[ota] you're gonna go far, kid

[bluntforces]

There are very few people, particularly in the Deck, who wouldn't describe Evan McCartney as 'an annoyingly happy camper.'

And he is happy. He's happy to be getting his degree sorted out. He's happy to be looking at jobs which will allow him to be productive--to actually use what bit of a brain he has properly, the way it's meant to be used. He's happy to be in love and waking up every morning next to the woman he's in love with. He's happy to run with the dogs and spend afternoons with his parents and run errands for his sister. He's even happy to get into fights with cousins who look down their noses and young idiots who need to get their heads out of a generation far too outdated to still be crafting culture.

He's happy. He's Evan McCartney.

But he's quiet these days. He's not entirely certain why. He's been singing less. Shouting less. Simply moderating his voice far better than he ever has, as if the concept of 'an indoor voice' has sunk in more than twenty years after being introduced. It sits funny in his shoulders.

So he does what he can. He gets up early to study; makes Riley breakfast and takes the dogs on a run. He goes to throw punches at bags until it's time to ice his shoulder and suck on his lip so the bleeding will stop. And he goes, ultimately, to lie on his back in the snowed-upon Green, because he's not entirely certain where to go when a body feels pensive.

Someone should teach him how to do 'pensive.'

Comments

[bluntforces]

"We can have reasonable number of beers if I'm buyin', kid."

Because raising a pair of dogs? Not as cheap as one would hope. Fairly expensive, actually.

[alwaysmessedup]

"Buyer makes the rules, moocher takes what he can get."

See how easygoing he is. See.

[bluntforces]

There's a beat of consideration before he shifts properly up and dusts off his pants.

"Buy you a few if you got some life advice to dispense."

Go on, Justin. Can you make that deal?

[alwaysmessedup]

Justin holds out his hand, "deal."

Because nowhere in there did Evan state he had to agree with or appreciate the advice.

Sometimes, he'd heard, his advice could be...dubious.

[bluntforces]

And shaken on, little buddy.

"You rather tell me about girls or about how t' live my life generally?"

[alwaysmessedup]

Justin shrugs slightly as they start moving in whatever direction of whichever place wherever Evan's buying the beer.

"Aren't you supposed to already be hooked up with a girl?"

He might not know Evan, but he hears things and he's certainly seen Evan out with Riley places.

[bluntforces]

"I am." Supposedly and otherwise. "More a matter of-- keepin' her along, you know?"

Or do you, Justin.

[alwaysmessedup]

Now Justin's snorting. "Pretty sure that y' don't keep a girl along," in Evan's words, "if she doesn't wanna be there. Especially one like her."

One who knew her own mind, or so it seemed.

[bluntforces]

"True." Very true. Ridiculously true. "But y' do things that-- drive girls away sometimes, right?"

[alwaysmessedup]

"Sure," you're talking to someone who's never kept a girlfriend, Evan. Though it'd been good with Delilah for a while. "And sometimes they just. Go away on their own. Figure girls probably say the same thing about us."

[bluntforces]

This is clearly not going to be a deep font of information. Still. Door being held open for Justin so drinks can be had.

"Maybe. But if we don't want that, don't we gotta-- do our best not to fuck up?"

[alwaysmessedup]

Justin nods as Evan holds the door open for him and walks on through before waiting to see whether Evan wants to go to the actual bar or sit down at a table. "Most people seem to tell me you should do your best not to fuck up in general."

He spreads his hands, "I figure fucking up is a fact of life so the trick is to find somebody who can stand it when you do."

There, how profound is that, Evan. Totally worthy of a drink.

[bluntforces]

That... was, in a way. Profound enough for a half-frozen and sore Evan McCartney. Certainly profound enough to have his hand waving for two beers at the bar. "And then-- what? You're good, if you're still trying?"

[alwaysmessedup]

"If they're worth it. I mean, they've gotta fuck up sometimes too and you deal with it, right?"

Nobody's perfect.

[bluntforces]

Give him a minute. He's got to try and think about moments when Riley hasn't been perfect since they started dating.

It may be many moments.

[alwaysmessedup]

He can wait. He's got beer. And if you think she's always perfect, Evan, you're delusional.

Though if he takes too long, eventually Justin will comment, "think you stayed out in the snow too long."

[bluntforces]

Delusion about women is not an unknown thing to one Evan McCartney.

"--nah, it's--" Give him a moment again. Less of a moment. "I just feel like it's-- my turn to fuck up. And like it's gonna be a big one."

[alwaysmessedup]

Have Justin's most skeptical face, Evan.

"Then you will. Obviously."

[bluntforces]

That was the opposite of helpful, sir. "But how d'you make sure it's-- like, regular fucking up? Forgivable fucking up?"

[alwaysmessedup]

Sigh.

Sigh.

"Did you miss the part where I said they'd forgive you if it's meant to be?" Or something like that. "Don't you ever watch Lifetime, man?" Because it's not like the relationship advice that Justin gets from dubious magazines is going to be of help here.

[bluntforces]

Maybe. A little. A bit. Bah.

"By that logic, just-- seems like with the right person, you'd get away with murder. Like-- actual murder."

[alwaysmessedup]

"That's not fucking up though, is it? That's being a sick bastard."

There's a difference, see.

[bluntforces]

...that shouldn't be such a good point.

That shouldn't be such an accurate point to this conversation.

"Which... would fuck things up if a girl thought you weren't."

[alwaysmessedup]

Snort, "now you're just being stupid. There's fucking up." You know, doing something idiotic or ill-advised or badly thought out that can hurt or upset the person you're with. "And there's making things fucked up." Which is being rather more intentional about it.

He doesn't figure Evan is the latter.

[bluntforces]

"What about not stopping fucked up things that maybe you shoulda?"

Inquiring minds. Not that this is Evan's problem. No. Surely not.