Over the next week, they don’t really talk about it. You’d think they would, that it was something monumentous and crazy, a change in their lives they couldn’t possibly ignore. Right?
Wrong. They’re so shy about it, dancing around the subject, spending more time around each other— finding every excuse— but where Alec keeps hoping to be softly kissed again, maybe manuevered against a wall casually and have soft lips pressed against his, instead they just…
Hug, at most. Find excuses to touch each other. Take every opportunity to be at the loft, to be on the couches, to nuzzle in close— but not kiss.
Did they regret it? Did they take things too fast?
Maybe everyone decided they didn’t really want all that closeness, after all, and it was just a ‘heat of the moment’ type thing.
The thought was like lead in Alec’s stomach. He kept waiting for someone to blurt out that they’d totally changed their mind.
Still, they were spending more time together, which was nice— as evidenced by Taylor showing up Friday night with a novelty party game, of all things.
They’d never heard of it, of course. Even Taylor had never heard of it before impulsively buying it from a game shop at the mall.
“You know there’s a ‘friends’ and a ‘family’ version of this game, right?” Alec said with amusement, phone in hand from looking it up.
Taylor flushed.
“O-oh. We don’t have to play.” She mumbled.
“Nah, dork, it’s fine. Let’s do this.” Alec gamely passed out piles of cards, dealing five stacks with surprisingly adroit hands.
“Play a lot of cards?” Lisa asked, stirring her drink absently.
“I’ve endured levels of boredom that would cripple you.” Alec said without looking up. “Here we go… one round, let’s say one of each? Icebreaker, Deep, Deeper, Act.”
“I don’t think that’s the rules.” Taylor thumbed the little pamphlet that came with the set.
“Fuck ‘em.” Rachel shrugged. “Rules are stupid.”
“That’s why Rach’s my favorite.” Alec shot the girl in question a little grin that she rolled her eyes at.
“Everyone does their set or we go one at a time with each category?” Taylor was paying more attention to the piles of cards now.
“Icebreakers around the room, then Deep, Deeper, and Acts.” Alec paused, checked an ‘Act’ card, and blinked. “Okay, and if you don’t want to answer a question, do a random Act. To spice things up, apparently.”
Brian eyed the cards like a snake.
“When you say ‘Act’ and ‘couple’s game’….” He trailed off. “Is the card game gonna try to make us have sex?”
“I don’t think any of them outright say sex, but they do get sort of risque.” Alec laughed a little. “Okay, instead of staring at an Action card the entire time, let’s draw those last, yeah? Keep a little mystery.”
“Better question.” Lisa scooped up her ‘hand’ of cards, fanning them out. “It’s made for couples as in ‘two people’. Who are we asking when we read off a question?”
“Well, we could go boring with the ‘person to our right’ or some shit.” Alec leaned forward, palming his set of cards without taking them off the table to peek at yet. “Or we could get really adventurous and make everybody answer.”
“How’s that work?” Rachel picked up her cards and grimaced. “Somebody read this shit for me.”
“Pick a lap, babe.” Alec said magnanimously. “Whoever you sit next to can read your cards.”
The redhead’s brow furrowed for a moment as she considered it.
“My lap.” Rachel said finally, pulling Taylor– who squeaked adorably– sideways onto her legs. “Read these for me.”
The others laughed without rancor. Even Brian chuckled about it and Taylor blushed a little as she adjusted on Rachel’s lap.
“Grab mine for me?” The brunette asked and Rachel handed her captive the cards in question.
“I still say this is a bad idea.” Brian rubbed the back of his neck even as he pulled up his hand. “I mean… isn’t this type of game just an excuse to flirt?”
“It’s probably an excuse to do more than that.” Rachel said, looking around. “If you don’t want to, say that.”
Tellingly, Brian was silent. Lisa took a shuddery breath.
“It’s also to get to know people better. There is a friends and family version, after all.” The blonde pointed out.
“Yeah, but this isn’t that version.” Rachel stared Lisa down. “It’s the one for couples and shit.”
“That just… means it’s going to ask more personal questions, maybe.” Taylor said, voice surprisingly level as she defused things a little.
“I guess.” Rachel eased back, adjusted her grip on Taylor’s legs. “Who’s going first?”
“Allow me, mademoiselle.” Alec grinned, plucking a card with a showman’s flourish. “Easy icebreaker to the room: “Lose your sense of touch or your sense of smell. Why?”
There was a bit of looking around as the group thought.
“… Smell.” Rachel said. “Maybe if we had dog senses it’d be different but not being able to smell stuff isn’t that bad.”
“Fair enough.” Brian relaxed by degrees. “Sense of touch is being able to touch people, feel them, hold them… I wouldn’t give that up.”
“It’s more than that though.” Taylor spoke up. “Pressure, temperature, texture… I didn’t have a sense of pain to my skin for a while, from nerve damage, and it sucked.”
Rachel rubbed up and down Taylor’s arm as the girl shivered.
“You’d have traded smell to get that back?” Lisa asked curiously.
Taylor nodded.
“I guess I’m the same.” The blonde frowned. “When I smell things my power gives me TMI on it anyway. A faint scent is enough for oh, she didn’t shower in three days or that guy doesn’t wash his hands.”
“Brutal.” Alec said, flicking the card onto the table face up. “I don’t think I have to answer, and that’s everyone. You’re up, Lis.”
“We’re going counterclockwise then?” The blonde pulled her own Icebreaker card from her hand.
“Why not?” Alec pulled his feet up under him, easing– just a little– closer to her as he relaxed into the couch.
Brian was on his other side, now destined to go last.
Taylor and Rachel were in the loveseat to the right.
“If you had to cancel one major holiday, which one would you eliminate?” She read.
“Easy.” Alec said at once. “Valentine’s Day.”
“What? Why.” Taylor looked up with surprise.
Alec’s face did a thing. Not quite a frown but it read as unhappy.
“Dad always went hunting. None of the others were good enough, he wanted someone new.”
Brian wasn’t the only one to suck in air at that revelation. Lisa set her cards down and tugged him over. He adopted an almost mullish look as he allowed himself to be pulled into her with an arm around his shoulders.
Alec gradually relaxed.
“Sorry to get so deep.” He mumbled.
“No, you had… fuck, a really good reason.” Brian tugged at his shirt collar. “Mine was going to be New Years, if that counts.”
Before they could ask, he elaborated: “Ten thousand new people at the gym, all of them on their new resolutions that they’re not going to follow. It’s good of them to try better lifestyles, but it’s a huge pain in the ass if you’re a gym regular.”
“Huh.” Lisa said, rubbing circles into Alec’s shoulder with her thumb. “I can see that. For me, I guess… wait, ha, I don’t have to answer. Taylor, Rachel, your turn.”
“Fourth of July.” Rachel grunted. “Fireworks scare the dogs.”
Alec laughed a little and Brian smiled.
“Good pick.” Brian said.
“I’ll go with Christopher Columbus Day. Fuck that guy.” Taylor said slowly.
“What’d he do?” Alec asked idly.
Rachel also frowned. “Who?”
“He ‘discovered America.’” Taylor said with finger quotes. “But obviously there were already people here. One of the fucked up things he did was enslave people from Hispaniola, now Haiti and the Dominican Republic.”
“And the smallpox.” Lisa said idly.
“I’ve never heard any of that.” Brian said with surprise.
Taylor shrugged.
“My mom had an entire soapbox she could pull out for the holiday.”
“Dork.” Alec said, but it was fond, and Taylor smiled back a little.
“Do me or Rachel go next?” She asked. “We’re sharing… ah, sharing a spot here.”
“Read mine first.” Rachel said, holding up a card. “Icebreaker, starts with an ‘I’ anyway.”
“Rachel’s is: would you rather be able to fly or be invisible? Why?” Taylor read, before answering herself: “Fly, easily.”
“Yeah that’s fair.” Lisa said, with a light smile.
“I don’t know.” Alec leaned back a bit, careful not to dislodge Lisa’s arm. “There’s been way more times in my life where I’d give anything to be invisible, where flying wouldn’t help.”
“… Fair.” Taylor said quietly.
Lisa’s lips turned down a little.
“Well, that’s depressing. Right now, I’d rather fly, and if we all chose that we could be New New Wave: Undersiders edition.”
Alec snorted hard.
“Demolition Dallon would hate that.” He said. “She’d knock us out of the sky on general principle.”
“Do we get to keep our other powers?” Brian asked. “Mine doesn’t not make me invisible. It makes everything in range un-visible.”
