"I'm sorry that I can't do more for you at this current time, sir. But I'll make sure to have your medication delivered as soon as we get it. Is there anything else I can help you with?"

"No, that'd be all."

"Okay, thank you for reaching out. Have a wonderful evening."

"You as well."

Alessandro ended the call, tossing his phone face down on the mattress. A hand was brought up to massage the bridge of his nose. An aggravating headache was beginning to form. As was a heightening sense of dread and annoyance.

"Well? What did they say?" Lance asked from the bathroom.

"The pharmacy doesn't have my antidepressants in stock right now. They checked their systems twice just to be sure. At best, they'll have them the day after tomorrow. At worst, it could be another three days before I get them again."

"Three d- that's awful!"

"Yeah, you're telling me." Alessandro walked over to his side of the bed and flopped onto his back. "I can't believe I forgot to get more earlier. I'm such a dumbass."

"Hey, come on now. None of that. It was an honest mistake."

"A mistake that just royally fucked me over for who knows how long."

The bathroom's light was flicked off. Lance walked out clad in a pair of plaid pajama bottoms. Strands of black hair were carefully being weaved into a low braid dangling over his shoulder. Long bangs fell over one of his eyes, shielding it.

He cleared his throat and made his way over to the other side of the bed. A fluffy blanket was pulled back to reveal a new set of satin sheets.

Once finished with his braiding, he slid into his designated spot. "What's going to happen now that you don't have for the morning?"

"It's going to suck. Exponentially." Alessandro turned to face his bed mate. In an unconscious habit of shielding himself when upset, both arms moved to cross over his chest. "This has only happened twice before. I'm usually good about keeping track of my meds and their deliveries. I guess it kind of just slipped my mind this time...

"To answer your question though, I'm going to end up going through withdrawal symptoms. I'm not sure how quickly it'll happen, but they'll probably start picking up after my missed dosage."

"What does that mean for you?"

"Things are going to be... difficult. I may get nauseous, irritable, sad; things like that. It'll be hard for me to control my emotions. I may end up having random outbursts because of it. Based on my past experiences, my symptoms may hit me steadily- and then all at once. I'm hoping that won't be the case, but I won't be surprised if it is."

A frown was given in response. "I know you just took your meds for the night, but are you feeling anything right now? I know they don't just drown out your emotions completely."

"I'm going to be honest. I'm very, very nervous. And I feel myself getting jittery. The best I can do for it is to try and sleep it off."

Lance nodded in understanding. He settled further into bed by pulling the covers over his body. Both pillows were scooted closer to the center of the mattress. They were shifted to be more comfortable once he flipped onto his stomach.

Alessandro sighed. A lone bedside lamp on his nightstand was shut off, masking the room in darkness. He returned to his previous position and took hold of the hand closest to him. It squeezed back in return.

"If you need me at any point, don't be afraid to wake me. I don't mind staying up with you."

"...Okay."

"Goodnight, Andro."

"Night."

*

Lance had a lot of amazing things going for him.

He was a talented model with an impressive amount of skill in terms of adapting to new environments. He had a wonderful circle of people who genuinely cared about him and his well being. He was positively gorgeous without even having to lift a finger, immense beauty never straying from his features.

His most impressive characteristic though, was being able to pass out while Alessandro was left alone with nothing to do.

Green eyes glared at the ceiling's plain design. Fingers fumbled with each other as a means of expelling residual energy. Both top front teeth nibbled at the skin of his bottom lip. It stung, but the pain was minute.

Floorboards creaking and water randomly moving through pipes had more of his attention. Unfortunately, they only added to his aggravation.

Additional noises made it difficult to concentrate on sleeping. The central air kicking on made him feel excitement as a rush of cold air made its way into the bedroom; a moment of glee only acting to awaken him further. Quiet sounds of Rain licking herself made him want to get up and caress the feline; a desire for companionship only acting to take away an already minuscule level of comfort. A slightly ajar window made it easier to hear rippling of cool water nearby; the thought of taking a refreshing dip only acting to make his legs feel restless.

