Happy Birthday to Meeerrrrrreeeeeeeeee [Open Mingle]

[abrightboy]

Who: The residents of ADI Apt B1 and YOU.
When: January 18th, from early evening onward.
Where: Apartment B1 at the ADI complex.
Summary: Tim Drake discovered Meredith Idlewild's birthday is today (by snooping in her stuff) and her boys decided to throw her a little surprise celebration since she, you know, looks after them and shit. Ofc neither of them knows how to do that, really, so Malcolm has recruited Neal Caffrey as Party Planner.
Warnings: To be added as necessary but none to start.


Thanks to Neal's intervention, the party Malcolm and Tim are throwing for Meredith is very nice, with tasteful decorations and good wine, alongside fancy finger foods and even fancier cocktails. Neal mans the 'bar' personally, mixing drinks for anyone who'd like to try one.

Malcolm and Tim will try to be social. It's for Meredith.

They did use Tim's connections, too. He recruited Jeff to slip invites onto people's desks if they work at ADI and take some over to Bonnie's. Meredith deserves maximum appreciation. The invites instructed everyone not to say anything to Meredith. When she comes home, it's meant to surprise her.

Early evening: SURPRISE!
When Meredith gets home, get ready to shout!

Mid-evening
Mix, mingle, eat and drink.

Late-evening
Your hosts will arrange a cab if you can't make it home; they already have a police lieutenant sleeping on their couch and tonight has been a lot of peopling for them. If they need to carry you down there... they're more capable of it than their slight frames would suggest.

Comments

Mid-Evening

[bossyboiler]

Kate has approached the bar for a refill. It will be her second of the evening. She knows better than to just keep throwing them back because while that will make her fee good, she doesn't like dealing with the morning consequences.

She looks over at Malcolm and can't help but smile at him. His secret is out. Kate has been talking to Meredith. "You've been hanging around the bar a lot tonight."

[abrightboy]

He meets that remark with an almost guilty look, which he quickly shrugs off in lieu of one that too casual.

"Just trying to be a good host. Just about everyone comes up here at some point."

Where Neal is mixing drinks and Malcolm is largely watching or talking to him.

"I've had the chance to meet some new people. Meredith is definitely better at networking than I am."

[bossyboiler]

Malcolm, she knows. Kate glances over at Neal and then back to Malcolm. Her little smile remains. "Wouldn't it make more sense to greet people as they come in?" Can she make him squirm? She's going to try.

"She is," Kate doesn't disagree. "You should see her in administration." She gets her refill but doesn't sip it immediately. "It was very thoughtful of you to give her a surprise birthday party."

[abrightboy]

He isn’t sure that she knows. He was very obvious about his crush on Neal long before Neal displayed any interest in him.

Play it cool, Bright.

“I was taking coats at the door earlier, but now most people are just. Here. Mixing.” He makes a circular gesture with his hands. “This is the best place to mix.”

He shrugs at her compliment. “Tim found out it was her birthday and Neal did most of the work on the party. …But I recruited Neal, so I guess I was mostly… a facilitator. I think Tim had Jeff deliver the invites.” He was busy helping Neal at the time, so he didn’t notice exactly what happened there. They were in a rush and Neal is distracting.

[bossyboiler]

Malcolm can play it as cool as he likes. Meredith is the one that outed his crush to Kate. She knows and there is nothing he can do about it.

"I must've missed you at the door. In any case, it's good to see you acting more like yourself." And not trying to eat heavy foods and throwing up after is what she mainly means.

"Oh, you recruited Neal?" Kate asks and her tone is a little too innocent. "How did you know he'd do well at party planning?"

[abrightboy]

Malcolm shrugs and smiles down into his glass.

"We're friends."

[bossyboiler]

"Oh, you're friends." Yeah, sure Malcolm. You two are friends who want to bone. "Pink is a good color on you."

[abrightboy]

Malcolm glances down at his shirt, then looks at her in confusion.

“I’m not wearing pink…?”

[bossyboiler]

"You're blushing."

[abrightboy]

He presses his lips together and shrugs. “It’s just crowded in here. Should probably. Turn the heat down.”

[bossyboiler]

"You know, you can tell me that you like him like him unless you haven't told him yet in which case, I'm sure I could get Meredith's assistance and we could find a way to lock you two in a room together."

