[color=silver][right][sub]TIMESTAMP — Tuesday, July 20th, 2021, After [url=https://www.roleplayerguild.com/posts/5421896]Here For You[/url]
FT —[color=3d8095] Ducaleon "Duke" Booker[/color], [color=deepskyblue]Dominic "Doc" Wells[/color], and [color=#3b776d]Lorelei Mercer[/color][/sub][/right][/color]
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[color=darkgray][indent][indent]
Once Duke and Jokes had followed Creed and his two charges safely back to the Gonzales home the other men were relieved of their shifts. Creed had accepted Aleyda’s invitation into the house and Jokes went off to call his Auntie Adora after getting a voicemail from the loving woman filling him in on the events going on with Boa and Puff out at Blue Hill. Left alone and to his own devices for the rest of the day, Duke drove back to Lost Souls with the intent of wasting the rest of the day inside the comfort of his own apartment. He opened his door with the expectation of a cold and dark living room and was instead greeted by the sight of his boyfriend, Dominic Wells, and the neutral face Duke had carried at work and on the drive home lifted into a bright smile.

[color=3d8095]“Hey,”[/color] he greeted as he closed and locked the door, toeing off his shoes and sliding the security chain in place now that the apartment’s two inhabitants were both home. [color=3d8095]“I thought you were busy until tonight.”[/color]

[color=00bfff]“I was. Or I thought I would be.”[/color] Dominic or Doc, as most call him, stammered for his words the minute he saw Duke walk into the apartment. [color=00bfff]“Club Business was cut short. Something about more important matters that Twitch had to attend to.”[/color] Dominic spoke as someone who didn’t have the full story and that’s because he didn’t. The man often had his head stuck in the clouds…well, if those clouds were made of nuts, bolts, and various engine parts spread throughout the Clubhouse. When he wasn’t here or in his own apartment when Duke’s not-so-sweet father, Tiberius Booker, came around, he was at the club. [color=00bfff]“So I had some free time on my hands. Didn’t want to spend it anywhere else.”[/color] He said with a beaming smile, gently patting the seat next to him on Duke’s sofa as some rerun of Family Guy was playing. It was the iconic episode where Stewie beat the holy hell crap out of Brian and even hearing it when his attention was shifted on his boyfriend, he couldn’t help but let out a few second hand chuckles. He loved stupid humor like Family Guy and American Dad.

Duke smiled as he took his spot next to the man he’d been dating in secret for years now. Things like family guy weren’t really his brand of humor and hadn’t been for quite some time, but he loved seeing his boyfriend smile and laugh no matter what the subject was, so he had some of the older episodes memorized as well. The first time he’d seen the scene currently on the screen he’d immediately thought of the trouble twins, Ransom and Molotov, and he was never able to see it the same ever since. Especially not after he ran Enforcer for one of Ransom’s collections; the kid was so vicious and cold on the job, and if he hadn’t known him his whole life, Duke could’ve been scared.

[color=3d8095]“I wouldn’t want you to spend it anywhere else, either,”[/color] Ducaleon admitted to his love as he leaned in and captured the leaner man’s lips in a loving kiss, dropping his hand to Dominic’s thigh and squeezing. Like always, he wanted to show Dominic how much he truly loved him, but there was always an underlying apology that this beautiful thing was kept secret for Duke’s sake, that Dominic was kept a secret just so there was no chance that word could get back to his father. Sure the man could have Sultan Wilson, Duke’s friend and Creed’s older cousin- a married gay man- work as the secretary for [i]Booker Brick and Mortar Restorations[/i], but that was different. That was business, and the dude was amazing at his job. But his own son, the one he raised after the divorce, being bisexual? Not a chance. Not after everything he’s said over the years, both overheard or said directly to Duke. Dominic understood, he’s always understood. He’d been friends with Duke’s older brother Leone long before they were Fallen Angels together. It didn’t make Duke feel any better about it. [color=3d8095]“I hate coming back to an empty home.”[/color]

