fic: every turn a surprise (6/6)
Part Five
Assembling the bed takes a couple hours longer than planned, but then the victory is that much sweeter. Brendon stretches out over the new mattress, limbs flung wide, and there's still room for the others to fit alongside him.
"We're gonna need twice as much cooling in here at night," Spencer observes, ever the practical one.
"I can reprogram the system so that at night, it'll only cool this room out of the four bedrooms. It should be more energy efficient than if it were cooling them separately."
Spencer is either satisfied with that answer or too tired to respond, which Brendon takes as approval. Brendon hauls himself off the bed and goes to set it up, knowing if he doesn't do it now that he'll only become less motivated the longer he lays on the bed.
When he gets back, nobody seems to have moved. "Oh, are we going to bed now?"
Spencer makes a disgruntled noise. "If you want to go exploring, we'll do it tomorrow. I didn't spend hours putting together this bed so that it could go unused."
"No, I know, I just... I wanted to say thanks," he says, picking at the hem of his shirt. "I know you all probably had better things to do on your couple days off, but. It means a lot."
Ryan makes a noise of disbelief as Jon pulls Brendon back down onto the bed. "You would've done the same for any of us," he says before kissing him quickly, then tilting his head down to kiss Brendon's neck, working his way down as he undoes the buttons on Brendon's shirt.
"It was fun," Spencer says, "and it's important you feel safe when you're with us."
"I do," Brendon says, gasping as Jon gets a hand on him, having pulled his pants off in one smooth move. Spencer moves in and swallows the next noise to escape his mouth. When he pulls back, Brendon fixes him with a significant look and says, "But I think Ryan's the one I should really be thanking."
"Don't thank me. It was just an excuse to make out," Ryan teases, shifting into the space where Spencer and Jon once were. He smirks down at Brendon, but there's something else in his expression: a look of affection that Brendon has only seen from him one other time, way before he and Spencer worked their shit out and got together.
Everything he'd felt at the bar comes rushing back twice as hard. He hauls Ryan in by his collar, mumbling something about getting rid of clothes.
"We can help," Jon volunteers, immediately getting to work.
Ryan's kisses start traveling down, lingering first on Brendon's neck, then continuing to his collarbone, and Brendon has to take a second to catch his breath.
"I can't believe you didn't know how crazy I've been about you," Brendon murmurs, a bit breathless.
"What?" Jon says, pausing in his ministrations to shoot Ryan an incredulous look.
"Seriously?" Spencer says. "Ryan, come on, you're like his biggest weakness."
"Hey," Brendon protests, "who said anything about weakness?"
Ryan bites down just a bit around Brendon's nipple, causing a whimper to escape from Brendon's mouth. "You were saying?"
"Okay Ross, enough messing around," Brendon says, maneuvering him so that Jon can get his pants off, then sliding his hands down Ryan's back until they reach his ass before finally pulling him flush against Brendon's own body.
Ryan goes with the movement, grinding down against Brendon. It feels amazing, so Brendon makes a noise of encouragement and pulls him in again.
"Jesus, you two," Spencer says from beside them, and when Brendon glances over, Spencer has his pants pushed open just enough to get a hand on himself. Jon appears to have noticed at the same time, because he mumbles something heated and makes his way over to Spencer to help him with that.
"Switch with me," Brendon says to Ryan, who goes with it without asking questions. Brendon smiles to himself when he is able to angle his body to keep their friction going and suck a mark into Ryan's neck at the same time. Ryan curses loudly and arches into Brendon, urging him to move faster. His hand fumbles between them and grips their cocks together, and Brendon gasps against Ryan's neck as he starts pumping.
Things start to get hazy as he gets lost in the feeling, but through it all he definitely hears Spencer make a reverent statement about Jon's body, and then realizes it's in his head, fuck, and then Ryan twists his wrist just right to bring Brendon over the edge.
He shifts as Ryan's movements get more frantic, reaching down to help him along. It's always amazing to see Ryan lose control like this, murmuring things under his breath that he'll never say otherwise. Brendon avoids kissing him until the last possible second just so he can hear his name said that way.
As Ryan comes down, Brendon leans over him to get to the panel, calling up a towel with the knowledge that no one's gonna want to get up in a few seconds. He pauses for a minute just to watch Jon and Spencer moving against each other, thrilling in their expressions. It's even better when Spencer shoots him a look that says he knows he's watching, and then clutches at Jon's arms as he comes.
Once the towel and any remaining clothes are tossed aside, Brendon sighs happily and leans into Ryan, feeling Jon's back lined up against his.
"This was not part of the plan," Spencer mumbles, sounding almost unhappy, but Brendon isn't fooled. He can hear the smile in Spencer's voice as he continues, "But I'm happy it happened."
"Spencer Smith," Jon murmurs, and Brendon can feel him shifting in the pause, "your smiles are what rainbows are made of."
Spencer's laugh stops short, and Brendon twists around to see what's going on. He sees the sudden sincerity in Spencer's expression just before he leans in and captures Jon's mouth, swallowing Jon's surprised noise.
"Really? That worked?" Ryan says, tone dubious.
"Compliments can go a long way," Brendon says, turning back to shoot Ryan a significant look.
Ryan raises his eyebrows and stares back blankly. Eventually, he relents and says, "You have a nice ass."
Spencer and Jon start laughing, and Brendon shrugs. "Works for me," he says, nuzzling up to Ryan before kissing him sweetly.
"Can we go to sleep now?" Spencer finally asks, and Jon snickers.
"Don't even start," Ryan says. "If you're trying to say you'd have rather spent all this time sleeping, you can go sleep on the couch."
"Hey, I never said that, and also, who's the one who put together the entire main frame by himself? If anyone's sleeping on the couch, it should be you, Mr. Weak Wrists."
"He's never going to let you live that one down," Jon says, tone sympathetic.
"Okay, everyone's cranky again, I think it is time for sleep," Brendon says. Still, he makes a point to stretch as much as it takes to kiss each of them in turn. He has the best night's sleep he's had in ages, and starts to appreciate the term 'sweet dreams'.
******
Jon tends to have clearer, more frequent visions when he's with the three of them, so Brendon doesn't think much of it when Jon wakes up with a jolt one morning, eyes distant. He does his best to distract Jon from the associated headache, placing kisses along his collarbone. He can feel the moment the vision ends by the lessening tension in Jon's body and the way he leans into Brendon's touches, but Brendon doesn't press. He knows Jon still needs a minute or two to process what he just saw.
"Hey," Jon eventually says, brushing the hair away from Brendon's forehead.
Brendon looks up to smile at him, noticing the worry behind Jon's answering smile. "Everything okay?" he asks as he repositions himself to give Jon a proper kiss.
"Something else I don't get the context for," Jon says with a shrug, dismissing it by continuing to kiss Brendon. He's definitely worried, though. Brendon tries not to be.
"Are we really getting up now?" Ryan complains groggily next to Jon.
"Only if you want to be," Brendon replies with a leer. Ryan just scoffs and rolls closer to Spencer, who can apparently sleep through anything.
"I'm gonna go for a walk," Jon whispers, shifting to get out of bed.
"Can I come?" Brendon asks with a smile that quickly fades when Jon looks hesitant.
"Maybe join me later," Jon says, kissing Brendon one more time before heading out. Brendon frowns. It's always a disappointment to see Jon put on pants, but today it's even worse.
Brendon would just let it go, except Jon then goes on to avoid him all morning. He sees him talking to Spencer and Ryan throughout the day, and maybe it's work-related, but it still makes him uneasy.
His sense of dread doubles when they all approach him at once in his old bedroom after their shifts are over for the day. Jon hangs behind the other two and looks guilty, and Brendon's first response is, "Why do I get the feeling you guys don't have good news?"
"You should come with us," Spencer says, tone all business.
Brendon gives him a suspecting look. "What if I don't?"
"Brendon," Ryan says insistently. "Come on."
Brendon goes, because he's kind of curious, but he doesn't stop asking questions. "Where are we going? Are we landing early? Is this about Jon's vision?"
They leave the living area and head to the less-visited section of the deck, into the gym, and Brendon's questions stop short when Spencer forces off one of the far sections of the wall, revealing a door.
There's a tiny, dimly lit room behind it, and Spencer puts on his reluctant 'rules face'. Brendon's stomach sinks. "Look, there's no time to explain--"
"Are you serious?"
"--but we need you to wait in here for the next few hours."
"There's time to explain," Brendon insists, looking from one of them to the other. Jon still won't look at him, and Ryan looks just as resolute as Spencer. "Come on. Somebody tell me what the fuck is going on."
"Just trust us," Ryan says, fixing Brendon with a significant look.
"You're gonna shut me into the wall and not give me any other explanation except 'trust us'?!"
"I'm sorry, Brendon," Spencer says before manhandling him into the space. Brendon feels indignation rising in his chest, but Spencer is strong, and he wasn't ready.
He settles for screaming instead. "This is insane! I thought you guys cared more about me than this! Jon, tell me what this is about!"
"It has to be this way, Brendon," Jon says so quietly that Brendon almost doesn't hear him.
It occurs to Brendon that this might just be happening because Jon saw it, which is so irrational and ridiculous that it makes him see red. "Fuck you!" he yells at Jon, and the last thing he sees is Jon's face crumpling before the door is shut in his face.
He stares at the closed door in shock for a few seconds, and tries pounding on it for good measure, but he can tell there's no sound heard from the outside. They could leave him here forever and no one would ever know.
He discovers a working panel in there, at least, which gives him something to do other than curse at them. Don't they know he could've just read their minds and found out on his own? They should be grateful he has morals, god. He's still pissed enough to do something, though, so he hacks into the surveillance and watches them mill about for the next half hour. He tried at first to find a way to unlock the door, but apparently it's a manual lock. Damn it all. But he knows how to translate the sound data and make sense of it, so he watches it go by with the images, and they're all clearly anxious but Brendon doesn't know why. He stares in shock as Nick and De'Mar come off the elevator. He'd had his suspicions about who the captain was, but to be honest, he really thought it would be Pete and Patrick, simply because Pete was always in his face so much. Now he realizes that if that was the case, Pete probably wouldn't have wanted to hide from him.
