"Why do you guys look half-dead?" Misha blinked, holding onto his throbbing head as he squinted to look at his father and Jake, whose dark circles were deeply etched under their eyes. Stephan was leisurely sipping on his cup of coffee, while Tristan was slouched over the table, drool pooling under his chin. Masha and Yuki were nowhere in sight, so he assumed they were still sleeping.
"Are crepes alright with you for breakfast?"
Misha was distracted by his mother's voice and momentarily forgot about the zombies at the table. The pain behind his eyes made it impossible to concentrate, anyway. Silence was for the best. Even the sound of his own voice was too loud for him to bear, and he winced slightly after shooting back a "yes" to his mother.
Dragging his feet to the table, Misha pulled up a chair to plop himself on it. He fought the dizziness to glance askance at his father.
Something seemed off with him, but he couldn't pinpoint what exactly. Misha frowned. Somehow, his father's eyes appeared less lively than usual, as if they were clouded by some sort of sorrow. His demeanor exuded a quiet sadness. How strange.
"Already up?" Gabriel asked with a yawn, entering the dining room. His eyelids were half-closed, dropping with sleepiness. "It's still early in the morning, no?"
"It's not that early," Misha replied with a roll of his eyes, then stretched his arm to grab Gabriel's wrist and pull him toward the chair beside him. "We're eating crepes for breakfast."
Gabriel hummed some gibberish words and obediently sat beside Misha. The next instant, Gulnas put a plate filled with crepes in the middle of the table. "Take as much as you want! There's a lot of mixture left, so I can always make some more if needs be." She leaned on the door frame to look at the stairs. "Hm, it's rare for Masha to sleep in. Should I go wake her up?"
"Honey," Alexey called his wife, "it's better to let her sleep. Masha will come downstairs with Yuki when they are ready. Don't fret so much."
"Right..." Gulnas laughed awkwardly, scratching her cheek. "We wouldn't want a repeat of yesterday."
"What happened yesterday?" Misha blinked in confusion as he busied himself with serving Gabriel's plate. His partner was still drowsy, and Misha feared he would knock the little tower of crepes over and make a mess. It wouldn't be the first time.
So, Misha took it upon himself to prepare Gabriel's breakfast, cutting his crepes into bite-sized pieces. He might or might not have added a bit too much maple syrup, too—Misha had a sweet tooth, and he tended to forget others might not share his sugar addiction.
Oh, well. Gabriel would eat it anyway.
"Someone forgot to close the door," Stephan chortled when the silence stretched. A teasing smile hung on his lips as he sipped on his coffee.
"Who?" Misha frowned, now filling his own plate. By his side, Gabriel froze mid-movement, the fork an inch away from his lips. It drew Misha's attention to his left. The first thing he noted was that the maple syrup was trickling down the fork to Gabriel's fingers, but his partner didn't seem to care. No, his gaze was locked onto Stephan's, the previous drowsiness gone.
"Gaby?" Misha cocked an eyebrow. "What's wrong?"
He gently nudged him, and Gabriel snapped out of his daze.
"Nothing." A stiff smile stretched his lips. "Just by curiosity. What do you remember from last night?"
"Erm, is that a trick question?" Misha knew he might have drunk one too many last night. In his defence, he couldn't have known Stephan's eggnog was this lethal, and coupled with the number of beers he gobbled down… If anything, he was surprised the hangover wasn't worse. Guess being younger has its perks at times. "Oh, come on, Gaby! Why are you looking at me like that? I remember up to the stairs, then after that… It's just blurry pieces. It's all jumbled up in my mind."
Misha didn't want to admit he had a blackout the first time he drank a bit of alcohol in this life, so he brushed over the matter quickly. "Anyway. Why?"
"Let's just say you were a little bit touchy-feely yesterday night, and it looks like the door of the bedroom wasn't closed properly."
The dots were starting to connect in Misha's mind, and he snapped his head toward his father, horror filling his gaze. No, it couldn't be! Did his father see him, or hear him, coming onto Gabriel…? It was one thing to accept his relationship with the man, but another to witness their private time. Oh my gosh, kill me already!
"Just…" Alexey sighed. "Learn to close the door."
