"You like this, huh?"
Jude didn't answer, instead squeezing Alvin's hand in affirmation. He knew the colour and expression on his face probably answered that question for him anyway; Alvin was just being cheeky, as always. Said man sighed a laughing breath into his ear before curling his fingers up inside him, causing Jude to make a noise which immediately threw him into a state of embarrassment.
He didn't even know how this had happened—one moment he was sleeping after a long day of tedious work, and the next moment he was naked and sweaty with Alvin's fingers inside him. He at least could remember that Alvin hadn't been home when he'd returned from work, and in his state of exhaustion he hadn't even stayed up to welcome his lover home. This made up for that, he supposed.
As he stifled a low moan behind his pursed lips, Jude's other hand slowly reached over to touch Alvin's chest. Enough of this teasing—he wanted the man at least on top of him, wanted him to... Oh, he couldn't even think it. Alvin would chide him for being childish if he knew.
"Mm?" Grinning, Alvin simply hummed at him inquisitively, scissoring his fingers and picking up the pace. Jude tilted his head against the other's neck to hide his blissful expression, whining in need, his own fingers curling against Alvin's chest. Alvin knew what he wanted, so why couldn't he just give it to him? This happened every time, he could swear.
"Alvin..." Jude could feel his skin burning up, the red traveling down his neck even, and the sensation only made him tremble. Alvin left a trail of kisses on the side of his neck, finally pressing up more against him, and the skin-to-skin contact made him keen. He clawed at Alvin's side feebly, trying to get his feelings across, and in his delirium he barely heard the other man's quiet answer.
"We're sorta pressed for time here, Jude... Later, I promise. For now..." A third lubed finger finally made its way in with the other two, and Jude's back arched up off the bed as he started to pant heavily despite the slight sting of the stretching. Alvin's unoccupied hand broke away from Jude's to stroke his hair, encouraging him as always—the motion made Jude's heart burst in confliction, at being treated like a kid but being held as a lover. Still, he understood there were some things that neither he nor Alvin would be able to let go of, and that was alright.
"A-Alvin... I-" His voice caught, and his hands gripped tighter at anything they could purchase. Alvin's fingers thrust relentlessly, his other hand tilting Jude's head up, allowing a rather open-mouthed kiss. Alvin hummed in acknowledgement as Jude moaned wantonly into his mouth, letting himself go. His body shook with the tremors, and Alvin's fingers finally stilled, his other hand stroking Jude's back calmingly. Jude continued the kiss languidly, not wanting to stop, the need to be close overwhelming him. It wasn't his fault that he usually got emotional after sex.
Alvin waited until Jude's tremors ceased and his breathing calmed before pulling out his fingers delicately. The boy sighed in relief, now blinking slowly as his sleepiness returned to him tenfold. Eyes closing, he felt the other man stoke his side and press a gentle kiss to his lips before whispering in his ear, words tinted with a hint of amusement.
"Seven minutes to ten, Jude. You should probably get dressed, yeah?"
Immediately his eyes flew open wide, and he stilled for a few seconds, processing the information. With a sigh, he then tiredly shoved Alvin away—him and his cocky, insufferable expression—and turned to get out of bed, ignoring the aches in his limbs. He let out a groan of despair when he checked the bedside clock; Alvin was no liar this time around.
"I'll get you later for this..." he mumbled angrily, cursing Alvin's laughter as he made his way to the bathroom. He prayed to Maxwell he could wash himself off and get dressed in the little time they had.
Elize would be lying to herself if she said she wasn't excited—and for numerous reasons, of course. First of all, who knew that riding an Elympion train by yourself could be so fun? Sure, she'd been nervous at the beginning, armed only with her wits and a paper of written directions to guide her, but it didn't turn out as traumatizing as she once thought it would be. After all, the nice attendant, once learning that she was a student, had let her choose her own pick of three candy bars from the food trolley, and that was enough to make her believe Elympion trains were the best in the world.
Coming to Elympios by herself was a treat in of itself. Her school project for this season was meant to be something art-related, so she took the opportunity and decided to make her topic "Lifelessness, Rebirth, and Regeneration"—also known as what Leia dubbed the "Elympion-Spyrite-Nature Revolution." At first, her topic choice was simply a ploy convincing Driselle to allow her an Elympion vacation by herself for this season's break, but the more she talked with her teacher, the more she found herself invested in her idea. In a two-part piece, she would first depict the lifelessness in Elympios's current state, and then depict her envisioned future for it—the regeneration part. It would surely earn her some snickers or glares from some of her classmates, but she was determined to get a good grade and some recognition for it.
Even more excited, though, was she for the "main event"—that is, staying with Alvin and Jude, both of whom she hadn't seen in person for a long while. Not only did she miss the people she grew to call her family, but she was very interested to see how the two were faring living together. She'd been there when they'd decided to get an apartment together, but hadn't seen the final result at all, or had heard much about how they were doing. This was her chance, and having not seen much of their relationship in action, she was curious.
