Tried to nurse it behind my mom’s back. [Open]

[justbeingknife]

Featuring: Majima (justbeingknife) and you!
What's happening: Finding old gyms, moving house, let's get drunk on the minibar
Day/s: Throughout March
Content warning: Salty language, drinking, Majima being himself

I feel alive for the first time

[ Ever since they'd found those old boxes of footage, Majima had been wandering further and further out in his explorations, both to get a better handle on the town and because he wasn't so sure their last hit had simply been dumb luck. Sure, coincidences happened, but --

There was a tall building with a white stone facade up ahead, its entrance slightly ajar. Oiling the hinges and pushing the door open revealed a wood-floored room illuminated only by a row of high windows along the back side. PISCINE BOULLINGRIN, read the sign.

It, like its neighbors, looked long-abandoned. But the row of mirrors inside and the markings along the floor suggested that the first room had once been some kind of studio.

ooc: Feel free to stop by and have Majima ask if your character would like to explore the abandoned gym, or find him a little later on rummaging through equipment closets, searching the rooms, or starting some cleanup! This is a general placeholder for any gym-related shenanigans. ]

Each sip hits my lips like a landmine

Uh... thanks.

[ signed Majima as a native carried a bar stool through the doorway and into the house. The man waved enthusiastically at him before leaving once more -- possibly to bump into anyone standing outside.

Should anyone drop by, they'd find that the walk-in basement of Majima's new house was currently filled with random junk Majima hadn't asked for (but appreciated, don't get him wrong): a pair of tonfa, shoes, a 50-pound bag of sand, a dart board... and then there were the boxes of bottled alcohol. These were clustered around the dark wood counter of the mini bar, which to the old owner's credit was beautifully appointed.

Majima shrugged, and plucked the first of the bottles out of its carrying crate -- single malt Scotch, amber in the afternoon light. ]

Guess I'm gonna need a sign.

On the 7th day, it was said God rest/But on the 8th day he made the DVX

[ Later on in the month, with everything squared away, Majima could be found at odd hours behind the bar, cleaning glasses or reading about bartending technique.

Someone who knew him well might think he looked a little more tired than usual, but any new faces? They'd get a smile and a bow from the man at the counter. ]

What'll it be?

Wildcard

[ U know what to do. Additional prompts to follow, maybe. Feel free to hit me up on Tetradecimal or tetra | majima #2434 on discord ]

Comments

[justbeingknife]

Shit.

[ Majima moved into high gear, slipping catfooted over a thankfully empty desk to get himself behind Jake before they were both dead. He ended up grabbing the chair and steadying it through sheer force; if Jake ended up losing his balance, he'd just have to bear up the weight of both at the same time.

As the outer shell of his jacket brushed up against Jake's fingers, he might be able to pick up the following:

ooc: So the link above up to 22:56 is what I'm describing below, depending on how much information you want Jake to get! ]

A quiet street late at night: no passersby, only two people besides Majima himself. The first was a big guy -- shaved head, bulky build visible even under the heavy green parka he wore. The second was a young woman about Majima's age, clad in a house coat and clutching a long white cane for the blind.

"We gotta get that car," the big guy was saying. "More guys on the way, right? Gimme two seconds." And then he was jogging ahead of them, slipping into a pale green business van. Majima turned to take the woman's hand and lead her forward. There was the sound of a car ignition...

And then an explosion. The windows of the storefront in front of the van blew out; something heavy shattered its way through some unseen glass. Majima and the woman were easily blown backward by the sheer sudden force of it. Five, ten feet at least. Intense heat, sparks rising through scattered ash -- and as Majima struggled to look up, he could see that the interior of the car was a roiling carpet of flames.

"Makoto!"

The woman was alive, but semi-conscious. And there was something else -- an older, grey-haired man in a double-breasted suit. He was short in stature, looked almost like some pencil-pushing businessman. But as he walked toward them, past the ruined vehicle, it was clear he was anything but.

"You are the worst, buddy. How could you lie to me like that?"

There was a pistol in his hand.

[waystation]

<sub>(OOC: Ooh, thank you, that's helpful!)

[Shit.

