IC Voicemail

[evowhisperer]

 *There's nothing but a long silence after the ringing stops. If the caller's been looking at their screen, there are plain black-and-white letters on display:*

Please leave a message after the beep.

*Beep.*

Comments

[evowhisperer]

*Cesar's face tightens, then relaxes: it was whisky, and he can feel the burn all the way to his stomach. It leaves him warm, and he lets out a sigh that breaths out tension, leaning against the counter.*

{I'm not here to have a heart to heart. You said you would tell me about--twins. Your original's. Please finish the subject.}

*'So Cesar can hurry up and leave' goes unsaid. Cesar avoids his gaze, unwilling to be friendly but unwilling to actually leave yet. Is this how pathetic he is, now? That he's crawling back to his ex-lover's copycat for trace morsels of the man's life when he won't even ask the man for them himself? It's shameful. Cesar reaches for another shot.*

[callmeryuzaki]

Oh, all right. So... Misa and Lazarus are pretty serious. Back when they thought I was gone they talked a lot on the Network, and it seems like they started dating pretty quick after you left, actually. When Lazarus was...

[He twists a finger at his temple, whistling in a "cuckoo" intonation and widening his eyes exaggeratedly.]

I think she helped Tony out a lot and their love blossomed. They started fucking pretty shortly thereafter and when you're humping that much, because you're out in the middle of nowhere surrounded by farm animals, well... accidents happen. And sometimes, they're accidents that young fertile people just get ecstatic about.

They're going to be crackers, you know. Completely crackers. Poor kids. Good thing you got out in time.

[He nods toward the remaining shots, taking the other whiskey one.]

Well, drink up, you must want to.

[evowhisperer]

*By the time Ryuzaki is done Cesar is hunched on his elbows at the bar, staring stonishly at the now-empty shotglass in his hand and fiercely regretting everything. He regrets coming here. He regrets demanding to be told. He regrets not buying more shots, and he regrets being somewhere that he doesn't feel comfortable getting well and truly knock-out smashed. He'd probably get robbed, or drugged, or worse, hook up with the clone.*

*Cesar puts the glass down, nodding once and rising to his feet. Oh--hm. Two shots taken on top of a system that was already well on its way to intoxication hasn't done anything for his coordination, and he knows he's probably going to sway the whole way home. Oh well.*

[callmeryuzaki]

[Ryzuaki tilts his head, the very portrait of sympathy.]

Let me remind you that you wanted to know this stuff. It sucks, but... with the way she was throwing herself at him I guess you can't blame him. He's not like us. He's barely even a person. He takes all his cues from people who he assumes know better.

[He presses down on Cesar's shoulder when the man staggers to his feet.]

Sit, stay. Just where do you have to be, anyway?

[evowhisperer]

*Cesar has just enough time for the memory of Lazarus straddling him behind a hedge to come to mind, face flushed with the absurdity of an adventure gone ridiculous, and of Lazarus touching his wrist with his fingers in his mouth, changing a silly thing into one that was unmistakably arousing. Snippets of time, both of them Lazarus-driven--*

*Cesar sits back down heavily, not really having the balance to fight the push. He shrugs at the continued touch, sending the copy a hooded look as he starts rising again. The instant he's up he turns to sign.*

{I'm not here for you. You're a copy. Shouldn't you be ashamed of yourself to be so hungry for your original's castoffs?}

*...Hah. Cesar doesn't even care how much that was a self-effacing dig at himself. At this point he just wants to hurt the clone enough that he lets Cesar leave without further cajoling. Cesar's mouth curls in a little sickle of a smile, and his teeth glow in the black-light.*

[callmeryuzaki]

[The doppelganger's goofy smirk fades, darkening into something vicious. Cesar's crossed a line, exploited his one truly sensitive area.]

Don't forget. I got there first, and you're here now because I told you to be, and it's Ryuzaki. Not "copy." Don't forget it.

[He stands, now, pressing closer, looming over the seated Cesar and fingerspelling the name.]

