Home Is Where The Heart Is

"He said that?" He blurted, his cheeks beetroot. "That - I mean, that's so sweet. Aha, jeez - I don't know why he puts up with me," he admitted with a snort, a smile growing wider on his lips. Lifting up the last two dips, he motioned May to follow.

"Ah... so you feel a ghost in here? Wheat does that feel like?" He curiously questioned as he set the dip down in front of the five men. "I... find the whole thing fascinating, to be honest. It's just... I dunno. I'm just babbling, I guess."
 
"Oh god, she's not talking about her dumbass job, is she? It's all bullshit. None of it's real, she just does it to scam people into giving her a living, y'know? It's also 'cause she didn't get good enough qualifications to get into college, so she does this shit for a living," murmured one of the men on the couch, his grin widening at his girlfriend's inevitably pissed reaction.

"...Ignore Oliver, it's not bullshit. I've seen ghosts with my own eyes, I've communicated with them. It's not like the shows. Most ghosts are really nice, you know? They're just trapped souls who can't find their way to whatever's next, some of 'em just want someone to talk to, I find. But there's definitely one here. I get all cold and my ears start ringing. Someone died here, I can feel that," she continued as she flopped down onto the couch with a beer in hand, propping her feet up on the coffee table. "It's interesting to me, you know? Ghosts were people too. I want to know who died here, know their story-- it's sort of my job to be interested in all of this."
 
If he could get any paler, Leo would be like snow. Instead, he seemed to instead grow a bit... transparent, though not enough for anyone to really tell but himself. Taking a careful seat on the adjacent love seat, Leo realized he had grown too quiet and quickly replied with clearly feigned laughter.

"That's not necessary," Leo insisted, waving his arm dismissively, silently thanking for Bitters hoping onto the seat beside him, his fingers immediately rubbing through the cat's fur to receive a pleasant purr in response. "I'm... sure that whatever happened isn't that big of a deal, anyway. Probably just some dumb old lady passed away or something in her sleep."
 
"Even more of a reason to find out, isn't it? It's your home, I'm not going to be pushy about it, but this obviously interests me. I get it, I'm bringing my work into a social occasion, I'll just shut up--"

"If this place had a ghost in it that was making our lives hell, I'd call you up to sort it out. If there is a ghost here, it's not bothering us, so you don't need to go out of your way, May. It's all cool, y'know?" Nyle grinned, doing his best to diffuse her interest and take the pressure of Leo. He hadn't had any idea that May was serious about this stuff. He had heard her talk about it, but, when he was as drunk as he was last night, none of it really stuck in his head. "Forget about it. If this house had some bad history, Leo and I would already know about it."
 
Offering an apologetic smile to the woman, he moved to grab a chip and dip it for the sake of keeping up appearances. It tasted like nothing and The guacamole only felt like slime in his mouth but he hid his disgust, nibbling on the chip carefully. He didn't really know whether he should have grabbed a handful since he never really got hungry or full, or eat sparingly so he stuck to the latter.

It took every fibre of his being not to grow transparent in stress or just force himself out of the room in growing anxiety and he instead decided to at least distract himself with his phone... though that only brought on anxiety at the thought of being seen as rude. He eventually decided to reluctantly watch the game as well... despite having zero interest in it.

"... does everything taste alright?" He weakly asked the others, his eyes landing on Nyle for some form of positive praise. "I... can't really cook so hopefully this is good...?"
 
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And, predictably, Nyle was quick to reassure Leo by grinning up at him from the couch. He wouldn't put him down in front of anyone but he also was a shit liar when it came to Leo too. So when he had no reason to lie, it was a relief - and he really didn't need to lie and pretend the dips were good when, in reality, he found them pretty tasty.

"They're awesome, you need to make 'em more often. Come and sit by me," he beckoned, shifting over in the couch to create enough space for Leo at his side. He could tell he was uncomfortable, so having an arm around him and stealing a kiss or two every now and then ought to relax him, if only a little.
 
Hesitating, he did eventually take a seat beside the other with a small smile. He didn't want to impose, especially in their fun. He was always scolded by his mother when he would accidentally interrupt her so that anxiety had followed him into death as well. To have Nyle wrap his arm around him was definitely calming.

"... what's going on?" He whispered to Nyle, completely oblivious to what the rules of football even were. One could tell by his clearly confusing eyes as he followed the ball be tossed haphazardly across the field. "Who are we supposed to be cheering for...?"

"Well, I'm a Giants fan," commented one of the friends, Greg, who didn't need to look away from the screen. "I get shit on all the time, called a traitor and all that. See, I just go for teams I know can do a good job. Why would I support a losing team?" He snorted as leaned forward, shoving chips into his mouth.
 
