Chapter 6 – The Indoor Shower

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Jay may or may not have stumbled out of the showers, he didn't know, he was too busy trying to quell the rising embarrassment and heat building inside him as he squinted out into the afternoon sun. The only good news was that the two entrances to the outdoor showers were aimed away from the pool, which left Jay faltering towards the house, his chest heaving and face feeling dangerously hot. He probably should have taken a second or two to compose himself before going back in view of the others, but Carlos was counting on him. Jay needed to get over himself, but mostly he needed to find Mal.

He took another uneasy step, practically cringing at how stupid he must look (because he knew what he'd just done with Carlos was bad, he'd crossed a line even if Carlos had asked, and now Mal was going to learn about it and kill him and Jay couldn't even feel bad about it because he was gross). He swallowed hard, trying to center himself, and almost stumbled directly into Ben, who'd walked around one of those damn decorative bushes that acted as a natural barrier between the house and backyard.

"Whoops, sorry," Ben said, because he was the most cliché human being in the universe. And because he was the nicest, he reached out to steady Jay by his elbows, like he was a damsel in distress or something. "Are you okay?"

"Yep," Jay lied, shaking his head as though that would help him clear it and wishing Ben would stop touching him because his body was reading that as a sort of reward, which was the last thing he deserved. "I um- Mal- Carlos needs Mal."

"Okay," Ben said, his brows furrowing in concern. "She's inside with Lonnie, getting drinks."

"Oh." Right, she probably wanted to be helpful to prove they weren't barbarians or something, not knowing Jay had already ruined her chances for that when Chad walked in and saw his hand down Carlos's pants. "Thanks, I'll just-"

"Are you sure you're okay?" Ben asked, leaning in to get a better look at Jay, which was enough to make him flinch back, not that he could really go anywhere with Ben still holding onto him, so he just sort of flailed and then Ben got more worried-

"What's wrong?" Jane asked, the Light Fae strolling by with Aziz in-tow. Looked like they had been heading inside as well.

"I think the heat's getting to him," Ben declared, making Jay realize that his stupid flush wasn't as hidden as he'd hoped and definitely worsened under that observation, something that left him feeling tongue tied.

Jane perked up. "Do you think he has heat stroke? We need to get him inside and cooled down if that's the case."

Jay swallowed. "Mal-"

"Could you get her?" Ben asked Aziz. "Carlos needs her."

There was a pause where Aziz evaluated Jay, his expression neutral, though it was like he knew the real reason Jay was worked up, and he was superbly unimpressed by it.

"Sure," he said a moment later, and then they were all bustling towards the house, Jay cradled between Ben and Jane while Aziz followed behind them.

Jay should tell them he was fine, but honestly he couldn't think of another way to explain his awkwardness, and getting out of the way for a bit sounded like a brilliant idea. Aziz parted ways with them when they entered the house, darting right towards the kitchen, and after a beat, Jane pulled them towards the left.

"This way," she said, seeming more confident now that there was a problem that needed to be solved. "Chad said they just upgraded one of the downstairs bathrooms. We should get him in a cold shower."

"Good idea," Ben said, Jay's stomach dropping as he hoped that this was a swimsuit-mandatory shower.

That seemed to be the case, though, Jane shutting the door behind them as Ben led them into what seemed to be a stupidly luxurious bathroom, something out of Carlos' dreams, maybe, since it seemed to be so tech heavy. Along one of the walls was a gigantic, clear shower with a built-in stone bench and Ben immediately herded him into that, Jane closing the stall behind them as Ben lowered Jay onto the bench.

"Um." Jane looked around, obviously searching for the nozzles. There didn't seem to be any sticking out from the wall, the tile completely undisturbed save for what seemed to be a touch screen. "Maybe we control it here?"

She hit a button and cold water seemed to shower down from above them from some of those rainforest showerheads, and while all of them jolted at the sudden cold, Jay couldn't help but feel that it was the best thing ever, the water putting enough of a shock to his system to steady his stupid arousal once and for all.

Okay, so this had turned out great.

"I'll set it for a few minutes so we can get his core temperature down," Jane said, her fingers dancing across the screen. "And then we should take him to the kitchen to get hydrated-" She abruptly cut herself off, which was enough to pull Jay's focus over towards her, her shoulders seeming to tense as she stared at the touch screen.

"Jane?" Ben hazarded, sensing something was wrong.

"I think it's glitching," Jane said, motioning to the screen.

Jay craned his head, squinting through the falling water, and noticed that a series of incomprehensible images seemed to be flashing across the screen in a sort of error. The control menu seemed to be all mixed up, which was worrisome for a shower that was entirely controlled electronically, and that anxiety only worsened when the door to the stall gave a hefty, audible click.

