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Can I come over?
That’s all the text said, which was enough to make Barry worry. Hank was never so blunt, there was usually at least 3 emojis after every text, sometimes more- it annoyed Barry usually but he missed them the second they stopped.
Nothing serious better of happened- Hank promised we were good after I trained his guys, Barry thought, as he paced around his bedroom. His roommates were out with the rest of the acting class, so he wasn’t worried about having to explain who Hank was to him when he arrived.
Who Hank was to him, was a complicated question- he was his employer, then savior, then partner and now friend of sorts but Barry often finds himself wanting something more. It’s not the first time he’s felt this way about another man, but it is the first time he’s felt this strongly, and towards Hank of all people- the ridiculous, bald, overly polite mobster, with his stupid smile and annoyingly fit body.
There was just something about him, his kindness, and the way he seems to radiate positive vibes even working in the Chechen mafia was somehow endearing to Barry. He’s just… Hank. And now that everything is good between them; no threats, no hits, no debt- Barry finds himself wishing for the courage to further their relationship but had long accepted he would never make the first move.
A sharp knock on the front door, broke Barry from his thoughts, as he moved to open it. The sight of Hank had his protective instincts flaring harshly.
“Oh… hi Barry” Hank said gingerly, keeping his eyes on the floor.
Barry placed one hand on Hank’s chin and raised it gently, taking in the bruises forming on his left cheek, the blood under his nose and the split lip. He dabbed his thumb lightly against the blood ruining Hank’s smile and said nothing. Hank’s heart skipped nervously, as Barry looked him in the eyes. When Barry spoke, his voice was quiet and strained, as he struggled to contain the anger he felt.
“Who did this to you?”
“Barry it does not matter, I am okay” Hank replied, though the smile he offered didn’t reach his eyes.
Barry was torn, he wanted to hunt down whoever had hurt his companion, but he also wanted to make sure he was okay. When Hank shifted, then gasped slightly and clutched his side, Barry’s mind was made up- revenge could wait.
“Come here, let’s get you fixed up” he said, guiding Hank towards the bathroom.
“Thank you Barry, you are good friend” Hank replied honestly, as he sat on the edge of the bathtub lightly.
Barry grabbed the first aid kit from under the sink and removed the antiseptic wipes. Once again, he placed a hand under Hank’s chin, tilted his head slightly to the side, then began to clean the blood off his face. Hank hissed faintly, when Barry swiped the antiseptic over his lips.
“Sorry,” Barry said tenderly.
“It is okay.”
As Barry cleaned up the blood, and gently checked over Hank’s nose and cheeks for fractures, he wondered who could have done this- sure he’s is in the Mafia but it's Hank, why would someone want to beat him up like this.
“Alright, that’s a little better- why don’t you take off your shirt and I’ll check your ribs” he announced, standing up and packing away the first aid kit.
When Barry turned back around, Hank had made no move to remove his shirt- he was still sitting on the bathtub, twitching his hands together nervously.
“Hank? You okay man?”
“Huh… oh yes, I am okay Barry.”
“Great, so you’ll take it off then?”
A sharp nod from Hank, indicated he would, yet he still made no move to do so. After several moments, he slowly pulled the garment up his torso, wincing slightly as he raised his arms over his head, then dropped the once crisp white shirt- now spattered with traces of blood, onto the floor.
Barry racked his eyes over the smooth, pale skin, now exposed- the copious tattoos, the smattering of scars - the one on his shoulder, that Barry had put there and felt a brief twinge of guilt over once again- and most notably the patchwork of purple, blue and black bruises wrapping around his ribs. Shit, even all bruised up he’s gorgeous- probably not the best time for that though, Barry thought.
“Shit Hank… how bad does it hurt?” Barry asked, as he moved closer and delicately began to slide his hands over the bruises, feeling for anything out of place, praying nothing was broken.
Hank flinched at Barry’s hands, then spoke shakily.
“They are quite painful yes, I do not think they are broken though”
“Alright well I’ll grab you some ice, and we can bind them later just to be safe”
Hank looked up when Barry spoke, and realized suddenly just how close together their faces were. ‘Are you in love with Barry?’ Goran’s voice replayed harshly in his mind.
He shook off the thought and moved forward before he could second guess himself, pressing his lips to Barry’s resolutely.
