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Long time coming, I know, and not too much to show for it, but after all this while, the ideas are finally coming to me, so you can--fingers crossed--expect an update within the next little while, and hopefully I can get this train back on the rails! Let me know what you think, what you want out of this, &c. &c. you know the drill by now. And enjoy!
Chapter Eleven:
In the most alarming game of grandmother's footsteps you'll probably ever play, someone crept into my flat. They closed the door with the quietest of clicks and tiptoed through the kitchen into the livingroom. With the quietest of steps they wound their way in the dark around my kitchen table and the large spot I leave open for when I finally inherit my uncle's cello. I don't care if I'm bad at musical instruments, I'm going to learn that damned thing, and I'm going to play it in that open spot! It doesn't hurt that the open area helps to divide my livingroom and diningroom up a bit.
I moved in my sleep, snuffling a bit and nuzzling back into the great wall-of-Dane behind me with a sigh. Both of us were fast asleep, and it was only the fact that the intruder's shadow crept across the dull street light climbing weakly in the window.
With a single small click of the lights, both Niels and I were awake like a shot. The blanket we had been under flew off in a spastic flurry of arms and legs as both of us leapt to our feet. While my newly-frenzied brain began to try to make sense of the lights and sounds and colours all around me now, a high, slightly giddy, and definitely girlish laugh broke through the air. It was at that moment that the pieces of my shattered senses fell into shape, and I knew immediately what had happened.
I'm a quiet man, usually. I don't like to shout. In part because when I shout, my voice tends to drift steadily toward my Scottish rootsI once had a very loud argument with a former boyfriend where by the time things were over, I sounded like I'd just got off the boat. I also don't like to shout because it brings out the worst in people. So, what happened next would likely surprise many who know me. I shouted, and I shouted loud. I don't remember all of what I said, but the gist of it went something like this. 'ANNA! GET OUT!'
'But Malcolm, how would I ever get to see what your mythical Dane was like if I didn't find out where you were today!' She quite obviously looked over Niels, an eyebrow raised in an infuriating way. Who the hell was she to give Niels that look? She didn't even like men! I threw a pillow at her while Niels bent over and snatched the blanket up from the floor. He held it out like a bullfighter's cape, shielding us both from her prying gaze.
'Malcolm, you know her?'
I nodded, 'Niels, this is Anna. She's my nosey and HIGHLY INAPPROPRIATE,' I shot those words specifically at her, 'friend. '
Anna curtsied, acting as though she hadn't woken up her best friend and a strange man while both were naked. 'I'll just wait in the kitchen until you two decide to get decent.' She said, feigning hurt at being yelled at. With one last look over her shoulder at Niels, she walked toward the kitchen.
As is probably needless to say, I was livid. I felt the tips of my ears and my cheeks burning scarlet, and I clenched and unclenched my fists rhythmically. I looked up at Niels, hoping that he would be taking this'situation' seems a bit of a mild word to use herebetter than I was. My anger was stopped short by the growing smile on his face. He wasn't mortified, he wasn't embarrassed, he wasn't even the slightest bit angry; his smile was turning into a grin, and then into a full-blown fit of laughter.
After a moment, he looked over to me, still chuckling, and put a heavy arm on my shoulders. 'She sure knows how to make an entrance, I'll give her that!' he burst into renewed laughter. I was still madand would be for some time afterbut between Niels' laughter and the sheer absurdity of the situation, I couldn't help but find myself breaking out into a sheepish smile of my own.
'I...I suppose she does....' I stammered slightly, knowing that my voice had successfully landed in the granite city (please return your trays to the upright and locked position before departing the aircraft), 'We should probably get dressed before she decides that she's going to renege on her deal.' I blushed at the look Niels gave me then. It was the strangest mix of confusion and curiosity, much as one has at some oddity in a circus, that I've ever seen.