Alec laughed again.
“That’s so fucking stupid, no.” He said. “Blinding people doesn’t make you invisible.”
“Two types of stealth.” Taylor said thoughtfully. “Nobody saw me, and nobody’s got eyes left to see me.”
“Jesus.” Alec put a hand over his heart. “That’s why we don’t let you plan ops, babe. No offense.”
“None taken.” Taylor shrugged one shoulder.
“That was mine. What’s yours?” Rachel hooked her chin over Taylor’s shoulder, pulling her a little closer.
“Oh, um.” Taylor cleared her throat. “What’s the grossest thing you’ve ever tasted?”
“Dumpster food when I was on the streets.” Rachel said, nonplussed. “I think it was spoiled but I was hungry enough not to care.”
“I made my cash last a little longer, thank god.” Lisa said. “That could have easily been me. I had to get a CT scan once and the stuff they made me drink beforehand was the worst.”
Her nose wrinkled.
“Spoiled milk.” Brian said with a casual roll of his shoulders. “Last time I didn’t check the date on it, I’ll say that much. I couldn’t eat cheerios for a year.”
“Oof, you took a bite after pouring the bowl?” Lisa said sympathetically.
Alec was quiet a touch too long when they turned to him. He quirked a smile.
“You don’t want to know.”
Lisa immediately winced.
“What? Why?” Rachel asked.
“Gross sex stuff.” Alec lifted one shoulder in a half-shrug. “Not that gross, mind. Just… yeah.”
“I’ve heard eating pineapple and sweet fruits can make emissions taste less bitter.” Taylor said, surprising the room. “Um. It was just something I read, once. I don’t know if it’s true.”
She ducked her chin.
Alec laughed, delighted.
“It’s true, actually. Oh, and hey, since I technically didn’t answer, I have to draw an Act card.”
“You don’t have to for that.” Brian said, jaw tight. “It’s different.”
“No, I’m gonna.” Alec looked up with a little smirk, hand on the deck. “Should you all pick who I’m going to do it with in advance, or is it automatically Taylor since I wussed out on her question?”
“You didn’t–” Brian tried, but Rachel huffed.
“With Taylor.” She said, and Lisa was already nodding.
“Definitely with Taylor.” The Thinker agreed.
“Well, don’t threaten me with a good time.” Alec dramatically flipped the card over. “Switch an article of clothing for the remainder of the game. Huh. Shirts would be easiest, probably.”
Taylor shimmied out of Rachel’s lap.
“Um.” She said, hands hesitant at the hem of her shirt. “Should we… out here?”
Alec quirked a brow.
“I’m fine stripping down out here, ma trésor.” He lifted his designer t-shirt, exposing a strip of his waist teasingly.
He waited for someone to tell him to cut it out and found enraptured faces. Oh.
Cocking his hip a little, he makes a show of it, shimmying the material up higher and higher. His fingers catch and drag the fabric until his abs are revealed and then pinch and pull, leveraging it above his elbows.
At that point he has to put up or let it fall back down, so he shrugs it over his head. Then he pulls it off his forearms and lets it drop to the ground, catching it in nimble fingers at the last moment.
He offers it to Taylor with a quirked lip and she flushes a little more pink.
Charming, really.
“If you want to go to another room to change, that’s fine.” Brian says, a little flustered himself.
Taylor looks over at him, the panic in her expression resolving a little now that she’s not staring down Alec’s shirt, chest, and the prospect of stripping all at once.
And they’re all four of them wishing really hard that she takes her shirt off and stays just as slow and shy putting his back on. It must have shown in at least one person’s expression because she blushed and ducked her head.
“There’s nothing really to see.” Taylor mumbled, arms crossing over her torso. “I know I’m flat like a boy, so…”
Someone made a little noise of protest. Several someones, Alec included.
“That’s such bullshit.” Alec tossed his shirt at her, watching her fumble to catch it. He stepped forward, cupped her cheek with one palm. It was instinctive to run his thumb over her skin, stroking over her beautiful pink blush.
Taylor stared up at him, that slack-jawed expression present once more. The kind of strong jaw and expressive brow combo that made her features so interestingly attractive.
He’d never wanted to kiss someone more, so he took a breath and released her.
“Go to another room, tresor. I don’t care which– hell, you can use mine.”
“I.” Taylor squeaked, then cleared her throat, looking away from everyone. “It’s really not a big deal…” Her muttering trailed off so low they couldn’t make it out.
“March.” Rachel growled, pushing a little on Taylor from behind and the tall girl stumbled to her feet, Alec’s shirt clutched in hand.
“I guess I just stand here then?” Alec ran a hand over his belly and Brian put his entire face in his hands, groaning.
Lisa snorted.
Alec mimicked her.
“I know I’m a treat, mon force, but don’t worry, surely some of these Action cards will have me putting on a show of some sort later…”
Brian flipped him off without looking.
Taylor shuffled out of the bathroom. Wearing Alec’s shirt. He stared. She offered her own tee-shirt and he stared some more, until Rachel nudged him with her foot.
“Right.” He swallowed, taking it from her and pulling it on with much less fanfare. “Sorry, Bri, your evening entertainment is all covered up again.”
“The disappointment is immeasurable.” Lisa noted dryly.
“There’ll be other chances, I feel really good about this game.” Alec smiled winningly at her and dropped back into his seat. Taylor’s shirt was soft and smelled like her.
“Who was your first celebrity crush and why?” Brian read his Icebreaker, flipping the card onto the table like a winning hand.
“I take it back, this game is stupid.” Alec muttered and Lisa coughed a laugh. Even Rachel breathed out a little amused grunt.
“Aw, come on, are you embarrassed?” Lisa ribbed him and Alec flicked her pointedly. “It can’t be that bad.”
“I don’t even think I ever had a celebrity crush.” Alec got more comfy on the couch, sinking into the cushions. “I’ve never really ‘crushed’ on anyone– for sure not strangers.”
“You never got that star-struck obsession where you think someone is just, like, unrealistically attractive?” Lisa looked at him. “I had boy band posters on the wall growing up– the Jonas Brothers, stuff like that.”
“The who?” Alec squinted at her.
She waved a hand.
“It was fad stuff that just… everyone around me was doing. You know, early teenage girl things. I feel like my entire high school got caught up in the Team Edward versus Team Jacob thing.”
“The what?” Alec couldn’t help laughing even as Brian groaned loudly and theatrically.
“Man, shut up, I had to take Aisha to those movies.” He complained. “Isn’t Edward like a hundred years old? Why’s he dating a sixteen-year-old?”
“The next one comes out in June.” Lisa said with amusement. “Eclipse. It’s the one where the love triangle is half the plot.”
“There’s a love triangle? With who?” Brian said with no small amount of horror. “Also, how many movies are there going to be?
“That’s the Team Edward/Team Jacob thing.” Taylor said, frowning a little. “I mean… my ex-best-friend was obsessed with it. We’d read the books in the covers and giggle a lot.”
“You and every other pre-teen girl.” Lisa shrugged. “Anyway, I guess the farthest back I can remember is Brenden Frasier in the Mummy. My… I got teased for it a little.”
Taylor made a little noise and Lisa looked her way.
“Nothing, it’s just– I really liked that movie.” Taylor said into her knees. “My mom and I would watch it, sometimes, and I hid in her shirt during the ‘scary’ parts.”
Everyone but Alec snorted.
“What?” Taylor looked around, almost offended.
“The scary parts of that movie are what you do for a living these days.” Brian reached all the way over until he could poke her arm. “You’re the scary parts of The Mummy.”
“I am not.” Taylor denied, kneejerk. “Okay, maybe… I guess I can see it. The swarms.”
“I need to watch this movie, apparently.” Alec said. “Did anyone else have a crush on one of the actors?”
Taylor sighed.
“The librarian. I don’t know if it’s really a crush or if I just wanted to be her. At the time I was small and plain, just starting to notice how gorgeous some women could be, hoping I grew up to look anything like them, and Evelyn was really smart and cool.”
“Aww.” Lisa said. “I don’t blame you, Rachel Weisz was awesome in that movie. Speaking of Rachels…”
“Never really watched any movies.” Rachel shrugged one shoulder. “Never had a crush on people, either. People are stupid.”
“Fair.” Alec tugged over a water bottle and claimed it. They had sodas and snacks arranged out on the loft table. “Me either, like I said. The only time I was really attracted to anyone as a kid was definitely a master effect and also, like, not a good time in general.”
