About two weeks had passed, and they'd all come to the conclusion that Risále really was harmless after Leon had done a secondary scan to check for trackers and they'd done a lie detector test on her. She passed with flying colors and was welcomed into the family with open arms. Life soon returned to normal for the others, a life with Risále in it.
"Hey, Owen…? Go back four doors and check the left corner?" Fenix asked, staring at the screen. He was slaying down on the bed, his controller inches away from the top of Owen's head.
"Uh, sure?" Owen replied and did as the other boy asked, "Did you see the monster or some kind of easter egg?" The two had been obsessed with video games from the moment they found them and had done everything possible to learn more about them. Back before they had escaped from where they were, they'd never heard of video games and had immediately gotten attached to the different stories and worlds of fantasy they could find in them.
Lumina and Mina were supposed to be there too, but they had to go clean the living room since according to Lumina, "No one ever vacuums this living room!" Which she had said while looking directly at Mina.
Mina had simply shrugged and downed her glass of wine. Risále looked so concerned that Lumina looked at her in pity, "Hey, it's happy hour somewhere, isn't it?" Mina simply asked as Lumina took the glass from her silently. Owen had left the room at that point, the last thing he heard was Risále's confused and concerned noises.
"I think I saw a key...Here, let me help," Fenix leaned down to wrap his arms around Owen and grip the controller. He was teetering on the edge of the bed, the only thing stopping him from falling was that most of his weight had been shifted onto Owen.
Owen tensed up at first at the sudden closing in distance between them and the intimate contact. Fenix seemed to notice and he tried to pull himself back up so that Owen had a bit of breathing room but Owen wanted to tell him that it was alright, and he could lean on him more. Deep down, he knew it wasn't a new feeling, it was something that had been there for a long time. It was always there, in the back of his heart, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it—
No, he knew what it was. He just didn't want to accept it.
Suddenly, the screen vignetted and the character jumped up right in front of the screen. Owen flinched a bit and lurched back, crashing into Fenix, who fell forward off the bed with a scream from the jumpscare.
The two boys groaned from the pain of falling, Owen falling backward and Fenix falling down. Fenix groaned and sat up, rubbing his side that he had fallen on. "Well, Jesus Christ, I didn't see that one coming," Fenix breathed.
"Damn it. I knew it would be hard," Owen groaned, leaning back, and hitting his head on the bed behind him.
"That's what he said," Fenix grinned, and Owen rolled his eyes, looking at him. Yeah, that was definitely his best friend.
"Did you really just, Fenix?"
"Hey, if you let Leon say it all the time with no comment, then why can't I?"
"That's because Leon is a wild card and I can't tell him to do anything. No one can. You, on the other hand, do listen to me occasionally," Owen's cheeks were flushed red. At that point, Fenix was squished uncomfortably behind Owen, his legs aching to be stretched.
"I think it's more than occasionally, thanks for noticing," Fenix muttered as he moved his legs so they were on either side of the boy. Fenix's words did not make Owen's face any less red. If anything, his entire face was red now.
There was some room between Fenix and Owen, so the younger wasn't practically on his lap. Fenix grabbed the controller and Owen sighed as he rolled his eyes, "Seriously, are you really not getting up? Ugh, it's hot as well. Don't kill us both, die alone," He said, annoyed while looking at Fenix. The older boy simply shrugged.
"I mean, are you uncomfortable?" Fenix asked, not wanting to force anything on the younger boy. He didn't want to push any of their boundaries. They were friends, but closer than any friends could be. They had been through so much together.
"No…." Owen said hesitantly. Was he uncomfortable? No. Was he a little frightened by how fast his heart was racing? One hundred percent, yes.
Fenix had been his rock for so long. He couldn't stand the idea of losing his friend to something like his stupid feelings. He'd rather stay the way they were, ignoring that feeling if it meant nothing would change. Nothing would change for the better but at least it wouldn't change for the worse.
"Then why do we have to move? It doesn't have to mean anything," Fenix said, not noticing Owen panicking at all. The younger had to thank any celestial being for that.
Fenix had always been extremely touchy and openly affectionate with Owen, so why was it different now? Fenix was like this to everyone in this base except Risále, but he just needed time to get to know her better. So, why was it that only Owen felt like this? Why was this happening? He was able to ignore it for so long so why was it flaring up now—
"Owen—Owen!" Fenix half yelled to get the younger boy's attention. Owen jumped but shook his head rapidly, trying to clear his brain. Fenix put his hand on Owen's, trying to direct his hands on the controller.
"It's in the corridor at 5'o clock, keep running!" Fenix said, and Owen did as he said. After dodging the monster a load of times, and almost getting caught and having multiple heart attacks, they finally managed to get out of the building they'd been trapped in.
Suddenly, the screen turned off, and Owen groaned in relief and leaned back. He tensed slightly.
Of course. Of course, he'd forget that Fenix was completely behind him.
And all of a sudden, all those little moments of intimate contact between the two of them started to feel different to Owen.
"Oh—Uh, sorry," Owen stammered. Fenix waved it off.
