Hello There

In Steven's opinion, Layla was the person that Marc and Steven would be if they combined all of their good qualities and ignored all of their bad ones. She was the most wonderful person he had ever met, and he wasn't just saying that because she was his girlfriend (and, admittedly, one of the only people he had ever met). She was genuine, clever, and she knew how to deal with people. Which was, admittedly, a department in which both he and Marc were severely lacking.

Not only had it been Layla's idea for Marc and Steven to meet Jake, but it had been her idea on how to coax him out. Since she knew him rather well, she knew that Jake was reserved, but he tended to open himself up more around Marlene, which was how Steven found himself dressing up to have dinner for five at his flat.

He held up two ties to the mirror, one being black with cartoon pyramids on it and the other being a light blue with a drawing of a hippo in its center, which reminded Steven fondly of Taweret. "Which tie do you like more?" He asked his reflection.

Marc crossed his arms. "You realize neither match that shirt, right?"

They were wearing Steven's navy blue button-up, the only nice shirt they owned. Marc had gotten rid of all his nice clothes after he moved out of Layla's, which was understandable considering that he really hadn't needed any, and Steven had only bought the shirt for his interview at the museum. It reminded Steven that they really needed to buy new clothes. "Yeah, but I think both still make us look dapper, dunnit?"

"We'd look more dapper if you picked a tie that actually matched," Marc quipped. "Why are you dressing up anyway? I thought they were coming here to eat."

"It's called respect, Marc. Not sure if you've heard of it." He settled on the hippo tie in hopes that Layla (and Taweret) would appreciate it. "Do you want to cook tonight? I know you've been dying to try those veggie burgers I make."

He let Marc front, who finished tying the tie, despite being vocal about his disdain for the thing. "Yeah, if you don't mind, of course."

"Not at all, mate. I'm sure Layla and Marlene will appreciate the fact that you tried for them."

Marc had not been quiet about his anxiety about the dinner, which Steven could understand. Neither of them knew anything about Jake other than what Layla told them and of course, the times where either Marc or Steven had gained control right after him. Steven hadn't forgotten the bodies in Cairo, the bloody mess left on his hands in the Alps, the glazed over look left in Harrow's eyes. Steven was equally as nervous to meet Jake, but he refused to let Marc talk him out of it. Besides, it was usually Marc who kept Steven calm, so he decided it was only fair that he be the one to comfort Marc this time. It helped, too, to know that Jake couldn't hurt them without hurting himself, and he didn't seem to be the type to do such a thing.

"Please don't tell me if I mess something up. I'm going to make these things right."

"That's what you said about my lentil soup, too, and we both saw what a bloody disaster that was."

Steven knew that Marc still ate meat when Steven wasn't co-fronting with him, and how much it sucked for Marc to mostly give up his eating habits, but he still appreciated the fact that Marc always tried to be respectful of Steven's beliefs, at least when Steven was around, so he never called Marc out for being hypocritical. He enjoyed the domestication of their lifestyle, and even though Marc wasn't yet used to living a "normal" life, Steven was doing his best to teach him. He even took to teaching Marc how to cook, even if Marc didn't enjoy it as much as Steven did.

When Layla finally knocked at the door, Marc let Steven front to greet her. Steven put the lid on the pan so the food could simmer and happily skipped over to the door. "Hello, love," he greeted, kissing her on the cheek. She was wearing a lovely floral blouse and a short, white skirt that felt slightly out of place in the London weather.

"Hi Steven," she said, offering him a smile before reaching up to peck his lips. "I love your tie."

Steven grinned with delight. "Thank you! Marc wasn't sure you'd like it."

"I did not say that, I just said it didn't match our shirt," Marc said, taking over. "And don't you dare encourage him." He pointed an accusatory finger at Layla, who just giggled.

Marc made his way back into the kitchen and let out a small sigh of relief. He had never met Marlene, and he had admitted to Steven how nervous he was about it. Steven was definitely the more sociable one between the two of them. Marc talked to people only when he needed to, and while Steven was definitely socially awkward, he at least did his best to engage in conversation. Thus, Steven had agreed to let Marc sit out until he got to know Marlene a little better through conversation with Steven.

Layla pushed a stack of papers across the table so she could sit down, and Steven fronted again. "Oh, bollocks. I forgot to clean the flat. So sorry. Oh gods, Marlene is going to think I'm a slob, isn't she?"

"Don't worry, Steven," Layla reassured. "Marlene is really excited about being able to properly meet you guys. I don't think she's going to care. Honest." She gave him a small smile, and Steven felt his worry melt away. Layla of course always knew what to say.

