Brunch and a Flick (Lani.)

[Odion Martins]

Continued from Listening to You

Honestly, Odion was a little nervous for this date. It wasn't like the first time he had ever been on a date, but it was the first time he had given it a name. It was the first time he had proceeded doing it with some semblance of a plan. And it was the first time he and Lani had gone out anywhere together since... Odion could hardly think that it was last summer. It was almost summer again. Well, it was high time they did go out, and maybe have some fun.

Straightening his shirt out, Odion decided not to go all out, lest he get something on his new clothes. Not that that mattered, they were simple objects easily attained. But the point was that Odion wanted to look nice for Lani. So jeans and a button up shirt would do it, collar down and perfectly ironed. Jared could make fun of him all he wanted, but Odion was going to look nice if he had the choice. Lani had seen him drunk, angry, and everything in between. The least Odion could do now was show that he cared, because he did. The last thing Odion saw as he left his bathroom mirror was the silvery glint of the ourobos.

Mimosa Sundays, that was where they were going to meet. Odion had walked to the classy restaurant and had checked his watch a hundred times. Maybe more, he'd lost track. He got to the place ten minutes to one, and was now altering between looking out the window in search of Lani, and staring down at his glass of water. Sitting up straightly in the booth, Odion titled his neck side to side, folding his hands on the table in front of him, staring at an invisible person across from him. Why was he so goddamn nervous? He was acting like a fucking high school loser who had never known love. But he knew love, and he was coming to meet him here for brunch.

Thoughts of last night's conversation made Odion smiled, and he glanced down at the menu again, trying to predict what Lani might order. This was a far better way to spend his time than wondering if Lani would come. Of course he would come... If he didn't, then Odi couldn't bring the telekinetic to the movie he had in mind. He had spent time online this morning, trying to figure out what would be perfect for them to watch together. Odion couldn't have gotten much more than four hours sleep total.

Puzzling over the menu, Odion heard the door opening and a new guest walk in. He stood by what he had told Lani quite a while ago, about how the eyes gave people away. And right now, his eyes were saying just how happy he was to know Lani was there, just for him.

[Lani Hunter]

A date. A date with Odion. Lani woke late and looked at his alarm clock in confusion. He’d woken up before it had gone off. That was unusual. He went ahead and turned off the alarm and dug around his sheets for a moment seeking his phone that had been lost in the folds of the sheets. He yawned and stretched himself out as he tried to remember the details. Mimosa Something was the place, one o’clock? It was brunch right? Lani shook his head and threw himself into the shower, maybe once he got his morning in order he could recall the details. The hot water did nothing to refresh his memory. He was so tired last night he almost forgot he called Odion last night, it almost felt like a dream.

The blond ran a comb through his hair and wondered if he needed a haircut as it was starting to creep over his ears a little bit. Still short for most standards but it probably could use a touch up soon. Clean shaven and refreshed Lani had the challenge of figuring out what to wear. He texted Caroline with a plea for help. He didn’t know how classy this place was, he really hoped that jeans were alright. When she suggested something with color he informed her he didn’t have a lot of colors. Should he wear a button up or a tee or both? He and Caroline bickered lightly as he sent her a picture of a few shirts and then tried on the one of her choice. In the end they agreed on a light bluish gray colored button up, it wasn’t well ironed and it had been hanging abandoned in his closet for who knew how long. But at least Odion couldn’t say it was gray, technically it wasn’t, it was only mostly gray.

Lani Googled quickly the address for the Mimosa Something, which luckily corrected to Mimosa Sunday and Lani nodded, glad that lord and master Google knew what he was thinking. Easily within walking distance. He was nervous, he told himself there was no reason to be nervous. His heart was beating loudly as he walked. He was so afraid they would start fighting over something again. Lani’s only goal for the day was to not start a fight, though Lani smiled, he wouldn’t mind a little bit of bickering, it would create a sense of familiarity. Lani was starting to think of things to not mention in conversation in case it struck a nerve and they started to fight. Lani realized as he walked that he hadn’t told Odion about what had happened in the end with his boss. Nor about the time he’d been arrested. The later was a rather embarrassing story and the former held the potential for a fight so Lani wasn’t sure it would be good to bring up either. Another time maybe.

He arrived and looked up at the sign and he pulled open the door and took a quick glance around. The hostess came up and Lani awkward smiled and told her he was meeting someone and midway through saying so he spied Odion and his smile broadened. He thanked her and slid into the seat across from Odion. “Good morning,” he said brightly. His eyes caught Odion’s and the blues shimmered like the sea on a sunny day. Odion looked, as always, perfectly put together. And he looked good. He looked much better, healthier than he was the first time Lani’s seen him, he also didn’t look like a raccoon anymore which was good. “You look good,” he blundered, “Uh, how was the rest of your night?” He hoped he didn’t keep Odion up after he’d called. He also hoped he wasn't to obviously nervous as he wiped his palms on his jeans and shifted in his chair.

[Odion Martins]

There were so many things they could discuss, so many topics that had only been touched and not yet discovered. Odion wasn’t opposed to talking about anything, as he was curious over it all, especially since it all involved Lani in some way. Odion was also certain that Lani would have many of his own questions, and trusted that the telekinetic would most likely break the ice before Odion could even go near it. Odion didn’t have a plan tonight, he merely wanted to stick to remaining truthful, and hoping that that would be the key to getting Lani to stay in his life. There wasn’t room for another large catastrophe, Odion was seeking out some peace between them.

