~black magic*

She could see he was doing better now, and knowing he was with her cousin brought an unexpected sense of comfort. If she couldn’t always be there for him, at least someone she trusted could.

At the sound of the knock, Emily opened the door, her smile easy and warm as she stepped aside to let him in. “No one’s ever going to complain about too many snacks,” she teased, shutting the door behind him.

She motioned for him to follow her into the kitchen, her tone light. “What do you want to drink?”

He walked inside and followed Emily to the kitchen. "I'll take whatever is on offer." He said, putting the bag of snacks down on the counter and started unpacking it. He'd gone more than a little overboard, getting all of Emily's favourites as well as a few of his own. He'd even stopped by his mom's house and got her to make some of the cookies she'd always made for the two of them when they were kids.

"So, what movies are we gonna watch? It's not all gonna be fucking chick flicks is it? Because I'm not sure I could handle that."

They moved around each other with the ease of familiarity, small touches and quiet moments filling the spaces where words weren’t needed. Sam had made a habit of keeping a spare sweatshirt or two in the apartment, as if there was ever a real chance of him staying at his own place for long. They had built something solid in the aftermath of everything, something warm and safe. Sam wasn’t sure what the future held, but for the first time in a long time, he wasn’t afraid of it. Because no matter what, Kai would be there.

Sam barely had the door open before the smell hit him—something distinctly burnt, mixed with a hint of… was that an explosion? His gaze swept over the kitchen, taking in the mess, the slightly singed stovetop, and the way Kai was very pointedly leaning against the counter like he wasn’t standing in the middle of a disaster zone.

Sam crossed his arms, raising an eyebrow as he took it all in. Then he looked at Kai—the sheepish grin, the forced casual tone—and, well, he couldn’t help it. He laughed. "Clearly not as eventful as yours," he said, stepping further inside and setting his things down. "So… do I even want to know what you were trying to make, or should I just be grateful the apartment is still standing?"

The sheepish grin stayed in place on Kai's face as Sam put his things down and took in the state of the kitchen. "Uh, it's probably better you don't know. But, the apartment is still standing, you're home, and we can order whatever you want for dinner, my treat." He said, a small chuckle escaping him as he turned to start cleaning up some of the mess that he'd managed to make.

"Y'know, I was thinking earlier that..." Kai trailed off, wondering how to finish his thought without making Sam feel like he was rushing things. "I was thinking that maybe you could, I don't know, start keeping more than just a few clothes here or whatever. If you wanted to."

Emily hadn’t expected her day out with Jay to lead her here—of all places, Kai’s shop. Their plans had been simple: lunch, a bit of shopping, and maybe she’d nudge Jay toward the arcade for old times’ sake. But the weather had other ideas. As the snowstorm worsened, they ducked into the first open door they could find, which just so happened to be here.

The air inside was warm, but tension curled at the edges of her thoughts. Things with Kai were still… off. The weight of their last conversation, of everything that had happened, lingered between them like an unsettled storm of its own.

Emily stood by the record bins, flipping through them with little focus, more for the act of doing something than genuine interest. She barely registered the sound of footsteps approaching until someone stopped beside her. A glance to the side confirmed what she already knew—it was Kai.

She didn’t look at him for long, turning her attention back to the records as if they suddenly held all the secrets of the universe. Still, her voice was light when she spoke, an attempt at normalcy in the midst of all the unspoken things between them. “You don’t happen to have anything covered in cheese in that apartment upstairs, do you?”

"You can go up and help yourself if you want." He offered, figuring she'd know exactly where to find the snacks. She'd been the one to help him figure out his snack storage system when he'd moved in, and he hadn't changed it since then. "Just don't let the others know."

SAM: i'm fine! i promise! i'm enjoying a nice cup of coffee! a cup of joy if you will, ha SAM: [ image sent: sam and his coffee cup with a stupid grin ] SAM: stay there. i'm sure this snow will clear up in no time. then i will come back and we can spend the day in bed, if you want 😘

KAI: oh, he's got jokes. wow. nice one. KAI: seeing your stupid face doesn't make me want to brave the storm any less. now i want to come and get you even more. KAI: that sounds like a really good plan, but what if i came and got you now and we came back here and got in bed to wait out the storm?

Jay didn’t know what to do with himself. It was difficult to avoid someone in an enclosed space like this, but he tried to keep himself busy and appear distracted, keeping up the pretense that he hadn’t seen him. He engaged in conversation where he could and wandered the rows of vinyl before coming back to Emily’s side. It was on his way back that Kai offered him a mug of something warm. “Thanks.” Jay stopped to take the mug in both his hands. He probably wouldn’t drink it, but he grateful for the warmth radiating into his palms. “Yeah, I’m okay. Just wasn’t expecting the weather to turn so suddenly.” The storm appeared to have caught a lot of them by surprise, judging by the amount of people huddled up in the store. He had never seen so many people in here at the same time.

“Thanks for letting us wait out the storm in here. I doubt this was how you planned on spending your day, so… thanks.”

Kai shrugged his shoulders when Jay thanked him for opening the store up as a place to wait out the storm. "I could hardly leave everyone outside to freeze." He said with a forced laugh, though he tried to make it sound genuine. "Here's hoping it passes soon."

