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Lance goes over to Jez's place to discuss the specifics of their unique relationship. |
After having received Lance's text perhaps a little later than she should have, Jezebel is finally at home after a long day at work. The young woman has sent Lance a text back that has given him an address (473 MacArthur, apartment #8) with the simple message of 'meet me'. Now after a shower and a change into a pair of cotton sweats and an old Led Zep t-shirt, Jezebel sits on her couch with a cup of hot tea in her hands, awaiting the man's arrival.
After receiving the text message, Lance gets ready and heads to the address, parking wherever he can find a spot to find. He is dressed down, for his standards, but still having the name brands. He heads into the building and finds the apartment specified. He takes a deep breath as he stands in front of the door before he finally knocks twice.
Jezebel springs to her feet and scalds herself mildly with her tea when she stands to answer the door, letting out a quiet curse before she sets the cup down on her coffee table. She opens up the door and can't supress the briefest of smiles when Lance is standing there. "Come in. I wasn't lying about the shitty apartment, as you can see now. I hope you'll forgive me though. And to be honest, I find it sort of cozy…" She doesn't actually have rats or termites though, so she was clearly exaggerating on that part. She steps away from the door to allow Lance access into the apartment, taking in a breath to try to get a whiff of his cologne. "Take a seat wherever you prefer. Mi casa es su casa, mi amigo." Considering the scene at Lance's apartment the other night and the cooling off period between then and now, Jez seems rather calm and collected.
Lance's head quickly looks up as the sound of the door being opened is heard and he sees Jezebel on the other side, offering a smile in return. "Hey." He offers as he first sees her. "Thanks." He tells her as she steps aside and lets him into the apartment. He steps across the threshold and looks around the area. "I use to stay in something like this before Division found me." He says, looking around before he takes a seat on the couch. "In fact, this might be my old couch." He says with a soft chuckle before he looks back to her. "You look good." He says as he looks her over.
"I wouldn't be surprised. It was here when I moved in." Jez says, closing the door when he moves to the couch. She moves to sit down beside him, quiet for a long moment. "Thanks. I shouldn't. I had a close call today. It was exhausting…" She does look a little tired around the edges. She reaches out slowly to touch Lance's hand. "I just want to start out by saying that you haven't done anything wrong, Lance. I just… I needed time." Jez pauses briefly after that before furrowing her brows. "If I'm just going to get in the way of you and Rebekah's friendship, maybe it's just easier if we didn't see each other anymore. I don't want to be the cause of any discontent." Jezebel pauses before she laughs bitterly. "I'm sure that if Bekah could hear this, she would say I'm just being manipulative."
Lance frowns slightly at the mention of her close call, but doesn't press anything for it yet. He glances down at her hand as he feels her touch his, moving to take her hand if she lets him. He looks at her as she starts to speak again, nodding slightly as he listens. "It's okay. I know you did what you had to do and maybe I was a bit naive with our situation. Especially considering Division." He glances down at the ground for a moment as he continues. "As much as I want to be with you and as much as I care for you, maybe you're right and it would be easier. But then I do care for you and I do want to be with you. I don't want to let you go." He lightly squeezes her hand.
Jezebel nods a little bit at him, considering his words. She locks hands with him, and then locks eyes with him. "I think we're both being insanely foolish here. …But this is the first time in a long time I've had real, good emotions, for the most part." She pauses again as she tries to collect her thoughts, breaking eye contact in order to look down at their intertwined hands. "Rebekah and I had another run in at the club she works at. I honestly didn't know that she worked there when I went there. Have you spoken with her at all?" Jezebel doesn't say it with resentment or anger. She's rather neutral about the whole thing.
Lance runs his thumb lightly over the back of her hand. "I know. It's been a while since I've cared about anyone like this." He nods his head once as Rebekah is brought up. "Yeah. I ran into her yesterday at the mall. I apologized and offered ice cream. We're alright now I think." He frowns slightly. "She mentioned you two running into each other again too."
There's a long moment where Jezebel struggles with the decision about whether or not to tell Lance about what ensued during her last meeting with Bekah and eventually all she says is, "It didn't go well. I don't think that she and I could ever be friends… or anything like it. Which actually genuinely makes me sad. I was looking forward to getting to know someone outside Division…" She smiles at him slightly as he runs his thumb over her hand, giving him a squeeze. "Either way, I guess this really shouldn't be about Rebekah. Despite all of our circumstances, we're two consenting adults that might have a shot at something like contentment in this universe…"
Lance nods and sighs. "That's what she was saying too. I didn't press anything about it." He looks up at her before he kisses the back of her hand. "I was hoping you two would be able to be friends, but I've figured that isn't possible too. But, with her aside, the decision should be about us. I agree fully." He looks up at her before he leans back against the couch. "I think we should weigh the pros and cons about us being together so we consider all the options."
