Chris
Human
LAPD Sergeant: Narcotics
And I won't let you drown when the water's pulling you in; I'll keep fighting, I'll keep fighting.
Posts: 407
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Post by Chris on Apr 9, 2012 21:17:04 GMT
"Okay," Chris said quietly and with another one of those fond smiles, "good point." As a general rule Chris tried to avoid stereotyping, but if Elle could make the joke herself then there was no harm in going along with it himself. Honestly though, he couldn't imagine Elle anywhere else, not now that she was in his life. He wasn't the sort to get so attached, certainly not easily and not with people outside of his line of work. In all the years he had lived in Los Angeles he had only formed solid, strong friendships with three people who didn't work with him at the station. Elle had managed to do in a short amount of time what others had tried and failed to do over the course of years.
"What are you thinking about?" he asked her, but it was gently that he did so; he didn't want to pry, or force her thoughts out of her. He cared though, and he could see in her eye something he thought he recognised, something he saw in his own eyes in the mirror some mornings. There was a light of nostalgia there, a thread of sadness but also affection, emotions that when combined made him think she might be remembering her father. They had talked about their fathers in the past, how they had both lost them at a young age and how close they had been with them.
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Elle
Human
Architect, Author & Presenter
Suddenly my eyes are open, everything comes into focus.
Posts: 119
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Post by Elle on Apr 9, 2012 21:37:18 GMT
"My dad," Elle admitted. "It just occurred to me that I might have bought it for him as much as for me." It wasn't something that she had thought consciously when she'd bought the building with the project in mind but standing there and thinking about Paris and thinking about her father she realised that whether she had known it or not he had been with her in some way when she'd made a lot of the decisions she had already settled on. It was strange really, she didn't believe in the supernatural or anything like that, but she did believe that her father would have liked this place and that he would be proud of her for where she had gotten herself to, for the fact that she had achieved so much on her own.
She smiled so that Chris would know she wasn't overly sad, turning her face to look at him properly again, not knowing that he had already guessed what it was she was thinking about."I wish he could see this place, that's all."
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Chris
Human
LAPD Sergeant: Narcotics
And I won't let you drown when the water's pulling you in; I'll keep fighting, I'll keep fighting.
Posts: 407
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Post by Chris on Apr 9, 2012 22:01:42 GMT
Another thing they had in common. Chris had made so many choices in his life because of his father, most important and influentially to become a police officer. He had excelled beyond what his father had been comfortable with, but in a way his decision to pursue a career in the Narcotics Division had been powered by his father, or more the loss of the man he had loved and respected dearly; when his father had died, his mother had developed a terrible addiction that had ruined what was left of the Tyler family. It was different to what Chris saw day after day, yes, but the effects drugs could have on a family were just as severe and devastating as those caused by alcohol. In losing his father, Chris had lost his mother as well, and he was bound and determined to stop that from happening to others, whether they be children, as he had been when everything had fallen apart, or adults. To him, it didn't matter.
"He would be so proud of you." Though Chris hadn't planned to say those words to her, they felt so natural and so right as he spoke them; he believed them with all his heart, and he looked her in the eyes, hoping to convey his sincerity in doing so. Chris might not have known Elle's father, but any man would have been proud to call this strong, determined, independent woman their daughter, of that he had no doubt.
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Elle
Human
Architect, Author & Presenter
Suddenly my eyes are open, everything comes into focus.
Posts: 119
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Post by Elle on Apr 9, 2012 22:26:02 GMT
For a moment or two Elle was quiet. Thinking about her father, thinking about the many things that had brought her to Los Angeles to this hotel, to her friendship with Chris, unlikely a thing as it was considering how wildly different their lives were, the deaths of their fathers aside. What she couldn't help thinking just then was how sad it would be if she and Chris had never met and how glad she was that he was in her life. Despite the topic of conversation she felt very lucky to be standing there in the hotel with him.
Elle put a hand on his arm and gave him a gentle squeeze with her fingers. "Thank you," she said to him sincerely. "That's sweet of you to say."
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Chris
Human
LAPD Sergeant: Narcotics
And I won't let you drown when the water's pulling you in; I'll keep fighting, I'll keep fighting.
Posts: 407
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Post by Chris on Apr 9, 2012 22:34:11 GMT
Meeting Elle was one of the best moments of his career, Chris had come to think. Yes, he had helped to overthrow terrible organisations, but there were always others to take their place. What had happened to Elle was awful, it wasn't something he would wish on anyone, any part of it, but it had allowed them to meet, and he genuinely believed he was better off now that they were friends.