It's surreal to watch all of them interact while he's kept upstairs, like he's some sort of spy. Their anxiety seems to have a source when Brendon sees five dudes come on board, with one out in front like the leader. Brendon focuses the feed so that he can read what they're saying, but at first it's all pleasantries. Max shows them around the cargo deck, but to Brendon's surprise they don't ask to come upstairs. The leader does, however, gather them all up after the tour and begins to read out a list - to Brendon's surprise, it's a list of their abilities.
"Nick Scimeca, level 8 telekinesis. De'Mar Hamilton, level 5 telekinesis. Tom Conrad, level 4 dream-walking. Max Steger, level 4 psychometry. Jon Walker, level 4 precognition. Ryan Ross, level 4 healing. Spencer Smith, level 3 telepathy. That sound about right?"
Brendon sees Spencer's crestfallen look when he hears he's a level 3 and everyone else is higher, and he wishes he was there to reassure him. Nick takes charge and assures the guy that everyone has long been accounted for, but it's obvious even from Brendon's video feed that they seem to be hiding something.
The dude asks if there's anyone else on board, and Brendon's blood runs cold, but they all deny it convincingly enough. The dude starts hitting buttons on a panel and Brendon realizes with a start who he is - Mr. Warner. He's from the Academy.
"These programs are very impressive," Warner says. "Who wrote them?"
Brendon's boys look guilty enough that Brendon starts to fidget, but Nick doesn't bat an eye when he says, "A hire, from one of the DW-series planets, last time we were outside the Inner Periphery."
The dude looks suspicious. "Who was this mysterious 'hire'?"
Nick shrugs. "He preferred not to give his name, and it was of no consequence to us."
He looks to one of the dudes that's with him (Minion #4, in Brendon's mental catalog), who looks extremely nervous but nods with a fake sort of confidence. "Very well," the dude finally says. "If you happen to see this 'hire' of yours again, pass the word to me immediately." He hands over a holo-card that reflects oddly in the surveillance feed. "He's highly dangerous, and at this point, we're not clear on the nature of his abilities. He likely has at least the power of persuasion, which may be why you felt so content not to know his name. Nothing is safe around this man, not even your thoughts."
De'Mar nods. "What do you suggest if we do meet him? Won't we be in danger just to be in his presence?"
Warner nods, looking satisfied with that response. "Do not approach him if necessary. If he spots you first, try to focus your thoughts on something mundane and unrelated, and then contact me as soon as possible to tell me your location. And for the future, you really should insist on full names in order to do background checks for all your hires. Our society doesn't put enough emphasis on this information. These are dangerous times, gentlemen."
Brendon blinks in surprise when Spencer steps forward. "Well then, if you don't mind, sir, could we take down all of your names? Just for our records, of course."
It's the first time that Brendon realizes it's weird that the dude came on board with 4 other dudes. Brendon imagines the look of dissatisfaction on Warner's face, but he smiles and praises Spencer for good cautionary actions. "Totally superfluous in our case, of course, but we can go around and give introductions, naturally."
"Oh, that won't be necessary," Nick says cheerfully. "We actually have our computers set up with a fingerprint system," he continues, approaching a panel and inputting a code that Brendon remembers explaining to Spencer. "All you need to do is place your hand on the panel, and your information will be stored in our system."
"Very well," the guy says, and his jovial demeanor is starting to slip a bit. "Go on then, boys."
They all walk up and place their hands on the panel in a row, but when the main dude is the only one left, he looks right at Nick and says, "Of course my name won't be necessary in this case."
Nick nods, already pressing the buttons to close down the program. "Of course." Brendon blinks, but none of the other guys even hesitate.
"Well, I think that'll be all for today, men. Let's head out." He ushers his men toward the exit, but he pauses to face Nick once again. "You'll turn in this man the next time you see him."
"Of course." Brendon watches in horror as they all nod mindlessly at the command with that same vacant expression.
Brendon's heart starts racing, and the dude says something else to Nick, but Brendon can't help notice the altercation going on behind them. Ryan and Spencer are talking quietly to each other, but Ryan isn't happy. Brendon keys in the command to focus in on the two of them.
"But why didn't we get his name?" Ryan asks, confused and inching toward angry.
"Because we don't need it, Ryan," Spencer explains, exasperated. "It's completely unnecessary."
"Yeah, I know but--" Ryan rubs at his temple as if he's in pain. Then his eyes widen and he looks around at them all. "No, Spence."
"Ryan," Spencer begins, gearing up for a lecture, but Ryan presses his hand to Spencer's temple and stares hard at him. Spencer starts to bat his hand away, but Ryan doesn't back off until a look of horror flits over Spencer's face. Spencer checks over his shoulder where Nick is closing the door behind the men. "I was going to--"
"I know," Ryan cuts him off, looking serious. "We can't let any of these guys see Brendon before I can heal them, or they'll turn him in immediately."
Spencer nods, still looking stricken. "Guys? Before we get back to work, Ryan has something important to tell each of you."
They all nod, taking this easily enough, but Ryan looks frantic. "Spence. Where's Jon?"
The moment that Brendon translates this dialogue, there's a noise immediately outside the wall he's leaning up against. Brendon jumps and then grabs at the wall, but it's no use; there's nothing to grab onto. "Jon?!" he says, trying not to sound as worried as he is.
"Hey, man. I know you're pissed at me, but it's over now. I came to let you out."
"No! Um, I mean, Ryan has something really important to tell you, like right now." He replays Warner's words in his head, turn him in the next time you see him, knowing that Jon's only seconds away from seeing him and doing just that.
"He can wait 'til I get you out and apologize."
"Dude." Brendon hates this. It's not Jon's fault, but the moment he sees him-- "Something bad is going to happen if you see me right now."
Jon's struggles with the handle stop suddenly. "What are you talking about?" he asks, but his voice lacks his usual confidence.
"What would you do right now if you saw my face?" Brendon tries.
"I'd apologize for shutting you up. You're mad at me, and it sucks." Jon starts twisting the handle again.
"Okay, but what-- what would you do if you saw Brendon Urie?" he asks, desperate.
"I'd turn him in to the authorities. He's a dangerous fugitive," Jon says immediately, voice flat. The handle finally slides through with a loud click, and Brendon pushes himself into the corner of the space in the hopes that Jon won't see him.
"Jon," Brendon whispers. He watches in horror as the confused, caring look drops from Jon's expression to be replaced by a steely determination. Jon, please don't do this, Brendon pleas with his mind, but Jon is already reaching for his transmitter and the holo-card that Brendon had seen on the panel. Please, it's me.
Jon pauses and stares at him, looking desperately confused. "He said you'd do that. Get in my mind, mess with me." He looks down to press in the numbers on his device, and Brendon leaps forward in an attempt to swipe one of the objects from his hands. He knocks the card out of Jon's grip, and Jon stares up at him suddenly, livid. Brendon cowers in the face of that look; he'd never imagined Jon would look at him like that. Jon draws his hand back, and Brendon thinks briefly of running, but then he hears Spencer's Jon, no! as the elevator opens. It's just enough time for Jon to hesitate, and Brendon darts around him toward Spencer.
Ryan heads straight for Jon, who is staring at Brendon with that same angry, determined expression. "Jon, look at me," Ryan says.
Jon does, but the stubborn look remains. "Not now, Ryan, I have to--"
But Ryan's fingers are already over Jon's temples, and he stops struggling when Ryan leans in to kiss him at the same time.
Brendon, Spencer says, grabbing Brendon's hand. Brendon looks into his face, seeing the seriousness and tenderness there. Jon was hypnotized. He didn't know what he was doing. Spencer slides his fingers over Brendon's forehead to brush back his bangs, then continues the movement across Brendon's cheek in a kind of caress. Please don't hold this against him.
Since it's a mental message, Brendon can hear the hint of us when Spencer says him. He places his hand over Spencer's and lowers it. It's okay. I know. He moves close into Spencer's space and feels himself calm down as Spencer lets him cling and clings back just as much.
"Brendon?" Jon says sheepishly.
Spencer pulls back from their hug, leaning in to press a quick kiss to Brendon's lips, then says, "We'll be in the kitchen."
Ryan slips into Brendon's space just as quickly to kiss him, tongue sweeping in just enough to make Brendon's breath catch, and then he's off with Spencer in the elevator. Damn Ryan Ross and his kisses.
When Brendon turns to face Jon, he's surprised at just how miserable Jon looks. "God, Brendon, I am so sorry. I can't believe I almost--"
"Hey," Brendon says, interrupting. "No one was hurt. You weren't in control--"
"No, but I knew, Brendon, I knew." His hands are shaking, and Brendon attempts to take one, but Jon pulls away. "This isn't okay. Don't you get it? I had a vision. I knew you were going to look at me like you were scared out of your mind, and I went ahead and opened the door anyway. I thought I was stopping it from happening."
Brendon attempts to take his hand again, and this time Jon doesn't resist. "Have you ever been able to stop one of your visions from coming true before?"
Jon stiffens. "No. That's the worst part of this whole thing. It's like I have no free will." He stares into Brendon's eyes, looking helpless. "What if it's something worse next time? What if I see something happen to one of you? What if I know how one of you is going to die and there's nothing I can do to stop it?"
His voice cracks as he asks the last question and he lets Brendon pull him into a hug, one of the fiercest Brendon has ever given. "Jon," he says, pouring everything into it. "These stupid things that we can do, our 'abilities'? Fuck 'em. We didn't ask for them, so we shouldn't let them control our lives."
Brendon rubs his hands up and down Jon's back and feels Jon calm down as he melts into the hug. "I will never forgive myself for what I did today."
