It was starting to warm up outside, and after a whole winter of thinking about it, Enzo finally, finally gave Luca permission to take them outside.

Luca tried to hide how excited he was when Enzo told him, but he must not have done a good job at it, as Enzo had smirked and rolled his eyes at Luca's dumbfounded "really?"

Though Enzo approved of it, he was still cautious, insisting that he and Luca have a good plan in place before actually going outside.

Their nightly visits became brainstorming sessions, where they decided on safe locations for the excursion, the best times to go, as well as back up plans should things go awry. Luca thought it was a bit overkill, but just staring at Enzo's anxious, furrowed brows made him throw himself into the planning sessions wholeheartedly. Anything to make Enzo happy and comfortable.

"Ok," Luca began on the big day, looking down at Harper and Enzo on his desk. Harper was blinking up at him expectantly while Enzo looked like he was going to be sick.

Luca pointed at Harper. "What are the rules?" he prompted.

"Don't go farther than an arm's distance from you," Harper rattled off obediently. "No hiding. Respond if you call out for us. If something seems off, you're picking us up immediately."

Luca nodded, satisfied. "Enzo?" he asked next. "Any objections about today?"

Enzo fidgeted but stayed silent.

"The weather is clear," Luca assured him. "There's no chance of rain, no gusts of wind. It's still early, so no one will be there. And if I see anyone, we'll head straight home."

Enzo finally nodded, and Luca held his hand out. Harper climbed on enthusiastically, but Enzo trailed behind.

Luca paused before he could put them in his shirt pocket.

"Enz," he said. The borrower looked up to meet his eye. "You and Harper will be perfectly safe, but we can stay home if you want. Just say the word."

Enzo looked like he was about to agree, but he took one look at Harper's shining, hopeful eyes, and sighed.

"We can go," he said, so softly that Luca had to lean in to hear him.

"Ok." Luca lifted them up to his shirt pocket and helped them slip in, Harper giggling at the new, unsteady surface. The little boy was used to spending time in there, but Enzo wasn't.

The older borrower shushed him. "We have to be quiet," Luca heard him remind Harper. "There might be other humans walking around while Luca's heading to the park."

"Ok," Harper whispered back, and then they were quiet, adjusting themselves a bit before one of them tapped twice on Luca's chest to let him know they were ok and ready to go.

***

Enzo was very nervous. True to his word, Luca hadn't talked about going outside since that day back in the winter. But Enzo had been thinking about it, even though he had insisted he wouldn't.

Though he himself still wasn't interested in going outside, he knew that Harper was. His little brother would constantly bombard Luca with questions about the outdoors, asking about what animals he saw on his way home from work or wanting to see pictures of the nature trails Luca hiked.

Watching this, Enzo realized that Harper had a light in his eyes that hadn't been there before they met Luca. And he realized that while he had ensured Harper's survival for all these years, he hadn't done a very good job at letting him just... live. To enjoy life and experience it to the fullest.

But Luca was good at that. He was both watchful and fun, making sure Enzo and Harper survived and lived. And ever since that winter conversation, Enzo couldn't help but notice the sickly pallor of Harper's skin compared to Luca's own warmth, leading him to give Luca approval to take them out today.

The walk to the park wasn't that bad. If Enzo hadn't been so anxious, he would have actually enjoyed it, being pressed up against Luca's chest and surrounded by his heartbeat.

All too soon, that part of the journey was over, however, and Luca's fingers were suddenly at the opening of the pocket and gently fishing them out.

"There's no one here," he assured them. "We're far away from any birds or anthills, too."

He brought them out, and the first thing Enzo noticed was how fresh the air was. Harper noticed it too, taking in great gulps of air as he looked around excitedly.

Luca set them down in the grass, and Harper immediately started poking around, marveling at the grass towering overhead and flipping little pebbles over to see what was underneath.

Enzo was much more cautious. He hadn't been outside in seven years, not since that awful journey to Luca's apartment. And even that hadn't really been outside, as he and Harper had spent the whole time huddled in the bottom of that other human's bag.

Standing there frozen in the grass, Enzo didn't know what to make of the softness under his feet or the rich scent of earth that met his nose. He kept his eyes glued to Harper, unable to even enjoy the cool breeze that brushed against his cheeks.

"Enz," came Luca's voice, and he turned around to see Luca sitting behind him and gesturing to him. "Come over here by me if you're nervous."

Enzo hesitated, his eyes flitting back and forth between the safety of Luca's hands and Harper, who was still crouching over pebbles.

"I'll watch Harper," Luca insisted calmly. "But if you're nervous, come sit by me. I'll keep you safe."

Enzo gave in and retreated to Luca's side, letting the human fold his fingers around him as a shield. Luca's thumb trailed up and down his spine automatically, and against his natural instincts, Enzo felt his shoulders relax at the familiar touch.

"Harps," Luca called, somewhere far above him. "Don't go past that pink flower, k?"

"The pink one?" Harper called back.

"Yeah," Luca affirmed. "That's too far."

"Ok!" Harper yelled, and Enzo closed his eyes.

He stood there for a bit, focusing on the foreign feeling of the sun's rays that were starting to peek over the horizon. He couldn't decide if it felt nice or terrifying.

Through the confusing array of new sensations, the feeling of Luca's pulse in the human's finger remained a comforting constant, and Enzo found himself focusing on that instead.

"Enz," Luca murmured. "Look at the sunrise."

Enzo cracked open his eyes, looking up at Luca before craning his neck over the side of Luca's hand to see what he was pointing at.

He caught his breath at the sight, eyes widening. The sky, which had been a pale, almost colorless blue when they first arrived, was now a riot of colors, oranges and pinks blending together and stretching across the sky.

"Wow!" came Harper's voice. "Enz! Do you see that?"

Enzo cleared his throat. "Yeah, Harps," he called back. "I see it."

He tore his gaze from the sight reluctantly to check on Harper. His little brother stood a little way off, staring slack jawed at the colors unfolding above his tiny head. A light breeze ruffled his feather soft white hair, and Enzo's heart softened just looking at him.

Turning his head, he glanced up at Luca, wanting to see his reaction to the magnificent sunrise. But to his surprise, Luca wasn't looking at the sky. He was watching Harper carefully, his eyes roving periodically to check their surroundings.

Enzo stared at Luca, watching as the warmth of the rising sun slowly cast a glow across the human's face. A strange feeling rose up in his chest, and he found that he couldn't look away, not even to look back at the sunrise. 

After a while, Luca looked down to check on him, and he smiled as he caught Enzo's eye.

"You ok?" he asked gently. 

Enzo nodded, slumping back down into the recess of Luca's cupped hand. His face grew warm at being caught staring, but he couldn't help it. Enzo peeked back up at Luca, touched to know that instead of enjoying the morning, Luca was keeping them both safe, as promised.

__________________________________________________________

A/N: Luca is prettier than a sunrise, confirmed. 

Thanks for reading! Don't forget to vote or comment. See you in the next part!