Illyana and Vance, Late Afternoon
Nov. 16th, 2014 04:52 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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om_mainAfter her afternoon with Becky, Illyana comes to give Vance a piece of her mind.
llyana waved goodbye to Becky in the hallway outside her room, then made a show of searching for her keys until the other girl had slipped inside her own. Once Becky was gone, however, the smile she'd been wearing disappeared and her shoulders slumped.
A pretty good horror movie and some really awesome popcorn might have gotten Becky to stop talking about it, but hadn't made her forget what Becky'd said about Vance and Vic. Who'd been hugging. In the rec room, and long enough (apparently) for even Becky to become uncomfortable with it. Moreover, if Becky was to be believed, Vance had initiated it. The question was, could she believe Becky?
She made a face as she started walking back the way she'd just come from. It wasn't that she thought Becky would lie to her. In fact, she was almost positive she wouldn't. On the other hand, Becky sometimes interpreted things in ways that didn't match up with reality. And so...
And so there was no way she was going to find out, unless she asked Vance. Sighing, she closed her eyes and pictured the hallway outside Harry's room. It probably would've been easier just to 'port inside, but for once, she really kind of wanted to knock first. Just in case Becky was right.
Vance started a little, from where he'd been taking a nap - he still hadn't gotten the hang of free time. He stood up, brushed off his basketball shorts and t-shirt (because maybe that would look less messy?), and went to the door. When he spotted Illyana, he grinned. "Hey."
"Hey," she countered, smiling a little despite herself, especially since Vic wasn't immediately in evidence and Vance didn't seem to be hiding anything. "You busy?"
"Nope." He took a step back, and opened the door further. "Come on in."
"Thanks." She walked inside and looked around, feeling awkward. "So...all settled in?" she asked, avoiding his eyes and hoping he'd shut the door behind him, because she really didn't want anyone wandering in. Or past. More than likely, Becky'd already forgotten her promise to keep things quiet. There were going to be enough rumors floating around without adding to them.
"Something like that," Vance said, nodding as he closed the door behind her. "I mean, you know, I don't have all that much stuff, so it's mostly just....setting things places."
Illyana nodded, then said casually, "So, I hear you met Becky, huh?"
"Yeah, she seemed....nice." And kind of weird. But she'd said she was Illyana's friend, and she'd also seemed to mean well? Mostly, anyway. Maybe Vance just was misunderstanding her somehow. If he was, he definitely didn't want to say anything bad about her to anyone else.
"She's insane," Illyana supplied, grinning a little at Vance's attempt to sugar coat it. "But she's pretty cool." She wandered a little further into the room, still not turning towards him. "She thinks you're cute - you might want to watch out for that. She writes RPF."
Vance blinked with confusion as he sat down on his bed. "RPF?"
"Real Person Fanfic," Illyana explained, wandering over to the desk and picking up a book without really noticing what it was. "And the regular kind, too. Mostly slash. She's pretty fascinated by the relationship between you and Victor."
She was fascinated by him and....Victor? How'd she even know about that? Vance snorted. "What relationship? I think me and him being in the rec room together might've been the most awkward thing ever."
"Oh yeah, lots of awkwardness. And tension. Plus, y'know, Victor apparently told her you guys dated, and showed her a picture." She turned towards him, finally, looking both hurt and annoyed. "It was an old one, though, so she wanted to check and make sure it was actually you. And that I knew you were offering your ex 'sketchy hugs' in the rec room."
Vance's eyes widened in confusion, even as his stomach started to sink. "He what? And what 'sketchy hugs'? He's a lizard, it was a warmth thing. It wasn't a weird, sex thing.
"Sketchy hugs are whatever Becky thinks sketchy hugs are," Illyana said, making a "how would I know?" gesture with both arms. "But yeah. He told Becky. And Nico, in case I forgot to mention that before. Right before he told him I was a homophobe - did I mention that? And a thief. Which he also told Becky and Pietro and who knows who all else. All over your stupid hoodie, which he still refuses to acknowledge I might have borrowed, and which he apparently still has, because it wasn't in with your stuff when I put back your t-shirts and CDs. Oh, and he pretended to be a new student and started talking Buffy, so that I'd go around asking everyone if they knew him to find out if he wanted to marathon with me and Nico. So, y'know, I'm sort of with Becky on the whole "sketchy" thing. Especially seeing as I was apparently supposed to be able to explain why you were offering instead of just giving the asshole a blanket."
Vance stood there through her tirade, a little bit dazed. That was....a lot to take in, all at once. He wasn't sure if he was supposed to start with the things Yana said Vic had done, or if he was supposed to start with the warmth-hug thing.
