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His hands had seen the blood of hundreds, his shoes stepped on broken bodies, his expression cold in the face of death or danger
But now his hands were fiddling with a single yellow flower, his shoes stamped tracks into the doormat, and his expression nervous while he deliberated the best way to knock and how to seem cool for his really nice friend
As he devised a strategy, the door creaked open, and a single, blazing purple eye peered out. It softened in recognition and it's owner opened the door entirely.
"Welcome, Iso. Gekko was starting to wonder if you were ever going to show up," Reyna greeted, moving aside to let him in.
Iso nodded awkwardly, stiffly shuffling into the house. It smelled like spices and flowers. Looking down the hallway, he noticed Sage standing over the stove.
Reyna left the boy alone, and went to bother her lover, who attempted to wave her away to no avail.
The sound of feet thumping and squishy babbling sounded down the hallway, and Iso's heart jumped into his throat. Why? He was just going to see his friend, no need to be so nervous.
A head of freshly dyed, neon green hair, and a pair of bright hazel eyes appeared out of the hallway. The arms that belonged to that person swiftly wrapped around the statue of a boy, greeting him warmly.
"Iso! You made it! Jeez man, what took you so long?" Gekko asked, throwing an arm over his friend's shoulders and leading him to the room at the end of the hall.
Iso cleared his throat, regaining his composure. "Oh, yeah...uh...I fell..." He coughed, going to sit on Gekko's bed as he usually did.
The room was just like it's owner. Colourful, messy, and warm. The lightningbolt wallpaper was peeling a bit at the edges, the posters were worn out, and the floors had definitely seen better days, but Iso didn't have anywhere else he'd rather be.
Gekko settled down right beside him, his little friends settling on his lap, and pulled out his phone, offering it to his friend.
"You were talking about some new songs you heard, turn them on!" Iso carefully took the phone from him, and put a few songs in their shared playlist, before plugging in his headphones. He carefully put one in his own ear, and the other in Gekko's, before leaning in close so the headphones didn't fall out.
"Hey! I think I heard this one on the radio," Gekko mentioned, resting his head on Iso's shoulder, his hand coming around to rest on his back.
Holy shit. Holy shit holy shit. They were so close. Could he feel Iso's heart jackhammering in his chest? No, he didn't have the same training, but Iso could hear every slight breath and hum Gekko exhaled.
Not in a creepy way, just in an observant way, or so he told himself.
It felt like ages before Iso remembered to breath again, and in that time Reyna knocked on the door to let them know dinner was ready.
Gekko paused the music and let his friends come along on his shoulders.
"Let's go! I think Sage made empanadas!" Gekko smiled, offering a hand to help Iso up. The bed tended to dip really low after so much use, so it was a little difficult to get up.
Iso took his hand, his own hand slightly trembling, before getting up himself.
The five made their way to the kitchen, Sage was moving around, setting the table, and Reyna was washing her hands.
As she was wearing white pants, it was very clear that something was wrong with Sage.
Having been raised by the aunties who ran street stalls, and his own mom who made sure he grew up informed, Gekko recognized it as a period stain.
But Iso didn't have that kind of luxury. Any sight of blood automatically put him into fight or flight.
Just as Gekko was going to gently point out that she had a stain, Iso jumped back and his hand flew to his empty hip. "DID SOMEONE SHOOT YOU?!" He cried, scanning for a threat.
Aziz jumping up at the sudden noise, and Gekko's eyes went wide as he slapped a hand over Iso's mouth.
Sage whipped around, her face bright red and her hands going to cover where she thought the stain would be
At the mention of blood, Reyna turned to inspect her wife, but seeing as there was no visibly open wound, she calmed, and just burst out laughing.
"Oh dear...no...this is...I'm sorry, Reyna. Can I borrow some pants?" Sage mumbled, going over to bury her face in the taller woman's shoulder in shame.
Iso's eyebrows furrowed, confused by the situation. Their friend was bleeding, why wasn't anyone being more worried?
"She's fine! It's a monthly thing girls go through! She's not bleeding...well, she is, but not from a wound!" Gekko whisper-yelled in Iso's ear, wanting to save Sage a bit of embarrassment.
Iso had heard of some feminine bodily function, but he had never seen someone bleed.
Gekko led Iso to the dinner table to explain what a period was, as Reyna helped Sage change and get cleaned up.
Iso was both horrified and impressed, holding a new found respect for his female co-workers at the protocol. He made a mental note to bring little snacks and gifts for whenever any of the girls were feeling irritable.
When Sage returned, she was wearing a pair of black sweatpants, with Reyna's arm on her waist.
"I'm sorry, Sage. I didn't mean to embarrass you..." Iso stated, bowing deeply in apology. Gekko had made sure to explain how awkward it was for a girl to have her period pointed out so publicly, so Iso knew he had to apologize for that.
Sage laughed it off, patting his shoulder. "It's okay, Ah-Li. You didn't know any better...just don't do that in the future," she chuckled, going to sit down at the table.
"Now, let's eat dinner. I hope that didn't gross you out too much?" Iso shook his head furiously, his eyes wide.
"No! Not at all. I find you more impressive now, JieJie," He blurted, hoping to assure her that he didn't think any less of her now.
Sage smiled warmly, giving Gekko an appreciative look.
The radivores on Gekko's shoulders were starting to get hungry, so he let them start eating first.
As his little buddies devoured the plates of food before them, Gekko leaned his elbow on the table, gazing at Iso as he fiddled with his thumbs.
"Huh, I wonder what else I'll have to teach you..." He mumbled, catching Iso's attention.
"What? What does that mean?" Iso replied, a little nervous.
The green haired boy just gave him a wink, that only confused him even more.
Reyna gently slapped Gekko's hand, amused by what his crush seemingly didn't notice.
"Come now, cariño, leave the poor boy alone. Let's eat before your little friends get to it."