"I think it just locked us in," Jane said, her gaze going wide as the glass walls seemed to fog over, cutting them off from the rest of the room. The glass went up all the way to the ceiling, and if it was as strong as it looked…

"It'll be okay," Ben said, always one to keep a cool head. "Aziz will come for us eventually. Why don't we just focus on cooling off-"

Ben cut off with a squawk when he was literally blasted in the face with a stream of water, portions of the wall opening up to reveal dozens of different shower head attachments whirring with an ominous sort of intent. Ben stumbled backwards until he hit the bench, where he immediately collapsed against the far corner of the stall, blinking water out of his eyes.

"Okay," Ben said, wiping at his face. "So um- that will be a funny story later-"

More whirring, and Jay froze when mechanical arms seemed to extend from small indents in the wall, two of them grabbing Ben's ankles and pinning him in place.

"Um," Ben said sort of dumbly while another arm came out, this one seeming to be a small, spinning brush that immediately attacked the sole of his left foot, diligently… cleaning it?

"Autocleaners," Jane gasped, like that made any sense. "That must have been part of the renovation."

"These things are real?" Ben gasped, flush darkening because apparently he was ticklish, his breath coming in small gasps. "I t-thought that was something Chad made up."

"No," Jane said. "They're real-"

She cut off with a squawk as one of those water nozzles started spurting directly against her groin, something that had her pressing her hands to her crotch with a dark flush before a different blast caught her breast, making it bounce and Jay was just- he was not going to pay attention to that, he needed to-

Apparently deal with his own cleaners that unfolded from the wall, the lot of them lathering up his chest while he futilely tried to guide them away.

This was not what he needed, he didn't want to get in trouble for breaking Chad's fancy house cleaning robots, not for a bathroom that had just been renovated, so he couldn't jerk them away, he just had to sort of bear with it like Ben was, whose ankles were slowly getting raised higher and higher, contorting the brunette against the bench seat while he giggled helplessly, his face red from exertion.

Jane let out another squawk, and against his better judgement Jay glanced over at her, only to see that she'd been continuously bombarded with different bursts of water until her bikini bottoms were halfway down her thighs, leaving her intimate parts definitely exposed-

Not that this seemed to be Jane's biggest issue, the Light Fae biting back moans as a set of autocleaners descended from the ceiling, cupping and cleaning her breasts until she was shaking, her swimsuit top shoved aside so her nipples could be properly lathered. She seemed to be clutching onto those metal arms in an effort to stay upright, leaving her effectively trapped in one place, allowing that one water nozzle to spray relentlessly against her flushed folds.

"Ah- ah," Jane cried, and Jay should really not stare at her, he was going to get labeled a pervert, or worse, somehow blamed for this, but she really was a sight. Something straight out of that porn stuff the guys back on the Isle traded like gold.

"J-Jane?" Ben croaked, freezing when he noticed her predicament. "Hold on, it'll um- run through its program eventually-"

Jay wasn't sure if Ben had more of a peptalk because in the next moment the Agraben was flailing, something hooking into the waist of his swim trunks and dragging them down so thoroughly that Jay got pulled off the bench. The metal arm had reached across his lap to do so it spun him, leaving his torso sprawled across the seat of the bench while his legs trailed onto the floor, his groin fortunately facing downwards but that wasn't a huge relief when he felt his swimsuit get dragged down his thighs.

"Shit," he cursed, because more of those damn cleaners were washing his back, trapping him in place, and a different stream of water was blasting right between his cheeks.

Ah hell, his dick was out in front of an actual prince and Jane – the sweet, innocent person everyone loved so very much and Jay was going to be labeled a pervert for sure.

"Guys," Ben said, seeming at an awful loss.

"Ben," Jane croaked, and Jay sort of wanted to join her because he could feel one of those soft, squishy sponges spinning between his cheeks, all lathered in a sort of goopy soap that left thick trails behind.

Jay moaned loudly, brokenly, as soon as it started spinning against his entrance, and that- he guessed that was fair, after what he'd done to Carlos, guessed it was only just for him to receive such debase treatment in front of Ben and Jane to show them how lewd he really was. That he enjoyed this was-

Jay gasped, and not because of the growing heat between his legs, his length jutting hard against his stomach, begging for attention. No, it was because something was building in the air, something that felt like Mal, like Evie, and-

Jane, Jay realized belatedly. He turned to see Jane seeming lost to the throws of want, but around her, invisible to most, was a shimmering layer of magic. She was projecting it reflexively, emanating a quiet but distinct sort of pleasure, and Jay didn't know if it was specific to Light Faes or just her, but he found himself responding to it all just the same. Responding – his magic grew to mimic hers, and he felt terrified of that development. Magic was the last thing he should be dabbling in, but he couldn't help but copy Jane, who Evie trusted so much. His magic ached to curl around hers and hers welcomed his – shimmers meeting crimson swells that only another magic user could see, until their energies seemed to harmonize with each other, practically singing until they settled into their bones and clicked into something new.

