"I got an interview."
Nigel looked up from his coffee, smiling at Adam despite feeling like shit. He was not a morning person or even human until he had his coffee, even if American's version of the stuff was like dirty dish water comparatively to what he normally drank in Romania.
"Of course you did." Nigel said, pleased that his plan with Rosa had worked out so well. The Romanian space agency must have snapped up the resume he had sent. "Where at?"
"With Halloran Industries, research and engineering for space communication and exploration." Adam sighed, already pensive. The job was exactly what he needed, but getting it was another matter entirely. It didn't matter if it was a perfect fit or not if he was unable to convince the people in charge to give him a chance.
Cursing in his head, Nigel made a mental note to light a fire under Darko's ass about securing Adam a job by any means possible. Darko hadn't been kidding when he stated that Nigel was not a patient man. There was only three names left out of ten on his hit list, and the New York criminal culture was reeling from the path of destruction that Nigel was single handedly carving out, leaving a high body count and no witnesses behind him. Once those three names were scratched off, Nigel wanted to leave the country as soon as possible, his people moving in to fill the void he had created and secure their place here. Leaving Adam behind was not an option anymore, but Nigel was hoping to make it as painless as possible for him.
"I also got a job offer from Rosa in Romania to work on the satellite data chips for their space program." Adam said, his brow furrowing, "Which is odd because I didn't send my resume or a letter of inquiry to them."
"Smart guy like you, people talk. Things like this happen." Nigel shrugged with a roll of his shoulders, the tension leaving them. He was relieved his plan was back on track and he didn't have to waste time killing anyone else. "Which one are you going for?"
"No, it's just an interview. I haven't gotten anything yet." Adam told his bran flakes. He liked to eat them in a certain amount of time or else they got too soggy. This conversation was throwing off the milk to bran flake saturation but the job situation was weighing heavily on his mind. Adam ate his cereal faster in an attempt to catch up.
"Would you be good at these jobs?" Nigel asked. He still didn't know all the ins and outs of what Adam could do but it all looked pretty damn impressive. Nigel had flipped through Adam's notebooks on more than one occasion to find the pages neatly filled from top to bottom with math equations and sketches of satellites and what looked like computer parts. "Of course you would be. All you gotta do is let them know, gorgeous."
"That's all?" Adam said, leaving off his cereal. He had lost his appetite, and he was stressed out enough that not finishing his breakfast wouldn't matter. "That's impossible."
"When is it?" Nigel asked, needing to how long he had to wrap up his business in New York.
"February 3. Seventeen days from now for Halloran." Adam said much to Nigel's relief. That was more than enough time. "Rosa I can set up anytime over Skype, taking into account the time difference."
"So what is bothering you? Go take what is yours." Nigel shrugged, giving advice on something he knew very little about. Truth be told, he had never worked an actual run-of-the-mill job a day in his life. Tending bar at their club didn't count according to Darko, who always looked murderous when Nigel sometimes showed up in a strange mood and insisted on helping out.
"They'll think I'm a freak. The last time I had an interview, I had my father with me and he explained everything about me to them." Adam explained, glancing hopefully over at Nigel. To his dismay, the man laughed and shook his head.
"Adam, my darling, as much as I would love to go along and sing your praises, I can't. You definitely won't get hired if I accompany you." Nigel sighed with a tired smile, well aware of what he looked like and how he presented to 'normal' people, the living epitome of a bad man. Nigel knew he could be entertaining, as well as a delightful conversationalist, and even come off as roguishly charming, but once one got all past that, he wasn't meant to be likable. "Just wing it."
"Wing it?" Adam said, getting up out of his seat to start pacing. Improvising was not a gift of many he possessed.
"Yes. Fake it until you make it. You don't need me or anyone else to sell you. Just tell them that you can do it. Like I said, you're a smart guy. People like me cater to smart guys like you." Nigel told Adam who looked back at him doubtfully, his hand fidgeting at his sides.
"But they'll think I'm weird." Adam fretted.
