txbooneâ:
Family. The word bears with it a heavy weight, like a precious gem, and Oz knows that itâll get to Tommy. It was always such a fluid word; having lived most of his life without his last (known) remaining biological kin, heâd sought the concept, the feeling elsewhere. In the Thanes, who raised him. In the club, who gave him purpose. In Delphine, whose loud presence equaled the value of a crowd rather than a single, petite girl. In the Demirs, who thought of him as one of their own, their son.
And of course he knows Oz isnât stupid. Heâd have caught on sooner or later, but now that heâs trying to look him in the eye and make him say it, he canât. Or he tries not to, lowering his head to try and avert his eyes. âOzâŠâ he begins, a silent plead for him not to make this harder than it has to be. âI just⊠donât want to impose, alright?â In the years that heâs been staying under the Demirsâ roof, eating their food, telling their stories, their jokes, imposing has hardly been an issue. There were times when heâd stop showing up to dinners, stopped answering calls, but never this long. Oz always brought him back home.
âAnd anyway, you really shouldnât take Delâs word on anything, you know?â He tries to laugh, but it comes half-baked and just plain awkward. âIâm⊠sorry, Oz.â He gets up and starts towards the next bike putting some metal polish on the cloth and hoping that Oz would just drop it.
Oz pressed his lips into a firm line. He knew that while his friendship with Tommy was important (incredibly important, he couldnât even put it into words), it wasnât an easy one. Tommy needed reassurance and validation, and Oz was more than willing to give it to him... if he didnât fuckinâ resist it all the time. He let out a sigh before running his hands through his hair, settling a bit more comfortably on the floor beside the bike.Â
âTommy, how many times do we have to tell you? Youâre not imposing. Family canât impose on family.â He said with a shake of his head. He frowned at his friend before clapping a hand on his knee.Â
âDid something happen to bring this up? Did Del say something?â While he loved his friend, she could be a conniving little snake at times.Â














