Page 30 of Cross the Line

“Damn right I am. Now sit down so I can look at you.”

“I knew you’ve secretly been dying to look at me. It’s okay. All the boys have, and some of the girls, even if I don’t play for that team.” Alec grins, wincing immediately. “Fuck, that hurt.”

“I meant to look at your injury,” Theo says, hoping the warmth he feels in his cheeks isn’t noticeable. He does like looking at Alec, far more than he is comfortable admitting, but Alec doesn’t need to know that.

“That’s not fun,” Alec protests, but it doesn’t escape Theo’s notice how quickly he complies.

“Not everything has to be fun,” Theo says, reaching out to skim his fingers over Alec’s cheek. The cut isn’t deep enough to need stitches, but it definitely looks like it needs to be cleaned and secured with a butterfly bandage. Alec tenses and Theo yanks his hand back. “Sorry, did that hurt?”

“No,” Alec answers with the slightest hitch to his breathing.

An image of Alec beneath him, mouth open and wanton as Theo touches him in a different way springs to mind, and it’s only a lifetime of self-denial and masking that allows Theo to keep a straight face. Thinking Alec is hot is one thing, imagining him beneath Theo, mouthy and eager, is something Theo shouldn’t touch with a ten-foot-pole. Especially not when Alec’s clearly hung up on some other guy.

“I’m going to go get the first aid kit and you’re going to stay here like a good boy.”

“Boring,” Alec whines, but lifts Rio up to kiss her face and doesn’t move. It takes Theo a minute to find the first aid kit under the sink in his bathroom, fully stocked out of precaution yet rarely used. He half expects Alec to have moved by the time he returns, but he’s in the same place Theo left him, bouncing his leg while baby-talking to the kitten.

Aware of Alec’s eyes following him, Theo drags one of the other chairs around the kitchen table and situates it in front of Alec, setting the first aid kit on the table before grabbing Alec’s chair and pulling him between the spread of his legs so that Alec’s knees are pressed against the inside of Theo’s thighs. The kitten meows between them.

“She’s cute.”

“Of course she is,” Alec agrees, eyes on Theo. “Her name is Rio. You can use it.”

“You’re going to get attached naming her.”

Why don’t you ever protect yourself? Theo wonders, holding that thought back.

“Too late, already attached. I think she’s like eight or nine weeks old, if I had to guess. Could be a little older.”

Theo pops open the first aid kit before digging out the antiseptic wipes, Vaseline and a variety of bandages, unsure which might work best. He uses a wet washcloth to clean the wounds first before ripping open the antiseptic wipe and drawing it over the swell of Alec’s high cheekbone. For the first time in Theo’s memory, Alec doesn’t move, body still as a statue as Theo draws it over the angry skin, careful not to push too hard. The gash is only an inch or so long, just deep enough to bleed, but definitely not deep enough to need stitches.

“Okay?”

“Yeah,” Alec croaks.

“Sorry if it stings,” Theo apologizes, leaning forward to blow on the cut. Alec makes a choked off sound that could be pain or something else. Theo doesn’t want to think about the something else. Something else is risky, and Theo doesn’t take risks.

He doesn’t think about the rise and fall of Alec’s chest as he smears a thin layer of petroleum jelly over the wound. He doesn’t think about the depth of Alec’s stare as he smooths a butterfly bandage over the cut on his cheek. Except he does. He thinks about it and he aches.

Alec sucks in a sharp breath and Theo frowns. “Did that hurt?”

“No.” Alec answers so quickly it’s impossible to tell if it's the truth or a lie.

“Alright,” Theo replies, dragging the pad of his thumb down the side of Alec’s jaw.

It’s unnecessary from a first aid perspective, a purely selfish touch, yet Theo can’t stop himself. He hones his attention on the way Alec holds his breath. When Theo moves his hands lower to trace the bruise that’s forming on his side, the kitten leaps down from Alec’s lap to explore the kitchen, giving Theo full access to him. He’s careful not to press too hard into Alec’s side, drawing a second clean washcloth over the skin to clean off the dirt.

Alec’s expression becomes something unreadable. His mouth is half open, his brown eyes piercing Theo. There’s something there, but Theo’s not used to having to guess. He’s used to Alec running his mouth so much you don’t get a second to even think. A quiet Alec is something Theo’s never been confronted with and he’s not sure what to make of it.

“Cat got your tongue,” Theo teases, drawing a new antiseptic wipe over the scraped skin. There’s not too much blood, but Alec definitely fought some concrete and lost. Besides the nasty scrape there’s also a bruise, which is discoloring quickly.

“Fuck you,” Alec laughs between a hiss. He playfully kicks at Theo’s ankle, and just like that he’s back to his usual, mouthy self. Everything is back to normal, whatever the hell that is.

“So, uh, what are you going to do with the cat?” Theo asks, squeezing a bit of petroleum jelly on his pointer finger. He smooths it over the wound before covering it with a gauze pad and a few carefully placed strips of medical tape. It’s not until he’s finished and packed the first aid kit back up that Alec finally answers.

“I don’t know.” Alec turns his head to watch the kitten paw at his ankle. With a bitten-off wince, he leans down to pick her up, immediately situating her on his chest. “I know I can’t keep her.”

The way Alec looks at her like she’s something precious has Theo speaking before he can think better of it. “I will.”

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