"Look, you're right. I shouldn't have let him hug me," he finally landed on. He was guessing that was the real reason she was mad at him. And Vance understood. She deserved an explanation, and a promise. "I just...we did it all the time, you know? Before we ever were dating. Just as friends. And that's how I meant it. But the minute he did it, it was weird. It's not gonna happen again.
"I promise," Vance swore earnestly. He meant it, really meant it. One, it upset Illyana, but....two, well, it really had been weird. Really weird.
Illyana'd crossed her arms over her chest while Vance was talking, but sighed. "Look, I get that. Kind of. Other than the part where you offered the guy a hug." She gave him an incredulous look. "I mean, he's been wandering around the school talking shit about me, and apparently, that doesn't mean anything?" Okay, granted, she maybe hadn't told Vance most of it, but she'd told him some. If nothing else, she'd kind of hoped Vance would've told him to knock it off, and it didn't sound as if he'd even bothered.
"You...I....you're just now telling me about that stuff," Vance pointed out, just a touch tentatively. "I didn't know he'd done all that."
"I told you some of it," Illyana corrected, pushing her hand back through her hair. "You seemed kind of weird about it, so I figured you didn't want to know. Besides, you said you guys weren't even friends anymore, so I didn't figure I'd end up fielding questions about why my boyfriend's hugging his ex from the school's biggest gossip."
He frowned a little, and let himself grip his bed covers a little. He hadn't had to do interpersonal confrontation in awhile that didn't involve some kind of violence. Vance knew, without a doubt, that that wasn't going to happen here, but old habits died hard. "You seemed kind of weird about it, too, I didn't want to push. And we aren't friends anymore. I....I thought maybe we might be able to be, but...that day in the rec room was so awkward...it seems pretty unlikely."
Vance swallowed, looking down at the floor. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to do anything to make you uncomfortable. It won't happen again."
Illyana was listening, yeah - but Vance wasn't really saying anything she hadn't expected to hear. The way he was acting, though, hands fisted in his covers, head down...she bit at her lip, and came over and sat down next to him, leaving just a little space between them and turning her hand in invitation. "I'm sorry," she said softly. There was a lot more she wanted to say, but...it could wait.
He shook his head a little. "Don't be. You have every right to be unhappy with the situation," Vance told her. He glanced over and, noticing her upturned hand, set one of his on top of it.
She tangled her fingers with his and squeezed his hand, smiling crookedly. "Yeah, not apologizing for that part," she admitted, then sighed. "I expected shit from Victor, y'know? Just...not this fast, maybe?" And...well, from what Becky'd said, Vic hadn't even started this. Vance had.
Vance was quiet for a moment. "I guess....I didn't realize. I mean, I didn't realize how bad things apparently are, between you two. If I'd known, I wouldn't have done it," he explained.
Yana nodded. "Yeah. I mean..." She sighed. "Look, it's not like I expect you to check with me or something. I mean, that'd be weird." Really weird, and it wasn't like she didn't expect that he'd have friends who didn't like her, or vice versa. "I just..." she shrugged. "He hates me. I could deal with that, y'know? My roommate hates me, I really don't care. But he goes around saying shit about me to my friends, and...well, he doesn't even know about...us." She frowned. "Unless you told him, anyway."
Vance shook his head. "I haven't yet. I will. 'Cause, I mean, if I don't, he's just going to hear it from someone else and that would be kind of unfair."
"I'm surprised Becky didn't tell him," Illyana replied, after throwing a sidelong, slightly annoyed look over at Vance. "Though she might've by now." Her eyebrows rose a little. "What exactly would be 'unfair' about it? Because I'm really not understanding that one."
He shrugged a little uncomfortably. "I'm not saying us going out is unfair to him or something. We broke up. We needed to. He's free to date whoever he wants to, and so'm I. It's just the...springing it on him. I probably should've said something, the other day, about it. I mean....he has a right to hear it from me."
Illyana's eyebrows shot up. "You're serious, aren't you? The guy tried to tell me you two were still dating, and you're worried about who he hears that you're dating me from?" She pulled her hand out of Vance's. "Maybe you should just get back together if you're that worried about him."
Vance's mouth opened, just slightly, in surprise. "First, yes, I'm serious. Just because he messed up doesn't mean that I have to be rude to him. It's not about being worried about him - pretty sure that ship sailed when I broke up with him - it's about being an adult and standing up for the choices I, we, made, okay? Second, I'm going to talk to him about his behavior, too. Now that I know about it."
"You knew about that already," Illyana pointed out. "I told you - you just didn't want to hear it, any more than he wanted to hear that I knew you. Is that why you wanted me to keep it quiet? So that you could tell the asshole in person?"
"No." It was immediate, and it was honest. "That's not why. I didn't want you to get in trouble, for visiting me in jail. Because that's a felony. It had nothing to do with him."
