37. Volt
Volt
After many beautiful hours watching Wallace sleep, tracing barely-there patterns on his chest as it rose and fell, Wallace had blinked up at him with hazy eyes and Volt couldn’t decide whether he wanted to stay in bed for a few more hours or get them both moving as fast as possible.
No, Volt was itching to be back at Prism.
He needed to see his family.
He needed to water his flowers, if any of them were still alive. God, what would happen to his fledgling almost-business if they were all dead? Plant them again, he supposed.
But mostly, he needed to see Angel and Magnolia confirm with his own eyes that everything was alright.
When he’d done that, he could ravish Wallace again.
Oliver had installed Volt’s internet panel in the wee hours of the night, though it was an older temporary data card that made his brain feel itchy.
He’d immediately contacted Angel, but his brother had been distracted, and they hadn’t chatted for long.
Volt knew that Angel had a lot on his shoulders, since he’d brought Magnolia home later in the evening and then still opened Prism, so he understood.
But that only drove him harder to get moving.
He’d looked longingly at the grounds through a window—their property truly seemed to go on forever, with only a few hedges and some hardy perennials here and there—but decided to investigate at a later date.
So with a quick breakfast for Wallace and a drawn-out goodbye with many expressions of gratitude to Oliver and Ben, they sped across town.
Volt distracted himself by making out with his baby girl, who he just couldn’t stop kissing.
They’d talked about collars last night—had that even been real?
—and he was about to see his family after far too long away.
When they pulled into the back alley, he raced around the car to open Wallace’s door, then scooped him up into his arms.
Wallace chuckled. “You’re excited.”
“Just happy to be home.”
Wallace’s eyes softened. “I’m happy to be home, too.”
God, what an amazing thought.
They grinned at each other, and Volt found himself falling in love all over again. He hoped he kept falling in love with his pansy for the rest of their lives.
“I love you,” he said, rubbing their noses together.
“I love you, too, Daddy,” Wallace told him, giggling as their eyes came too close together. “I’m so glad that you’re safe. And that you’re mine. I can’t wait to move in.”
“Oh, me, too, creampuff.” Volt was still bubbling over with delight. Even with all of his flaws on display, Wallace loved him. Wallace was his.
He strode up the back steps and Wallace laughed. “Not going to put me down?”
“Nope!” he answered happily. “You were the one who insisted that you could move in without picking up anything from your apartment first, so you’re the only thing I need to carry.”
“Mmmm… That’s true. I don’t need anything if my Daddy’s going to choose all my clothes,” Wallace whispered in his ear, all seductive innocence.
Fuck. Volt had picked Wallace up to share his excitement, but now his cock was getting a lot of other ideas. The idea of choosing Wallace’s wardrobe, of being gifted with something so vulnerable and important to Wallace’s rapidly-evolving sense of identity, was still driving him wild.
He hoped that Wallace understood that he was getting fucked in every outfit that Volt got to dress him in.
“You like that, Daddy?” Wallace’s voice was husky.
“Yeah, baby, you know I do.” He kissed along Wallace’s neck, letting him know just how much he liked it.
A wolf whistle drew his attention away.
Somehow, he’d made it to the kitchen, where it turned out Angel was standing just a few feet away with a shit-eating grin on his face.
He hadn’t even noticed. In fact, he hadn’t checked any of the cameras or databases to figure out anything about how Prism was doing once his internet connection was restored, which wasn’t like him at all. Oops.
But now Angel was here, and he couldn’t believe how much he’d missed those dark, piercing eyes and that tuxedo-clad form.
Wallace made a movement to be put down, and Volt let him slide to the ground, crossing the room to squeeze his big brother instead.
Angel hugged him back just as tightly. “You alright?” The words were a mumble against the back of his neck.
“Yeah. Wallace and his friends took care of everything. I’m safe. Still having a bit of trouble with my internet connection, but they’ve ordered a new part that’s coming in tomorrow.” Oliver’s temporary solution still felt weird, and Volt didn’t like it.
Connecting to the internet was usually more natural than breathing, but he knew he’d been subconsciously, and sometimes consciously, avoiding it. That was probably why he hadn’t checked the cameras and logs.
“How are you?” Volt asked, pulling back so they could see each other, but keeping his hands on the other spark’s hips.
An expression flitted across Angel’s face, too fast for Volt to catch. Worry? Sorrow? But it was gone as quickly as it appeared. “I’m fine.”
