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"Your problems are mine too," Cyrus said, "I went in knowing full well what was going on. Thanks for helping me out too. It really does mean so, so much."
He nuzzled up to Marcus.
"You've given me a lot of hope that things can get better."
A soft whine left Marcus. He wrapped his arms tightly - but carefully - around Cyrus and drew him gently closer.
“You’re going to make me cry again.” He pouted, though the tears were already there, painting glistening lines down his lightly freckled face.
“I’m giving you everything I can. I want you to have the whole world, all the love that I’m possibly able to give.” He took a moment to sniffle, wishing he could stay wrapped up with Cyrus like this forever.
“I’ll do my best too, for us. I’ll do all I can. I’ll take your problems and help figure them out, and I’ll give you my problems to sort out with your help. Y-you said we were equals… I’m going to remember that.”
Cyrus nodded, giving a soft smile.
"Of course. I love you, Marcus. Please stay safe, okay?"
He leaned into the crook of the other's neck.
"While you're up, could you grab some medicine from my dresser?" Cyrus asked, "Doesn't have to be right this second."
Though he was focused on loving Marcus, there was still a slight glaze of pain settled over his eyes. He was hurting still, though he'd been able to tune it out a surprising amount.
"I love you too, I will. I promise." He murmured, humming in delight at the close contact and loving affection. He much preferred this to Marx's tight hold. Cyrus was so gentle with him.
"Of course I can. I can go get it right now, too. If you're hurting its better to take it sooner." he chastised, slowly parting from the warmth that was their cuddles. "I'll go get our coffee's and grab that medicine right away, how does that sound? You need a little pick me up."
"Thanks, love," Cyrus replied, letting go of Marcus at last.
He carefully moved the pillows so he could comfortably lay back a bit. His hands still shook slightly, but he couldn't really do anything to stop it.
"Anything for you, Cyrus." He murmured, smiling softly at the other. He moved off of the bed, walking over to the dresser to search for the meds.
"Are you comfortable there, Cy? Would you like me to find any blankets for you?" He asked over his shoulder, pulling the correct medications from the dresser and moving to offer them to his boyfriend.
"Thanks. No, the comforter and sheets are fi- wait, actually, could you grab my weighted blanket?" he asked, taking the medicine and downing it with some water from a bottle that had to have been at his bedside for at least a week.
"Also, don't feel obligated to interact with Nina if you don't feel comfortable while you're out there."
"Of course I can, let me go find it." Marcus watched Cyrus out of the corner of his eye as he searched for the heavy blanket. He made a face at the old water, but didn't comment. Warm water made his stomach upset but he didn't get to be picky about it.
"Nina…? Will she pry?" He questioned, tilting his head. "Do you think she'll ask… about… well…" He fell silent for a moment, trying to draw enough confidence to even mention his past situation. "Do you think she'll ask about Marx?"
"I… I'm not sure? I think we made it clear that she's not to toy with you or manipulate you in any way. However, I'm sure she wants to get in good with Marx and your gang- better than our old man did. As far as your… relationship to him…"
Cyrus paused for a second, as his mouth felt gross and dry upon calling what they had a "relationship."
"That's not what she's interested in. She's not out to get anyone, but she is only looking out for herself, if that makes sense."
Marcus nodded quietly, heaving the weighted blanket over to the bed once he had collected it from its place. He wouldn't admit it, but he was heavily relieved. He despised his place in the gang. Everyone who knew about Marx and the Silence knew about Marcus and his place. There was a mutual understanding that nothing got in between Marx and his little plaything. It kept Marcus 'protected'.
It kept him hidden from anything normal.
"I understand that. I guess I'll have to answer questions about the gang… After all I might be running it after he's gone. I'm glad she won't be too interested in the details of me and Marx…"
"Ah, thanks. Yeah… in fact, I was thinking she might be an asset in helping us stall him," Cyrus continued, pulling the blanket over most of his body.
