content warning: mention of apartment fire
Edit 5/25: a series of one liners about viking era sexuality because I'm a massive nerd
MILOŠ
The Czech Republic is just about as interesting as when I left it. Jan and I spent all morning scrimmaging at the hockey rink I grew up in, I got to sign a jersey and hang it up on the wall to be a sort of testament to the rink of "hey we raised a pro player" all that.
There's just something missing about all of it, I've got my dad, he's nice but quieter, I've got Rey and that's really what started this.
I know Håkon's on the plane.
I know I know I know he's on the plane and he needs time to go home and breathe and collect himself.
But as I back myself into the pillows set up in this bed already, I'm like 99% sure he's one of the things that's missing. Him and the hollow wood smell he has. I feel like he would really round out everything right now.
That and my mother. However she would be an absolute atomic bomb to bring into this situation. I love her dearly but my father would not survive.
HÅKON
I turn my phone back on again after landing, the sweetest and most adorable voicemail dropping into my inbox as I do.
I walk up the ramp, jetlagged as hell, exhausted, all that, it's midmorning but it feels like late afternoon but it doesn't really matter.
"Hi Håkon," his voice is a little tinny over my earbuds. "It's late here and I should be asleep, in fact I'm pretty sure I'm gonna regret sending you this on account of how delirious I am. You were right, I sunburned a little. But I love you, so much." He yawns on the other side in the recording. "Mmm and right now I miss you because you'd cuddle with me in this little bed no matter how cramped it is and I'd be able to snuggle into your chest and call it a night and fall asleep because you'd be there. It's almost pitiful how attached I am to you but that's what you get, you let me fall for you and now you've got all of me, all the weird clinginess on top of it. I miss you." there's a slow breath. "M'gonna go to sleep, get yourself some rest and you know where I keep my spare key if you need to get into my apartment for whatever reason. Mhmm, nevermind, go get yourself a fresh hoodie if you have the energy, the Boston one has to be gross by now. And then sleep and have some coffee and some Advil and then get on those workouts. I wanna come home and get my ass whipped by you because you're ahead of me in workouts already." There's another yawn. "Also I like your thighs."
I turn a little red in the airport terminal, walking my way toward baggage claim.
"Anyway," he drawls out. "I love you, I love you, I love you, go take care of yourself, be good, be nice to yourself, I love you. I'm so fucking tired oh my god. I love you, again, good night."
I play it again before getting home.
And then I triple check that it's in the save category and not the auto-delete one.
And then I get my exhausted body over to the rink for what's about to be one of the worst workouts of my career.
It does turn out to be one of the worst ones ever. My arms are jello after one full set through all my exercises which is awful because normally I can get through three. My legs are a slight bit better but I blame that on Milo entirely.
I'm halfway through a set when the door opens.
"You're back," It's Paxton, not who I was expecting, but I guess it's better than Ukko.
I pull out one of my earbuds, stringing it around my neck. "Yeah,"
"Why? I thought you and Rocks were in Sweden most of the summer."
I shake my head, doing another rep before saying anything. He really came at a bad time. "Rocks is in the Czech Republic catching up with his dad, I got into an argument with my parents so I'm home."
His eyebrows go up. "Was it bad?"
"Nah," I rack the bar. I'll redo it later once he leaves. "Just inconvenient." I pull the straps off my wrists and set them on the bench, sitting down next to them. "A long time coming but still a shock to the system."
"Yeah, I get what you mean. So he's... off?"
"Yeah," I nod.
"Things still going alright with him?"
"Yeah?"
"I dunno you just seem off."
"I'm jetlagged, I just got in this morning." I yawn. "And I'm a little weird after what happened with them."
"How long have you two been apart?"
"Five days." I answer, almost too quickly.
"Well that's the issue," Pax laughs. "You're codependent on him."
"I know, I know." I sigh, leaning back on the bench. "Irritating how much of an imprint that guy has on me."
I swear the look that crosses his face is beyond amusement.
"What."
"He's dominant, isn't he."
"So what if he is? That's not your business." I stifle a slight laugh. "Yeah, fine, he is."
"That's fucking adorable." Paxy laughs. "I knew he would be, but that's amazing."
"Zip it about my sex life." I try, but I'm a little delirious and laughing feels nice. "Doesn't help that he's a cocky bitch about it either."
"Oh god," Pax looks over at me. "You're telling me you left with a cute and funny Rocket and I'm getting back a cocky Rocket? I did not sign up for this."
"He's fine," I laugh. "He's just Rocket."
"I never thought I'd live to see the day where I could look at you and genuinely see you ridiculously in love, but here you are all starry eyed." He crosses his arms. "Simp."
"Shut up," I laugh, reaching my foot out to kick his shin.\
Gage stares at me for a slight moment, "you know how mad your little viking ancestors are about that?"
"About what?"
"That he's taking the upper hand, if you will?"
I frown, wiping my hands on the sides of my shorts, "why would that... what?"