Brendon pulls back, giving Jon a stern look. "No. Just--no, Jon. Fuck that. You didn't do a damn thing to me of your own will, so stop it right now."
Jon pulls his hand back, surprised. "But--"
"No. You're not allowed to blame yourself for what some douche bag from the Academy forced you to do. Promise me." Brendon holds his pinky out between them and waits.
Jon stares at Brendon's hand for a second before reluctantly hooking his pinky with Brendon's. He cracks a small smile. "This is kind of an antiquated ritual, you know."
Brendon narrows his eyebrows and tightens his hold. "Does that mean you plan on breaking it?"
Jon smiles for real then. "Never," he promises. Brendon awards him with a kiss.
******
"Thanks to Spencer's quick thinking and Brendon's hack of the database, we now have the names and abilities as they are on record for the man's four men. Eric Land, level 9 telekenesis, Zach Sorkin, level 8 empathy, Tony Anderson, level 7 telekinesis, and Alex Suarez, level 4 telepathy. Unfortunately, we weren't able to get the main guy's information, but at least this will get us started," Tom says.
"I know who he was," Brendon says, stepping forward. All seven of them turn to face Brendon in surprise, and he tries not to blush. "His name is Mr. Warner. He was some bigshot at the Academy, I assumed the superintendent. There were rumors that he had a spot in the government, too, but I never knew if they were true or not."
Nick nods and gestures for Tom to enter this information.
"I think it's clear that he has the power of persuasion," De'Mar says, "but how to deal with that next time, I'm not sure."
"If I can heal fast enough, I can try to help others, too," Ryan says.
Brendon nods. "I may be able to resist it by filtering out my sense of hearing? Um." He looks at the floor when all eyes are on him. "I wasn't affected by Warner's commands, and I think it's because I couldn't hear them. If I'm able to close off my mind to hear his words, I think I can avoid them."
"You can do that?" Max asks.
Brendon shrugs. There's no use holding back about his abilities at this point. "I've never tried it before, but it may be possible."
"If anyone can do it, Brendon can," Spencer says confidently.
Brendon beams at him, and then at Jon, who is nodding in agreement. Ryan gives him a small smile before looking away. Brendon bounces, wanting to run around and hug them all, but he keeps it contained.
"Alright, well our best plan of action is just to prepare as much as we can in case there's a confrontation," Nick says. "Jon, let us know if you see anything else, and if any of you have any ideas, please do not hesitate to share them. I know I haven't really united our crew before, but that's changing now. We're going to work together to protect this ship and everyone in it, are we agreed?"
Brendon nods, feeling a pang as he watches everyone else nod.
Spencer approaches him after they return to their quarters, kissing him without saying anything. "You're thinking something stupid about running away to keep us safe," Spencer says.
Brendon tenses, but Spencer runs his hands over Brendon's back to calm him down. "Are you reading my mind?" Brendon accuses, voice just barely shaking.
Spencer blinks in surprise. "Didn't have to," he says.
"I just--" Brendon stops to swallow around his scratchy throat. "I thought I was escaping by getting on a ship. I was stupid enough to think that would be safe. And now I've ruined the lives of seven new people, three of which I damn well love. Fuck." He buries his face in Spencer's shoulder, trying not to cry. Fuck fuck fuck. He shouldn't be pulling Spencer into this.
"Okay, first of all. Who said anything about ruining our lives? If it was Jon who was in danger of being taken away, wouldn't you be right in the front of the defense to keep him here? Or if it were me? Or Ryan?"
"Yeah, but--"
"And second," Spencer continues, "even if you ran away, we'd still follow you. We'd never give up until we found you again, and we'd never forgive ourselves for letting you get away. And if you don't already know that, then you're an idiot."
Brendon swallows, feeling choked up now for a whole new reason. "Fuck," he says again, following it up with a laugh this time.
"Can we come in now?" Jon asks, peering around the doorway.
"Get your asses in here," Brendon says, pressing at the edges of his eyes to get them to stop stinging.
Jon heads straight for Brendon, and Ryan trails in behind him. Brendon welcomes the comfort of a Jon hug, even though Jon has to worm his way in from the side since Spencer won't let go. Brendon smiles when Jon murmurs in his ear, "You're not going anywhere."
Brendon jumps when Ryan's arms come around his stomach from behind, but relaxes into the embrace coming at him from all sides. Ryan presses his lips softly on Brendon's neck, then pauses. "I ran away from home once."
Brendon looks at Spencer as he nods. "I remember."
"I didn't have anywhere to go, and I was afraid to go to Spencer's house, so I went down to the drug store on the corner. I hung out for all of an hour before Spencer hunted me down."
"Why'd you run away?" Jon asks, soft in Brendon's ear. Brendon is struck suddenly by how close they all are, and it makes him smile.
"My dad was drunk, which was nothing new, but when he tripped and hurt his hand, I was trying to bandage it up and it closed up completely when I touched it. My dad screamed at me because it hurt, and then because I was a freak, and as far as I knew he was right. So I tried to escape."
Brendon wants to hug Ryan, but he can't exactly turn around, so he settles for taking Ryan's hand and squeezing it.
"That was the night I told him about my psychic thing," Spencer says softly.
Brendon squirms away toward Jon, leaving Ryan and Spencer to look at each other. "We've been best friends ever since," Ryan says, and Spencer nods before kissing him.
"But you already have us, so no running away," Jon says, smiling. Brendon smiles back and welcomes the kiss that Jon gives him, then goes willingly when Jon pushes him back toward the bed. "You promise?" Jon asks even as he moves to straddle Brendon on the mattress.
"I'm not going anywhere," Brendon swears.
******
In the intervening days, Brendon goes into overdrive trying to coach Spencer on his ability, and he even tries occasionally to help Ryan and Jon develop more with their abilities. They're all thrilled to discover that if Ryan focuses hard enough, he can form a protective shield around anyone he's touching.
Brendon is confident that the only way to avoid Warner's suggestions - other than being healed by Ryan - is to filter out his sense of hearing, though he's afraid to attempt it. The four of them all gather around the table when Brendon first tries it, and with three sets of eyes on him, he concentrates and turns off his aural perception. His eyes widen when he realizes it's worked, and he signals for Spencer to send a message into his thoughts. Spencer complies, and it's so weird because it doesn't feel like he hears the message anymore, just feels it. It's kind of awesome, but totally weird. He nods at Spencer, then looks to Jon, who signals that it's okay to read his thoughts. He has success with that, and again with Ryan, though he can't quite get over how strange it feels. He sighs in relief when he can stop the filter and let sound in again, and he feels exhausted. "I'm going to have to practice that a lot more before it comes naturally," he warns, but the guys all agree to help him out.
Somehow, the pressure of the oncoming confrontation makes Spencer learn three times as fast. He becomes proficient at reading thoughts, much to Ryan and Jon's chagrin, but Brendon is ridiculously proud. Ryan, especially when he's willing to listen to Brendon's advice, improves greatly, until he's able to protect people who aren't even directly touching him. Jon, meanwhile, let's them know any details when he finds them out, though it's sporadic and unpredictable.
This practice becomes something of a routine, and no one mentions that they have no idea how long it will be until they'll need to put it to use.
******
Brendon is sitting in the kitchen, rambling about something mundane on the computer, when it happens.
"Seriously, we know you're smarter than we are, but do you have to hold it over our heads all the time?" Ryan snaps.
Brendon turns to face him, feeling hurt. "I didn't mean--"
"Ignore him, he's just still cranky that we didn't stop at his festival last week," Spencer says, passing through.
"Fuck you. You've taken his side from the beginning, but don't try to pretend like he doesn't piss you off, too. You always came into my room to complain. 'God, he won't shut up, Ryan. What's it gonna take?'"
Brendon looks from Ryan to Spencer, and the latter looks utterly betrayed.
"You know, if you felt this way, maybe you could've said something sooner," he says to Ryan, anger bubbling up.
"Well apparently we can't run this ship without you."
Brendon sees red. He can't believe Ryan really feels this way, and to think that he's been thinking it this whole time just makes it worse. "Well now that I've got you all up and running, maybe you should just dump me off at the next stop! That's where you picked me up the first time, after all."
Ryan's expression smooths out. "That's not--"
"Whoa, what's going on here?" Jon asks, rushing into the kitchen. "Did you not see the message?"
Brendon whirls around to look at the screen, instantly seeing the urgent message. "We're being hailed by the authorities to Earth." He swallows. "To Vegas. The same city the Academy is in."
"What's the reason?" Spencer asks, though he looks like he already knows.
"Harboring a dangerous fugitive," Ryan says from his position in front of the other panel. Brendon watches the tense line of his back.
"We should get upstairs and talk to Nick," Jon says.
They pile into the elevator, and Spencer hits the button in the ceiling to go upstairs. Brendon tries to keep his hands from shaking, tries not to think about what's about to happen. A hand wraps around his own, and he stares in surprise at Ryan. Ryan doesn't say anything, but he shoots Brendon a serious look. Brendon's anger was pushed aside the moment he read the message, so he squeezes Ryan's hand and focuses on what's to come.
They meet with Nick and the rest of the crew in a rush. Max informs them that the rest of the ships in their caravan have been made aware of the situation, but they won't be able follow right away.
They land and are boarded immediately by Warner and his men. Warner demands they hand over Brendon, but the crew are all standing, waiting for him in a line, with Ryan using their joined hands to form a protective shield. Because of this, they're impervious to Warner's suggestions at first.
When Warner figures out what's going on, he orders two of his minions to act, and they use telekinesis to hurl things at their line-up. Nick and De'Mar are able to fend off these threats somewhat, but the minions are stronger.
When it starts to become clear that they can't hold back these advances for much longer, Brendon squeezes Spencer's hand, blocks out sound, and breaks away from their line-up. He starts with the guy he recognizes, the stronger of the two telekinetics. He says into this guy's head, Why are you doing this? We knew each other at school, dude. Why are you trying to hurt me and my friends?
