Tess

[cottoncandypink]

The door does not open up to the condo, unfortunately. Because Wilford has not been to the condo since the last time he brought someone through the door. It opens up from his office, into an area nebulously defined as a dining room.

At least, there is a table there, which someone has taken a passing effort to keep clear. The stack of mail, hastily picked up toys, and a couple of coats on the table suggest nobody does any eating at the table.

The house is what passes as small in the neighbourhood. Windows look out on the sloping hills and sprawling city in the distance. Inside, brushed steel kitchen, slate grey walls, and leather furniture are betrayed by tiny hand smudges on the windows, peanut butter stains in the carpet, crayon scribbles in places that nobody seems to have the energy to deal with.

The house is also unusually quiet. How interesting.

Comments

[have_no_mercy]

Taking the phone, she calls the office back and learns they're on their way and should be there soon. Putting her plate on a table she sits back in her chair to relax.

"This is a little more than I was expecting to have to deal with."

[cottoncandypink]

"Thank god I missed that part."

He's spent one afternoon with Tess, and he wants nothing to do with this crap, ever again.

[have_no_mercy]

"You'd better be careful with Celine."

Tess may have made hers happen, but it often happens when you don't want it to.

"Unless Michael wants a pseudo sibling."

[cottoncandypink]

"There's a lot you don't know," Wilford says.

And he leaves it at that.

[have_no_mercy]

"I'm sure there is."

And she doesn't particularly want to know.

[cottoncandypink]

Good. Because Wilford doesn't particularly want to talk about it.

"I wouldn't be surprised if she bails as soon she signs the divorce papers, anyway."

The only reason he can think of why she's put up with him for so long is a complete lack of other options.

[have_no_mercy]

"If that's the case, why wouldn't she just leave now?"

Tess is glad she doesn't have to worry about such situations.

[cottoncandypink]

"The big wall around the property and my bills being paid probably have something to do with it."

Wilford likes having her around, even when she drives him nuts by doing weird things like covering his sofa with blankets. But her moving in was very much an act of desperation.

"Once things calm down and she's able to do her job, she'll have her own money again."

He hasn't had a relationship last longer than a month in his life. Experience has told him this one is only different because the circumstances are.

[have_no_mercy]

"Mmhmm."

She's not so sure about that, but it's Wilford's problem, not hers. The phone rings shortly after and she picks it up.

"Yes, send them up."

With the phone down again, she tells Wilford the obvious.

"They're here."

[cottoncandypink]

Well then. Wilford grumbles wordlessly, adjusts his glasses, and changes the way he sits. And he's suddenly no longer Wilford. He's a stuffy, decorated officer who can barely spare a full sentence to his wife.

It paints a very particular image for whoever knocks on the door a few moments later.

What? Is he expected to answer it? He's clearly eating his dinner and watching a news piece on some foreign war.

[have_no_mercy]

Right. Eye roll.

She gets up to answer the door and invites the doctor and his assistant in.

"Where should we begin?"

[cottoncandypink]

Wilford barely glances up. "What's this?" he asks. He looks up again, and suddenly seems to realise what he's looking at.

"Oh, right. That..." He waves his hand vaguely. "Hasn't stopped blustering like this all day. You can do something about it, right?"

The doctor and his assistant both do an admirable job at not being obviously wrong-footed.

"Well, let's take a look and see," the doctor says.

[have_no_mercy]

"Well, it's like he said. It was like this when I woke up this morning and I haven't been able to stop it since."

"I usually can," she elaborates.

The doctor and the assistant give each other a look.

"Well, let's get some privacy and we'll do an examination." The doctor offers. Tess leads them to what she hopes is a bedroom.

[cottoncandypink]

It is a bedroom. Even though nobody lives here, a lot of care has been put into making it look like someone does.

It's also the bedroom Wilford uses as a dressing room, so his other set of clothes is piled on a chair. Little things - his rubber bands, a box of disposable contacts, random bits of watch band and the like - are scattered on dressers and tables.

It looks like someone with a housekeeper has given specific instructions to leave his personal effects alone, but give everything else the white-glove treatment.

Wilford does not follow them back, because he is clearly too busy watching his program.

[have_no_mercy]

The examination goes just fine without him and they all return after about twenty minutes.

"Darling, we're all done."

Just so Wilford knows.

She shakes the doctor's hand, thanking him, then lets the both of them out. She leans against the closed door.

"That wasn't so bad."

[cottoncandypink]

Wilford waits long enough to be sure nobody's lingering outside the door.

"That didn't change much," he can't help but observe.

[have_no_mercy]

She sighs at him and walks back to her chair, to sit once more.

"They gave me an injection to suppress my abilities. It might take a few minutes to kick in."

She looks over at him.

"They're also doing blood tests so I'll need to come back for that."

[cottoncandypink]

Well, there's an obvious solution there. Without even hesitating, Wilford pulls his wallet out and thumbs through for a business card, and hands it over.

"Then you'll need that."

He gets up to take his plate to the kitchen, hesitating for a moment to see if Tess wants anything on hers at all, or if he should take it away as well.

[have_no_mercy]

She takes the card and turns it over in her hands.

"Thank you."

[cottoncandypink]

Wilford takes the plates back to the kitchen, quickly cleans up, and puts everything away. The trash isn't anywhere near full, but who knows when anyone will be here next, so he replaces the bag to take what's there out with him.

"You know when you need to come back?" he asks when he's done.

[have_no_mercy]

She smiles a little as he goes back to the kitchen, not surprised he's choosing to ignore what she said.

"A couple of days. Give them time to run all the tests they want."

[cottoncandypink]

Wilford nods. "Good," he says.

It means he can go back to the bar eventually, and not be assaulted by... this.

"Anything else needs doing?"

[have_no_mercy]

She shakes her head.

"This was it. We can go if you want."

The wind starts to die down, slowly.

[cottoncandypink]

Wilford nods. He disappears to go change again, taking less time this time around. After a few minutes, he returns properly pink and shaggy, having not even bothered to re-style his moustache.

That feels much better.

"Hopefully wherever the other two are, they're out for a while," he says, making sure he's got everything he needs. He finds his phone on the table, and stuffs it into his pocket before fetching the trash from the kitchen.

[have_no_mercy]

She likes this Wilford better.

She watches him as he busies himself around the condo.

"Can we get back to the bar from here or do we have to drive back?"