Ari uncovered his face, clearing his throat faintly and snickering softly at the kiss. "Only slightly, dear Honey. Only slightly. I don't think that that haunting was strong enough yet, not at all. You must haunt me a little more, I think, before I truly feel the effects of your haunting." he laughed softly, smiling down at Honey.
"You telling me to haunt you harder?" Honey asked, quirking a brow. That sounded like a challenge, and oh, was he feeling competitive. He rolled into a sitting position and looked over at Ari. His expression was calculating. Suddenly, his arm snapped out behind him. He ripped one of the blankets from the door and threw it over himself. Five seconds of adjusting later, and he was dressed like a classic sheet ghost. He waddled on his knees over to Ari, but instead of doing anything particularly spooky, he lifted the sheet and kissed him on the forehead.
"Boo," he whispered, grinning despite himself. The whole thing was ridiculous.
Ari laughed, smiling up at Honey from where he sat on the pillows. "How terrifying." he replied, smiling. "I think that that was a sufficient haunting, as I feel quite petrified with fear." he was laughing even as he spoke, reaching up to rest his hands on Honey's shoulders. "I am shaking where I sit."
"That's exactly what you deserve, you scoundrel," Honey scolded. He tapped him on the nose as if he was a dog. Just as he was about to say more, undoubtedly going to continue his little charade, there came a knock on the door.
"Good morning! I'm sorry to bother you, but is Honey in there?" It was Lovey. She must've come to check on them after last night. He called for her to step inside and heard the door swing open. Through the gap created by him taking one of the blankets, he could see her legs and fuzzy pink slippers. She laughed brightly.
"Oh, that looks so cozy! I didn't mean to intrude, but, um, Sugar's been going wild all morning, and I thought she might want to see you." She bent down and placed the dog on the floor. Immediately, the pup sprang forward and bounced into the fort, landing on Ari's stomach. She barked several times in a row. The blond reached over to pick her up in case she got aggressive, but he stopped when he saw her tail wagging.
Ari smiled at Lovey, then grinned at Sugar, reaching up to pet the little dog. "Hello, Sugar~" he crooned, a smile still tugging at his mouth. "Aren't you so cute? Aren't you such a sweet little cutie?" he babied her, laughing a little bit and petting Sugar gently. "Such a sweet little thing, yes you are, yes you are!"
Honey flopped onto his stomach and then wiggled halfway out of the fort so he see his sister better. She'd done her hair in a ponytail, and her lips were painted baby pink to match her dress. Keeping her legs warm was a pair of cream colored stockings.
"Like I said, I'm just here for a minute. I've gotta go to work the front desk." She retrieved a pink mask with ribbons from the pocket of her dress and held it for him to see. Her expression softened. "Pretty's out talking to the people selling the house. She said she wanted to see if we could move in any sooner."
"There's no rush. Baby's not gonna be here for, what, several months? You've got time."
"Yeah, but I don't like the thought of you being here any longer than you have to. I know you're gonna say that it's fine, but it's not. This place just isn't safe for you anymore."
"What, and a house is?" He didn't mean to sound so angry, but his face had gone bright red. "Doesn't matter where we hide. People can find us anywhere. You know that. Remember what happened last time, when-" He cut himself off, remembering that Ari was still there. Absentmindedly, he reached over and gave Sugar’s head a scratch. The little dog no longer looked so excited.
Ari quieted at their conversation, looking up at the two of them with concern in his gaze. "Is everything alright?" he asked slowly, sitting up and poking his head out of the blanket fort. "Or is this, uh, not a conversation that you want me to be here for?" he didn't want to interrupt them, but he wanted to help, somehow, if it was possible to do so.
Honey blew out an exasperated breath and pinched the spot between his brows. This really wasn't Ari's problem to deal with. Besides, they were in his room. It'd be rude to have an argument when they weren't in their own space.
"Yeah, handsome, it's alright. Got a bit heated, that's all. Right, Lovey?" He looked up and immediately felt like he'd been sucker punched. His sister was visibly upset. She wasn't crying, but her eyes were suspiciously damp, and he saw her lower lip tremble. "Oh. I didn't mean to, uh, say that stuff."
"It's okay! Really, you're right. It's fine. We're good! Just, um, I guess I'll see you guys later." She hurried out the door as if she didn't want to hear another word. Honey didn't blame her. He'd basically blown up at her for no reason.
Ari looked between the two of them, and pulled back into the blanket fort so that he wasn't interrupting as much. "Sorry." he said softly, as Lovey left. He knew it wasn't his fault, but he was still sorry for the argument and for the upset that had happened. He gently scratched behind Sugar's ears, not wanting the dog to feel stressed and upset about all of this.