The last time Misha had felt this embarrassed was when Gabriel overheard his hologram self confess and tell him with that smug tone of his to woo the man. That darn message had been the bane of his existence, although he had to admit that his slip of tongue, the one during his supper of reconciliation with his parents, had also rendered him beet-red.
Today, too, he felt a burning sensation spread on his cheeks, and Misha lowered his eyes to his plate, not daring to utter a single word.
***
Gabriel was waiting for Misha, as his partner had gone upstairs to change his clothes. They were going on a date, and Misha had insisted on dressing to the nines for the occasion. The reason being that it was their first Christmas as a couple; Misha wanted to make it memorable, something Gabriel agreed with wholeheartedly. He knew this time of the year was always hard on his partner, and if a date could help overwrite the tragic Christmas when Misha had to wake up to a world without his mother, Gabriel would gladly oblige.
But for now…
"So," he glanced askance at Jake, "how did Alexey take it?"
"Relatively well," his brother sighed, peering at the kitchen, where Tristan was scolding Stephan for whatever reason, and Alexey was mediating between the two. Gulnas was busying herself with the dishes, while Masha was whining that her head was about to burst, with Yuki gently patting her back. They were out of earshot, so he spoke freely. "He knows pretty much everything, except for Pierrot and his son's kidnapping. We spared him of a few gruesome details."
Such as how you truly lost your eye. Gabriel had the thought, but he didn't say it aloud. It wasn't something he liked to bring up.
Years ago, they had come up with a half-baked lie endorsed by Angela. According to their story, Jake got blinded in one eye in a freak accident involving a rogue kettle that exploded. A big shard got embedded into one of his eyes, and it needed to be surgically removed, or so the story went. It was so ridiculous that neither Alexey nor Gulnas thought of questioning him at the time.
"I see," Gabriel pinched the bridge of his nose, lifting his glasses. "Should we tell Misha?"
"Better not," Jake shook his head. "I have a hunch Alexey would rather keep this a secret, too. He doesn't want things to become awkward between them. Also…" Jake paused, arching an eyebrow. "He asked us to ensure Gulnas never finds out, or that's going to break her heart. He's not sure she can even accept it, anyway."
"I'll keep that in mind."
"Gabriel." Jake clicked his tongue. "It's not like you to make such a blunder. How could you not notice the door was still open?"
"Try to think straight when your lover is straddling you, and tell me about it," Gabriel scoffed back, eying his brother with schadenfreude. "Maybe if you allowed Stephan in your bed, you'd understand what I mean."
"I might not have a lover in this life," Jake's mouth twitched, "but I've been married twice in my past lives. I know the feeling very well, thank you."
"Huh-uh."
The brothers stared at each other, and time ticked. Gabriel didn't lower his emerald eyes, which mirrored Jake's, until his brother let out a sigh. He rubbed the back of his neck and averted his eye, mumbling, "I've maintained the statu quo for years. It feels weird to break it so suddenly."
"Don't you think it'd make a great Christmas gift, though?"
"Since when were you interested in my love life, anyway?"
At the accusatory tone, Gabriel shrugged. "Since Misha has made up his mind to play cupid with you two, although he seems to have forgotten about it yesterday, too busy getting smashed."
"Oh, I see." Jake smiled coldly. "But if we both decided to go on a date today, Tristan would end up alone on Christmas. And, no, I don't care if he has the memories of his past lives. He's still a child."
"I feel like you're using our brother as an excuse to postpone your little chat with Stephan," Gabriel mercilessly pointed out. The same pattern had been repeating itself time and time again these past few years. It was never the right moment, and Jake could always do it later. "Just invite him over tonight and talk to him after Tristan goes to bed. Stop running away. He's been waiting for you for long enough."
Jake jolted, but Gabriel didn't comment further. His brother had once said that if he and Misha could wait until both of them were adults, then Stephan could also wait a few years. It had already been a few years.
Whistles echoed, snapping Gabriel out of his thoughts, and he instinctively turned around to see Misha coming downstairs. For once, he stood with his back held straight, his hair neatly combed, and a fitting three pieces enhancing his well-built body. Even if his face remained somewhat feminine, his body made it clear that he was a man, with his broad shoulders and toned limbs. The vest enhanced his much slender waist, however.
A tinge of red colored his cheeks, drawing a smile out of Gabriel.
His partner was so darn cute, even as a grown-up man.