Graham's comment about missing human psychopaths elicits a surprised laugh from Reid, though he's mid-sip when it happens, and he sets his mug down hard on the table so he can cover his mouth before he starts sputtering. There's truth in what Graham has said, a truth Reid can relate to, because even though he's come to a point where thinking about vampires as unsubs has become generally commonplace, he still has those moments of wondering how on earth this could have happened to him. When it comes to Darrow, explanations are few and far between, and Reid has come to accept that. He doesn't dwell too much on what he'd do if someone else from his world were to arrive here or if he one day woke to find the love of his life has been taken from the city. There are too many other pressing matters to occupy his mind, worrying about all the things that could happen hardly seems productive. Even so, he sometimes finds himself comparing this life to his old one, and the vast differences are beyond astounding.
Aside from the existence of vampires, there's also the fact that he's in a relationship with a werewolf, which is nothing like he could have possibly imagined before he'd been brought here. It's been a learning experience, though, one he's come to value because while vampires and werewolves may still be the thing of stories in his world, it's given him an entirely new perspective on how to go about his job. Profiling a vampire seems rather pointless from an unseasoned point of view but there are nuances in the creatures' behaviors, different needs and desires, and Reid isn't sure that it'll ever be possible to come up with a satisfactory record of those things with an undetermined number of factions at play, but he's been trying.
"I have contacts," Reid tells him, keeping it simple for now because he owes it to the vampires who have supplied him with information to keep them anonymous. When it comes time to talk to them again, he'll certainly be calling Graham to be there but until then, Reid doesn't want to risk losing whatever help they can get. "They haven't agreed to interviews on the record but if they hear anything that sounds like it could be related to the case, they get in touch with me. There hasn't been much yet. Whoever's in charge of this particular faction is very good at keeping things quiet, which I think is a fair enough indication that they're someone these vampires fear. They're in a position of power, and I imagine it doesn't turn out very well for anyone who tries to cross them."
He takes another sip of his coffee, the corners of his lips twitching at how easily Graham seems to find it to talk about his girlfriend. Whoever this Molly Carpenter is, she'd clearly made an impression from the start, and Reid knows the feeling. It'd taken him and Luke much longer to push past their fears before finally allowing themselves to be together but now that they've reached that point, Reid knows he couldn't have gone on for much longer anyway. He couldn't have kept his relationship with Luke platonic or watched Luke fall for someone else. It would hurt too much, even thinking of it now sparks an uncomfortable tug at his heart, but Reid knows he's nothing to worry about. Luke loves him, there's nothing he's ever doubted less.
"It's nice," Reid says, resisting the urge to roll his eyes at himself. "To say the least, I mean. I didn't date a lot in my world. I had a girlfriend a couple years ago, but she-- she was killed." And then he'd been forced to kill her a second time in the other Darrow, but he isn't keen on getting into that. "After that happened, I thought it was over for me. She was different, Maeve, you know? An incredible intellect, you could hear it in every word she said, and she was kind. I didn't expect her to come into my life but once she was there, I didn't want to let her go. So when she died, I figured I'd never be able to find something like that again. Not that I ever looked in the first place but that only made it seem more obvious."
He lowers his gaze to the table, briefly losing himself in the memory of seeing Maeve's face for the first and last time, but it gives way to Luke. The poems Luke had left for him, the evening in the abandoned amusement park, the first time they'd kiss, the glass sculpture of the Towers Luke had commissioned for his birthday, his boyfriend's lazy smile this morning when they'd woken up, it all comes rushing toward him in a blur of images, and he has to take a deep breath because he can feel his heart swelling in his chest.
"I was wrong," he continues. "When you say it's big with Molly, I know what you mean. I look at Luke, and I know. It's-- It's indescribable, how important he is to me. In a place so unpredictable, it's nice to know there's at least one person who will always be by your side."
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Aside from the existence of vampires, there's also the fact that he's in a relationship with a werewolf, which is nothing like he could have possibly imagined before he'd been brought here. It's been a learning experience, though, one he's come to value because while vampires and werewolves may still be the thing of stories in his world, it's given him an entirely new perspective on how to go about his job. Profiling a vampire seems rather pointless from an unseasoned point of view but there are nuances in the creatures' behaviors, different needs and desires, and Reid isn't sure that it'll ever be possible to come up with a satisfactory record of those things with an undetermined number of factions at play, but he's been trying.
"I have contacts," Reid tells him, keeping it simple for now because he owes it to the vampires who have supplied him with information to keep them anonymous. When it comes time to talk to them again, he'll certainly be calling Graham to be there but until then, Reid doesn't want to risk losing whatever help they can get. "They haven't agreed to interviews on the record but if they hear anything that sounds like it could be related to the case, they get in touch with me. There hasn't been much yet. Whoever's in charge of this particular faction is very good at keeping things quiet, which I think is a fair enough indication that they're someone these vampires fear. They're in a position of power, and I imagine it doesn't turn out very well for anyone who tries to cross them."
He takes another sip of his coffee, the corners of his lips twitching at how easily Graham seems to find it to talk about his girlfriend. Whoever this Molly Carpenter is, she'd clearly made an impression from the start, and Reid knows the feeling. It'd taken him and Luke much longer to push past their fears before finally allowing themselves to be together but now that they've reached that point, Reid knows he couldn't have gone on for much longer anyway. He couldn't have kept his relationship with Luke platonic or watched Luke fall for someone else. It would hurt too much, even thinking of it now sparks an uncomfortable tug at his heart, but Reid knows he's nothing to worry about. Luke loves him, there's nothing he's ever doubted less.
"It's nice," Reid says, resisting the urge to roll his eyes at himself. "To say the least, I mean. I didn't date a lot in my world. I had a girlfriend a couple years ago, but she-- she was killed." And then he'd been forced to kill her a second time in the other Darrow, but he isn't keen on getting into that. "After that happened, I thought it was over for me. She was different, Maeve, you know? An incredible intellect, you could hear it in every word she said, and she was kind. I didn't expect her to come into my life but once she was there, I didn't want to let her go. So when she died, I figured I'd never be able to find something like that again. Not that I ever looked in the first place but that only made it seem more obvious."
He lowers his gaze to the table, briefly losing himself in the memory of seeing Maeve's face for the first and last time, but it gives way to Luke. The poems Luke had left for him, the evening in the abandoned amusement park, the first time they'd kiss, the glass sculpture of the Towers Luke had commissioned for his birthday, his boyfriend's lazy smile this morning when they'd woken up, it all comes rushing toward him in a blur of images, and he has to take a deep breath because he can feel his heart swelling in his chest.
"I was wrong," he continues. "When you say it's big with Molly, I know what you mean. I look at Luke, and I know. It's-- It's indescribable, how important he is to me. In a place so unpredictable, it's nice to know there's at least one person who will always be by your side."