Hey guys, just wanted to pop in and give ya'll my love since you've given me yours these past three months! I can't believe that's how long this has been going on and getting the kind of traction it has been, I'm honestly shocked but in a good way. Hope ya'll doin good, as always I love to hear from you.

BIG shout out to JuliaFernandezHiwatari, this was her first RP ever and she did AMAZING! As tradition I was Ray and she was Kai through pretty much the entire chapter. Without her ya'll wouldn't have a chapter today, so make sure to give her some lovin too.

Without further ado, enjoy and I'll see ya'll on Monday! Hope ya'll have a good and safe weekend.


Ch 28- First Steps. Saturday, November 3rd.

On the ride home from the court house, Ray had asked Natasha not to tell the others that he had talked to Stan and she agreed to not say a word to the others. When they arrived home he pestered her enough till she caved, letting him help make dinner for everyone and like the past two nights they ate together with that same familiar family feeling. Things were looking up, they had to at this point.

It was still hard for him to move his fingers much, he still had to rely on his pain medications to keep from hurting too much but he pushed past it. He had been looking forward to going out the next day, to find a new truck, though as the family got ready for bed Natasha said they had to wait but promised to take him the following weekend and he was fine with that; even if it put a small dark cloud over his head.

Like an unspoken rule between the two of them they switched places for the night, Kai taking the couch and Ray taking the bed. Neither put up a fuss about it, figuring it was only fair now but Kai did close his door just out of spite. Micah knew, he didn't say anything, and with the lights out the two finally rested from the long day they had reveling in the idea that they could sleep in finally with the weekend.

Sadly, at four in the morning, Kai was stirred awake as Ray got up and was fussing with tying his hair back. Already he had gotten himself dressed in a pair of sweats and a light jacket, his running shoes on and tied up ready to go.

Kai blinked away the sleep that still clung to his eyes, trying to peer at him through the minimal lighting of the room that was seeping through his curtains and blinds. It took him a minute to realize what he was doing, it was Saturday morning and Ray said he always ran on Saturdays. Apparently that also meant with stitches and a recovering sprained ankle in possibly thirty degree weather.

"What're doing? It's the crack of dark." Kai looked around again, adjusting his eyes. This was ridiculous.

Ray paused with getting his hair up, he honestly had thoughts of cutting it since it was becoming such a pain to do anything with now with his stitches.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to wake you. I'm gonna go run though, I already told Natasha yesterday and she said it was fine and gave me a key so I could get back in." He told him, looking slightly guilty for waking him up.

"I won't be gone long." He added quickly, finally getting the hair tie wrapped around his hair in a low ponytail down his back.

Kai leaned back into the cushions, listing the pros and cons. With the way Ray was he couldn't go alone. At least, that's what he told himself.

"Give me a minute." Kai finally said, grunting as he pushed himself up. His back was killing him.

Ray watched him a bit stunned, "You don't have to come, take your bed back and go to sleep." He tried, stepping back for him to crawl in the still warm bed.

"And leave a wounded comrade unaccompanied? I don't think so Kon." Kai went to grab his running clothes and headed down the hall to change. Fuck his shivery. This was going to be hell.

Ray just watched him go, being called by his last name kind of throwing him for a sudden loop. Was he in trouble?

He sat down on the edge of Kai's bed, waiting for him to come back as he felt worse now. He really hadn't meant to wake him up, he could go alone like he always had before but wasn't going to put up much of a fight with him about it.

In the bathroom, Kai pulled off his clothes, his mind racing. God he was cranky this morning, and when did he start calling people by their last names? He pulled his shirt over his head and looked in the mirror. Ew, he looked atrocious. Oh well he'd fix it later. Not wanting to keep Ray waiting he roughly put on the rest of his stuff and dashed out. What a way to start the day…

Ray stood up as Kai came back into the room, getting his shoes from the closet and Ray cocked a brow before he smirked. Kai's pants were on wrong side out.

"Hey babe..." He called sweetly, trying not to laugh at him.

Kai glanced at him. Babe? Oh yeah, they were dating weren't they? Where was he today?

"What, let's go. Andale Andale."

"Might want to fix your pants first hun..." Ray said, biting his lip to stifle the laugh that was trying to force its way out.

"And you might want to fix when you decide to run." He retorted, hiding a blush as he left the room. Oh cruel running gods, why?

Ray belted out a laugh once the bathroom door was closed, apparently Kai was not a morning person on weekends. He took himself out of the room, figuring it best to meet him in the living room once he was more properly dressed and ready to go.

A weird sensation started to stir in his gut, this was how it all started between the two of them. He hadn't ever imagined it would have come to this, where they were now, but if anything he was happy it did.