R-Y-U-Z-A-K-I.

[evowhisperer]

*Cesar sits back down heavily as Ryuzaki's height increases the weight on him. He's not concerned--hell, he smirks right up into his face, vindictively pleased.*

{You thought you were special. Did you forget how I dropped you as soon as I knew what you were? You're not calling the shots, and even if you were first, you weren't last. You didn't last.}

*Ha ha. He made a pun. The humor in his chest is sick, like he's cutting his heart out to fling blood in Ryuzaki's face. It's worth it, though--he wouldn't trade this grim edge of satisfaction for anything.*

[callmeryuzaki]

[For a second, Ryuzaki looks like he wants to punch Cesar. Then, he's reaching into his back pocket, pulling out a pair of tablets.]

This is my friend Molly. Hello, Molly.

[It goes on his tongue, and then he holds the other tablet in his open palm.]

I get it. You're mad at Lazarus. You want to take so much out on him. Why don't you take this other tablet, we can get a private room, and you can do whatever you want? Call me Lazarus if you want. Hit me if you want. Try to break something. That's got to appeal to you just a little bit.

[evowhisperer]

*This... isn't according to the script he was expecting. Cesar picks the tablet up with a dubious look, holding it between his thumb and forefinger. Then he looks up at Ryuzaki.*

*He'd be lying if he said he wasn't tempted. He's never tried it before, but he's heard--... well, it'd still be a poor idea, right? Probably. Besides, this is Ryuzaki, and the man had been on the verge of punching him just seconds ago. Since when was 'restraint' in the man's vocabulary?*

*Cesar doesn't reply with signs. He just sits there with the tablet, giving Ryuzaki a look that speaks for itself.*

[callmeryuzaki]

[Ryuzaki takes the answerless opportunity to resume his seat on his own barstool, facing Cesar, smirk returning to his pale face.]

It is as fun as you've heard. Not addictive. Not dangerous. I can't say the same for the other activity I'm proposing. Those private rooms? Anything goes, and I do mean anything.

In addition to not crying and curling up in a ball and calling you by your dead brother's name, I actually can take a punch now. Why don't we check them out, turn this nightclub into a fight club of our own and blow off some steam?

[evowhisperer]

*Ouch. Hell. How does Ryuzaki know about those details? Lazarus must have talked about them over the network. Probably to Misa, actually. It feels like someone's drained the fight out of him, and Cesar leans his elbows on the bar, letting his shoulders relax.*

*The tablet is brought to his face--but he just presses it against his forehead, staring moodily at the drink display. This wasn't the way he wanted this to go, but that tablet is a twist, and it's promising a happy evening. He's heard the stories--happy, surrounded by friends, and maybe even able to just forget his problems and enjoy life clutching lustfully in Ryuzaki's arms. 'No more crying and being mistaken for a man Cesar got killed' indeed. He might even be able to forget that, if he tries hard enough. Would that really be such a terrible thing? He could go back to work the next Monday and forget any of this ever happened. Lazarus would deal with Blaise. All his problems would go away.*

*His face is relaxing, and he gives the tablet a distant look, chewing on the edge of his lip. It's a bad idea. This is a bad place to try anything new like this, especially with--His eyes move to Ryuzaki, giving him a lazy, sidelong look.*

[callmeryuzaki]

[Some of what Ryuzaki "knows" is lucky guesses, and some of it was indeed gleaned from the "safe" Network conversations. It doesn't help that he knows enough about these people to recognize what buttons are the most lucrative to push.

He glances right back at Cesar, meeting his gaze unflinchingly.]

Our little secret. What happens here tonight stays here. But you can't stay where you are, hurting like that... I don't see any point existing that way when you have a choice not to.

