abrightboy | No One's Born Broken

Malcolm smiled as that kiss broke, then raised his eyebrows. "Oh, no. It was fine. I went the wrong way, but I accidentally found a Lowes, so I thought... paint! And then the nice lady at the paint counter called me a cab."

Malcolm tugged at Raylan's lapels. "I can put this stuff away if you're ready to go. Finish it later."

"You walked around?" Not that Malcolm walking specifically was surprising, only that Raylan had fully expected him to call a cab as soon as he'd driven off. Raylan glanced at the bathroom and then looked back down at Malcolm before continuing.

"Yeah, I'm ready. The sooner we go, the sooner we get back and I can open a beer, take off my boots." The sooner he could hold and kiss Malcolm without reservation. "Art talked me into takin' tomorrow off," he mentioned, almost casually. "And I'll be givin Willa back sometime tomorrow mornin'."

"I'm trying to get the lay of the land," Malcolm said about the walking. He had to learn the city.

"Is that so?" he replied to Raylan's news, leaning into Raylan to steal another kiss before pulling away to gather up his paint and supplies. "So... almost a whole day to ourselves in our new place," he noted with a grin up at Raylan. "Sounds like - possibly - the best day ever." He glanced in the direction of Willa, even though there was a wall between them. "Not that she interferes at all. It's been really nice having her around."

"I mighta suggested that I'd have her til the end of the day." He mighta lied. Despite the fact that he followed the kiss for a fraction of an inch before Malcolm fully got away, he stayed leaned on the doorframe to watch.

"You only say that because you haven't been woken up by her yet," he teased. "She's cute, but havin' her here wasn't what I had in mind for our first night. Second night, maybe." But the first night was supposed to have been for them.

If he didn't know any better, he might think that Winona planned it out that way.

"That's kind of our lives, huh? Things not going quite to plan."

Once everything was closed up and tucked away in a corner by the toilet where they wouldn't get kicked or stub any toes, he got up and slid his arms around Raylan again.

"We'll have a first night alone first night tomorrow," he suggested, pressing one more kiss to Raylan's mouth.

"I guess it kinda is," he admitted, sounding like he didn't care much one way or the other. And he didn't. It could be as hard as it wanted to, he still wanted to try. To do this with Malcolm. To be with him.

Humming a note as he pushed off the wall to let Malcolm wrap his arms around him and be collected in return, Raylan smiled as he bent to meet that kiss. "Sounds like the best idea we've had all week."

He stole another kiss before starting to step backwards. "C'mon. Let's go do some shopping and have a barbeque."

Malcolm smiled broadly. This? This was the sort of life he'd always been told probably wouldn't be possible for him. It was an exciting adventure.

"Let me just grab my phone," he said, pausing at the stereo to shut off the music before snapping up his phone from the breakfast bar. "Oh, you texted," he noted, swiping the notification off the home screen. "...And my mother called. Well. That wellness check can wait," he said, swiping that notification off, too, and shoving the phone in his pocket.

He bent by the baby carrier. "Did you have a good time at the Marshal's office?" he asked, tickling Willa under the chin. He glanced around for the diaper bag and grabbed it as he stood up, so Raylan could take the baby in her seat.

Raylan got Willa back into her car seat after checking her diaper and lifted his eyebrows at Malcolm as he fetched and slid on his hat.

"I did. And you didn't text back after sayin' you were lost. I mighta broke the speed limit gettin' home too." And he wasn't sorry in the least. "But I agree that your mother can wait. Winona was enough; you deserve at least one day where you're not harassed."

Checking that he had everything, he watched with a smile as Malcolm tickled Willa's chin, earning a pleasant half laugh as she twisted and turned to avoid it, eyes following Malcolm as he rose until she couldn't see him anymore. Raylan picked up the car seat and led them down.

Once they were all strapped in and on the road, he continued. "She's not going to call back a million times, is she? I say turn it off now if that's the case."

Malcolm huffed a laugh.

"No. She knows when I'm ignoring her. Not that it was on purpose this time."

He didn't want to turn off his phone in case Gil needed anything.

"Though I may have done it on purpose, if I heard it ring."

He looked at Raylan. "So I know we need meat to have a barbeque, but what else are we looking for?" He wanted to help.

