Page 23

Finn

After the weekend we'd had, going back to normal on Monday was the hardest thing I'd ever had to do. Or at least that was how it felt.

I'd had breakfast with Levi; then he'd driven me home on his way to work.

We'd spent most of Sunday in bed, and while I'd had a nightmare last night that had woken me in a blinding panic until Levi managed to calm me down, even that couldn't put a damper on my feelings.

I'd loved spending all that time with Levi, and I was going to miss him.

Would it be too soon to suggest moving in together? I wanted to spend more than just the weekends with Levi, but that was hard to do with both of us working.

We hadn't even said I love you to each other yet. Wasn't that supposed to come first? All the movies and books seemed to think so .

Did it really matter if we followed the script? As long as we were both happy, it shouldn't matter what order we do things in, should it? We'd already talked about having kids someday, for crying out loud. We could talk about moving in together, couldn't we?

My phone buzzed, and I picked it up quickly, eager for a break from not-working.

Seeing Levi's name on my screen made me grin, and I quickly opened the text.

Levi : Wanna have dinner together tonight? I can't go the whole day, much less the whole week, without seeing you.

Before I could reply, another text popped in.

Levi : Sorry if I'm coming on too strong, but I miss you.

I quickly typed a reply before he could send another one.

Me : I was thinking the same. Dinner sounds good. Restaurant or food truck?

Levi : Food truck, then maybe walk around for a while before I drop you home?

I would much prefer to stay at his, but that was something I needed to first talk to him about tonight.

Me : Sounds good! Can't wait to see you.

Levi : I'll pick you up at 7.

Me : I'll be waiting.

With plans made to see Levi soon, I found it much easier to focus on work, and I hoped it was the same for him.

By seven, I was ready and growing impatient, which was unfair because it wasn't Levi's fault I'd gotten ready early.

I passed the time playing with Padfoot and avoiding Dad's not-quite-subtle questions as he tried to figure out if I'd be spending the night at Levi's. I imagined they liked having the place to themselves.

If Levi said yes, they could have the place to themselves all the time.

I'd miss them, but it was way past time I moved out. The only reason I hadn't already was because I hadn't thought I could live alone. I would've been too anxious about everyone else. But with Levi, I felt like I could do it.

A knock on the door had me jumping to my feet and rushing for it before anyone could react, with Pads chasing at my heels.

I opened the door, and Levi smiled up at me.

"Hey," I murmured, then leaned forward to kiss him. His hands fell to my hips as he pulled me closer, deepening the kiss.

Everything around us disappeared as his scent and warmth engulfed me, but then one of my dads cleared his throat behind me, and Padfoot tried squeezing his way between Levi and me, making me pull back with a huff .

"Hey, Levi," Dad greeted cheerfully, and I shot him a glare as I pushed Padfoot back inside so I could shut the door in their faces.

"Hey, Raphael. Just here to pick Finn up for dinner."

"Have fun, you two," Dad said, then blinked as his eyes focused on me, lingering on my eyes. Had he just noticed I wasn't wearing my glasses? Before he could mention it or try to make a big deal of it, I spoke.

"We will," I assured him, then pulled the door shut with a sigh. Taking a deep breath, I turned to Levi and smiled. "Let's go."

He chuckled, then took my hand in his, leading me to his car.

We talked about our day on the drive over, and Levi parked in a lot near the food truck's current location. He'd left Greta home since it was better than leaving her in the car here, and we linked hands as we walked to the food truck.

Trick was at the window as usual, but Vo was nowhere to be seen.

"Where's your other half?" I asked as we placed our orders, and he chuckled.

"Lena conned him into treating her to some ice cream."

"That girl's going to be a worse troublemaker than Cam ever was, isn't she?" I asked, making Trick laugh. Trick had adopted Lena when she was just a baby, after her mom—Trick's sister—died, and he and Vo were doing a great job with her, even if they did spoil her rotten .

Once we got our food, Levi and I found a table in the corner, and he shook his head as we unwrapped our food.

"I really like how close you are with everyone in town."

"I wouldn't say everyone ," I protested, and he smiled.

"Yeah, but still. You seem to know someone everywhere we go. It's nice."

"You will too, you know. Once you've lived here for a while. I've been here fourteen years, remember?"

"It doesn't feel like it, does it? That we were apart for fourteen years?" Levi asked as he took a bite of his salad, and I shook my head.

"It really doesn't."

Levi smiled, and we ate in silence for a while as I tried to find the courage to bring up the topic I wanted to discuss.

"What is it?"

"Huh?"

Levi gave me a worried look, his eyes roaming over my face. "Is something wrong? You looked...anxious."

