( it’s never, ever been this strained between them: not even when they first met, the punisher shackled to a hospital bed like a rabid animal, the man himself insisting he was dangerous. she’d still stepped over the line. talked to him. he’d been polite and more open than she expected.
frank skulks in like a restless stray, his shoulders tighter than usual. in the light of karen’s living room, she can see he does have a fading bruise beneath one eye, but it’s mottled and paling yellow; an old one, then, and nowhere near the scale of injuries she’s seen on him before. just background noise.
his hands are shoved in the pockets of his jacket, new york winter still clinging to the outer fabric, his boots, the exposed skin of his face, as he trails her over to the kitchen. )
You think I drink tea? ( frank cracks a smile, crooked beneath his stubble. ) Beer’d be great, if you got it.
( part of the trouble, he thinks, is the fact that they don’t really do social calls either. there had always been some emergency underpinning their relationship: checking up on her, making sure she was alright, solving mysteries together, sinking their teeth into clues. he’d always had a reason, an excuse to see her that verged on professional. now, there’s no excuse sitting between them except that he wanted to see her. the pleasure of her company, even if he doesn’t deserve it. )
no subject
frank skulks in like a restless stray, his shoulders tighter than usual. in the light of karen’s living room, she can see he does have a fading bruise beneath one eye, but it’s mottled and paling yellow; an old one, then, and nowhere near the scale of injuries she’s seen on him before. just background noise.
his hands are shoved in the pockets of his jacket, new york winter still clinging to the outer fabric, his boots, the exposed skin of his face, as he trails her over to the kitchen. )
You think I drink tea? ( frank cracks a smile, crooked beneath his stubble. ) Beer’d be great, if you got it.
( part of the trouble, he thinks, is the fact that they don’t really do social calls either. there had always been some emergency underpinning their relationship: checking up on her, making sure she was alright, solving mysteries together, sinking their teeth into clues. he’d always had a reason, an excuse to see her that verged on professional. now, there’s no excuse sitting between them except that he wanted to see her. the pleasure of her company, even if he doesn’t deserve it. )