In minutes Kai came trotting down the hall, his hair devoid of gel and eyes ablaze with their signature fire and his pants on right. Once in the living room Kai looked Ray up and down. As much as he despised this, Ray drew him to be better and was thankful Ray saw through his moods. He hoped so anyway.

"Ready?" He asked, approaching him.

"You really don't have to come with me, but for your efforts I'll get you a coffee again." Ray grinned at him, leading the way and opening the door.

The morning cold air hit them and he visibly shook, the wind felt like tiny needles against his stitches but he pushed past it and stepped out to lock the door behind them like Natasha had asked him to do. Once they were outside Kai cupped Ray's hands in both of his gently and blew on them. Noticing Ray flush, he rubbed them with his palms carefully.

"Sounds nice but I'll buy this time. You just take it easy, don't make me have to carry you back." He said playfully.

"Where's the fun in that if we don't work up a sweat?" Ray grinned past his blush, pulling away and started down the few steps of the porch.

He didn't dare chance a look over at his now abandoned home, every time he came outside he would avoid looking at it. There wasn't anything of importance over there now, the tape had been removed recently, he was allowed to go back and get anything he wanted or needed but hadn't done so.

"Let's go this way, there's a different route we can take than last time." Ray said as he turned down towards the opposite direction of his home in a light fast walk, wanting to wait to build up into an actual run once they got further down the road.

Kai cocked a brow. A different route? It wasn't a secret what Ray was doing but he wouldn't push him on it. He knew all too well what that was like, not wanting to see the shelter of his despair either. At hearing Ray call for him he walked after him, the two now walking in sync.

"I brought my music. Wanna drown out the world with me?" Kai playfully smirked at the surprised look on Ray's face. God he was adorable.

"Sure, as long as it's not crap." Ray said, stepping closer to him and slowed down. Maybe running wasn't a good idea after all but being out of the house was making him feel a lot better, like he had some normalcy in this mess.

Kai stopped and glared at him, pretending to be offended, then he scoffed. "That's Tala's area of expertise."

Ray snickered at him, "You really aren't a morning person, are you?" He asked, the two of them coming to the end of their street and directed them down to the right where they rounded the corner of the street.

"Would you like me to lie or tell you the truth? No... Mornings are a bitch and I'm the personification of it." Kai let out a chuckle at Ray's face.

"Ray, darling, if I didn't want to come I would've stayed home." Kai reached into his pocket and pulled out his iPod. "Now put this in your ear." He said as he held out his earbud to him, sticking the other in his own ear.

Ray blushed at the name, even if it was all in jest, as he took the other end and stuck it in his ear, stepping that much closer to him so the cord didn't pull too much. Their hands brushed so he took it up in his, his heart fluttering in his chest.

"I'm still a bit shocked about all of this." He admitted, shaking his head slightly.

"Me too…" Kai gave Ray's hand a small squeeze pulling him along a bit faster, "But I don't regret it."

"I don't either." Ray quickly said, hoping to keep the dark cloud from hanging over the two of them as he could see it starting to come over them for some reason.

Ray followed along, the faint sounds of a song coming through the earbud and smirked at the familiar song. "Did you like them that much you put them on here?" He asked, humming along slightly to The Veer Unions City of the Sun.

"More or less, yeah." Kai could feel his cheeks burn and he was sure it wasn't the dagger-like breeze hitting them. "That, and, I never finished the CD." He internally flinched, wondering if Ray would be upset about that.

"Ah that's a shame, they're really good." Ray said over the music, feeling himself getting lost in it a bit. "Some of it's kind of hard to listen to, given the circumstances."

Kai abruptly stopped, feeling Ray brush into him slightly. "I'm sorry." He tossed their radio to him, "Change it." He instructed when Ray had given him a questioning look.

Ray looked down at the screen and back up at him for a minute, deciding to scroll through the songs Kai had. A lot of them were the ones he listened to, there wasn't anything much lighter that he could settle on and decided to put on Kai's favorite instead. He handed the earbud back to him, letting him place it in his ear before he hit play.

Kai's head involuntarily bobbed along at the familiar beat, "Good choice. Now let's get back to it, before you freeze." He said, watching Ray try not to shake in the cold wind that blew by them.

Ray nodded, keeping the iPod in his hand between them as they started back down the sidewalk until they got to the stop sign. The only thing between them was the music and he didn't mind it being that way, it was going to be a while before they got to the café but for the life of him he couldn't think of anything to say.

As they crossed the street more and more people were waking up, a few cars and trucks already driving by them that he finally took notice of. His heart clenched and his stomach twisted in knots at the thought of his truck, his baby, that was in a pile of rubble now thanks to Stan.

Although he was grateful for the others giving him money in order to get a new one he didn't want a new one, he wanted his truck. Kai looked at him and nudged his side lightly.

"Hey." He waited for Ray to look at him before continuing, "You okay?" He asked as Ray watched a truck drive by them, staring at it until it was out of sight.

