Week 69: Muscle Management

Coraline opened her eyes blearily and blinked several times, rolling her head forward as she sat upright. Possessing her medical droid wasn't exactly like sleeping, but it did leave her body in a similar state for the duration and she had just spent some time working on Hugo's right side. As such she looked momentarily disheveled but seemed overall smaller today, save for her shoulder length hair. The ex VK agent quickly slipped on a form fitting surgical apron and crossed the room to the operating table. Where Hugo lay and Medibot hovered, attentively.

The plague doctor gave Hugo a slightly sloppy smile and yawned hugely as she began to prep his left side for work. Coraline's third eye opened and she began marking off areas of muscle with a felt pen. "Oh my, I always forget how tired my body feels when I come back to it. I have to say, suddenly finding myself very tired is not an experience I find overly agreeable. Been feeling it a lot lately, actually." The plague doctor smiled weakly and gave a half hearted shrug before continuing. "Do you ever find yourself feeling like that, Hugo dear?" She squeezed his upper arm for a moment, before cracking her arms and going back to work. [Pass L&A by 2]

Hugo, donning only a small pair of boxers, gave Coraline a weak little nod. "Sometimes more than others, encantadora. Now.. yes. I feel pretty beat up. And not the good kind, either." He smiled at that, but he seemed tired and fairly out of it. He dozed through some of the surgery; Coraline knew something must be up, since he considered talking to her and entertaining her part of his duty as a patient.

He struggled upright as she got to work preparing things, and stretched out his arms. Oh, his right arm was visibly smaller than his left at this point. Good. It was nice to get feeling back to normal. "Just think, one more of these surgeries and then I'll be back to my lithe self." He chuckled, but not with too much enthusiasm.

Coraline nodded sympathetically, covertly snapping a picture of Hugo with her camera finger. "Sorry to hear it Juicey, I had hoped one of us had had a relaxing trip back at least. How, sweetie, how can it be difficult for us to relax on the motherfucking world view?" The plague doctor shook her head and tsked at the two of them under her breath. [pass L&A by 6]

The nuke's comment made the shapeshifter look up from her work in surprise and giggle. "hehehehe, I think perhaps you have confused your body for someone else's. Shap's perhaps?" Coraline teased, clearly hoping to goad Hugo into his usual enthusiastic responses. "Have the two of you picked a date yet, by the way? November weddings are very in this year. And will I get to be one of your bride's maids?" She bit down on a huge grin, quickly ducking under his arm and got to work from behind him.

Hugo leaned forward a little to give Coraline better access, and he tutted at her in reply. "I was lithe..er. You know. I was big, but still.. human big. My arm wasn't wider around than Silvia's waist. It was just.. meaty." He sighed gently, and there was less warmth in his voice than normal. "And I haven't seen Shap in a few days. And-AND, he's not that skinny. He's more.. well built everywhere. ..And we're not rushing into getting married!" He managed a little smile at that, at least.

He tilted his head a little bit to look at her marking pen, and he made momentary but still sad eye contact with his cyberneticist.

Coraline noticed that and failed entirely to react in time to wink. She smiled tightly as she finished outlining the muscles on his arm and started work on his back. Poor Hugo was definitely down and there was only so much banter would do to make a body feel better. Of course the last time she had tried to cheer the nuke up....The less said the better.

"I'm glad to hear it, rushing into marriage so rarely ends well." The plague doctor sighed, a quiet sympathetic sound. The work was relaxing, for her but it was only giving Hugo more time to dwell on whatever was the matter. She chewed her lip as she chewed over what to say. She tried several topics out in her head but no of them really clicked, so she settled for the safe. "We'll be back to earth soon though, and the first thing I am going to do will be slid into my loverbot's lap. It'll be good for me. How about you Juice, any plans for once we're home?" [pass L&A on the dot]

"I'm actually.. thinking about.. going home. Not Seoul, but.. back to the Free State. I haven't been for, wow, it feels like months and months now. Yeah, four, five months. Phone calls aren't the same and I.. I miss it." He sounded very much like the young man he was, hunched over a bit and pining for home cooking. He sighed, and Coraline could hear the gears in his mind shifting. "I've sent so much money home.. Tia says the business is expanding like crazy, they have a whole new building just for testing the soil savers and de-pollutant sprays, and she's even keeping some tester pigs now and quail now, which is really nice. It's cows next, plus the new school and security... Everything will be different. And it'll be.. it'll be good."

