving it for something big. It would have been a lie if she said that waiting around for him to do something was making her antsy, but that didn’t mean that she wanted a new master! No, no, she didn’t, because she liked having Hansel as her master, because it just gave her another reason to keep hanging around him…
Moving down the hallways, Jeannie’s hands fidgeted in front of her as she thought of what she was supposed to say over and over again in her head. What if he got mad? Well, of course he would be mad, because this was Hansel, but was he going to be mad at her? She wasn’t sure. What if he blamed her for what had happened? Damn, she was usually so careful about covering her hands, and the one time when she didn’t have them in her pockets or shoved underneath her sleeves, someone went and grabbed onto one of them.
Making her way over to his room, she paused as she stood outside of his door, raising a hand to knock. He wasn’t expecting her, so when his voice came from the other side, asking who it was, she froze up before answering. “Hansel? It’s me, it’s…it’s Jeannie.” She bounced on her heels impatiently, turning her head to look down the hallway, hearing the door open as she did so. When she looked back, he was standing there. “Hi! I know this is, uh…this is really random and I prooobably should have told you I was stopping by, but I kind of wanted to-…I kind of needed to talk to you?” Blaaaaah.
Hansel had not been expecting visitors and at first he had been anything but pleased, in all honesty. The sudden sound of knocking made his stomach churn and he felt like he was going to kill whoever was on the otherside of the door if they didn't go away that instant. Of course, when that familair voice accompanied by that even more familiar name came through the door, he walked to it, standing in front of it for a long moment and wondering what on Earth she would need to talk to him about. Was she upset by something? Had the doctors found out about her sneaking into his room? His stomach churned even harder at the thought and he suddenly felt very sick. If they found out, it was fine, but if they forbid them from seeing one another because of it - fuck, it would ruin all his plans.
Clearing his throat, he put his normal cocky facade back in place, pulling the door open and smirking down at her, his arm going over his head as he leaned against the door frame, brow arched just lightly, and a look of pleasant surprise on his face as he cocked his head to the side by just a few centimeters and stared her down. "Hm. And what exactly could you need to talk to me about, Jeannie?"
Her large blue eyes stared up at him, her hands now wringing together. It wasn’t until she noticed that she was doing it did she stop and place them into the pockets of her jeans. Now, how exactly was she supposed to tell him? Her mouth kept opening and she kept thinking of different ways to word it. For all she knew, maybe it wouldn’t be that big of a deal…maaaaybe he wouldn’t mind?
Yeah, right.
“It’s just…I’m not-…I wanted to-…Ihaveanewmaster.” The words were out of her mouth quickly, almost strung together as one word as she now stared down at her shoes, bracing herself for whatever reaction he would have to this news. Part of her was expecting him to slam the door in her face, or something like that. Which, might have been better than him yelling at her, which would have been awful. Before he got to react, she lifted her head and looked at him, speaking quickly again. “But, it wasn’t my fault, I didn’t mean for it to happen, please don’t be upset with me! A-and you still have one wish left, but I can’t grant it until my new master makes his wishes, and I’m sorry, I’m really, really sorry!” Without noticing, her hands had made their way out of her pockets to start fidgeting in front of her again.
Well…she had given him the news without wasting much time, and even though she had wanted to break it to him gently, she couldn’t stop herself. He had a right to know…right? Oh, she didn’t want him to be upset with her, not at all. She wouldn’t be able to handle it.
Hansel was not sure how to react at all. The look of upset in her face, the words that spilled out, they touched something in him he hadn’t expected. Did he actually care for Jeannie? He had told himself she was amusing but his affections for her were all a rouse cooked up to get him out of here. He never even thought of her as a friend, really, merely saying so to get her to trust him. He had wanted to play her – wanted to use her for his own means. But seeing her feeling so troubled, so worried, it actually made his heart hurt a bit. Like he wanted to protect her the way he protected Gretel and make sure she never knew pain again.