"Because someone was going to turn me in to the police?" Well, Victor might, now that she thought of it. Or Cersei, if she could get away with it. Still. "Whatever. Don't worry about talking to him about his 'behavior'. I wouldn't want you to be rude or anything. I'll handle it." Or not, because honestly, she was apparently damned if she did, damned if she didn't, but that wasn't anything new.
Vance frowned even more deeply. "It's not rude for me to talk to him. Please stop twisting my words," he asked. "If we had dated, and then we broke up, and I was dating someone else, wouldn't you want me to have the guts to tell you? That's the only courtesy I'm offering him here, Yana. Just that. If he's being mean to you, that's something else entirely, and it's not okay."
"If we broke up and you started dating someone else and you made a point of coming to tell me, I'd probably figure you were trying to rub my nose in it. Why would I want you to come tell me that?" That wasn't courteous, it was just mean. Honestly, when she looked at it that way, she sort of liked the idea of Vance going and telling Victor personally - or would have, if she'd had any reason to think Vance was doing it for that reason. "But y'know, if you were going to do that? it sounds like you had the opportunity already, and didn't bother."
"So if I'd told him, I'd be a jerk for telling him. But because I had the chance and didn't, I'm a jerk because I didn't tell him in front of some girl I barely knew," Vance summarized. Man, girls were confusing. "What is it, Illyana? What would you have liked me to do? Not hug him? I've already said that I shouldn't have, and that it won't happen again. What else do you want from me?"
Kitty was right. Guys were just idiots because they were guys. "I want to have some idea that I mean more to you than your ex does?" Illyana said, exasperated. Wasn't that obvious? Except apparently not, because he was sitting there all calm and talking about courtesy and not being rude and making it pretty obvious he thought she was just being irrational "Because you said he didn't matter, and I believed you. And now it's all about how he feels and what's the right thing to do, and honestly? I don't care."
Vance sighed, and shook his head a little in frustration while he consciously fought the urge to hide. No. He was an equal here. He could do this. "You do mean more to me, Illyana. Okay? You absolutely do. You're...I like you a lot. A lot, a lot.
"That doesn't mean I don't care about everyone else's feelings, though. It's not just Victor, but everyone. I'm not his friend anymore, but I'm not rude to strangers either, if I can help it."
"Yeah, well, Vic's not a stranger. He's an asshole," she pointed out, still frustrated despite Vance's reassurances. It wasn't like she made a habit of going out and being rude to people she didn't know. People she actively didn't like, though? Why would she care? And why would he?
"But aside from knowing about one disagreement you guys had one time, I didn't know that until just now," Vance pointed out. "And, even if I don't like what he's being doing....it's not in me to be mean, Yana. It's just not."
Illyana sighed. Even if? How was there even an "even if" involved here? ""Whatever. Do whatever it is rational, courteous people do. Let me know how that works out for you."
"You're mad at me." Vance looked down at the floor.
"Well, you figured that part out," Illyana said, rolling her eyes, then sighed. "Look. I realize you're sorry about the hug. And that's...okay, I'm still weirded out by why you'd do it, but it's probably another one of your weird not-rude things, and...whatever." She made a gesture to dismiss any further hugging discussion, just because she really didn't even want to think about it. "I get that I maybe didn't tell you everything about Vic, but I didn't think I had to. I figured you'd be on my side, and that when you got out you'd just tell him to go fuck off and die. I was wrong. Whatever."
"I am on your side," Vance promised earnestly. "And I'm going to tell him to knock it off."
"Which isn't exactly the same thing."
"I'm not exactly big on swearing," he said.
"That's not what I meant."
Vance swallowed. "Illyana...I'm angry at him too, okay. For saying those things about you. For saying things about me. He had no right. But if there is one thing the last year or so has taught me, it's that I need to control my temper. I need to think, before I act."
Illyana rolled her eyes. "You don't even have a temper."
"You think I killed my father in a fit of calm?" He asked sarcastically. Vance shook his head a little, as though to snap out of it. "Sorry. That was uncalled for. I do have a temper, Illyana. And that's exactly why I have to be careful about it."
She shrugged. "I guess?" she allowed. "I mean, I'm pretty sure there's options between killing him and having a nice, friendly, non-offensive talk." She frowned. "Maybe I should've just teleported him to Canada after all."
"That seems a little drastic," Vance said. "Can't I just tell him, in no uncertain terms, that he needs to stop?"
"It's kind of lacking something," Illyana pointed out, wrinkling her nose. "Can't you at least tell him he's an asshole? Kitty said he was a son of a bitch, and she's not even involved."
"Not really my style," he replied, smiling just a little. "I mean, are you even sure I know that word?"
"Well, you just recognized it. So I'm pretty sure you know it."
