Aidan's Apartment - Evening - Clear
Aidan Klein
Expelling a heavy sigh, Aidan collapsed into his sectional, propping his feet up onto the coffee table and cracking open the beer in his hand with the bottle opener on his keychain. Taking a swig, he settled it on a coaster on the end table and picked up the remote, running his other hand through his wet hair and yawning wide enough to crack his jaw a little. Nero and Rheinallt were really coming along in the tournament preparations—he was confident the both of them would do well enough to attract some attention.
He didn't remember the last time he'd had to work so hard for a mission, though. That plus the hours he'd been racking up on his own in the gym at the mansion tended to leave him tired enough to sleep pretty well at night, which was a nice change. He could almost manage to pretend he was a morning person, at this rate, even if some part of him would always be hopelessly nocturnal.
Flipping on the television, he figured a little research couldn't hurt. PSPN was showing a recap of all the biggest tournaments from the last year in a marathon this weekend. Knowing stats was one thing; being able to see people battle, watch them make decisions under pressure and learn their styles—that was the way he'd always done it. He hadn't gotten to the spot he'd occupied with some super-crazy secret training regimen. He just worked hard, and made sure he knew his shit.
Of course, that part of his life was over now, but maybe it'd help the guys out.
Reclining a little back into the sofa, he didn't protest when Frost hopped up to lay half-over his lap, instead running his fingers through her soft, slightly cool fringe of fur. Now... who here was likely to show up early season in Kanto...?
Before he could get comfortable, though, there was a hurried knock on his door. “Aidan, are you in there?" the voice obviously belonged to Niav, but she sounded a little troubled by something. “If you are, we could really use your help," she seemed to add.
Brows knitting, Aidan stood, Frost jumping off before he could dislodge her, looking slightly offended that he'd gotten up so soon after sitting down. He doubted Niav would be here for anything that wasn't important, though—unless the other member of 'we' was Rheinallt, then all bets were off.
When he tugged open the door, though, it was to find that she was actually with Rheinallt the younger, and he blinked at them, noting the concern on their faces. "Help with what?" he asked simply.
“Nev," Niav spoke without missing a beat. “You remember how Kas and I set up a Fletchinder account for her? Well, she matched with someone and she's going to meet him for a date. The only thing is," she paused to glance at Mel before turning back to him, “it wouldn't be so much of a concern if they were going anywhere else. If it hadn't been anyone else, really."
“You're aware of Béliam Arnaud, right? Valerie's son from Kalos? Nev... well, she matched with him and they're meeting at the Delphox. Normally I wouldn't consider this any of my business; she has a right to go out on dates with whomever she wants, but..." she trailed off as if she were unsure how to phrase what it was she found a problem with.
“It's a little concerning."
Even Aidan had to take a second to process all that. For a moment he was kind of... uncomfortable. He'd known she was interested in doing this kind of thing, of course, but—he'd sort of thought she'd tell him if she ended up making those kinds of plans. Not because she was obligated, because she wasn't, but just because they were—
That wasn't important right now. "Can I ask what about this is coming across as suspicious to you?" he asked, narrowing his eyes slightly. He knew of someone by that name, but the guy was Kalosian and stuck to a pretty local battle circuit from what Aidan knew, so when it came to details, there was nothing in his memory at all.
"It seems like kind of a lot for a first date, doesn't it?" Mel asked, frowning.
"What, because the place is fancy? Wouldn't a flashy rich kid from Kalos want to do that normally?"
Niav furrowed her brows. “Yes and no," she stated. “First off, if you're a flashy rich kid, you're not going to use Fletchinder for dates. Money and status alone would be more than enough to get attention, or in this case, dates. If that didn't work, money would definitely buy you dates if you knew where to look. They have escort services for shit like that."
“I'm just... I'm worried that she might be getting herself into something that she won't know how to get out of. We've tried to prepare her for worst case scenarios; she has all of our numbers, but you know how Nev can be. As brilliant as she is... she's also airheaded. She's not..." Niav didn't seem to know how to finish that sentence, but it was obvious enough that she was concerned about Doc.
Ah, that was the missing piece. Aidan hadn't ever really bothered to examine who did and didn't use services like that, thinking of them as matchmakers that used algorithms instead of human intuition. But apparently there was a class gap there, and if so, he could immediately understand what the worry was. "You said Delphox, right?" he asked, almost rhetorically. Looking down at his t-shirt and sweatpants, he sighed.
"If we're gonna check in on her, I'm gonna need a few minutes to find my suit. Niav, you've got something that'll work, right? We'll be way less suspicious as a pair than going alone." Most people would just assume they were there on a date.
"I can get you guys a reservation," Mel said, immediately withdrawing her pokégear and punching in the number for the restaurant.
"This late?" Aidan's brows rose. He'd figured he'd have to pay a lot more just to get them in ahead of someone else on the list.
Mel grinned. "I've got connections. You guys get dressed; since I can't go with you I at least want to take care of this part."
Niav nodded her head. “I'll meet you in the foyer of the complex," she stated, taking her leave.
