Unstoppable Force vs Immovable Object [Eli]

[Eli Morrison]

Oh. Oh

Eli froze for a moment, his eyes going wide. Mii...pregnant? That was so many levels of not good. He didn't know Darryl well. More by reputation than anything else. And he'd gone and...

Well, to be fair, from the sound of it, Mii was also a willing participant. He couldn't go blaming Darryl for all of this, even though at the moment he--rather irrationally--wanted to find the older man and hit him repeatedly. Which was odd, as he hadn't had any violent emotions towards anyone else in years. No one other than...

Non-specific deity, Eli was not the person to talk to about this. Granted, his mother had been nearly ten years younger than Mii when she had gotten pregnant with him. And then she'd run away and married an abusive bastard who was not his father. This was a completely different situation.

And Eli had a feeling he was going to have to remind himself of this fairly often. This was about Mii. Not his mother. Not him. He had to be there for her, no matter where he was coming from.

Tentatively, he stepped closer and put his hand more solidly on her shoulder, ready to pull her into a hug if she needed it. "I don't know what you should do either." He was no expert here, except on one way not to handle it. "But whatever you do, I'm going to be here for you." And he hesitated for a moment, before decided that yes, seeing her this nervous and unhappy was an appropriate time for him to hug her. So he drew his best friend into a tight hug, trying to be supportive, protective, or whatever it was that Mii needed right now.

[Midori Hawkins]

Eli’s reaction was everything Mii had figured would happen. It wasn’t exactly something she could have eased into. How the hell did you admit you were pregnant without freaking your best friend out? For the record, despite spending a bit of time with one Darryl Bond, she still didn’t know him all that well. Which made this whole thing so much worse.

Now she’d said it, dropped the bomb, so to speak, she had to explain. The way it stood now, she sounded... well... easy. And it wasn’t like that. Not at all. She didn’t want Eli to think that, either. She had to do something.

The firmer touch on her shoulder was a little comforting, but she was still riddled with anxiety. She realized too late that this was probably not the best place to be having this conversation. “I know. I didn’t expect you to. I just... don’t know.”

And then he hugged her. When it came to Eli, hugs were rare. She could count on one hand the amount of times he’d voluntarily hugged her. But he was doing it now. She automatically hugged back, pushing any previous thoughts about distractions and shopping away. Pressed against him, she tried not to let her emotions get the better of her as she hastily explained. “I didn’t mean to, Eli. It just happened. He asked for my help with something and then he kissed me and we ended up in his room and there was vodka and rum involved and I didn’t mean for it to happen.” God, she didn’t even want to date Darryl, and now she was stuck having a baby with him? Maybe she needed to try Eli’s way of life. He didn’t seem to get into any trouble. “I’m sorry.” She didn’t even know why she was apologizing.

[Eli Morrison]

When she mentioned the alcohol, Eli's arms tightened around her shoulders. She knew about his singular distaste for the stuff. And though he didn't judge her for drinking--she was an adult, and his best friend--he was going to resent the hell out of Darryl for that.

He'd read books about grief, about handling difficult situations, about unplanned pregnancies, but still he didn't know what to say. Eli assumed the most comforting thing would be a gentle pat on the back and assurance that everything was going to be okay. But just because he said it didn't make it true. He wasn't going to say something he didn't know was true, and he didn't think she expected him to either. No, "Everything is going to be okay," was trite.

"Don't say you're sorry to me. Mii... you haven't done anything wrong." Sometimes, things like this happened. It just sucked when they happened to people like Mii, who didn't deserve to have her life thrown upside down right now. She hadn't even been working at Hammel for a year yet.

So Eli decided to take the lead on this one. He wasn't good at this, but he was going to try. "We can do this another day. This weekend. I promise, we'll come back here and shop on Saturday and I won't complain at all." She seemed struggling not to cry, and he assumed she would prefer not talking in public about this. "Let's skip to going back home and ordering food and seeing Zero." He knew he failed when it came to being comforting. But his pretty little dog was much better at it. They could talk at home, and if Mii needed to cry, no one would judge her.

[Midori Hawkins]

God, did she ever know about Eli’s dislike of alcohol. It was what had made her reluctant to even mention it in the first place. She always felt guilty, because she knew he hated it. But for her, it wasn’t often. She was far from an alcoholic. It just didn’t take much to get her tipsy, and once she was tipsy, she was far more easily influenced.

