"These kids are too nice. If I'm going to steal their food, I have to do it in front of them, where it's funny." The peak Dad thing to do. Not that he knows what other Dads do.
He watches the way they light up when they finally find what they're looking for. It's horribly cute and he doesn't know what to do with that thought so he keeps it in his head.
"Mmm, sure. I'll try one. Got to see what the fuss is about after all."
Probably a good thing he keeps it to himself. They wouldn't know what to do with that information either.
They nod and tear open one of the packets. There's two inside and they toss them into the toaster and then onto a plate once it pops back up. And over to a table they go. May as well sit down.
"Careful. There's filling in there that's gonna be hot." But it'll taste good, at least to them. It is a sort of hot-chocolate taste but if Héctor likes it, that's up to him.
He can smell it before it's even done. Something sweet. He shouldn't be surprised there, they did seem to like that best but surprised he is and he blinks at the tarts the moment he can really look at them. He takes one up.
"Huh. Really more like a pan dulce than a tart." Though thinner than he's used to there. He splits it in two in his hands, just to see this filling. Chocolate.
Well, here goes. He takes a small bite and hums his approval. Pretty nice actually. Sweeter than he's used to, but nice.
He's definitely more interested in sneaking glances at them though. Considering how exicted they were to have this, he wants to see what joy he might catch on their face, if any.
"Brand names and shit, I'm guessing. Mainly treats for kids and it has a crap load of flavors."
Seriously, it's kind of ridiculous. But they have their attention on their tart so sneaking glances at Nekane isn't that hard.
From an outside prospective it's just someone eating. But Héctor's known them long enough to probably pick up this and that - the intense focus they have on something they like, the small upward curl on the corners of their mouth. Their eyes are just a little brighter.
And probably the fact it lasts for about a minute before the pop tart is completely devoured. They're hungry, okay?
A treat for kids with tends of flavors. And there's Nekane, loving it. It's sweet, watching that small little smile, the way they're lit up. It's the little things that bring then joy and it's their little joys that make him smile helplessly, hopelessly fond. This was definitely worth stealing for, though it's distracting him from actually finishing his own.
He laughs a little when they devour it, giving his head a shake.
"Go heat up a couple more and put them on a plate. You can bring it back to my room and we can worry about crumbs later."
He gets up and walks to them, pushing their hair back with a hand so he can kiss their forehead.
Nekane actually goes a little cross-eyed when they lean their head back to watch him walk over and kiss them. It really is easier and nicer that Héctor can do this without thinking about it too hard. And that they can take it without feeling like their skin would rip itself off just to escape the contact.
They pop the rest of the tart into their mouth and reach up...to ruffle his hair badly. With both hands. Luckily they don't have crumbs on them.
"Sure. Can make something else for you too while I'm here, if you want."
A mouth full of pop tart? Adorable. The reaching up in the process? Also, very much that. The hair ruffling? A jerk move but something that makes him laugh. He gives them a light shove.
"Sure, why not?" He'll fight down his jitters but they always let him watch. They always mind him.
He lets them go about their preparations and helps where he can. Any instruction or whatever else, he'll listen to. They can take their bounty back to the bed where they can settle, and he sit down behind them and get to work.
If they could read his mind, Nekane would huff. Instead they get up and roll their shoulders so they can start cooking. Today is mac and cheese with extra cheese on top to make up for a lack of hotdogs. Something simple because their shoulders sting. They leave it up to Héctor how much he wanted to spoon into a bowl for himself while they shove the rest of the pop tarts into the toaster. Onto a plate those go and they grab their own mac and cheese.
Once upstairs they sit down on the bed, making sure they leave Héctor enough room to sit behind them. They hunker down with their bowl of mac and cheese and just let him go to work without complaint.
"I swear these stupid things are growing." In regards to their wings. God, they hope not.
Macaroni and cheese. It's not something he would have had back home-- ever. But it's soft and simple in a way that wouldn't bother his stomach and will probably taste fairly good. He takes just a little bit, enough that it will count for something, especially with the effort they just put in for him.
It's back to his room they go and once he's set his food down, he settles in behind just like he said he would. Time to get to work.
"They're not growing," He says though his voice is a touch fond. "Even with magic-y stuff, they're meant to be proportionate to you. I'm pretty sure you're not having a growth spurt. You're just shoving yourself in even smaller places is what. Brace."
