Archive of Our Own

Mack’s not a suspicious person by nature. Not really. He trusts that the people in his life will tell him things, especially if they could in any way, shape or form concern him and the people he loves. Especially, especially, if it involves someone from Mack’s hockey sphere.

So yes, Mack’s a trusting person. He waits patiently for people to tell him things (unless it’s Will who Mack knows is okay with his pushing) and he handles it all with the grace and confidence he can muster at his big age of twenty.

But Aiden’s definitely keeping a secret from him, and Mack doesn’t even know how to get to the bottom of it, he only knows that he absolutely has to. He has to, because Aiden’s the one person who takes forever to tell Mack things, who waits until things are all sorted before he talks, and Mack’s not waiting forever to get the story of this secret. No way. Not this time. He’s already waited long enough.

And sure, Mack will feel guilty if it’s something deeply serious that Aiden’s keeping hushed for a reason, but it doesn’t feel that way. This feels different. So, a few days after his birthday, Mack decides he’s going to get backup (he’s already mentally drafting a text to Will) and he’s going to investigate why on earth Aiden keeps behaving so weird.

--

Mack
hey, i need ur help with sumthign
aidens being really weird
still
want to help me figure out y

Will
Oh youre finally doing something about this, thank god.
Im in.

--

Mack’s suspicions were first spiked in March as the season crept closer to its cluttered end. He’d been at Aiden’s dorm, paying his brother a visit before he had to go and play Boston at the TD Garden. It had been going normal and fine. Mack was embarrassing Aiden in front of his dormmates and receiving plenty of love and affection from them in response.

It was when they’d been left alone and Mack had gotten Aiden’s phone in his hands, some funny moment from the latest BU practice playing away, that things sparked alight. The clip was funny, and Aiden’s teammates were just as dumb and chaotic as Mack remembered them to be, but it had all bled from his mind when a text notification came through, the sound loud and chirping in the relative quiet of Aiden’s dorm.

Mack didn’t even get to read any of the message before the phone was gone, Aiden all but throwing himself to the other side of the couch. He was curled around his phone like a comma, and Mack was left blinking at nothing. His hands were still stuck like he was holding the phone, it’d been that abrupt.

That wasn’t typical Aiden behaviour, far from it, and really, Mack should’ve started investigating a lot sooner after that, but he didn’t think anything bad of it. Not at all. When Aiden had snatched his phone away like Mack had started blaring porn from his speakers or something, Mack didn’t let it last in his head for longer than a minute. He just held his hands up in surrender and leant back against his half of the couch.

“Did you, um… did you see anything?” Aiden had asked. Mack hummed in question as he met Aiden’s gaze before shaking his head once he realised what Aiden meant. “Oh, um. Okay. Good.”

Mack merely looked back at the TV again to hide his smirk. “You can keep your little girlfriend or whatever a secret, it doesn’t bother me.” There’d been a spluttering then before Aiden was diving into his space, fists flying at Mack as he told him to ‘shut the hell up’ and ‘mind your business’. It’d been a distraction from Aiden’s behaviour, but Mack had leant into it.

He trusted his brother to tell him whenever he was ready, after all.

--

Mack, you see, is not the only one working on an investigation. Will has had his eyes and ears all fixed on Leno for a few months now, a tip-off from Gabe in early January about their friend’s behaviour setting him on the hunt.

Even with things being a bit less cozy and familiar between them, Will still cares for Leno, still wants the best for him, and if he’s acting weird, skittish and shy and quieter than usual, then Will needs to step in and figure out what’s wrong. Because something most definitely is wrong, but Will knows that just asking Leno is a surefire way to get a closed-off, avoidant friend for a few days.

Gabe knows that too. That’s why he’d gone to Will instead.

And in an unusual twist for him, Will doesn’t tell Mack. After all, Mack’s made his thoughts on Leno more than clear and Will doesn’t need Mack’s bias muddying his investigative waters. So, he tucks that slice of his thoughts into a mental pocket, and makes it seem that there’s nothing going on in his head that doesn’t pertain to San Jose or the lingering aches from his injury.

--

Mack forgets about the Boston incident until the next questioning thing pops up.

It was in April that time, the final dredging days of the season, and Aiden wasn’t there. The rest of his family were. He could see his mum and dad chatting to each other, Charlie waving her arms at him maniacally every chance she got, and RJ with his head jammed into his phone. It would’ve seemed normal if Aiden had been there.

But he wasn’t. Because Aiden was in Washington, D.C., for some reason, and Mack hadn’t figured out why. As far as Mack knew, Aiden had no friends out that way, all of them instead being scattered across Boston and Vancouver. It made no sense, and he was a bit frustrated by it all, to be honest.

In that moment, skating circles across the ice as he waited for the left goal to be put back into place, Mack remembered March, remembered Boston. He remembered the uncharacteristic way Aiden had behaved, snatching his phone back and turning awkward as he asked Mack if he’d seen the text.

Aiden’s mystery girl (because that’s what Mack and Will had settled on as an explanation) was in Washington, wasn’t she?

Mack didn’t hesitate. He hadn’t even started investigating properly by then, but Will heard everything Mack thought, no matter how weird or out-there it was, so off he went towards the bench, towards his blonde-haired, blue-eyed, American wet dream of a boyfriend. “Smitty!”

“What?” Will responded, turning away from Toff with an overexaggerated eyeroll. Mack was pretty sure he’d gotten lost in Will’s eyes for a little bit then, but that was hardly integral to the situation with Aiden, so he’d buried it down and focused on saying what he had to say.