Barry pulled back suddenly, and Hank was ready to apologize profusely before dying of embarrassment and disappearing forever, when he felt Barry’s lips slam back into his own.
Oh thank fuck, Hank thought, before losing himself to the kiss.
Barry pulled him closer, arms sliding around his back- when Hank let out a sharp groan in pain.
“Fuck sorry… you alright?”
“It is okay Barry, but we could maybe save kissing for later?”
“Of course, come on- I’ll grab the ice” Barry said, taking Hank’s hand and leading him into his bedroom.
“Make yourself comfortable, you’re sleeping here tonight… um I mean if that’s okay with you” Barry told Hank, nervous that he was overstepping.
“Yes I will stay here, thank you”
“Alright, I’ll be back in a minute” Barry said as he left the room.
Once he was alone, Hank took a moment to breathe and focus his racing thoughts. He kissed me back, he must like me too- he does not think it’s bad that we are both men, the guys from earlier were wrong.
“Get it together Hank, everything is okay,” he whispered to himself, hoping to calm his nerves before Barry came back to him.
He was still freaking out a little, when Barry re-entered the room, carrying ice, aspirin and a glass of water.
“Here you go” he said, setting down the water and tablets, then handing the ice pack to Hank.
“Thank you, Barry you have been very kind.”
“It’s my pleasure,” he answered with a smile, “do you want to tell me what happened?”
Hank shifted uncomfortably at the question, once again not looking in his eyes. He felt the bed dip slightly as Barry sat next to him, moving around until their shoulders were pressed together comfortably.
“...okay” he replied quietly. So quietly that Barry barely heard him at all.
“Wait first, is it okay if I hold you?”
“You want to cuddle me?” Hank teased but moved closer to Barry anyway.
“Fuck off” Barry returned, glaring at him- but there was no trace of anger in his voice, and he was still smiling.
Hank giggled at that, so Barry gingerly pulled him into his arms fully then, careful not to jostle his ribs too much. Can’t believe I like this dork, Barry thought fondly.
Hank told him the story of what happened, and Barry kept his breathing steady, even though he was struggling to remain calm. Hank’s voice was uncharacteristically flat while telling the tale of his assault, and his shoulders were stiff with tension.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Hank was walking down the street, enjoying the pleasant, but not overly bright sunshine when he heard a voice shouting angrily behind him.
“HEY FAGGOT! YOU IN THE WHITE SHIRT! WHERE YOU OFF TO SO FAST?”
Hank ducked his head slightly and quickened his pace. A few people stared at him as he hurried past, but no one said anything.
“WHERE YOU GOING GAY BOY? COME BACK AND TALK TO US”
Hank turned his head slightly and caught a glimpse of the four guys heading straight for him, one of whom was wearing a leather jacket with a tacky skull embroidered on the front.
‘Fuck, I should of let someone come with me’ Hank thought, as he pulled out his phone. His fingers hovered over Barry’s name briefly, but he kept scrolling until he found Dasha, one of his most trusted guys and pressed the call button.
The phone was then snatched out of his grip, and the call was ended. He was shoved harshly into the alleyway he’d not realized he was next too. Once they were off the street, two of the guys grabbed his arms, the one holding his phone dropped it forcefully to the concrete with a smirk, and the fourth man continued his verbal tormenting.
“My my boys, looky what we have here- some bald ass twink strutting around like he belongs here.”
“Please man, just let me go” Hank pleaded, feeling a tad pathetic but desperate to get away before it got worse.
“Woah, what’s with the accent there Nancy? I don’t think you’ve earned the right to mouth off faggot” asshole #4 said, before throwing a punch at Hank’s nose.
Several hits followed, his mouth, left cheek and nose again being the targets. He slumped in the others’ grasps and was unceremoniously dropped to the pavement.
No one moved for a moment then he heard footsteps leave the alley, so he believed it to be over. Phone stealing asshole then delivered a handful of sharp kicks to Hank’s ribs, and a final “FAGGOT”, before running away with the others.
‘Fuck’ Hank groaned, clutching his torso and trying to stop the tears streaming down his bloody cheeks.
He lay on the dirty ground for several minutes, hating the way their words made him feel- sick, and shameful, like he was sinning just by existing, like walking down the street was something he didn’t deserve to be able to do safely.
