prohibitions | When love became an act of defiance

The man doesn't seem to acknowledge Jonathan right away, which is probably unsurprising. Instead, he continues to work; signing a few documents and lazily waving the paperwork he had gone through to join the neat stack of finished work. It's not until he puts his pen down and takes the half finished cigarette from the ash tray so he could take a drag that he turns his attention to the other.

He raises a brow as he regards the other before he speaks. "Asked you to make sure I eat, did she? Typical," he said with a click of his tongue. Irritating. The staff had always been sweet on him and it has always been this way. The difference was that he was a cute kid and now he's just a sullen adult.

Abel doesn't move from his seat and it doesn't look like he's all that interested in eating. Or at least, interested in eating with Jonathan's presence around. He does speak again though. "You know, most people usually attempt to try and mask their thoughts a bit better. No on really likes having their thoughts available to the other." Was that smile a haughty smirk or a self depreciating smile? "You think rather loudly and a lot and it's a tad irritating, you know."

He didn't have much love for being a psychic in all honesty. He hated the way that he couldn't keep other thoughts out of his head. He hated the taste of all the emotions that surrounded him mixing together. He absolutely abhorred not always knowing which thoughts were even his own. What was his and what belonged to others.

"Don't think too much, you know. You'll get yourself into trouble otherwise," he replies before tapping his cigarette over the ash tray and pulling another document to him with a lazy twirl of his hand.

He definitely seemed to have no intention of eating.

He was expecting to go unacknowledged so when Abel finally chimes in, he perks up, "She did and I intend to do right by her." He tilts his head, looking over at the food before returning this gaze to the other.

On the first day, Jonathan usually knows where to point his loyalties but in the past few hours, he's found a slow growing shift in them and he's not quite sure where they lie, only that they don't belong to Abel's father despite him being his employer.

"You're the first I've worked for with an ability like this so I do apologize for that." He's not worried about his thoughts, at least, not yet anyway so really he doesn't mind that Abel can read them like an annoyingly open book. There's been a lot of information to digest and he can't exactly stop his thoughts when it comes to that.

He puts Abel's complaints into consideration as something to actively work on and he's sure he'll get better at it with time but for the moment the other is just going to have to deal with it for the small amount of time as he adjusts.

"You should invest in some soundproofing if it bothers you so much." He voices back, raising a brow at the suggestion because if he was as talented with magic as he was or his entire family from what his father boasted about, it should be relatively easy, right? Why suffer when you didn't have to?

It wasn't his place to make such remarks but perhaps its him testing the waters with how out of line he can be then just some obedient valet.

Abel has definitely returned to working, although he lazily waves his hand and one of the plates of flan float over to his desk. He knows why the staff worries about him, but he wasn't about to air out the complications of this household to some stranger that was hired by his father.

Jonathan also never said what he did have to eat though.

"What's soundproofing going to do, you git? You're in my room," he says with a roll of his eyes. "My entire room is warded but it isn't going to do much when you're loitering in here like my father's dumb dog," he says with little care about being polite or not. It's not like it matters if things bother him or not. He had absolutely no power in this household. He couldn't even leave his room without permission.

The man seems to be fine with eating the flan (although his actual meal will probably stay untouched for awhile) as he speaks again. "Besides, you bother me a lot, but I don't exactly get a choice in the matter either." There's obvious resentment. A bitterness that isn't even truly aimed at the other.

If anything, it seemed his more hostile attitude to the other wasn't towards Jonathan specifically but because the other was employed by his father.

Okay, he walked into that himself but, at least, now he knows the other has a ward around his room which answers that question.

If there was something that irked Jonathan to no end, it was being referred to as a 'dumb dog'. He's heard that insult many times before regardless of whether they knew of his nature or not, he's also been called a 'mutt' and while he tries to not let his emotions on the subject bother him so much. It was difficult. He huffs a breath and he pushes himself off the wall, clenching one hand into a fist.

He only lingered to see if the other would eat and with Abel's selection of the flan, he decided to take his leave. He had packing to do before he would come back much later in the evening.

Jonathan looks at the other, irritated but otherwise in some control despite the fact he can feel claws digging into the palm of his hand, "That makes two of us. I'll be seeing you in the morning. Goodnight, sir."

Turning to leave in the same fashion as before except he foolishly claws into the door frame and there may have been the sound of wood splintering before he closed the door behind him. It might out his secret before he ever so much as had a chance to truly hide it but he didn't care.

