[He supposes it's a valid fear, just not one that particularly ought factor in his case. Gene shakes his head, and reaches to set a hand on Tony's shoulder, fingers flexing gently.]
You haven't spent a lotta time around boys from Alabama, have you? [A bit of a smile.] I promise, we ain't as complicated as all that. You do somethin' I ain't into and I'll let you know. No hard feelings, all right?
[He's had food, a bottle of Coke, nobody's shot at him in a full twenty-four hour period an' he ain't had to stick his hands in somebody's chest cavity to chase down a bad bleed. Nothin' much can sour him now on that count.]
[He gives him a little 'do I look like I spend a lot of time around boys from Alabama' look, but raises his hand to take Gene's in his and entwines their fingers, giving it a faint squeeze.]
All right. I think a genius like me can figure that out.
[He lifts their clasped hands, kissing the back of Gene's and smiling coyly up at him.]
[He huffs in a way that suggests mild (but entirely put upon) exasperation and his fingers fall to his buttons. There's no ceremony to be had about it, he just strips out of the shirt, folds it neatly and sets it aside.
He's got a few scars here and there - some obviously from the war and others that seem older, things a boy who lived an active outdoor life mighta just accrued in his time. Of the recent ones there's a smattering of scrapes and a couple burns, nothing serious. Hell, nothin' he's ever bothered comin' off the line for.
He scuffs his hand through his hair and then reaches to set a hand on the back of Tony's neck to pull him in for another kiss.]
[Tony looks him over with obvious interest, noting a few minor injuries as well as the excellent shape he's in. Damn, Tony's no slouch himself, but clearly he needs the army to send him some workout plans.
He slides closer on the bed so he can settle his hands on Gene's now bared waist.] Well hello there, soldier.
[He grins, unresistant as Gene pulls him in for another kiss. He lets his hands wander this time, brushing them up Gene's sides, then back down to run his fingers lightly over well-defined abs. Then, gently, he sets a hand on Gene's chest and pushes, aiming to tip him back onto the bed without breaking the kiss.]
[He splays his fingers, hand pressed flat against the center of Gene's chest, and looks down at him silently for a moment before giving in to temptation, leaning in to press his mouth to Gene's collarbone. He trails a few kisses along the one side, then drags his tongue up the other, tasting Gene's skin.]
[That last word has a bit of a waver to it. Arousal and all that ain't much been a part of his life, but purely physical sensations of a positive sort still feel good. He reaches up to curl his fingers lazily through Tony's short hair, tryin' hard not to think about the last time he tended a scalp wound.]
[The hand in his hair feels nice, and Tony shows his appreciation by kissing his way up Gene's neck, then drawing back just enough to catch his lips in another hungry kiss. He lets the hand on Gene's chest wander again, absently trailing over bare skin. If this is as far as they go tonight, just kisses and soft touches, Tony realizes he doesn't mind; it's closer than he's been to anyone in a long time, and he's happy to keep at it as long as Gene wants.]
[It is nice, a little stolen moment of peace and calm and utter, indulgent laziness. He ain't a selfish man by any means, but he'll bask a bit, though he intends to take the earliest opportunity to reciprocate he can. For now, though, he'll just be a bit boneless beneath Tony's hands.
He does nuzzle into that kiss, though, makin' it into something open-mouthed but still oddly chaste, and he's thinkin' idly about flipping their positions so he can get started on that payback when Reggie pops back through the wall.]
Jesus!
[He still ain't used to that, and he was just about halfway relaxed. Havin' anyone barge into the room would've engendered that response, much less his dead best friend.
Only, that's one helluva outburst right there, and he opens his mouth to-- say somethin' else (he's a terrible liar on account of not really carin' to do it much, but this is his one gray area, he will always lie about this and may God forgive him this one sin) when he realizes Tony is staring right at Reggie too.
So instead of murmuring out one damn word, he shuts his mouth with an audible click of his teeth and just sort of stares at him, eyes wide.]
[Tony startles at the outburst, drawing back in surprise and pulling his hands away from Gene. He starts to ask what's wrong, if he did something he shouldn't have, but a blur of white catches his attention and his head snaps up to spot--
No, that's. That's ridiculous. There's a ghost in the room. Why would there be a ghost in a London hotel room? Probably because there are a lot of dead people in London. If ghosts were even real, which, okay, wouldn't be the weirdest thing he'd ever dealt with. The important thing is that there's a potentially hostile entity in the room and he should probably do something about it.