Having already set his menu down with folded hands on top of it, Odion was smiling at Lani before the blond could say hello. “I take it you slept well,” he said knowingly, staring at Lani for a moment or two, unsure how to respond to the compliment. In Odion’s humble opinion, Lani looked good with his hair on the longer side. The short hair cuts made him look boyish, but the longer hair done the way it was now, well… Odi wondered absently if his face was the same colour of his hair due to his thoughts, and was thankful Lani wasn’t a mind reader. Odion took up the menu once more and wondered if Lani even liked samosas.

“I was instantly asleep after I hung up, it was miraculous.” Lani wasn’t the only bloke with a sleeping problem. Odion grinned at Lani over the menu as their server set a second glass of water in front of Lani. When asked if they were ready to order, Odion politely said that they would need another moment. Just because he was ready didn’t mean Lani was. Odion’s gaze went back to Lani, all of his pretty words and charm floating away just when he needed them most. “There are so many things I understand but even more that I don’t,” he decided to say, gesturing at Lani, “take you for example. I can spend all night thinking about you but when I finally do get to see you I have no idea what to say.” Perhaps this was why he was so quiet all the time?

The redhead sighed, sitting up taller if that were a possibility. Odion gave Lani a leveled stare, moving past his attraction to the blond and into the heart of things. “If I let down my walls, and I hope that I am by saying I’m a total idiot around you,” that comment at least, decorated Odion’s face with a smile, “will you also let me in?” A pleading look was just past the smile, and Odion needed to know they could do more than look at some memories, but that they could survive and grow past them.

[Lani Hunter]

If there was one thing Lani promised himself, it was that today he was going to be honest. No matter how painful or uncomfortable, he would be truthful. It had been his lies that broke them in the first place, but he was afraid that once Odion saw him without the lies he would realize that he wasn’t worth it. It was a nasty cycle that Lani had stuck himself in. He wished Odion had stayed away so he could continue his heart sealing process and gone on with his life. Then he had pushed Odion away as hard as he could, then he prayed for Odion to stay and now he was caught where he was before, he wanted Odion to stay so desperately that he was willing to say almost anything, which wasn’t a healthy thing in a relationship.

“Wonderfully,” he said, “How about you?” He had practically passed out after they’d said goodnight, Lani didn’t even remember if he’d hung up or if Odion had. Lani raised a brow at the redhead as a small red tint started to show on his cheeks. Lani wasn’t sure what brought on the color but he liked it. Odion always looked best with a little color on his face. Lani dropped his eyes to the menu and started looking through the lists. Lani was feeling like breakfast food, but there was also a lot of new things on the menu. Lani had never actually had samosas and he should have expected something like this, Odion always knew how to pick places that would allow them to try something new and different. He grinned at Odion, glad he’d slept well and too daft to think otherwise.

Lani thanked the waiter and tossed Odion a grateful smile, he was nowhere near ready, he had barely had a chance to look at the menu. “Any recommendations?” He asked of the redhead as he looked over the menu, some of these sounded very good. Those mimosas looked really good too and Lani was severely tempted but he didn’t want to mix alcohol this early, so he’d stick with water. Lani looked up when Odion spoke and stared at him blankly for a moment uncertain of what Odion was talking about at first. He cocked his head at Odion. Odion wasn’t a very talkative person, Lani knew, he’d definitely opened up a lot over the time that Lani had known him. “Well,” Lani said, move of a verbal pause to give him a second to think. His fingers tapped the edge of the menu, “You could always just say whatever’s on your mind.” That was what Lani did, more or less. “And if that doesn’t work there’s always the weather.” The corner of his lips quirked a bit at his joke. God, small talk was the worst.

Then Odion had Lani’s undivided attention. He swallowed nervously, but when the comment brought a smile to Odion’s face it was like the redhead came alive. Odion had the best smiles, it was light there was an internal light that shone whenever he did, but Lani digressed and Odion had just asked a question. A very strong part of Lani wanted to lie. He wanted to say yes and then lie through his teeth, but Odion knew him better than that. He’d promised himself no lies, no lies anymore, not between them. He met Odion’s gaze and nodded, it was painful and scary to let his walls down but if Odion was doing it as well, it was only fair. His heart protested, it was like being the king of a castle and ordering all of the guards to stand down and all of the doors flung wide open as an army sat at siege at their gates. Only Odion wasn’t an army, he was the one person Lani wanted in. “I’m not sure what to do now,” Lani said and his lips lifted into a smile, “I always thought you were the smart one.” So if Odion was an idiot about Lani, what did that make the telekinetic?

[Odion Martins]

Odion did want to bare himself to Lani, but that couldn’t be all that happened either. Self-revelation was a process, not a one day ordeal. It wouldn’t be healthy to do only one things anyways, whether that be fighting or being silly, a good relationship had everything, theirs was just a bit off the beaten path. But love is love, in beggars and in kings.