“You remember when Aiden was being weird in Boston? I think his girl is in D.C.,” Mack said. Will had fixed him with a look so strong, Mack was surprised he’d still been standing. “Why are you looking at me like that?” Mack had said. He’d pouted too, obviously. It always made Will’s eyes drop to his mouth, and Mack liked that.

“It took you this long to figure it out?” Will said. Mack had wrinkled his nose and slapped his stick off of Will’s helmet before zooming back to centre ice, ready to take the faceoff without Will on his line.

Mack had thought his observation was clever, but apparently not. And he’d gotten grumpy then, throwing his all into the faceoff. It worked, allowing them to score a goal, but Mack had still been simmering with frustration as he ended his shift and sat on the bench.

Why hadn’t Aiden trusted him enough to tell him the truth? Mack hadn’t even known Aiden was in D.C. until his parents had rocked up to Bridgestone Arena without him. Even then, it’d been Charlie who’d explain where their missing older brother was. Not his parents, not Aiden.

“Come on, maybe it’s not that serious between them,” Will had said a few minutes later when they were wedged together on the bench, his voice breaking through Mack’s thoughts. “Just trust him, yeah?” Mack huffed and nodded and pushed all thoughts of his older brother from his brain until the game was over, a win under their belt alongside confirmation that they hadn’t qualified for the Playoffs that year. Bittersweet.

Aiden would tell him when he was ready… right?

--

Mack
y r u in dc?

Aiden
??
I’m not in DC.
Who told you that?

Mack
then y arent u in nashville
aiden?
dude..

--

The season ends with a bang that’s too little, and much too late. They win against the Jets on the road, a steady enough 6-1, but the season’s over, they’re not in the Playoffs, and Will still hasn’t figured out why Leno’s acting weird. Gabe’s been trying to find answers too, but he’s been busy, a new relationship fogging his brain, so it’s mostly up to Will to get to the bottom of it all.

Will finally gets to meet up with Gabe again a few days after the season ends, however. It’s a somewhat impromptu meet up, an idea hastily thrown together after the pair had discovered that Leno’s in Vancouver, of all places, but it worked out. Will had flown out to New York only a few hours after Gabe had come back from Calgary.

“I’m telling you, the way Lenny’s acting… it’s too serious to be just a casual fling,” Gabe says. The pair of them are squished side by side on Gabe’s single seater armchair, a casual level of intimacy from years of hockey roadies together coming out with ease, like they don’t spend months of the year away from each other.

“You think?” Will asks. They’re flicking through Leno’s Instagram and Snapchat stories, over and over, assessing them in detail for any hints or clues. Will finds himself wondering if he has something, but then Gabe points out that it’s totally normal, and vice versa. They’re no closer to uncovering the truth than they were months ago.

And then Gabe refreshes Instagram.

“New story,” he says. Will leans over Gabe’s shoulder to peer at the screen, and he’s pretty sure both of their jaws drop in sync when they see what shows up. It’s a link to Leno’s new Instagram post and Will doesn’t even have time to open his mouth and ask Gabe to click it before Gabe is doing exactly that.

The post loads and Gabe scrolls through it with exaggerated flicking motions. Each one is more rewarding, more revealing, than the last. It starts off simple – a shared meal, a hoodie-clad arm visible at the edges of an elevator mirror selfie – before it turns sweeter, stronger, more romantic. Undeniably so.

“Fucking hell,” Will says when Gabe swipes to the last photo. It’s confirmation (vindication for Gabe) of everything they’ve been looking for. Leno’s chain, the one Will’s never seen him without, rests in the palm of his hand, framing the new charm he’s added to it. A simple letter ‘a’, in elegant, refined script.

“It’s a girlfriend,” Gabe says. Will exhales a heady rush of breath, leans further into Gabe’s side, and starts swiping back through the photos. It all certainly stacks up that way. The dinner spread over a fancy tablecloth, the hoodie sleeve that Will now recognises as one of Leno’s wrapped around an arm that most definitely is someone else’s, the faintly visible hearts drawn on the edges of a napkin. The letter ‘a’ charm. “Will.”

“Yeah?” Will says. He doesn’t tear his gaze away from the ‘a’ charm until he registers the lack of response from Gabe. He looks then, only to find Gabe smirking. “Dude, relax your mouth and tell me what the fuck you’re thinking.”

“We have a new thing we can investigate,” Gabe says, still smirking. And oh. Oh. Will’s into this. Will is so down for this. He doesn’t even speak, just turns and smirks back at Gabe. They burst out laughing together seconds later, like the little boys they once were, and immediately open Leno’s following list.

--

Mack
did leno just softlaunch on his insta

Will
I thought you didnt follow him?

Mack
came up when i was scrollign

Will
Well okay then.
I think so.
No idea who it is.

Mack
damn ok
good for him, ig

--

Mack was at World’s the third time Aiden got weird.

As captain of team Canada, Mack was busier than anybody. By the time he was finally free to leave, the USA vs. Switzerland game was already well underway. Mack had paid it no mind, uncaring who won as knowing who his opponents were going to be wouldn’t matter until after they progressed to the quarterfinals.

And they would progress. He was sure of it.

But maybe he should’ve paid more attention to the game.

Once Mack had collapsed into the privacy of his hotel room, he wasted no time in calling his brother. It had become a habit by then, calling Aiden to see how he was after every game Mack played. It was grounding, in a way. And he’d call Will after, too, when everything was sleepier for him, so Will could whisper him to sleep the way Mack missed from on the road.