Lisa glanced at him and winced.
“Yikes.” She agreed, reaching for her own water. She offered it in a toast that Alec gamely matched, tipping their bottles together and drinking to that.
Yikes indeed.
“Gross.” Rachel said. “Do I have to do a dare card since I don’t have an answer?”
“Mmm, does she?” Alec said. “If she does, I do, too. I don’t even really know any celebrities.”
“Brian hasn’t answered yet. And Taylor technically hasn’t either.” Lisa pointed out.
Taylor made a dismayed noise.
“Ugh, fine, my first ‘celebrity’ crush was… fnndrneiza.” She spoke into her knees, legs pulled up.
“Didn’t catch that.” Rachel said shamelessly, tugging Taylor more or less back into her lap– or at least against her chest.
“I said my first crush was Alexandria, all right?” The tall girl squirmed. “I had posters of her in my room.”
“Had?” Lisa arched a brow.
“Alright, fine, they’re still there but that’s because I haven’t changed my room decor in… years, I guess.”
“That’s really cute, Tay, I wouldn’t have guessed that about you.” Brian smiled at her. She squinted at him like she wasn’t sure how sincere he was being.
Alec outright laughed.
“C’mon, I can see it– you would hero-worship her. She’s hardcore as fuck.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Taylor’s shoulders rose a fraction.
“Nothing, nothing, Miss Melts-off-Dragon-Dick-First-Night.” Alec rose both hands in supplication.
Taylor, after a moment of intimidating intensity, reached out and took a cheeto from the bowl on the table. She pitched it at him.
Alec pretended it was a mortal wound, clutching at his heart and bowling over. Lisa giggled a lot, making room for him.
“Gah, my blood sugar! How unhealthy… my arteries are clogging as we speak…” Alec gripped his shirt, arching his back in the death-throes.
“You mean your cholesterol.” Lisa corrected.
Alec paused in ‘dying’ to look at her. Shrugged.
“Ahh, my cholesterol!”
Rachel snorted and even Taylor laughed a little.
Brian just sighed but he was smiling.
Win.
“Brian, who’d you crush on?” Rachel asked, turning with unerring precision to the other boy.
He thought about it for a moment.
“Raven-Symoné in the Cheetah Girls.” Brian finally said. “Although, again, it’s Aisha’s fault. She insisted we watch that movie every other night.”
“Wasn’t she like, five, when that movie came out?” Lisa asked, amused.
Brian gave a dead-eyed stare.
“You’ve never been around a six year old girl who won’t stop singing songs from a Disney movie?”
“I’ve been around a lot of little kids and that never happened to us.” Alec said, imagining any of his sisters. “I mean, Cherie liked music a lot but wouldn’t sing at home.”
“You’ve been around a lot of little kids?” Taylor asked, surprise catching her.
“Yeah.” Alec said simply. “I have like… a lot of siblings. Let’s move on?”
“You and Rachel don’t have answers for us.” Lisa countered. “Not even any cape crushes?”
“If I develop one now does that count as my first celebrity crush, technically?” Alec mused. “Because some of these new capes on the scene really do it for me.”
Taylor made a choked little noise.
“Who?” Rachel demanded.
“Well, there’s this newbie in the Bay who does stuff like recreate the plagues of Egypt, which is badass, and her costume makes a really fine silhouette.” Alec allowed. “And Tattletale literally wears a catsuit.”
Lisa reached out to pinch him again. Alec bore it good-naturedly. He made to continue and she pinched him again, ignoring his efforts to dodge, and he squirmed away and she kept going after him, until finally his legs were in her lap.
“I guess you’re hot, or whatever.” Rachel said grudgingly. “I’ll put Regent as mine.”
“What, really?” Alec half straightened up, legs still over Lisa’s. “Hang on, I think I’m flattered. The others are right here.”
“You’re pretty.” Rachel shrugged one shoulder. “So’re they, I guess. Brian’s big, Lisa’s little. Taylor’s tall.”
Alec nodded sagely.
The others were blushing. So was he, honestly. Being picked first felt special. He moved on quickly.
“My turn, then. Deep. Now that all the Ice Breakers are done. Do y’all feel all the ice is broken? We could go around again.”
“Read your card, pretty boy.” Lisa flicked the edge of his ‘hand’, indicating the one with Deep on the back.
“Gah, fine. ‘Have you ever had a near-death experience?’” Alec immediately snorted. “We all had near-death experiences this week, the fuck? This game is obviously not meant for capes.”
“Also, we all triggered.” Taylor pointed out. “That’s as near-death as it gets.”
Lisa sucked in a breath.
“Not necessarily, but trigger-trauma is definitely a Deeper card kind of conversation.” She said, offering Taylor a wobbly smile. “Also, yes, I can think of at least twice that all of us almost died recently. Next?”
“Agreed.” Brian said dryly.
“Hmm, ‘Between us, who has the crazier family?’” She paused only momentarily, mostly to let the others chime in.
“Alec.” Brian said instantly.
“Alec,” Rachel agreed.
“Yeah, sorry. Definitely Alec.” Taylor offered a half-shrug.
“Fine, damn. I guess it’s me, even though Brian has this Aisha character and from what I’ve heard, she’s a riot.” Alec huffed under his breath, fighting a smile.
Brian lifted his eyes in a no-nonsense stare and pinned Alec down.
“She’s not ever meeting any of you so don’t even ask.” The shaker said, “My work-life balance and that separation is the only thing keeping me sane.”
Alec mimed wiping a tear of disappointment.
“It’s okay, sweetheart.” Lisa said, patting his knee. “It’s hard to beat an A-class threat for crazy families. How would you even trump that, an S-class threat? Really unlikely, unless someone has, like, Jack Slash for an uncle.”
“Imagine.” Taylor said, shuddering. “Hm, maybe if one of your parents went to the Birdcage?”
“Nah, they Birdcage people for basically nothing.” Rachel denied. “Any of us might get it just for having ‘scary’ powers.”
“Fair. Sorry Alec, Heartbreaker’s the worst, even in the hypotheticals.” Lisa said, a grin playing on her mouth.
“Ha, don’t I know it. Preaching to the choir, there, Lis.” Alec reached out and she gave her hand, letting him play with her fingers, noting the faint purple sheen to her nails.
“Is it my turn or Rachel’s?” Taylor asked. “I can’t remember.”
“You go.” Rachel said, tucking her chin over Taylor’s shoulder to look at her ‘hand’ of cards.
“Okay.” Taylor mumbled. “Um, ‘What did you used to do in your free time before… before we started dating’?”
She cleared her throat.
“Since we’re not… that… maybe let’s do ‘before we joined the team?’”
“Well, three of us were on the streets before joining the team, so maybe let’s do before you joined the team.” Lisa said magnanimously.
“Yes.” Alec said at once. “Also, ‘started dating’ as a euphemism for ‘joined a villain team’ is actually hilarious. Taylor, you should tell your dad that’s what you’re doing.”
“I’m not telling my dad I’m dating you!” She paused. “You, plural.”
“Y’all?” Lisa suggested, practically laughing but managing to tamp it down.
Taylor shrunk into her shoulders, but since Rachel was holding her, ended up snuggling into a hug. Rachel watched smugly.
“We can call missions going on a date.” Rachel said. “You know, for you to tell your dad. Secret cover and all that shit.”
Brian chuckled and Alec flashed a thumbs up.
“Hell of a date,” Alec said. “My kinda party, though– what’d you do for your first date? Oh, we robbed a bank.”
“Shut up.” Taylor said in a grumble. “I wouldn’t say that. Besides, our first date was Fugly Bob’s.”
“I wasn’t there.” Rachel pointed out.
“I think our first ‘date’ was the Lung thing.” Brian corrected. “But that makes it sound like Lung was a part of it and, yeah, no.”
“First date: survive lung.” Lisa grinned. “Or, if you’re Taylor: win.”
“First date activities: rot someone’s dick off.” Alec laughed and Brian grimaced hard.
“Dude, gross. Not on my dates.” He shoved Alec.
“Noted for future dates.” Alec rolled his tongue. “So, Taylor, you’ll have to do something else if our next ‘date’ takes us up against a regenerator. Leader’s orders.”
“If you melt his dick a second time he will actually devote all his resources to killing you, though– so maybe don’t.” Lisa winced.
“Can we be done talking about this?” Taylor whined. “Someone else answer the question. I’m not even required to answer, it’s my card.”