Marc took over, turning back to their dinner, mumbling obscenities as he realized that the burgers were slightly more blackened than they were supposed to be. He had never been a good cook, and he had truly no idea how Steven had gotten so good at it. Marc had never really had to cook himself dinner before, first being reliant on military dinners, then on Layla (who was a good cook). In the year since Cairo, Marc had gotten slightly better at it, but he had in no way become good.

He was just setting the table when there was another rap at the door. Marc tensed, then forced Steven to the front. Layla, who had been watching their body language, stood and made her way to the door. "I got it," she said, and both Steven and Marc mentally thanked her. Steven took a deep breath and looked over at the door.

"Hi Mar!" Layla said, hugging the woman tightly before inviting her inside. The baby bump was not at all noticeable while she had clothes on, and Steven felt his face flush as he tried to shake away the memory of her naked body.

Marlene grinned at her, then waved at Steven. "Hi, Steven with a V. It's so nice to meet you when we're not naked in bed together."

Steven's blush grew deeper and he silently begged that she wouldn't keep bringing that up. "Uh, yeah. Hi Marlene," he said awkwardly. He almost pushed Marc to the front, but he had made a promise to Marc, and that wouldn't be fair.

Layla and Marlene both giggled and sat at the table, Layla helping to clear Steven's clutter off of the table so that each of them had a place. He put the burgers on the table in front of them. "Marc made these so if they taste awful, that's why."

"Hey!" Marc called out from the headspace, and Steven smiled a bit. He sat down across from Layla so that he didn't have to look over at Marlene and waited for the two of them to finish dressing their burgers so that Steven could dress his.

"So uh... what's Jake like?" Steven asked, still trying to not look Marlene in her eyes.

She chuckled a bit. "From what I know about you, the total opposite of you." Steven pursed his lips. "I don't mean that in a bad way, of course. I think you're both lovely. I just mean that he does things much different from how you do."

"How?"

She took a bite from her burger and pondered a bit. "Well, you're very awkward and soft-spoken, for example. Jake, while reserved, isn't afraid to speak his mind when he wants something. You wouldn't hear this from him, but he's quite passionate about things. Not tangible things, per say, but justice is big example. He keeps up with a lot of court cases. He probably could have been a lawyer had he not a criminal record." Steven nearly spit his food out of his mouth. "This is very good by the way."

"I'm sorry, did you say criminal record? He has a criminal record? In his name?"

Marc fronted suddenly, taking Steven by surprise. "Actually, that'd probably be me."

Marlene smiled at him. "You must be Marc Spector. It's a pleasure to meet you." She reached over to shake his hand, and he hesitated before taking it. She gripped his hand tightly, but warmly, and Marc decided he liked her vibes. He nodded at her in acknowledgement. "And, to answer Steven's question, no, Jake doesn't have a criminal record in his name. He works as a taxi driver on the weekends, so it's important to him that he keeps his license."

"A cabbie, huh?" Marc looked back at his burger and took a bite. He hummed in approval, but it was a bit bland for Steven's tastes. He'd have to remember to try some of that spice that Layla really liked.

Suddenly, Steven and Marc both felt an unfamiliar presence in the back of their mind, and Steven fronted, looking over at Layla. He hoped his wide-eyed glare was enough to convey what he was thinking.

There was a brief moment of pause, where everything seemed to slow down, and when Steven blinked again, he was back in the Innerworld.

Steven didn't spend much time in the Innerworld. It was a very stuffy place to be, in his opinion, and he much preferred being co-conscious with Marc. Still, he had spent a bit of time there since shit had gone down in Cairo, at Marc's bequest. Marc was no therapist, but he told Steven that getting to know the Innerworld was important. At least, that was what he had been told, apparently. Thus, it was a familiar place, but that didn't mean Steven really knew his way around as well as Marc did.

And he had certainly never been there with Marc before.

"Steven?" Marc asked, clearly just as surprised as Steven was.

"Marc?" Steven shivered in fear as the familiar feeling sank in. "Are we... dead again?"

Marc chuckled. "Not this time, buddy. We're both in the Innerworld."

Steven blinked in confusion. "Well, if we're both in here, that means..."

A sigh emanated from the other man. "Yeah. Jake has the body."

Steven crossed his arms, thinking for a moment. "Do you think if we go back up there Jake will run away?"

"Not if Layla and Marlene do their job correctly."

They both stopped for a moment, then Steven reached over and pulled Marc in for a hug. Marc was taken aback for a moment before finally returning the hug.

When they pulled away, Marc gave Steven a puzzled look. Steven rubbed the back of his neck. "Sorry, I just... I haven't had a chance to do that since we... yaknow. And it feels good to hug my best friend."