But first, Aiden.

The only sound that Mack heard when Aiden connected the call was his older brother’s sharp intake of breath.

“Aiden? You good?”

“Hi, sorry,” Aiden said, still not looking down at the camera. He was more focused on whatever was happening before him. He hissed again before huffing when a whistle sounded. “Sorry, watching the team USA game.”

Mack remembered blinking owlishly, confused out of his mind as to why Aiden was watching team USA play. Some misplaced sense of duty or honor considering he played for an American university team? Mack was never quite sure. All he knew was that he was confused and Aiden was very, very distracted.

“Dude, did you even watch my game?” Mack drawled. Aiden had startled and finally turned his attention to Mack then, a sheepish grin on his face.

“Course I did. Watched it with dad, mum, Charlie and RJ,” Aiden said. That only worsened Mack’s confusion. How was Aiden watching team USA without his family booing the place down? “They’ve all scattered now, so no chance of speaking to ‘em if that’s what you wanted.”

“Oh, that explains how you’re able to watch team USA in peace,” Mack huffed. Bratty, sure, but it had paid off when Aiden flushed bright pink, like Mack had said something embarrassing, and Mack couldn’t help himself. He sat up and fixed his gaze on his brother, even through the pixellated phone screen and the thousands of miles of distance between them. “Aiden. Why are you watching team USA?”

“Why not?” Aiden muttered. And Mack, in his post-match exhaustion, in his desire to call Will, in his belief that Aiden would tell him literally anything, foolishly let it go. He shrugged and snuggled back down into his sheets, fighting exhaustion as Aiden updated him on his day. It was after the fifth yawn that Aiden finally let him go and only then did Mack think about it.

Aiden had blushed. Blushed. It didn’t make any sense.

(Mack would think back on this moment once he started his investigation and curse himself for not remembering it, or interrogating it any deeper beyond a brief conversation with Will, but he was tired and the prospect of falling asleep to Will’s voice was more alluring than anything else, so he sank into his desires and forgot all about Aiden for the night.)

--

Gabe
Updates – Leno followed two girls last night, both names beginning with a.
You reckon it’s one of them?

Will
It makes no sense.
Why would he follow his girlfriend after soft launching her?
Are you sure we didnt miss anyone?

--

It’s Matt who spots it, funnily enough. He makes a strangled noise, startling Will and Gabe from their detective-ing in the armchair, before he snatches up the remote and rewinds. “Look. He kisses the ‘a’. I’m sure of it,” Matt says.

Gabe and Will sit up as one, leaning closer to the screen to see what Matt had spotted. Will feels a bit weird being this close to Gabe when Gabe’s boyfriend is only a handful of inches away, but Matt’s chill, so Will tamps down the curse of Christian guilt within him and focuses on Leno.

Sure enough, the far-away, trapped in a screen, version of him twirls his fingers round the chain as the anthems come to an end before he grabs the ‘a’ charm and kisses it. Will hears Gabe suck in a breath before he starts laughing, the sound giggly and carefree.

“Oh my god, he’s hiding a girlfriend from us and yet is being a sap about it on live TV,” Gabe says. Will huffs and pushes Gabe’s face away from him before he stands up. Matt smiles at Gabe in a way that is so ridiculously fond and if Will didn’t know how bad he was with Mack, he’d probably have hurled or asked them to fuck off by now.

But alas. They’re his only companions in the matter of investigating Leno, so he has to suck it up and deal with it. He misses Mack, though. Almost violently.

Will’s phone rings in that moment and he almost startles before remembering the time in Switzerland. It’s most definitely Mack, calling after his game. Will grabs his phone from the table and excuses himself from Gabe and Matt’s company, heading up to Gabe’s spare room that he’s been hogging.

“Hi Mackie,” Will says in greeting, sprawling out on the sheets. Mack’s puffy, sleepy face fills his screen, and he can’t stop the smile that overtakes his features. Mack’s so beautiful that it makes Will ache sometimes.

“Aiden’s watching team USA and I don’t know why,” Mack says in lieu of a greeting. His voice is foggy with exhaustion and Will can imagine kissing him in his hotel bed, tasting the words on his tongue, the two of them sharing quiet giggles when Mack inevitably yawns into a kiss.

God, he misses him.

“Is that supposed to be weird or something?” Will asks. Mack glares at him through the screen and Will holds a hand up in surrender, smiling again when it makes Mack giggle. The sound barely reaches his ears through the distance and the damaged filter of his phone speaker, but his mind fills in the rest like it’s nothing.

“He was blushing about it, Willy. Why was he blushing?” Mack’s pouting and it’s so distracting that Will has to look away to answer, otherwise he might blurt out something stupid and soppily romantic.

“That is weird. Did you ask him why?” Will asks. He already knows the answer, knows it’s a no because Mack’s weirdly sweet about respecting people and their secrets, and it makes Will feel fucking sick sometimes, but he still asks. Always.

“No. Was too tired, just wanted to call you,” Mack admits. His voice is sheepish and shy. It’s adorable.

“Well, I’m here,” Will says, letting the topic of Aiden trail off. He knows Mack’s torn on how to feel about the entire situation, so he won’t push and prod at the conversation topic. He’ll let Mack guide it until he feels ready to push it further than normal.

Mack hums and nuzzles further into the sheets, a full body wiggle that Will’s called cute more times than he probably should’ve. Mack blinks up at Will through the camera, all coy and sweet. “Tell me about your day so far…?”