'Find his suit' was a bit of an exaggeration; Aidan knew exactly where it was. It was by far the most expensive item of clothing he'd ever owned, and while he was hardly in any kind of financial straits it was still hard to conceptualize owning clothes worth thousands of dollars. But as the right hand of Neo Team Rocket's boss, certain appearances were sometimes necessary, and at the moment he was kind of glad he had it.
It was sharp, at least, black with very thin white pinstripes, and he wore a crisp black shirt underneath with a white tie tucked into the black vest. He elected to pull off the silver rings usually on his fingers, replacing them with a watch, its leather band supporting an inlaid dark blue face with pearl-white hands. He ran a comb through his hair, and elected to waste no more time than that, only taking the pokéball containing Rex with him, which he minimized and tucked in the breast pocket of his jacket.
Once he'd reached the meeting place, Niav was there, dressed in a dark red sleeveless pleated chiffon dress. Her hair was pulled into a tail with light waves, and a few strands left to frame her face. She furrowed her brows in his direction, though, and pulled the matching sheer shawl over her shoulders.
“Mel says our reservations are near Nev's table, but far enough that she won't see us," she stated, pursing her lips together. “She also called in the Gogoat service that specializes in the foreign cars. Gotta show up with a car that looks the part, too, I suppose." She pushed a heavy sigh through her nose.
“I hope she's doing alright, so far. She was supposed to meet her date around eight thirty."
He didn't need to check his watch—it was already nine. Nodding shortly, he headed out through the lobby, holding the door for Niav and stepping into the waiting purring red sports car that had just pulled up to the curb.
"Delphox, please," he told the driver, leaning back and cracking the window before pulling a cigarette from one pocket and a lighter from another. "Mind if I smoke?" he asked. He felt torn—it'd be his first one in a couple days, but he was really jonesing for it at the moment. He had to suppress the urge to scoff at himself.
It figured, really.
“Not at all," Niav replied, keeping her eyes outside as they made their way towards the restaurant. “Mel put the reservation under my name, by the way. Figured there'd be less attention drawn your way if it was your name on the list," she stated, turning so that she was glancing in his direction.
“Upscale or not, you do have a rather large fanbase behind your name. A lot of those in the higher echeleons all had some sort of bet riding on you in your battling days," she added. “Appearance wise, you clean up well-enough that they might not recognize you at first."
He snorted, smiling a little almost despite himself as he lit the cigarette. "I'll take that as a compliment, coming from you," he said, exhaling some smoke out the window. She was, after all, the infiltration specialist of her set. It meant she knew what to do to blend in different places, and while he was a fair hand with that himself, it wasn't exactly his specialty. "So thanks, I guess."
It wasn't much longer before they'd reached the Delphox, though, and a valet approached the car to open the door for Aidan and Niav. She stepped out and forced a smile on her face, glancing up at Aidan. “Here's hoping for the best," she muttered softly.
He hummed quietly, offering her his arm politely. They were greeted at the entrance to the restaurant by several members of staff. It didn't really matter who had the reservation in a certain sense: they had the money and looked the part, so they were going to get treated a certain way. A young woman took Niav's shawl to coat check, but other than that they didn't really have any extraneous clothing, so they were brought almost immediately to their seats.
A waitress came by a moment later to take their order for drinks. Once they had been placed, Niav glanced around subtly. “There she is," she spoke, tilting her head towards the right side of them. From anyone else's perspective, it would look like she was interested in what Aidan had to say instead of pointing someone out. Her brows were furrowed, though.
“I don't see Arnaud with her, though," she added. Glancing in Doc's direction did seem to prove that it was just her, however; the expression on her face was almost despondent. “He might be in the restroom, but... that face she's making, it doesn't look good."
Aidan shifted his attention to the seat across from her. The cutlery was completely undisturbed, the seat tucked in in a way that suggested it had never been moved out. "He's not in the bathroom," Aidan said, feeling an unexpected flicker of anger. "He was never fucking here to begin with."
As far as results went for the suspicions the others had had, this wasn't the worst thing. But he was willing to bet Doc wasn't feeling any sense of that right now. Her first arceusdamn date in the world, and the fucker had stood her up.
"Hey Niav," he said, returning his attention to the woman across from him. "I hate to be a jackass and skip out on our surveillance op here, but..." he gestured towards the table Doc sat at, figuring she'd infer what he was asking.
“Go," she spoke, nodding her head in understanding. Her expression was easy to read as one of anger, but her face smoothed out as she stood from the table. “I'll make sure things are covered on our end, here. Just... take care of her," she stated, offering a small smile before taking her cellphone out and leaving. She said something to the waitress who had gone to get their drink, perhaps to let her know they were no longer in need of them. She tipped the woman before leaving towards the front of the restaurant.
Doc seemed to be staring at her glass, though, still filled with what looked to be champagne of sorts. She probably ordered it and hadn't touched it.
Sighing quietly, Aidan put one hand in the pocket of his slacks and approached, drawing to a stop just behind the free chair in front of Doc and resting his free hand on the back of it. "This one taken?" he asked. He didn't think he'd heard his voice come out that gentle in a long time. It wasn't really a trait he usually associated with himself, but if he could make it fit here, he had to.