Luckily, she managed to find the apartment without much trouble—the amiable landlady outside the building kindly pointed her to the right floor, and no one seemed to spare her a second glance as she made her way. Of course, if she'd brought Teepo with her, she would've gotten plenty of weird stares for sure—the exact reason why she didn't. At least, not for this trip, which was supposed to be "purely academic," as Driselle had promptly reminded her before sending her off. Staying under the same roof as Alvin? They both knew it was a lost cause, honestly.
Mouth already widening into a smile, she knocked on the door. And waited. After ten seconds with no answer, she knocked again, a hint of confusion at the back of her mind. Before it had enough time to fester, though, the door finally opened.
"Glad to see you, little lady."
All of a sudden, there Alvin was, smiling down at her. At seeing him for the first time in months, Elize couldn't help but drop her bag and lunge at him. They'd talked plenty over GHS—her and Jude as well—but it was much different to see someone in person. She felt him laughing as she buried her face in his shirt, and she smiled along with him, any nervousness of being alone drifting away.
Their apartment wasn't as messy as she'd expected from what Leia told her, but she figured that they'd probably made sure to clean up somewhat before she arrived. She noticed Alvin watching her nervously as she took in her surroundings, and turned back to him with a bright smile.
"I like it here! It's very homey—I can tell that it's you guys who live here. Like, seeing all of Jude's books everywhere, and your coats..." He threw her a slightly alarmed look, and she shook her hands adamantly. "Oh, no, I mean, I like that it isn't super clean! Driselle always makes me clean up after myself, even if it's the smallest thing! But, like this... it really shows that it's lived-in. It's comfortable!"
At that, Alvin smiled back at her and reached down to pat her head. "Well, in the time that you're staying here, feel free to strew your belongings wherever you want too. I'm sure that'll make it even more... homey."
Elize dropped her bag again, leaning her head against him. "I'm glad I'm here, Alvin."
"Same. We've missed you, kid."
It was at that moment Jude burst out from another room, looking frazzled. He spied Elize and stepped a bit closer, though she immediately ran and hugged him tightly, making him gasp in surprise.
"Jude! I missed you!" It was all she could say as she buried her face in his chest, eliciting a chuckle from him. If she'd brought Teepo with her, he would just do this for her so she wouldn't have to—but no, she reminded herself, I have to get better at showing my feelings without using Teepo. It'd been a constant struggle since the first time she'd set Teepo aside, but she knew she was getting better.
Jude hugged back, setting his head atop hers. "I missed you too, Elize. Have a safe trip here?"
She pulled back and nodded, turning away to pick up her bag from where she'd dropped it. "I was on the boat and train by myself, but nothing went wrong. I was a little nervous, but being on the train was so fun! I thought I might get into trouble with someone—being in Elympios on my own—but the attendant was very nice to me!"
The two men smiled, relieved at her tale. They both had to admit, they'd been worried once they heard Elize would be traveling all by herself for the first time—being a Rieze Maxian in Elympios still wasn't the best situation.
Coming to attention, Jude straightened himself out and brushed down his crinkled shirt. "Oh, has Alvin shown you to your room yet? It's just our spare, so you can decorate it however you like... Not to say you're going to be here for very long, anyway... Oh, and are you hungry? I can make us some breakfast, if you want... Is bacon and eggs okay? Oh, or you probably want something more like what you have at Sharilton, right...?"
Elize closed her eyes happily at his concerns, feeling light and bubbly inside already. It was nice to see them again after what felt like such a long time, and to find that Jude was just as caring as he always had been. He hadn't changed, that's for sure, and she never wanted him to.
Alvin grinned at Jude's rambling as well, though his was more amused. "Well, I was thinking we could go out for brunch in a little bit. Elize did get to eat on the train, after all; we can show her around our place a little more and leave once we're hungry, yeah?" Elize nodded, and Jude flushed in embarrassment at realizing how he'd acted, even knowing that they appreciated it nonetheless.
"Y-Yeah, of course! Um, Alvin, if you could show her around, I just need to go make sure I'm set for work before we leave..." He trailed off, taking out his GHS and walking towards the kitchen table.
Elize looked to him in surprise. "Huh? Jude, you don't need to take off work just because of me being here... Your research is important!" Regardless of her tone, he only looked back with a smile.
"I want to spend time with you while you're here, Elize." She blushed in joy, suddenly glad Teepo wasn't with her. "Besides, I won't be taking off every day; that wouldn't be reasonable, and I know you have to work on your project while you're here, too."
"Okay..." She paused, nodding her head in understanding. Alvin chuckled softly at them, nudging Elize at the small of her back to guide her to the next room.