"Your truck?" He watched with him until Ray gave a slow nod. "Tell me what you liked about it? What you'd want in a new one?" In truth, Kai was sick of talking. At this point, he just wanted to play his turn at therapist and listen.

"Well..." Ray paused for a minute, finally crossing the street with him. "I liked the seats, they were heated. The radio was pretty nice, since it was touch screen and all and more modern. They said the previous owner had switched the factory one out, I had plans on getting a better speaker system when I had enough saved. It was big enough where I didn't have to worry about getting crushed inside it." He reeled off quietly.

"Ray, dear, speak up- OW!" He said at the elbow to the ribs.

Ray huffed as he stopped, at this rate they weren't going to make it to the cafe without turning into human popsicles. "You're right here, I don't have to speak up you can hear me just fine." He went off, not looking amused.

"I said I wanted to get a better speaker system in it, that the seats were heated and it was big enough where I didn't feel like I would end up buried in it if I got in a wreck." He listed off louder now, "And stop with the endearments, it doesn't suit you."

Kai glowered at him. "…Fine. If that's what you want, Ray. And we'll make sure that's what we look for at the dealership then." Kai put his walls back up. Why did he even try? It was still too early to deal with this.

Ray huffed at him, this was turning into another shit storm that he didn't want or need.

"Yeah, I guess..." He sighed as he shrugged, "Why don't we go home?" He suggested, clearly seeing Kai was still in no mood to actually be awake right now.

Kai took a breath, "Let's keep going." At that he jogged forward, the earbud coming out of his ear with a hard swing.

He needed to keep Ray happy and he would. No matter the cost to himself. Ray rolled his eyes, deciding to take his own out and stuffed the whole thing in his pockets and started after him quickly until he came up beside him. He took the lead since Kai didn't know how to get to the café, guiding them down a few more streets until they were brought to the main road they had been on the first time they did this.

Ray slowed down his jog, coming to the intersection and jabbed his finger into the button for the light. He tried to keep his shaking down, cursing himself quietly for not taking a pain pill before he left. The wind stung his wounds, the air was burning his lungs and he fought from coughing in front of him.

However, Kai noticed and despite wanting to hoist the man into his arms and carry him home, he refrained. Endearments didn't suit him. Bullshit. And Ray was needlessly pushing himself, again. He thought about telling him he was a dumbass but kept his mouth closed, taking the lead across the street once the light turned for them.

Ray followed after him, his legs were killing him but it felt good to actually feel like he was doing something other than just laying around. He had sat still long enough in his opinion.

"You're mad at me." He called behind him, getting to the other side with the café in sight and prayed silently it wasn't crowded. Maybe a coffee would help his cranky boyfriend.

"Nope." Kai finally said as the two approached the café, "What do you want?"

"To know why you're mad at me." Ray said bluntly as he stepped up and opened the door for him.

"Pick your battles, Ray. Now, what do you want from the menu?" Kai walked in, not missing the low growl in his partner's throat. Normally he found it sexy but at the moment it was as irritating as an angry toddler.

Ray rolled his eyes at the back of his head, following him inside. This was stupid and he didn't even know why. Were they even allowed to be butting heads like this after only three days of being together?

"Get me a vanilla frap, I'll get us a table." He said and left Kai to wait in line.

"Got it."

Three days in. They were only three days in and he'd already said something to shut him down. What was wrong with showing he cared, wasn't that what made relationships work?

Ray had pulled him in like a moth to a flame and now he was shutting him out.

When it was his turn he placed the orders and went to find Ray on his phone once he had their drinks. How could he confront him about how he felt, was he overthinking this?

Ray sat his phone down as Kai came over and sat with him, getting the booth they had sat in their first time there. The only good thing out of this was there was no more Brooklyn waiting outside for them.

"Just tell me what I did." He sighed, pulling his drink close and playing with the end of his straw.

Kai licked his lips, rubbing them together. Why was he so apprehensive about things lately? He'd never worried about someone's feelings so why now?

Because he loved him…

He looked at him, firmly locking gold with crimson. "Let me love you the way you deserve. Don't shut me out."

Ray cocked a brow, when did he do that? "I wasn't trying to, if that's what you thought I was doing to you." He defended quickly, "I'm sorry."

"Shoving away my endearments is no way to say you need me. We'll both get used to this, it'll just take some time and effort." He paused, "It's okay."

Kai took a sip of his coffee. After doing so, he smiled. He needed to lighten the mood. Then it clicked.

"Now, tell me about your dream truck."

"I wasn't shoving them away, they just seemed out of place. Like you were mocking me or something, that's all. And maybe it's a bit too soon for them..." Ray explained, still finding his straw to be more interesting than actually drinking from it.