Sugar wagged her tail so hard that her entire body wiggled, and she gave Ari a few licks on the wrist. She seemed calmer than before. That was likely due to the fact that Lovey had left, meaning the pup couldn't see that her owner was distressed. She trotted in small circle in Ari's lap before curling into a ball.
"Yeah. I mean, nah. Don't be apologizing for stuff that's not your fault. But yeah. That sucked." Honey scratched at his forehead before raking his hand through his hair. "Damnit. Not sure why I said any of that. Shit. I hope she's gonna be alright."
Ari kept gently petting Sugar, scratching behind her ears and smoothing his hand along her fur, half to calm her and half to calm himself. "She'll be okay." he said softly. "But, uhm, she's doing her best to help you, Honey, and constantly being negative about that help doesn't help anyone, least of all you. She knows the past as well as you do, Honey." he gave the blond a faint smile.
"I know. She's being real nice and helping me out, literally offering half her house to me, and I just- I don't know. I really don't know why I did that."
Honey didn't smile back at Ari. Instead, he buried his face in his folded arms. When he spoke next, his voice was very muffled.
"I'm mad at her, and it's not fair that I am 'cause it doesn't make sense. I'm mad 'cause I wished she'd noticed my stuff sooner, even though I spent years hiding it from her. It just feels like she ignored it out of convenience. That's not how it really is, I know. She's a sweet person. She's good. She would've done something sooner, if I'd only told her. But there were times when I really thought she would've caught on, and even though I didn't want her to notice, I also kinda did? I think deep down I always wanted help, but I convinced myself I didn't need it."
Sugar whimpered and nosed against Ari’s fingers. She was still curled up, but her eyes were now on her owner.
Ari kept gently petting and scratching Sugar, trying to reassure the little dog. "Yeah." he said softly. "But, uhm, people tend to see what they want to see, not the truth. She…she wanted to see that you were okay, and what you were presenting to her was that you were okay, and she took that at face value. It's not her fault, but it's not yours either." he kept his gaze on Honey, reaching out with his free hand to gently rub Honey's back.
"It hurts," Honey admitted softly. He lifted his head and looked to the side, meeting Ari's eyes. "I spent years doing everything I could for her. When she was injured or sick, I always found the best help possible, even when it meant I'd eat scraps for a week. When she was upset, I'd listen, even when I was dead tired. When someone attacked her, I risked my life to get revenge. If what's been going on with me had been happening to her, I would've known. I would've. I mean, shit, it took Rin and Arquis, what, all of a couple days to discover what was going on? Four years. That's about how long I've been doing this, and she never asked once."
Sugar cried quietly and tucked her head into Ari's side. She was a very empathetic dog. Even though she didn't know what was being said, she could tell by the emphasis on certain words that Honey was upset.
The blond sighed. "I sound like a spoiled brat. She's done a lot for me, too, and now there's this. It's probably more than I deserve. I'm just being bitter."
Ari kept gently stroking the dog, trying to soothe her. "Honey…Rinlos has…more personal experience with this. They know what abuse looks like, even when someone is, ah, doing a good job of hiding it." they didn't go into any further detail; what had happened to Rin was not Ari's business to tell. "If…and I don't know about Lovey, what her experience with it might be, but if she has had little to none, and you were telling her everything was fine, that there was consent given, then…most people take things at face value. It's alright to be upset and disappointed, but please odn't take it out on her. She did her best, and sometimes people's best isn't what we need from them."
Honey shoulders rose and fell in a pathetic attempt at a shrug. "I know. She wants to see the good in people and assume the best, and that's what I love about her. She always tries to be positive. But, well, I don't know. I'm not making sense. Thinking with my heart, not my head. Always gets me into trouble, makes me say stuff I don't mean."
For a really long time, he didn't say anything else. Had it not been for his eyes, which were still clearly open, it would've looked like he'd fallen asleep. His brow was drawn, and his jaw was clenched tightly. It didn't seem like he was angry, though. Just hurt.
"I think she's being naïve with this, too," he finally murmured. "She wants to think that moving outta here is gonna fix things, and yeah, it'll solve some stuff. But I'm worried, Ari. I'm scared she's hoping that this'll all just," he flung his hands out, making his wrist ache, "go away or something. Like, we won't have to talk about it once we've moved out, ‘cause all the bad is behind us. She’s done it before. I don’t think it’s malicious, but, like, I can’t just pretend none of this is happening. I can’t go back to that.”
Ari nodded a little bit. "I understand. And that's…that's something that you'll need to make sure she understands. That moving out will help, but that it won't magically fix everything. It won't suddenly make everything right. And…it's going to be hard for both of you, I think." he shrugged his shoulders, looking down at Sugar for a moment, and then back over to Honey.
Sugar sniffed Ari's knee and pawed at it. She was no longer curled up. Her hind legs were stretched out, and her snout was poking into his calf. She wagged her tail when she saw the two young men looking. Her owner gave her a halfhearted pet.