It takes a couple minutes of some deep breathing before he finally steps away from the door and scoops up the rest of the lingering papers off the floor and tosses them up on the bed before grabbing his wallet and keys from his suit jacket that he had left hanging off the chair during his little research montage. He quietly slips out of the room and alerts a staff member along the way that he'd be back probably before midnight as he needed to pack.

Once in his car, it was a long drive of blaring the most intense and loud music he could find off any of his playlists until he got home. Then it was several hours of nearly packing his entire closet, a few knickknacks to remind him of home, a few personal belongings and his birds and their cage which should fit in the backseat if he tried hard enough.

Already alerting his family that they'd need to house sit, he says a quiet goodbye to his apartment since he gave them one of his spare keys when he first moved in. He's almost glad by the time he makes it back to the estate, managing to get the help of one of the staff when it came to getting his belongings to his room. Jonathan pretty much flops down on the bed once everything was inside and he very much just wanted to fall asleep right then and there but unpacking had to be done.

Ah. He can taste it. The burn that was accompanied by heated emotions. He had most definitely touched a nerve of some kind and the other was far from pleased from his insult.

Which meant that he had a favorite insult for the other from now on. Wonderful.

He would feel more remorse for it, but he had done this song and dance with everyone his father had hired to keep him in line and he was much too exhausted to care about offending people that he was trying to push out of his life anyways.

Nothing seems to have changed at all while Jonathan was gone. The glow of a light can be seen flooding in from under the door to indicate that Abel was seemingly still awake. A bit worrisome given that the man had to be early in the morning and it was already getting quite late.

Although, if the other checks on him, he'll find he can't seemingly find the man right away. Abel wasn't in bed, but he wasn't sitting at his desk either. It looked like he had eaten some of the stew (although it looked like a pitiful amount eaten), but both flans were gone. His tea cup was half filled and cold.

There was the sound of gentle breathing though that the other probably could pick up.

It takes another couple of hours to truly be unpacked and settled. The birds weren't happy about being in a completely new and strange place but Jonathan had let them out while he was unpacking so they could explore and stretch their wings before he was going to turn in for the night.

Jonathan takes the time to wash up and change into pajamas, a simple t-shirt and sweat shorts for comfort. Its after putting up Beau and Kiwi that he notices the light was still on in the other's room.

He gives Abel's door a light knock before peaking his head inside, surprised he didn't see the other at all. Strange. He had only come in to retrieve the food tray that way it would be an easy hand off for when breakfast arrived in the morning. Jonathan's steps are quiet as he looks for the other, reaching the table he starts to pile the dishes onto the tray as quietly as possible and he's glad the other ate the flans even if dinner was practically untouched.

When he turns to leave is when he spots Abel, practically curled up underneath his desk and completely unchanged from the outfit he wore today. Letting out a deep sigh and a gentle shake of his head, he takes the tray back to his room and adds his stew bowl and teacup along with it on the table before heading back into the room.

By the looks of it, this had to be a habit of his as he kneels down in front of him and with relatively ease, picks him up and carries him to his bed. He wasn't about to attempt to take off the other's waistcoat since that would be pushing personal boundaries but, at least, he wouldn't be sleeping on the floor.

The man stirs sleepily, but waking up was never a strong suit of his. He barely regards the other in a half asleep stupor before he practically curls up in Jonathan's arms and buries his face against the crook of his neck. It didn't help that Abel was more on the cold blooded side and basically gravitated towards warmth and Jonathan was very warm and comfortable.

Without the guarded expression and the constant furrowed brows; Abel looked much younger. His appearance seemed far less rigid and his features much softer. A rare sight most likely. It's too bad it's unlikely he'll ever be like this while actually conscious.

Just another thing for Jonathan to think on about the strangeness of the household he was now involved in.

Jonathan can feel his face heat up a bit as Abel shifted in his arms and buried his face against his neck, practically freezing at the edge of Abel's bed when he comes to it. It would be easier to stay with him and just sleep in the same bed but that had to be crossing some lines with this being the end of his first day. And he's sure the other wouldn't appreciate that.

Instead, he tries to lay the other down as gently as possible so as not to wake him. Its then that he sees just how relaxed and peaceful he looked. A stark contrast to his entire appearance when he was awake and it raises his suspicions about what was really going on around here.

