[ Huh, score one for the memory unit scenario not being completely wrong. It was utter crap about some predictions but it at least knew Tucker's preferred shitty nickname. The liquor was the first one he grabbed from the stash, it could have been anything and he wouldn't have cared. It was probably for the best that he didn't end up with a bottle of tequila.
He dropped onto the bed, the mattress dipping under his weight as he settled in and got comfortable. ]
Figured that out all on your own, huh? What clued you in?
You're sitting on my bed when you know I sleep naked, and you haven't bitched about it once. It's obvious you're all fucked up, and she's the only one that ever messed you up to this level.
[Don't ever let it be said that Tucker wasn't perceptive; he noticed shit. He might not always comment on, but he did see it until someone mentioned and pushed, and then he would spill exactly how he felt. And this? This was his opening.
Tucker cracked open the bottle of booze and handed it to Epsilon, more because he needed it way more than Tucker did (and because Tucker wanted to watch the new-human have his first drink).]
I saw her on the network, too.
What happened with you guys? Figured you would be excited to see her, not looking like someone pissed in your helmet - which I still say wasn't me.
[ Tucker saw through to the heart of the issue way too easily, but then again who else could drive him to drink? The bottle he accepted back without thinking about it much, he had memories of drinking. It wasn't so bad, a good way to avoid dealing with his problems for a little while. ]
She got pissed off because I'm not him. Alpha. Said I was shitting all over his memory and that I shouldn't act like I know her.
[ There was a faint raw edge to his voice a thread of undeniable hurt because he had expected it to go differently. Thoughtlessly he raised the bottle to his lips to take a swig of the whiskey, only realizing after it started to burn and he began to cough that maybe getting drunk was a huge fucking mistake. Enjoy watching him cough up a lung, Tucker. ]
So, what you're saying is that you get on my bed and you want to get naked after. Cool, I'll remember that.
[Jokes? Jokes he was good at. He wasn't sure if it would cheer Church up, but the alcohol would fix what he couldn't. Tucker did roll his eyes at the recital of what happened, unsurprised and yet feeling some complex turning of Church was Church was Church and Epsilon isn't Alpha that overlapped each other and fought for dominance.
He didn't give either one credence.]
Fuck, Church, you know she's a bitch. What else did you expect? A hug and a compliment? [He waited for that coughing fit to be over; come on, stop embarrassing yourself, newbie. He held out his hand for the bottle.] What are you going to do?
[ Part of him was desperately grateful for that small kindness, that Tucker didn't give him shit for coughing. Hell, he didn't even make an "everyone chokes the first time" joke when it was dangling right there in front of him like low hanging fruit. Even as he passed the bottle back to Tucker he could feel the burn easing off into a tolerable heat and-
Yeah. This might work. ]
I don't fucking know, dude. She was a fragment, too. [ Then again, at the end his version of Tex had found her own form of peace but only after shooting him in the stomach and then getting lost in the memory unit. ]
I'm gonna stay the hell out of her way until she finds someone else she hates more. It's only a matter of time.
Yeah, like five minutes. She pretty much hates everyone. I think she's even tried to kill me at least twenty times and we were kind of on the same side. Sometimes.
[Then again, she wouldn't be the first person to try, and probably not the last, but that wasn't exactly the topic of the day. He took the bottle, curled his fingers around it, and brought it took his lips. The deep drink burned but it was a familiar burn, the immediate sensation that would soon be gone after enough drinks. The beginning drinks were like the vaccine shot: burn after the needle so it would be better later on.
Except then you felt like death the next morning, which meant his metaphor didn't work, but whatever.
He smirked and handed the bottle back to him, the See? No cough. Let the pros show you how written in his eyes.]
You're Church. That's all the fucking matters. If she doesn't like it then that's her problem.
[ You're Church. Those words were heavy, had a weight that he wasn't sure Tucker felt when he said them so easily. It meant a lot, that he was enough, that he didn't care that he was a knockoff imitation of the real thing who had pieced himself together from disjointed stories and downloaded memories.
The bottle he took like challenge it was. This time when he raised it to his lips he was ready for it and that initial burn had done the work to numb him enough to make the second swallow easier than the first. It was still a little rough, his throat clearing before the bottle returned. ]
It's my problem when she's not even willing to talk to me. I still can't fucking believe she said I was disrespecting his memory. I am his fucking memories!
[Of course. Church was Church. Sure, there was Alpha and Epsilon, but the distinctions only mattered to him when he thought too hard about it. How Epsilon didn't really remember anything from the time they spent together because Caboose "conveniently" left him out of the stories. Yeah, that stung.
Alpha was more of an asshole, too. Not by much, but by enough.
Tucker thought back to the damn Reservoir Dogs movie, then shoved it down, away. Took another drink. They hadn't really talked about this shit, about the difference, about the memories. It wasn't anything to Tucker, but to Church--]
Okay, but were you an asshole when you told her that? Or were you actually nice about it?
