Something to say (Faolan/Edge)

[NightshadeVII]

The soft morning sunlight fell through the window, and the smell of freshly made coffee still hung in the air, a gentle reminder of a quiet morning, filled with soft, sleepy greetings and plenty of time to spend.
The living room that Edge and Faolan found themselves in was cozy and had personality. A pile of books where arranged almost artfully on the coffee table, their backs worn from use, beside them lay a notebook in which Edge wrote songs and ideas down and pen, both seemed a little beat up, from having been transported so many places, but neither were about to fall apart. A couple of movies from the previous night could also be found on the table. The ever so recognizable, beat up and tattered guitar case that has been with Edge since before his arrival in Wathais rested against a bookshelf. There was a sense of peace to this place, an calming aura, that was only strengthened by the smell off fresh morning air, coffee and some third, pleasant smell that seemed to just belong to Edge’s apartment.

It was the weekend, so neither Faolan or Edge had any work to do. It was nice to have the blonde sleeping over like this, a new experience for sure, but not something he had any objections about getting used to.
For now, Edge was sitting on the couch, relaxed as ever, with Faolan lying down, resting his head in the punk’s lap. They had talked every now and again, pleasant, short conversations, but for now they were both quiet, just enjoying the other’s company, content with the silence. The Darai had been toying with Faolan’s hair, running his hands through the other’s soft, blonde locks, smiling down at him, whenever their eyes met.

They had been dating for just about two weeks now, two wonderful weeks that, to Edge, almost felt more like a dream than anything else. While he had slowly gotten used to the fact that he and Faolan were dating, it still filled him with such a warmth to think of it, it brought a smile to his lips, almost no matter the situation.

Still, despite all that, there was something that gnawed at Edge, something he hadn’t told Faolan yet. He still hadn’t told him that he wasn’t human, and he hated that. Faolan deserved to know what Edge really was and what he was getting into, so he had a chance to decide if he even wanted it. Yet, the Darai had struggled with finding the right time and place for it. At times, they had been interrupted, by either of their jobs, by friends or other random things that required their attention and subsequently took Edge’s mind of what he wanted to say for a few moments. Other times, he just didn’t know how to say it. Coming off as too casual would almost be weird, suddenly just revealing himself would make everything more overwhelming than it needed to be and being too serious might just be overkill. Sometimes, his inner fear had overwhelmed him, and he had swallowed his words yet again, so the guilt continued to gnaw at him relentlessly.
But no matter what, it needed to be said and it couldn’t really be postponed any longer. Faolan deserved to know the truth about Edge, and he felt bad that he hadn’t told Faolan until now. He didn’t really have a reason to not tell the blonde. After all, Faolan did work with other supernaturals and seemed very accepting of them, but Edge was still nervous. It was one thing working with non-humans, but another all together to date them.

A thoughtful look crossed his features now, brows furrowing slightly, as he wondered if Faolan had already figured out that he wasn’t human. After all, Edge knew that there were situations where he had slipped up and purred when he shouldn’t, showed hints of markings, just as Faolan turned towards him. He had tried to brush it off every time, flustered and caught off guard. But he didn’t want to do that anymore, he didn’t want to hide behind panicked lies. Faolan deserved better than that.
Absentmindedly, he had begun toying with one of his snake-bite piercings.

“Hey Faolan...”, He finally began, looking down at the blonde, trying to sound relaxed, but the next words he spoke came out clumsily, “can I tell you something? I’ve been meaning to for a while now...”

[qhostqrowls]

Faolan shifted drowsily as Edge spoke, his golden eyes glowing in the soft morning light. He looked up at his boyfriend, his head still resting comfortably in his lap, and smiled, reaching up to run a hand through his black and white hair. It was not often he slept in like this, but he'd taken the weekend off to spend some quality time with Edge. He was still getting used to it all, but so far...he had loved every moment of it. Edge was patient, and gentle, and funny, and he felt like he could tell him anything in the world.

"Mmm?" he queried, looking very comfortable, but much more awake than he had been a few seconds ago. There was an edge to Edge's voice, something anxious and hesitant. He worried too much - they both did, but it still sounded important. "What is it?" his hand fell from Edge's hair, only to reach for his hand to intertwine their fingers, his thumb stroking gently over the back of his knuckles.

