Levi nodded, making sure to lock the door before walking any closer. He placed them on the small wooden coffee table in between the four of them before sitting next to Xio again, “You betcha! Ma only makes them, never buys them. Says that the shop bought once taste like ‘blue cheese made by someone’s feet.’” He used quotation marks as he spoke with a chuckle.
“I love homemade cookies. Kai I love your family.” She hummed, glancing st the cookies. “Can I have one?” She asked softly, tilting her head with an innocent smile. She was really actually loving this family. She found herself longing for a mother who could cook and who would worry. She longed for a mother who would support.
Sure her father was supportive and loving and a good dad, but he was never around anymore. He spent his days over working himself. Xio just wanted a normal family. Her mood seemed to dip at that thought. She wanted to be normal. It’s why she hid behind outfits and makeup. She was afraid others would find her different if she didn’t.
Levi nodded taking two in his hands, "Go for it, take as many as you like." He motioned to the tray as Denzel took some himself, Kai didn't touch them, though. He just smiled politely and nodded to what Levi said.
"Kai, you should play for Xio and us soon," Denzel said, biting into a cookie as Kai went beat red.
Xio snatched one up and began to nibble on it, savoring each and every bite. “I love this family. Can I just join you guys?” She joked through a mouthful of cookie. Her eyes settled on Kai. She patted the seat next to her, a questioning look in her eye asking him to sit by her.
“You play!? You should have told me earlier. I would have forced you to play for me.” She giggled, winking. “I would love to hear you play.”
Kai flushed even redder, rubbing the back of his neck as he moved himself from Denzel and the beanbag to the seat next to her, "D-Depends if you want me to play piano or guitar," He shrugged, "I'm okay at both."
"Okay?! Dude, you're amazing!" Levi chuckled.
She smiled, leaning against him slightly. She couldn’t decide what she wanted to hear from him. “C-can I hear you play both at some point? I want to hear your guitar and piano playing.” She murmured, running a hand through his hair. She loved how soft and messy it was all the time. She wanted to just style and play with his hair for hours on end while he played her a song.
Kai nodded, sinking back into the seat to give Xio better access to his hair. He had to admit, but he really enjoyed it when she did it so he wasn't going to complain, "I'll play piano for you later, then." He said softly, offering a small smile.
Xio smiled back at him, attempting to braid his hair. It wasn’t going too well. “I can’t wait to hear.” She mumbled, forgetting there were others around them. She couldn’t believe how soft his hair was. As she grabbed another cookie and shoved into her mouth, Xio ran her fingers through the hair near his neck. “You’re so soft all the time.”
Kai hummed his agreement, sinking into the couch a little further, "Condition, shampoo, then condition again. Perfect for getting it super soft." He muttered, letting his eyes fall shut. He knew Denzel and Levi were smirking even though he couldn't see and he resisted the urge to flip them off.
“Never change it. This is perfect.” She purred, watching him with an amused gaze. He was too cute. It almost hurt her. “You’re like an overgrown puppy.” She giggled, planting a soft kiss to his forehead for the heck of it. “I love your hair. It’s soft.” She added afterwords, leaningninto him.
Kai pouted a little, "I'm not… I'm not a puppy." He mumbled, wrapping his arms around Xio. He shifted so she was sitting in his lap, Kai wrapping his legs through hers as he buried his head in the crook of her neck, "Okay fine… maybe just a little bit like one."
Xio couldn’t help but to blush at this new position. She could feel his breath against her skin as he spoke and that was a feeling that drove her insane. She smiled at his words, continuing to run her fingers through his hair. “Or a lot like one.” She murmured, her face hot and red. He was so close.
"I will go as far as half like one and that is that." Kai replied, letting his eyes fall shut again. He breathed in her scent, rubbing small circles into her side with his thumb softly. He could have fallen asleep there, quite happy and content.
"No I have to agree with Xio, you;re very much like a puppy." Levi said, Denzel nodded in agreement.
“Only half? You’re way more than just half like a puppy.” She replied, relaxing into his touch with a soft shiver. She laughed softly at Levi’s answer, resting her head against Kai’s. Her own scent was one of lavender and vanilla, warm and friendly it settled into her very being. “You’re too cute to not be one…”
"I don't think this is really…" Kai trailed off when he went his body become suddenly cold. The twin's face drained of colour, Denzel leaping off the beanbag and rushing out the room.