In response Chris smiled, his eyes dipping down briefly to her hand on his arm. He hadn't even noticed that they were close enough for her to do that, that he had come to stand so near to her that she could reach out and touch him without difficulty. "I mean it," he said. "How could he not be?" His eyes had come to up to hers by that point, and he shook his head just enough to convey a subtle air of disbelief, as if the idea of anything else was just unfathomable to him. "Just look at this place. I don't know many people who would give it more than a second glance, let alone take it on as a project." Whether or not Elle realised it, that said a lot about her.
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Elle
Human
Architect, Author & Presenter
Suddenly my eyes are open, everything comes into focus.
Posts: 119
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Post by Elle on Apr 9, 2012 22:49:22 GMT
Elle did look around when he said that, despite it not actually being an instruction. It really was a mess of a building, a building in crisis she would call it but as obvious as the problems with it were she couldn't help but fixate on the potential of it, of what the place could be if she gave it a chance. Perhaps that did say a lot about her, it certainly seemed to speak to her mindset, her optimism, it was thanks to her father that she was who she was today though, despite his early death and despite her being without his presence for so many years, his memory endured and his values remained.
How the evening had gone from dinner to Elle getting slightly teary-eyed in the burnt out remains of her rescued hotel she would probably never know but she had to blink slightly. The thing was that Chris knew what those words really meant, he had been without a father for most of his life too and he would know how the sincerity of his statement struck just the right chord. She waved a hand rather than speaking, her eyes cast down.
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Chris
Human
LAPD Sergeant: Narcotics
And I won't let you drown when the water's pulling you in; I'll keep fighting, I'll keep fighting.
Posts: 407
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Post by Chris on Apr 9, 2012 23:16:18 GMT
It was reassuring to individuals like Chris to know there were people out there who were like Elle, men and women who saw the potential in things, in other human beings and in places that had long since been abandoned. Elle still had hope, and that was something rare and precious, especially when you knew what was out there; the murderers, the rapists, the kidnappers and thieves and dealers and addicts. It was a terrible world to live in, but somehow there were still people like her who saw the brighter side of things, who saw the silver linings. He didn't know how she did it, and he both envied and admired her for it.
Without really thinking about it, Chris reached up and took the hat from his head, if only so he could bow slightly and get a better look at her face when her eyes dipped down like that without running the risk of spilling the thing to the floor. His hand touched her arm. "This place already means a lot to you. I can tell." Just briefly he glanced around the room in which they were standing. "If you want my opinion, I think you should keep it when everything's finished." His eyes came back to her face. "You deserve it." Chris offered her a warm smile.
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Elle
Human
Architect, Author & Presenter
Suddenly my eyes are open, everything comes into focus.
Posts: 119
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Post by Elle on Apr 11, 2012 21:26:45 GMT
When he touched her arm she raised her eyes a little to see that he had taken his hard hat off so that he could look at her. If anything his hair looked even more rebellious having been trapped under the thing. "Keep it? Really?" Elle asked, smiling gently at him, speaking softly now. "You think?"
Keeping the hotel hadn't really been on her radar purely because it was so far away; there was a lot of work to do on the place she had to get through all of the trials and tribulations that would throw up before she could even begin to seriously consider what she would do with it once it was done. Selling it would have been the natural recourse, she would make back the money she had pumped into it and could go on with her life but maybe he was right. If she felt this attached to it now she had a feeling when she was done nursing it back to health she would feel even more sentimentally compelled to protect it.
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Chris
Human
LAPD Sergeant: Narcotics
And I won't let you drown when the water's pulling you in; I'll keep fighting, I'll keep fighting.
Posts: 407
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Post by Chris on Apr 11, 2012 22:56:36 GMT
"Really," he said with another small smile. In all honesty she deserved a lot more than a renovated hotel, but this was the sort of thing that made Elle happy and so Chris was all for her keeping it. Besides, he had a feeling she would miss it sorely if she went on to sell it, maybe she would even deeply regret such a choice, and the last thing he wanted for her was more disappointment. Chris didn't think that was right, not by a long shot.
"Promise me you'll at least think about it." It was her choice at the end of the day, it was a big decision and one she would have to weigh carefully, but Chris trusted to her judgement; he just didn't want her to hold back on giving herself something as big as this, for whatever reason. Elle had asked him for his opinion on this project, and now there it was, out in the open, hers to do with as she pleased. Chris just hoped she took it into consideration when the time came to decide one way or the other.
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Elle
Human
Architect, Author & Presenter
Suddenly my eyes are open, everything comes into focus.
Posts: 119
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Post by Elle on Apr 11, 2012 23:28:23 GMT
For a few moments Elle considered him and his words, at first she was smiling, almost laughing softly at the mere suggestion of keeping the hotel but then Chris seemed to be so serious about the idea and he wanted her to promise. She sobered somewhat and tilted her head into the light a little bit, watching him.
