#( c: aleki 05 )

[dreidful]

there  was  a  mixture  of  embarrassment  and  necessity  for  reid's  sabbatical  from  the  ark,  days  after  reviving  aleki.  his  death  lingered  on  him  like  a  haunting  melody  that  he  simply  could  not  escape.  the  son  of  hinenuitepō  felt  no  other  way  to  escape  than  to  take  his  time  to  return  back  to  himself  ;  refreshed  and  recharged  in  the  only  way  he  knew  how  to. 

a  brilliant  ray  of  sun,  a  light  in  the  dark,  a  bulwark  from  the  madness  chipped  away  from  all  that  they  had  to  face.

but  now,  reid  returned  resolved  more  than  ever  with  his  typical  kindness  radiating  and  a  bag  of  tropical  fruits  and  some  new  zealand  pastries  from  one  of  their  favorite  bakeries  from  back  home.  “  you  home,  aleki?  ”  the  man  barged  in  without  shame  during  the  early  morning  light,  expecting  the  other  to  be  tossing  in  his  bed. [ @lavasick. ]

[dreidful]

was  comfort  a  good  enough  reason  to  keep  returning  into  the  arms  of  his  best  friend?  reid  hadn't  the  energy  nor  the  stamina  to  keep  aleki  at  arm's  length  after  being  gone  for  so  long,  especially  after  the  surge  of  yearning  he  felt  after  his  death.  he  hadn't  wanted  to  untangle  the  web  of  what  that  meant  and  so  he  simply  didn't  for  the  sake  of  ease.  aleki's  warm  body  felt  like  a  furnace  against  reid's  chilling  touch  but  often  it  felt  more  like  he  a  moth  waiting  to  be  destroyed  by  the  son  of  pele's  flame.  "  thank  you,  aleki.  "  his  voice  soft,  perhaps  even  the  softest  that  aleki  had  heard  in  quite  some  time.

reid  had  a  quip  about  aleki  not  taking  time  off  and  being  a  robot  but  he  rather  not  ruin  this  moment  of  reunion,  he  had  missed  aleki  after  being  gone  for  weeks.  "  don't  squeeze  too  hard.  "  okay,  maybe  he  couldn't  help  himself  as  he  attempted  to  ease  aleki's  colossal  strength  feeling  like  a  vice-like  grip  constricting  him  in  place.

"  do  you  want  to  hang  out  with  just  me?  "  reid  asks  directly,  turning  his  head  to  meet  his  exes'  gaze.  "  i'm  happy  to  if  you  want,  you  can  catch  me  up  with  all  your  shenanigans.  "  a  smile;  look  of  desire  and  a  knowingness  of  hurt,  reid  attempted  to  slip  out  of  aleki's  arms  and  sit  himself  up  curious  on  what  he  might've  missed.

aleki finally returned to consciousness as he became aware of that familiar weight beside him ; a soft smile across his features as he opened his eyes, staring at the other man nestled against him. perhaps their feelings might never return to the way they were before ────── but nothing really compared to the familiarity that reid offered. and of course, aleki was angry that reid abandoned him when he needed him most. but he'd rather bask in this solace even just for a little bit before they had to hash things out. " welcome back ... " a tender kiss pressed on top of reid's head, gently tightening his embrace around him. " it's my day off. " now, that was something new. aleki usually couldn't stand just lying in bed all day. he didn't know what to do with his hands if he wasn't fighting or tinkering or making himself or someone else feel good. but there were some days now where it felt like just getting out of bed was the hardest thing. he shrugged it off as his body begging for respite, to recuperate ; but he knew deep inside that it felt heavier than just being tired. " i was thinking of hanging out with tristan later. maybe check on levin. but you're here now so — i guess it can just be a lazy day with the two of us. maybe, forest, too, if he decides to come over. "

[dreidful]

things would always be complicated when it came to aleki lafaele and they had left with reid bringing the other from the pits of rarohenga back to the mortal realm only to decidingly leave him for his own well-being. his first thought was to pull aleki from this dream world that he seemed stuck in, but he wanted to ease himself back the best he could. " aleki... " reid sighed, an eye roll at the reference to teeth and the onrunning jokes that the son of pele often had in jest.

and that was the issue — reid felt like through aleki's highest that he was so important and whenever convenient, he'd throw reid under the bus for the sake of humor, success, truly no rhyme or reason but because he thought it was funny. but instead of fighting, he'd allow this one moment of reprieve and slid himself into aleki's arms and settled in the best that he could. " you're not usually one to still be in bed. "

aleki rarely had days when he decided he wouldn't train or do anything too extensive. as much as he wanted to be stronger, as much as he wanted push himself to his limits, he knew that he needed to give his body some time to recuperate, too. a broken body wouldn't serve him well. especially when his spirit already felt fragmented and carelessly sewn back together. he would usually be up by now, should already be on morning jog ────── but there he still was, sleeping soundly. dreaming. " no. no. no. you can't take the boat, tangaroa is angry and he will punish you with the tides . . . " aleki murmured, talking in his sleep. but reid's voice seemed to have brought half his consciousness back to reality, but eyes remained close as he tossed and turned ; trying to remain in this dream for a few more minutes. " reid is home . . . " he told whoever he was talking to in his dream. " no, no, it doesn't have teeth. he didn't get that from lady hine-nui-te-pō, thankfully. " a small laugh. but despite continuing to dream, half of him seemed aware of reid's presence, a hand outstretched towards the other pasifika demigod — beckoning him to come to bed with him.