Having already memorized the menu, Odion wasn’t sure what to recommend to his, friend. “Food wise, you would probably like the beef samosas,” he said, since Lani was so keen on cheeseburgers, it only made sense. “They’re not too spicy, merely flavorful.” Odion paused in the middle of his explanation. “Have you ever had samosas before?” He made a little triangle with curved points with his hands. “They’re little bundles of dough with meat or vegetables in the middle.” If he knew what pizza pops were, he would have made the comparison, but Odion didn’t really know what junk food was like.

And so, Odion did say what was on his mind. There was no point in looking over memories with someone who didn’t trust him. If Lani wasn’t willing to do this, then there was no point in remembering the past and there couldn’t be a future. So when Lani gave him a nod, Odion nodded in return, feeling his set nearly wrap around him in comfort. Or perhaps that was something else, Lani’s power was often all consuming. Odion was not a knight with an army to contend with, he was on his own. For now.

“Me neither,” Odion admitted, a half smile gracing his features. “I’ve just been making it up as I go along.” Surely Lani didn’t believe that Odion had a plan, did he? The redhead furrowed his brow for a moment, thinking, when the server came back to take their order. Odion didn’t hesitate in asking for three of the larger spiced chicken samosas, but clearly his train of thought had been derailed. He was just itching for Lani to order so the server would go away and they could carry on their conversation.

Watching their server leave, Odion looked back to Lani, instantly softening. Lani certainly received special treatment from Odion. “I don’t think we should start over though, but I would like to be given another chance.” And maybe more than one more chance, because it seemed that he was constantly making things difficult for himself and Lani. “I don’t have any answers, but I like being on the same page with you.” Another smile, and a deep breath. This was a lot harder than he thought it would be, but it was also strangely pleasant. All Odi knew was that he needed Lani back in his life, back by his side. He only ever wanted to do things together.

[Lani Hunter]

That was the hardest part. It was a long and laborious task and Lani had to bare himself as well if they wanted this to work at all. Problem was the idea of opening his heart and baring his soul were comparable to pulling teeth. Lani was glad that Odion had thought of this, it was a nice break from the memories and the hard discussion they had to be having, it was nice to let his walls down in a situation that wasn’t blatantly painful. If they could do this in a benign situation, then they could build into something harder. Lani found himself smiling, it wasn’t comfortable, but it wasn’t a terrible feeling, that fear still existed in his heart and the terror was a hard thing to ignore, but he was able now to do so, it wasn’t crippling.

Lani nodded despite not exactly being sure what Odion was talking about. He then shook his head and listened to the explanation. “Oh,” he said, “Kinda like pizza pockets?” Meat wrapped in pastry, that sounded good in any occasion. Lani lacked the ability to cook, hell after he’d managed to catch rice on fire he’d pretty much given up. So he knew all about junk food, and take out places and anything that was quick and delicious. If he didn’t run around roofs so frequently and eat a decent amount of vegetables he’d be in serious risk of getting out of shape. Admittedly, Lani had been doing a little more working out now that Odion was back, he tried to tell himself that he’d been meaning to do it all along and that it was in no way because of Odion that he was taking more care of himself.

A small smile grew on Lani’s face at their shared wordless agreement. It would take a bit of conscious thought, but that was worth it, Odion was worth it. Lani laughed, Odion would just be winging it. If there was one thing that Lani had learned it was that Odion made plans variable, because he could think on his feet. Lani let his power do as it will and in the back of his mind processed and let the information stand as important or not in the back of his mind. If it was important it would call his attention, if not it would slide past. Lani had stopped completely restricting his power, it wasn’t working, the hard thing with this was letting down his walls and inviting strong emotions could lead to his power acting out, but for now it brushed over Odion for a second. Lani still stood by the idea that Odion’s power was warm.

Lani went ahead and ordered some of the samosas but he got lamb in his, essentially once he discovered that it was an option he definitely wanted to try it. When the server left Lani shrugged at Odion. “Well, you’ve officially taken all of my plans and shaken them up, so I’m game.” No plans, no expectations, Lani didn’t know what was going to happen and planning for it even seemed silly. Being with Odion was worth living life without plans, it was terrifying and Lani was still hoping he could convince Odion of the importance of planning, but he was starting to see Odion’s point from those discussions long ago.

Lani titled his head as he listened and he closed his eyes for a moment gathering his thoughts. Walls down, honesty, Lani felt like he was standing on the edge of a deep pool staring at the water and being told to jump in with no way of being sure he’d reach the surface again. He didn’t have anything to fiddle with now that the menus were gone and so he reached for his water and spun the glass in his hands. He gave a little smile. “I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t want to try again, I honestly can’t figure out why you’re giving me another chance, really.” He said nervously scratching his head and narrowing his eyes at Odion. Of all of the things that had happened between them their biggest fights had been over something Lani had said or done. Lani returned the smile, they were on the same page. “I think that’s a good plan,” he said, starting over would be impossible, they had to face what they had both done and live with it and forgive and then they could move forward. Instead of treating this as though it had never happened they had to learn from it and grow stronger for it. “I’m really sorry about waking you up last night,” Lani said sheepishly.

[Odion Martins]

Odion would rather go through something real than something like a date. Not that a date wasn’t real, but it wasn’t real life. It just seemed like a good idea at the time he had suggested it and he didn’t regret the decision – Lani deserved to have nice things, and if Odion could provide them he would. Perhaps a date seemed strange in the life of someone who was constantly going uphill. A date was like having a break from all the turmoil he had simply grown accustomed to. It was similar to possibly reconnecting with his biological family – scary, and unrealistic.

