A/N: Here comes the last chapter, I hope you will enjoy it and that you liked the story:) Let me know your thoughts or if you want a sequel. Cheers!
Reality was coming back to him slowly... waking up seemed to be a chore. As if his body was submerged in something wet and heavy, and when Tomas opened his eyes it was like breaking the surface. He blinked into the grey of the oncoming morning, heard the rain beating heavily against the window. It was the sound of the falling water that sent a signal to his brain and he realized the only reason he even thought of opening his eyes was the need to use the bathroom. With a sigh, Tomas moved his hand and rubbed at his eyes, feeling the strain the simple move put on his muscles. What made him freeze mid motion however was the touch of a warm hand on his waist that he hadn't noted before. Tomas frowned, feeling his heart skip, because the last thing he remembered was falling on his bed and there was definitely no space for another person to share. He swallowed. Was this just another dream? Or a vision? Slowly, very slowly he turned on the bed, letting the hand slip off his waist. Only to hear a grumbled "Tranquilo, Tomas. Todo esta bien." Tomas opened his mouth in surprise, while the hand returned to its place, this time landing on Tomas' stomach. "Tranquilo, bien." Marcus muttered, gave Tomas's stomach a pat then let out a snore.
Tomas didn't know what to do. He wanted to laugh at the ridiculousness of the situation, but he was too confused for that. He decidedly remembered there being two beds when they came to the room... now it seemed the beds were pushed together and against the wall. To top it off, at the foot of Tomas's bed was a table positioned in such a way that blocked his exit... and of course, Marcus was occupying the other bed. Stretched all out, lying on his stomach, with one hand under his head and the other laying comfortably on Tomas' stomach.
'What the hell happened?' Tomas thought and was about to ask just that, when he really noted the pallor on Marcus' face and the dark circles under his eyes. For the lack of better word, it looked as if Marcus had just managed to shut his eyes after a weeklong exorcism. Which might've been how Tomas felt, but he was pretty sure that when they left the house, Marcus looked less haggard. Tomas sighed and ran a hand over his face, noting the feel of dried sweet and a still wet yet warm towel right next to his head.
Great. It wasn't enough that Tomas let himself get into such a state, then let the demon almost get the better of him. Now he was doing who-knew-what and keeping Marcus from the rest he needed. Just another way to feel like a burden. Just another reason for the man to leave him behind... once again. Tomas swallowed the sudden nausea then licked at his dry lips. He was parched and at the same time felt sticky, covered in sweat. Weariness rushed over him just at the thought of moving, but his body let him know in no uncertain terms that there was a reason he woke up. With a groan, Tomas once again slowly extricated himself from Marcus' embrace, pausing as the man muttered more nonsensical words supposed to relax him back to sleep.
"Sorry, Marcus, but I really need to go," he muttered and stepped over the dangly legs, off the bed and almost face planted when a hand shot out and grabbed him by the pants. Tomas' eyes went wide, his arms waved in the air and for a second it looked like he was trying for a gymnast number, before he managed to right himself.
"I swear I'll tie you down," Marcus growled, eyes open to slits and his hand still clutching Tomas' pants leg. Tomas blushed, one hand grabbing at his pants so they didn't slip down, the other reaching for the bed table for some support, because the sudden movement made his head spin.
"Could you maybe first let me use the damn bathroom?" Tomas snapped, then winced. Nope, loud noises weren't recommended either. The grip on his leg was released and Tomas turned to face Marcus, who was sitting up in the bed, looking for all like something a cat dragged in.
"You awake this time?"
Tomas wasn't expecting that question. For a second it made him doubt if he really was awake, but surely, he felt too shitty for this to be a dream.
"Why wouldn't I be?" He asked, confused. Marcus rubbed at his eyes, looked towards the window and the downcast weather, then gave Tomas an assessing look.
"You tell me. Is it normal for you to go on a walk in the middle of the night, half naked?"
Tomas blinked, his forehead scrunching up in thought as he tried to make sense of Marcus' words. Then something clicked in the back of his mind and he let out a simple "Oh."
Marcus shook his head in amazement.
"Just an 'Oh'? Do you mean to tell me your sleepwalking will be a daily occurrence?"
Tomas groaned and pushed his hands against his eyes, until he saw white.