Surprisingly, the apartment was bigger than Elize thought it appeared to be. Immediately behind the front door were the kitchen, living, and dining rooms—not separated by any walls, creating one open area that made the apartment seem small. However, one door against the back wall led to another hallway which contained several rooms, including Alvin and Jude's room, the spare room, an office-type room—probably for Jude, she guessed—and a laundry room. With two bathrooms in the apartment as well, Elize was pleased she wouldn't have to deal with having no personal space, being used to the Sharil Manor. What made her happiest, though, was that the spare room she would be staying in had a large window with a decent view of one of the city's parks—she immediately thought of how perfect it would be for her project.
After allowing Elize some time to unpack her things, the trio left for brunch, and Elize pitched some of her project ideas to them in detail after being pestered about it. As shy as she was to have to explain herself, she could tell the two were very supportive. Jude seemed especially interested, seeing as she would no doubt be drawing much inspiration from his spyrite research—that's what would make this envisioned future possible, after all. She'd make sure to get a chance to visit Jude's work while she was here.
To her delight, the two men spoiled her rotten at the café, buying for her any sweet she desired and then some. It was true that neither of them had really changed during the time she'd been apart from them, but it was refreshing to realize how different things could be when they weren't involved in perilous adventures and having to save the world time and time again. Life was... normal—and she still had to get used to it, considering she'd never felt the relaxation of having a normal life. Finally, after all these years, she was being gifted that chance... Which was exactly why she felt she owed so much to these people, whom without she would never be able to feel this feeling.
When she'd last seen them, Alvin was clean-shaven; after he'd kept the "rogue" beard for so long, he'd said he liked to switch it up every now and then. Now, though, she could see it'd been growing back for a while, as it looked almost the same as it had a couple years ago. When asking Jude how he felt about it, he'd only turned pink and admitted he did like it—Elize had to agree. It reminded her of Rowen, and Jiao, and her father—and Alvin fit the list along with them, for sure.
Jude, on the other hand, had been cutting his hair and regrowing it for a while; just now, it was in the middle of growing out again, tapered at the middle of his neck. She hoped, while she was staying here, he would do her hair, which he'd only done a few times for her in the past. She could remember each detail of it regardless.
Luckily, she got what she wished the minute she asked for it, and Jude did her pigtails for her during breakfast the next morning. He was clumsier than her at it by now, but she still preferred it this way. The food he'd made for them that morning was also something she wasn't that familiar with—they didn't have waffles too often in Rieze Maxia—yet she found it one of the most enjoyable things she'd tasted. Since Ludger, she'd come to appreciate Elympion food.
Leia's sudden text to her as she was eating also reminded her of her secondary goal during this trip—seeing Alvin and Jude's relationship in action was something she couldn't help but be excited for. And yet, all she'd been able to catch glimpses of in the twenty-four hours she'd been here was some hand-holding. ...Well, maybe she was being too hasty. She'd caught Jude leaning his head on Alvin's shoulder while they were watching the television, and while Jude was cooking she saw Alvin sneak up on him and wrap his arms around his waist lovingly. Of course, they'd probably thought she hadn't been looking during those times, and that thought simply annoyed her—she wasn't some kid anymore! Were they trying to hide their affection around her or something?
Now a girl with a mission, Elize was determined to get them to open up somehow. But that was a hard thing to try and focus on, considering she had an entire two-part art project to complete in the span of a few weeks or so. Despite her conflicting priorities, she still found herself working on her project day in and day out for the first week. It didn't seem fair—this was a vacation, right?—but at the same time, Jude and Alvin both seemed to be working a lot too after the first day. This was probably what their regular routines were in the first place, and she didn't want to get in the way of that. Apart from Jude wanting to treat her every now and then by cooking something or going out to eat, they mostly got take-out for dinner and ate leftovers for lunch. She didn't complain, still happy to be with them, but it was... different.
In the mornings, she would usually be the first one to rise, depending on Alvin's work hours. While Jude came and left at what Elize thought were typical hours, Alvin's work schedule was as erratic as she could imagine from him. On Thursday, he'd even slept in until 1 PM; Jude said this was nothing to be worried about and that he needed the rest, which quelled her worries. At least, during those times, Elize could wake him up by jumping on him—that was the only time she really went into his and Jude's room. She knew he didn't appreciate it, but she couldn't help herself; she'd never grow out of her habit of teasing Alvin.
To her relief, since school was out she was no longer forced to wake up at any particular time, but she always found herself waking first anyway, too caught in the habit. Either that, or Jude would wake her before he left, making sure she was able to eat breakfast. She loved those mornings.
By the second week, she'd comfortably settled herself into the "living with Alvin and Jude" situation, while simultaneously finishing the first half of her project. Out of embarrassment, she refused to let neither Alvin nor Jude see any of it until the finished product was ready. Most of her inspiration for the "lifeless" portion was taken from the highroads' landscapes, but she'd also added in some aspects of Elympion culture to remind whoever was looking—yes, this was a "human" issue, it wasn't just about wishing to save the environment and grow some trees... Damn that one kid in her political science class.