"Yeah, well. You know what I mean." He nudged her with an elbow.
"Stop that," she demanded, lips twitching just a tiny bit. "I'm being annoyed at you. And reserving the right to teleport freaky lizard boy to Canada. Or maybe Siberia." She considered that for a moment. "You can even be nice and give him a blanket first."
"Pretty sure a blanket wouldn't help, at that point," Vance said.
"I'm okay with that," Illyana observed after a moment's consideration. Okay she was kidding. Mostly. She had to admit, the idea had appeal.
He chuckled softly. "Right."
"I'm not a nice person," she pointed out. "The only reason I didn't do it after the whole Tommy thing was because Pietro and Nico would've missed him. Though Pietro said he wouldn't blame me." Becky, she figured, would've gotten over it.
Vance shook his head. "I still can't believe he posed as Tommy. I mean, what's the point?"
"No clue," Illyana shrugged. "Just to sit back and laugh at me running around trying to find the new kid? That's all I can figure." She made a face. "Honestly, I'm more mad about the rest. That was just kind of icing on the cake, y'know?"
"Well, none of it's okay. And I'll tell him so." Vance nudged her again. "Still mad?"
Illyana sighed. "I don't know. I don't think so. Just confused." She leaned in against him anyway, though, then paused and frowned. "What'd he say about you that you're mad about?"
Vance shrugged a little. "Honestly? Anything, really. My sexuality isn't really anyone's business."
"You guys weren't public?" Illyana asked, surprised. "Because Pietro definitely knew. Kitty, too. Though Cal didn't," she acknowledged, then bit at her lip. "I maybe kind of told him. I didn't realize everyone didn't know."
"We weren't. Unless he's been telling people all along," Vance said, frowning thoughtfully.
"I don't know," she admitted. "I mean, I know Pietro knew, because he told me you guys had broken up. And Kitty asked me if you guys were still dating." She shrugged. "Most of my friends weren't here when you were, though. Well, other than River, but she knows everything." She slipped her arm around his back. "How come you didn't tell anyone? I mean, it seems like half the guys here are dating their roommates."
"Well, Pietro was his roommate. So....that wouldn't be totally surprising. And River knew. I knew that." Vance nodded. "Didn't know about Kitty, though.
"And...it was complicated."
"Complicated like I should mind my own business? Or the kind of complicated where I should ask complicated how?"
Vance shook his head, and looked down at the floor again. 'No, nothing....I mean, you don't need to mind your own business. My, uh....my dad had some definite...some definitely views on guys who liked guys, okay? I didn't want him to find out."
Illyana nodded slowly, and tightened her arm around Vance a little. Yeah. That would've been bad. "Did he? Find out?"
He shook his head 'no."
"That's good, at least." Not, she supposed, that it really mattered much, given that it apparently hadn't made a whole lot of difference, but...it was something. "I'm sorry I told anyone," she said softly. "I didn't know."
Vance shrugged. "No reason to hide it now, I guess."
"There is if you don't want people to know." She shrugged and shifted her arm so she could rub his back slowly. "I mean, like you said, who you like is your business."
"I don't even know why it bothers me. It shouldn't. It's stupid. I don't even care if people know I like guys, or know that I went out with Vic. Just...he didn't even ask," Vance said.
Okay, this one she understood, even if she still didn't quite grasp Vance's logic a lot of the time. "It's not stupid. It bothers you because you trusted him. You guys had a deal, and he broke it."
Vance shrugged. "I dumped him. So I guess I broke it, too."
Illyana shook her head. "Nuh uh. Relationships end, people get dumped. But you trusted him with something about you, and...I'm guessing he knew why it was a big deal? That's not something you just blow off."
"He knew." Vance frowned, and then shook his head. "Nevermind. Forget all that for a minute. What, uh...what're you doing today?"
"Ummm...well, I went and saw Ouija with Becky already," Illyana replied, frowning a little at the sudden change of subject. "Other than that, I didn't really have any plans. Why?"
He shrugged, and gave her an awkward little smile. "Was just wondering if you wanted to hang out or something."
Illyana's eyebrows arched a little and she smiled back. "Isn't that what we're doing? I mean, even with the arguing part?"
"Well, yeah, but I meant doing something more fun."
"Mmm. I could be talked into that," she observed, turning towards him and reaching up to trace her fingers down his cheek.
Vance leaned in, slow enough for her to stop him, and then kissed her gently. "Okay."
"Just okay?" Illyana teased, pulling back just a little, the heat of his lips still on hers. "Did you have something else in mind?"
He smiled against her. "Nothing in particular."