He reached for his phone then, and considered calling Dasha, then thought better of it- he didn’t want his men to see him looking so pathetic.
So instead he texted Barry and called an Uber to take him over there. The driver that picked him up had looked concerned for a second, then shrugged and drove him to his destination in silence.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“Jesus Hank, I’m sorry- you didn’t deserve any of that. I promise I’ll never let that happen to you again” Barry said, pulling Hank closer to him, as if to protect him from the world.
Hank smiled sadly at that, knowing it was unlikely to be the last time such unpleasant things happened to him.
“I appreciate your concern, it is nice… but this kind of thing just happens, you know?”
Barry nodded slightly, then pulled them further into the bed.
“Get some sleep, we can talk some more tomorrow”
“Okay… goodnight Barry” Hank said quietly, before planting a brief kiss on Barry’s cheek, “thank you for everything.”
Blushing, Barry whispered a “goodnight Hank” back before settling down and waiting for the man in his arms to fall asleep.
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An hour later, once he was absolutely sure Hank was asleep- Barry removed himself slowly from the space next to him, grabbed a gun from his mattress hidey-hole and his keys, then snuck out of the apartment.
‘The Screaming Skull’ was a biker bar, a short 10-minute drive from Barry’s place. When Hank has told him of the jacket one of his assailants wore, Barry figured the bar was a good place to start looking for them.
He parked, then headed inside with a quick nod to the bouncer, and pulled up a stool at the bar.
“Just a beer please” he said easily to the bartender, before taking a slow look around the bar.
There were scatterings of leather jackets, and big guys covered in tattoos, all drinking heavily. A few younger guys were in one corner playing pool rowdily, though it didn’t seem to bother the other patrons.
His drink was placed in front of him, so he raised it in thanks and drank a few long sips. Hank’s story had gotten to him. He knew he was bisexual when he was 15, but kept it hidden well enough that he’d never been hurt because of it. Well except for the right hook he received when he tried to kiss a boy, he thought liked him too, but that kid never told anyone- so Barry’s secret had remained so.
The loud conversion taking place at the pool tables drifted over him, and he tensed when he realized what exactly they were talking about.
“Jay man, you shoulda seen it, this fag was parading around in his tight ass clothes, thinking he’s so hot- like he didn’t have any hair for fuck’s sake, no eyebrows, no nothin’- he looked like a freaking alien” one of the guys said, producing laughter from the others.
“Yeah so we had him in this alley, and Eric was like yelling at him and then he spoke with some wack as accent, so we rearranged his face and ribs some” one of the others added.
“Damn I can’t believe I missed it” Jay said, still smiling at his friends’ story.
“Hey!” Barry called out, suddenly standing behind them- causing all three men to jump in shock.
“The fuck man!” Eric spat, “the hell do you want?”
“I’d like to fuckin’ talk to you assholes… in the parking lot perhaps” Barry spat through a gritted smile that didn’t reach his eyes, while gesturing at the back door to their left.
He turned and walked through the door before they could reply. He was only outside for 5 seconds before the three drunk assholes stumbled through the door after him.
He faced them, sizing them up mentally and promising not to kill them- no matter how much he wanted too.
“Well?” the unnamed asshole asked, “What. The. Fuck. Do. You. Want?” he finished slowly, punctuating each word carefully, like Barry wouldn’t understand him or something.
“That guy you beat up today, he’s my…” Barry paused then, realizing he and Hank hadn’t talked about what that kiss meant yet.
“That freak was your fucking boyfriend?” one cut in with a cruel laugh.
“Two-for-one faggot special today boys. Looks like you get to join in on the fun this time Jay,” Eric announced with a smirk.
With an eager nod, Jay took a step towards Barry, cracking his knuckles threateningly and swung what would have been a mean punch- had it connected.
Barry had seen it coming a mile away and dodged without a thought. He cracked his left fist across Jay’s face in return, smiling when he felt the tell-tale crunch of a broken nose.
Jay dropped to the ground, clutching at his face in shock, as blood poured out and coated his hands. At seeing their buddy on the ground, Eric and asshole #3 lunged at Barry, who weaved away from their fists and delivered a hard kick to Eric’s stomach.
