2019-10-12 - Being Cared About Is Hard

The funeral is over. Itzhak went drinking, as one does, permitted himself to be fussed over to a certain degree, then bailed. He came home in a gorgeous suit, kinda smashed and looking like he's been crying. So like a real funeral.

He's still in this suit when he comes to fetch Isolde and her cookies. "Figure Alexander might like to bring his girl home," he'd said, and brought her over to his place. Now he's sliding out of the jacket and hanging it up.

Isolde has been in a mild state of concern most of the day. Lingering in the back of her mind. She'd had lunch with Cameron, caught up with her, and it had been good to spend time with the woman - but she was worried about Itzhak. Alexander. All her friends and the others who were putting Gohl to rest. She wasn't really sure what to expect or when it would be over after everything started, so Isolde made sure to come home in plenty of time. Chocolate chip cookies were made and ice cream purchased. Comfort foods. Accepting the idea that Alexander might bring Isabella over as a reason to go over to his just fine. There was worry still though. Concern.

The plate of cookies get set on the counter and the ice cream placed in the freezer. She waits until The jacket is off before going to him and wrapping him up in a hug. She clashes greatly of course, with his nice attire. Only being in a pair of jeans and a thin, long sleeved shirt herself. She doesn't speak yet, just nuzzles against Itzhak's neck and giving him a squeeze. An attempt at a bit of comfort to start with.

The shirt is somewhat wilted after the day, not crisp like it started out, but it's still quite crisp enough to rustle gently as Itzhak winds his long arms around Isolde. He bows his head over hers, nestling his huge nose in her hair to breathe in her scent. "Broke my violin for Gohl," he murmurs. "Buried her with him."

The news of the broken violin causes a barely audible little noise to escape Isolde. As if someone had physically prodded at her. Her heart hurt for the man in her arms. Nothing came without a cost she supposed but that didn't make it any less terrible. She hugs Itzhak closer. "I'm sorry Itzhak." She murmurs back, and she does sound sorry. Part of her wants to go out right now and get him another one. But it wouldn't be the same, and Isolde knows that too. So she just keeps holding him. "It's all over now though right? He's not going to hurt you anymore? Or any of them?"

"Yeah. Pretty sure it worked. Because the mamzer did something on his way out." Itzhak's voice is low and rough. He rocks Isolde back and forth in his arms, like he's the one comforting her. "He shut all the doors. I can't reach out with my," he frees one arm to tap his temple. "It's like I'm stuck in a closet or something, when I used to be able to go anywhere I wanted. Fuck him." That's a growl, deep and intense and full of drunken sorrow. "We gave up so much to him and he killed so many people and he did THAT on the way out."

Isolde tilts her head up with a light frown, studying Itzhak as he talks about what Gohl did. It took her a minute to piece together what he was saying. Implying. She reaches up to touch the other side of his temple. "...Evil people do evil things. Even on the way out." Her frown deepens. "They take, and take. Even when there's nothing left to take." Her hands moves from his temple to run through his hair. "Maybe it will go back to how it was? Maybe it's only temporary?" There's a touch of hope in her question. Hope for him, and if he felt like he was trapped like that. Did Alexander feel that way too? She presses her lips to his cheek. "Let's sit down okay? Do you want me to make coffee?" Did he have coffee? Oh well, she tossed the offer out there anywhere.

Oh there is coffee. There is so much coffee. Mechanics and musicians run on coffee. Itzhak grunts. "Maybe. I dunno. Gotta work on it, because this shit is unacceptable." He's reluctant to let Isolde go, his arms snug around her, but unwinds. "Would ya? I'll change. It's a miracle I didn't spill anything on this suit as it is." He kisses her forehead and goes into the bedroom, taking the jacket.

"Yes, we don't want the suit getting stained." She agreed. Nice clothes were expensive! And a pain to shop for. While he goes to the bedroom, Isolde works on putting about half a pot of coffee together. Humming quietly as she goes about it. She also finds two bowls and takes the ice cream back out. Because yes, coffee + ice cream + cookies is clearly the best combination of comfort food. By the time he comes out she's neatly putting a couple cookies in each bowl and the coffee is just about done.

