doesntsing | open post

"Of course. Wouldn't expect you to get in a cab without makeup." Just a bit of teasing. He isn't the kind of person who likes to go out without looking his best, either.

His initial idea is to clean his desk, but he notices where Midge is sitting and grins. He leaves the bundles of clothes on the chair before sitting on the bed next to her, the tray between them. Jaskier has brought her coffee like he remembered from their time at the cafe after their sex marathon, but he's having (a very aromatic) tea.

"Enjoying the view, I take it? If you want a 'taste of that'--" He waggles his eyebrows, grin still in place, tone joking. "Geralt made the bread and the jam." He then drinks his tea, amused by his own stupid joke.

She rolls her eyes fondly at his joke. “The only one I want a taste of is you.” Midge innocently sips her coffee (which he made exactly how she likes it, she noticed) and playfully rubs her toes against his calf.

“I know we can’t have sex here. I have a gig later this week though, so I hope you’ll be feeling better by then.”

Jaskier can't help wondering if that would still be true if Geralt was single. But before his thoughts can wander too far, he feels her toes on his leg.

"She says she knows, yet she teases. Mischievous lady." He nods while spreading jam on a slice of freshly baked bread. "Count me in. Honestly, I'm feeling better already. Today is recovery day. I'll probably be out and about tomorrow." He tilts his head. "Some musician friends told me about an art jam on the weekend. Would you be interested?"

Midge can’t say for certain if she wouldn’t rather be with Geralt, but the fact is that she and Jaskier have much more in common than she and Geralt do. There’s much more to attraction than just the physical and Jaskier stimulates her brain as well as her body.

She picks up a piece of bread and starts to spread jam on it. “What’s an art jam?” she asks.

"Oh Midge, it's this most amazing concept, I was so happy when they told me about it," he explains as his general body language gets rather bouncy. "Artists get together in a club or a bar and just... create! They drink and chat, bounce off each other's ideas. Build something together, or mayhaps simply get inspiration. Great to exchange phone numbers too." He takes a bite of his bread and chews it rapidly when he remembers something. "I guess I need to get those card thingies, don't I."

“Oh,” she replies. “Alright. I guess I can bring my notebook and work on some new jokes.” She’s needed to take some time to do that. Midge might be distracted by all the other artists present, depending on how loud they are, but it can’t hurt to go.

“I never really felt like an artist before I met you. Comedy isn’t seen as an art, you know. Not like painting or ballet.” She shrugs. “I don’t have business cards. Should I have business cards?”

He beams when she agrees to come, clearly very excited to have her there. He promises to send her the details later and takes another bite of his bread, almost choking when she mentions what art is.

"How can it NOT be art? You tell stories! You write! You need creativity! You need timing and charm to take control of the stage! You call out society for their crap! You make people think and feel new things! How are all those things not art? How is it any different from a comedic play? Your characters just happen to be your children and your ex."

Does she need cards? He thinks about that for a second. "I'm not sure how things with a manager work. Is Susie the only one allowed to make contacts?"

His words make her grin. He’s always so complimentary of her and what she does. Midge feels like he’s one of the only people who understands why she has to pursue comedy as a career.

“Thank you,” she replies. “I can make contacts if I want to.” She takes a bite of the bread. “Maybe I do need business cards. What would they say? Mrs. Maisel - Comedian? Would yours say Bard?”

That’s kind of amusing to her.

"Just 'comedian' works. I suppose we can't exactly add 'tits of a goddess'." He winks before taking another bite of his bread, thinking about his answer while chewing.

"Musician. Singer. Composer. Poet. Writer. Chronicler." Suddenly he wrinkles his nose. "I'll have to make a different set for Yennefer's and Geralt's services, won't I? Should I call myself their manager?"

“I could add it,” she says with a little smile, “but I don’t want to be hired just for my fantastic tits.” Midge has been working hard to book gigs because she’s actually funny, not because of how she looks.

“You’re multitalented.” Midge takes another sip of coffee. “How do you think they would feel about you considering yourself their manager.”

Odds are, not happy about it.

He chuckles. "We'll have to hide them. They're very distracting."

The question leaves him thinking for a second. "I don't know. The word is still new to us, we're trying to understand how it works. They want me to do all the talking with clients, promoting, and negotiating. Isn't that what a manager does?"

“Well, I don’t want to hide them completely…” Midge arches her back a little, pushing her breasts forward. Not to entice him too much, but she isn’t wearing a bra under her nightgown and her nipples show hard through the satin.

“Yes, that is what a manager does. I always think of the manager as the person who is in charge.” A beat. “But I don’t see Susie as being in charge of me.” The two of them make decisions together.

His eyes definitely go down, and he can't help but lick his lips at the sight. Jaskier hasn't had an orgasm in almost a week, and for him, that's a sin. "Like I said: very distracting."

He can't help glancing at her chest while the conversation continues, so he tries to keep himself busy by eating and drinking. "Yeah, that's the sense I got from what people I said, and why I wasn't precisely on board with the idea of getting one for myself." Another pause. "You're right, you don't let Susie be in charge of you. I'll talk to Yennefer and Geralt, see what they think. Nothing says we can't add our own spin to it, right?"

Fortunately, Midge doesn’t mind if he stares at her chest. She wants him, though she’ll have to be content with meeting at the apartment later in the week.

“Maybe you’re more of a spokesman,” she says. “Somebody who speaks for the group, but you’re not in charge.”

A gasp. "A spokesman is perfect. Oh, you brilliant, beautiful woman--" His hands reach forward, but he pulls them back at the last second. "Fuck. It's so hard not to kiss you right now. You're torturing me here, my witty lady."

