Chapter Text
It was no secret that Dex Dizznee hated Fitz Vacker. He hated how tall the other boy was—an entire two inches taller than Dex—and how Fitz always seemed to know the right things to say or exactly when to laugh at a joke that was not funny in the slightest. He hated that Fitz’s chocolate-brown hair was always styled perfectly and how his bright teal eyes sparkled whenever he found something amusing. He hated how smart Fitz was, how skilled he was at Elvin History and Alchemy—he was an entire point above Dex and Dex was supposed to be the best at Alchemy.
But most of all, Dex hated that no matter what he did he was completely, hopelessly in love. He had tried to hide it at first, scowling whenever Fitz neared him and picking fights whenever he could, but Biana had caught on. Dex still was not sure whether he should be relieved that someone knew his secret or scared.
He trusted Biana, but still. He had a crush on her brother.
When the realization hit him at the age of fifteen, Dex seriously wondered if he had been tricked into drinking an elixir. Some love potion that Keefe might have slipped into his drink to give everyone a good laugh because tensions were high from the Neverseen’s latest attack. Needless to say, seven months later, the feeling was still strong.
So, yeah, Dex hated Fitz Vacker for making him feel the way he felt. It sort of washed over him out of nowhere that morning. He had walked into the small kitchen in one of the Black Swan’s hideouts, rubbing the sleep from his eyes when he saw Fitz biting out of a blitzenberry muffin. He had been leaning against the side of the counter, the picture of nonchalance and boredom.
At that moment Dex had felt his heart rate pick up. It was weird, okay? Not only was it weird when Dex’s eyes roamed over Fitz Vacker in a loose grey t-shirt and human jeans, but it was extremely weird when he found himself entranced when Fitz bit into that cursed muffin and his tongue slept over his lips.
Yup. It was the muffin’s fault for making Dex yearn for Fitz’s mouth. Three months later Biana discovered his mortifying crush, but she was the only one that knew. Dex had made her swear not to tell. If anyone else found out, Dex was not against the idea of running off to the Forbidden Cities and living peacefully among humans.
So, as he and his friends were being ushered into yet another safety house around midnight on a Friday—the sixth one in the past seven months—he was internally going insane. There was no way he could be trapped in a house with Fitz for who knew how long.
Before, they only had to hide for a night or two, but Mr. Forkle had made it clear that they would be staying in this one for a week or more. Dex could not—would not—be trapped underground in such close proximity to the boy he liked. Nope.
No one besides Biana (obviously) knew about his sexuality. He was bisexual and even though he was not ashamed of it, he could not bring himself to admit it. Elves weren’t against it, but it was sort of unheard of. Dex did not want to bring any more embarrassment to the Dizznee name for the triplets and his parents’ sake.
“Biana,” Dex whispered frantically into the brunette’s ear as Mr. Forkle led them down a long set of stairs underground. “If I have to share a room with you-know-who I will find a way to break out of here.”
Biana patted his shoulder sympathetically. “We could ask to room together, if you’d like. I love Sophie but she snores in a way that makes me want to claw my ears out.” A devilish grin played with her lips. “You and I could gossip all night!”
Dex was tempted to agree and thank her profusely when the dim lights suddenly cut off, leaving him to drown in the darkness. He stumbled on the steps, crashing into someone and earning a startled cry. “Sorry!” Dex felt a flush creep up on his cheeks, suddenly thankful for the darkness.
“Dex.” Fitz’s accusatory voice only made the flush grow. No no no no no. “Watch where you’re going—you could cause all of us to fall and break our bones. Don’t be so clumsy all the time.”
Annnd there it was. Oh well, Dex supposed he missed arguing with the terribly handsome boy. “Clumsy?” Dex squinted upwards, trying to make out Fitz’s face. His teal eyes were visible, and Dex was starting to be able to make out the lines of his face. “If you weren’t standing there I wouldn't have bumped into you! It’s your fault, wonderboy.”
“My fault?” Fitz sounded appalled. “Are you on something, Deck? I was minding my own business when you crashed into me out of nowhere!”
Dex glowered. “Don’t call me that.”
“Then don’t call me wonderboy.”
“Fine.”
“Fine.”