Itzhak hangs up the jacket and pants and tie, carefully and awkwardly. He tugs the jacket straight on the hanger, and conscientiously slips the garment bag around the whole deal and zips it up. It'll all need to be dry cleaned, but he can forget about it for now. When he comes out he's wearing only loose pants, all the rest of him on display, nipple piercings and hidden tattoo hidden no longer. He ducks into the bathroom for a couple minutes, then he's coming over to slip an arm around Isolde's waist while she puts bowls together. "Okay, you have the best ideas," he says, tired but smiling a little for her.

Isolde lifted her eyes briefly from the bowls to watch him go into the bathroom and then returned to her work. Smiling when he wrapped her up again. "I'm glad you think so." She leaned her head back briefly to place a kiss on his neck. "Feel better being out of the suit?" She lifts up one of the bowls after placing a spoon in it and offers it to him. "We can find something funny to watch if you want. Or we can just hang out and talk. Tonight's all about you. And however I can help you feel better. I know it's been a hard day. One of the hardest in a while maybe."

Itzhak wobbles a hand in a silent Jewish 'maybe'. His neck is getting stubbly; he was shaved smooth as glass for the funeral, but he's now rocking his usual beard shadow. "God, I dunno, Izeleh," he murmurs, eyes half closing when she kisses his neck. "I don't... shit. I don't know what I want. Don't, just...don't fuss over me too much? I don't wanna feel broken." Then he laughs in a single huff of a breath. "You know all about that, right?"

Ironic. Since that had come up in her conversation with Cameron today. Isolde gave him a wry smile. "Of course I do." She waits for him to take the bowl and then retrieves her own. "It isn't a good feeling. So I won't fuss, and I'm certainly not gonna treat you like you're broken." She breaks off a piece of her own cookie and lifts it to him. "Let's sit down and see if there's anything good on. And if not. Well. We'll figure out ways to stay occupied." Giving him another smile and then grasped the hand that was on her hip to lead him back to the living room. "What do you want in your coffee?"

Itzhak takes his bowl, and nips the piece of cookie from Isolde's hand, kind of drunkenly playfully making sure to lip her fingers at the same time. "I don't even have a TV." Oh. He doesn't. "I'll put on some music instead. Nothing in my coffee, if I'm gonna eat all this sweet stuff with it." He picks up his phone, swiping one-handed at it, clumsily. Classical violin music begins to drift out of the speakers he's set up around the space. "Tell me what ya been up to," he says, allowing himself to be guided with that hand on his hip, which is kinda distracting.

Isolde peered at the living space a moment. "...I'm spoiled at Alexander's." She chalks it up to. After so long of not actually watching television or anything - she's definitely taken forgranted that some people don't own TVs. Including her boyfriend apparently! "Music is even better though." She gives his hip an affectionate squeeze and sets her bowl down.

Releasing him, Isolde retreats back to the kitchen so she can put together black coffee for him and just a cup with just a little milk in it for herself. Heading back, "Being sick mostly." She gave him a playful little smile. "Checking up on the animals. I had lunch with my friend Cameron earlier today. That was nice. Catching up with her." And Isolde was again reminded that she needed to tell Itzhak about Cameron but it just really didn't feel like the right time. She'll see how the conversation weaves and if it came up, it did. If not, next time.

Itzhak slumps on the elderly, comfortable couch and leans back, arms draped along the top, head tipped back. Mozart plays from the speaker and he hums along under his breath, left fingers twitching. "Cameron, don't know her. How's Bennie?" He doesn't really know Bennie either, but he hasn't forgotten that Isolde told him she might have had a problem with her boyfriend. The ice cream melts a little into the cookies while he isn't eating it.

