for epistemological

[corkscrewed]

[ further continued from this thread. ]

[ things are, for a few more days, pretty good. they make progress. they make tentative plans. martin spends a lot of time with jon, wrapped around him when they sleep, and they never manage to quite finish the movie.

so, yes: things are pretty great, until suddenly they aren't anymore.

it's a strain to hold out hope with both tim and daisy gone, with jon in the hospital, but he does because he has no choice. the circumstances are less than ideal when he finally meets georgie, but she seems to understand the situation by the look on martin's face when she comes into the hospital room with her coffee. she usually brings two coffees from that point on.

so he clings to hope, because he has to, and when that finally starts to fray? peter is there. peter, who promises him that he can help. that with jon gone - and jon is gone, he says with gentle urgency - that others are going to need to step up. that martin will, because that's the only way to keep everyone safe. sure, it won't be easy at first, but it will get easier, and he'll barely notice the difference. that concessions need to be made.

so martin agrees to those concessions, and georgie starts spending more time at the hospital, to pick up the slack that martin leaves.

and then jon wakes up. don't, peter tells him. if you want this to work, you can't. it'll be easier if you don't think about it.

it works for a while, too. not that it's gotten easier at all like peter promised (and he has, quietly, sent georgie a single message to ask if he's okay, because that's all he needs to make it), but because martin is stubborn. because he's this far in, and if he can be the one to keep everyone safe, then he will.

it's working well enough until the evening jon's office door opens, and martin swears under his breath. the expression jon will catch on him is surprise, panic, before it's carefully arranged into something more neutral. busted. ]

Comments

[epistemological]

Georgie took one look at me after waking up and hasn't been back since.

Did you two get on? I thought you would.

[corkscrewed]

yeah. she was really nice. never had any doubt about you waking up.

[ martin had failed him in that regard. ]

[epistemological]

She's got a sense for thta kind of thing.

Literally. Though that's her story to tell.

[corkscrewed]

You haven't tried talking to her since?

[epistemological]

I saw her face.

[corkscrewed]

doesn't mean you shouldn't reach out.


you shouldn't be alone.

[epistemological]

Thus speaketh the subject expert?

[ There's a brief pause before the [ . . . ] shows up a couple of times.]

She was waiting for Jon. I'm not sure how much I'm still what she knew as Jon.

[corkscrewed]

[ he won't touch that because- yeah. he is the expert, or at least he aims to be. ]

You're still Jon. she'll get over it.

[epistemological]

Like you are?

[corkscrewed]

This has nothing to do with you.

[epistemological]

You have to know how that sounds.

[corkscrewed]

You heard the tape. you heard that my plan worked. against Elias. right?

[epistemological]

And I tried to explain.

[corkscrewed]

no, Jon. that plan worked, and I couldn't tell you about it in advance, because doing so would compromise it. remember?

[epistemological]

Yes, but then I'm not sure how that applies to this.

[corkscrewed]

Please, Jon. just think about it.

[epistemological]

I hope you realize I may be missing part of the equation given that I've also 'missed' sixth months.

[corkscrewed]

go to bed. I'm not supposed to be talking to you anyway.

[epistemological]

I can't.

The bed's too empty.

[corkscrewed]

That's not fair.

[epistemological]

[ He thinks back. To that first night in the hotel room. To that first, terrible outburst. Didn't it all just start there?]

That's never stopped you before.

[corkscrewed]

[ he shouldn't have drank. he should've put his phone away when he did. ]

i want to tell you, but i can't. please try to understand.

[epistemological]

I'm not asking any questions, Martin. I'm not looking for answers.

I just want to see you.

[corkscrewed]

[ there's a long pause - a long, long, long pause. martin starts and stops typing a half dozen times, before- ]

you can't tell anyone. promise me that.

[epistemological]

Who would I tell?