He pulls the covers over the other before flipping off the lights and lingering in the doorway for a moment before closing the door and going to bed himself.

Today was strange and conflicting but he's hoping tomorrow will treat him a little better. He sleeps soundly until the ladies decided it was time to get up and their soft chirps at the first sign of decent morning light which acted as Jonathan's alarm before his own chimes off.

The man wouldn't consider himself a morning person but he's job forced him to get used to the routine adjustment despite how much it messed with his internal clock. He stares sleepily at the ceiling, not totally awake but desperately wanting to go back to sleep.

Breakfast comes two hours later than what Abel's schedule wanted him to have it. Not because the staff don't know what time it technically was, but because they simply didn't bring it until then because it had been useless to do so. They just accommodated to when Abel did actually take breakfast because serving it any sooner just meant the food would sit out until then. They knock on Jonathan's door just like before with trays of food for both Jonathan and Abel. There's also a tray for morning tea and/or coffee.

With breakfast being late, it meant that Abel's schedule would have to be shifted around. He never cared for all the things his father tried to jam into his day and he knew his physical limits (and that his father had no care about them), so this wasn't a big deal anyways. He skipped half the things his father intended for him. There wasn't enough time in the day to do all his work, follow his father's schedule perfectly, and still sleep.

Also, getting up in the morning was a struggle. He was terrible at it.

It's why the other may find the man sitting up in bed with unfocused eyes and looking around him. He was a bit confused because he was still dressed in his day clothes, but he was also in his bed. The former was something that happened a lot, but the latter was new. He doesn't recall ever making it to his bed.

It takes Jonathan some time to get out of bed and washed up for the morning, while he waited for breakfast to arrive, he looked over the supposed schedule for the day, making slight adjustments and still seeing just how packed it seemed to be. Kiwi and Beau were let out of their cage and walked all over the scattered papers on the table, demanding attention from their owner.

When the knock on the door comes, he thanks the maid again once breakfast was delivered, eating his portion first before corralling the birds back into their cage and knocking on Abel's door with his portion in hand.

He greets him with a soft "Good morning", before he notices the other's confused behavior as he goes to set Abel's breakfast on the table before walking over to him. Sleeping under his desk seemed to be a habit of his and being placed onto his bed wasn't remotely on his radar.

Jonathan sits on the edge of Abel's bed and hesitantly reaches out to try a smooth out the other's somewhat messy bedhead. The other didn't seem quite awake yet, judging by his expression so he doesn't quite tell him that he moved him over here or today's schedule. He almost takes the time to enjoy to seemingly soft moment between them which was a stark contrast to Abel's behavior yesterday but similar to his behavior when he came to move him to his bed.

Edited 2019-05-16 09:52 (UTC)

He frowns a little. Not at the other. If anything, Abel doesn't seem to even quite realize the other there. The greeting is kind of lost on him as he blinks a few times to try and wake up. Jonathan will find very quickly that Abel just had very low blood sugar in the morning (and may also explain the man's particular affinity towards sweets).

The man was also touch starved. He doesn't think of it at all, but lets his eyes flutter closed and leans into the gentle touch. The comforting warmth and feeling. It's a rare comfort that he gets too experience. Something he doesn't really recall experiencing since he was a child.

It just so happens that he's still sleepy enough to indulge in it.

As Abel leans into his touch, he takes in a soft breath as if this was a moment that might slip away if he wasn't too careful, nearly freezing up again. Maybe working as Abel's valet wouldn't be too terrible after all and that only raises his suspicions about this place and everyone's relationship in it.

Jonathan continues to run gentle fingers through the other's hair, slowly getting it back to something less ridiculous as the other seems to enjoy it for the time being.

Once Abel's hair was pretty much back to normal, he gently brings his hand down to the other's cheek, a light brush of his thumb across the skin as he just stares in thought at the other. Not thinking about what he was really doing or what he should be.

Eventually, the other was going to come to and Cain just looked... so peaceful in this moment that he didn't want to cut it short. Not yet. It was worth dealing with whatever remarks the other would make in his direction once he was fully awake.

Abel seemed to be very similar to what one would expect a cat to be like if they were human. A little pleased sigh and the other seemed so relax. He didn't seem anywhere close to it yesterday.

He just presses his face against Jonathan's hand. If he were awake enough; he'd be embarrassed and horrified by his actions, but he was much too tired and hungry for such gentle attention.

