Diamond Eyes [Lion!] [M]

[Cheesigator]

"... Yeah..." Loa fell quiet, ignoring the wink Vander had given him in favor of over-analyzing the situation like he did with everything.

So, Vander hadn't figured out Loa lived right upstairs yet, huh? He probably would've blurted it out the moment he came to the realization so maybe that was a good thing. Part of his life was still secret, private and safe, and he let out the tiniest sigh of relief after he finished the last bite of his pizza, leaning back into the couch and trying to ignore the man sitting next to him.

He'd never played for anybody before, he had no intention of doing such a thing. His music wasn't really anything to write home about anyways, and Vander had already heard it, probably didn't even care for it that much even though he didn't realize it. Well, if the floors were as thin as they seemed; he'd definitely heard some of this guy's music playing downstairs, heard him tinkering and playing with things. So it had to work the other way around, even though he tried to keep things quiet. Such was life.

Everything was always a double-sided coin.

He eventually let himself get wrapped up in the movie again, and even though he found the plot intriguing, after a few days of hard work and the wounds, he started to pay attention less and less, eventually drifting off to sleep with his head kind of crooked on the couch. At the very least he didn't snore.

[Lion]

Vander always got a little bit more sleepy after a heavy meal like pizza. It made passing out on his couch after a long day's work all that much more bearable, but for now it was something he didn't really want to sleep for. He had company dammit and he was having a harder and harder time trying to keep his heavy eyelids open until he felt something slumping against him.

He didn't even remember how he laid down in the crook of the sofa and just let himself sink in. Something else was laying on him and only when he felt a kink in his neck did he made a noise and he lifted his head up to see Loa's head slumped against him. He didn't bother moving. He kind of liked the warmth and the tv had reset itself to regular boring shit once the movie was done streaming.

Vander said nothing and just carefully adjusted himself to get better situated on the couch. It was a great couch for napping anyway.

[Cheesigator]

Considering the long week he'd had, and how he simply refused to take care of himself and just let those wounds drag his body down, it would've been surprising to no one that he just kind of passed out. It wasn't a simple nap for him, he was out cold.

Rare was a night where he didn't toss and turn, waking up from nightmares and trying to go back to sleep afterwards, wasting who knew how many hours in just laying there, staring at his ceiling wishing everything would just stop. Not necessarily that it would end, but that it would stop. Stop being so hard, so lonely, that he would stop being... Him. The way he was.

Right now though he didn't have to think about any of that; all he did was sleep soundly, eventually turning his body so he was laying more directly on Vander, head on his chest. The warmth was strange but so oddly comforting. He briefly recalled in his sleepy mind the times when he and Ru were kids and they'd have sleepovers, mostly at Ru's house. His family had always been so nice. Loa had always liked to sneak over to Ru after he was asleep and just sit or lay by him, enjoying the warmth like he was right now.

It wasn't until 6 or 7 AM that Loa finally started to stir, sleep crusting his eyes as he raised a hand to wipe it away; his shoulder hurt from laying in an odd position, draped on top of... OH. OH THAT WASN'T A COUCH.

He froze in mild horror as he realized he was laying directly on top of Vander, his heart leaping up into his throat as panic made every muscle lock in place. Fuck. Fuckfuckfuckfuck what did he do? If he moved, would Vander wake up? Had Vander been awake when he fell asleep? Why the fuck did he fall asleep? How could he? Wait--

His eyes got a little wider. Bandanna. Where was it. It was gone oh fuck--

He started to move in panic to find it before he realized his movements, here again, might wake the guy underneath him. And then Vander would see his face, what he really looked like. That was infinitely worse than him waking up to Loa sleeping on him.

He took in a deep breath to try and momentarily quell the panic trying to drown him as he looked with eyes only around the couch, on the floor, seeing if he could spot it anywhere. He reached up with a trembling hand and tentatively felt around his neck, wondering if maybe it had--oh thank the gods. It had slid down. He had it.