Jude and Alvin had both promised her that they'd get more time off work as well, which made her happier than ever. She needed a break, truthfully. Watercolours took a lot out of a person.
Fortunately or unfortunately—Elize didn't know—Leia had also texted all three of them, saying that she could stop by to catch up and see Elize this week. Elize was excited, for sure, but didn't know how things would pan out with someone as volatile as Leia. The intrepid reporter seemed just as eager to know about Alvin and Jude's relationship, after all—she was the one always texting her, "Have you seen them kiss yet?"—"Does Jude ever talk about Alvin to you? He never tells me anything!"—"Do you think they've had any fights yet, or are they just the perfect couple for some reason?"
She had to admit, she was just as eager to know these things, but seeing that eagerness in someone else was... disconcerting. Suddenly, she felt for the boys who would no doubt be subjected to Leia's wrath any day now.
Though, interestingly, Jude and Alvin never talked about their relationship—at least, not around her. She'd only remembered them talking about it when they first announced they were going to live together. Of course, it had been implied for a short while before then, but... She couldn't help but wonder.
Nevertheless, there wasn't anything she could do, right? She thought about asking them a question or two one particularly peaceful night, as she read her book, as Alvin continued to tease her about this one boy from her school and Jude was immersed in his work at the dining table—but she couldn't bring herself to. She'd probably get teased if she asked questions that were too personal. And it didn't really matter anyway, right?
On the second Tuesday since Elize came to stay with them, Jude was once again awakened by his lover entering the room. Not surprised, this being a common occurrence, Jude sluggishly turned his body to the side and peeked his head over the covers barely enough to read the clock—11:12. In the morning. At this revelation, he became more alert. Alvin would've told him if he was coming home this late—well, it was the next day. He'd expected it to be maybe one or two in the morning, but not eleven.
Hearing a coarse groan, Jude turned back over and craned his neck to see Alvin taking his shirt off and already getting in the bed. "Fuck... I undershot how long that was going to take." His voice was hoarse, and Jude frowned.
"Rough night?" Jude's own voice was still heavy with sleep. Alvin wrapped his arms around him and pulled him close, sighing in relief. Jude rested his head in the crook of his neck, already close to dozing off.
"Yurgen warned me facilitating these shipments with these guys would take a while, but I was stupid and decided to get there late anyway..." Alvin sighed into Jude's hair, fully planning on sleeping the whole day away with his lover in his arms.
Jude had thought it was weird that Alvin had left for work as soon as he'd returned home from his, so no wonder. He sighed as well, though more in concerned exasperation than in relief.
A few minutes passed by with Alvin seeming to be out cold, and Jude felt himself falling back into sleep as well. It wasn't as if either of them would have to go into work today, probably, so he wasn't worried.
Suddenly, he was broken from their reverie by a very loud, persistent knocking—so loud he could clearly hear it from here, even though he knew it was from the front door. When it was accompanied by Elize's faint yelling—"Jude! Alvin! There's someone at the door!"—Jude sighed in annoyance, and he felt Alvin's fingers tighten on the back of his shirt.
"You get it..." The older man managed to mumble against his ear, and Jude moaned in frustration. He was just about to fall asleep again, and now this? There's no way he would move.
Alvin's hands reached down and sharply pinched his butt, eliciting an aggravated yelp. "Awake now?" His voice was still unbearably tired, but Jude could hear the smugness, and huffed.
"Fine, fine..." He slowly rolled out of bed, pulling on a pair of pants to replace his sweats as quickly as possible before making his way to the front door. Elize was sitting at the dinner table as he passed by, and he patted her on the head, still rubbing the sleep out of his eyes.
When opening the door, he was attacked. He should've expected it, truthfully.
"Jude! Hey, I've been knocking on the door, for what, five whole minutes? What's up with neglecting me, huh?" Leia's exuberant voice filled the apartment, and Jude sighed, but still reached up to hug her back.
"Sorry... Hey, I'm sure it wasn't that long." More awake now, he pulled away and shut the door. Immediately, Elize, who'd already been standing in wait, tackled Leia.
"Elize! I missed you so much! How've you been?" The older girl smiled, resting her head on the younger's. Elize's smile grew as she hugged tighter.
"Great! It's so much fun here! And I'm so glad I get to see you again!" At that, Leia looked down at her happily.
"Me too. Man, wouldn't it have been awesome if Rowen and Gaius could visit at the same time as well? We'd just have a big reunion! We should do that sometime, actually." She crossed her arms, seeming to be in thought, and Elize's eyes sparked at the prospect.
"Totally! I'd bring Teepo too, then!" Jude and Leia chuckled at that.