I told her once I was there in person, I didn't want to say it on the network since anyone can look at what you're saying.
[ Not to mention AIs didn't seem to be incredibly popular after the Null decided to go all skynet and try to murder everyone who didn't bow down to their wishes. Advertising that wasn't his top priority. The liquor was already going to work, softening the edges of what had once been a bad mood. Maybe Carolina was right about him being a lightweight but this felt way better than before.
Or maybe it was the fact that Tucker was actually helping him work through it. ]
I probably could have found a better way but I wasn't trying to hide it or pull some kind of fucking 'gotcha' moment.
Just admit it: you're really shitty at talking to chicks.
[There was nothing wrong with that; not everyone could be a born natural like he was. There were no accusations attached to that, his voice frank rather than rough. Tucker took another drink from their shared bottle before shoving it back at him, immediately falling back onto the bed with his arms beneath his head as he looked at him.]
How can you be made of science and still be so shitty at talking to girls? [There was a little laugh under his breath as he rolled his eyes up to the ceiling.] Dude, do you even, you know, what sex is like? Organic bodies have some perks. Maybe make nice and she can show you?
[ Tucker's comment was greeted the way it deserved, with a surly middle finger raised in his direction before he took the bottle back. This whole drinking thing was getting easier each time. Why did people even make such a big deal out of it? ]
I know what sex is like, asshole. [ Not that... he had ever actually gotten any himself in this body. Or any other. Like fuck was he mentioning that, though. The last thing he needed was Tucker calling him a virgin until the end of fucking time. ] I think I'd be safer putting my dick in a bear trap than trying that with Tex.
What about you? When was the last time you got laid?
[Yep, this was still better than how he expected it to go. Tucker watched Epsilon drink and man, was that former-AI going to feel it tomorrow.
Tucker couldn't wait. Welcome to organic bodies.]
Hey, this isn't about me! [Which was to say, "not telling because I don't know if I can count back that far". He and Sister, probably? God, had it been that long? But it wasn't his fault that everyone on Chorus was either a teenager or so wound up in this war that they couldn't seebeyond it. Including some of his teammat--]
I can get laid whenever I want, but right now I want to make sure you do. You know, while you're all blood-filled and shit. That's what friends do: be wingmen for each other. I don't blame you for not knowing since you never did for me.
[ Hah, he knew that deflection for what it was. Someone was full of shit about the level of game he had. He'd be saving that particular tidbit for later when he wanted to really rub Tucker's nose in it. ]
Look, you can't go and tell me I have absolutely no game and then tell me I need to wingman you two minutes later. Make up your mind, dude.
[ And did you really want this guy as your wingman, Tucker? In the memory unit even Professor Fuck thought he was a lost cause. ]
And I don't want you trying to get me laid, that's weird.
[No, he didn't want it, but considering the choices for wingman were Caboose, Grif, Sarge, and Simmons' virgin ass, he was pretty sure that Epsilon was his best choice. Beggars can totally be choosers, but desperate times call for desperate measures.]
But you didn't offer. That's the point!
[Okay, it wasn't, but he was starting to lose his point because this alcohol was good and they had been at it for a few now. His shoulders rolled in a shrug as he looked around.]
You're only saying it's weird because you've never been laid. It you had, you'd be begging me to help you get it again. [There was a small, playful smirk.] So, who's more of a virgin: you or Simmons?
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
lovernotafighter) wrote2022-03-04 03:30 pm
no subject
He dropped onto the bed, the mattress dipping under his weight as he settled in and got comfortable. ]
Figured that out all on your own, huh? What clued you in?
no subject
[Don't ever let it be said that Tucker wasn't perceptive; he noticed shit. He might not always comment on, but he did see it until someone mentioned and pushed, and then he would spill exactly how he felt. And this? This was his opening.
Tucker cracked open the bottle of booze and handed it to Epsilon, more because he needed it way more than Tucker did (and because Tucker wanted to watch the new-human have his first drink).]
I saw her on the network, too.
What happened with you guys? Figured you would be excited to see her, not looking like someone pissed in your helmet - which I still say wasn't me.
no subject
[ Tucker saw through to the heart of the issue way too easily, but then again who else could drive him to drink? The bottle he accepted back without thinking about it much, he had memories of drinking. It wasn't so bad, a good way to avoid dealing with his problems for a little while. ]
She got pissed off because I'm not him. Alpha. Said I was shitting all over his memory and that I shouldn't act like I know her.