“Fair, fair.” Alec chuckled. “Hmm, before Taylor started dating us–” another Cheetoh flew at his face, which he dodged, then picked up off his chest and ate, still reclined back with his legs in Lisa’s lap, “– I liked to paint, I guess? The graffiti on the door is mine, obviously.”
“Does it count as graffiti if we own the property?” Brian asked with a raised brow.
Alec booed him. “It’s bossman’s property, and even that’s probably criminal. Almost certainly criminal. Illegal any way you count it.” He waved a hand. “Your turn.”
“Me?” Brian paused. “Before Taylor joined the team–”
Alec and Lisa both booed him, jeering loudly enough that he dropped the bag of chips he’d just opened.
“Jesus, fine– before Taylor started dating us–”
“The air quotes were magnificent, do continue.” Alec allowed graciously.
“– I hate you. Anyway, I spent most of my free time as an actual cape for hire, out of town. Making money.”
“That’s not free time, though, that’s work time.” Alec complained loudly.
“He’s right, it’s work.” Rachel stared at Brian without blinking, over Taylor’s shoulder.
“Fine. I guess… watching dumb movies with Aisha? And sometimes Earth-Aleph imports of anime.”
“Weeeeb.” Alec called, drawing it out, and Taylor frowned.
“What’s that mean?”
“People used to say ‘Jap’ for people that are nerds about Japanese media.” Lisa said. “Then the early internet pointed out that it was a slur from WWII, and people changed to using a made-up word instead.”
“Nah, nah, you’ve got it all wrong.” Alec denied. “Well, partial credit. It started as Wapanese as a portmanteau of white Japanese/white people japanese fan, and then the mods of 4chan changed every use of the word to weeaboo for no reason in ‘05. Or, I read once that they switched to get around a filter on another site, but who knows which came first.”
“Fascinating.” Lisa said dryly, then to Taylor. “Weeb means ‘dork about Japanese media like anime or manga’.”
“I’m surprised you watch that stuff, Bri.” Alec said. “You’ll have to tell me your favorites later.”
“It’s really more of Aisha’s thing, but she’s really into movies, pop culture, that kind of thing. Mostly to do the opposite of whatever’s popular, but…” Brian sighed. “It’s a way to spend time with her, at least.”
Rachel shrugged, breaking the quiet after that statement.
“I walked my dogs.”
“We know, dear.” Lisa said.
“Most of my hobbies are ‘dogs’.” She continued.
“We know, dear.” Lisa said again, indulgent. “And we love this about you.”
“What about you, Lis?” Alec nudged her, voice dropping.
“Me? Well, I like reading mystery novels and seeing how far I can get before my power spoils the plot.”
“Laammee.” Alec drawled. “C’mon, give us something interesting.”
Lisa huffed at him.
“She likes shopping.” Rachel volunteered. “Not just for clothes. Like, really likes looking around and buying things.”
“It’s therapeutic.” Lisa agreed, looking somewhat surprised.
“She likes leaving scathing food reviews.” Brian said, shrugging when they looked to him. “Any time we eat out and it’s bad, Lisa leaves a rating that critiques everything about the food.”
[add a reference to her tiktok videos]
“Oh, yeah.” Alec recalled. “She also uses her power to point out stuff she should not know, like scandals of the wait staff or if there’s like, rats in the kitchen.”
“I do it under a dummy account, thank you.” Lisa blew air into her cheeks, looking like an overgrown chipmunk. “It’s perfectly safe.”
Taylor laughed a little.
“Sounds like you have the most hobbies out of all of us, Lisa.” She said.
“Nah, Alec likes video games and Brian likes working out.” The blonde squinted. “I won’t argue that Rachel needs more hobbies, though.”
Rachel shrugged good-naturedly.
“I’m happy with what I’ve got.”
“Does what you’ve got include a captured Skitter?” Alec teased.
Rachel smirked where Taylor couldn’t see it.
“Maybe.”
Taylor cleared her throat.
“Okay, Rachel’s Deep card. ‘What traits do you look for in a partner?’”
“I don’t have to answer because it’s mine.” Rachel said, before turning so she was speaking nearish Taylor’s ear. “You go first.”
Taylor swallowed.
“Uh… strong?” She practically squeaked. “Pretty, maybe.”
“Score.” Alec said, extra obnoxiously, causing the girl to blush almost nuclear.
“Pretty, sure. Strong though?” Lisa reached out and squeezed Alec’s bicep pointedly.
Alec squawked.
“You sanctimonious bitch! Take that back.”
“Or what?” Lisa’s eyes glittered.
“Bold of you to play games when you’re literally right here and ticklish.”
“I am no—AGHT!” Lisa’s word squealed out and she screamed, high-pitched with laughter as Alec’s fingers moved on her ribs. “Stop– peace– PAX.”
Alec gamely ceased, trailing fingertips down her ribs in an almost soothing apology.
“Don’t ever try to lie to me again,” He turned his nose up, mock-haughty. “Not ticklish my ass. I can literally feel your nerves, heathen.”
Brian stood up and handed Alec a piece of candy.
“What’s this for?” He turned, expression falling back to his blank ‘normal’, if a little pink.
“Good job. You saw the line, stopped when she said stop and it wasn’t funny anymore.” He looked at Taylor. “Positive reinforcement.”
“I get candy when I read social cues correctly?” Alec unwrapped the little treat. “Hang on, wait. I get a kiss when I read social cues correctly?”
Brian flushed.
“It was a random chocolate out of the bowl, don’t read into it.”
“But what if I want more kisses?” Alec fluttered his lashes.
Brian reached into the candy bowl and threw another silver-wrapped candy at him.
“Dick.” Brian said, cheeks dark with it.
Alec smugly ate his second chocolate.
“Well, what I like in a partner is a guy not afraid to give me kisses. Or chocolates. Or flowers, I suppose.” He smirked the entire time, like an asshole. “Brian, I’ve got kisses and chocolates but no flowers? For shame.”
“Don’t push your luck.” Brian said. “What do you like from girls?”
“Ooh, asking the interesting questions. Since ‘head’ is probably an inappropriate answer– god, Lisa, why–” She pinched hard and he snorted another laugh. “– okay, okay, fine. I guess… hair color isn’t really a thing, since I like brunettes and blondes and redheads.”
A semi-pointed look which Lisa did not pinch him for, thankfully.
“Laying it on pretty thick there.” Brian said, expression droll.
“You literally asked.” Alec countered. “Anyway, I don’t know. Being cool. Funny. A bit of a dork. It helps if they like me.”
“So what you like in a partner is them liking you?” Lisa challenged. “I… can’t even make a narcissist joke because that’s just reasonable, honestly. Why would you want to have a partner that didn’t even like you?”
“Exactly.” Alec laughed but when they looked away he swallowed, expression dropping.
“I guess, for me…” Lisa continued. “I don’t know? I’m not really used to liking people like that. Romantically, I mean.”
“Do you like any physical traits?” Alec asked, tracing her fingers one by one on her re-captured hand.
“Well.” Lisa squinted at them. “Statistically, dark-haired people, I guess.”
“Nice, I make the cut.” Alec drawled. “Taylor, Brian, high-five me.”
“We can’t reach.” Taylor said, amused.
“Air high-five, then, across the room.” He kept it up until they indulged him, which made butterflies warm his stomach. How fucking lame.
“I hate being by myself.” Lisa continued, eventually. “So, people I can stand to be around for long periods of time. I don’t really care how they look.”
“You care about some things.” Brain said. “Even I know that.”
“Correct.” Lisa allowed. “I need you to shower daily. Brush your teeth. Wash your ass.”
Alec snorted hard, completely unexpected.
“So, bisexual at least.” He sang. “Straight men do not let soap touch the taint, much less anus.”
“Hey,” Brian complained. “I wash my… all the parts.”
His cheeks flushed again.
“You’re really not the poster child for heterosexuality, though.” Alec said easily. “Just throwing that out there.”
“Shut up.” Brian muttered. “Jerk.”
“Straight men don’t wash their ass?” Taylor asked, nose wrinkling.
“They really don’t.” Lisa cut in, before anyone else could. “My power is a snitch about it and men are gross.”
“Wow, Brian, are you just going to let her diss you like that?”
“You’re in that category, too, asshole– bisexual or not.”
“Am I though?” Alec glittered. “Am I really?”
He fluttered his lashes until the other boy looked away only to start cackling, throwing his head back with mirth. Lisa watched with an indulgent smile.
“Don’t torment him, honey, you’ll break him.” She ran a hand down Alec’s calf.