"I promise," Elle nodded a little. She really would think about it seriously; if Chris thought it was a good idea then maybe it did bear more weighty consideration earlier on in the process of restoring the place, Elle trusted his judgement above "You know you shouldn't take that off in here," she added after a pause, placing one of her hands on the hard hat he's removed. "It's against regulations."
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Chris
Human
LAPD Sergeant: Narcotics
And I won't let you drown when the water's pulling you in; I'll keep fighting, I'll keep fighting.
Posts: 407
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Post by Chris on Apr 11, 2012 23:49:21 GMT
"Good." It was practically mumbled, an automatic -- albeit still heartfelt -- response more than anything else, as was his small nod that came as a kind of accompaniment to the single word of acknowledgement. When Elle gave him her word on something, he knew that she would keep to it; she wasn't the sort to break a promise, at least not through any fault of her own, and he believed that she really would consider the matter at length, weigh all the variables and the pros and cons, before she came to any sort of decision one way or the other.
His gaze dropped momentarily to the hat he held now in one hand, his chuckle soft and his shrug light. "It's your site, isn't it?" he asked her, bringing his eyes back up to her face. "Here I was thinking you made the rules." She hadn't mentioned rules, regulations were something else altogether, but it didn't matter either way. If there was any serious danger Elle wouldn't have let him take it off at all.
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Elle
Human
Architect, Author & Presenter
Suddenly my eyes are open, everything comes into focus.
Posts: 119
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Post by Elle on Apr 12, 2012 0:10:12 GMT
No, she wouldn't have let him take it off at all if they weren't in one of the safe parts of the hotel. Technically they should have kept them on while on the premises no matter where but she did know he building like the back of her hand and she would make sure that they were both wearing their hats when they made their way out of the place again. For the time being she was more focused on the conversation at hand.
Elle gave a little sigh and lifted her hat off her own head too, raking her free fingers through her hair. "If I were to keep this hotel," she said, evidently still thinking about what Chris had suggested, "you'd have to be my first guest."
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Chris
Human
LAPD Sergeant: Narcotics
And I won't let you drown when the water's pulling you in; I'll keep fighting, I'll keep fighting.
Posts: 407
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Post by Chris on Apr 12, 2012 0:46:56 GMT
Knowing Chris' luck, whatever happened, a hard hat probably wouldn't do him much good anyway. A knock on the head wouldn't have been the worst injury he had sustained in his life; given that he had taken a bullet once in his career -- once too many in his opinion -- he wasn't too worried about a possible concussion, especially not in that moment. Right then he was focused on Elle and topic onto which they had stumbled.
"I am already, aren't I?" he asked her, looking around and then back at her face, his smile easy and comfortable, brows raised just a fraction. It might not be finished yet, but he wasn't here in an official or business capacity, so in his eyes that made him a guest. "Either way," he went on, "you can count on that." Honestly, he wouldn't have it any other way, and given that he might end up being responsible for her owning a hotel, it was the least he could do.
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Elle
Human
Architect, Author & Presenter
Suddenly my eyes are open, everything comes into focus.
Posts: 119
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Post by Elle on Aug 27, 2012 20:22:08 GMT
"Well, I mean in a room with sheets and furniture," Elle laughed. "Not charcoal and dry rot." Which was what about eighty-percent of the place was at the moment. What she had in mind was having her friends stay there before the place opened officially. She supposed, briefly, that the fact she was sort of making watercoloured plans for the future was a good sign that she really did want to keep the place. It was an investment. Her father would have approved and that was a nice feeling.
"But, good. I'll even put you in the presidential suite," she imparted, smiling.
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Chris
Human
LAPD Sergeant: Narcotics
And I won't let you drown when the water's pulling you in; I'll keep fighting, I'll keep fighting.
Posts: 407
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Post by Chris on Sept 30, 2012 17:31:03 GMT
Chris laughed too and nodded his head as if to say that made sense, it would no doubt look and feel much better when it was finished. As it was he felt comfortable enough here and now, no doubt because of Elle's company, she had always made him feel at ease and like there was nothing to fear from just being himself. Chris didn't often let all those official walls down and relax, really relax. In his line of work that could be a hazard, he had to be on his guard and at his best at all times, always alert and cautious. There was no room for relaxation, not like there was here when it was just the two of them and no danger to be found, at least not in the same sense as there was when he was on the clock.
"The presidential suite?" His brows lifted and he smiled with a small tilt of his head, interested and amused both at the same time. "Wow, I don't think I've ever stayed in a presidential suite before." He didn't have to think about it but he pretended to anyway, taking his eyes from her and gazing out of that big hole in the wall. "It'll make a nice change from sleazy motel rooms." Not that he spent a lot of time in those either but he'd been in a few over the years. Just part of the job.
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