The sympathy was mixed very heavily with fury. Someone had taken away his property was how his mind had interpreted it – Jeannie was his until that final wish was done. It was part of the reason why he held on to it. He worried that, should he finish that wish, she’d disappear and he would be left without any help. She had a way of making his wishes come true no matter what and the thought of losing such an ally did not settle well with him. Nor did the thought of someone else having that power. It was supposed to be his – and his alone. Selfish? Maybe, but that was what came with Hansel’s diagnosis. He only cared about himself for the most part – only leaving room for a few others in the crevices of his very dark heart.
He swallowed roughly, pulling her inside perhaps a bit too harshly and closing the door behind him before anyone could see. He was glad he no longer had a roommate as these meetings were much easier to have without interruptions thanks to it. He looked at her, shaking his head in disbelief, and almost wanting to cry over the thought of someone else owning her, wishing from her, and getting her attention all on them. He didn’t like this. She was his, dammit! He clenched his fists, looking at her, his eyes almost begging for this to be some kind of joke. Was she going to forget about him now? Forget about him like everyone else who had ever cared about it him tended to?
“Who? Who… Who took you from me?” He snarled. He wanted to know – needed to. Oh, he’d never get his fucking wishes because Hansel was going to kill the bastard! He clenched his jaw, grabbing her arms and pulling her somewhat closer as he looked down at her. “What about my wish? What about you and I? Are you going to hang around this master now? Beg for his attention instead of mine?” He pushed her away as he released her arms, turning around and pinching his nose roughly and trying to figure out what to do. He just needed that name and then he’d teach him a lesson – the same way he taught the lesson to that arrogant son of a bitch, Hatcher. The same way he taught a lesson to all those fuckers who had asked Gretel out on a date in high school, or told her she was beautiful, or the ones that she even thought about fucking… They’d all learned and this bastard would have to learn too.
The look in his eyes made her stomach churn, never having seen him so angry about anything before. She had been with him while he was upset, while he was unhappy, but to see him angry? It was so intimidating. Usually Jeannie had a way of cheering him up, or a way of making things just a little bit better at least, but now she was the cause of his unhappiness. She wasn’t used to it. She didn’t like it.
When he pulled her into his room, she turned around to face him, her knuckles a bit raw from how much she had been rubbing them. It was a tick she had when she was nervous, and even though she had tried to stop on so many occasions, she just couldn’t. Her head hung low, as though she was a small child who had been caught doing something wrong. But she didn’t do anything wrong! Or did she? Maybe this really was her fault, because she had been so careless. She should have kept her hands in her pockets, she should have kept them safe, because if she had, than she wouldn’t be standing there, having to break this news to him.
A quiet gasp was heard as he pulled her to him, causing her to look up at him with large blue eyes that were welling up with tears as he continued on. Her head kept shaking back and forth quickly in response to his questions, only able to verbally answer when he pushed her away, like he didn’t even want to deal with her anymore. “I wish I could change things, but I can’t! I don’t want a new master, Hansel, I don’t want things to change between us and I don’t want to give him more attention than I give you, but I don’t have a choice! But just because you’re not my master doesn’t mean we can’t still be around each other, right? That doesn’t have to change, right?” Her words were hopeful, even though they kept getting caught in her throat since she was trying to fight back tears. She just wanted him to understand!
“You have no choice?” He snapped, his fist angrily coming in contact with the wall to relieve some of the anger from him, and there was a distinct crack as it popped a knuckle out of place without him even really noticing. What was this bullshit? She had a choice! She always had choices! He supposed that her fucked up mind probably didn’t get that, probably convinced herself that something horrible would happen if she didn’t comply. His fist was still against the wall where he had hit it, his eyes shut tight as he clenched it tightly once more. He didn’t want her to be with some other man as often as she was with him. It was too much – after everything he had been through, it was just too much.