The last word is a warning. It'll keep them from swallowing food at the exact moment he pops a joint back into place.
"I told you I like--urg." They put down the spoonful of mac and cheese they were going to eat when they feel the joint go back into place.
One would think they learned their lesson a long time ago, but no. Nekane could hear John's usual tone of 'amazement' that they hadn't lost them both yet when he had to fix their wings before they could.
"Besides, that line of thought means I'm fucking doomed to be short forever. Don't dash my dreams."
His smile becomes a grimace for that second their body tenses with pain. Nevertheless, this is their own fault. He's about to move to the next one when they go on, and that he has to lean over for, just so they can see the look on his face, brows raised, grin, and complete doubt.
"Oh," He says, "I'm definitely dashing those dreams. You're short. You're twenty-something years old and you've never even been a kid and this is what you've got. Short forever."
With a bit of snickering, he goes right back where he was and finds the next joint. He gives another warning before he pops that one in place.
"There are other ways to hide that don't crush your wings down."
And to that they actually stop eating long enough to elbow him, fixing the man with a flat look. Asshole.
"I'll remember that when you clock your fucking head on a door frame one day. And I will laugh at your damn misery." They grumble.
The next joint to be popped back in place doesn't hurt as badly so they continue eating. Mainly to avoid answering Héctor's comment as long as they can until it becomes obvious what they're doing.
He yelps but only snickers more. And when they talk of him hitting his head. That... happened woefully often back home. People weren't tall like he was there and then. Except Imelda's brothers of course.
"You'd have laughed anyway," He points out. He knows he's right.
The sullen silence just gives them away further. He goes to the next joint.
"Mmhmm, and uh, would you say this is comfortable?" He pointedly pops that joint then and there. But then, with his teasing done, he asks, "What is it for you? Maybe we can work something out. It's not the dark, of course. Is it having your back to something, being hidden, being crowded in...?"
"I'll photograph it." Which is a terrible threat of epic proportions. Only not and they know it.
But that's just delaying the conversation more and they know it. So Nekane sighs. "Got no idea. It is comfortable, I ain't lying about that. It's just...a place I go, I guess."
They have no idea where it comes from. But Héctor might be able to put the pieces together if he thinks about it. He had to work to get under the bed and then them out, not to mention not a lot of people would get down there in the first place. Or figure someone with wings would be desperate enough to try hiding under a bed.
It's a hiding spot. A hiding spot where all other options are exhausted.
"I'll hold it above your head, where you can't reach." Implying he'd ever be able to get it out of their hands. He still hasn't to this day.
He reaches out for their shoulder, a softer touch not meant to fix anything, just to say he's there.
"It's a comfort. It feels safe." He can get that. "I do believe you. I'm just thinking there's got to be other options. Better options."
He lets go of their shoulder and goes back to their wings. There's just a bit more left to go. He gives warnings for those and tends the last few. Some of them are smaller, but some need a real big pull and that's bound to hurt. When he's done, he lays a hand on their back and kisses between their wings. It's obvious now, when he does that, no longer the secret it used to me.
"I'm going to massage your back a bit, take out some of the kinks. You can keep eating. It shouldn't hurt more." Such was his plan to begin with. He continues, "I think what we need is a way to trick your head. Some way to hide that you can know is safe, and feels like under the bed, but you know, isn't."
They give him a look that basically says you and what army but relax under his touch. It's nice, even if their wings make it a bitch and a half. The bigger pulls hurt but it goes without complaint because it was their own fault this happened, so bitching to Héctor about the pain was pointless.
He offers a massage and they nod, pulling off their jacket to make things a little easier. And they have to think about what he's talking about. A way to trick their head...
"Could always make a fox-hole." Nekane jokes. "Normally I can use closets but those apparently aren't a fucking thing here so..."
They know full well tricking their head isn't the easiest thing around, particularly because they don't like doing it in the first place. But they get his point. Héctor isn't always going to be around to fix their wings and Nekane really didn't trust anyone but him to do it if they can't.
It's a strange feeling, the way they just let him in. He remembers how hard it used to be, how they reviled any kind of touch at all. It's still hard for them. But they let him close, let him help, let him try and fix things and he can never forget the trust he's being given with each second of it.
He works the muscles of their back, including the ones they don't feel because everything is connected. He listens to them joke but he hums thoughtfully at it.