He wanted nothing more than to toss and turn, so he could try and find a better position—one that could maybe help him settle down. He didn't though, and a yell in frustration was held back.

The only reason his angered noises weren't made was because he didn't want to risk waking Lance. Despite his generous offer of helping out, there wasn't any use in both of them staying up and being completely exhausted once morning came.

Even though Alessandro knew it wouldn't do much good, he forced his eyes closed. They burned, reminding him of his strange proclivity of forgetting to blink when focused on something. A sigh was held back in regard to a faint blue tint making its way through his closed lids.

The obnoxious hue came through a cracked bedroom door. It was left partially open to give Rain a chance to leave if she wanted to. Because of that, glowing shapes could be seen as they made their way inside from one of multiple glass walls down the hall. The light itself wasn't particularly bright, but it was enough to act as yet another distraction.

But that was okay! He could work with this—he could do this. Attempts could be made to ignore extra stimuli by thinking of something else: deep inhale, deep exhale, stay focused on... anything calm. 

He willed himself to anchor on slow, even breaths and imagined... a nice beach.

There are waves crashing against the shore, splashing against shells and pebbles. Rough sand is cold as it trickles in between stretched out toes. A raging sun has set, and a radiant moon is left in its wake.

A pleasant, relaxing view.

Long strides are taken over to the water. The ocean greets him with open arms by prodding at both feet in an unspoken invitation to come closer. Go deeper.

Alessandro swims out until there's no land around him. It's just him, the moon, the stars, and the open sea. Calm wind tousles his hair and kisses his cheeks. There's nothing to worry about except-

Wait.

What's that brushing against his leg..?

Is that... Is that a shark?!

Green eyes shot open. A previously lax expression morphed into one of genuine confusion because why in the world did his mind go there of all places? Uncertainty quickly shifted to rage though, because it shouldn't be that difficult to just fucking focus and go to sleep.

Maybe he could think about taking a walk in the forest? Or maybe-

Rampant thoughts cut off at the sound of a blaring ringtone. It took everything in him to not scream for not noticing how fast time was passing. A small groan in agitation slipped out by accident, the sound coming out raspy and nasally.

Alessandro grabbed his phone to turn off the alarm. Birds chirping broke through the piercing silence. He took it as a personal jab because the peaceful sounds of the morning actually worked in making him tired.

The only saving grace he had to rely on was a pair of arms that wrapped around his torso. Their hold was tight and firm. It was an action that pulled a deep sigh out of him, and it made the bags under his eyes seem not as heavy.

"We need to get up, Lance."

"In a bit. The world can wait five more minutes."

*

Apparently the world couldn't wait five more minutes because why the fuck would anything work in his favor today?

The morning's stresses steadily increased as time passed. Business inquiries became annoying as soon as people flocked around their boss when he entered his floor's main lobby. Requests for him to be in other departments were accepted with a clenched jaw. Meetings with newer models felt even more daunting as the mask of Mr. Bale was being held together with cheap tape.

It was difficult to manage, but work life went on as normally as possible.

Once he reached six hours after the missed dose, however, withdrawal symptoms started running rampant.

On top of complete and utter fatigue, Alessandro's emotions were all over the place. He wanted to snap at people for talking to him but immediately felt guilty about having such rage induced thoughts. Forced smiles, a falsified cheerful demeanor, and feigned enthusiasm brought about an intense need to mentally shut down. There was a want to be left alone coupled with a fear of being left out.

Persistent nausea made a home in his body as well. Lunch consisted of swirling around a tall cup of black coffee. Each sip brought about a strong urge to vomit, but it was forced down since the caffeine was necessary.

An icky, sick feeling subsided, thankfully. Unfortunately, it was replaced with a head splitting migraine that wouldn't go away.

Alessandro knew if things kept going as they were, he wouldn't be able to continue working. The thought made him bury his face in his hands. And it seemed the day really was out to get him because someone walked into his office once his vision was shielded.

He nearly grumbled at the intrusion.

"Relax. It's just me."