Odion’s face scrunched in that comical way that showed confusion. “Pizza pockets?” He asked incredulously. Honestly, it was like he had never been down the frozen section of a normal grocery store. It just wasn’t the norm in Europe where everything was fresh unless you went to the American part of town, and he had spent more time on the other side of the pond than he had here. Odion waved his hand around, dismissing Lani’s comparison. “I can assure you now that it’s better than whatever this pizza pocket is.” In any case, Odion would be doing Lani’s poor diet some favours. They were thieves, not beggars.

Genuinely surprised that Lani hadn’t ordered something with his beloved cow, Odion’s facial expression momentarily turned into one that said he was slightly impressed – a half smile with a bit of a nod. He needed to give Lani more credit. But when Lani replied, Odion couldn’t help but smile again. “It wouldn’t be the first time, yeah?” He was sure that Lani thought he had his whole life figured out until they crossed paths. The same thing was happening again, but Lani seemed more at ease with the idea the second time around. But having no plans was what made life exciting, and Odion rarely worried about what lay ahead of him because everything was at his fingertips. It was what had made him so profoundly effective with his power, more so now than ever before. Lani had only gotten a taste of what Odi could do.

Odion looked at the glass Lani was playing with and smiled at it before transferring the glance to Lani. “You took the words right out of my mouth.” Two had to play the game, and they had both lost. Odion was willing to give Lani anything, except a fully-fledged plan of course. Watching Lani’s expressions change from serious to silly made Odion feel like they truly were on the same page. They weren’t about to forget everything that had been between them, and honestly, he didn’t want to. There was much to be gleaned from the past. Chuckling softly at Lani’s apology, Odion simply shook his head. “Are you really?” He asked teasingly. Odion wasn’t sorry, and Lani really shouldn’t be either. Odion picked up the fork beside him and put it on the flat of his palm. “And here I thought I was wanted,” he said, studying the fork as though he had never seen one before. He was thinking about showing Lani a trick, but changed his mind and replaced the utensil on the table. It was better to keep Lani guessing anyways.

Fidgeting slightly, Odion gave Lani a contemplative stare. I could look at him all day if he let me… he thought to himself, a hand going to cover his mouth to hide his smile. He cleared his throat. “Do you like the X-Men movies?” He mumbled behind his hand, the corners of his eyes giving him away.

[Lani Hunter]

If there was a mistake that Lani would never make again if would be pulling that kind of stunt on Odion again. He hadn’t meant to hurt Odion so badly, but that was what had happened. Communication was key and it was something Lani was bad at, but he was willing to work on that. Not only willing, Lani had to work on that. He remembered what they used to be like. Bickering and challenging each other, talking about everything and nothing, there were serious times and there were silly times and there were hard times and Lani missed all of them. He’d said that things couldn’t be as they were before, the trust had been broken on both sides. Lani stood by what he’d said, but that didn’t mean that things couldn’t be better than they had been.

“You know, those cheese and pepperoni things?” He said, he didn’t understand how Odion survived. Lani literally lived out of the frozen section of the grocery store. If he could either buy it and heat it up as leftovers or just pop it in the microwave for a few minutes, Lani was all over that. Lani raised a brow and painted his face with mock skepticism. “I dunno, it doesn’t get much better than pizza in a pocket.” He honestly just wanted to see Odion’s face in reaction to that. Odion had a much more sophisticated palate than Lani did. Well, he didn’t really have a lot of options when the best he could do was the microwave. He dared not use the oven, chances were he’d forget about it and yet again make it look like he was trying to burn down the apartment. At least the microwave turned off when the timer went off.

Lani raised a brow at and gave Odion an innocent shrug. Lani could have beef at any point in time, why not have lamb, besides lamb was delicious when his mother made it for Easter. Lani chuckled and nodded. “I guess so long as you’re in my timeline that’s a fact I have to accept.” He gave Odion a smile. He kept things exciting that was certain. Lani was never going to give up plans. He had big plans, they were overarching plans, they were plans that could be attained without the detail of every moment being dictated. So there were plans, but they’d become malleable. Odion had come in and shaken Lani’s life at its core and Lani found that he didn’t really mind. He wouldn’t stop planning his plans, especially for his heists, there was no way that was stopping. There had to be backup plans of backup plans in case all of the plans went to hell.

Looking at Odion with a tint of surprise in his eyes, Lani smiled warmly at the time turner. “So I guess we’re on the same page?” He asked uncertainly. They had been through too much together to forget about it all. What made them strong wasn’t just the good things, it was the bad things as well. Lani chuckled lightly and shook his head giving Odion a shrug. He watched Odion as Odion looked at the fork. Odion looked better, much better, and Lani found himself biting the inside of his lip as he looked at Odion, fascinated by every feature, every small change of expression, every movement. All so familiar and all so mysterious at the same time. He raised a brow in confusion but let the questions rest in his mind as Odion replaced it on the table. Lani laughed. “Just because I wanted to call didn’t mean I should have. I’m glad I did, but I feel bad for waking you because I couldn’t sleep.” He blushed, he had been feeling so alone and he wanted to hear Odion’s voice. Odion should have no doubts about whether or not he was wanted. It felt a little ridiculous in the wakeful hours. “Okay, so I’m sorry, but I don’t regret it. Maybe that’s better?” Technicalities were killer. Technically by not regretting it, that meant he wasn’t actually sorry at all.