With a huff Dex stumbled back towards Biana. “Your brother is an idiot,” he sulked. “A stupid, cute idiot who absolutely hates me.” He could hear Mr. Forkle’s dumbfounded complaints, Sophie’s frantic voice from down below and Keefe’s reassurances. Tam, Linh, and Marella were arguing over something about ten steps above Dex and Biana. Fitz had joined Sophie and Keefe’s conversation, groaning about how he could not see a thing.
“I know,” Biana sighed. “You should really get better taste in men.”
Dex laughed at that. “Already tried that. I could try to brew an elixir to somehow make me not feel the way I feel for him, but—”
“Don’t mess with your emotions like that,” Biana said quickly, almost fearfully. “We learned about that in Alchemy in third year, remember? Emotions are too strong to mess with and if you manipulate them then you could go insane or something like that.”
Dex opened his mouth to tell her that he had been joking when the lights overhead flickered on. Biana was staring at him wide-eyed, lips pressed in a thin line. “I would never,” he promised her. “Besides, the ingredients I would need are pretty rare.”
Biana punched his arm lightly. “Let’s go; this small stairway is beginning to make me feel claustrophobic.” She took his hand and stepped around him, leading him down the stairs until they met up with Sophie, Keefe, Mr. Forkle, and Fitz. Dex pressed closer to Biana because Fitz was right there.
Mr. Forkle was touching the stone wall in front of him, muttering something until the stones started to part, revealing a small circular room. They followed the old man inside. Forkle flipped on a switch nailed to the wall and bright lights shined out of nowhere.
“My eyes,” Dex pressed his hands to his eyes. Tears had begun to spring from his eyes. “Oh, I knew I was going to regret not buying those human glasses that make everything seem darker.”
Biana laughed from beside him. “Gosh, I forgot how sensitive your eyes are!” Dex could tell that she was biting the inside of her cheek in an attempt to not burst into an uncontrollable fit of giggles.
“You,” he said with a grimace, “bully me.”
“Nah,” she poked his cheek. “I love you.”
Dex removed his hands from his eyes, willing his eyes to adjust to the light faster. “Do you really?” he muttered. “It’s hard to tell sometimes.” He was about to add more when he noticed that his friends were all staring at him and Biana in shock.
“I knew you guys were dating!” Keefe announced happily as he turned to a shocked Sophie. “See, Foster? I called it! You owe me those E.L. Fudge cookies now.”
“You guys are dating?” Sophie’s jaw was basically on the ground. Her abnormal brown eyes turned to Dex, looking slightly betrayed. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
Linh squealed from behind Dex, and he whirled to face her. “Oh, you guys make such an adorable couple! I sensed something but I didn’t really want to make things awkward by pointing it out.”
Marella smirked. “Yeah. You two spend an awful lot of time together. So how long have you been together? Four months?” Her ice blue eyes were twinkling and Dex had almost forgotten how much she loved gossip and drama.
Tam was completely silent, his eyes trained on Biana with a look of pure heartbreak. Dex wondered what Fitz looked like, if he was also just as heartbroken. Dex doubted it, but that did not stop him from hoping.
Biana was looking up at Dex, mouth parted in paused laughter. She looked like she was trying so very hard not to double-down and cackle like a witch. “Dex,” she whispered, “I cannot believe this is happening right now.” She then stepped away from him and cleared her throat. “Dex and I are just friends. Always have been. He doesn’t like me like that.”
“Doubtful,” Keefe coughed under his breath.
Biana crossed her arms. “Oh, yeah? Come closer and feel our emotions, Mr. Doubtful.” Her eyebrow was raised and Dex felt suddenly terrified. No. Honestly, he was surprised that Keefe hadn’t picked up on his feelings for Fitz, but that was probably because Sophie’s emotions were supposed to be so strong and numbed everyone else’s. But now…what if he caught Dex’s feelings towards Fitz?
Keefe shrugged, looking as smug as ever. Dex kind of hated him for it. “Okay.” He walked closer and closed his eyes. Dex felt as though his heart was going to beat out of his chest and fall with a smack onto the tiled floor beneath him. This could not be happening.
“Ask us questions,” Biana challenged Keefe.
“Are you dating Dex?”
“No.”
