(no subject)

[ripetere]

[ Ten o'clock. Finally, his shift was over. He tossed his black staff shirt with SECURITY emblazoned in bold white letters across the back onto the table in the closet that passed for a break room, and dug his cigarettes out of a jacket pocket. Most nights he'd be working until the club closed, but he'd agreed to come in early today to do set up for an event. A guest DJ or some shit - he wasn't paid to care about those details, he was paid to lift heavy objects, break up bar fights, and turn away teenagers with fake IDs.

Normally he'd just head home for the night - the music wasn't to his taste, and he had woken up with a headache that hadn't ever quite subsided. But... Bruno was here. Had showed up with an entourage of beautiful women barely half an hour ago, even. Leone knew it was weird and creepy of him to stick around just to watch a stranger, but... a little while wouldn't hurt. Enough to have a cigarette or two. Then he'd leave.

He slipped out of the breakroom, and made his way through the wall of noise and people to reach the back patio doors. There was a decent view of most of the bar from back here, and while there were a few other people having a smoke it was still relatively quiet this time of night.]

Comments

[ripetere]

[ It must be nice, Leone thought, to have friends like that. Then again, the last person that had watched out for Leone had ended up dead for his troubles, so maybe it was better if he was alone.

He pushed that thought away, hoped it didn't show on his face, and turned to Bruno's question instead. ]

Mmm. I came in early, so I only had to work part of the shift tonight.

[zippermom]

[There was a flicker of... Something there on his face, but Bruno didn't know him well enough to guess at what it might be. But he was grateful to know they could keep talking for awhile, even if the conversation wasn't exactly... Deep.]

Oh, good. I'd hate to think I was keeping you from your job.

[He smiled in a way he hoped was convincing, but he was so used to faking it these days that he had no idea if it'd work, or if he'd just end up looking a little crazy.]

[ripetere]

[ Leone shook his head, and then tucked a strand of hair that had fallen loose from his messy bun back behind one ear ]

Nah, Tony'd kick my ass if I slacked off on-shift.

[ As soon as he said it, he realized it's probably been too long since he had an actual conversation with someone who wasn't one of his coworkers. Most of the regulars didn't even know the owner, and Bruno, while he was here often, was not quite a regular yet. ]

The owner. Good guy. [ He's hired Leone, after all. ]

[zippermom]

[Bruno let himself be momentarily distracted by that little gesture, gaze lingering on the line of Leone's jaw, glad to finally be able to get a good look at him in decent lighting.]

Is he? That's good to know.

[Not that he usually vetted the proprietors of all his usual watering holes, but he was ultimately giving the man his money. He took another drag on his cigarette, aware of how far it'd burned down and the fact that once it was finished, he was going to lose the flimsy excuse he had to be standing out here, unless he suddenly decided to take up chain smoking. Camille was going to laugh at him if he went back into the bar figuratively empty handed, but he wasn't sure what to do. It was a little late to say 'hey, I noticed you watching me' without coming off as weirder than he wanted to. Usually he just chatted a little, hooked up, and then regretted things at his leisure. That seemed like both an unlikely outcome to this particular evening, and not one he would have wanted, even if it had been more probable.]

[ripetere]

[ Leone could see Bruno was almost done with his cigarette and knew that if he didn't keep this conversation going somehow, it was going to end, and they'd go back to being two strangers who occasionally crossed paths. And while he was shit at keeping conversations going, he found himself wanting to try, wanting to stretch this moment out a little longer. ]

You're a model, right? I think I saw you in Vogue Italia once.

[ That particular page had been saved to his folder of fashion clippings, even though the clothes hadn't been his style. ]

[zippermom]

[Bruno laughed a little and nodded.]

That shoot was awhile ago, but yeah.

[He was glad to have an excuse to keep talking, but he was going to be mortified if this all turned out to be an extended version of the 'where do I know you from?' game.]

You read Vogue?

[He was genuinely curious now.]