Doc's head snapped up in surprise, jostling a few of her bangs from her eyes as she glanced in his direction. “Aidan, what are you doing here?" she asked, confusion written on her face. She blinked a few times, as if she were trying to clear her vision of something before her eyes went back towards the glass in her hand.
“I... wasn't expecting to see you here, is all," she spoke, a small smile appearing on her face. It seemed forced, though, as if she were trying not to show how upset she truly felt about her situation. She'd been wearing a relatively nice dress, black in color and it exposed the left side of her shoulder. It had a neck tie of sorts that was attached the left side that had a strip of what was supposed to be the sleeve portion of her dress. Her hair had been pulled up into a loose bun, probably from Niav's and Mel's help, with her bangs left loosely where they fell.
"Wasn't expecting to be here," he said honestly. He expelled a quiet breath, remaining standing since she hadn't indicated otherwise. "And I'm obviously not who you were hoping for." He wasn't an idiot, after all—he knew damn well what it meant that she hadn't even told him this was happening. But still, she'd gone to all the trouble of dressing up and preparing for a nice evening out, and he knew she had to think something of him, to willingly spend nights in with him, even if she might have preferred nights out with someone else.
"But you know... I am here. I can get you home, if you want, or if you're hungry we can eat. I'm not some big-shot from Kalos, and I'll probably pronounce all the food wrong, but if you don't mind that I don't think I'm the worst company ever."
“Oh, but were you here with someone, then? I don't... I don't want to pull you away from someone if you were. I'll be fine; I'll just finish this and..." she paused, swallowing audibly before glancing back at her glass. “I'm sure you'd rather be elsewhere, though, and not here stuck with me," she stated, offering him a rueful smile.
“And that's just nonsense. You're very good company to have. I wouldn't mind at all..." she trailed off again.
He shook his head faintly. "I was here with Niav. She and Mel were worried about you and wanted to make sure you were all right." Clearly she wasn't; hopefully she would take the admission for the sign of concern it was, and not an insult.
Aidan sort of figured what she'd just said was as close to an invitation to sit as he was going to get, so he did so, resisting the urge to reach across the table and ruffle her hair or something. She'd clearly gone to some effort with it, and he didn't want to muss it or anything. The waiter promptly appeared to take his drink order; he gave it quickly and returned his attention to Doc.
"I won't ask if you're okay," he said simply. "But is there anything I can do?"
Doc shook her head softly. “No, there's not. If you were here with Cyrilla, then you know I was here on a date," she stated almost in a whisper. “I didn't... well, I didn't want to tell you about it because I didn't want to bother you with something so silly. Plus... I," she paused to take a sudden breath of air before closing her eyes. “I should have known this would happen."
“I thought that if you didn't know, and this happened, then it was like it never did happen. And... you wouldn't have to see me like this," she continued, quickly rubbing the back of her eyes with her hand. She sniffed softly, but it looked like she was doing her best to keep herself from crying.
Bother him? Was that really how she thought of it?
He had to admit it tracked with certain other facts about her, but if she thought it after all this he'd been a shittier friend than he thought.
Aidan had never been one for fancy places to begin with, but at this moment the setting seemed like it was just getting in the way of everything. Withdrawing his wallet from his pocket, he laid out enough cash to pay for both their drinks, the time she'd spent sitting, and a generous tip before he stood up again and held a hand out towards her. "Let's get out of here, okay? I'm not trying to cut you off, or stop you from talking, but we can't really do that right here anyway."
She blinked in surprise at him. “Okay," she spoke softly, taking his hand and standing from her spot. She followed behind him as they reached the front of the restaurant. One of the waiters retrieved her coat for her, and she slipped it over her shoulders, pulling it closer to her as if to hide herself somehow. It was cool outside, not quite enough so for a jacket, but it might have been more for psychological comfort than physical.
“I'm... sorry if this interrupted your evening. I know you like to watch PSPN sometimes and... occasionally play the game," she spoke softly, still. She hadn't glanced in his direction, though, even as they stepped outside.
The street outside was lit pretty nicely; they weren't far from the docks, here, and Aidan pointed them in that direction more to have somewhere to walk than anything else. "You didn't," he said simply. "You didn't interrupt me, and you don't bother me. I'd say you know that already but... I don't think you do." He pushed a soft breath through his nose. He wasn't oblivious to her struggle with her sense of self-esteem, of course, but he hadn't quite realized how bad it was. Maybe some of this was just a really bad night talking.
"You know this isn't on you, right? Standing someone up is the kind of thing only an asshole does, now matter how fancy the place is he picks to do it."
She pulled in a soft breath, and shook her head. “But it is... on me, I mean," she stated, reaching up to pull the band that held her hair up, off. It caused her hair to fall over her shoulders, and she ran a hand through the strands to set them straight, it seemed. “I've never been an interesting person, or exceptionally beautiful. If anything, I'm plain and possibly quite the most boring person around," she stated, huffing lightly at herself.
“Even when I was a young child, people just weren't... well they weren't interested in me at all. Not even to be my friend. I just... I stayed by myself, read the books the school library had, and went home. I... remember there being someone, at one point in my life, who'd been my best friend, but he's gone now. He..." she furrowed her brows slightly as she paused, “he died when I was twelve."