"So, uh, Leia? Not that I mind you being here, but why so out of the blue?" Jude questioned hesitantly, combing his hand through his hair and still trying to look more presentable. Leia's cheeks puffed in annoyance.
"Jude! I texted, like, everyone saying that I would be able to visit sometime this week, didn't I? I wanted to see how Elize was doing here with you guys!"
"Well, yeah, but I thought you would let us know ahead of time when exactly you would come." As always, Jude tried to reason with her, but Leia persisted.
"Well, it's not like it's a bad time or anything, right?" Jude paused, shaking his head reluctantly, and Leia grinned. "See! Besides..." She leaned in closer—though Elize was already back to eating leftover pancakes and reading her book, so she probably wouldn't be listening anyway. "I need to be here to make sure that Elize isn't witness to any inappropriate situations while she's living with you guys, huh?"
Jude felt the blood rush to his face and grimaced—no way would he mention how close that'd been to actually happening when Elize first arrived. "Wh-What are you saying, Leia? Ugh, just quit it, will you?" She only giggled teasingly, pulling away to survey the area with eager eyes—which Jude was confused at, seeing as she'd already been in their apartment many times before.
"I'm just saying. So, where's Alvin, anyway?"
"Right here." They all turned their eyes to the doorway next to the kitchen, seeing an exhausted—and still very shirtless, to Jude's chagrin—Alvin. The man walked to the fridge resignedly, taking out a bottle of milk and proceeding to chug it down. Jude mentally sighed.
"Alvin! See, this is exactly what I was just talking about!" Leia turned to Jude excitedly, her eyes practically screaming Gotcha!, and Jude's face flushed again before he turned away angrily.
"Wh-... Ugh, I thought you were going to sleep some more?" Jude could only ask, walking towards the lethargic man. Alvin paused in his drinking to send a certain reporter an annoyed glare.
"Well, I would've, but I can't sleep at all with the amount of noise going on out here. Since when did you just waltz in here unannounced?" Leia only smiled cheekily, walking forwards to pat him on the arm jovially.
"We're all practically family! What's the harm in stopping for a visit every now and then? More importantly—since when did you start walking around without a shirt all the time?"
Despite Jude's red cheeks—and Elize's blushing and staring, which had started the moment Alvin appeared—he wasn't nearly as fazed, responding casually, "My house, my rules. Really, why are you here?"
"You didn't get my texts or anything?" At that, Alvin stared blankly before finally remembering.
"Oh, that... Yeah, I guess." Leia looked to Jude questioningly at Alvin's subdued behavior, and Jude sighed.
"Alvin got home from work not too long ago, without any sleep. He's just tired." Leia's eyebrows rose in surprise.
"Oh! Well, you can go back to sleep if you want. In fact..." She suddenly turned to Elize, pulling her up by her arms and heading to the front door. "I was just going to take Elize out! Walk around, see the town, buy her a few things—you know, girl bonding stuff! I'll take care of her for you, don't worry! You guys can do whatever you want while we're gone! See you in a few!"
As quickly as she came, Leia was gone and with Elize in tow. Jude blinked, processing what'd just happened, before slowly looking to Alvin, who had just finished the bottle.
"...We're all out of milk."
Jude's eyebrows lowered as he regarded the empty glass in Alvin's hand. "That was the last one?"
There was a pause. "Oh, don't get too sad about it, Jude. I have some milkfor you, if you want it that much."
Well then. Jude's face turned scarlet within seconds, his hand reaching up to smack Alvin across the arm. "Alvin! Seriously?" He could only whine, and Alvin grinned, suddenly seeming less downcast than before.
"What? You just make it too easy," he teased, grabbing the younger around the waist and kissing the side of his face, eliciting another grumble of annoyance. "When do you think the girls will be back?"
"I don't know, maybe in a few hours?" Jude responded, the redness beginning to fade from his cheeks.
"Great. Let's go sleep, please. I can't take being awake for much longer."
Elize was quite shocked at the amount of trinkets Leia was able to buy for her—did the other girl really get paid enough for this? Still, she couldn't complain as she got spoiled with so many little presents. Her favorite was the tiny, intricately decorated toy bird which could chirp and flap its wings at the same time! It didn't get that far off the ground, but the technology never ceased to amaze her.
It was also nice to hear about the progress Leia had made as a reporter, and to be asked about her own progress in school. She didn't like to brag, but she was one of the smartest in her classes, so it always felt good to talk about school. When they began talking about Elize's stay so far, she was more hesitant to say what had been on her mind, but they eventually delved into the subject.
"Well, it's not that surprising to me—yes, it is Alvin, who's flirtatious as ever, but I always thought Jude would balance that out? I mean, there's no way Jude would let Alvin hang all over him while a kid was staying in their house, right?"
Elize nodded reluctantly from beside her on the bench—Leia had gotten them both ice cream as well, and she was halfway finished with hers, but was suddenly more interested in the conversation than in eating.