"But it's probably best we address that when all three of us are together. Just because I have some understanding of what makes her tick."
He paused for a moment. "You only have to share what you're comfortable with to her."
Marcus thought over it, his eyes narrowing slightly. “She could help actually. A lot.” He bit his lip, sighing deeply. It would be risky. The more people involved meant a higher chance that Marx would figure out what was going on. Or was it better to have more people? Would that mean more damage control?
“I think so too. I don’t know how she thinks or work. It wouldn’t be smart.” Marcus leaned down to kiss Cyrus’s cheek, sighing once more. “I will. Don’t worry my love. Now, I’ll be right back, okay?” He hummed, smiling before he left through the door somewhat hesitantly.
Was he scared of Nina? Hell yes.
Cyrus laid back and waited for Marcus to return. He picked up his phone to check for anything new, but it didn't seem like he'd gotten any more texts from Pollux. Then again, what had he expected? It was definitely more important that he was resting.
Marcus made his way into the kitchen, his stomach churning when his brain brought up the memory of the bloodied body.
He cursed under his breath, looking around to figure out where everything was placed.
For a moment he forgot about Nina.
Nina wasn't paying much attention when Marcus came in. She was at the counter, on her laptop. She had earbuds in, and only noticed him out of the corner of her eye. She pulled the earbud out of one ear.
"Lighter, was it?" she asked, tilting her head.
There was an odd gleam in her eyes. Her gears were definitely turning. What could she learn from him? Was there anything she could get by befriending him?
"I imagine we'll be working together, at least a little bit in the future."
He turned his head to look at her when she spoke, his eyes wide. "Yeah… Lighter works." He replied, reaching for a cupboard. When he didn't find mugs he moved to the next and on and repeated it until he found what he was looking for.
"We'll probably be working a lot together in the future. Once Marx is finished he's handing it over to me. Regardless if I want it or not, it'll be my responsibility." He shrugged gently, turning to look at Nina.
"But yes. I am the second in command. When Marx is busy I'm the one who takes care of the business stuff."
"So, you two meet through business, or…?" Nina asked, "What's the deal? Cyrus hadn't mentioned you until last night, but he's been gone a lot lately. Figured it was for that mission, but… he never carried it out. I hadn't really expected him to."
She shook her head.
"There are often better ways to silence people than killing, though," she mused, "Usually, less bloodshed arouses less suspicion. What do you think, hm?"
“Are you talking about how Marx and I met or how Cyrus and I met?” He asked, raising a brow and folding his arms.
He’d humor her for now.
“I think unnecessary bloodshed is a waste. Silencing people is a waste. But it’s needed at times.”
"Cyrus," Nina replied, "I don't really care too much about how you and Marx met."
She took her other earbud out.
"You seem pretty invested in him already."
“Cyrus delivered a correspondence letter to Marx. I was the one who was tasked with showing him to where it could be delivered. Then we went out for drinks.” He replied smoothly, a slight smile playing on his lips at the memory.
“I’m incredibly invested in him. I haven’t met anyone like him. Not in a long time at least. He knows what it’s like, being a victim in a situation you can’t get out of.”
"Oh," Nina replied, sounding slightly surprised, "That's pretty recently. I suppose you two really clicked, huh?"
She tilted her head.
"Victim, though? Despite being second in command, you consider yourself a victim of circumstance?"
She shrugged.
"I'm not sure why we take so many people who don't want to be here. It's inefficient at best."
“Yeah, we clicked right away.” He smiled softly, humming happily in remembrance of the day they met and the wonderful night that followed it. “God I love him.” He rumbled.
“Oh I’m no victim of circumstance. Cyrus is. I chose this life. I chose Marx as much as I hate it.” He corrected, his eyes hardening at the memory. Marx used to be sweet. He acted like the perfect man, soft spoken and caring, but he switched. Like it was all some sort of elaborate trap.
