He'd totally intended to leave after the fish sticks and french fries... but then there was ice cream, so he'd had to push off his departure by another thirty minutes or so. Unfortunately, it seemed like Gin had forgotten to actually put his clothes in the dryer, too, and since it was going to be close to freezing outside soon and he'd likely need the extra layers, he'd had to grudgingly stay longer, again.

By the time he heard the machine buzz that it was done, he was half asleep on the couch staring at some nature documentary that Gin had to watch for one of his biology classes. It took him a few moments to realize that the machine had even finished, then another minute to push himself up. Except, strong but careful arms gently guided him back down against the warmth he'd been resting against.

"It's almost over, Sparky. Just stay till it ends?" came Gin's voice from right above his head.

He could feel the man's words vibrating all around him, making him realize that he'd actually crawled into his lap at some point. There was even a knitted blanket covering them both.

Trap...

There was no way he wasn't getting up immediately. If he fell asleep now, he definitely wouldn't be waking up anytime soon. He was just about to push himself up again when he realized something he really should have a lot sooner.

I'm getting way too used to this guy...

A certain scaly friend had secured itself beneath his hoodie and was comfortably coiled around his waist and part of his right leg.

"You do realize that this isn't fair?" he grumbled as he settled down again, pouting as he glared at the hallway leading to the laundry room, then farther down, the elevator area.

He felt himself being suddenly squeezed tighter in Gin's arms and grunted, squirming a bit at the unfamiliar attention. Hugs he didn't initiate were rarely good. They meant that he was usually being grabbed from behind and if he didn't break out of them soon enough, he'd get pinned or thrown against something.

His fight or flight response kicked in, and thankfully for Gin, he managed to wrestle back the fight one. The flight one, however, kicked into overdrive, allowing him to wiggle his way out of the guy's arms and fumble awkwardly onto the cushions beside him. The entire time he was moving he heard his new belt rattle, but the warning was ignored, because honestly, a snake bite from a venomous reptile was preferred over most of the situations he'd had to fight his way out of in the past few years.

Gin looked a little startled by his sudden freak-out, but he quickly calmed himself and offered a reassuring smile. "I'm sorry," he said, knowing that he'd likely caused whatever had happened.

Dammit. I love hugging, but sometimes it just scares the shit out of me. Especially if he isn't let go the first time he tried to move out of one. Seeing the hidden look of upset on Gin's face also hurt a lot. After so many years of pretending to play nice with people, he was quite used to seeing when smiles were fake. At least part of Gin's was real... he was just trying to calm him down without allowing himself to get up and flitter around him worriedly.

It was appreciated.

"I'm just gonna go get my spare clothes and head out," he mumbled as he slowly got up from the couch, watching the other man carefully, though he felt terrible for it. He knew that Gin wasn't the type of person his father was, but you couldn't just shrug off ingrained reactions and emotions.

"A-alright, Sparky," Gin said, clearly upset but not wanting to be more of a bother.

I'm sorry. I should have never come here.

Pyre tried to give him a reassuring smile, but he knew that it likely looked more like a grimace, so he just hurried down the hall. The laundry room was a tiny little area tucked off to the side and when he stepped inside, warmth enveloped him. He let out an exhausted sigh and turned toward the door.

He knew that he had no right to do it in someone else's home, but he reached forward and shut it, then turned the lock. Looking down at his hand still on the knob, he felt his shoulders sag as he realized that his hand was shaking slightly where it still gripped the cold item.

Realizing this, he took a few steps backward until he felt the wall behind him, then slowly slid down to the floor. Crossing his arms over his knees, he let his forehead fall against them and squeezed his eyes closed tightly. His mind partially shut down as he tried to fight back his panic attacks, digging his nails into his elbows before letting his arms slide from atop his knees to wrap himself in a painful hug.

He felt something around his waist and leg move slightly off and on, but his attention was completely directed inward, focused on keeping away the nightmares threatening to overwhelm him.

Sweat began to inch its way down his back and forehead as he shivered in the warm room. The stress coursing through him turned his limbs to ice as his heart skipped and fumbled trying to pump blood to where it needed to go.