"Vikings, right? You're entirely northern European."
"Yeah?"
Gage smiles, the same smile he uses when he knows he knows something that one of us doesn't. "In Viking times up north, the highest offence you could call someone- a man- was a bottom."
I stare at him blankly, mentally waffling between never speaking with him ever again and inquiring about gay Vikings.
"I think the word was sansorðinn," it comes out weird but sounds vaguely like Swedish, "implying that a man was of female position in bed. The punishment was death."
"Great," I grumble, "homophobic Vikings."
"No, no, they were completely alright with gay people, in fact I think it was a little encouraged. They just weren't cool with bottoms. The lines of ancient sexuality more so followed that of man, as in giving, and woman, as in receiving. Not man as in man and woman as in woman."
I frown, "so it wasn't considered gay to have sex with another man."
"They didn't have a concept of being gay, really, just a concept of sexual interest and sexual drive."
I sigh, "so you're telling me that if I take back the reins on this that my ancestors will stop rolling around on their burial ships?"
He stifles a laugh, "no, I'm telling you that someone, somewhere, probably in Valhalla-"
"Valhalla," I stop him and pronounce it correctly.
He raises an eyebrow, "sorry, princess, Valhalla, is probably slamming down a mug of mead over your little Slavic friend."
Honestly, some of the stuff Gage spits out sometimes scares me. "Did... did ancient Slavic people and Vikings fight?"
He shrugs, "yeah, sometimes, probably. Everything was super mixed up. Maybe you even had a great great great something who was also in a relationship with a random Slavic warrior."
I feel a funky little pang, "oh."
"Probably kind of likely, too, considering the intermixing of Europeans during that period of time. So maybe someone in Valhalla-" he gets it right this time, "is cheering you two on sitting next to their funky little slavic boyfriend too."
I have to fight a little to hide my smile, "how do you know all this?"
"Dude," he rolls his eyes, "I swear every time I pull something out like this, people forget I went to fucking Harvard."
I snort, "and did they offer an ancient sexuality course at Harvard?"
"Yeah," he laughs, "I set the curve repeatedly in that class, not to brag."
"You're bragging."
"Hey, anyway, have you been keeping tabs on the rest of us?"
"Nah, not really, why?"
"Nico got approved for the Olympic team, Fen's still in Colorado with her, they've had some interesting photos on the Team USA Instagram of him training with them."
I roll my eyes. "Fenrir in his natural habitat."
"Yeah, absolutely," Pax pulls in a breath. "So that's one end, you and Rocks have been keeping track of each other, obviously he's been keeping track of Steph so you probably know his surgery went well. I guess the biggest thing is Jorgen. We're not sure if we're getting Jorgen back next year."
I look up at him. "We're not? What is he doing?"
"He's been working for Chicago East EMS most of the summer and he's got a kid. Did you miss the kid?"
"Rocket saw that in the chat but I was driving at the time, so yeah kinda."
Pax nods. "He's got a seven year old, apparently, I mean the kid's adorable, but that's now his only focal point, which makes sense. It's going well, apparently, but he's been working an actual EMT job for two months now and I overheard Bernie talking some stuff over with him in his office. Depending on what happens with that he might be dropping us."
"That sucks," I mumble. "Gonna miss him."
"Yeah, it's been going weird for him too, did you see the chat last night? Probably not you were on a flight."
"Right," I nod. "Also I barely check that thing, it's scary."
Pax lets out a laugh. "He was on the cover of the Chicago Tribune."
"He what?" I pull my phone out of my pocket. "What for?"
"I didn't read anything of what was going on, all I got was that he was front page material recently."
I'm busy scrolling back through texts until I find the attachment. "Yeah there he-" I cut out. "He wasn't on the cover for a good reason, look."
Pax leans down to read off my phone screen. "Apartment fire kills six, injures 4." He's silent for a moment. "Damn."
"Do you think he's alright?" I pull the phone back down again, looking at the cover of the article someone must've screenshotted. It's Jorgen, that's for sure, soot smeared up the side of his face, gloves on, EMS shirt, pants equipped with everything an EMT could need. He seems to be pointing someone in another direction, backlit. It's a ridiculous photo.
"That's an insane shot for the photographer, but." I pause, breathing. "Is he alright?"
I close out of the image, scrolling through the texts. Nico sent it this morning at 9. He responded at noon. "He's fine, just shaken up a little."
Paxton is quiet for another few seconds. "Can't imagine what he must've seen to shake him. It's Jorgen goddamn Hadley."
I shudder. "I can't imagine half the shit he's seen. I can barely handle my own blood and guts and all that. He's just out here doing that voluntarily?"
"Guess so."
"Ick." I mumble. "Should probably tell Rocket that the mood is not right today so he doesn't send unsolicited memes in the chat."
"Yeah you probably should."
***
short but it's a little filler while I ramp up the very end of this. (can you believe that? we're almost done)
anyway
-rabid