"It does," Marc agreed, and they stopped again, standing there awkwardly for a few moments.

"Should we... try to spy on Jake and the girls?"

Marc nodded. "Let's go."

They carefully made their way back up to the headspace, where Jake was still in control. Layla and Marlene were cleaning up the dishes, seeming to have just finished up their dinner. Jake must have felt the presence of Marc and Steven, because he immediately began to pull back. Marlene noticed his attempt to dissociate and grabbed his hand, snapping Jake back to reality. "Where are you going?" She asked.

"I have to... Marlene I can't stay. Marc and Steven are here. They can't... I can't let them..." Jake trailed off. Steven noticed that his accent was similar to Marc's but it had a slight twinge to it that he couldn't quite place. It sounded familiar, somehow.

Layla smiled at them. "Why do you think we're here?" She asked, and Jake's eyes widened with fear.

Steven saw it as an opportunity to step in, and he placed himself into the reflection of the mirror that was sitting across the room from them. "Hey, mate."

Jake flinched, his head turning immediately in the direction of the mirror. His eyes widened at the sight of the reflection. Steven knew that Jake was aware of him and Marc- Marlene had confirmed that when he first met her. Still, Steven remembered the feeling when he first realized that his reflection was not his own, and he knew it took some getting used to. Jake didn't say anything to him, so Steven decided to keep speaking. He gave Jake a small smile and wave. "Hello! I'm Steven Grant. And that's Steven. With a V. But I'm sure you already knew that. You knew of us. But you didn't reveal yourself. We had no idea you existed until recently."

Jake blinked, then looked back at Layla and Marlene. Layla was occupied with dishes, and Marlene was watching him carefully. "Uh... I gotta... I'll be right back," Jake said, before rushing off to their bathroom and locking the door. He glared at Steven, who now stood in the reflection of the bathroom mirror, waiting for Jake to respond. "You weren't supposed to know about me," he answered.

Steven smiled sheepishly. "Ah, yeah. I figured. I sort of woke up in Marlene's bed and she told me everything. Well, mostly everything."

Jake mumbled something in what Steven assumed was Spanish and kicked the sink. "She wasn't supposed to fucking tell you. We talked about this."

"Hey, mate. Don't get all grumpy with her. You're the one who kept yourself hidden from two blokes that you share a body with. It was inevitable we found out, yeah?"

"It was not supposed to go like this," Jake grumbled, pacing the bathroom. "How could I have lost control like that? How did I let you wake up before me?"

Steven didn't know how to answer, so he just shrugged. He wanted Marc to say something, but the other man seemed content to let Steven do all the talking. "Why didn't you want us to know?" Steven asked, but he had a feeling that he wasn't going to get a straight answer from him.

Jake sighed. "Because Marc didn't want to know," he said vaguely, confirming Steven's suspicions. He cocked his head and glared at Jake, trying to get the man to say more, but he refused.

Steven blinked, and suddenly he was no longer staring at Jake through the reflection, but was back in the headspace, looking through Jake's eyes at Marc, who was now in the mirror. The answer had been enough to get Marc to crack, he supposed. "What do you mean?" Marc asked, and Jake flinched at the voice, before scowling at Marc.

"It's... a long story," he answered.

"We got time."

Jake scoffed. "We used to know each other. As kids. Then... something happened. And you forgot about me. Steven forgot about us both."

Steven hated how vague the man was being, and Marc seemed to hate it even more so. "We knew each other? What happened? What was the 'something'?"

"Listen here, hermano, just like how there are some things that Steven is better off not knowing, there are some things that you're better off not knowing, too."

"It's my body."

"It's our body."

There was silence after that. Jake was hiding things from them, and Steven wasn't sure he wanted to know everything, or at least not as much as Marc wanted to know. Steven had come to terms with the fact that he had been created as a way for Marc to cope with trauma, and it was important for the survival of the system that he not know everything. It seemed like it was time for Marc to have to learn the same. Though, Steven couldn't help but wonder how much Jake knew about their past.

"Can we continue this conversation later? I feel like a piece of shit leaving all of the cleaning for Layla and Marlene."

Marc nodded and blinked so that he was back in the headspace, leaving Jake to his own devices. Steven felt Marc slip back into the Innerworld, probably to digest the conversation they had, but Steven wanted to stick around so he could get to know Jake a bit better.

Jake sighed and made his way out of the bathroom, not even attempting to put on a smile for the two women. "How did your conversation go?" Layla asked him.

Jake shook his head. "Yous are cruel for not telling me."