"Shall I invest in a comfortable pair of handcuffs then?" Marcus asked with a blasted smirk on his face and Tomas blushed.
"What? No!" He shook his head and gave a defeated sigh. "I don't know," he admitted.
Marcus eyes quirked in interest and Tomas grimaced.
"I used to sleepwalk when I was a kid... after..." Tomas paused, his dreams and memories rushing back at him with vengeance and he took a step back, wavering. Marcus reached out to steady him, but Tomas shook off the hand, already feeling bad enough for his weakness.
"I just... need to use the bathroom," Tomas said and left Marcus sitting on the bed, a thoughtful look on his face.
Once he took care of his needs, Tomas paused at the sink, simply enjoying the feeling of cold water running over his hands. He felt like a coward, but he was hoping Marcus would be asleep by the time he left the bathroom, so he took his sweet time and at least washed off some of the dried sweat. While he considered taking a shower, his body let him know in no uncertain terms that it would appreciate being back in a horizontal position and Tomas blinked away the dark spots appearing on the verge of his vision. With a sigh, he knew it was stupid to wait any longer, it wasn't like Marcus would let something go so easily. He was like a pit-bull... once he bit into something, there was no power on earth to coerce him into letting go.
Just like he expected, Marcus was still awake, sitting in the bed with one hand resting on his raised knee, the other rubbing at his eyes. When he heard Tomas approaching, he looked up and Tomas was taken aback by the tired look on his face.
"About time. I was just mustering the energy to go and check if you weren't trying to run away through the ventilation window."
It was such an absurd idea that Tomas snorted and rolled his eyes.
"Running away is your thing, not mine," he muttered under his breath, then froze. "I... sorry. That was uncalled for," he shook his head, disgusted with himself.
Marcus just raised an eyebrow.
"Why? It's the truth, isn't it?" he said and Tomas winced at the self-deprecating tone of his voice.
"No. I didn't mean..." But Tomas knew that was a lie. Somewhere deep down he still felt angry with Marcus for actually leaving, for not returning sooner. He just had no energy to lie about it anymore. Tomas shrugged and wavered. He needed a place to sit, but one chair was strangely positioned by the door and the other was standing in the middle of the room but covered in clothes... the whole room looked like some obstacle course.
"Really? Was this necessary?" Tomas asked, pointing at his backpack also lying on the floor, right in the trajectory towards the door.
Marcus just shrugged.
"Didn't want another startled guest calling the cops on us."
Tomas closed his eyes, trying to make sense of the sentence. He had no luck, only managed to make himself dizzy. There was suddenly a hand on his arm and Marcus gruffly pulled him back towards the bed.
"For Christ sake, lie down before you crack your head open on something," Marcus muttered and scooted back a little so Tomas could crawl onto his side of the bed. Tomas frowned at him, wanting to protest such treatment, but there was really no other place to go. Both chairs were just too far away and he felt like his limbs were made of rubber. With a sigh, Tomas crawled past Marcus but didn't lie down... instead he settled sitting against the corner, facing Marcus.
"Any particular reason you wanted to share a bed with me?" he asked after a moment of silence. Tomas felt like all the fire had left his body. The fever was probably gone too, but it left him without energy, depleted.
Marcus shrugged and nodded towards the obstacle course.
"It calmed you down and I wanted to get some sleep too."
"Sorry for that. I can help you push the bed back now," Tomas offered, though truth be told, he didn't feel like moving and Marcus knew that, if his snort was anything to go by.
"You still look a bit peaky. My back really wouldn't appreciate a need for another move."
This time it was Tomas who snorted and shook his head.
"I'm fine-" he started saying but he paused at seeing the sudden angry look on Marcus' face.
"For Christ' sake, Tomas. When will you stop lying to me?" Marcus snapped. Tomas wanted to protest, but realized it was useless. Marcus was right after all.
"I don't know how often I need to repeat this, but I won't leave you for being sick or messing up. Do you understand? I don't have a clue where you even got that stupid idea from. But God led me back to you and Mouse and I'm here to stay. Period."