The guy's thoughts are filled at first with repetitions of this idea, Why am I doing this? This is followed up quickly with reassurances, It's my duty, to protect the universe from this dangerous fugitive. Brendon surmises quickly that at least some of Warner's supporters are only working as a result of Warner's suggestions. He sends this thought to Spencer, Jon, and Ryan, adding to the latter that he might have luck if he can get close enough to heal any of them. Spencer lets Brendon know that Warner has figured out that Brendon has found a way to resist him, so he's regrouping with his men to come up with a better plan.
Brendon glances over just as they leave their huddle, and then suddenly all of Warner's men run at their line from all directions. They are forced to let go of each other and spread out to keep the men away, and Warner immediately starts saying things to each of them. Brendon can't hear what Warner says, but Spencer turns to him with a threatening look, and Brendon starts to run, but then Ryan is there with a hand on Spencer's shoulder, and then Spencer snaps out of it. Brendon takes a moment to feel proud that Ryan has gotten so good at healing, but then Nick and De'Mar are throwing things in his direction and he has to go for cover.
Brendon, he suddenly hears in a voice he doesn't recognize. I'm on your side. I'm a telepath, but all I can do is send thoughts. Warner hasn't been able to recruit a telepath any stronger than me, and he keeps me on hoping that I'll get better at reading minds. Brendon glances up long enough to recognize Alex Suarez, one of the minions from their first visit to the ship. Pete and Anjela are on their way, just try to hold off Warner for a little bit longer.
Brendon can't quite process that fast enough, but Spencer is there saying, Look at Jon, and Jon is signaling for Brendon to read his thoughts, so Brendon darts around another box and breaks into Jon's mind. You and Ryan need to work together. I don't know how, but that's what's going to save us.
Brendon doesn't see how that is possible, as Ryan is currently darting around trying to heal everyone, but he stops to think for a second. Ryan concentrates hard, making the same methodical motions with each person he heals. Brendon suddenly has an idea, and he takes a deep breath, sends a warning at Ryan, and then runs out to meet him. All of Warner's minions are now gathered around one of their cargo boxes, trying to lift it by actual manual labor, so Brendon has a moment to explain to Ryan his plan.
I need you to concentrate hard on exactly what you do in your head whenever you heal someone. I'll read your thoughts and try to broadcast that back out into everyone's heads.
Ryan looks at him with wide eyes. Will that work?
Brendon shrugs. I have no idea. Are you ready?
Ryan nods before shutting his eyes in concentration. Brendon picks up the code of it instantly, knowing it by how it feels like another language, and he copies it as best he can and broadcasts it with no limitations. His head starts hurting immediately, but it works. The mania of people on their side - now multiplied because others have arrived - dies down, and they all pause. Warner's minions have managed to lift the box, but they stop suddenly. Warner keeps barking out orders, and Brendon can see a vein threatening to pop in his forehead. He broadcasts the same message again, and Warner's minions stop in their tracks again. It happens again and again, and it's almost comical, but Brendon starts to feel dizzy. He does the same thing again, feeling lightheaded, and he has a vague perception of Pete running at Warner, and suddenly there's all this noise, and Ryan shouts, "Brendon!" just before Brendon blacks out.
******
When Brendon blinks his eyes open, Ryan is hunched over him with Spencer and Jon right behind him. Jon is murmuring reassurances to keep trying into Ryan's ear, so Spencer is the first to see him awake. He pulls Brendon up into a hug, and Ryan makes a desperate happy noise and slumps against Brendon, bringing Jon with him. Brendon feels himself enveloped completely, and he feels completely at home in that moment.
"We should get back out there," Jon whispers. "It's over, but they want to see us."
Spencer supports Ryan's weight as they leave the ship, and Brendon worries. "Is he okay?" he asks Jon.
"Probably exhausted himself," Jon murmurs, slipping his arm around Brendon. "Are you okay?"
Brendon nods. "What happened?"
"You passed out, I guess from overdoing the whole psychic power thing. Before Pete could take Warner down, his guys managed to get one of our cargo boxes up and thrown at you and Ryan. It... it was pretty messy for a few minutes, before Ryan woke up."
Brendon sees the sadness in Jon's eyes and bumps his shoulder against Jon's. "I feel absolutely fine now," he assures him.
"Yeah, because Ryan overdid himself. I swear, sometimes I don't know what to do with you two."
Brendon is reminded of their argument earlier that afternoon, but that seems so far away now. "How long was I out?"
"Ten minutes? It seemed like forever. Spencer helped out the guys by figuring out who was being controlled against their will, but I was completely useless. I just sat there like a lump and waited for you to open your eyes."
"Hey," Ryan protests, and Brendon realizes he and Spencer have caught up with them. "Don't talk like that, Jon Walker. You're the reason I kept going for so long. We'd still be sitting there if you hadn't been there."
Brendon wraps his arms around Jon and hugs him tight. Jon chuckles and hugs back, obviously not in any hurry to join back with the group. Ryan rests his hand on the small of Brendon's back as they walk outside, and they're walking in this tangled up line when Brendon spots Anjela.
"Brendon!" she exclaims, and Brendon breaks free of his boys to pounce on her with a hug. "I'm so glad you're okay," she says. "I thought we weren't going to make it in time."
"What are you doing here?" Brendon can't help but ask. "Not that I'm not glad to see you! But uh, I wasn't exactly expecting you."
He sees Alex Suarez talking to Pete just behind where they're standing, and he really wishes he knew what was going on.
"It's kind of a long story," she says. "The short version is that Alex, Pete and I are all in business together."
"Doing what?" Brendon asks, mesmerized.
"Well, our first order of business was protecting you."
"You're kidding."
She laughs. "I wouldn't kid about that. But now, it seems that the Academy has come under new leadership," she says, smiling and indicating herself. "I think my first order of business is going to be changing up our post-graduation options. What do you think?"
Brendon stares at her, disbelieving, and then hugs her again. "I have a million questions, but first. How in the hell did you find me?" he asks, pulling away.
As if on cue, Pete strolls up to them and puts his arm companionably around Anjela's shoulders. "Hi."
"Pete?" Brendon asks Anjela warily.
"Pete Wentz, co-owner of Petenut Butter & Jelly Enterprises, at your service," Pete says, giving an elaborate bow.
"I can't believe we let you use that name," Alex says, approaching their group. "Hi," he says to Brendon, "I'm sorry for barging in on you earlier, but I figured what good am I as a spy if I don't encourage the good guys?"
"Wait a minute," Spencer says, coming up to them with Jon and Ryan in tow. "Slow down a second. You all work together?"
"Yes," Anjela says with a world-weary sigh. "I ran an underground system of businesses, Alex coordinated deliveries of non-perishable foods to planets in the Inner Periphery, and Pete decided to get us all working together. Actually, what is it that you actually do for PB&J?"
Pete narrows his eyes. "Customer relations and company expansion," he says, tone challenging. "Also I gave you both your cool nicknames."
"Yeah, you call me 'Butter.' Thanks for that," Alex says, rolling his eyes.
Brendon can do nothing but stare. "So you've been in charge of everything this whole time?" he asks Anjela.
She shrugs, unassuming. "If you got into any sort of trouble, it would've been my fault. I thought I'd look out for you."
"So you're the reason I wound up on the ship. The reason I met these guys," he says, gesturing at Ryan, Jon, and Spencer.
"Yes?" she says, unsure of his tone.
He beams at her, unable to resist hugging the life out of her one more time. "Thank you thank you thank you," he says, clinging.
She laughs softly. "I'm really glad you're happy, Brendon."
Brendon looks around at all the people still gathered from the fight, everyone that was willing to stand with him. "Yeah, me too."
******
That night, Brendon goes to Ryan first. Ryan tenses briefly in their bed, but gives up the charade immediately. "I thought I wasn't going to be strong enough."
Brendon makes a sympathetic noise and wraps himself tightly around Ryan. "Jon was there, though. He says he knew I'd make it."
Spencer slides into Brendon's thoughts with just a hint of a question, and Brendon tells him, Two minutes.
He uses those two minutes to bicker with Ryan and point out that he didn't actually have to fully heal Brendon, but Ryan won't hear that because he had to know that Brendon was gonna be okay, no waiting, no wondering. Spencer's hand on his back and Jon's voice in his ear were enough to help him keep trying.
"I'm sorry for what I said this morning," Ryan says quietly. "Even when you get on my nerves, I'm still crazy about you. That's why I get all worked up, because it's not fair that I can never really dislike you."
"Ryan, come on." Ryan blinks at him. "I think we're a life-changing fight away from that stupid argument, don't you?"
When Jon and Spencer come in, Brendon and Ryan are kissing, but not quite making out. Spencer wraps around Brendon while Jon does the same with Ryan, and then Spencer pushes up and cranes his neck to kiss Ryan softly. Spencer's sending out comforting thoughts, always easier when he's connected with Brendon, and Jon reaches across to rest one hand on Brendon's hip. "We're going to sleep now," he mumbles.
"Do you know that or are you just saying it?" Spencer says, but it lacks its usual bite.
Jon says, "You'll never know," and Ryan tightens his hold on Brendon's hand when Jon kisses the back of his neck.
"Are you guys pampering me because I was freaking out about the fight?" Ryan asks, annoyed.
Jon makes a shhh noise while Spencer shifts around to move his leg in between Brendon's and kick Ryan's ankle. He settles comfortably and doesn't move his leg.
Ryan starts to whine "Guys," but Brendon cuts him off mid-whine to say, "One of these days we are going to get so tangled up that we can't walk without each other."
There is a beat of silence, and then Jon says, "I think we already are."
Another beat, in which Brendon feels his heart swell, and then Ryan snorts and Spencer says, "Oh, that was deep, Jon."
Brendon turns his head to push his smile into the pillows, and he drifts off to sleep to the sound of laughter from the three dudes he loves.
