promuseboxing | (no subject)

In the aftermath of saving Harper from her mother, Marcus suggests they take a break. Not forever, but long enough for them to lick their wounds and steel their hearts for the next trial that awaits them. Maybe he sees the exhaustion nipping at the edges of Tomas’s spirit. Or perhaps it's that Marcus himself is tired of sleeping in the truck as they trade shifts on the long journey to their next destination. Whatever his reasons are he keeps them to himself. Tomas agrees and they find a quiet town with a nice motel that won’t demolish their funds, close enough that they can go to Harper if she needs them.

The town is small, a bit off the beaten path but lovely all the same. Plenty of shops to visit as well as what looks to be an active church congregation going by the festival happening in the park beside the church. For a while, Tomas trails after Marcus as they pick up supplies, half distracted as his eyes keep straying toward the festivities. It reminds him of Saint Anthony's, setting off an aching homesickness that always seems to be waiting to hit him at the least opportune moment. Marcus finally waves him off after they finish putting their bags into the truck, telling him he'll catch up after he investigates the music store they passed. Tomas can already see new cassette tapes in their future.

He finds out as he wanders through, looking at the stalls and stands that the fair is to help raise money for the church's roof which has been in need of repair for several months now. It doesn't take long for Tomas to be drawn to the bake sale table, chatting with a few locals as he tries to decide what to buy. The congregation isn't Catholic but the spirit is familiar enough that Tomas finds himself at ease as he makes his picks. A few chocolate pastries for himself and some jam tarts he's started to recognize as Marcus's favorite.

"What brings you out this way?"

"We were passing through and decided to spend a few days resting. The town is lovely."

"With your wife? You chose a great time to stop in, the weather is amazing this time of year."

"Oh, no. I don't have a wife. I'm traveling with my partner, he ought to be around soon."

"How wonderful!"

The conversation continued on amicably, Tomas asking about local landmarks and restaurants they could visit. Gossip that he has no stake in but listens to anyway, letting the words wash over him like the tide. He tells a few stories from Chicago, editing enough details to keep everything anonymous. When the subject very suddenly turns to a crazy news story about a pair of priests kidnapping a woman just one state over it feels like a bucket of ice water has been dumped over his head. He quietly thanks every saint watching over him that he had left his clerical clothes at the bottom of his bag, that he's dressed in plain clothes that hint at nothing special. The words leave him off-kilter, fumbling to catch up as the conversation continues without him.

When he spots Marcus making his way over there's no disguising the relief on his face. He takes two steps over to meet him, opening his mouth to say they ought to leave when one of the women speaks up, sounding absolutely delighted.

"This must be your husband! I'm sorry-- partner." At Tomas's look of helpless surprise, the woman winks at him. "You don't need to worry, honey. We aren't the sort of folks who care about who a person loves."

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"Oh, I can full well see how it happened, but it's not a bad cover at all. Maybe we should keep it. And are these actually jam tarts?"

Marcus takes a moment before starting the car to peek into the box, and sure enough there are his favorite treats inside. There was an equal chance Tomas was bluffing, but no. He actually was that thoughtful, the little shit.

His smirk only broadens as he repeats, more teasingly this time, "Very thoughtful, darling, thank you." The box gets closed again, and he's turning the key now. "Should we find some real dinner before going back to the motel?"

That smirk draws Tomas out of his sulk as he rolls his eyes at the teasing pet name. He may eat one of the tarts out of spite now, possibly the very last one just to see what sort of face Marcus makes when he does.

"Food sounds like an excellent plan. I think I saw a diner not far from the motel." A diner was a safe choice for their next meal, even with their funds running a little tight. Bennett hasn't sent anymore money their way which means Tomas may need to find a way to access his savings if they are to continue their work.

Maybe we should keep it.

The thoughts turn over in his head as Marcus pulls out of the parking lot and out to the road. "And if we are keeping that story I think we need rings, darling." At least they won't need to think of false names thanks to the fake IDs that Bennett provided for them.

Marcus remembers the place Tomas is referring to, and nods as he pulls away from the curb to head back that way. Dinner's the easy part of this. They need to discuss their next move, if they're going to try and meet up with their people or continue as they have been on the run alone, helping whoever they can. He knows there's more at stake than one soul at a time, but they could probably both use a break. They just can't lay low for long, with their cash dwindling.

"Rings, hmm? There's something I never thought I'd be shopping for, but you did say partner. We might get away with saying we just aren't married yet. Or we're just living in sin, that's about as far from priests as you can get."

He turns right on the road back to their motel, scanning for the diner. It should be coming right up.

Edited 2019-05-13 23:56 (UTC)

Their work is so important, yet Tomas chafes at how slow it can be. Brick by brick they are trying to disassemble the edifice that the demons gave built and it feels like for everyone one they remove three more replace it. But there's still a bone-deep ache of tiredness in Tomas, especially after Harper's mother did her level best to cave in his skull with a hammer.

They need this break. It feels good to banter over things that don't involve someone's immortal soul. No lectures about risk-taking. Just... a very strange situation.

"Fair enough." A marriage could complicate things as well. People could poke at their story for holes. Better to let them fill in the gaps with their assumptions so that they could tell as few lies as possible. "At least they were pleasant about it." So many people used god as an excuse to hate, it left a sour taste in his mouth.

He spots the diner, pointing it out as Marcus. "Hopefully their coffee isn't terrible." After the day they've had, Tomas would kill for a decent cup of coffee. Too many cups of subpar gas station brews has left him craving something better.