There was something soft and wistful in his voice, and he despite his size he seemed a lot smaller.

Coraline nodded at Hugo's words and her voice had that far away quality when she spoke. "Yes, I'm thinking of seeing an old friend once we're back as well. Mainly business, of course but I think we'll split of bottle of the wine I got for the show too. Should make for an enjoyable evening. You're right though, even fully interactive 3D holograms aren't the same." The plague doctor listened attentively, continuing to section off areas of the nuke's flesh. She was paying particular attention to his lower ribs and stomach, determined to find out if he was actually ticklish.

"It'll be nice, to see what a change you've helped make to the place. Though not to put too fine a point on it sweetie, but it does sound like the night life won't have picked up much." After a brief pause the shapeshifter spoke again, her voice slightly more measured and even a touch serious. "Don't stay away too long though Juicey, it would be frightfully dull without you." [L&A roll pass by 9]

Hugo squirmed a little, though it was hard to tell if it was because of the felt marker or the things which Coraline was saying. "Night life isn't a big deal. I mean, it's nice to just.. Drink and shoot with my brothers, you know? Or maybe Raul will make me watch his new favorite shows and make me braid his hair. It's been.. a long time since I did that." There was a fondness in his voice, the kind one would use for a pet or small child. He sighed, but there was sadness in it, too.

He gave Coraline one last look over his shoulder, and in a matching, softer voice said, "I.. don't know how long I am gonna be gone. I just.. ..need to be out of this for a while, you know?"

Coraline smiled as Hugo spoke of his brothers and braiding someone's hair, it was cute and endearing. As well as something he would be better at after they had finished. She met his look with curiosity and concern, pursing her lips a little. "No not really, sweetie. Be out of what exactly?" The plague doctor moved around to the front of Hugo, sitting next to his legs and looking at him with raised eyebrows. "What's up hon? You haven't really been yourself since you came in." Coraline spoke softly, smiling a little too tightly. [L&A pass by 7]

The massive and most naked agent was quiet for a minute as Coraline worked. His fingers drummed an unsteady rhythm on the surgery table, as he thought of what to say. "You were right about... About Silvia thinking we were exclusive. And it wasn't just because of you. She really did think we were.. very very serious. ..Ah." His shoulder hunched over a little more at the memory, face turned far away from the doctor. he rubbed his face with his right hand, shaking his head. His voice grew soft. "..She was.. really.. upset."

"Oh, I'm sorry sweetie, it really wasn't about me was it?" Coraline offered, her voice quiet and a little hollow. She smiling weakly but could not hold back a frown, nor the lines around her eyes and mouth. The plague doctor looked around the room for a few moments, unsure of where to put her eyes. She settled for placing the tips of her fingers lightly over Hugo's. "I... for what its worth, I still can't believe she would presume such a thing without even asking you to date her. I mean what century does she think we live in?" The ex VK agent rallied, sounding slightly more confident but just as serious. She gently pet Hugo's hand, hoping that the small contact would sooth the huge agent. [L&A pass by 8]

Her expression twitched and contorted and she kept half forming words before trying different ones. "I see she wasn't the only one, who was upset. So I would guess that Silvia said some upsetting things to you, dear. You can tell me you know, if you need to." Coraline pursed her lips and waited, nodding encouragingly but also shrugged her palms up to indicate there was no pressure. Sometimes she lamented of herself and her ability to communicate.

Hugo moved his fingers over Coraline's and squeezed her fingers for a second before pulling away. "Well, if it helps you, she said she might be interested in you, but didn't want to deal with it when she was.. being exclusive with me. So.." Only the barest hint of a falter, of some negative emotion, was in his warm voice. He offered his cyberneticist a little smile, and tucked his knees to his chest. When he looked away, he relaxed slightly. He sighed.

"I didn't even tell her we kissed. I got as far as asking about Alessandro before she just.. freaked out. I've never seen her.. like that. It was..." He grew quiet as he tried to find the right words.  His hands clenched into fists and slowly unfurled as he played the ends over in his head. "..Horrible? I.. I couldn't believe what she was saying. So hurtful and--And you know why?" His voice shifted suddenly, the slow ache gone and replaced with something very much like anger. "Because she watched the video of us, that night, but stopped it once we finished messing around. And never saw the hours of us talking afterward, about.. everything. About all of this. About Alessandro and.. ..us. I've been treating her like she knew, for weeks. I mean, she didn't remember, but knowing that she knew.. helped, and.. and hurt too. I thought she thought that all the things I said were just.. meaningless sex talk, but... She just never heard them at all. I don't know what's worse."

