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“There’s a good place for a slice two blocks north and one block east. Not the pepperoni though. Get the cheese or one of the weird ones.”
Stephen looked at the other sorcerer as he went back to reorganizing the books on transformative magic. He was learning a lot from Wong, and not all of it was for the job. How Wong seemed to know everything was a mystery upon itself. The pizza place was one instance in a line of the frequent surprises Stephen had been subjected to nearly daily. The funny thing was Wong knew more about this portion of the city than he did, often rattling off facts about the history and geography from the top of his head. There were times excitement slipped into his voice when he told Stephen about some new place they should get takeout from, having scouring the Internet for the latest hotspot. It had been impressive, because Wong had never even hinted to Stephen that he was human before that day in Hong Kong. Now, they often sat together in the library disagreeing about which David Bowie era was the best: Wong clearly wrong about Low being the best album when Ziggy Stardust was right there breaking boundaries not only musically but artistically.
Living with the man in Kamar-Taj taught him that Wong was not someone to cross, but coming into contact with him in the New York Sanctum was teaching him that Wong had many facets to his ways of expression. His serious and closed off demeanor in Kamar-Taj was still there, but it sometimes gave way to laughs and gestures of kindness that Stephen had not expected. Sometimes they agreed, and sometimes they argued, but the routine they had developed somehow worked. They were an odd pair for sure. No one would know that though, as other sorcerers tended to keep away from the New York Sanctum.
When Wong could tell Stephen was having difficulties, he often dropped some of his scrutinizing to soothe Stephen's worries or concerns. Those moments weren’t common, but they were there. At times he had felt lonely, but then Wong would snap him out of it. These little touches of care truly made him feel grateful, especially in the days after the Ancient One had died and Mordo left.
Stephen tried to give back in little ways, like making tea, or trying his best to be prepared when Wong came. When they decided to get take out like today, he almost always fetched them food. That was less to do with trying to please the other master, his only stable connection to Kamar-Taj, and more due to the fact that sometimes Stephen needed to remind himself that he was back in the city he called home, even if most of his day was spent inside the Sanctum. He didn’t really need to interact with people, but the energy from them gave him a boost of energy was well: a pick me up for evening hours. This was the same for Wong’s frequent trips to the Sanctum and elsewhere. It was always good to get a break.
Stephen smiled to himself as he forked over the little money he had to buy a few slices for dinner. They were getting sick of whatever Kamar-Taj had been sending, and he figured the little pocket money they sent over could be spent in worse ways. It was amusing to him how this reminded him of his days in college, living off the bare minimal, but managing to enjoy his time. Having nothing once again had been shockingly satisfying, and maybe it was because he had someone to share it with.
The familiar smell of pizza stirred the hunger pains in his stomach as the worker handed over the packaged slices. Wong once again was right about this being a good shop, not that Stephen would tell him. They had fallen into stand off about sharing praise for one another, often just trading jabs at the stupid things the other one would occasionally say. It was oddly comforting.
When Stephen returned back to the sanctum with their dinner, he made his way to the study. They would never eat in the library near the books, especially given the cesspool of grease that was New York pizza or the other take out food that they could afford. The study was not off bounds though, even if Wong grumbled that they should be eating in the dining room.
“Finally! I could smell it from the moment you walked up the stairs,” Wong stated, grabbing the top box.
“You know, you could offer to buy sometimes.”
“I could, but you have to remember that I’m your guest and not the other way around. If you ever wind up visiting me in another place, it will be my treat. One would think that you’d learn that custom by your age.”
Stephen sighed as he sat down with his own piece, opening the box, lifting it up, and folding it before taking a bite. It was probably still one of the best deals in New York along with the breakfast carts. However, they rarely ate breakfast together.
“Where were we?” Wong asked.
“The properties of the Crystals of Corinth.”
“Ah yes, a misnomer if there ever was one, as it has nothing to do with Greece.”
