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trigger warnings : joplin mention
★。／｜＼。★
CAM'S POINT OF VIEW
IF THERE'S ANYTHING MORE STRESSFUL THAN BEING ATTACKED BY RAVENING GHOST-RATS, it's having to go shopping for a posh party the day of, and not having a single thing to wear.
Had Cam been to posh parties before? Absolutely.
Except he hadn't been able to wear a suit there, therefore he didn't own a suit. This led to hours of Lucy and Cam wishing for death: Lockwood had told them that according to a London magazine called London Society, the dress code for these events was dinner jackets for men and cocktail dresses for women. Neither of the two owned anything of the likes.
Agents were permitted to wear agency uniforms, with rapiers, but considering Lockwood & Co didn't have a uniform, that didn't help.
This had sent the duo into a panic that morning, leading to a frantic trip to the Regent's Street department store. By mid-morning to afternoon, Cam found himself walking along the quiet street, with one bag with what was considered an appropriate suit, and a box of shoes in another. Lucy was still at the department store, as she had gotten stuck in a long waiting line, so she'd told him to go home and she'd meet him soon.
In a way it felt nice to get to attend such a prestigious event without being handed a dress and being yelled at to put it on or face the punishments. But at the same time Cam despised parties and large events such as this because he always felt like he was suddenly on autopilot mode, unable to focus on anything but every little flaw and potential danger.
"Can I give you a hand with those?" Cam turned around in surprise, not expecting to see Kipps in all his might and glory; his Fittes uniform speckless as if he'd never had to crawl through old water pipes to try and grab the source of a dead Victorian child. Or as if he'd never broken a sweat before. The buttons on his top were ridiculously shined, and Cam bet that if he looked to close he'd be able to find every flaw in his face.
"Are you following me?" Cam accused, and the older boy immediately started apologising, adding on to Cams shock, "No. No, sorry, I didn't mean to . . . " the boy stuttered slightly as he approached Cam, "I just saw you from across the street, so I though I'd," he trailed off awkwardly.
Cam gave him a weird look, mumbling a small 'okay then' to himself before turning on his heel and walking in the opposite direction, hoping Kipps would get the hint.
"I spoke to Saunders. He told me what you and your team did the other night," Cam almost sighed when Kipps quickly caught up to him, attempting to start a conversation.
What hint did he think I meant?
"Formidable overarm, I hear,"
"Yeah, well, tell that to Lucy, not me,"
He glanced to his right when he saw Kipps fall in line with him (which he realised later on looked more like he was giving the boy a side-eye. Well, either one works for him), not saying anything. But Kipps just kept opening his mouth, "Lockwood & Co were nothing before you came along. No one took them seriously. Now that's suddenly all changed, and it's pretty obvious why,"
"Yeah, well we make a great team," Cam answered simply, praying that this interaction would end as he saw how close he was to the house.
"Yeah?" Kipps stopped in front of him, blocking his path, "You're wasted here," he lowered his voice, as if telling a secret, "And Fittes is a great place to work,"
Cam looked at him in a mix of shock and mild disgust, "Yeah, well, they turned me down multiple times, so-"
"They made a mistake," Kipps argued politely, "Look I know he's probably told you I'm the worst person in the world, but if you're interested in finding out the truth," he paused, smiling awkwardly, "would you consider coming to the party with me tonight?"
Cam was stunned, and the first thing he thought wasn't even about how much he would rather not, "I've punched you multiple times in the face, and you want to take me to the Fittes ball?" he asked in an incredulous tone. This had to be a fever dream.
I am surely losing it right now.
Kipps just laughed lightly, like Cam had made a good joke, which cause Cam to frown, not understanding a single thing about this man, "I suppose I believe in second chances," Cam breathed in nervously, "Oh . . . well, uh, you see I can't. I'm uh, I'm going with-"
"Lockwood," he finished for him.
"And Lucy," he quickly added, and Kipps nodded slightly, "Of course,"
There was an awkward silence for a moment, and Cam kept glancing away from Kipps, looking at how close he was to getting inside.
"I came in a bit too big with the party, didn't I?" Kipps quickly laughed the awkwardness off, and Cam forced himself to laugh slightly with him.
"How about a coffee?"
Cam quickly thought of an excuse, "Uh maybe, but look, I've gotta go. You know, get inside, get ready,"
Kipps quickly nodded in understanding, moving out of his way, "No, no, of course. I'll see you around,"
Cam quickly made a beeline across the road, mumbling a small 'yeah' under his breath: "And think about it though, yeah? Will you?" Kipps asked him once more, still remaining polite and composed.
Cam gave him a small nod and smile, which seemed to be enough for the blonde as he walked away. As soon as he wasn't facing the man any longer his smile disappeared off his face, pure confusion in its place instead.
When he crossed the road, he failed to see a certain (jealous) boy watching the entire interaction from a small window.
Cam muttered a small apology as he walked through the door, accidentally bumping into George who was stress cleaning the floor.
"At least it's safe now. We don't want Pamela to-"
"Ooh, Pamela, is it now?" Cam teased mischievously before heading upstairs, hearing the quiet ring of the doorbell echo through the hall.
