A smile lingered on Gabriel's lips as he watched Misha's bright-red cheeks through the window walls. He couldn't hear what he was talking about on the phone since he had gone outside, but considering who he was allegedly talking to, it was easy to guess. Vanessa was quite, let's say, open-minded, and her vocabulary could be overly crude at times. That said, Gabriel wouldn't be surprised if she were currently bombarding Misha with 'suggestions' of what to do this weekend and asking for a full report in exchange for covering his butt. No way in hell she wouldn't leverage her help to get some good old gossip about her best friend's love life.
Knowing her bubbly but overbearing personality, Gabriel could already tell that his intimate relationship with Misha wouldn't be so private with her in the vicinity. However, he didn't mind: he knew Vanessa didn't care much about their bed matters and was only teasing Misha, for his bashful reactions were too entertaining. And who was he to blame her? He, himself, found Misha's shyness adorable and endearing. Whenever he could catch a glimpse of it, it made butterflies fly around in his stomach.
"Your smile is giving me the creeps," Jake's annoyed voice snapped Gabriel out of his thoughts, bringing his attention back to his brother. "I definitely prefer your business smile. It's less disturbing."
An indifferent shrug was Gabriel's answer. Although he did smile often, it rarely came from the heart. The only one who could truly stir up his feelings and make them burst was Misha. Otherwise, he would adapt his facial expressions to the emotions he knew he should be showing in order to be socially accepted. Jake was well aware of this, which was why he considered him to have robot-like manners–not like Jake was any better.
"On another note," Gabriel spoke up, peering into Tristan's room where Angela and Gulnas were currently chatting with his little brother, "I'm somehow amazed at Gulnas' ability to get along with Angela, even though she disapproves of her deep down. Angela's mask of hypocrisy is easily discernible to anyone with a bit of social awareness."
"It's called diplomacy," Jake sighed. "Gulnas is good at flattering Angela and lifting her mood, so they get along well. Gulnas value her relationship with her because of us and does her best not to offend her fragile ego. Wait until we rip off the status quo with Angela, and I'm sure Gulnas will be the first to tear her apart."
"I'm sure she will. Even though you keep your annoying mask in front of her, Gulnas does consider you a member of her family, too. If she ever learns what Angela put you through, then we'll need to either find her a good lawyer or help her hide a body. There's no way Angela will be left unscathed."
Jake responded with a light scoff and a tilt of his head in agreement. Misha's mama-bear traits hadn't come out of nowhere. Gulnas was a sweet middle-aged woman until she wasn't. Never mind her petite stature: once she was angered, all hell would break loose. Getting on the bad side of a nice person rarely ended well. Jake would know, as he had been married to such a woman in his past lives. His wife had been the gentlest soul on Earth until someone crossed the line, and Mrs. Brown wasn't any better.
"Anyway," Jake closed the subject and handed a dark-green backpack to Gabriel. "For you. Courtesy of Stephan. Apparently, you'll need those things… You, or Misha at least. Will you not look at me like that? I'm only the errand boy. He said it's his birthday gift to Misha."
Despite his mouth twitching in annoyance, Gabriel nevertheless took the backpack and opened it to take a look at its contents. As expected, it was everything they might or might not need for certain activities. He wasn't sure whether to laugh or cry and shook his head in exasperation. However, he didn't throw it away; instead, he closed the backpack and then swung it over his shoulder. Tristan's gift had taken him by surprise, and the trip was sudden, but he had a hunch about what might happen during the weekend. Misha had endured well these past few years, so he might as well reward him. And for that, they would need what was inside the backpack.
Honestly, Gabriel would have liked to purchase these things with Misha and enjoy his bright-red face and embarrassed look, too. However, he wasn't even sure if Misha was aware of how two men got intimate and the necessary preparation for the one on the receiving end, especially if they wanted to make things comfortable for both of them. He had a hunch that Misha only looked up at adult films and didn't do much research. It was a discussion they would need to have, and if they got in the mood, at least, they would have everything needed and no trip to the sex shop or pharmacy would be required.
"I don't know if I should thank Stephan or throw him under the bus."
"Just ignore him when he asks you how it went," Jake smirked slightly.
"Wait until it's your turn," Gabriel coldly smirked back, which earned him a grimace from his brother. "Remember what you told me years ago?"
"I know, I know," Jake waved his hands. "He managed to keep it in his pants for two years now, so I guess I'll consider his confession."
"You will only consider it… Really? Only?"