Niels' expression changed in a split second to one of puckish mischief. 'Well, if she's going to break the agreement anyway,' he grinned and dropped the blanket, standing openly nude in the middle of my living room. I admit that I gave him a once over, feasting for the thousandth time since I'd first seen him on his handsome form. 'We might as well give her a show, right?' He looked over his shoulder at me with an impish grin and winked before walking confidently out of my livingroom. No, he didn't walk. He had the rolling confident amble of a man who doesn't thinking he's a handsome motherfuckerinstead, he just is. Thinking a fact to be true requires some sort of question being raised about it; no one could question that Niels was one of the most truly 'manly' men out there. He seemed to exude a sort of quiet easy virility that, to be perfectly frank, made my knees act more like jelly than joints.
I snatched up the blanket, wrapping it about myself almost like an odd crocheted cloak from a trashy fantasy novel. With the blanket trailing behind me, I tiptoed into the kitchen. I'm still not sure why I tiptoed; it's not like I was sneaking up on anyone, but tiptoe I did. I found Niels half-inside the drier, taking out our clothes, Anna looking at me with a smirk and that eyebrow still maddeningly quirked. I wasn't quite sure what to do, to be honest, but Niels' blonde head reappearing along with our clothes in one big hand solved that problem nicely. Of course, Anna was not to be so easily thwarted out of whatever plan she had cooked up. With a sudden jerk she held out a hand for Niels to shake, 'Pleased to meet you! My name is Anna, and you are?'
Without giving her the pleasure of his uncomfort, Niels held out his free hand and shook hers in his firm grip, 'And my name is Niels Carl Østergård-Hämäläinen. A pleasure to make your acquaintance, Ms...?'
Anna looked a bit surprised by his answer, likely having expected something less sure of himself. She would later tell me that you could tell a lot about someone by how they reacted when you caught them wrong-footed; apparently Niels passed her test. 'De Groot; Anna de Groot.' Niels chuckled at that, drawing an eye-roll from Anna. 'I know, I know, my last name is a testament to irony. But don't you dare call me Ms De Groot; that's my mother's name.'.
'I wouldn't dream of it! Although I'm sure that it would be easy to tell the two of you apart; there's no way your mother could match your youthful beauty.' Now, I know that he was turning up the charm that much because he was being facetious, but it was still a little bit ridiculous.
Anna, for the first time in her life, was speechless. She wasn't blown away by the compliment; she got her fair share of thosebetween her raven hair, her stormy blue eyes, and her (quite frankly) oversized bosom, it wasn't surprising. Instead, she was quite simply left nonplussed by the incongruity of a large naked man that looked to be a viking slathering on all the charms of an Edwardian gentleman. I was a little taken aback myself, and we ended up all standing there, Anna's hand still engulfed in Niels' much larger one, a handful of clothes in his other hand, and not a stitch aside to cover him.
After a few seconds, Niels broke out into the most joyful laughter I think anyone has ever let loose on the world. Within a flash, both Anna and I were laughing likewise, and what nervous tension there had been broke into an awkward-but-friendly easiness.
'If you'll just give Malcolm and I a couple of minutes to get dressed and make out a little, Ms Anna de Groot, we can have a cup of tea or coffee or something.' Niels turned to me and gave an obvious wink, to which I replied with another cheek-to-cheek (if you catch my meaning) blush.
Anna nodded, smiling and nodding knowingly. 'The teabags are still at waist level, right, Malcolm?' she asked, a slight smirk creeping back to her face.
'No, they're still in the jar on the counter where they've always...' It took me a minute to get it, and I gave her a friendly disappointed look, walking toward my small bedroom without saying another word.
Niels followed, and closed the door behind us with a small snick as it closed. I started to drop the blanket as I got to the dresser along one wall when I felt two hands on my waist, and suddenly my feet were off the ground and I found myself tossed onto the bed, and a heavy weight on my back.