"I don't really know, I'm just copying what they do. Sports isn't my thing. I kinda get the appeal? I dunno," shrugged Nyle, deriving more amusement out of his ignorance of the game than anything else. Seeing how the others were so invested in it while he barely understood what was happening did make him chuckle, but he never pretended he was the biggest sports fan. The others were, and he was happy to host the game at his place for them, just to hang out and get to know them better.

"I mean, maybe next time we could stick on Cake Wars and Leo can bake us some muffins or something. That's more my style," he continued with another grin, cuddling closer to his boyfriend. "Relax, I'm clueless too. Nobody's gonna hate you because you don't know the rules, Leo. I don't either. It's just fun being with some friends and getting drunk."
 
"Yeah..." he quietly replied, a hand nervously reaching for his hands tight. He was trying hard to fit in but his eyes would always drift back to May nervously. Entwining his fingers with his boyfriend's, he moved to take another bite of the dip to appear casual.

"Cake Wars? You know I'm more like Nailed It," Leo teased in response with a bashful snort, biting his lower lip. Watching the others ignore their conversation and replaced with four out of the five year in victory when their team made a point, leaving Greg groan as his team began to fail. Watching the others cheer, Leo did offer a genuine smile. It was nice to see others happy, at least.
 
"When they leave, we can watch a few episodes of both, hm? It'll just end up making me hungry, and I'm trying to avoid eating cakes, but it's worth it," he smiled, his attention turning to the others as most of them cheered. This was all he had wanted when he first made the decision to leave Philadelphia. He wanted to do the same with the friends there, only with his own home and his independence. It had taken a while to finally achieve it, and it took getting drunk in the neighbouring town to finally make some friends, but it was all worth it.

"You both should come to my place on Saturday, we're throwing a party for Oliver's birthday," grinned May, glancing to her boyfriend happily. "It'd be awesome to have you guys there-- it's fancy dress, obviously, so wear something creative."
 
"Oh, ah... I can't..." Leo slowly replied, his tone apologetic as he shot a nervous glance over at May. "I don't really like leaving the house. It... makes me uncomfortable. Nyle parties enough for the both of us," he laughed awkwardly.

"Oh, c'mon! It'll be fun, it'll look fun to see you in some nice jeans or whatever. I mean, I dunno how to dress 'nice'," Greg snorted as he leaned back, grunting.
 
"I'll totally come, but Leo can't. He works part-time on Saturdays down at the local store, and his boss is a real shit. Won't let him take any time off-- but hey, I'll be there. I'll dress up really nice too, make a big effort," grinned Nyle, chipping in with an excuse in the effort to help his boyfriend out. He didn't know where the excuse came from, but he figured it was a decent one that let the pressure off Leo. The fact they were inviting him along too was a good sign, it meant they liked him, but it also meant having to come up with plenty of excuses for later if they continued to do so.

"Ah, really? That's a bummer. Maybe next time, yeah? It'd be nice to hang out with you more, Leo. You're the only one who believes I'm not wasting my time studying a lot of bullshit--"

"He's being polite, ain't you?" Oliver murmured, tearing his eyes from the screen with a playful grin towards Leo. "It's why you don't wanna come to the party; May's scared 'ya off. She does that a lot. Nah, I'm kidding-- it's fine, dude. We can hang out when you aren't working."
 
"No, no! I... enjoy your company, May. It's just - Nyle and I have a complicated work schedule," Leo reassured, his eyes landing on his boyfriend in horror at the excuse. I'd he told the truth, that he had agoraphobia and was afraid to leave the house, he wouldn't have to remember any lies and his brain was frazzled enough as it was.

"Nyle can take pictures for me, or video it! I'll... I mean, I do want you all to have a lovely time at the party," He babbled, growing nervous. Nervous enough to get up and head to the kitchen under the excuse of bringing out more chips. "I'll fill the bowl up!"
 
"...Did I say something wrong? I thought it was a good excuse, babe. They ain't from around here, they're not going to know what store we're talking about," began Nyle as he trailed after his boyfriend, heading to collect more beers so his disappearance from the living room was at least for a reason. Awkwardly frowning once recalling how horrified his boyfriend had looked, he leaned against the wall with a smile, one he hoped did a good enough job of reassuring him.

"Hey, you can pick my outfit for me, order it from Amazon or something. You can dress me up as anything, I won't say no," he offered, his smile widening. "I'll go as a fucking ballerina if you want me to, and I'm sure you'd love to upload tons of pictures of me looking like an idiot to Instagram, hm?"
 