He quickly reached up, pulling it off to retie it around his face, sitting up a little better so he was sitting on Vander's hips. Finally he was able to assess the situation a little better, although he was still groggy as fuck. He looked down at the guy currently underneath him and tried to ignore how that thought made his heart flutter a bit. Hell. How hard could this guy sleep, anyways?

He just didn't know what to do now. If he got up, Vander might wake up. If he stayed there, Vander would eventually wake up anyways. What did he do? What the hell was he supposed to do?? He was never coming here again. Fuck this it wasn't worth it.

[Lion]

Vander didn't wanna get up. Didn't want to wake up even if the kink in his neck was getting even worse and if he was going to be late to his morning work out. Better get that in before drills today. Fuck!  But then again, when he slept, he tended to pass out really hard. Especially if he had pizza in him.

Oi, that kink was going to be bothering him all day.

Vander felt something on top of him and slowly, very very slowly, his eyes fluttered open. He moved, very gently. No sudden jerks of motion as he recognized it was Loa and his hands came up and settled on his hips. The action of squeezing them hadn't been anything consciously provocative, but his fingers added pressure to Loa's hips never the less and he just looked up at him in that quiet moment.

He couldn't see his face, but his eyes said plenty and the light coming through the small slits in the blinds played on that disheveled mop of wavy black hair. Vander just laid there and soon reached up to push the visor from his face, forgetting in that time that sleeping in it was really uncomfortable.

With it, he couldn't see Loa's face anymore, but he closed his eyes anyway and rubbed at the crusts in the corners of his eyes.  The impression of the visor lightly impressed in his cheeks and temples.

"Morning," he murmured softly. "Want some coffee?"  And just then, on its timer, the machines that fixed the coffee began brewing it and the scent filled the apartment.

[Cheesigator]

FUCK.

He looked down and saw that Vander was stirring, although it was hard to see since he was wearing that visor even to bed. He hadn't been fast enough, he was literally caught sitting on the man and he froze up in panic, eyes wide as his brain just stopped functioning for a good thirty seconds in horror.

Of course, thirty seconds was all it took for Vander to place his hands on Loa's hips, a movement that shocked the Pilot Echo so bad he was just plain confused, glancing down as his guard was momentarily dropped and then--

Pressure was placed on said hips as Vander, for some unknown reason, squeezed, and the sensation sent a tingling rush up Loa's spine that made his breath hitch and he--

--moaned.

Something nobody knew about Loa was one simple fact that might come as a surprise, or might not--he was still a virgin.

He had no clue about any apparent spots on his body that were triggers or sensitive or anything of the sort. He had no idea. So when that sound came out of him he was so horrendously confused and utterly mortified he couldn't even answer Vander's question. Hadn't even heard him ask it, to be perfectly honest.

All he could think was WHAT......... THE FUCK.......... WAS THAT?

At some point he'd covered his mouth with his hand in shock despite the fact that he was wearing a bandanna and Vander couldn't see his face anyways. He was literally so petrified he couldn't move, couldn't think, couldn't do anything. This had never happened to him before. What was going on? What was that?! WHAT THE FUCK WAS HE SUPPOSED TO DO? His little interaction with people was of zero help here, he had no idea what to do, what to say, how to even breathe at this moment.

He was so horrified he couldn't even process enough to think to run. He just sat there. Stunned. Like a deer in headlights.

[Lion]

Vander couldn't see, not clearly anyway without his visor, but he didn't have to know feel the weight of the man on top of him. He sat up, well, more like leaned up on his elbows and had set his visor on the side. He didn't need to see to feel something pressing against him and knowing more or less where Loa's face last was. And the fact that it was probably covered in that bandanna of his.

What...what was that?  Vander didn't even say anything regarding that and just reached for his visor again, slipping it over his head. "You okay there, buddy?" he finally spoke, slipping his hands on his hips again. The squeeze this time was more out of comfort and that's when he felt it.

Something. 

Pressing against his lower abdomen and Vander saw the hard-on pressing against Loa's pants. What? Oh...  The hip squeeze did it then?  It wasn't an unpleasant sound and the fact that Loa didn't even move left everything to all sorts of confusion. He pushed himself up to actually sit against Loa and he just smiled softly. "I'll get the coffee," he said with a gentle tone, not bringing attention to any more awkwardness.