SAM: i'm stuck in COJ SAM: i dunno when i will be back SAM: i should have stayed. sorry :/

KAI: are you okay? KAI: i could try and come and get you. KAI: i've got chains for my car and COJ isn't that far away.

The masquerade had not been kind to Emily and Kai’s friendship. The events that had unfolded still haunted her, especially the fact that she had punched him. She couldn't believe she'd done it, but part of her still felt like he deserved it. The way he treated Asher—someone who’d always had his back—was beyond frustrating. And the secret that had been kept for twenty years, the one he’d spilled, had caused a rift between her and Sam, her favorite cousin. The more she thought about it, the more it gnawed at her, each passing day only making her more upset.

She hadn’t heard from him in a while. The silence between them stung, and it only made her more angry, more confused. He’d always been someone she could count on, but lately, it felt like he was slipping further away. After much back and forth, she finally texted him, suggesting they meet up at the arcade—where they'd spent so many hours as kids, back when things were simpler. She had dragged him there, often more than he wanted to go, but now it felt like a place that might hold answers.

Standing outside the arcade, arms crossed, she waited for him to show. When she finally saw him walking toward her, a mix of emotions hit her. Part of her wanted to feel relief, to feel like maybe this was the first step toward fixing things, but there was a bitter edge that wouldn’t go away. She pushed herself off the building and stood her ground, her expression hardening.

"We need to talk," she said flatly, her gaze fixed on him. She paused, letting the weight of the silence sit between them. "Asher told me you went to his place and talked to him. I thought I made it clear to leave him alone." Her voice wavered with a mix of frustration and hurt, but there was also a sadness there. Why hadn’t he come to her first? Why was he keeping things from her? It stung more than she cared to admit.

When Emily texted him and and suggested meeting up at the arcade, Kai had agreed, knowing it wasn't something that he could put off any longer. He missed Emily like crazy. She was his best friend, the person who knew him better than anyone else, and not having her around had left something of a hole in his life. Sure, it was his own doing, but it was time to own up to his shit.

As he walked up to the arcade, Kai could see Emily waiting for him outside. When she started talking, he stayed quiet, letting her say what she needed to say without interrupting. "Yeah, you did. I went to apologize." He said when Emily had finished. "I'm trying to fix the shit that I've fucked up lately. Asher got the worst of it, so he was my first stop. My apology tour is a long one, and you should've been one of the first, and I'm sorry you weren't."

He exhaled softly, his hand resting against Kai’s chest, feeling the steady beat of his heart beneath his palm. “Kai…” Sam started, his voice low and steady, though the weight of everything they’d been through made it tremble slightly. “I know you mean that. I can see it, feel it. And I need you to know that you matter to me too. A lot.” He reached out, letting his hand brush lightly against Kai’s cheek before settling on his shoulder. “But this… it’s going to take time.”

His thumb moved against Kai's cheek for a moment. “When I told you I loved you before, I meant it with every part of me. I still do, in some way. But trust? That’s what’s missing right now. And without it, those words feel like a promise I can’t fully keep yet. Not until I know we’re both standing on solid ground again.”

Sam’s voice softened, and he tilted his head slightly, his fingers curling under Kai's chin so he didn't look away from him. “This isn’t me saying I’m giving up, okay? Far from it. I’m still here, and I’m going to be here. I want to rebuild this with you. But I need to see it, to feel it, to know that we’re both doing the work.”

He leaned in, brushing a soft, lingering kiss against Kai’s lips, a quiet reassurance that he wasn’t running, even if he couldn’t give all of himself just yet. When he pulled back, his forehead rested lightly against Kai’s, his voice barely above a whisper. “I want to get back to that place, Kai. To where I can say it again and mean it without hesitation. We’ll get there. Just… give me time.”

His heart was pounding steadily in his chest. "I know, and I get that." He said, nodding his head to show that he was hearing and understanding what Sam was saying. "However long it takes, I'm in this, I promise you." Whatever he had to do, he was willing to do it. He didn't want to be the person he had been lately. Cold and cut off and mean. Before the dark magic, even on his worst days, he had never been like that before, and he had no intention of letting anything like this happen again.

Just knowing that, at least for now, Sam wasn't going anywhere, that he wasn't giving up on him, that was more than enough for Kai. With Sam's forehead pressed gently against his own, Kai looked into his eyes. "We'll go at your pace. I'll follow your lead, and I'll do the work to make sure this doesn't ever happen again."

They made a thoughtful noise, pondering what they could even suggest to help their cousin out. But truly - they didn't really know much at all about dark magic. Other than the obvious don't do it it's bad! lessons that were taught in childhood. "Well - I'm not sure about rehab...what have you been doing? And - can't you just...like...not?" The statement was partially an attempt at a joke to lighten the mood, and partially a honest question. They had a feeling it wasn't quite that simple. "Can I do something to help you out?"

He shrugged his shoulders. "I don't even know, honestly. I guess I just need someone to keep my honest so I don't keep doing stupid shit." There was no one else in his family that Kai trusted more than Aspen. "Trust me, I'm trying to just not. It's easier said than done." Kai said, forcing a laugh to try and continue to keep the mood light. "I was also hoping you'd come with me to talk to my mom. It might help to have some sort of buffer for that conversation."