Keefe hummed in response. “I’m not a lie detector but it doesn’t seem like you’re lying, Biana. But for Dex…” His eyebrows drew together in concentration. Oh no. “Can I hold your hand, Dexy?”
“No!” Dex took a step back. “Me and Biana are dating. There. Happy?” His mind was racing and he…he had to get out of there. He would rather be banned from mallowmelt for an entire month than have to continue this.
Biana looked over at him, teal eyes full of pity. “Keefe, Dex is—er—” she sighed. “Dex is telling the truth. We’re together! Yay!” She put on a smile that looked far too forced for her own good. Dex wanted to light leap somewhere far, far away.
Dex shuffled closer to her, trying to make it all seem believable. Should he hug her? Hold her hand? He settled for placing a hand on her shoulder, which only made her let out a quiet groan that only he could hear. He looked at her and tried to say I owe you and I love you super platonically with his eyes. She nodded and her smile became slightly real.
“How did you guys get together?” Linh asked curiously, beaming.
“And when?” Sophie added.
Dex felt his eyes widen. Shit, he did not think this through. Thankfully, Mr. Forkle cleared his throat at just the right time.
“You kids can do this later, alright?” He pulled a lever and a hallway appeared. Inside it held eight doors, four on one side and four on the other. “I need to give you a quick tour and then leave. Someone will be down to check on you every morning and night.” He showed them four bedrooms—two beds in each, a desk, and a closet. The kitchen, bathroom, living room which held their duffel bags and other things they had packed the previous night, and finally a room equipped with weapons in case they were ever to be ambushed. “The kitchen is stocked with food to last you all a good month in case something happens.” He walked out of the hall but hesitated at the last second. “If you kids need anything just hail me or your parents, okay?”
They all nodded and then Mr. Forkle disappeared, making the stone wall transform back into just a boring stone wall. All of them just stared for a few long minutes until Marella said, “So…now what?”
“I, for one, need to lay down.” Fitz’s voice made Dex’s heart skip a beat. Stupid, he scolded himself. “You and Dex?” Fitz was staring at Biana. “I’m your favorite brother! Why didn’t you tell me?”
Biana shifted from one foot to the other. “We didn’t tell anyone.” She glanced over at Tam for a split second. Guilt clawed at Dex and all he wanted to do was apologize to Biana for basically ruining her chances with the guy she had liked for over a year.
“It’s late.” Fitz trained his eyes on Dex. “We should probably get ready for sleep and continue this conversation tomorrow.” He turned, walked into the living room to grab his bag, and then headed to the bathroom, closing the door behind him.
Everyone went to gather their stuff afterwards and then went to claim a bedroom. Sophie headed to the one on the end of the hall, Marella and Linh went into the one next door, and Tam walked into the one opposite of the living room. Keefe had not made any move to claim his own room, eyeing Biana and Dex in confusion.
“Biana,” he frowned. “You’re feeling disappointed, exasperated, a huge amount of despair, and…affection? Yeah, affection. For Dex.” He frowned. “But it’s not, like, affection-affection. More like how you would feel for a sibling.” Keefe then looked over at Dex and Dex hated this. He decided right then and there that he hated empaths. “Dex, you’re feeling a whole bunch of things right now.”
Dex, full-on panicking now, shook his head quickly. “It’s okay, Keefe. I don't need you to tell me what I’m feeling.” He took another step backwards as though that would somehow make Keefe’s connection to his emotions lessen.
“No, Keefe, I’m curious.” Fitz stepped out of the bathroom at that moment, face wet from where he had presumably washed it. He was in flannel pajama pants and a navy blue t-shirt. No no no no no. Dex’s heart could not handle this. “Tell me what my sister’s boyfriend is feeling right now.”
Dex worried that he had heard the bit about Biana’s affection toward Dex as nothing more than platonic.
Keefe’s brows were furrowed. “It’s a whole mix of things. Fear, worry, dread, anxiety, panic, irritation—that one is directed at me, by the way—and…” he drifted off, eyes widening. “Biana, could you take Dex’s hand for me? I want to check something.”
Dex took yet another step back. “I’m going to go to sleep now,” he tried to make a dash for his duffel bag but Fitz grabbed his wrist and no. His heart did that stupid double-beat thing at the contact. He jerked his wrist away, but it was too late.