"I guess you're right. I just... Sometimes it feels just like how it used to be when we were all traveling together, you know? Not all the time, but sometimes it does. And I don't really want it to be like that. I thought I would be able to see more of how things have changed for them." I want it to be more like a family, she thought, but didn't dare to say that part.
"Huh? Really? Yeah, I wouldn't have expected it to be that similar..." Leia trailed off in deep thought, letting her ice cream melt slightly—not enough to drip off the cone, she made sure. "Ugh, I hate thinking so much about something like this. I mean, what gives? It's been at least four months since they started living together like this—they should be, like, a super legit couple by now! It shouldn't be wishy-washy to anyone!" As she talked more and more, she seemed to be getting more and more fired up; Elize scooted away in trepidation.
The annoyed reporter stood up, tossing her ice cream in the nearby trashcan. "Well, I've just about had it. I wanna go back and ask them about this now! Come on, Elize." She was already walking ahead, and Elize squealed nervously at her proposition, running to catch up.
"Leia! Don't you think you're being a bit forward about this...? I mean, if they're having troubles with their relationship or something, then it's their own business..." She shouldn't have worded it like that. Damn.
Immediately, Leia turned around with a gasp. "You think they're having relationship troubles? It's that bad? Damn! Now I really need to help somehow! Come on, Elize!" She grabbed the younger girl by the hand and sped off, all the while Elize was trying to reason with her.
"I d-didn't mean it like that, really! I mean, they do couple-y things sometimes! Leia!" Elize wasn't even sure if the other was listening or not, and sighed to herself. She'd dropped her ice cream already, too—just perfect.
For the second time that day, Jude was ripped away from his state of relaxation by an incessant knocking on the front door. Unlike the last time, he only exhaled tiredly before pulling himself away from his lover and getting out of bed—no use fighting it.
"Hey, that's probably the girls, so try to wake up soon, alright?" He received a weary mumble in response and smiled to himself. When Leia started filling the apartment with her loud voice, Alvin would have no choice but to wake up anyway.
Jude opened the front door and braced himself for whatever physical attack Leia would inflict on him this time, but found that not to be the case.
"Hey! Sorry, should've asked for keys before we left, huh? Hahaha..." Leia trailed off nervously, her expression unreadable, and the young researcher raised an eyebrow in interest.
"Uh, it's fine? You're back earlier than expected." He let them in and closed the door, noticing Elize's anxious expression and suddenly growing apprehensive. What had Leia done this time?
"Oh, we just decided to get back quickly and hang out with you guys. It's not as if we haven't been all around Trigleph by now—anyway, where's Alvin?" Elize's face grew more distressed at Leia's question, and Jude's mind started turning.
"Sleeping, but he'll probably be out soon. What's up with you?" Leia laughed nervously again at his question, but knowing he wasn't going to buy any excuse, she suddenly faced him with determination.
"Well, I was just wondering if anything was going on between you two." Jude's brows furrowed in confusion—he wondered if he was misinterpreting what she was saying.
"Um. What do you mean by that? ...I mean, duh, there's something 'going on between us'... I-I mean-!" At the wording of what he'd just said, Jude blushed mildly and raised his hands in defense. "...Ugh, you know what I mean. I wasn't dreaming when we told you we were... together, right?"
Finally, Leia's eyes softened, and she smiled. "Nope! That totally happened. So you two are in a relationship?"
"What? I-I just said that... Leia, what's going on with you?" At his genuine confusion, she raised her hands to calm him down.
"Nothing, nothing! Well, I just was checking. Elize told me—"
"Leia...!" Elize piped up, embarrassed, from next to her, and Jude raised an eyebrow.
"Did Elize not remember? Elize, you were there when we told..."
"N-No, it's not that! Leia's got it all wrong!" The young girl only grew more frantic, and Leia shushed her with a pat on the head.
"I'm not saying that she didn't know. I'm just saying that... Well, she told me you guys didn't really seem like a couple? Not all the time, anyway. And she even made it sound like you guys were going through some relationship troubles—well, she didn't make it sound like that, maybe that was just me jumping to conclusions, huh? But I got annoyed at what she told me. Are you guys still in the trial period or something? I mean, you're living together, for heavens' sake! Jude, if you back out now, your dad will be pretty disappointed, I'm sure—all this work Alvin did to convince him, and then it only lasts for less than a year? Imagine what'll happen then!"
With every word she said, Jude and Elize became more and more embarrassed and flustered, Jude eventually about to burst out that No, there's no way in hell that's going to happen. However, someone beat him to the punch.
"Damn, Derrick would beat me to a pulp for sure. Not that I think I can't take him, but I would rather not go through that, for sure. Don't tell me you're thinking of breaking up with me, Jude?" The voice was teasing, because he knew that of course, that would never happen anytime soon. The trio turned towards him, and Leia piped up yet again.