Lance's voice was quiet. Gentle. He closed the office door as silently as he could.

Slow steps were taken up to the desk. They stopped behind Alessandro's chair. Goosebumps erupted along his neck when warm hands settled on both shoulders. His muscles were lightly squeezed as a means of forcing out some residual stiffness.

The kind gesture was enough to make his body melt into a puddle of partial tranquility.

He was only being given a quick massage, but the sentiment behind it was sweet. He appreciated Lance trying to help out despite not really knowing what to do.

"...Stephan thinks you should head home if you're not feeling well. Not to be a stickler, but I agree with him."

"I don't remember asking for any input." Alessandro paused right as those words left his mouth. Even more violent waves of guilt crashed into him. "I'm sorry- I didn't mean that. I really didn't mean that. I didn't mean to snap at you."

"It's all right-- I know." Slender fingers continued pressing into hard muscles. "I know things are difficult today. That's why I'm giving you the option. I'm not saying you have to go home. Just putting it out there that you can if you want to."

"...I just wish people would stop fucking bothering me today. It'd be so much easier if I could just work from my office until closing. But I can't say that. Not when people need me."

"If I say it, it wouldn't be as bad right?" Lance chuckled. "If I tell Stephan to send out a little email about you being too busy to meet with anyone else for the rest of the day, then technically you didn't say anything about it."

Alessandro finally took his face out of hiding. He was met with an exaggerated wink and a playful grin. His mouth clamped shut when a phone was pulled out. Stephan's contact was presented, and a quick message was sent the secretary's way.

Green eyes shifted to the desk that sat outside of the office's glass doors. The younger male was seen typing on his laptop. His gaze moved away from the computer screen when his phone lit up.

Stephan tilted his head while reading the message. Smiling, he brought his attention upward. A thumbs up was flashed in understanding.

"And done," Lance joked. "Now the rest of the day is yours."

"...Thanks."

"No need. So! What're we going to do for the next couple of hours?"

"We?"

"Why not? My shoot is done for the day, so I don't have anything to do. I could always head back to our house, but that doesn't make much sense since I'd have to come right back to pick you up at closing. May as well spend some time doing something while I'm here."

Alessandro supposed that was a fair statement.

Humming, he turned around in his swivel chair to scout the contents of his office space. There wasn't much aside from his desk, the electronic fireplace, some filing cabinets, a water cooler, and a small bookshelf. The folders in every filing cabinet were kept in alphabetical order and were already pretty organized; so there wasn't much to be done with that. The small bookcase housed issues of prior magazines that the Bale company used for their published catalogs.

Those magazines brought upon the realization that a new summer listing would have to start getting made soon.

"You want to help me pull some ideas together for a couple clothing lines?"

"Me? Really?" Lance asked in disbelief. "That's kind of out of my element. I'm just a model- I don't know anything about making clothes."

"You don't have to. All I need to do is get some ideas on paper about the things I think would be good for next season's issue. It could literally be anything; as long as it's appropriate for summer. We'd just be jotting down notes."

"So... we're just brainstorming?"

"Pretty much."

"Do you..." Lance looked away for a moment. "Do you think that'll be enough to distract you from... everything else?"

"I'm hoping so."

"Well, let's get to it then."

Together, the two started writing down ideas on a small notepad with yellow paper.

With summer quickly approaching and temperatures continuing to climb, they figured thinner, more revealing outfits would be the way to go. As would a minor collection of weather appropriate products.

Alessandro came up with simple bases while giving Lance the opportunity to give some input as well: rompers with a halter top design doubled with an attachable skirt; tube tops that could be worn inside out with a different yet equally fetching pattern on both sides; leggings with a breathable fabric that switched to mesh the further down it went; shades with specific lenses to accommodate people who already wore glasses.

It was an interesting scenario to go through as catalog building was normally done alone. Bouncing ideas off of another person made the whole ordeal go a lot faster. It made things a lot more fun too.