"Alright then," she whispered, sliding her hand around to the back of his head as she closed the space between their lips once more, her eyes drifting shut. After all, he had said he was going to tell Vic off. If he didn't...well, after what he'd told her? Nico or no, she'd take care of it herself.
llyana waved goodbye to Becky in the hallway outside her room, then made a show of searching for her keys until the other girl had slipped inside her own. Once Becky was gone, however, the smile she'd been wearing disappeared and her shoulders slumped.
A pretty good horror movie and some really awesome popcorn might have gotten Becky to stop talking about it, but hadn't made her forget what Becky'd said about Vance and Vic. Who'd been hugging. In the rec room, and long enough (apparently) for even Becky to become uncomfortable with it. Moreover, if Becky was to be believed, Vance had initiated it. The question was, could she believe Becky?
She made a face as she started walking back the way she'd just come from. It wasn't that she thought Becky would lie to her. In fact, she was almost positive she wouldn't. On the other hand, Becky sometimes interpreted things in ways that didn't match up with reality. And so...
And so there was no way she was going to find out, unless she asked Vance. Sighing, she closed her eyes and pictured the hallway outside Harry's room. It probably would've been easier just to 'port inside, but for once, she really kind of wanted to knock first. Just in case Becky was right.
Vance started a little, from where he'd been taking a nap - he still hadn't gotten the hang of free time. He stood up, brushed off his basketball shorts and t-shirt (because maybe that would look less messy?), and went to the door. When he spotted Illyana, he grinned. "Hey."
"Hey," she countered, smiling a little despite herself, especially since Vic wasn't immediately in evidence and Vance didn't seem to be hiding anything. "You busy?"
"Nope." He took a step back, and opened the door further. "Come on in."
"Thanks." She walked inside and looked around, feeling awkward. "So...all settled in?" she asked, avoiding his eyes and hoping he'd shut the door behind him, because she really didn't want anyone wandering in. Or past. More than likely, Becky'd already forgotten her promise to keep things quiet. There were going to be enough rumors floating around without adding to them.
"Something like that," Vance said, nodding as he closed the door behind her. "I mean, you know, I don't have all that much stuff, so it's mostly just....setting things places."
Illyana nodded, then said casually, "So, I hear you met Becky, huh?"
"Yeah, she seemed....nice." And kind of weird. But she'd said she was Illyana's friend, and she'd also seemed to mean well? Mostly, anyway. Maybe Vance just was misunderstanding her somehow. If he was, he definitely didn't want to say anything bad about her to anyone else.
"She's insane," Illyana supplied, grinning a little at Vance's attempt to sugar coat it. "But she's pretty cool." She wandered a little further into the room, still not turning towards him. "She thinks you're cute - you might want to watch out for that. She writes RPF."
Vance blinked with confusion as he sat down on his bed. "RPF?"
"Real Person Fanfic," Illyana explained, wandering over to the desk and picking up a book without really noticing what it was. "And the regular kind, too. Mostly slash. She's pretty fascinated by the relationship between you and Victor."
She was fascinated by him and....Victor? How'd she even know about that? Vance snorted. "What relationship? I think me and him being in the rec room together might've been the most awkward thing ever."
"Oh yeah, lots of awkwardness. And tension. Plus, y'know, Victor apparently told her you guys dated, and showed her a picture." She turned towards him, finally, looking both hurt and annoyed. "It was an old one, though, so she wanted to check and make sure it was actually you. And that I knew you were offering your ex 'sketchy hugs' in the rec room."
Vance's eyes widened in confusion, even as his stomach started to sink. "He what? And what 'sketchy hugs'? He's a lizard, it was a warmth thing. It wasn't a weird, sex thing.
"Sketchy hugs are whatever Becky thinks sketchy hugs are," Illyana said, making a "how would I know?" gesture with both arms. "But yeah. He told Becky. And Nico, in case I forgot to mention that before. Right before he told him I was a homophobe - did I mention that? And a thief. Which he also told Becky and Pietro and who knows who all else. All over your stupid hoodie, which he still refuses to acknowledge I might have borrowed, and which he apparently still has, because it wasn't in with your stuff when I put back your t-shirts and CDs. Oh, and he pretended to be a new student and started talking Buffy, so that I'd go around asking everyone if they knew him to find out if he wanted to marathon with me and Nico. So, y'know, I'm sort of with Becky on the whole "sketchy" thing. Especially seeing as I was apparently supposed to be able to explain why you were offering instead of just giving the asshole a blanket."
Vance stood there through her tirade, a little bit dazed. That was....a lot to take in, all at once. He wasn't sure if he was supposed to start with the things Yana said Vic had done, or if he was supposed to start with the warmth-hug thing.
"Look, you're right. I shouldn't have let him hug me," he finally landed on. He was guessing that was the real reason she was mad at him. And Vance understood. She deserved an explanation, and a promise. "I just...we did it all the time, you know? Before we ever were dating. Just as friends. And that's how I meant it. But the minute he did it, it was weird. It's not gonna happen again.
