(( LOG : hymne à l'amour ))

[downplaying]

[Characters:] Vincent & Claude
[Date:] 04.03.2009
[Summary:] Neither of them is particularly objective in their judgement of the other.
__________

[Lunch break.

It's been a long couple of hours to get through, what with the course participants consisting mainly of women under the age of 30, but Claude's group has worked surprisingly efficiently, getting a head start on the subject of objectivity in the press - under much discussion. He has left the three girls to their free time gossiping now, retreating to his seat further back in the room. To his vacuum jug of coffee and his daily edition of Le Monde.

Luc, the other Luxembourg Daily journalist present, will just have to seek him out if he needs him.]

Comments

[downplaying]

[He doesn't need to respond to that, he can sense - as Vincent's fingers brush over his hand. As far as flirting goes, it's subtle, but considering where they are, that's probably for the best. Although Claude is as out at his workplace as you can get in a conservative country like Luxembourg, there's no need to mix the two things up. So instead of saying anything in response, he just pours Vincent a cup of coffee. Casually.]

Where are you from? I'm sorry to say that your French betrays you.

[justcrywolf]

[The coffee is poured, the conversation moved along. Great. No punches to the face - generally a good sign. Though to be fair, the man might very well just be exceedingly polite. Vincent's met a lot of gay and bisexual men over the past two decades, however, and in this case, he's not all that doubtful.]

Lierneux. [He draws back, sipping his coffee.] I like to think of Europe as my place of birth, though. Sounds less constrictive.

[downplaying]

Then I won't bother asking where Lierneux is, because frankly - I have no idea.

[With a smile, he sips his coffee, looking at Vincent over the rim of his mug. It's a beautiful thought, almost poetic in its nature. It wasn't something he'd have expected of the other man, but he likes the element of surprise. It grants him promises of more along the same vein.

Of course he won't set himself up for disappointments by assuming anything yet, but their chemistry is good and what he does have in his pocket is a visiting card. With his phone number on it.]

[justcrywolf]

[This makes him laugh, the cup of coffee shaking slightly in his hand.]

No, who the fuck does?

[He doesn't actually have anything against his town of birth, nor his background all in all. Belgium is a great country to grow up in, for a man with Vincent's particular inclinations. He takes another sip.]

And you. France, naturally, but where?

[downplaying]

Paris. I grew up near the Luxembourg Gardens. I always found it ironic that I'd end up in Luxembourg, later.

[He shrugs. Indicating that the irony doesn't overly matter to him - he's not complaining. The coffee is growing lukewarm fast and he drinks it in large gulps now. A part of his brain is heavily fixated on the idea of fucking Vincent up a wall in the nearest bathroom, but the majority of his braincells are behaving. Small blessings.]

[justcrywolf]

[He shrugs. It's not a very interesting co-incidence, after all, and the other man doesn't seem very intent on pretending otherwise. Swallowing down the last of his coffee, he reaches back and puts the cup on his own table before favouring Claude with another smile slash smirk.]

If I keep this for the next hour, can I expect a refill?

[downplaying]

Darling, keep the cup until we can have some proper coffee at Bonn Café.

[Claude fills up his own cup again, meeting Vincent's eyes and managing to tamper down a smile somewhat. Reducing it to a quiver near the corner of his mouth. There is no real doubt left in his mind and the signs are telltale enough by themselves that he is willing to be daring. There's no one in their immediate vicinity anyway, to hear. It'll be their own dirty little secret.]

[justcrywolf]

Well, in that case...

[He loves a man who'll get bold when it counts. That's usually a good quality in other areas of life, too. Reaching for his wallet, Vincent grabs one of his visiting cards, the design somewhat boring and tasteless. As expected from his current employer, to be frank, but the contact details can't be faulted for a bad set-up.]

Give me a call and we'll see if you get it back.

[downplaying]

[He glances down at the visiting card as he takes it, eyes scanning the name, phone number, email. With a small smile, he pockets it, finding his own and holding it out for Vincent to take. An equal exchange. It wouldn't take much to convince him that their minds are in the same place, either. Sharing a common idea.]

Sure.

[justcrywolf]

[Their lecturer comes in at that exact moment, groups of chattering girls following along from taking their breaks outside the room. But he takes a bit longer than necessary anyway to accept the card and place it in his wallet. Getting a feel for it, so to speak, because in a moment, as soon as he moves on, things will progress to first stage - the usual sense of free fall. He likes that. It's how all relations start (and usually how they end, too).

With a quiet nod - intentionally mirroring his initial greeting - he turns away and returns his focus (at least partially) to the topic at hand.]