“Do I like the X-Men movies?” Lani repeated as if he hadn’t heard the question and he smiled seeing the light come into Odion’s beautiful eyes. Even hiding it, Odion’s smile was contagious. “Of course,” he replied and cocked his head at Odion, that was a random question. “Do you like the X-Men movies?” Lani asked in return. Were they really going to talk about a movie? Well, he supposed that was something to talk about. “You know I’ve always been jealous of Jean Grey,” he mused aloud, she was infinitely powerful and she didn’t seem to suffer from the constant headaches, though there was that time she turned into the Phoenix and killed everyone, but that was besides the point.

[Odion Martins]

Odion’s scrunched face didn’t change – it was like Lani was talking about eating road kill. “Like pizza,” Odion said, though he wasn’t sure why you’d want that in your pocket at all. Odion wasn’t a good cook, not at all, that had always been Jared’s specialty, so the redhead wasn’t wanting for much, and when Jared wasn’t around, he went out. Input effected output. If he drank, he got drunk, if he ate like a glutton, he wouldn’t be able to jump over rooftops very easily. Odion’s scrunched face turned into surprise for a moment, and then knowing. “Right,” he said, rolling his eyes, “sounds to me like you should take a cooking class.” Odi raised his eyebrows, waiting for Lani’s reaction to that.

Lamb was delicious, Odion couldn’t agree more. Giving Lani a shrug, the redhead thought on what had been said for a moment. “You don’t have to accept it if you don’t want to,” he said rather seriously. If Lani didn’t want him around, Odion would leave. There was an old saying Odion had heard at some point, about letting go those who you loved the most, because you loved them. But Lani was smiling, so it seemed he had accepted his fate – which could’ve been worse than having Odion in his life. The Irishman truly commended Lani for being able to plan, it simply wasn’t his strength though.

Lani’s smile warmed Odion from the inside out. “We are,” he confirmed with a nod, looking from his glass to Lani again. They were going to give each other another chance. It didn’t mean a clean slate, it just mean the slate was there, in existence for something to occur on. Odion caught the look of interest in Lani’s eye as he replaced the fork – some things were simply more important than little tricks. “I didn’t mind,” Odion said truthfully, “not one bit.” He pondered for another second or two, the time between his words had never really bothered him that much, though maybe it did make him appear a little bit socially awkward at times. “Just means I’ll have to return the favour some time,” he said, only teasing, but knowing Lani, he may start not being able to sleep properly in anticipation of Odion maybe needing something from him. “In any case, I’m glad you called,” he said, a smirk on his face, “very spontaneous of you.” Though once again knowing Lani, he had probably fought himself on whether he should or not for a while before he actually did.

Odion laughed outright and removed his hand from his face. “Well that’s good news,” he said, figuring that Lani would get the hint. But he didn’t, and it only amused Odion further. “I don’t know yet,” he said, giving Lani an adventurous gaze, “I guess we’ll find out later.” As Lani continued talking about presumably someone in the movie serious, Odion found the statement curious. This Jean Grey could be anyone, male or female, so he made the only connection he could knowing as little as he did about the series. “Why? Is it something to do with telekinesis?” Maybe they were talking about movies, but they were also talking about Lani, and Odion was infinitely interested in that subject area.

[Lani Hunter]

Lani nodded and couldn’t help the impish grin that grew on his face as Odion looked at him like he was talking gross nonsense. It was pizza, and it was folded into a pocket, it was basically the best invention ever. Lani laughed, he’d have to make Odion eat a few, then he would know. Lani wrinkled his nose at the idea of a cooking class. “I don’t need a cooking class,” he countered, “ I just don’t have time to cook.” Okay, so a little white lie wasn’t off the table was it? Odion need only ask Adam about Lani’s cooking and he’d probably get the full story with a great deal of added embellishment from Lani’s roommate. “Do you cook a lot?” He asked curiously. Lani knew Odion was a man of many talents, there were things he was better at, but he had some talents that were rather surprising.

The telekinetic gave Odion a curious look and met his eyes. “That’s just it isn’t it? None of this is something we have to do,” he waved his hands between the two of them and the world they lived in. “We’re not pawns of fate, Odion.” Lani was here because he wanted Odion in his timeline. And if that meant that Lani had to accept the fact that Odion would forever be tearing up his well laid plans, well, that was a small price to pay. Lani wasn’t accepting his fate, he was throwing fate out of the equation altogether. He was accepting that this was who Odion was, and he could accept that or not, and he chose to accept that because there was a strong part of him that wanted to be with Odion, even as the equally strong part screamed at him to run away as fast as he could. No one would make this decision for him, that was something Lani promised himself and his heart.

With a smile Lani finally stopped playing with his water and lifted it to his lips to take a sip. Lani smiled, glad that Odion wasn’t upset with him, though Lani was still working through the embarrassment of some of the things he’d just come out and said when he was tired. Turned out honesty came best the telekinetic in one of two ways, in waves on anger or waves of delusional states, such as being tired or drunk. Granted there was also a whole lot of other strange things that got caught up in the mix that had to be sifted through to get to the truth. Lani laughed and shook his head. “Fair enough,” he agreed, nodding his head as he relented to the fact that he deserved that. It would probably be one of those times when he was actually sleep well, if it was his luck. Odion had called him lucky, but he’d never specified whether that luck with in his favor or not. As of late it was feeling rather against him. Laughter bubbled out of his throat. “Not that spontaneous,” he claimed and rested a finger on his lips as he thought back for a moment. It was partially accidental if he recalled correctly, but he was glad his finger had slipped.