Dom looked at his boyfriend (and yes, that’s what they were and no amount of secrecy would ever change his opinion about that), reading between the lines of Duke’s words, his kiss, and how his hand squeezed Dom’s lean thigh. He understood what was being said without it being uttered and Dom always wanted to reassure Duke almost every time he could. When Duke’s kiss broke, Dom kissed him back. [color=00bfff]“Being alone sucks. Your place is much more homier than mine ever could be. Your couch is great too!”[/color] This was Dom’s specialty. Perhaps a side effect of his habit of shifting from one subject to another, which played into his uniqueness that most either loved or didn’t, but Ducaleon Booker never gave him any grief about it. That made him the second Booker who had accepted his faults, no matter how out of control they became and there were some days when Dominic was like the energizer bunny.

But because of the man next to him and his brother, Doc has his anchors. 

[color=00bfff]“You know, though, we could always invite Dolce around. Maybe we can have her and Callum over for dinner one of these days? Maybe make some of Shale’s greatest hits? I like to think I’m getting the hang of some of their recipes…”[/color] Although he understood nothing compared to the real thing, if there was one thing Doc could do well it was pick up things quicker than most would. His mind was always churning, always processing complicated problems. A recipe was so much like taking apart and putting together a motorcycle. If you knew which parts were what and where they went, you could understand how to put it together. Recipes were similar in that way and Dom’s focus was, if anything, one of his better traits. Plus, he liked making Duke happy and food was the ultimate act of love because it meant someone put time and effort into doing something considerate for that one person who means the world to them. Duke is that person for Dominic and so was his family (exception: Tiberius). 

[color=3d8095]“Uh, yeah,”[/color] Duke responded to the suggestion slowly, mind already kicking up into gear to find a way that the invitation could seem natural. [color=3d8095]“Um, what if I…what if I say I want a Booker sibling day or something! Leone could come and we could have you come since you live next door and so Cal isn’t the odd one out. Plus you’re the best cook of all of us so it would make sense,”[/color] he assured, eyes trailing from side to side in anxious thought. Dolce may have broken through his walls a few years ago when she got him to admit that he was [color=3d8095][i]’bi-curious, probably, I don’t fuckin’ know but you can’t tell a soul, promise me’[/i][/color], but he still couldn’t bring himself to update her on the fact that it was actually [color=3d8095][i]’bisexual, definitely, and currently with the most amazing man that the family had accepted long before I started dating him.’[/i][/color] He’d never said anything to Leone about it, and his older brother had never asked. [color=3d8095]“Movie marathon maybe?”[/color]

It was at that moment Dominic processed what he had said and what it really meant. He was so used to his family knowing about who he loved (not the specific who but who he was attracted to in the general sense of things), but that didn’t mean the same was for his boyfriend. Holding Duke’s hand and squeezing it assuringly, Dom looked at his boyfriend. [color=00bfff]“Whatever you’re most comfortable with.”[/color] He made sure that Duke saw his eyes, heard his voice, and made sure he knew he wasn’t trying to force anything. That was the last thing. He got ahead of himself, didn’t think it [i]all[/i] the way through. He was so in love with the man next to him that he was only thinking of what could help him not feel so alone in the event he couldn’t always be waiting for him when he got home and having his siblings over seemed like the second best thing.

[color=00bfff]“I feel like I would have to cook. Leone can’t toast bread, let alone handle Shale’s iconic, if not complicated recipes.”[/color] He laughed, remembering the last time that Leone tried to make a grilled cheese. [color=00bfff]“Did I ever tell you about the time he made us dinner one time and it was so bad, Twitch made an official amendment and held a Table vote about it?”[/color]

[color=3d8095]You didn't have to,"[/color] Duke laughed, letting go of the lip he was biting to make way for the smile that broke across his face. [color=3d8095]"He came to me whinin' about it as soon as the meeting was finished. Tried to prove to me that he could cook and then almost burned dad's house down, I had to push him out the back window so he didn't get caught,"[/color] that was a long time ago, after the divorce had been finalized and his father had taken up heavy drinking in his off hours, so Duke of course had gotten his brother out of the line of fire and been cleaning off the stove as his father pulled into the driveway. When Tiberius had entered the home soon after, he'd thrown a fit over the half-cleaned kitchen and wasted food. The smile faded off Duke's face as he remembered how the rest of the story went. [color=3d8095]"You have mama's recipes perfected compared to the rest of us, I don't know how all three of us missed the cookin' gene but I know they're happy that you were around to pick up the slack,"[/color] he leaned back into his boyfriend and gave him a soft kiss on his temple. [color=3d8095]"That genius brain of yours never ceases to amaze."[/color]