[NightshadeVII]

For a moment, the worry disappeared from Edge’s eyes, as Faolan looked up at him with those beautiful golden eyes. The Darai’s eyes softened as well, luminous and kind as always.
When Faolan reached up to run a hand through Edge’s hair, the Darai closed his eyes, enjoying his boyfriend’s gentle touch. Edge had always enjoyed physical contact with people he cared about. Simple hugging or touches were important to him, but now that it was Faolan, his boyfriend doing this, it somehow became even more special, more important. A content purr was already building in his throat, and he had to consciously stop it from spilling out. This reminded him once again of everything he stopped himself from doing. Still there were so many things he wanted to show Faolan, or surprise him with, but couldn’t yet. He wanted to be the best partner he could, and he hadn’t done that yet. When it came down to it he was excited to be able to show everything, to be able to show his affection in the way he knew best.
Fondness in his eyes, he smiled down at his boyfriend, leaning into his touch.
Boyfriend... it still felt weird to call Faolan that. In a good way of course, it filled his chest with a warmth, as he remembered that he was wanted by someone else.
He just hoped that what he was about to stay wouldn’t ruin that.

“Well, I’ve been meaning to tell you this for a while, I just couldn’t find the right time...” he said, still thoughtful, but hopeful, glad that Faolan didn’t sound alarmed yet, his voice still soft. He trusted Faolan, but was also prepared for the blonde to be shocked. It would be much weirder if he wasn’t, after all, he had known Edge as a human for three years at this point. By Eda, he hated that he had waited this long.
“I should have told you ages ago, really, and I feel awful for not doing so.”
He gave Faolan’s hand a soft squeeze, carefully lifting their entwined hands to place a soft kiss on the back of Faolan’s hand.

“I... I’m sorry in advance if this is too much for you”, he continued, looking genuinely apologetic “just... promise me that you’ll keep an open mind? I know that you always do, but still...”
He smiled nervously, but softly.

[qhostqrowls]

Faolan's easy smile shifted into one of faint worry, the more Edge spoke. The anxiety in the musicians voice was not lost on him, and when Edge next quieted, he carefully sat up, still keeping ahold on his hand. All traces of previous sleepiness were gone, and he focused carefully on Edge, what he was saying, how he was holding himself.

"Hey, it's okay." He assured, softly spoken as ever. His thumb continued to trace soothingly over his knuckles. "You can tell me anything. I promise you that I'll keep an open mind." An encouraging smile, and an encouraging squeeze of his hand accompanied the words. "And it's probably not as bad as you think it is, yeah?"

He didn't like seeing Edge this agitated, even if he was very curious as to what the big reveal was. Whatever it was, it couldn't be serious enough to ruin anything between them. Still, a handful of poisonous, irrational thoughts slipped into his head - he's found someone else, this isn't working-

He blocked them out, in favour of comforting Edge in the moment. The doctor seemed completely relaxed, his inner turmoil hidden, as he settled back into the couch next to his boyfriend, his scent and the smell of coffee - proper caffeinated coffee - wafting around him.

[NightshadeVII]

Edge quickly noticed how Faolan’s expression morphed into one of worry, however faint, it was there none the less, as a slight furrowing of he brow and a twitch by the corners of the mouth. Why was he always so bad at starting conversations?, Edge asked himself. This had happened when he told Faolan about his feelings as well, he wound up wording himself in a way, and hesitating enough, so that Faolan got worried, expecting the worst. Though in this situation, there might be more reason to worry?

As Faolan sat up, the punk couldn’t help but appreciate that he was still holding his hand, still tracing soothing patterns across his knuckles. The blonde’s gentle patience did help calm him, somewhat, it reminded him that Faolan was someone he could talk with about anything, and one he had talked with about a variety of different subjects, some heavy, some not. Faolan’s words, his voice, was comforting and Edge returned the smile, still nervous, but obviously grateful.
“I hope it isn’t as bad...” he said quietly, some part of him not wanting to hope, another wanting nothing more.