"No, it's a great excuse!" He insisted quietly as he fiddled with the bag of chips, cursing quietly when a few chips fell onto the floor. "It's brilliant, yeah. Just... what if I forget? What if I forget that, that's what I'm supposed to say? I'll blow our cover and it'll be incredibly awkward," he explained quickly, his frown only lightening up at the idea of his boyfriend in a tutu. Taking a deep breath to calm himself down, he dumped the chips into the empty bowl.

"Sorry. I'm sorry. I shouldn't... I shouldn't think that way, right? Ugh... sorry," He babbled on becore offering a small smile. "So... I get to pick your outfit? Okay, yeah. I won't make you look too dumb, aha..."
 
"You don't have to be specific, yeah? If they ask, just say you have work. Don't need to remember the details, do 'ya? Just-- Just relax, Leo. It's not a big deal, really. They aren't going to remember anyway, they're kinda drunk," he reminded with a tipsy grin of his own, which reminded him to lean over to fetch out more beers. He didn't want to get as drunk as he did the previous night, but a few drinks watching the game with friends wasn't a huge issue. Besides, he was at least in his own home this time - he didn't have to get cut up and bruised from stumbling (and falling) on the journey back from a bar.

"Yeah, you can choose my outfit. It has to be something good, obviously. And make sure it's something that I'd look hot in. I don't really want to go as, like, a some monster with a mask on all night, that'd be a hassle."
 
"You look hot in everything," he countered easily, albeit quietly as he clutched the bowl tightly. Glancing out into the living room, he nodded to himself before daring to re-enter the room, laughing in an attempt tic try and seem casual... though it only caused the opposite.

"Anyway! What's going on the game?" Leo asked a bit louder than his normal, quieter tone. Grabbing a beer himself, he carefully cracked it open. He wanted to seem a part of the group and, while he didn't really taste anything nor get the desired tipsiness, he knew succumbing to peer pressure was important in this situation.
 
"Ah, nothing really, it's slowed down a bit. All we know for certain is that Greg's an idiot for switching his loyalty. He's such a glory hunter," snorted Oliver, the young man grabbing a beer from Nyle appreciatively. He might not know him all that well, and Leo less so, but he was perfectly happy chilling in their house like this. They weren't hostile or unfriendly, so he easily saw a friendship blossoming from this all, as did May.

The girl wasn't present, having headed to the bathroom, though she did return moments later, pale and evidently spooked out. With a faint glance towards Leo, she smiled politely to try and hide how unnerved she was. It wasn't necessarily to do with Leo himself; it was more to do with how horrendous she felt in the bathroom. She was instantly hit with chills and she knew the feeling often came to her when she was at a sight someone had died in. The bathroom was such a place; she knew that the moment she stepped in there.

"...I'm fine, chill. It's just-- that bathroom. Gave me the chills," she shrugged, slipping back down onto the couch with a faint frown. "Someone died in there; they're still here. Close by. God, I don't wanna bring a dampener on things--"

"Then don't, nobody wants to hear your ghost bullshit right now, May. It's winter; it's cold. That's all it was," her boyfriend sighed, dramatically rolling his eyes. "Sorry about this."
 
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Any mention of his death in such a direct way always made him uncomfortable and incredibly guilty. Even before Nyle, he would get uncomfortable when they worked on the house for a new owner. To hear May mention what had happened, his eyes drifted off briefly as a frown grew.

"Really?" Leo eventually feigned once he seemed to come back from his moment of blacking out a tad. "That's a bummer, aha... I mean, it hasn't bothered us much, right?"
 
"Nah, it's fine. I hardly notice there's a ghost in this place. I mean, if there was, we'd know, right? I dunno, May. It sounds mad," shrugged Nyle, desperately downplaying the other's enthusiasm in her work. He had taken a liking to May, as he had the others, and he was genuinely interested in her work now he knew that ghosts were real. It made her work valid and he was actually desperate to hear about her experiences, and whether she had come into contact with malevolent spirits - that sort of stuff intrigued him, after all.

So downplaying what she did for a living and what she had an interest in made him feel terrible, but he would do it time and time again if it meant protecting Leo. If feigning nonchalance and upsetting May helped, he'd do it, albeit with regret.

"...I don't think it's mad, that's... rude. I thought you believed in this, Nyle?" She questioned, her expression faltering. Her friends, like her boyfriend, weren't believers. She assumed Nyle had been, and it inevitably excited her that she now had someone to discuss her work and passion with. Now, in her mind, it was a waste of time. "...Right, sorry. Yeah. It's mad. Whatever. Sorry."
 
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