Jay didn't mean to accept Jane's magic any more than she intended to embrace his but it happened anyway, and Jay was lost to about three seconds of delighted warmth at the foreign energy before whatever spell they'd inadvertently melded together decided to activate.

And boy, did it.

He didn't know what happened exactly, only that in the next moment he could feel his nipples getting pinched and pulled, feeling more sensitive than they'd ever been before, feeling full and soft and hot except that was Jane – he was feeling Jane's chest just like he was feeling her groin get teased relentlessly by the water. He was feeling her and he knew without question that she was feeling him, feeling the brushes on his back and the thick sponge between his cheeks and it built up so brutally it was no wonder that they fell apart long after.

And wasn't that a fucking experience, Jay experiencing his own release with Jane's on top of it, and then experiencing Jane experiencing his release and vice versa until their orgasms were entirely brutal, the water spout between Jane's legs seeming to strategically shut off in time for her to burst glittering streams of slick, Fae slick, and Jay felt that echoed through his own length as it pulsed ruthlessly, Jane keening through that and both of them breathing so very hard when it was finally over.

The autocleaners – at least his – seemed to respond to the jerked motion and finally pulled away, leaving him slumped against the bench as he tried to catch his breath. Jane was still trapped by the arms teasing her breasts (and still Jay felt those, still felt her groin twitching freely, felt the slick smeared against her inner thighs), but she didn't seem to mind now, happily surrendering to their embrace.

Jay wondered if he should try messing with the touch screen, if maybe he could teleport them out of this situation.

Maybe Jane could, that would be something, or-

A growl, and Jay almost thought he imagined it, or maybe it was just a whir of electronics or something. But then there was another one, and Jay turned in time to see Ben's pupils dilate, his auto cleaners releasing him as his lips pulled back in a snarl, everything about the prince seeming to become beastly.

"Ben?" Jay tried, unsure how he felt about the way the prince was staring at Jane, and then that brutal gaze was on him, Ben's normal coherency seeming entirely gone in favor of the beast he said rarely came out to play.

Well, seemed like some mechanical issues and magic were enough to fix that problem.

"Ah, shit," Jane gasped, further proving just how screwed they were, and then Ben was darting forward in a sort of crouch, his entire focus seemingly aimed at Jay's wanton disposition.

So yeah, turned out the situation could get worse.

-:-:-

Carlos stood curled against the far wall of the outdoor shower, his back tucked close to the wall, not that it helped him feel less vulnerable considering the fact that he was still very much half naked, his heart pounding furiously in his chest despite the fact that Jay had left him like, three minutes ago, seeming embarrassed on Carlos' behalf.

In all honesty, Carlos still wasn't sure exactly what happened. He knew Jay was just trying to take care of him and fortunately trusted Carlos enough to believe the whole bug story, but now Carlos was left with his swim trunks hanging just beyond his reach, because sometimes Jay forgot about those extra few inches he had on Carlos that made all the difference. Carlos could probably hop for it if he tried, but that would require him to turn his back to the door, would require him to let go of his swim shirt, and as that seemed to be the only thing protecting his dignity right now, he'd elected to hide in the corner and bemoan the turn of events that had brought him here.

Just- Jay. The idea of chicken had sounded horrible enough when Carlos thought he was going to cart Mal around – the idea of failing her so notably in front of the others, of having her that close – it was all bad, but then Mal had fended him off on Jay, and distantly, Carlos knew it was so she could mitigate that potential embarrassment, but then Carlos was forced onto Jay's shoulders, getting the Agraben's head between his legs in a manner that was nothing like the way he secretly desired.

That had been torture alone, but Jay was- he was loyal and determined and desperate to follow Mal's orders to the best of his ability, that was what made him her number two, so of course his entire focus was on keeping Carlos upright no matter the cost. Carlos knew Jay hadn't intended all the additional contact, but that hadn't stopped it from happening, hadn't stopped a certain heat from building between Carlos' legs each time Jay squeezed his butt, until it got to the point where he was terrified it might be noticed and-

Maybe hurling himself into the water hadn't been the most graceful plan of retreat, nor had babbling about some imaginary bug, but he honestly hadn't expected anyone to follow him, or if they did, it would be Mal.