[ There was a faint raw edge to his voice a thread of undeniable hurt because he had expected it to go differently. Thoughtlessly he raised the bottle to his lips to take a swig of the whiskey, only realizing after it started to burn and he began to cough that maybe getting drunk was a huge fucking mistake. Enjoy watching him cough up a lung, Tucker. ]
no subject
[Jokes? Jokes he was good at. He wasn't sure if it would cheer Church up, but the alcohol would fix what he couldn't. Tucker did roll his eyes at the recital of what happened, unsurprised and yet feeling some complex turning of Church was Church was Church and Epsilon isn't Alpha that overlapped each other and fought for dominance.
He didn't give either one credence.]
Fuck, Church, you know she's a bitch. What else did you expect? A hug and a compliment? [He waited for that coughing fit to be over; come on, stop embarrassing yourself, newbie. He held out his hand for the bottle.] What are you going to do?
no subject
Yeah. This might work. ]
I don't fucking know, dude. She was a fragment, too. [ Then again, at the end his version of Tex had found her own form of peace but only after shooting him in the stomach and then getting lost in the memory unit. ]
I'm gonna stay the hell out of her way until she finds someone else she hates more. It's only a matter of time.
no subject
[Then again, she wouldn't be the first person to try, and probably not the last, but that wasn't exactly the topic of the day. He took the bottle, curled his fingers around it, and brought it took his lips. The deep drink burned but it was a familiar burn, the immediate sensation that would soon be gone after enough drinks. The beginning drinks were like the vaccine shot: burn after the needle so it would be better later on.
Except then you felt like death the next morning, which meant his metaphor didn't work, but whatever.
He smirked and handed the bottle back to him, the See? No cough. Let the pros show you how written in his eyes.]
You're Church. That's all the fucking matters. If she doesn't like it then that's her problem.
no subject
The bottle he took like challenge it was. This time when he raised it to his lips he was ready for it and that initial burn had done the work to numb him enough to make the second swallow easier than the first. It was still a little rough, his throat clearing before the bottle returned. ]
It's my problem when she's not even willing to talk to me. I still can't fucking believe she said I was disrespecting his memory. I am his fucking memories!
no subject
Alpha was more of an asshole, too. Not by much, but by enough.
Tucker thought back to the damn Reservoir Dogs movie, then shoved it down, away. Took another drink. They hadn't really talked about this shit, about the difference, about the memories. It wasn't anything to Tucker, but to Church--]
Okay, but were you an asshole when you told her that? Or were you actually nice about it?
no subject
[ Not to mention AIs didn't seem to be incredibly popular after the Null decided to go all skynet and try to murder everyone who didn't bow down to their wishes. Advertising that wasn't his top priority. The liquor was already going to work, softening the edges of what had once been a bad mood. Maybe Carolina was right about him being a lightweight but this felt way better than before.
Or maybe it was the fact that Tucker was actually helping him work through it. ]
I probably could have found a better way but I wasn't trying to hide it or pull some kind of fucking 'gotcha' moment.
no subject
[There was nothing wrong with that; not everyone could be a born natural like he was. There were no accusations attached to that, his voice frank rather than rough. Tucker took another drink from their shared bottle before shoving it back at him, immediately falling back onto the bed with his arms beneath his head as he looked at him.]
How can you be made of science and still be so shitty at talking to girls? [There was a little laugh under his breath as he rolled his eyes up to the ceiling.] Dude, do you even, you know, what sex is like? Organic bodies have some perks. Maybe make nice and she can show you?
no subject
I know what sex is like, asshole. [ Not that... he had ever actually gotten any himself in this body. Or any other. Like fuck was he mentioning that, though. The last thing he needed was Tucker calling him a virgin until the end of fucking time. ] I think I'd be safer putting my dick in a bear trap than trying that with Tex.
What about you? When was the last time you got laid?
no subject
Tucker couldn't wait. Welcome to organic bodies.]
Hey, this isn't about me! [Which was to say, "not telling because I don't know if I can count back that far". He and Sister, probably? God, had it been that long? But it wasn't his fault that everyone on Chorus was either a teenager or so wound up in this war that they couldn't seebeyond it. Including some of his teammat--]
I can get laid whenever I want, but right now I want to make sure you do. You know, while you're all blood-filled and shit. That's what friends do: be wingmen for each other. I don't blame you for not knowing since you never did for me.
no subject
Look, you can't go and tell me I have absolutely no game and then tell me I need to wingman you two minutes later. Make up your mind, dude.
[ And did you really want this guy as your wingman, Tucker? In the memory unit even Professor Fuck thought he was a lost cause. ]
And I don't want you trying to get me laid, that's weird.
no subject
But you didn't offer. That's the point!
[Okay, it wasn't, but he was starting to lose his point because this alcohol was good and they had been at it for a few now. His shoulders rolled in a shrug as he looked around.]
You're only saying it's weird because you've never been laid. It you had, you'd be begging me to help you get it again. [There was a small, playful smirk.] So, who's more of a virgin: you or Simmons?