He bobbed his head in concession. "Fair enough."

"Well, depends on what we want with it. Corn on the cob is good. Potato salad tends to be a more classic choice. Something cool to go with the hot and all. Or somethin' like coleslaw." He glanced over. "Baked beans is another possibility, but I don't think you'll like those."

Malcolm considered the options. "I might be able to do some corn," he finally decided. "And we can get... whatever else you want." He did not want Raylan's meals to ever be limited to what he was up to eating.

"Beer. Definitely beer. But the corn will be plenty. Maybe a couple of dinner rolls too. They're always good to mop up some of the mess." Raylan wasn't going to limit his meal but he would shift things around to the cheapest option he could. He wasn't pressed for money, but he couldn't help old, common sense habits.

Waste for the sake of it was kind of disgusting.

They pulled into the grocery store and Raylan cut off the engine, sliding out to open the back door and get Willa out of her carseat, hefting her up onto his shoulder with a smile and a soft set of words to her before he lifted his eyes to find Malcolm. "Ready?"

Malcolm hesitated, pointing to the backseat. "Do we need the bag or... do we leave it here?" he asked.

Raylan huffed a breath. "She's not going to starve and I checked her diaper before we left. It's okay; we won't need anything from it." With a little tilt of his head, he started them off that way and got a cart, settling Willa down in the child provided seat. He was glad she was old enough to sit up on her own - it made things like this easier.

"Just don't let us leave without the jello."

"Right!"

He'd already forgotten about it.

He hadn't been in one of these big supermarkets since the last time he went with Raylan, before their last trip to Arlo's. He glanced around watchfully, taking it in, staying near Raylan's elbow as he navigated. He had some idea where things were.

Guiding them through, Raylan hit up the produce (for corn) and the nearby meat section for their chicken before they ambled off towards the sauces.

"We'll have to get charcoal too, unless it's a gas grill. I didn't think to check," he commented with a glance over.

"Propane!" Malcolm exclaimed. "It's propane and there's a full tank," he said. He looked at the sauce in the cart. "You can do one without any, right?"

He glanced at the sauce and then the chicken. "I can but it'll be drier for it. You can always peel the skin off, get rid of everything but the grilled in flavor. You ever had lemon pepper? I make a fairly decent lemon pepper chicken too. The south is not lackin' in spices, just in case that wasn't clear."

"...I can take the skin off? Oh. No. That will be okay. Maybe I'll try a little bit of the sauce. Separately."

He glanced up at the next aisle's sign.

"Desserts. They'll have the jello there, right?"

"Always an option," he assured. He glanced up at the sign.

"Should have. Lead the way." After gathering the jello and the beer, Raylan got them into and through the check out and once they had their bags, he headed them towards the car.

"What'd you find on you walk? How'd you spend the afternoon?"

Malcolm hefted one of the bags to settle its weight better and looked over.

"Well, I wandered around a bit, trying to get my bearings. Um, badly. Other than the Lowes, which I initially walked into for the air conditioning, I didn't really go anywhere in particular." He looked at Raylan. "And I'm not sure I could find it again."

He couldn't stop the amused huff of a breath as he popped the trunk with his keys and set the one bag he had in there.

"Not even if you run outta paint? I know exactly where you were," he continued with a nod, having been knowing these streets for a lot longer than Malcolm. "We'll have to map the place out for ya later. While we're talking over escape plans and what you do in any given situation."

He hadn't started these talks with Malcolm yet because they weren't living together and Raylan had been a little suspicious of this having happened at all in the first place. But now that they'd gotten over that particular hurdle, it was gnawing back into the back of his head.

Malcolm chuckled, putting the bag he was holding in the trunk, too.

"What to do in what kind of situations?" he asked. A beat. "Is this about laundry? I'm sure I can figure it out."

"You know, like a fire, tornado, armed men comin' to the door, what to do in a carjacking, Art comin' to the door. Basic stuff." He gave Malcolm a sly smile as he opened the car door, setting his hat on the roof so he could duck in to get Willa in her seat.

Malcolm slid into his seat, turning to look at Raylan as he leaned into the back.

"Raylan... you know I've been in law enforcement for over ten years, right?" he said with an amused lift of his eyebrows.

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject