Egg Dying

[asoncalledgabriel]

Easter is coming, and Gabriel wants to do something... Eastery. But his entire family is in another world. So after spending a little bit of time feeling depressed and lonely, he started planning. He sent text messages to people he thought might come, telling them that he was going to dye eggs for Easter and he wanted company.

Then he'd gone out and gotten everything he needed: too many eggs, cheap dye kits that were being promoted in every grocery store, vinegar, extra plastic cups. When he came home, he cleaned off his kitchen table and set the dye cups up, measuring out everything carefully as he followed the directions on the boxes.

Then he put on water for tea and checked his phone, hopeful.



[Small gathering-type post! If your pup knows Gabriel, he probably invited them, feel free to tag in and tag around. Set for any time Easter weekend. I'll post it to the main community in April!]

Comments

[shadows_have_offended]

"Hey," Neil says, managing to smile, because it's Gabriel, and he can almost always find a smile. Beer sounds better than tea, but he thinks he ought to stick to tea, at least for now.

"Is it totally ridiculous that I haven't dyed eggs in about a decade? I feel like that might be a little ridiculous."

[asoncalledgabriel]

"Very ridiculous," Gabriel says solemnly. "But I've also two little sisters and a little brother, so a year without dying eggs just never happened."

The always did it, partly because Ma and his grandmother insisted, but also because his younger siblings were so interested.

"Here, help me a bit with the tea."

[shadows_have_offended]

Neil blushes, just a bit, at the teasing, but he takes it. As an only son with no particularly close cousins, there'd been very little need for it. They didn't get the holiday off from school because it was already over the weekend. He hadn't gone home for it after he was thirteen.

"Yeah," he says, following Gabriel into the kitchen. Focus is good. "Are we making enough for everybody? How many people are coming, do you know yet?"

[asoncalledgabriel]

"Yeah, I'll at least keep the kettle warm, y'know? And I've no idea. Kav said he'll be here, Olivia, Inej. Whoever else comes is a bonus."

He gets a few mugs down, just so they're out. Neil can have top pick.

"I figured I'd just leave all the tea out and people can put the kettle back on if we run out of hot water."

[shadows_have_offended]

In the kitchen, which isn't really all so private but they're still alone, Neil gives Gabriel a little peck on the cheek. He doesn't know the names off the top of his head, but he might know the faces. He comes and goes from Gabriel's apartment and he's met some of his friends in passing, and it's nice to get to know them more.

"Good way to do," he says. "And we can just keep it fresh while we're working on everything, yeah."

[asoncalledgabriel]

"Are you nervous?" he asks, soft, just between the two of them, after Neil kisses his cheek. Neil just seems a little... off. Maybe it's him; maybe he's just distracted by the people around.

[shadows_have_offended]

Neil breathes out a little. He should just tell Gabriel what's going on, but he doesn't want to worry him. There's nothing to worry about just yet, anyway. Well, there is. There's everything to worry about.

"School's been stupid," he said. "I'm just a little wound up."

[asoncalledgabriel]

"Yeah? You haven't said anything," he says with a little frown. He leans close and brushes a kiss to Neil's temple.

"Just try to unwind here, yeah? Just friends and eggs and tea."

[shadows_have_offended]

Neil shakes his head, shrugs, smiles. It's a mask he's worn so many times that he knows where all the edges fit and it feels seamless and natural.

He leans into Gabriel, just a little bit. His height, just those couple of inches, feels stupid and terrible and he hates them for a second, wishing he were shorter.

"I'm trying," he says. "It's really nothing. And anyway, it's Spring Break, finally. So I ought to just...fucking relax, right?"

[asoncalledgabriel]

Gabriel is sure he knows that look, but he lets it go. They're at a party, and he doesn't want Neil to feel cornered. He wants him to have fun.

He tucks his head against Neil's, nuzzling close for that moment.

"Yes, you should relax. C'mon, let's dye some eggs and then you can laugh while I try to blow them out."

[shadows_have_offended]

Neil groans softly and leans his forehead down, down, against Gabriel's shoulder. "Between you and that guy that brought the liquor, I'm gonna be a blush-furnace. You're...you're both terrible. I know you're really going to blow the eggs, but all these blowing jokes?"

He laughed a little, though. "Terrible."

[asoncalledgabriel]

Gabriel grins and nudges against Neil. "Kavinsky," he says, giving the name just so Neil would know who to reference. "And he started it, I'm only trying to keep up."

[shadows_have_offended]

"I don't know if that makes it any better," Neil says, glad he has his head down on Gabriel's shoulder, but he can hear him grinning.

He's flustered, and his boyfriend and this cute guy have been nudging and laughing and making flustering jokes, and it's terrible. But he went to a boy's school for years, and he can manage for a night.

Can't he?

[asoncalledgabriel]

"C'mon, let's dye some eggs, mate."

He jostles Neil towards the table. "You want hard-boiled ones or ones we'll have to blow?" Gabriel really isn't trying to fluster Neil, he's just asking.

[shadows_have_offended]

Neil gives Gabriel a tiny swat, nothing at all, because he knows he's not trying to tease. He pulls himself together as best he can. There are people here, laughing and talking and having fun. He can't be a mess--or drag Gabriel away for a moment of privacy.

"I'd hardly know what to do with them either way," he admits.

[asoncalledgabriel]

He gives Neil a nudge. "Mum and my grandmother would decorate with them. C'mon, do you eat hard boiled ones? We'll send you home with some of those."

At least then Neil would get something out of them, rather than just having pretty, empty egg shells.

[shadows_have_offended]

He'd only ever really had ones that were already peeled and all that, so he didn't really know what to do with them when they were still in the shell, but he didn't say that. It sounded silly.

"That sounds good, yeah," he said. It did. He'd figure out what to do with them from there.