"Look at this little fuck."
Ryan jumped, but managed to restrain his urge to grab something sharp. Instead, he focused on the phone being thrust under his nose.
"That's a picture of you."
Ray cackled. "Damn right it is." He threw himself onto the couch, right into Ryan's personal space--shoulders rubbing, one leg thrown over his. Ryan could feel his shoulders creeping up under his jacket, and forced them down. It was Ray. It wasn't like he was in danger; this was just how Ray was. Clingy. Cuddly. Disregarding his very obvious cues to stay away. Climbing over his carefully constructed walls like a parkour master.
"That was my first mugshot," Ray bragged. "Thirteen years old, B&E and trespassing. Broke into some rich fuck's mansion and they didn't even notice for a week."
"Shitty security," Ryan noted.
"More like shitty perception check." Ray shrugged and shot a grin at Ryan. "They were there the whole time. Their house was so big and their heads so far up their asses that they literally didn't notice me squatting in their basement for a week."
Ryan had to laugh at that. He had to, instead of thinking about thirteen year old Ray, hiding in a stranger's house. Judging from the skinny face from the mugshot, with the ghost of a black eye still lingering, he hadn't been squatting there for fun.
"Now you gotta show me yours." Ray's elbow dug into his side, his smirk sliding sideways. "How'd you pop your criminal cherry?"
It was just Ray. That was just how he was. It didn't mean anything. "I don't have my first mugshot saved on my phone," he evaded.
"Of course you don't. I'm sure your entire record is, like, redacted with black tape or whatever." He didn't move away, didn't pull back and give him space, but Ryan still felt the retreat. He didn't have to answer. Hell, he could make something up, Ray would never know. As much as Ray loved pressing his buttons, he did respect any lines that couldn't be crossed. Maybe he smudged the line sometimes. And sometimes Ryan smudged the line himself. But he still respected the line.
"It was an assault charge."
"Nooo." Ray drew out his sarcastic response. "I'm shocked."
"It’s not exactly what you think." He didn't want to say, but Ray was looking at him in desperate delight, and he couldn't say no to that face. "I got tired of this pair of assholes picking on a girl in my class, so I…well, you can guess."
"Aww. Dark knight Vagabond in his shining armor." Ray tipped his head, resting against Ryan's shoulder, and that made it all worth it, it really did.
"Don't go ruining my reputation," he warned. "Can't have people thinking I'm nice."
Ray’s slow blink and smile made the hard feeling in his chest ease. "You're the nicest bastard I've ever met," Ray said, so sincerely.
"You wouldn't say that if you saw the rest of my criminal record." It wouldn't be weird if he put his arm around Ray, would it? Ray was practically sitting in his lap, he should…should secure him so he didn't fall off. That was it. There wasn't anything wrong with that.
"Okay, but seriously, unless you got anything gross on it, situation isn't changed." Ray made no comment on the hand sliding around his waist, settling on his lower back. "Like, you're here. You’re in this crew. You don't get here with a bunch of unpaid parking tickets or shit like that."
That was true. It was nice, being around people that knew his crimes, and didn't care. Or at least, didn't care enough to be scared of him. It was nice, having at least one person who looked at him as Ryan.
"You wanna make that record longer?"
There it was. Ryan felt the grin spreading across his face. There was that chaos hiding under Ray's skin, always pushing for a little more. Never mind that he was pretty much cuddling with the most dangerous man in the city. Not content with that, even through there was every indication that he was enjoying himself. He just wanted to enjoy himself more.
"What did you have in mind?"
"Oh, you know," Ray shrugged, pressing his shoulder in deeper against his. "A little GTA, a little GBH, some arson and shit. You know, a fun date night."
Date night. Ryan's heart was pounding. "Is it a date?" he asked cautiously.
Ray straightened and turned, facing him dead on. "What do you think?" he asked darkly. Chaos and delight mixed on his face and in his eyes as he leaned in close, pressing his lips quickly to Ryan's.
Or it would have been quick, if Ryan hadn't seized the moment and deepened the kiss, grabbing him by the back of the head and hauling him in. Any doubt in his mind fled when Ray melted into him, pulling him in just as fiercely. Kissing him like he was trying to make a point.
Ryan didn't let him go, didn't let him get away even when the kiss stopped. He wasn't about to let this end. Even if Ray was still just joking, still teasing. He wasn't.
"Okay," Ray murmured. "You totally just ruined my smooth flirtation attempt. I was gonna say you could decide if it was a date when we were done, then we'd have a competition of who could add the most offences while we were out, big fat kiss in front of some explosion but you," his breath hitched with a gasp when Ryan tightened his hand in his hair, "you just went and ruined that."
"You said I was a bastard," Ryan reminded him, squeezing his hip where his hold had shifted. "Serves you right for trying to flirt with me."
"It worked though, right?" Ryan appreciated the way Ray's voice rose in a squeak when Ryan's hand roamed. He suddenly had a good idea for payback for all of Ray's teasing.
"We'll decide after the, uh…date." How fitting, for them, to get together while discussing crime. How perfect, seeing Ray's eyes light up in delight, over the prospect of crime or the chance to get closer to him. How stupid an idea it was, but hell, he didn't get an impressive criminal record ‒ or an impressive criminal partner ‒ by being safe and smart.
Sometimes you had to go break some things.