I licked my lips, then swallowed hard. "There was something I wanted to talk to you about."

"Okay?" When I didn't speak, he reached out and took my hand in his. "You know you can tell me anything, right?"

Nodding, I took a breath, then said it in a single breath. "I was wondering if maybe you would want to move in together? As in I move into your place, not the other way around. Obviously. "

Levi blinked, his eyes getting a little unfocused, probably because he was trying to make sense of my word-vomit.

I chewed on my lower lip as he pulled something out of his pocket and fiddled with it. I couldn't see what it was since his hands were under the table, but the tinkling sound was clue enough.

Hope filled my chest like a balloon, and just when it felt like my heart was going to explode, Levi slid a key across the table, a smile on his face.

"I've been carrying that around for a week now, trying to find the right moment to ask you," he said with a rueful laugh, and it was my turn to be dumbfounded.

I carefully picked up the key. It was nothing special, just a key to a lock, but it might as well have been made of gold for how precious it was to me.

"How about we move you in this weekend?" he suggested, and I frowned. I would've preferred to move right away, but it made sense to wait. He had a job to go to tomorrow, and I had quite a lot of stuff I would want to move.

"Or," he said, making me glance up, "you could come over tonight. We can bring some of your clothes over tomorrow, and spend the week together, then move the rest of your stuff in on the weekend."

"I like that plan," I agreed quickly, making him smile.

"Me too. I'm really excited to live with you, and I'm sure Greta will be too. "

We finished eating, then decided to walk around for a while before going home.

It was a nice night—baby dragon must have been doing well—and the streets were busy with locals and tourists alike, so we decided to walk through some of the back streets and alleys that only the locals used.

They were much quieter, and I felt at peace strolling with my fingers linked with Levi's.

A rustle in front of us made me pause, and I glanced at Levi. "Did you hear that?"

He nodded and let go of my hand to take a careful step forward. "Who's there?"

A man stepped out of the bushes a few feet in front of us. He was big, with thick arms and a beer belly. A scraggly beard covered his face, and his eyes looked almost colorless under the streetlight.

That wasn't what drew my attention, though. No, that would be the gleaming silver baseball bat in his left hand.

I grabbed Levi's hand, tugging at it, but he stayed put, moving so I was behind him.

"I came to this town cause I heard it was great fishin'. Didn't know it was so damned infested ," the man muttered, and I tried and failed to drag in a proper breath as I struggled to remember he was just human. We could take him.

"You should get out of here while you still can," Levi warned, and the man snorted, sounding just like a pig.

"Oh, I'm not the one who's gonna be leaving. It'll be you two, in nice big black bags. "

"Levi," I murmured, and he squeezed my hand. I was about to tell him we should back away and get help or something, maybe alert Raiden. Clearly, the new baby had distracted him from his duties, which I didn't blame him for one bit. Or I wouldn't, if Levi wasn't the one in danger.

Before I'd even opened my mouth though, the man stepped forward and swung. Everything happened so fast after that that it wasn't until I was on the ground with Levi cradled against my chest that it sank in.

The man's bat collided with Levi's head, and the crack that filled the air was the worst sound I'd ever heard. I reacted without thinking, turning the man to stone as I fell to my knees and caught Levi before he could crash into the ground.

The steel bat clattered to the ground and rolled over to the side of the street as I pulled Levi against my chest, my palm covered his heart as panic engulfed me. It was only when I felt the steady beating of his heart and heard him groan that the fear subsided a little.

"Hey," Levi murmured, and I scanned his face, meeting his hazy eyes as he smiled a touch loopily.

"You got to use your powers for good after all.

" His head lolled against my chest as his eyes fluttered shut, and I reminded myself that his heart was still beating okay.

He was just unconscious. He was going to be fine.

Still holding him to my chest, I pulled out my phone and called the only person I could think of.

"Hey, kiddo. What's up? You staying at Levi's again? "

"D-dad?" I said, then realized my teeth were chattering, though I couldn't figure out why. For once, I wasn't cold at all.

"Finn, what's wrong? Where are you?" Dad asked, turning serious instantly.

I told him the street we were on, then told him to hurry.

"We're on our way. Are you hurt?"

"N-no. Levi is."

"We'll be there soon. Stay on the phone with me, okay?"

Fuck. Why wasn't Levi moving? The guy was human. He couldn't have hit Levi that hard, right?

"Finn, you there?" Dad called from the phone, and I blinked. Why was I still on the phone?

I ended the call, then dropped the phone and pulled Levi against my chest, curling my body over his to keep him safe. He'd be okay. He had to be.