He took Dom's face in his hands and pulled him into a deeper kiss, willing to drop the subject for the time being in lieu of being affectionate and loving with his boyfriend for as long as he could. He sat up just long enough to swing a leg over his boyfriend's lap and settle there like he was the missing puzzle piece, then he resumed his task of trying to take his love's breath away. He was just beginning to slide his hand up under Dominic's shirt and-

[i]*Knockknockknock*[/i]

[color=3d8095]"Shit-"[/color] Duke threw himself backwards, out of his lover's arms and off of his lap before the third timid knock could even finish. Avoiding the coffee table, Duke twisted to catch himself on his hands so he didn't face plant onto the threadbare carpeting, then he not so calmly gathered himself up into a standing position and looked around his apartment with fear-wild eyes. [color=3d8095]"Um, b-bedroom, go hide i-in the bedroom, [i]please[/i],"[/color] Duke begged, apologizing with his eyes while already backing away from his boyfriend and towards the door, an unfortunately common routine between the two. [color=3d8095]"I'll get rid of whoever it is."[/color]

Even before Duke was finished, Dominic was already on his feet, his body half-turned towards the bedroom. A small period of curiosity kept him from going as he saw his boyfriend head for the door and he went inside his lover’s bedroom, closing the door shut, but making sure to put his left ear to it so he could at least hear half of what might happen. In the back of his mind, he feared it might’ve been Duke’s poor-excuse of a sperm donor. If that was the case and if he had to, he would throw some fucking hands. Dom wasn’t a fighter [i]fighter[/i] like Leone or, really, any of the angels, but he would go to ware for his man. 

Once the bedroom door had closed, Duke took a deep breath and peeked through the peephole, eyebrows raising in surprise as all he could see was the disheveled top of the person's head on the other side, indicating a small brunette with her head down and standing rather close. Were the hair a bit lighter, Duke would have suspected it to be Boa's friend, Poppy, though he'd be just as confused on why she was here. As it was, the Enforcer had no idea as to who could be waiting on the other side of the door, nor why they'd chosen his. After a moment's consideration, Duke slid the chain out of place and unlocked his door, opening it just enough for the girl to see him but not be able to see too much of his apartment behind him. The girl now standing in front of him was more than half a foot shorter than him, which was impressive given his shorter than average stature at five foot seven. He took in her ruffled appearance and timid stance and let the tense line of his shoulders fall until his body language was more soft and welcoming.

[color=3d8095]"Uh, hello,"[/color] he greeted, sticking his head into the hallway to see if anyone was with her or using her for an opening. [color=3d8095]"Are you alright?"[/color]

[color=#3b776d]“Um,”[/color] Lorelei honestly would have rathered no one answered the door. Let alone a big guy that could take her down with his finger. Her teeth started jittering in sudden bouts of fear. Miss Samantha told her that this was the safest place in Edenridge. That her parents wouldn’t know she was here. Miss Samantha told her to be brave and that soon she’d find her again and take her in. Or did she hear that wrong? Did Samantha want nothing to do with her? Then why would she give her this burner phone? 

