Athur woke up a few hours later in his bed, unsure of how he had gotten there from the couch and unsure how he had changed clothes. A smell wafting through the air, as he tried flattening the hair that stood up on one side of his head, was clearly what woke him up from his sleep. Glancing out the window, he found the sun to be much too bright and squinted in pain as he made his way to the kitchen.

It took him walking to the other end of the hall to realize his door had been closed, he never closed his door in case Wade needed to wake him during the night. The solid wall of the scent of ham was what woke him up enough to remember he had been hit by a car, as well as the other related events occuring around said happening.

"Emrys, little early isn't it?" Arthur asked, leaning against the cabinet as Emrys cooked.

"Actually, it's well past nine, so you're a little late. How did you sleep?"

"Alright I guess..." After a moment of silence, Arthur looked at his feet and glared at them. "So, uh, how did I get in bed?"

"You walked in there, I suppose you don't remember?" Emrys asked with a short laugh, "Did you think I carried you in there or something? I could barely lift your dog, let alone you."

"I wasn't implying-" Arthur defended, feeling quite dumb. "Anyway the door was closed-"

"I closed it so I wouldn't disturb you. You were quite put out when Wade wasn't following you to bed so you kinda huffed off. Even called him a 'traitor', I believe. I came in to check on you periodically but Wade seemed fine sleeping with me on the couch. So eventually I just kept the door shut so I wouldn't risk waking you."

"Wade slept with you." Arthur grunted, thinly veiling his jealousy, "The dog who has slept at my feet every night since he was a pup, slept with you."

"I didn't know it would bother you this much, Arthur." Emrys admitted, "Sorry. Anyway... Food is ready. As you can probably guess by what I'm cooking, I went to the grocery while you were asleep."

"Right," Arthur muttered, taking the plate Emrys and setting it down on the counter. Grasping Emrys's shoulder, he sighs, "Sorry. Really. I don't understand why I'm acting so petulant, it's very unlike me."

Emrys had a fleeting expression of a grin before shrugging and face falling into neutrality, "No harm... Oh, by the way, that box you put by the road I think someone took the box."

"I see," Arthur muttered, "I suppose I should finish what I started. I still have a few boxes of clothes and things to go through from under my bed. Quite frankly, I have no idea what's in them. Might as well do something productive while I have the time off, since I usually spend weekends laying around and drinking... I'm sure you noticed I tidied up a bit."

"Yeah, it's getting there." Emrys agreed, "I'll be glad to help if you need it."

"I'll be okay, I think." Arthur muttered, talking between bites as Emrys nibbled absently on some buttered toast. "Just hang around and keep me company I guess, make sure I don't succumb to brain aneurysm while I relive the dumb things I did in my youth."

Emrys betrayed a smile as he whispered, "Not funny."

...

After morning routines were finished, they each changed clothes, Emrys laid on Arthur's bed with Wade lying like a large fluffy pillow under his knees.

Arthur pulled out the first box quickly, immediately cursing under his breath and shutting it after opening. "I'm not sure I'm ready for these boxes."

Emrys looked at him in sympathy, his eyes watching Arthur in earnest. "Would you like to talk about it?"

"It's, uh, old family photos... Before they, my parents..."

"Did they pass away?"

"No, that would have hurt less I think." Arthur sniffed hard, as though surpressing a wave of emotion. "I don't like talking about it."

"My books-" Emrys volunteered, "I am sure you wonder why I am so protective of them."

"Yeah, planned on asking you eventually."

"Tit for tat," Emrys offered, his eyes serious and stubborn. "I tell you about the books, then you talk to me. You owe me nothing," his voice flattened, "I just want to learn more about you. I find you... Interesting."

"You're right, I don't owe you anything. That being said, though, I am more curious about the books than I care about revealing the whole thing with my parents. Odd as it may seem, I accept what has happened I just can't forgive them for it..." Arthur moved the box to the side, scooting within a few feet of Emrys, petting Wade's snout. "So, the books. What's the deal?"