Gently he pried Loa off and fixed his clothes before going to the pot and poured two cups. He wasn't sure how Loa took it but he fixed them both with two heavy dollops of creamer and stirred them before going back to the coffee table and setting it down there.

"Hey, I gotta take a piss. IF you...uh, wanna take care of your 'situation' there...." Vander pointed to Loa's groin. "Take all the time you need."

[Cheesigator]

Oh gods. He noticed.

Of course he would notice, Loa, how the hell would he not when the only other sounds in the apartment was that of the coffee maker!?

Vander started to prop himself up better and Loa thought for a half second to smack his visor away so he wouldn't be able to see the traumatized look on the assassin's face, but he was too little too late once again and Vander asked if he was okay and started to put his hands on his hips again. This time Loa reacted, but, "D-Don't--"

He gasped as the tingling sensation ran through him again and he realized he'd never wanted to die more than he did in this moment, right here, right now, blood rushing up to his cheeks in a horrible blush and then running south as he realized too late until Vander had pried him off and set him down on the couch again. Quickly he got a hold of himself enough to use those blood powers of his to make that thing go away, just in time for Vander to set down the coffee cup. But before the technopath could even finish speaking Loa was up and darting out of the apartment, door shutting a bit loudly behind him.

He couldn't even apologize, couldn't say a single word. He just bolted, like the coward he was, all the way up to his own apartment which he tried to sneak into as quietly as possible. The last thing he needed was for Vander to find out now, of all times, he lived directly above him. That would be the absolute worst, and would just make everything more awkward than it already was.

He shut himself up in his room, completely forgetting he'd forgotten his flight suit and helmet in Huxley's apartment for now. Right now, he didn't care; the only thing he could do was keep replaying those awful moments over and over and over and over again in his mind. This, this was why he was unsuitable for friends, for hanging out, for being a normal fucking person, because he couldn't do anything right.

What the hell was wrong with him!?

He pulled off the shirt Vander had loaned him, tossing it by the door as he went into the bathroom, using what few shards of mirror were left against the wall to try and look at his hips. Maybe he'd been poisoned, was this some kind of toxin? Maybe there was nerve damage.

And yet he saw absolutely nothing in the mirror, other than the two wounds Vander had fixed up for him last night. Physically, everything seemed fine. So what the hell was that, then!?

He stepped back out into the hallway, looking into his bedroom where his dented alarm clock read that it was 7:32 in the morning. He had no idea what to do, and the last thing he wanted was to keep reliving those horrifying moments over and over again for the rest of the day. His mind instantly jumped to one thing that would help wipe that stupid fucking memory from his mind so he never had to think about it again, and he didn't give a damn what anyone might say--

7:32 AM was not too early to start drinking.

[Lion]

If one thing was for sure, he wasn't expecting that. Vander had been standing there one second with coffee in his hand and before he could even offer breakfast, Loa just noped it the fuck on out of there. Didn't even bother saying goodbye. Vander blinked behind that visor and just stood there, glancing out toward the door, half expecting it to burst open again to say he was just kidding and that...well, that was hoping for just a tad too much.

The coffee was cleaned up and as he moved into the bathroom for a quick shower, he spied the helmet and discarded flight suit in the corner. OH right, he was all shredded up when he came in the night before.

Vander gathered up those things together, neatly folded them and studied the name on the flight suit.  Vitton. Louis Vitton. He'd probably want these back before the day was done that was for sure. Later though when he came back from drills. The day wouldn't stop just because this guy seemed to have some sort of panic attack.

While he was away, the little machines that helped take care of Vander's apartment took the flight suit and did what they could repair the ripped portions of it. When he came home, it was more or less good as new. Within reason, he shrugged and tucked the items underneath his arm and looked up Vitton on the directory.

Huh, Pilot Echo. And...apparently right above him. Wow, this whole time? Was he the guy that made that bumping ass music late into the night? Those were the questions that lingered on his mind as he made his way up to his apartment and once he was in front of it he gently rapt his knuckles on the door.