He took a moment, trying to piece together sentences, trying to find the best way to stay it, but it felt as if the words were getting stuck in his throat because he had waited so long. But he wouldn’t continue keeping Faolan in the dark like this, he had already done so long enough, ruled by his fear of loosing someone he cared about. Edge knew that if their relationship was to be healthy and hopefully last, it couldn’t be built on hidden truths. Faolan deserved to know, so he could decide if he still wanted this
A new sense of determination made its presence known, and Edge took a deep breath.

“By Eda, I shouldn’t have waited this long to tell you...”, he muttered under his breath, berating himself. He really hadn’t made this situation easy.
Carefully he shifted in the couch, turning to he sat cross-legged, facing Faolan. For now, the blonde seemed relaxed, but Edge wasn’t sure whether or not Faolan was suppressing his own worries, hoping to make the punk less nervous. It worked partially at least. The Darai’s heart was still beating heavily in his chest, but he trusted Faolan, trusted that he meant what he said. Taking a deep breath, to calm himself, Edge figured he’d try to keep it as simple as possible. Carefully, he met Faolan’s eyes, his gratefulness of Faolan’s patience and kindness was obvious in the way his eyes seemed almost luminous.
Here goes, he thought to himself, knowing that he was as ready as he’d ever be.

“Im sorry I didn’t tell you this earlier Faolan, I really am, but here goes. I’m... not human.” He finally admitted, the shame of keeping it all hidden for so long evident on his face, “I’m something called a Darai. And yeah, that... isn’t human.”
He stumbled over his words, phrasing himself more clumsily than he had expected, not knowing if he had been too blunt and forward. Eyes rested nervously on Faolan, looking for signs of fear or distress. As always, he was ready to be rejected, cast aside. Right in this moment Edge didn’t know what to do with himself, all at once, his body was filled with an energy urging him to do something, but at the same time, he barely dared to breathe.

“I’m so, so sorry, Faolan” the words stumbled out of his mouth before he could even stop them, a flood of shame and self-blame, “I should’ve told you ages ago, and I don’t know why I didn’t, I was just... scared. Scared that you wouldn’t want anything to do with me, among other things...”

[qhostqrowls]

Faolan sat patiently, holding back more words of encouragement. Interrupting never helped at moments like this, even if he meant well by it. He sat quietly, holding tight to his hand, smiling faintly when Edge glanced his way.

"I'm...not human."

The mood in the room changed in an instant. Faolan's hand became very still within Edge's. His heartbeat fluttered, stammered, seemed to skip a beat. There was a very, very long period of silence, where Faolan looked at him with a shuttered, stricken expression, shock shifting to confusion, to fear, and finally, to a dangerously neutral mask. He'd frozen up completely.

"You're not human." He repeated, forcing the words out, stiff, in his clumsy effort to steady the tremor. He pulled his hand out of Edge's, the movement sharper then he meant it to be. "A Darai." 

The name felt foreign in his mouth. Foreign and unfamiliar and he didn't know what that was, didn't know what one could do, what they looked like. His lack of knowledge frightened him, and a wave of panic threatened to engulf him. Drown him under its smothering, oppressive weight. He could already feel it shorten his breath, quicken his heart rate.

He'd never been scared of Edge. Edge had always been kind and gentle and patient, never raised his voice or his hands against him. But this was exactly how it had started last time. Warren had been kind and gentle and patient as well, at the start. It had seemed fine, then, too. It had started like this, and then, after the reveal it had curdled and soured into something twisted. It's the same, a poisonous voice whispered. It's exactly the same. He's exactly the same. This is why you shouldn't have done this.

"Why," he said, in the same dangerously calm, choked tone, "Why would you not tell me that, Edge? You know -" and here his voice shook, but it was impossible to tell which emotion weighed more heavily on it -  fear or anger. "You know where I work. Why - why would you hide this? Is it something about your species? I don't even know what a Darai is."  

He had not yet raised his voice, soft spoken as always, but he stared hard at him, demanding an answer. Searching for something, anything, that would still his shaking hands and the crushing fear. 