Odion’s laugh was like music to his ears and it made Lani’s smile grow and reach into his eyes. Lani was confused as to why it had come up randomly in the conversation but he was gonna roll with it. Lani’s brow raised and he completely missed the implication that they were going to see the movie because he was too busy staring at Odion like he’d grown a second head. He remembered that Odion didn’t have a good awareness of pop culture like music and movies but Lani had thought surely Odion had seen the X-Men. Then Odion asked the question and Lani let out a soft laugh. “Oh, Odion,” he said in mock sadness shaking his head as if he were terribly sad that Odion had gone all of this time and not been opened up to the Marvel Universe’s X-Men. Lani wasn’t aware they were talking about him, he thought they were talking about the movie so he felt obliged to open Odion’s eyes. “I think we might have to have a movie marathon,” he said with a happy spark in his eyes. “She’s basically the telekinetic every telekinetic wishes they could be,” he claimed, he was exaggerating, he could count on two or three fingers the number of telekinetics he knew, none of whom he’d ever discussed this with.

“She can control things on a molecular level that I can’t ever hope to understand,” he explained, he assumed Odion had learned enough about Lani’s power at this point to understand that Lani’s power had limits. Sure he could tell if two things were touching and he could understand how things worked if he let his power play with them long enough, but individual molecules, that was far beyond his capabilities. He certainly couldn’t feel the microscopic dust in the air, otherwise he’d be able to See things beyond the four walls and ceiling and floor. She could also Touch people and fly, but that was beside the point. “But Odion, there’s so many powers, so many strong powers, it’s nothing like it is in real life.” Lani blinked at Odion, his expression blanking for a moment as he pondered the fact that real life in this case had meta humans in it. To think just three years ago that would have been a preposterous thought.

[Odion Martins]

Odion laughed at the excuse, shaking his head. “That sounds like a lot of rubbish to me,” he said, a smug grin on his face, which promptly disappeared once Lani asked if he cooked. He shrugged. “Never really have to,” he said, which was why he didn’t bother. They both were doing the same thing and giving each other hell for it, which both amusing and annoying to Odion because that meant he was both in the wrong and in the right. As was Lani. But at this point in time, Odion wasn’t going to offer that they go together. If they fought enough now as it was, he could only imagine what a cooking class with the two of them in it may look like.

As Lani once again contradicted himself, Odion did his best to simply listen rather than come up with the next best rebuttal. The line about not being pawns of fate struck Odion at his core. Only mere moments ago he had been thinking the same thing. Yes he and Lani kept crossing lines, and perhaps at first it had been unintentional, but there had to have been a point even at the earlier stages of their relationship, where the two of them were making a conscious effort to seek the other out. Maybe they were growing and had always been doing so, even during their time apart. “I’d rather play chess than be a pawn,” he said by way of agreement, a silly grin crossing his face. “If I were to be a piece in a chess match at all, I’d like to be Queen.”

There was easy laughter between them in all the right places, and even though Odion knew they had some crumbling bridges to cross in the near future, he had the feeling that they would get over them, walking or floating. The smile snapped off of Odion’s face as Lani feigned feeling sorry for him. “What?” He asked. Maybe Lani really didn’t like X-Men? It wasn’t as though Odion had had the time to indulge such things, what with being an orphan, having to fend for himself, and just recently, being an ex-drug addict. Somehow watching movies never seemed like a priority. In fact, the redhead hardly spent any time at all in front of any sort of screen. Reading, now that was a different story. More confusion crossed Odion’s eyes. Sometimes, when one knew so many languages, colloquialisms were lost in translation. Such as movie marathon, what did that mean exactly? “Oh really?” Odion asked. “I didn’t know telekinetics had these discussions,” he teased, glad to know that this Jean Grey was a woman. “What makes her such an idol?”

As Lani began to explain, Odion nodded once. “She’s a fictional character,” he stated simply, “if normal people knew how hard it is to have powers, they wouldn’t want them. It’s all about what makes money.” Yet another reason why Odi didn’t waste his time watching something he couldn’t understand the point of. Tilting his head in curiosity, Odi’s brow furrowed at the statement. Instead of turning things philosophical he only smiled. “It sounds like you really like these movies,” he said, sitting straight again. He really did behave just like a cat. “I thought there was only one, that one that’s being advertised in theatres right now,” he added purposefully. Maybe Lani would get the hint, eventually.

[Lani Hunter]

Lani raised his hands and gave Odion an innocent shrug, allowing Odion to think of his excuse as he wished. Raising a brow at Odion’s faltering smile at the return question spoke a lot louder than the excuse that he gave. He laughed and nodded, understanding the situation. A cooking class for Lani was out of the question, he didn’t see the point and he was surviving well enough as it was. It was probably for the best Odion didn’t offer, at this point in time, in the same cooking class, chances were one of them would die. Lani did assume wrongly when he ventured a guess toward how Odion kept himself fed. “The frozen food aisle?” He guessed. If Odion did eat frozen food then he had no right to accuse Lani of poor eating. Though, if Adrianna over the past several months hadn’t come over to give him a home cooked meal every once and a while he probably would have completely lost all of the healthy habits he’d gained having a dining hall available.