THE END
Assembling the bed takes a couple hours longer than planned, but then the victory is that much sweeter. Brendon stretches out over the new mattress, limbs flung wide, and there's still room for the others to fit alongside him.
"We're gonna need twice as much cooling in here at night," Spencer observes, ever the practical one.
"I can reprogram the system so that at night, it'll only cool this room out of the four bedrooms. It should be more energy efficient than if it were cooling them separately."
Spencer is either satisfied with that answer or too tired to respond, which Brendon takes as approval. Brendon hauls himself off the bed and goes to set it up, knowing if he doesn't do it now that he'll only become less motivated the longer he lays on the bed.
When he gets back, nobody seems to have moved. "Oh, are we going to bed now?"
Spencer makes a disgruntled noise. "If you want to go exploring, we'll do it tomorrow. I didn't spend hours putting together this bed so that it could go unused."
"No, I know, I just... I wanted to say thanks," he says, picking at the hem of his shirt. "I know you all probably had better things to do on your couple days off, but. It means a lot."
Ryan makes a noise of disbelief as Jon pulls Brendon back down onto the bed. "You would've done the same for any of us," he says before kissing him quickly, then tilting his head down to kiss Brendon's neck, working his way down as he undoes the buttons on Brendon's shirt.
"It was fun," Spencer says, "and it's important you feel safe when you're with us."
"I do," Brendon says, gasping as Jon gets a hand on him, having pulled his pants off in one smooth move. Spencer moves in and swallows the next noise to escape his mouth. When he pulls back, Brendon fixes him with a significant look and says, "But I think Ryan's the one I should really be thanking."
"Don't thank me. It was just an excuse to make out," Ryan teases, shifting into the space where Spencer and Jon once were. He smirks down at Brendon, but there's something else in his expression: a look of affection that Brendon has only seen from him one other time, way before he and Spencer worked their shit out and got together.
Everything he'd felt at the bar comes rushing back twice as hard. He hauls Ryan in by his collar, mumbling something about getting rid of clothes.
"We can help," Jon volunteers, immediately getting to work.
Ryan's kisses start traveling down, lingering first on Brendon's neck, then continuing to his collarbone, and Brendon has to take a second to catch his breath.
"I can't believe you didn't know how crazy I've been about you," Brendon murmurs, a bit breathless.
"What?" Jon says, pausing in his ministrations to shoot Ryan an incredulous look.
"Seriously?" Spencer says. "Ryan, come on, you're like his biggest weakness."
"Hey," Brendon protests, "who said anything about weakness?"
Ryan bites down just a bit around Brendon's nipple, causing a whimper to escape from Brendon's mouth. "You were saying?"
"Okay Ross, enough messing around," Brendon says, maneuvering him so that Jon can get his pants off, then sliding his hands down Ryan's back until they reach his ass before finally pulling him flush against Brendon's own body.
Ryan goes with the movement, grinding down against Brendon. It feels amazing, so Brendon makes a noise of encouragement and pulls him in again.
"Jesus, you two," Spencer says from beside them, and when Brendon glances over, Spencer has his pants pushed open just enough to get a hand on himself. Jon appears to have noticed at the same time, because he mumbles something heated and makes his way over to Spencer to help him with that.
"Switch with me," Brendon says to Ryan, who goes with it without asking questions. Brendon smiles to himself when he is able to angle his body to keep their friction going and suck a mark into Ryan's neck at the same time. Ryan curses loudly and arches into Brendon, urging him to move faster. His hand fumbles between them and grips their cocks together, and Brendon gasps against Ryan's neck as he starts pumping.
Things start to get hazy as he gets lost in the feeling, but through it all he definitely hears Spencer make a reverent statement about Jon's body, and then realizes it's in his head, fuck, and then Ryan twists his wrist just right to bring Brendon over the edge.
He shifts as Ryan's movements get more frantic, reaching down to help him along. It's always amazing to see Ryan lose control like this, murmuring things under his breath that he'll never say otherwise. Brendon avoids kissing him until the last possible second just so he can hear his name said that way.
As Ryan comes down, Brendon leans over him to get to the panel, calling up a towel with the knowledge that no one's gonna want to get up in a few seconds. He pauses for a minute just to watch Jon and Spencer moving against each other, thrilling in their expressions. It's even better when Spencer shoots him a look that says he knows he's watching, and then clutches at Jon's arms as he comes.
Once the towel and any remaining clothes are tossed aside, Brendon sighs happily and leans into Ryan, feeling Jon's back lined up against his.
"This was not part of the plan," Spencer mumbles, sounding almost unhappy, but Brendon isn't fooled. He can hear the smile in Spencer's voice as he continues, "But I'm happy it happened."
"Spencer Smith," Jon murmurs, and Brendon can feel him shifting in the pause, "your smiles are what rainbows are made of."
Spencer's laugh stops short, and Brendon twists around to see what's going on. He sees the sudden sincerity in Spencer's expression just before he leans in and captures Jon's mouth, swallowing Jon's surprised noise.
"Really? That worked?" Ryan says, tone dubious.
"Compliments can go a long way," Brendon says, turning back to shoot Ryan a significant look.
Ryan raises his eyebrows and stares back blankly. Eventually, he relents and says, "You have a nice ass."
Spencer and Jon start laughing, and Brendon shrugs. "Works for me," he says, nuzzling up to Ryan before kissing him sweetly.
"Can we go to sleep now?" Spencer finally asks, and Jon snickers.
"Don't even start," Ryan says. "If you're trying to say you'd have rather spent all this time sleeping, you can go sleep on the couch."
"Hey, I never said that, and also, who's the one who put together the entire main frame by himself? If anyone's sleeping on the couch, it should be you, Mr. Weak Wrists."
"He's never going to let you live that one down," Jon says, tone sympathetic.
"Okay, everyone's cranky again, I think it is time for sleep," Brendon says. Still, he makes a point to stretch as much as it takes to kiss each of them in turn. He has the best night's sleep he's had in ages, and starts to appreciate the term 'sweet dreams'.
******
Jon tends to have clearer, more frequent visions when he's with the three of them, so Brendon doesn't think much of it when Jon wakes up with a jolt one morning, eyes distant. He does his best to distract Jon from the associated headache, placing kisses along his collarbone. He can feel the moment the vision ends by the lessening tension in Jon's body and the way he leans into Brendon's touches, but Brendon doesn't press. He knows Jon still needs a minute or two to process what he just saw.
"Hey," Jon eventually says, brushing the hair away from Brendon's forehead.
Brendon looks up to smile at him, noticing the worry behind Jon's answering smile. "Everything okay?" he asks as he repositions himself to give Jon a proper kiss.
"Something else I don't get the context for," Jon says with a shrug, dismissing it by continuing to kiss Brendon. He's definitely worried, though. Brendon tries not to be.
"Are we really getting up now?" Ryan complains groggily next to Jon.
"Only if you want to be," Brendon replies with a leer. Ryan just scoffs and rolls closer to Spencer, who can apparently sleep through anything.
"I'm gonna go for a walk," Jon whispers, shifting to get out of bed.
"Can I come?" Brendon asks with a smile that quickly fades when Jon looks hesitant.
"Maybe join me later," Jon says, kissing Brendon one more time before heading out. Brendon frowns. It's always a disappointment to see Jon put on pants, but today it's even worse.
Brendon would just let it go, except Jon then goes on to avoid him all morning. He sees him talking to Spencer and Ryan throughout the day, and maybe it's work-related, but it still makes him uneasy.
His sense of dread doubles when they all approach him at once in his old bedroom after their shifts are over for the day. Jon hangs behind the other two and looks guilty, and Brendon's first response is, "Why do I get the feeling you guys don't have good news?"
"You should come with us," Spencer says, tone all business.
Brendon gives him a suspecting look. "What if I don't?"
"Brendon," Ryan says insistently. "Come on."
Brendon goes, because he's kind of curious, but he doesn't stop asking questions. "Where are we going? Are we landing early? Is this about Jon's vision?"
They leave the living area and head to the less-visited section of the deck, into the gym, and Brendon's questions stop short when Spencer forces off one of the far sections of the wall, revealing a door.
There's a tiny, dimly lit room behind it, and Spencer puts on his reluctant 'rules face'. Brendon's stomach sinks. "Look, there's no time to explain--"
"Are you serious?"
"--but we need you to wait in here for the next few hours."
"There's time to explain," Brendon insists, looking from one of them to the other. Jon still won't look at him, and Ryan looks just as resolute as Spencer. "Come on. Somebody tell me what the fuck is going on."
"Just trust us," Ryan says, fixing Brendon with a significant look.
"You're gonna shut me into the wall and not give me any other explanation except 'trust us'?!"
"I'm sorry, Brendon," Spencer says before manhandling him into the space. Brendon feels indignation rising in his chest, but Spencer is strong, and he wasn't ready.
He settles for screaming instead. "This is insane! I thought you guys cared more about me than this! Jon, tell me what this is about!"
"It has to be this way, Brendon," Jon says so quietly that Brendon almost doesn't hear him.
It occurs to Brendon that this might just be happening because Jon saw it, which is so irrational and ridiculous that it makes him see red. "Fuck you!" he yells at Jon, and the last thing he sees is Jon's face crumpling before the door is shut in his face.
He stares at the closed door in shock for a few seconds, and tries pounding on it for good measure, but he can tell there's no sound heard from the outside. They could leave him here forever and no one would ever know.
He discovers a working panel in there, at least, which gives him something to do other than curse at them. Don't they know he could've just read their minds and found out on his own? They should be grateful he has morals, god. He's still pissed enough to do something, though, so he hacks into the surveillance and watches them mill about for the next half hour. He tried at first to find a way to unlock the door, but apparently it's a manual lock. Damn it all. But he knows how to translate the sound data and make sense of it, so he watches it go by with the images, and they're all clearly anxious but Brendon doesn't know why. He stares in shock as Nick and De'Mar come off the elevator. He'd had his suspicions about who the captain was, but to be honest, he really thought it would be Pete and Patrick, simply because Pete was always in his face so much. Now he realizes that if that was the case, Pete probably wouldn't have wanted to hide from him.