"I know. You're right. We need to talk about it. That's the most logical thing." He flexed his hand and studied the way it moved. There was a very old, faint scar across the knuckles of his hand. It was tiny. Not from a fight, but from broken glass. He'd been digging around for something in someone's bins. Food, most likely. People threw out food all the time. He'd eaten his fair share of stale bread and old leftovers. It wasn't glamorous, but it'd kept him alive.
"I just get real tired of trying to do the logical thing. And, like, considering people's feelings. Sometimes I just wanna start screaming and never stop." He balled his hand into a fist suddenly, watching his skin shift over vein and muscle and bone. "Sometimes I think maybe I did want all this to happen. That I needed someone to, like, beat the anger out of me. I'm angry a lot. I don't wanna be, but I am."
His hand relaxed again. He let his arm fall to the floor and sighed.
He bit his lip faintly, trying to think of the right thing to say. "I…I don't think…I'm not a psychologist, or…or a therapist, but…you aren't…the anger didn't need to be beaten out of you. You're angry because there's been so much, uhm, trauma. And issues." he kept his gaze on Sugar, hoping he was saying the right thing but feeling out of his depth. "Just…it's not your fault, and I don't….you didn't want this, Honey."
Honey glanced over, his brows knitted with concern. All it took was a moment of observation for him to come to a conclusion. Guilt seized his heart, and he frowned. This wasn't right. Things were supposed to be going differently between the two of them.
"I'm overwhelming you," he said, half to himself. The realization made him blush. They'd only known each other for a couple days, and he'd already dumped so much of his trauma onto Ari. The poor man was probably stressed out of his mind trying to find a way to respond to it all.
Well, that wouldn't do. Determined, the blond continued, "You're right. You're not my therapist or whatever. And as sweet as you are, angel, to help me with all this, I haven't exactly been fair to you. So. Tell you what. Why don't we change the subject? Let's focus on you for a bit."
Ari took a deep breath, looking at Honey for a moment. "I…are you sure?" he said slowly, gently scratching behind Sugar's ears. "I don't…I know that this is important, but…but it's…it's a little overwhelming. I'm sorry. I…I don't want to hurt you, and I know you need to talk about it, but I…I think it would be better to find a therapist, instead of me. To…to work through all of this, I mean."
Honey smiled, pretending that what he'd said didn't hurt. That pain was irrational. Ari wasn't pushing him away, and besides, Honey had been the one to bring it up in the first place. He'd recognized the signs first and had stopped himself from continuing to rant. It was a healthy behavior, or at least it was supposed to be. Yet that tiny, awful part of his mind was screaming that this was a rejection. Ari was rejecting him. His problems were too much for him to handle. He really was that messed up.
He wasn't going to say any of that out loud, though. This wasn't the time to wallow in more self-pity. He nodded emphatically.
"Yeah! Yeah, nah, you're good. You're totally right! I've been real rude to you. And you're on vacation! Enough stressing out." His smile faltered, but only for a second, and it came back more radiant than before. "Do you want some alone time? We’ve got a spa, if you wanna relax. Champagne, too.”
"I'm sorry, Honey." he said softly. "I…I know this is important, but I just…it's too much for me right now." he took a deep breath, he looked down at Sugar again, taking a deep breath. "I don't need alone time, though! I'm okay. I am." he didn't know what to do now. Or where to look. He didn't mean to disappoint or let Honey down.
Honey nodded rapidly. His fake smile was still plastered on, and this time, he was determined not to let it falter.
"Oh, don't be sorry for that, it's all good. I talk about this stuff too much. I get it." Though the words themselves could be perceived as passive aggressive, there wasn't a single trace of bitterness in his tone. He was being honest. Everything he'd brought up had been terribly depressing, and it was layered on top of a really tough morning. Ari was probably exhausted. The blond to pat his knee before rolling to his feet.
"Well, here's the deal. You might not need alone time, but, uh, I've gotta go and get back to cleaning duty. And I've made another executive decision. You're not allowed to help. You get to stay here and relax a little. Unwind."
Honey gestured for Sugar to come to him so he could pick her up. The little dog didn't move. He called her name softly, but she didn't budge an inch. When he came closer, she actually started to growl. Her gaze was hostile; she looked like she might snap at his hand. Her owner's fake smile dropped.
"Sugar, please? You can't stay here." She growled again, and when he tried to take her, she tried to bite his finger. He scrambled back. Pain flashed through his eyes, quickly chased away by humiliated anger. "Fine! Stay! I'll get Lovey to come get you in a minute."
Ari blinked at him, not quite sure what to do. "Sorry." he said softly. "And, ah, are you sure you don't want any more help? I want to help you, if I can. If you'll let me." he looked down at Sugar, brows gathering faintly. "Sugar, go with him. You don't need to stay here with me, sweet thing."