Page 40 of Playing with Fire

"Disgustingly content," Tatty finished for her. "Must be love."

"Oh god." Leo's voice was muffled against my leg. "Please kill me now."

I pulled him closer, tugging the sleeves of my hoodie down over his hands the way he liked, making sure he was completely enveloped in my scent.

"Are you sure you want me here for this?" Leo asked quietly as we headed toward the kitchen. "Meeting the whole family is a big deal. This feels... official."

The hesitation in his voice made me pause. "You've met most of them before."

"Not like this." His eyes dropped to our intertwined fingers. "Not as your..."

He trailed off, the unfinished sentence hanging between us. Not as my what? Boyfriend? Partner? Possession? The lack of a clear definition suddenly felt like a gaping hole between us.

"As my Leo," I finished for him, the words feeling inadequate but honest. "Just be yourself. They'll love you."

"But what if they don't?"

"Then they’ll answer to me," I growled.

The tension in his shoulders eased slightly, but uncertainty still lingered in his eyes. "I just... I don't want to screw this up. Whatever this is."

"You won't."

The voices in the kitchen grew louder, my siblings' distinctive tones carrying through the house. But for once, the thought of sharing my space didn't fill me with resentment. Because Leo was with me, grounding me in ways no one else ever had.

River's distinctive deadpan cut through the noise as he entered the living room. "If it isn't the arsonist and his new toy. Finally decided to join the living?"

Leo tensed beside me, his fingers tightening around mine. I shifted slightly, angling my body to create a barrier between him and River's cutting gaze.

"Fuck off, River," I said, already reaching into my pocket with my free hand. I pulled out one of the squishy stress balls I'd started carrying since noticing how Leo's hands got restless when he was nervous, pressing it into his palm without drawing attention to the gesture. "Or I'll tell Theo about that weird mushroom experiment you're hiding in that creepy basement of yours."

Leo slid his hand into the sleeve of the borrowed hoodie, but I knew he was squeezing the ball by how the fabric twitched.

River's lips twitched in what passed for a smile with him. He immediately claimed the couch across from us, one arm draped possessively around Theo's shoulders. "Bold of you to assume Theo doesn't already know."

"He knows about the illegal spores," Theo confirmed with a serene smile. "And he also knows about the jar under the stairs. The one with the glowing stuff."

River's eyes narrowed. "Traitor."

"Love you too." Theo's smile widened before he turned his attention to Leo. "Glad to see you survived the fire. And Xavier." The slight pause made Leo flush.

"Barely," Leo muttered, but there was humor in his voice now.

"I’m surprised you’re the first ones here," I said. “War’s usually the first one through the door.”

As if summoned by his name, the front door burst open with the unmistakable chaos that was Warrick's family's arrival.

"Mom, it’s us!" War's voice carried through the house, followed by Pax's deep laugh.

"We brought pie," Pax added, his massive frame filling the doorway as they entered the living room. His tattooed arms were loaded with gift bags and what looked like a homemade pie.

"Uncle X!" Charlie, all of five years old and already a force of nature, broke free from War's grip and launched herself at me. I caught her automatically, keeping my other arm around Leo's shoulders. "Did you bring me a pwesent?"

I felt Leo's eyes on me. Most people never saw this side of me—the Xavier who remembered his niece's favorite colors, who kept toys in his pockets just in case. The realization that he was seeing me in this new context made me feel unexpectedly exposed, as if another layer of my carefully constructed persona was being peeled away.

"Charlie," War scolded, looking immaculate as always in pressed chinos and a button-down that probably cost more than my entire wardrobe. "What have we discussed about demanding gifts?"

"But Uncle X always has toys," Charlie pouted.

---