It's surreal to watch all of them interact while he's kept upstairs, like he's some sort of spy. Their anxiety seems to have a source when Brendon sees five dudes come on board, with one out in front like the leader. Brendon focuses the feed so that he can read what they're saying, but at first it's all pleasantries. Max shows them around the cargo deck, but to Brendon's surprise they don't ask to come upstairs. The leader does, however, gather them all up after the tour and begins to read out a list - to Brendon's surprise, it's a list of their abilities.
"Nick Scimeca, level 8 telekinesis. De'Mar Hamilton, level 5 telekinesis. Tom Conrad, level 4 dream-walking. Max Steger, level 4 psychometry. Jon Walker, level 4 precognition. Ryan Ross, level 4 healing. Spencer Smith, level 3 telepathy. That sound about right?"
Brendon sees Spencer's crestfallen look when he hears he's a level 3 and everyone else is higher, and he wishes he was there to reassure him. Nick takes charge and assures the guy that everyone has long been accounted for, but it's obvious even from Brendon's video feed that they seem to be hiding something.
The dude asks if there's anyone else on board, and Brendon's blood runs cold, but they all deny it convincingly enough. The dude starts hitting buttons on a panel and Brendon realizes with a start who he is - Mr. Warner. He's from the Academy.
"These programs are very impressive," Warner says. "Who wrote them?"
Brendon's boys look guilty enough that Brendon starts to fidget, but Nick doesn't bat an eye when he says, "A hire, from one of the DW-series planets, last time we were outside the Inner Periphery."
The dude looks suspicious. "Who was this mysterious 'hire'?"
Nick shrugs. "He preferred not to give his name, and it was of no consequence to us."
He looks to one of the dudes that's with him (Minion #4, in Brendon's mental catalog), who looks extremely nervous but nods with a fake sort of confidence. "Very well," the dude finally says. "If you happen to see this 'hire' of yours again, pass the word to me immediately." He hands over a holo-card that reflects oddly in the surveillance feed. "He's highly dangerous, and at this point, we're not clear on the nature of his abilities. He likely has at least the power of persuasion, which may be why you felt so content not to know his name. Nothing is safe around this man, not even your thoughts."
De'Mar nods. "What do you suggest if we do meet him? Won't we be in danger just to be in his presence?"
Warner nods, looking satisfied with that response. "Do not approach him if necessary. If he spots you first, try to focus your thoughts on something mundane and unrelated, and then contact me as soon as possible to tell me your location. And for the future, you really should insist on full names in order to do background checks for all your hires. Our society doesn't put enough emphasis on this information. These are dangerous times, gentlemen."
Brendon blinks in surprise when Spencer steps forward. "Well then, if you don't mind, sir, could we take down all of your names? Just for our records, of course."
It's the first time that Brendon realizes it's weird that the dude came on board with 4 other dudes. Brendon imagines the look of dissatisfaction on Warner's face, but he smiles and praises Spencer for good cautionary actions. "Totally superfluous in our case, of course, but we can go around and give introductions, naturally."
"Oh, that won't be necessary," Nick says cheerfully. "We actually have our computers set up with a fingerprint system," he continues, approaching a panel and inputting a code that Brendon remembers explaining to Spencer. "All you need to do is place your hand on the panel, and your information will be stored in our system."
"Very well," the guy says, and his jovial demeanor is starting to slip a bit. "Go on then, boys."
They all walk up and place their hands on the panel in a row, but when the main dude is the only one left, he looks right at Nick and says, "Of course my name won't be necessary in this case."
Nick nods, already pressing the buttons to close down the program. "Of course." Brendon blinks, but none of the other guys even hesitate.
"Well, I think that'll be all for today, men. Let's head out." He ushers his men toward the exit, but he pauses to face Nick once again. "You'll turn in this man the next time you see him."
"Of course." Brendon watches in horror as they all nod mindlessly at the command with that same vacant expression.
Brendon's heart starts racing, and the dude says something else to Nick, but Brendon can't help notice the altercation going on behind them. Ryan and Spencer are talking quietly to each other, but Ryan isn't happy. Brendon keys in the command to focus in on the two of them.
"But why didn't we get his name?" Ryan asks, confused and inching toward angry.
"Because we don't need it, Ryan," Spencer explains, exasperated. "It's completely unnecessary."
"Yeah, I know but--" Ryan rubs at his temple as if he's in pain. Then his eyes widen and he looks around at them all. "No, Spence."
"Ryan," Spencer begins, gearing up for a lecture, but Ryan presses his hand to Spencer's temple and stares hard at him. Spencer starts to bat his hand away, but Ryan doesn't back off until a look of horror flits over Spencer's face. Spencer checks over his shoulder where Nick is closing the door behind the men. "I was going to--"
"I know," Ryan cuts him off, looking serious. "We can't let any of these guys see Brendon before I can heal them, or they'll turn him in immediately."
Spencer nods, still looking stricken. "Guys? Before we get back to work, Ryan has something important to tell each of you."
They all nod, taking this easily enough, but Ryan looks frantic. "Spence. Where's Jon?"
The moment that Brendon translates this dialogue, there's a noise immediately outside the wall he's leaning up against. Brendon jumps and then grabs at the wall, but it's no use; there's nothing to grab onto. "Jon?!" he says, trying not to sound as worried as he is.
"Hey, man. I know you're pissed at me, but it's over now. I came to let you out."
"No! Um, I mean, Ryan has something really important to tell you, like right now." He replays Warner's words in his head, turn him in the next time you see him, knowing that Jon's only seconds away from seeing him and doing just that.
"He can wait 'til I get you out and apologize."
"Dude." Brendon hates this. It's not Jon's fault, but the moment he sees him-- "Something bad is going to happen if you see me right now."
Jon's struggles with the handle stop suddenly. "What are you talking about?" he asks, but his voice lacks his usual confidence.
"What would you do right now if you saw my face?" Brendon tries.
"I'd apologize for shutting you up. You're mad at me, and it sucks." Jon starts twisting the handle again.
"Okay, but what-- what would you do if you saw Brendon Urie?" he asks, desperate.
"I'd turn him in to the authorities. He's a dangerous fugitive," Jon says immediately, voice flat. The handle finally slides through with a loud click, and Brendon pushes himself into the corner of the space in the hopes that Jon won't see him.
"Jon," Brendon whispers. He watches in horror as the confused, caring look drops from Jon's expression to be replaced by a steely determination. Jon, please don't do this, Brendon pleas with his mind, but Jon is already reaching for his transmitter and the holo-card that Brendon had seen on the panel. Please, it's me.
Jon pauses and stares at him, looking desperately confused. "He said you'd do that. Get in my mind, mess with me." He looks down to press in the numbers on his device, and Brendon leaps forward in an attempt to swipe one of the objects from his hands. He knocks the card out of Jon's grip, and Jon stares up at him suddenly, livid. Brendon cowers in the face of that look; he'd never imagined Jon would look at him like that. Jon draws his hand back, and Brendon thinks briefly of running, but then he hears Spencer's Jon, no! as the elevator opens. It's just enough time for Jon to hesitate, and Brendon darts around him toward Spencer.
Ryan heads straight for Jon, who is staring at Brendon with that same angry, determined expression. "Jon, look at me," Ryan says.
Jon does, but the stubborn look remains. "Not now, Ryan, I have to--"
But Ryan's fingers are already over Jon's temples, and he stops struggling when Ryan leans in to kiss him at the same time.
Brendon, Spencer says, grabbing Brendon's hand. Brendon looks into his face, seeing the seriousness and tenderness there. Jon was hypnotized. He didn't know what he was doing. Spencer slides his fingers over Brendon's forehead to brush back his bangs, then continues the movement across Brendon's cheek in a kind of caress. Please don't hold this against him.
Since it's a mental message, Brendon can hear the hint of us when Spencer says him. He places his hand over Spencer's and lowers it. It's okay. I know. He moves close into Spencer's space and feels himself calm down as Spencer lets him cling and clings back just as much.
"Brendon?" Jon says sheepishly.
Spencer pulls back from their hug, leaning in to press a quick kiss to Brendon's lips, then says, "We'll be in the kitchen."
Ryan slips into Brendon's space just as quickly to kiss him, tongue sweeping in just enough to make Brendon's breath catch, and then he's off with Spencer in the elevator. Damn Ryan Ross and his kisses.
When Brendon turns to face Jon, he's surprised at just how miserable Jon looks. "God, Brendon, I am so sorry. I can't believe I almost--"
"Hey," Brendon says, interrupting. "No one was hurt. You weren't in control--"
"No, but I knew, Brendon, I knew." His hands are shaking, and Brendon attempts to take one, but Jon pulls away. "This isn't okay. Don't you get it? I had a vision. I knew you were going to look at me like you were scared out of your mind, and I went ahead and opened the door anyway. I thought I was stopping it from happening."
Brendon attempts to take his hand again, and this time Jon doesn't resist. "Have you ever been able to stop one of your visions from coming true before?"
Jon stiffens. "No. That's the worst part of this whole thing. It's like I have no free will." He stares into Brendon's eyes, looking helpless. "What if it's something worse next time? What if I see something happen to one of you? What if I know how one of you is going to die and there's nothing I can do to stop it?"
His voice cracks as he asks the last question and he lets Brendon pull him into a hug, one of the fiercest Brendon has ever given. "Jon," he says, pouring everything into it. "These stupid things that we can do, our 'abilities'? Fuck 'em. We didn't ask for them, so we shouldn't let them control our lives."
Brendon rubs his hands up and down Jon's back and feels Jon calm down as he melts into the hug. "I will never forgive myself for what I did today."