Yeah, Eli could resent Darryl. A little.

At least he was smart enough to avoid the clichéd “it’s going to be okay” thing. It was the last thing Mii wanted to hear. She’d probably get it from her parents. Her brothers, well… one would laugh at her misfortune (thank you, Zach), and the other would probably lecture her on the evils of alcohol, and then offer his support. She didn’t want sympathy. Hell, if anything, she wanted to be yelled at. Told off, for putting herself in this position. But it didn’t happen.

“I know, but it feels like it. This is just so… weird.” She’d wanted a baby. Yes. She’d admit it. But not now. First she’d wanted to find her own Prince Charming. And Darryl was no prince. And she wasn’t sure he had the potential to be one, either. Not for her. They were just too different.

Snuggled into her best friend, Mii almost wasn’t listening to him. But she caught what he was saying, and God, didn’t it make sense. She needed a distraction, and this just wasn’t working anymore. Seeing Zero, that might help matters. “Okay,” she agreed meekly. “Let’s go see Zero.” She didn’t mind postponing this little trip. It wasn’t nearly as necessary anymore. Yes, Eli still needed work clothes, but now wasn’t the time. She let go of him, pressing her hand to her eyes for a moment. “Can we go now?” As in, right this second? Please? “I think I need a dog hug.” Not to say Eli hugs were bad in any way, shape, or form. She just knew the dog would be happier to be held than her best friend was.

[Eli Morrison]

Eli gently took the shirt from her hands and put it with the others he'd discarded on the table. He wasn't planning too far ahead at the moment, but right now his goal was to get Mii out of there, to someplace more private. Even the walk back to his apartment would be better than in here, where there were people shopping and selling stuff. Away from any and all other people would be ideal right now.

When they got back to his apartment, he made sure to distract Mrs. Perry by purchasing a loaf of bread, with the vague idea of making garlic bread with it. (Clearly, he'd heard James mention something about cooking when people were upset. He was way out of his league here, so he was drawing on any inspiration that came to mind.) That allowed for Mii to head upstairs without being bothered, and when he joined her, she already had Zero on her lap, and the little dog was licking her face.

"Good girl, Zero." Eli murmured, thankful that his companion was more talented at this comforting thing than he was. He didn't have instinct here, but Zero, ever-loving Zero did. (He was absolutely going to give her a treat tonight. She deserved it.)

After a moment of hedging, cleaning up his apartment a little--even though Mii had seen it at its worst, and this wasn't it--Eli sat down beside her and started to gently scratch Zero's ears. He didn't know what to say, or what kind of help he could offer.

The last time he'd known anyone in this situation, he had been the problem.

"Mii...whatever you need. I'm here." Non-specific deity, were the words even coming out of his mouth in the right order? This was all he could offer. Not advice. He wished that his best friend would suddenly develop telepathy, since he already knew what he thought was the right thing to say, if she were to ask him what she should do. He could handle anything except a direct request for advice.

[Midori Hawkins]

However far ahead Eli was thinking, it was a good plan. If she was going to cry, Mii didn’t want to be around so many people. She felt completely jumbled up inside. She’d hoped telling someone would make her feel better. Feel less alone. And while it had done that, now she had bigger problems. Namely, someone knew. She trusted Eli not to judge her on her regrettable actions, but at the same time, what if he did? What if he told her she should do something she didn’t want to do?

Her mind worked on overdrive the entire walk back to Eli’s apartment. She’d calm down once she saw Zero. The little dog had a way of making her feel better, no matter what the problem was. So while Eli was downstairs, she took the cue to head up. Zero was already down from her post on the couch when she came through the door. “Hi, girl,” she said softly, flopping down on the couch. She was glad Eli didn’t have rules about the dog and couch, because Zero jumped up and settled into her lap, licking her face. Mii didn’t say anything to her for a moment, just wrapped her arms around the furry bundle.

Once Eli was upstairs, Mii tucked her face against Zero’s fur, murmuring softly to her. She didn’t expect the dog to be able to fix her problems. Hell, she didn’t expect that of Eli, either. She didn’t think anyone would be able to solve them. Briefly, she toyed with the idea of speaking to Sean about it, but she didn’t want to bother him with her petty problems when they had a criminal on the loose. That was where their focus needed to be now. Which meant that her job needed even more atten –

Oh shit. Her job. How much longer could she keep travelling? She didn’t know, and that inspired a fresh wave of tears to threaten to fall. (She didn’t know why that idea upset her so much.)