"Dude, don't worry about it. It's fine, it's not like we haven't been this close before. Why are you apologizing, this isn't any different from before?" Fenix seemed truly confused, and Owen was lost for words.
"That...That's fair. Yeah, you're right," He sighed, "Anyway, I guess we should go check on Lumina and Mina. Maybe there's something we can help them out on something."
Meanwhile, in Sector 2, Xander was barely managing to stop his boyfriend from killing someone, "These damn bastards sure are getting more confident. I even said that I'm your boyfriend and they still…I made it damn clear that you're mine," Kaedan muttered, as Xander put him down and they started walking away from the bar. They hadn't really gotten the information they were looking for, so there was really no point in staying for much longer. Xander leaned down and pressed a butterfly kiss to the corner of his mouth.
"Or, you know, maybe you've been acting a bit more aggressive than normal these past few days?" Xander asked.
"No, I haven't," Kaedan snapped back quickly, but then within the next second, he turned to Xander, sighing, "Have I been more aggressive recently?"
"I mean…I guess you could say we haven't interacted with new people in quite a while so it's been a while since something like this has happened," Xander added, "Besides, it's kind of hot, and you know how far is too far," He said, squeezing Kaedan's hand lightly, the shorter man resting his head on Xander's shoulder.
"Listen, you could have also broken up the fight earlier, if I recall it was you that was egging me on," Kaedan glared at him.
"Well, I just wanted that man to know what would happen if he disrespected you and what was yours," Xander replied innocently, "Besides, you know if someone aggressively hit on you the way they hit on me…"
"Whatever you would do to them is probably something that I can't think about now because we're in public and I can't make out with you. But it would be hot, too," Kaedan rolled his eyes, but he was struggling to hold his smile back.
He subtly slipped his hand into Xander's, not going further than letting their fingers brush together. Xander smiled softly as he felt the warmth of his fingertips.
"Everyone's been stressed lately, have you noticed? I mean, that sudden panic attack from Owen—Which he hasn't really had in a while—And Lumina's been having nightmares even though she won't talk about it," Xander rolled his eyes and sighed. Kaedan looked at him with pity and leaned up to press their lips together.
"You're doing a great job, you know, with her. You always have. You're all she really has, you're more like a parent to her than she wants to admit. And you how kids can be, they don't want to tell their parents what's bothering them out of fear of making their parents feel bad," He said. Xander took his hand and gently kissed the back of it.
"Darling, I don't want to alarm you, but I think you're actually gaining brain cells," Xander said, smiling.
"What? No. What makes you think that? Xander, have you forgotten that our group has a total of three brain cells and you have most of them?" Kaedan reminded him so seriously that Xander started laughing.
"You're absolutely amazing, you know that?" He asked. Kaedan grinned and mockingly struck a pose.
"Oh, hell yeah, I know. I'm the best, aren't I?" Kaedan said jokingly. "Though in all honesty...I did want to ask you something…" Kaedan said, his tone taking on a more serious turn. Xander slightly tightened his grip on Kaedan's hand and turned to him, Kaedan's back facing the streetlamp.
The taller man looked at him, "What is it?""
"Well, remember what I said when we first got together? I warned you that being in a relationship with me could get you into a lot of fucked up situations? I just—I need to know if you're sure about it. I know, it's really random to bring that up now but I can't help but notice that they're keeping a closer eye on us in Sector 3. I just need to ask and with going back to Sector 1 and...Well, my father hasn't been all that silent about who he wants support from. And you know that they'll take him up on it. I guess this is a warning but…He's not going to let me go easily. And if they get Sector 2 involved, you know who else will probably stick his nose in here. I know you've been through some shit, so you think you're alright with all of this, but it's exhausting, isn't it? I'd understand if you're reconsidering being with—" Kaedan said softly.
Xander turned to him and held both his hands, not even daring to allow the other to finish his last words.
"Kaedan, listen to me. Back in Sector 1, I helped you because I wanted to. You could have paid me with the whole stronghold, and I would have rejected it—I mean, even though it was falling apart, you know what I mean. I found you interesting at first, and that became endearment. God, I was lucky you forgave me after everything that happened. Trust me, I can't even think of reconsidering being with you. After all the effort I went through to get you back? In fact, if anything, I want to…" He paused, "Sorry, that wasn't important. I love you, alright? And as you said, this isn't new to me. I'm a widely feared ex-assassin, I'll be fine," Xander smiled while explaining.
Kaedan reached over and wrapped his arms around his boyfriend's neck, burying his face in his shoulder, "...I can't come that close to losing you again. I wouldn't be able to take that again. Please be careful. Don't…Don't do anything stupid for my sake, alright?"
"I promise you, I'll do my best, baobei," Xander replied softly, and he pushed forward, connecting their lips gently. Then, he placed a soft kiss on Kaedan's nose, "The same goes for you. Don't take any unnecessary risks for me, alright? I can't stand losing you either. Don't forget, I'm sickeningly in love with you as well," He tapped Kaedan's nose as the other man laughed, "Now, I was going to ask, where the hell are we going?" Xander asked.
"Do you really think I have any idea?"