Keefe was gaping at him like he had just seen an alicorn do the hokey-pockey. “Dex, are you—”
“—tired?” Dex cut in, voice way too squeaky for his liking. “Yes, I am, Keefe. Thank you for noticing.” He feigned a yawn. “Biana, ready?”
Biana was looking at Keefe, and Dex knew that she knew that Keefe knew. “An excellent idea, Dex.” She snatched her lavender duffel bag. “Keefe, you can room with Sophie and Fitz can room with Tam. I am going to room with my amazing boyfriend.” She stood on her tip-toes to press a kiss to Dex’s cheek. Dex fought the urge to wipe it with his sleeve because why was it so wet?
“Uhh, no.” Fitz crossed his arms. “I am not letting the two of you share a room. No way.” He was vibrating with barely-contained fury.
“We can sleep with the door open,” Dex offered. He was desperate; so very desperate. He could not share a room with Fitz. Biana had once mentioned that Fitz slept shirtless as a way to make Dex flustered, and if that were true then Dex would break immediately. He wasn’t going to risk it.
Fitz shook his head stubbornly. “Biana, go to Sophie's room.”
“But—”
“Biana.” Fitz glared at her. “Go or I’m going to tell mom and dad about this.”
Biana shot Dex a pitying look. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed her lips against his ear. “If you end up kissing my brother I won’t be mad,” she whispered. “In fact, I’ve already written my speech for the wedding.”
Dex rolled his eyes. “Shut up. We don’t even know if he likes boys.” He frowned as the words left his mouth. He really hated liking someone who would never return the feeling. “We can break up tomorrow if you’d like.”
Biana pulled away and grinned. “I’ll practice my tears.” She turned and glared up at Fitz, the perfect actress. “You,” she gritted, “are the worst brother ever. Keeping me from the love of my life?” Her eyes glassed over.
Laying it on a little thick, Dex thought. He fidgeted with the strap of his duffel bag. “Good night, Biana,” he smiled as best he could over the hammering of his heart. He tried to make his gaze fill with longing, but he doubted it convinced Keefe.
“Good night, sweetheart.” She blew him a kiss and walked toward Sophie’s room, but not before she warned her brother. “Fitz, if you kill him I will jump scare you for the rest of your life.” She vanished as though to show what she meant, then shut the door behind her.
Keefe coughed awkwardly. “Well…I’m off to bed. Fingers crossed that Bangs Boy doesn’t murder me in my sleep.” He glanced over at Dex. “Good night, Dex.” Dex felt his cheeks burn because, oh, right, Keefe knew. Stupid empaths. “Night, Fitzy-Poo.” Keefe pressed a sloppy kiss to Fitz’s cheek and then closed the door to Tam’s room.
Fitz made a disgusted face and wiped his cheek with the back of his hand. “I call the bed on the right.” Fitz left Dex to go to the only remaining bedroom.
Dex felt like he was going to be sick. He reluctantly followed and set his duffel bag on the other bed, thankfully on the other side of the room. A lone desk sat in between the beds, separating them. “I’m going to take a shower,” he announced.
“I hope you slip and bang your head on the shower tiles,” Fitz snickered.
“And I hope you wake up to nightmares about the Great Vacker Family being not-so-great anymore,” Dex retorted.
Fitz glowered over at him. “What does my sister see in you?”
“Oh, I don’t know.” Dex started unloading vials and ingredients for elixirs on the small twin-sized bed, searching for his pajamas. “Maybe she thinks I’m handsome and funny and smart.” He clenched his jaw when he still couldn’t find them. “Maybe she just likes me for who I am. Not everyone looks for the worst in people, wonderboy. Biana sees me for who I am and she doesn’t mind.” Dex was—and always would be—grateful to Biana and her unwavering friendship.
“So she recognizes that you’re a prick?” Fitz countered. “That you are some friendless nerd who sucks at Alchemy?”
Dex flinched at that. How was he in love with Fitz Vacker? “Your sister is a really great person, Fitz. I don’t know what happened to you. Maybe you should learn a thing or two.” Dex scratched his chin as though he were in deep thought. “I’m sure I could create some elixir to make people more nice and fun—not sure it would work on you, though.”