'Hi there,' Niels said in my ear, his body pressed full length against mine, his breath tickling the red hairs of my short beard. 'And you thought I was joking, didn't you?' He lifted his weight just long enough for me to roll onto my back, looking up into his blue eyes. 'That's better....' He said, leaning in and lightly kissing my neck, beginning just behind one ear and working his way to just under my chin before pulling back. He gave me a possessive grin, as though he knew that he could do what he wanted, but also telling me that he wouldn't if I didn't ask. It was the smile of someone who doesn't need to prove their control over a situation.
'I...uh...we should probably stop before...well...pants get more...difficult. If you thought Anna was bad naked, just think of her with...that...' I said softly, blushing againin writing this I've come to the conclusion that I'm really not sure what colour is more natural to me: whiter-than-flour or redder-than-cherriesand nodding down a little pointedly.
He grins, 'I suppose you're right. How long do you think it'd take to get her to leave, because I'm not sure you should be allowed to leave the bed with clothes on....' He stood up, sorting out his clothes and mine, putting back on his trousers without bothering with anything underneath. 'Well, if she's already seen everything anyway, there's really no harm in me neglecting to wear a shirt, is there?' he said, half talking to himself.
I put on my own clothesyes, all of them; I don't quite have that panache that it seems to take to walk around in only a pair of jeans and nothing else, above or underwhile Niels watched, occasionally putting a hand under my shirt, or grabbing my arse while I tried to pull on my pants. He would smile innocently afterward as though nothing was out of the ordinary at all.
'Let's go see what mischief Anna's wrought while we've been getting decent then.' I said, hand on the doorknob.
We went back into the main area of my apartment and looked at each other after a few moments spent looking around. 'She disappeared.' Niels said, eyebrows furrowed.
'No, she's probably in the garden, reading some boring history book on the hammock.' I pointed out the only closed door in the place.
'Garden...in that room.... Malcolm, do I need to be worried?' he asked with a chuckle.
'Not at all, it's just a hobby, nothing illegal. Unless suddenly rhododendrons have been banned, but that doesn't seem likely to me.' I stopped with my hand on the doorknob and turned back to look at him.
He took the opportunity to bend down, hand on my back, and put his lips softly to mine.
Chapter Eleven:
In the most alarming game of grandmother's footsteps you'll probably ever play, someone crept into my flat. They closed the door with the quietest of clicks and tiptoed through the kitchen into the livingroom. With the quietest of steps they wound their way in the dark around my kitchen table and the large spot I leave open for when I finally inherit my uncle's cello. I don't care if I'm bad at musical instruments, I'm going to learn that damned thing, and I'm going to play it in that open spot! It doesn't hurt that the open area helps to divide my livingroom and diningroom up a bit.
I moved in my sleep, snuffling a bit and nuzzling back into the great wall-of-Dane behind me with a sigh. Both of us were fast asleep, and it was only the fact that the intruder's shadow crept across the dull street light climbing weakly in the window.
With a single small click of the lights, both Niels and I were awake like a shot. The blanket we had been under flew off in a spastic flurry of arms and legs as both of us leapt to our feet. While my newly-frenzied brain began to try to make sense of the lights and sounds and colours all around me now, a high, slightly giddy, and definitely girlish laugh broke through the air. It was at that moment that the pieces of my shattered senses fell into shape, and I knew immediately what had happened.
I'm a quiet man, usually. I don't like to shout. In part because when I shout, my voice tends to drift steadily toward my Scottish rootsI once had a very loud argument with a former boyfriend where by the time things were over, I sounded like I'd just got off the boat. I also don't like to shout because it brings out the worst in people. So, what happened next would likely surprise many who know me. I shouted, and I shouted loud. I don't remember all of what I said, but the gist of it went something like this. 'ANNA! GET OUT!'
'But Malcolm, how would I ever get to see what your mythical Dane was like if I didn't find out where you were today!' She quite obviously looked over Niels, an eyebrow raised in an infuriating way. Who the hell was she to give Niels that look? She didn't even like men! I threw a pillow at her while Niels bent over and snatched the blanket up from the floor. He held it out like a bullfighter's cape, shielding us both from her prying gaze.
