abrightboy | No One's Born Broken

Raylan took Malcolm's sudden movement with a lift of his smile as he met the kiss, hands slipping around his waist to greedily keep him there for a few seconds longer than necessary.

"Tastes like home, huh?" His smile spread a little more as he leaned down to steal another lingering kiss from Malcolm. "They make a coffee that tastes like you?"

Malcolm laughed brightly, one hand sliding up his chest to wrap around his lapel.

"Probably not," he acknowledged, "but I might taste like it after a cup...." He smiled. "We can get you a really big travel mug so you can bring it to work. Instead of drinking tar."

He hummed a chuckle. "I'll have to bring enough for the whole class and I don't want to share the taste of home with them. I'll just have to get up early enough to enjoy it at home before I go in."

The comment reminded him of the time and he checked his watch, stealing another kiss before he slipped away to find his own tie and get it put on.

"Speakin' of, we should get a move on if we wanna hit the bar before I'm late."

"Right!", Malcolm replied, turning up his collar and grabbing his tie, tying it deftly before turning his collar back down and grabbing his jacket and shoes.

As they headed out to the car, Malcolm smoothed down the front of his jacket. "Do I look okay?"

For the task. Obviously an expensive suit looked 'okay' at the very least, in general.

Looking up from the edge of the bed where he sat perched as he pulled his boots on, Raylan looked him up and down before giving him an amused look.

"You always look okay." Even on his 'lowrent' days, Malcolm managed to look like a million dollars and far fancier than anyone in Lexington, despite their attempts. Gathering his badge, gun and hat, Raylan slipped on his own suit jacket and nodded again.

"Ready?"

--

It only took them 15 minutes to get to the bar, a two level building that was taller than it was wide, textured walls sun-yellowed and bearing a giant neon sign that read 'BAR'. The door, at least, was a larger oak one, giving the building a sense of stature, despite it's signage.

"It's no Hilton, but it worked," he commented as they pulled up.

"You weren't exactly staying at the Hilton before," Malcolm allowed, but he still eyed the building warily. It was a bar called 'BAR'. "But I guess if it were, it wouldn't have clients that consistently needed kept in line."

It wasn't hard to read Malcolm's face. Raylan smirked. "Wanna see the inside?"

He huffed a laugh. "Of course I do," he answered. Raylan's life was of great interest to him.

Though he did let Raylan lead the way.

Raylan held the door open behind him long enough for Malcolm to catch it's weight and led them into a very standard looking kind of bar. One pool table, but many small tabletops and a good looking bar itself. Behind it was an older man, mid 50's, who greeted Raylan with a little lift of his head and a smile.

"Hey Marshal. Late night or early mornin?"

Raylan chuckled. "Little bit of both. Just stopped by to grab something." The bartender nodded and watched Raylan and his guest move around to the far side of the bar and up the stairs that were tucked just inside it. The door wasn't locked and Raylan led him into a small hallway that let out in a singular bedroom and adjacent bath.

Digging into the dresser that was painfully bare besides a few lone t-shirts that looked sad enough as is, Raylan pulled out a small stack of papers and handed them to Malcolm. "It's only about twelve or so, but I didn't wanna get to crazy and these things change all the time so."

He grinned as he took them from Raylan's hand.

"That's plenty." He leafed through them. "They look promising."

He tucked them into his jacket and glanced around the room.

"You didn't find this a little depressing?" he asked with a gesture around.

He smiled, pleased that Malcolm was pleased with what he'd gotten together. But the following question had his smile fading back to the easy one he normally wore with a noncommittal shrug of one shoulder as he looked around.

"It's clean and waterproof. This was never gonna be a permanent place, but it worked well for it's function." Whether or not he found it depressing was another story. Depressing compared to what? "Better than sleepin' in my car, I suppose."

The remark about sleeping in his car drew Malcolm's eyes from their surroundings to Raylan's face. Was that something that could have happened? He couldn't tell from what he saw there.

"Maybe I just don't like the idea of you being somewhere... that doesn't care about you."

The room had no relationship with Raylan. Anyone could have crashed there. It was a void.

Raylan was too prideful to fall that low, but this was all of one rung above it. He pulled his smile a little, hoping to convince Malcolm that it really was fine before he continued.

"That's the point of those apartment papers, you're already on top of that problem." He nodded softly. "C'mon. There's really nothing else here. You want me to drop you off somewhere or do you wanna start from the courthouse?"

"....Is it okay if I get out at the courthouse with you?" he asked. Someone might see them parting ways. Not that he was planning on getting demonstrative, but. It was morning. After they were seen together the previous day.

"Yes," Raylan assured without hesitation before he stepped forwards, hands sliding around Malcolm's waist. "And speakin' of.." He kissed Malcolm one more time, one more time before they went back out into a world and a day about. One more time because, the way things tended to go, he didn't want to miss any chance to openly love Malcolm, since they felt rare when they weren't settled in for the night.

"To hold me over til tonight," he muttered softly as it broke.