"Mind your own business."
"No way. You've meddled in mine with Tristan, so I'm going to meddle in yours, too. Should I help book a nice hotel for you?"
A small, annoyed laugh escaped Jake. But he soon wiped off the annoyance and instead cocked an eyebrow. "Well, if you're offering. I guess I'll save some money. Give me some time to think, and I'll give you an update about the date and place."
"Sure thing."
The banter between the brothers was light-hearted, and both smiled slightly. Sometimes, they still couldn't believe how their relationship had done a turnabout a little over two years ago. Of course, it took time before they could trust each other fully, as years of hatred and miscommunication couldn't vanish in the snap of a finger. But now, it was as if they had always been close, able to tell what each other thought. Maybe because they were so alike on the most basic level, they had no difficulty getting along. At times, it was uncanny.
"What are you talking about?"
The curious voice drew the brothers' attention to their left, where Misha stood. He had finished his call and returned inside. His cheeks were still slightly flushed, bringing color to his pale skin.
"Nothing much. Just discussing Jake's next date with Stephan."
"I see," Misha nodded, unsurprised by Gabriel's comment. Jake and Stephan often went out on 'dates' to keep up appearances for Angela, so that she wouldn't suspect anything. She was still very much into the false impression that Stephan was under Jake's thumb.
To be fair, it wasn't exactly a false impression, as Stephan was indeed head over heels for Jake. The only difference was that they never slept together for real, even if Jake's neck was most often dotted with red spots whenever they met and 'spent' the night together. Misha was very much aware of that, thanks to Stephan's constant whinings. It was to the point where his laments were getting a little worse every day, and he wished to be deaf. What kind of employee wants to know everything about their boss's sex life? Well, maybe Vanessa would like to. Too bad for her that Stephan had a minimum of common sense and didn't bother his other employees with his love-life problems. He didn't want to be reported for sexual harassment. Hence, his laments were only for Misha's ears.
As such, Misha didn't suspect that Jake was about to give in to Stephan. It didn't even cross his mind. He thought that it was the usual, and neither Gabriel nor Jake corrected him.
"Your mom should be done soon," Jake said when he noticed that Gulnas was about ready to leave, getting up and hugging his little brother. "So, leave Tristan to me, and go out to have some fun. And no but! If anything happens, I'll contact you. He's going to be very disappointed if you don't make the most out of his gift."
"Fine, fine, I get it!" Misha pursed his lips, rubbing his neck in discomfort. "I'll try not to worry too much and enjoy my time at the spa. And no, I'm not promising anything! I'm a worrywart, so live with it!"
"I know, I know," Jake pacified him before he got on a full ramble. Otherwise, they would be there until next morning. Jake then seemed to hesitate a second before lifting his hand and ruffling Misha's hair. "I hadn't had the chance to say it yet, so I'll say it now: Happy birthday."
Taken aback, Misha stared at Jake's poker face a second before mumbling something that sounded like: "and thank you for the gift". It was barely audible, however. It felt like he was being coy, so Misha wanted to repeat and spoke louder, but before he could add anything more, his mother and Angela came out of Tristan's room, and Jake's hand slipped to poke his forehead instead. He was back to his persona, acting like an annoying jerk who was out to bother him and get on his nerves, as always. Because there hadn't been anyone nearby, Jake had taken the opportunity to be himself for a short moment, but now that he had an audience, he had to comply with his role, whether he liked it or not. And thus, he snorted for the sake of Angela's ears:
"Will you stop it with the frown? You look ugly as hell. Tristan is fine, so get a grip, will you? You just turned eighteen today! You're an adult now, so act your age."
"Back to you!" Misha grimaced back, doing his best to stifle a laugh. Even if he had grown used to this little charade of theirs, it was sometimes hard to play along and not give themselves up. They were supposedly in a love-hate friendship, where Misha adored Jake but sometimes struggled to handle his grumpy outbursts. "You're acting like a goddamn brat!"
"Guys," Gabriel sighed, as if trying to calm them down. "We're in a hospital, so please, keep quiet!"
The squabble earned them a smile from Gulnas, and Angela, noticing her reaction, followed along. They then parted, and Gabriel went with Misha and his mother. He had already gotten permission from his step-mother, thanks to Tristan's puppy eyes that helped convince her. The boy truly was the best weapon they had to handle her volatile temper. She was too weak to his sad face, and Tristan sure as hell was exploiting it plenty lately.