alwayskayaking | Duplicity Inbox

[ Flames, Tim is not going to make this easy, is he.

He could tell Tim off and hang up, leave the bridge in cinders. No one would blame him, he gave it a good effort.

Or he could let his frustration show. Sarcastic and bitter. Oh yes I'm awfully disappointed you still draw breath but since you do I thought I might as well ask after your health anyway since you seemed so upset about no one doing that the last time we talked. When are you planning the fall off your high horse so I know when to film?

But instead he takes a deep breath, squelches his temper, and goes the diplomatic route. ]

All I know is you were attacked and I wanted to know if you and the women you were protecting were alright, Tim.
No one deserves that, especially not in their own house.

So it's just out in the streets when I'm attacked that you think I'm wrong for calling the cops? [It's sarcastic, but there is an honest curiosity to Tim's question. Why was this threat to his life okay when the others hadn't been? Was it all because of Charlotte? Did Hawke care more about her well being? Or did he hate Gilia and thus didn't care about what happened to her?]

We're both fine. And it was more Charlotte protecting me than the other way around. All I did was make a phone call.

What I think about the guard doesn't matter.
You were in danger, you acted as you saw fit in your own defense and that of someone else.

I'll say again, I don't want to see you hurt and all I wanted was to make sure you weren't.

[ He's going to talk about the guard, blast it. He knows that wouldn't go well because he's not very well going to lie, and he's also not certain it wouldn't set off this stupid citation anklet. ]

I am glad to hear you're alright.

Why? Why doesn't it matter this time? There wasn't that much difference between why I called them this time and before. Really the only things different was Charlotte was there and it happened in my home.

For fucks sake Tim.
I shouldn't have said it before either.
This is me correcting myself after you made a point.
You are right in that what else are you supposed to do.
I still stand by getting punched in a bar not being a legitimate reason but otherwise?
Yes.
You have every right to defend yourself from a real danger.
You don't deserve to be attacked, harmed, or left bleeding in the street and no, whoever does that to you should face some consequence.

[ But stop being such a fucking tool about it and maybe you'd get attacked less. ]

[...]

I don't remember saying anything about getting punched in a bar. [Did he? He was feeling so attacked, hurt, and caught off guard from someone he thought cared about him that maybe he did? But he had kept thinking about Jacob and the dog that mauled him. He never did figure out who that dog was. Had he mentioned the bar fight?]

That's what you're going to focus on?
Not the 'you're right Tim, I'm sorry'?

[ He could have sworn Tim said something about the fight. Even so, he's flabbergasted that Tim isn't lording Hawke's concession over him. Vindication is usually something that takes center stage. ]

Yes. [He's trying to replay that conversation in his mind. Maybe he did? Did he mention it?

Although it reminds him of a question he did ask. One that didn't actually get an answer before.] Do you know the man who hit me? Or anyone I've called the cops on?

Lewis Carroll can only get you so far, Tim. But I guess I'll just have to do with the bell.

Yes.
Chris and I are friends, and Festival is his Tominant

[ What a lovely time for autocorrect to rear its ugly head. ]

Dominant.
Does that matter?
He shouldn't have punched you and I already admonished him for it, far before I ever talked to you about any of this.

But now you're just going to write me off as coming to Chris' defense blindly, yes?
Get it over with, then.

[ Why does he even try? He shouldn't have. He's just a bad as Jon, wanting to salvage something that's not even there in the first place. ]

[The message gets read with no response for nearly ten minutes. It made a bit more since now why sometimes it was alright to call the cops, but not others. So long as Hawke already knows them.

He should probably leave it. Cut his loses with Hawke, but he just feels so betrayed. He admonished him? Is Hawke saying he knows Cris shouldn't have hit him and still lectured Tim for calling the cops when he's been physically attacked?]

So what reason did he give you that it was alright to go around striking people without warning? Did he tell you how after the first punch I gave him a chance to leave without any problems? That I thought he hit me at random or was even trying to hit someone else? That I told him to walk away and leave me alone or I'd call the cops. Regardless he purposely came at me again. So I called the cops because I couldn't get him to STOP HITTING ME.

[ Adalwolfe has to take a moment to run his hands down his face in absolute social agony. After ten minutes he'd though Tim had just decided not to talk to him any longer, which would have been fine. He'd almost been able to put this out of his mind and get on with his work day. But no. Here comes Tim blundering back into his messages with the written equivalent of screeching like a gull. ]

You've never been in a tavern brawl have you

[ And it shows. ]

But yes, he told me.
We all agree it was an idiotic thing to do.

Look, I'm finished.
I don't believe you're going to make the effort to even try to understand what I've been telling you since you've mostly been ignoring it and I'm rather tired of craning my neck to see you on your impossibly high horse.
Try not to hurt yourself falling off it one of these days.
Believe it or not I care what happens to you, but I also have enough self respect to know to walk away when that care isn't respected or appreciated.

Good luck, Tim, because luck is probably all you're going to have left to rely on if you keep pushing everyone away.

[ With that, Hawke puts his phone on silent and places it face down on his desk, not to be looked at for at least the rest of the work day.

He'll probably regret this later, mostly because he's seen the worst consequences of not being able to help someone see eye to eye. Maybe. But Tim doesn't have to know that. ]

I have. That's why I asked him to stop and walk away. He didn't. If you're going to be friends with people who pick violence to solve their issues then don't be surprised when they get arrested again. Just maybe next time don't blame their victims for their actions.

Edited 2021-02-23 21:59 (UTC)

Read at: 6:37 pm

[Tim wishes Hawke the best. He doesn't want to see the man get hurt, but if that's the company he's choosing to trust and believe then Tim doesn't think that's possible.

He had hoped that being in his head meant Hawke was going to be different. Would be the kind of man who thought better of Tim then the lies and misinformation people had been spreading about him. Clearly that wasn't the case. Hawke had just been like everyone else. Believing the worst of him right away without getting his side.

Tim will be polite to Hawke whenever they cross paths after this, but he would no longer be trusting him or sharing more than the surface level things going on in his life.]

And I'll try to remember to put the seat down occasionally, but no promises. And of course I can't speak for the other guy.

You have your own bathroom.

But what if yours is closer and I really need to use the loo?

Just... Just close the lid and wash your hands.

I promise to always wash my hands, I'm not a heathen, but I make no promises about the lid.

I'll get the mop. [Tim will do his share in working to clean up the mess that was left behind. That is until he hears the ding of the elevator and hands whatever cleaning item he was holding quickly over to Charlotte with a muttered apology. He still needed to act like a dominant when the city was watching.

The guards have several questions that Tim will answer honestly while also trying to insist that he thinks the danger has passed so they were no longer needed. No, he doesn't want to press charges anymore or have her arrested tonight, but they still request he show up tomorrow morning to make another statment about the events tonight. Also to call back should his neighbour threaten him again.

After that it's just arranging with the housing people to get a new door. A couple submissives are sent up and get to work right away on the replacement.]

[A little later on once shit's mostly calmed down, Charlotte will take a good hard look at that untouched bottle of bourbon. It's something she really hadn't wanted any part of, but tonight was a night of 'what the actual fuck?'. She'll call out in the apartment.]

Feel like getting drunk?

With me? [He sounds surprised.] I mean; I do, but do you mean the two of us drinking together? Or are you just finding a round about way to ask me to leave the apartment for a bit?

[She holds up the bottle.] Sucks to drink alone, and you spent a chunk of cash on this. Figure that you deserve to enjoy some of it.

It was for you, but if you really want to share it with me? I'm not going to say no. Especially tonight.

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