Brendon pulls back, giving Jon a stern look. "No. Just--no, Jon. Fuck that. You didn't do a damn thing to me of your own will, so stop it right now."
Jon pulls his hand back, surprised. "But--"
"No. You're not allowed to blame yourself for what some douche bag from the Academy forced you to do. Promise me." Brendon holds his pinky out between them and waits.
Jon stares at Brendon's hand for a second before reluctantly hooking his pinky with Brendon's. He cracks a small smile. "This is kind of an antiquated ritual, you know."
Brendon narrows his eyebrows and tightens his hold. "Does that mean you plan on breaking it?"
Jon smiles for real then. "Never," he promises. Brendon awards him with a kiss.
******
"Thanks to Spencer's quick thinking and Brendon's hack of the database, we now have the names and abilities as they are on record for the man's four men. Eric Land, level 9 telekenesis, Zach Sorkin, level 8 empathy, Tony Anderson, level 7 telekinesis, and Alex Suarez, level 4 telepathy. Unfortunately, we weren't able to get the main guy's information, but at least this will get us started," Tom says.
"I know who he was," Brendon says, stepping forward. All seven of them turn to face Brendon in surprise, and he tries not to blush. "His name is Mr. Warner. He was some bigshot at the Academy, I assumed the superintendent. There were rumors that he had a spot in the government, too, but I never knew if they were true or not."
Nick nods and gestures for Tom to enter this information.
"I think it's clear that he has the power of persuasion," De'Mar says, "but how to deal with that next time, I'm not sure."
"If I can heal fast enough, I can try to help others, too," Ryan says.
Brendon nods. "I may be able to resist it by filtering out my sense of hearing? Um." He looks at the floor when all eyes are on him. "I wasn't affected by Warner's commands, and I think it's because I couldn't hear them. If I'm able to close off my mind to hear his words, I think I can avoid them."
"You can do that?" Max asks.
Brendon shrugs. There's no use holding back about his abilities at this point. "I've never tried it before, but it may be possible."
"If anyone can do it, Brendon can," Spencer says confidently.
Brendon beams at him, and then at Jon, who is nodding in agreement. Ryan gives him a small smile before looking away. Brendon bounces, wanting to run around and hug them all, but he keeps it contained.
"Alright, well our best plan of action is just to prepare as much as we can in case there's a confrontation," Nick says. "Jon, let us know if you see anything else, and if any of you have any ideas, please do not hesitate to share them. I know I haven't really united our crew before, but that's changing now. We're going to work together to protect this ship and everyone in it, are we agreed?"
Brendon nods, feeling a pang as he watches everyone else nod.
Spencer approaches him after they return to their quarters, kissing him without saying anything. "You're thinking something stupid about running away to keep us safe," Spencer says.
Brendon tenses, but Spencer runs his hands over Brendon's back to calm him down. "Are you reading my mind?" Brendon accuses, voice just barely shaking.
Spencer blinks in surprise. "Didn't have to," he says.
"I just--" Brendon stops to swallow around his scratchy throat. "I thought I was escaping by getting on a ship. I was stupid enough to think that would be safe. And now I've ruined the lives of seven new people, three of which I damn well love. Fuck." He buries his face in Spencer's shoulder, trying not to cry. Fuck fuck fuck. He shouldn't be pulling Spencer into this.
"Okay, first of all. Who said anything about ruining our lives? If it was Jon who was in danger of being taken away, wouldn't you be right in the front of the defense to keep him here? Or if it were me? Or Ryan?"
"Yeah, but--"
"And second," Spencer continues, "even if you ran away, we'd still follow you. We'd never give up until we found you again, and we'd never forgive ourselves for letting you get away. And if you don't already know that, then you're an idiot."
Brendon swallows, feeling choked up now for a whole new reason. "Fuck," he says again, following it up with a laugh this time.
"Can we come in now?" Jon asks, peering around the doorway.
"Get your asses in here," Brendon says, pressing at the edges of his eyes to get them to stop stinging.
Jon heads straight for Brendon, and Ryan trails in behind him. Brendon welcomes the comfort of a Jon hug, even though Jon has to worm his way in from the side since Spencer won't let go. Brendon smiles when Jon murmurs in his ear, "You're not going anywhere."
Brendon jumps when Ryan's arms come around his stomach from behind, but relaxes into the embrace coming at him from all sides. Ryan presses his lips softly on Brendon's neck, then pauses. "I ran away from home once."
Brendon looks at Spencer as he nods. "I remember."
"I didn't have anywhere to go, and I was afraid to go to Spencer's house, so I went down to the drug store on the corner. I hung out for all of an hour before Spencer hunted me down."
"Why'd you run away?" Jon asks, soft in Brendon's ear. Brendon is struck suddenly by how close they all are, and it makes him smile.
"My dad was drunk, which was nothing new, but when he tripped and hurt his hand, I was trying to bandage it up and it closed up completely when I touched it. My dad screamed at me because it hurt, and then because I was a freak, and as far as I knew he was right. So I tried to escape."
Brendon wants to hug Ryan, but he can't exactly turn around, so he settles for taking Ryan's hand and squeezing it.
"That was the night I told him about my psychic thing," Spencer says softly.
Brendon squirms away toward Jon, leaving Ryan and Spencer to look at each other. "We've been best friends ever since," Ryan says, and Spencer nods before kissing him.
"But you already have us, so no running away," Jon says, smiling. Brendon smiles back and welcomes the kiss that Jon gives him, then goes willingly when Jon pushes him back toward the bed. "You promise?" Jon asks even as he moves to straddle Brendon on the mattress.
"I'm not going anywhere," Brendon swears.
******
In the intervening days, Brendon goes into overdrive trying to coach Spencer on his ability, and he even tries occasionally to help Ryan and Jon develop more with their abilities. They're all thrilled to discover that if Ryan focuses hard enough, he can form a protective shield around anyone he's touching.
Brendon is confident that the only way to avoid Warner's suggestions - other than being healed by Ryan - is to filter out his sense of hearing, though he's afraid to attempt it. The four of them all gather around the table when Brendon first tries it, and with three sets of eyes on him, he concentrates and turns off his aural perception. His eyes widen when he realizes it's worked, and he signals for Spencer to send a message into his thoughts. Spencer complies, and it's so weird because it doesn't feel like he hears the message anymore, just feels it. It's kind of awesome, but totally weird. He nods at Spencer, then looks to Jon, who signals that it's okay to read his thoughts. He has success with that, and again with Ryan, though he can't quite get over how strange it feels. He sighs in relief when he can stop the filter and let sound in again, and he feels exhausted. "I'm going to have to practice that a lot more before it comes naturally," he warns, but the guys all agree to help him out.
Somehow, the pressure of the oncoming confrontation makes Spencer learn three times as fast. He becomes proficient at reading thoughts, much to Ryan and Jon's chagrin, but Brendon is ridiculously proud. Ryan, especially when he's willing to listen to Brendon's advice, improves greatly, until he's able to protect people who aren't even directly touching him. Jon, meanwhile, let's them know any details when he finds them out, though it's sporadic and unpredictable.
This practice becomes something of a routine, and no one mentions that they have no idea how long it will be until they'll need to put it to use.
******
Brendon is sitting in the kitchen, rambling about something mundane on the computer, when it happens.
"Seriously, we know you're smarter than we are, but do you have to hold it over our heads all the time?" Ryan snaps.
Brendon turns to face him, feeling hurt. "I didn't mean--"
"Ignore him, he's just still cranky that we didn't stop at his festival last week," Spencer says, passing through.
"Fuck you. You've taken his side from the beginning, but don't try to pretend like he doesn't piss you off, too. You always came into my room to complain. 'God, he won't shut up, Ryan. What's it gonna take?'"
Brendon looks from Ryan to Spencer, and the latter looks utterly betrayed.
"You know, if you felt this way, maybe you could've said something sooner," he says to Ryan, anger bubbling up.
"Well apparently we can't run this ship without you."
Brendon sees red. He can't believe Ryan really feels this way, and to think that he's been thinking it this whole time just makes it worse. "Well now that I've got you all up and running, maybe you should just dump me off at the next stop! That's where you picked me up the first time, after all."
Ryan's expression smooths out. "That's not--"
"Whoa, what's going on here?" Jon asks, rushing into the kitchen. "Did you not see the message?"
Brendon whirls around to look at the screen, instantly seeing the urgent message. "We're being hailed by the authorities to Earth." He swallows. "To Vegas. The same city the Academy is in."
"What's the reason?" Spencer asks, though he looks like he already knows.
"Harboring a dangerous fugitive," Ryan says from his position in front of the other panel. Brendon watches the tense line of his back.
"We should get upstairs and talk to Nick," Jon says.
They pile into the elevator, and Spencer hits the button in the ceiling to go upstairs. Brendon tries to keep his hands from shaking, tries not to think about what's about to happen. A hand wraps around his own, and he stares in surprise at Ryan. Ryan doesn't say anything, but he shoots Brendon a serious look. Brendon's anger was pushed aside the moment he read the message, so he squeezes Ryan's hand and focuses on what's to come.
They meet with Nick and the rest of the crew in a rush. Max informs them that the rest of the ships in their caravan have been made aware of the situation, but they won't be able follow right away.
They land and are boarded immediately by Warner and his men. Warner demands they hand over Brendon, but the crew are all standing, waiting for him in a line, with Ryan using their joined hands to form a protective shield. Because of this, they're impervious to Warner's suggestions at first.
When Warner figures out what's going on, he orders two of his minions to act, and they use telekinesis to hurl things at their line-up. Nick and De'Mar are able to fend off these threats somewhat, but the minions are stronger.
When it starts to become clear that they can't hold back these advances for much longer, Brendon squeezes Spencer's hand, blocks out sound, and breaks away from their line-up. He starts with the guy he recognizes, the stronger of the two telekinetics. He says into this guy's head, Why are you doing this? We knew each other at school, dude. Why are you trying to hurt me and my friends?