"I promise," Vance swore earnestly. He meant it, really meant it. One, it upset Illyana, but....two, well, it really had been weird. Really weird.
Illyana'd crossed her arms over her chest while Vance was talking, but sighed. "Look, I get that. Kind of. Other than the part where you offered the guy a hug." She gave him an incredulous look. "I mean, he's been wandering around the school talking shit about me, and apparently, that doesn't mean anything?" Okay, granted, she maybe hadn't told Vance most of it, but she'd told him some. If nothing else, she'd kind of hoped Vance would've told him to knock it off, and it didn't sound as if he'd even bothered.
"You...I....you're just now telling me about that stuff," Vance pointed out, just a touch tentatively. "I didn't know he'd done all that."
"I told you some of it," Illyana corrected, pushing her hand back through her hair. "You seemed kind of weird about it, so I figured you didn't want to know. Besides, you said you guys weren't even friends anymore, so I didn't figure I'd end up fielding questions about why my boyfriend's hugging his ex from the school's biggest gossip."
He frowned a little, and let himself grip his bed covers a little. He hadn't had to do interpersonal confrontation in awhile that didn't involve some kind of violence. Vance knew, without a doubt, that that wasn't going to happen here, but old habits died hard. "You seemed kind of weird about it, too, I didn't want to push. And we aren't friends anymore. I....I thought maybe we might be able to be, but...that day in the rec room was so awkward...it seems pretty unlikely."
Vance swallowed, looking down at the floor. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to do anything to make you uncomfortable. It won't happen again."
Illyana was listening, yeah - but Vance wasn't really saying anything she hadn't expected to hear. The way he was acting, though, hands fisted in his covers, head down...she bit at her lip, and came over and sat down next to him, leaving just a little space between them and turning her hand in invitation. "I'm sorry," she said softly. There was a lot more she wanted to say, but...it could wait.
He shook his head a little. "Don't be. You have every right to be unhappy with the situation," Vance told her. He glanced over and, noticing her upturned hand, set one of his on top of it.
She tangled her fingers with his and squeezed his hand, smiling crookedly. "Yeah, not apologizing for that part," she admitted, then sighed. "I expected shit from Victor, y'know? Just...not this fast, maybe?" And...well, from what Becky'd said, Vic hadn't even started this. Vance had.
Vance was quiet for a moment. "I guess....I didn't realize. I mean, I didn't realize how bad things apparently are, between you two. If I'd known, I wouldn't have done it," he explained.
Yana nodded. "Yeah. I mean..." She sighed. "Look, it's not like I expect you to check with me or something. I mean, that'd be weird." Really weird, and it wasn't like she didn't expect that he'd have friends who didn't like her, or vice versa. "I just..." she shrugged. "He hates me. I could deal with that, y'know? My roommate hates me, I really don't care. But he goes around saying shit about me to my friends, and...well, he doesn't even know about...us." She frowned. "Unless you told him, anyway."
Vance shook his head. "I haven't yet. I will. 'Cause, I mean, if I don't, he's just going to hear it from someone else and that would be kind of unfair."
"I'm surprised Becky didn't tell him," Illyana replied, after throwing a sidelong, slightly annoyed look over at Vance. "Though she might've by now." Her eyebrows rose a little. "What exactly would be 'unfair' about it? Because I'm really not understanding that one."
He shrugged a little uncomfortably. "I'm not saying us going out is unfair to him or something. We broke up. We needed to. He's free to date whoever he wants to, and so'm I. It's just the...springing it on him. I probably should've said something, the other day, about it. I mean....he has a right to hear it from me."
Illyana's eyebrows shot up. "You're serious, aren't you? The guy tried to tell me you two were still dating, and you're worried about who he hears that you're dating me from?" She pulled her hand out of Vance's. "Maybe you should just get back together if you're that worried about him."
Vance's mouth opened, just slightly, in surprise. "First, yes, I'm serious. Just because he messed up doesn't mean that I have to be rude to him. It's not about being worried about him - pretty sure that ship sailed when I broke up with him - it's about being an adult and standing up for the choices I, we, made, okay? Second, I'm going to talk to him about his behavior, too. Now that I know about it."
"You knew about that already," Illyana pointed out. "I told you - you just didn't want to hear it, any more than he wanted to hear that I knew you. Is that why you wanted me to keep it quiet? So that you could tell the asshole in person?"
"No." It was immediate, and it was honest. "That's not why. I didn't want you to get in trouble, for visiting me in jail. Because that's a felony. It had nothing to do with him."
