It's Been a While

[Michael Blackwood-Hardt]

Michael's lips opened, and he shook his head gently. While he was relieved she had been brave enough to make a decision, he hated it. His chest closed up and his eyes burned, he had found her just to lose her again. It hurt, and the absence of her hands in his was one of the coldest feelings he could remember, but he couldn't for the life of him figure out a way to make it right. Eventually he nodded, "I'm sorry," he said softly, knowing that if he said any more his throat would close.

[Annabelle Hennessy]

Annabelle nodded slightly. "Me too." Without looking back at him, she turned and walked away, forcing herself not to break into a run. The tears were streaming down her face now, and it was by luck alone that she managed to make it out of the forest without tripping. Only when she knew she was out of sight did she wipe away her blurred vision. As soon as she hit the clearing, she broke into a sprint to her refuge.

magikal05.proboards46.com/index.cgi?board=books&action=display&thread=3486&page=1#68046

[Michael Blackwood-Hardt]

Michael watched her leave, an empty feeling in his chest, he knew that she was crying, he himself was heartbroken and when he went to run a hand through his hair he felt wetness on his cheek when his hand brushed it. He walked numbly back to where his pad lay and looked down at it, glad that for once it wasn't Dare looking up at him, just grass and sky. He slumped down cross legged and put his elbows on his knees, burying his face in his hands.

[Dare Blackwood-Hardt]

Dare came along just long enough later that he hadn't seen the girl, only one crumpled form at the treeline where the club met. Dare was far enough when he spotted that form that he could have turned away without being seen, but before he could, he'd recognized Michael. His feet picked up from their casual stroll, carrying him across the grass to Michael's side. "Hey, are you okay?" Dare asked softly, even as he knelt next to Michael, one hand extending to rest lightly on Michael's shoulder.

[Michael Blackwood-Hardt]

Michael pulled his head up and looked over at Dare, immediately turning his head the other direction to wipe his eyes. "Honestly, no," he said softly, only barely comforted by Dare's hand. "Anna was just down here." He didn't even know if Dare would know who he was talking about, he couldn't remember if he had ever said her name. His eyes closed and his chest constricted again as he tried to pull in a calming breath.

[Dare Blackwood-Hardt]

Anna... The name wasn't familiar, but it didn't need to be. It was painfully clear who she was, and judging from the way Michael looked, how it had gone. Dare dropped his sketchbook off to the side somewhere and shifted to sit next to Michael, silently declaring his support. A small, spiteful part of him was angry at that girl he'd never met for having been gone so long, then reappearing just in time for this. Dare couldn't think of a thing to say, didn't feel like prompting Michael would be right, but he looked at him, concern etched on his face, and hoped he'd confide.

[Michael Blackwood-Hardt]

"She just...showed up," he said, staring blankly out in front of him. "And told me she had went to the masquerade and kissed this guy, didn't tell me who he was....she was that girl we talked to, with the sword." Michael stopped, finally taking that deep breath he had tried for before, only to have his throat close up again. "I told her I was Jack," he said, choking slightly because it only made what had happened come back in full force to his mind. "I wasn't nice when I said it. Dare, I was mad." He brought his eyes back towards Dare, he had treated her so badly.

[Dare Blackwood-Hardt]

Dare's eyes had widened at Michael's confessions far more than the idea that he'd been angry or had lashed out. He wanted to say it was okay, or it'd be okay, but he knew the words would be empty; how could anyone know? One of Dare's hands rose, but it hesitated, suddenly unsure of its welcome. After everything that had just happened, was he even wanted? Dare pulled his hand back and looked down, letting his fringe obscure his eyes. "So what happened?" he asked softly, though he could almost hear the answer already.

[Michael Blackwood-Hardt]

"We fought, I couldn't...." Michael trailed off, looking off into space for a few seconds before licking his lips in discomfort and looking back at Dare. "I couldn't be with her and not be with you," he pushed out before his eyes turned away again, the confession too revealing for eye contact. "She looked so hurt, but I couldn't do it....and she left." He just hoped that he had made the right decision.

[Dare Blackwood-Hardt]

Dare's gaze lifted sharply with Michael's confession. I couldn't be with her and not be with you. He realized he'd stopped breathing and forced himself to inhale, all the while looking at Michael, somehow hoping he could pick up enough physical clues to answer the swarm of questions fighting in his mind. Michael had broken up with his girlfriend, at least in part, because of him.

Dare blinked, trying to clear his mind, but the thoughts were persistent, and he couldn't sort them, didn't stand a chance of it without knowing things he couldn't seem to make himself ask. Where does that leave us? His hands flexed, a subtle but compulsive motion he needed to release just enough tension to begin to assimilate things.

[Michael Blackwood-Hardt]

Michael hated the silence and wished Dare had said something. He felt a moment of panic, he had made the wrong choice, he should have went with Anna, now he wouldn't have anyone. His breath caught, and now he had made a fool of himself because surely if Dare was for the decision he would have said something. He mentally shook himself, no, he was just thinking that because his mind was so exhausted from just that short conversation with Anna. He forced himself to look up at Dare, silently begging a reply.

[Dare Blackwood-Hardt]

Dare felt Michael's gaze even before he looked up, or maybe he looked up because he felt it. His eyes met Michael's, and the insecurities swirling behind the green faded in the face of those he saw in the earthy brown. "I won't hurt you like that," he said softly, then, realizing how truly useless words like that were, he dropped his gaze and searched for something better. "I want to be with you," he said, "Or, I mean, try, I don't know." He paused, then looked up again. "What do you want?" Was it too soon? Did Michael even want to take it that far? To the last, he'd called it an experiment.

[Michael Blackwood-Hardt]

Michael sighed, relieved that Dare's reaction was positive. He looked into Dare's eyes, thinking hard. But the hard, intense thinking wasn't helping him figure anything out. After a few long seconds he reached out for Dare's hand, trying to push everything out of his mind and hear what he needed to do. Dare was a good friend, and there was an intimacy that they shared, wasn't being together the next logical step? "If you're willing, then I am," he said, wondering if Dare knew the trust Michael was putting in him.

[Dare Blackwood-Hardt]

Dare's heart had stopped beating, he was sure of it. He took a long breath, and somehow it started again, a heavy thud echoing in his ears. All at once, his hand curved against Michael's, squeezed lightly, and his lips began to curve as well. It had seemed like everything was sinking in by slow steps, and then all at once there was a rush, and he was grinning. "I'm willing," he said, the rush of knowing, of there being some definition he'd never asked for, of knowing Michael trusted him that much, everything shone in his eyes at once.

[Michael Blackwood-Hardt]

Dare's smile and the emotion in his eyes immediately removed the heavy weight that had been on Michael since Anna had walked up. He smiled broadly, even though he looked away, silently celebrating that it had worked out. When he turned back towards Dare his own eyes were sparkling, his mood instantly changed, covering up the tendrils of sadness left over from talking to Anna with happiness. "The very last thing I ever imagined," he said, a dry laugh coming from his throat.