It was almost midnight before Vlad finally walked through the front door. Andres had the TV on mute to not disturb the kids who were sleeping and he changed the channel as Vlad dropped on the couch beside him with his bag.
The Colombian didn't dare look at him as he changed the kids station to something else. He could feel his stare on his face but didn't say anything until he did.
"No welcome home?"
"Your Ma left a long time ago."
"I know. I came home for you."
That made Andres sigh.
He left the channel on some news then dropped the remote on the side table before finally looking at Vlad. He wanted to stay void of any emotion, God he tried, but the second he saw the Russian's hard features, his cold heart immediately melted and he held back a smile.
Clearing his throat, he tried to sound quarrelsome. "Why did you leave?"
Vlad's perfect hazels narrowed. "I-I needed space."
"You ran," he accused and loved it when Vlad's eyes widened with guilt.
"I did... I did not mean-"
"You shouldn't have run." He quoted Vlad from the last time he had ran away from him because of the club incident. "We are not kids so avoiding me was very immature."
Something flashed in Vlad's clear eyes and a huge smile spread across his face. "You remembered."
Andres couldn't hold back the smirk. "Now who's immature?"
He cackled, an odd way of laughing, then ran a hand over his face. He sighed into it before pulling them away and shocking Andres when he reached out and pulled him so their lips smashed together.
Andres really did try to push him again so he could quote what he had told him when he had tried to fix their relationship back then with a kiss, but he fell for it. He immediately melted when Vlad cradled his head then slowly crawled on top of until he was straddling the man under him.
Vlad pulled away and breathed. "I guess we're both immature."
"I love you." Andres breathed against him and smiled widely when he saw Vlad's wide eyes.
His hazel eyes shone brighter than normal and the hands that held his face drew back to pull him into a tight hug.
Andres didn't know why that gesture had shocked him but he pushed that aside as he hugged him back.
"Te amo Vladimir."
~::~
His eyes fluttered opened but they quickly closed back from the light. His hand reached up to block the light from the window before opening them to find out where he was. He was still in the hospital, naked safe from the briefs and patient gown he had on that fitted loosely on him.
The man dropped his hands down after getting comfortable with the light then stared at the ceiling. He felt alright and didn't seem to be having a huge injury so why was he here in a hospital bed?
Someone called his name and he glanced over to the person. Leon, from his wheelchair reached over to touch his cheeks and Stuart couldn't help but blush. He didn't even know why, he felt relived for some reason.
He looked back at the ceiling, letting Leon's hands fall on the bed before he said, "Am I on some kind of drugs?"
"The sedative's just wearing off. What happened to you Stuart?" He sounded worried and that made Stuart look back at him to see the furrowed brows.
"What happened?" he asked, puzzled by his concern.
"You fainted. The doctor said something about insulin problems."
"Oh yeah, I'm diabetic." He rolled his eyes and sighed.
They both fell silent and when Stuart started to feel like himself again, he felt the headache hit him. He groaned in pain then suddenly saw Leon reach over with a glass.
"The nurse will be back with the drugs soon," Leon said as he took the glass of water from him.
He downed it without a word and sighed when his mouth didn't feel so dry anymore. He handed the glass back to Leon who happily took it and he sat up. "How long?"
"A day," he answered and Stuart had to look at him just as he rolled his wheelchair to the table not so far from his bed. Stuart noticed he no longer had his cast on.
"They took it off," he said in awe.
Leon stared at him confused for a while before his eyes followed Stuart's to his leg. He chuckled and nodded as he rolled the chair back to him. "Yes. Said I should try moving my legs slowly. They took it off the day before yesterday after you came to my room screaming 'I found you.'"
His brows bumped into a scowl. "I did that?"
"You don't remember?" He said it like it was something Stuart had to know. He drew closer to him then tilted his head up at him. "You kept saying 'I found you', and the expression your face... Then you fainted in my arms and I swear I've never panicked like that in my life."
Stuart stared at him and watched when something flashed in his eyes and for a second, it was like it was his Leon sitting down on that wheelchair.
"What did you say you felt for me?" Leon asked suddenly and Stuart felt his heart skip a beat. Good thing he wasn't up on the computers and heart monitors unless that was a dead giveaway.
"I like you." His voice came out like whisper and he flushed after he said it.