"She's my boardwalk buddy. When I got wasted that one night. We apparently fell asleep under the boardwalk together." Isolde chuckled, setting the mugs of coffee down and settling in beside him. "Bennie's okay I guess. She wasn't there when I went to the house last. So, maybe everything is okay now?" She hadn't heard otherwise at least. She takes a careful sip of her coffee before grabbing her bowl and curling up against Itzhak, sighing contently as she listened to the music. It was comforting to listen to. Relaxing.

"She was ...oh, wait, is Easton her boyfriend?" Itzhak squints, then shrugs. "She was all over him, anyway." Was Easton the boyfriend who caused a problem so bad Bennie had to hide at Alexander's? He doesn't know and without Gohl's unfocused rage fueling him, it's a lot less important. He's got a great focus for his rage now, and it's that he had to break his violin to get rid of Gohl.

He lets his arm drop around Isolde's shoulder, cuddling her against his bare chest. Then he cracks an eye at her, giving her a faintly amused look. "You fell asleep with this girl under the Boardwalk? Izeleh." His tone is teasing.

"I dunno? He might be?" Isolde shrugged a bit, taking a bite of ice cream. She really had no idea! There's a giggle as Itzhak teases her and she relaxes against his warm, bare skin. "We were fully clothed! That's the important thing." She mock protests. "She's really pretty though. And nice. And I think she's got some abilities but she thinks it's magic? Like She's a witch." Isolde mused. And well, really, they all might as well be witches. "Though. If the pictures were anything to go by, we got pretty wild." Wiggling her eyebrows at Itzhak, teasing him back a little and then paused. "Can I tell you something? Are you in the mood for being told things? It can wait. If you're not."

"Oh there's pictures now." Itzhak finally picks up his bowl to take a bite of ice cream and slightly disintegrated cookie. He's not exactly relaxed, more like doing things that are supposed to be relaxing in the hopes that it works. He's tense and tired and there's a hard knot of sorrow under his breastbone. But to be here alone with Isolde, with comfort food and music playing, is better than to be roaming the streets in a state of fevered heartbreak. ...Or so he's telling himself. "I mean, if this isn't magic, I dunno what else to call it. Yeah, tell me things. Bring it on."

"There are! Maybe you'll see them one day." Isolde winked, relaxing a little into the couch as she watched him. Still a touch of concern for him lingering, she couldn't help it. But at least he was here. "Yeah, I guess it is magic. Sorta. Without the wands." Thinking on that briefly. Then was quiet a moment on how she wanted to present telling him. "...I slept with Cameron. Like, a few days or so after the Boardwalk thing. It just kind of happened. And I like her, and hanging out with her. If you're okay with it, I want to keep seeing her some. Like how you and Rebecca are?" Breaking off another piece of cookie to eat it.

Itzhak's eyebrows pop up in surprise. "Ya did?" But then he's grinning at her, that edge of restless anger pushed back. He hugs her one-armed. "Happy for ya, sweetheart. You deserve all the love you want. 'Course it's okay. You can sleep with whoever you want. Date whoever you want. It don't matter to me. ...I put that wrong," he says reflectively, "it's not that it don't matter exactly. Ugh, it's hard for me to think of the right words. The point is, yeah you don't gotta worry about me. I like you havin' other people. I figure that way you always got someone to turn to, yannow? I'm kinda bad at being that person for anybody."

Isolde relaxes a little when Itzhak grins. She really wasn't sure what she was expecting his reaction to be, but she's glad it's a positive one. Not that this means her initial reasons for reaching out to Cameron for help with particular mischief were going to be stopped. Because, you know, mischief was important and all that. She returned the hug and gave him another smile. "I know what you mean. Having people...it's a good thing. But you've been good at being that person for me, you know." She leaned in to steal a quick kiss. "It's funny." She says as she settles back. "She has another person already too...so it's like. One big circle of people." There's a little giggle. "I want you to meet her. Sometime. Soon maybe."