Lala clutched tightly on the phone, wondering immediately if this was a mistake. She wished her brother was here. He would know what to say and how to say it. He would be able to read if this guy was good or not. If he was going to hurt her or if he was understanding and willing to hear her out. [color=#3b776d]“I’m really sorry, I… I’ve never done this before.”[/color] Lala brought the phone up, placing it on her chest, holding it with both of her hands. Her sleeves dropped ever so slightly, showing a glimpse of fading marks, of someone who had held her down, countless times. [color=#3b776d]“Someone… said… Lost Souls is… has good people? I, um…” [i]Don’t want to go home.[/i] [/color]  

Duke’s eyes had trailed from the girl’s chattering teeth, to the obvious burner phone clutched tightly in her frail grasp, to the multitude of faded grip marks now apparent on her thin and pale wrists and he felt his jaw clenching in anger. He did his best to keep any heated response from showing on his face or in his stance but he’d seen bruises like that far too often on the kids in his hood- [i]the Warren and the Boaz brothers, the Cernis siblings[/i]- until something or someone changed their situations. There were too many disgusting people in this world, too many people happy to hurt the ones they’re meant to be shielding, and Duke had seen more than enough proof before he followed his baby sister and her stooges into the Serpents. Everyone in this building had seen enough proof, that’s one of the reasons it existed.

[color=3d8095]“Hey, it’s alright,”[/color] He assured in a soft and low voice, reading between the lines of her answer and once again trying to soften his otherwise hard and muscular appearance. He let go of the door and let it slowly swing open so the girl could see the empty space behind him and see him fully and unguarded. His focus was now entirely on making the obviously abused young girl feel safe, or at least comfortable, enough that he could get her inside and get a warm blanket around her. [color=3d8095]“My name’s Duke Booker, and this is my apartment. Whoever told you this place was safe is right, and I’d like to help if you’d be okay with that.”[/color]

His demeanor was kind and his words were soothing. Pierce had always told her to not judge a book by its cover. Looks could be deceiving. Wolves could wear sheep’s clothing while good people could have fangs and venom, solely because that’s how they were raised to be.  She was a bird, flying far from her cage, seeking safety from a place full of those that look like predators.  Based on how this man presented himself and how he talked and even opened his door for her to see everything inside before she came to the decision of staying or going, she could tell not everyone was a monster.  She could tell he meant well. 

Her shoulders didn’t ease, since she was still frightened. Not at him or his apartment but at the fallout of her running away. Her grip on the phone tightened as she nodded and greeted back, [color=#3b776d]“I’m Lorelei. My friends call me Lala…”[/color] her voice trailed off, as she stopped herself from giving her surname. If she told him too much, this could backfire. Lala was far too deep into the victim mindset that every word she said, every action she did, she wondered if it would turn against her. Taking a deep breath in and holding it in, she took a couple steps inside. Looking around, completely aware of her surroundings, alert and trying to find some clarity of how to feel safe in this moment, she exhaled, catching a couple of breaths, before apologizing again, [color=#3b776d]“I’m sorry for intruding…”[/color]

[color=3d8095]“It’s no problem,”[/color] He assured the girl again. [color=3d8095]“I’m gonna close the door but I won’t lock it unless you want me to,”[/color] He dictated his actions to her before he did them, making sure the hypervigilant state the girl was in was at least partially satiated by the clear information. In the lull that closing the door created, Duke took a moment to look down and realized he still had his boots on. Why did he still have his boots on? He always took them off when he closed the door so what had stopped him today?

Oh. Right. His boyfriend got home early.

[color=3d8095][i]’Fuck.’[/i][/color]

His fear of being discovered warred for only a second with his protective instinct over someone who is obviously a victim of abuse before he took a deep breath and announced, [color=3d8095]“I’m sorry, I forgot to tell you this. I have someone else in the other room but I promise he’s harmless, I can get him out of here while you close yourself in the bathroom or something,”[/color] Duke’s own nerves suddenly picked up. He didn’t want Lala to think that he had tricked her, or that they were trying to corner her, but this was one of those situations he’d feared for years; a small mental slip now had someone close enough to discover his relationship with Dominic, and he had no idea how this stranger would react. [color=3d8095]“I’m sorry, again, I just forgot.”[/color]

[color=#3b776d]“It’s okay…”[/color] Lala whispered, noting Duke’s fixation on his boots. She slowly took off her shoes by the door, assuming that was the etiquette of this household. [color=#3b776d]“I… trust you.”[/color] Cautiously, she placed her shoes to the side before shuffling deeper into the apartment, not knowing where to go. She chose to stand in place, waiting for direction from the older figure. Obedient and patient, just how her dad trained her. 