Alessandro routinely found himself too occupied by his lovestruck feelings to acknowledge his negative ones. He still felt a bit ill, but jovial laughter and playful smiles were easier to focus on instead. Intrusive thoughts continuously tried to force their way to the surface. They were pushed down at the sight of bluish gray eyes reflecting the golden rays leaking in from numerous open windows. Fear of being left alone was pacified with a well placed hand hold. Sensory overload was less daunting as peaceful humming cut through the normal sounds of busy office life. He appreciated the companionship in a daunting moment of weakness.

Things took a turn though, once they exited Bale's Path to Fashion to make their way home.

Normally, car rides gave Alessandro some time to destress after work. He didn't mind sitting in traffic because it gave him a chance to slow down, both literally and figuratively. It was nice to make an impromptu stop at a local bakery or café for an unplanned evening snack. It was invigorating to go through the expansive nature pathways that lined either side of the road on the way to the Bale household.

Tonight, driving just made him exhausted.

Traffic made him want to crawl out of his skin. The thought of eating almost made him vomit. Flourishing trees made him feel tiny. Ugly. Insignificant. Stiff fabric against his skin made him want to scratch and scratch all over. The seatbelt dug a little too deep near his collar bone and made him want to leap out of the vehicle. A cotton candy sky with a looming ball of orange was too bright to be considered beautiful.

It was all just... too much.

The day as a whole was just too much.

"Would you like me to make you something?" Lance asked as they exited the car. "I don't mind starting dinner while you go and relax. Maybe take a shower or something."

"That- that sounds nice." Alessandro nodded. "If you could, just make something light. Not really in the mood to eat, but I know I should anyway."

"You okay with soup? Like, chicken noodle- or lentil- or something along those lines."

"Soup is more than fine." Offering a false smile, Alessandro unlocked the front door. His arm was grabbed before he could walk inside. A look of confusion was coupled with a slight tilt of the head. "Yeah?"

"You know I got you, right? Like, I'm here for you if you need me. I know cooking and helping out with chores and stuff isn't much, but I hope it helps you at least a little bit."

"...You being here with me while I'm going through all of this means more than you might think. I'm used to dealing with stuff like this by myself. You standing beside me is more than I've had in a really long time. So, don't worry. You may not be doing too much out of the ordinary, but you're doing enough. And I appreciate all of it."

Lance's expression lifted. It caused Alessandro's mood to do the same.

Being honest about his mental and emotional state actually helped to take a proverbial weight off of his shoulders.

They entered the house, leaving their shoes by the door. A worn briefcase was set down by an unutilized coat rack. One set of socked feet padded along the floor to the kitchen. Another strode down the hall toward the bedroom.

A shower seemed equal parts tedious as it was enthralling. Getting undressed, using the restroom, and testing out water temperature didn't sound like the most fun thing to do. Standing under a warm stream with nothing else to worry about sounded amazing though.

Alessandro could take as long as he wanted to. He could have some time to recharge after having spent most of the day holding up a cracking, crumbling mask. Then, when he was done, he would be rewarded with a home-cooked meal prepared by his favorite person.

Yeah, that sounded like a lovely evening.

Alessandro paused in the doorway to his bedroom after reaching his destination. Flicking on the overhead lights, he took in the sight of Rain lying down at the foot of the bed.

Poor girl must've had a long day if she hadn't heard his initial arrival.

Quiet steps were taken over to the feline to not disturb her. A gentle hand swiped through the fur atop her head in between her ears the way she liked.

They didn't flick in response like they normally did.

The appendage ran down the length of her side and settled atop her ribs near her round underbelly.

She wasn't moving. Or breathing.

A soft smile fell. Green eyes steadily widened. Both hands grabbed hold of Rain to shake her. She was repeatedly poked and prodded at in different spots. Her tiny face was cupped.

The Calico's head fell to the side with a quiet thud against the mattress.

"No- no, no, no." Alessandro's chest tightened. His throat began to burn. Ice ran through his veins. His vision tunneled as he stared down at his cat. Tears began building in his eyes, and it suddenly got a lot more difficult to breathe. "Lance!"