"Uh, Loa?" he called through the door. "It's Huxley. I just got some stuff for you. That you probably will want back. Like your helmet."

[Cheesigator]

The rest of Loa's day went by fairly quickly thanks to the alcohol. The day after coming home from a mission thankfully nothing was really expected of him other than rest when he had confirmed wounds. So he spent his day indoors, simply unable to go out and face the world after what had happened that morning. His dragon would be lucky to even get him out to work out for the rest of the week.

He didn't work on anything, just lazed around and did fuck all nothing all day, bottles of various whiskeys in his hand depending on what time it was, his alcoholism having long before reached a point that might've been a point of concern for anyone else. But it wasn't like he had any friends or immediate relatives who cared about him or his well-being, so it didn't matter.

By the time Vander made hid way to the Pilot Echo's apartment it was fairly late in the day; he received no answer when he called, but if he tested the doorknob he would find it unlocked, the door swinging open on loosened hinges. If he entered, he'd find the interior of the apartment would be hauntingly empty. The only decorations to speak of were empty bottles of various types of booze quite literally everywhere. On the floor, counterspaces, one on the couch. The living area was pretty barren, the tv mounted on the wall and serving as a monitor for the computer desk below it that was surrounded by instruments and synthesizers. All the lights were on, but it seemed no one was around, unless if he decided to venture further.

The back room was the bedroom, and it was arguably just as messy and naked as the kitchen and living room. Loa was passed out in his bed, for once not wearing anything to hide his face, and only wearing boxers. The bed was only dressed in sheets, which had been tormented and thrown and twisted in Loa's apparently restless dreams, said sheets tangled around his legs and missing just about every other part of him.

He was out cold so if Vander had been hoping to speak to him at all, there was no chance of that happening today.

[Lion]

By the second knock, which had been far more forceful than the first, Vander figured he wasn't going to answer the door. And by that knock the door actually was nudged gently ajar, the gentle squeak of hinges parting the way for him. An Echo's door didn't squeak unless it hadn't been opened in some time. It was an assumption that became more and more apparent as he entered.

And the more he saw the more those suspicions were confirmed. Did anyone even live here? From the looks of it a raging alcoholic with excellent taste in music. Vander's stomach turned itself over when he saw the liquor and the musical equipment. No one was mixing anything today, but from the bottles they'd definitely been drinking. There was a trail of them leading into the hallway.

He made no noise as he passed through, tucking the helmet and the flight suit underneath his arm and turning the corridor into the bedroom. "Loa?" It came out as no more than a whisper one that Vander set the items down on the edge of the bed and moved over to Loa.

And nothing was hiding that face. Vander could see that scar running across it so clearly, he was tempted to reach forward to touch it but refrained. He was beautiful, so what on earth would convince this man that he had to hide his face? For all Vander knew, at the time when he met him, he'd had mandibles installed in place of human jaws. And he knew if he had something that bad ass he'd want to show everyone!

"Loa," he murmured again, louder this time. And still no response.  Vander leaned forward and reached down to take Loa's nearest hand. His touch was delicate and he just felt for a pulse. Just in case. The gentle rise and fall of his chest indicated he was in fact still alive. But clearly just clinging to it. Because no one could drink all these bottles and have everything be okay.

Vander didn't know when he would wake up, if at all. But at least the poor schlub was breathing. And with that he carefully moved a chair from the computer in the living room to the the bedroom, making as little noise as possible and setting it tucked flush to the bed. Sitting down, Vander reached across and settled Loa's hand in his and Vander perched his feet up on the bed. It was awkward to be sitting in that chair like that, but Vander wanted to feel when he woke up.

His free hand reached up and pried the visor from his face, leaving it in his lap and he just laid his head back. The guy needed to cover his face to be seen by the rest of the world. Vander wondered if he'd feel better knowing that he could make no distinction between that and the shadows that liquefied in the corners of that bedroom.

Vander could see him amorphously, vaguely made out his hand. And just waited for him to wake up.

