bloodandbrass

[ rough trial? they're not supposed to be that roughed up afterward. evan considers questioning it, but this is david. he probably got into a fight on the way out, or the way over here. something stupid. the thought sticks, though, so he puts it away for later.

of course he's focusing on this, though. evan tries to keep his temper in check. he doesn't need to be accused of this bullshit here and now, and not by a survivor, either. ]

Half of 'em. [ he pulls a broken trap jaw out of a crate near the work bench, sets it in front of him and tries to focus most of his brain on fixing the twisted metal. it shouldn't be hard. ] Don't think you'd be into anyone I hate that much anyway. Shouldn't piss you off this much.

That's not it.

[ david watches evan work, a frown on his face. he wouldn't say he's pissed, but maybe he is. it wouldn't exactly be unreasonable if he was anyway, it's evan who's the problem here. ]

It's you trying to dictate where I put my dick like you're my-- [ ew, wait. ] Like we're in a relationship here.

[ if he wasn't so pissed off, he'd laugh at that. like we're in a relationship. as fucking if.

as it is, he twists the metal so hard it cracks, which is just one more thing to fuel the rage. evan slams it back down but doesn't turn around to look at david, just yet.

he wants to snarl something. about how taking what evan have to offer is a trade. that if he wants this then he has to follow rules. but - that's a lie, plain and simple, because there are no rules here, even in trials sometimes. he just doesn't want to think that someone who could come to him would go to someone else, and for once, he does realize that.

he also knows that voicing it will have david off the workbench and out the door in an instant, probably unlikely to come back ever. the rope was bad enough to drive him off until now. ]

Didn't realize you couldn't take a joke.

[ half of one, really. ]

Don't bullshit me.

[ if it's a joke, he thinks it's a bad one, and david likes to think he's pretty good at catching evan's sense of humour. that he's pretty good at dealing with evan in general, which is a-- a weird thought. leads to places he doesn't want to follow. ]

All I'm askin' for is the same little crumb of respect I give you by not asking questions or making demands about who all else you take a tumble with.

[ david sighs, makes a frustrated gesture with an open hand. maybe he's not that good at dealing with evan, because he keeps butting up against this weird, controlling nature and all david knows how to do is barrel into it at full speed. sometimes-- sometimes he can slow down enough to think it through, but mostly all he knows how to do is fight it. same way he's tried to fight every other fucking thing in his life that tried to control him in even the smallest ways. ]

[ he works his jaw, lets out a sharp breath through his nose, and keeps going before he thinks to himself if that's a good idea. ]

I mean, shit. Only reason this even works is because I can still get my leg over elsewhere too.

[ he's still enough until david stops talking. he listens, the anger boiling, the self-control shredding, and then as soon as he hears david finish he turns. bears down on david faster than he should be able to and grabs him by the throat - not to pick him up, but to force him back where he's sitting on the workbench, keeping him caught and penned in.

it'd be easy enough for david to smash a fist into ... anywhere he wanted, honestly, but evan's not thinking that far ahead. ]

You get the respect you deserve. I never asked about that shit before. You volunteered it.

[ probably also as a joke. too late for evan to realize that now. ]

Who else.

[ because demanding works so well with david. ]

[ it always catches him off-guard, these bursts of speed from evan. david doesn't have a chance to react until there's a hand around his throat, but he does after. like always, the anger is instant. he hates this and he's sure that evan must know it. moves with the push if only because that's the only way he can still speak, but it's with a curled lip and a set of his shoulders that says he's ready for a fight. ]

None of your fuckin' business.

[ david snarls, brings his hands up to evan's arm, thumbs looking for the tendons in his wrist to dig into and try to force his grip to let up. ]

Only mentioned it because you're the one acting like the centre of the fuckin' universe. Like nobody gets laid if you ain't here to whip it out.

[ he's not quite angry enough that the pain doesn't reach him, but entity help him, he's not about to let go. ]

You like what I give you? Better or worse than anything else you've ever gotten in your life?

[ it's not quite ego that gets him to ask that. david's angry, which makes him angry, and he's already angry, and maybe he wants to know that what he's giving is worthwhile. not that he'd doubt it. the others, few that wander in, prove it. and so does david. but he also gets a lot of other signals from david, and sometimes it's hard to tell the difference. ]

The fuck kind of question is that?

[ it might not be ego, but david takes it as such, confused and angrier for it. fingers digging in harder against evan's wrist just out of spite more than anything. david doesn't want to want him, but he does, and it stings to have to verbalise that. not even for the first time. so david can only assume he needs his ego fluffed, needs to be told he's a better fuck than anyone else in the fog so he can feel big and important. ]

[ he scowls. honest, sure, but david refuses to say more than he has to. ]

You think I'd put up with this shit if I didn't?

