FF100 - Prompt 076 - Who?
Summary: Janson interrogates Hobbie about a date.


Originally published as "Interrogation"
Rogues: Hobbie Klivian, Wes Janson, Inyri Forge
Disclaimer: I do not own SW.

Extra Disclaimer: Written before Carr staked her claim. I'm sorry, Carr.

“Where are you going?” That had to be the thousandth time Janson had said that in the last five minutes.

“I told you, nowhere.” Hobbie glared at his roommate. “Don’t you have a prank to play or a woman to seduce?”

“Well, Wedge actually started cracking down on those kitchen duty threats,” Janson admitted, “And I spent all afternoon peeling potatoes and slicing carrots. I’m too mentally exhausted to devise any new pranks.”

“That never stopped you before.”

“Hobbs, that hurts. I always put lots of love and care into every one of my stunts,” Janson said. He leaped onto Hobbie’s bed and started to bounce on the mattress. What, he was too tired to come up with pranks, but not to act like he was three? “Where are you going?”

“What about seducing a woman, Wes? Why don’t you go to a bar, work your charm, and bring her back here. I won’t be back until late, and by then you should be done with whatever it is you’re going to do.”

“I smell like vegetables. Even the Wes Janson charm won’t compensate for me smelling like I spent all day in a kitchen. You know what women think when men smell like they were cooking, don’t you?” Janson continued to jump on the bed, then hopped across the gap in the center of the room to land on his own bed. “They think ‘oh, he’s a wuss.’ Make note of it, Hobbs, no woman will go to bed with a man she thinks isn’t a real man.”

“I’ll try to remember that.” He wondered what he had ever done to Wedge to earn him the right of rooming with Wes forever. Every mission, every barracks assignment…it was always the same. It wasn’t that Wes was extremely annoying, but it would be nice if he would act his age from time to time.

“Look, I know you have a date. You might as well just tell me who she is and where you’re going so I can tease you about it and be done with it.”

“If I do, you’ll follow us and make my life a living black hole.” Hobbie checked his wallet. That should be enough for dinner. “And you’ll chase her off. She’ll never want to see me again because you’ll ruin our date.”

“I promise I won’t ruin your date,” Janson said, dropping to a sitting position on his bed.

“You won’t think you are, but you will. You always do.” He shoved his wallet into his pocket. “I really like this girl, Wes, and I refuse to let you ruin this for me.”

“Do you love her?” The last comment only served to make Janson even more interested in his personal life. It just figured.

“I might. I don’t know.” He sighed. “It’s complicated.”

“What do you mean it’s complicated? You either are in love or you aren’t.” Janson slid his hands behind his neck and reclined so he was leaning against the wall. “The way I see it is, as long as you don’t have to see her on a regular basis, admitting how you feel won’t ever make things too awkward. Let’s say she shares your feelings. Then great, come back, kick me out – Force knows I owe you more than one night alone – and really get to know her. And if she doesn’t, well, then just don’t call her again.”

“I hear the Wraiths are on world. Can’t you go bother Shalla or something?” Hobbie really didn’t want to get Janson’s opinion on dating.

“I could, but what fun is that? I’ll bug her, she’ll hurt me, I’ll come back here to nurse my wounds, you and your lady friend will come home, and I’ll be too injured to let you have any privacy.”

“If Shalla’s beating you into a pulp, then you can’t be following me around all evening. Sounds like more than enough privacy to me,” Hobbie reached for his jacket. “And we won’t be coming back here tonight. She’ll go back to her place, I’ll go back to mine, and that’s that. You see, Wes, there’s a large part of the population who go on dates that don’t involve one night stands.”

“Sounds dull to me.”

“Good-bye, Wes.” Hobbie moved to leave.

“Look, it’s killing me, Hobbs. You’re my best friend and you refuse to tell me who this girl is that has you thinking about the four letter L-word. If I were ever in love with a woman, I’d tell you.” Janson pouted.

“That’s a rather big if.”

“Well, eventually I’ll reach the emotional age of 17, 18…”

That was never going to happen. It’d be a miracle if Wes reached the emotional age of 11. “We’re keeping it quiet because we work together. That’s all I’ll tell you.”

“Oh come on, that only narrows it down to like four women.”

“One of the women in the squadron is married, you know.”

“So?” Only Janson would fail to see why that made a woman unavailable.

“That’s a lot less than every female in the sector,” Hobbie pointed out.

“I’ll promise not to follow you.”

“You’ll find other ways to make our lives unbearable.” Did Wes Janson really take him for that much of an idiot? “What part of ‘we’re keeping it quiet’ is hard to understand?”

“Oh, fine, I promise I won’t tell.”

Hobbie just looked at him skeptically.

“I swear!”

“Swear on your X-wing.”

“I swear on my X-wing I won’t tell anyone.”

“And on your black book.”

Janson looked hurt. “You don’t trust me?”

“No.”

“Fine, I swear on my X-wing and my black book that I won’t tell anyone.”

“And on Lt. Kettch.”

“Hobbie! That’s blasphemy!”

“Swear on Lt. Kettch or I’ll call Wedge to distract you while I escape.”

Janson crossed his arms and pouted. After a minute, he sighed, “I swear on my X-wing, my black book, and Lt. Kettch that I won’t tell anyone.” He glared at Hobbie. “Satisfied?”

“Yes.” He slid into his jacket. “I’m going for dinner and dancing with Inyri Forge.”

Janson started to cough. “Inyri? How’d you pull that off?"

Hobbie just smiled and keyed the door open. “You promised on Lt. Kettch. Just remember that. Good-night, Wes.”

~*~