So, it turned out that being handled by humans wasn't bad at all, Luca realized. Of course, that depended on the human, but luckily, he just so happened to be held by Enzo, who was surprisingly gentle. Being held was so nice, in fact, that Luca finally felt that lingering, instinctual fear of his humans start to ebb away, which made spending time with them a lot more enjoyable.

Luca was in the kitchen with Harper a few weeks later. Enzo was in the middle of taking a test, so he had put Harper in charge of getting himself dinner, telling him there was stuff for sandwiches in the fridge and pantry.

Unfortunately, the bread box was empty, and Enzo hadn't thought to take the extra loaf of bread down from the top of the fridge to replace it. Luca and Harper both just stared up at it.

"Should we get Enzo?" Luca wondered aloud, and Harper immediately shook his head. He had already tried standing on a chair to reach the bread, but he was too short.

"No," Harper answered. "He said he can't be interrupted on this test because it will flag him for cheating or something. He said we're only allowed to bother him if it's a real emergency, like we're dying, or the apartment is burning or something."

"Hmm." Luca stared up at the bread again. The top of the fridge really wasn't too high. "You know, I can probably reach it," he suggested.

Harper perked up. "Really? You're going to climb?"

"Sure. I brought my longer hook today. It reaches the top of the fridge."

"Cool!" Harper cheered. The little boy stood back from the counter as Luca got his hook into position. He swung it over his head a few times before tossing it up to the fridge. The hook went high enough, but it missed the crack in the door that Luca was aiming for, clanking off the side of the fridge and plummeting down into the crevice between the counter and fridge. Luca tried to hold on, but the rope slipped out of his hands and followed the hook, disappearing into the darkness.

Luca and Harper both stared at it for a minute.

"Damn it," Luca finally sighed. Getting between the counter and the fridge was a huge pain, but he couldn't do anything without his hook. He couldn't even make it back to his nest inside the walls without it.

He got down on his stomach to squint into the darkness. Climbing down without a hook was going to take forever. And be pretty dangerous. He stood back up and turned towards Harper. The little boy was staring at him, his dark eyes expectant.

"I... can't reach it," Luca admitted. "Maybe... we can just... eat chips for dinner?"

Harper immediately shook his head. "Enzo will be mad," he said.

"Yeah, but you can't reach my hook, and I'm too high up to get down there to look for it," Luca explained, looking back at the dark gap. "We'll just have to settle for something we can reach."

Harper tapped his lip, thinking. "I can help you down!" he suddenly offered, and Luca turned to look at him.

The boy looked very sincere and determined, waiting for Luca's answer. Luca studied him thoughtfully. It's just a lift down to the floor, he thought. And after being held by Enzo... it doesn't seem too scary to be held by Harper.

"Will you be careful?" Luca finally asked, and Harper immediately nodded.

"I'll use both hands!" he responded, cupping his hands together and showing Luca. Luca couldn't help but smile at that.

"Ok," Luca found himself agreeing. And oddly enough, he didn't feel nervous at all.

***

By the time Enzo wandered out of the bedroom, Luca and Harper were both finishing their sandwiches.

"Hey," he said, looking tired as he ruffled Harper's light hair. "Good job getting yourself dinner."

Harper squinted up at him, brushing some crumbs off his pointy little face. "You left the bread on the fridge again," he accused, and Enzo frowned.

"How'd you get it down?" he demanded. "You didn't try climbing up a chair to get it, did you?"

"Uhh..." Harper looked away for a second. "I did try that, but I wasn't tall enough." He quickly pointed at Luca before Enzo could scold him. "But Luca got it down! He climbed up using his hook! But his hook fell before he could climb, so he let me help him down, and then he got it."

"Oh." Enzo looked taken aback to learn that Luca had let Harper touch him. The older human looked at Luca next, who shrugged.

"He was careful," he said, and Enzo nodded, clearing Harper's plate and heading to the sink to clean up.

The next hour flew by. Harper sat at the table to complete his homework, with Luca hovering by his paper out of curiosity. Harper was more than happy to explain the math problems to Luca, though Enzo had to interrupt every now and then to correct his little brother. 

It was so warm and comfortable being out here like this, and Luca just kept staring at the two humans who had changed his life so much. Harper with his tuft of white-blonde hair that stuck up like a baby duck's and smile that always lit up whenever he saw Luca. Enzo with his patient hands and eyes that bored into your soul. Luca never would have guessed that he could... have a family like this again. 

All too soon, it was time for Haper to get ready for bed, so Luca stood up and stretched. "I'd better get going," he announced reluctantly. "Goodnight, you guys."

"Goodnight, Luca!" Harper echoed, and Enzo nodded. Luca took his time packing up his sack, feeling a bit glum as he thought back to his nest in the walls. It was so quiet, so devoid of the life and warmth he felt out here with the humans. It hadn't even been two months since he started spending time with both of them, and in that short time, he'd felt more at home than he had in the last seven years.

Luca was so busy uncoiling the rope of his hook that he didn't even notice Harper's hand sneaking around him until he was already being pulled into the most careful hug. "I love you, Luca," the little boy whispered. "Sleep well."

Luca froze, a little unsure about what to do, but his heart softened at the sincerity in Harper's voice. He did his best to hug Harper back, swallowing around the sudden lump in his throat. "Love you too, bud," he said.

***

Luca crept out of the walls later that evening. He just couldn't help it. He tried to be okay on his own, but he just started feeling more and more lonely. Harper was already asleep, but Enzo was still up, seated on the couch with his legs crossed under him and his computer on his lap.

This wasn't an unusual sight, as Enzo would often be up late working on something called college courses. He only took a few at a time, since he worked full time.