She fell silent for a moment after that, eyes downcast and not at all paying much attention to where she was going. It seemed that she was just following idly beside Aidan.
He lost the war with his instinct to reach over, only to his own surprise it wasn't to pat her head like he'd thought. Instead, he shifted a strand of her loose bangs in his fingers, moving it so that it was tucked behind her ear. "I'm sorry for your loss," he said sincerely. He knew what that felt like—to lose someone you thought really understood you, was really close to you in a way no one else had been. Even if his hadn't been human.
"But you know... I don't think you're boring at all. You're brilliant, for starters. And the way you look at things—I don't know anyone else like you, and that's interesting. I've met all kinds of people, but I'd never compare you to any of them. You're too much yourself." He tucked his hand back in his pocket, turning his eyes ahead.
"As for the plain bit... I think you should get your eyes checked, Doc. There's nothing plain about you." He shrugged, trying to walk a line between being sincere and saying too much. Aidan didn't have to be half as good at reading people as he was to know she was in a fragile state right now—he wanted to make it better, not more awkward or uncomfortable. As much as he could, anyway.
She smiled a little, then, though at what in particular, it was hard to say. “Miles used to say the same thing," she spoke softly. “Even if he didn't necessarily speak the same way as you or I can. Mr. Mime are still notoriously intelligent and aren't psychic for a reason," she stated, finally shifting her gaze towards Aidan. Her eyes were glistening with unshed tears, but she was still smiling a little softly at him.
“But you don't have to say things like that to me, to cheer me up, Aidan," she stated, the smile faltering for a moment. “You're the first real friend I've had in a long time, even if you also happen to be my superior. I... well, I'm grateful for your friendship."
Mr. Mime? So the person she was close to had also been—
He exhaled heavily. "I'm not saying it just to cheer you up," he said flatly. "I'm saying it because it's true. I also hope it helps, but... I wouldn't make stuff up for that. I don't like lying to people, and I'll never lie to you if I can help it." He wished he could promise more than that, but with what he did for a living, what Gregorovich might ask him to do in the future... there just weren't any guarantees, and pretending like there were would be a lie of its own.
They'd finally reached the edge of the dock, and Aidan paused, thoughtful. The water glittered under the lights, but he felt like he hardly saw it.
"Why—" he paused, reconsidering the wisdom of his question and then going ahead with it anyway. "Why wouldn't you want me to see you? You're allowed to be in pain, you know. In front of me or not."
“Because I don't want to bother you with trivial things like that," she replied. “I don't want to be a bother to you at all, but... sometimes I feel like I am, even if you say otherwise." She took a deep breath, and glanced out towards the water. “It's been five months since I arrived here, and in those five months I've made more friends than I've ever had before, and... well, I'm not entirely sure how to be a friend. Part of it is me learning as I go, but I also worry that I might not be..." she paused in that thought and shook her head.
“My pain and sadness shouldn't fall on my friends, is all. Or anyone else, for that matter. It's... it's mine and I should be the one to deal with it."
Aidan frowned. Really, he'd just told her he was making a point of not using platitudes and she still thought he was just trying to make her feel better. This woman.
Still, if ever he'd had a virtue to his name, it was the patience he'd developed after his wild adolescence. He figured he needed it here, and maybe she did too. "That's... kind of the opposite of how it works, Doc," he said, turning his eyes from the water to look over at her. "Friends aren't just there for the shiny happy shit, and if they are, they're not really your friends. You think—" he paused, trying to find a way to explain it so she'd understand. "You think the rest of us don't feel like that sometimes?" He tilted his head, asking the question softly.
"What would you do, if our situations had been reversed tonight? If somebody had stood me up and I was upset about it? Would you think that was a burden on you, that I should keep it to myself because it was my problem?"
Her eyes narrowed as her brows furrowed deeply. “I... well, no. I'd hope you'd talk to me, or someone else, about it. I wouldn't want you to be upset about it, I just..." her expression smoothed out as she seemed to at least understand what he was trying to tell her. “I guess I just didn't ever feel like there would be people who'd be willing to be there for me. I've... never had that before."
She took a deep, shuddering breath before she glanced back at him. “I suppose I'm still getting used to that there are people like that. And... well, that I'm lucky you're one of them," she stated, the tears in her eyes finally falling freely. “Thank you, Aidan."
He felt some of the tension he'd been carrying leave him at last, expelling a breath along with it before he stepped a little closer towards her. "C'mere," he said quietly, opening his arms in invitation. "Pretty sure friends get to do this too, if you don't object."
Not that he was overly familiar either, but—it felt like the right thing to offer. He sure as hell wasn't just going to stand there uselessly while she cried, after all.
She didn't seem to object, and closed the distance, wrapping her arms around him and burying her head in his shoulder. She sobbed quietly for a few minutes before it seemed to die down. She pulled away from him, wiping her eyes with her hands as she took a breath to steady her breathing.
“Do... would you mind if I came over to your place for a few? Maybe... maybe we can even finally get Balthazar and Maribelle past the water labyrinth?" she asked, glancing up at him with puffy eyes.