"Because someone was going to turn me in to the police?" Well, Victor might, now that she thought of it. Or Cersei, if she could get away with it. Still. "Whatever. Don't worry about talking to him about his 'behavior'. I wouldn't want you to be rude or anything. I'll handle it." Or not, because honestly, she was apparently damned if she did, damned if she didn't, but that wasn't anything new.
Vance frowned even more deeply. "It's not rude for me to talk to him. Please stop twisting my words," he asked. "If we had dated, and then we broke up, and I was dating someone else, wouldn't you want me to have the guts to tell you? That's the only courtesy I'm offering him here, Yana. Just that. If he's being mean to you, that's something else entirely, and it's not okay."
"If we broke up and you started dating someone else and you made a point of coming to tell me, I'd probably figure you were trying to rub my nose in it. Why would I want you to come tell me that?" That wasn't courteous, it was just mean. Honestly, when she looked at it that way, she sort of liked the idea of Vance going and telling Victor personally - or would have, if she'd had any reason to think Vance was doing it for that reason. "But y'know, if you were going to do that? it sounds like you had the opportunity already, and didn't bother."
"So if I'd told him, I'd be a jerk for telling him. But because I had the chance and didn't, I'm a jerk because I didn't tell him in front of some girl I barely knew," Vance summarized. Man, girls were confusing. "What is it, Illyana? What would you have liked me to do? Not hug him? I've already said that I shouldn't have, and that it won't happen again. What else do you want from me?"
Kitty was right. Guys were just idiots because they were guys. "I want to have some idea that I mean more to you than your ex does?" Illyana said, exasperated. Wasn't that obvious? Except apparently not, because he was sitting there all calm and talking about courtesy and not being rude and making it pretty obvious he thought she was just being irrational "Because you said he didn't matter, and I believed you. And now it's all about how he feels and what's the right thing to do, and honestly? I don't care."
Vance sighed, and shook his head a little in frustration while he consciously fought the urge to hide. No. He was an equal here. He could do this. "You do mean more to me, Illyana. Okay? You absolutely do. You're...I like you a lot. A lot, a lot.
"That doesn't mean I don't care about everyone else's feelings, though. It's not just Victor, but everyone. I'm not his friend anymore, but I'm not rude to strangers either, if I can help it."
"Yeah, well, Vic's not a stranger. He's an asshole," she pointed out, still frustrated despite Vance's reassurances. It wasn't like she made a habit of going out and being rude to people she didn't know. People she actively didn't like, though? Why would she care? And why would he?
"But aside from knowing about one disagreement you guys had one time, I didn't know that until just now," Vance pointed out. "And, even if I don't like what he's being doing....it's not in me to be mean, Yana. It's just not."
Illyana sighed. Even if? How was there even an "even if" involved here? ""Whatever. Do whatever it is rational, courteous people do. Let me know how that works out for you."
"You're mad at me." Vance looked down at the floor.
"Well, you figured that part out," Illyana said, rolling her eyes, then sighed. "Look. I realize you're sorry about the hug. And that's...okay, I'm still weirded out by why you'd do it, but it's probably another one of your weird not-rude things, and...whatever." She made a gesture to dismiss any further hugging discussion, just because she really didn't even want to think about it. "I get that I maybe didn't tell you everything about Vic, but I didn't think I had to. I figured you'd be on my side, and that when you got out you'd just tell him to go fuck off and die. I was wrong. Whatever."
"I am on your side," Vance promised earnestly. "And I'm going to tell him to knock it off."
"Which isn't exactly the same thing."
"I'm not exactly big on swearing," he said.
"That's not what I meant."
Vance swallowed. "Illyana...I'm angry at him too, okay. For saying those things about you. For saying things about me. He had no right. But if there is one thing the last year or so has taught me, it's that I need to control my temper. I need to think, before I act."
Illyana rolled her eyes. "You don't even have a temper."
"You think I killed my father in a fit of calm?" He asked sarcastically. Vance shook his head a little, as though to snap out of it. "Sorry. That was uncalled for. I do have a temper, Illyana. And that's exactly why I have to be careful about it."
She shrugged. "I guess?" she allowed. "I mean, I'm pretty sure there's options between killing him and having a nice, friendly, non-offensive talk." She frowned. "Maybe I should've just teleported him to Canada after all."
"That seems a little drastic," Vance said. "Can't I just tell him, in no uncertain terms, that he needs to stop?"
"It's kind of lacking something," Illyana pointed out, wrinkling her nose. "Can't you at least tell him he's an asshole? Kitty said he was a son of a bitch, and she's not even involved."
"Not really my style," he replied, smiling just a little. "I mean, are you even sure I know that word?"
"Well, you just recognized it. So I'm pretty sure you know it."
"Yeah, well. You know what I mean." He nudged her with an elbow.