A part of him felt awful for reacting like this. He could see the hurt on Edge's face, and wished he could just have leaned in and hugged him, had accepted the reveal calmly and 'with an open mind' as he had promised. But the guilt, the regret, it was a faint whisper in the back of his mind. Right now, he was just scared, and angry, and confused.

[NightshadeVII]

As silence fell over the apartment, like a choking, stifling layer of plaster, Edge’s insecurity morphed into shame, a crushing, suffocating shame that threatened to overwhelm him. And his shame was obvious in the way his shoulders fell and he averted his eyes, bowing his head. He seemed so weirdly fragile, strangely small and delicate, compared to how he usually smiled and laughed and seemed so content. But in a way, this fragile, ashamed version of Edge was just as true as the smiling, content Edge, it was just a version he had practiced overcoming. Though that practice did little for him now.
Looking Faolan in the eyes felt almost impossible to him now, because he knew what he would see, hurt and shock, fear and confusion, emotions he had hoped never to instill in Faolan. When he felt Faolan’s hand go stiff between his own, he wanted most of all to give it a reassuring squeeze, to kiss it and apologize to Faolan, but the moment he saw the fear in Faolan’s eyes, it felt like his resolve shattered. His grip loosened on the blonde’s hand and his eyes fell again, brows furrowing. There was no doubt about it now.
He had fucked up. He had fucked up big time.

Without saying a word, he listened to Faolan speak, to his questions, the blonde’s voice stiff, and strangely calm, which Edge attributed to a mix of fear, hurt and possibly anger.
His heart was pounding in his chest, so heavily it hurt, so loudly that it thundered in his ears, deafening. It was hard to breathe, his throat was tight and twisted and it felt like he was choking, like a glass ball had been lodged in his throat and refused to budge.
Where should he start? And how could he even explain himself? Edge wasn’t even sure that he really knew why he hadn’t told Faolan about his true nature. It wasn’t like his kind preyed on or terrorized humans in any way, not only was that completely against darai culture and values, it also couldn’t be further from Edge’s nature. So why had he been so scared? Why had he waited so long?

“I don’t... I don’t know why I didn’t tell you, Faolan,” he finally said, his voice low and quiet, “I should’ve told you and I... I hate that I’ve been such a coward.”
Then he paused, considering what to say next. By Eda, what was he gonna do now? Under his breath, he cursed at himself in his native tongue for being such an idiot and such a coward. Edge knew that this was probably giving Faolan all the wrong ideas, when in reality, it had nothing to do with him, it was just a stupid, thoughtless mistake that had been allowed to grow.
“This doesn’t have anything to do with not trusting you. I trust you Faolan, I really do...”, the Darai continued. Then he took a deep breath and lifted his gaze to meet the blonde’s eyes.
“And I know I should have told you. I should have told you from day one, but I didn’t, and I don’t even know why. I was just thoughtless and stupid.”

Now that he had finally looked up again, the shame was so, so evident in his sad eyes as he spoke. It was obvious that he regretted it had come to this, and that he was scrambling to make amends.
“And I didn’t want to scare you. I didn’t want to be seen as some kind of monster or freak of nature by someone I care about so much.”
A soft sigh pushed past Edge’s lips, and for a moment, he thought that it might just be better, for both of them, if he got up and left right now. But he couldn’t. His legs were heavy and somewhat wobbly, but more importantly, he couldn’t bring himself to walk out on Faolan like this, leaving him scared and hurt and confused. Edge didn’t want this to go unresolved, and he did know Faolan, knew what kind of person he was. He didn’t react like this without reason.
Then Edge took a deep, steadying breath, and held on to his conviction, his willingness to get this sorted out in the best possible way, no matter what the outcome of that was.
“I should’ve told you before we even started dating. You deserved an honest chance to figure out whether or not you wanted me...”, then, on after thought, he added: “I’ll tell you anything you want to know about what I am, I promise, anything.”