--

Gabe
Whipped.
[photo attached]

Will
Gfy, Gabe.
We cant all live with our boyfriends during the offseason.
(Thnx for the pic.)

--

Third time wasn’t the charm. Mack still hadn’t started investigating by the time Canada played against America. It was a chance to rectify their mistake at the Olympics, to beat the reigning gold medallists. Mack was determined to take it.

It was after Macklin had scored the first of the goals that afternoon that he spotted Aiden. He was with the rest of their family, unlike the game in Nashville at the end of the regular season, and yet, he still looked like he wasn’t really with them. His family were all wearing some manner of red clothing to show support for team Canada, but Aiden… he had blue on.

As he’d made his way back to the bench, Mack had kept muttering it’s just a colour, it’s just a colour, it’s just a fucking colour under his breath, until Fraser had clamped a hand down on his shoulder and asked him what the fuck was wrong. Mack had shrugged him off with a smile, wedged himself between Minty and Sidney on the bench, and thanked whoever existed out there that his family were sitting behind him.

And yet, after three more goals and a victorious triumph over America, Mack forgot about all of it. The colour, the way it seemed like Leno was perpetually finding ways to be in Mack’s space and oh. Yeah. That had happened, hadn’t it?

Mack had shrugged it off at first, assumed it was just Ryan Leonard doing Ryan Leonard things, maybe something about Will, but it got to a point where even Sid noticed and asked if there was something going on between them, unresolved tension. Mack had blinked and responded that he really had no idea. Because he didn’t.

But then they’d scored four and won, proven their point that America really wasn’t better than them, and that was it. Mack dove into his celebrations, got drunk for the third time with Dickie whilst Minty dithered about like a mother hen, and all manners of weird behaviour were gone from his head.

And like a fool, he let them.

--

“Next time,” Will says. Gabe and Matt are both sat in silence, staring at the phone in Will’s hand like it’s a ticking time bomb, and Will would laugh if it wasn’t Leno on the other end of the line. Leno whose more insecure than either Will or Gabe, despite what people think. Leno who would freak out if Will started laughing for no reason. “Seriously, next time, you guys are gonna smoke it.”

“Hopefully you’ll be with us. You and Gabe,” Leno says with a huff. There’s a rustle of fabric that Will assumes is Leno’s bedsheets and he winces when he thinks about how late it must be over in Switzerland right now. He thinks about Mack cancelling their nightly call in favour of getting drunk.

“Hopefully, yeah. What are your plans for now? Sleep before the plane home tomorrow?” Will’s asks. It seems innocuous enough, but from the way Gabe and Matt lean forward, Will knows they know what he’s really asking, really trying to root for.

“Think so, yeah. Not gotten a–” Leno trails off as someone knocks at his door. “Hold on, lemme just…” Leno stands with a grunt, and Will widens his eyes in Gabe’s direction. Matt’s holding back his laughter, face buried in Gabe’s spine in a way that looks painful for them both, but Gabe’s frozen into stillness, body tense with anticipation. “Oh hey. You made it. Um, listen, Will. I’ll text you tomorrow, yeah? Sorry, just. Unexpected turn of events.”

“Of course. Is everything alright?” Will’s fingers shoot up to curl around his chain, holding on for the answers he so desperately needs. There’s a voice muttering on the other end of the line and Will wishes the audio quality was that little bit better, that little bit sharper so he could discern who it is.

And maybe he’s just missing him, all too aware of how Mack is currently partying it up, but it sounds like Mack, somehow. God, Will might just be going insane. Lovesick.

“Yeah, just um. A is, um, a friend is here. Look, talk later, yeah?” Leno says, sounding more distracted than he ever has before, and then he’s gone, call ended, the connection between them severed in a crude fashion. Will stares at his phone screen in astonishment.

“His girl just rocked up to Zurich, didn’t she?”

“Fribourg,” Gabe corrects softly. He’s puzzled, Will can tell, his eyebrows furrowed and his hands tangling knots around each other. “Besides,” Gabe looks up, “I think Will’s gonna agree with me here. That didn’t sound like a girl.”

--

Mack
aiddddddddddddennnnnnnn
who r u seeing

Aiden
Oh my god, you’re drunk again, aren’t you?

Mack
kdgnavldsgldl

Aiden
Mack?
Please tell me you just fell asleep and aren’t hurt or something.

Mack
He fell into a bush. I’m getting him back to the hotel safely, don’t worry. -Fraser

Aiden
Thank you.
Let me know if you need any help.

--

Home sweet off-season home. Mack was so glad to be back in Vancouver, back with his parents. He’d been so ready to train with Minty and Bedsy, and he knew it was going to be one of the best times ever.

Little did he know, he’d be starting an investigation soon enough.

It’d been a normal day when Mack finally got tipped over into full-blown suspiciousness and concern. His birthday had been a few days away, the big two-zero, and Mack was bothering everyone by how little he seemingly cared for it. Because, at the end of the day, he didn’t really care. It wasn’t the big, seemingly all important twenty-one, and Mack was always a bit uncomfortable when he was the centre of attention. At least in hockey, he could deflect onto his team. He couldn’t do that with his birthday.

Thankfully, a new distraction popped up for him, just in time – Aiden’s random pattern of disappearances. Much like everything else, Mack hadn’t thought about it at first, but it got to a point where he couldn’t ignore it. Aiden was always typing, head in his phone, screen turned away whenever anyone sat near him.

