"George," Matty croaked out, fighting against his heavy lids which were trying to shut when he felt George shift on the air mattress they were sleeping on since Sasha only had one spare bed and Adam and Ross had already claimed it.

"Hmm..." George mumbled sleepily, his body stretching out before he lazily threw an arm over Matty's waist, causing Matty to flinch instinctually as his hand grazed his now bandaged ribs although his touch had been nothing but gentle.

"How do you end up here? Did you run away like me?"

"Not exactly," George sighed, some of the roughness to his voice fading slightly as he gave Matty his full attention. "It's late though, wouldn't you rather talk about this some other time?"

"You don't have to tell me," Matty backpedaled hurriedly, assuming he had crossed some sort of line, although it was hard for him to tell which questions were too invasive given his instant connection with George and how comfortable he already felt with him. "I just...I guess I'm confused how you three came to be, and I know you explained it to me a bit earlier, but this seems like a fairy tale, or a dream, and I'm so fucking scared that I'm going to wake up on the streets tomorrow, or worse, back in my bed, and I'll have imagined all of this."

"You won't love, this is real, and I know it's crazy, but I'm so proud of you for how well you're taking everything. You're strong, and now you're safe, and everything is going to get better."

"I just don't understand," Matty pouted despite the warmth George's words released inside of him, more to himself than to George, but now that he was given a moment to think over the events of the day, he was desperate for some sort of explanation as to how this all had happened. "I mean - why me? Adam said you've seen thousands of people on the streets before, and I just...you already had a family, so why bother risking everything by bringing me into the picture?"

"Honestly...I don't think I can explain it with words," George admitted, his statement drawing out slowly as if he was searching his head for a way to relay what was going on in his mind. "You aren't truly the first, we have taken in others for short periods of time, usually just to help them get back on their feet. We haven't in a while though, it's easier not to of course, but fuck - when I saw you, it was like something clicked. Part of it is what I said earlier, I saw myself in you, but that's not all of it. I couldn't stop thinking about you, and then when I noticed you again on the curb, I knew I had to ask. I don't really believe in fate, but I think you were meant to be found by us, and I just - there is something here right, like a connection? You can tell me to fuck off at any time, but it's like I've known you for years even though it's only been a day."

"No, you're right, I don't...really ever trust people, haven't in ages, but you make me feel safe. I don't know why, but I like it."

Matty could somehow sense George's smile although the room was too dark for him to properly see it, and when George tugged him closer and buried his face in his shoulder, he found that he was correct when he felt George's teeth pressing against his thin t-shirt.

"Good, I want you to feel safe all the time."

Matty opened his mouth to say something else, but he found that his queries didn't really matter anymore, not when he had George holding him so tightly, not with his hot breath tickling his neck gently, so despite his racing thoughts, Matty allowed his eyes to slip closed, his body automatically fitting against George's like they were made to do this.