He perked up a little, "Well, if anything it'd just be a bigger and better version of what I had. I wanted to get a lift kit for it too but never had the money, so if I can find one already lifted I'd go for that. Heated seats would be nice again, and I liked the leather instead of cloth since it's easier to clean. Four door, like the other one."

"I'll tone it down then and I wasn't mocking you. I just... Was trying to make you... Feel comfortable a-and loved. I guess." To say he was now nervous would be an understatement, he didn't want to screw anything up but now he felt he had.

Would he still want to be with him now? Shifting his mind's gears he tried to keep to the topic on the truck.

"Sounds good, have you looked at any yet?" He wasn't all that interested in trucks himself but Ray loved them, so he was willing to try and see them how he did.

Ray perked up again and pulled his phone back up, going to the website he had quickly looked up and sat it down between them on the table. Scrolling through to show him a few he had already found that were within his budget range, keeping in mind that he was still making payments on the other one.

"I really like the inside of this one, and it's lifted but the stereo would need to be changed out." He rambled off before going to another one.

"This one has the four doors but they're those stupid inside ones, they don't give enough room when getting in and out but it's the cheapest one." He pointed out, frowning slightly.

Kai leaned forward to get a closer look. Those looked nice and suited Ray, he could picture him in all of them.

"Those look nice and who knows, we might be able to help you out more." He paused, "If not, get the lifted one and I'll buy the stereo."

"You guys have done enough for me as it is, and the others getting the money to help with this already is a lot. I've been able to do things on my own this long, I'm not asking anymore from anyone. I'll get it when I can since I still have to get a new job, I appreciate it though." He told him gently, lest he upset him again, and put his phone back and finally took a drink.

Kai snorted, stifling a chuckle. He knew that'd be his answer. "But what if I want to, Kon?"

"If it'll make you feel better, Hiwatari." Ray answered back playfully, "What's with the sudden use of my last name?"

Kai went red, "I don't know. Guess I enjoy how- how..." He was stuck, how to express it. How? He looked to Ray for guidance. What now?

"I feel closer to you." Kai finally uttered, his heart pounding loudly. Could Ray hear it?

"I'd feel bad if you didn't." Ray chuckled seeing him blush like mad, ducking his head a little to sip at his drink some more. "Think Natasha and Micah would be okay if the others came over?" He asked once he sat back up, leaning against the booth more comfortably.

Kai shrugged, "Not really, as long as we're not too obnoxious. That means no Tyson." He playfully said.

"Be nice." Ray chuckled a little, "C'mon let's head home, we can finish these on the way back." He said, slipping out of the booth and snatching up his drink.

"When hell freezes over." With a wink Kai got up and followed Ray out into the merciless cold.

Fingers crossed the way back would be smoother.

When they finally made it back, frozen to the bone, Ray slipped into the bathroom first to take his medication and jump in a warm shower. Kai went to his room to wait for him, the others weren't up yet since they seemed to be normal people when it came to sleeping in on Saturdays. As he sat on the edge of his bed, waiting his turn for the shower, he ended up laying back and passed out within minutes of his head hitting the pillow.

Ray stepped back into their room and saw him asleep on the bed, halfway on and halfway off and smiled at him a little. Maybe now with more sleep he wouldn't be so cranky. He left him there to sleep as he took up the couch, even though Natasha had given him free reign of the house he didn't find it right to just go in there without someone else up.

He took out his phone, checking his accounts and then went back to looking up more trucks. Getting lost in scrolling through the listings for an hour only to be pulled back to reality with the soft tapping on the wall beside his head, snapping his head around he saw Tala looking down at him and smiling.

"Already wear him out?" Tala asked with a soft chuckle.

Ray's face burned, "N-No…" He stuttered, shaking his head. "We just went out for a run."

"And you survived?" Tala said, looking impressed. "He's not much of a morning person."

"I noticed." Ray chuckled as the blush on his face died away, "I thought about waking him up so he could shower, but felt it was best to leave the beast to sleep."

Tala laughed at that, he knew he liked this kid. "Probably for the better, lesson learned I'm sure."

Ray nodded, getting up to follow Tala into the kitchen. "You don't mind if I make something, do you?" He asked tentatively.

"No, make yourself at home Twizz." Tala said as he started up the coffee maker, replacing the filter while giving Ray a concerned look.

"I just wanted to make sure, it's not my place." Ray quickly explained, noticing the look Tala was giving him.

"Yes, it is. This is your home now, mom and dad already said they wanted you to be comfortable and if you want to make eggs or pancakes nobody is going to stop you." Tala said, giving him a gentle look.

Ray just nodded, not knowing what else to say to that as he rummaged through the fridge beside him for eggs since that sounded like a good idea after all. Tala took himself to the table to sit and wait on his coffee, watching Ray go around the kitchen looking for pans and other things he needed.