[evowhisperer]

*Cesar stares at him heavily for a few seconds more, before his gaze drops. He smiles, laughing silently for a second or two, chest shuddering unsteadily. Ha-ha.*

*The Molly traces an invisible line down his face, towards his mouth, and leaves when it touches a half-smiling corner. He clasps the tablet in a closed fist: it's a goodbye to those fleeting, drunk-glowing dreams of a euphoric evening. He'll take it later, maybe, but not here, and not now.*

*Maybe the doppelganger really does want to see him happy, maybe he doesn't. Either way, though, there's nothing about this that was ever just meant to be about Cesar. Ryuzaki's just saying anything to sooth him, anything to coax him into letting them start something he'd been so determined to stop.*

*He'd almost let it happen again, hadn't he? Cesar rests his cheek on the closed fist, smiling at Ryuzaki. The clone had tried so hard. The room is rocking gently around Cesar's head, and he feels warm, and impulsive, and he still didn't do it. Acidic resentment bubbles up in his chest, and he straightens with abrupt poisonous energy. He's not getting a good evening, and he'll be damned if Ryuzaki gets away better off than him.*

{Did you know that he's better than you in bed?} *Cesar's eyes glitter, and he turns so that his back is to the counter, freeing his hands properly. The Molly is still pinched between two fingers.**

{You're not my first in everything. He's good enough I could come twice every time, even without trying.}

*Fuck if he knows or even means what he's saying. All he wants is to see Ryuzaki's face blanch in fury, to see his eyes flash and his oily smile disappear.*

[callmeryuzaki]

[Ryuzaki's eyes harden again, that flinty edge sharpening their focus even through the euphoric gleam the drug elicits as it starts to take hold.

So, you want to play like that, do you? He smiles gently, condescendingly.]

How impressive... if that was your lover and this was a year ago. But he isn't, and it's not. He's looking at being a family man, now. A girlfriend, probably wife soon, and two... well, let's face it, kids with special needs. There, I said it. So much stress and responsibility... he can pretend to handle it for quite awhile, maybe, but I don't think anyone will be coming at all in that arrangement.

But I've learned so much in a year... is that what this is? Are you drunkenly trying to get me to prove to you that you're wrong?

[He reaches for Cesar's knee, running his hand along his inner thigh.]

Hey, I'm echoing back the world's greatest detective. Proof is kind of what I do.

[evowhisperer]

*Cesar's smile falters, and the doppelganger has won this round. Lazarus isn't his anymore, and it brings him no joy at all to think of the young family crumbling, and a new father falling back-first for a too-light impact in a bathtub full of glass--*

*The caress at his thigh steals his thoughts, and his lips part, not quite drawing in air. He doesn't reply for a few seconds. Yes, Ryuzaki just knocked this round clear out of the water, too. Trying to regain lost ground, Cesar leans his face closer, staring him eye to eye.*

{You even copy his echoes, if you still get anything at all. Is that the real reason you're doing this? You're copying a list he wrote of everything and everyone he won't do? Is there anything about you that's original?}

[callmeryuzaki]

[That clinches it; in seconds, Ryuaki knows just what's happened, and he relishes the aftermath. It's even more delicious because Cesar thought he had him with those choice digs at his origin and his nature. Not that they don't sting; it's a highly sensitive topic for a creature that only exists because an inferior, frail one was accidentally created 28 years ago.

Then Cesar's close enough to kiss... or bite, should the fancy strike the doppelganger.]

Maybe that's true. Maybe I get his echoes, and maybe I just know how to use them better. Papacito rico, Desde que te conocí no hago nada más que pensar en ti.

[His accent is perfect, his voice deeper, lustier.]

