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“That cop texted me,” Ravi said after a beat.
Wren straightened. “Which one?”
“Javier.” He spelled the name slowly, like he was trying to get familiar with the letters. “He quit last night.”
Wren stared in shock. Vee-vee? “He quit?”
“He got written up for what he did, so he quit. I think it’s going to be bad for him,” Ravi added, and there was something in his gaze that Wren recognized. Something deep and a little terrifying. Something entirely unfamiliar. “He was really kind.”
Wren couldn’t argue there, as much as he wanted to. Javier was the man Caleb’s ex had been sleeping with, and Wren wanted to hate him, but he couldn’t. He was kind. And he’d been devastated when he found out his role in turning Caleb’s life upside down.
He was pretty sure Caleb and Javier would never become best friends, but Wren had a feeling the guy would always have a seat at their table. Especially now.
“Are you going to go find Percy?” Ravi asked after a long beat.
The question took Wren by surprise, and his breath stuttered in his chest before he let himself answer honestly. “Yes. Right after I take Mouse home.”
“I can do that,” Ravi offered, then squished Mouse’s face between his palms before grinning up at Wren. “I wouldn’t mind the company today.”
Wren fought back the urge to jump up and run until he got to Percy’s office. The only thing that stopped him was Ravi. “I need to know you’re okay.”
Ravi gave him a flat look, but Wren wasn’t going to let it go this time.
“I know it happened before. I know it’ll happen again. You’re my best friend, and I can’t protect you…” His hands trembled, and he had to collect himself. “I can’t lose you.”
Ravi was up and walking around the desk, stopping when he was almost too close to Wren to sign properly. “You’re not going to lose me. I’m not going to let some racist asshole scare me away. I’m just tired, okay? And I don’t have the energy to comfort you over this.”
Wren’s eyes widened. “No. No. That’s not what I mean. I don’t want comfort. I just realized that my life means a lot more with you in it.”
Ravi swallowed heavily, his eyes going a little red. “I love you.” His hand was steady as he held up his three fingers. “And I will be fine.”
Wren hadn’t expected that, and the confession was like a physical blow. “I’m going to go fix the rest of my broken personal life, and then we’re going to have pajama day at home. Just us.”
Ravi laughed and rolled his eyes. “Okay. I pick the movie though. I’m tired of your nerd garbage.”
Wren flipped him off, then dropped to his knees to give Mouse a quick cuddle before grabbing his CI case and his keys. He glanced at Ravi once more over his shoulder just to reassure himself it was okay to leave, and then he was out the door.
He made it to Percy’s office in record time, but the clock was ticking down to five a little too quickly. He knew Percy had ASL class at six, so it was a crapshoot whether or not he’d get there before Percy left. But when he pulled into the nearly empty lot, he spotted Percy’s car, and his heart began to thud in his chest.
A small part of him—the part that wasn’t done being a complete coward—had wanted to miss Percy. He just needed a little more time to figure out what he wanted to say. But he knew he needed to take this leap now.
He locked his car, then pulled his processors out and attached them to his head as he walked through the front door. They came on, the sound of his feet on the tiles almost startlingly loud since he’d gone without them for nearly a week straight, and it took him a moment to handle the instant wave of vertigo.
He felt a sudden pulse of fear when he glanced around, not in the mood to deal with some asshole security guard—and he still wasn’t over that, but it was a problem he could deal with on another day. He held his breath as he waited to see if someone was going to come storming over, but the lobby remained silent.
There was no one at the desk either, so he rested his elbows on it and counted his breaths until he was calm. Everything sounded odd and far too loud, but he was doing this to meet Percy halfway. He knew he wouldn’t always need to, but this was a gesture because he’d fucked up.
And none of it had been intentional. He knew his struggle with his own identity would haunt him until the day he died. But he was man enough to take responsibility and embrace who he was and the man he wanted.
The walk to Percy’s office felt odd—familiar and yet not—and he had a single tremor run through him when he stopped in front of the office door. His knuckles ached when he knocked, and he strained to hear a voice on the other side.
But none came.
Wren had no idea if he just couldn’t hear Percy call for him, if he was being ignored, or if Percy really had gone. He took his chance and pushed the door open, but the office was empty. His heart sank to his feet.
“Fuck me,” he muttered aloud.
“I can’t do that in here.”