He was just beginning to get dizzy when he felt something soft and warm drape over his shoulders. When a second item was added a few moments later, he felt his whole body sag with relief as the shivers began to subside and his breathing stabilized enough for him to tilt his head back and slowly, cautiously, open his eyes.

The lights were thankfully still off, leaving just enough coming in from beneath the door for him to be able to see around himself. His shaking hands had moved to hold the two soft fleece blankets that had somehow found their way around his shoulders, closer. They had likely just come out of the dryer, too, because they were much warmer than they normally would be and they definitely weren't electric ones.

Huh?

Looking down at something that caught his eye, he noticed a tall glass of water next to his left foot, and beside that, a small pint of peanut butter and chocolate ice cream with a spoon.

That's when he remembered something important.

Snaky had been wrapped around me when I ran in here earlier...

His heart sank at the thought of Fen being there for his whole breakdown. Looking around, he noticed a large container of bleach sitting on top of the shelf above the dryer. Without thinking, Pyre slowly stood with the help of the wall, then began reaching up toward the bottle, only to pause when he heard a light tap on the other side of the door.

The sound made him jump slightly and lower his arm, suddenly worried that someone might come in and see what he'd been about to do.

"Can I come in?"

Fen...

He wasn't sure why, because if it had been Gin who had asked, he would have definitely said no, but when Pyre hesitantly whispered out a tired "okay," the door slowly inched its way open. Before the other man could see, he quickly wiped off his damp face.

"Hey," Fen said calmly when he was finally visible.

Holy fucking abs.

Pyre glanced down at the pint of ice cream by his foot, then back up to the man's six pack, then back down. He spent quite a few moments envisioning how he could get the guy to let him rub the ice cream all over his muscles, then slowly lick it off.

"You seem distracted..." Fen said with a slight hint of humor to his words, finally drawing Pyre's eyes up to his own.

"Oh no, I'm definitely focused," he said as he leaned over and picked up the glass of water and ice cream container. He downed the water in less than a minute, then licked the remaining droplets from his lips as he stared blatantly at the guy before him.

"I've dismissed my butler for the day, but if you want me to drop you off anywhere..." Fen offered, though it was obvious that he didn't want to let him go anywhere. It was freezing out and probably would be snowing soon, if it wasn't already.

He wouldn't mind a ride to the local bus station so that he could have a bench, but considering what time it probably was already, all of the ones sheltered from the elements were probably taken. He knew that he didn't want to go back to the shelter so soon, either...

Lifting the small pint of ice cream still in his hand, he shook it slightly, pleased to feel that it was completely full.

"I need to deal with this first," he said as he took a hesitant step forward.

He didn't like that Fen was completely blocking the door, and it seemed like the guy figured that out, because he quickly moved down the hall toward the kitchen.

Curious, and smelling something that made his mouth water, Pyre followed him... at a safe distance.

Oh damn, is that what I think it is?

A huge stack of chocolate chip pancakes sat on the counter, piled high on a large plate.

"I tend to cook when I'm nervous... and I'm starving since I've been a snake for a while and couldn't eat dinner," Fen said as he got himself down a plate and piled three pancakes on it before adding a small amount of peanut butter to each.

"You can have some if you'd like," he said as he exited the kitchen, making Pyre comfortable enough to walk into the area.

Granted, it was completely open and he could easily jump over the counter to get to the dining area near the elevator, but he still liked to have multiple escape options, especially after a panic attack.

He took his time getting himself two pancakes, then covered them in syrup, butter, and some frozen blueberries he found after a curious browse through the freeze, after asking, of course. Once done, he walked over to a far corner in the living room and sat down with his food and refilled glass of water. He set his ice cream back in the freezer, not wanting to melt it before he could get to it.

Eating another full meal, then dessert, would take a good while, but time wasn't something he was focused on at that moment.

He should go shirtless more often.

Although, Fen didn't look all that comfortable being so, and was shivering every once in a while as he ate, so Pyre wasn't sure why he didn't just put a sweatshirt or blanket on, but he couldn't argue that he greatly appreciated the eye candy and it made for a wonderful distraction from his previously-tormenting thoughts.