[ he squeezes a little harder just to emphasise what 'this shit' is. ]

[ the question's just waiting to lunge up out of him, a snarl of an accusation: then why the fuck do you need to go to anybody else?

but he hesitates, because he knows the answer. actually, he knows a few. and he doesn't want to hear some of them out loud. he doesn't want to give away any sort of weakness, either, because that question sounds fucking needy, like he's some possessive, jealous ... like david said. like this is a relationship.

his wrist burns with the pressure david's putting on it, and his grip on david's throat loosens a little in response. ]

Just checkin'.

[ abruptly he lets go, but doesn't back off. ]

Way you're actin' it's like you don't give a shit about it.

[ david laughs. he doesn't mean to, but it slips out of him sharp and sudden, disbelief more than anything. he considers telling evan not to bullshit him again, because this has to be more bullshit, but that won't get him anywhere. ]

Would I be here if I didn't give a shit?

[ who the fuck treks all the way out to argue about something they don't care about? he's put way too much effort into this, whatever this is, to have evan accuse him of that. it's legitimately almost offensive. ]

[ it's a good point. evan's not always convinced, though. he argued about a lot of shit in his life he didn't actually care about. maybe too much. ]

According to you, you got other people who could help instead.

[ it's said without as much accusation as it could be. evan considers, briefly, getting a grip on david, not an aggressive one but a different kind, because if he thinks about it it's been a while since david was last here. but even if that's part of the reason he showed up, it's not the whole reason. not the driving force. ]

[ so he is jealous. the hypocrisy of it annoys the fuck out of david, but pointing it out probably won't do anything. it didn't before. he just doesn't see the issue, evan can barely stand him at the best of times, why would it matter to him? the only answer he can see is it's pure ego, that evan wants to be king dick of the fog or some shit, but even for him that seems insane. ]

Why's that bother you so much?

[ evan gives david a long look, silent, glowering, considering how to answer the question.

blow it off? that won't end anything; this shit will just keep going. be honest? he's not even sure if he can be honest with himself. be way too honest to try and shut him up? no, that'd be weird.

he doesn't back off in the slightest, tilting his head just a little. half in consideration, half in irritation. ]

I can't stop you, but I don't like hearin' about it.

Then I won't bring it up.

[ david shrugs a shoulder, lets his hands fall idly to evan's waist. he doubts his issues run as deep as whatever the fuck's going on with evan — truthfully he doesn't care if evan's fucking other people, there's just a lot of messed up shit that comes to mind when he has to remember evan's fucking the other survivors. david's already spending more energy than he'd like pointedly ignoring the signs from some people when they come back to camp. ]

[ whatever evan's issue is is something else, and it's frustrating as hell, but what can he really do about it? realistically nothing. ]

Like I said, only ever mentioned it 'cause of your asumptions.

[ evan snorts. his assumptions. assuming that david wasn't getting any action outside of him? he knows that this whole place is a mood-killer, but maybe at this point some of them don't care if a smug fuck in black leather's taking pictures of them fucking in the woods.

he has to assume that it's with other survivors. even what they have took a long damn time, and it's a fight half the time. other killers - it's a pain to think about, even if he knows some of them do get action. willing action, even. ]

Yeah, well, you ain't gettin' it better is my guess.

[ the hands on his waist make him wonder, now that the argument's turned into a smolder. it feels deliberate, but he's not going to push just yet. david's still liable to try and break his jaw getting mad about something stupid. ]

Sure. If you want.

[ noncommittal, very much a "i'm not getting into this" answer. the truth is he's not getting it better anywhere else, not even close, but it's not as simple as 'evan's just better' because in a lot of ways he's really, really not. there's just a lot of shit at play here and not a single part of that is something david wants to get into. ]

[ he leaves his hands on evan's waist while he thinks on how to say what he wants to say like he's not even really aware they're there. ]

I don't even get why you give a shit about this from me.

[ why does he give a shit? that's something he doesn't think about much, but sometimes he does consider it. why does he get particular about who's coming out here? what about them? they're not just an offering allowed by the entity, most of the time.

it's not everyone. but it is some. ]

Does it matter?

[ his hand comes back up and grazes at the red marks his choking grip left behind. they won't bruise; he didn't hold on long enough or hard enough to leave a lasting mark, if anything ever lasted here. ]

Most of you got somethin' worthwhile.

It's confusing.

[ david frowns, feeling childish of all things all of a sudden. ]

I've got the unfortunate affliction of actually bein' attracted to you and your ugly mug, so I come out here. Simple as.

[ he hates this kind of honesty, the inherent vulnerability that comes with it, but he's not nearly as bad at communicating it as some people. but here, with evan? it's not just vulnerability, it's exposing a weakness. feels like the moment after stepping in a trap, watching trapper walk toward you. more frustrating for the fact that the few times he's offered this honesty out, evan never reciprocates, but david isn't even sure if he wants that this time. he doesn't think so. ]

[ he manages to keep his voice even, at least, a frown of concentration on his face as he looks past evan toward the wall behind him. ]

Clearly that's not the case for you, and you wouldn't put up with my shit if all you wanted was another hole to fuck, So I don't get it.

