Devil's Gambit

Chapter 27

"Does he still talk in a southern accent?" Daniel snickered, and Jackie glanced at him with a playful smirk.

"Oh yeah, it's a natural accent actually, since we came from Missouri when I was young, but he definitely enhances it for the show."

"Howdy par'ner," Daniel turned to Elijah, mimicking a horrifically fake southern accent, and the other man gave him a deadpan look.

"Well, I think I'm going to head to bed now," Harley announced, trying to slow down his pace over to the sink so he didn't appear too eager.

"Yeah, I think Jackie and I are going to head up as well." Axel helped his girlfriend up from her chair, careful to maneuver her baby bump around the edge of the table. "Have a good night you hooligans," he grinned over his shoulder.

"You guys are such a bunch of grandmas," Daniel whined. "Eli, wanna go make a run for some rolling paper?"

"I don't really need any," Elijah muttered as he ripped up his napkin, earning an overly dramatic expression from Daniel, who furrowed his eyebrows and downturned his mouth as much as possible in an overly comical way. "Oh my God, fine," Elijah conceded quickly, his chair screeching against the wooden floor as he stood.

"Bye guys, be safe," Harley called as he dried off his plate and the two boys shuffled out the door, Daniel throwing a peace sign over Elijah's head. As soon as the door clicked close, Harley ran over to lock it before booking it towards the stairs, taking them two at a time. He paused as soon as he got to the top, scanning the area for Jackie or Axel, with neither to be found, so he made a sharp right turn down the short hall towards Lucas' room.

There was a dim light under the door, and Harley knocked gently, leaning closely against the door. "Lucas?" He called softly, waiting for a beat in the silence that ensued.

The carpet near the door creaked as it always did under Lucas' weight, and Harley's breath hitched as the door swung open, Lucas' towering frame in the threshold. Harley opened his mouth to say something, but two arms quickly wrapped around him and pulled him into the room, the door shutting quickly behind them. Harley was frozen as Lucas embraced

him tightly, his arms pinned to his sides.

Lucas rested the side of his face against Harley's head, kissing his hairline and his temple as he nudged his nose into his boyfriend's hair. His hold trembled slightly around Harley, but he couldn't help but hold onto him tighter, reassurance that he was there.

"Uh, Lucas-" Harley's muffled voice spoke up from where his face was smashed into the tall man's chest. "This is very nice and all, but you're kind of scaring the shit out of me."

Lucas removed himself slowly, bowing his head as he took both of Harley's hands into his own, squeezing them tightly. "Ever since those guys beat you up, I haven't really been the same. I just got scared. I'm sorry," he muttered, keeping his eyes downcast as Harley's mouth parted in shock, ducking down slightly to catch Lucas' lowered gaze.

"I'm here. I'm okay," Harley whispered, squeezing his boyfriend's hands. He was one second away from trying to unpack that confession with Lucas, but felt that at the moment, it was better to just accept and assure him instead. Lucas being vulnerable was such a rare occurrence, he didn't want to do anything to jeopardize his willingness to be open again in the future.

"I know. I know," Lucas gritted, but it sounded more like frustration with himself than Harley, and he finally let go of Harley's hands to sit down on the mattress dejectedly. Harley stood for a moment, ringing his hands uncomfortably before he joined Lucas, looking around the room awkwardly. Not much had changed since the last time he was in there, except that it appeared Lucas had cleaned up and organized a bit. His eyes settled on the tiny Colombian flag posted on the wall behind Lucas, and Harley figured he'd try his luck getting him to reveal more about himself given the man's current state.