It stopped him in his tracks, and he sucked in a few rapid breaths- trying to shake off the winded feeling, meanwhile #3 had landed a solid hit on Barry’s jaw. He shook his head briefly, then tackled #3 to the ground- from there it only took four hard punches to knock the asshole out cold.
Standing once more, Barry turned to see Eric had recovered enough to try again. Fuck, Barry thought, before engaging in the fight once more. There was a flurry of punches, kicks and elbows, then Eric was on the ground also, face significantly bloodier than before.
Barry was feeling a little better now, looking down at the pathetic fuckers who think it’s okay to hurt someone for their sexuality, who think it’s okay to hurt someone as amazing as Hank.
He started to walk away, heading home to be with Hank again- when he heard one of them cough and move to stand up.
He pulled his gun from the waistband of his jeans and pointed it between Jay’s eyes.
“Stay down kid, it’s not worth it- cause I fuckin’ promise you- if you ever do what these fuckers did today, I will come back and I will use this” Barry swore, flicking the safety off, just to see Jay flinch.
With a final nod, Barry tucked the gun away and walked back to his car.
“Tell your other friends what happened tonight, I don’t want to have to repeat myself” he called out, as he climbed into the driver’s seat and sped away.
--------------
Barry sat in his car for nearly 20 minutes, after he got home. His hands were shaking, knuckles swollen and bruised. He took a few deep breaths and repeated the only rational thought he had ‘they deserved it- you didn’t kill them’, then made his way into his shared apartment.
Nick and Jermaine were playing a video game when he walked inside. They gave him a distracted greeting that Barry halfheartedly returned, before heading straight into his room.
Hank was still asleep thankfully, so Barry changed into his PJ’s quickly, and slid into bed behind him. Hank rolled over and snuggled into Barry’s chest, a move that had him blushing fiercely again- not that he’d admit that to anyone. Ever.
He felt himself relax easily in Hank’s presence. He pressed a quick kiss to his smooth forehead, then let himself drift into a pleasant sleep- feeling content for the first time in years.
---------------
Hank woke up to an uncomfortable pressure on his ribs, Shit what the hell did I get up to last night? As he shifted out of the tight grip, he remembered the events of yesterday.
The guys on the street, bleeding in alley, texting Barry, their first kiss, staying in his bed- at that Hank smiled to himself, looking forward to more kissing.
He picked up one of Barry’s hands with his own and noticed the dark bruising and dried blood coating his knuckles. That was definitely not there before… oh Barry, what did you do? Hank pondered briefly, until Barry started to twitch behind him.
Careful not to hurt his tender ribs further- Hank rolled over to face Barry as he slowly woke up.
“Good morning” Hank said softly.
“Mmm morning” Barry replied, voice heavy with sleep.
Hank once again picked Barry’s right hand- carefully he pressed a gentle kiss to his knuckles that made Barry hiss in pain and wake up fully.
A look of guilt crossed his face, as he struggled to think of an explanation.
“Did you kill them?” Hank asked before Barry could come up with a lie.
“No… I thought about it, took a fuckin’ gun with me just in case and everything- but no, I didn’t kill them.”
“Thank you Barry- I never had someone stand up for me like that before” Hank said earnestly.
Barry looked saddened by this, and pulled him into a tight hug, cautious of his injuries. Hank sighed against his shoulder, content to remain in Barry’s comforting warmth forever- after several long moments, they pulled apart and laid facing each other again.
“Sooooo” Barry began awkwardly, “are we gonna talk about the kiss or?”
“Well… you meant it, did you not?”
“Absolutely”
“Okay then, we are boyfriends now” Hank declared with a cheeky smile, eyes bright now, as he soaked in the happiness he felt knowing his feelings were returned.
“Works for me” Barry confirmed, then pressed his lips against Hank’s.
They kissed slowly, learning the way their mouths fit together. A swipe of tongue along his top lip, had Hank opening his mouth to allow Barry to deepen the kiss. Their tongues danced languidly, and Hank let out a soft moan. This had Barry pulling him closer and kissing him harder, trying to draw more noises out of him.
This continued for several minutes, until the need for oxygen was too much to ignore. They separated and caught their breaths, smiling dazedly at each other.
“As great as this is, would it be alright if we ice my bruises again? Kissing you is very good, but I am quite sore this morning- my ribs are bullshit” Hank said in a low voice.
