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“Here,” Danny said in front of him.
Slowly, Thomas peeled open one eye to stare at the white mug in front of him. He could smell the lemon tea the hotel had provided them. He should feel something about the mug, about Danny making him a cup of tea.
You guessed?
He took the mug silently, holding it in his fingers that didn’t feel warm.
Danny kept standing in front of him. He no doubt expected Thomas to get up so Danny could sit down and Thomas would drape himself in his lap, like they usually did when there wasn’t a second couch.
Thomas closed his eye again, making no effort to move or drink the tea he didn’t want.
Felinus cleared his throat pointedly.
The warmth of Danny’s legs moved away from him, sitting on the couch close to Thomas.
“Right,” Felinus said, his voice calm, standing in front of the TV. “You four have had an interesting vacation thus far.”
“Is that what we’re calling it,” Kevin muttered. “Ow!”
Felinus chuckled softly. “It’s a word for it,” he replied. “We’re just going to cover the basics of things. The ‘need to know’ if you will. As you most likely gathered or Thomas has pointed out to you, there is an underground on the island. That group had a… an arrangement with the man interested in Thomas. He did not work for the group. He was told not to bother you, but as you can see, he did not listen.”
“How did he get his hands on Thomas,” Danny demanded. “How did no one stop-” He fell silent and Thomas opened one eye to see Felinus staring down the couch.
Someone whimpered and Thomas closed his eye again.
“That is not part of your need to know,” Felinus said after a few more seconds. “It doesn’t matter.”
Someone took a breath.
“It,” Felinus repeated slowly, growling out the words. “Doesn’t. Matter. Keep it up, Daniel. See what happens.”
There was a pause.
“Returning to your need-to-know,” Felinus continued calmly. “The man who threatened Thomas has been dealt with. The group has agreed to look after whoever remains to ensure your safety for the remainder of your vacation. The man who stayed with you this morning will act as guide and communications from here on. Anyone who wants to return home can go pack their bag now and leave with us. No one has to leave, no one has to stay though I would not suggest only one person stay behind-”
“Wait, who’s leaving,” Danny said, his voice rising as he stood up. “Why would-” He broke off, silence filling the room. “Thomas?”
Thomas sighed through his nose, opening his eyes as his watch buzzed in his pocket. Leaning forward, he set the untouched tea on the table. “I’m going home,” he said, not looking at him. “You three should stay. Have fun. Enjoy yourselves.”
“Thomas, are you sure,” Mark asked, worry in his voice. “You don’t have to go alone.”
“No one is going early,” Danny said firmly. “We can fix this.”
“Thomas wants to go home,” Felinus said without raising his voice. “So he is going home.”
“There is no one at home for him,” Danny shouted. “He-”
Thomas got to his feet and put a hand on the center of Danny’s chest. He could feel his heart racing, Danny’s chest expanding under his fingers as Danny drew in a breath. Then he shoved, hard, following Danny down as his legs hit the back of the couch and he was forced to sit. “I would rather be home and alone,” he said, his voice barely a whisper as he finally looked Danny in the face, “than be here with you and alone.” Without looking at anyone else, Thomas walked away from Danny and was out the door. Unlike Danny, he didn’t slam it when he entered the hall. He just allowed it to naturally fall shut behind him.
* * *
The amount of pleasure Seong felt watching Thomas shove Danny into his place was perhaps unhealthy. He would have thought Danny had learned his lesson about thinking he was in charge when Seong had thrown him out of the room or when Felinus had turned his growing ire onto him, but his head was as thick as his batting helmet. He picked up Thomas’s bag as Danny continued to stare at where Thomas had been a second ago and followed after him.
Thomas wasn’t running, which was probably a good sign, but he wasn’t walking either. Luckily, he was taking the elevator and Seong was able to catch up while he stood waiting for it.
“I shouldn’t have done that,” Thomas whispered, looking up at the numbers.
“He shouldn’t have told you that you weren’t allowed to go home,” Seong pointed out to him, putting his hand in the small of Thomas’s back. “If he cared about anyone but himself, he would have offered compromises, not ultimatums.”
