The Metropolis Not!Vengers in... Location, location, location!

[stands_for_hope]

[continued from here]

Steve wakes up slowly, happy and warm and content enough he's not sure where he is at first. The clues he gets initially aren't helpful because they're such universal parts of his life, as far as his hindbrain is concerned, that they're just a part of 'how he should wake up'.

There's a warm body up against him, deep brown hair pressed up against his nose and mouth that smells like home, a ratty old mattress beneath him that's too firm for anyone but someone like him--

And a metal arm across his stomach. Huh. That shakes some things loose.

It doesn't halt the grin on his face, though. That's... probably never going away, or at least it won't be budging anytime soon (probably until Jim looks at him, disgusted, and tells him to 'stop lookin' like a loon'). Instead, he just reaches over to grab his phone from the the bedside table (amazing the things that survive a plain crash when they're kept in the right pocket) and peers at the time.

Huh. Nearly two. That's fair. But--

"Hey, sleepyhead. You get some good rest?"

Comments

[kolodnoykovki]

"Yep. Last time I saw so many beds in one place was my first barracks. And no way in hell were they that nice." It was a little intimidating - almost. "Let's just hope they've got one firm enough for us."

[justakidfrombrklyn]

"Did you want to put together your own frame or are we going to be grabbing one of those as well?" he asked as he headed up to get to the crosswalk.

[kolodnoykovki]

He'd gotten used to this particular flashback.

This one, where he saw the street, saw the street from the middle, saw an SUV heading toward him, and shot a single explosive disk, saw his aim utterly unerring.

Explosion. Smoke. Lift. One step, a breeze. And then he turned and walked toward the battered husk--

"I think we need a frame," he said, voice distant but growing more present with every word. "Just a simple one."

[justakidfrombrklyn]

Steve heard the difference, though, and reached back to settle his hand gently on Jim's shoulder.

"Simple and strong. We're both pretty big."

[kolodnoykovki]

Back to himself, he nodded. Slow and sure. "Yeah, we are. Futon fits well enough, but I don't think it's a size."

[justakidfrombrklyn]

"Probably best if we see what the sizes are like in the store and just judge there," he admitted as he walked across the street. Then they were at the door, which he opened as a matter of habit for Jim.

[kolodnoykovki]

Jim stepped through without thinking twice about it, looking around with a certain measure of disbelief. So many beds. A part of him was almost disgusted. So many here, and so few for the homeless people he'd slept amongst...

"Better than the barracks for sure."

[justakidfrombrklyn]

Steve noticed a bit of the hesitation, raising an eyebrow at him carefully out of curiosity before stepping forward, looking around for a bed that looked about right. After a moment of being unsure of what he could even start looking for, he trotted over to one of the folks who appeared to work for the store. She pointed him over to one of the sections of the store and Steve ran back, tilting his head in the same direction.

"She said the firm ones are over that way."

[kolodnoykovki]

Jim had been wandering around, pushing on some, and he'd stopped at a memory foam mattress that he just wasn't sure about. He pushed his hand in and watched the foam slowly take shape again. He tugged at a corner, sat on it -- and he hurriedly stood. That just hadn't been right.

When Steve came to tell him where the firm beds were, he gladly followed, leaving the memory foam behind. "That thing was just weird..."

[justakidfrombrklyn]

He looked at the label on the bed and nodded firmly.

"Oh those things creep me right the hell out," he admitted as he stepped away from the bed.

"It's like sinking into a marshmallow. Tony ordered one of those right off the bat and I slept on the floor for a week before I donated the damn thing and got a new one."

He shook his head.

"Doesn't help that they're hot as the hell on top of that."

[kolodnoykovki]

"And it felt gross," he muttered. "I can't even imagine sleeping on it. That's just..." This time, he shuddered exaggeratedly before poking a nearby mattress. "...Well that's better but not great."

[justakidfrombrklyn]

"She said the ones over here might work for me," because he'd kept it to himself because this was 'his' bed he was buying as far as the rest of the world is concerned.

He walked over to one of the mattresses that looked particularly firm and thin and pressed a hand in. He frowned thoughtfully before pressing it again.

"What about this one?"

[kolodnoykovki]

Jim pushed on it - then he sat on it thoughtfully. "Hm. Not bad. Not quite as firm as the futon." But a little more softness, they could handle - just... nowhere near the softness of that memory foam thing.

[justakidfrombrklyn]

He nodded and sat down next to Jim.

"I think I could sleep on this. A little softer might help with your arm as well, just a little softer."

[kolodnoykovki]

"Worth a try - but I don't think we should pick out the first one here. There's... what, about ten more?" He motioned to the rest of the section. "We can at least poke the other ones before we say we're done."

[justakidfrombrklyn]

"I'm just gonna take a look at the number so we remember it," since he agreed.

Then he was getting up and testing the next one.

"...well, this is definitely firm."

[kolodnoykovki]

"Can you knock on it?" He smirked when he shifted over and-- "Damn."

[justakidfrombrklyn]

"Might not be a bad idea since we're gonna break it in after all," he admitted.

"...I feel like I ought to see if I can bounce a quarter off it."

[kolodnoykovki]

"Wonder if you can bounce an anything off it." He tried a bounce, just to see if it was possible, and raised an eyebrow when the thing barely wiggled. "Okay, too firm, even for us breaking something in."

[justakidfrombrklyn]

He looked over at Jim with a little grin.

"You know, if we were wearing red, the next one'd be 'just right'," he pointed out as he stood up and headed over to the next one.

[kolodnoykovki]

"It's Goldilocks, not Red Riding Hood." He prodded Steve's arm. "And you already match."

[justakidfrombrklyn]

"Never could tell the difference," he pointed out with a little shrug before nodding to the next bed.

"So let's hope the blond luck stands, eh? Think it'll be just right?"

He stood up and slowly made his way over, sitting down on the bed.

"Hmm."

[kolodnoykovki]

"Blond luck," he repeated before flopping over onto the next one beside Steve. And he considered. "...Huh." Worth thinking about. He bounced just a little, evaluating.

[justakidfrombrklyn]

"Don't get much more toe-headed than me, especially when it grows out," and he gave it a bit of a bounce as well.

"Try the next one? I already got the number on this one, but if you like it."

Cause he kinda liked it.

[kolodnoykovki]

"So two of 'em on the list now?" But he moved to the next. "I like the first one and that one so far. Choosing between's gonna be a little hard."