When her best friend was beside her, Midori shifted so that she still had her hands on the dog, but she rested her head on Eli’s shoulder. Normally she was careful with contact around him, she knew he wasn’t fond of it, but she needed it right now. She just hoped he’d understand that. “I don’t know what I need,” she admitted. She needed to tell Darryl. And James. And her family. Somehow. With a half smile, she tried to make light of the situation. “Can you just hit Darryl for me?” Okay, not funny. She knew that. She took a slow, deep breath before trying again. “I just need someone to tell me my options. I can’t think about it.” She knew what she didn’t want to do. And, deep down, she knew what she did want to do. She just didn’t know what to do about Darryl, about her job, about anything. “Maybe I should talk to Sean...”

[Eli Morrison]

Eli just raised his eyebrow at her. Only Mii could get away with joking about him performing any kind of violence on anyone. He shook his head slowly, the sarcasm on his face easily readable. "No. I'm not going to hit Darryl. I'm a lot bigger than him and it wouldn't be fair." But they could only be lighthearted for so long.

Options. Fuck. This was the conversation he didn't want to be a part of. Carefully, he moved his arm so it was around her shoulders in a kind of half-hug. But what he couldn't do in security in comfort, he could make up for in cold, sheer information. "There is a clinic in Burlington, if you want to...terminate." He couldn't help but be clinical about this. Though Mii was older, with a degree and a job and a support network....

All Eli could think about was that his mother's life would have been better if she'd chosen that option.

After a pause that lasted way longer than it should have, he forced himself to continue. "There is adoption, too." As a librarian, he had a responsibility to keep patrons' borrowing records a secret. But as Mii's best friend, he had the responsibility to to whatever he could to help her. "Though circumstances have no doubt changed now, a while ago Chase came to me, looking for books about parenting. Though I don't know how they'd feel about it now, with Nikolai and with everything that's happened, but... they're close."

Of course, that was skipping some very important steps along the way. "Yeah, you probably should talk to Sean. But you have to tell Darryl. I'll come with you, if you want, but you have to tell him about this." He didn't know what she wanted from him. But whatever it was, he was going to be there.

Funny. Loyalty had never been one of his major traits, simply because he'd never felt this amount of loyalty towards anyone else. But whatever Mii needed, whoever she needed him to be, Eli would be ready. He just wasn't there quite yet.

[Midori Hawkins]

The hitting comment was supposed to be lighthearted. Too bad it didn’t work. If she really wanted someone to say they’d hit Darryl, she’d have to call up Zach, or even Corbin. Corbin was never violent, but she suspected he had the ability, when it came to his sister. “You’re no fun,” she mumbled softly. But she didn’t mean it. Now just wasn’t the time for fun.

If anyone could give her cold facts, it was Eli. Mii knew that. And she knew what she was doing by asking him. She would get her facts. Keeping her hands on Zero, idly stroking her fur, she sighed and listened. But the first option made her twitch. “No.” This may not have been planned, but God, she couldn’t do that. Not ever. If she’d been in a less vulnerable mood, she might have gone so far as to give his leg a light smack. But her fingers were occupied scratching Zero. “No. I can’t do that.”

They sat in silence, until Eli finally started again. Adoption wasn’t something she’d considered yet. She was still too much in the shock state of things to think about it. At least it was better than terminating. When he mentioned her boss, she bit her lip. If she chose that route, that would have to be the most awkward conversation she’d ever have with him. “I guess so.” It could work. Maybe. Maybe she’d even get to see the baby then.

And then again, maybe she didn’t want to give it up. Despite not wanting to fall madly in love with, and marry, it’s father, maybe... she could do this on her own. She toyed with that idea for a moment, until she realized Eli was talking to her again. Talking to Sean, she could handle, but telling Darryl? “I know,” she murmured. “You don’t have to come. He’ll probably freak out, but you don’t have to come.” Yes, because that gives him incentive to let you go on your own. She didn’t know what she wanted, or needed, from Eli yet. Just knowing he was going to be there, supporting her, made her feel infinitely better. She smiled and rubbed Zero’s ear. “... Can we just forget about this for now and order dinner?” She had her facts, she had her options, and she had an idea of what she needed to do. For now, she just wanted to shut the door.