conflictresolution

I know. Let's avoid being compromised the pair of us, yes?

[ this is killing her, because she definitely screwed the pooch on that front. but maybe she can somehow fix it before silco takes notice or something. she did tell ekko to keep everything that happened in the treehouse. so.

... there's a delay in her response until she types: ]

yea.

Edited 2024-07-14 22:42 (UTC)

[He knew. He might not have the details, but he suspected she was compromised already. The delay in such a simple answer was enough to reinforce the suspicions. Now he had to impress on Levi finding evident to confirm if she wouldn't tell him.]

Then there doesn't appear to be more to discuss, yes?

[Except he has his own admittance to work his way to as well.]

[ she wants to say no, but that'll be lying. although, she can't say yes either. ... so she'll go back to her little question for a question strategy. ]

is there more?

[He stared at the question. Was she calling him out? Or herself?

He had to be the adult, didn't he? That's the responsibility he took when Jinx came to his care. He was hesitant given the silent month was still not far behind them, and he honestly had no idea how she would react. So mulled it over, weighing his options.]

I've met someone. We've been sleeping together on occasion in the last two weeks. There is little, if any, emotional attachment.

[ ... so it wasn't his phone glitching earlier. ]

oh.

[ that's all at first, but then a follow-up question: ]

another sex worker deal or?

It is another Chosen. It's simply sex between us, Jinx.

[Sort of. Silco actually had no idea his own expectations, so things remained in the "it's complicated" area if he allowed himself to think about it.]

oh.

[ what does she say to that, really? ]

thats super, good for u.

You remain my priority.

yea. of course.

[That admittance went as expected. There would always be benefits to the single father existence it seemed. Hopefully she would remain talking to him after she had time to process.]

I apologize if this has been a shock. It was unexpected.

[He did not let people close as a rule. This wasn't just business, and he knew it.]

You'll still come home for dinner?

ure human. and humans and animals have needs. its all nature and instincts.

yea.

I suppose. We both know it's dangerous to let others close. Very well.

[ there's a small pause before her next message arrives, wanting to say something, but decides to refrain her own thoughts. as one wise telepathic once said to her, "handle your own damn problem for once". ]

yea, it can.

[He interprets the pause as her processing or her pulling away. He hadn't decided which to settle on yet. He has said his peace; it's up to her to determine how she reacts to it.]

I will see you tonight.

see u.

[ an hour or so passes until finally she arrives home with a few hidden ingredients inside two plastic bags. when jinx enters in, she toes off her shoes and calls out: ]

I'm home!

[ and before she allows her father to answer back or meet her at the door, she quickly adds: ]

I'll be in the kitchen getting dinner ready!!

[ then scurries off quickly to the other room with the bags, placing them on the table and rummages through cabinets for all she needs to prep for their dinner. ]

[He busied himself with work or at least shuffling papers into piles then reorganizing them into different piles as he rolled the conversation over in his mind. Text hid so many nuances that it was improbable of him to be able to determine his future course of action.

He couldn't yet stand up and pace around with his feet still healing, at least not as much as he would have liked. He reserved his walking for getting to specific locations. He was determined to return to routine activities by next week, but that might mean burying himself in work as he used to.

Would he give this new bright spot up if it meant not losing Jinx? In a heartbeat. Would he be happy about it? No but he'd live. He might just be quiet and withdrawn or angry and tyrannical. Having a go at Jerry and the Council would be a worthwhile distraction if it went that way...]

Alright, I'll come to the table in a minute.

[He lifted his head from resting on his forearms in his study. He slowly pushed himself to his feet and gingerly walked to the living room with an accounting book under one arm. It took him careful walking to make his way to his intended destination on the couch and eased himself into it. All of the muscle soreness was gone, so he only had to wait for his feet.]

What did you decide on for dinner? [He was opening the book and adding notations while he listened to her in the kitchen.]

Just my crabmeat salad sandwiches!

[ she announces as she gathers all the materials she needs to prepare it. next, she fires up the stove and sets it to a particular degree for the meat. ]

I'll try and make it extra special this time.

[ because who knows how long she has with him until her entire world changes drastically again. if things follow align like with her sister and the enforcer, it's only a matter of time until she gets nudged further and further out of the picture.

less communication, set visitations, and then finally, the big "they're coming to live with us" and he and whoever will play such an important role in each other's lives that she might have to sleep outdoors again. and who knows? maybe he will stumble upon another mizuki along the way too.

if that does happen, at least this time, she is prepared for it, and won't be entirely blindsided like how it was with vi. so, she should make the best of it, and be happy for him (even though it hurts). after all, mylo believes she deserves it with how she treated silco a few weeks ago, she had it coming as far as he is concerned. ]

What do you want to drink?