"I don't believe that." He spoke and Stuart's eyes widened as he took in the man's grim face.
He didn't look like he was joking and he didn't look like he was going to laugh a few seconds later. He was dead serious and Stuart's heart sank deeper than the titanic. He had made it to this point the man cared for him, he couldn't have it that all of a sudden he didn't believe him anymore. If that was the case, how was he going to go home? How was he going to tell the kids?
Stuart felt too weak to even respond and he just gaped at him pleadingly.
Luckily, Leon wasn't done. "I don't think you like me. I think you're in love with me."
Stuart was speechless but when he finally found his words, he said, "I like you."
"You love me." He corrected.
Stuart didn't want to think about it. It took him a lot to like the man in the way he did, saying that he loved him would only make everything seem more real.
"I like you," He repeated, hoping the man would understand and not push him any further.
"You love me." Was his only response.
Stuart shook his head. He didn't want to believe it. He couldn't love the man. He was a man.
"I-I..." he choked on his words, his heart racing faster that it was getting harder to breath.
"You love me, Stuart. Admit it. I know you do. It's in the way you took care of me, the way you worried about me, the way you looked so relieved when you found me-"
"Stop."
"-You love me. You love me more than anything. Why can't you admit it? Tell me, you love me."
Tell him I love him. Tell him I love him. Tell him I love him. Do I love him? More than anything?
"Stop, please." He begged.
Leon only stared at him before he did something that had Stuart jumping out of the bed. He tried to stand up. He used the bed rail as support as he pushed himself off the wheelchair so he could be eyes to eye with him. But Stuart never gave him the chance before diving from the bed and plucking him from the floor.
Stuart had thought he would be heavy but he never expected him to be that heavy. He almost thought he would give out as he lifted Leon unto the bed. He laid him on it and started to leave but Leon pulled him back and there was a familiar tinkle in his light brown eyes.
"Just say you fucking love me so we can skip all these to the kissing already."
"Leon?"
Since the accident, Stuart's heart had been hit, thrown, stabbed, stepped on to the point he was slowly losing his mind. He was in that really dark place but Leon's smile seemed to pull him out because he felt his heart swell.
Leon smile grew wide and he said, "Yes, it's me baby."
Stuart never knew he was going to miss that term of endearment ever.
He jumped on him as Leon drew himself up until he was seated then opened his arms so Stuart could fall inside. The Aussie didn't dare hesitate. He was pulled into a bone crushing hug and he swore he almost cried from how much he missed it.
"When? How?" he asked, burying his nose into the man's hair and taking a good whiff of it.
Leon hummed and started as he adjusted Stuart's legs so they were on either sides of him, "It was when you fainted. Kind of like a snap in my brain or something. Before, it was like I knew you but didn't know you."
Stuart pulled away to stare at him. Leon was back. His Leon was back. He wasn't dead but with him and trying to grope his ass. The Aussie ignored it for the fact that Leon hadn't the chance for a while.
"Have I ever told you, you had such pretty eyes?"
Stuart only nodded before leaning down to kiss him but Leon blocked his lips with his hands then said after Stuart gave him a quirked brow, "Not going to kiss you until you tell me you love me."
His eyes narrowed suspiciously. "Why don't you say it first?"
"Because I want Stuart to say it first."
Stuart frowned and sat up on him. His eyes rolled skywards and he shook his head at how childish he was being. "It hasn't been a day and I'm already putting up with your bullshit."
He started to get down but Leon caught him around the waist and sat up so the space between them would be none existent.
His face fell into a grimace and he frowned. "Don't leave me."
"I wasn't." He spoke quickly when he saw how serious he was. "I only wanted to move over to the chair."
Then Leon pouted. "Don't scare me like that." He sighed then continued, "Okay, you get your kiss but after, you'd have to cuddle with me on the bed."
"Really?" Fuck! He was trying not to sound so excited but fuck it, he was and his voice gave it away.
Leon only smirked before tilting his head up to kiss him. Stuart practically shook with relief and hunger as Leon's tongue dived into his mouth. His hands held him so close to his body, it felt so perfect.
Everything was perfect.
Leon had wanted just a simple kiss but Stuart was too consumed by it to stop and neither was Leon.
They probably would have done something that miraculous evening if Vlad and the kids hadn't popped open their room door and caught then in the act.
"Shit." They both chorused.