A quiet huff left him, and he nodded slightly. "Of course you can, Doc. I think I've come up with a new strategy for the boss, even."
If she was asking about that, he figured she was going to be all right.
He didn't remember the last time he'd had to work so hard for a mission, though. That plus the hours he'd been racking up on his own in the gym at the mansion tended to leave him tired enough to sleep pretty well at night, which was a nice change. He could almost manage to pretend he was a morning person, at this rate, even if some part of him would always be hopelessly nocturnal.
Flipping on the television, he figured a little research couldn't hurt. PSPN was showing a recap of all the biggest tournaments from the last year in a marathon this weekend. Knowing stats was one thing; being able to see people battle, watch them make decisions under pressure and learn their styles—that was the way he'd always done it. He hadn't gotten to the spot he'd occupied with some super-crazy secret training regimen. He just worked hard, and made sure he knew his shit.
Of course, that part of his life was over now, but maybe it'd help the guys out.
Reclining a little back into the sofa, he didn't protest when Frost hopped up to lay half-over his lap, instead running his fingers through her soft, slightly cool fringe of fur. Now... who here was likely to show up early season in Kanto...?
Before he could get comfortable, though, there was a hurried knock on his door. “Aidan, are you in there?" the voice obviously belonged to Niav, but she sounded a little troubled by something. “If you are, we could really use your help," she seemed to add.
Brows knitting, Aidan stood, Frost jumping off before he could dislodge her, looking slightly offended that he'd gotten up so soon after sitting down. He doubted Niav would be here for anything that wasn't important, though—unless the other member of 'we' was Rheinallt, then all bets were off.
When he tugged open the door, though, it was to find that she was actually with Rheinallt the younger, and he blinked at them, noting the concern on their faces. "Help with what?" he asked simply.
“Nev," Niav spoke without missing a beat. “You remember how Kas and I set up a Fletchinder account for her? Well, she matched with someone and she's going to meet him for a date. The only thing is," she paused to glance at Mel before turning back to him, “it wouldn't be so much of a concern if they were going anywhere else. If it hadn't been anyone else, really."
“You're aware of Béliam Arnaud, right? Valerie's son from Kalos? Nev... well, she matched with him and they're meeting at the Delphox. Normally I wouldn't consider this any of my business; she has a right to go out on dates with whomever she wants, but..." she trailed off as if she were unsure how to phrase what it was she found a problem with.
“It's a little concerning."
Even Aidan had to take a second to process all that. For a moment he was kind of... uncomfortable. He'd known she was interested in doing this kind of thing, of course, but—he'd sort of thought she'd tell him if she ended up making those kinds of plans. Not because she was obligated, because she wasn't, but just because they were—
That wasn't important right now. "Can I ask what about this is coming across as suspicious to you?" he asked, narrowing his eyes slightly. He knew of someone by that name, but the guy was Kalosian and stuck to a pretty local battle circuit from what Aidan knew, so when it came to details, there was nothing in his memory at all.
"It seems like kind of a lot for a first date, doesn't it?" Mel asked, frowning.
"What, because the place is fancy? Wouldn't a flashy rich kid from Kalos want to do that normally?"
Niav furrowed her brows. “Yes and no," she stated. “First off, if you're a flashy rich kid, you're not going to use Fletchinder for dates. Money and status alone would be more than enough to get attention, or in this case, dates. If that didn't work, money would definitely buy you dates if you knew where to look. They have escort services for shit like that."
“I'm just... I'm worried that she might be getting herself into something that she won't know how to get out of. We've tried to prepare her for worst case scenarios; she has all of our numbers, but you know how Nev can be. As brilliant as she is... she's also airheaded. She's not..." Niav didn't seem to know how to finish that sentence, but it was obvious enough that she was concerned about Doc.
Ah, that was the missing piece. Aidan hadn't ever really bothered to examine who did and didn't use services like that, thinking of them as matchmakers that used algorithms instead of human intuition. But apparently there was a class gap there, and if so, he could immediately understand what the worry was. "You said Delphox, right?" he asked, almost rhetorically. Looking down at his t-shirt and sweatpants, he sighed.
"If we're gonna check in on her, I'm gonna need a few minutes to find my suit. Niav, you've got something that'll work, right? We'll be way less suspicious as a pair than going alone." Most people would just assume they were there on a date.
"I can get you guys a reservation," Mel said, immediately withdrawing her pokégear and punching in the number for the restaurant.
"This late?" Aidan's brows rose. He'd figured he'd have to pay a lot more just to get them in ahead of someone else on the list.
Mel grinned. "I've got connections. You guys get dressed; since I can't go with you I at least want to take care of this part."
Niav nodded her head. “I'll meet you in the foyer of the complex," she stated, taking her leave.
'Find his suit' was a bit of an exaggeration; Aidan knew exactly where it was. It was by far the most expensive item of clothing he'd ever owned, and while he was hardly in any kind of financial straits it was still hard to conceptualize owning clothes worth thousands of dollars. But as the right hand of Neo Team Rocket's boss, certain appearances were sometimes necessary, and at the moment he was kind of glad he had it.