"Wow, Alvin. Is today 'listen in on people's conversations while shirtless and standing ominously in the middle of a doorway' day?" At her joke, Alvin smirked, walking forwards nonchalantly and placing his hands on Jude's shoulders.
"No, it seems to be 'wake up Alvin while he's trying to sleep' day. Elize, if there's something troubling you, you can tell us. You know that?"
At such attention being targeted at her, she blushed heavily and averted her eyes. She didn't know how much he'd really heard, but judging from his expression, he probably understood even more than Leia and Jude did at the moment. "N-Nothing was troubling me, really! Leia just takes things too far!"
"Hey!" Leia exclaimed indignantly, and the others chuckled. Alvin looked back to Elize warmly, and the air lifted.
"Well, neither of you have anything to be concerned about. We're going to stick together for a while yet, aren't we, Jude?" Alvin teased, kissing said boy's cheek—Elize smiled at it. It was the first time she'd seen them kiss. Even if it was only one on the cheek, like what she'd done to Alvin all those years ago, it was still something.
"Y-Yeah... We're okay, Leia. Don't worry." Leia nodded, accepting the response. Jude seemed to buy Elize's excuse that Leia was the one putting things out of proportion, to Elize's relief. But Alvin still looked to her instead, and the younger girl looked away in apprehension.
"Are you staying for dinner? If you guys are hungry now, that is," Jude continued to change the subject, and Elize and Leia both nodded.
"Yeah, I'll stay! I have to leave as soon as we're done though, unless you guys want me to sleepover?" At the shifty look appearing on Leia's face, the other three grimaced.
"No, no, you leave when we're done eating. I'll kick you out if I have to," Alvin teased, jostling her in the arm. Leia pouted.
"Like hell you will!"
"Consider it revenge for making me go sleep-deprived."
As the two bickered, Jude turned to Elize, his eyes full of care—only Jude could make someone feel so at ease with just a look, she thought.
"What do you want to eat, Elize?"
"Um... Something like the spaghetti you made on Friday sounds good..." She suggested thoughtfully, and Jude smiled.
"Sounds great! It'll be ready in about half an hour." He patted her on the shoulder before making his way to the kitchen, Leia complaining that she didn't have half an hour. Elize scolded her bad manners, though in her heart she was grateful that things were back to normal.
Leia ended up leaving shortly after six, and Elize was at first worried that Alvin or Jude would ask her about what had happened earlier. Yet, things seemed regular—the three were in the living area together, with Alvin and Elize watching the television and Jude on the armchair being preoccupied with a book. Elize was relieved at the simplicity—that is, until Alvin faced her and said the words she most certainly didn't want to hear.
"So, wanna talk to me about what happened today?"
No, I really don't, she thought, but only hung her head, which was starting to turn a little red in embarrassment already. She didn't know if Jude was listening to them, but she hoped he wouldn't be.
"...Nothing really happened today, so..." She tried to play it off, but Alvin obviously didn't buy it. She couldn't tell if it was just because he knew her so well or because she was just a see-through person; she hoped it was the first one.
"I'm just saying, I'm a bit worried about what reason you would have to think Jude and I don't seem like a couple. But if you don't want to tell me, that's alright." He said it casually as ever, and she gritted her teeth. Well, now she had to say it, didn't she?
"I-I didn't think that you guys weren't... I just..." She trailed off, focusing her eyes on her feet which hung off the sofa. Driselle had taken her for a pedicure a month ago, and she could still see some flecks of colour in her toenails.
"Hm?" Alvin hummed, urging her to go on, and she was sure Jude was probably listening to her now. She could practically feel him looking at them.
She mustered up the courage to raise her voice. "I just... I wanted to come here because... I wanted to see what it's like..."
"...To see what it's like?" Alvin repeated after her, and now he seemed much closer to her than before. She raised her eyes a little.
"...To have... parents..." Her eyes widened when she heard it, because she hadn't even planned on saying it.
She didn't dare look at either of the men, not wanting to know the looks on their faces. She heard Alvin, though.
"We're not your parents, Elize."
"Alvin...!" She heard Jude's voice—holding a scolding tone—from her right, and Alvin must have raised his hand to calm him down.
"Jude, it's okay... Elize." His hands touched her shoulders, and she finally looked up to face him. His face was serious, but caring—and she didn't even realize it, but she felt the tears runs down her face.
She couldn't help but think of her own father when she saw him. She couldn't even remember his face, yet...
"Elize," Alvin continued, wiping a tear away. "You're parents... They're still with you, you know that? I'm sure they wouldn't like to feel replaced by us, would they?"
"I don't want you to replace them...! I know you wouldn't...!" She could finally speak louder, but her voice still got caught in her throat. "I just... I just wanted to see what it would be like... To have people loving each other and treating me like a daughter... Because... You're my family..." More tears fell, and Alvin pulled her to his chest. She buried her face in his shirt, arms clinging to him—he smelled like cologne, and something that reminded her of the sea, and she felt that this was something how her father would've smelled like.
