suddenlybees | || IC INBOX

[ Grabbing Kano's ankle would be easiest, and would save Maverick the trouble of having water balloons dumped onto his head. Kano lets go of the branch and drops back down to the ground, wiping dirt and bark dust off on the sides of his pants. ]

What is it? Geez...

[Ah. He actually listened.

...Fuck.]

Uh.

[He got so distracted by everything else, he didn't...think about how exactly he was going to say this. He's not grabbing Kano's ankle, anymore, but...he does try to take his hand in one of his own.]

Mousie visited me yesterday. He wanted... [THIS SUCKS] He said he needed me to tell you, because you're fucking hard to talk to, and he'd just get confused into thinking shit was fine. But it's not, so I said I would.

[Things were super not fine between those two... Toki was just super not fine in general.]

It ain't healthy for him to be around you. He's super fucked up, and even if you make him forget about how shit things are sometimes, the rest of the time you aren't...helping. He wants to get help. So he doesn't want...to see you or talk to you anymore.

[ ...What.

Really... what?

He wants to deny the accusations, laugh off the fact that Toki is indeed super fucked, but he's. He's being thrown away. He's being abandoned. Toki couldn't even come and say it to Kano's face himself. That's how little he cares.

The entire time, Kano stands in stunned silence, hand limp in Maverick's until the very end, whereupon he yanks his hand free and turns on his heels, dismissive mask of a smile immediately slamming up before he bites his bottom lip too hard to make any sort of illusion possible, because this is the only way he can deal. He can taste blood. He can numb himself too. This is fine. ]

...Message received loud of clear~ I gotta go now, so I'll see you later!

Cricket --

[He reaches out to catch Kano again, but in his haste -- both of their haste -- he can't get hold.]

Fucking -- shit, I know it fucking sucks, but I made you come out here for a reason! This is our spot, you're safe here, so don't fucking run away. If you're pissed, you can hit me; if you're sad, you can fucking cry. But I know you're feeling something, and this place isn't a fucking joke to me. Kano... I'm here. Let me be here.

[ He feels the whiff of air by his hand when Maverick fails to catch hold of him, but as much as he wants to scream and cry and run away, he lets his feet shuffle to a stop, head down and teeth gritted. What good would hitting Maverick do; shooting the messenger isn't the answer, and he's got such a tremulous hold of his "friends" already. What good is crying, either, when it never helped in the past, when there was nobody to hear and nobody to help— Maverick is here, but he can't help. ]

Leave me be. I don't want to be here.

[ He mumbles under his breath, hoping Maverick doesn't catch any of that because then he can toss a "never mind~" over his shoulder and storm away like he had meant to. It's hard to breathe here. His chest hurts. He doesn't want to put a name to any of these emotions, because he doesn't want to make them real. ]

[Shooting the messenger isn't the answer, and yet the messenger's getting grazed by a bullet anyway. It hurts, knowing he helped make his friend hurt this way, and to hear that even though he'd just lost someone, he doesn't want someone else there for him. Not that...he can really blame him...

Instead of obeying, he clenches his hands into fists at his side.]

Where do you want to be? [He exhales, and he's grateful that the tremor stays there, rather than making his words crack.] I'll take you. Anywhere you wanna go, if I can get you there, doesn't matter how, I'll take you.

[He can't be alone right now. He can't, not how he wants, because Maverick would fucking hate it if anyone else did this to him, but unfortunately, he cares too much.]

[ Alone. Not here. Dead. Spiteful answers like that jumble up in Kano's mind and are shoved to the side before they make it out of his mouth, because none of that is something Maverick can grant him; he doesn't want that. He needs to talk to Toki. Confront him and force the ultimatum out of him, instead of accepting it from a third party. Just by being there, Kano is ruining his life. The harder he tries, the more he clings, the worse everything...

Aah, what's the point? ]

...Let's go to Canada. It'll be a day trip.

...Okay.

[Despite the small pause, there isn't a trace of hesitation or doubt in his tone. Kano wants to go to Canada today? He'll go to Canada today. Sorry about the bike plans, Kanata... At least the name is similar?

Maverick steps to be in line with Kano and finds his hand.]

We'd better get a fucking move on, then, if we want to catch a flight yet.

[One that still has space... His credit is going to be so fucked. But it's fine. What's having impulse control, when it comes to someone you love? Let's go.]