Malcolm smiled softly. "I think...." He leaned up and pressed another kiss to Raylan's mouth, "that you should really stock up," he murmured, then kissed him one more time. "In case the day is longer than you want. Or just feels that way."

He reached up and let his fingertips travel down Raylan's jaw. "And don't forget that I love you," he added, nodding encouragement.

If it all did go horribly wrong, he'd still have what little Malcolm had to offer. No matter what.

Humming softly into the last kiss, Raylan sighed a little, obviously soaking up the reassurance and comfort as he listened, jaw turning into the traveling fingers as he lifted his eyes back to Malcolm's.

"I love you too." God help him he was actually gonna get to come back home to this tonight, and huge part of him couldn't wait. He hummed and stole one more before turning Malcolm around. "Lead the way back down before we get distracted."

He was so easily distractible when it came to him.

Malcolm grinned at him over his shoulder as he headed down, delighted butterflies in his own stomach from Raylan's attention.

He gave the bartender a little wave as he passed.

Moving down with him, Raylan couldn't help smirking at the bubbly way Malcolm waved goodbye at the bartender and Raylan tipped his hat with a parting-, "Might be back later tonight to talk to ya.. Or not at all, we'll see." With a little shrug and a nod from the bartender, Raylan followed Malcolm back to the car and slid in.

"Alright. Stop two."

The courthouse was only ten minutes from the bar, not something to be missed and it passed too quickly before Raylan was pulling into one of the side lots and cutting off the engine.

"I'll text you when I'm done and we can convene somewhere?" He knew Malcolm was going to be texting him before that, which was still okay, but he wanted to cover the end plans, since that was only gonna be a handful of hours. Hopefully.

Malcolm nodded. "We can meet at a coffee shop or something," he suggested, glancing around to make sure nobody was in a position to look in the windows before giving Raylan's leg a little pat, then getting out of the car.

He made a concerted effort not to look back as he walked down to the curb, flagging down a taxi, but as he got in, he looked over, looking for Raylan in case he hadn't disappeared inside yet.

"There's more than a few around to choose from," he replied, catching Malcolm's fingers as he withdrew for a small squeeze before Raylan let him go. Taking his time to adjust his hat and get out, Raylan was still lingering by the car as he eyed Malcolm safely getting into a taxi.

Now he could go to work.

As soon as he stepped in the office, he knew he was gonna get some shit, if by nothing more than the smug little curl of Tim's lips that he pointedly ignored as he said his good mornings. But Tim wasn't one to let him off so easy.

"You get your visitor all settled?"

Raylan gave him a look. "He got himself settled, but yes. Isn't even gonna peruse action against the Marshal's Service for the damage he took from that headbutt." As though it'd ever work. Tim's eyes narrowed a little bit, jaw shifting thoughtfully.

"I don't suppose you want to keep him outta the report, do you?"

Raylan scoffed. "Why? He was there, wasn't he?"

Rachel came out of Art's - Her office and looked at them. "Come here, you two."

They glanced at each other, suddenly comrades again as they filed into the 'principle's office. Raylan was in trouble again for having shot that guy in the calf but, like always, he was gonna get away with it with only a slap on the wrist.

Once that was over and they'd been dismissed to actually write their report on what the hell happened, now with Acting Chief Brookes oversight, Tim didn't stop.

"You gonna tell me what's up with you and the guy from New York or are you gonna make me dig?"

Raylan only lifted his eyebrows with an almost mockingly sweet pull of his smile.

"Only if you're gonna tell me why you're takin' to having a drink fifty miles outta town."

Tim eyed him and grunted before turning to his paperwork. "No way in hell."

Raylan grinned and did the same.

At the second property, Malcolm texted Raylan that it was a 'contender'. So was the third. When he got to the fifth property, he was looking around the apartment Raylan had found, when the landlord mentioned a unit being available on the top floor. It had a small roof garden and a large bank of windows that angled towards the sky. The bedroom had a skylight.

'I found it,' he texted Raylan. 'He'll hold it for you to see when you're done work. I'm getting a tea. See you soon. xxxooo'

The messages were checked as they came in and Raylan itched to see what had settled in Malcolm's tastes. But Rachel had another meeting for him and he could only text back a quick: Can't wait to see it. Or you.

"Excuse me, are you busy with something else?" Rachel asked, one hand finding her hip.

Raylan tucked his phone away with an innocent look and shook his head. "I'm all yours, Chief." The dubious look and 'Mmhmm' that he got in return wasn't a confident one.

45 minutes later, Raylan was in his car and texting Malcolm. I'm off. Where can I meet you?

Malcolm sent him the address of the coffee shop where he was drinking herbal tea and perusing a tourist guide to Lexington.

His face lit up as soon as he noticed Raylan walking in, though he waited at the table, rather than going to him. His eyes stayed on Raylan, though.

Arriving shortly, Raylan stopped to get a coffee at the counter before joining Malcolm at his little two seater table with a pull of his smile.

"I hope it wasn't too terrible out there in the big city of Lexington, for ya," he said, teasingly. "So you found it, huh? Which one? How late is the guy gonna be there?"

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