"That might not be a bad idea," He says. "Obviously not a real fox-hole, but if we can make something that's the same idea. Someplace you can go and you can tell yourself your safe until it's true. As true as it can be here."
That or they can look for a closet but who knows if and when they'll find that. Or if it will even be safe.
"Could do something with blankets. When I was the orphanage and not just roaming the streets or other places, there was a few times, with the other kids, we'd be up these sort of fortresses. The sisters always had us take it down so they never lasted but nothing would stop you here."
In turn they realize the ease they have with him touching them after taking their jacket off without thinking about it. Nekane thinks it might change when he actually has his hands on them, but it doesn't. There's still the hyper-awareness of being touched there, but it's Héctor and they know he won't hurt them. It's easier to relax.
And even if they can't feel it in places it still helps them relax and get the ever-present kinks out of their back. They can't help the pleased noise that comes out of their mouth when he gets a particularly bad knot out.
Focus.
"Maybe, yeah. Set up something using the desk as a base. Or maybe something in the corner of the room."
Somewhere they can put their back against, basically.
He chuckles softly at that noise, smiling wider. It feels good to be able to do something, to be able to make them feel good. He fights the urge to kiss them again because then they'll really be distracted.
"Maybe both," He suggests. "And we can take a couple of chairs from somewhere, use them extend things a little."
Some good old petty theft but who cares. They don't.
"And depending on if its my room or yours, you'll still have one desk free that you can use."
Because of course, it hasn't slipped his mind that they hid here out of all the hotel.
Nekane sure doesn't care. It wouldn't be the first time they've 'borrowed' something and it sure won't be the last. And it's not like there's a super important chair in Hell anyway.
"Both." Because go big or go home. "We can make a playground or something."
And because it's them, they do think about the options present between their room and Héctor. But they don't answer that because they also realize the implication they themself set because this was the first place they chose to hide in. They could have hid in their own room or hell, even have gone so far to hide in the club itself. But no. Héctor's place.
Maybe he'll buy the excuse the reason why Nekane doesn't answer is because they've suddenly stuffed a whole pop tart into their mouth.
He laughs and grins wider. A playground. He's never seen one in person but he's heard of those.
"Playground it is. I can return to days of youth and you can actually get one."
Nevermind that it would be an ambitious project. It's not like they don't have the free time in this place. Even if it's silly. And speaking of silly, he snorts at the sight of their puffed cheeks.
"Ah, see, there you go. You've already got a head start on youthful re-enactment."
They twist around so they can shoot Héctor a very flat look. But they can't offer a rebuttal until they finally swallow all of the pop tart. God damnit.
"I'm...just hungry." Nailed it. "And I ain't young enough to pull that off."
They think. Maybe. Nekane thinks they really need to figure out exactly how old they are one of these days. But more importantly-
That flat look just gets him giggling. He can see them trying to swallow it all down fast enough to comment.
"You're young at heart, my friend. It's in there."
And that's not just teasing. Even if he says it to tease. But with their question, he just shakes his head and shrugs.
"Nope. Santa Cecilia doesn't have that kind of money. Or population. Any sort of play I did as a kid was climbing the neighbourhood and falling off of that."
They can't focus on chewing and trying to elbow him at the same time so he wins. Yes, there is winning here, somehow.
"I can picture you falling off of shit easily." It's actually kind of adorable, although it probably could have turned out badly too. "Guess you and I went in different directions."
He climbed up things, they climbed under things. Kind of interesting to see where those preferences go.
Although they both have their reasons for both options.
Oh, he's taking that win. He's definitely taking it. Though he does give a light shove when they say they picture him falling. He did admit as much but still.
He was always banged up and dirty in youth. There was no helping him until Imelda happened. He hums then.
"When you feel small, and you live in the dirt, you dream of those high places at first," He says softer now, going back to what he was doing with massaging their shoulders. "You climb the highest buildings and hills and you shout to the world, Hello, I'm here! Please, someone notice me..." Youth had been lonely like that. Ernesto had understood and didn't get it all at the same time.
"It was never good for me. But at least we can make your direction good for you."
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Again he snorts. Again, he shakes his head.
"These kids are too nice. If I'm going to steal their food, I have to do it in front of them, where it's funny." The peak Dad thing to do. Not that he knows what other Dads do.
He watches the way they light up when they finally find what they're looking for. It's horribly cute and he doesn't know what to do with that thought so he keeps it in his head.