Edited 2024-07-15 00:40 (UTC)

Always enjoyable.

[It was simple and wouldn't be too filling. He could easily pick at them if his appetite deserted him midway through the meal. He wasn't moving around as much as he had been when it came to moving between his businesses, but he was also still working on regaining the weight that he had lost the previous month. It was a work in progress.]

Special as in added spices?

[Silco had already made a personal promise that he wasn't engaging with Richard if it meant losing his daughter. He wouldn't leave her behind, and he would still always remain in her corner. It was a fact that his new lover would have to accept and adapt to, or else it wasn't going to work as anything more than it currently was: sex. Did he want something more? He was too conflicted to parse that out.

However, Jinx was his daughter. He had made a promise when he had taken her in, and he intended to fulfill the promise. He would not abandon or forsake her. Time would tell how well he could manage this extra person in his life, even if it remained sex only.]

Two fingers of whiskey will be enough for the night.

Just trying a different sauce. But whiskey coming up! It'll be ready soon...!

[ her tone may sound cheery, but that's the wonders of masking and being in an entirely different room than him. however in the next twenty minutes or so, there's silence from her besides the auditable sounds of meat sizzling and a knife chopping against a cutting board.

unfortunately with her mind being preoccupied with so many ridiculous and impossible scenarios of her unknown future, his daughter knicks herself with the knife at least four times. although with each accidental slice, she doesn't react or wince -- almost like she didn't notice them, and she won't until much later on, knowing her.

and jinx has shimmer to thank for that, really. little pains like these are as flat as a mosquito bite, and the only way she will feel any enscrutiating hurt is if someone puts a bullet in her multiple times or stab her until their arm gives out. ]

Want me to bring dinner to you or you wanna eat the table?! I'm almost done!

I see.

[He would eat whatever she put in front of him, and he wouldn't mind the change over. He was scribbling notations in his accounts book while he could hear Jinx cooking in the kitchen, unaware of her accidents with the knife at this time. He would discover those little accidents soon enough once he rose from the couch.

He lifted his head from where it was over his book at her question, slowly closing the pages and cover together so that he could put it aside on the coffee table.] I'll eat at the table with you.

[He pushed himself to his lightly bandaged feet and made the short journey to the kitchen after looking at the dining room table. It took him longer than usual still, but he leaned on the door leading into the kitchen first.] Do you want me to set the... where is that blood coming from?

[His mismatched gaze looked over her fingers, and he moved further into the room, reaching out to take his hands.] Let me see, Jinx.

[ she turns to him with a perplexed look on her face, and then follows his gaze down to her fingers. the shimmer blood coating her padded her fingertips, and jinx blinks a few times with slight bafflement. ]

Oh... huh. Guess I did that without knowing.

[ the next she knows, her father is now close to her with his hands extending out for examination. ]

Oh, pffft! It's not a big deal. I'll just wash it off in the sink or whatever.

[ in spite of her nonchalant response, though, jinx allows him to see for himself that her cuts aren't that severe. or maybe, in her opinion, it isn't. she's been through far worse incidents than this. ]

Edited 2024-07-15 03:46 (UTC)

Distracted, it seems. Do you want me to finish cooking?

[He took her hands in his hand and brought them up closer to examine the damage to her fingers. It wasn't deep enough to require stitches, but they would need to be washed and tended. Of course neither of them could be healthy right now, could they?]

Wash them in the sink. I will get the medical kit and we will tend them. Scrub with soap then rinse well.

[He nudged her towards the sink to wash her blooded hands, and he moved to the living room where the medical kit was stationed thanks to the bandage changes still necessary for his feet. He picked it up and brought it back to the kitchen with him to set on the counter where she wasn't currently preparing food.

He opened the kit and pulled out some simple band-aids.]

Let's dry them off and get them bandaged up.

[ jinx sighs, feeling rather guilty of having her father suggesting to finish up dinner and retreating to the living room to fetch for the kit. she'd protest if it weren't for silco already disappearing, so instead, she does what she is told and cleans her fingers with water in lukewarm temperature. when he returns, she mutely wanders over while drying off her hands and pick out the band-aids (particularly the ones with funny designs). ]

I'm sorry.

[ she mutters finally, fastening the gauze on one finger and then the next. ]

I'm making you work more again. ... But really, I can finish cooking.

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