Chapter 16
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
MATEO
Having Dax speak for him felt wrong, but Mateo wasn’t sure what else to say. He felt like an ass, and he didn’t want to make it worse by saying anything to upset his roommate. Dax was saying everything he would’ve thought to say anyway. He figured it was better to leave it to him.
He really hadn’t meant to snap at the guy.
Despite his exhaustion, he wasn’t normally that guy.
The kind of person to take his mood out on others.
Even when he lived in his old apartment and both neighbors were blasting music or pounding on the walls, he wasn’t this bad.
But then again, when he’d been living in his own apartment, the space had been his own.
He wasn’t sharing a kitchen, forcing him to skip meals to avoid sounding like a neurotic jerk complaining about the mess.
He didn’t trip over shoes in the hall or have to search the whole kitchen for a bowl that somehow kept ending up on the highest shelf despite him storing it in the lower cabinets the last time he used it.
Maybe he needed to buy his own dishes and pans.
He could store it all in his room and only take it out when he needed it.
That sounded insane, didn’t it?
He sighed. There was a reason he and his sister agreed to never live with each other after they moved out of their parents’ home.
They bickered like cats and dogs when they were teens because he was fastidious and she was his opposite.
They only started getting along when they both moved out for college, and when discussing getting apartments in the city, they agreed for the sake of their relationship, it was better if they never lived together again.
Mateo hadn’t planned on having any roommates at all.
Had it not been for the money he was saving staying in the condo, he wouldn’t have accepted.
“Is he okay?” Kaz basically whispered. When Mateo looked up at him, he shrank a little, which looked odd on such a big guy, but the tension in his face eased when Dax waved off his concern.
“He’ll be okay. He just needs a nap. Once Miles is done, he’ll get some sleep and be right as rain afterward.”
Kaz looked toward the hallway where Miles was still working and then behind him into his own room. “He can nap in my room if he wants?”
Ugh. Now Mateo felt even worse for the way he treated the guy. Dax was right. Who could treat such a sweetheart poorly and not feel like a complete dick about it?
Dax, oblivious to Mateo’s turmoil, smiled up at the orc.
“That’s sweet, but I think he needs the ward to get enough rest. You’re right off the living room, and he’s a light sleeper, you know?
But thanks for offering! We should meet at the gym again soon.
” He turned to Mateo, his bright beaming smile nearly blinding when Mateo was still so exhausted.
“Kaz is a good workout buddy if you need one. He’s not a fan of the pool, but when I want to lift weights, I know I can count on Kaz to spot me. ”
It was adorable to watch the big orc’s cheeks turn a darker shade of green, like the simple comment both pleased and embarrassed him.
“All done,” Miles said behind them, drawing their attention. He’d said it wouldn’t take that long, but even Dax looked surprised that he was finished already.
“That was fast.”
Miles shrugged, dusting off his hands and sending chalk dust all over the floor. Mateo’s eye twitched but he bit his tongue to stop himself from saying something. The guy just did him a huge favor. Mateo could just sweep up later.
“The room was smaller than I thought and with the wards on the building, it was easy to anchor the spells. Come see for yourself.”
Mateo didn’t have the ability to see the magic, but he felt it when he stepped into the room—like walking through thick curtains as it brushed over his skin. When the door closed, the whole room went silent. He let out a surprised laugh.
“Holy shit. I can actually hear myself think.”
Miles snorted, leaning against the wall by the door with his arms crossed over his chest. “I live with a loud roommate, so I get it. I set up a ward after day two of him inviting over his ‘special friends’.” He shook his head, pushing off the wall and opening the door again.
Even with the door opened, the sound past the doorframe was muffled.
Mateo almost wanted to cry from pure relief.
“So since I assume you’re not all that familiar with wards, I’ll explain the basics.
The spell is made to muffle everything but sounds at a certain decibel.
” When Mateo’s brows knitted together, Miles explained, “It’s a failsafe.
It’ll block out your roommate’s offkey singing or the neighbor having sex, but it won’t block out fire alarms or anything like that.
The emergency services team uses a spell to break through sound wards by emitting a sound at a certain decibel, letting everyone know to get out of the building, so you’re good on that too.
I attached it to the wards in the building, so if you move out or want it removed, you’ll need a mage or witch to do it.
Probably another water mage if I’m not available.
Having the same elemental signature makes it easier to remove.
” He thought about it for a minute, eyes on the ceiling, before nodding sharply once.
“I think that’s about it. Any questions? ”
“Uh, just one,” Mateo said, gaze shifting to the magic circle drawn in chalk on the floor. “Does that need to stay?”
He felt awkward asking, he didn’t want to say anything that might come off as rude, but Miles just snorted and shook his head.
“Nah. I already broke the circle, you’re good.
Though I’d wipe it with a towel first before adding water, just in case.