"Mmm, sure. I'll try one. Got to see what the fuss is about after all."
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They nod and tear open one of the packets. There's two inside and they toss them into the toaster and then onto a plate once it pops back up. And over to a table they go. May as well sit down.
"Careful. There's filling in there that's gonna be hot." But it'll taste good, at least to them. It is a sort of hot-chocolate taste but if Héctor likes it, that's up to him.
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"Huh. Really more like a pan dulce than a tart." Though thinner than he's used to there. He splits it in two in his hands, just to see this filling. Chocolate.
Well, here goes. He takes a small bite and hums his approval. Pretty nice actually. Sweeter than he's used to, but nice.
He's definitely more interested in sneaking glances at them though. Considering how exicted they were to have this, he wants to see what joy he might catch on their face, if any.
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Seriously, it's kind of ridiculous. But they have their attention on their tart so sneaking glances at Nekane isn't that hard.
From an outside prospective it's just someone eating. But Héctor's known them long enough to probably pick up this and that - the intense focus they have on something they like, the small upward curl on the corners of their mouth. Their eyes are just a little brighter.
And probably the fact it lasts for about a minute before the pop tart is completely devoured. They're hungry, okay?
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He laughs a little when they devour it, giving his head a shake.
"Go heat up a couple more and put them on a plate. You can bring it back to my room and we can worry about crumbs later."
He gets up and walks to them, pushing their hair back with a hand so he can kiss their forehead.
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They pop the rest of the tart into their mouth and reach up...to ruffle his hair badly. With both hands. Luckily they don't have crumbs on them.
"Sure. Can make something else for you too while I'm here, if you want."
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"Sure, why not?" He'll fight down his jitters but they always let him watch. They always mind him.
He lets them go about their preparations and helps where he can. Any instruction or whatever else, he'll listen to. They can take their bounty back to the bed where they can settle, and he sit down behind them and get to work.
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Once upstairs they sit down on the bed, making sure they leave Héctor enough room to sit behind them. They hunker down with their bowl of mac and cheese and just let him go to work without complaint.
"I swear these stupid things are growing." In regards to their wings. God, they hope not.
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It's back to his room they go and once he's set his food down, he settles in behind just like he said he would. Time to get to work.
"They're not growing," He says though his voice is a touch fond. "Even with magic-y stuff, they're meant to be proportionate to you. I'm pretty sure you're not having a growth spurt. You're just shoving yourself in even smaller places is what. Brace."
The last word is a warning. It'll keep them from swallowing food at the exact moment he pops a joint back into place.
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One would think they learned their lesson a long time ago, but no. Nekane could hear John's usual tone of 'amazement' that they hadn't lost them both yet when he had to fix their wings before they could.
"Besides, that line of thought means I'm fucking doomed to be short forever. Don't dash my dreams."
You jerk.
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"Oh," He says, "I'm definitely dashing those dreams. You're short. You're twenty-something years old and you've never even been a kid and this is what you've got. Short forever."
With a bit of snickering, he goes right back where he was and finds the next joint. He gives another warning before he pops that one in place.
"There are other ways to hide that don't crush your wings down."
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"I'll remember that when you clock your fucking head on a door frame one day. And I will laugh at your damn misery." They grumble.
The next joint to be popped back in place doesn't hurt as badly so they continue eating. Mainly to avoid answering Héctor's comment as long as they can until it becomes obvious what they're doing.
"Ain't as comfortable. I've checked."
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"You'd have laughed anyway," He points out. He knows he's right.
The sullen silence just gives them away further. He goes to the next joint.
"Mmhmm, and uh, would you say this is comfortable?" He pointedly pops that joint then and there. But then, with his teasing done, he asks, "What is it for you? Maybe we can work something out. It's not the dark, of course. Is it having your back to something, being hidden, being crowded in...?"
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But that's just delaying the conversation more and they know it. So Nekane sighs. "Got no idea. It is comfortable, I ain't lying about that. It's just...a place I go, I guess."
They have no idea where it comes from. But Héctor might be able to put the pieces together if he thinks about it. He had to work to get under the bed and then them out, not to mention not a lot of people would get down there in the first place. Or figure someone with wings would be desperate enough to try hiding under a bed.
It's a hiding spot. A hiding spot where all other options are exhausted.