"How's your fingers and stuff?" Tala asked, watching him carefully so he didn't hurt himself.

"They're alright." Ray said as he shrugged a little, putting the pan down on top of the stove and turned it on. "It's getting a bit easier to move my fingers, not much but it's better than before."

Tala nodded along to what Ray was telling him, "Did Skittles ever give you that present?"

Ray smirked a little, so that was how Kai got those. "He did, but I haven't touched them." He said, motioning behind him towards the open doorway of the kitchen to indicate Tala's parents down the hall.

"Don't worry about it, use them, they'll make you feel better." Tala said, flicking his wrist at him.

"I don't want to make anyone mad at me." Ray frowned a little, "As much as I really want one, it's not worth getting in trouble."

"You won't get in trouble, trust me I know what it's like to just quit cold turkey. It's not good on your body just to up and quit like that, take it slow and ween yourself off of them. Otherwise you'll just end up hurting yourself."

Ray rose a brow, "You used to?"

Tala nodded, "Started when I turned eighteen and could get them myself, Bryan was terrible at it when we first started dating and I just kind of fell into it. Mom and dad made me quit when they found out and it was one hell of a ride, let me tell ya." He chuckled.

"I've tried before, it never worked." Ray told him, shifting back around to get the eggs in the pan now.

"I don't blame you for using them, I can't imagine having gone through what you have. Like I said, use em and enjoy them. I understand."

Ray nodded, as much as he was dying to have a smoke he still didn't think it was a good idea. Micah said no, Natasha seemed to understand, and Kai hated it.

"Well, thank you… For getting them for me." He settled on, his attention on the stove now as the two fell quiet.

Tala left him alone, he knew how much his mother hated being pestered while cooking. Getting up he got himself a cup of coffee, pouring one out for Ray as well and set it down on the counter beside him before taking up his chair again as the smell of the eggs cooking filled the kitchen.

"Well isn't this a nice surprise." Natasha said as she stepped into the kitchen.

"I hope you don't mind." Ray said quickly as he whirled around to face her, looking like he got caught doing something he shouldn't be.

Tala rolled his eyes, apparently he didn't get the hint yet.

Natasha just smiled at him, "I don't mind at all honey, make yourself comfortable."

Ray nodded at her, "I'm making enough for everyone, if that's okay."

"Sounds perfect darling, are you making anything else with them?" She asked, stepping up behind him and looking over his shoulder.

Ray shook his head no, he didn't want to pry more into their food than he already had done.

"That's okay, I'll get some sausage and we can make that." Natasha said as she took herself to the fridge and rooted around in it until she found what she was looking for.

"Micah and I are going out today, you boys going to be alright by yourselves?" She asked as she stood beside him, getting the package opened and the pan she needed set out on the back burner.

"We'll be fine Ma." Tala answered.

"Oh, here's the house key." Ray said quickly, digging in his jean pockets for it.

"That's yours now, Micah and I will make a new one while we're out." Natasha said as she slapped the sausage patties down on her pan.

Ray nodded as he slipped the key back into his pocket quietly, the kitchen falling back in silence aside from the sizzling of the grease coming from the patties in the pan. Micah joined them just before the food was done, Tala bouncing up from his chair to go wake up his brother as Natasha and Ray plated the food.

Down from the hall came a slew of angry Russian, Tala laughing through it all as he came back into the kitchen holding his sides.

"He's really not having a good day." He laughed as he took his seat.

"You need to leave him alone." Natasha warned, dropping his plate in front of him before she sat down between him and his father.

A few seconds later Kai came into the kitchen, sending a glare that could kill his brother if it had the power to do so. Roughly jerking his chair out from under the table he sat down beside him and Ray, running a hand through his damp bangs.

"Honey… Are you feeling okay?" Natasha asked, noticing his face was flushed and the dark circles under his eyes.

"Yeah." Kai nodded, moving his eggs around on his plate with little to no enthusiasm. "Just tired."

Ray looked at him, his heart sinking to his stomach as he took in Kai's flushed complexion and dark circles under his eyes. His skin looked wet, like he had been sweating in his sleep and his more ragged breathing. He lifted a hand and placed the back of it to Kai's forehead, he felt as though he was on fire.

"You're running a fever." He stated, letting his hand fall back onto his lap as he felt guilty.

"I'm fine." Kai answered before a bone shaking cough racked through his throat.

"Alright, into the shower with you." Natasha said, standing up and shooing him to do the same.

"Ma, I'm fine." Kai argued, not moving.

"Now mister." Natasha scorned, pointing down the hall.

Kai rolled his eyes, standing up on wobbly legs and took himself back down the hall to the bathroom where he slammed the door shut behind him.

"He went with me this morning…" Ray said, having craned his neck around to watch Kai leave and turned back when the door was shut.