[Cheesigator]

Somewhere in the dark depths of Loa's sub-conscious he could feel that another person had entered his apartment. He could always sense when someone else was nearby, he could feel their pulse. But he was so drunk and so deeply asleep even that didn't wake him; all it did was prompt more nightmares.

The touch on his wrist made him twitch in his sleep before his brows furrowed and he rolled over, grumbling something unintelligible. As the minutes wore on he would flinch, remembering his days in Candidacy.Those hellish days of torture and misery, made only worse when Ru was TRIMMed. The only reason he'd even succeeded was out of his sheer stubbornness and willpower to not let Ru's sacrifice go to waste, and it was all he could do just to stay alive as it was right now, for that man who would never know how much he meant to Loa. It had been so long, yet he kept replaying that awful moment over and over and over again in his head.

He was screaming, fighting against the Pilots who held him back as Ru fought two others barehanded, who overtook him in a few moments. He'd always been a big guy but when they were still just teenagers, still not even sure of how to use their powers yet, Loa in particular, it was all too easy for the adults to put them in cuffs to get them ready for transport. He screamed and screamed, struggling as they took him away and all he could see of Ru was the look of shock on his face when the blood went rushing up to one of the Pilot's heads who was holding Loa, making him drop the teen and scream as he started coughing and crying blood.

More Pilots swarmed in then as they took Ru away and Loa kept fighting to get to him, literally beaten down and stunned until he lay there on the floor with a fat lip, blood in his own mouth as he was dragged back; his powers had finally awakened and he could be useful. If they could subdue him they'd give him one more shot--

His eyes flew open and he suddenly bolted upright in bed, covered in a cold sweat as he panted, throat a little raw, he must've been yelling in his sleep again. His fingers and knuckles were full of cramps from clutching the bedsheets so hard in balled up fists, and his heart wouldn't stop hammering in his ches--

He wasn't alone.

Loa was still a little drunk, so he didn't think to investigate, didn't think to call out or see who was there in the dim light of his bedroom, he just reacted based on pure instinct.

His movements weren't as sharp as they usually were, but considering his current status they were still impressively fast; in one moment he was in the bed, the next he had a bowie knife in hand from where its sheath was strapped under his mattress and he had the blade up against Vander's throat while his hemokinetic powers kicked in and cut off the blood flow to his brain from his neck down.

One must understand, Loa didn't have any friends. The only kind of person who would sneak into his apartment must be an enemy.

And yet the moment he saw Vander's face he stopped, brows knitting  in confusion before he remembered oh yeah gotta release him from that semi-chokehold there, and he relinquished his grip on the other man's blood, removing the knife from his throat as he just gawked at him, not registering yet that his face wasn't covered, instead more confused as to why the man was here.

"H-How--Sorry. Sorry. Why--How th'fuck did you get in here?" He attempted to snarl but it wasn't nearly as menacing as he wanted it to be--he just sounded like an angry, wet cat, that also happened to be drunk and slurring if anything. He hadn't eaten anything today, he was literally so full of booze it was amazing he hadn't drowned.

[Lion]

Vander didn't need to know what was going on in Loa's subconscious to know that when a blade was abruptly pressed to his throat, he wasn't just going to sit there and let it stay. He couldn't see him clearly, and he didn't have to before his fight or flight instincts kicked in. And since he couldn't exactly run away, with the guy half on top of him, Vander held his breath and waiting for the blade to loosen when Loa seemed to half come to his senses.

With the way he leaned forward, Vander had his back pressed against the chair and when Loa leaned back, his foot reached back, thrust forward and into Loa's gut. Not hard enough to completely take the breath out, but definitely enough knock him back and he wasted him in lunging forward and pressing his entire body weight down on Loa to keep him pinned.

His hands fumbled for the other man's wrists and he held him there long enough to search his features. Or he would have if he could actually make them out in detail. Vander made a soft growl, gritting his teeth. "What the hell Loa!? Calm the fuck down! I'm not here to hurt you. And I can't see your face anyway," he sighed, calming down as he released Loa's wrists. "So you don't have to hide your face, ok? Good fucking gods. I'm...sorry for breaking in here. But the door was open."

