Log: Security

[maine_makes_growly_noises]

Who: Maine and Delta
What: Maine needs to talk about a few things after the events of the day
Where: the Ai residence
When: Monday night, 11 May (backdated)
Warnings: to add as needed

After the events of today, Maine knows better than to return to the Ai household in mercenary attire. He made an exception when he retrieved Omega earlier. Now that he intends to spend the night, this is different. He stops at the base only long enough to change into something comfortable enough to sleep in and pack an overnight bed.

He can't get Florida's voice out of his head. The switch from eager torturer to caring father-figure is uncanny, and while he knows Florida wouldn't intentionally hurt Louisiana, Maine is worried sick over Delta.

Once he has permission to borrow one of Niner's motorcycles, he hurries over to the Ai home. He has to know that Delta's okay. And more importantly, Delta deserves to know why he's concerned.

How Maine will do that without dragging Florida back into this mess, he doesn't know. It's what Louisiana would want, though. So for her and for his teammate, he'll keep the names out of this.

For now.

Comments

[protective_logic]

Delta's spent most of his time in his room that day. Curled up on his bed and wondering just what would happen if he never left his room.

Well, that and he reads his book. It's really good. Soon he's going to have to talk to his book club and everything. For now, he's just tired. Tired and he thinks maybe he's almost ready to move out of this room at last.

[maine_makes_growly_noises]

Delta? I'm here.

With how often he's here, he could probably ask for the door code. It feels too forward, though. Besides, he likes watching Delta's expression brighten when he arrives.

[protective_logic]

He has to stare in shock at his datapad as the redirected message hits him. Then he smiles at it before sending a message to Maine with the door cycling code.

Come on up.

[maine_makes_growly_noises]

At any other time, Maine might have smiled knowing that he has been granted access. The message does calm him a little. While he waits in the airlock, he tries to relax more, remembering his breathing exercises. There's no reason to spook Delta. At least, not anymore.

[protective_logic]

There's too much family downstairs for Delta to be willing to leave the room he's in, so instead, to work out some of his nervous energy, he starts to tidy the room. Sort out the pillows and the blankets and tidy up the things that Epsilon and Sigma leave lying around whenever they come into to grab stuff. He's going to have to leave here soon. It's not fair to them that he's taken their room.

[maine_makes_growly_noises]

Maine takes a minute to fend off the twins and field questions from the older brothers. Yes, everything is fine. They're safe. Nothing is wrong. No, he's not rushing to Delta's protection upstairs.

He's rushing to his own.

Finally he escapes upstairs. He opens the bedroom door without knocking.

[protective_logic]

Delta is in the middle of folding blankets when Maine walks in, not even hearing the door open. By normal timelines, he's still got a few minutes before Maine finishes his greetings to the others and dropping off food.

[maine_makes_growly_noises]

Delta has his back to him. Not wanting to startle him, Maine makes a show of dropping his duffel and removing his helmet. No response. Crossing the room in a few strides, he touches Delta's elbow in greeting.

"You're safe," he whispers.

[protective_logic]

Delta flinches only the littlest bit when Maine touches him. But he turns and sees his boyfriend, and smiles warmly at him.

"Hey."

[maine_makes_growly_noises]

Maine says nothing, just snatches Delta up in his arms. For a moment, he doesn't dare to breathe. This is real. Delta's okay.

Finally, he lets out a long, ragged breath. He can't just stand here, holding Delta without explaining. Yet that's all he wants to do.

[protective_logic]

"Is everything okay?" Delta has to ask. He's not used to Maine just hugging him like this when they haven't even really said hello. Maine had been out all day without a word. Perhaps he'd had something at work go wrong?

[maine_makes_growly_noises]

He shakes his head. No, everything was not okay. Closer to it, after seeing Delta's smile, but still not okay.

Shaking his head won't be enough, and Delta deserves better. Maine lets him go and sits down heavily on the edge of the bed.

[protective_logic]

Very not good then. Delta sits beside Maine and takes one of Maine's hands into both of his. "Can you talk about it?"

[maine_makes_growly_noises]

"Did York not tell you?" he asks. Perhaps not. Maybe he didn't want to frighten Delta or invade his space. "Or Sigma?"

Clearly not. LOUISIANA GOT INTO TROUBLE THIS WEEKEND. SIGMA FOUND HER ON CAMPUS THIS MORNING, HIDING AND INJURED.

[protective_logic]

"Thus the losing the job," Delta agrees. "I'm sorry your friend got hurt. You should be with her, though."

[maine_makes_growly_noises]

Maine shakes his head again. SOMEONE WAS AFTER HER. WHEN THEY FOUND OUT I WAS INVOLVED

His hands are shaking. He takes Delta's hands again and tries to calm himself. "They threatened you."

[protective_logic]

It takes a moment for Delta to process what he's seeing on Maine's lips, but in the end he's certain he's read it correctly. So he twists his hands in Maine's grip so he can squeeze the far larger hands.

"Of course they did, Maine. When people want to hurt you, they go for your weak points. And neither of us can even laughingly pretend that I'm not a weakness," Delta sighs. "Perhaps... retaining that weak point in your line of work isn't the best decision."

[maine_makes_growly_noises]

He's so calm about this. So resigned. And it isn't fair. "Not weak. A liability, maybe." One that only Florida would know to exploit.

"You," he says, "are a liability worth having."

[protective_logic]

"I'm not if a threat has you upset so easily," Delta counters. But he isn't letting Maine's hands go. He likes it too much. He likes being close to his boyfriend like this.

[maine_makes_growly_noises]

"That's what a team is for," Maine says. "York came to guard. Texas neutralized the threat."

How she did, he has no idea. But Florida had seemed so calm during the encounter at the Cytherean. (Most of it, anyway.)

"Just needed to make sure you're okay," he admits.

[protective_logic]

"I'm fine, all things considered," Delta points out, moving to lean more heavily against Maine. Yeah, it meant he can't see Maine's lips anymore, but he doesn't want to. Seeing the words and not getting to hear them is far past depression.

"Thanks for protecting me then."

[maine_makes_growly_noises]

ALWAYS, he spells into Delta's hands.

He should tell Delta more about Louisiana, especially the fact that she knows about his implants. Instead, he wants to enjoy the quiet.

Really, he's very tempted to kiss Delta, to see if he can tease a smile back to those sullen lips. But would Delta want that?

[protective_logic]

He wants to chide Maine for that comment. Tell him that he shouldn't make promises that he can't keep. There is too much of that in the lives of the Ais. But at the same time he can't bring himself to bring Maine down.

THANK YOU he spells back. It's nice to do it like this, to press the letters into Maine's hands.

[maine_makes_growly_noises]

Delta doesn't seem entirely pleased with that promise. A kiss would be the wrong idea entirely.

L KNOWS ABOUT YOUR IMPLANTS. FIGURED IT OUT, he spells instead.

[protective_logic]

"Oh," Delta says aloud, looking away from Maine. "That's going around lately. How Delta can't manage anything at all because he can't hear."