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[ hell yeah. Reno ends up little spoon a lot—not that he has a problem with that, it's just sort of how it shakes out with the few people here he's got a cuddling relationship with—and so the chance to be big spoon is kinda nice.

he sets his drink down on the end table and then drops himself down into the cushions, leaning sort of into the angle between the arm of the couch and the back of it, legs spread enough that Netzach can settle in between them comfortably. it's the kind of posture that's ideal to just snuggle up in someone's arms and lean on them, but without being so reclined that it's hard to drink at the same time. ]

C'mere, I'll be your pillow. [ he grins, but it's the grin of someone who knows he sounds ridiculous, not an attempt to flirt. ]

[perfect. netzach is ending up so spoiled tbh...

he keeps his drink in hand as he settles in comfortably, scooting down enough that he can properly rest against him without his own height getting in the way. a little shift, a little wiggle, and... yes. ideal. that's comfy.]

-there we go. Hey, this couch is pretty nice.

[ once Netzach has gotten himself situated and is leaning comfortably against Reno, Reno tucks one arm around his waist and uses the other to pull at a blanket currently draped over the back of the couch, using it to cover up their joined legs. with that done, he reaches for his glass as well, and there they are—nice and cozy, curled up together.

it's nice, this kind of thing. ]

Ain't it? I didn't pick this place for it, but I definitely ain't mad about it. It's comfy.

I thought you might have brought it in yourself, but... you really weren't kidding about not having much stuff, were you.

[he reaches down to adjust the blanket a little before taking another drink, his gaze shifting to the apartment's walls. sure, he can get people not wanting to make a home out of the place... usually there are more signs they're the ones living here, though.]

Just didn't feel like doing anything with the place?

[ Reno makes a noise that sounds like a laugh, but it does kind of touch on the things he and Netzach were talking about earlier. more serious than chatting about couches. ]

Eh... kinda. [ he takes another drink, leaning his head partly against the cushions and partly against Netzach. ] More like—I just don't know what to do with it?

[ how does he explain this? maybe straightforwardly is best. ]

Back when I was workin' for the Company, I had an apartment but I didn't live there. I lived at the Company building and just stored my shit at the apartment. Kept it real tidy so when I bit it, it'd be easy to clean up. Never learned how to decorate or whatever, never saw a point.

...yeah, I can't blame you for that. I never did much with my space, either.

[he didn't care about anything enough to, in the facility, and then in the library... well, his floor was fine as it was.]

I don't really know much about decorating, but this is still the first time I've ever really had anything to keep, or felt like putting my own art around the place.

[another sip, and:]

Honestly, a lot of the stuff I do have... it's just because it reminds me of other people here.

...That's cute. [ Reno smiles. ] You're real cute.

[ still drunk enough that the brain to mouth filter is even more broken than it usually is. Reno takes another sip too, humming under his breath. he likes the idea of Netzach sort of slowly collecting memorabilia of his friends, memories of times that he was glad to be alive. ]

You got your own place or do you share?

I hear that a lot.

[it's getting easier to just-- take compliments. slowly, but surely.]

But I share, yeah. We renovated a place-- took some walls out and put some new fixtures and things in with Kaveh and Alhaitham and Midnight's help, so that some of us from the Library could stay together. It's me and Yesod and Chesed now, though, Roland... vanished before we finished the apartment.

'Cause it's true. [ duh.

sort of vaguely, Reno remembers Roland—they were never close, in fact he's not even sure they ever spoke, but the had orbited each other at a couple of parties, and Roland was at the gala at the table next to Reno. ]

Sorry to hear that. [ he knows, now, better than ever before, exactly how much it can fucking suck when someone you're close with vanishes without a trace.

in an effort to keep the thought from being too sobering, Reno adds, ] Hey, I tell you I met Chesed? He gave me coffee at that Christmas... secret... whatever thing. I shoulda known he worked with you and Yesod 'cause how else would he know my dream is to brew mid coffee for a living.

It's all right. He's the kind of guy who can take care of himself.

[he took care of netzach well enough, too, but- well. he doesn't exactly wish for him back, not when it would mean dealing with this place.

that mention of chesed gets a little grin from him, though, over the rim of his glass.]

You guys get along? I think Chesed's probably the best of us when it comes to dealing with people... it sounds like that's the kind of dream he'd appreciate too. [a pause.] He'd probably tell you to have higher standards for the coffee, though.

We didn't talk much, but he seems nice enough.

[ and he'd given Reno a quick crash course in Secret Santa etiquette, which will surely come in handy next year when the holiday rolls around again. ]

Definitely sounded like he was interested in the coffee not being mid. Is he a big coffee guy or somethin'?

Always has been. He likes coffee in the way I like alcohol... probably more, if I'm being honest. I don't care so much about the quality and the taste, I just enjoy the good stuff when I have it.

[chesed, though, is knowledgeable about the beans, their blends, how to prepare them and the various different ways to make a drink. just like binah is with tea. (but netzach does his best not to talk to binah.)]

Damn, and that's sayin' something.

[ there's a sort of kinship Reno feels with Netzach in this regard—it seems like they both have vices a little too big for them. Netzach with his liquor and the drug stash in Kaveh's posession; Reno with his liquor and the packs of cigarettes he goes through on the daily to destress. if anybody ever introduces Reno to hard drugs it's over for him, honestly. ]

That's kinda how I am too, though. I'll go for the good shit if someone else is buyin' but mostly I don't care about prestige. If it tastes good it tastes goood, whatever.

Exaaactly. I always cared more about how strong it was, you know? Or that it was alcoholic at all. It's only really here that I started getting into trying them just for their flavor... though I did like absinthe before.

[even if it was more for the legacy of the drink, it was something he felt he could appreciate for more than just its alcohol content. maybe he should start looking for it here.]

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