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“Diego!”
Diego ignores it, climbing down the stairs, two steps at a time. Maybe if he ignores him long enough, Klaus will go away.
“Diego, wait up!”
A sharp turn to the right and Diego closes the doors behind him. It’s cold outside, it’s freezing outside, and he just knows Klaus is going to ask him to drive him somewhere because Diego is probably the only idiot he can annoy into caving.
“What are you doing?” The question comes from Allison, who’s sitting on the couch with Vanya, popcorn between them, and watching what looks like an action movie on the giant TV. “Oh, I think Klaus is looking for you.”
“No shit,” he rolls his eyes, then does a double take. “Since when do we have a TV?”
“Since I bought one yesterday,” Allison raises her eyebrow, lips quirking up in a smile, “you seriously didn’t notice?”
“No, I–”
“Oh, hey, Diego,” Luther says, pushing the door open and nearly causing Diego to stumble, “sorry, didn’t see you there. Also, I ran into Klaus just now, I think he’s looking for you?”
“Keep your damn voice down,” he scowls, quickly looking around before closing the door again, “and I know that. I think he wants me to drive him somewhere.”
“He wants to go to that Subway that opened near the library last week,” Vanya explains, pausing the movie, and Allison and Luther make ahs and ohs like that made sense, they had known all along. “He said Ben saw an ad on TV about some new sandwich.”
“How is it that Ben was watching TV before me,” Diego demands an answer from the room, pointing at the screen with one of his knives for emphasis. Because come on. “And why couldn’t any of you drive him there?”
Allison shrugs. “Maybe if you spent less time brooding.”
Newly seated on one of the armchairs, Luther nods. “That’s exactly why we needed a TV.”
With a not really apologetic grimace, Vanya apologizes, “I don’t have a car. None of us do.”
“All of you told him to ask me, didn’t you?” Three very guilty heads nod in unison. “Unbelievable. Five people over the age of sixteen with a shitload of money and I’m the only one with a working car?”
“I had a rental,” says Allison, “but I’m still looking to buy one.”
Luther raises his hand. “I didn’t have time to look for one.”
There’s a minute of silence and they all look at Vanya for her excuse. She bites her lip, fidgeting in her seat. “Oh, I just didn’t want one.”
Allison snorts and presses play again on the movie, clearly considering their conversation over, but before Diego could tell her that no, this isn’t over yet, when are they all planning on getting their shit together, the doors burst open and this time he does stumble.
“Diego,” Klaus calls, as if Diego wasn’t already right in front of him, and someone should really sit him down and talk about using his inside voice. “I was looking for you. We need to go to that Subway near the library, Ben says they have a new special, limited time only, come on.”
“ We don’t need to go anywhere,” Diego snaps, and from the corner of his eyes, he sees the TV freezing again and Allison passing Luther the popcorn bowl. “You need to get your damn license or call an Uber.”
“But Diego,” he whines, draping himself on an unoccupied couch, which, by the way, Diego doesn’t remember being there the last time he was in this room. What the fuck is going on in this house? “You have a perfectly good car for that. And do you really trust me behind a wheel in this city?”
Diego, who still remembers the ride on the ice cream truck, shudders. No, he absolutely doesn’t. In fact, he wouldn’t trust Klaus to drive a bike. “Still not happening.”
“Hey, can you guys bring me one of their cookies?” Vanya asks, already looking for her wallet.
“The chocolate chips one?” Klaus sits up, reaching for the offered money and ignoring Diego scowling at their exchange.
“I’m not going out in this weather,” Diego announces, kicking the leg of the couch to get his attention and watching with shameless satisfaction as Klaus loses his balance as has to grip the cushions not to fall.
He glares, “so you want me to walk there in this cold, cold unforgiving winter? What kinda big brother are you, Diego?”
“We’re the same age. We are all the same age.”
And then. Goddamnit. And then, Klaus’ face falls a little like it always does when he’s thinking about fucking Vietnam, and it’s Klaus, everything about him is loud, even his sadness. “Actually, now that I think about it, I’m older than the lot of you– except dear, grumpy Five, of course,” he says with a fucking fake grin that’s fooling absolutely no one, besides maybe Luther because Luther is an idiot. “So my bad, I guess, “ he adds with a flourish.
Goddamnit. Diego sighs. It’s not as if he can say no now! Fucking hell. He heaves the most long-suffering sigh he can manage before smacking him in the arm. “Get the fuck up, then. I don’t have all day.”
Klaus blinks up at him, frowning, “what?”
“Do you want your stupid sandwich or not?”
“Really?” He scrambles up, and his new smile looks a lot more like his usual one, and this particular crisis seems successfully averted. Diego refuses to smile back; it’s the principle of it all. “Let’s go then, before they eat all of Vanya’s cookies.”
Klaus makes for the front door, but Diego grabs him by the back of his shirt, dragging him back. “Not so fast. What part of it’s fucking freezing outside didn’t you understand? Go find a damn coat because I’m not hearing you whine about the cold later.”
“Fine, mom,” he huffs, whirling around in the direction of the stairs, hissing something too low for them to pick up.
In the silence that follows, Diego steels himself for the inevitable mockery. Allison is watching him with a way too amused grin. So is Luther. Vanya is the only one with the decency to at least pretend that she’s not entertained by this, and he would forgive her if she hadn’t asked for the cookies like she knew all along Diego would cave.
“Not a word,” he grits out, crossing his arms over his chest.
“Didn’t say anything,” Luther raises his hands defensively, still grinning.
“Yes, Diego,” Allison says, too sweet for it to be anything good, “don’t worry, we won’t tell anyone you’re a big softie.”
“I hate all of you,” he gestures them with a knife.
Vanya coughs, sounding suspiciously like a laugh. “Of course you do,” she tells him infuriatingly placating.. See if he brings her any cookies.
“I’m leaving,” he scowls, picking up his keys from his pocket as he goes, more than glad to leave this nightmare mansion. And if he waits, idling on the curb long enough for Klaus to burst out of the house, ridiculous coat now on, well. Diego did promise to drive him to the fucking Subway near the library, didn’t he?