Ink covered his eyes with one hand and groaned. He should have tried to at least act like he was in a better mood. He knew people only saw his outside first. Not Amy, though. She'd seen through his tough exterior from the very beginning, the thought ran through the back of Ink's mind. And he still couldn't keep her.

He shook himself out of that line of thinking and knocked on the door again, “Hey, Moose sent me.”

“I don't know any Moose! You must have the wrong place!” The man's shaky voice said from directly behind the closed door.

Right. He probably wouldn't know Andy's gamer tag. Ink mentally slapped himself. He looked like a biker- okay, he was a biker, but he wasn't in a biker gang! Moose's tag made her sound like someone nefarious. He knew better! Get a grip, Ink!

“Andy. Her real name is Andy. I'm supposed to help protect you from your crazy fan,” Ink could tell his voice sounded anything but happy. But he couldn't quite pull himself together enough to change it.

A moment of silence, then, “You're Markus?” The poor guy's voice made Ink feel guilty.

“Yes. Sorry, man. I didn't mean to terrify you. I promise, I'm not a bad guy,” The programmer brushed fingers through his beard, then rubbed a hand over one of his tattoos.

The locking mechanism in the door flipped, and the door cracked open. Issac was still pale, and his entire body had little shivers of adrenaline aftershocks running through it.

Ink winced, another bout of guilt slammed into his heart, then he held out his hand, “Sorry, again. It's been a hell of a few months for me. I should have made sure Andy gave you a description so you'd be prepared.”

Issac shook his head, then took Ink's hand in his own and pumped it firmly. That surprised Ink. Even though the man obviously just had the bejesus scared out of him, his handshake was still steady as a rock. Ink's impression of the smaller man bumped up a degree.

“I made assumptions based on what Andy told me. I was expecting some preppy uptown designer,” Issac said with a self-mocking smile. “You'll be much more effective than what I was picturing.”

Ink huffed. It was almost a laugh. It was the closest he'd been to a chuckle in months. “Leave it to Andy to make me sound like that,” He continued to talk as Issac lead him inside, “I don't think most of the people at SRG really see my outside anymore. I'm just Ink to them.”

Issac froze, and Ink almost ran into his back. The larger man stepped back a pace, so as not to look too aggressive, as Issac swung around to look at him with big eyes, “You work at SlideRuleGames? But, Andy said you were a designer.”

“I guess you could call me a game designer,” Ink corrected, “We tend to be a more disreputable sort of designer, though really, I usually just call myself a programmer.”

A slow smile formed on Issac's face. Dimples slashed his cheeks, and Ink almost wanted to look away from the pure glee on that scruffy face. But the happiness was a lot better than the terror from moments before. Ink felt his inner tension and guilt begin to ease.

Issac rubbed his hands together, and Ink could already see the guy's brain working. He snorted, again, not quite a laugh, but closer, “Let me get settled in, then you can ask me any question you want.” His duffle was weighing on his broad back and digging into his shoulders; otherwise, he'd stand there and let the guy give him the third degree about work.

“Right,” The vlogger rubbed the back of his head and spun around. “Let's get you to your room.” He trotted up the stairs, and Ink followed him through a door.

The room was nice in an understated sort of way. It was also large enough that he wouldn't feel claustrophobic. Ink dropped the duffle at the foot of the bed, with a quiet sigh of relief. The weight of the bag wasn't anything he couldn't handle, but the straps still dug in uncomfortably. He turned to face Issac, “This is perfect for me, thank you.”

Issac shrugged and nodded all in the same movement. It made him look a little like a bird ducking his head. Ink found himself wanting to crack a smile and furrowed his brow instead.

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

“Um... I'm going to let you unpack,” Issac said, then left, shutting the door softly on his way. He had this sort of nervous energy where this big man was concerned. It was probably the adrenaline that still coursed through his body. Maybe the fact that he wanted to pick the man's brain of what it was like to work at SRG. Or perhaps it was having someone he didn't know living with him? He didn't know.

Issac had always wanted to work at a gaming company, though, but he didn't have the talent. His art skills were mediocre, and his coding skills were laughable, but it didn't stop him from wanting to. Of course, if he had that sort of talent, he wouldn't be making vlogs for a living. He shook his head again, to dispel such negative thoughts and made his way back downstairs.

For now, he would make the two of them some dinner. Hopefully, that would give him some time to settle his nerves. And give him time to think of some good questions. He'd grill some food, then grill his new roommate. At least that would keep his mind of the whole reason he needed a roommate, to begin with.