Realistic or Modern Oh So Golden

[mikaluvkitties]

Casper nodded, eyes wide. Though he had only mentioned his mother being into the jam, she wasn't the only one interested in the process. Casper couldn't help a giggle at Marlon's pun, and Susan looked between the two, suspicious, causing Casper to cut off a bit, smile falling.

He offered a flimsy smile at Marlon's own, which only made Susan more suspicious. Marlon's next words did not help.

Casper swallowed hard, eyes falling to the floor.

Still, Susan nodded. "We like trying to find things Robert might like. He isn't the easiest to cook for." She laughed a bit, glancing at Casper before pushing the graying hair of her long bob back, though it wasn't in her face to begin with.

Then Marlon spoke again, and any concerns she had fell aside. Maybe he knew too much for her comfort, but he also knew about math, as far as she could tell. She wasn't about to test it, though she had studied Casper's textbook herself in her efforts to assist him in school. She smiled again. "Well," she said, "maybe you can get through to him in ways I can't." She didn't mean for it to be mean, but Casper still blushed, hand moving to his mouth.

 

[Navarro]

Whenever Casper giggled at his jokes, Marlon got a little rocket boost of confidence, but that fell back to earth once he saw Susan’s reaction.

“Yeah! Everyone’s got preferences. I get it, my dad was similar.” He said, talking just a little too fast, nodding just a little too much. “Say… Is your dad here? I’d love to say hi to him, too.” He asked Casper, offering an encouraging smile. “Don’t wanna disrespect him by barging in here and not saying hi!” Marlon gave a little nervous laugh. He wasn’t sure what to call Casper’s dad. It might seem disrespectful to call him Robert, but he didn’t even know their last name. That alone made him feel a little more awkward.

Nevertheless, he was quite curious. Things were going pretty well with Susan, all things considered. But perhaps meeting Robert would be an Icarus moment of sorts, flying too close to the sun and crashing hard. The fear of that wasn’t enough to keep Marlon from asking.

Regarding Susan’s attempts to teach Casper, he gave a casual shrug, smiling. “And hey, everyone’s got a different learning style and teaching style! Maybe we’ll click...” He smiled at Casper. “…With math and stuff.” He was quick to add.

 

[mikaluvkitties]

Casper nodded along to everything Marlon said, hanging on to his every word. He paused when he asked if his dad was home, looking up at the ceiling as he thought, taking a second to process the answer.

"No," he said, looking back at Marlon, "Daddy doesn't come home for a bit."

While Susan was less concerned by what Marlon was saying, she couldn't help a tiny smile of approval as he thought to greet Casper's father, even if he wasn't home at this moment.

"I could come get you two when he gets here, if you'd like?" Susan suggested, still smiling.

Casper gasped, hands clapping together once as he grinned. "Yes! Please do, omma!" As Susan's smile ticked down, Casper continued hurriedly, turning to Marlon, "Sometimes I don't see daddy until dinner, but that's okay.

"I'll be sure to tell you both when he comes home," Susan said, clipped. She focused again on him as he spoke, brow furrowing for a second before he added on the last bit, and then she smiled. "...You're right," she admitted. "That won't stop me from trying to help him, but... Maybe in this instance, you can help him better than I can."

Casper couldn't help a smile back, and it only grew as Marlon continued speaking, knowing that they were not only in cahoots, but also successfully deceiving his omma. "Yeah! ...Wanna head upstairs now?" He tilted his head.

 

[Navarro]

When Marlon heard that Robert wouldn’t be home for a while, he bopped his forehead as if saying duh. “Oh, okay! Yeah, that makes sense. Cool, cool…” He felt like he should’ve known – it wasn’t that late in the day, after all. But curiosity got the better of him, and he had to ask.

Marlon smiled at Casper’s endearing burst of excitement; their sweet demeanor made his heart flutter. He got a little more excited when he noticed that Susan seemed to like his enthusiasm for greeting the whole family. “That’d be great! I’d love to say hi when he gets home.” He tried to keep an unsuspicious, cool air about himself, but try as he might, he still found himself grinning like a doofus.

He didn’t want Susan to feel awkward about her attempts to tutor her child. Parental relationships could be complicated, and adding a student-teacher dynamic had to make things even harder. Marlon just kept an easy smile on his face as she spoke. And though he liked Casper’s grin, he knew better than to wink at them right in front of Susan.

“Sure, let’s head up now!” Marlon gave one last little wave to Susan before he got ready to follow Casper. He was quite curious to see what their room was like, and what traces of Aaron were still in the home.

 

[mikaluvkitties]

Susan found herself smiling. Marlon's enthusiasm was refreshing, even if she... didn't quite understand why he was so enthusiastic. If he had winked, she might have actually caught on, but as it was she simply said, "You two have fun," dismissing them as she went back to what she had been doing prior Marlon's arrival.

Casper clapped, grabbing Marlon's arm casually as soon as Susan's back was turned, tugging him to the staircase encased in walls in the living room. Upstairs, they entered a hallway, and Casper immediately went right, making a slight u-turn before turning the handle on their door.