She grins and closes her eyes for the kiss, but is sadly not rewarded. “You can kiss me,” Midge says, “unless you think you won’t be able to stop.”

Leaving him is going to be difficult today. It’s going to take everything in her to go and be responsible instead of dragging him off to the Goldsteins’ apartment. Jaskier needs to rest though. He’s still not 100% well.

"I won't be able to stop," he says. Yet he still leans in to press his mouth against hers, closing his eyes so he isn't tempted further by her lovely body. By concentrating on the sound of swords clashing outside, he manages to keep it chaste. Pulling back takes effort, and he ends up resting his forehead against hers. "Thanks, by the way. For playing nurse for me. Napping on your thighs was really nice."

She hums against his mouth, enjoying the kiss until he breaks it. At least he stays close to her.

“You’re welcome. I’m glad you’re feeling better.” Midge takes a deep breath and lets it out. “I was worried when I hadn’t heard from you… but I also wasn’t sure if you were just… busy.” With other lovers. “Or maybe you didn’t want to talk to me.”

It was a fine line between feeling like she was concerned and wondering if she was bothering him.

"Oh, darling..." Desperate for more touch but not wanting to push the temptation too far, he brings her hand up to nuzzle it. He's smiling softly, his heart feeling all fuzzy by her affection.

"What Yennefer told you wasn't a lie - during hunts, I may not always be available to answer. But even if I'd actually been busy-" He waggles his eyebrows. "There'd be nothing wrong with you messaging me. I'd just answer it when I see it. I promise you I don't expect you to answer me immediately, either, if you're with the kids. Or any other kind of busy." He'd pout a lot, because he can get annoying when he's attention-hungry. But that's not her fault.

Then he kisses her hand. "I love talking to you, of that you can be sure. Being a hedonistic bitch means I don't keep around anyone or anything I dislike."

She strokes the back of her finger down his cheek. “I love talking to you too,” Midge replies. “And sometimes letting our bodies talk instead.” Leaning in, she kisses his other cheek.

Midge smiles at him referring to himself as a hedonistic bitch. “You’ve been nothing but sweet to me.” Mostly. “I guess you must like me a lot.”

Her kiss makes his whole body shiver, and he lets out a little sigh. He likes sweet moments and small tokens of affection - not everything has to be about sex (no, really!). But considering the current context, he can't help but feel a bit frustrated. Hearing Ciri's laughter coming through the window is what helps him pull back.

"You're an absolute sweetheart, and it's contagious," he explains after another sip of his tea. "I joke a lot about corrupting you, but the real miracle is that you've managed to keep so much of the sweet housewife with you after so much time in clubs, the stage, and the harsh reality of the nightlife." He wrinkles his nose. "And you can't tell Geralt that I said that, because usually I'm the one trying to bring sunshine into this family."

But he's also seen the world, and had to learn to navigate what it's made of outside the family estate.

She loves to make him shiver like that. It’s comforting that even a small touch from her can make him react in such a way.

“It’s not an easy business,” Midge says, resting her head against Jaskier’s shoulder, “but I don’t want it to change who am I. I’d like to think I’m not naive about a lot of things, although you’ve perhaps changed my mind about that. I know showbiz is ruthless. I hope I can survive without becoming ruthless myself.”

"It's not only about the business," he clarifies. There's an awkward pause then. When he first talked about his family, he was high on fever. The second time was on text, and the devices help put a distance when it comes to difficult matters. Having to bring this up face-to-face feels different, but he's glad he can trust her with it. "It's also about living in the real world outside the family money."

Been there, done that; many harsh lessons were learned. Her comment on naivety makes him wonder if she means in general or regarding sex.

He grabs her hand and gives it a squeeze. "You have no idea how happy I am to hear that. I hope you achieve it, I truly do. It's always been my goal while traveling with Geralt, helping him see the brighter things in life while walking in the dark. And we're hoping we can keep Ciri safe in the sunshine, too, which is why we don't want to go back to our homeworld. But like I told you about morbid humor, there's no denying I've absorbed some of it." Cynicism, he means. He lets his head rest on top of hers. "Although I suppose my own family made me a bit of a bitch, too. That's the other amazing thing about you - you're not snobbish."

Midge wraps her arms around him, unable to help herself. “Even though my family has money, my parents always wanted me to be practical. I also never really looked down on people for being different. The way I see it, my people have been judged to the point of almost being wiped off the Earth. I can’t very well believe stereotypes about black people or gay people if I know that the ones about Jews aren’t true.”

She raises her head to look at Jaskier. “I haven’t met her yet, but I think all of you are doing a wonderful job with Ciri. You make your decisions based on what’s best for her, which is what you should do.

I’m no stranger to morbid humor, but there’s a time and place. I don’t want to live being cynical all the time. My comedy points out hypocrisy in what I hope is a funny way, but a way that still makes people think.”

And what else can he do but hug her back? He's weak. Sue him.

Her explanation makes a lot of sense, yet here's when Jaskier's world perception comes in - sadly, not everyone who belongs to a certain group is as accepting of other groups, too. He's met many bigoted elves and racist queers. Hell, the fact that he's here thinking she's very accepting for a religious person says this about himself, too. Is he going to say that aloud? Hell no.

The comment about Ciri makes him smile. "Thank you, darling. It means a lot to hear that." He kisses the top of her head, his body still itching for more affection. "You're right, it's not fun to be cynical all the time. That's usually my philosophy, too - I never meant to argue against it. I simply can't help being amused by how you see me. That's all."

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