“Bah, you never let me have any fun.” He pouted at her and she stared for just a second too long. Alec’s expression dropped clean again, game abandoned, and she looked away sharply.
“Hey–” He reached out, snagging her hand again, but Lisa was looking directly at the other girls and not acknowledging him.
“Brian, your turn.” She said, still looking at Taylor. “We’ve really spent too long on this– oomph.”
Alec had sat up and moved his legs out of her lap, wrapping both arms around her middle and tugging until they were almost mirrored Rachel and Taylor. Lisa ended up with her back to his chest and he tucked his chin over her shoulder, affectionate.
“Brian, come here, you look lonely.” Alec said, flicking his eyes over to their fifth.
Brian swallowed, but stood and walked over. He hesitated only for a moment before throwing a leg up on the other side of them and letting Alec lean against his chest, like they were a chain.
He put his arms around both of them.
“Now,” Alec said, dropping his head back against Brian’s big shoulder to look at him. “Tell us what you want in a lover.”
“That was not the question.” Brian said, but Alec could hear his heart beating fast, under his ear.
“Close enough,” Alec shrugged. He couldn’t help humming under his breath, pleased. Very warm, very solid.
“Well, if we’re being shallow about it.” Brian took a breath. “You two here are so unfairly pretty that I’ve got basically no shot at thinking ‘straight’.”
It recalibrated Alec’s brain. Something stuttered.
Brian calling them pretty?
Brian calling him pretty?
Alec pushed his face more into Brian’s neck and whined about the unfairness of it all. Then, angle bothering him, he hid his face in Lisa’s hair and muttered vocal complaints in a language none of them spoke.
“There, there, babe.” Lisa said teasingly. “You can dish it out but you can’t take it?”
“Shut up.” Alec nipped at the back of her neck, pouting. “And you– that’s like, what, the third pet name you’ve called me tonight? I don’t need this shit.”
His voice was high with complaint but there was a blush to his cheeks he couldn’t hide. Alec remembered last week, where she called him sweetheart. Where was that?
“Again: you can give but you can’t take? You’ve been giving us your little French nicknames all week.” Lisa trailed fingers over where his arms were tight around her midriff.
“Hush.” Alec grumbled, petulant. “It’s different.”
“It’s really not.” Taylor said, only to flush when they all turned to her. She was watching with hooded eyes– so was Rachel, but her stare was more like a predator’s, both unblinking.
“Also, for the record: I can take it just fine.” Alec let amusement curl his voice, a dark aspect as he kept his mouth near Lisa’s ear and nipped again.
Brian got a little deliciously tense behind him.
Fuck.
“Bitey.” Rachel said, just that. A low growl to her voice.
“Approval?” He checked and her nod was slow, deliberate, and smoldering.
He cursed against Lisa.
“Do you like biting, mon force?” He tried, dizzily, to get things back on track.
“I’ve never had someone bite me.” Brian said, swallowing hard enough Alec could feel it.
Alec groaned.
“Fuck, someone read the next card before being trapped between these two kills me.” He squeezed his eyes shut and took a few deep breaths, grâce.
“Trapped, huh?” Rachel said, all amusement. “It’s Brian’s turn.”
A bit of shuffling behind him as Brian reached for his abandoned cards.
Almost immediately, the larger boy laughed. The sound brushed air against Alec’s hair, distracting.
“What?” Lisa asked, craning her head back. Brian put the card in front of her– and in turn, in front of Alec.
“What’s your favorite viral trend?” Alec read, chuckling despite his predicament. “Well, definitely that tiktok trend Lisa tried that… had everyone kissing me for no reason in the Loft last week.”
“Yeah, that turned out surprisingly well.” Lisa said, appropriately breathless. And, fuck, okay, Alec gave in and started kissing her neck a little, which ended with Brian’s remaining hand tightening around his waist a little. God.
“Did you get lots of views?” Brian asked, voice almost strangled and yeah, Alec could see it getting all of the views. He’d even found Lisa’s account so he could watch it a silly amount of times.
She nodded, swallowing a gasp that had the collective heart rate of the room jumping up quite a few beats per minute.
“That was my favorite trend, too.” Brian said lightly, almost too lightly, and
“Definitely my favorite so far. T-taylor?” Lisa prompted, tilting her head to give Alec better access, fuck. He kept it so light, being good, not drawing tongue or teeth into it, a press of lips that might be accidental if he wasn’t… moving, very faintly, brushing his mouth purposefully to and fro, in what in any other circumstance would be a tease.
“That was for a video? I thought you just… wanted to kiss him” She said, and this time the plural was obvious. Brian shivered behind him and Alec’s entire body tensed in a rolling wave.
“Here, look.” Lisa thumbed open her lockscreen with shaky hands and navigated to a separate folder with only one video in it.
“You watch it, too?” Alec said against her ear, feeling her bite her lip, feeling the rush of her pulse, and– fuck, no, his power was just acting up.
Sex always made him very aware of the other bodies around him, just what they were feeling. And four people around him were certainly turned on, reflecting his own want back at him like a gilded mirror.
Fuck.
“Jesus.” Taylor said, breathless, watching the short video replay a few times.
“Testing how my guy best friend reacts if I try to kiss him,” She read, finally pausing it. She handed Lisa back the phone. “He just… let you?”
“He really did.” Lisa shivered, tossing the phone on the couch next to her. She leaned back into Alec and practically purred with her body, even as she fought to keep her voice even and her face straight.
“It wasn’t exactly a hardship.” Alec let his voice drawl, pulse thundering. Were they going to talk about it? Address how fucking easy it was to just kiss for hours, to passing Alec from lap to lap, loving him, touching him, smiling into his lips and–
“Yeah, that’s definitely my favorite trend, then. Not that I really know any others.” Taylor cleared her throat, then looked back at the girl behind her. “Rachel?”
“What’s the question?” She grunted, after just a second too long, eyes not leaving the other three together on the couch.
“Do you have a favorite trend? Like when different people make videos doing the same thing?” Taylor asked.
“Nope.” Rachel said. “I like that video, though. You should put that on my phone.”
“If you don’t know any trends, you should pick a penalty card.” Brian took a deep breath. “I’ll grab one for you.”
He picked up a dark ‘Action’ card and bit his lip.
Alec leaned back into him and smirked a little.
“Didn’t think that through, did you?” He asked. “Go on, read it to us.”
“Ass.” Brian looked down at him but it was with a fondness that made something kick violently in Alec’s chest. “Why don’t you read it?”
A thumb across Alec’s cheek, tipping his face just so to face Brian. Alec’s mouth parted softly and a little sound fell out, a trembling noise caught somewhere between a breath and a moan.
Brian’s eyes went gratifyingly dark.
“Any day now.” Lisa’s voice was low with amusement as she half-turned in Alec’s arms to watch them. “You’re making Rachel wait.”
“I don’t mind.” Rachel shrugged again. “I like watching them. They’re hot like this.”
Brian’s blush instantly turned a shade darker, exhaling long and shaky as he dropped eye contact.
“Fuck.” He said, only for his eyes to return to Alec again, like he couldn’t look away. His hand moved down until he could stroke his thumb across Alec’s soft lower lip. “Is it horrible that I want to put on a show for her? I’ve never done anything like that.”
Alec stared, pale eyes wider than normal as he struggled to function.
“You two make a gorgeous daydream together.” Lisa sighed, half-wistfully. “Lost in pleasure, desperate for it, trying to get even closer. Listening to you make noise into a kiss would probably be enough to fuel my imagination for weeks.”
Her voice held the entire room enraptured, crossing a line they had been toeing all night.
Alec turned his head a little, just enough to kiss the thumb resting so soft and warm against his mouth. To feel Brian stop breathing for it.
“As much as I want to give you material for your spank bank, Lis, we are actually in the middle of something.” Alec’s voice was hoarse.
He pulled Brian’s hand away to look at the card.
“Rachel, it wants you to give someone a hickey.” Alec recited, trying to get… well, his breathing wasn’t not under control but he still felt unmoored, warm and tingly and a little turned on.
He tried to get that shit on lock.
“I’ve seen that before, I think. Weird mark on your neck, right?” Rachel said.
“Among other places.” Alec gave a bit of humor to it, still unused to how easy it was with them. How laughter was in his voice more often than not, the amusement and happiness hell and gone from the dead monotone he’d had for most of his life.
“Ooh, that’s true– it doesn’t say where to give the hickey. Or to whom.” Lisa’s voice was all play, trailing fingers over the arm Alec had around her.