"He'll be okay, it's just the weather getting colder and probably stress." Natasha said as she sat back down in her chair, "There's medicine he can take, and he can sleep it off."

Ray nodded, suddenly not feeling hungry anymore. It was his fault either way, Kai wouldn't have been stressing if it wasn't for him being in the hospital and everything else he had put him through.

The table went quiet after that, Kai coming out of the bathroom thirty minutes later and Natasha and Micah were already gone. Tala had decided to go off on his own for the day too, leaving the two of them there alone. Ray cleaned up while Kai had gone back to bed, keeping away from him for as long as he could so he could get some rest.

Ray hadn't even asked Natasha or Micah about having the others over, even if he missed them, Kai didn't need them around with him trying to rest but he was about to go bored out of his mind. There was nothing on TV, his homework was done and his missed assignments were caught up. He wasn't one for sleeping through the day often, especially if he hadn't done much. He turned the TV off after flipping through the channels for a good forty minutes, unsure of what to do with himself now. His Xbox had been left at his house, he could get it but didn't want to go over there again at all, or alone.

Getting himself up from the couch he wandered back to Kai's room quietly, not wanting to wake him up, and dug through his drawer for his pack of cigarettes. The others were gone, who knew when they'd be back. He slipped out front, standing away from the door in the yard and lit one up. His nerves settled, slightly, and against his better judgement he glanced over at his house.

It was probably not the best idea to go over but his legs ended up carrying him over there anyways, only to freeze outside the front door.

"He's not in there… You can go in and get what you want and get out…" He reasoned with himself, his right leg slightly bouncing.

"I know… But still…" He mumbled, sucking down what he could of his cigarette and held it in for second longer before he blew it out to the side.

"Now or never…" He said and jerked the door open, leaving it like that as he stepped inside.

He didn't need to go farther than the living room to get his Xbox and his games, quickly undoing the cords and piling everything up beside him.

"Stan's going to kill you for smoking in the house." He muttered, his back tensing as a car drove by and froze again until he slapped himself out of it.

"He's not here… He's not coming back." He breathed, his nerves about at their breaking point as he stood up and grabbed his things in his arms.

As he stepped back towards the front door his eyes wandered down the hall towards his opened bedroom door, it still hanging off slightly from when Tala had kicked it open. Without wanting them to his feet carried him down there, his cigarette dangling between his lips as he peeked inside.

It was still a mess; the wood was now stained red and the glass was only shuffled around from people coming in and taking photos of it. Seeing it all again felt like he was being pushed back in time to when it happened, hearing himself pleading for it to stop and trying to fight back.

He shook himself again, tearing his eyes away from it all and turned only to be stopped by Stan's opened door. It had never once in his life been opened and curiously he stepped closer and looked in, he wasn't even sure what it was he was looking for in there but it still made his stomach clench. He sat down his things by the door and stepped inside, flicking ash on the floor as he went.

Like his room there was no closet, just a wooden dresser pushed up against the window that faced the backyard to his left. The bed sat in the middle of the room, facing the door, with a TV mounted up on the wall across from the bed. Two simple wooden nightstands on either side of the bed, the room was a mess. Left over beer bottles littered the floor all the way under the bed, the trash can was overflowed with remnants of food and other things that made Ray cringe.

Against his better judgement he went over to the dresser and pulled open the top drawer, it wasn't in there so he shut it hard making the entire thing rock back with the force. Jerking the next one open only to slam it shut again, going to the next one quickly. All four drawers were empty.

"They probably took it." He growled out low, kicking at the dresser.

"And what would you have done with it anyways?" He asked.

He shrugged at himself, "Burn it… Something…"

"Can burn the house down, if it'll make you feel better."

"Tch, and deal with being charged with arson?" He scoffed at himself, stepping back out and picking up his things where he had left them and headed towards the front door.

Outside he spit his burnt out cigarette on the front porch, stepping it out and leaving it there before walking back to Kai's house. With his hands full he pushed the door open with his shoulder, almost jumping out of his skin as Kai stood there with his jacket and shoes on as if he was fixing to leave the house.

"What're you doing? You should be in bed." Ray said, quickly putting his things on the couch as he reached over the back of it and went to him.

"I was going to look for you, you weren't here." Kai answered before he turned and coughed into his arm, his entire body shaking.

"I just stepped outside, c'mon back to bed with you." Ray said, putting his hands on his arms and guided him back to his room.

"You went over there? I would have gone with you." Kai said as he let Ray take him back to his room without a fuss.

"You need to lay down." Ray said, helping him get out of his jacket and pushing him to sit down on the bed so he could get his shoes off for him.

"I can do that." Kai said a bit wide eyed as he watched him kneel down in front of him.

