Chapter Text
All he wants is a damn break. Between the heroin addiction and withdrawals, Jenny and the eye drops, the Updates and multiple timelines, being abducted and tortured, and everything else he’s suffered through these last months, he’s drained. Fucking exhausted. How hard would it be to make himself completely disappear from the world for a few days just so he can sleep?
And how much harder would it be to convince Trevor to disappear with him?
---
Philip’s gaze swipes across the bus once more, from Ray, lying unconscious next to him, to his teammates spread out along the benches throughout the middle of the bus. How he wishes he can just shut his eyes and forget everything from the past 48 hours. Instead, he has to go back to the garage and attempt to clean up their mess across the internet while the rest of the team works on making their alternate story convincing to the 21sters dragged into all this.
Somewhat looking forward to having a few hours to himself back at the garage, allowing him the chance to deal with all this shit without the team watching, Philip would still prefer having Trevor go back with him. Only, no one on the team knows about them, this thing that’s still relatively new, and honestly, probably fucked up a bit now thanks to 001’s actions. Trying to convince Trevor to go back to the garage with him might seem a little odd when there isn’t anything he could do there that he can’t do at the safe house they’re setting up.
So he lets it slide to the back of his mind, knowing there’ll be time later for them to talk, and to tell the team.
---
Getting Rey back to the garage is easy enough, thanks to the driver provided by Wakefield, but waiting for him to wake up from his drugged coma is mind numbingly boring. Granted, it shouldn’t be much longer, but Philip has never been one to take sitting around and waiting quietly. Especially since he can’t exactly wander off and do something else in the meantime.
“There he is,” he muses once he finally notices the first signs of Ray stirring on the bed.
“Oh, Jesus, keep it down a bit man,” Ray groans, certainly feeling the hangover effects from the drugs. “How did I get here?”
“I took your keys.” Philip jangles said keys between them in enunciation. “Made you crash. You were ‘celebrating’.”
“Well, I must’ve had a good time, Phil, cause…” Now sitting up, Ray glances around, obviously unaware of exactly where he is. “I don’t remember how I got here or what we were celebrating.”
Time to get the fake memories rolling. “You were in trouble with a loan shark, uh, named Varghese?”
Ray curses, his reaction exactly what Philip needs to be sure this story will work, and follows him out to the main are of the garage. “Oh, right. I got picked up by a couple of his boys. I don’t remember what happened after that.”
“Well, they gave you 24 hours to come up with the money. You came to me, asked me to place some bets, we came here to watch them come in and hilarity ensued. You really don’t remember?”
“No- I maybe forgot to tell you I probably shouldn’t drink.”
“Oh, we established that. But, my hungover friend,” Philip agrees, walking over to the workbench, grabbing an envelope filled with cash, “you’re out of the hole with a little extra.”
Snatching the envelope out of his grasp, Ray riffles through it, worry still crossing over his features. “Oh, I owe Varghese more than this.”
“Well, he’s been paid. That’s…. that’s the extra.”
“Fuck off.” Philip smiles, unable to blame Ray for his skepticism. Even if all this was fact, the amount of money in that envelope is more than enough to keep the lawyer happy for a while. “Man, I love you. Oh, come here.”
Though, it is a bit of a surprise when Ray comes in for a hug, which he awkwardly returns. “Ray, that’s, uh, what friends are for.” He’s grateful Ray can’t see his face, can’t see the strain and awkwardness at referring to their dynamic in such a way when the guy can’t even remember straight up saying they weren’t friends in the last 24 hours.
Ray leaves immediately after that—thankfully—and Philip comm’s Mac soon as the door shuts behind him. “Boss, Ray is taken care of.”
“So the memory inhibitor worked?”
“He was the easy one,” Marcy’s voice chips in.
“That, and the cash,” Philip agrees.
“Now you can get back to cleaning up our mess,” Mac reminds him.
“On it.” And he does just that, depositing himself onto the chair in front of his computer, wasting no time in hunting down the videos.
Until a minute later Trevor’s voice comes on over the comm.