A smile grew on Lani’s face, he’d never played chess against Odion, he could only imagine how much fun that would be. He nodded and his smile broadened. “Most powerful piece on the board,” he said his mind wandering a little bit, Odion was no Queen, he was a prince, a king in training. It did suit Odion though, to be the strongest and most variable of all of the pieces. He was unpredictable and likely to sneak his way through his allies and strike before his opponent ever realized he was vulnerable. “Would you be the one to hang back and survey the field or would you rush in at the start?” He asked, curious about Odion, “You know chess is a game that required strategy and planning,” he added taking a drink and quirking a brow at Odion. He couldn’t possibly play chess without laying out a plan, or several in fact accounting for every move. Odion would probably hate the play against Lani, he took a long time to make a move.

Lani smiled back at Odion and just shook his head, he was not going to explain himself. He had thought surely being at Hammel at some point he had gone to the movies, but he supposed he shouldn’t be too surprised. He waved it off and continued the conversation. “Oh yes,” Lani replied jokingly with a nod, “It’s unanimous, all one of us agree.” He had missed talking to Odion like this, just talking, without heavy hearted topics and a great deal of emotional weariness to follow. Lani couldn’t lie, he missed talking to Odion about everything, all the things that bothered him and kept him up at night, but this was nice. Lani resisted the urge to roll his eyes. He wasn’t delusional, he knew she was a fictional character, that didn’t mean he didn’t want to be like her. Though he couldn’t argue with that. “Well they’re doing a very good job of it.” That franchise was well funded, it might not be as big as some others but it definitely had a strong fan base.

“They’re really good,” Lani verified. “Oh, Odion,” Lani said in the same tone as before and he broke into laughter. “There’s… god there’s four… no, five.” He pondered for a moment, “Six counting this one. I think.” He was busy counting and then it hit Lani. “Ah,” his smile renewed, “So we’re doing brunch and a movie? I’ve heard really good things about this one. So you’ve really never seen any of the other movies?” He asked resting his elbows on the table. He rested his chin in one of his hands as he considered Odion. “You’re not much of a movie fan are you?” He guessed. Lani considered himself well rounded, he loved reading, but he also enjoyed movies. Sometimes it was interesting to see what it was that was read, other times it was frustrating because it wasn’t anything like he would have thought it was. That was the benefit of a good novel, everyone could interpret things as they wished.

[Odion Martins]

Odion smiled and shook his head ‘no’. Maybe he deserved that jab, but Lani should never assume things. “Jared Bell,” he supplied, as though it were top secret, “he’s quite the cook that one. Not much for presentation, but god it tastes good.” Jared had plenty of natural talents, apparently tending to others in all aspects was one of them. “Or I go out. I can’t cook worth shit.” At least it seemed they had finally found some common ground between their otherwise opposite habits.

Tapping the table twice, Odion was happy to hear that Lani knew how to play chess. “Exactly,” he said, watching Lani steadily. And to think, he had learned so much more about Lani in just a few minutes of talking. Granted, Lani had also learned a lot about him. Odion simply could not pillage what he wanted and leave his heart locked away. And besides, if he too didn’t share, then Lani wouldn’t be smiling like he was now. It made Odi happy to see Lani happy. If Lani were a chess piece, he would probably be the knight, who was tricky in where he could go, but could never not go in an ‘l’ formation. After all, for Lani planning was key to survival. “Ah,” Odion said, nodding in agreement, “but it is a game nonetheless, and opponents can always be tricked into thinking you do have a plan. Besides, who’s to say I wouldn’t cheat?” The redhead smiled from ear to ear, imagining a game board in front of him. It seemed that he had struck gold with the topic of chess. “Rushing at the start causes irrational decisions,” he said, raising an eyebrow. He didn’t say who would make the irrational decision.

Laughing, Odion shook his head. “Maybe I should start a time turners club,” he mused, completely serious, though in all reality he wasn’t. He’d never met another time turner, and guessed that if he had, it wouldn’t end well. Now he was wondering just how much revenue these movies made, and seeing as Lani had just informed him that there were six, they must be doing quite well. Maybe there was something to this whole corporation business. “Good thing I’m in business school,” he said, just Lani seemed to get the point of this whole conversation. Usually Odion didn’t like talking about things he knew nothing about, why make himself vulnerable unless it was worth the cost? Nodding, Odion felt like Lani was really, and truly looking at him, maybe even past the surface. He shook his head quickly, smiling as he looked down at the table and blinked a couple times. “No, not really,” he chanced a glance back up at Lani, “but I thought you would.” Odion offered a gentle smile, as though he were trying to get out of something and had been caught red handed.

When their food came out, Odion thanked the server and pulled all three of his apart so they could cool off. “God these smell amazing,” he said, looking over at Lani with a grin. “The lamb is delicious, you made a good choice.” Of course, he would only think to say that now, after the fact. Sometimes it was hard to think straight around Lani.