Somehow that little ticklish touch, so absent-minded, was taking his breath.
“How do you give them?” Rachel asked, impatient. “They look like a bruise but the color’s wrong.”
Alec started to speak and paused.
“Oh fuck.” Lisa said, pulse sprinting as she closed her eyes hard. Brian caught on and groaned.
“No, come on, we have you right where we want you.” The shaker complained, trailing beseeching kisses down behind Alec’s ear.
Okay first of all, Alec shivered for that. Then he made a complaining noise because, look. Look.
“It’s literally the perfect setup, I gotta.” He whined, leaning into how ridiculous they were all being. It was weird that nobody was going to turn on him, cruel words wielded like a weapon, weaknesses exploited, wants denied
Alec could admit things and even… ask for them.
“I can come back?” He wet his lip, before worrying it with his teeth. That was dumb, though.
If he got up now, even for so worthy a cause, they’d just fall into each other, and he couldn’t even blame him? But there would definitely be no room for Alec anymore.
Except Brian was already nodding, pressing a lingering kiss to his neck, the other hand reassuring and stroking whatever part of Alec it landed on– elbow, hip, finally his jaw as he pulled himself back.
Slowly, like it took real effort.
“Yeah, of course. We’ll keep your seat warm.” Lisa agreed, too, pressing all her weight into him. He hugged her closer, encouraging that sort of thing, he’s not stupid, and she brought his hand up to kiss the knuckles.
He was so warm. Surrounded by Lisa and Brian, all soft and sturdy, supporting him, leaning into him, wrapped around him. Leaving was a genuine tragedy except.
Rachel wanted to learn something.
Well, not that she’d said it in as many words, but it was a perfect set up and Alec was a showman at heart, okay? He could perform, if nothing else.
And where before everything had been acting in order to survive, burying fear and loathing and malcontent, here he could take those embers of emotion and fan them a little, smile and laugh and play and be rewarded, encouraged, kissed.
“What are you talking about.” Rachel asked, frowning from over Taylor’s shoulder.
“I think…” The bug-controller took a deep breath. “You asked how so I think he’s going to come show you?”
“That’s stupid, he’s literally in Brian’s lap. With Lisa in his lap. They’re being all flirty and stuff.”
“Ah, but you’re worth it, ma loulou.” Alec offered a small smile as he extracted himself, the other two only hesitating for a moment like they wanted to keep him before helping him up.
He stumbled, but it wasn’t due to a lack of balance. God. If he wasn’t surrounded by people he’d draw a trembling hand over his face, just to give him a moment to cope with that.
Like they wanted to keep him, fuck.
“Unless, that is, I should doubt my welcome?” Alec walked over as though he were entirely unaffected, entirely sure of himself, and he mostly was as sure of his welcome between the two girls as he was Lisa and Brian, but a niggling doubt sent a frisson of cold through him.
(But they wouldn’t, right? Rachel and Taylor walking into the loft, not upset but interested, crawling over to him, kissing him without rhyme or reason, just because they wanted to, holding his face, sucking his tongue a little, passing him around–)
If they didn’t want him, Brian and Lisa already said he could come back, he wasn’t completely adrift.
There wouldn’t be any cold, sharp lines tossed his way; no cutting remarks, no mocking laughter that he dared to think he was wanted. If anything, there would be pouting and giggling as Lisa laughed and comforted him from the rejection, a ‘there, there’, Brian’s big hands pulling him in, keeping him safe.
And if being with neither of them for five seconds, standing alone in the center of the living room, felt like being cast out to sea in the middle of the lonely arctic, like hovering over a cliff’s edge, then–
Rachel didn’t move away from Taylor, but she did hold out her arm, and Alec climbed on to the loveseat, pressing into her side.
“Hi.” He greeted, smiling wider than was perhaps appropriate, and it was… hmm, for a moment he wasn’t sure what to do, what was too close?
It was stupid, he literally came over here to give hickey lessons, even if he hadn’t strictly been invited, and yet he was fretting about where to put his hands?
“H-hey.” Taylor said, shyly, and she’d be curling in on herself if Rachel would let her.
Instead Rachel pulled her in closer, until Alec and Taylor were practically in her lap, facing each other.
“Okay, we have him. Now what do we do with him?” Rachel smirked a little and Alec blinked, a little caught off guard and a little warm about it.
“Au contraire, ladies, I am here to do something with you.” Alec grinned. “Although to be fair, it could be either of you, hmm?”
He pulled some of Rachel’s hair behind her ear, tucking it there as an excuse to lean in and breathe against her skin.
“Ticklish.” She complained, and Alec touched his tongue to the lobe a little, snickering. She headbutted him softly to get him away, which, fair, both of her hands were occupied.
“So,” Alec started, back to business, ignoring the flush on his skin that hopefully wasn’t visible. He trailed his lips purposefully down Rachel’s neck, making a show of it. “You make a hickey by kissing, biting and sucking on thin skin. I bet Taylor knows the mechanics, don’t you, beautiful?”
“Me?” She startled as if coming out of a trance, still staring at where Alec was molesting Rachel’s throat. “I’ve never, um. I gave someone a hickey once, but it was on a dare. At a sleepover.”
Normally he might tease but they all picked up on the undercurrent of misery there, on the ‘this was before’ that highly indicated Taylor’s past sleepovers were with one of those little bitches that had organized her trigger.
Alec had some experience with purposeful triggers.
Bad enough that triggers happened. That someone could be in a fight, an accident, a cape battle or some domestic situation like Rachel or Brian, or lose someone like Lisa, and come out of it broken and changed.
But pushed to the edge on purpose? They might not have meant for her to trigger but, like Alec, someone had damn well tried their best to hurt her.
Whether or not they’d wanted them to trigger, Alec and Taylor’s worst days had been orchestrated and that shit was infuriating. She didn’t even want revenge which was insane because Alec would hesitate long and hard if offered an orbital strike of the entire city of Montreal, and that would only be because of the 1.5 million other people living there.
“You’ve never received one, hmm? Then I guess we should ask Rachel who she’s going to use her Action on.”
“Taylor, obviously.” Rachel said, right as Taylor blurted, “You, probably, now that you’re here.”
They both turned to look at her, gold and blue eyes skeptical.
“Well, I mean… look at him.” Taylor muttered, almost inaudible under her blush.
“But I mean… you’re all–” Alec gestured to her, tilting his head to the side. “C’mon, lovebug, work with me here.”
“He’s right. You are all–” Rachel wiggled her eyebrows, grinning.
“Hush.” Taylor said, looking completely down. “I know what I look like, okay? You don’t have to try to make me feel better about it.”
“Okay, point of order.” Lisa said from across the room. “Taylor is hot, we all agree, right?”
“Lisa!” Taylor sputtered.
“Obviously.” Alec said, a bit of smartass in his tone.
Rachel rolled her eyes, “Yeah?”
And Brian laughed.
“Not to be crass, but she’s really good looking.” He admitted easily.
“I…” Taylor tried to talk and just trailed off, frowning at all of them. “I’m not pretty, though?”
The honest confusion in her voice was strange to hear from someone so confident in her cape persona, so tall and genuinely gorgeous.
“I think you should let me give you a hickey, then let me murder those little bitches who made you think that,” Alec said, going for earnest and ending up somewhere dark and flat instead.
Taylor stared at him in shock.
“Agreed.” Rachel growled, and Taylor turned to look at her. Rachel’s expression softened fractionally. “To both of those things.”
“I– what? No?” Taylor said, glancing between them in confusion. Then, firmer: “No. They’re… not worth it. At all.”
“No to the murder but not the hickey?” Alec asked, letting the amused and flirty quirk of lips distract him a little from the sudden urge ot hide a body or two.
“Isn’t it… supposed to be Rachel?” Taylor mumbled, half hiding in Rachel’s shoulder. “I thought you were going to show her.”
“I am.” Alec said, casually getting that much closer, until he could smell her hair. Was that weird? She had nice hair. “Rachel needs a demonstration. Don’t you, Rach?”
“Sure do.” Rachel agreed readily. “Let’s see it.”
The weight of her expectant gaze was like a living thing, a serpent coiled in wait– or maybe in this case a wolf in the dark, hmm?
“What do you say, Tay? Can I?” Alec moved her hair out of the way, admiring the long line of her neck.
“I don’t–” She actually stuttered and it was so fucking cute.
“Hmm. Let me try some things and you tell me if you don’t like it. Okay?”