Given how silent he normally was on personal matters, often still giving Stephen the cold shoulder when he did not deign to answer, Stephen found himself loving these little lessons more and more. It was relaxing to listen to Wong's low voice and the words he said. Inbetween bites, there was the familiar exchange of question, answer, clarification, more clarification, random fact, and an occasional opinion. Only when they finished their slices, needing to get some napkins, did they stop talking.
They cleaned up their mess in silence, as they had done so many other times before, eventually coming back to rest back in the library. Stephen closed his eyes for a bit, trying to refocus his mind and energy. Wong would soon leave for Kamar-Taj once again, and he’d be alone, and he found these days it was harder to take the times inbetween Wong’s visits when the time came.
“Hey, do you want to listen to some music tonight?” Stephen asked suddenly.
“Sorry, I have to fill in for one of the other Masters. Short staffed and all.”
“Still?” Stephen huffed.
Wong frowned at him in irritation. It had been quite a while since he looked at Stephen like that, and all he could do was shrug it off.
“Yes, of course still. You act as though when you came into Kamar-Taj that your experience was the norm. It’s not Stephen. Even though there were less Masters at the time, there were still quite a few. Now we don’t even have a Sorcerer Supreme and even less staff. Drumm’s dead, Mordo is gone, Minaru is on leave. Should I continue?”
Stephen went quiet, reflecting on Wong’s words. Only after being given the position as the Master of a Sanctum did he start to understand what kind of dire situation they were in.
“Yea, okay.”
Wong wet his lips as he stared at Stephen in contemplation. Then, his eyes went wide for a fraction of a second before abruptly looking away, as if he realized something.
“What?” Stephen asked.
“What, what?”
“You just looked at me oddly.”
“Only in your imagination. Don’t you have to meditate on something? Study more?”
Stephen sighed loudly.
It was back to the regular routine as they said their goodbyes. They had been doing so well for the last few weeks. Then, there was always a bump, Wong pulling away a little more after these moments. Maybe, Wong had just felt a sense of responsibility for Stephen, and was humoring him for the most part. But that couldn't have been the truth. Wong always showed when he was irritated with Stephen, unlike Mordo, who just went off on him when things had become too intense.
It was appreciate to some extent, but also vexing.
It would be a few more days before Wong came back though, in better spirits than he left, but a little quieter than before. It seemed that his tasks were probably taking their toll on the man, so Stephen quietly fixed them some food and tea. This time he opted to make some simple sandwiches. It was something he could make easily and it wouldn’t cost too much money. Wong ate his in silence as Stephen tried to make small talk, eventually engaging the man by having him clarifying some points about the Celestials. Stephen actually knew the answers, he just wanted Wong to talk to him. The quiet had started to get to him sometime yesterday evening.
“And so they were spared.”
Stephen nodded, trying to figure out if he should just ask if something was wrong or not.
“Stephen, are you listening?” Wong asked, a note of aggravation slipping back into his voice.
“Yea. They were spared because they had offered up twelve perfect beings. I don’t buy it though. 12 perfect beings. One I can understand, but twelve?”
Wong shrugged in response. Stephen was surprised Wong didn’t have respond with his normal ‘for your sake, just accept the possibility’.
“Is everything okay?” Stephen asked tepidly.
“Everything is never okay, but it’s the state of things. Nothing new,” Wong replied with a smirk.
“You seem distant.”
“We spend too much time together these days.”
There was a quiet after Wong said that. Stephen knew that they spent quite a bit of time together, but too much time? He wasn’t sure of that, as he wanted more. It was Wong’s opinion though, and he had to accept it.
“I like when you’re here. Even if we argue, it’s good,” He tried to reassure Wong.
The hesitant look in Wong’s face worried Stephen, and he braced himself for the possibility that Wong had become fed up with him.
“I know. That’s the problem, Stephen. We can’t afford these kinds of attachments.”
“Like what?” Stephen asked with a heavy heart.
“I don’t know if you understood my meaning. I thought you knew, but here you are again, being a bit denser about things you don’t want to see.”
He swallowed hard hearing the words. Up until this point, it hadn’t crossed him mind that this was what he was feeling. With Wong acknowledging the elephant in the room, it allowed him to do so as well.