Suddenly, Jude had his arm around her as well from her other side, and her tears slowed. "I'm... I'm okay..." She pulled away slightly, wiping her eyes. "Thank you..."
"Elize... Do you really want us to be your parents...?" Jude's soft voice whispered from next to her, and she felt calmed.
"...I don't know about that... I just... I guess I got so caught up in my idea of being in a family that- ...When it didn't turn out exactly how I thought it would, I got scared..."
"...Elize, we love each other. And we love you. Wanna try being our daughter until you leave?"
She gasped at Alvin's words, looking at him with wide eyes—he only stayed smiling. Silence rang in the room, before she finally nodded and hugged him again.
"...Yeah."
Alvin chuckled, leaning down to kiss her on the cheek, and then leaning across to kiss Jude on the mouth. Jude grunted in surprise, but accepted and joined in the embrace. Elize smiled, feeling as if she'd just found something she'd been missing for a long time.
"I'm surprised, though," Alvin said to her once they pulled away. "I didn't think this would be the reason for your concern... I mean, didn't you have a sort of crush on Jude for a while? What happened to that?" Jude made another sound of surprise, and Elize smacked Alvin on the arm in embarrassment.
"I...! I don't feel that way anymore..."
Alvin only smirked knowingly. "Yeah, I get it. Jude the do-gooder would be the perfect parent, huh? So caring, would always help you with your homework..."
Jude's face turned slightly red at the thought. "Alvin... I'm sure that's not it."
"No, it's not, really." At that, both Jude and Alvin turned to Elize in surprise. "Alvin, you remind me of my father."
"M-Me?" The man in question looked taken-aback, which was something that didn't happen very often. Elize nodded, and he frowned. "...Your dad, huh? I thought you didn't really remember him."
"I don't... But, when I think about him, I imagine your face. Is that weird?" Alvin's eyes suddenly widened, and Elize wasn't sure of the severity of what she'd just said.
"Uh... N-No, I guess it's not that weird..."
"I think it's nice," Jude piped up, smiling at Alvin. Elize could tell they were having a whole conversation with just their eyes—something only people in love could do—and her heart fluttered.
"Yeah... Thanks, Elize." She wasn't quite sure what she was being thanked for, but nodded her head anyway.
"Thank you too... For letting me have this chance, I mean..."
Alvin smirked again. "No problem. And hey, it wasn't my fault we weren't being that affectionate. Jude had this super boring talk with me the day before you arrived about 'not tainting your innocent eyes'. Can you believe this kid?" Jude spluttered in indignation, and Elize faced him with a devilish smile.
"Yeah, Jude—I'm not really a child anymore, okay? You don't have to be such a stick in the mud!"
"Uh..." Suddenly, he showed a smile to match her own. "Well, if I'm going to act like your dad, then I'm allowed to be as strict as I want, right?"
"Oh, he's got you there," Alvin muttered, and Elize pouted. Inside, though, she was overflowing—from now on, things would be different, she was sure of it, and she was going to cherish every moment of her vacation she had left.
Elize gripped the handle of her suitcase tightly, but gripped Jude's hand even tighter. "It's here."
"Yep, looks like it. You gonna be alright, kid?" She could tell that Alvin was at least a little concerned, and faced him with a smile.
"I'll be fine! When I came here, it was really fun being on the train! No troubles. I'll text you when I get on the boat, though." She already knew Jude would remind her, so she said it anyway. Jude squeezed her hand in confirmation before letting go and leaning down to hug her.
"Alright. We'll miss you. And don't worry about your project—it turned out beautifully. I'm sure your teachers will love it!" Jude smiled at her with a look of pride in his eyes, and she blushed happily.
"Make sure to tell Driselle how nicely we treated you, or else she'll sick Rowen on us for sure." At Alvin's joking, Jude scoffed. Elize nodded to him, though, and when she knew Alvin wouldn't do more than ruffle her hair to send her off, she reached over to hug him tightly. Before he could reply, she took off towards the train, hand waving behind her.
"...Wow, that was some vacation, huh?" Alvin intoned to Jude, who was simply staring at him with a knowing smile on his face.
"Alvin... You'd make a really great father."
"Huh...?" The man appeared shocked again, and a little apprehensive, before suddenly grinning. "Trying to say something, Jude? Want to start a family?"
"What..." Blood rushed to Jude's head. "Alvin! You know that's not—"
"Imagine what our kids would look like, huh? Just picture it. Your hair, my eyes..."
"Alvin! That's impossible—"
"I'd like a little girl, how about you?"
Jude sighed, abruptly leaning forward to press a forceful kiss against his lover's lips. Nevermind the fact that they were in a busy station filled with people—this was the only way to get Alvin to shut up, for sure.