![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
nola_doomOver the last few days, the whole world had shifted. It looked different now, to Alistair, because he felt different.
For a long time -- maybe all his life -- Alistair had been the only person in his own corner, on his own team. He had struggled alone for attention and validation and understanding, simultaneously disavowing those things and treating them as inferior at the same time that his secret heart craved them more than anything.
And then Eric had come along. Impossible Eric, blunt Eric, difficult Eric. Ruthless Eric, brilliant Eric, creative Eric. Honest Eric, passionate Eric. Eric, who wanted to fight for Alistair. Eric, who had probed Alistair's walls until they crashed down.
Alistair felt both vulnerable -- too vulnerable -- and deeply moved.
And also, hungry as all hell for revenge.
What this all meant, though? It meant that Alistair arrived at Eric's building before Eric did. It meant Alistair waited outside for him. It meant Alistair checked his hair and teeth for imperfections at least ten times while he waited. It meant that, when Eric did arrive, Alistair was studying himself in his phone's camera, turning his head back and forth to find the most impressive 'welcome home' angle.
For a long time -- maybe all his life -- Alistair had been the only person in his own corner, on his own team. He had struggled alone for attention and validation and understanding, simultaneously disavowing those things and treating them as inferior at the same time that his secret heart craved them more than anything.
And then Eric had come along. Impossible Eric, blunt Eric, difficult Eric. Ruthless Eric, brilliant Eric, creative Eric. Honest Eric, passionate Eric. Eric, who wanted to fight for Alistair. Eric, who had probed Alistair's walls until they crashed down.
Alistair felt both vulnerable -- too vulnerable -- and deeply moved.
And also, hungry as all hell for revenge.
What this all meant, though? It meant that Alistair arrived at Eric's building before Eric did. It meant Alistair waited outside for him. It meant Alistair checked his hair and teeth for imperfections at least ten times while he waited. It meant that, when Eric did arrive, Alistair was studying himself in his phone's camera, turning his head back and forth to find the most impressive 'welcome home' angle.