“I know that this... this changes pretty much everything for you, and I’m so so sorry... but I’m still me. I won’t... change or treat you differently or anything because of this.”
More than anything he wanted to reach out now, to hold Faolan’s hand, as if he hoped it would prove that he was honest, that he meant what he said. To Edge, and any Darai for that matter, touch could say just as much as words, if not even more at times, that was part of the reason why he loved Faolan’s fleeting touches, and the ones he gave in return, like a hand brushing over the blonde’s own. It could say more than a thousand words, but right now, Faolan might not see experience it that way. Edge hand twitched, wanting to move and hold Faolan’s, but he stopped himself, laid chains on his impulses out of fear that it would make it all worse than it already was.
“I won’t hurt you, Faolan, I promise. Though I think I already did, in another way...”

[qhostqrowls]

Edge looked very broken and small as he sat there, shoulders hunched, clearly ashamed, embarrassed, regretful. Normally, Faolan would have comforted him, sat down, talked through it calmly. But this wasn't a normal situation. None of it was normal! He was scared, and angry, and the last thing the blond wanted to do was comfort him, or even be near him. It was the complete opposite to what he usually felt for Edge.

"I should’ve told you before we even started dating." 

"Yes, you should have!" He exclaimed, suddenly standing up from the couch, creating more distance between them. "You should have! I don't understand why you wouldn't! If I worked anywhere else, I might understand, because I know -" a deep breath, as he tried to steady his voice, which was rising in pitch and sounding more hysterical by the second. "I know you're scared, I can't ...imagine what it's like to tell someone this, but -" he threw up his hands, eyes shimmering with the beginning of tears. 

The hot, telltale prickle only served to infuriate him further. He didn't want to cry, not now, not in front of Edge. "- but I can't trust you now. Do you realise that? I don't know what else you're lying about, Edge! Is there anything else?"

For the first time ever, he was yelling at Edge. The soft spoken surgeon rarely rose his voice at anyone, let alone his boyfriend. The other was being so calm and rational - everything he said made sense. Faolan knew Edge wouldn't ever hurt him, knew he really had been scared to tell him. But he'd lied, he'd lied for so long. He felt stupid and embarassed and like the other had taken advantage of his ignorance.

But still, anger wasn't the most prominent emotion in his voice. It was fear. The revelation has opened old wounds and Faolan, for all his yelling, looked very fragile and very frightened as he stood in front of the Darai.

[NightshadeVII]

He had been waiting, almost breathless, counting every agonizing second before it all came crashing down. But when everything finally did shatter, he was surprised, almost overwhelmed by the polar shift.
Faolan was yelling now. He was angry, he was scared, he was hurt, tears were welling up in his eyes as he wondered how much he had been lied to. Pushing away from the couch near instantly, the blonde put distance between them, perhaps scared of what Edge might do to him, or what he was cabable of doing
Before he could even think, Edge followed suit, almost jumping to his feet, eyes wide with worry, heart pounding in his chest. His hand twitched to reach out for Faolan, to take his hand again or otherwise calm him, but he didn’t. Instead he pushed down the impulse, not wanting to push Faolan any further than he had already done. What was he supposed to do? What could he even do?

“I can’t trust you now!”
The words seemed impossibly loud and felt like a punch in the gut. The tears were becoming more prominent in Faolan’s eyes and Edge strangled a gasp. Of course Faolan couldn’t trust him, the Darai didn’t know what he had been expecting after revealing that he had kept the truth hidden for over three years.
Words stuck in his throat and he could barely bring himself to form a coherent sentence.

“I do... I do realize that... I’m so sorry, Faolan, I never meant to do this to you” Edge said, just as quiet as before, “I don’t... expect you to trust me... and I’d understand if you don’t want anything to do with me after this. I’m sorry I did this to you. I shouldn’t have, but I... I guess I’m a coward...”
The feelings of fucking up and of being broken, which he constantly struggled with, resurfaced, whispering poisonous lies from the back of the Darai’s mind. Of course a broken creature such as himself could do nothing but break the bonds he had with others, one way or another. Of course he ended up hurting Faolan. All because he just... hadn’t been good enough.
He was a fool to have believed that he actually deserved to be with Faolan, and had just proven to himself that he shouldn’t be.