"So what? You are weird. "Nigel grinned. "But I'm weird too. Everyone is weird. It's okay to be weird. You have got to learn how to dress it up as normal. That's what little white lies are for."
"I don't lie. I won't. Lying is bad." Adam said softly, rubbing his arms with his hands as words made him feel uncomfortable.
"Truth is relative and whatever you make of it." Nigel snorted, making light of it until he saw Adam withdrawing mentally and physically from him. "Fine, no lying. You'll just have to charm them with your pretty face."
"That's never worked before." Adam frowned, wondering where Nigel was going with this. It didn't sound very practical. He let Nigel pull him into his lap though, the older man pressing soft kisses to his cheeks, chin, and then mouth. Adam changed position so he could more comfortable sit on Nigel, his legs bracketing the older man and the chair so that the two could face each other. Nigel seemed pleased by it, his hands dipping down to squeeze Adam's ass as he grumbled foreign words into his neck.
"So you have an interview with this Halloran, but what about Rosa? You should set up an interview with them as soon as possible." Nigel asked, gently steering Adam where he needed him to go in more ways than one. Adam was more interesting in kissing now though than responding, his hands still tentative but much braver now as they explored Nigel's angular face, his sharp cheekbones and curvature of his brow.
"I do, but I have to set it up with them through Skype." Adam said, bothering by the whole thing. Despite Nigel's reasoning in the matter, it just didn't make sense. If that were true, Adam reasoned he would be getting job offers from space programs all over the world, not just Romania.
"Wouldn't that be so much better for you? All you would have to do is stare at the camera and remember to smile." Nigel practically purred out the idea as light fingertips traced his thin lips.
"Yes, it would be, but I don't speak Romanian." Adam said sighed as large callused hands left off his ass to trail up his back under his shirt, kneading his angel bones of his shoulders blades and the ladder of his vertebrae.
"Luckily for you, I do. I could actually sit in on the interview with you, though out of sight from the camera. We'll get you a nice suit because clothes make the man, and practice some bullshit small talk to float you through the lighter parts of conversation." Nigel said, sweetening the deal. "How does that sound to you, gorgeous?"
"I can do that." Adam smiled fragilely, feeling too much and thinking not enough. Nigel smiled back for so many worse reasons, watching Adam start to lose himself to his touch and attention. "But what happens if I get the job? I don't want to move to Romania."
"Arrange the interview, Adam, and you'll have all the help you need. You never know. You just might end up changing your mind. Variety is the spice of life after all."
Plush lips were placed to his own, Adam tasting sweet and clean from breakfast, far too pure for the likes of him, but that had never stopped Nigel before
OoOoO
Nigel had been gone too long. Rubbing his palms nervously together, Adam paced from his bedroom to the living room to avoid staring at the clock any longer. Adam knew exactly almost down to the minute how long it took him to get groceries but Nigel had offered to go for him instead this time, promising to get all the right brands. That was over three almost going on four hours ago. An hour would have be acceptable, two hours unprecedented, but three going to four hours boggled Adam's mind.
Scenarios spun through Adam's complex thinking patterns, trying to rationalize the length of Nigel's absence. He couldn't have gotten lost, Adam giving Nigel a very detailed map of the area pulled from satellite images as well as written instructions. He couldn't even call Nigel to check in on him, the man's cellphone sitting on the table, left behind which was unusual because Nigel liked to keep it on him at all times or well within arm's reach.
Even now it sprang to life, the vibrations against the table's wood making Adam's head hurt. It was Nigel's phone but Adam had never been told not to answer it. That and Nigel might have realized he left his phone and could be trying to call him, Adam reasoned out as he reached for it.
"Nigel, where are you?" Adam answered the phone. There was a pause on the other end, much to Adam's distress.
"It's nice to know I'm not the only one who asks that fucking question." Said a strange man, his accent similar to Nigel's but heavier, his English obviously not as good and spoken much slower. "Would it be safe to assume I am speaking to Adam?"
"Y-yes, it would be safe to assume that." Adam stammered.
"I see Nigel is being as useless and absent as ever. I will need you to relay to message to him for me. Can you do that?" said the mysterious man.