Vander pushed himself off him, keeping his hands on his arm for Loa's left and he pulled him up to his feet. "You okay bud?"

[Cheesigator]

In his fucked up state he didn't really have much of a chance to do anything other than react with widening eyes as Vander suddenly kicked him the gut and knocked him over onto his back on the bed. He coughed, the sudden movements ripping some of the stitches back open as he let Vander pin him, too dazed and dizzy to really fight back.

He tensed as his wrists were pinned and he let out a hslf snarl, trying to squirm under the man to get away, until Vander spoke, and he froze.

His face? .... OH--

Every muscle tensed and his chest seized up, heart leaping into his throat as panic started to wash over him because oh fuck. His face was barren and Vander had probably seen--was looking at him, right now even.

The panic settled into his gut but it wasn't alone; it was quickly joined by the sense of loathing that was so specific to Loa. He had the face of a fucking murderer, that was why he hid it, even from himself. He couldn't stand to look at himself in mirrors, or in reflections.

It was his fault Ru died. He was also the one solely responsible for the deaths of so many others as well.

His breath caught in his throat as he realized Vander was right, he wasn't wearing the visor and he still probably couldn't see him. All Loa could do was turn his head to the side, eyes shut tight as he clenched his teeth.

Fuck. Fuck. 

Vander was right, if he'd only just come to help. What the fuck was wrong with him?

The other man sat up, pulling him up as well and by doing so pulled the two of them closer in the process. His body heat felt nice, and surprisingly comforting. Loa wanted to curl up on him and fall asleep again like they had with the movie. Still, he couldn't look the man in the eyes now that he knew full well his fave was exposed. All it would take was Vander putting that visor on again, and he'd see what Loa really was.

".. No." He grumbled finally in response to the technogeek's question.

"I've never been alright." He said, his voice going a little hoarse for a moment. He was still so dizzy and lightheaded, he didn't k ow why he was opening up to Vander at all.

"Just... Had nightmares, like usual. That's all." He growled as he started to try and climb out from under Vander's lap.

[Lion]

Vander shifted around and got off Loa, sitting instead at the edge of the bed.  He calmed down significantly and the adrenaline was leaving him. With the drive to no longer keep him down, he sighed and buried his head in his hands, brushing his hair back and out of his face.

Keeping his eyes closed, he kept those shapes at bay, accepting the darkness of his vision and wanting to put his visor back on. His hands refrained and he reached down to feel where he hoped he dropped it onto the ground. Fingers touched onto something familiar and he didn't interface with it, instead just picked it up and stuck it into his jacket.

"Nightmares, huh?" he murmured, following the trail of Loa's voice. "What kind of nightmares?" The concern was genuine, and if he wanted to talk, Vander was here to listen.

"They can't be that usual if they make you want to kill people returning your helmet and flight suit back to you. Admittedly, I probably should have woke you up. But you were out cold. You looked like you needed your sleep."

Vander didn't move, and kept his eyes shut. He wanted to get up, to reach for the helmet that he'd left at the edge of the bed and had fallen off in the scuffle, so instead he just kind of gestured in that general direction.

"You uh, left it in my apartment yesterday. I thought you'd want your helmet back.'

[Cheesigator]

Vander finally got off of hin abd Loa worried at his lower lip, watching him fumble around on the floor for something, eyebrows furrowed. He stayed where he was, laying there on the bed as he turned his head to stare up at the ceiling, which was still swimming a little.

"Other than me, you're the first person to ever step foot in here." He finally admitted, throat still a bit scratchy because he couldn't be bothered to clear it. "Thought you were any enemy." After all, he had no friends. Other than Vander, apparently, which he still didn't understand.

"Thanks." He said, awkwardly, unsure of what else to say.

The silence between them was quickly growing with awkwardness and Loa's addled brain desperately tried to search for a way to fix it, and he could only go back to what he'd initially been drinking to forget in the first place.

"Sorry. 'Bout yesterday. Dunno.. That's never happened before. I panicked."