He banged his fist into the table, but remembered at the last second to pull it. There was only a little dent. "..Shit. ..Fuck. She was so.. mean, Coraline. Mean and shouty and angry and... She wanted.. to hurt me, I think. I mean, she apologized right after, but she said.. mean things about Alessandro. For no reason." He was gushing now, eager to tell the story to someone who knew them both, and he looked at Coraline, his expression almost.. pleading.

Coraline couldn't help but smile as Hugo so clearly put her feelings before his own, it was flattering to think that Silvia might like her and that Hugo would do that for her. But it was very clear that the poor nuke was wrong and although she was afraid of hurting his feelings, well Coraline had to set her friend straight, even if she couldn't quite look at him anymore. And took her hand back. "I can't really deny that it does, but I don't think thats actually true sweetie. I-I think, and don't be mad at me for thinking or voicing this, okay? But I think she was just... keeping in me in reserve, in case things didn't work out with you, you know?" [L&A faill by 1]

After a moment the shapeshifter pulled her leg up, the one nearest Hugo and hugged it tight to her chest. She glanced over at him as he looked away and listened intently, flinching and making sympathetic noises at the appropriate moments. Her frown grew and her pursed lips thinned to a very narrow line as Hugo went on. Her eyes widened as the nuke's voice grew angry and she jumped as he hit the table, hugging her leg closer. She inched a little way back from her best friend as he looked at her, nodding and smiling tightly. She swallowed nervously before speaking and avoided eye contact as she did so.

"She, I mean, the-it." Coraline paused, took a moment to breathe in and out and tried again. This time her voice managed to stay level. "Yeah, I'm sorry Juicey that is the worst. Especially after all the shit you have heard about Una for Silvia to slag off Alessandro, after you have been so thoughtful and understanding with her." She broke off shaking her head slowly. The petite plague doctor's frown grew more pronounced even as she attempted to hide it behind a half hearted smile. "She-she had to know that nothing you said, you did, was to hurt her. And she still... heh, no matter what she expects from you from now on, her next move better be pretty fucking apologetic." She sniffed and eyed Hugo warily, just for a moment before all her muscles tightened.

"She told me she had watched the footage too, and you were so sad, after she didn't remember. She put you through that and now this.... what for? So she can hold onto some outdated and defunct courtship system? ehehehehe...." Coraline stifled her laughter as it turned to sniffles, turning away from Hugo and covering her face with her hand.

Hugo considered Coraline's words for a moment, mouth opening--and then he realizes she was crying, or at least making some sort of sad noise. His brow furrowed, and he reached out with a huge hand to her shoulder. His thumb rubbed a circle above her collar bone, soothingly. "..Hey, hey. Encantadora. What's wrong? Please don't be so sad. After what seeing what she's like when she's angry, maybe it's better she doesn't want to be with you. ..Dumb, but better?" He was trying to joke, the tiniest bit. He raised his eyebrows, trying to look encouraging, and smiling.

Coraline sniffed once more and wiped her eyes, sighing into her hand before turning to look at Hugo. "eheh, Hugo darling? You've seen what Silvia is like when she is angry, I have not. And yeah, I don't think I do want to. Heh, dumb but better." The plague doctor nodded at her friend, smiling genuinely. She took his hand and nuzzled it gently with her head, evidently glad that he was willing to comfort her when she was meant to be doing that for him. [L&A passed by 7]

After a moment she let his hand go, turning her body to face him again. "Sorry sweetheart, I just felt so upset for you, we're not all made of your mettle you know. I didn't mean to worry you." Coraline sighed once again, but with a little laugh and littler-er grin in it. "So she was terrible to you, apologised straight away, and then?" The shapeshifter gently pressed for more details, smiling only a little tightly at her friend and nodded encouragingly.

Hugo frowned slightly at the obvious cover-up (his own father wouldn't have cried for him), but Coraline didn't want to talk about it, and he didn't press. His look of disbelief faded as she started talking. He pet her cheek with thumb before taking his hand back so he could lean on it.

"Yeah.. Well, no. We kept.. fighting, her spines were out"--he sounded almost a little pleased or amused at that, before becoming more somber--"I went to leave, she told me to get out and I, it.. I asked her if she wanted me to, really? I was ready to get another room... ..And she said she didn't know, and we talked a little more, and then, after that, she apologized. So.. Not.. right after, but, once she calmed down, yeah." He shrugged his left and more massive shoulder. His words were gentle, but his expression said something was still bothering him about it. "..She hates nukes, I think. I mean, not because she hates nukes, but she hates them because they... get me and Una. And the way she talked about them.."

