Paper Hearts

𝔹𝕠𝕟𝕦𝕤 𝟚: 𝕋𝕙𝕣𝕠𝕦𝕘𝕙 𝕤𝕞𝕒𝕝𝕝 𝕡𝕚𝕖𝕔𝕖𝕤 𝕠𝕗 𝕡𝕒𝕡𝕖𝕣

Bonus 2: Through small pieces of paper

Lex breathed a sigh through his nose. He was home alone, with nothing to do, a rare occurrence. He was bored and couldn't think of anything better to do, so he dressed up into something comfortable but presentable and was on his way to wander the city. There wasn't a lot he hadn't already seen in the part of the city he lived in. There were large stores, bakeries, places of the likes, and he'd either been to or seen all of them at least once. 

He didn't have a set destination in mind, so he followed the crowds to wherever it would take him, admiring the different art he'd see graffitied on building walls. Yes, it was basically vandalism, but art was art and when it was good, it needed to be appreciated. So that's what he did. He pulled out his phone, and snapped several pictures of the wall art and then moved on as he swiped through the few pictures he took.

It happened so fast. One second, he had the device in his hands, smiling softly and the next, it was gone, swiped from the grasp of his fingertips. He stared after the receding figure of a boy, no doubt, clutching his left shoulder where he'd been shoved away. He was shocked, dazed even as he pressed whitening fingers into his throbbing shoulder, the pain very much real. 

It took him several minutes before he was moving again, this time in the opposite direction than where he'd been heading. It took him nearly two hours to get home, having not grasped just how much time it took him to get so far away from home. 

When he did get home, he showered and made something small to eat, leisurely getting through it all with his mind now occupied. He'd been robbed. Stolen from in the middle of a saturated street. In all honesty, he wasn't all that shocked that his belongings had been stolen right from him where others could see, but it still wasn't a fun experience to have your things stolen.

Sighing, he went into his bedroom, one of the places he barely occupied since he spent most his time in Mateo's bed or their living room. He spotted his polaroid camera on the shelf near the window of his room, and immediately, relief washed over him like a wave returning back to shore. He was glad one of his most prized possessions wasn't stolen at least.

Almost instantly, an idea came to mind and he busied himself with it. 

Lex's room door burst open hours later after the doorknob shook for a concerning amount of time even though it was not locked. A frazzled looking Fern waltzed in followed by Mateo who had some of his shirt buttons untied and his tie loosened around his neck. It took moments for Lex to notice the drying, clear tear tracks on Fern's face, undoubtedly sticky and uncomfortable by now, but he didn't seem to care, pushing Lex up against his bed so he landed on his back with a harsh huff.

Straddling him, Fern frowned down at him. "Where were you?" 

"At home?"

"Lex," Fern frowned harder, brows pinched so tightly together, Lex thought they must've hurt. "We both called you so many times, but you didn't answer. I thought you got hurt!"

Lex's hands settled themselves on the other man's hips, slowly lifting himself up. "You always jump to the worst conclusions," he chuckled. "I'm sorry. I went out earlier because I was bored. I wandered a little further than I'm used to, and some boy stole my phone." At Fern's scandalized gasp, Lex laughed and stared up at Fern's messy face.

Mateo, who had yet to speak, sat on the edge of Lex's bed slowly, taking hold of one of his hands and rubbing his thumb across the back of it. "Are you sure you're okay?" The concerned twinge in his voice made Lex smile ruefully.

"I am."

He raised a brow, kissing the knuckles of the hand he had clutched in his grasp. "Nothing hurts? No bruises?"

Lex smiled sheepishly, pulling his hands away to grab at the hem of his shirt. "Well.... there is my shoulder...." He pulled the shirt of his head, wincing slightly. He was sitting facing them, so he nudged Fern gently off of him before turning to show them his shoulder. "It hurts a little, but I don't think it's anything bad." 

"Not anything bad?!" Fern nearly shrieked, hands pulling Lex closer by the waist. "It's bruising, Lex. It's red and purple. It's big." Lex sighed, looking up at Mateo who had now moved to sit in front of him. The man gave him a small smile, knowing Fern was going to fuss over him until he was satisfied that he'd doted on their youngest boyfriend enough. 

Lex felt the ghost of breaths on the back of his neck before kisses spread across his shoulder and over the bruising that offended Fern so much. He chuckled to himself and let Fern do as he pleased, happy to be on the receiving end of Fern's kisses. 

After Fern let out a pleased hum and ruffled Lex's hair, Lex hurriedly put his shirt back on, not without wincing and Fern fussing over him once again. He pulled out what he'd been working on all day since he got home; an album book that had their names in pretty font with a picture of the three of them as it's cover.

Mateo let out a questioning hum, wrapping bulky arms around Lex's waist once Lex settled in his lap. "It's a little something I was working on today. It's not all that great, but I really hope you'll like it." He flipped the book open, animatedly talking about the pictures he pointed at, all of which he took with his polaroid camera.

Halfway through the album, while he was showing a photo of them with the words "the sun made them look like glowing demons" under it, he noticed the silence he was speaking into and looked up at their faces. Well, Fern's face since he couldn't really see Mateo's from where he sat perched on his lap. 

Fern was smiling at him fondly, his glasses in his hands as he fiddled with them. Even with the dried tears on his freckled face, Lex still thought he was beautiful. "What?" He questioned, a little self-conscious under the unwavering gaze of his boyfriend.

"Nothing, you're just..." Fern gestured wildly with his hands at the way Lex sat in Mateo's arms, the album in his hands as he smiled widely. "So adorable. And of course we like the album." 

"He's right," Mateo's voice vibrated through his chest to Lex's. "It's nice to see you so happy."

"That's one of the sappiest things I've heard you say." Lex chuckled, snapping the album shut and laying it on his bedside table. "Thank you, for appreciating the album, I guess."

"Of course." Fern said, disappearing out of the room and returning with a cleaner face, looking much better than when he'd walked in. "Now," he declared, lifting Lex (with a little help from Mateo) and placing him on his back on his bed. "I've been wanting to do this since we got home. I'm afraid you'll have to put up with me for just a little bit more." 

He trailed kisses up Lex's neck and Lex laughed because of course Fern would want to shower him with kisses and fuss over him. "I don't mind." He kissed back when Fern pressed their lips together, sighing softly through his nose as Fern interlaced their fingers beside his head. 

His other hand searched out Mateo's and when he found it, he squeezed it in reassurance. I'm fine, that one squeeze said, and he hoped Mateo understood. Fern suddenly broke away from their kiss and when Lex opened his eyes and looked up, he saw why.

"It's cute to see you fuss over someone so much," he smiled, his hand in Fern's hair and chuckling shortly after at Fern's eyeroll. Lex watched as they began to kiss too and then smiled when Mateo kissed him next. "You should understand though," Mateo spoke against his lips, voice dropped low, "He does it because he loves and cares about you." 

Lex smiled sweetly, pecking Mateo's lips repeatedly and then starting a trail up his jaw. There was a slight stubble, he noted. "I know. I love you both too."