Work Text:
Something is going on with Style.
Fadel has only known this endearing yet infuriating man for a couple of months, yet he knows that he has not been himself lately. And it’s making that part of his brain that is always questioning Style’s sincerity to fire up.
Is he mad? Did Fadel do something to piss him off? Is he getting bored? Or maybe just realizing that this whole thing was a bad idea? Is he rethinking things and wanting to break it off?
Not that Fadel would blame him if he did, but it would be nice if he could just tell Fadel up front and not just disappear and act cagey. Fadel is an adult, he can take rejection. No need to drag it out.
He splashes a little more water than necessary as swiftly runs the mop over the floor.
There’s no need to play pretend. Fadel doesn’t need to be coddled. And if it’s not Fadel, then what has Style acting strangely?
“What are you thinking about so hard over there?” Bison asks, breaking him from his thoughts.
Fadel looks over at him where he’s wiping down a table and shakes his head. “Nothing.”
“Yeah, well that nothing looks pretty serious.” He sets the washcloth down and comes over to him, wet hand squeezing his shoulder as he looks at him with a pensive face. “So how about we try that again?”
Fadel wants to smack his hand away and tell him to mind his own business, but he knows his brother, and if he’s curious, there is no getting rid of him. He will hound him all night. “Style has been acting weird.” He admits, shrugging him off and going back to his aggressive mopping.
“Weird how?”
“He’s been ignoring my texts and was pretty standoffish when I saw him yesterday.” He tells him, but hesitates a moment before quietly adding the thing that bothered him the most. “Last night he even leaned away from me when I went in for a kiss.”
“Well, why don’t you just ask him what’s wrong?”
“And let him know I’m onto him?”
Absolutely not.
“Aye, Fadel.” He whines and Fadel can see him shake his head in his peripheral vision. “Why do you always jump to the worst case scenarios? Are you really going back to not trusting him?”
Fadel just glares up at him. He should know why this is his automatic response. Fadel has been burned before. He won’t let himself be burned again.
“Fine.” His brother sighs. “Don’t ever talk about your feelings. See how that works out for you.” Fadel waits for him to continue, but he doesn’t. He just goes back to his cleaning.
Fadel is glad. He doesn’t want to talk about his feelings regarding Style anymore. If he thinks about him and how down he looked yesterday, it makes his insides turn uncomfortably.
A moment later his brother lets out a quiet. “Oh, shit.”
Fadel snaps his head up to look at Bison. He’s staring down at his phone. “What?”
“Well, I know why Style has been weird.”
Fadel sets the mophead back in the bucket and stalks over, snatching the phone out of his brother’s hand.
It’s a text message thread between him and Kant.
Me:
Hey, Fadel says he’s worried about Style. What’s going on with him?
First of all, he’s not worried…much.
He looks at Kant’s response.
❤️ Kant ❤️
Oh, he’s probably just been more quiet because it’s the anniversary of his mom’s death today.
And Fadel’s stomach drops.
He’d known he’d lost his mother, but he hadn’t…It had never even occurred to him that he could just be upset because he was sad. He had jumped to conclusions and just assumed.
God, he’s a fucking asshole.
He hands Bison the phone. “Finish closing up. I’ve got to go.”
Bison doesn’t even argue, he just says, “No problem.” And sends him on his way.
He will probably get a big fat I told you so later, but right now he doesn't care. Because he needs to get to Style. Needs to be there for him if he needs him to be.
He makes it to his boyfriend's garage in near record time and when he slips into the side entrance, he is met with Style’s dad in the doorway. “I was wondering if you were going to show up today.” He says tone light but eyes carrying a heaviness only those that have lost have.
Fadel gives him a tiny wai as he takes off his shoes and steps inside. “I’m sorry, I just..” he trails off, not sure what he should be saying here. Sorry he thought badly of Style? Sorry for not knowing this very important date? Sorry for being such a shitty boyfriend?
But it seems his boyfriend’s father knows without Fadel having to explain anything. “He didn’t tell you, did he?”
Fadel shakes his head. “No, sir.”
“Ah, that boy. Always talking such a big game, but when it’s time for him to ask for help, he doesn’t know how to lean on others.” He too shakes his head and nods back to where Fadel knows their main living quarters are. “He’s inside, just go easy on him, yeah? He’s new to this boyfriend thing.”
“I will.” Fadel replies softly and goes in search of Style.
He finds him on the far side of the living room, kneeling in front of where Fadel knows a picture of his mother sits on its own shelf. He can smell that incense has been burning before he comes to a stop next to him. Style doesn’t acknowledge that he’s there so he just kneels down beside him and takes his own incense stick and lights it.
When he’s finished, he settles back and lets his arm brush lightly against Style’s. They don’t speak for a while, both just staring at the tiny memorial Style and his father had made for the woman they’d lost, but then his boyfriend lets out a small sigh. “How did you know?”
“Bison asked Kant what was going on with you.”
A startled sounding chuckle slips out of his mouth as he looks over at Fadel. “Bison? Why was your brother worried about me?”
Fadel fights the urge to roll his eyes. It wouldn’t be proper to do so on a day where Style is feeling his grief. “It’s because I was worried about you…”
He can feel the heavy stare on the side of his face. “You were worried? Why?”
The heat of shame crawls up his neck until it reaches his ears. “You weren’t being yourself. You pulled away from me last night, so I might have been worried and started thinking too much about things.”
“So Bison asked Kant what was wrong because you didn’t want to ask me?”
And that pretty much sums it all up, so he simply agrees.
It’s Style’s turn to shake his head, but then he’s leaning over to rest his head on Fadel’s shoulder. “Sorry I was being distant. I didn’t think you’d pick up on my hesitancy, but I should have, since I know you are observant.” He sighs again. “I should have just told you.”
And Fadel is well aware of the fact that what he’s about to say is so hypocritical, but he can’t help but ask, “Why didn’t you?”
“Well, I’ve never had a long-term boyfriend before, and we’re both so new at this. I didn’t want to pressure you or make you think I’m weak….”
Fadel raises his hand to pat Style’s head a few times and then just rests it in his hair. “We all miss our loved ones that have passed on. It’s not a weakness. I honor my Pa and Mae on their death anniversaries too. Sometimes I even go to a temple.”
That seems to shock Style as he takes a deep breath in. “Really?”
“Mmmh.”
Style finds his free hand and holds it. “Next time I’ll just tell you when I’m feeling down.”
“I’d appreciate that.”
“So, what were you thinking too much about, anyways?”
Fadel doesn’t want to talk about this, about what he’d thought. But if Style is willing to be honest, he can at least try when it comes to things like this. “I thought that you wanted to break up.”
This causes Style to jerk upright and grab Fadel’s face with both hands, fingers squishing his cheeks. “Oi, why would you think that? You know I would never leave you. It was love at first sight, remember?”
Fadel does roll his eyes now and pries his hands off his face. “Yeah, yeah. Ok. I admit, I jumped to conclusions and I’m not proud of it. So, let's just agree to be better at communicating our shit from now on, ok?”
Style holds out his pinky and when Fadel doesn’t move to do the same he pouts. “Fadel. Come on. Let's pinky promise, yeah? Do it for my beautiful Ma, who is looking down on her handsome child and smiling at her equally handsome son in law who lacks trust in him. Prove to her that you’re willing to believe me.”
Reluctantly Fadel holds out his pinky and Style wraps his own around it. “There. Is that enough to please my mother-in-law?”
Style grins. “Of course. She is happy because I’m happy.”
And if Fadel’s chest swells with warmth at the smile Style gives him, because his face is no longer shadowed by sadness, then no one else has to know but him.