the killing kind - (lgbt | onc 2022)

7

word count: 1823
total word count: 15497

The next day dawned overcast, a blanket of slate-grey clouds covering the sky. Kavi spent the morning rolling bandages for Declan, leaving at noon just as the sky opened up in a heavy downpour. He ran all the way home, stripping off his boots when he got inside. Laura seemed to be out of the house, so he raided the kitchen for a snack before entering his bedroom.

Jasper appeared as Kavi was opening one of the windows to let the room fill with the earthy smells of grass and rainwater.

"This is your room?" He asked.

Kavi stepped away from the window, watching him wander from place to place to look at each individual item.

"Yeah. You remember it?"

"Some of it." He delicately picked up the model car on Kavi's nightstand, examining the tiny interlocking pieces of tin that made up its frame. "We put this together on your birthday."

"Yep. It was a gift from Laura. Took us hours." Kavi moved to stand at his side, looking at the model as Jasper gently replaced it. Then he spotted the canvas sitting propped on an easel, tilted to catch the light that normally streamed through the windows.

"Hey, this is cool."

Kavi followed him. "I came in here to keep working on that, actually." He gave Jasper a nudge to move him out of the way, then sat down on the stool, dragging it closer to the easel. "Just don't know how to fix this." He touched the dark crimson slash, a stark, bloody reminder of the jolt of shock he'd felt when Laura broke the news.

Jasper stood behind his shoulder, making Kavi's spine tingle. "What happened?" He asked.

"Just fucked it up."

"You should leave it."

Kavi couldn't help a surprised laugh. "Leave it?" He repeated.

"Yeah." Jasper stepped closer and reached around Kavi to touch the paint stain. "It looks nice."

It was impossible to actually focus on the painting. Kavi forced a derisive snort.

"Your taste in art must suck."

He sensed the way Jasper's chest quivered with quiet laughter more than he saw it. "I'm serious," he said, tone light. Fuck, it was nice to hear laughter in his voice again. Kavi resisted the urge to shake that thought out of his head.

"...Maybe I can find a way to work it in," he relented. "Just for you."

"It'll look good," Jasper promised.

"We'll see."

Rain pattered against the ground outside, filling the silence that followed. Kavi was just reaching for a paintbrush when Jasper broke it again.

"Think you can handle yourself with that gun?"

Kavi froze, suddenly hyperaware of the weight on his waist. Despite his reluctance, he'd stayed true to Laura's wishes thus far.

"It's not for you," he said. "I promise."

"Kavi, if something were to happen and you needed to protect yourself from me—"

"No. Jas, I'm not going to hurt you." The white-hot anger was growing again, pressing behind his eyes. Not at Jasper, but at the very idea of turning the gun on him. "I'll use it on literally anyone else if I have to, and I mean that. But not you."

"And if I hurt you?"

"Better you than anyone else. We'd be even then, at least."

"Kavi, don't say shit like that—"