Lab C : Chapter 8 - A lot of subext

“BBBwuuuhhhh”

John shoots up from bed. He’s shirtless, and under the soft, breathable but warm comforter, he’s naked. He takes a huge deep breath, and moans as he lets it out, relaxing back.

“Holy shit I feel good.”

His head falls over and looks directly at Sabine sitting next to his bed. Her legs crossed, arms crossed, holding a fat syringe nonchalant, very intentionally not looking at him. With his eyes, he looks down her body, lingering on the curve and squish of her thigh under the thick skirt, tracking up to the divot of her stomach and subtle tent made by her breasts under the thick sweater, and when he finds himself back at her lips, he can see she’s looking at him, and takes just a second longer to look back up and meet her eyes.

Silence… comfortable, looking from eye to eye silence.

“Blue.”

She throws her head back, stomping her feet. “How the FUCK do you know? Every. single. time.”

John shrugs with a smile.

“I’m scheduling you another pre-cog test. This is ridiculous. If I got data like this with anyone else they would be stuck here where you belong.”

John’s smile fades.

“Sorry. It’s just… sorry. That wasn’t cool.”

John gets up, heading to a closet. She averts her eyes but doesn’t move. His room is smaller than Sabine’s but just as regal. It leans into royal greens and crystal like fixtures. One section is just a beefed up version of the room he had in his home. His kitchen is WAY better stocked, a dozen knives arranged on a magnetic strip. Pots, pans hanging from the ceiling. So much counter space you could host a dinner party of 12 at it, using it to store the apps, the dinners, and drinks there.

He has a massive lily painted by the kitchen. A galaxy like spiral painted behind his bed. A low roar of fire painted around his research and work area.

“How’re things in the lab? Dr. Tam still cracking the whip on his favorite lap dop?” He pulls out a snug black button up shirt, bright red boxer briefs, black slacks, yellow socks with red stripes and starts to get dressed. It’s still quiet.

He corrects himself. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to jump right into teasing you. We’re both off our game huh?” He looks to her and she’s leaned back, arm over the chair back, confident as hell with her name badge resting on the apex of her chest. A billboard.

He raises his eye brows. “What? You finally stand up to him or…”

His shoulders drop, tilts his head, stops getting dressed, “You made your fucking play.”

She sticks her tongue out a blep and does a little dance in the chair.

“Hah, Dr. Ambower huh?”

“Yep.”

Then she sets down a digital tape recorder on the table. “This is Direct Assistant to the Lab Cheif, Dr. Ambower recording notes from Dr.Grimsen-”

“-Stop! Stop. I am here as a consultant. Ms. Direct Assistant,” He holds, enjoying her warm, contained giddiness, “You can still call me John.”

“Dr. Grimsen,” she insists a head bob and he submits with a subtle tilt back, “has had direct contact and is the only known survivor of C-477B.”

“Ya’lls names are dumb. Can we just call it the Ink man, The Shadow House, and the Shadows? Wait which one is B? Why is it B?”

"A is the basement, B is the building, we’ll make C the Inkman and D the Shadows.”

“The basement? What the fuck is in… oh right the cult stuff. What’s going on in there?”

“Literally nothing. But it’s the leading theory for the source of C-477B.”

“The Shadow House”

A pause… she stops the tape recorder.

“Are you still seeing Lily?”

John scrunches his lip, fully dressed in all black business casual. He takes a seat next to her.

“You know… something weird happened.”

“Recorder weird?”

“Maybe, talk it out first?”

“John… I…”

He looks to her name badge.

“Yeah, yep. I still am.”

She nods, “Is Lily here right now?”

He looks to the bed, the old fluffy white dog is laying on the bed. It stretches out, a big stretch, then relaxes into the bed like it owns it. He looks back to her and nods.

“Got it.”

She hits record, freezes, then hits stop again.

“Fine. Off the record. But John, I live in a glass house and mistakes are stones in the air. If this becomes relevant, I’m putting it in the file.”

John mulls it over and she gives him a second. “It’s just…” he clicks his tongue behind clenched teeth, staring at a spot in the table. He shrugs and turns to her, “Yeah, fine. Record it.”

She looks down shamefully with a knowing smile. Something between them just died a little bit. She hits the button.

“Is this regarding the,” she sighs, “Shadow house?”

“One of the Shadows grabbed Lily’s tail”

She clicks the record off and leans forward.

“I thought we decided she was just in your head.”

“I know! I know. But,” he looks to the dog, “I saw it. The shadow grabbed her tail, she stumbled and fell into me.”

She ponders this. “Do we…"

“Open a case?! I mean, after that… honestly a part of me is pretty jazzed that she’s not just in my head. Don’t get me wrong, forever doggo that can come with me everywhere but also stays at home when I ask it too: super rad. But if she’s a ghost…”

“Yeah, if she’s a ghost…”

They look in each others eyes. Her smart watch lights up and buzzes. They hold eye contact for a bit longer. She looks down at it just enough to swipe away what ever it is.

“How sure are you?” she asks. As he opens his mouth she replies with him, in unison,

“I have a perfect understanding and relationship with reality. I know what I saw.”
“I have a perfect understanding and relationship with reality. I know what I saw.”

“If you weren’t right all the god damn time you’d be in a jumpsuit.”

“And if you got your head out of your ass you’d be out there with me.”

She smirks. “You couldn’t stand me out there.”

“You’d have trouble standing if we were out there.”

“You don’t have to jump to 10 you know? At least let us get through the appetizers before you drop dessert like that.”

“Don’t we have an interview to do?” John says, leaning back, head in his hand, taking up lots of comfortable space.

She rewinds the recorder, recording over the last bit. They share a smile like a wink.

“I’m here with Dr. Grimsen regarding c-477 B, C, D-”

“-Who will hereby be referred too as B, the Shadow House, C, The Inkman, and D, The Shadows?”

She pauses it, “Your dumb John.”

“Start your stupid recorder you idiot.”

They both smile again, she hits it. He glances at Lily. Sabine’s eye brows furrow a bit, but she puts on a kind face when he turns his attention to her.