Jezebel contemplates before she just laughs. "Pros: Maybe we're not totally miserable. Cons: Rebekah hates me. Division kills us for being together, if not mild torture and brainwashing sessions." She glances at him and watches him carefully. "I don't know, that would be pretty cut and dried to most people. I've always been a little stubborn myself… unfortunately." She lets her comment sit in the open air as she weighs the gravity of the situation that they've gotten themselves into.
Lance smirks and chuckles. "Maybe that wasn't the best suggestion as to come to a decision." He rubs the back of his neck before he looks at her again. "I don't want to loose you. But I know that if we do stay together then we'll have to deal with the consequences sooner or later and we may have to end up like you-know-who. If we want to keep this going, we have to realize that this is a very real possibility. We could be running for the rest of our lives." He seems very somber about the idea, torn between two very different worlds.
"Lance, we'd never have the chance to run. Our kill chips would be activated if we kept defying them. They don't just overlook these things and frankly I'm… I'm surprised that we've been able to keep it going for this long. Fooling around with civilians who don't know any better is fine, but…" Jezebel worries her teeth over her lower lip and reaches down to squeeze his hand again. "Two lovers on the inside could get big ideas and end up exactly like you-know-who…" She leans in to him and stops just short of pressing her lips against his. "We don't have to lose each other. We'll always have each other's backs. I guess the question is, is that enough?"
Lance nods and frowns. "Yeah. Fucking chips." He sighs and shrugs. "I don't know know if it'll be enough to tell you the truth." He looks up at her, starting to reach up to her cheek but stops himself. "This is something that appears to be a clear choice, but I can't agree with it."
Jezebel moves back a little bit in order to keep a safe distance from him. "This is all so confusing. I've never been so confused in my entire life, Lance. Not even when I went through training." She pauses, glancing at him. The air between them seems rife with explosive chemistry, but a heaviness too. She reaches up to chew at the tip of her thumb, twitching her nose. "I wish I had all the answers. I wish I knew what to do right now. I don't think that the things I want to do are the right answers to this though."
Lance nods and rubs his forehead slightly as he tries to figure things out. He looks at her and bites his lower lip. "I wish we both had all the answers and the answers I do have I know are the wrong ones." He turns to face her better, looking down at his hand. "There's a part of me who is willing to fight and claw through whatever comes our way to be with you, but then the other part of me knows that it'll never happen that way." He looks back up at her, looking in her eyes. "Why couldn't I have met you seven years ago?"
"Because we'd have both been dumb teenagers." Jezebel responds easily, grinning at him. Behind that grin is a certain sadness, however, one that she has worked hard to keep hidden for the bulk of the conversation. "I'd offer to let you stay the night but I'm not sure if it's a good idea or not. I just… I like you being close. I missed you over the past few days." It takes her a minute to admit it, her voice faltering a few times. She looks up at him and shakes her head. "This is no good, is it? I guess we're a little like Romeo and Juliet in a way. Such a stupid metaphor…"
Lance nods and shrugs. "That's true, but at least we would have to make this decision. I would have stopped conning and gone straight probably. Never done the bank job and never gotten Division's attention." He sighs softly before he smiles and chuckles. "It may be a stupid metaphor, but it's definitely an appropriate one. We want to be together, but we can't otherwise we'll be killed with a push of a button."
Jezebel stands from the couch somewhat abruptly, though not out of offense. "It's been a long day, Lance. I think I'm going to bed. You're welcome to stay if you want to… or not. It doesn't matter to me." She looks at him and smiles. "If I had met you at that age, I'd have probably punched you before I'd have kissed you." It's a funny admission, but one that seems to ring true nonetheless. "I'm sorry. I wish I were a dumb civilian at this point. You could still have a lot of sex with me, but even then, I'd be getting cleaned for getting too close."
Lance looks up at her as she stands, nodding his head. "It's alright. I understand." He says, standing from the couch and looks at her. "I'll go so it'll be easier on us." He doesn't make any movements to move towards her. "I'll see you later then. Give me a call sometime." He says, standing there for a moment before he turns and starts towards the door.
"Yeah." Jez simply says. "I will. We'll get together soon…" Probably in a public, well-lit, non-threatening sort of a place. "Goodnight, Lance." She smiles at him before she heads down her hallway, closing the bedroom door behind her once she's safely behind it.
"Good night, Jez." Lance says in reply as he opens the door. He offers one last wave before he heads out of the apartment, closing the door behind him.