It was sharp, at least, black with very thin white pinstripes, and he wore a crisp black shirt underneath with a white tie tucked into the black vest. He elected to pull off the silver rings usually on his fingers, replacing them with a watch, its leather band supporting an inlaid dark blue face with pearl-white hands. He ran a comb through his hair, and elected to waste no more time than that, only taking the pokéball containing Rex with him, which he minimized and tucked in the breast pocket of his jacket.
Once he'd reached the meeting place, Niav was there, dressed in a dark red sleeveless pleated chiffon dress. Her hair was pulled into a tail with light waves, and a few strands left to frame her face. She furrowed her brows in his direction, though, and pulled the matching sheer shawl over her shoulders.
“Mel says our reservations are near Nev's table, but far enough that she won't see us," she stated, pursing her lips together. “She also called in the Gogoat service that specializes in the foreign cars. Gotta show up with a car that looks the part, too, I suppose." She pushed a heavy sigh through her nose.
“I hope she's doing alright, so far. She was supposed to meet her date around eight thirty."
He didn't need to check his watch—it was already nine. Nodding shortly, he headed out through the lobby, holding the door for Niav and stepping into the waiting purring red sports car that had just pulled up to the curb.
"Delphox, please," he told the driver, leaning back and cracking the window before pulling a cigarette from one pocket and a lighter from another. "Mind if I smoke?" he asked. He felt torn—it'd be his first one in a couple days, but he was really jonesing for it at the moment. He had to suppress the urge to scoff at himself.
It figured, really.
“Not at all," Niav replied, keeping her eyes outside as they made their way towards the restaurant. “Mel put the reservation under my name, by the way. Figured there'd be less attention drawn your way if it was your name on the list," she stated, turning so that she was glancing in his direction.
“Upscale or not, you do have a rather large fanbase behind your name. A lot of those in the higher echeleons all had some sort of bet riding on you in your battling days," she added. “Appearance wise, you clean up well-enough that they might not recognize you at first."
He snorted, smiling a little almost despite himself as he lit the cigarette. "I'll take that as a compliment, coming from you," he said, exhaling some smoke out the window. She was, after all, the infiltration specialist of her set. It meant she knew what to do to blend in different places, and while he was a fair hand with that himself, it wasn't exactly his specialty. "So thanks, I guess."
It wasn't much longer before they'd reached the Delphox, though, and a valet approached the car to open the door for Aidan and Niav. She stepped out and forced a smile on her face, glancing up at Aidan. “Here's hoping for the best," she muttered softly.
He hummed quietly, offering her his arm politely. They were greeted at the entrance to the restaurant by several members of staff. It didn't really matter who had the reservation in a certain sense: they had the money and looked the part, so they were going to get treated a certain way. A young woman took Niav's shawl to coat check, but other than that they didn't really have any extraneous clothing, so they were brought almost immediately to their seats.
A waitress came by a moment later to take their order for drinks. Once they had been placed, Niav glanced around subtly. “There she is," she spoke, tilting her head towards the right side of them. From anyone else's perspective, it would look like she was interested in what Aidan had to say instead of pointing someone out. Her brows were furrowed, though.
“I don't see Arnaud with her, though," she added. Glancing in Doc's direction did seem to prove that it was just her, however; the expression on her face was almost despondent. “He might be in the restroom, but... that face she's making, it doesn't look good."
Aidan shifted his attention to the seat across from her. The cutlery was completely undisturbed, the seat tucked in in a way that suggested it had never been moved out. "He's not in the bathroom," Aidan said, feeling an unexpected flicker of anger. "He was never fucking here to begin with."
As far as results went for the suspicions the others had had, this wasn't the worst thing. But he was willing to bet Doc wasn't feeling any sense of that right now. Her first arceusdamn date in the world, and the fucker had stood her up.
"Hey Niav," he said, returning his attention to the woman across from him. "I hate to be a jackass and skip out on our surveillance op here, but..." he gestured towards the table Doc sat at, figuring she'd infer what he was asking.
“Go," she spoke, nodding her head in understanding. Her expression was easy to read as one of anger, but her face smoothed out as she stood from the table. “I'll make sure things are covered on our end, here. Just... take care of her," she stated, offering a small smile before taking her cellphone out and leaving. She said something to the waitress who had gone to get their drink, perhaps to let her know they were no longer in need of them. She tipped the woman before leaving towards the front of the restaurant.
Doc seemed to be staring at her glass, though, still filled with what looked to be champagne of sorts. She probably ordered it and hadn't touched it.
Sighing quietly, Aidan put one hand in the pocket of his slacks and approached, drawing to a stop just behind the free chair in front of Doc and resting his free hand on the back of it. "This one taken?" he asked. He didn't think he'd heard his voice come out that gentle in a long time. It wasn't really a trait he usually associated with himself, but if he could make it fit here, he had to.
Doc's head snapped up in surprise, jostling a few of her bangs from her eyes as she glanced in his direction. “Aidan, what are you doing here?" she asked, confusion written on her face. She blinked a few times, as if she were trying to clear her vision of something before her eyes went back towards the glass in her hand.