[color=3d8095]“Okay,”[/color] Duke replied, closing his eyes to keep her from seeing his frustration at himself and taking a moment to take his boots off before he also moved a little further into the room. He didn’t show it much, but he was honored by the girl’s somewhat easy trust of him, well aware that he wasn’t the most approachable looking in many people’s minds. Assuming she didn’t want to sit down until she knew where the other man in the apartment was going to be, he shuffled past her, giving her a wide berth as he did, and headed to his bedroom. Ready to get it over with, he quickly grasped the doorknob and flung the door open to reveal his boyfriend.

Or it would have, had Dominic not been listening with an ear to the door. As it was, there was a rather solid and impressive [i][b]thunk![/b][/i] when the wood door met the taller man’s head and Duke immediately released the doorknob in favor of covering his mouth with his hands.

Dominic had been listening the entire time, only able to make out bits and pieces of what was said - most of it from his boyfriend. He hadn’t been able to make out everything he said and that was mostly due to how close his ear was pressed against the door. He was on one knee and the murmurs of something about ‘this place being safe’, Duke introducing himself to whoever was at the door. [color=00bfff][i]Did someone come over that Duke didn’t know?[/i][/color] Again, it was impossible to hear, much like his boyfriend walking towards the bedroom and aimlessly swinging the door open with force.

Only that force was met with a not so sturdy Dominic. He felt the impact hit his ear and his head, knocking him clear away from the door and on his ass.

[color=3d8095]“Oh my god, babe, are you okay?”[/color] Duke asked, [color=3d8095]“I’m so sorry, do you need some ice-”[/color]

Before responding, Doc gave a shaking thumbs up gesture. He wasn’t hurt [i]that[/i] bad. As he slowly raised himself upward, he held the left side of his head and he didn’t feel anything wet, which meant no blood. [color=deepskyblue]“Good news! There’s no blood, so you didn’t whack me [i]that[/i] hard.”[/color] He laughed, only to feel nothing but discomfort in his head. He might be called Doc, but he wasn’t the kind that went to med school. [color=deepskyblue]“So, out of curiosity, why swing it so fast?”[/color] He peeped through the opened door and saw some little girl who looked oddly familiar and he just waved to her, smiling gently. 

[color=3d8095]"I didn't know you were gonna be standing right on the other side!"[/color] Duke defended, dropping to his knees to grasp Doc's face, checking his eyes and gently tilting his head every which way until he was satisfied that he hadn't concussed his lover. Releasing the breath he'd been holding, Duke finally silently declared Doc to be in good health. When the worry from that particular thought faded, it left room for a question of his own to form. [color=3d8095]"Wait, why were [i]you[/i] so close to the door? Were you trying to listen in like some kinda old sitcom parent?"[/color] He took his hands, already conveniently on either side of Doc's face, and squished his cheeks together. [color=3d8095]"That shit don't work that easy, you dork."[/color]

Lorelai wasn’t like most young people. Some individuals that were left to their own devices would take the opportunity to be nosy and look around to gather information. Lala wasn’t like most people her age. She stood there, still holding the phone close to her chest, waiting for further instructions, not wanting to step out of line. As she stood there quietly, she reflected. She graduated highschool a couple of months ago. Her parents were there, pretending to be normal. People would go up to them and say how Pierce was such a tragic loss. He would’ve done amazing things. They were good at pretending. She was not, which is why she kept quiet. If she kept quiet, she wouldn’t have to lie. 

Not too long ago she turned eighteen. Two days ago, actually. The day before Dear David. Her birthday was one of the days where her mother was more lenient of letting her out the house to spend time with friends. When she got in bad headspaces, it was hard to think about them because it was in those moments she felt more lonely than ever but now? As she heard two men, that she could only assume were lovers, playfully bicker, she thought of her friends and realized she had more reasons to better her life. To fight against her monsters. Bernie, Freya, Alaric, Alex… she had people that loved her. That was more than enough reason to carry on. 