[ His lips part, a "why?" caught in between. Why do all this, take his jokes seriously, take him seriously when he just wants Maverick to think him a joke and let him be on his way. He doesn't squeeze Maverick's hand back, doesn't feel like he should be allowed, but he also doesn't want to be here. If he stays here, he's going to seethe, he's going to plot and scheme and come up with some terrible, vindictive idea to get back at Toki. One is already forming, and that's no good.

So, let's go to Canada.

He'll make up the cost, someday, somehow. He'll make it worth it, maybe. He doesn't know.

Whatever. He pulls his hood over his head and lets Maverick take the lead. ]

[Maverick takes the lead. He leads Kano out of the forest, taking him down a different path than he'd walked to come to this spot, because he's sure a guard is waiting for him to return and he doesn't want to waste his time explaining that he's taking this sad, angry teen to Canada on a whim. He leads him out from a different part of the forest, leads him onto a bus that will take them near the closest airport, where he leads Kano to a counter and argues with the person at the desk until they get him two tickets on the next flight to Canada -- definitely pricey, and even the closest available seats are rows apart. He picks up the pace and leads Kano deeper into the airport, stopping only to comply with security, then to throw money at some shop with criminally high pricing to get them some gum and chocolate milk for the flight. He leads Kano away to the right waiting area, and not long after, he leads him onto the plane.

From his spot several rows away, Maverick sighs and leads the conversation.]

there's some old bitch that thinks she's gonna get a disease from me and her husband snores
how's it around you

[ It's nice to be able to shut his brain off and not think for a while, to keep the hood pulled over his eyes and stare at the fringe between the darkness of the fabric and that of the world around his feet. Like this, he doesn't even care if Michael is watching. Just another person's life he messed up by being here. Don't think. Don't think. Like when he was a kid and all of his energy was poured into keeping the one person in his life happy, but then he grew up and got too full of himself and thought he could do more than he could— was so desperate to prove himself capable, all by himself, he wouldn't let anybody do anything else with him.

Haha.

A fool.

He tries to sleep on the plane, but that's always hard. His seat's an aisle seat, and normally he'd be pacing up and down the aisles in agitation, if he didn't feel like kicking the window open and climbing out. The text comes and he lets it sit there for two minutes before he even looks at it to read. ]

Mom and her kid.
They're going on vacation.
How much longer until the drinks come around?

oh shit...I should probably tell Mama I'm up in the air, huh

[haha whoops he's the worst son. take comfort in that, Kano, it isn't you.]

shouldn't be long I think but I don't fly much
you finish your milk already?

You'll be back soon.
Not yet.
Want to get coffee to mix into it.

yeah I guess

[Still going to quick shoot off a text to her, though... She can keep a secret. Never mind that she's going to be sending him many angry texts for hours, now.]

kinda fucking bailed on bike plans though

sounds like a plan

[ Reception in the air isn't always the best; maybe she'll forgive him. ]

Oh yeah.
If he gets mad, I'll deal.
It'll be nothing new.

[...Yeah. That was true.]

want me to text him or just wanna deal with it later?

I can text him.

[ He does not text Kanata. ]

It'll be easier to deal with later, anyways.
One thing at a time.
Or whatever.
I wonder if we get pretzels on this flight.

[Poor Kanata. If Maverick knew who it was they were biking with, he'd go ahead and text him now, but alas.]

I think I've only ever gotten cookies and soda
pretzels would be good
flights as long as this have like some fucking meal plan though don't they?

8 hours...
Probably two meals worth?
Every time we flew out on missions I never bothered with food.
Will you spot me?

??? for what

One of those kids meals with the stackable cheese and crackers.

[a lunchables?? this is his wish?]

if I let you just hold onto my credit card for the flight do you promise not to lose it or steal my identity

[ yeah
but also ]

No.

[ which is probably the most honest answer Maverick will ever get from Kano, ever ]

[pizza lunchables is superior, Kano is a fool.

...but an honest fool, sometimes. sigh... well. he appreciates it.]

alright
just text me when you want shit (within reason) and I'll have the flight attendant send it to your seat or however the fuck that works
starting with cheese and crackers and coffee(?) I guess
oh wait looks like the free drink cart is coming down
does it have coffee on it already? that looks like a pot right

[ He wasn't trusted with the sauce packets as a kid, so he only knows the cheese and crackers. ]

Yeah, that's the coffee.
I can get it here so you don't have to pay extra for it.
But the cheese and crackers when the next cart comes.
And whatever candy that's being offered.
Doesn't matter what kind or how much.

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