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The first time Galo noticed that something was off, he and Lio were out for coffee. They stood at the back of the queue, which wasn't that long but everyone in front of them was taller than Lio. Galo watched Lio rise up onto his tiptoes and try to carefully peer around the heads and shoulders that blocked his view of the menu board. Although Lio always moved with an element of grace, his every motion calculated and executed with elegance, Galo couldn't help his amused smile as he watched Lio squint past the register.
"Do you want me to pick you up?" Galo offered, only half-joking. He placed a hand on the small of Lio's back, but it wasn't so much a demonstration as it was an excuse to touch him.
"If you lift me, I will kill you." Lio's voice was subdued and the threat lacked vitriol. He sighed and sank back onto his heels. "Whatever. I'm just going to get the same thing I always do."
"Black, two sugars?"
"Yup."
"I don't think anyone actually likes black coffee. I think you just like that it makes you look cool." Galo's fingertips traced a path from Lio's spine to his waist. He tugged Lio closer and felt gratified when he leaned into Galo's side without resistance.
"So, you think I look cool."
Even without looking at his face, Galo could tell that Lio was smiling. It made him smile, too. "You always look cool. Even when you've got bed-head and morning breath."
"Shut up."
"And especially when you've got gunk all in your eyes."
"I'm going to murder you," Lio said, trying not to laugh.
Another clue came when Galo and Lio were downtown at a souvenir shop. He watched Lio peruse a book on the city’s architecture, the page an inch away from his nose as he read a footnote at the bottom of a photograph.
"Aren't you meant to be finding a gift for Remi?" Lio asked, his gaze lingering on a diagram of some scrollwork.
"Yeah, but I dunno what he likes."
"And staring at me will inspire you to find something?"
Galo flashed a cocky grin that let Lio know he was about to say something either incredibly dumb or incredibly endearing. "Well, I do find you pretty inspirational.”
Lio snapped the book shut and thumped it on Galo's chest. “Stop that.”
“Hey, Lio,” Galo began carefully, as the final clue fit into place, “I think you might be nearsighted.”
“Why would you think that?” Lio asked, feigning nonchalance. A bead of sweat slid down his temple.
“Well, your aim has been kinda off lately. You’re usually way better at this than me.” Galo gestured across the open field to the target they had been shooting at, where arrows with neon green and pink fletching were clustered around the bullseye. “And just now, you almost shot Gueira.”
“I still hit the target.”
“Yeah,” Galo agreed, but the word lilted. Lio’s green arrow was at the edge of the final circle.
“He wasn’t there a moment ago,” Lio pouted.
“No, he wasn’t. But you probably should have noticed him. Did you?”
“No. Do you think he noticed?”
“Boss!” Gueira shrieked.
Galo cupped one hand around his mouth and spoke to Lio in a stage whisper. “Yeah, I think he noticed.”
“Is this about the eggs?” Gueira bellowed across the field.
Lio took a deep breath and shouted at him. “What eggs?”
"Never mind!" Gueira yelled back. Meis appeared at his side a moment later, yanking Gueira away from the archery target, and they engaged in yelling at each other instead. Lio could only distinguish a few words from their overlapping raised voices, but it seemed to be an ongoing argument about eggs.
"We should go to an eye doctor," Galo suggested.
There were several things in that statement that Lio wanted to comment on-- primarily, Galo's use of the word 'we'-- but he settled on a one-word response that addressed all of his concerns: "No."
"No?"
"It's not that bad."
"You almost shot Gueira."
"But I didn't. And if I had, he would have thanked me for it."
"Weird, but probably true," Galo agreed. He brushed his fingers through Lio's bangs, pushing them aside for a better view of his eyes. "We should get them checked out anyway, just in case it's something else."
"'We' again," Lio muttered unhappily, but Galo just smiled at him.
"You want me to go with you, right?"
"Don't assume that," Lio said. But when Galo ruffled his hair and laughed, Lio felt his face flush. And later, when Galo texted him information for an eye doctor that Heris recommended, Lio made an appointment and forwarded the confirmation to Galo.
<can i ASSUME that we’ll get lunch b4 ur appt?> Galo texted him back.
“Cheeky.” Lio smiled at the screen and tapped out his reply. <You may.>
Lio heard a reverberating boom from somewhere outside the station. He tensed on instinct, every muscle coiled and ready to fight, but then he realized that the casual atmosphere of the break room hadn’t changed. Aina glanced up from the magazine she had been reading, staring off in the direction that the sound had come from.