'Malcolm, you know her?'
I nodded, 'Niels, this is Anna. She's my nosey and HIGHLY INAPPROPRIATE,' I shot those words specifically at her, 'friend. '
Anna curtsied, acting as though she hadn't woken up her best friend and a strange man while both were naked. 'I'll just wait in the kitchen until you two decide to get decent.' She said, feigning hurt at being yelled at. With one last look over her shoulder at Niels, she walked toward the kitchen.
As is probably needless to say, I was livid. I felt the tips of my ears and my cheeks burning scarlet, and I clenched and unclenched my fists rhythmically. I looked up at Niels, hoping that he would be taking this'situation' seems a bit of a mild word to use herebetter than I was. My anger was stopped short by the growing smile on his face. He wasn't mortified, he wasn't embarrassed, he wasn't even the slightest bit angry; his smile was turning into a grin, and then into a full-blown fit of laughter.
After a moment, he looked over to me, still chuckling, and put a heavy arm on my shoulders. 'She sure knows how to make an entrance, I'll give her that!' he burst into renewed laughter. I was still madand would be for some time afterbut between Niels' laughter and the sheer absurdity of the situation, I couldn't help but find myself breaking out into a sheepish smile of my own.
'I...I suppose she does....' I stammered slightly, knowing that my voice had successfully landed in the granite city (please return your trays to the upright and locked position before departing the aircraft), 'We should probably get dressed before she decides that she's going to renege on her deal.' I blushed at the look Niels gave me then. It was the strangest mix of confusion and curiosity, much as one has at some oddity in a circus, that I've ever seen.
Niels' expression changed in a split second to one of puckish mischief. 'Well, if she's going to break the agreement anyway,' he grinned and dropped the blanket, standing openly nude in the middle of my living room. I admit that I gave him a once over, feasting for the thousandth time since I'd first seen him on his handsome form. 'We might as well give her a show, right?' He looked over his shoulder at me with an impish grin and winked before walking confidently out of my livingroom. No, he didn't walk. He had the rolling confident amble of a man who doesn't thinking he's a handsome motherfuckerinstead, he just is. Thinking a fact to be true requires some sort of question being raised about it; no one could question that Niels was one of the most truly 'manly' men out there. He seemed to exude a sort of quiet easy virility that, to be perfectly frank, made my knees act more like jelly than joints.
I snatched up the blanket, wrapping it about myself almost like an odd crocheted cloak from a trashy fantasy novel. With the blanket trailing behind me, I tiptoed into the kitchen. I'm still not sure why I tiptoed; it's not like I was sneaking up on anyone, but tiptoe I did. I found Niels half-inside the drier, taking out our clothes, Anna looking at me with a smirk and that eyebrow still maddeningly quirked. I wasn't quite sure what to do, to be honest, but Niels' blonde head reappearing along with our clothes in one big hand solved that problem nicely. Of course, Anna was not to be so easily thwarted out of whatever plan she had cooked up. With a sudden jerk she held out a hand for Niels to shake, 'Pleased to meet you! My name is Anna, and you are?'
Without giving her the pleasure of his uncomfort, Niels held out his free hand and shook hers in his firm grip, 'And my name is Niels Carl Østergård-Hämäläinen. A pleasure to make your acquaintance, Ms...?'
Anna looked a bit surprised by his answer, likely having expected something less sure of himself. She would later tell me that you could tell a lot about someone by how they reacted when you caught them wrong-footed; apparently Niels passed her test. 'De Groot; Anna de Groot.' Niels chuckled at that, drawing an eye-roll from Anna. 'I know, I know, my last name is a testament to irony. But don't you dare call me Ms De Groot; that's my mother's name.'.