"Yes, I can." Adam said, grateful that this conversation was happening over the phone. He did so much better when he didn't have to try and read facial expressions. The only thing he really flubbed with phone calls was knowing when to say goodbye and hang up, the other person having to end the conversation for him. Nigel was working on that with him though in preparation for his Skype interview.
"Tell him that Darko says he can move in whenever he is ready to return to Bucharest. The renovations are done." Darko said, pleased with what he had managed to accomplish in so short a time period.
"R-renovations? Move in? What do you mean?" Adam barely got the words out, his throat tightening too quickly and painfully to form anymore.
"He hasn't told you?" Darko mused, really hoping he hadn't ruined a surprise, but that would be just like Nigel to not share important information in a timely manner. "What do you know?"
"I know Nigel was supposed to be back by now with the groceries but it's been almost four hours." Adam said thinly, confused as his mind started to make connections and piece things together.
"I think you and Nigel need to have a very long talk, but please leave my name out of it as much as possible. I would love to sit here and explain it all to you, but I get bored so fast and I have things to do." Darko said ending the phone call, hoping the next one would be from Nigel in a good mood. He doubted it though. Cursing Nigel, Darko was grateful for once that the violent man was an ocean away.
OoOoO
All things considered, it had gone rather well. Nigel's errand had taken longer than he would have liked, but now the two Russians were dead, leaving only the Italian left. Nigel always liked to save the best for last. Groceries in hand, Nigel let himself into the apartment to find Adam standing in the middle of the living room with Nigel's cell phone in hand and his laptop powered up on the table. Not pleased by this, Nigel shrugged worry away for now. Anyone who called him would be speaking Romanian or some other language.
The expression on Adam's face was something Nigel had never seen before though. It was like a different shade of beige in blank vagueness, but something intense was underlying there. Nigel couldn't quite put his finger on it.
"Adam, what's wrong?" Nigel asked watching as Adam's gaze flicked between the laptop's monitor and the phone in hand in rapid succession. Drawing closer, Nigel could see that Google translate was up on the screen as well as part of his conversation to Darko, the one he'd had in front of Adam a while back. As always, the translation was a mess but one line of dialogue had been perfectly translated.
….I want it ready by the time I get back….
"I see it was a mistake to leave my phone out and to underestimate you. You are ever the total package, brains and beauty, my darling Adam." Nigel sighed, setting the groceries down in a chair by the table.
"Darko called and said you could move in whenever you return to Bucharest. That the renovations were done. You're going back to Romania." Adam said flatly, his mind still trying to make sense of it all. It was too much information to process all at once. He was feeling dangerous overwhelmed and trapped by that feeling.
"Yes I am, but I am taking you with me." Nigel said quietly. He could tell that it didn't matter what he said at this point. Adam was too far gone.
"The interview at Rosa was you. You sent my resume to them." Adam said, his words usually sharp. There was heat growing there, temperatures rising through his tone.
"I did."
"You lied." Said the calm before the storm.
"A little. The ends justified the means." Nigel said, his heart breaking. Adam was beautiful even in his anger, and Nigel was a dangerous man in love.
There was a moment of perfect stillness from Adam before it shattered, the reaction even surprising a man like Nigel as Adam threw the phone to implode upon impact with the hardwood, and started to make a mess out of the apartment.
"Ha-ha-ha! Fooled you! Dumb Adam! Dumb, dumb, dumb, dumb, dumb, dumb," Adam chanted in his anger, crippling embarrassment making everything in his head hurt all sharp and jagged from too many thoughts. Rage made him blind, his hands seeking out whatever to throw to keep those feelings away from him. Nigel was just like everyone else, and all his words and promises meant nothing. He was leaving and eventually one way or another, everyone left Adam. First his mom, then his dad, then his job, and now Nigel. Throwing his back against a wall and at a complete loss, Adam's palms started to hit his temples in time to his words. "Dumb, dumb, dumb, dumb Adam."