[evowhisperer]

*The words weren't especially raunchy, but the throaty hum that delivered them more than made up for it. Cesar straightens, and his face and ears are burning, and he won't immediately meet the other man's gaze. Great: Cesar, 1. Ryuzaki, 3.*

*He doesn't understand why it isn't working. It's like he's firing shots point-blank at Ryuzaki's chest, but they're passing through like smoke. Why isn't he distracted? Why isn't he losing even a little bit of control, and why is Cesar the one thinking about the feel of Ryuzaki's breath, and how it smells of alcohol and faint licorice? He'd watched the man's lips while he talked, trying to hear the words under the deafening synthetic beat, and the shapes they took were mesmerizing.*

*Cesar's fingers are work at the Molly tablet without his attention, turning it around once or twice. He stops doing this to sign.*

{Your accent is shit.} *No it's not. Jesus, Cesar doesn't even know how to sign in Spanish. It's the first time he's ever wanted to, and it grates that he can't.* {You should know that before you embarrass yourself.}

*His free hand goes to the nearest shot glass--but it's empty, isn't it? He presses the hand flat on the counter instead, taking the moment to stand up again. He's done here. He needs to get away from whisky and licorice, and eyes that pin him like an exposed bug.*

[callmeryuzaki]

[Control's a state of mind. If Cesar did have the upper hand here, even by just one point, Ryuzaki would be devastated, but it's like trying to sow a deadly plant in a patch of land where the seed can find no purchase. For it to take and grow roots simply isn't possible here, with Cesar alone and entrenched in Ryuzaki's element, drunkenly mourning a relationship that's left without him.]

It's not shit. It's him. That detective. Stupidly smart, stupidly perfect... OK, for a psychopath, at least. But isn't that exciting, too, in its own way?

[He gives the bartender a look, and the shot glasses are swept away and replaced with two more. Ryuzaki's hand slides closer to Cesar's crotch, conveniently falling there and squeezing when the other man stands resolutely. ]

I also find embarrassing myself exciting. In. Its. Way. Sit down before you hurt yourself... and consider letting me do it for you in a way you'll like a lot more.

[evowhisperer]

*Cesar stops and reverses direction when the hand meets its goal, but moving his hips back doesn't create any distance. Sitting down doesn't, not when the hand can follow so easily. Cesar grabs Ryuzaki's wrist, pulling the arm up and to his far side, tugging Ryuzaki close enough to glare right up into his face. Their breaths intermingle between them, and they're close enough that Ryuzaki might not even have to shout over the music.*

*Whatever advantages Cesar had in glaring from the harsh shadows on his face are lost by his lack of high ground, as well as by the fact that his body had been instantly responding to the touch. Why had he agreed to come here? He hadn't even tried to insist Ryuzaki say his piece over the phone, he'd just buckled in and jumped at the first chance to drink and keep moving. Was it really so bad to have Ryuzaki pulling at him like a fishhook through his hand? Yes, but dealing with his problems without distractions just then was worse.*

*Cesar pushes Ryuzaki's back towards himself, and the painful twist with an equally uncomfortable grip were probably deliberate. There's two shotglasses in front of him, and they both get a stormy look before he's reaching for the first one, knocking it back.*

[callmeryuzaki]

[It might not be as gratifying as a devastating mental or emotional blow, but by nature of his existence, Ryuzaki inherited Lazarus' sensitive wrists. They've never been the same since he tried to carve them open and bleed to death quietly in a bathtub, even after corrective surgery, and the result of Cesar's maneuver is to cause him to hiss in pain and withdraw. At least, he attempts to withdraw; it's kind of hard, with Cesar pulling him so close that he can smell, even taste the alcohol on the other man's breath. Though his eyes and breathing pattern say he feels it, he smiles through the pain.]

H-heh... nice, I... knew I could get you to touch me. Feel the hotness of your blood.

[A sharp cry gets elicited as Cesar twists and flings his hand back at him, and he turns and massages it, reaching for the other shotglass and matching it.]

You know, I have always been on your side. But now that you've decided to hurt me... let's work with it in a mutually beneficial way. You feel better now, don't you?