“I... wasn't expecting to see you here, is all," she spoke, a small smile appearing on her face. It seemed forced, though, as if she were trying not to show how upset she truly felt about her situation. She'd been wearing a relatively nice dress, black in color and it exposed the left side of her shoulder. It had a neck tie of sorts that was attached the left side that had a strip of what was supposed to be the sleeve portion of her dress. Her hair had been pulled up into a loose bun, probably from Niav's and Mel's help, with her bangs left loosely where they fell.
"Wasn't expecting to be here," he said honestly. He expelled a quiet breath, remaining standing since she hadn't indicated otherwise. "And I'm obviously not who you were hoping for." He wasn't an idiot, after all—he knew damn well what it meant that she hadn't even told him this was happening. But still, she'd gone to all the trouble of dressing up and preparing for a nice evening out, and he knew she had to think something of him, to willingly spend nights in with him, even if she might have preferred nights out with someone else.
"But you know... I am here. I can get you home, if you want, or if you're hungry we can eat. I'm not some big-shot from Kalos, and I'll probably pronounce all the food wrong, but if you don't mind that I don't think I'm the worst company ever."
“Oh, but were you here with someone, then? I don't... I don't want to pull you away from someone if you were. I'll be fine; I'll just finish this and..." she paused, swallowing audibly before glancing back at her glass. “I'm sure you'd rather be elsewhere, though, and not here stuck with me," she stated, offering him a rueful smile.
“And that's just nonsense. You're very good company to have. I wouldn't mind at all..." she trailed off again.
He shook his head faintly. "I was here with Niav. She and Mel were worried about you and wanted to make sure you were all right." Clearly she wasn't; hopefully she would take the admission for the sign of concern it was, and not an insult.
Aidan sort of figured what she'd just said was as close to an invitation to sit as he was going to get, so he did so, resisting the urge to reach across the table and ruffle her hair or something. She'd clearly gone to some effort with it, and he didn't want to muss it or anything. The waiter promptly appeared to take his drink order; he gave it quickly and returned his attention to Doc.
"I won't ask if you're okay," he said simply. "But is there anything I can do?"
Doc shook her head softly. “No, there's not. If you were here with Cyrilla, then you know I was here on a date," she stated almost in a whisper. “I didn't... well, I didn't want to tell you about it because I didn't want to bother you with something so silly. Plus... I," she paused to take a sudden breath of air before closing her eyes. “I should have known this would happen."
“I thought that if you didn't know, and this happened, then it was like it never did happen. And... you wouldn't have to see me like this," she continued, quickly rubbing the back of her eyes with her hand. She sniffed softly, but it looked like she was doing her best to keep herself from crying.
Bother him? Was that really how she thought of it?
He had to admit it tracked with certain other facts about her, but if she thought it after all this he'd been a shittier friend than he thought.
Aidan had never been one for fancy places to begin with, but at this moment the setting seemed like it was just getting in the way of everything. Withdrawing his wallet from his pocket, he laid out enough cash to pay for both their drinks, the time she'd spent sitting, and a generous tip before he stood up again and held a hand out towards her. "Let's get out of here, okay? I'm not trying to cut you off, or stop you from talking, but we can't really do that right here anyway."
She blinked in surprise at him. “Okay," she spoke softly, taking his hand and standing from her spot. She followed behind him as they reached the front of the restaurant. One of the waiters retrieved her coat for her, and she slipped it over her shoulders, pulling it closer to her as if to hide herself somehow. It was cool outside, not quite enough so for a jacket, but it might have been more for psychological comfort than physical.
“I'm... sorry if this interrupted your evening. I know you like to watch PSPN sometimes and... occasionally play the game," she spoke softly, still. She hadn't glanced in his direction, though, even as they stepped outside.
The street outside was lit pretty nicely; they weren't far from the docks, here, and Aidan pointed them in that direction more to have somewhere to walk than anything else. "You didn't," he said simply. "You didn't interrupt me, and you don't bother me. I'd say you know that already but... I don't think you do." He pushed a soft breath through his nose. He wasn't oblivious to her struggle with her sense of self-esteem, of course, but he hadn't quite realized how bad it was. Maybe some of this was just a really bad night talking.
"You know this isn't on you, right? Standing someone up is the kind of thing only an asshole does, now matter how fancy the place is he picks to do it."
She pulled in a soft breath, and shook her head. “But it is... on me, I mean," she stated, reaching up to pull the band that held her hair up, off. It caused her hair to fall over her shoulders, and she ran a hand through the strands to set them straight, it seemed. “I've never been an interesting person, or exceptionally beautiful. If anything, I'm plain and possibly quite the most boring person around," she stated, huffing lightly at herself.
“Even when I was a young child, people just weren't... well they weren't interested in me at all. Not even to be my friend. I just... I stayed by myself, read the books the school library had, and went home. I... remember there being someone, at one point in my life, who'd been my best friend, but he's gone now. He..." she furrowed her brows slightly as she paused, “he died when I was twelve."
She fell silent for a moment after that, eyes downcast and not at all paying much attention to where she was going. It seemed that she was just following idly beside Aidan.