Adam's hands were caught though, Nigel making the slighter man cross his arms over his chest before pulling him close in a tight embrace. "I need you to calm down, darling. You are not allowed to harm yourself." Nigel said softly to the man struggling in the cage of his arms. He had read about these sort of outbursts in the books, and how to respond to them.
"No, I hate you." Adam yelled, the sound of it muffled into Nigel's chest. Nigel knew the words were being said in anger, but they hurt more than they should have. He'd rather Adam just punch him or something and get it over with, but he couldn't risk letting Adam go.
"I know you do. It was inevitable." Nigel sighed, pressing a kiss to the top of Adam's head while the man raged against him. Adam couldn't hurt him like this, perfectly contained by a man who lived and breathed violence, made durable from it.
"I hate you! I hate you! You're a liar!" Adam sobbed, struggling less and less the more he grew tired. "I'm not going to Romania with you! I'm staying here!"
Adam continue to fight him like a moth caught in a spider web until all he could do was sob into Nigel's shirt who finally let Adam go, the younger man going limp in his arms. He guided Adam to the ground so that he could sit there, hiding his face behind shaking palms.
"It occurs to me that you might not be in the best state of mind to discuss this. I have some things to finish up here though before we depart. Let's say I give you 'til the day after tomorrow to pack, say 48 hours from now, but that's the best I can do. Agreed?" Nigel said, wanting to wipe away the tears that stained that beautiful face be loved so much even if Adam's eyes were as hard and unyielding as sapphires at the moment. Anger brought out all the blue in them.
"Liar." Adam whispered back, crossing his arms back over his chest to start rocking. He looked tapped out though, so Nigel wasn't too worried about him starting to himself again or find another mirror.
Reaching over to hold Adam still long enough to do so, Nigel pressed a kiss to a heated forehead in farewell, leaving with one goal in mind. To finish what he started, only one name left on his list. After that, his only concern would be Adam.
OoOoO
Nigel didn't return that night and for the first time in months, Adam went to bed by himself. He didn't get to sleep though, turning Nigel's words, all of them, over and over in his mind. The whole situation was terrifying and confusing. It was made even worse without Nigel there to clarify.
Upon learning that he had Asberger's, the most frequent question that Adam would get from strangers was 'what was it like?'. Adam was never quite sure how to answer that question because it wasn't like anything. The closest comparative he had ever read in reference to Asberger's was that it was like constantly entering a room mid-conversation. The conversation spoken in a language you only partially understood with everyone in the room expecting you to make sense of it and be part of the exchange. Adam could appreciate the metaphor now, understanding it better now because for a time, Nigel had been his translator and guide for any room he chose to enter, helping him follow the conversation. Now that Nigel was gone, the prospect of entering the rooms alone was frightening. Life without Nigel was frightening.
Adam had put the Nigel's phone back together and repaired it, but it remained silent. A thorough search of the apartment had turned up nothing but a scrap of paper with an address scrawled out in Nigel's handwriting. Googling the address had produced a bar in the Bronxs named Rizzo's. Adam fell asleep staring at it, wondering what he should do.
OoOoO
"Now, I read that planets are lined up across the sky..." Harlan said, glancing over at Adam who had plopped himself down to lean against the windowsill. He hadn't said a word since he'd show up out of the blue. Since he was here, Harlan thought it was a good time to look over the papers Mr. Wardlow needed signed by Adam. It passed the time and filled the silence, but it was starting to get on Harlan's last nerve. "Like they haven't been in 30,000 years."
"Uh-huh." Adam responded, unenthused. That set off an alarm in Harlan's head. When Adam wasn't going a mile a minute about space when given an opening like that, something was definitely wrong.
"You didn't get the job you were going for?" Harlan asked, fishing for answers.
"No." Adam said, referring to Halloran. Having nothing else better to do, he had skyped Rosa and done his interview in a vain attempt to stop thinking about Nigel. It had been less complicated than he had feared, the scientists there in Romania ecstatic to have Adam come work with them. They told him his resume turning up when it did was like a miracle. Apparently, Nigel had accidently sent some of his notes about the Viking program along with his resume, and now Rosa wanted to make him a lead on their interstellar satellite navigation program. It hadn't translated well but from what Adam understood, they wanted him so bad for the project they didn't care if he had Asperger's, four arms, or wore a duck on his head for fun. His work spoke volumes, the language of math universal.