“Inefficient? Gangs thrive off of helplessness. They take in those who don’t have any other option, those who need a way in life. I joined to escape my family.”
"Depends," Nina said, pondering the statement, "As soon as you start dragging your feet in your assignments, that's where I draw the line. And perhaps that isn't the case for you. It's not the case for a lot of people. Sometimes it is desperation that brings people here, and they're willing to do a lot to fix whatever happened. Some of them stay here. Well, most of them do."
She shook her head.
"Pretty damn funny that he hesitated so much on all of his missions, then when it came to Dad, it was like all inhibitions were gone."
“He didn’t have a choice in the matter. Cyrus is a good person. He doesn’t want to kill. I don’t blame him for ‘dragging his feet.’ No one should be forced into that lifestyle.” He growled, though the words weren’t necessarily rude. They were angry, however, yet it wasn’t directed at Nina.
“But you won’t have to worry about that anymore. Cyrus and I will stay out of your hair.”
Nina nodded. All he said was definitely true.
"Good to know. Tch… I have to set up a meeting with Marx in the near future. Housekeeping and whatnot. Knew it would come eventually, but doesn't make me any more eager to get the initial bullshit out of the way."
She tilted her head.
"Does Marx know about you two? Would he like you seeing someone like Cyrus?"
Marcus grew tense at the question. His gaze fell to the (now) clean floor, dashes of red seeping into his vision at the memory of blood and gore. If Marx found out… the blood wouldn't be his. It would be Cyrus's. And Marcus couldn't handle that.
"No. He doesn't. The less he knows the better. He'd kill Cyrus if he knew. I'm taking a huge risk here and putting Cyrus in a lot of danger. But I'm not going to let anything happen to him. Even if I have to kill Marx and the entire gang, I'm not letting him touch Cyrus." He growled, the confidence in his voice surprising even himself.
He was a lot more ready to off Marx than he had first thought.
Maybe killing him would be easy enough. All he had to do was fight the conditioning Marx had given him.
"I'm sure you know exactly what place I'm in when it comes to Marx. He doesn't want me to be with anyone he doesn't chose."
"Oh. Actually… I didn't know that," Nina replied, her voice growing a little quieter, "I just didn't know if it was something you didn't want to let slip. And now I see where you stand."
Nina frowned.
"There's been too much bloodshed for my liking, and how fucking stupid would it be to shed blood over love and lust? Those things simply aren't worth it. If he would want to kill Cyrus over you, the man may be more careless than I thought."
She gave a chilling smile.
"I don't know what my brother told you, but I'm not someone you need to fear. Not in this case, anyway. He's helped me take a step up in the world, and I'm not about to incite any more of his wrath."
Marcus looked back over her, offering a small smile in return to her own. He let her talk, the gears in his head working. He didn't feel threatened by her, strangely. He still felt a little reserved, and of course wouldn't give her an upper hand against him, but he was less afraid and more curious.
"Careless when it comes to me, maybe. He is very thorough in his ways to keep me as his. I don't think he planned for me to go against him, however." He noted, snickering at the thought. He was starting to realize just how much of an advantage he had against Marx at the moment.
"And as for fearing you, I don't think you'll do anything to us. However, you are still powerful, and you are still a potential threat. You work with Marx. If you wanted us completely out of the picture all you would have to do is let it slip that I'm with Cyrus and we'd be gone; Cyrus dead and I locked away in some basement."
"Well, lucky for you, that's not really my goal. It'd be a petty one at best," Nina said.
She stopped suddenly.
"Go against him? Just what are you planning to do?"
Marcus flashed her a stupid grin, shrugging.
"I'm planning to go against him. That's all you need to know. I love Cyrus and want to be with him. And this isn't going to be some Romeo and Juliet type shit either." He laughed softly to himself at that. A modern tragedy wouldn't be what their life turned into.
He flipped himself around and finally poured the two cups of coffee had come to get, humming as he did so.
"It's about time I started standing up for myself after all."