Mutely, she nodded, as Alec moved in, crossing Rachel’s torso and cupping the back of Taylor’s neck to pull her close.
When his lips touched her skin she gasped, sharp and sudden. Alec paused, dipping back so slightly to check.
“Good?” He murmured softly and felt her nod, a jerky thing, fingers clenching into Rachel’s thigh. Ah, he shouldn’t be able to feel that, and yet– the line between his body and theirs was a very thin thing.
“Okay.” Alec grinned a little into her rabbity pulse and that made it kick, tension running through her frame. God, she was wound so tight…
It made him think of really dirty things the four of them could do to her, ways to make her relax that would probably be called ‘too far’ or ‘scandalous’ should he repeat them out loud.
Okay, yikes, he should probably stay right here, not get that far ahead of himself. It was easier by the fact that Taylor was breathing heavy, tense against him, and Rachel’s guiding arm around the other girl keeping her close.
“There you go, just relax.” Alec said, words almost muffled and kissed languidly along her throat. He wasn’t just going to go for it, not when Taylor was drawn tight like stringed instrument.
Of course, that was a different game to play and it was possible to be taut like that for good reasons… She just wasn’t. Alec bit a little here and there, just to check, and she still jumped every time.
“Y-you can just, just do it.” Taylor said, eyes screwed shut, still so damn tense.
“I want you to enjoy it.” Alec said, surprising himself with how true it was, kissing the words into flushed skin. “C’mon, Taylor, lean into it. We’re teaching, here. Does it feel nice?”
“… it does.” She said, admirably breathless. So he was at least doing something right.
Alec rewarded her with a firmer kiss, the lightest pressure– it could hardly be called a suck but it did make her gasp once more, shivering, so he did it again and again.
Not enough to even pinken the skin but it made her nerves sing for him, and he could almost feel it.
“Is this part of the hickey or just necking?” Rachel checked, and Taylor made a dismayed noise.
“Just for fun.” Alec answered, between slow kisses. “I want it to feel good. The tease is… exciting. Makes it more. Right, Tay?”
“Gnn.”
Alec laughed a bit against her skin, almost all breath instead of sound.
“It’s weird to do this without kissing first.” Alec admitted. “I mean, it’s nice, but you’re hardly warmed up for it. Gotta take some extra time to get the mood right.”
“The mood.” Taylor said through gritted teeth, fingers clenched. “Is fine. It’s fine. Go ahead.” That last bit half-moaned, as she shivered again.
Little trembles in her frame betrayed her.
“Nah, I wanna take my time with you.” Alec decided, giving her a bit more pressure but not much. “Unless you don’t like it?”
She was tellingly silent and Rachel smirked.
Alec tangled his hand in Taylor’s hair, getting better leverage. He pulled her close and she gasped, ragged and somehow still surprised.
He pulled her close and nipped a little, slowly.
“Educational enough for you, Rach?” He grinned against Taylor’s skin.
“I’m learning a lot.” Rachel said, voice low and turned on. “Knew you’d be good at this.”
Alec’s gut clenched, a wave of fire rolling through him. Evil. He shifted his weight slightly, his own breathing affected, and Rachel smirked louder.
“Bitch.” He complained, and she laughed, a throaty chuckle that would keep him up at night.
Lisa and Brian couldn’t hold laughter at that one, though it was quiet and brief as they did– whatever they were doing over there that made their pulses spike and their emotions flutter.
“Stop teasing us.” Rachel said, a little ragged, and trailed her hand along Alec’s jaw. Her thumb pushed, wanting his mouth open, and it was so easy to oblige.
He moaned. Taylor jerked against them like a live wire.
“Go ahead.” Rachel said, leaning closer to both of them. “I want to watch.”
Alec pressed his forehead to Taylor’s collar for one second, fucking gathering himself, before moving to obey. It was close, intimate with his hand on one side of her throat and his mouth on the other, like he was pulling her in and keeping her there, with them.
No escape, but then again Taylor wasn’t trying to escape. She was pressing into them like her body couldn’t even help it.
Alec strongly felt she was one more teasing kiss away from a please falling out, begging for her pleasure in a way he just knew would be beautiful.
Sadly that wasn’t the game they were playing tonight, and he did have a job to do.
“Like this.” He explained, though of course it wasn’t visible, but Taylor painted a pretty picture for him: gasping and groaning and bucking in their grip when he finally got to work, sucking easily and sensually right where her neck met her shoulder.
His mouth was a rhythmic pulse and she clenched to it, her hands and her insides, too, though she would probably freak the fuck out if he told her he could feel it, clenching around nothing, cock hard and aching with it.
“There you go, just like that.” Alec said, encouraging nonsense, as he scraped teeth and pressure over the same one spot, feeling it start to bruise from her side of things, knowing how to do it just right. When to stop, when to give her more, when it started to hurt– and when it hurt just the right side of too good.
His power was cheating and yet, for the first time, he was having fun with it, not vindictive or self-serving. Just making it as good as possible for her.
“Good.” Rachel praised, her hand slipping to cup the back of his neck, and Alec wanted to whine, had to consciously stop the instinctive response to that. She wasn’t– quite– guiding him but the feeling of it, the weight of her hand on him, of her approval, was hot and heavy.
“Jesus.” Brian said, faintly from too far away, and Alec wished they were on the daybed, wished they were all tangled together, too many hands to tell who was who, all soft, reverent touches and easy love.
Then he flushed and kicked himself a little, because that sounded like sex— and worse, group sex– which would not be anything like his addled mind kept coming up with, and he knew better. It would not be soft and sweet like he was imagining.
…Although, a significant and ever-growing part of him wanted it to be.
He wasn’t sure, of course, couldn’t be sure– all his experience told him the opposite— but he thought… he thought he could make it sweet for them. If he tried.
Alec flushed and closed his eyes, focusing on the task at hand.
His hand shook on Taylor’s neck but that was fine, she was shaking like a leaf under his touch, and every other breath was a near-whimper, and when Alec pulled away she was panting.
There was a fresh, strawberry shaped and strawberry-colored oval of broken blood vessels marring her otherwise pale skin, and his lips kind of tingled.
“There.” Alec said roughly, rubbing a thumb over the unblemished side of her neck. “See, Rach?”
He tried and failed to gather himself.
“Not really.” Rachel said, nudging his grip aside and kissing the untouched side of Taylor’s neck herself. “Let me try.”
“Nng!” Taylor jerked, spine going straight, as Rachel bit. And bit some more. Faint teeth marks, not hard enough to bruise or break the skin, distressed the skin, crescents of stark white showing overlapping indents.
Taylor thrashed through it, moving her chin back and forth like she couldn’t decide to lean into it or away, and finally she pushed Rachel away.
“That’s… not how you leave a hickey.” Taylor finally begged off, looking overwhelmed, eyes dark and hair a touch messy. Mostly from where Alec pulled her in, but some of it was from her dropping her head back, from how she moved– struggled– against Rachel’s teeth.
“Damn.” Rachel deadpanned. She gently eased Taylor out of her lap and reached for Alec, grabbing him with sure hands and bullying him close to her.
“Guess you’ll have to show me.” Rachel said, reeling him in with feeling, and Alec could only laugh with disbelief as she pitched herself back, taking him with her, and he had to catch himself on the cushions.
He snickered into her shoulder and didn’t bother trying to hide it as one of her hands settled on his hip, more aggressive than Brian despite being several sizes smaller, and the other cupped his nape and pulled.
“You know, the card said you had to do this.” Alec tried to smother his laugh and it didn’t work. She tugged him rudely into place, mouth to where she wanted it, and Alec was lighter than air.
He kissed her there immediately, peppering in a few bites because he had to, because she’d practically dared him, and he was rewarded with a growl that sounded so strange and hot out of a human throat.
“I’m learning.” Rachel said, belatedly. “Can’t do shit if I don’t know how.”
“Fair point, lovely Rachel.” Alec accompanied each word with another kiss. “I… mm… am happy to be your teacher in this. Do I have an attentive pupil?”
“You have an impatient student, if that’s what that means.” Rachel rolled her eyes, the hand on his hip migrating. She splayed it on the small of Alec’s back, sliding under his shirt, and he let the moan for it be sweet, be high and pretty, just to feel her other hand clench in his hair.
“C’est bien,” He rasped, inhaling roughly. “Nn, god, Rache–”
“Suck, Alec.”
And fuck if that didn’t go right to his cock? God, he was impaired.
He obeyed sloppily, barely able to find a good place to give her the mark she so sweetly requested, kept losing his place from the slip of saliva and her sweat.
