zwischen immer und nie

Elio smiled gratefully at his boyfriend. "Thank you... I don't even know why I want to look for him." He sighed softly. "Maybe I just want some peace of mind, or I.... I feel like I owe him this, because I got the better end of the stick and I didn't even help him out." He thought of all the hidden packets, pills, and cigarettes he found in the cabin. Elio was bothered by the amount of it, so he quickly disposed of them without telling anyone.

Elio shut his eyes for a moment. He'd be lost without Nath and there was no denying that he would always protect his boyfriend. "I want to." Elio nodded his head slightly. "He's the only one who knew Noah well... And he might know what really happened to him, or where he is." Even when Noah was probably in the Underworld now, Elio wanted to visit his grave. "Will you help me?"

Elio wanted to bury himself in Nath's arms if he wasn't already doing it. "I've been doing that. I found most of his friends." But Elio tried to limit his interactions with them, because he'd often catch them looking at him and know they were thinking of and missing Noah. "I can't find his... boyfriend," Elio said. He wasn't sure if he should call the guy an ex since Noah was gone. "They were really close and according to people, they were a really good match, so I won't be surprised he was devastated. The last lead I had about him was here, but it was a long time ago and I haven't found any trails yet."

Elio turned his gaze to the plushie. "I went here to look for him because he just disappeared in my dreams. He's—he was nice enough not to be in them, but sometimes he'd send something over in the dream that just made me feel good when I woke up." And as dreams often feel and do, Elio barely remembered anything about them. It slipped off his mind a few seconds after waking up. "I knew I was adopted but never really bothered to look for my biological family because my life was fine. My parents didn't know either that I had a twin, but I guess Noah knew or something. I don't know... It's all too late now, anyway. I found my real mother but we both don't like each other so I'm never seeing her again."

"The Legos." Elio smiled a little. So Noah had reached the biggest cabin and left traps in there too. "I bet he's already been on your bed." Elio lifted the plushie so he could easily see it and his boyfriend's face. "Oh, we're in the same boat anyway. I don't remember meeting him before in the flesh."

The tag was the only indication that it was previously owned. Some toys left in Elio's cabin had NOAH written under them, as if Noah was Andy from Toy Story and he was marking his toys. "Had," Elio corrected in a mumble. "Did you know him?" He turned his head slightly to look at his boyfriend's face.

One of the things that was funny but at the same time good when Elio's cuddling with his boyfriend was that, being the shorter one, he fits in Nath's arms. the shorter one. Elio hummed a little, feeling comfortable already with his boyfriend's warmth and tight embrace. "Simba can't hug me back but I'll still hold him." Leaning his head on Nath's chest, he continued, "This isn't mine though." He turned the plush to look at the small tag, which had the same purpose as a dog tag. It was painted white to cover the original tag. Simba, it says on the front of the tag, while names were written at the back. If lost, please return to Noah Gray (Hypnos) or Ian Calloway (Dike).

i just wanna coo at him

"Yeah." Elio had a faint smile when he approached his boyfriend, his arms open for a cuddle request. He wasn't big on physical affection before, but he was kind of getting used to it now and Nath gives the best hugs and cuddles. "I'm okay... I just felt like I wanted a hug including this plushie? It's cute, right?"