Debts To Be Settled

5

Tommy stands at his desk, leaning over the edge. His head is positioned right beside the bent lamp. His hands are lost in the thick fabric of the article of clothing he's holding. The radio plays a recent segment recorded from a local comedy club. His shoulder throbs dully, but he doesn't worry about it. The pain will soon disappear entirely. This isn't the worst injury Tommy has ever sustained. It isn't even the worst one he's continued working while harboring. Tommy's focus is entirely on the clothing against his fingertips.

He is dimly aware of another person appearing inside the room with him. He casts a glance over his shoulder, frowning when he notices Phantasm looking out of the window near Tommy's pallet that overlooks the street outside. Tommy turns back to his project. Phantasm does whatever he wants anyway, regardless if Tommy is pretending to supervise him or not.

"Did you miss me?" Phantasm asks like he's about to sing a song. Phantasm disappeared a few days ago. The radio is the only reason Tommy knew Phantasm was still alive. Apparently, there was some dangerous gamble the Syndicate decided to take. For all intents and purposes, it looks like the Syndicate were able to win. Tommy didn't bother with the details, but he did pay attention when the radio host complained about the Syndicate only sustaining minor injuries. Unless Phantasm was purposefully left out of that report, Tommy thought he was safe to assume Phantasm was fine. Right now, Phantasm does not have any injuries, though there are faint bloodstains on his suit. Tommy is unable to determine if the blood belongs to Phantasm or to another person.

In lieu of an answer, Tommy glares at Phantasm from the corner of his eye. He snips at a loose thread with only half his attention on it. Tommy doesn't need to check to know that he has done right, so he keeps his glare steady. Phantasm responds by laughing under his breath, his green eyes glowing brighter when he takes languid steps towards Tommy. "You, my friend, are becoming far too comfortable around me."

There is a threat in those words even when Phantasm keeps his tone light. Even if he was threatening Tommy, the blonde rolls his eyes, letting them land back at the task in his hands. "I have, at least, a few minutes more since I'm almost fucking done with your damn suit."

"You always know exactly what to say to make me happy," Phantasm chirps, folding his arms behind his back as he leans forward. Tommy gives the villain another glance, but Phantasm doesn't seem inclined to act on his impulses. He watches Tommy with an observant expression. His smile slowly drops away. Tommy knows the feeling of being stared at like the back of his hand. Tommy grimaces, reaching over to grab another spool of thread. Phantasm has always been like this. His emotions change as quickly as the wind does- from amusement to anger to this unnerving quiet in a matter of seconds. Tommy is accustomed to it because it is familiar. Most foster kids and parents were unable to hold back their emotions. It is the fact Phantasm doesn't have a good grasp of his emotions that upsets Tommy's mind. Phantasm is dangerous and powerful. The only decent consequence of this fact is that Tommy can switch him from a negative emotion to a positive one fairly quickly, but the same could be said for the reverse.

"Why are you favoring one side?" Phantasm asks, snapping Tommy out of his thoughts. Tommy stops moving for a second. He turns his attention to Phantasm. The villain is raising an eyebrow with an unreadable expression in his eyes. He is not frowning or smiling, an odd detail considering how often Phantasm does both. He is genuinely asking, and he expects an answer from Tommy. He wants to know, and that stupefies Tommy more than Phantasm's expression does.

"The city is a fucking rat's nest," Tommy murmurs, pulling down his shirt to show the bandage from the wound he got the previous night. He has spent the entire time laying off of it, but once the other tailors left, Tommy unwound all his restless energy by throwing himself into his work on Phantasm's suit.