It should have been gross, should have been stuffy and hot and claustrophobic in the worst ways, but instead it was rushed and hot, in the best way, stoking a fire in him that made him clumsy with haste and want.
He finally got a likely piece of flesh and bit, indenting there, establishing the place. From there it was the work of nothing to worry the skin, to mouth and suck at it until color formed, and Rachel grunted under him.
“S’good.” She said, echoing his earlier cry, and he shuddered on top of her. Her hand slid down, grabbing his ass, and encouraging him, pulling him closer.
“‘m too hard for that,” He breathed, broken fits of air sucking into his lungs, trying to keep it to her ear, trying to not let the others hear but of course Taylor was close enough and she choked.
“No.” Rachel disagreed, forcing his hips closer to her, rubbing his– fuck, he was still dressed but his cock rubbed messy against her stomach through the layers and her hand on his hip encouraged it, setting the pace, setting the rhythm, and he buried tight little sounds into her throat.
Regardless of what anyone says, it’s not whimpering, and if it was, it would be understandable.
His boxers and pants are too uncomfortable for this, Rachel’s jeans an even rougher material, and as the sensations bump up to flinching from overstimulation he latches onto her neck and sucks, half-desperate and fumbling, and Rachel moans low.
They’re both struggling for breath, Rachel’s breathing a little more even than his. Alec squeezes his eyes shut against it, overwhelmed in the best way, until finally Rachel makes a little sound and pushes him off.
Gently, but it still stings for a second, snapping through him like a lash, until he finds himself on his back on the loveseat that’s really too small for all this, elbows holding himself up, completely disheveled.
And Rachel doesn’t look mad, or upset, she looks intent.
A little like she wants to eat him alive.
“Well, why’d you push me away then if you’re not done with me?” Alec asks, and clears his throat to hopefully make his next words less gravelly and wrecked.
“Trying to decide if I want you or Taylor.”
Alec blinks. It should maybe be hurtful but at the same time, it’s kind of no contest?
“Don’t strain yourself, love, that’s an easy choice.” And in that case, it definitely makes sense why she would so cruelly abandon him. It also gives him a chance to feign composure, although hopefully he only looks half as fucked out as he feels.
He offers a small smile Taylor’s way, one that falls away as he takes in her expression. If Rachel wanted to eat him, Taylor looks like she wants to wear his skin around, and it shouldn’t be…
Fuck it shouldn’t be even a little hot but that kind of intensity, right at this moment, is… nice? Is it nice?
He’s clearly going insane.
“Don’t worry, tresor, she’s all yours now.” Alec tried, shifting his weight so he could sit up, maybe run a hand through his hair and laugh this off, but before he can–
Hand. At his chest.
Pushing him down.
Back down onto the couch.
“No.” Rachel says again. “Taylor doesn’t mind. She already got one. Your turn.”
“Me–?”
For a moment it doesn’t comprehend, and then his lips part with surprise.
But what about Taylor, he wants to say. It was meant to be for her. Rachel was meant to choose her– it was– oh–
Everything goes strangely blank when Rachel climbs on top of him.
He loses a few seconds in the good way, surprised to be chosen over anyone, surprised to be wanted, but then a long stretch just disappears, out of ingrained habit, as her weight settles on him.
“Alec?” Softer now, Rachel’s hand on his cheek. “Hey, what–?”
She sounds upset, which isn’t good. He shakes off some of the lethargy. It feels oddly like pulling himself from sleep, or a waking dream.
Oh, she’s on him. Sitting on him. Straddling him, even. She’s… sex?
It’s usually not so bad with a woman, especially not when they’re on top and he can just mentally check out–
No.
Alec shakes himself out of it a little, frowning. Rachel is looking at him in real concern, even Taylor has edged forward.
“Hey.” Alec says, for lack of anything else. His face feels blank. Oh, ugh, he’s hard? What’s he hard for?
Well… pretty girl in his lap, easy enough.
He paints a grin on for that, opens his mouth to make a joke–
And just like that, Rachel’s hand is covering his mouth.
Blank.
It’s stupid. Even as it’s happening he realizes it’s stupid, that her intent was to stop him from making light of it. That it was out of care, not harsh or violent, or even sexual.
But her hand is covering Alec’s mouth and she’s on top of him and when he next registers anything, he’s alone on the loveseat.
His kneejerk response is to complain, because he doesn’t want to be alone, he doesn’t want to be fucked up and held at arm’s length for it. Then reality sets in and he sits back with a neutral expression.
Something cold forms a lump in his stomach, because he didn’t just freak out; he shut down, which is stupid, dangerous and useless for actually escaping if it had been… that.
How wonderful.
They had been having fun. Taylor’s little card game had been the most they’d talked to each other ‘just because’ in weeks, they’d been moving in the direction of maybe kissing him again, or at least talking about it, and Lisa and Brian had not wanted to let him get up.
They had wanted him, emphasis on the past tense, and now that entire train of thought was completely derailed, all because he couldn’t keep it together. Game ruined. Night ruined.
Chances of being softly kissed and passed around, ruined.
Shit, he didn’t even mind Rachel climbing on top of him, which was the infuriating part.
Rachel climbing on top of him was a hot and welcome course of action, but something about it had caused him to freeze right up and his normal method of deescalating tension– laughing it off– had been nipped in the bud, with a gentle hand shushing him that his body had chosen to interpret as something much worse.
Alec sat up, deciding to forego a look around the room despite his other instincts insisting it was the only way to be safe– knowledge is power, knowing where everyone is, where the threats are, who’s here, etc., very important, whatever.
His hands were faintly shaking.
His mouth was set in an unhappy line and he pushed a hand through his curls, feeling irrationally irritated.
They weren’t gone, of course. Even without looking, Alec knew who was around him at any given time. One of the gifts of his trigger, rewarding paranoia and making it easier to disassociate right out of Jean-Paul’s miserable circumstances.
He closed his eyes as Lisa settled next to him, knees on the couch.
“Look at you, working yourself into a state.” She said, unimpressed.
Despite himself, Alec’s shoulders relaxed at the tone. Not pity. Thank god. He could handle just about anything except the kid gloves.
“Bitch.” He said, tiredly.
“Nope, Rachel’s over there.” She pointed, which he could see without looking because her nerves were a glowing, familiar silhouette.
“Very funny.” Alec peeled his eyes open and found green looking at him, Lisa fighting a grin. His throat worked: “Must we?”
“What, make the running joke of ‘bitch’ / ’I know she is but what am I’?” Lisa came closer until he could feel her warmth, radiating off of her outline and onto his, watercolor bleed.
“You know what I mean.” A breath, almost too quick to note. “Don’t give me grief about this, please.”
Her eyes widened a little, and he had just enough time to regret, stomach dropping… before her lips curved into a happy little smile.
Alec squinted at her, suspicious.
“Excellent boundary, sweetheart.” She said, voice so soft.
Alec’s pulse tripped into a sprint so fast it almost hurt, because what?
No, seriously, what!? All night he’s been wanting that, all week he’s been waiting for it, wondering if it was a one time thing, if they hadn’t really meant it, and–
“Really?” He asks, in a bit of pique. “After I freak out over something stupid?”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Lisa lifts her nose, obviously amused. “I’m just here to keep a promise.”
“Right.” Alec frowned, moody. “And what–”
Brian, sitting down on his other side. Not shying away from touching him, bullying Alec into the position he wants. Touching Alec like everything is completely fine and Alec didn’t just embarrass himself in the lamest way possible.
The loveseat is smaller than the couch. Still, Brian pulls Alec against his chest, bundling him close, and while his heart is still recovering from that, Lisa slips right against him with a shameless bit of manhandling to put Alec’s arms around her middle.
She snuggles in all cozy, which makes him snort.
“I thought I was supposed to get a kiss for establishing boundaries,” He said, voice still a little dull, making up for it with slowly pulling her in of his own accord.
“Get a little bit further away from the panic threshold and I’ll give you one.” Lisa said, shrugging one shoulder, her little spaghetti-strap pajama top barely hanging on.
Alec fixed it for her, dragging the strap up her arm and back to its place.
“We said we could get back like this, right?” Brian asked, hugging Alec almost fiercely. “See? Everything’s okay.”
“Are you reassuring me, or yourself?” Alec rose a brow, melting into him despite… everything.
“Both.” Brian said, a challenge to his words.
“Do you want to keep playing?” Lisa asked, holding out– his cards. Well, his last card. They were all down to one each.