“Did the mod get you?” Volt asked, instead of calling him on the half answer. That question had been eating at him, even after Oliver had assured him that Angel was alright. “I thought that I called you, and I’ve been worrying…”
“Oh my god! That’s what it was.” Angel’s face was animated, bringing him back to his usual playful self. “It smelled like rubber and lemongrass, but burned.”
“Yeah! I thought it was burnt oranges and rubber balls.”
“Ewww…” Wallace moaned. “That’s what the mod smelled like?”
They both nodded at him. “It was disgusting,” Angel added. “Honestly, the call barely lasted a second, and I thought it was just a glitch. I ran full diagnostics afterward, though, and everything was fine.”
“Thank goodness.” Volt squeezed him again. “You know I would have been devastated if it got you, too.”
Angel gave him a little half smile. “Don’t worry about me. I’m just glad you’re alright. Oh, and I watered your plants upstairs.”
“You knew about those?” Volt hadn’t been keeping it a secret… but he hadn’t exactly talked about it either.
Angel raised one eyebrow. “Was I not supposed to know?”
“What plants?” Wallace piped up.
“Just some plants I’ve been growing in an empty room.” He tried to downplay it, even if he was dying to get back to them. It was just… something about knowing that his business might work out made him want to hide it even more.
But didn’t Wallace deserve to know everything in his life? Whether he succeeded or failed?
“I’ll show you,” he promised Wallace. He released Angel and looped an arm around Wallace’s waist instead. He wasn’t going to hide anything from now on. Hell, Wallace might have some good ideas, too.
And now that Angel knew, he might as well ask. “I was thinking about moving them to the roof when the weather warms up. Do you think that would work out?”
Angel’s face flashed through another slew of emotions, too fast for Wallace to catch. He thought he saw something like sorrow and maybe fondness, but just in the little twitches of his skin.
Maybe he’d imagined the whole thing. It had been a long few days for everyone. “Are you sure you’re alright?” he asked.
Angel rolled his eyes. “I’m fine. Really. We can talk about the roof when it’s warmer. You should go up and see Magnolia. I didn’t tell her anything about you. Just that you were doing something with Wallace.”
Was that a strange topic change or just his imagination?
“Thank you. I’m sorry I wasn’t around to help,” he said, searching Angel’s face again. This week must have been a huge burden for his brother.
In so many ways, it was better for Magnolia to be at home with her family and all of the things that she loved, but making the transition and getting her settled in was a huge undertaking.
She usually needed a lot of extra care the first few days when she was back while whatever had sent her into the hospital cleared up.
To have Angel keeping the business open while settling Magnolia in and worrying about him must have been awful.
Angel shrugged. “We were fine.” His smile was forced. “Just glad to have you back. How are you?”
Volt didn’t love the way that Angel was acting like everything was alright, when it had clearly been a difficult week for him. Though maybe he was hyper-aware of Angel not being forthcoming about his feelings because Volt had just promised Wallace that he’d be more open about his own.
He couldn’t force Angel to share. Maybe he just needed some time before he was ready to talk. Or some sibling time for just the two of them.
“I’m doing amazingly well, all things considered. It’s really just my internet connection that still needs to be fixed. Wallace supported me through everything, and I think we’ve made some new friends.”
Angel gave him a genuine smile. “I’m glad to hear it. It’s good that you’ve met some friends.”
“Would you like to take a night off?” Volt asked. “I can hold down the fort if you want to just relax. Tonight or some other night. Or maybe you and I could have a movie day sometime?”
Angel’s eyes softened for a moment, but Volt still couldn’t catch the emotion. Longing? Then the expression flitted away. “I’m good. We’re not opening for hours yet, and everything’s ready to go. But I’ll let you know.”
“You do that,” Volt commanded, hugging Angel tightly. “I missed you.”
Angel finally melted into him, taking the comfort that he offered. “Missed you, too.”
Volt sighed with relief, not in any hurry to release his brother. They were going to be okay.
“Go on upstairs,” Angel scolded, giving him a little push. “Magnolia will want to see you.”
Volt couldn’t wait. “That was next on my agenda.” He put a hand on Angel’s shoulder. “But really. Let me know if you want a break. Or some hang-out time. Or anything. You’ve had a hard week, and you deserve some down time. I’ve missed my big bro.”
Angel huffed, finally looking like himself. “Alright, little bro, I’ll let you know.”
Volt hugged him one more time—he just couldn’t help it—happy to see that Angel already seemed to be feeling better.