abrightboy | Happily Ever After AU

abrightboy

From here

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only | Expand All

From:

conning

"Imagine," Neal drawls, sharply sarcastic. He lifts his hand to rest it against Malcolm's back again. He gives Malcolm an uncertain look, one that's equal parts worry and... agreement with Martin and Jessica. Which is distinctly uncomfortable.

He pauses, not sure if he has the right to an opinion here, but he finally, gently, says, "But... wouldn't it be better if she knows what she's remembering, if and when she starts to?"

From:

abrightboy

Malcolm looks at him, then looks at his parents, who look more pleased than he likes.

"No. No."

"You know, if you're on board with overlooking murder, I could have used some of that energy back in '98," Martin drawls.

"Do you really think she wants to know that she's a cold blooded killer? I wish I didn't know," Malcolm says, his voice rising. "I wish I didn't know about you!" he shouts sharply, then turns and bangs on the door, not looking back at any of them as he storms out.

"Well," Martin says to Neal. "That was nice while it lasted, huh?"

From:

conning

Neal gives him an impatient look and walks out after Malcolm, jogging a little to catch up once he’s out of sight from Martin and Jessica. His heart is in his throat even though it’s not much of a jog.

“Malcolm, wait—please?” He catches Malcolm’s hand tentatively. “I don’t think you’re wrong, I don’t, I just…”

And he trails off at that. Neal Caffrey, advocating for honesty. Suddenly he feels like a hypocrite.

From:

abrightboy

Malcolm stops when Neal touches him, looking up for a moment and then down.

"Look, maybe I never handled it right, okay? But she stabbed a man in cold blood. I couldn't just let...." He puts a hand to his head, but it's shaking and he stuffs it in his pocket instead. "I'll talk to her. I will."

From:

conning

Neal moves around in front of him, still holding one hand and reaching out to gently take the wrist of Malcolm’s hidden hand. Something in Neal twists painfully at Malcolm’s instinct to tuck his tremor out of sight. “You did what you had to. You protected her, and your family, you did do the right thing, it was the only thing you could have done.”

He lifts both hands to brush Malcolm’s cheeks with his thumbs. “But it’s not the only thing you can do now. You’re not alone, not this time, and neither is she. You should be the one to talk to her about it. You were there. They weren’t.”

Tentative, not sure if Malcolm will pull away, Neal leans in to kiss him.

From:

abrightboy

He doesn’t pull away. When it breaks, he looks a little deflated.

“Once she knows, she has to live with it. With what she did. She can never un-know it. She can never be who she used to be ever again.”

From:

conning

Neal bites his lip. "I know. Believe me. I understand, at least a little."

From:

abrightboy

“Why does everyone want to do that to her?” Malcolm asks. It’s not a guilt trip; he’s really asking.

From:

conning

It still bites into one of Neal's small, guilty places. For a second he wants to backpedal, say Malcolm is right and that Neal changed his mind, but...

"Because... it happened," he says softly. He hesitates another moment, looks down. "It's like when Ellen told me who my dad was, who he really was, before I could enroll in the police academy and find out the hard way. I didn't want to know it, sometimes I still wish I didn't, but... it's better to know than to believe a lie when everyone else knows the truth."

From:

abrightboy

He wants to say that everyone doesn't know, but everyone who counts does. The whole family knows, except for her.

Finally he nods.

"Okay."

He turns and heads out of the hospital, reaching the sidewalk to hail a cab.

The weight lifts a little when he receives a text. A case. He looks at Neal. "We have a case."

He gives the taxi the address.

From:

conning

Neal holds Malcolm's hand all the way there. He can't think of anything to say. He wants to, though. It distracts him from their neighborhood--until they pull to a stop.

"...The Canmere Hotel? There's a case in the Canmere?" Neal spares a moment to think about how odd it is that he's perking up over one of Malcolm's cases, but he can't help himself.

From:

abrightboy

"I heard Duke Ellington used to stay here," Malcolm tells him as they get out of the car. He looks up at the building then heads inside, where JT is waiting for them.

From:

conning

"That's the tip of the iceberg," Neal says, and he regales Malcolm with celebrity history and art deco factoids until JT cuts him off to lead them to the body.

(Neal does not, fortunately or unfortunately, know about the Bowery Ripper.)

From:

abrightboy

Most people don’t; it’s a serial killer deep cut.

Malcolm walks over to the body as JT points out to Neal “not everyone shares your appreciation of architecture. He was an architect.”

“Stabbed in the eyes with the pointy circle thing.”

“It’s called a ball bearing compass,” JT supplies.

Malcolm looks at him curiously.

“I liked math class.”

“It’s his,” Dani tells them. “It has his initials engraved in it.”

“So the killer didn’t bring his own weapon. It was a crime of opportunity,” Malcolm points out.

From:

conning

Neal grimaces a little. "They wiped off the fingerprints. Whoever they were."

That's as long as he can stand to look at the body. He shifts his attention back to their surroundings instead, following Malcolm and the others as they try to catch the developer who owns the building--and catch Ainsley catching him instead.

From:

abrightboy

“Hey,” Malcolm says, stepping over to Ainsley. “How are you?”

“Busy,” she says brusquely. “Aren’t you?”

From:

conning

Neal does not like that reply. Or that tone. He barely keeps himself from picking a fight over it, and even then it's only for Malcolm's sake. Once she's marched away again and they're heading back inside to talk to the Bolsheviks, Neal gives Malcolms hand a little squeeze.

"How are you?"

From:

abrightboy

He shrugs expansively. “I’m…. Did she seem mad at me?”

From:

conning

Neal looks back toward the doors before they follow JT and Dani toward the elevator. He wants to say no, that Malcolm is probably worrying because of that morning’s talk, but…

“I’m not sure,” he admits.

From:

abrightboy

Malcolm doesn’t get a chance to answer before JT declares the elevator a risk and they get in, Dani remarking that she heard Malcolm was at Claremont.

“Oh. Yeah. Family stuff. You know, I catch killers for a living, but it doesn’t take much and suddenly I’m six years old, being scolded for playing squash in my mother’s solarium.”

“I think we need to work on your relatable metaphors,” Dani deadpans.

From:

conning

Neal grins at Malcolm, entirely charmed by the mental image. “What’s not to relate to in that?”

From:

abrightboy

Malcolm smiles at his shoes when Neal says that.

Dani gives him a flat look. “Who plays squash or even knows what a ‘solarium’ is?” she counters.

From:

conning

Neal gives her a bland, dry look. “You only speak one dialect of teasing humor, don’t you.”

From:

abrightboy

She chews her gum idly and just looks at him, unimpressed.

“It’s okay,” Malcolm says, waving it off. “I come across a little… elitist sometimes. I know,” he insists. He looks at Dani. “I know.”

From:

conning

Neal turns Malcolm’s face back toward him, kissing the other man. “You’re the least elitist rich person I know.” Still teasing, though not entirely. “…We’ll, except for June.”

The elevator dings and JT gets off, muttering “thank god” under his breath.