But of course it was Jay, because Mal had left Carlos in his charge, and Jay always finished his missions.

And if that mission was to search for a bug that didn't exist because he thought Carlos was having a breakdown (and he was, just not over bugs), then Jay was the kind of guy who would quickly and thoroughly search Carlos' swim trunks, teasing and feeling at every inch of skin and Carlos could still remember the feel of his rough, calloused fingers, so much bigger than Mal's, so good, and he had to fight not to rut into them, not to ask Jay if he looked pretty because he'd gotten used to doing that with Mal and it wasn't like Jay was there because he wanted to be.

And then Chad caught Jay literally with a hand down Carlos' pants, which was information Carlos was sure would go straight to Audrey even if Jay didn't think so, and he was going to have to tell Mal about it later but he should probably leave out the part where Jay cleaned him and-

Fuck, Carlos still tingled, his body still humming with a low-level buzz of arousal. It seemed like everywhere Jay had lathered with that soap couldn't help but sing with want, threatening to get Carlos worked up again, which was absolutely one of the last things he needed. How would he explain this to Mal? Maybe he could pretend he got worked up at the thought of her helping him, that would flatter her, and it wasn't even a lie, he usually did get worked up thinking about it, and he would have right now if he hadn't been slightly panicking. Just- why did Jay have to be so thoughtful? So mindful of Carlos' cleanliness issues. He'd been so certain that Carlos wouldn't touch his swim trunks again without magical intervention that he hadn't thought twice about hanging them up to dry. He likely knew it was weird for Carlos to get worked up by Jay washing him, but the Agraben had played it all off as just getting clean, even when his finger had slid into-

Carlos twitched, reminding him just how much that wasn't a thing he should think about now. This wasn't the time. Mal would be here any minute. Jay had said so, and he wouldn't have left Carlos this vulnerable if he had known he'd be gone for a long time. Maybe Carlos' perception of time was slowing down because he was embarrassed, and honestly, he should be. What would Mal think if she came to find her boyfriend cowering in the corner? It would take what, maybe ten seconds to jump and grab his swim trunks? What was ten seconds of potential exposure compared to the minutes he had already wasted hiding in the corner?

That was it, he just- he needed to get a hold of himself. No more cowering.

Carlos swallowed, trying to steady his heartrate as he slowly shuffled along the wall until he was under the swimsuit. To have the best odds of grabbing it he'd have to turn to face it, which would leave his back exposed. Granted, he could always switch his grip to the back of his shirt, pulling it low to cover his rear, but that would leave the front of his shirt to slide up his stomach, and exposing his semi arousal seemed unthinkable regardless of whether it was in someone's line of sight or not.

Carlos sighed and made his choice, turning to face the suit. He could feel his face heat in a furious swell of embarrassment when his bare cheeks were turned away from the stall, but he just needed to jump-

"Carlos?" A voice – Doug's voice – said, and Carlos lost a moment looking over his shoulder, his eyes locking with Doug's the moment the musician walked into the stall until they dropped, likely drawn to Carlos' pale skin-

The young De Ville flinched in a jerked turn, pressing his back against the wall, heart pounding furiously in his chest and hands clutching the hem of his swim shirt in a tight, unyielding grip that stretched the material low over his groin.

Doug had just seen his- he'd seen-

"Um." Doug seemed frozen in shock, his attention split between Carlos and the swimsuit hanging above him. "I- sorry, I should have knocked. Just- I saw Jay leave without you so I thought I'd check up on you."

"H-He was gonna get Mal," Carlos managed, wishing his legs weren't so bare, his scars on such obvious display. Wishing it hadn't been Doug who'd come back, because Carlos had felt almost sort of like an equal to Doug until this afternoon, when they'd discovered the musician was ripped due to his dwarven genetics, his muscles even more defined than Jay's were. He'd been sheepish under everyone's attention, Lonnie letting out wolf whistles and Carlos feeling even more listless in his long sleeves and oversized swim trunks.

Granted, Mal had matched his outfit, but how much of that was so Carlos would feel comfortable? And he knew he shouldn't look that gift horse in the mouth, but he couldn't help but worry about the day Mal would realize Carlos wasn't worth as much effort as she kept feeding into him.

Doug winced. "Oh. Right, she um- she and Lonnie went inside to get everyone drinks."

Of course, that was why Jay hadn't gotten her yet. That- of course. He hadn't just abandoned Carlos for giggles. Jay wouldn't do that.

"I can go get her if you want," Doug continued, a small flush building on his cheeks, like he was embarrassed by Carlos' scrawny, ugly legs on his behalf. "Or – hold on."