This all flashes through Tony's head in about five seconds, but all he actually says, as he scrambles to his knees on the bed, putting himself between Gene and the ghost, is--]
Don't worry, I've handled this kind of thing before. Just stay back.
[He can't even keep track of the thoughts in his head, they're movin' too fast for him to do anything but try to make some fragmented sense.]
No, no, it's-- he won't hurt us.
[It don't surprise him that this is the man's reaction to seein' a ghost, but it still guts him anyhow. Reggie, who seems to have gotten over his relative shock at bein' seen by somebody other than Gene, just rolls his eyes.]
[He hears Gene's warning but doesn't heed it, moving more firmly between Gene and the ghost. When he lets go of Gene, however, the ghost disappears from sight, and he's instantly alert again.]
He vanished--but he could still be close.
[What a terrible time and place to be ambushed by a ghost. At least they both have their pants on if they need to make a run for it.]
[He says that like a medic. A whipcrack of sound, firmness and fury and a couple years of knowledge under his belt that the highest general will damn well shut up and listen to the lowest medical corporal when they operate in his theatre of expertise. He shifts, pushes himself onto his knees and takes Tony firmly by the shoulders to look him in the eyes.]
Pull your head outta your rear one minute and listen. I said he ain't about to hurt us. He's one of mine.
[He can't do anything but lay claim to Reggie, they've been two halves of the same soul for so long that even dead there's no distance between them. He doesn't know how else to explain it. If Tony's seeing him too, then Gene needs to protect that.]
[Tony shakes his head, disbelieving, and realizes that the ghost is there again, right where Tony last saw him. He stares at him, taking in the details--it's pretty much exactly how he'd always imaged ghosts to be, and yet there was still something unsettling about being able to see through the man. After a long moment he looks away, realizing he's being rude.]
Sorry, I'm staring. This is all a bit, uh. Unexpected.
[Reggie just sort of. Puts that out there. Even dead - even transparent - he's the sort of guy that fills a room. Bombastic, almost. Well, he always did want to be an actor. Had the charisma for it, in spades. Gene just gives him a look that's soft and wistful, and then looks back at Tony.]
[The initial shock now wearing off, Tony relaxes a little more, sitting back on his heels. He looks over at Reggie for the introduction and holds up a hand uselessly.]
I'd offer to shake your hand, but uh--might run into some trouble.
[Reggie keeps it to a lazy salute, just a two-fingered wag in the general direction of his forehead.]
I'll overlook it just this once.
[His accent is strongly Bostonian, clipped with a goodly education and upbringing, but casual enough that he doesn't seem strongly married to that education. Gene, on the other hand, is daring to breathe for the first time in what feels like an age.]
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You haven't spent a lotta time around boys from Alabama, have you? [A bit of a smile.] I promise, we ain't as complicated as all that. You do somethin' I ain't into and I'll let you know. No hard feelings, all right?
[He's had food, a bottle of Coke, nobody's shot at him in a full twenty-four hour period an' he ain't had to stick his hands in somebody's chest cavity to chase down a bad bleed. Nothin' much can sour him now on that count.]
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All right. I think a genius like me can figure that out.
[He lifts their clasped hands, kissing the back of Gene's and smiling coyly up at him.]
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That tender little gesture, though, earns the warmest possible smile, and Gene ducks his head - more shy than strictly embarrassed.]
I should hope so, Mr. Stark.
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And for the record, I am definitely in favor of you taking your shirt off.
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He's got a few scars here and there - some obviously from the war and others that seem older, things a boy who lived an active outdoor life mighta just accrued in his time. Of the recent ones there's a smattering of scrapes and a couple burns, nothing serious. Hell, nothin' he's ever bothered comin' off the line for.
He scuffs his hand through his hair and then reaches to set a hand on the back of Tony's neck to pull him in for another kiss.]
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He slides closer on the bed so he can settle his hands on Gene's now bared waist.] Well hello there, soldier.
[He grins, unresistant as Gene pulls him in for another kiss. He lets his hands wander this time, brushing them up Gene's sides, then back down to run his fingers lightly over well-defined abs. Then, gently, he sets a hand on Gene's chest and pushes, aiming to tip him back onto the bed without breaking the kiss.]