Fitz took a step toward him abruptly, his beautiful teal eyes narrowed and flashing with fury. Oh, how Dex wanted to make those eyes flash with happiness and amusement. He was doing this wrong. “Tell me what you see in my sister.”
“W-What?” Dex’s eyes widened. “Aren’t you going to threaten to punch me or something?” Was Fitz alright?
Fitz raised an eyebrow, silently declaring a challenge. “I love Biana and it seems like she loves you, so I want to know what you see in her.” He was still angry, Dex noted. But it’s a calm kind of anger. Dex could work with this.
“Okay.” Dex nodded. “Like, right now?”
Fitz shrugged. “When else, Deck?”
Dex was about to tell Fitz not to call him that but refrained. He could do this. “Well…I like how positive she can be. She always seems to know the exact things to say to cheer me up. She helps me study for Alchemy sometimes, and she’s good company. I really enjoy hanging out with her because her personality sort of clashes with my own and we share a lot of the same interests. She’s not afraid to be herself and state her brutally honest opinions, and she’s always there for her friends. I can trust her with my secrets and she can trust me with hers.”
Fitz looked at him like Dex was a puzzle he just couldn’t quite solve yet. Dex felt his stomach flip. “I…okay. Okay. What else?”
“What else?” Dex sputtered. “I just told you everything there is to tell!”
Fitz was downright frustrated now. “How long have the two of you been dating?”
“Four months.” Dex didn’t hesitate. Four months ago Biana had found out about his embarrassing crush on Fitz, so it only made sense to say four months. “But why does that matter? I like her and she likes me; end of story.”
“Dex.” Fitz looked like he was trying to understand a complex Alchemy problem. “You sound like you’re describing your best friend. That is exactly how I would describe Keefe.”
Dex paled. “Well, maybe you’re in love with Keefe.” He needed to get out of there. “I’m going to go wash up now.” He finally—finally—found his pajamas and ran to the bathroom. He was freaking out. What if he ruined it all? What if Fitz found out? Shit—what if everyone found out? No. He was overthinking this. No one was going to find out.
But…Keefe had found out. Keefe would tell Fitz because they were best friends and then Dex would never leave his room again. Maybe living in the Forbidden Cities was the best option. He could probably pass for a human if he drank an elixir to change his eye color to something like green or brown.
Dex locked the bathroom door and started the shower. It was a nice bathroom, as nice as a bathroom could get. It was pretty big, which Dex appreciated. He stripped free from his clothes and stood under the hot water, letting out a relieved sigh. He normally didn’t fall asleep until four o’clock in the morning because of all the gadgets he was planning, but as exhaustion took over he supposed going to sleep an hour early wouldn’t hurt. His mom was always complaining about him not getting enough rest.
He didn’t know how long he was in the shower for, but when he cut the water the mirror above the sink was so fogged up Dex couldn’t help but write down ideas for a new gadget with his pointer finger. He wrapped a soft white towel around his waist and got to work. It was supposed to be a kind of clasp that you could put on a piece of clothing to make it turn invisible.
Biana had given him the idea a month ago, but he had been so busy designing weapons for the Black Swan that he had put it on hold. Now, though, he had the time. All the time in the world. And it was sure to be boring where he was, in a bunker, trapped. With his friends who he was currently lying to.
No guilt came with the thought, though, which then made Dex feel guilty for the lack of guilt. He really hated that. His emotions were playing with him and Dex was too tired. It had been a crazy day.
Still. The thoughts came to him at hyper-speed and just like that the sleepiness was gone. He was wide awake, covering the mirror in his thoughts. It would somehow have to transfer energy through the piece of clothing and manipulate the lighting. Dex beamed as the solution came to him: mirrors.
As quick as he could, Dex shed the towel and pulled on his boxers, then a pair of light pink pajama pants that Biana had gifted him as a joke after he had called pink an ugly color. He tugged on a white t-shirt and brushed his teeth. With that he hurried out of the bathroom and towards the bedroom.
He was so busy with new thoughts, new questions, new solutions to those questions, that he yelped when he saw Fitz standing in the middle of the room, stretching. Shirtless. Fitz Vacker was stretching completely shirtless. Fitz Vacker was shirtless. And Dex, being the utter mess he was, tripped.