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He reaches out for their shoulder, a softer touch not meant to fix anything, just to say he's there.
"It's a comfort. It feels safe." He can get that. "I do believe you. I'm just thinking there's got to be other options. Better options."
He lets go of their shoulder and goes back to their wings. There's just a bit more left to go. He gives warnings for those and tends the last few. Some of them are smaller, but some need a real big pull and that's bound to hurt. When he's done, he lays a hand on their back and kisses between their wings. It's obvious now, when he does that, no longer the secret it used to me.
"I'm going to massage your back a bit, take out some of the kinks. You can keep eating. It shouldn't hurt more." Such was his plan to begin with. He continues, "I think what we need is a way to trick your head. Some way to hide that you can know is safe, and feels like under the bed, but you know, isn't."
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He offers a massage and they nod, pulling off their jacket to make things a little easier. And they have to think about what he's talking about. A way to trick their head...
"Could always make a fox-hole." Nekane jokes. "Normally I can use closets but those apparently aren't a fucking thing here so..."
They know full well tricking their head isn't the easiest thing around, particularly because they don't like doing it in the first place. But they get his point. Héctor isn't always going to be around to fix their wings and Nekane really didn't trust anyone but him to do it if they can't.
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He works the muscles of their back, including the ones they don't feel because everything is connected. He listens to them joke but he hums thoughtfully at it.
"That might not be a bad idea," He says. "Obviously not a real fox-hole, but if we can make something that's the same idea. Someplace you can go and you can tell yourself your safe until it's true. As true as it can be here."
That or they can look for a closet but who knows if and when they'll find that. Or if it will even be safe.
"Could do something with blankets. When I was the orphanage and not just roaming the streets or other places, there was a few times, with the other kids, we'd be up these sort of fortresses. The sisters always had us take it down so they never lasted but nothing would stop you here."
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And even if they can't feel it in places it still helps them relax and get the ever-present kinks out of their back. They can't help the pleased noise that comes out of their mouth when he gets a particularly bad knot out.
Focus.
"Maybe, yeah. Set up something using the desk as a base. Or maybe something in the corner of the room."
Somewhere they can put their back against, basically.
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"Maybe both," He suggests. "And we can take a couple of chairs from somewhere, use them extend things a little."
Some good old petty theft but who cares. They don't.
"And depending on if its my room or yours, you'll still have one desk free that you can use."
Because of course, it hasn't slipped his mind that they hid here out of all the hotel.
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"Both." Because go big or go home. "We can make a playground or something."
And because it's them, they do think about the options present between their room and Héctor. But they don't answer that because they also realize the implication they themself set because this was the first place they chose to hide in. They could have hid in their own room or hell, even have gone so far to hide in the club itself. But no. Héctor's place.
Maybe he'll buy the excuse the reason why Nekane doesn't answer is because they've suddenly stuffed a whole pop tart into their mouth.
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"Playground it is. I can return to days of youth and you can actually get one."
Nevermind that it would be an ambitious project. It's not like they don't have the free time in this place. Even if it's silly. And speaking of silly, he snorts at the sight of their puffed cheeks.
"Ah, see, there you go. You've already got a head start on youthful re-enactment."
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"I'm...just hungry." Nailed it. "And I ain't young enough to pull that off."
They think. Maybe. Nekane thinks they really need to figure out exactly how old they are one of these days. But more importantly-
"You've never seen a playground before?"
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"You're young at heart, my friend. It's in there."
And that's not just teasing. Even if he says it to tease. But with their question, he just shakes his head and shrugs.
"Nope. Santa Cecilia doesn't have that kind of money. Or population. Any sort of play I did as a kid was climbing the neighbourhood and falling off of that."
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"I can picture you falling off of shit easily." It's actually kind of adorable, although it probably could have turned out badly too. "Guess you and I went in different directions."
He climbed up things, they climbed under things. Kind of interesting to see where those preferences go.
Although they both have their reasons for both options.
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He was always banged up and dirty in youth. There was no helping him until Imelda happened. He hums then.
"When you feel small, and you live in the dirt, you dream of those high places at first," He says softer now, going back to what he was doing with massaging their shoulders. "You climb the highest buildings and hills and you shout to the world, Hello, I'm here! Please, someone notice me..." Youth had been lonely like that. Ernesto had understood and didn't get it all at the same time.
"It was never good for me. But at least we can make your direction good for you."
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