It wasn't an awesome thing to hear, but Ford knew it was true. It was charitable, even, because what he was really doing was losing his shit in this chair in the parlor and Noble had been very deliberately not pressing him for details about it, even though he easily could have. And despite what Ford had just said Noble still had a look like he wanted to. Merlin, what the hell was Ford going to say if Noble came right out and asked him what had happened? Or where he'd been, or what he'd done with his clothing, or why he was wearing someone else's pants? He'd either have to come right out and tell him the whole thing or else just clamp his mouth shut and say nothing, because there was no chance in hell Ford was going to be able to lie convincingly at the moment, and certainly not to Noble, and certainly not when he was still looking at him like that.
This had been stupid. This had been so stupid, and yes, Ford had sort of known that already, but sitting here in his parlor consumed by dread of having a conversation with his brother really drove the point home. Where were you tonight would have been a completely normal, innocuous, innocent question under any other circumstances, and if Noble asked him that right now his whole world was going to collapse. And this wasn't the only time he was going to be in this situation, either, because the more often he went out and stayed out the more likely it was that someone would ask him about it. Maybe he could have just brushed off the comment or lied about it after the first night, or after the first week, but if Macnair was going to start holding his hand — he just couldn't hold it together under these circumstances, and he knew it. And what if what happened last Monday happened again, where Macnair just wanted to kiss and cuddle and sleep in the same bed and not even get properly undressed at all? How was Ford supposed to face questions from his family after that?
He moved his left hand off of his face and ran it through his hair. He blinked to try and adjust his eyes to the light again, then shook his head. "I'm not going to stay out late anymore," he announced. He'd said it as soon as he'd decided it, and he wasn't even sure if he meant that he was going to stop seeing Macnair or if he was just going to stop agreeing to stay the night afterwards. He didn't even really know if he was saying this for Noble's benefit, or for his own, to make the resolution seem more concrete. "I should've stopped last week. This was stupid."
This had been stupid. This had been so stupid, and yes, Ford had sort of known that already, but sitting here in his parlor consumed by dread of having a conversation with his brother really drove the point home. Where were you tonight would have been a completely normal, innocuous, innocent question under any other circumstances, and if Noble asked him that right now his whole world was going to collapse. And this wasn't the only time he was going to be in this situation, either, because the more often he went out and stayed out the more likely it was that someone would ask him about it. Maybe he could have just brushed off the comment or lied about it after the first night, or after the first week, but if Macnair was going to start holding his hand — he just couldn't hold it together under these circumstances, and he knew it. And what if what happened last Monday happened again, where Macnair just wanted to kiss and cuddle and sleep in the same bed and not even get properly undressed at all? How was Ford supposed to face questions from his family after that?
He moved his left hand off of his face and ran it through his hair. He blinked to try and adjust his eyes to the light again, then shook his head. "I'm not going to stay out late anymore," he announced. He'd said it as soon as he'd decided it, and he wasn't even sure if he meant that he was going to stop seeing Macnair or if he was just going to stop agreeing to stay the night afterwards. He didn't even really know if he was saying this for Noble's benefit, or for his own, to make the resolution seem more concrete. "I should've stopped last week. This was stupid."
Set by Lady!