The other is right that it won't last forever, but it seems like it won't be too awkward between them. Instead, Abel pulls away to finally get to his feet. A bit of a stagger as he kind of just disappears into the bathroom. Honestly, if not for magic and routine, it was likely the man would have walked into the door if he didn't have the magic to open it while he moved.

At the very least, Jonathan had time to mull over his thoughts with the sound of the shower eventually being heard behind the door.

He gives the other a soft smile as Abel presses his face further into his hand. Seeing him relaxed suited him better than the furrowed brow and hard features. Jonathan lets Abel pull away and watches as the other slowly makes his way to the bathroom.

With the sound of the shower running, Jonathan takes that as his cue to leave. The last thing he needed was to explain why he was sitting on the bed if he lingered too long. He gets to his feet to cross the room to his own, opening it and glancing back towards the bathroom before a flash a smile could be seen and slips inside, closing the door behind him.

He knows to expect a complete 180 when he walks into the room again but that small moment was something he looked forward to seeing again. Jonathan presses his back against the door for a moment, looking over the palm of his hand and running his thumb gently against his fingertips before he gave a light shake of his head and pushed off the door. He needed to forget the thought because the other can very well read his mind and it would simply be less trouble if he didn't think about this.

Getting attached easily was a terrible habit of his and while he swore he'd stay longer than Abel estimated of him, he feels that the longer he does stay, the more he'll find out what was truly going on around here. And he's not quite sure he can simply stand and watch when that happens.

Jonathan finishes getting dressed, pulling on a button down that he rolled up the sleeves for and settling on stylish collar pins in lieu of a tie. He plays with Beau and Kiwi for a few minutes before he dares to knock on the door again with schedule in hand.

"Come in."

Jonathan will find the man already dressed and his hair dry and styled for the day. The softer demeanor that the Brit held was gone, although he seemed at least more relaxed than he had been the day before. He was sipping tea from a cup with the teapot floating and following him as he walked.

Abel also had his sleeves rolled up to his elbows. He wore a plain white dress shirt with a dark blue waistcoat and matching pants. What was more curious though was the multitude of burns that could be seen on his fingers and forearms. While the ones on his fingers were easy to guess (he was a smoker), but the scars on his arms were curious. The man should easily be well cared for. It seemed unlikely for him to harbor so many past injuries unless self inflicted. Still, the man's personality probably seemed too far off to do that at that level.

"You have birds," he says suddenly. Probably just parsing stray thoughts from the other, since he had just been playing with them moments before.

Jonathan pushed the door open and stepped inside, there was an almost clear difference to Abel compared to yesterday and even earlier but he wasn't exactly going to get his hopes up that he wouldn't be as rude. At least, he regarded his presence this time.

He does make it a point to be more attentive towards the other, gaze flickering from the floating teapot to the curious burn scars as he tried to make some sense of those before Abel drags his attention at the sudden comment about his birds, stopping him in his tracks as he stopped short of being closer to Abel's desk.

"Two. They're lovebirds, sir." He says, pressing the schedule close to his chest. While he knows they can be little chatter boxes, he couldn't hear them from inside Abel's room but he also knows that the other can easily pick the knowledge of them up from his thoughts, if he didn't catch their chirping from when he opened the door. Not that he minded.

"Your welcome to meet them anytime, if you'd like." Jonathan offers with doubts that Abel would ever indulge in it but maybe they could help relax the other and give him an excuse to take a break from his work.

He sips his tea quietly before placing the cup back on its saucer. "Abel. I'm not my father. I don't go by sir," he spits out. The man was obviously not very fond of his father and his father didn't exactly show much love for the man in return. Still, there was a sad look in his eyes.

Instead he holds out his hand so the other can give him the schedule in his hands. "I imagine we have very little time for that." Abel knows he's usually given very little free time to indulge and he can't recall the last time he had used any time for himself or merriment. "Come on now. Usually that bastard wants me up by five for whatever bloody reason. Best to get a move on if you want to keep your job. Why you want it is beyond me," he says offhandedly.

It's not like he's a pleasant person nor does he think this is a pleasant job for anyone to work.

"Apologizes." Jonathan ducks his head a bit, noting not to call the other 'Sir' anymore and sticking to using the other's name if he needed to. He wasn't expecting the bite in the other's tone on the matter but he's quick to learn that anything remotely relating to his father is a very sour subject.