[Lani Hunter]

Lani’s eyebrows jump toward his hairline in surprise. “Really? Jared?” Lani would never have pegged Jared as a cook in a million years. Lani laughed and his face tinted a little bit pink as he ducked his head. “Me either,” he admitted, “Last time I tried I set rice on fire…” His face little more than pink now with embarrassment. Rice was cooked in water, Lani had to be the only person in the history of ever to set it on fire. Lani wasn’t just a bad cook, he was a dangerous one, if they did a cooking class they’d be doing regular eyebrow checks. Odion should join the club of people who were eventually going to starve for lack of ability to cook. Though Lani didn’t put it past Odion to learn, and he wanted to learn too, but there were actual biohazards to be concerned about if he mixed the wrong thing.

It was amazing what a conversation could do when it didn’t involve them yelling at each other. A knight did have one advantage, as the Queen couldn’t make the same move that the knight could. Lani nodded in agreement and gave Odion a smile. “I don’t think you’d cheat. It wouldn’t be a challenge that way,” he claimed, knowing Odion, he could cheat, he could and Lani would probably never know. He opened a hand in a gesture toward Odion, seeing his point as well, “But being flexible is also important.” He would relent to that fact, there were times when planning was important and there were times when need for action didn’t allow for remaking of plans. It was something Lani knew he had to work on. Lani cocked his head at Odion with interest, “Or would they just appear to be irrational?” All part of a clever plan and tricky to nail down. Often times things that were so desperately random and irrational were all part of a giant web of plans.

Lani smiled at Odion’s musing, he had never met another time controller either, but they had to be out there somewhere. Nodding, a thought occurred to him. “What gave you the idea for business school?” He asked, besides the initial information he’d never really gotten to ask about it. The fact that Odion had just appeared back in Vermont had occupied most of Lani’s concern, but now he wanted to know what was on Odion’s mind. Something had changed and Lani wasn’t quite sure when this change had started to take form, perhaps being honest about his fears and seeking Odion for help. When he looked at Odion now he didn’t see something that was, he saw his best friend and as much as he was afraid he saw his love and it was good to have him back, even as they were now, a little distant and cautious. “We don’t have to if you don’t want to,” he said with a soft smile, he’d really only mentioned a movie offhand.

Lani was distracted as their waiter came and their food smelled wonderful. Lani nodded in agreement matching his grin and looking at the samosas with interest and a touch of wariness. “Yeah,” he agreed and poked it with his fork wondering if he should cut them or something, he looked at Odion and then raised his eyes to Odion’s face hoping he would be able to follow the redheads lead. Lani finally cut off a small piece and sampled it. It was very hot. He now realized why Odion had given them a moment to cool. He chased the piece with water and swallowed feeling the heat through his throat. He must have been making all sorts of entertaining faces at the moment. “That is really good,” he said a hand hovering in front of his mouth as he let it rest open as if that was going to help the burning sensation on his tongue. He took another drink of water and held it in his mouth for a moment. He flushed with color, he would make a fool of himself with a very attractive Odion having a front seat view. He was going to let those cool for a while, though the taste was delicious and he wanted to keep eating. “Good choice, Odion.”

[Odion Martins]

Odion smirked, "I know, it doesn't really seem fitting." Jared was a friendly chap, and the loyalist of friends, but Odion would have never guessed that he could cook worth a damn. Odion laughed lightly. Lani burning rice, now that he could imagine. "I don't even remember the last time I tried to cook," he said, his memories blurry as it hadn't been something he deemed worth remembering so why bother?

"True," Odion said, "but sometimes cheating can be just as satisfactory." Hopefully Lani would catch on, and realize the redhead was now talking about pickpocketing. Yes he could do it without stopping time, but sometimes it didn't matter how it was done, but rather that it was. Sometimes it was done for the sheer thrill of the game, which was more like chess and in this case, Lani was correct. Odion smiled and shrugged. Much like his magic tricks, he wasn't going to give anything away, especially since Lani seemed to like molecular control of his telekinesis, Odi didn't have anything to worry about. "Fancy a game some time?" He asked, envisioning the two of them playing across the board. It could be splendid - it could be horrendous.

"Oh," Odion said, a little taken aback by the question. "Charming people seems to be the only thing I'm good at," he said, using his hands as he spoke. "That, and conning them. Besides, knowing a handful of languages is bound to be an asset in the business world. Dealing with foreign countries and what not," he said, giving his reasons in point form. Basically, it was legal, and he thought it was something he could be good at that didn't require a lot of work so he could continue with his... extracurriculars.

It was nice to be talking with Lani again, for the sake of finding and knowing, and not fighting. Odion was going to try his hardest to make it last. "I know," Odion said, grinning, "but it's for you." Lani was right, they didn't have to go to a movie. They also didn't have to have brunch, but none of this was necessary, which was what made it so grand.

A puzzled look overcame Lani's face, and Odion laughed a little, only because of the faces Lani was making, not because he was pleased the blond had been burned. "You alright?" He asked, reflexively reaching across the table to playfully tap Lani's hand, like everything was going to be okay. Odion smiled at his own gesture momentarily, hoping it was alright, and then retreated lest Lani shoo him away. "I'm glad you like it," he said, looking down at his own plate. The samosas were steaming a little too much still, so Odion glanced back at Lani for more conversation. "You'll have to pick a place for next time."