Luca studied him from afar for a minute. Despite the way Enzo had helped and held him just a few weeks ago, the human hadn't really gone out of his way to touch or pick Luca up since then. The most he would do was nudge Luca aside if he was in the way on the counter or table, which... actually happened a lot, as Luca often found himself drifting towards Enzo in the hopes of being picked up.

Luca couldn't even say why he kept going up to Enzo. The human still intimidated him, though Luca knew how gentle he was. There was just... something magnetic about Enzo and his calming stillness. Despite his terrifying size, Luca found his presence to be quite comforting, and he wanted to get more used to him.

Enzo barely glanced at him as Luca approached the couch. "Hey," he said, turning back to his computer screen. "What are you doing up?"

Luca hesitated for the briefest moment before slinging his hook up to the couch, giving it a few tugs before pulling himself up beside Enzo. "I... I was just bored," Luca answered once he was seated by Enzo. "I wanted to see what was happening out here."

"Hmm." Enzo didn't appear too interested, leaving Luca to just stare at him and try to figure out what the human was up to.

Enzo was frowning a bit, his eyebrows furrowed as the light from the screen reflected in his dark eyes. He scrolled through his computer endlessly, clicking on things a few times before frowning harder.

Luca was fascinated. When Enzo was doing college, he typed a lot. Now, he was just scrolling. Luca wanted to see more, so he inched towards the human, trying to see the screen. What he was not expecting, however, was for Enzo to suddenly lay his hand out in front of him, palm up.

Luca perked up. There. An invitation. Finally.

The human didn't say anything, so Luca crept up to his hand on his own, laying his own hand against one of Enzo's long fingers before looking up at the human. Enzo was still staring at his computer screen, not even paying attention to Luca. 

Luca still paused before he could climb on. Even though he wanted to be close to the human, it was still a little nerve-wracking. But eventually, Luca's curiosity got the better of him. After taking a deep breath, he stepped onto Enzo's offered hand, sitting down for more stability.

Once he was settled, Enzo lifted him up onto his lap so that he could see the screen, sliding Luca off his hand and letting him settle on his leg before talking.

"I'm looking for another apartment," Enzo explained, to Luca's surprise and dismay. "In case you were wondering. They're raising the rent at this place, and it's not a good enough apartment to justify such a price. So, I'm looking for another one."

"What?" Luca blurted out, and Enzo raised his eyebrows at him.

Luca quickly lowered his voice. "I mean... you're... leaving? Really?"

After I was just getting used to them? he thought. After... after I finally felt like I had a home?

"Mhmm," Enzo went back to scrolling through the apartment listings. All Luca could do was stare at his long, slender fingers, trying to reel back his feelings.

If they leave, he thought, aghast, then what will happen to me? Will I... will I be alone again?

"Are you coming with us?" Enzo asked abruptly, cutting into Luca's spiraling thoughts.

Luca blinked and looked up at Enzo in surprise. The human was still ignoring him, focusing on the apartment listings.

But the longer Luca stared, the more it seemed like Enzo's preoccupation with his screen was more of a front than actual interest, giving Luca the privacy he needed to answer the question without the pressure of too much human attention. 

In fact... the more Luca thought about it... the more he realized that was probably what Enzo had been doing the last couple months: acting aloof so that Luca could approach him at his own pace.

Luca felt warm at the considerate thought.

"I... am I allowed to?" he asked quietly.

"Sure," Enzo said. "Harper would miss you if you didn't."

"Would you miss me?" Luca asked curiously, and he was rewarded with a small smile. Enzo rarely smiled.

"You're alright," he said, by way of answer. "I'd rather have you come with us than stay here by yourself. You don't seem like the type who does well without attention."

Luca chuckled a bit at Enzo's way of dancing around the question. But he didn't even have to think about his answer.

"I'd like to come, too," he said. "If that's ok."

"I wouldn't have brought it up if it wasn't," came Enzo's brisk reply, and Luca smiled to himself.

Enzo seemed to have a hard time showing affection to anyone but his brother. He certainly wasn't good with words, even with Harper. But Luca understood what he meant. And he felt lucky to be someone that Enzo liked... or at least tolerated. Because Enzo... took remarkably good care of the people he loved.

Luca leaned against Enzo's side, deciding that he quite liked the warmth the human provided. Enzo's breath hitched against him, but he continued scrolling through apartments like nothing happened.

Luca watched him lazily for a little while, Enzo interrupting his sleepy haze every so often to ask for his opinion on an apartment.

Luca tried to be helpful, but he didn't know much about apartment hunting from a human perspective. And he didn't really need to be picky about where he lived anymore since he'd be safe with Enzo and Harper.

So, eventually, he just curled up on his side and drifted off to sleep, disinterested in Enzo's task. The last thing he was aware of before losing consciousness was a light, warm weight resting over him as he fell asleep.

__________________________________________________________

A/N: No matter the universe, Luca will always be obsessed with Enzo and being as close to him as physically possible.

Some notes about the characters in this AU: Luca as a borrower takes a lot less time to warm up to humans than Enzo as a borrower. Our extroverted boy is just happy to have attention and someone to talk to.

Enzo as a human is slightly less high strung and a lot more empathetic towards people who aren't Harper. Hence why he's so considerate of a tiny Luca.

And Harper is just... Harper. Still a perfect little angel.

Thanks for reading!

Next encore chapter: What if Enzo's and Luca's first meeting took place seven years ago, back when Luca first found the borrowers under the table? How would Enzo have reacted? I know some people were missing mini Enzo and Harper, so we're bringing them back for this extra! Hope you enjoy!