"We can make time..." He says softly as he steps forward to pass the schedule over. He's not quite sure how, given the overly packed agenda for the month but maybe he'll cut one of the days short on purpose. Regardless of what the consequences might be. Once the schedule was passed, he takes a few steps back, arms behind his back out of habit. Jonathan can't help but agree that his father's judgement was a bit out of wack, based on what was required of the other to accomplish during the day. It seemed almost impossible.

Its the first time he's seen such a schedule and he's worked with kids and teens before. They had a more balanced day than Abel seemed to have. His reasons for the job, however, were his own and they may slowly be shifting from what he had in mind originally.

"I have my reasons." is all he says on the matter and tries to keep his thoughts nonexistent on them, though that in itself was difficult.

The job could be worse than what it was, whether it was actually pleasant didn't matter. At least, not anymore. He's worked for enough people to know that working for someone who was actually nice was a rarity that not many showed.

"I don't want apologies. I just don't want you to call me that again," Abel simply replies with. It's curt, but the other seems less irate by the other and just rather irritated at the word itself.

He takes the schedule from him and goes over it. He places his tea cup down the same time a pen floats over to him and grabs it out of the air. "Well, we're already some hours behind, but I generally don't go to a bunch of these things. It's as though he simply adds things to my day for the sake of doing it and not because it's actually worth anything. Etiquette class? He could at least be a smidge more subtle," the man says with a scoff. He seems to cross a few of the things off the list. Things he knows he has no interest in doing or attending and is possibly there just to waste his time.

Abel purses his lips for a moment, but doesn't say anything else for a moment. He quickly downs the rest of his tea. "Well, let's go."

Things seem to go quickly and chaotically. From business meetings to social engagements to just about anything you expect a high class socialite goes through. Abel is nothing short of completely charming and captivating. He fits the image well and is quite a sweettalker. From pressing chaste kisses to hands to making idle jokes that earn plenty of chuckles. There's no sign of the surlier man that Jonathan had first met.

The man was a terribly good actor.

Everything seems to go by as quickly as it comes and morning quickly becomes the afternoon to the evening. Abel doesn't actually complain much at all throughout the day. Almost as though he doesn't even have the time for that.

By the time they're back at the estate, it's passed supper time.

While Jonathan has no idea of the depth the other's anger towards this came from, he still respects the other to keep to his word in never mentioning it again, "I understand."

He's not about to force that Abel stick to the schedule to a T, so he merely listens and watches as the other crosses things off for the day, making some sort of note to avoid them in the future. Depending on what they were, of course.

The valet is quick to follow after Abel downs his tea, having some sort of idea of how the day would go but also unprepared in a sense for it.

Its not an unfamiliar atmosphere to be a part of, its just Jonathan has no real idea of how to interact in such settings. It was fairly easy to blend in with the walls and seemingly disappear, much how his past bodyguard jobs relied on him to be. Granted, this was a tad different. He couldn't be completely invisible, seeing as he needed to be available at a moment's notice or take notes in the meetings.

For the social engagements, he held back. Simply observing and noticing how different Abel interacted with people when he had to versus when he was alone with him. It was almost like he was a completely different person.

Had Jonathan's role in life been switched with someone in Abel's conversational circle, he might've enjoyed being charmed by the other man. Some part almost wishes he was, just to see what that would be like but he stays quiet and makes an effort to stay out of his own head. Abel didn't need to catch those thoughts in particular.

For everything else, he was still quiet. Offering no input or opinions, he didn't speak unless he was referred to and even then he kept whatever answers short and to the point. He's almost glad when they start the drive back the estate, allowing himself to relax a bit as he stared out the window into the night until the familiar lights came into view.

While he lets Abel go on ahead, he's stopped by a member of staff to tell him that dinner would be brought up if they wanted it, to which he nods. It was a long day and while the meetings and socials had some food provided, it wasn't grand meals and he was quite hungry. He couldn't vouch for the same for Abel though, some tea and food might do him some good.

In the comfort of his bedroom, he's quick to plop down on the bed, the ladies chirping at their owner's return and want for attention.

Abel seems to do any of the social or work engagements on his schedule, but it's easy to note that he absolutely skips any classes his father has put on the list. He simply did not care to waste his time going to classes where he probably already excelled at the material or because his father was possibly being petty. And he was surely being just as petty by wasting the man's money on tutors he didn't ask for in the first place.