[ripetere]

[ Leone could feel himself blushing, and wished desperately that he had bothered to do more than just fill in his eyebrows before coming to work - foundation would have hidden the redness. As it was, he hoped that the dim half-light would be enough to keep Bruno from noticing. ]

Yeah - I couldn't pull off most of those clothes, but it's nice to look sometimes.

[ There was an edge of defensiveness in his voice - he'd been teased about it a few times on the force, when other officers caught him reading on his break. Never outright cruel, really, but not understanding, either. ]

[zippermom]

[Bruno tipped his head to the side and looked at Leone with open curiosity, for the moment unconcerned with whatever sort of impression he was making to focus in on that bit of emotion in his voice.]

I think you're selling yourself a bit short.

[Okay, maybe his opinion wasn't totally impartial, but really. Leone had height going for him and he clearly knew enough to do an expert job with his eyebrows, if nothing else... Bruno didn't have a real clear idea what his sense of style might be, having never seen him outside of work, but he was certain he must have one.]

[ripetere]

[ A short, slightly bitter laugh escaped Leone. ]

Thanks, but I'm not. I mean, I have to draw my eyebrows on just to not look like a goddamn alien.

[ There were people who could pull off the invisible eyebrows look. They were generally a lot more confident and had more body modifications than Leone. ]

[zippermom]

That's...

[Had someone made him think that? Bruno frowned, offended on Leone's behalf. This was precisely the sort of thing that riled him up, and he had to stop himself from just confessing how utterly handsome he thought he was. Unconventional, maybe, but that was just all the more appealing. Instead, he bit his lip for a moment while he tried to think of some more appropriate way to express himself.]

If someone told you that, they're wrong. You're perfect just like this.

[He could feel his face heat a little with a mix of embarrassment at himself and outrage at... whoever had made him feel that way. Society, maybe. Whatever. It was bullshit.]

[ripetere]

[ Leone glanced away, oblivious to Bruno's embarrassment in his attempt to hide how red his own face was. ]

Look, you don't have to bullshit me with platitudes, alright? [ Bruno was beautiful, was surrounded by other beautiful people, like his friends at the bar - there was no way he meant anything beyond the empty words Leone had heard often enough in his life. ]

[zippermom]

[He was surprised by how much that hurt, not because he was essentially being called a liar, but because it was apparently easier to believe it was a lie than it was to believe the truth.]

It's not bullshit. Why would I bother with that?

[There was a wave of... something flooded beneath his skin, not quite anger, not quite frustration. The useless feeling of wanting to fix something there was no real way to fix.]

I came out here because I wanted to talk to you. I'm sorry if other people have been assholes, but that's not what I'm doing here.

[ripetere]

[ Leone didn't know how to respond to that. His first instinct was, as ever, to be contrary and spiteful about it, but... he found he wasn't in the mood for arguing. He was tired, headachey, and inexplicably, the most beautiful man he'd ever met was standing here talking to him.

He settled for swiping a hand over his face and sighing. ]

Yeah, sorry. [ Not much sincerity in the words, but he knew the conventions of social interaction. ] I need a drink. Can I get you something?

[zippermom]

[It felt... a bit like he was being brushed off, but he also realized that getting in a heated debate about self-esteem with someone who was basically a stranger wasn't productive. Especially if he wanted to get to know him better.]

Okay, sure.

[He wasn't really much of a drinker outside social events where it was expected, but tonight, he could probably use it.]

I'll take whatever you're getting.

[He had what was probably a bad habit of just drinking whatever was handed to him. It meant he didn't have to decide, but it also meant he didn't really have much of a preference.]

[ripetere]

Be right back, then. [ Despite the crowd, it didn't take him long to get the bartender's attention - she was probably the closest Leone had to a friend these days. She gave him a knowing look when he ordered two drinks, one of them decidedly not one of his usual choices, but to her credit, said nothing. He'd probably get grilled for details before his next shift, though. He made his way through the crowd, careful not to spill either of the drinks, and out to the relative quiet of the patio.