"Let me help you." Ray fussed at him, popping his boots off and stood back up and took them to the closet. "Have you taken anything?" He asked once he turned back to face him, having pulled out the clothes basket from inside to throw in the wash.

Kai shook his head as he laid back down, his entire body feeling like he was being stabbed with needles. His bangs were sticking to his face from sweating again, his lungs felt like they were burning and he could feel the tightness in his chest every time he tried to breathe.

"Okay, I'll get you something. Don't get back up, you don't need to be sick longer than necessary because you want to be stubborn." Ray said as he took the clothes basket, tucked against his side, out with him and put it in the laundry room down the hall before going to the bathroom to find the medicine Natasha had talked about.

"Here, take these." Ray handed him the two large green pills and a glass of water.

Kai sat up and knocked them back, chugging the glass dry and handed it back to Ray. "Where you going now?" He asked as Ray was already leaving.

"Laundry." Ray answered, pausing in the doorway. "Do you want something to eat?"

Kai shook his head, "Can you come back when you're done?"

"Sure." Ray shrugged his shoulders before he left.

Kai laid back down, closing his eyes and praying that the medicine would kick in quick. He hated being sick, it wasn't often that he did but when it happened it really knocked him on his ass. Now he understood about what had made him so irritable and out of mind earlier that morning. Down the hall he could hear Ray starting up the wash and shifted towards the wall his bed was placed against, watching the door for when he came back in until he frowned as Ray sat down on the couch.

"What's wrong?" Ray asked as he pulled his phone out of his back pocket, thinking since he had the time he'd look up more trucks.

"You don't want to sit with me?" Kai asked.

"I don't want to get sick." Ray chuckled, causing Kai to slightly pout at him.

"I just want you to sit with me."

"Alright." Ray sighed and went over to him, making himself comfortable against the wall behind him as he scrolled through his phone.

Kai watched over his arm quietly before another coughing fit hit him, turning away from him as the entire bed shook until it was over.

"Sorry…" He mumbled as he laid back down on his side.

"I'm sorry you got sick. Now I have to go to school without you, which sucks…"

"If you got sick with me you wouldn't have to go." Kai said in a slight teasing tone, his chest rattling as he spoke.

"I don't want to get sick, keep your germs to yourself." Ray chuckled, not missing the way Kai had moved closer to him.

Kai went to say something back when Ray shoved the phone near his face, "I like this one a lot, and it's cheap." He said as he showed off the truck he had found.

"It's nice?" Kai tried to be supportive, to him it looked like every other truck Ray had already shown him.

"It's got everything I want, without needing to get a new stereo. Only problem is that it's not at a dealership and I'd have to pay up front for it." Ray sighed as he brought his phone back down over his lap, "I don't have what they're asking."

"See if they'll lower the price."

"I can, but even still it would suck me dry." Ray huffed, backing out of the listing he had brought up.

"I have some in my savings." Kai said as he shifted beside him, trying to get comfortable on his side.

"No, I'm not taking any more money. Not from you, or anyone." Ray said firmly.

Kai rolled his eyes as he put a hand on Ray's thigh, "Let me help, we're going to need something eventually. And if that's the one you like why not get it if we can?"

"Because even with the money from the others, what's left in my savings we'd still need about three K." Ray huffed, "Do you have three thousand dollars in your savings?" He asked, finally looking down at him.

Kai smirked a little at him, "I have a bit more than that actually."

Ray's face fell, "How?"

"Natasha and Micah give me the money that they get for having me here, they take barely half for food and things and the rest is given to me. I get about five hundred a month, they take less than one hundred and I've been putting it back in my savings since I moved in with them."

Ray sat there trying to do the math in his head, Kai had lived with them for four years… He stopped there, he wasn't good with math.
"I'm not taking your money." He repeated, looking away from him quickly and back to his phone.

"You're not taking, I'm giving." Kai said as he leaned into him, his hand still placed on Ray's leg.

Ray pretended to ignore him, scrolling through his phone quietly until Kai plucked the phone from his hands. Ray breathed out heavily and turned back to face him, not looking amused.

"Kai."

"C'mon babe, let me do this for you." Kai interrupted him quickly.

"You've already done so much though, everyone has, and I've not done anything for any of you."

"You got out of there, you're safe and that's all any of us wanted." Kai answered as he pushed himself to sit up, leaning his back against the wall his bed was pushed against and went back to the listing Ray had showed him.

"I like this one too, it suits you. So let me help." He said as he looked at the pictures more thoroughly, "It has the room you wanted, the leather seats and the radio." He listed off, "And it's big enough you don't have to worry about being buried in it."

Ray didn't know what to say to him after that, they could keep fighting over it in circles but didn't think it would do either of them any good.

"Give the guy a call, see if he still has it and will lower the price for you first. If not, see if he'll hold it so we can look at it tomorrow, you might not even like it once you see it in person." Kai said since Ray went quiet on him, handing his phone back to him.