“David and Jeff are just taking a break to get some medical attention.”
“Trev?” It’s obvious he’s not talking to Philip—most likely with the rest of the team—but that doesn’t explain the sudden connection. When he doesn’t get a direct response from the other, he has to assume it was an accident. “Hey, man, everything okay over there?”
There’s a pause, then, “I think we were done.”
Eyes widen and his pulse definitely jumps. “Uh, what? Shouldn’t we talk about-”
“You were talking about my feelings.”
Okay, Trevor definitely isn’t talking to him, but that only confuses Philip further. “What the hell is going on, Trev? Who are you talking to?” It’s obviously not anyone on the team, otherwise Trevor wouldn’t have not responded to him. One of the FBI agents, maybe? But why would they want to talk about his feelings?
Wait, no-
“Grace.” He nearly growls out her name. He hasn’t been blind to her growing interest in Trevor over the last few weeks, nor of her ignoring Trevor’s attempts to shake her off. Even if Philip was ready for everyone else to know about their relationship, he doubts even that would get Grace to take a step back.
“Mnh-mnh. Philip and Ray?”
“What about us?”
“Yeah, you do.”
Brows furrow. “Oh gross, don’t tell me she implied we’re a thing.”
“Trev?”
“Trev?” Oh, he’s going to have some select words for Grace the next time he sees her.
“Grace, I am delighted you were the one kidnapped and interrogated, not my parents. There, I said it. So…”
“Jesus, this woman is relentless.”
“So can I go now?”
Hearing the distress in Trevor’s voice causes Philip to slam his palms on the edge of his desk, frustrated that he isn’t at the safe house right now, unable to do anything about Grace’s inability to fuck off for even a second. He half wishes he could hear what exactly Grace is saying, half relieved that he can’t, knowing it would only make him that much more annoyed with her.
“Remember we’re much, much older than these bodies.”
“What the fuck, man? I swear, I’m going to shoot her the next time I see her if she keeps this shit up.”
“Calm down, Philip, she’s gone. Although I could definitely use a shower now.”
Leaning back in his chair, fingers rub along the bridge of his nose. “That only makes me want to shoot her more. What the hell was all that about, anyway?”
“She was trying to logic her way through 001’s kidnapping of her in comparison to the rest of the team’s hostages. I promise, nothing happened.”
“Not for a lack of her trying, I’m sure.”
“It would’ve been easier if she knew about us.”
“No!” An annoyed sound forms deep in Philip’s throat. “No,” he repeats, softer this time. “I already told you I’m not ready for the team to know about us yet. And especially not her.” Because the moment Grace finds out, everyone else will, too.
Trevor sighs. “I know, Phil. I’m just saying, not trying to persuade you to change your mind. I gotta go. The rest of the team is sitting around, waiting. I’ll see you later.”
“See you tonight. And be careful. Please.”
“Will do.”
---
It’s safe to say that, as soon as Trevor finally makes it back to the garage, Philip is more than a little stressed out. Sure, things at the safe house ended rather anti-climactically, but that doesn’t mean much where he’s concerned. With all the shit that’s happened recently, Philip would like more than half a day of more shit not happening to the team.
It’s only after he’s got Trevor in his grasp, after he’s greeted the engineer with a quick once over for any possible additional injuries, after a heated kiss that didn’t last nearly long enough, that he’s able to relax. Hands still cradling the back of Trevor’s head, foreheads pressed together, Philip closes his eyes and takes in a slow, deep breath, shoulders dropping as he exhales. The feeling of Trevor’s hands rubbing up and down his back helps quite a bit, and it isn’t long before his emotions have leveled back out.
“I know I just got here, but just a reminder I do have to go back to my parents’ house tonight. Gary can’t help me move out in the morning if I’m not there.”
A smile appears, and Philip steals one more quick kiss before finally stepping out of Trevor’s embrace. “Can’t exactly complain about that since that means having you here every night after that.”
“Exactly my point.” Trevor’s smile matches his, and slaps a hand against his shoulder. “How about some dinner before I go?”
“Sounds perfect.”