Turning to face her, he rubbed his hand, the popping noise heard once more as he slid the joint back to where it belonged and winced at the action. It was a distraction – pain was always a distraction. He swallowed, nodding finally at her words, and wishing beyond all meaning of the word that he could just have her as his and his alone again. He would be around her – if only to carry through on his plans for release. But would he see her as much as he used to? Would they spend hours talking and laughing with one another? Would he be able to have what was most likely the closest thing he had to friendship still?
Closing his eyes, he took a deep breath to try and get his anger to ebb away, trying to control himself. If he killed this man, it would set everything back. Just like attacking Hatcher had set him back. He would need to relax, need to deal. He would learn his lesson in time, especially if Hansel ever ran into him outside this hell hole. Managing to calm himself some, he reached out again, his arms wrapping around Jeannie’s torso and pulling her close to him, his eyes shut tight as he held her.
“Couldn’t… Couldn’t I just touch your hands again and get you back? My last wish? I… I could think of it faster, I could… I swear. I just… There’s got to be some loop hole, here, Jeannie.”
Once again, Jeannie gasped as he punched the wall, taking a cautious step back. She knew he would never hurt her, or…well, she hoped he wouldn’t. But he was reacting so violently. He had just hurt himself because he was so angry. What if he went and hurt someone else? What if he went and hurt her new master? Everything would be so messed up because she lacked the ability to make choices when it came to who her master was. Then again, she lacked the ability to make choices when it came to a lot of things, since she did whatever anyone wished of her, even if she didn’t want to.
When he turned around to face her, she dropped her hands back down, rubbing her palms against her thighs, swallowing roughly as he reached out for her once again. Part of her was afraid of what he was going to do, of what he was going to say next, but he just…held onto her. She raised her hands to hold onto his arms, shaking her head as she stared up at him, her eyes once again getting glossy with tears. When she spoke, her words were quiet. “I-…There’s not…”
God, if it were that simple she would have thrust her hands at him as soon as she got there. She would have asked him to just take her back and be her master again. But she couldn’t keep going back and forth, it would mess everything up. She had a new master now, and she had to keep her hands safe…even from him.
Hansel was upset – genuinely so. He needed to keep himself under control but he could hear his heart thudding. Pulling away from her finally, he ran a hand through his hair, sitting down on his bed and staring at the floor in thought. What was he supposed to do now? How could this plan work if she wasn’t continuously around him? His last wish was important to him, though what he had planned on, he still didn’t know. Rubbing his temples, he took a deep breath, letting it out in a shaky sigh.
Finally, he grabbed her wrist, careful to not touch her hands and pulled her over to him as he stood up again. His hand cupped her cheek gently as he looked down at her, his eyes filled with some unreadable emotion. He could work with this. He would have to. The depression he felt over his loss of power over her could be worked with to seem like genuine, loving emotion and he would make both her and the doctors believe that he had wanted to remain her master just to be around her. Yes, it was perfect.
“Jeannie, I…” He was speaking at barely a whisper, not sure what to say, afraid of ‘ruining the moment.’ His heart thudded slightly in his chest and he needed to think of what he could do to prove to her how important she was to him. Simply being upset didn’t do it, did it? He had never had to show jealousy inside these walls before – and outside of them, he’d just gone to the source of the problem and gotten rid of it. Something he couldn’t do now. So how did he show her? How did he display affection without violence towards the offender?
Smiling sadly, he was hit with an idea. Hoping to every god he could think of that Gretel wouldn’t hear about this, Hansel leaned in and placed his lips gently against hers, taking in the first kiss that he’d gotten from another woman in ages.
Turning around as he walked away from her, she found herself instinctively wanting to take a step closer to him, but decided that it was best to just give him a bit of space. Her eyes stared down at the tiled floor, feeling like something was crawling beneath her skin. She hated when people were upset with her, and even if it wasn’t even her fault, she wanted to be able to fix everything. It was a horrible, feeling so useless.