'I wouldn't dream of it! Although I'm sure that it would be easy to tell the two of you apart; there's no way your mother could match your youthful beauty.' Now, I know that he was turning up the charm that much because he was being facetious, but it was still a little bit ridiculous.
Anna, for the first time in her life, was speechless. She wasn't blown away by the compliment; she got her fair share of thosebetween her raven hair, her stormy blue eyes, and her (quite frankly) oversized bosom, it wasn't surprising. Instead, she was quite simply left nonplussed by the incongruity of a large naked man that looked to be a viking slathering on all the charms of an Edwardian gentleman. I was a little taken aback myself, and we ended up all standing there, Anna's hand still engulfed in Niels' much larger one, a handful of clothes in his other hand, and not a stitch aside to cover him.
After a few seconds, Niels broke out into the most joyful laughter I think anyone has ever let loose on the world. Within a flash, both Anna and I were laughing likewise, and what nervous tension there had been broke into an awkward-but-friendly easiness.
'If you'll just give Malcolm and I a couple of minutes to get dressed and make out a little, Ms Anna de Groot, we can have a cup of tea or coffee or something.' Niels turned to me and gave an obvious wink, to which I replied with another cheek-to-cheek (if you catch my meaning) blush.
Anna nodded, smiling and nodding knowingly. 'The teabags are still at waist level, right, Malcolm?' she asked, a slight smirk creeping back to her face.
'No, they're still in the jar on the counter where they've always...' It took me a minute to get it, and I gave her a friendly disappointed look, walking toward my small bedroom without saying another word.
Niels followed, and closed the door behind us with a small snick as it closed. I started to drop the blanket as I got to the dresser along one wall when I felt two hands on my waist, and suddenly my feet were off the ground and I found myself tossed onto the bed, and a heavy weight on my back.
'Hi there,' Niels said in my ear, his body pressed full length against mine, his breath tickling the red hairs of my short beard. 'And you thought I was joking, didn't you?' He lifted his weight just long enough for me to roll onto my back, looking up into his blue eyes. 'That's better....' He said, leaning in and lightly kissing my neck, beginning just behind one ear and working his way to just under my chin before pulling back. He gave me a possessive grin, as though he knew that he could do what he wanted, but also telling me that he wouldn't if I didn't ask. It was the smile of someone who doesn't need to prove their control over a situation.
'I...uh...we should probably stop before...well...pants get more...difficult. If you thought Anna was bad naked, just think of her with...that...' I said softly, blushing againin writing this I've come to the conclusion that I'm really not sure what colour is more natural to me: whiter-than-flour or redder-than-cherriesand nodding down a little pointedly.
He grins, 'I suppose you're right. How long do you think it'd take to get her to leave, because I'm not sure you should be allowed to leave the bed with clothes on....' He stood up, sorting out his clothes and mine, putting back on his trousers without bothering with anything underneath. 'Well, if she's already seen everything anyway, there's really no harm in me neglecting to wear a shirt, is there?' he said, half talking to himself.
I put on my own clothesyes, all of them; I don't quite have that panache that it seems to take to walk around in only a pair of jeans and nothing else, above or underwhile Niels watched, occasionally putting a hand under my shirt, or grabbing my arse while I tried to pull on my pants. He would smile innocently afterward as though nothing was out of the ordinary at all.
'Let's go see what mischief Anna's wrought while we've been getting decent then.' I said, hand on the doorknob.
We went back into the main area of my apartment and looked at each other after a few moments spent looking around. 'She disappeared.' Niels said, eyebrows furrowed.
'No, she's probably in the garden, reading some boring history book on the hammock.' I pointed out the only closed door in the place.
'Garden...in that room.... Malcolm, do I need to be worried?' he asked with a chuckle.
'Not at all, it's just a hobby, nothing illegal. Unless suddenly rhododendrons have been banned, but that doesn't seem likely to me.' I stopped with my hand on the doorknob and turned back to look at him.
He took the opportunity to bend down, hand on my back, and put his lips softly to mine.