Bewildered, JJ situates Desi more comfortably on his hip and follows Cass down the hall into the living room. It looks almost identical to every time he came here to pick up Desi, the abundance of wyvern plushies on the couch the only difference, and a little bit of the anxiety in his chest eases at the familiarity. “You don’t play by the same ‘food rules’?What does that mean?”
“Well,”Cass drawls, his eyes gleaming, “I don’t see the need for pancakes to be reserved for mornings and spaghetti to only be served at night. If we want cheeseburgers for breakfast, then we’re going tohavecheeseburgers for breakfast.”
“Yeah!” Desi cheers, throwing her arms up. “Cass makes really good cheeseburgers, JJ! He puts lots of yummy toppings on them! You’re gonna love them!”
JJ’s stomach roils at the thought. “That, uh,” he says faintly, shooting Cass a look. “That sounds a little heavy for the first meal of the day, Cass.”
“What, and eggs and bacon aren’t?” There’s an easy smile on Cass’s face, ateasingsmile. JJ can’t resist the urge to smile back. “But,justfor your delicate human sensibilities, I’ll modify my plans a bit. Desi, do you want a bacon cheeseburger with a fried egg? And avocado?”
Desi gasps with delight, clapping her hands. “Yes! All my favorite things!”
“And for JJ…” Cass’s smile softens. “How about bacon, egg, and cheese on a roll?”
JJ’s throat feels dry. “Depends.”
“On?”
“Can I have avocado, too?”
Cass looks pleased. “You can have all the avocado you want, lackey,” he says, and he turns towards the stove. His kitchen is noticeably smaller here than in his regular house, and a pang of guilt twists through JJ. He hates that Cass is inconveniencing himself just for JJ’s sake. “Do you want to finish reading to Desi? We had a few pages left in our newest picture book.”
JJ’s shoulders relax even more. “Sure,” he says, and he carries Desi over to the couch, plopping down on the cushion and grabbing the book in question. “Desi, can you show me where you and Cass were?”
And, as Desi flips through the pages to find where she and Cass left off, JJ listens to the sound of Cass rustling around the kitchen and feels safer than he has in weeks.
Maybe even years.
“So how are you feeling?” Cass asks, easing himself down on the coffee table in front of JJ and raising his eyebrows expectantly.
JJ casts his eyes towards the ceiling, considering the question. He’s currently sitting sideways on the couch with Desi napping in his arms and a fuzzy blanket pulled over them both. It’s so cute that Cass is tempted to take a picture.
Desi is out cold. All of her trouble sleeping vanished the instant JJ came home, and JJ’s single-minded enthusiasm in playing dragons and chasing her around the backyard wore her out long before midmorning.
And JJ himself, it seems, is just enjoying the peace. “I’m… better than yesterday,” he says, and he gives Cass an uneasy smile. “Thanks for not, um, judging my mental breakdown too harshly.”
Cass squints back at him.“Judgingit? JJ, you went through three days of literal torture. Anyone would be at their breaking point. Frankly, I’ll be surprised if youdon’thave a few more breakdowns in the next week or so. It’s nothing to be ashamed of.”
JJ doesn’t look convinced. “I guess.”
Carefully, Cass asks, “Do you want to talk about it?”
JJ falls quiet again, looking down at Desi in his arms. Cass lets the silence linger. JJ has never been the most talkative person, usually defaulting to quick answers and deflecting questions, but Cass is hoping to slowly coax him out of that habit.
He wants to know everything about JJ. Even the bad parts, as long as JJ is willing to share them.
“Not today.” JJ’s voice is soft. “But thank you. Really.”
Cass nods, unsurprised. “Of course. But the offer’s always open if you change your mind, okay?”
Eventually, JJ smiles back. “Okay. Thanks, Cass,” he says, and he tucks his chin more comfortably over Desi’s hair. “So how, uh. How long can I stay with you and Desi?”
Cass bites back a grimace. Part of him hoped JJ wouldn’t even ask that question, just intuitively understanding that he’s always welcome here, but?—
But a much larger part of him knows JJ would never assume that. Honestly, it’s probably good that they’re addressing this issue early. “Forever,” Cass says casually, resting his forearms on his knees. “Unless you had other plans?”
JJ goes still. “Cass, I can’t just stay here permanently.”
Cass doesn’t drop his gaze. “Why not?”