[color=deepskyblue]“It’s not like I intended to get whacked with a door. I didn’t know who would be at the door. I thought it might’ve been someone not as…tiny as the girl out there.”[/color] Dominic sighed and felt his head pulsate. His loving boyfriend had deemed him to be not brain damaged, but it felt like he was. Every breath he made felt like the migraine and the pain it came with was only getting worse the longer it went on. He might have to pay Dr. Sinclair a visit whenever he got the chance. [color=deepskyblue]“Anyway, now that it’s been established that I’ve got the common sense of the cast from Friends, who’s the girl? Is she okay?”[/color] From where he was and from what he could see, something was off but he couldn’t place his finger on it. Call it his sixth sense tugging at him or something like that.

Duke turned around to look at Lorelai and his hands retreated from Dominic's face on reflex, finding purchase on the doorframe as he stood back up before they were clasped behind his back like a kid caught touching something he shouldn't.

[color=3d8095]"Um, this is Lorelai- Lala. Lala this is Dominic he's uh,"[/color] the Serpent Enforcer closed his eyes against the stupidity of what was about to come out of his mouth, especially given what the girl just saw, but he's been living with this secret for so long that the responses were practically ingrained. [color=3d8095]"He's a family friend and my neighbor."[/color]

[color=3d8095][i]’Please don't ask why I had him hiding in my bedroom. Play ignorant if you have to,’[/i][/color] he kept the plea from showing while taking a too-casual half step away from the doorway and wringing his hands behind his back, out of her sight.

[color=#3b776d]“Nice to meet you, sir,”[/color] Lala shyly replied, holding herself with proper posture and polite mannerisms. Gazing at them like authority figures, wide eyed and anxious, she rooted her feet to the ground. Her hands had dropped in front of her skirt as she tightly held onto the burner phone. [color=#3b776d]“Sorry to have interrupted…”[/color] her deep, brown eyes went from one man to the next, understanding the situation but not wanting to comment on it. It wasn’t her place. [color=#3b776d]“A woman named Samantha led me here and said I could find shelter. I…”[/color] she looked away from them, ashamed at her actions, knowing this would come to bite her in the ass later. Her melancholic gaze went from Dom’s face, straight to her feet like a forlorn, neglected animal who hasn’t had an ounce of kindness and love, the type you expect to get from family, in years. [color=#3b776d]“...I don’t know where else to go.” [/color]

[color=deepskyblue]“It’s okay. You weren’t interrupting anything at all.”[/color] Dominic gently smiled at Lorelai, seeing how she stood, how she acted, how she [i]spoke[/i]. That off feeling he had from before that was just from a momentary glance increased and it made his stomach turn at the thought of what kind of torture she had to go through to be so…obedient with two people she barely even knew. [color=deepskyblue]“Samantha seems like she knew what she was talking about.”[/color] Dominic crouched down to Lorelai's eye level but didn’t advance any paces. Something told him he needed to go with caution. [color=deepskyblue]“She must care for you a lot. Lost Souls might not look like much, but it’s one of the safest places for anyone to live. We have good friends looking after us. Protecting us even when we don’t realize it. So you will be safe here, that much I can guarantee.”[/color] He spoke as softly as he could so she didn’t feel alarmed but not too soft so she heard every word he said. 

[color=#3b776d]“Good, I’m glad,”[/color] was all Lala could muster saying in response at first. All the nerves and anxiety that had gotten her to this point were now being formed into tears running down her cheeks. She was quick to back up and wipe her face, not realizing she even needed to cry. [color=#3b776d]“Sorry, sorry,”[/color] she profusely apologized. [color=#3b776d]“Thank you for being so kind to me. I know this is really weird,”[/color] she rambled, completely scatterbrained, [color=#3b776d]“and I don’t know what I’m doing. I hope I’m not bothering you two… it’s just I don’t know what comes next. I never did this before. Maybe I’m making a mistake, maybe I’m being too impulsive. I could go back and apologize, maybe that will make everything better.”[/color]