The silence that settled in the room was strangely calm. Maybe because Tomas for once didn't argue, didn't try to cover up anything. Marcus looked at the younger man, unsure if he was still even awake. Their eyes met and Tomas gave a small nod of acceptance. Marcus felt as if someone lifted a weight off his shoulders and let out an involuntary sigh of relief.
"When I let that demon inside my head," Tomas spoke softly, his voice barely breaking through the sound of the raindrops hitting the window angrily and Marcus inclined his head to hear better, not wanting to miss a word. "I think it had found a memory I myself had buried a long time ago."
Marcus frowned and sat up a bit straighter. He put a hand on Tomas' outstretched leg and nudged him to continue.
"I had a vision - before the Rance family. When I was six."
Marcus closed his eyes for a moment and sighed. He was hoping at least one of them had a happy childhood, unspoiled by the work of evil, but it seemed that not even Tomas was spared. Marcus knew how violent the visions were on Tomas as an adult, he couldn't even imagine having a six-year-old child having to deal with them. And for what purpose?
"It was just before I was sent away," Tomas continued, his breath hitching a bit. "Actually, I think that was the reason why abuela took me in."
"What did you see?" Marcus couldn't help but ask and he could feel a slight shiver run through Tomas' body, down through his legs.
"Things I didn't want to remember. Not then, and not now. Awful things that no child should see."
Marcus didn't push.
"I'm sorry," he said instead, and Tomas smiled.
"You are the last person who needs to apologize for that, Marcus," he said gently and cleared his throat. "I thought... I thought I was in hell... that I was going to die. But then... there was a man in the shadows. I didn't see his face clearly, only his eyes... shining blue eyes and a voice that made me feel at peace, made me feel safe."
"I thought... I thought you hadn't felt God before... before Angela," Marcus said, his throat closing up.
Tomas shook his head and leaned forward, putting his hand on the one Marcus lay on his leg.
"It wasn't God, Marcus. It was you."
"What?" Marcus pulled back, startled. "That... that doesn't make any sense," he said, shaking his head, trying not to see the hurt in Tomas' eyes. "It had to be the demon, just playing tricks on you."
Tomas' face hardened.
"It wasn't. I know I didn't remember this before, but... ever since the first moment we met, I knew you seemed familiar. I knew I could trust you. Now... now I know why."
Marcus was silent, his thoughts all over the place. He didn't need any more evidence to know where his place was, not since that day on the pier. He felt God, heard Him, and the message he received was clear. Find Tomas and stay with him. Tomas on the other hand seemed to be lost between doubts and uncertainty about the origin of his 'gift' and its use. Mouse's soldier training didn't help much in that matter, maybe just added more questions. Still, the knowledge something used the image of Marcus to communicate with a six-year-old child sent shivers of apprehension down his spine.
"Are you sure it was me?" he couldn't stop the question from slipping out and Tomas let out a dry chuckle.
"Hard to mix up that accent of yours with anyone else... or those eyes," he added softly.
"How long?"
"How long what?" Tomas frowned.
"How long did those supposed visions last? How come you didn't remember sooner?" Marcus waved his hand in the air as if asking the universe. His voice was curt and Tomas tensed at the clearly notable doubt.
"Nothing supposed about them," he answered a bit curt himself, then shook his head with a sigh. He didn't want to fight and until he could call Olivia and ask her a few questions himself, Marcus was right, this could all be just some scheme of the demon. Although Tomas had no clue to what purpose. "About why I didn't remember... maybe I tried to forget. It wasn't the happiest part of my life, what with dad leaving, our lack of money due to medical bills and... being sent away."
"Do you remember your nightmares when you were six-years-old?" Tomas asked after a moment of silence. Marcus closed his eyes.
Yes, he remembered perfectly well. Even at six he could remember the smell of cheap booze, the screaming and the fights. And there was no power on this world that could erase the day when he fired that shotgun and killed his own father. But Tomas was different, his nightmares were different. They were in his mind and while that would have been horrifying, Tomas could always wake up. For Marcus there was no reset button, no waking up. Marcus had to live his nightmares out and as such couldn't ever forget them.
"I know that trusting what a demon shows me is stupid. And maybe it really was just my imagination, I don't know."
"Olivia would know though, wouldn't she?" Marcus asked and could see some of the tension leaving Tomas' body.
"Yes. I'll ask her... next time."