His gaze fell on Una, and for one, she seemed almost.. sympathetic about this. She'd seen the fight too. Hugo's sadness deepened, and he had to look away. "She said I'd jumped into bed with the first nuke I saw, but not her, and... It made me.. unfaithful? And.. ...Not as good as Ken'ichi." He couldn't even muster enough anger to sound bitter at the dead man's name.

"Well quite frankly sweetie, fuck that guy." Coraline placed extra emphasis on the words, happy that Hugo had not pressed her. Whether he had noticed or not. She breathed out, smiling up at the huge agent. "I mean, I suppose I understand why she would be jealous about that but hating nukes, that's just not a healthy response, you know?" The ex VK agent titled her head at the former fed, gesturing with an upturned hand. She shook her head and tsked slowly. "You can't be unfaithful to her if neither one of you has even asked the other out, let alone asked for exclusivity. Besides," the plague doctor pursed her lips and furrowed her brow, "surely you haven't had time away from Silvia to even see Alessandro, not since before the rescue mission. Right?" [L&A pass on the dot]

Hugo shook his head in agreement with Coraline. "No, I haven't seen him for.. almost two months now. That week after Fenris' party. I mean, even if she thought we were dating from when we.. when we got to Jerusalem, I wouldn't have even had time..." He shook his head again, unable to look at the agent on the table with him. She was able to follow along, he knew, and he didn't need to keep asking. "And.. Silvia and I haven't had sex. I... pointed that out to her, that I couldn't sleep with, uh.. someone else if I hadn't slept with her? But.. that didn't help."

He winced a little, and his body tensed a little as if he was going to begin speaking. After a few deep breaths, he added in a much softer voice, "You know, when she was up there in that.. space station.. She didn't think I was going to come get her. I mean, I guess she didn't, didn't know about the things I said, but..." He sounded.. ashamed, and guilty, just mentioning it.

Coraline's jaw dropped open and her eyebrow's raised as her eyes narrowed. "Are-are you fucking kidding? I really hope she set herself right on that once you did because, and I don't mean any offense here Hugo, but it's pretty flipping obvious that you have been devoted to her for-for a long time now. I'm sorry to keep swearing, quite crude of me really." The former plastic surgeon shrugged, apologetically and gently lay a hand on his shoulder. [L&A pass by 6]

"But even if she didn't know what you had said, it really ought to have been obvious. Especially to someone as perceptive as her ladyship. And I mean, I don't pretend to understand Silvia's viewpoint on the sex but I guess she hasn't had any for a long time? So... yeah." The petite plague doctor winced and bite her lower lip, waiting for Hugo's response. She decided to forestall it, instead. "She has to know, it wouldn't have made a difference if they had held her behind their army, you would have gone for her." Coraline nodded firmly, clearly feeling the conviction behind her words.

"Well, she was being tortured," He added quickly, defensively. "The whole point was to make her feel.. hopeless, so, I mean, I guess.. I guess it's understandable.." His words turned to apologetic mumbles as he trailed off, trying to lessen his own hurt by thinking of reasons why she wouldn't have thought that. He gave her a look and added, in a slightly stronger voice, "And that was right after we fought after the.. party." Despite the louder words, it didn't seem to make him feel much better... And Coraline could see his eyes moving from side to side as he remembered something else. He sighed a little and looked miserable, hugging his knees to his chest and resting his forehead on them.

"That she was, and I would understand if she doubted it from time to time, but not from the outset." Coraline continued doubtfully, but grew more confident as she spoke maintaining eye contact and nodding. "Besides, just as you said, she had not watched the video and you were operating under the assumption she had and was just as upset despite it. If she had watched it or told you she had not, both of you would have acted differently. You would have told her what she meant to you, right?" The plague doctor had withdrawn her arm and held onto the edge of the chair, under her legs. She rocked back and forth a little, apparently without noticing. [L&A pass by 7]

"Look sweetie, I don't mean to be hurtful about her, certainly not needlessly. I-I'm simply astounded at how many assumptions she seems to make. I wouldn't have though it of her ladyship." Coraline fidgeted, clearly torn between giving Hugo his space and providing physical comfort. She tsked softly to herself and looked back up at the nuke, her frown tight and her eyebrows raised. "The two of you will talk, once she has watched the video right? And you will let her know how she has upset you, won't you?" The shapeshifter spoke softly and lightly touched Hugo on the upper arm.