Emrys took a moment to collect his thoughts before speaking.

"The old books, all the first editions were my only real possessions for a very... very long time." Emrys's eyes misted before he blinked them away, the wetness in his throat sticking.

...Flashback...

"I was homeless most of my life... I ducked in and out of homes of acquaintances, friends, and shelters for a long time before I found roots. I had no family. The hardest part was finding ways to eat, thinking of clever ways to get it when I wasn't living on a couch. Sleep always came hard too, I had to protect my books.

"They were all I had, aside from a few pieces of clothing and bare essentials- I couldn't let them slip away... The memories attached to them-" Emry's voice finally cracked, he wiped his eyes quickly and with shame.

"I'm sorry... anyway, I finally got a job where they didn't need to see me in person and learn to distrust me because of my background. 'He is a thief,' they would whisper about me. 'He's so dirty-looking, does he even own a razor?' they sneered . Even though I could hear them, they didn't care.

"Oftentimes, they claimed anything that went missing or was lost was an attempt for me to resell them for petty cash. It hurt a lot. One of the few that saw the truth was the boss of the last job before this one.

"He took me aside once and asked if I had found a stable home, and when I admitted I hadn't he seemed very... beside himself. He wrote a phone number down and gave it to me with his hands shaking.

" 'Call them. They will give you a job, I can assure it. I just... Can't allow you to work here anymore, the gossip among the others is too much to retain our repuatation for much longer. I am so sorry, Emrys. I really am. I have written you a glowing referral, you can use it anywhere you like for as long as you need. You do not need this job, son. You need peace.'

"At that, I just thanked Mr. Garrett for giving me the job, the referral, and I just... left. I haven't seen him since. The person on the card he gave me accepted me immediately and asked only that I write as extensively as possible.

"The first few, he asked me to complete by hand and when he saw I was serious he gave me enough of an advance for a small laptop. I was so happy I wrote all of my next round of reviews in one night. Soon after, when things were steady I put myself up in a hotel, then a rental - my home now. It's been.. A process, for sure."

...

To this Arthur felt totally outshined, not only by Emrys's strength, but his humility. He felt a little cold-hearted when he responded:

"My story is much simpler than yours, it isn't a fair trade I think. However, regardless... my parents stopped loving me. I don't know why, maybe I didn't do good enough in their eyes, maybe they didn't like my taste in girls, maybe because I chose a 9 to 5 over a job with prestige.

"It started when I was in my teens. First, they would interrupt my stories to discuss their own problems, or fight on the odd occassion. Then, they stopped asking how school was going, how I was doing, who I was spending time with. Then, we stopped having family vacations to the lake house. Eventually, they sold the property the lakehouse stood on and they stopped coming to my games, my school events, my award ceremonies. They just stopped existing as parents in my life.

"I can't place when they stopped caring, eventually I just noticed they weren't around and I didn't invite them to my graduation. Why let my words fall, yet again, on deaf ears? They bought me this place and with it, they did their parental 'due dilligence', and they cut the cord completely."

Without a word, Emrys reached over quickly, hugging Arthur around his shoulders, burying his face into his shoulder. Arthur wrapped his arms around Emrys's back readily, his angry demeanor dissolving into sadness that he had never let himself truly feel. He showed no reluctance in this.

He had never even told Eve.

That single thought was what lead Arthur's eyes to water, leading to tears as he squeezed Emrys tight. Emrys began breathing shakily, as if holding back his own tears as he whispered a quiet witticism to the effect of 'how they were both pathetic sad sacks'.

Wade whined in discomfort at the weight upon him and they released from the hug reluctantly. Emrys excused himself to the bathroom, Arthur grasping his hand on the way out.

"Thank you, Emrys... For sharing."

"You too... Arthur." Emrys eyed him, glancing at their hands before flushing in embarassment and darting off to the loo.

A.N.

It's a longer one, yay!