The guy's thoughts are filled at first with repetitions of this idea, Why am I doing this? This is followed up quickly with reassurances, It's my duty, to protect the universe from this dangerous fugitive. Brendon surmises quickly that at least some of Warner's supporters are only working as a result of Warner's suggestions. He sends this thought to Spencer, Jon, and Ryan, adding to the latter that he might have luck if he can get close enough to heal any of them. Spencer lets Brendon know that Warner has figured out that Brendon has found a way to resist him, so he's regrouping with his men to come up with a better plan.
Brendon glances over just as they leave their huddle, and then suddenly all of Warner's men run at their line from all directions. They are forced to let go of each other and spread out to keep the men away, and Warner immediately starts saying things to each of them. Brendon can't hear what Warner says, but Spencer turns to him with a threatening look, and Brendon starts to run, but then Ryan is there with a hand on Spencer's shoulder, and then Spencer snaps out of it. Brendon takes a moment to feel proud that Ryan has gotten so good at healing, but then Nick and De'Mar are throwing things in his direction and he has to go for cover.
Brendon, he suddenly hears in a voice he doesn't recognize. I'm on your side. I'm a telepath, but all I can do is send thoughts. Warner hasn't been able to recruit a telepath any stronger than me, and he keeps me on hoping that I'll get better at reading minds. Brendon glances up long enough to recognize Alex Suarez, one of the minions from their first visit to the ship. Pete and Anjela are on their way, just try to hold off Warner for a little bit longer.
Brendon can't quite process that fast enough, but Spencer is there saying, Look at Jon, and Jon is signaling for Brendon to read his thoughts, so Brendon darts around another box and breaks into Jon's mind. You and Ryan need to work together. I don't know how, but that's what's going to save us.
Brendon doesn't see how that is possible, as Ryan is currently darting around trying to heal everyone, but he stops to think for a second. Ryan concentrates hard, making the same methodical motions with each person he heals. Brendon suddenly has an idea, and he takes a deep breath, sends a warning at Ryan, and then runs out to meet him. All of Warner's minions are now gathered around one of their cargo boxes, trying to lift it by actual manual labor, so Brendon has a moment to explain to Ryan his plan.
I need you to concentrate hard on exactly what you do in your head whenever you heal someone. I'll read your thoughts and try to broadcast that back out into everyone's heads.
Ryan looks at him with wide eyes. Will that work?
Brendon shrugs. I have no idea. Are you ready?
Ryan nods before shutting his eyes in concentration. Brendon picks up the code of it instantly, knowing it by how it feels like another language, and he copies it as best he can and broadcasts it with no limitations. His head starts hurting immediately, but it works. The mania of people on their side - now multiplied because others have arrived - dies down, and they all pause. Warner's minions have managed to lift the box, but they stop suddenly. Warner keeps barking out orders, and Brendon can see a vein threatening to pop in his forehead. He broadcasts the same message again, and Warner's minions stop in their tracks again. It happens again and again, and it's almost comical, but Brendon starts to feel dizzy. He does the same thing again, feeling lightheaded, and he has a vague perception of Pete running at Warner, and suddenly there's all this noise, and Ryan shouts, "Brendon!" just before Brendon blacks out.
******
When Brendon blinks his eyes open, Ryan is hunched over him with Spencer and Jon right behind him. Jon is murmuring reassurances to keep trying into Ryan's ear, so Spencer is the first to see him awake. He pulls Brendon up into a hug, and Ryan makes a desperate happy noise and slumps against Brendon, bringing Jon with him. Brendon feels himself enveloped completely, and he feels completely at home in that moment.
"We should get back out there," Jon whispers. "It's over, but they want to see us."
Spencer supports Ryan's weight as they leave the ship, and Brendon worries. "Is he okay?" he asks Jon.
"Probably exhausted himself," Jon murmurs, slipping his arm around Brendon. "Are you okay?"
Brendon nods. "What happened?"
"You passed out, I guess from overdoing the whole psychic power thing. Before Pete could take Warner down, his guys managed to get one of our cargo boxes up and thrown at you and Ryan. It... it was pretty messy for a few minutes, before Ryan woke up."
Brendon sees the sadness in Jon's eyes and bumps his shoulder against Jon's. "I feel absolutely fine now," he assures him.
"Yeah, because Ryan overdid himself. I swear, sometimes I don't know what to do with you two."
Brendon is reminded of their argument earlier that afternoon, but that seems so far away now. "How long was I out?"
"Ten minutes? It seemed like forever. Spencer helped out the guys by figuring out who was being controlled against their will, but I was completely useless. I just sat there like a lump and waited for you to open your eyes."
"Hey," Ryan protests, and Brendon realizes he and Spencer have caught up with them. "Don't talk like that, Jon Walker. You're the reason I kept going for so long. We'd still be sitting there if you hadn't been there."
Brendon wraps his arms around Jon and hugs him tight. Jon chuckles and hugs back, obviously not in any hurry to join back with the group. Ryan rests his hand on the small of Brendon's back as they walk outside, and they're walking in this tangled up line when Brendon spots Anjela.
"Brendon!" she exclaims, and Brendon breaks free of his boys to pounce on her with a hug. "I'm so glad you're okay," she says. "I thought we weren't going to make it in time."
"What are you doing here?" Brendon can't help but ask. "Not that I'm not glad to see you! But uh, I wasn't exactly expecting you."
He sees Alex Suarez talking to Pete just behind where they're standing, and he really wishes he knew what was going on.
"It's kind of a long story," she says. "The short version is that Alex, Pete and I are all in business together."
"Doing what?" Brendon asks, mesmerized.
"Well, our first order of business was protecting you."
"You're kidding."
She laughs. "I wouldn't kid about that. But now, it seems that the Academy has come under new leadership," she says, smiling and indicating herself. "I think my first order of business is going to be changing up our post-graduation options. What do you think?"
Brendon stares at her, disbelieving, and then hugs her again. "I have a million questions, but first. How in the hell did you find me?" he asks, pulling away.
As if on cue, Pete strolls up to them and puts his arm companionably around Anjela's shoulders. "Hi."
"Pete?" Brendon asks Anjela warily.
"Pete Wentz, co-owner of Petenut Butter & Jelly Enterprises, at your service," Pete says, giving an elaborate bow.
"I can't believe we let you use that name," Alex says, approaching their group. "Hi," he says to Brendon, "I'm sorry for barging in on you earlier, but I figured what good am I as a spy if I don't encourage the good guys?"
"Wait a minute," Spencer says, coming up to them with Jon and Ryan in tow. "Slow down a second. You all work together?"
"Yes," Anjela says with a world-weary sigh. "I ran an underground system of businesses, Alex coordinated deliveries of non-perishable foods to planets in the Inner Periphery, and Pete decided to get us all working together. Actually, what is it that you actually do for PB&J?"
Pete narrows his eyes. "Customer relations and company expansion," he says, tone challenging. "Also I gave you both your cool nicknames."
"Yeah, you call me 'Butter.' Thanks for that," Alex says, rolling his eyes.
Brendon can do nothing but stare. "So you've been in charge of everything this whole time?" he asks Anjela.
She shrugs, unassuming. "If you got into any sort of trouble, it would've been my fault. I thought I'd look out for you."
"So you're the reason I wound up on the ship. The reason I met these guys," he says, gesturing at Ryan, Jon, and Spencer.
"Yes?" she says, unsure of his tone.
He beams at her, unable to resist hugging the life out of her one more time. "Thank you thank you thank you," he says, clinging.
She laughs softly. "I'm really glad you're happy, Brendon."
Brendon looks around at all the people still gathered from the fight, everyone that was willing to stand with him. "Yeah, me too."
******
That night, Brendon goes to Ryan first. Ryan tenses briefly in their bed, but gives up the charade immediately. "I thought I wasn't going to be strong enough."
Brendon makes a sympathetic noise and wraps himself tightly around Ryan. "Jon was there, though. He says he knew I'd make it."
Spencer slides into Brendon's thoughts with just a hint of a question, and Brendon tells him, Two minutes.
He uses those two minutes to bicker with Ryan and point out that he didn't actually have to fully heal Brendon, but Ryan won't hear that because he had to know that Brendon was gonna be okay, no waiting, no wondering. Spencer's hand on his back and Jon's voice in his ear were enough to help him keep trying.
"I'm sorry for what I said this morning," Ryan says quietly. "Even when you get on my nerves, I'm still crazy about you. That's why I get all worked up, because it's not fair that I can never really dislike you."
"Ryan, come on." Ryan blinks at him. "I think we're a life-changing fight away from that stupid argument, don't you?"
When Jon and Spencer come in, Brendon and Ryan are kissing, but not quite making out. Spencer wraps around Brendon while Jon does the same with Ryan, and then Spencer pushes up and cranes his neck to kiss Ryan softly. Spencer's sending out comforting thoughts, always easier when he's connected with Brendon, and Jon reaches across to rest one hand on Brendon's hip. "We're going to sleep now," he mumbles.
"Do you know that or are you just saying it?" Spencer says, but it lacks its usual bite.
Jon says, "You'll never know," and Ryan tightens his hold on Brendon's hand when Jon kisses the back of his neck.
"Are you guys pampering me because I was freaking out about the fight?" Ryan asks, annoyed.
Jon makes a shhh noise while Spencer shifts around to move his leg in between Brendon's and kick Ryan's ankle. He settles comfortably and doesn't move his leg.
Ryan starts to whine "Guys," but Brendon cuts him off mid-whine to say, "One of these days we are going to get so tangled up that we can't walk without each other."
There is a beat of silence, and then Jon says, "I think we already are."
Another beat, in which Brendon feels his heart swell, and then Ryan snorts and Spencer says, "Oh, that was deep, Jon."
Brendon turns his head to push his smile into the pillows, and he drifts off to sleep to the sound of laughter from the three dudes he loves.
THE END