He slowly pushed himself up, wincing ad the change in gravity affected his head in new and more painful ways, a full on migraine coming back to squeeze his head like a goddamn face hugger. Did he still have anything left in the bottle on the nightstand? That'd make it feel better.

He reached over and grabbed the bottle, inspecting it for a moment before he took a swig of whatever was left, which wasn't much. It was straight rum.

[Lion]

Vander opened his eyes to the sounds around him, listening to Loa's movements and letting the shapes spill across his vision. A line for movement, bleeding out to something half-solid and sloshing in front of him. The movement caught his attention, the raised container, and most importantly, the smell. It smelled like rum and if it wasn't apparent that this guy had a drinking problem before, it sure as shit was now.

By instinct, Vander lunged out and hoped for the best and swung his arm out to knock that bottle from Loa's hand, uncaring if it clattered onto the floor and spilled or broke. And as he stood up, he reached out for Loa and wrapped his arm around his shoulders. "Stop that.  You don't need that shit. Let's uhhh, go down to my place, and I'll fix you up some real food.  I have coffee and left over pizza. I'm your friend, Loa. What's mine is yours," he offered gently.

He didn't even stop to think before pulling him into a hug, although it was brief. Arms came around him firmly, squeezing him and patting his back. "Don't worry about a thing. Or...if you don't want to leave, I'll bring the pizza up here, and something better to drink that that garbage water? If you want I mean..."

[Cheesigator]

Just as the mouth of the bottle touched his lips, it was suddenly knocked from his hand where it flew and hit the wall and shattered. Loa stared stupodly for a moment before he started to get angry. That was his, dammit! Now he had to clean up broken glass and shit but that was his and yes he did need it!

Before he could argue though, Vander was speaking and it made him bite his tongue long enough to hear him out and get confused again, which seemed to be the ongoing theme of this evening. He just stared at the man when he called himself Loa's friend.

... Why? Why would anyone do that to themselves, why had this guy done it intentionally?

Suddenly Vander's arms were around him, and he just blinked stupidly before he just.. Reacted. He returned the hug, holding onto the man tightly and burying his face in his shoulder.

"Let's go." He said quietly, clenching his fists in the shirt on Vander's back as he closed his eyes and just enjoyed his warmth and his scent and the comfort it brought. He didn't understand why it felt so nice, he just... Did it. He was a pouty drunk, it seemed.

He pulled away finally, glancing down and realizing he was bleeding again from his popped stitches and elected to ignore it, it was just a few droplets of blood. He was pretty much naked this entire time, and he also was probably in desperate need of a shower. Maybe the shower would help his head feel better.

He didn't really know what else to say and he didn't actually want to let go of Vander, the hug felt too nice. But he found his way off the bed, grumbling under his breath that Vander better help him clean the broken bottle later as he scrounged around and found a pair of sweatpants and a tshirt, pulling them on. He was swaying a little as he stood and he reached up to rub at his temples, his head pounding.

"Mind if I use yer shower?" He asked, looking over at Vander after he'd pulled some shoes on; he didn't wanna stay in this hellhole right now. Which was funny when half the time this was the only place he ever wanted to be; maybe he was a little more honest with himself when he was drunk.

He didn't really want to stay cooped up and hide from life forever. He wanted to get out, see the world, have friends. But he sucked at all of those things. At least now Vander was offering him the direct choice, and with all that liquid courage in him he didn't have to think too hard before he accepted it.

[Lion]

Yup, a shower definitely wouldn't hurt and considering that Vander had just gotten home himself and the first thing he thought to do was come here and drop off Loa's things he probably didn't smell like much of  rose either.  It wasn't a bad idea. Vander felt that cool clammy skin drift off him when he pulled enough away from Loa.

"Yeah you come along with me. But I'll need to put my visor on again to actually see where I'm going. I'm not one of those cool kungfu monks," he snorted, smiling goofily. Vander turned his back to Loa and pulled that visor from his pocket, sticking it on his face and securing the band. Once his vision focused on that grid, he took in a deep breath and led them both out of that apartment.

