Only You

Date/Timing: 27 October 2006
Setting: Edan's room, Manchester flat; Manchester, England, United Kingdom
.
Edan plods through the door into the foyer, kicks off his shoes, shifts his rucksack with a huge sigh.
A box watches him from atop the shoe cupboard.
He peers—squees, grabs the box, squishes it to his chest, hippity-hops. Another squeal and he sprints up the stairs to his room.
Rhys isn't in, so he dumps his bag, drops the package on the mattress, attacks the tape with his pocket knife.
Bubble wrap.
A note.
Edan tears into it.
- 19 Oct 2006
Berlin, Germany
Dear Edan,
Hopefully the enclosed will improve your audio environment. -
Edan digs through another layer of plastic to find a box advertising fancy-fancy headphones. His heart does a happy little dance as he eases them out.
Good heft, heavily padded.
"Perfect," he breathes, grabbing his laptop and powering it on, throwing himself to sit cross-legged on his bed. He's through to the music in an eyeblink, plugs in the new gear, settles the headpiece, and fires up /A Different Kind of Tension.
Blissful racket.
He sighs happily, head nodding along with the beat, picks up Hermann's letter where he left off.
- How do they sound? -
"You know me too well," laughs Edan.
- Well, I've done it. I'm officially a Computer Science major.
My father seems rather smug about it, probably because he hopes I'll write programs for his robots at a discount. It seems he's already suggested as much to Dr Umarov. -
"What a fucking cunt."
- I won't work for my father even in his wildest dreams. Hell will open up and swallow me first.
Dr Umarov, though, has already put me to work as his assistant. He has me writing a program to analyze, test, and score code-writing assignments. If I can make it work, it will save both of us /ages correcting these things by hand. I've already had to score the first-day quiz from the graduate course, so I know what I'm talking about. -
"Only you, /leannan, only you."
Motion from the doorway.
Vanessa, hair safely under wraps, waving.
Edan pushes the headphones down to rest on his shoulders—
Squeaking, creaking, and very specific vocalizations.
—rolls his eyes.
"How do you /stand this?" she asks, gesturing toward Iggy's room.
Edan points to his neck, melts a bit. "These now. My boyfriend sent them today."
"Sweet. Mind if I come in?"
"Be my guest," he replies, gesturing to the beanbag, "if you can stand the soundtrack."
She snorts, settles down with the grace of a royal. "You're Edan, right? Astrophysics?"
"The very one. And you're Vanessa the most-amazing chemistry major."
"Have you been talking to my parents?"
"Uh, no?"
"It sounded like something they'd tell people about me."
"Ah. I, um, picked up on it eavesdropping on you chatting with Iggy." Cringes. "Sorry about that."
Vanessa waves off the apology. "Speaking of Iggy, you letting Rhys borrow the new gear when your boyfriend stays over?"
Edan ruffles his hair. "Um, we're kinda long-distance right now."
"You and me both."
"Oh?"
"It's his year in New Zealand." She smiles. "He switches between Canterbury here and Canterbury there."
"Does that simplify things or make 'em more confusing?"
"Neither." Vanessa shrugs. "Email means it's a rather moot point."
"Ah. Right. Of course." Edan rubs the back of his neck.
"Where's yours these days?"
"Berlin and I can't visit for another—" Mental maths. "—seven months and thirteen days."
"You have it figured to the day."
"If you give me a moment, I'll get you the seconds."
"It must be serious."
"Pretty sure he's the love of my life. /For life." Sighs, "He's /amazing."
"He's studying abroad this term?"
"Sorta? I mean, he's studying and abroad, but it's, uh, complicated?"
"'Complicated'."
"Well, he's seventeen and his dad won't let him leave home until he turns /eighteen and I'm not allowed to go /there because the old bastard's a homophobic douche-nozzle?"
Vanessa grimaces. "Ouch."
"Yea, thought I was done dealing with that sort of shit. Twenty-first century and all that." Sighs. "/Definitely didn't expect someone else's parent to be a problem."
"You and yours don't get along?"
"My /actual parents are great. My /biological mum's entire family's disowned me and handed me an unofficial 'no contact' order."
"For someone Rhys calls a 'harmless dork', you're banned from a lot of places."
Edan laughs. "All because I'm a harmless /gay dork and they're afraid their kid'll catch it from me."
Vanessa shakes her head. "Some people ...."
"Yea ... really hurts having to avoid family like I do."
She hums an agreement.
A clatter, a /thump, and muffled grumpy noises as the squeaking next door stops.
Edan snickers.
"Was that what I think it was?"
"Probably."
"You're a /saint for putting up with this."
"You get used to it," shrugs Edan.
"So ... if the boyfriend's overseas with a dad like that, how'd you two meet?"
"He was here for a term, then—" Deep breath. "—his dad found out about us and transferred him."
"That's rough."
"Yea, but we're making it work. Sorta." Fiddles with the headphone cord. "All—" Points his chin to the wall. "—/that makes it hard."
"I'm sure it does," drawls Vanessa.
Edan's face flames and he yelps, "Not like that!"
Vanessa laughs, makes a calming gesture. "Settle down, Orange Juice. I'm just teasing."
Edan huffs.
A shriek—
Vanessa cringes; Edan sighs.
—and the squeaking stops.
"Blessed quiet returns."
"For abouuuuuuut thirty minutes."
"You're kidding."
"I wish."
"You'd better send that boyfriend of yours a hell of a 'thank you'."
"Believe me, I will," vows Edan, crossing his heart.
Category:Ficlet
Category:Manchester (setting)
Category:Edan
Category:Edan's POV
Category:Edan (ficlet)
Category:Hermann
Category:Hermann (ficlet)
Category:Conversations via snail mail
Category:Lars (mention)
Category:Vanessa
Category:Vanessa (ficlet)
Category:Rhys (mention)
Category:Ficlets with images
2006 10 27
Category:Celestial Mechanics
Category:Pages with comments