The room was, in a word, girly, with walls painted a pink that sparkled in the light. a white canopy bed rested against the wall by the door, sheer pink curtains tied to the posts. A nightstand stood next to it, and next to that were two small desks, one after the other. On one rested a computer, and the other overflowed with art supplies. Shelves hung above them, dripping flowers, jewelry, and even more art supplies. Behind the desks sat a crowded bookshelf, and next to that, a white armoire that nearly kept the pair from entering.

Casper, stepping delicately on the smooth wood floor, reached the center of the room and spun around, grinning at Marlon. They spread their arms wide. "This is my room!"

 

[Navarro]

When Casper grabbed his arm, Marlon was pleasantly startled. He gave Susan a friendly smile and a wave before rushing upstairs with them.

“Wow, this is gorgeous!” Marlon’s eyes widened slightly, taking in every detail of Casper’s room. The hint of sparkle seemed just right for them, and so did the sheer curtains. He couldn’t help but smile at how well the room expressed Casper’s tastes; he was glad they had their own private space they could decorate. “Nice jewelry,” he hummed. He didn’t quite expect Casper’s room to be this nice, but he was relieved to see that they had access to nice, pretty things that sparked joy. Turning his head, he marveled at the art supplies. “Nice, Raf would kill to have supplies like those!” He chuckled, not fully aware of the way that phrase came out.

“Hah, your dad must be cool. It’s nice to have someone like that around,” he said, recalling their previous conversations about Robert’s generosity.

It was a privilege to see where Casper spent most of their time. He began to contemplate what made Casper’s home life challenging – from what he could tell their parents loved them, and supplied them with nice things. But he knew that even the nicest home and most loving family could start to feel like a gilded cage. Surely Aaron’s disappearance made them more protective of their remaining child, and while that’s well intentioned, he understood how it could be stressful.

Marlon walked softly, not wanting to damage anything or even just knock something over. He couldn’t help but glance around for Strawberry, the plushie cat he gave them.

There was so much to take in – he wasn’t ready to delve into algebra just yet. At his core, he wanted to pull Casper in for a kiss, now that they were out of sight, but he knew he shouldn’t be that brazen.

“And damn that’s a nice book collection!” He cheered, “I used to have a ton before the fire. Which of these are your favorites?”

 

[mikaluvkitties]

Casper preened at Marlon's compliments, smiling happily, eyes crinkling as he nodded. By Casper's laptop sat Strawberry, facing the door, watching the pair.

"My dad's really nice, yeah. He gets me books, and art supplies, and feeds and clothes me..." Casper was a bit fixated on the material things Robert did for him, and it was obvious.

He stepped closer to him, looking at the bookshelf and nodding. "You can lend some if you want." Then, Casper faltered. "Oh, um..." He nibbled his lip. "I haven't read most of them. Reading's... hard, I guess."

 

[Navarro]

Marlon smiled and nodded, taking note that Casper enjoyed receiving the finer things in life… The gears were turning in his head, thinking of how he could acquire nice things on a highway patrolman’s budget. He had his methods, and for a split second, a devilish smirk crossed his face. He caught himself, though, and broke free from that expression.

Upon hearing what Casper had to say about the bookshelf, he scrambled to find an answer, and words came spilling out before he could think. “Oh, more for the aesthetic? I gotcha,”

Yet there were times in Marlon’s life that he couldn’t settle down with a book, either. Stress can make focusing hard. An awkward lull passed before he added, “Yeah, I know what you mean. When I was going through…Y’know, shit when I was a kid, I couldn’t read much of anything. Used to love it.” He shrugged. “Haven’t really gotten back to it since, though.”

He looked around scanning the room for hints of Aaron. He was so curious about that brother of Casper’s, but he didn’t want to bring up anything painful.

“So, um, yeah! Tell me about your school. Maybe I can help.” His wording was deliberate. Marlon was willing to help with more than problems on a page - he’d gotten the sense that Casper was catching shit from people at school, and he’d have been more than willing to settle the score on their behalf…

 

[mikaluvkitties]

"Kind of, yeah..." The silence that followed made Casper fidget, nibbling at his lip harder as he kept staring at the bookcase. In a way, he felt guilty for having a bookshelf full of books he hadn't read and had no intention of reading. Other people could use those books- other people actually liked reading.

Then Marlon spoke up, and suddenly he felt a bit less bad about it. He smiled a bit, turning to Marlon with a tilt of his head.

“Do you wanna get back into it?” he asked.

The shelves and desks contained pictures of a younger Casper and someone who looked around his age. Though it was obviously the same person, their hair went from long to short depending on the photo, and they always looked angry.

Casper looked at one of them as he thought about how to answer, suddenly missing his brother- especially when they were younger. They used to be in it together- and he’d defend Casper when he needed it. Now, he was on his own, and, honestly? He was an easy target.

“It’s… hard,” he admitted. “I don’t miss Aaron as much there as I do here, but… People are mean. Even teachers… and I guess I’m just… bad at learning things.” They shrugged.

 

[Navarro]

“Ah, maybe someday,” Marlon said of reading. “Kinda hard to settle down and take in a fictional world when you’re barely staying afloat in the real world. At least for me.”

