[Zach raises an eyebrow. He'd call Nathan's bluff if they weren't in a place that was full of trolls and psychos and like, war heroes or something. He's gathered early on that, basically anything is possible, here.]
Oh, yeah, loads of times. I mean, a few times probably can't be counted as murder, but there were definitely some murders in there. Like, this one time, this crazy stalker ex-girlfriend of one of my mates impaled me on a pipe, and one time I was beaten to death in a locker room, and another time I was sawed in half by this guy who thought he was a video game character and I was a mod boss or some shit!
[He pauses.]
Okay so that last one didn't happen, but only because someone distracted him before he had a chance to fire up the chainsaw. But it was going to happen!
[Zach blinks. Well, he for sure didn't expect that. Okay. He takes his time, just staring silently at his tablet, thinking about the fact that Nathan, apparently, is like a goddamn Highlander or something. Zach remembers watching this show when he was a kid.
And that's another one with a superpower of some sort. Zach really is the most...normal...person around Norfinbury, he's pretty sure. It doesn't hurt, no, not at all, why the fuck would he want superpowers anyway.]
I thought powers didn't work out here, though. What if you don't come back?
[Look, he can't be sentimental with guys, okay, it's weird. Especially guys who he's only just met recently. Tifa got a bit of the sappy, gushy truth out of him but he's gonna be more flippant with Zach.]
I know how loved and popular I am, and if I was murdered everyone would have a big cry about how young I am and how tragic the event in question was--but I'm like a cockroach, I just don't stay down.
[Zach can see how much of it is posturing, he's used to it, if only because he does the same way too much. But it's still mildly irritating. He gets why Hagan kept on being so disgruntled with him all the time, now.
[Zach laughs again, although there is a cutting edge to it.]
Better get used to it, it's pretty much my only setting.
[It just means he cares, Nathan. Which makes Zach uncomfortable, because he barely knows the guy, after all. He barely knows anyone around here, and yet he gives a shit. It's like saving the world all over again, only this time he doesn't have an awesome laser to kill shit with, goddamnit.]
[He props his chin on his fist, his frown turning into a grin again. He can't help it! He's not good at acting all upset when most things just straight up amuse him.]
Was there a point to this, or did you just want another opportunity for banter while I'm still breathing?
[His face lights up even more.]
Did you fall in love with me?
[Nathan would fall in love with himself. But, well, that already happened.]
Dude, of course I can admit I'm an asshole. It's part of my natural charm.
[Zach makes a face, leaning back from the tablet with a disgusted grimace. No, he certainly has not fallen in love with Nathan after talking to him like, twice. He's not that pathetic, thank you very much. He snorts.]
Don't be gross, I just wanted to make sure you knew what you were in for.
[Interestingly enough, though, Zach doesn't feel quite as shaken up now, like the conversation with Nathan helped restore some of his better spirits. But nobody tells Nathan that. Zach'd never hear the end of it.]
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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[Despite the grimness of the topic, Nathan grins. He always feels a bit snappier when he gets a laugh out of someone.]
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[Zach raises an eyebrow. He'd call Nathan's bluff if they weren't in a place that was full of trolls and psychos and like, war heroes or something. He's gathered early on that, basically anything is possible, here.]
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[He pauses.]
Okay so that last one didn't happen, but only because someone distracted him before he had a chance to fire up the chainsaw. But it was going to happen!
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And that's another one with a superpower of some sort. Zach really is the most...normal...person around Norfinbury, he's pretty sure. It doesn't hurt, no, not at all, why the fuck would he want superpowers anyway.]
I thought powers didn't work out here, though. What if you don't come back?
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With great power comes great responsibility.
[Dramatic pause.]
Or, you know, fuck it, right?
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[So Zach is one of these people who really doesn't want to die, so Nathan's attitude is throwing him off his game. Which he usually has plenty of.]
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[Look, he can't be sentimental with guys, okay, it's weird. Especially guys who he's only just met recently. Tifa got a bit of the sappy, gushy truth out of him but he's gonna be more flippant with Zach.]
I know how loved and popular I am, and if I was murdered everyone would have a big cry about how young I am and how tragic the event in question was--but I'm like a cockroach, I just don't stay down.
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Instead, he just rolls his eyes.]
The hero we deserve, I guess. A cockroach.
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Okay, a handsome one. No need to be a dick about it.
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Better get used to it, it's pretty much my only setting.
[It just means he cares, Nathan. Which makes Zach uncomfortable, because he barely knows the guy, after all. He barely knows anyone around here, and yet he gives a shit. It's like saving the world all over again, only this time he doesn't have an awesome laser to kill shit with, goddamnit.]
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[He props his chin on his fist, his frown turning into a grin again. He can't help it! He's not good at acting all upset when most things just straight up amuse him.]
Was there a point to this, or did you just want another opportunity for banter while I'm still breathing?
[His face lights up even more.]
Did you fall in love with me?
[Nathan would fall in love with himself. But, well, that already happened.]
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[Zach makes a face, leaning back from the tablet with a disgusted grimace. No, he certainly has not fallen in love with Nathan after talking to him like, twice. He's not that pathetic, thank you very much. He snorts.]
Don't be gross, I just wanted to make sure you knew what you were in for.
[Interestingly enough, though, Zach doesn't feel quite as shaken up now, like the conversation with Nathan helped restore some of his better spirits. But nobody tells Nathan that. Zach'd never hear the end of it.]