The man seemed to flourish in a social setting. Witty remarks and gentle laughs that were just loud enough to seem genuine, but not enough to be obnoxious. He seemed very in his element and the man easily knew how to sweet talk his way.

It's no surprise given that he knew exactly how to charm someone if he knew what they were thinking, after all.

Things were amiss though. The way he sometimes clenched his jaw a little too tightly. How he dug his nails into his palms sometimes. Just small things that are unnoticeable to most, but could be picked up by someone closely observing him.

It was easy to pick up the man wanted to be anywhere but where he currently was.

So of course he quickly scurries to his room as soon as he can.

It's a bit of time before there's a knock. But the knock is coming from the door between Jon's and Abel's room. A moment after, Abel pushes the door open a bit. He doesn't quite look at the other and drums his fingers against the door for a moment. "Jonathan."

After spending the day watching and listening, he's started to notice some of Abel's habitual tells if he solely focused on him for an extended period of time. They changed either in conversation or with the setting but they were still there and that only added to the confusion he held surrounding the other.

Abel was this enigma that he still didn't know how to figure out.

Jonathan is surprised at the knock on the door when he notices it wasn't coming from the one facing the hall but rather the one joining their rooms, "Come in," He calls out before propping himself up on his elbows, just in time to see Abel push the door open.

It takes him a minute to sit up proper, thinking that something might be wrong. Also realizing this was the first time Abel had ever referred to him by his name since he got here.

"Did you need something?" He asks softly, unsure of what to expect the other to ask of him. Was he here to take him up on his offer from earlier?

The Brit was dressed down more than Jonathan probably has seen him. He's still wearing his clothes from the day, but his jacket and vest was discarded and he had undone the buttons on his sleeves.

He looked tired.

"Your birds. You said I could meet them anytime," Abel starts. He pauses though. "Is now not a good time?" Abel had intended to be nothing short but completely nasty and spoiled and rude to the other. But he was also tired and stressed out and the idea of interacting with another living creature that he couldn't read the thoughts of was also terribly alluring.

He wouldn't say he was an animal lover, but he was fond of them nonetheless. Abel fusses with the hem of his sleeve absentmindedly. "Nevermind, I should leave you be. It's been a long day," he says suddenly changing his mind.

He blinks in surprise that he'd actually take him up on the offer but before he has a chance to give his answer Abel is already trying to backpedal. After the day they had to go through, how could he say no?

Jonathan pats a spot on the bed before he moves to stand, "I offered and really anytime is a good time, plus they are dying for some attention," he smiles at the other before walking over towards their treat bag first, grabbing a few pieces before he held out one for Abel to take.

"Kiwi really likes treats and scratches underneath her beak while Beau likes to do her own thing until she decides she likes you. If they poop on you, I'm so sorry about that." He rubs at the back of his neck, hoping they won't. That would be embarrassing.

He heads over to their cage to coax them out as they took up spots on his arm. "Alright, ladies, you guys have to be nice, okay?" He coos at them before taking a seat next to the other.

Kiwi was a richer green coloring with a touch of red-ish orange around her beak while Beau was more of an light aqua blue with a touch a peach around her's as Jonathan introduces them individually.

He gets them onto his finger before placing them on Abel's shoulder and at first they sort of look at him, Kiwi gets closer and picks at his shirt while Beau is trying to travel down the other's arm towards his hand.

They helped him a lot when he was living alone and maybe Abel needed some of that sort of company too.

Abel quietly shuts the door behind him and sits down where the other had patted at. He looks a bit unsure about the whole thing. This wasn't really the type of social interactions he was used to. Dealing with delegates of all kinds? Easy. Normal socializing? Completely out of his comfort zone.

But there seems to be some genuine joy in Abel's eyes as he looked at the two birds. A bit of life that wasn't quite there before. Almost childlike innocence even.

He lets the two birds do what he wants, although he holds his hand with his palm up and open with the treat in it; curious if Beau was after the treat in his hand. The metal cuffs on his wrists were more obvious with his shirt sleeves unbuttoned at the cuffs. The engravings were more noticeable too.

"You've had them for awhile?" He holds up his other hand towards Kiwi. The Brit won't mind if she nips at them honestly.

When love became an act of defiance

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