I don’t think anything would happen with a human adding water, but hey, I’m no expert.
Magic is funny sometimes.” He jerked a thumb over his shoulder.
“I’m gonna head out. Let me know if anything goes wrong with it, though I don’t think it will.
It’s a basic spell.” He shrugged, shoving his hands into his pockets with the ease of someone confident with his craft.
“Thanks, Miles. I appreciate it,” Dax said, beaming at him.
“Yeah, thank you,” Mateo agreed.
Miles shrugged again. “I owed Dax a favor.” He narrowed his eyes on his friend. “No more bringing that story up. If I knew any telepaths, I’d ask for that memory to be erased in my own head if I could.”
Dax snorted, his mouth twisted as he tried to hide his grin. One tentacle made an ‘x’ over his heart as he swore, “I’ll never bring it up again. See you tomorrow.”
With a two finger salute, Miles slipped out of the room, leaving Mateo and Dax alone in the quiet room. Mateo slumped, letting out a long breath. It was so quiet.
“Time for some rest, I think,” Dax suggested, putting his hands on Mateo’s shoulders and steering him back to bed. Mateo only protested a little.
“I’m already up. I need to clean up the mess, and I can never sleep if I’ve already gotten up for the day,” he whined.
“I’ll help with that,” Dax chuckled. “In the bed. There you go.”
Flopping onto his bed face first, Mateo grabbed his pillow in a death grip in an attempt to keep his hands to himself. He wasn’t sure what Dax’s plan was, but he didn’t want to accidentally latch onto the guy and force him to stay in bed with him again.
It didn’t surprise him when Dax crawled into bed with him and pulled Mateo against his chest. The kraken was pretty handsy with him, and cuddling was a nice way to get him to relax.
He didn’t think it would put him to sleep, but maybe rest would be enough for his fried brain to function at least until he could go to bed for real at the end of the night.
What surprised him was when Dax’s tentacles came into play, wrapping around him in that all over hug that made Mateo melt every damn time.
He squeezed just tightly enough to make Mateo feel secure in his hold without making it hard to breathe, and Dax’s fingers began combing through his hair.
“’s not fair,” Mateo slurred, his eyes slipping closed without his permission.
“What?” Dax chuckled, like he hadn’t understood him.
Mateo couldn’t make his mind work well enough to repeat himself. He was either more tired than he thought or Dax had the magic touch because he was out a few seconds later.
When he woke up, he had no idea how much time had passed.
With no windows in his room, it was sometimes hard to tell.
He was no longer wrapped in Dax’s tentacles, which was a little disappointing, but he couldn’t say he blamed the guy.
Mateo had spent half the time falling asleep on him.
It didn’t matter that they’d shared a kiss the day prior.
No one would want to stick around to play teddy bear when their companion was tired instead of doing actual date things.
He groaned, burying his face into his pillow. Maybe he needed a new job. If he left, he’d be able to skip the embarrassment of running into Dax again after falling asleep on him three times. The guy must’ve thought he was a man-child, still needing his naps.
The door opened a crack, allowing a little light from the hallway to spill in, but it closed just as quickly. Mateo sat up with a frown, his eyebrows flying up when he realized it was Dax.
“Dax?”
Dax froze, his whole body going stiff like he’d been attempting to move silently and thought if he didn’t move, he wouldn’t get caught. The image made Mateo want to laugh. He would’ve if he wasn’t still overwhelmingly embarrassed. Still, he had to ask. “You know I can see you, right?”
Dax slumped dramatically before straightening again. Without windows, the room was pretty dark, but the light coming from underneath the door gave him just enough visibility to see Dax’s shadow coming closer and crawling back into bed.
“Sorry. I’d hoped I wouldn’t wake you,” Dax murmured, gathering him up again like he hoped to put Mateo back to sleep. No way was that happening, he was awake enough now and he didn’t want to embarrass himself even more.
“Where’d you go?”
“Kitchen. I got thirsty.”
Well, at least this time he didn't let himself get dehydrated just to coddle Mateo.
“Sorry,” he murmured, fingers toying with the edge of his pillow. “You didn’t have to stay. I’m sure you’ve got better things to do than hang out here and cuddle me.”
Dax snorted, making Mateo twist to look at him. The tentacles shifted to allow him to turn over, but didn’t release him, which was… kind of nice actually. He could get used to the all over hug thing.
“Something better to do than cuddle the adorable and sexy man who uses my tentacles as teddy bears? I challenge anyone to find something better than that.”
Mateo’s stomach flipped, and he felt his breath catch. How was it he managed to get the attention of someone so sweet?
Dax leaned closer, nuzzling his nose into Mateo’s neck and making him shiver. “It smells like you in here. I like it.”
“Why?” he breathed, tipping his head to give the man more room. He still didn’t get it. He’d been a complete mess since the first day he and Dax met. He didn’t understand why the guy was still sticking around.