“Yeah sure, be right back,” Barry said, pressing one final kiss to Hank’s lips and untangling himself from the sheets.
When he left his room and headed into the kitchen, he saw Nick and Jermaine eating breakfast.
“Morning” he greeted politely.
He received only hums in return and moved to get an ice pack out of the freezer. Once his back was turned, Nick gained the courage to ask.
“So, Barry… who’s in your bed right now?”
“Uhh…” Barry replied intelligently. When the fuck did they see Hank? he thought, while trying to come up with some believable bullshit.
“I went to ask you something last night and saw there was a man in your bed and that you weren’t here,” Nick continued boldly, “so who is he then?”
“A friend.”
“You sure about that dude? Cause Nick said he was naked in your bed” Jermaine added on.
“He’s not naked… look not that it’s any of your fuckin’ business- he’s a friend and he got mugged yesterday and they messed up his ribs okay” Barry explained then, lying but not overly so.
“Alright man, no need to be so defensive” Nick said then, hoping to calm the growing tension.
“Yeah whatever,” Barry said as he left the kitchen.
Once he was back in the privacy of his own room, he leant against the closed door and calmed his spiraling thoughts- They don’t know anything, they didn’t see his face- Hank’s fine.
“Barry?” Hank’s voice shook Barry from his stupor, “You okay?”
“Yeah, I’m fine- here you go” he answered, as he handed Hank the ice, who then eagerly pressed it to his aching ribs.
“So where do we go from here?”
“I don’t know Barry, but like no matter what- we figure it out together, yes?”
“Together sounds perfect”
They shared a soft smile at that, looking forward to the future happily, for the first time in a long time.
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2 weeks later…
They were walking down the street hand in hand, on a gorgeous sunny day. Barry was still getting used to openly being with someone, let alone a man, but he found himself enjoying the openness of their relationship.
He thought back to the afternoon that Hank had showed up at his apartment, bloody and bruised, and how angry the sight of him made Barry. The moments following, that led to their first kiss and the declaration of their feelings towards each other, were something Barry would forever cherish.
He adored Hank and felt nothing but pride at walking down the street with him by his side, announcing to the world that they were together.
Barry focused back on to Hank’s ramblings, letting the other man's voice occupy his attention.
“...it was like, super fun time you know- anyway isn’t that just the craziest thing you’ve ever heard of?” Hank finished, and turned his head towards him, still making their way downtown.
“Barry?”
Hank asked when Barry stopped walking suddenly. He followed his gaze and observed unpleasantly that two of the men that had attacked him several weeks prior, were heading towards them. It didn’t look like they had noticed him and Barry yet, but he didn’t want to risk it either way.
He tugged sharply at Barry’s hand, aiming to drag him away before the situation got any worse but he didn’t budge. Hank looked at Barry’s face desperately, only to see an expression of pure rage- nostrils flared, eyes narrowed, and lips down turned.
Oh shit- Hank thought.
As if reading his mind, the two assholes looked up at them then- recognition dawning on their faces.
They stopped dead in their tracks, raised their hands slowly, heads shaking slightly as they held eye contact with Barry, before backing away several paces and turning to hurry down the street away from them.
Hank let out a sigh of relief as they fled, grateful to not have to go through the pain and shame they dealt out again.
Barry blinked once, then twice and finally turned back towards Hank. He ran his hands over him briefly, leaving one cupped gently around his neck.
“Are you okay?” he asked, eyes empty of rage, and instead filled with concern for his boyfriend.
Hank nodded in reassurance and reached up to pinch one of Barry’s cheeks. He received a bewildered expression in response, making him giggle.
“You look so cute when you are being scary.”
“That makes no sense, how can I be scary and cute at the same time Hank?”
“It must be another one of your like super cool, badass assassin skills”
Barry snickered at that, “Shut up” he scoffed.
“Oh man, you must have scared them for real- you did not have to tell them two times that’s for sure,” Hank continued to tease, he wasn’t afraid anymore- thanks to his brilliant, badass boyfriend.
“Yeah, I’m glad they understood me- now come on, we’ve got a lunch date to get too” Barry said, before taking Hank’s hand in his own again and making their way down the street once more.
Fin