Jake's thinking much the same thing as he feels the chair rise underneath him. He's less worried about falling than he is about now figuring out how to lower the chair without banging it on the ground. But before he can really start sweating bullets, Majima is there, grabbing the chair. Thank god he called Majima in here when he did.

It's pure instinct to touch the man's shoulder to get his footing. It's not just his footing he gets in the bargain. Unexpectedly, he blinks and opens wide eyes on a scene from a time and a place far from here.

People standing in a street in New York? No, that's just the association he makes because it's all he knows. The signs are in Japanese; the red lantern hanging from the eave of a building is pretty, and decidedly not something you'd see in his neighborhood unless it were Chinatown. He recognizes one of the people with startling clarity--Majima.

There's no convenient translation services to tell him what they're saying, but they're aborted attempt to flee and Majima's imploring, pained attempts to rouse his female companion say enough. And the gun. There's a gun. There's a man with a gun, and they can't get up--

Jake jolts from the vision with a near-gasp like someone snapping out of a waking dream, unwittingly tightening his hold on Majima's shoulder even as he leans back against the filing cabinet like the force of the car bomb has sent him reeling, too.]</sub>

[justbeingknife]

Hey, you all right?

[ The immediate danger was past, but Jake still looked like a goose had walked over his grave. Was all that from a scare about falling off the chair? Granted, the consequences could've been pretty dire, but... ]

Talk about a close call. Lucked out on that one.

[waystation]

<sub>[That goose took a hell of a stroll, that's for damn sure.

Jake's response was delayed as he didn't want to risk moving until he was absolutely sure he could do it soundlessly. It gave him time to process. His throat worked--not to emit the questions crowding to the surface, just to swallow.

Blinking away the glassy, far-away look, he settled wide eyes on Majima. He'd had visions before, but not often awake and unprovoked. He realized, as he gingerly straightened up from the filing cabinet, that it hadn't been entirely unprovoked... It had happened as soon as he'd touched Majima's jacket.]</sub>

I'm fine.

_{[He was only shaking a little bit when he retrieved his device to reply. But I... How to put it? He licked his lips and tried again.]}

Were you ever in an explosion? With a bomb. And a woman and an old man.

_{[And a third guy who'd gotten the brunt of it... but Jake had difficulties repeating it after the guy's grisly demise.]}

[justbeingknife]

What?

[ was all the intelligence Majima could really muster in his surprise.

This was a question completely out of left field, and about something and someone (multiple someones) he'd never brought up to Jake. ]

How did you

[ More Reims weirdness? There hadn't been any red dust around, though, and neither of them had been asleep. ]

[waystation]

_{[I'd like the answer to that, too, he thinks. Fortunately (or unfortunately), his weirdness is fuelled by something quite a bit more internal than mysterious dust. His resigned exhale is silent before he takes to his advice.]}

Promise you won't scream?

_{[An offbeat question, but one with a purpose. He looks into Majima's one eye closely, wanting to be sure. He doesn't want to be the cause of two close calls in the span of ten minutes.]}

[justbeingknife]

[ If he was anyone else, Majima might have hesitated. But facts were facts -- he was in the unenviable position of being able to make that promise and know he could follow through on it. ]

Yeah.

[ Maybe Jake was like Tetora -- a touch-based telepath. Made sense, right? They'd both stuck around Reims for about the same amount of time, and Majima hadn't sprouted any sudden ability to know things about other people he couldn't possibly. And now, looking back at Jake... maybe. ]

[waystation]

_{[For both their sakes he hoped that was true because what he was about to do could be a teensy bit startling--]}

( This is how. )

_{[Jake took a breath, then reached out for Majima's mind--deliberately this time--to project his voice into it.]}

( I saw something. A memory, I think. This is how--it happens sometimes, with me. )

[justbeingknife]

[ This time it was Majima's grave that was apparently hosting an unexpected guest. He stiffened instinctively upon hearing words in his head that were not his own -- it wasn't like hearing with his ears, either. That much was certain. ]

Is it somethin' you can turn off?

[ Of all the people he thought he might have to one day explain his actions to, Jake Chambers was not one of them. So, you know. This was new. ]