[evowhisperer]

*Cesar's eyes flicker his way at the cry, but it's easier to focus on the shotglass instead, and when it's downed he studies it as though there might be secrets hidden in the cheap glass.*

*He does feel better. He has more room to breath, now, and driving that cry from someone who's gone out of their way to cause so much pain has given him a vindictive curl of satisfaction that barely took the edge off of everything that's still pent up inside. It's not that he's a cruel person, or that he enjoys seeing people in pain. He doesn't. It was just... circumstantial.*

*Cesar rotates the shotglass back and forth, eyebrows low and back curved defensively. On impulse he waves for the bartender's attention, holding three fingers up and tapping his chin. Water. He should have some, shouldn't he?*

[callmeryuzaki]

[If Ryuzaki sees a spark of the pleasure, it's something he can respond in kind to. That's what he's there for, that's what he thrives on, even if it means a little bit of temporary discomfort. He catches sight of Cesar's sign, mouth twisting into a smirk.]

What he said, bartender. Three more shots of whiskey, the W is for whiskey.

[evowhisperer]

*'What?' he mouths, looking at Ryuzaki. By the time he looks back to the bartender the man is already pouring shots, and he only lifts his eyebrows at Cesar's signaling gestures.*

*Cesar doesn't try very hard, sighing and shooting Ryuzaki another sour look. This next shot will be his fourth one, if he takes it, and this is on top of what he'd already had before arriving. How much had that been? He tries to remember what the bottle looked like when he'd started, but he hadn't checked. His body feels pleasantly warm, now and his thoughts are loose enough that the original pain--Lazarus, Misa, twins--is nearly tolerable.*

*This wasn't the first ex he'd had that had gone on to marry and have 2.1 children. Sonia had been terrific, and Cesar had sent wedding gifts when he'd heard the news. It wasn't the fact that they were separate that made Lazarus' casual reveals so bad, it was how they'd ended, and that at some level Cesar had assumed that Lazarus would stay the way he was: unavailable to anyone and focusing on himself. Of course he'd been mistaken; it hadn't been some permanent mental handicap, it'd been a medication issue, and from the sounds of it it'd cleared up the moment his medications returned. Why would Lazarus want to remain single? As offputting as he was, he still had an unusually magnetic effect on the people around him. He was honest. He meant well.*

*The moody, surly drunk Ryuzaki has been coaxing continues to study his empty shotglass, ignoring the new row that's been lined up in front of him.*

[callmeryuzaki]

[Ryuzaki glances back at him, winking impishly as the shots get lined up on the counter in front of them.]

Salud, Cesar.

[He takes one of the shot glasses, too, drinking it down in one smooth motion.]

Come on. You're not going to make me finish these myself, are you? It's your turn. Unless you're ready to stop, of course, in which case we can find somewhere a little quieter. What'll it be?

[evowhisperer]

*Cesar shoots him a look, but reaches for another shot. The fact that he sips instead of throwing it back says a lot about his current levels of intoxication. What says even more is how he's considering the possibilities:*

*The first option is to stay there and drink. Could he drink forever? Obviously not, as he'd probably pass out or fall asleep at the bar. It wouldn't be such a terrible thing on its own, but there's nothing that feels safe or friendly about this club, and he's almost certain that he would wake up relieved of cash and credit cards.*

*The next option is to go with Ryuzaki. Cesar swallows, and the whisky's burn is barely registering by now. Maybe they could have a little fun, and Cesar could pretend he was having the last night with Lazarus that he never got to have...*

*Pathetic. Cesar grimaces and drags his free hand down the front of his face, sober enough to be humiliated by these thoughts and not sober enough to avoid them. He needed to get over himself. Maybe he'd be better off going with the man to a dark corner and punching him out, then tottering unsteadily all the way home. It was no more than Ryuzaki deserved....*

*The third is to simply leave. He doesn't find this one as appealing as the other two, for one because Ryuzaki would probably just follow him home, and for another because he's already tried it, and each time he stands Ryuzaki intercepts him. He could force the man away, of course, but there's an emotional fatigue that's stealing his will to make himself heard over Ryuzaki's cajoling. At the very least he wants to stay until he's recovered a little more.*

*Cesar takes a longer sip of whiskey, glancing at Ryuzaki with what he probably thinks is discreet consideration.*