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[braveoff]

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[braveoff]

Yeah. I'd like knowing you had it, anyway. That you can come and go even if I'm not home.

[ It doesn't feel like home to Drake, not in the way that Hadriel did, but maybe it could. Maybe with more paint on the walls and coming back to Sharkface in the apartment every now and then. He grins again. ]

Paint, raid the fridge, whatever.

[requiemshark]

[ Sharkface smiles again. A little warmer than before. ]

All right. I’d like that, too.

[ A quiet place he retreat to. A safe place. He taps his pen against the sketch pad. ]

You wanna see?

[braveoff]

[ Feeling warm and content, Drake turns his head to press a kiss to Sharkface's hair, then nods. ]

Show me.

[requiemshark]

[ He passes the sketchbook over, watching curiously for Drake’s reaction. The drawing is a little rough, not yet done, but the broad strokes are there. The span of Drake’s shoulders, the way he holds himself. How the light casts his face. And a quieter expression on his face, in his eyes. Something honest. Real. ]

[braveoff]

[ Drake studies it for a long moment, struck once again that he's seeing himself how Sharkface sees him. It's beautiful even as a sketch, something he's never thought about himself while looking at photos or in the mirror. ]

You always manage to get expression in the eyes. How do you do that?

[requiemshark]

Practice.

[ Which is the honest answer. It takes a lot of practice. He works at it. ]

I dunno. Always liked drawing faces. Trying to get people just right.

[braveoff]

Pretty sure I could practice for a lifetime and never come close.

[ He passes the book back, voice softening. ]

I love it.

[requiemshark]

[ Sharkface huffs, taking the sketchbook back. ]

Helps, having -

[ He smiles. Just a little. ]

Somebody worth drawing.

[braveoff]

[ Drake smiles softly, leaning in to press his forehead to Sharkface's. ]

You can be real sweet, you know that?

[requiemshark]

[ He leans into the gesture, his eyes closing. He breathes out. And things settle, for a moment. ]

Sometimes, I guess.

[braveoff]

[ Drake laughs softly, reaching up to run his fingers through Sharkface's hair. ]

Trust me.

[requiemshark]

[ It's soft. A small gesture, on balance, but a gentle one. He shivers a little, pressing closer. ]

I do.

[ Even now, he's not entirely sure how to explain that one. ]

Thank you. For this.

[braveoff]

[ This is nice, Drake thinks. Just being together, even if he has to actively curb the instinct to go in for a kiss. Instead he twirls a lock of hair around his fingers and lets the moment settle. ]

Thank you... I know how hard it is to let someone in.

[requiemshark]

[ He breathes out and, to his own surprise, settles. Not completely - never completely - but he trusts Drake, and it feels safe. And he misses being held. Like how his family would. ]

This place is fucked.

[ Understatement of the goddamn century. ]

But I’m trying - I’m trying not to be sharp with people all the time.

[braveoff]

[ Drake smiles encouragingly, even though Sharkface's eyes are closed he can probably hear it in Drake's voice. ]

You're doing great with me, at least.

[requiemshark]

It feels easier with you.

[ Not perfect. Not always painless. But - better.

Safe. ]

[braveoff]

[ Drake's hand stills, curiosity scratching at the back of his mind. It can't hurt to ask, right? ]

...why, do you think? I mean, coming at you with what I did could've just freaked you out.

[requiemshark]

[ For a moment, there's no answer. ]

I don't know.

[ His voice is soft. ]

You could have lied to me. People do that. But I just ... believed it. Believed you.

[braveoff]

[ Drake can't imagine lying to Sharkface. Not at any point, either time they met. It just... feels wrong even to think about it.

He smiles softly, brushing their noses together. ]

Guess I've got an honest face. But I'm glad you did.

[requiemshark]

[ Sharkface sighs and nuzzles closer. ]

You do. Think maybe I needed that.

[ Someone honest. ]

[braveoff]

[ Closer is good, though at this point they're cuddled up in such a way that any more and someone's going to be in the other's lap. Not that Drake would mind that. ]

Everybody needs that. Trust is... really hard in the first place, you know?

[requiemshark]

Yeah.

[ He used to trust too easily. It's been used against him. But then he found his family, and that -

It hurts, still. But it was real. He loved them. He would have done anything for them. ]

It can go wrong.

[ But it hasn't, with Drake. ]

[braveoff]

[ Drake hums in agreement, because... yeah. It can, and it can be horrible. But? ]

But if it doesn't, it's worth having.

[requiemshark]

Yeah.

[ He takes a slow breath. Lets it go. ]

Yeah, it is.

[ Like this. ]

[braveoff]

Let me grab you that key. Just a second.

[ Drake pulls back slowly, brushing a kiss to Sharkface's hairline as he gets up, and disappears into his bedroom. He keeps the spares in a drawer in there. ]