“It’s been coming on for some time, hasn’t it?” Stephen asked, smiling sadly.
“We don’t have enough Masters.”
It sounded more like a plea than anything else.
“I’m not going to leave, even if things go south between us. I’m not like Karl.”
Wong nodded, getting up from his seat before fetching a book. Most likely it was a distraction from having that conversation again. Even if they had discussed that day to death, it was something they came back to; a moment that changed things quite a bit.
“What do you want to do?” Stephen asked.
“What I want to do and what I should do are two different things, aren’t they? I should go back to Kamar-Taj.”
“Or you could stay for some ice cream?” Stephen suggested, trying to stall Wong from leaving.
The other sorcerer cringed from the suggestion before half smiling. Stephen knew his weak spot after three weeks of being in the Sanctum. He hadn’t had to use that card yet, but eventually this day had come.
“I can stay a little bit longer, I guess.”
As Stephen went to go fetch it, his mind travelled through how this might play out. This was all more logical than he had been used to in similar situations. Then again, he always felt more in control during those times. Wong was different, and Stephen could never sweet talk him into things that he could with many others. Common sense seemed to rule over all.
Ice cream was a bribe for sure, but it gave Stephen time to think about what was going on between them at the moment and the possibilities of a future. Wong was comfortable, steady, and not bogged down by Stephen’s brilliance. They could make a good match, and Stephen had been lonely for quite some time, having messed up quite a few relationships over the past decade or so. This had a chance to be something better than all of those.
After he fetched the ice cream, bowls, and spoons, he traveled back up with his mind made up. The sooner this happened, the better.
“Why do we always wind up like this?” Wong asked when he returned.
“No idea what you mean.”
“In this room, eating something, and me trying hard to keep everything professional, while you throw caution to the wind.”
Stephen smirked. If that hadn’t described most of his past relationships he didn’t know what did. This type of thing was always respite from the harsh realities he dealt in; only he had traded complex surgeries with complex mystical problems.
After Stephen dished them out some ice cream, they sat there eating it, the clatter of the spoons the only noise for a few moments.
“There’s no point denying the possibility of making our lives a little better,” Stephen replied after a mouthful of the chocolatey goodness.
“Risking it all for the chance of something that is far from being guaranteed? Stupid, but romantic.”
“Calculated risk,” he paused for another bite, “I don’t gamble normally, only when the odds are in my favor, or I have no other option.”
That prompted a laugh, not an absurd one of disbelief that Nic or Christine would have given him long ago, but a genuine one of amusement. There was this playful side to Wong that sometimes came out, and he appreciated it.
“Sometimes I think you’ve changed, but you have these streaks in you of your former self.”
“Yea, I know. I’m arrogant and stubborn, but hey, that’s me.”
They then smiled at one another, a more and more familiar sight recently. It was good.
Stephen put down his bowl, prompting Wong to do the same. He got up and took some steps towards the other sorcerer. Both of them with more tense expression on their faces. Stephen figured it was now or never.
His heart beat a little faster before he quickly ducked down and put his lips lightly upon Wong’s for what must have been not even a second. Wong looked at him with a curious expression, touching his mouth for a moment. Then, he got up so he was almost at Stephen’s height and returned the kiss. This time a hesitant press at first, but then it bloomed into a real kiss. Stephen started to feel a bit weak in the knees having expected to be chastised, but rewarded instead.
When Wong pulled away, Stephen wanted to immediately fall back into it, but stopped himself. In good old Wong fashion, he stopped Stephen in his tracks with a look, and then smiled before narrowing his eyes in a serious fashion, the smile still on his face.
“Let’s sleep on it a bit. Now though, I’m leaning towards maybe letting nature take its course.”
“Yea,” Stephen responded after a moment.
As Wong turned to leave, Stephen called out to him, “You assume I will be getting sleep!”
“Go to bed, Strange. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
Stephen sunk back into his chair, feeling a contented warmth settle in his chest. He sat there for quite a bit forgetting about the dirty bowls and the neglected melting ice cream. It was good to find a home, and he was pleasantly surprised that along with it came good helping of happiness.