Anything else? The question echoed as Edge considered what to do. Because there as more to say- by Eda, he wasn’t even from this world, he didn’t even know if he was from this universe- and he wanted to tell Faolan the truth, he didn’t want to lie, or hide anymore. But at the same time, he was worried that saying that would only push Faolan away completely, scare him even more than he already was. He was scared that it would break something that couldn’t be fixed again, if that hadn’t been broken already.
He didn’t want that. It was selfish of him, just like his hiding had been but he... he wasn’t ready to loose Faolan like this, not because of some stupid, cowardly mistake he had made.

As the silence became crushing, Edge looked back up at Faolan, purple eyes soft, gentle and regretful. He could see how fragile Faolan looked, how much the entire situation frightened him, but the longer he observed the other, the more he realized that perhaps this was deeper than he thought it was. While the reactions were understandable, they seemed to not be fully directed at Edge. The fear in Faolan’s eyes was a new one, and it seemed like an older fear was hiding behind it.
As he took this in, Edge was almost convinced that there was something else lying beneath this. Faolan was a kind and understanding person, who never raised his voice, much less yelled, and he wouldn’t react in such a manner unless there was a very good reason. Which there had to be, he looked absolutely terrified. It didn’t seem like any regular kind of fear either, no, this was something much deeper, something existential. It was as if this situation was similar to something dark that Faolan would rather forget, but now he saw it reaching out towards him, trying to pull him down again.
It hurt to see just how quickly his expression had gone from calm and content to so scared. And it hurt even more when Edge realized he reckonized that look in Faolan’s eyes, he recognized that deep, numbing, suffocating fear. Because he had felt it too. It was a fear from the past, memories Faolan would rather forget, hurt he’d rather not feel again, events he desperately wanted not to relive and a pain he never wanted to rediscover. Edge knew very well how horrible it all was and wished that he could take it away from Faolan.

While this dawning realization did take power away from the poisonous voice in the back of his mind, he still felt awful for triggering this, knowing what it was like.
Seeing Faolan so scared, so very frightened and fragile, overwhelmed by the betrayal, made the guilt stab deeper into Edge’s heart. He wanted nothing more than to hug the other or hold his hand, telling him that everything was okay, that he was safe and that Edge would never do anything to hurt him.

“I... no, I’m sorry... I’m so sorry, Faolan”, Edge ran a hand through his hair, not knowing what to say, knowing he could say nothing to make this better, “I can’t say anything to somehow make this okay, I know that. But I want you to know that I never did this to hurt you or scare you. I didn’t do it because I didn’t trust you and I didn’t do it in order to... twist our relationship to something else.”

[qhostqrowls]

Edge's words didn't seem to properly register anymore. The surgeons expression and body language had shuttered off - arms crossed over his chest, his gaze flat and distanced but still bright with tears. It seemed he had made up his mind about the situation. 


"I can't be here right now." He said finally, curtly, in an effort to curb his emotions. "I need - I need space, I need to think. About all of...this." His steely expression flickered and broke as he turned on his heel, the last word shaking badly. He would not let himself cry in front of Edge. His jacket was swept from where it hung by the door - and then he was gone, the door swinging quietly shut behind him. He left a tense silence in his wake, and the apartment felt empty and hollow, with Edge sitting small and alone on the couch.

[NightshadeVII]

Edge didn’t care that his words were falling on deaf ears, even if he didn’t doubt it. His heart and thoughts were racing, competing for the leading position. He wanted to eat his words, wishing that he had started the conversation differently, that he had done anything differently, so they wouldn’t have ended up in this situation.
And yet, words failed him, as Faolan turned on his heels and walking out of the apartment. Edge wanted desperately to say or do something, but he didn’t know what, and he didn’t even know what he wanted with it. All he could do was watch as Faolan grabbed his jacket and disappeared out of the door.

Once the door shut and Edge was left alone in that choking silence, he sunk to the ground, back against the couch, his hands running through his hair as he pressed his forehead against his knees. The apartment was so empty now, the echoes of the words that had been said dripping down the walls choking, suffocating. He couldn’t get the images of Faolan’s tearglazed eyes or his shaking hands out of his mind. He couldn’t forget the sound of his voice, how it quivered and shook with every word. He couldn’t escape the hurt, scared look in those golden eyes that he held so dear.
What did he do now? Was there even anything he could do?
Again, his hands ran through his hair, his brows furrowed in a pained expression. He didn’t even notice his own tail wrapping around him in an unconscious attempt to calm himself. This was a mess. Another fuck up. And he didn’t know what to do. There probably wasn’t anything he could do but wait and be useless.
“Fuck...”