Marlene shrugged. "We figured it was the only way you'd reveal yourself to Marc and Steven. We know how you are, love."

"Funny the thing I love the most about you is also what I hate the most about you."

She rolled her eyes at him. "Don't be so dramatic. You know damn well you wouldn't have done it on your own."

"There was a reason for that," Jake snapped, and Layla paused her dish washing to look at him. The man shook his head and shoved his hands into his pockets. He sighed again, then grabbed a set of keys that were hidden in a drawer that Steven nor Marc ever used. "I'm going for a drive."

Steven noticed as Layla and Marlene shared a look, but they didn't move to stop him.

Jake made his way out of the flat and down some streets that were unfamiliar to Steven. It was shady, dark, and a place that would have made Steven nervous. Jake didn't seem to care though, and after only a few minutes of walking, they approached a black cab parked at the side of a building. A familiar looking man approached them, and it took a few moments to realize that it was the living statue that Steven usually saw outside of the museum.

He smiled at Jake and Jake held out his hand to shake it. "How are ya, Crawley?"

The statue man- Crawley- nodded in acknowledgement. "Jake Lockley. Been a little while since I've seen you."

"Ah, been kept busy. The putas found out about me."

"Oh dear. Did Marlene or Layla spill the beans?"

"Marlene, kinda. Stevie woke up instead of me one mornin' and Marlene explained everything. It was my fault, though. Shoulda woken up earlier."

"How'd they take it?"

"Marc's upset. Stevie's still here listenin'. Watchin'."

Steven was surprised at the acknowledgement, but he didn't attempt to front like he normally would with Marc. He doubted that Jake would appreciate it in the same way that Marc did.

"Ah. Hello, Steven. Good to see you, lad."

Had Steven been fronting, he would have blushed. Instead, he spoke to Jake directly. "Ah, please tell him hello for me, would you?"

If Steven didn't know any better, he would have thought that was the hint of a smile on Jake's face. "He says hello."

Crawley hummed, then patted Jake on the shoulder. "Are you driving tonight?"

"Planned on it. Probably won't take any customers tonight, though. Just need to clear my head... kinda."

"You mean have a conversation with Steven?"

"...Probably."

Crawley chuckled, then stepped away from the car. "I'll let you get to it then. Be nice to him, please. The kid has a good heart."

"Yo sé eso. Buenas noches, Crawley."

With that, Jake steps into the car and drives onto the main road.

It doesn't take long for him to acknowledge Steven. "Alright, Stevie. I know you got somethin' to say. What is it?"

Steven hums and doesn't attempt to place himself in a reflection this time for fear of Jake getting distracted. He had no idea how Jake was as a driver, but he'd rather not take his chances. "You're hiding something from us," he accused.

"Yeah, 'course I am," Jake confirmed. "Ain't your business."

"Why not? Same body, innit?"

"Sure. Doesn't mean yous need to know everything about my life. It's my life, just like you had your life before you knew about Marc."

"But it wasn't really my life, was it? It was an assortment of lies that Marc fabricated for me that I thought was my life."

"Sure, but that didn't make a difference to you at the time, did it? I mean, fuck, I don't even really exist, and yet I've got a girlfriend and a kid on the way. How much of that is lies and how much of it is my own life?" Steven didn't really know how to respond to that. "This is the first time I've even tried to have an identity separate from you or Marc. I've spent my whole life pretending, taking shit in, embracing the pain. Now I feel different. Separate. Happy. Like I have a purpose other than just protecting us."

There was silence for a moment. "I'm sorry," was all Steven said.

Jake shook his head. "Don't be. I am sorry for not introducing myself sooner, if it helps. I just... this was mine. I finally had something that was mine. Something that made me feel like more than a fuckin' punching bag. Something that made me feel real."

Steven could tell that Jake didn't really want to be exposing himself like that, but he figured it was one of those moments where the words just tumbled out of his mouth. Steven liked to consider himself easy to talk to, maybe Jake thought the same. "You are real, Jake. Marc is real, I am real, you are real. Just because we share a body doesn't make any of us less important or less real than the other. We're supposed to be working together, yeah?"

Jake sighed, and Steven could feel some of the tension fall away. Their shoulders dropped a bit and their jaw wasn't as tight. "Yeah. I guess you're right."

That had been way more than Steven expected out of Jake for one night, and he hoped it wouldn't be a one-time thing. For now, though, he figured he'd stop pushing and allow Jake to finish his drive before they got back home. "Goodnight, Jake."

Probably despite himself, the man chuckled. "Goodnight, Steven."

Then, Steven left Jake be and slipped away to the Innerworld to sleep.