Then he’d started disappearing upstairs to ‘take calls’, vanishing for hours on end. It took only two of these calls for Mack and his parents to realise they had nothing to do with hockey. Hockey calls didn’t last that long, not even the most serious ones.

Which meant that, when Mack’s parents confronted him, asked him if he knew what was going on, Mack wasn’t surprised. Aiden was always willing to tell things to Mack (admittedly months down the line), but he rarely told their parents the more personal things he went through. And this time… this time, Mack was also totally clueless.

“Is he seeing someone?” His dad had asked and it was like a fuse had been lit. The fact that his parents were so out of hockey-related options made Mack decide he had to act sooner rather than later. He needed to, because if Aiden was seeing someone, like Mack had assumed, like Will had too, then Mack wanted to know that information.

He might’ve been the younger brother, but Mack was fiercely protective of Aiden, and he wasn’t going to let some total loser break his brother’s heart. No way.

And Mack swears, he didn’t want to involve Will at first. Will was still in New York with Gabe, doing whatever it was they were doing. Not training, though, Mack knew that much. But the night after his birthday left him with no real choice.

He’d been on the phone, waiting for Will to come back from whatever thing he was doing to help Gabe, when he heard the giggles start up. They were coming from Aiden’s room, which was next to Mack’s, and Mack sat up with a frown. It was a noise he’d never heard from his brother before, and to say he was curious would be an understatement.

So, Mack had gotten out of his nest of blankets, padded to the door, and peered out into the hallway. Aiden’s room light was on, the faintest traces of it seeping out under the door. Mack crossed over and pressed his ear against the wood. He could hear the faint hum of Aiden’s voice, but the words were indecipherable, so Mack made the worst mistake.

He knocked.

Aiden’s voice cut off at once and it was silent, deathly so. Mack huffed and pressed down on the handle, barging into Aiden’s room without care for what his brother had to say. What greeted him was a pink-cheeked, wide-eyed Aiden, his phone clutched to his chest. The sight of him sent Macklin back to March again, back to Boston, to the first time Aiden had acted this suspiciously. Something lit up in Mack’s chest, something that he hastily tampered down to deal with later.

“Are you okay? I heard noises like you were crying,” Mack lied and oh. Oh, he hated lying to his big brother. Aiden huffed out a breath of laughter that sounded far too relieved, and Mack wanted to pounce, to grab his brother by the shoulders and rattle him back and forth til the truth spilled from his mouth like coins from a ripped open purse.

“Yeah, no, I’m fine. Was, uh, was laughing at something one of the guys sent in the group chat. Sorry. What about you? You good?” Aiden responded. Mack nodded and apologised for his interruptions before he left. When he got back to his phone, Will was there, concerned over his missing boyfriend.

“Aiden was being weird again,” Mack had muttered once Will inquired.

“You wanna talk about it?” Will offered. Mack should’ve said yes, should’ve kickstarted his investigation that night, but he didn’t. He shut it down, retreated into his shell, and let Will talk at him instead until sleep tugged his eyes closed and his brain off.

When Mack woke up in the morning, he remembered.

--

Gabe
I would come to you, but Matt’s pinning me down and snoring into my neck right now.
Go check Leno’s new story.
He posted it at 3am.
3am, dude.

Will
Oh my god.
This relationship is serious fror him, isnt it?

Gabe
Uh-huh.
The only people I call for more than three hours at a time are Matt and uhhhhh…
Oh yeah, Matt.

Will
Wait, did you notice the second initial in the contact name?
AC.
I think we have another clue.

Gabe
Good spot. Time to go hunting.

Will
Lets do it.

--

It’s closer to June than July and Mack’s been investigating Aiden for weeks now, but he’s making no forward progress. There’s been parties and family gatherings, and Aiden’s disappeared from them all, always the second his phone rings. It’s definitely someone he’s seeing, there’s no doubt about that, but the question is still who?

And then there’s the matter of Ryan Leonard. Which, okay. Not who Macklin thought he’d ever be making himself think about, but Will had told Mack about his investigations into Leno a few nights after Mack had started his searching, and now the pair are working in tandem with Gabe and Matt.

Neither pair has gotten answers.

Mack sighs again, snagging Minty’s attention. They’re supposed to be training, but Mack had slipped on the ice so many times that Bedsy had called it quits and forced Mack through the boards and onto the benches until he’d calmed down. Mack wasn’t quite there yet, obviously.

“What’s up?” Fraser asks.

“Just… you ever notice someone’s acting weird and you trust that they’ll tell you, but so far, you’ve heard nothing?” Mack says. He hadn’t meant to drag Fraser or Connor into this, but after helping them untangle their relationship drama the day prior (a situation involving one Easton Cowan and a mess of a love triangle that was actually just mutual three-way romantic interest), Mack found himself once again stuck on the topic of Aiden. His mind was drawing a bunch of conclusions and all of them were nonsensical, all muddied and hard to see clearly like some kind of Rorschach test.

“Hm, sometimes. I usually just ask them what’s going on, to be honest,” Connor says. Blunt and exactly the worst tactic for Mack to employ in this case. He sighs and drags a hand down his face.

“Con, honey, that only worked because Easton’s in love with you and doesn’t quite know how to tell you no just yet,” Fraser says. Mack watches as Connor sticks his tongue out, and Fraser smiles at him. It’s disgusting how in love with each other they are, but Mack is sure he’s not much better with Will.

God, he misses Will.