Her fingers curled under into her palm as he reached out for her wrist. Even if she wanted to let them accidentally brush against his hands, she couldn’t let herself. It wasn’t about what she wanted. She wasn’t supposed to get what she wanted. It wasn’t as great as people might think, being a Genie, being able to grant everyone else’s wishes except for her own.
When he spoke, she blinked, biting at her lower lip as his hand went to her cheek, her eyes begging him to continue on. To say something more than ‘Jeannie, I…’. He what? What was going on in his head? Why was he looking at her like that? He had never done it before. Part of her thought that he was looking at her like that, because he was upset with her. Then again she had seen first hand how he reacted when he was upset. He punched things, and he sure as hell didn’t have that look on his face. And he didn’t smile like that either, and he didn’t—
Her eyes closed as his lips pressed against her own. Her hands balled into loose fists at her side, not knowing what to do with them at that moment. She just stood there at first, and it wasn’t until she realized how good his kiss felt did she return it. It was short, and didn’t last as long as she wanted it to, but she wanted to see if it was just…a kiss, or if it was a kiss. In order to find that out she had to pull back to look at him, looking into his eyes once again, to see if she could find the answer there. “Hansel…”
Damn it, she had been annoyed when he had said nothing more than her name, and now she was doing the same. She wanted to ask ‘what was that kiss about?’ but she figured he would be able to figure out what she wanted to know without her saying it. Or…she hoped he would.
Hansel shook his head softly, not knowing how to answer. He pulled away from her, walking over to the opposite side of the room as he ran a hand through his hair in apparent thought. He twisted his hands, trying to think of what to do next, how to stop this before he was forced to explain him. He didn’t have a proper reason thought up yet, and he certainly couldn’t say he loved her or anything as foolish as that. Finally, he walked to the door, opening it, and refused to look at her.
“I… I’m sorry,” he muttered, his eyes shutting briefly. Why did he suddenly feel guilty again? This was his plan – his means of escape. He couldn’t let his conscience get wrapped up in something as important as this. Yes, Jeannie was his friend, but he had to use her for his own benefits, like he did all his friends. Confusing her, hurting her, it would all be part of the process, but it was how things had to be. Selfish? Maybe, but it was who he was.
Clearing his throat, he stayed put, his hand on the door handle. “You… You should go,” he said quietly, his voice cracking some on the last word. Did he want her to stay? He couldn’t tell. This feeling inside of him was strange. He wasn’t enjoying it and it was throwing his reasoning skills off kilter. He had to find Gretel and hold her and be with her again – she always made things so much clearer. Not confusing. Not like this.
As he turned around, she was tempted to reach out and make him face her, and maybe kiss him again so that he’d know that it wasn’t a problem…but she didn’t. No, she just stood there, staring at him, her palms rubbing together as they usually did when she was nervous or uncomfortable. At the moment, she was both. There was absolutely no way of telling what would happen next.
Perking up as he moved, thinking he was coming back to her, she watched him move past her towards the door. Her heart sank in her chest as he ignored her, didn’t even look at her.
Sorry?
He was sorry? That wasn’t the reaction she was hoping for. Not at all. She looked rather crestfallen as he suggested that she leave, and stalled, playing with a loose string on her shirt before turning back to him, forcing herself to smirk at him, so he didn’t see how much she really wanted to stay. “Y-yeah, I think you’re right.” Taking a deep breath, she exhaled it as a sigh before walking towards the door, pausing as she was about to leave so she could turn towards him. “You didn’t-…” She was going to say ‘you didn’t have to say sorry’, but she held her tongue. Instead, she gave him another smirk. “I guess I’ll just…I’ll see you around, Hansel.” Her smirk turned into what might seem like a genuine smile, but after she gave him a simple wave and turned around, it faded, and as soon as she rounded the corner, she found herself walking very slowly, her fingers lifting to give her lips a feathery touch. He has kissed her. And then he just apologizes and tells her she should go and doesn’t even look at her.