"Good. So... did you have any other prophetic dreams tonight? You seemed to be... somewhere else."
Tomas blushed and lowered his eyes.
"They weren't prophetic, no... just... memories."
Marcus raised an eyebrow and gave Tomas' leg an imploring squeeze.
"Tell me."
So, Tomas told him, about the sleepwalking, about his abuela's concern. He spoke about father Miguel and the first day he met him, about the questions in the office and the ritual.
"Now that I remember, I'm pretty sure it was the prayer of deliverance," Tomas finished and cleared his throat. Marcus leaned over and handed him the half full bottle of ginger ale. Tomas took it with a look of thanks, though he grimaced at the room temperature of the drink, but felt it settle well on his empty stomach.
"Did it work? The deliverance prayer?" Marcus asked when Tomas put the lid back on the bottle and rested his head back against the wall, eyes half closed.
"Yes, it did. I could feel something right then and there... the darkness leaving. It felt... freeing," Tomas said with a slightly wistful tone. 'I wish I could feel free now,' he thought, but didn't say it out loud. He was past the point where such wishes could be uttered or even delivered. He didn't deserve it and didn't expect it. God seemed to have a plan of his own anyway and who was Tomas Ortega to have an opinion about that.
"So, no more sleepwalking or nightmares?"
"No. I was... for all purposes of that term... normal." Tomas said with a small smirk and rubbed at his eyes tiredly. He needed more rest but it was already morning and he didn't know what the plan for the day was... or the next few weeks. At the moment he couldn't care less.
"Sometimes I feel like I'm in a tug-o-war," Tomas spoke and looked at Marcus, a bit amazed that he still had the man's unwavering attention.
"Both sides trying to pull you over?" Marcus offered, catching up on what he meant and Tomas nodded.
"Except it feels like they're ripping me apart instead. Don't know if this is a gift from God or a curse-" Tomas let the sentence hang with a shrug.
"Ever thought it is neither?" Marcus spoke up and Tomas blinked.
"What do you mean?"
"Maybe it's just who you are, Tomas. Something you were born with," Marcus tapped at his forehead. "Something both sides figured they could use."
"So, what... the demons send me visions?"
Marcus shrugged.
"You have skills, Tomas. Everyone just wants to sway you to their side."
Tomas thought about it. Was it better to think about his visions like that... just a skill? Or to think that God let him see the horrors of hell at the tender age of six? Tomas closed his eyes, letting out a groan. No, if God sent Tomas something, it was Marcus. When he was six and then again, with the first vision after Angela's visit.
"I think God meant us to fight this together since the start." Tomas was surprised he spoke out loud, even more when Marcus snorted.
"I have been telling you that since I came back," Marcus reminded him with a grin and Tomas didn't know what to say to that. Maybe just 'Right, I'm an idiot'. But that sounded too much like admitting his shortcomings and Tomas didn't want to let Marcus off the hook so easily either, not for leaving.
There was a rumbling sound of thunder coming from outside and Tomas shuddered. The fever was gone but now it left him bereft of the heat and the room didn't seem so warm anymore. But the bed was too comfortable to leave and get his shirt and his head felt too empty.
"You don't have to figure it all out today," Marcus told him gently, patting his leg then moving it a bit out of the way so he could lie back down. "The room is ours until tomorrow, no questions asked. I wouldn't want to drive in this weather anyway. So, hunker down, and later we can go grab some food. Right now, I need to sleep. Someone kept me awake the whole night."
Tomas snorted, but didn't protest. A yawn broke out on his face and before he knew it, his head hit the pillow. He didn't even care about the fact that he was practically boxed in between the wall and Marcus' lanky form, taking up a surprisingly large space. The sound of rain was overriding the jumble of thoughts inside his mind. Maybe he could even try and get some sleep.
A few minutes later, there was a rustle of sheets as Marcus changed his position and a warm hand landed on Tomas's side. Tomas opened his mouth to say something, but there was a soft snore and he didn't have the heart to wake the older man up. So, he just sighed and closed his eyes again. Strangely enough, the warmth of the touch helped to ground him and calm his turbulent mind. Tomas didn't move away and finally fell into a deep sleep... dreaming of a pair of blue eyes and a friendly voice chasing away all the demons.
The End