Steve was hurriedly packing his bag, his entire body aching. Every movement reminded him of the tortures he had endured, but he didn't care. Charlie wasn't responding, and he needed to go to Romania to find his soulmate. Despite not living together or seeing each other often, Steve couldn't imagine his life without him. Danny was waiting in the living room, silently supportive of Steve's decision to search for Charlie.
He had just finished packing when Danny called him from upstairs, holding his phone.
"It's Charlie," he said as soon as he saw Steve.
The relief that washed over Steve at that moment made him sit down on his bed. His whole body was trembling as Danny handed him the phone.
"Hello?"
"Hey, dragoste, what's going on?"
"Oh my god, Charlie, are you okay?"
He knew his wizard could hear the worry in his voice, and he couldn't hide it.
"Yes, I'm fine, I was sleeping. Only your old number rings in the middle of the night, so I didn't get your calls until this morning. What's got you in this state, dragoste?"
Steve realized that Charlie could sense his anxiety, but he couldn't help it. He also acknowledged that his need to be with Charlie hadn't lessened even after learning he was fine. He felt an urgent need to be with him.
"I... uh... are you going to be home for the next few days?"
"Yes, I'm staying at the reserve."
"I'm on medical leave for two weeks, and I…"
"Yeah, come. You can tell me what happened at home, okay?"
"Great, I'll catch the first flight," Steve confirmed, relieved.
"Tell me when the international Portkey departs, and I'll pick you up at the airport."
"I can transit to the reserve…"
"Stop, Steve. You're worried, I get it, but I'll wait in the arrival area of the Portkey. Don't worry, I won't be in danger."
Steve took a deep breath; he was being unreasonable, and he knew it. However, learning that his secret was known to the person who orchestrated his abduction and torture was making him lose his composure.
"Okay, I'll call you from the airport, just stay at the reserve."
"Promise, see you soon."
Steve hung up, handed the phone back to Danny, and sank onto the bed, his head in his hands. He was trying to control the mix of emotions within him – relief that his man was fine, embarrassment at how he'd worried so much, anger at Wo Fat, exhaustion from all he'd been through.
"Need a ride?" Danny offered, extending a hand. "If I were you, I'd probably have hopped on a plane within five minutes of leaving the hospital."
Steve smiled, amused by his friend's attempt to reassure him.
"I would have if you hadn't stopped me."
"Maybe, but believe me, I would've been in a worse state than you."
"I'll take the ride if you're offering," Steve said.
They exchanged smiles and left. Steve pretended to prefer buying his ticket at the counter to prevent Danny from asking too many questions. He also declined Danny's offer to accompany him into the building. He thanked his friend, promised to keep him updated, and entered the bustling airport. Without hesitation, he replicated what Charlie had shown him once and found himself in a small café where there were hardly any people.
"I'd like a Portkey, please," he requested from the cashier, who eyed him suspiciously.
"Sure, follow me to the back room," she finally responded.
They went through a small door behind the counter, which she closed behind them.
"What's your mode of payment?"
Steve ignored her annoyed tone and showed her his military tags, on the back of which Charlie had engraved runes.
"I see," the witch said, taking out her wand.
She made a waving motion towards one of the shelves, and it became blurry.
"Safe travels."
Steve thanked her and walked through the passage. On the other side, he found a spacious hall with wooden pillars on top of which information was displayed. He tried not to stare at the wizards, elves, giants, and other beings he passed by and made his way to the information desk.
"Hello, I'd like a Portkey to Bucharest, please," he asked the wizard behind the counter.
"The next one is in fifteen minutes, the following one is tomorrow," the man replied in a monotonous tone while looking at a parchment that seemed to scroll on its own.
"Fifteen minutes is fine."
"Alright, your wand for registration, please."
Steve removed the chain with his military tags and handed it to the wizard.
"I see," he said.
He performed a few wand movements while mumbling something towards the tags, noted something down on his parchment, and then returned them to Steve.
"Gate 4," he announced before lowering his head to his notes.
"I don't have to pay anything?" Steve asked, surprised.
"It will be deducted from your partner's vault. Go ahead, your Portkey leaves in five minutes."
The soldier followed the direction the wizard had pointed with his arm and, guided by the numbers on the ceiling, easily found the spot. There were eight people gathered around a surfboard loaded with luggage. Each person touched the surfboard with one hand, and a house elf dressed in blue fabric welcomed them.
"Any luggage, sir?
"Just my backpack," he said, pointing to it.
"You can keep it or put it on the surfboard, as you prefer," the elf informed him, showing where to sit.
Steve placed his bag on the surfboard and his hand on the Portkey, still holding the strap of his bag around his arm. He looked at the timer in front of him; it was leaving in less than a minute. He didn't have time to warn Charlie, he would have to do it upon arrival and wait for him.
A man with Asian features, dressed in a suit, arrived running and stood right behind Steve just two seconds before the Portkey's unsettling sensation pulled its passengers forward. He had used this method of transportation with Charlie before, and despite its practicality, he hated it. He despised the feeling of being hooked by his navel and yanked forward. The swirling colors around him made him dizzy every time, especially when the journey was long, as it was this time. He felt like he had been clinging to the wind for hours and knew even before he touched the ground that he wouldn't manage to land on his feet. The impact of the arrival combined with the recent hours he had lived made his legs give out; they would have collapsed if not for the strong arms that caught him.
"Are you alright?" the man behind him asked, his voice full of concern and very close to his ear.
The non-magical nodded and got back up with the stranger's assistance. He was still holding onto him when he turned around to thank him. The man's hands slid across Steve's muscular body, and he didn't let go when Steve faced him. Instead, he tightened his grip on Steve's hips.
"Can I buy you a drink?" the man asked.
"No, thank you," Steve tried, moving away but unable to shake him off.
"I'd really like to get to know you better."
"I'm not interested, now let go of me."
"I don't see a ring on your finger, so you're available."
"Is there a problem here, gentlemen?" a security guard interrupted them just as Steve was getting seriously annoyed.
"No, he was feeling dizzy, I was just making sure he didn't fall," the man confidently lied.
Finally, he backed off, but not the guard who wanted to make sure Steve was able to stand. Irritated by what had just happened, he thanked the guard curtly, grabbed his bag, and went to sit facing the fireplaces he had spotted across from the landing area. There, he sent a message to Charlie, asking him to pick him up. His lover replied almost immediately, saying he would be there in five minutes. Steve let his gaze wander around as he waited. He spotted the exits, security personnel, various creatures he had never seen before, and the man who had hit on him sitting in a café, watching him intensely. His stomach twisted when he saw him stand up and walk towards him. It wasn't that Steve couldn't defend himself if he touched him again, but he dreaded the possibility of the man using magic against him. In that case, he would be defenseless, and he hated the idea.