[abrightboy]

“We’re fine,” Malcolm tells her, waving that off then looking around like he might find someone else to talk to by sheer proximity. No dice. He drags his gaze back to Kate. “I just don’t know how… public we are.”

Some part of his brain reminds him that Neal kissed him in a coffee shop and the rest of his brain ignores it because better safe than sorry.

[bossyboiler]

Kate is happy that he finally admitted it. "I was wondering how long you'd keep avoiding the subject." She shrugs her shoulders and then follows the direction Malcolm looks in. Sorry, bud. There is only Kate to speak to at the moment.

"That's fair. Meredith outed you, just f.y.i. so I think it's only a matter of time before everyone knows."

[abrightboy]

"Meredith doesn't gossip," Malcolm tells her. "She must feel pretty close to you."

He glances at Neal, mixing someone's drink at the other end of the bar, then glances at Kate, then glances down into the drink he's not really drinking.

"I'm just being careful."

[conning]

Neal, for his part, has finished making the most recently requested set of drinks and has temporarily excused himself. He spotted Malcolm hanging around about five minutes ago and has been impatient for a chance to talk to him ever since.

He doesn't bother to do it from across the counter. He joins Kate and Malcolm and--no hesitation, no reluctance--slips an arm around Malcolm's waist and gives him an unapologetic kiss. He smiles at Kate, recognizing her.

"Hey. Good to see you." He means that, too. He's been saying it to almost everyone he recognizes, lately, after Thackery's disappearance and learning that Ren and several others have vanished as well.

[bossyboiler]

"She merely pointed you two out. I filled in the blanks." They aren't close but they do work in the same department. Or maybe it's just the good news of two people who like each other finally getting together. They are short on good news.

"I can understand that considering how often we're subjected to awful situations. But that's also a good reason to move fast. We don't know what's going to happen next." For all that they know, a plague of polar bears could be right around the corner.

"Hi Neal." Kate just smiles at the two of them. There they were, Malcolm wanting to play it safe and Neal not. "Having a good time?"

[abrightboy]

Malcolm's caution is all in Malcolm's head. He's concerned about making the wrong move and ruining everything. But every time Neal is happy to see him, a piece of that chips away. The kiss leaves him with a visibly dopey happiness on his face and leave most of his attention on Neal, despite the conversation continuing.

[conning]

"I am, actually," Neal says, the incautious choice of words giving away his surprise even if his tone doesn't. "Pulling it together was fun, and anything we can celebrate here is worth celebrating. Plus, Mere deserves it."

He smiles in the named birthday girl's direction, then smiles down at Malcolm. "Malcolm and Tim are the ones who found out it was today."

[bossyboiler]

Kate continues to smile at the two of them. "I'm glad to hear that. You've put together quite the party." It's a nice party for a nice person. Everyone seems to be having a good time.

She looks at Malcolm and his dopey expression and then turns her head back to Neal. "How sneaky of them. I'm sure Meredith appreciates the thought behind it."

And because she wants to make Malcolm squirm a little she adds, "You two make a cute couple."

[abrightboy]

Malcolm looks at her.

"Tim did the sneaking," is all he says, though he shifts fractionally closer to Neal.

[bossyboiler]

"Did he? He seems an unusual person. The first time I met him he demanded that we spar." She makes a face because who does that with someone they didn't even know? It had almost been unreal (but it's not the first time she encountered Tim. She just doesn't know it.) "Who does that?"

[conning]

"You did some of the sneaking," Neal says, giving Malcolm a tiny nudge with his hip. "You recruited me."

When Kate asks her question, he makes a softly ironic noise. "You'd be surprised at the number, I think."

[abrightboy]

Okay, he did do that part.

Malcolm breathes out a laugh at Kate's question and Neal's answer.

"He just wants everyone to be safe," he assures her. "It's his way of trying to make sure people are safe."

[bossyboiler]

"Maybe I would, Neal. Is that how you introduce yourself to people when you don't feel like flashing that charismatic smile of yours?" She looks back to Malcolm. "You have to admit, it's a weird way to go about it."

[conning]

Neal offers up said charismatic grin. “Maybe it’s more a commentary on the kind of people I knew, in a past life.”

He gives Malcolm’s temple a little kiss. “Tim’s a teenage boy from another dimension. I’m pretty sure that gets him something of a pass on weirdness.”