"I guess. I still don't feel right about this." He said, taking it back and pressing the button to shut off the screen.

Kai arched a brow as the screen went black in Ray's hands, "That's not calling him."

"Let me think about it. Plus you're sick, you don't need to go anywhere." He saw Kai pout. Man he was hard to say no to.

"I can handle being out for less than an hour tomorrow, but you need to call him." Kai pressed, this was like arguing with himself.

"Can't it wait?" He asked in a huff.

Kai grabbed the phone from him, turning it back on and went to the listing and pressed call on the number that had been provided under the listing.

Ray's heart thudded, "You thickheaded dumbass! Why'd you do that?" He heard it ring a few times when Kai held the phone to his ear. He was making him do this?! Ray babbled when someone picked up.

Kai smirked, letting Ray take the phone and sat back to watch until he frowned, he couldn't even understand what Ray was saying. He snatched the phone back and put it to his own ear, rolling his eyes at the glare Ray was giving him.

"Hi, I'm calling about the Dodge you have listed, was wanting to know if you were firm on the price or not and if you're available tomorrow?" He reeled off quickly, pulling the phone away from his mouth as he tried not to cough too hard into it as the man greeted him back.

"No that's fine, what time are you available then?" He asked, watching Ray's face fall and smirked harder. "Sounds good, if you can text me your address I'll get back to you in the morning."

Ray eyed Kai when he was done and had hung up the phone. "Wanna take a guess at how angry I am at you? Wipe that amusement off your face, I'm serious here!"

Kai only smirked harder, "You're awfully cute when you're mad." He teased and tossed his phone back to him, it going off in his hands with the man's address. "And you're welcome, he says we can come by after two tomorrow."

Ray tried to glare but damnit that was sweet. He could feel his face shift somewhere between pissed and touched and according to Kai, who was laughing, it was hilarious.

"Shut up!"

"He didn't go down on the price, so we'll have to pull it out before we go. If you still like it that is." Kai said, deciding to ignore him.

"I- Kai. I can't pay you back for this. I mean, I'm flattered but I think I'm going to text him back and decline. I can't do this to you."

Kai's eyes became intense all of the sudden and Ray had the urge to zip it. "Who said I wanted you to pay me back? That's not what this is Ray, I'm doing it because I love you and eventually we'll need a vehicle of our own." Kai said as he tried to bring down the intensity of his gaze.

He understood where Ray was coming from but he wasn't going to have any of it right now.

"Look, it's better to buy one out right with you still having to make payments on the other. In the long run this is better, especially for one that you like. Now I'm done talking about it."

"But Kai?" Ray watched as Kai let out a painful yawn and laid down, proving his point.

Ray got up and headed for the couch. Would it even do any good? He doubt he'd be able to rest like this now.

"You're that mad at me about this that you left?" Kai asked as he watched him go again, was it really too much to ask that he just sit with him?

Ray turned back around, "I'm not mad Kai, just nervous."

He trusted Kai but despite that, Ray was still second guessing everything. What if Kai was wrong and the financial strain bit him and everyone else up the ass? He couldn't live with that.

"Stop worrying for a day, you just got out of the hospital. I get it, I really do, but stressing over every little thing right now is going to get you sick too." He warned cautiously as he sat up on his side, "I know you're used to doing everything on your own, I get that too, but for once let someone help you here. I'm willing to be that person Ray. If you want this, us, to work then you need to trust me."

"I do!" Ray walked back over to him and sat down. "I swear I do."

Kai put his arm around his waist and pulled him closer, leaning his head against his arm. "Okay, then stop worrying for a second and just let me help."

"Okay." Maybe he could lean on others and not get hurt, maybe Kai was right. "I love you." He whispered out, it was barely audible so he doubt Kai heard it but it just came out; he couldn't help it this time.

"I love you too." Kai mumbled back, dragging Ray down to lay beside him where he could hold him. "Things will get better, I promise. And really, three thousand out of the twenty seven or so I have saved up isn't going to hurt." He said as he shifted more on his side where he could look down at him laid out next to him.

Ray went limp, not fighting this time. "Alright." He said as his head hit a hard surface he recognized. Kai's lullaby-esque heartbeat sang in his ear like mother's tune. He could tell he was happy and that in turn relaxed him completely, he could stay like this forever.

What was he so stressed out about again? It didn't matter since he couldn't remember anything, the slow fall and rise of Kai's chest almost knocking him out for the rest of the day.

Finally Kai let the medicine that Ray gave him and was trying to knock him out work, falling asleep with him wrapped around him. To hell if Micah threw a fit about it, they both needed it right now. He'd talk to Natasha later when they got home about going out tomorrow, get the money they would need regardless and hoped that the truck was what Ray wanted after all.