He stepped forward, and Carlos would retreat if there was anywhere to go to. Instead he found himself trapped against the wall, his heart pounding faster as Doug descended upon him – perfectly proportioned, beautiful and unmarked and smart and enough things to make Carlos pulse weakly, like he'd ever have the right. They were face-to-face and then Doug reached over him, effortlessly pulling down the swim trunks Carlos had been struggling for, because of course.

"I guess Jay left them up to dry?" Doug hazarded, because he was so damn smart.

"Yeah," Carlos murmured, bundling the fabric in front of himself as best he could. "We um- washed them."

"Because of the bug," Doug said, expression neutral but eyes assessing, likely because he knew there'd never been any bug.

They likely all knew that. Auradon pools probably never got bugs, especially pools belonging to royalty. They all knew Carlos had freaked out for another reason, but they wouldn't know what it was because they all lived perfect lives and didn't have internal struggles because they weren't broken, needy things.

Did he know that Jay had thought the bug was real? Probably, Doug was smart like that, and knew Carlos would have played along.

"It's okay," Doug soothed, taking a tentative step back from Carlos, because he knew Carlos preferred not to be crowded. "We um- we didn't think, Carlos, and I'm sorry for that. You've already mentioned how much you don't like fighting."

Carlos paused, genuinely thrown by the conclusion, enough that it must have read in his expression.

"It's okay," Doug repeated, his expression supportive, and that time he reached out and gave Carlos' shoulder a careful squeeze. "None of us think less of you."

But they would if they realized why Carlos had been so on edge. They would if they saw how rough and scarred he was compared to them. It was enough to make him drop his head, gaze lingering on the ugly burn that took up so much of his thigh, which was of course the exact wrong thing to do. Doug wasn't like Chad or even Ben, Doug never missed anything. He followed Carlos' focus and paused, as though he hadn't noticed the wound before, which was just another kindness among a multitude of others.

"May I?" Doug asked, motioning to the scar, and Carlos froze, unsure what he was asking but desperate to say yes because he was curious to find out, because part of him wanted Doug to stay close, so he nodded tentatively and felt his breath catch when Doug dropped into a crouch, his fingers trailing across the ugly, burned flesh that took up so much of his thigh. "May I ask who did this?"

Carlos tried not to twitch, Doug's fingers grazing the outside of the wound, where he could actually feel it. "Same person who did most of the others," he whispered, his voice sounding hoarse. "My mom."

Doug paused, and Carlos knew he struggled to understand such cruelties.

He who had a loving family, he who had support and love.

"I'm sorry," Doug said, like it was in any way his fault. "I'm so sorry, Carlos. I… if you want, maybe I could take you to meet an elven doctor during the break? They're good at helping with permanent injuries in a way most doctors aren't." He looked up at Carlos with those earnest, green eyes, so damn close to his groin, just some bundled up fabric between them. "Not that this makes you less attractive," he said, his hand settled on the burn. "Not that any of your wounds make you less attractive."

He said this and sounded so sure, like he knew what was bothering Carlos, like he could read right into his soul.

"Don't," Carlos said, ducking his head reflexively. "Don't say that. I'm not- it's ugly."

It was all ugly.

Doug's expression turned into something more determined, like when he was standing up for Carlos during their robotics' team meetings. "You're not ugly," he said. "You're a survivor, and every one of these marks means you're strong. You don't have anything to be ashamed of."

"My mom's a psycho," Carlos pointed out, because that warranted plenty of shame, but just like his attempted refusal to join the robotics team, Doug wasn't buying it.

"You're not," Doug offered simply. "And you don't have to hide away as though you're apologizing for her. She's paying the price for her crimes, and you don't have to." He reached up, shifting the bundled swimsuit enough to expose the stab marks and cigarette burns on Carlos' other thigh. "These," he said, tracing an old scar along his hip. "Are not your fault, and you don't have to feel ashamed of them either."

Carlos didn't know how to refute that, wasn't sure how to respond when Doug was being so wonderful and close, and Carlos already had enough, had already gotten more than he'd needed – that day, even – so it was fortunate that he wouldn't have to think of a response at all, because in the next moment, Mal was pushing into the stall, ducking around a curtain of vines and halting in the doorway.

On one hand, this was what Carlos had been waiting for.

On the other, this was a nightmare.

-:-:-

Endnotes:

Boy, I wonder how Mal's going to react to this next time ;)

On that note, just a reminder that the second update is going to be on Thursday this week instead of Wednesday. I had sort of forgotten about this cliffhanger so it wasn't intentional, just an unfortunate byproduct of the busy time of year :)

Until next time