[color=3d8095]"You're not bothering us,"[/color] Duke reassured, his older brother instincts kicking back in as her tears started to fall, he made his way into the bathroom and came out with a roll of toilet paper, holding it out at arms length to her while apologizing, [color=3d8095]"Sorry, I don't really have tissue, but you can use this. And I'm sorry to say this, but it's pretty unheard of that returning and apologizing makes [i]that[/i]-"[/color] he glanced at the bruises still showing on her wrists, no judgment in his tone, none of the anger he felt at seeing them showing on his features. [color=3d8095]"-any better. Usually it's just…more pain. If you're not comfortable here with us we understand, but please let us introduce you to some of the women that live here too. Maybe you have a friend we could call?"[/color]

[color=#3b776d]“No, no, it’s fine,”[/color] Lala graciously took the toilet paper, sniffling as she placed the burner phone on the counter. Ripping a tiny piece of paper off to dab her face, she explained, [color=#3b776d]“No one really knows about my situation. I’ve never told any of my friends and I don’t think I’m ready to tell them now. They’d feel bad for not noticing and I don’t want them to feel bad.”[/color] Instead of hugging the burner phone, she was now hugging the toilet paper. The fact that she was no longer holding the one thing that could protect her in this situation with two strangers, older men no less, showed she wasn’t scared of either of them. If anything, she felt safer here than anywhere else she’s ever been. 

[color=#3b776d]“I guess…”[/color] What would Kylee do? She asked herself internally, before offering an olive branch, [color=#3b776d]“…We can start by getting to know each other better. And if you two are okay with me staying for a night, I can try to plan my next steps. I don’t want to meet new people and have to do this whole thing all over again.”[/color] She gave an exasperated sigh. [color=#3b776d]“This was a lot for me to do but if I’m imposing then sure, we can find someone else,”[/color] Lala mustered to put a small smile on her face, which was still a little wet from tears, hoping she wasn’t being too demanding and they actually did want her to stay. [color=#3b776d]“Whatever you guys think is best!”[/color]

[color=3d8095]“You’re not imposing, seriously, Lost Souls doors are always open to those who need help,”[/color] Duke reiterated to the newest lost soul herself. He looked back to Dominic and nodded him over to the couch, taking the seat next to him once he had sat down and looking to Lala, who was the last one standing. He hadn’t been questioning it before, figuring she didn’t want to be the one to sit down with two stronger strangers in the room, but now he realized she may not know what’s okay to do. He pointed to the plush and worn leather seat placed on the adjacent side of the coffee table to their right. [color=3d8095]“You can take a seat in the recliner there, the blanket over the back is really soft if you’d like to use it.”[/color]

With direction, Lala nodded and shuffled her way first to the blanket then to the seat. Getting herself situated, after placing her back pack at the foot of the chair and the toilet paper on the coffee table, she leaned back, pulling the blanket over her thin body. She placed a hand in front of her mouth and yawned into it. When she was comfortable, she surveyed the two older men before smiling and meeting Duke’s gaze, [color=#3b776d]“Mr. Duke, you carry yourself differently when you’re around Mr. Dominic. I can tell there’s a lot of trust between you two.” [/color]

Whether they were platonic best friends or more, she knew she was lucky to be in their home. [color=#3b776d]“I had someone I trusted too, with all my heart. He was my protector until Charlie decided to end that. But I know for him, I have to be strong. I have to protect myself.”[/color] As much trauma as Lala had gone through, she built enough power of will to articulate her words and her experiences. She didn’t go into too much detail about her own trauma but in time, with a trusted group of people, she was sure she’d get in a place where she could speak freely and let her story aid those who need to hear it. [color=#3b776d]“I struggle though. I’m too weak to be a fighter and like, how do you fight something you’ve lived with most of your life? How do you fight monsters?”[/color]

Another person Charlie’s actions weighed on, of course. Duke couldn’t say he was surprised, almost everyone in town had some connection to those lost the day of the shooting. Charlie helped create a lot of lost souls himself. He didn’t quite know how to feel about her comment on him and Dominic, aside from the fact that it made him sweat a bit. If she could see that he acted differently around him and they just met, well, just how obvious was it to the people that knew them? Just how [i]different[/i] did he act?