Down to the level below, he opened the door, letting the Pilot Echo first.  The door closed with a soft click and Vander kept his face down to avoid looking at him in the face and slowly gestured to the bathroom. "Help yourself to the shower. I have rags you can cover your face with if it makes you more comfortable. I'll throw some cold pizza in the oven," he offered and smiled despite covering his visor with his face.

He did just that, pulling the pizza from the fridge and popping a few slices on a cooking sheet and throwing it into the oven.

[Cheesigator]

At the mention of Vander putting on the visor again Loa felt mixed feelings; his heart made a half-assed attempt to leap into his throat, while the other part of him almost didn't care--that part was the alcohol. He hadn't eaten in like 12 hours, he wasn't really himself. He just... Didn't care about anything.

On their way out though he snagged a bandanna lying on the counter, using it to hide his face as they walked through the hallways back down to Vander's apartment; walking any kind of distance though while having such a hangover yet also still being drunk proved to be way harder than he realized--it wasn't like he did this outside of his apartment, he hadn't thought that out very thoroughly. He ended up leaning heavily on Vander for most of the way there.

Once they were inside he took it off again, tossing it to the couch since he couldn't exactly wear it in the shower, and he'd noticed Vander purposefully looking away from him. Something made his heart do a flip but he figured that was the alcohol and ignored it, instead just nodding to the man and finding his way to the bathroom, damn near tripping over himself on the way there (which would've been funny any time that wasn't now.)

He pulled his clothes off and rested an elbow against the wall, forehead resting against a clenched fist as he let the shower water run, having left the door open. If he stepped in there was he gonna slip and break his neck?

It was a possibility.

His knees had already almost buckled several times on the way here. Hell.

He took a deep breath and called out to Vander, eyes shut tight partially because he felt embarrassed but mostly because the bright bathroom lights were nearly blinding as much as they were making his head hurt ten thousand times worse.

"Hey Vander? Come here--please."

[Lion]

The pizza would take a few minutes to warm up and the oven would automatically turn off when it was finished. Vander had everything rigged in that apartment for extra convenience. Sometimes he'd spend hours and hours fiddling with a project and forget important shit. This way at least his apartment wouldn't burn down. That would really fucking suck and having to relocate all his little buddies would be a pain in the ass.

Just a few of the minor inconveniences that he'd rather avoid.

"Hey Vander? Come here--please."

No sight required when it came to walking around his own apartment, but he kept it on anyway. The guy could barely stand and the last thing he wanted was him cracking his head on a shower floor. That thought alone made Vander shimmy on down to the bathroom and he stopped short of the wide-open door. "Whoa."

It was nothing more than a breath as he got basically all of Loa in his vision. And this time it was his turn for his cheeks to warm up. The guy could barely stand, and here he was butt ass naked. The water was running and already steam would soon filling the room. Vander wasn't going to let him get hurt. And it wasn't anything he hadn't seen before, personally speaking.

Vander licked his lip for a moment and didn't hesitate to move forward. He needed a shower too. Two birds, one stone? And he could make sure Loa didn't fall and crack his head. It certainly made sense to him. Taking Loa's hand, he put it on his hip, and Vander undressed.  The uniform came off easy, and when he was about to slip his pants off, he paused, hesitating for a moment.

Would this guy freak out about showering with another man? For purposes of making sure Loa didn't collapse, Vander didn't see the harm in it. And it wasn't as if he was at all bad to look at. It didn't matter what technicalities were in place. Those can be considered later. For now Loa needed him, and he'd be damned if he was going to leave him like this.

"Here, on my shoulders," he murmured, looking directly at his face. Placing his hands there in the crook where his traps met the rounded edges of his shoulders, Vander dropped his pants, slipping them down and kicking them away.  "Hold on to me. And easy into the tub. You're not gonna fall,"

Steam didn't do well for that visor and taking a shower wasn't anything exponentially difficult. Vander slipped that off his head too, tossing it onto a hook with a flick of his wrist and it caught on the back of the door.

He eased him into the tub and closed the curtain, the water making Vander yelp as it struck his back. "Too hot," he laughed and reached behind him to ease the temperature. "You ok there, Loa?"