⠀ ⠀ ⠀“ 𝗂 𝖺𝗆 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖻𝗎𝗍𝖼𝗁𝖾𝗋. “
┈┈ ♱ ┈┈
⠀ ⠀ billy butcher.
leader of the boys, unhinged, killer. the guy, the one in charge, the supe killer.
❖ ━─┈ thane of beowulf.
Nate paused in the frame, the door in one hand. He let Sammy politely wave back, before shouldering past him and shoving the door closed. The last thing he wants is for Roxie to hear a single word that comes out of that kid’s mouth.
As she was waiting for him to head off, a few more steps were taken back before seeing the front door open and a younger boy be at the door. A few blinks were given, but she raised her hand to give a faint wave to suggest a mere hello to her other neighbour. Don't want +
“Right,” he breathed through a humorless laugh.
Nathan shrugged, brushing her comment off as best he could. It wasn’t a lie, really. He did work in delivery. Just. Not food.
“Yeah, see you around,” he mumbled, stepping away and turning around to open the door. Of —
That's - totally the confidence needed.
She grinned, shaking her head side to side. ''And hey, least you're in one peace, no?'' She edged a brow up before blinking. Oh, like Uber Eats and stuff? ''Damn, must get a lot of annoying customers. Well then, I'll see you +
He’s got it under control. That’s a lie. He absolutely does not have anything under control.
Following her movements, he stood up to his feet, looming over her on the top step. “Fair enough,” he agreed, giving a lazy shrug. So jumping was technically his idea? Okay but she —
He should be careful with that, before they end up coming over to check if he's okay. Or send mail to the house to say he's been absent too much and will be kicked out.
''Hey, hey - I didn't choose the jumping, you did. You didn't want to go back through so I kind +
— coat pocket. “I didn’t mind the roof. It was the jumping,” he corrected her with a small huff.
There’s a small nod; hands back to their incessant fidgeting in his lap. “I should probably get ready for work,” he exhaled, tipping his head to one side to finally look at her.
Uhhh yeah, definitely the second one. He hadn’t even told Joyce the truth. To be honest, he hadn’t been telling her a lot of things. That felt bad. He owed her more than dishonesty.
Nate finished setting himself a few reminders and locked his phone before slipping it into his —
Jesus. So did he drop out, or was the school just sending him a ton of messages asking where the fuck he was?
''Knew it.'' She teased playfully, before nodding her head just slightly. ''You just don't want me taking you to another roof, huh?'' She said jokingly. Can't +
— yeah,” he huffed, flashing her a faint smile, “𝑺𝒐 many dates.” Please, she doesn’t even want to know how long it’s been since he’s last dated. It’s sad.
“I don’t mind taking over,” he responded, typing something in his phone, presumably a reminder
Hey, he told her before that he’s too busy to even attend school. He wasn’t joking. But really, keeping track of things on his phone prevented him from making another mistake and in his line of work, on the wrong day, a mistake could end with a shattered knee or two.
“Oh —
He didn't look upset, just - very uncomfortable. Roxie leaned back, elbows now resting just behind her as a soft laugh drew out from her mouth. ''Why thank you,'' she said before looking over. He was looking at his calendar? Damn, he must be really busy. ''Trying to see +
Physical affection was fine. Great, really. Did he look upset? Definitely not upset. Just— mildly embarrassed. She shouldn’t read too much into how he reacts. It’ll rarely mean what she thinks.
“I— admire your confidence,” he scoffed, relieved for the hasty change of subject. —
God, had she gone too far? It looked like he was dying inside by just thinking about it. Maybe he really disliked physical affection. Hell, he could be one of those people who only do emotional interest but the idea of anything else just, doesn't interest them. +
Nathan shrugged, his thumb running over the purple welts on his knuckles. To be honest, he was afraid to look through her old things. He wasn’t ready for that yet. All of that— her death, him leaving for NYC, it still felt fresh. Suspended in time.
He inhaled again and held —
He's not looked? ''Then, how do you know something isn't there when it's not been checked yet?'' She commented. Roxie had noticed it, but since he face-planted the jump the other day, she sort of guessed it was from that.
Rolling her eyes in response, she only decided +
— his breath, refusing to look in her direction. Why? Because for some reason, he was convinced she’d know he was thinking about it now. Very vividly. Releasing his breath, he tried to laugh but it only sounded strangled. “That’s a pretty big assumption,” he finally —