Chapter Text
People cheered as they entered the room, it was, after all, a party to celebrate some gig they had. The Arks’ fans were nothing if not loyal, that much being evident by how quickly tickets sold out.
On stage, it was easy. Easier to count patterns on fingers, disguising them to the beats of the music, easier to push aside the anxiety, and easier to be consumed by the environment. But right here, in this room full of strangers, it was not easy at all. At times like these, Jimmy would stick to Rowan's side, or Lister’s for that matter. But upon grounding himself with a hard blink, neither of them were by his side anymore. He wondered if Lister would be drinking.
It was probably obvious to anyone that Lister was an alcoholic, or at least that he liked alcohol a little too much. And if that was anything to go by, it meant that at a party like this, post-show, there would be alcohol, and Jimmy wouldn't be surprised if Lister was drinking it.
He excused himself from a very one-sided conversation with some blonde girl, not interested in hooking up with a stranger, or a girl for that matter, and made his way over to the drinks table, a little surprised when there was no familiar mousy hair. Lister was either off with some other person or was already throwing up. Neither of those scenarios seemed particularly pleasing to Jimmy. He fixed himself a drink, unsure on if he was actually going to drink any of it when he felt a presence to the left of him.
“Jimmy Kaga-Ricci!”
Jimmy turned, the voice making him feel even weirder about whatever was going on.
“Oh, Hey Magnet.” he tried to smile, but it came off as more of a grimace than he liked. “You doing alright mate?”
“Yeah not bad, you always throw the good parties.”
Jimmy hummed at this, unsure whether or not to say that he really fucking hated parties, that they tended to be Lister’s idea. That he’d rather not be around Magnet at all.
“I wouldn’t call them good, much less fun when you’re sober.” He replied, waving his cup slightly.
“Well it’s a good job Bird likes alcohol so much then isn’t it?” Magnet snarled, something akin to glee flickering in his eyes at Jimmy's reaction.
“I think I’m going to go, got people to catch up with.”
Jimmy attempted to turn away but got stopped by a hand on his arm. Déjà vu washed over him and he met Magnet's gaze.
“Come on it was only a joke, didn’t know you’d get so het up over your little boyfriend.” He laughed.
“Lister isn’t my boyfriend, we aren’t a thing.” Jimmy defended. “You think that it wouldn't have made international news by now if we were?”
This seemed to calm Magnet, who loosened his grip, sliding his hand up to rest on Jimmy's shoulder. “Yeah, yeah, ‘spose that’s right.” and then. “I meant what I said, about you being hot in real life.” and once again his lips were on Jimmys. Magnet was drunk, and not a very good kisser. Somehow, Lister was better at kissing even though he was normally much drunker than this.
“Yeah okay, bye Magnet,” Jimmy said pulling away, freeing himself from the grip and walking out of the room. Lister got shit like this all the time, Jimmy wondered how he coped with it. He didn't ask himself exactly why he had thought about Lister whilst another man was kissing him. He didn’t think he’d want to go through those feelings right now.
He sat at the kitchen island, realising a bit belatedly that he had left his drink in the other room. He lowered his head onto his hands with a breathless laugh, focusing on deeply breathing in and out. It probably wouldn't look good if he had yet another panic attack at a party.
“You’re in your head again.”
Jimmy raised his head just enough to see that it was Rowan and dropped his head back down. “Fuck off, let me be in my head.”
“What’s going on?”
Jimmy laughed, unsure of where to begin. “Later, not now.”
“Alright then,” Rowan sighed. “Oh, did you see Lister? He was looking for you.”
Jimmy met Rowan's eyes this time. “What? No, I haven't seen him.”
“He seems surprisingly sober for an event like this.” Rowan shrugged. “Must be important.”
“Yeah.”
“C’mon Jimjam what’s going on.”
“I’m in my head again,” Jimmy smirked, finding it amusing to see Rowan frown at the repetition of his words. “I’m going to find Lister. Don’t leave.”
Jimmy stood, deciding to pass by the balcony, just to check if Lister was outside after everything. Which he was.
He watched from the doorway as Lister took a drag of a cigarette, the end glowing brighter before smoke almost effortlessly spilt from his lips, a harsh grey against the dark skyline of London. It probably shouldn't have been so attractive, but even still the sight left a weird feeling settling in Jimmy's chest. He forced himself to step outside, moving to stand next to where Lister was standing.
"Hey," Jimmy said softly, laughing a little when he saw Lister jump. "Rowan said you were looking for me?"