Yup. He tripped. He barely stopped himself from face-planting on the hard wooden floor. He was mortified, feeling that familiar flush creep up from his neck to his cheeks to the tips of his ears. Please don’t let this be real, he pleaded. But, like always, the universe hated him and it was, in fact, real.
“You good?” Fitz drawled. “Looks like you fell pretty hard, Deck.”
Dex quickly got back on his feet. Well, at least he didn’t break his nose. “Shut up, wonderboy,” he grumbled. He forced his eyes to look at a place over Fitz’s shoulder. His bare shoulder. Oh, Gods, since when did Fitz get biceps? His golden bronze skin seemed to be glowing under the bright lights.
Dex could feel his blush only getting warmer. Why was he back in here? Dex thought harder than he should have, but then remembered. Right. Gadget, paper, pencil. He stuffed the clothes he wore earlier in his duffel bag and snatched his pad of paper and pencil, about to head back to the bathroom.
“Nice pants, Deck.” Fitz’s voice was full of humor, and even though Dex knew that Fitz was making fun of him he couldn’t bring himself to care. He was only disappointed because Fitz didn’t even laugh. And Dex wanted him to. Dex really wanted him to.
Oh, what he would give to hear that low, rumbly sound directed at him.
“Thanks, wonderboy. Your sister got them for me.” Dex turned to shoot him a snarky smile, but he froze. Fitz…Fitz had abs. Well, obviously. Dex did, too, but not like that. Not a six-pack and well-defined muscles all along his torso. Dex felt his mouth dry up and he subconsciously licked his lips.
Fitz shifted. “Where are you going?”
“Huh?” Dex was only partly paying attention because his brain was having a melt down. Dex had seen Fitz shirtless before, but that was when they were fourteen and before Dex had a horrible crush.
“I said: where are you going?” Fitz scratched the back of his neck and no. Dex was not going to track the movement with his eyes.
“The bathroom,” he croaked out. He cleared his throat and looked down at the floor. “The bathroom,” he repeated in his normal voice. “I’m working on a gadget and I wrote some notes on the mirror so I better get back before they disappear.”
“Huh. Okay. And then are you coming to bed?”
Dex fidgeted with the pencil in his hand. Gods, it sounded like they were a married couple. That led Dex to picturing them as a married couple, and he blushed at how happy the thought made him. “Why would I?” he asked stupidly. Dex was always stupid when Fitz was around.
“It’s almost three.”
“Oh.” Dex frowned. “What time do you usually fall asleep?”
“Midnight.”
Dex couldn’t help it: he looked up and…and he immediately looked back down. Fitz was looking at him in pure confusion, frowning. That was fine. Dex could handle a frowning Fitz Vacker, but it was late and Dex was sort of tired so he wasn’t thinking straight. Which was why when he saw said frown he thought: I would do anything to kiss that frown away.
This was why Dex needed to room with anyone other than Fitz.
“Oh.” Was all Dex said. “You can go to sleep now; I won’t wake you or poison you in your sleep, wonderboy.”
“I know that, Dex.” Dex could practically hear the eyeroll in Fitz’s voice. “What’s the gadget about?” Footsteps neared. “And you can look up. You have seen me shirtless before, right?” Fitz was teasing, clearly trying to keep from laughing.
Dex was internally freaking out. He looked up. He could do it. He could be strong. “Just trying to be polite.” He met Fitz’s eyes and swallowed. His eyes were really beautiful; more beautiful than Biana’s even though they basically shared the same eyes.
“Yeah, whatever. What’s the gadget about?”
Dex, forever awkward, shrugged. “I can’t explain it.” He could totally explain it. “I’m going to go copy down the ideas. You should go to sleep.” He did not want Fitz to go to sleep. He wanted Fitz to follow him into the bathroom and press him against the wall and kiss him senseless. He wanted to dig his fingers in Fitz’s hair and hear his sweet moans and groans in his ear. He wanted a lot of things that he really should not be thinking at the moment.
“Yeah, alright.” Fitz yawned. “See you in the morning, Dex. Try not to wake me up when you’re done.”
Dex nodded and made a sound of agreement in the back of his throat before fleeing the scene. He spent that night overthinking and writing down the proper pieces he would need in order to create the clasp. Needless to say, he did not go to sleep for a while.