“It’s Aiden. He keeps disappearing from hours on end to take these phone calls. He, he hides his phone screen when texting, but only sometimes, and he’s so eager to get back to Boston before his classes start again. I don’t get it,” Mack says. He drags a hand through his hair, wincing as he snags at a knot, before he sighs and grabs a water bottle. The icy water is bitter against his teeth, and he swallows it down with a wince.

“He’s gonna be at that big party, right? The one Sid’s hosting?” Connor says. He’s practically sat in Fraser’s lap now; one leg curled around Fraser’s and his chin on Fraser’s shoulder. If Mack has one thing going for him over these two, it’s that he’s nowhere near as clingy as them. Far from it.

“Yeah,” Mack says, confused as to where this is going.

“If he disappears, follow him,” Connor suggests, and oh. Oh, it’s just that easy, huh? The party will be busy and crowded, knowing how many people Sid’s invited, and Mack can easily just blend in with the other guests if Aiden starts to get suspicious of his new shadow.

“Oh my god, Connor, you’re a genius! Thank you, I could almost kiss you right now, I swear,” Mack says, jubilant at the prospect of having something to do, some way to continue his sniffing around. There’s a snort of laughter in response from Connor, and a fond huff from Fraser, before Fraser fixes Mack with a look that makes Mack blush and duck his head.

“Please don’t kiss my boyfriend. Easton might try and fight you if you did.”

--

Will
Have you seen Leno?

Gabe
Just left my side.
He was acting suspicious.
His phone lit up with a notification and then he stood up and just vanished.
Apparently Leno said he was heading to the bathroom, but that’s what Matt heard, so don’t trust him completely.

Will
Noted.
Me and Mack are on it.

--

Will squeezes Mack’s hand before pulling it up to his mouth and dropping a kiss on the back of his palm, just to see Mack smile. It lasts for all of two seconds before Mack’s making a strangled, cut-off noise. He gestures with his hand, at a total loss for words, and Will freezes when he sees what’s in front of them.

Aiden. It’s Aiden Celebrini and he’s heading towards the same room Will just watched Leno walk into, the same room Will and Mack were just about to go and creepily stand close to. His mind starts racing, scrambling, trying to connect the dots. How are they linked? Is it coincidence, or what? Will’s thinking through it all until Mack starts dragging him forward and then it hits him.

“Oh my fucking god. Leno’s dating someone with the initials AC. AC as in…” Will turns to look at Mack, and they’re in sync when they say, “Aiden Celebrini.”

“No way,” Mack hisses, backing Will up against a wall. “Tell me he’s not going into the room with Leno. Please.” Will swallows and shakes his head as he shifts his gaze to look at the room over Mack’s broad shoulder. It’s distractingly broad but Will’s a good scout so he forces himself to focus even harder.

“I… I can’t tell you that.”

“Fuck,” Mack says, dropping his head onto Will’s collarbone. Will hums, eyes still fixed on the room, the door slightly ajar from where Aiden hadn’t closed it properly. He lifts his free hand up to soothe through Mack’s hair until Mack finally lifts his head back up. “We have to get closer.”

“Careful, door’s still open,” Will whispers. Mack’s head whips around, and Will can see the shift in his temples as Mack narrows his eyes.

“Let’s go, but keep quiet, yeah?”

“Okay.”

They creep closer on quiet feet, hoping against hope that no one comes upstairs and spots them, especially not one of the older, more experienced players Sid invited. Will doesn’t feel like explaining himself to what could potentially be one of his idols today. No thanks.

Mack peeks through the gap in the door briefly before pulling back with a shake of the head. Nothing visible, then. Will presses a quick kiss to Mack’s cheek before leaning in closer to the door. Voices greet his ears immediately and Will’s eyes widen at what he’s hearing. Mack looks much the same.

“How has it already been three months since I last got to kiss you, baby?” It’s Leno speaking and Will has to clamp a hand over his mouth. Leno. Aiden. Leno and Aiden. That’s… it’s… Will’s confused. How is this a thing? Since when was this a thing? How did those two even get in contact?

“I don’t know, sweetheart, but you can kiss me now, if you want. There’s no one here.” And yes, that’s definitely Aiden. Mack mouths his brother’s name in shock, and Will squeezes Mack’s hand again, ignoring the way his own brain scatters even further into a haze of confusion. Leno may be like a brother to Will, but he’s not his actual brother, not in the way Aiden is for Mack. He can only imagine what Mack’s thinking.

“Come here then,” Leno huffs with a whine, and then they’re kissing. Will can hear it. Mack wrinkles his nose before slowly pushing the door open. Will panics and tries to stop him, but it’s too late, the door is wide open and, mercifully, neither Leno nor Aiden seemed to have realised it.

Leno’s sat on the empty desk, Aiden between his thighs, and they’re kissing. Passionately. Far more passionately than Will would’ve expected from either of them, especially with each other. Leno’s practically plastered himself to Aiden’s front, his hands curled in the collar of Aiden’s shirt. The material strains over Aiden’s shoulders and really, Will wonders how the seams are holding on.

Aiden doesn’t seem less enthusiastic, however. His hands are cradling Leno’s face like he’s precious treasure and he’s making all these little noises into the kiss and Will really feels like a voyeuristic creep right now. He shouldn’t be watching this. Mack probably isn’t faring well either.

Which is why it doesn’t shock Will when Mack steps forward and clears his throat.

Leno and Aiden separate instantly, both breathing heavy with wide eyes as they turn and spot who interrupted them. Will sees the exact moment Aiden spots Mack, his face falling. His head goes next, dropping down until his chin is almost touching his chest.