Where Casper’s eyes went, Marlon’s attention followed. His eyes widened. So that’s Aaron? He took a moment to imprint Aaron’s face in his mind, and noticed his ever-changing hair. Marlon had sported a few different looks across his lifetime – he knew firsthand how different it felt to shed his glasses and change his hair. That said, he couldn’t help but wonder about Aaron’s transformations over the years. How was he growing and shaping his identity? And what did he look like now? His eyes darted between the photos and Casper. He held his breath, about to take the plunge and ask something about Aaron, but caught a vibe from Casper that he couldn’t dismiss.

When he felt like Casper down on themself a bit, he threw his arm around them and nuzzled their neck. “Hey. I don’t think you’re bad at learning. They suck at teaching,” Marlon scoffed. “And the people that give you shit… Maybe someone oughta set them right.”

 

[mikaluvkitties]

Marlon was barely staying afloat. If Casper were honest, he could relate. School felt like a constant pressure, weighing down on him heavily, and that didn’t even account for home, with its expectations and missing brother. He nodded sympathetically, thinking for something to say and finding… nothing.

Casper kept staring at the pictures, ruminating on his thoughts, only to jump when Marlon touched him. He turned to him, eyes wide but not unhappy or too shocked. Slowly, he started to smile, eyes dropping down to his hands as they fiddled with each other. He leaned against Marlon as he spoke. It took him more than a few seconds to fully engage with what he was saying.

He didn’t think he was bad at learning. Then again, he’d never taught Casper, had he? But he sounded so sure, and… it was a nice change, in all honesty, having someone who believed in him… His smile grew a bit, still shy, and then he registered that last bit.

With a frown, he thought, brow furrowing. “Set them right?” He glanced up at Marlon again, tilting his head. “What do you mean?” He wasn’t a violent individual, and violence wasn’t the first idea that came to mind. Maybe it should have been, but it wasn’t, and he tried to think of other solutions. Maybe he wanted to talk to them? “I don’t know,” he admitted, “They might get mad, and I don’t think that’d be good…”

 

[Navarro]

Marlon had full faith in Casper – he just felt they were being underserved by their teachers. And he knew how bad it felt to have douchebags looming over you – he’d do anything to free Casper from that burden. Even things unbecoming of an officer…

He winced a little when Casper jumped, but eased up when he saw them smile.

“Oh, you know…” Marlon had to think fast to turn this around. “Maybe I could give a talk at your school. I don’t have to confront them directly or anything.”

Unlike Casper, Marlon was a violent individual, at times. He just knew better than to do it in public – especially on school grounds.

“Maybe they’d put a little more stock in a message about being close-minded lil’ shits if it came from, you know…” He gestured to himself with a bit of flair. “Instead of some counselor who looks like their great aunt Patty.”

Marlon shrugged. He figured it was worth a shot – if nothing else, he could lay eyes on Casper’s bullies… And go from there.

 

[mikaluvkitties]

Casper tilted his head. A talk at his school sounded... nice. It was an excuse to see Marlon, and any excuse to see Marlon couldn’t be too bad. And maybe… maybe that would help. Despite knowing better, he let a little trickle of hope flow through him. And he wouldn’t even confront them. It was… in a way, it was perfect.

He nodded, smiling up at Marlon. “You’re right.” He stepped closer to Marlon, and, after a moment of hesitation, said, “You’re really smart.”

Then, he leaned forward, kissing him gently.

 

[Navarro]

Marlon returned the kiss – and followed it up with a soft smooch to Casper's neck.

Smart? Hardly anyone called Marlon smart. That made him blush a little more than he thought it would. "D'awww! Me? Smart? I'll admit that I have an idea every now and then." He shrugged. But the complement, admittedly, fed his ego – and got him one step closer to his prey.

Running his hand down their neck, down their back, Marlon had the slightest inclination to grow those kisses into a full-on make-out session, but then something popped into his head – Robert. The dad. Oh shit, what if the dad walked in? That wouldn't go well – and he wouldn't be able to bluff his way into the house again, after that.

"So, um, hey! What's up with your dad? Think he might be getting home soon?" Marlon checked his phone – it was a bit past usual working hours...

 

[mikaluvkitties]

Casper smiled, head tilting down a bit as Marlon kissed his neck. He gave a quiet gasp, smile turning into a flat-out grin as he looked to Marlon, tilting his head away from the other boy. “You have a lot of good-” He cut off with a shiver, lips still parted as he looked at Marlon, quietly hoping he’d go a step further.

And then Marlon was talking about Casper’s dad, and Casper remembered that his father would be home any minute. He pouted as he pulled back, gaze dropping as his brow furrowed.

“Probably,” he admitted, stepping around Marlon to go sit amongst the stuffed animals on his bed, becoming nearly engulfed by them. One of them slumped off pitifully, and Casper pouted, lifting the stuffie up tenderly before setting it next to him and patting its head. “We should probably get started…”

It would be a lie to say Casper wasn’t dreading it, that a part of him wasn’t worried that Marlon would see him struggle with something as easy as math and decide he didn’t like him anymore.

Of course, there wasn’t really anything Casper could do about that, was there? He really wished there was...