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"You sure this'll work?" Gomez asks, twisting his fingers in his lap. His nails buzz slightly from the contact, the sound curling gently through the air. "I mean, I trust your science, dude, but you know--"
"I do. It'll be okay." Probably okay, anyway. Well, it won't be okay, not in any sense of the word, but it'll work. It has to. All of Isaac's calculations check out, every variable has been taken into account. He knows what he's doing, he always does.
"We're doing the right thing," he says, trying to make himself believe it. "This is the only way to help Françoise." That part, he can more easily believe. His sister matters more than anyone, she always has. There is no universe where he can make himself feel otherwise.
"I get that, yeah. I just..." Gomez giggles nervously. "I'm nervous, you know? I mean, it'll hurt, it always hurts when I overextend myself. And I'm not gonna back out, but it's just..." He lets out a rattling breath, looking down at his lap.
"It'll only hurt for a few minutes," Isaac assures him. It'll take approximately that long for Gomez's heart to give out. "And I'll be with you the whole time, remember?" He leans forward, taking a deep breath--he wants to burn Gomez's scent into his perfect memory, hold it for the rest of his life. "I won't leave you."
"'Course you won't." Gomez looks up at him, lips twitching in that old impish grin. "Cause you know that I'll haunt your ass if you mess this up."
I'll get it right and you'll haunt me anyway. "Yes, you've made that abundantly clear." Isaac tries to sound stiff, dismissive, but he can feel his mouth pulling into its own smile. Gomez is so look, so beautiful and he can't--he won't--
He doesn't consciously make the decision before he's leaning forward, pressing their lips together. Gomez's mouth is as warm and buzzing as the rest of him, pressing against Isaac with a quick and frantic hunger, like this is something good they're doing, something beautiful.
Then Gomez breaks away from him, gasping, eyes wild. Isaac lurches back, his heart rattling painfully in his chest.
"Sorry," he manages, and for a moment he's apologizing for everything. "Sorry, I'm so fucking sorry--"
"It's okay!" Gomez holds out a hand. "It's okay, it was good, it was good, just..." He swallows. "Morticia."
"Right." Isaac had forgotten about her, fuck. He hopes she won't cause too much trouble, after.
"Maybe." Gomez swallows. "I could, I don't know. Talk to her? Work something out. She likes you, man." His eyes are so bright, so hopeful. "I mean, you and me and her and Françoise, we can do anything, can't we? We're the baddest kids in town."
"Yeah." Isaac nods slowly, willing his heart to slow, to go cold and steady. "We are." He reaches to squeeze Gomez's hand. "Now, let's get going, okay? Françoise's waiting."
Gomez lets himself be guided up the stairs, trusting and obedient as...no, don't think of lambs. Don't think of anything except the gears leaping to his touch, the possibilities blossoming in his hands. When he hears the screaming start, he will not let himself look back.