"Stop that," she demanded, lips twitching just a tiny bit. "I'm being annoyed at you. And reserving the right to teleport freaky lizard boy to Canada. Or maybe Siberia." She considered that for a moment. "You can even be nice and give him a blanket first."
"Pretty sure a blanket wouldn't help, at that point," Vance said.
"I'm okay with that," Illyana observed after a moment's consideration. Okay she was kidding. Mostly. She had to admit, the idea had appeal.
He chuckled softly. "Right."
"I'm not a nice person," she pointed out. "The only reason I didn't do it after the whole Tommy thing was because Pietro and Nico would've missed him. Though Pietro said he wouldn't blame me." Becky, she figured, would've gotten over it.
Vance shook his head. "I still can't believe he posed as Tommy. I mean, what's the point?"
"No clue," Illyana shrugged. "Just to sit back and laugh at me running around trying to find the new kid? That's all I can figure." She made a face. "Honestly, I'm more mad about the rest. That was just kind of icing on the cake, y'know?"
"Well, none of it's okay. And I'll tell him so." Vance nudged her again. "Still mad?"
Illyana sighed. "I don't know. I don't think so. Just confused." She leaned in against him anyway, though, then paused and frowned. "What'd he say about you that you're mad about?"
Vance shrugged a little. "Honestly? Anything, really. My sexuality isn't really anyone's business."
"You guys weren't public?" Illyana asked, surprised. "Because Pietro definitely knew. Kitty, too. Though Cal didn't," she acknowledged, then bit at her lip. "I maybe kind of told him. I didn't realize everyone didn't know."
"We weren't. Unless he's been telling people all along," Vance said, frowning thoughtfully.
"I don't know," she admitted. "I mean, I know Pietro knew, because he told me you guys had broken up. And Kitty asked me if you guys were still dating." She shrugged. "Most of my friends weren't here when you were, though. Well, other than River, but she knows everything." She slipped her arm around his back. "How come you didn't tell anyone? I mean, it seems like half the guys here are dating their roommates."
"Well, Pietro was his roommate. So....that wouldn't be totally surprising. And River knew. I knew that." Vance nodded. "Didn't know about Kitty, though.
"And...it was complicated."
"Complicated like I should mind my own business? Or the kind of complicated where I should ask complicated how?"
Vance shook his head, and looked down at the floor again. 'No, nothing....I mean, you don't need to mind your own business. My, uh....my dad had some definite...some definitely views on guys who liked guys, okay? I didn't want him to find out."
Illyana nodded slowly, and tightened her arm around Vance a little. Yeah. That would've been bad. "Did he? Find out?"
He shook his head 'no."
"That's good, at least." Not, she supposed, that it really mattered much, given that it apparently hadn't made a whole lot of difference, but...it was something. "I'm sorry I told anyone," she said softly. "I didn't know."
Vance shrugged. "No reason to hide it now, I guess."
"There is if you don't want people to know." She shrugged and shifted her arm so she could rub his back slowly. "I mean, like you said, who you like is your business."
"I don't even know why it bothers me. It shouldn't. It's stupid. I don't even care if people know I like guys, or know that I went out with Vic. Just...he didn't even ask," Vance said.
Okay, this one she understood, even if she still didn't quite grasp Vance's logic a lot of the time. "It's not stupid. It bothers you because you trusted him. You guys had a deal, and he broke it."
Vance shrugged. "I dumped him. So I guess I broke it, too."
Illyana shook her head. "Nuh uh. Relationships end, people get dumped. But you trusted him with something about you, and...I'm guessing he knew why it was a big deal? That's not something you just blow off."
"He knew." Vance frowned, and then shook his head. "Nevermind. Forget all that for a minute. What, uh...what're you doing today?"
"Ummm...well, I went and saw Ouija with Becky already," Illyana replied, frowning a little at the sudden change of subject. "Other than that, I didn't really have any plans. Why?"
He shrugged, and gave her an awkward little smile. "Was just wondering if you wanted to hang out or something."
Illyana's eyebrows arched a little and she smiled back. "Isn't that what we're doing? I mean, even with the arguing part?"
"Well, yeah, but I meant doing something more fun."
"Mmm. I could be talked into that," she observed, turning towards him and reaching up to trace her fingers down his cheek.
Vance leaned in, slow enough for her to stop him, and then kissed her gently. "Okay."
"Just okay?" Illyana teased, pulling back just a little, the heat of his lips still on hers. "Did you have something else in mind?"
He smiled against her. "Nothing in particular."
"Alright then," she whispered, sliding her hand around to the back of his head as she closed the space between their lips once more, her eyes drifting shut. After all, he had said he was going to tell Vic off. If he didn't...well, after what he'd told her? Nico or no, she'd take care of it herself.
