sortinghat_logs | Makin' nice

WHO: Bro Kirkland and Arthur Strider
TONE: LIGHTISH???
RATING: PG13 for Language probably
WHEN: One of these recent days
WHERE: Bro's office
WHAT: Arthur has been distant for a while and Bro wants to know whyyy.
STATUS: Orngoring

Bro actually doesn't know what the deal is. For the longest time, Arthur has been avoiding him and he doesn't get it. The problem is, he's been so busy dealing with other shit that he hasn't had the chance to get the guy alone in order to figure it out. At least until now, that is. He's sent him a note to meet him in his office, and he's just waiting on him to actually make it there.

He misses Arthur, though. For a while there, Arthur was an irreplaceable part in his life, and he regrets the fact that somehow they've drifted apart. Arthur may just be a student, but he's more than that to Bro. Arthur may not feel as strongly, but Bro considers him as a part of the family. Why else would he have bought him a broom? And a pair of shades. The shades were the real symbol of family-hood though. He doesn't just do that for anyone, and Arthur earned them. So the fact they've grown apart just sucks ass.

But he's gonna fix it. He doesn't quite know just what it is that caused it, but he's gonna fix it as best he can so that they can go back to being friends. Bro honestly hopes that it actually is reparable though. There's only one way to find out though, and Arthur should be there pretty soon. Time to get this show on the road.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

In all honesty, Arthur had felt that way. He'd been more than happy to have been accepted into Bro's family when his own, save for his mother and a cousin or two, largely ignored him or wrote him off simply because he was the youngest of four, not yet old enough to have any notable career prospects and no longer vocal enough about his opinions (over the increasingly raucous voices of two of his three older brothers) to really draw any interest.

Maybe he'd taken being snapped at too much to heart. He probably had, but his teenage years had already been a long line of being told to sit in the back and be quiet every time he tried to speak up. Bro probably hadn't meant it to come across as it did, but that hadn't kept him from withdrawing slightly, unsure as to whether or not his presence was wanted or if it was simply another interference in something that he didn't understand. The professor was an adult, and Arthur was just a teenager, it wasn't difficult to see where the lines could be drawn.

When he got the note to see him in his office he was half sure that he was in some kind of trouble, though as he wracked his brains on the way he couldn't think of anything that he might have done. He paused at the door, then knocked once before opening the door and poking his head inside.

"... Sir?"

Bro looks up from whatever he's doing at the desk- which honestly isn't that much, since he's mostly just been waiting for Arthur to get here. When he sees him, he motions for the chair in front of his desk. "Hey man, siddown." His tone is friendly, and he offers Arthur a smile. It feels like it's been a while since he's seen him outside of a classroom, so it's pretty nice.

"... Hey."

That was as good a start as any. He moved into the room, pushing the door closed behind him and took the seat, though he didn't quite settle into it. Arms folded, as per usual, he was determined to keep his expression neutral until he was sure of what was going on here.

"If this is about using purple ink on my last homework assignment..." He'd run out of black ink and had to resort to using Gamzee's. Of course, he didn't think that was really what this was about.

Bro raises an eyebrow at that, giving him a look that clearly says 'Seriously?' Because he's the last person to fault anyone for using colored ink. Just look at the time he used the most eye searing shade of red. "No, it's not about that," he says, shaking his head. "As if I give an ounce of crap about what color ink you use."

He takes a long breath in and exhales it in a sigh. "It's about how you've kinda been avoiding me lately."

Okay, so it was a long shot. Never in a million years would this guy call him out for using a coloured ink on his homework, but that had been the only thing he could think of that wasn't personal. That only really left one thing, and Bro hit it right on the head. Arthur started slightly, then rubbed one hand around the back of his neck before clasping both of them in his lap.

"I got the distinct impression I'd overstepped my boundaries." He lifted one thick eyebrow slightly. "Until now I hadn't been given any reason to suspect I was wrong."

Well that isn't something Bro is expecting to hear, so it catches him off guard. His eyebrows raise and the general air of surprise can be felt. He always thought they were pretty close- he can't think of a way Arthur would actually overstep any boundaries, considering how he's helped before. It takes a lot of trust for Bro to open up to anyone, and a special kind of person for him to trust that much.

"Really?" he asks, a little concern in his voice. "What the hell gave you that impression?" Before Arthur can speak, he adds, "You didn't. I think with you, that's kind of fuckin' impossible."

Catching Professor Strider off guard? Wonders will never cease. It at least further assures Arthur that he was probably wrong in his assumptions, but that only leads to the problem of having to work this entire thing out, and he's never really been that good at talking.

"If I might speak candidly, professor.. When you've been given the impression of being trusted by someone, and then an expression of concern by you is met with a response that more or less adds up to 'sod off', it's rather easy to assume a line has been crossed."

Bro is quiet a moment, as he thinks back to when he possibly could've given Arthur such an impression, but. His mind is drawing blanks. And maybe it's because he just kinda blocks out all thoughts of when he and Murdoc were fighting. So after a moment, he lets out a sigh. "When did this happen, and what'd I say?"

"I believe it was when you set us a quite frankly ridiculous assignment that made it rather clear that you were allowing your personal life to interfere with your professional conduct." He said it flatly and without any particular malice, but if the professor says he can speak plainly then he certainly will.

"I expressed concern, and I believe..." He paused to think - it had been a while. "You told me to stop 'acting like a kicked puppy', sir."

Oh. That. It certainly wasn't one of his better moments, that's for damn sure. He shifts slightly in his seat, and it's obvious that he's pretty ashamed of it, looking back on it. And then Arthur continues, and suddenly it all makes sense. Yeah, that was definitely dickish of him. Goddamn him and his inability to control his anger sometimes.

"I'm sorry," he says immediately when Arthur is finished speaking, and his tone is actually sincere. "I ain't gonna try and make excuses for that shit. It was outta line, even if at the time it felt like I was justified. Shouldn't've taken it out on you like that. Or anyone, for that matter."

Arthur watched him steadily, a small frown drawing his eyebrows together. There was something about the way Bro acted around him that always made him feel older than he was, and there was definitely something gratifying about feeling that an adult wanted his approval.

"... It's fine," he said eventually, glancing away. "I suppose I would be the last person to talk about taking my temper out on other people."

Edited 2013-06-27 12:43 (UTC)

Makin' nice

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