"That why you so down?" Harlan offered, trying to make sense of Adam's weirder than usual mood. "Hell, I've lost more jobs than…"
"No." Adam interrupted, shaking his head. "I think Nigel and I broke up? He's going back to Romania"
"Oh." Harlan said, mouthing a silent 'thank you' to a higher power before mentally catching up. "Wait, what? How are you not sure?"
"I don't know. It's confusing. He lied. He lied, and I found out about it. I can't trust him anymore." Adam said, staring down at his hands. A lot of what Nigel had said didn't make sense anymore now that he was a liar.
"Ah. These all seem fine." Harlan said, handing Adam back the legal documents he had brought along to look over. "I'm probably going to regret asking this, but what did Nigel lie about? Did he lie about going back to Romania?"
"No. He sent my resume to Rosa. It's Romania's space program. I got a job with them earlier today if I want it."
"So let me get this straight, the guy helped you get a job dealing with space and all that stuff you won't shut up about?" Harlan acted, feeling a little stunned. He knew Adam was smart but had never thought to steer him toward something like that. Nigel had though, which said something about him.
"Yes. Darko said all the renovations were done" Adam said, not making a whole lot of sense to his company who let it go to press on.
"I probably going to regret saying this, but it sounds like he really wants you to come with him to Romania." Harlan sighed, not really wanting to defend Nigel of all people. He had done a hell of a lot more good for Adam than most people though, "Seems to me that the guy has gone through a whole lot of effort and trouble to make a place for you there. Not only that, but make sure you're happy there too."
"I don't want to lose my home." Adam said, the familiar words lacking their usual fire.
"Adam, you have a job now. You can keep the apartment if you want to, but you're going to have to decide if you want Nigel in your life or not. The apartment is just a place. If you keep it, it will still be there. If you don't, I really don't think you'll care too much in the long run. You'll go to a lot of places in life, hell, maybe even live in some of them."
"He's a liar." Adam pouted, still stuck on the idea. Overthinking it was making him tired and feeling foolish though.
"Before I went into the service..." Harlan sighed, not wanting to tell this story. "I met a girl who made me a promise. When I came back, she was right there waiting for me, but I found out she hadn't quite kept her promise...So I put some things in a bag and I left. Never spoke to her again.
"Though sometimes the wanting to was…was like a live animal, clawing at my chest from the inside." Harlan. "Thirty-five years. She's the only picture in my head that can still stop me in broad daylight...and make me curse myself
for a stubborn old fool."
"It's not rocket science." Harlan said when it was obvious Adam wasn't getting what he needed from that private piece of personal history. "I'm saying you need to talk to Nigel one more time, that's all."
"No." Adam said, but then relented. "I don't know."
"Liars is all you're gonna run across in this world." Harlan sighed, "A man has got to learn the difference between just plain liars and liars worth lovin."
"Harlan? If you called that girl couldn't you stop cursing yourself for a stubborn old fool even if you still had to be old?" Adam asked, Harlan resisting the urge to smack his oldest friend's son upside his damn head.
Whether he meant to or not, Harlan thought old Raki's kid was a hell of a lot smarter than he let on, Adam asking for the other paperwork the lawyer had left with Harlan before leaving. The ones that went into detail about placing the apartment on the market.
Long after Adam left, Harlan stared long and hard at his front door, wondering what was to become of Adam and who in the hell Nigel really was, and what kind of man was he. Harlan still couldn't get a last name from either of them, Adam not knowing and Nigel flat out refusing to tell him. Nigel claimed he never used it for 'reasons', whatever the hell that meant.
Sighing, Harlan shook himself, taking his own advice and Adam's question to heart as he began to look through address books and shift through letters.
"Follow through, young man. Follow through."
TBC
