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Part Eight

He didn't want a way out, either. Leo hugged his friend back with equal force (despite only being half his weight in muscle) and tightened his grip on the back of Skip's shirt. They stayed together for a moment, half inside the door frame and half out, before Skip let out a breath of relief.

"You're here," He whispered, close enough to Leo's ear to make out the words.

"Technically, you're here, because it's my house," Leo laughed out and released his grip with hesitation. When Skip pulled away to give him a classic Skip Glare, he only laughed it off and motioned to the luggage set before them.

"How was the trip?"

"About what I expected. Turns out my baby has worse gas mileage than I thought," Skip jabbed a thumb in the direction of his truck in the driveway.
"I'm glad you drove, though, my parents took the car and we still need to go places for the next month."

"So I'm your DD, is what I'm hearing?"

"Basically," Leo grinned. "Come in before the bugs get inside and I have to reclean the whole house."
Skip took two suitcases bulging with clothes inside, stepping away from Leo as he walked through the doorway to avoid whacking him with one. If he had, he was pretty sure Leo would fall to the ground.

"You're a lot shorter than I thought," Skip remarked, waiting for Leo to take the lead into his house and show him where to put his things. Leo only laughed in response, shaking his head and walking to the living room beside the entrance.

"Doesn't help that you look like the spawn of Hulk Hogan, huh?"

"Not at all," Skip smirked and released his grip on the luggage, taking a seat in one of the leather couches across a fireplace. The fire wasn't on, but he still felt an immense warmth spread through his bones from the minute he stepped inside. "Nice house."

"I'll tell my parents you said so. Any idea on when Eli's supposed to show up?"

"Nah," Skip settled back into the couch, rubbing a hand across the leather and taking a much needed stretch of his legs. "Knowing his luck, the Uber probably got lost."

"One can dream," Leo snickered to himself. "God knows I don't wanna spend any more time than I need to with that kid."

We're gonna have to alternate days to keep him entertained. I call Saturday's off."

"No fair, I want a saturday for myself!"

"We can alternate weeks if we need to."

"Sounds like a plan," Leo said and smiled at the sight of Skip getting comfortable. His friend was really here in front of him, and would stay that way for an entire month. Sure, they talked everyday over the phone or text, but actually seeing his facial expression move when he spoke and the way his piercings glistened under the warm light gave off such an amazing feeling that he didn't want to lose. Skip only just arrived, and Leo already couldn't bear the thought of him leaving. "You want anything to eat or drink?"

"Normally I would say no, but the drive was enough to render me useless," Skip replied. "Got anything non-vegan in this place?"

"Nope."

"I'll take fruit then."

While Leo left to grab an apple and a glass of water from the refrigerator's filter system, Skip checked his phone for any messages from Eli. What he didn't expect was two missed calls, a voicemail, and a variety of random keyboard smashing in the form of copious texts. Skip redialed and raised the phone to his ear.

"What's up, Eli?"

"The uber got fucking lost!" Elijah's voice screeched through the speaker. "The airport is only thirty minutes from Leo's house, and he managed to get lost! What the hell! So I requested to be dropped off at a fast food place nearby, and called another uber, and she's on her way, but still!"

"Sounds rough, kid," Elijah could hear Skip's teasing through the phone. "I just got here, but text me when you're five minutes away. I might even save you some food if you hurry."

Elijah was never one to pass up food. He hung up without a proper goodbye and shot a text to his uber, telling her to step on the gas or he wouldn't leave a tip.

Leo walked back into the living room not even a second later, throwing an apple to Skip who caught it with practiced ease.

"Was that him?"

"Yep, said he'll be here soon."

"Cool," Leo took a seat beside him. "Any ideas on what to do before he gets here?"

"Take the rest while I can have it," Skip joked, but it was clear to anyone who knew him that he was beyond excited to meet Elijah. "Got any card games or something? I feel like we could be here a while."

It took a total of twenty three minutes of playing Go Fish before the doorbell rang out through the house again, leaving both Skip and Leo to jump out of their skins with an eager awareness of who was behind that door. Leo was the first to move, standing up and dashing over to the front door, only to thrust it open the same he did with Skip.

Instead of a giant in his wake, Leo was left with...well...the opposite of one. Elijah had a mess of red waves piled atop his head, yet a clear face of pale skin that betrayed the fact that he wasn't a pure ginger. He mentioned dying his hair in the past, and Leo didn't rule out the possibility that he was only a redhead out of desire. Even so, he fit the look with ease.

While Leo was not only taller than Elijah in his element, he was also much more fit. Eli had bones made of sticks and clay, looking like they were about as brittle as a pile of chips left on the ground. His smile reached all the way up to his cheeks, leaving behind two dimples on either side, and his thin eyebrows raised in wonder at who was before him.

Leo, for his part, was the first to embrace this time.

He couldn't help but notice how happy he was at the moment, with a friend at his front and another approaching from behind. The connection he had between these two people went beyond anything he experienced before, and Leo was overjoyed to host them in his home for the next few weeks.

Almost as soon as he let go of Eli, Skip came barreling through and lifting the shortest kid up in a hug that rivaled one from a movie. Elijah's feet were lifted from the ground below him, relying on Skip's brute strength to keep them aloft for a few moments of bliss. After a minute of bear hugging it out, Skip was reluctant to place Eli back on the concrete, stepping back to avoid scratching an itch to hug him once more.

"So," Elijah grinned at both the boys standing in front of him. "Is anyone going to mention the eyeliner?"
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A/N: Tbh, when I first thought of the character for Skip/Zeke, all I knew was that I needed him to have eyeliner. It was a necessity. And I needed Elijah to make fun of him for it.
As always, feel free to let me know what you think! Thanks for reading! :)