He lost the war with his instinct to reach over, only to his own surprise it wasn't to pat her head like he'd thought. Instead, he shifted a strand of her loose bangs in his fingers, moving it so that it was tucked behind her ear. "I'm sorry for your loss," he said sincerely. He knew what that felt like—to lose someone you thought really understood you, was really close to you in a way no one else had been. Even if his hadn't been human.
"But you know... I don't think you're boring at all. You're brilliant, for starters. And the way you look at things—I don't know anyone else like you, and that's interesting. I've met all kinds of people, but I'd never compare you to any of them. You're too much yourself." He tucked his hand back in his pocket, turning his eyes ahead.
"As for the plain bit... I think you should get your eyes checked, Doc. There's nothing plain about you." He shrugged, trying to walk a line between being sincere and saying too much. Aidan didn't have to be half as good at reading people as he was to know she was in a fragile state right now—he wanted to make it better, not more awkward or uncomfortable. As much as he could, anyway.
She smiled a little, then, though at what in particular, it was hard to say. “Miles used to say the same thing," she spoke softly. “Even if he didn't necessarily speak the same way as you or I can. Mr. Mime are still notoriously intelligent and aren't psychic for a reason," she stated, finally shifting her gaze towards Aidan. Her eyes were glistening with unshed tears, but she was still smiling a little softly at him.
“But you don't have to say things like that to me, to cheer me up, Aidan," she stated, the smile faltering for a moment. “You're the first real friend I've had in a long time, even if you also happen to be my superior. I... well, I'm grateful for your friendship."
Mr. Mime? So the person she was close to had also been—
He exhaled heavily. "I'm not saying it just to cheer you up," he said flatly. "I'm saying it because it's true. I also hope it helps, but... I wouldn't make stuff up for that. I don't like lying to people, and I'll never lie to you if I can help it." He wished he could promise more than that, but with what he did for a living, what Gregorovich might ask him to do in the future... there just weren't any guarantees, and pretending like there were would be a lie of its own.
They'd finally reached the edge of the dock, and Aidan paused, thoughtful. The water glittered under the lights, but he felt like he hardly saw it.
"Why—" he paused, reconsidering the wisdom of his question and then going ahead with it anyway. "Why wouldn't you want me to see you? You're allowed to be in pain, you know. In front of me or not."
“Because I don't want to bother you with trivial things like that," she replied. “I don't want to be a bother to you at all, but... sometimes I feel like I am, even if you say otherwise." She took a deep breath, and glanced out towards the water. “It's been five months since I arrived here, and in those five months I've made more friends than I've ever had before, and... well, I'm not entirely sure how to be a friend. Part of it is me learning as I go, but I also worry that I might not be..." she paused in that thought and shook her head.
“My pain and sadness shouldn't fall on my friends, is all. Or anyone else, for that matter. It's... it's mine and I should be the one to deal with it."
Aidan frowned. Really, he'd just told her he was making a point of not using platitudes and she still thought he was just trying to make her feel better. This woman.
Still, if ever he'd had a virtue to his name, it was the patience he'd developed after his wild adolescence. He figured he needed it here, and maybe she did too. "That's... kind of the opposite of how it works, Doc," he said, turning his eyes from the water to look over at her. "Friends aren't just there for the shiny happy shit, and if they are, they're not really your friends. You think—" he paused, trying to find a way to explain it so she'd understand. "You think the rest of us don't feel like that sometimes?" He tilted his head, asking the question softly.
"What would you do, if our situations had been reversed tonight? If somebody had stood me up and I was upset about it? Would you think that was a burden on you, that I should keep it to myself because it was my problem?"
Her eyes narrowed as her brows furrowed deeply. “I... well, no. I'd hope you'd talk to me, or someone else, about it. I wouldn't want you to be upset about it, I just..." her expression smoothed out as she seemed to at least understand what he was trying to tell her. “I guess I just didn't ever feel like there would be people who'd be willing to be there for me. I've... never had that before."
She took a deep, shuddering breath before she glanced back at him. “I suppose I'm still getting used to that there are people like that. And... well, that I'm lucky you're one of them," she stated, the tears in her eyes finally falling freely. “Thank you, Aidan."
He felt some of the tension he'd been carrying leave him at last, expelling a breath along with it before he stepped a little closer towards her. "C'mere," he said quietly, opening his arms in invitation. "Pretty sure friends get to do this too, if you don't object."
Not that he was overly familiar either, but—it felt like the right thing to offer. He sure as hell wasn't just going to stand there uselessly while she cried, after all.
She didn't seem to object, and closed the distance, wrapping her arms around him and burying her head in his shoulder. She sobbed quietly for a few minutes before it seemed to die down. She pulled away from him, wiping her eyes with her hands as she took a breath to steady her breathing.
“Do... would you mind if I came over to your place for a few? Maybe... maybe we can even finally get Balthazar and Maribelle past the water labyrinth?" she asked, glancing up at him with puffy eyes.
A quiet huff left him, and he nodded slightly. "Of course you can, Doc. I think I've come up with a new strategy for the boss, even."
If she was asking about that, he figured she was going to be all right.