log - too tired for title whee - closed to B1 and A4, open to those likely to wander by

[conning]

Who: B1: Closed to Neal and residents; A4: open to B1 and those who wish to poke their heads in because socializing and open doors
When: Early September--on a Sunday and then the following Wednesday. Why the following Wednesday? Idk man I just picked something.
Where: B1 on Sunday, and A4 on Wednesday IG???
Summary: Meredith invited Neal to visit, and Neal suggested making it a mingle for both apartments. Then Malcolm invited Neal over and Neal decided to do a solo trial run or something like that.
Warnings: Not at the moment. except possibly meredith giving neal a shovel talk


B1 - SUNDAY

Okay, well, he meant to make it simple. But then he got carried away, because that's who he is as a person. So here is Neal managing two coolers, one slightly smaller than the other. He has to set one down in order to knock on the door.

The coolers themselves contain tiny servings of about a dozen different dishes, from tiny seasoned steak slices of varying doneness to little onigiri stuffed with lightly salted salmon. If it's stupidly elaborate, feel free to assume there is some dressed-down (read: locally available) version available in miniature.

The other cooler has small bottles of cheap wine and those little paper cups that barely hold a mouthful. He sets the wines with the foods that pair best.

Look this is who he is as a person, okay? At least he's dressed normally--turquoise sweater, close-cut jeans.

[ SUPPLY ACTIVITIES AS YOU WISH, both with Neal and each other. ]


B1/A4/Passerby - FOLLOWING WEDNESDAY

Okay, so the tiny food was a bit much. Only God can judge him.

At least this time it's a plain old cook-out with a grill on the patio of A4. Yes, the grill items include salmon, chicken, and... tofu in several marinades including citrus-chipotle.

Only God can judge him.

There's also a spread of perfectly ordinary salad-shaped objects and tiny pickles et cetera inside on the kitchen counter.

[ SUPPLY ACTIVITIES AS YOU WISH, both with Neal and each other. ]

Comments

[abrightboy]

Malcolm has the audacity to look Jeff right in the face, shift his weight uncomfortably, turn a little pink and say “like what?”

[cacophonish]

"Liiiiike..." He shoots Neal a Look: lingering and doe eyed and definitely exaggerated for maximum Lovesick Puppy effect.

[abrightboy]

“I did not,” Malcolm says unconvincingly. “Stop it before he sees you,” he adds in an urgent whisper.

[cacophonish]

He snickers, covering his mouth with a hand to at least try to muffle the laugh, and then bumps Malcolm's shoulder with his. "Relax, man. If he sees it, he'll just think I want to fuck him, not you."

See, he's just jumping on that social grenade for you, buddy. You're welcome.

[abrightboy]

Malcolm looks almost mortified. “It’s not…” he starts sharply, then deflates and looks at the food on the table, pushing a paper wine cup around with his finger. “About that,” he finishes quietly.

[cacophonish]

"Oh." The way Malcolm deflates makes Jeff feel a teeny, tiny twinge of guilt for teasing him. It's just such an easy dynamic to fall into, okay? Makes him feel like he's with his brothers again. Buuuut...

Malcolm's not his brother. Maybe it's not Jeff's duty to fuck with him.

"Sorry, dude, I didn't mean to um, to make things... awkward."

[abrightboy]

Malcolm looks at him and shakes his head. It’s not Jeff’s fault.

“I make things awkward all by myself,” he assures, spreading his arms to encompass… his whole everything. “I… asked him out,” he confesses in a low voice. “He turned me down.”

[cacophonish]

Jeff frowns in sympathy. "Fuck, I'm sorry." He glances at Neal again, then Malcolm, and does his best to salvage things with:

"Well. Fuck him, you're a catch."

[abrightboy]

Malcolm looks at him and then huffs a self-deprecating laugh. “That’s… really nice of you. I’m… not at all, but… that was kind of you to say,” he admits, pushing the wine cup around with his finger some more. He looks over at him, remembering his entrance as he spots the DVD in his hands. “Were you looking for Tim?”

[cacophonish]

"Dude, you're like, hot, and you dress well, and you're super smart, and really nice." He pokes Malcolm. "So fuck off with that, you're a catch."

Then, as for why he's here? Jeff glances around a little, then nods. "Oh, uh. Yeah. I thought-- you know, I didn't know if he was around for a movie or what."

[abrightboy]

At the compliments, Malcolm laughs again and looks down at the floor this time, then back up at Jeff.

“He said he can’t deal with dating right now, but sometimes that’s true and sometimes it’s something people say so they don’t hurt your feelings.”

He looks towards Tim’s door. “He’s home. He’s not really at the party. Maybe he does want to watch a movie.”

[cacophonish]

"Yeah..." Jeff can't really criticize that, since it's certainly an excuse he's wheeled out more than once. As far as he figures, he's not dating material, anyway, so it's not a lie, but...

He gets how it can suck, being on the receiving end of the excuse.

"Well, he seems to like hanging around you, I mean. He brought all that over?" Jeff jerks a thumb at the mini food-and-wine pairings.

And, look, he's going to try not to look hopeful at the prospect of a movie. He just glances in the direction of Tim's door. "He didn't want to be here?"

Maybe he should go, give the guy some alone time.

[abrightboy]

Malcolm looks at the food, then at Neal and then quickly shifts his gaze to the floor between him and Jeff.

“He… says he does. Like it. Being friends with me.”

He looks at Jeff as he asks about Tim’s closed door.

“He’s not a big fan of big gatherings.”

[cacophonish]

"Probably wouldn't go through all that effort if he's just all talk and nothing else," he remarks.

As for Tim... Jeff lifts his brows and he only has one question:

"This is a big gathering?"

[abrightboy]

“I know. It is a lot of effort. Nobody goes through effort for… for me. I don’t. Know what to make of it.”

He shifts awkwardly and looks towards Tim’s door again.

“Sometimes he doesn’t like it when me and Meredith are both in the living room,” he explains.

[cacophonish]

Man.

Malcolm's self esteem might be even worse than Jeff's. He kind of wishes he knew something deep and meaningful and helpful to say, but that's probably better left to someone smarter than him. Maybe Meredith. He should let her know (totally subtly) that Malcolm could use a pep talk.

"I think, when you don't know what to make of it, you should do what I do: roll with it." He taps his temple. "Don't think about it."

Thinking sucks.

But speaking of thinking, here's Jeff second-guessing himself, casting a nervous look at Tim's door.

"Oh, uh. I should-- should I go? I mean, if this is a lot, I-- I don't wanna crowd him."

[abrightboy]

“We did… hang out earlier. It was good; it went well,” he replies. At the question, he looks at Tim’s door, then at Jeff. “Don’t go without saying hello. Let him have a choice.”