“Get the fuck off my brother, Leonard,” Mack practically snarls. (Will ignores the way his stomach swoops at the sound.) Leno squeaks and tugs Aiden into him, hiding behind his frame. Mack snaps. “That is the exact opposite of what I said to do!”

“Drop it already, Mack. It’s my choice who I date,” Aiden says. He sounds tired, he sounds scared, and Will feels bad for him. There must’ve been a reason this whole thing has been a secret, and Will can only imagine that a large portion of that reason was imagining what Mack’s reaction would be.

“But… but it’s Ryan Leonard, Aiden. Why him?” Mack says. The fight has already drained out of him, the way it always does when it’s Aiden on the other side, and Will pulls him in, gently looping his arm around Mack’s shoulders. Mack smiles at him then, quick and brief, and that’s relief enough for Will.

“Because he makes me happy. Isn’t that answer enough?” Aiden says, his voice wavering. Mack’s mouth opens and closes before he swallows thickly.

“But he played for BC,” is his retort. Will turns to look at Mack then, eyebrows furrowed. Of all the arguments Mack could’ve chosen, he goes for that one? Surprisingly, it’s Leno who decides to verbally remind Mack of the irony of that sentence.

“Oh yeah, and Will didn’t?” Leno says. He gently pushes Aiden back a few steps before he slips off the desk and comes to stand in front of Mack. “Look, Mack, I’m not saying you have to like me. Please don’t, actually. It’d be weird. But you do have to accept that Aiden likes me and I lo– like him too.”

Will catches the slip up, and he can tell Aiden does too, judging by the mushy expression that comes to rest on his face, but Mack must’ve missed it because he steps forward, out of Will’s hold, and jabs a finger into Leno’s chest.

“How do I know that I can trust you with that?”

“Because of this,” Leno says, pulling his chain out from under his shirt. The ‘a’ charm rests against his knuckles, alongside the cross and the coin, and Mack mutters a small ‘oh’ before Will spits out his thoughts, entirely unable to stop himself.

“Fuck that fucking charm, oh my god,” Will says. Leno turns to him, a soft frown on his face and Will immediately has to backtrack. “No, not like that. It’s cute, and if Aiden doesn’t have a matching one, you two need to rectify that, but seriously. Me and Gabe have spent hours agonizing over that charm, trying to figure out who it represented.”

“Really?” Leno says. His voice has gone scratchy and high, and it’s like it triggers something in Aiden. He moves forward with fluid grace, gently looping his arms around Leno’s waist from behind. “Well… well now you know, I guess. You can tell Gabe if you want. Or, wait, can he?” Leno says, twisting to get Aiden’s opinion.

“Of course. I trust that whoever these two tell which keep it hushed,” Aiden says, fixing his gaze on Will and Mack for a handful of seconds before looking back at Leno, his expression softening immediately. He presses a kiss to Leno’s temple before Leno turns back with a smile.

“There.”

“Well good, because I’m telling Fraser and Connor. And probably Easton because those three are fucking attached these days,” Mack huffs. “Oh, and uh… you should probably tell mum and dad. They keep asking me if I’ve figured out who you’re dating yet.”

“I’m surprised Charlie hasn’t already told them,” Aiden says. Leno turns bright red at that and Will’s about to poke fun at him when realisation hits him like a brick. It seems to catch Mack as well because he splutters.

“Charlie knows?!” Mack screeches. Aiden stumbles back from Leno with a laugh, hand covering his mouth. Mack squawks (literally. Will thought it was a bird.) and launches himself at his older brother. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

“I didn’t tell her!” Aiden protests, hands coming up to shield himself from Mack’s torment. Leno slowly backs away until he’s at Will’s side. “She found out when she caught us on a date once. I had no choice!”

“I’m sorry,” Leno says, voice quiet. It spears Will’s attention all the same. Leno doesn’t… he doesn’t ever apologise. Not verbally, at least. He always found other ways to show that he’s sorry.

“What for?”

“For not telling you. I was just worried things would fall through, y’know? I don’t… I can’t say I feel like I deserve him yet,” Leno says. Will smiles and turns his eyes away from the scrapping brothers. He tugs Leno into his side and presses a quick kiss to Leno’s cheek.

“You do. I promise you that, Ryan.”

--

Will
Hes dating Aiden Celebrini.

Gabe
SHUT UP YOU’RE LYING
Oh yeah its Matt by the way

--

It’s cooler outside. The thickness of July heat has retreated for the evening, and that’s how Mack comes to learn the truth of how the whole Aiden and Ryan thing even started.

“When? And… and why?” Mack asks. Aiden huffs and sips at his drink, careful not to dislodge Mack’s head from his shoulder.

“We met in January, when the Capitals played in Vancouver. We… we knew who each other was, we just pretended that it didn’t matter. It was only supposed to be for one night, y’know? But then I couldn’t bring myself to lose contact with him. Even if we only remained friends, that was fine for me,” Aiden says. “I can’t say why, not really. Maybe it’s because I expected him to be horrible and he was actually one of the nicest people I’ve ever met. Maybe it’s that.”

“But how did it develop into this so fast?”

“Ryan’s chatty. I learnt to be chatty back, especially once I realised he liked it. We just learnt about each other so fast, we had so much in common. We wanted the same things, and it didn’t take long for both of us to realise we wanted those same things with each other.” Aiden sighs as he speaks, wistful and so lovesick that Mack can’t help but wrinkle his nose.

“Gross.”