Edited (no more edits i promise) 2024-12-11 09:50 (UTC)

[ slow on the uptake as evan can be around anything resembling an emotion, he picks up on what might be behind david's questions. his hand pauses at david's throat, listening, considering.

he laughs - an actual laugh, short as it is - at david's admission of being attracted to him, because while it's not the first time he's heard that, it's been a hell of a while and he's not as ... well, almost-nearly-good-looking as he used to be. but, fine. people have opinions on that kind of thing. and now david wants to know what evan sees in him? why he doesn't just eject him when he's getting unruly or keeps letting him in despite everything?

the full answer is complex, and might make him think about who he is as a person. so he considers what to say, his thumb pressed lightly against the base of david's throat. ]

Ain't always about looks. [ how does he phrase all this without david hauling off and punching him out? ] Like I said. All of you got somethin' that keeps me from throwing you out on your ass. Couple of you don't get the time of day even if you ask nice.

[ although that's only a few who have. the really irritating ones. ]

You're a pain in the ass but that ain't always a bad thing.

[ imagine him admitting david's like him if he wasn't a consummate murderer and failure and wanting to get a trace of that back. ]

[ david tilts his head a little with the press of evan's thumb. that doesn't actually explain much, but truth be told david's fine with that right now. he was trying to explain himself more than he wanted any kind of explanation from evan, because sure, part of him would love that, but he's not sure evan could tell him anything that wouldn't just confuse or frustrate him more. ]

[ a lot of what evan holds back would, perhaps ironically, work strongly in his favour with david, but evan doesn't know that and david has no way to know what's not said, so he just has to try and fill in the gaps himself. or be satisfied with not knowing. it's just confusing, because in some ways he's sure evan accepts a lot more from him than he would from a lot of other people. would he clean and dress their wounds? let them sleep here-- let them sleep in his bed? ]

[ david snorts a small, amused noise. not always a bad thing. ]

Might be the nicest thing you've said to me.

[ it probably is, evan thinks. he's got few things to say about david, and up until recently - however that gets defined - they were always negative. but that's not new. that's every survivor. even if david made himself distinct with how much a problem he could be.

another thing evan doesn't do is follow up that comment with something about breaking in something wild, because the last time he said that to one of them it went about as badly as it could. that's another explanation, another reason he lets people in here, and even one he can grasp. but it's a bad one, and he grasps that, too. ]

Stop fucking around and you might get more.

[ a mild term for the things david does in trials, but evan doesn't elaborate. instead he shifts, spreads out his whole hand to wrap lightly - not like a threat - around david's throat, tilting his head back just a little further. ]

[ david frowns at the hand around his throat, but he knows he's never going to completely stop evan from doing it, so he allows it in this context. tilts his head back with the motion, still looking up at evan. ]

We both know that's never gonna happen.

[ his lips twitch up into a faint smirk, just a little one. brings up a hand to evan's chin, tugs at the edge of his mask with a finger to emphasise the point that it's still there. david lets evan get away with a lot of shit he'd never let anyone else do, but that's one rule he's sticking to. if evan wants to fuck, the mask comes off. ]

[ no, it won't. some animals would rather die than break.

again. not always a bad thing.

he leans his head back at the tug on his mask, but doesn't grab or say anything; he just pulls it off, carefully sets it aside, ignores the lurking feeling of being more exposed than if he was naked, and slides his hand around to the back of david's neck to get a grip in his hair.

it'll let him tug his head back, baring his throat instead of potentially choking him. not much better, except ... ]

Yeah. You couldn't stop to save anything.

[ except it lets him bite, even if this first one isn't that hard. ]

[ david's breath catches at the bits, it's been long enough that he'd kind of forgotten what this feels like, the way it sparks something in him. his hand slips easily to the back of evan's neck, lightly holding him there, mostly encouraging. ]

And let you have some peace?

[ the way he smirks just a little is audible in his voice, like what he's said is actually funny, other hand slipping in the side of evan's waders at the same time, resting more comfortably at his waist. ]

Be criminal of me, that would.

[ that gets him another, slightly harder, bite, which might not be the apparent punishment it's supposed to be given the way he knows david reacts to those.

evan digs his fingers harder into the back of david's head, gripping what he can of his hair, keeping his head pulled back. his other hand moves up, under david's shirt, pushing it up to get a better feel over the skin and scars that've been away for a while. no one's fault but his own, but he'll blame david for it anyway.

there's no response this time, because as far as evan's concerned any argument he'd make isn't going to be as convincing as what he can do. david can keep badmouthing if he wants - it might get him what he wants, after all - but evan's got something else to focus on now. distracting him from that, primarily. ]

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