Tiberius Booker never liked different, much.

[i]’How do you fight monsters?’[/i]

His father wasn’t a monster. He wasn’t a great man by any stretch, don’t get him wrong. The man was every type of phobic that you could be when it came to the queer community and the things Duke had heard him say about his mama after the divorce were nothing short of vile. The man had let his drinking get the best of him and his idea of what makes a man was strictly enforced in both of his sons. But Duke had been the one to be home when he stumbled in drunk after a long night, pissed about people he saw out and about with their loves that day. Duke was the one Tiberius could fix before he became a problem. 

You can be a bad person without passing the threshold into monster. Tiberius toed the line often, but didn’t like to cross it. He wasn’t a monster like the parents of some of Duke’s Serpent siblings, but Tiberius Booker would not need to worry about overcrowding at his funeral service.

[i]’How do you fight monsters?’[/i]

The truth is, Duke doesn’t know how to reply to Lala in this moment, because he’d never fought his monsters, let alone his father. He’d taken the closet doors he was meant to burst out of and pulled them closed tighter, adding locks to the inside so no one could get to him where he was most vulnerable. Duke never knew how to fight his demons, and he never knew how to stand up to people like his father. But he did know one thing, and that was that, [color=3d8095]“No one’s too weak to be a fighter. Sure you have people like me or Creed with obvious muscles and fighters’ builds, but then you’ve got people like my girl Emira, who’s deceptively soft looking but could put most fighters on the floor. She could honestly probably teach you some moves, and if not I could talk to Marce and Cela next time I’m at Phil’s. Maybe it’s a little less about fighting your monsters right now, and more about building your strength to do it in the first place,”[/color] He looked over to Dominic for validation. [color=3d8095]“That makes sense, right?”[/color]

That was a heavy question Lorelai asked. Monsters existed all over in all shapes, sizes, and colors. They were sometimes the devil you knew while others were less obvious and paraded as a friend, or somebody who was just trying to get into your good graces so they could hurt you when your back was turned. Dominic, in his life, had experienced all forms of those people. Listening to Duke talk about what it took to combat them, he didn’t realize it but he was nodding even before his boyfriend looked his way. 

He smiled at Duke and then to Lorelai. [color=deepskyblue]“Couldn’t have said it better myself. I’m also not as great at conveying what you just said either. My brain goes [i]woosh[/i]--”[/color] Dominic made the sound that an airplane makes when it’s taking off from the runway to emphasize what he just said, [color=deepskyblue]“--whenever I try to get my thoughts out. But everything Duke said is right. David took down Goliath with nothing but rocks and a sling, but he had the heart of an underdog and never gave up. That’s how ya beat whatever monster or demon you come across: by never giving up.”[/color] In that moment, Dominic had kind of realized he contradicted himself. Apparently he did know how to get his thoughts out when he wanted to.

Duke smiled at his boyfriend, realizing the same thing. He made an aborted movement to grab Dominic’s hand before he caught himself and played off of Dom’s words. [color=3d8095]“Everyone loves a good underdog story, and gaining the strength to fight your monsters, mental or physical, is a perfectly attainable idea. You’ve also already found me and Dom, and we aren’t exactly lone acts. You’ll have people in your corner if you want them there.”[/color]

The two lovers were so enthralled with one another that they didn’t notice the stranger they permitted in their apartment had dozed off, bundled in their fleece blanket. For once, Lorelei felt safe. The more they talked, the more her worries were put at ease and before they knew it, she faded and entered the land of dreams. 

They were sweet men. 

Maybe Lost Souls was the safest place in Edenridge. Maybe she could find a family here. She would have to thank Miss Samantha the next time she saw her. Her breathing was quiet and her posture, while more relaxed, was in a sitting position. Her head leaned back into the recliner as she imagined a bright, sunny day. No rain or cloud in the sky. No darkness to hide the monsters that only meant her harm. Just the sun and those that mattered. Mostly though, she thought of her brother. 
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