Jules reached for the doorknob, but it was evidently locked since he had heard the click.
Regardless, he decided to knock a couple times, but stopped when he heard giggling inside. Against all his might, he grumbled curses under his breath and stepped further away from Reno's bedroom. It was true, he had been seeing Reno prior to starting to fall for Tessa. They had been great friends, almost like brothers, and one night when Jules was thirteen and Reno was eleven, a bit of sexual curiosity and comfort between the two turned into a sudden make-out session in Jules bedroom. Both decided to never speak of it again, but not speaking about it didn't mean it wouldn't happen.
Wolf and Draco's sides were amicable, and they would have constant gatherings and parties where all the older adults were hammered and unable to walk by the time the party even started. Thus, Jules were always at their base, had his own bedroom, and Reno and Jules were basically inseparable. Not only that, but they were still in school, and Jules and Reno would head to school and return back to the base together. Even Bronsted thought it weird how close they were, but both genuinely enjoyed each other's company.
Until one night, when they had been tussling and play fighting, Reno had been able to overtake Jules, and as he sat on top of him, both his legs at either sides of Jules, he paused for a moment and seriously took notice of his features. His sharpened jawline, his rounded dark brown eyes that glinted every time it hit the dim light in the room, the way his lips plumped outwards whenever he fell into his thoughts, which happened often when they wrestled. Especially the black disheveled sweaty hair that made Reno's heart thump every time he shook his head and droplets fell all over the floor.
He wasn't sure what had overtaken his body, but when he leaned in and connected their lips, Jules didn't even stay paralyzed for a moment. It was as if he had always wanted it to, and reached around the back of Reno's neck and pulled him in tighter, deepening the kiss in an instant. They were both newbies, not having much experience, thus the kiss wasn't as harmonious or melodious as it should be, but they were experimenting on something they never felt before. As such, both dove in with full intensity, letting their hands roaming over their clothes to areas they didn't know they loved being touched by another man, without once distancing their lips. However, when Jules started to reach for Reno's waistband and loosened his sweats, he felt Reno's entire body freeze and instantly stopped.
For a second, Reno seemed to realize what he had done and what happened, and instantly pushed him apart from Jules. Neither of them said anything, merely staring at one enough as they breathed heavily. Reno's hands tightened as he rapidly turned away, feeling his entire face warm. "I-I sh-should...uh...I should head t-to bed."
Jules slowly nodded his head, himself shocked that they had reached that far. One thing was certain though; they definitely had both enjoyed it. "Y-yeah...m-maybe we're just...both really tired." He chuckled uneasily, pushing himself to his feet.
The problem was that it happened the next night, and then the next night, the next night. Every time, they would get longer and longer, much more revealing and comfortable until Reno realized there were places on his body that he never knew he liked having teased by Jules. But they never spoke about it, merely put their clothes back on and Reno left the bedroom and Jules shoved himself underneath his blankets, trying to stop his mind from replaying his intimacy with Reno over and over again, but he couldn't from how giddy he felt.
The only reason they had to talk about it was when Jules, who had started high school, started getting attention, more attention than he used to. And one of the girls that did give him the attention was Tessa, who had recently left the base and hadn't spoken to any of her family members in years. Jules had been honest about the attention, but it did rub Reno the wrong way when he started hanging out with Tessa after school instead of returning to the base with him.
And suddenly, their nights stopped. Whenever Reno would come to see Jules, he would have an excuse.
"I'm really tired today."
"I don't feel like it, maybe tomorrow."
"I don't really want to, sorry Reno."
The only reason Reno figured out what happened was because he eventually asked the question, "What is this? What are we doing?"
Jules had raised his eyebrows in confusion. "What do you mean?"
"You haven't kissed me in over a month." That made Jules glance elsewhere. "You haven't been wanting to...do it...with me anymore..." The way Reno's voice coiled caused Jules to feel his heart clench. "Are you...are you still attracted to me?"
When Reno allowed himself to be vulnerable, it was the most adorable thing on earth, but also the saddest thing to witness. His eyes bubbled, rounding so wide as if he was a puppy, and it stung even more if they were glossy since it meant he was about to start crying. Not only that, but he usually didn't know whether to clench his hand into a fist, or keep his palm straight, so they would fidget by his side. And at that time, he was still young, thus he would, without realizing, suck in his bottom lip since he would be trying really hard to maintain his composure, but his nose would flare since he was trying to inhale and exhale from only his nostrils.
Jules didn't want to hurt him, but he had to tell him the truth. "I am attracted to you, of course I am." He lowered his head for a moment and exhaled a long sigh. "But I'm seeing Tessa, and I think I'll ask her to be my girlfriend."
Ever since then, Reno completely avoided and ignored Jules, storming away if he tried to have a conversation and locking his door if Jules ever tried to visit. That was the last time they spoke before Draco and Cesar had their disagreements and Cesar never returned to the base, and disallowed Jules from returning as well. Jules did want to go, but the hostility made Jules a target if he ever tried to visit, and that was how they were disconnected that long ago. The two sides continued to have scuffles and fights, thus there had been an instant when Jules had left Reno near death at a hospital, after they had a physical fight when they were both on a mission.
It wasn't until recently that they had rekindled their lost relationship, but there was still uncertainty from Jules. It wasn't that he didn't want to be with Reno, but there was something holding him back. Reno had been the only man he had ever done anything with—he wasn't even sure if he was attracted to other men. There was merely something about Reno that drew him in and made him want to explore, but he wasn't sure why there was a resistance in his mind stopping him from asking him to be his boyfriend.
Regardless, the only thing crossing his mind was trying to figure out what Reno was doing with that woman in his room. The giggling could have been from sexual teasing, but that did make him feel slightly better since there wasn't any moaning. Nonetheless, he had completely forgotten that Draco had informed him that his girl would be waiting in his bedroom, but the moment he pushed his door open, he realized why she had been hidden from the others.
Her black hair had been cut very short, barely reaching her jaw, and her eyes were dark and gloomy, as if she hadn't had any sleep in days. She was completely naked but it was clear the exposure made her uncomfortable, since she was seated on the bed with her legs crossed and her arms folded to hide her breasts. However, what caught his attention was the bruises along her flesh and the bold black eye that had been done recently and was healing, a nasty green mixed with purple and yellow, radiating outwards towards her cheekbone. As if that wasn't enough, the bold red marks on her wrists and ankles made it evident that she had been restrained for a long period of time.
Jules could have never expected this sight.
"T-T...Tyler..."