Hugo was still thinking of something, so he nodded along with what she head without really taking it in. His forehead bumped against his knees. When it got to the 'telling Silvia about it' bit, he froze. "Y-yeah. I mean, she's watching it now. Or.. Did. Before. She.. she will, now that I'm.. not there..." He seemed to be fading and looking more and more.. anxious. He shifted his weight slightly, and looked away. He seemed to be thinking, struggling to say more.... But it was easy to talk to Coraline.

"But even, even after, after we talked in Jerusalem, after... Jictar and this and.. and everything.. She said that me being with other people made her feel like I don't care about her." And he sounded even more wounded.

Coraline looked around, avoiding Hugo's gaze and chewing on her lower lip a little. After a moment she nodded, apparently to herself and sighed hugely. "I-I can't imagine thinking like that, certainly not thinking that way without hating it and needing to change it but..." The petite plague doctor shook her head and covered her mouth with one hand, frowning deeply. "But I guess you might have to accept that being with Silvia means you just can't.... be with other people." Coraline shrugged, holding her palms up before clasping them down in her lap. She kept grasping for something else to say, opening and closing her mouth but there just wasn't anything she could say to make that better. [L&A pass by 9]

Hugo pulled his legs closer to his chest. "She said she would.. try to change her mind. But.. She didn't sound happy. And even then, just.. just.. before that? Even hearing a little thing, she just... Like, everything I did just.. just didn't matter." He sighed heavily, shaking his head. "Like, could you imagine one thing someone could say near you to make them feel like they didn't care about you? Especially after.. everything?... I..." He hung his head, seeming small despite his mass and size.

"And.. she's scared of sex. She said it. And I.. I need people who have some way to.. control some part of me, you know? Strength or skill or.. something to.. stop me. Or want me to be all like.. ..like I am when I get into it. And she can't... take it, want it, consent to it, stop me. So.. ..So I be with her, and then don't have sex? I mean, I can't imagine training with Alessandro and then not just jumping on him after hours of.. galvanic.. training." He sounded guilty about it, at the end, and sad, too. "Even if she says she's okay with it, if even hearing about it is enough to make her feel like I don't care about her, she's not gonna be okay with it." He sounded miserable.

Coraline inched a little closer to her best friend, pouting slightly. She rubbed her temples, closing her eyes and glancing between her finger's over at the nuke. They were back here again and Coraline could not think of a single way she could make this better. Her friends had come to an impasse and the plague doctor couldn't see how one could change enough for the other. Not without messing themselves up something fierce.

"I wish I could help, do more than just listen and maybe offer advice. You're both my friends and very attractive and I do care about you, you know? But it wouldn't work, wouldn't help. Ehehe, I guess the things that helped in 6th form won't work forever" Coraline sighed and grinned hugely but sadly, wistful. "My whole form, all seven of us we dated each other off and on and oh my the drama. I mean I was there and I can hardly imagine. In the end it all came to a head over summer, I thought I would never speak to them again. I decided that wouldn't do. I got us all in the same room, got everyone to talk and it all came spilling out but me and Trace we made everyone listen. We worked through it all and agreed that the hurt, the recriminations, it was unnecessary."

Now she was smiling, eyes wet and Coraline was clearly far, far away. "We all dated after that and we talked, real talk, and when a group of us did things together we always made sure to do things with the others. It was so much better! And it helped with work too because we all had people in the same subjects to go over our work with, not to mention just kick us up the back side when lazy." She giggled softly and hugged herself, very lightly. "It was a lot of work but it worked so well. We had to break it off when we all went to different universities, of course, but we did it as friends with no regrets." [L&A roll pass by 7]

Coraline swallowed and seemed to rejoin the present, glancing over at Hugo with an apologetic blush. She glanced down and around, her eyes finally falling on her medical droid. "It wouldn't work with Silvia. But she is generous, perhaps if you talked about it and both worked as hard at it. Perhaps it would be worth it, to be with her." The petite plague doctor fixed Hugo with the most neutral expression he had ever seen her wear. "How likely does that sound, I mean if the two of you compromised hard enough?" Coraline could not help the ghost of a grin spreading over her lips as she looked at strong, sexy, so so dumb Hugo.