Into You •Finnpoe Stormpilot•

Chapter II

San Francisco, California

Finn grabbed his last box and placed it on the counter. For living in an orphanage for twenty one years, it was nice to have a place of his own.

It wasn't too bad of a place, the orphanage, they allowed him to extend his stay until twenty one instead of eighteen since he knew many of the kids and became a matron so he had a place to stay while he helped. He learned stitching, cooking, driving, and basically most life skills that he would've struggled learning properly anywhere else if he didn't stay.

Finn put his hands on his hips and looked at the collection of about fifteen boxes, a bed already shoved into the corner of the studio and a few pieces of small furniture. It didn't take long for him to move in since he hadn't had many belongings saved in his room back at the orphanage- not that it could've even held much.

He grabbed the box cutter carefully stored in his pocket and began opening the boxes one by one. Pulling out two pans, two pots and a few cooking utensils, he placed each of them in a cabinet gently. He continued the cycle of opening and organizing all his objects until it had been an hour and everything was perfectly in place. He grabbed a cup of water and gave the plants on his shelves and windowsills a drink.

Finn fell onto his bed and took a deep breath to clear his head. Maybe he could get some paints from the hardware store to liven up the place. He didn't want to be in a room that had no light or color. Most of his objects were colored and his favorite was one of his own painted canvases containing a mountain near the water with the sun setting so gracefully behind it.

The young man sat up and looked out the window at the slowly dimming sky and decided to take a short nap before cooking dinner for himself.

•••

Finn woke at the sound of a body collapsing outside his door. He heard footsteps and the muffled voice of a woman questioning someone.

He climbed out of bed, turned on the lamp next to him and snatched a T-shirt to put on before he rushed over to the door to find an older woman, the same color as him, trying to help a young Latino man off the floor.

Finn fell to his knees and turned to the woman. "What happened to him?" he asked while grabbing the man's arm and wrapping it around his shoulder.

She shook her head. "I haven't seen him like this in weeks. He's not usually this bad." Placing her hand on his, she looked him in the eye. "Can you take care of him and make sure he gets inside safe? My knee is starting to give out and I don't have the strength to carry him."

Finn nodded and slipped his other arm underneath the legs of the seemingly lifeless body while the lady took one last look at the two of them before she started to bring herself to her door. She turned briefly and put her hand on her chest, "My apologies, I'm Ruth and welcome home."

Finn curved the corners of his mouth to form a smile and finished picking the man up bridal style, "I'm Finn and thank you."

He starts, "I forgot to ask you, what's his-" the door closes and Ruth disappears without another backwards glance.

Finn looked down at the man in his arms and got a good look at him for the first time. His slightly parted lips were cracked and chapped with dry blood barely showing from the corner of his mouth. A red gash highlighted his cheek with a bruise that shaded the left side of his face.

He'd never been this type of close with another person- let alone another man- but a feeling rose like bubbles up inside of him. And although it wasn't an emotion he'd experienced before, there was some type of peace and familiarity that blew over him like a warm breeze.

Shaking off the feeling and regaining his focus, Finn pushed the barely cracked door open and used his shoulder to turn the light switch on. Light immediately flooded into the room to show the man's bed with sheets hanging off the side and papers and clothes scattered about.

Finn walked over to the bed to gently place him down and began to pull off the man's shoes making sure not to get any dirt on the sheets. A small gleam of light caught his eye and he looked at the dirty, stained shirt to find a name tag pinned onto the chest area. Rubbing off a mark, he read the name edged into the metal. Poe.

Finn turned back to the unconscious and quietly snoring heap and took a moment to gaze at him once more. This time, Finn noticed his disheveled hair and long eyelashes while he carefully removed the pin from Poe's shirt so it wouldn't accidentally poke him.

After taking the necessary accessories off of him, Finn took a step back to make sure anything that could be hazardous was removed. He stared at the man who stirred and slipped his arm under the pillow.

Finn's face lightened at the motion and draped the hanging sheet over the peaceful man. He decided it might be cold and didn't want him waking up in the middle of the night.

Finn couldn't help but gaze one last time over each of Poe's features that sculpted his strong face. Even if he looked like he went through hell, he sure did look like he was an angel.

After finishing the job of making sure the man is safe, Finn closed the door.

When he turned to go back inside his own apartment, he noticed a brown jacket in the middle of the hallway. He picked it up and dusted it off.

Assuming it was Poe's, he draped it over his arm and decided to use it as a reason to check up on him the next day to see him hopefully not unconscious.