"Fine. Don't worry, I'll be right there, telling you what hallucination to avoid." It means the Death Valley trip won't be like the ones Lark loved at home, but seeing Alec there will probably make up for it.
Alec opens his mouth to reply, then hesitates once he realizes he has an actual schedule to keep now. He's been striving to fill his time however he can, and now between infirmary shifts, patrols, both sparring and Enclosure runs with Eggsy, lessons with Nina - it makes him smirk a little.
"Tomorrow night," he comes back a moment later. "After dinner. Each figure out our own way in. Sound fair?"
Because fair is something they both have an excess of experience with.
"Sure, I'll meet you there. You're staying over, still?" He nips Alec's neck, happy to keep the bruise he left there earlier going. "I want to hear more about your upcoming holiday."
The feel of Lark's teeth sends a pleasant shiver through him, but Alec reaches up with one hand to push his face away anyway, flicking lightly at his ear.
"I have to go meet Eggsy and Nina for sessions, then a session with the Emperor, and a shift and a patrol. You think I have time to stay anywhere?" The look he tips Lark is both petulant and sly.
"I think you can spare an hour or two, yeah," Lark smirks, biting at his shoulder instead, not unlike the way he does when he really, really wants Alec to keep doing something. "I bet you could time your day to the half-minute if you wanted."
Alec pushes him away again, flicks at his ear harder this time.
"How do you jump from down to the half minute to spare an hour or two? And why would I want to?" He is fully aware of where this is heading and, as such, closes the laptop to set aside.
Similarly, Alec pretends to be pointedly oblivious despite both of them being fully aware of just how much he isn't. He sets the laptop on the table beside the couch.
"That's not a compliment, that's a fact - be better at compliments," he returns blithely.
"You know I don't sleep, right?" comes what seems to Alec to be the natural follow up. This is a lie, but not the kind Alec thinks twice about issuing. The healing process, he figures, gets a free pass so it might as well be true.
"My hours are very precious to me. And worth more than a compliment."
"Well then it's definitely worth more than a compliment. Make me an offer. I want to know how much it's worth to you," he hedges back.
Someday, if he hasn't already, Lark is going to figure out that the reason he never gets a better answer out of Alec for this is he has no idea what kind of value should be placed on anything.
"Priceless," Lark deadpans. He has no idea yet why Alec hedges, but his assumption has been very much what Alec just told him. "Tell you what. You stay, you get compliments--multiple--and I'll see if I can't show you something new."
"They're really not. I've never given you anything." Lark smiles at him. "Okay. I can meet those demands. But I'm not going to tell you what it is in advance--you'll know it when you feel it."
"Oh, he's cocky - I like them cocky," he says to no one at all, reaching up to card his fingers through Lark's hair just like he refused to allow earlier. Then he's pushing to his feet.
Every now and then, Lark realizes how much he enjoys all of this, and it's a rush. It's also like missing a step and being certain he's about to fall down a flight of stairs, though.
This is one of those times, and he laughs and kisses Alec hard.
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"When?"
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"Tomorrow night," he comes back a moment later. "After dinner. Each figure out our own way in. Sound fair?"
Because fair is something they both have an excess of experience with.
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"I have to go meet Eggsy and Nina for sessions, then a session with the Emperor, and a shift and a patrol. You think I have time to stay anywhere?" The look he tips Lark is both petulant and sly.
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"How do you jump from down to the half minute to spare an hour or two? And why would I want to?" He is fully aware of where this is heading and, as such, closes the laptop to set aside.
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"I'm admiring your ability to manage your time so well you can find time where others would lose it. Take a compliment, Alec."
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"That's not a compliment, that's a fact - be better at compliments," he returns blithely.
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"My hours are very precious to me. And worth more than a compliment."
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"Really. What is an hour with you worth? Assuming, of course, that for this hour I would want you at least strategically nude if not fully unclothed."
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Someday, if he hasn't already, Lark is going to figure out that the reason he never gets a better answer out of Alec for this is he has no idea what kind of value should be placed on anything.
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"Appealing to my ego and sense of adventure. Not a bad strategy," he allows after serious, blatant consideration.
"Better plan: guarantee me something new, and I'll give you one and a half. Compliments are a given."
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"Deal."
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This is one of those times, and he laughs and kisses Alec hard.