“Oh, shut up,” Aiden says, lightly nudging at Mack with his elbow. Mack grumbles and sticks himself even more into Aiden’s space just for the hell of it. “I have to put up with you going all gooey whenever Will’s name is so much as mentioned.”

“That’s not true.”

“It so is!” Aiden protests. “Mum said his surname when asking you a question at dinner the other day and you literally wilted like a dead flower when you realised she was asking after Will’s sister, not Will himself.” Mack grumbles again, pinching at the skin above Aiden’s knee until his older brother hisses and jerks away. “Fuck, you’re evil.”

“You deserved it.”

--

Mack
im still mad at you

Aiden
But?

Mack
thers no but.
im mad

Aiden
Okay, Mackie. If you’re sure.

Mack
does he serioisly make you that happy?

Aiden
About as happy as Will makes you.

Mack
oh

--

“I told you – should’ve widened the search to include guys,” Matt says. He’s leaning back against the couch cushions, smug as fuck as Will recounts the tale of the whole Ryan and Aiden thing. Gabe, who’s drunk off of his head, curled into Matt’s side without care for who sees, whines.

“Didn’t think he would go for a guy,” he says. And yeah, Will agrees with that. Neither of them had expected that from Leno, of all people. He was always interested in going for women, of hooking up with them and bragging about it the next day. Sure, that had been tamed the longer he played beside Ovi, the longer he played in the NHL, but still. Will hadn’t expected this.

“Well, a good detective always considers every angle, even the ones that seem stupid.”

“Shut up and suck my dick, Matt,” Will says in response. Matt laughs, like Will wanted him to, and Gabe weakly kicks at Will. He misses by a mile, limbs out of coordination due to his drunkenness.

“My boyfriend, go find your own,” Gabe pouts. Will rolls his eyes and ruffles Gabe’s sweat-damp curls before winking at Matt, just to wind Gabe up further. Gabe whines and kicks at him again, his foot connecting with the curve of Will’s knee this time. Will hisses and kicks him back. Pair of children, they are, squabbling at Sidney Crosby’s party like this.

“I’m going, I’m going. Brat,” Will grumbles. He stalks off with a laugh, ready to go and find Mack. He needs to kiss his boyfriend stupid after everything they’ve been through tonight.

--

Will
Hey. How are you feeling after yesterday?

Leno
tired. is mack still mad?

Will
Mad? No. Shocked? 100%.

Leno
ill take shocked over mad

Will
Are you happy?

Leno
will, ill be honest
i dont think ive ever been happier

--

“Baby? Mm, why are you still up?”

When Aiden turns, he’s not surprised to find Ryan standing in the doorway of the small office, rubbing at his eyes and blinking against the light. The movement raises the hem of the shirt he’s wearing, one of Aiden’s jerseys he’d nabbed months ago, back when this was all beginning. It exposes more of his thighs, faint traces of still-blossoming marks left by Aiden lingering against his skin.

Aiden has to tear his gaze away before he initiates round three right on the office floor.

“Sorry, couldn’t sleep,” Aiden says. He turns the chair around and holds his arms out. Ryan crosses the room with fast steps, clambering into Aiden’s lap and sighing contentedly. Aiden smiles into the tangles of Ryan’s hair and soothes a hand up and down his boyfriend’s back. “What are you doing awake? You don’t normally wake in the night.”

“Mm… must’ve sensed you were gone,” Ryan mutters. Despite his honey-sweet words, he sounds exhausted, and Aiden can’t say he blames him for it. All the recent back and forth travel has lagged them both out of sync and sleeping at appropriate times feels impossible these days.

“Come on, let’s get back to bed with you, sweetheart,” Aiden says, slowly lifting Ryan up as he stands. Ryan hums and clings to him harder, legs lacing around Aiden’s torso. His face pops up from Aiden’s neck with a soft smile. Aiden smiles in turn and greets him again with a soft, “hi baby.”

“Hi,” Ryan responds with a giggle. He presses a quick kiss to Aiden’s mouth, distracting Aiden from nudging the door open with his hip, before he sighs. “Thank you.”

“For what?” Aiden says. He gently lowers Ryan to the sheets before slipping in alongside him. It takes no time at all for Ryan to latch himself to Aiden’s side, clingier than Aiden would’ve ever anticipated from that first night in the bar.

“For loving me,” Ryan responds. “Because I love you. I really do.” Aiden’s heart stutters and then he’s rolling Ryan over, pinning him against the mattress as he kisses him with all the passion and energy he can muster. Ryan makes a noise of shock before he’s kissing back, clinging onto Aiden’s shoulder and tugging him in, coaxing all the noises he can from Aiden’s mouth. Aiden lets him.

(He’s heard Ryan go on enough rants about how much he loves Aiden’s little noises when they’re kissing. More than enough rants, really. He stopped suppressing them eventually, if only to get Ryan to shut up about it.)

Aiden pulls away, presses a line of kisses down the thick cut of Ryan’s jaw, before he pulls back completely. He smiles down at Ryan’s flushed face, the halo of red underlining his smattering of freckles and the jagged edge of a scar along his jaw. He’s beautiful, one of the most gorgeous men Aiden’s ever seen, and he’d feel fragile if Ryan hadn’t just said I love you.

“I love you too,” Aiden says. Ryan smiles, wide as anything, flashing his teeth and crinkling his eyes. Gorgeous. Unfairly so. But he’s also Aiden’s, his boyfriend, his love, the one person he’d push back against his family’s judgement for. Ryan hums and tugs Aiden in, uncaring when Aiden’s weight pins him further.

“Good. Kiss me again?”