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Really? That tired old line?
[Far as he knows, it's one of the favourite bits tooled about by the Piccadilly Commandos. Just makes him laugh, is all.]
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[He splays his fingers, hand pressed flat against the center of Gene's chest, and looks down at him silently for a moment before giving in to temptation, leaning in to press his mouth to Gene's collarbone. He trails a few kisses along the one side, then drags his tongue up the other, tasting Gene's skin.]
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[That last word has a bit of a waver to it. Arousal and all that ain't much been a part of his life, but purely physical sensations of a positive sort still feel good. He reaches up to curl his fingers lazily through Tony's short hair, tryin' hard not to think about the last time he tended a scalp wound.]
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He does nuzzle into that kiss, though, makin' it into something open-mouthed but still oddly chaste, and he's thinkin' idly about flipping their positions so he can get started on that payback when Reggie pops back through the wall.]
Jesus!
[He still ain't used to that, and he was just about halfway relaxed. Havin' anyone barge into the room would've engendered that response, much less his dead best friend.
Only, that's one helluva outburst right there, and he opens his mouth to-- say somethin' else (he's a terrible liar on account of not really carin' to do it much, but this is his one gray area, he will always lie about this and may God forgive him this one sin) when he realizes Tony is staring right at Reggie too.
So instead of murmuring out one damn word, he shuts his mouth with an audible click of his teeth and just sort of stares at him, eyes wide.]
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No, that's. That's ridiculous. There's a ghost in the room. Why would there be a ghost in a London hotel room? Probably because there are a lot of dead people in London. If ghosts were even real, which, okay, wouldn't be the weirdest thing he'd ever dealt with. The important thing is that there's a potentially hostile entity in the room and he should probably do something about it.
This all flashes through Tony's head in about five seconds, but all he actually says, as he scrambles to his knees on the bed, putting himself between Gene and the ghost, is--]
Don't worry, I've handled this kind of thing before. Just stay back.
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Wait--
[He can't even keep track of the thoughts in his head, they're movin' too fast for him to do anything but try to make some fragmented sense.]
No, no, it's-- he won't hurt us.
[It don't surprise him that this is the man's reaction to seein' a ghost, but it still guts him anyhow. Reggie, who seems to have gotten over his relative shock at bein' seen by somebody other than Gene, just rolls his eyes.]
What a gentleman you got yourself, Genie.
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He vanished--but he could still be close.
[What a terrible time and place to be ambushed by a ghost. At least they both have their pants on if they need to make a run for it.]
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Will you stop.
[He says that like a medic. A whipcrack of sound, firmness and fury and a couple years of knowledge under his belt that the highest general will damn well shut up and listen to the lowest medical corporal when they operate in his theatre of expertise. He shifts, pushes himself onto his knees and takes Tony firmly by the shoulders to look him in the eyes.]
Pull your head outta your rear one minute and listen. I said he ain't about to hurt us. He's one of mine.
[He can't do anything but lay claim to Reggie, they've been two halves of the same soul for so long that even dead there's no distance between them. He doesn't know how else to explain it. If Tony's seeing him too, then Gene needs to protect that.]
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You--yours? [There's a moment of silence as he processes this, then--] You have ghosts and you thought I was lying about a mere sunken city?
[He could tell, Gene, you were skeptical!]
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Well, I seen ghosts before. Ain't never seen a sunken city.
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Sorry, I'm staring. This is all a bit, uh. Unexpected.
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[Reggie just sort of. Puts that out there. Even dead - even transparent - he's the sort of guy that fills a room. Bombastic, almost. Well, he always did want to be an actor. Had the charisma for it, in spades. Gene just gives him a look that's soft and wistful, and then looks back at Tony.]
Tony, Reggie Holiday. Reg' - Tony.
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I'd offer to shake your hand, but uh--might run into some trouble.
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I'll overlook it just this once.
[His accent is strongly Bostonian, clipped with a goodly education and upbringing, but casual enough that he doesn't seem strongly married to that education. Gene, on the other hand, is daring to breathe for the first time in what feels like an age.]
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How did...have you been there the whole time?
[And Gene didn't say anything? That's embarrassing, even by Tony's standards.]