Despite their impasse the night before, Enzo still found himself going out to meet Luca the very next night. He couldn't help it. His warmth, his voice, his easy smile. Enzo had once seen a bunch of moths flutter around a porch light. He thought they were stupid at first, bumping into the glass cover as they tried to get to the light. But now, Enzo understood.

It was late, much later than Enzo had been planning to go out. He actually hadn't been planning to see Luca at all tonight, but he was tense and fidgety and just... needed him.

Luca was already in bed when Enzo crept out of the nest, and he had immediately looked down at the shifting curtain and smiled. Enzo still didn't really smile at anyone but Harper, so he just nodded back, heading towards the human.

"Harper asleep?" Luca asked, leaning over to lay his hand on the floor. "You here to hang out?"

Enzo hesitated for only a moment before climbing onto the now familiar, callused surface, rubbing his eyes and hooking his arm around Luca's thumb for better support as Luca lifted him up onto his lap.

"Yeah," he said shortly.

"Hmm." Luca's fingers flexed slightly around him, holding him in a cupping shape.

Enzo didn't get off even when Luca rested his hand in his lap, choosing instead to hunker down in Luca's palm and lean against the human. He stretched a bit, trying to get comfortable. But his muscles were tight, and he couldn't help but wince. Luca immediately noticed the pained expression on his face

"What's wrong?" the human asked, sounding worried. "Are you hurt?"

Before Enzo could answer, Luca started feeling along Enzo with his free hand, catching Enzo's arm between his fingers and gently running his thumb over it

"Does it hurt here?" he asked, his voice soft. He switched to Enzo's other arm, probably mistaking Enzo's stunned silence for a no. "Or here?" he asked, rolling Enzo's arm between his fingers experimentally.

Enzo brushed him off, his face warm at the sudden touch. He might let Luca pick him up nowadays, but Luca had never just touched him before. "No, not exactly," he said. "It's just that I'm always pretty sore. I think it's just from climbing a lot. That's all."

"Hmm."

The shadow of Luca's other hand suddenly fell over him, and Enzo held his breath as Luca's fingers gently landed on his arm again.

"What are you doing?" Enzo asked, torn between wanting to pull away and wanting to see what Luca was up to.

The human yawned. "Nothing," he said. "Just hanging out."

His fingers slowly moved up from Enzo's arm, running through his hair before trailing down his back.

Enzo shivered and tried to bat him away at this point, but after a brief pause, Luca's fingers just came back.

"Luca!" Enzo protested. No one ever touched him like this— no one ever touched him, period. Harper liked to snuggle and hold his hand, but this... Enzo didn't know what to make of it.

Luca's fingers froze on Enzo's chest, and the human looked him in the eye. "Do you want me to stop?" he asked seriously.

Enzo stared back at Luca, speechless as he considered it. "I... umm... no," he finally admitted, dropping his gaze. He hoped his face wasn't as red as it felt. But holy hell, did this attention feel amazing.

"Hmm." Luca resumed his task, rubbing along Enzo's back and arms like it was the most natural thing in the world.

Enzo closed his eyes, trying to figure out how he felt about this new development. Though it had caught him off guard, he quickly realized how soothing it was, and he found himself not wanting the warm touch to end. 

"Enz, you really are tense," Luca spoke up suddenly. "All of your muscles are as hard as rock. Are you stressed or something?"

Enzo opened his eyes again, not knowing how to answer that. "I... don't know? This is how I normally am?"

"Geez, man!" Luca exclaimed. He looked concerned. "That's no way to live! Here, lie down."  He gently pushed on Enzo's chest, tilting him backwards and pressing him into his hand.

Enzo let him, finding himself lying on his back in the hollow of Luca's hand. He stared up at Luca uneasily, and the human stared back. Enzo didn't know what to make of the look in Luca's eyes.

They were brighter than usual, staring at him with both tender softness and keen interest. It felt like Luca's piercing eyes could see all of him, and Enzo squirmed at the thought. He didn't think he liked being the center of anyone's attention like this. 

"Close your eyes," Luca murmured.

Enzo did so reluctantly, squeezing his eyes shut as Luca's hand moved over him and rested on his shoulder.

"I don't..." he breathed out. "Umm... what are you doing?"

Enzo wasn't sure if the butterflies he felt in the pit of his stomach came from fear or... anticipation.

"You need a massage," came the resolute answer. "Can I give you one? You'll feel a lot better."

"Ma-ssage?" Enzo tried out the foreign word. "What's that?"

"It's when someone rubs your muscles to help you relax. It's like a health thing. It feels really good."

"O...k," Enzo relented. He considered turning Luca down, snapping at him and storming back to the bedside table. But lying here just felt so good. And Enzo couldn't help but be curious about what was about to happen next. "What do I need to do?"

"Nothing," Luca said. The warmth of his hands was already sinking into Enzo's bones, making him feel drowsy. He fought to stay awake, but Luca's voice was just too damn comforting. "Just lie there and relax. And tell me if you want me to stop or if anything hurts, k? And I'll stop or be gentler."

"Ok," Enzo breathed out.

***

When Enzo came to, he felt incredible. He had long grown used to the tenseness in his muscles that came from always being poised to listen and run, so when he woke up, surrounded by warmth, he couldn't believe the looseness in his own limbs.

He yawned and stretched his arms overhead, shivering a little as he worked out the kinks in his back.

"Hey," came Luca's voice, and Enzo froze, opening his eyes to see Luca's face far above him.

Huh? Enzo blinked, turning his head sharply to see... that he was still cupped in the palm of Luca's hand.

I... fell asleep here? he thought in disbelief.

"Sorry to wake you," Luca said. "But I'm pretty tired, and I didn't want to fall asleep while holding you."

"O...oh," Enzo stuttered, sitting up sharply. He immediately felt dizzy at the rush. "That's fine."

He moved to slide off Luca's hand, but Luca's voice stopped him. Enzo squinted up at him. "What is it?"

"How are you feeling?" Luca wanted to know. "Little more relaxed? You don't seem as tense anymore."

"Yeah, I'm good," Enzo said. He just wanted to get away and process how close he had let the human get to him, but his legs were wobbly.

"Here." Luca moved his hand down to the bedside table, and he parted the curtain so that Enzo could easily slip into the nest he shared with Harper. "Night, Enz."

"Night," Enzo whispered back, so quiet he was sure the human didn't hear him.

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A/N: These midnight trysts keep escalating. How perfectly scandalous.

Thanks for reading! What do you think Harper's reaction will be once he finds out how closse Enzo and Luca have gotten? See you in the next part!