“Geeze, do they start earlier every year?”
“You sound like my grandmother when you say stuff like that,” Remi said.
“Shut up!”
Fireworks, Lio remembered. He slowly released the breath he had been holding and unclenched his fists, only to be startled by Galo bursting through the door in the next moment.
“Fireworks!” Galo shouted jubilantly, slapping his hands on the door frame and pushing off for an extra burst of speed. He rushed across the room-- Aina pivoted her legs out of the way just in time to avoid a collision-- and grabbed Lio’s hand, pulling him up from the couch. “Come on come on come on!”
“Okay, okay!” Lio scrambled after him, yanking his uniform jacket off the back of the couch.
“Take the radio in case we get another call. The intercom doesn’t work up there.” Remi held up a walkie-talkie and Lio quickly snatched it from his hand before Galo could pull him out of range.
“Make sure it’s on ‘mute,’” Varys said. “I’m not interested in hearing anything I shouldn’t.”
“I am,” Lucia cackled, which was unsettling enough for Lio to remember to check for it later on.
Galo didn’t let go of Lio’s hand until they were on the roof, which made their journey up the stairwell challenging but fun. He sprinted across the concrete until he reached the edge closest to the fireworks. There was a large street party a few blocks over and Galo could hear the distant echo of the crowds, lost somewhere underneath the boom-crackle of fireworks. They weren’t close enough for a proper view, but they could see the bloom and glow of the lights in the gaps between the buildings that blocked their view.
Lio triple-checked that the radio wasn’t set to broadcast before setting it down. He joined Galo in sitting on the ledge of the roof, their legs danging into open air. There was a lull in the show, but then a new series of explosions began in brilliant shades of red and yellow. Galo gasped and leaned sharply to the side for a better view, knocking his head into Lio’s.
“Sorry!”
Lio laughed and waved Galo off when he tried to inspect his head for a bruise, but he pat the concrete between them in invitation. “I wasn’t sure if you liked fireworks. I’m glad that you do.”
“Why? Oh right, because fire.” Galo moved closer, his hand touching Lio’s. He made a startled sound and picked up Lio’s hand, holding it with both of his own. “We’ve been outside for two minutes and you’re already this cold?!”
“It’s winter, Galo. And someone didn’t give me time to grab my gloves.”
“I’ll take responsibility!”
“Don’t say it like that.”
Galo wrapped his arm around Lio’s shoulders and held him so that he was pressed to his side. He noticed that the fireworks were beginning to slow in frequency again. “I think they’re getting ready for another set. Can you see alright?”
Lio heard the unasked question. “I don’t need my glasses for watching lights.”
“But they’re pretty lights,” Galo said. He didn’t push the issue any further, but after a pause and some light grumbling, Lio reached into an inner pocket of his jacket and took out a hard shell eyeglass case.
“I’m still not used to the weight, but it does help.” Lio slid the glasses up his nose and frowned at Galo. “Don’t stare.”
“Sorry,” Galo said with a grin.
Lio leaned his head against Galo’s shoulder. “To be honest, I knew I was having trouble with my vision. But I was hoping it would go away.”
“That’s not how eyes work.”
“That’s how they worked before.”
“Huh. Does that have something to do with the Promare?”
Lio nodded. “I’ve been nearsighted before, but it’s always righted itself. I think it’s because I needed to regenerate all the time while I was fighting.”
Galo wondered if that meant that Lio did a general full-body healing thing or if his eyes specifically had been injured on several occasions. He decided that he didn’t want to know and rubbed his hand up and down Lio’s arm. Another barrage of fireworks started up and there was a sudden rise in volume from the partygoers down in the streets below.
“That must be midnight,” Lio said, turning to face Galo with a smile. “Happy--”
Galo pressed his lips to Lio’s, gently at first but then he felt Lio’s sharp intake of breath and the rise of his chest. He felt the stifled whine at the back of Lio’s throat and the shockwave that went through him was far louder than the fireworks. Galo raised his other hand and he pressed his fingertips to Lio’s jaw, tilting his head just so, and Lio fisted his hands in the collar of Galo’s jacket. They deepened the kiss, not stopping until Lio started to crawl onto Galo’s lap without realizing it and nearly upset their balance on the ledge.
“Well,” Galo said, breathing hard and grinning from ear to ear, “Bet you didn’t see that coming.”
Lio let out an exaggerated groan, but it didn’t match his pleased expression. “How long were you saving that one?”
“A few days.”