[qhostqrowls]

The elevator was blessedly empty. As the silver doors slid shut, the first tears began to fall, and Faolan pressed the heel of his palms to his eyes to stop the flow. He hated this so much - that he cried so easily, that Edge wasn't human, who the entire situation reminded him of. He drew in a ragged, heaving breath, and then another, collecting himself before the doors opened again. 

When he stepped out into the lobby, he had a tenuous hold over his emotions. The tears had stopped, at least, but his expression was wretched and taunt for the effort. But now he didn't know where to go, or what to do. The street outside was fortunately void of foot traffic, but if he went back to his apartment, he knew he'd just work himself up into even more of a panic. 

He scrolled down to Sara's number almost unconsciously, finger hovering over the call button. He didn't want to bother her with this - but she'd know what to do and what to say, she always did. The redhead had become a good friend to him in recent months - he was sure she wouldn't mind a call, even this early on a weekend morning. 

He listened anxiously to the call dial as he pushed out and onto the street. 

"Hey, Sara." Came the wobbly voice, once she picked up. "I'm sorry I'm calling so early, but-" he let out a breath, picking up his pace. "-but could we please meet up? I need to talk, it's…it's about Edge," The wobble almost turned to proper tears, the frail veneer of calm he'd plastered on cracking further, even as he scrambled to reassure her. "It's fine if you - if you can't, though." 

[tsukikoko]

Sara's voice was a cheery "'ello luv!'", pleased and excited to hear Faolan's voice. She liked having coffee with him, going for drinks, chatting about their relationships to one another; though she'd always been friendly with the doctor, of late they'd become far closer, so an early morning call didn't put her off any.

But when the note of his voice came through the phone to her, Sara's demeanour changed instantly.

She'd been lounging half across a certain agent even as she'd answered the phone, but now she pushed herself to her feet and was throwing clothes on even as she responded.
"O'course we can 'ave a chat luv." She was nodding and blew a soft kiss in Aaron's direction, lest he think this was a WDSA-related emergency, as the vampire altercation in the park had been. "I'll be owt the door in two ticks, like, where are ya? I'll pick ya up, know a quiet place we can git coffee, alreet?"
Given Faolan's tone, something awful must have happened. Had he and Edge broken up? Faolan had seemed so happy with their relationship last she'd spoken to him, but there were any number of things that could have happened.

[qhostqrowls]

Faolan could have collapsed in relief at Sara's affirmation. He smoothed a trembling hand over his hair, nodding to himself as she spoke.

"Okay, okay, thank you so much," The words came out in a breathless rush, but the blond sounded considerably calmer - focusing on her voice, his breathing, where he was stepping. Anything but Edge. There was still a tremble to his voice, but just talking helped to take his mind off the situation. "I'll…meet you outside my apartment block?"

He'd be there by the time she arrived. Guilt soured in his stomach as he took note of the background sounds of the call - he'd woken her up, yet she hadn't hesitated for even a second. 

[tsukikoko]

Sara had leant in to give Aaron a quick kiss goodbye just before she responded to Faolan,
"Eee, nowt a problem luv, I'll be reet with ya."
After exchanged goodbyes, she hung up and near ran down the stairs, snatching up her car keys and enchanted wristband on her way to the front door. Her friend needed comfort and she had no intention of leaving him waiting any longer than she had to.

It was about half an hour or so before Sara's car pulled onto the correct street; on her drive down she had seen a few other people out and about, but Faolan's street was quiet - which was likely a blessing for the man while he was so upset. It also made the job of spotting him very easy. Her expression creased with concern at the sight of him; the hunch of his shoulders, the way his gaze remained firmly on the floor, cemented just how dejected and miserable her friend was feeling.

The shifter pulled up alongside and was out of the car even though she hadn't killed the engine, stepping towards Faolan and opening her arms out to him. Though she left him with the final decision of whether he accepted the hug or not, Sara murmured gently,
"Come 'ere luv."