"I'm tryin'," Itzhak says, a little plaintive, and returns the kiss gentle and soft. And prickly. "You know I ain't gone steady with anyone for years? It's real easy for me to just kinda sink into doing my stuff, forget about anything else, get laid when I got the itch. That's what I've done for a long time now." The kiss is sweet with ice cream, too. He steals another one from Izzy. "But I'm tryin'. Sure, I'd love to meet her."

"You're doing good." Isolde let the kiss linger for a second or two longer. "Ain't like I have either. Well. Only time ever was Emory I guess." Her brow furrowing as she thought it over. Then gave a slight shake of her head, as if putting those thoughts back up on the shelf. "I like what we have. Being with you feels easy." Snagging another bite of ice cream before setting the bag down. "Soon then. Maybe we can get a drink or something sometime."

"Stupid heart's been broken so much it don't hardly work anymore. Wish it was an engine. I could rebuild it. Just gotta gimp along on half a cylinder." Car analogies! Itzhak sighs while Isolde kisses him. "Sure. You gotta meet Bex, too, if you want. I like whatever it is you call this, with you. I like you, frosheleh." He tips his forehead against hers, eyes closing. "Roen says I fall in love easy, you know? Guess it's true."

"I believe eerything can be healed, fixed, if it's given enough time. And I'm here to help you fix it. And Rebecca too even maybe. All the people who care about you." Isolde spoke softly as she relaxed against him. "I like you too. Lots." She reaches out to take his hand and curl her fingers against his. "Nothing wrong with having a big heart. It's their loss if they don't reciprocate." She paused a moment. "I'll meet her. If she wants to meet me. Seems only fair."

"She..." Itzhak hesitates. Shakes his head. "Nevermind. If you don't wanna, it's okay." He twines his fingers with Isolde's, pulls her hand to his chest to hold it there. "I'm lucky, yannow?" he tells her quietly. "Lucky I got people who care about me. Lucky I got you."

Unlucky in a lot of other ways, but he's ignoring that.

"No...I do. I just," Isolde pauses, because she doesn't want to get into the real reasons she's been reluctant to meet his other woman. Because they're mostly selfish. "I just don't want her to feel uncomfortable or anything?" She offers up. "She's important to you right? So...I want to meet her." Isolde resolves, giving his hand a gentle squeeze. "And we're lucky to have you. I'm lucky." Mirroring his answer sincerely, feeling the thrum of his heartbeat faintly as her hand was laid on his chest.

"Okay," Itzhak says, completely missing that what Isolde says may not match entirely what she thinks. "Maybe I can meet Cameron at the same time." He pulls her hand to his lips to kiss her wrist, his mouth cooled form ice cream, his eyebrows poignant. "I'm gonna go back to New York for a week or so soon. You want you should come with?"

"Like...a double date?" Isolde blinks at the suggestion. It was an interesting one to say the least...but also maybe less awkward than a trio in any form. "Sure. I'll ask Cameron what she thinks. I'm sure she'd be down for it." Then she grinned a bit at the next question. "Yeah. I'd love to. I want to meet your family. Think around Halloween time? Or maybe more Thanksgiving time?"

Itzhak laughs low. "A double date? Yeah, like a double date. I'll bring mine and you bring yours. To be real honest, Izeleh, that's kinda the best part of running things this way. We get the best of everything, you know?" He escalates to nibbling. "Maybe Thanksgiving. I gotta work it out with my sister and ma. They're gonna love you."

Isolde makes a pleased little noise as Itzhak nibbles at her wrist. "It is, kinda." She agreed. "I'll let you know. Maybe we can go out for drinks or something. Something simple." Kissing his temple. "Then, we should send a big care package of candy to your niece for Halloween time. With the cute ghost marshmallows and pumpkin Reese's and everything like that!" She suggested. "I hope they do. I'm looking forward to meeting them."

"Care package, you bet. I know you're crazy about them ghost marshmellows." Itzhak opens his arms, gathers Isolde up, and just holds her, rocking gently. "I just wanna hold you," he murmurs, to follow that up. And he does, wrapped around her while Beethoven plays and the cold bowls of ice cream sweat on the coffee table.