"Kai? Have you been taking your medication?" Levi asked, lifting Kai's head from where it sat. A layer of ice was tarting to work its way up his neck as the younger male nodded.
"It's not… time though…" Kai muttered, gently pushing himself away from Xio.
Xio panicked. The twins were worried and flustering over Kai. So she was obviously going to be worried. She let her arms drop away from his head and instead slide down his arms to gently take his hands. “K-Kai?” She asked softly, biting her lip at the sight of his freezing body. “What’s going on?” Xio refused to let his hands go even as he pushed away from her. She felt sad at the absence of his warmth and breath. That emotion was quickly taken over by fear. Fear of losing the one male she thought she could actually date.
"Xio, I need you to help me get Kai up, please," Levi said, wrapping an arm around his brother and lifting up up off the couch, "I'll explain everything once he's safe, I promise but you need to stay calm. Everything will be okay in a couple hours."
Xiomara nodded, taking in a few deep breaths. Her anxiety would take hold of her eventually, but right now she could push it back. She had to help Kai. “Ok… ok I can help…” she moved to wrap an arm around Kai, staring at his face with a look of defeat and worry. His powers were terrifyingly powerful.
Kai offered Xio a strained smile, "Don't worry… everything will be fine." He muttered, giving her a small kiss on the cheek as Levi led them to that metal door not too far down the hall. Giselle and Denzel were already there, the older woman unlocking the door with a set of keys. Ice looked like it was seeping out from under the metal but none of them seemed to care.
Once the door was open, Kai removed himself from Levi and Xio, and stumbled inside, Giselle locking the door behind him, "This way." She said, leading them into a room next door. The room was very much like a viewing chamber. There were seats, a desk and a huge glass window so they could see inside the one Kai was in.
Kai's room, was pure white. The walls, the floor, the ceiling, everything. The only other colour, was the blue from the ice that protruded from every surface that wasn't the window. It hung from the ceiling and the walls in sharp spikes and they almost seemed to grow slowly.
The door gave her chills. She didn’t like it one bit. She liked it even less when Kai willingly stepped into it. As she followed the twins and Gazelle, she felt uneasy and sick to her stomach. How did they deal with this every Time? Even the viewing room was hard to look st. And yet she drunk it all in, missing the feeling of Kai’s arms around her. What was going on with his ice? Would he be alright?
“How often do you do this…?” She asked softly, shaking from head to toe.
Levi pulled Xio into a hug, hoping to calm her just a bit into Kai recovered and was safe to come out, "It's not often. Generally it happens on his birthday, and the winter solstice but… it's becoming more frequent and we don't know why."
"His powers just… become out of control," Denzel explained softly, "Kai can't control it. It's like a little explosion, hence this room. It controls it. His doctor and some scientists… they found some medication to suppress the attacks, but we don't think it's working anymore."
The poor girl was shook to her core. She bit her lip, barely managing to hug Levi back. “It’s not working anymore?” She didn’t know what to do. He had mentioned how bad his powers got around the solstice but he had never told her how often he had attacks. “There’s got to be something that can help him!”
Levi gave Xio a small squeeze, “We know. We’re trying to find something. There’s people we trust working round the clock. Darius said they were close to finding a cure to stop the attacks completely, it shouldn’t be too long a wait now.”
Then, there was a muffled sound that emerged from the room. It sounded like glass breaking but in reality was all the ice spikes. Kai was in the middle, panting as the ice removed then broke, the process repeating a few times before the spikes grew into they were poking Kai from all directions.
Xio shut her eyes tight. She only listened to the sounds of ice shattering and breaking. It hurt her internally and yet she wasn’t sure why. She just didn’t want to see him in pain or hurting.
Denzel cursed under his breath and started to pace, “Tanz has to come up for something. He’s the smartest person in America…”
“He will, Denzel,” Giselle piped up from where she was standing by the glass window, watching as her third son shattered, reformed, and shattered ice over and over, “Darius Tanz is a good man, he’s smart and his team is smart, too. They’ll come up with something, have faith,” She sighed, “Xio, would you like some tea? It’ll help the shock.”