A small part of him was surprised Bruno had actually stuck around and waited for him, but he managed to push it aside for the moment, and offered him one of the drinks. ]

Here - I figured you'd like a bellini more than what I'm drinking.

[zippermom]

[Leone wasn't gone long, but it was long enough for Bruno to gather himself a little better. He told himself he wasn't going to dive head-long into trying to fix whatever was bothering the other man... not tonight. It was a bad habit, and definitely not appropriate for the level of familiarity they currently had.

He raised an eyebrow slightly as he took the offered drink.]

Under different circumstances, I might be a little offended by that. But you're probably right.

[There were people who--given his appearance and his career--tended to assume things about him, which, while not wholly inaccurate, was grating nonetheless. He was pretty sure that Leone, with his long hair and drawn in eyebrows, wasn't being condescending, though. And given he'd basically slammed his first drink before coming out here, Bruno was grateful to be able to pace himself a little.]

That does make me a little concerned for what you've gotten yourself, though.

[ripetere]

[ Leone lifted up his glass to show Bruno the pale amber liquid inside.]

Grappa. Not the good stuff, either - but I have fast metabolism, so it would take me about four of those [ he nodded at the drink Bruno was holding ] before I even started to feel it.

[ It was only a little bit of a lie, even - though Leone knew there were other reasons it took so much to get him drunk these days.]

[zippermom]

[Bruno didn't bother hiding the skeptical look on his face at that revelation, not entirely sure how he should feel about this little display of masochism. Leone was several inches taller and probably had a few kilos of muscle on him, so he didn't doubt him, but still. No one really drank grappa because they liked the taste.]

Am I really that bad a conversationalist?

[He smiled a little to make a joke of it, though he was beginning to think he'd failed utterly at his attempts a flirtation. Maybe he really wasn't interested at all, and this was just Leone's weird way of getting it across?]

[ripetere]

[ Leone glanced down, flustered ] No, it's- I'm not very good with people. Conversation. It's not you.

[zippermom]

[Oh, no. That was... he was sure he wasn't supposed to find that confession so adorable, but he did. It also probably explained a few things.]

Is that why you never stopped to talk to me?

[He kept his voice low, though there wasn't much chance of them being overheard. He just didn't... want Leone to think he was trying to embarass him or something. He'd been waiting all this time for him to make the first move, and it had never really occurred to him that this might be why he hadn't.]

[ripetere]

[ Leone could feel his face heating again, not helped in the slightest by the few sips he'd had of his drink on his way back outside. Usually he wasn't this transparent, but it seemed like Bruno could see right through him.] I- yeah.

[ His awkwardness wasn't the only reason - everything he touched fell apart, and Bruno didn't deserve that - but it was part of it. ]

[zippermom]

In that case, I'm sorry for making you wait. I'm not really used to this, myself.

[He didn't usually find himself in the position of making a first move. People came to him, and he let things go from there... Very rarely did he find himself truly wanting something enough to pursue it. But this... This he wanted. Even if it was just getting to know him a little better, and he wished he'd done something sooner.]

[ripetere]

[ Leone glanced up again, clearly confused, before Bruno's words fully penetrated the fog of his anxiety. ]

What? No - I mean, you don't have apologize. You're not the one being weird about this.

[zippermom]

[He takes a sip of his drink, and laughs quietly.]

I probably am. I know exactly where my lighter is, after all.

[It's at least a little silly that he needed the pretext, he figures.]

So we're both bad at this. It's okay.

[ripetere]

[ There was a moment of confusion before Leone grasped what Bruno meant, and then it was replaced by a small smile. He was pretty sure Bruno was, at the very least, a more socially acceptable sort of weird - bad pick-up lines were the stuff of mainstream fiction, after all - but he appreciated the attempt. ]

Let's try this again, then. [ He took a deep swallow of his drink, relishing the warm burn as it went down, and then offered Bruno his hand.] Leone Abbaccio.