Once I get up I feel better

[Artemis James]

Emotions were difficult to manage at the best of times, and unless you were skilled in masking them, were open for anyone who could read them like an open book. Artemis hadn't much practise in forcing his negative emotions back, and so often felt guilty when he was around Franck. The last thing he wanted was for his friend to suffer because of him... He'd already done far too much for him. He must surely know that, especially currently, if he was going to spend time with Artemis he would likely end up enduring some form of borrowed negativity... Yet still he kept company with him. But that was Franck... He was selfless.

Artemis took the last piece of his slice into his mouth, chewing it he watched his friend, eager to hear what his opinion would be on his suggestion. Thankfully he seemed positive, bringing a smile to Artemis's lips. "You... You actually know the person who owns it?" He expressed curiously; His smile however then fell at Franck's next words. He blinked at the other man, with eyes widened; Franck... Had gotten married? To a woman?
Artemis quickly shifted his gaze to his now empty plate, staring at a smear of chocolate, slowly drawing his fork round the plate and scraping off the smear as Franck continued. He felt strangely uneasy. Was it because he hadn't expected Franck to announce such a thing? Was it because he hadn't expected his friend to get married in such a sudden way? With a sickening realisation as he remembered that Franck was likely feeling every flicker of this, Artemis quickly snapped a wide grin to his friend. "Vegas and alcohol? Sounds like it was a fun time at least!" He gave a nod, joining in with Franck's casual laugh about the entire situation. He then gave a quick wave of his friend. "Don't worry, paintballing suits me just fine," He gave a resolute nod. "It's a date! It'll be good for me to get out and see how Kalispell has changed... I'm still getting my bearings, you know? The town is pretty different now." Artemis was inwardly thankful for Franck choosing paintball over the Kalispell night life... Paint ball may leave him physically exhausted, but he was far more comfortable with that then spending a night in some club.

[François Laffont]

Sometimes, Franck wished to say to people like Artemis to stop feeling bad for him. They were the ones feeling something negative and sure he could pick it up, perhaps even react according to it, but he could very easily let it go of him, unlike them. They were not his emotions after all. And he wanted for them to share with him, if that could help them feel better. He didn’t want them to feel bad just because he might share their emotions for a time. What he’d get from them was nothing to what they were dealing with.

Artemis might not know Franck’s secret when he felt down but the young man tended to smile even more when it happened. It was a nice way to chase away the gloom. In the end, he could even trick himself that he was happy. So if he was smiling right now, it was not just because of the good company but also because he was working on not letting any negativity that could come from the other man to get over him.

He seemed surprised that Franck knew who owned the paintball complex. “Sure, I do. It’s Frank and Ellen. They’re both good friends of mine. Well, Frank more than Ellen but that’s just because she likes to pretend she hates everybody,” he shared with him. If he told them he wanted to try it, he knew he could get in for free and enjoy everything they had to offer. Well, he would for free with Frank, Ellen might charge him something but he was certain he could convince her to lower her price a little or offer them more.

He knew the news of his marriage would shock Artemis. It shocked him. He was not the kind to get married and divorced a week later because it didn’t work. He considered it a very serious thing. And to do it with a woman... He felt rather uneasy at the emotions he got from Artemis though and shifted on the bed, doing his best to keep it to himself. He usually kept the little blows he got from an emotion he shouldn’t have picked up to himself. Artemis must have noticed though as he tried to recover and change the mood a bit. Franck chuckled, happy of the diversion. “It was. I... I was rather depressed after a trip to France so Frank thought I needed another one to cheer up. I should have known better but I really didn’t think it would go that far.” He chuckled again and shrugged at this after a moment. “Didn't mean to drop it like that but you might hear about it. Frank... she likes to take my name at times. She finds it funny to mess with people and have to Fran(c)k Laffonts, you know? Just thought it was best to tell you before you end up finding out on your own.”

Artemis than really changed the subject and brought it back to the paintball and Franck grinned at that. “I’m sure it will great. And you’re right. We can look around town too, or leave the exploring for some other time. Now that you’ve recovered, you’ve got all the time in the world to see the town.”