Underneath

(Sooo, I've been extremely sick (hence no updates for a long time.) Feeling much better recently, though updates won't get too much faster since I'm starting a new job tomorrow on evening shift. Figured I'd get something up for this before bed tonight since it's been so long.)

The sound of the door quietly clicking shut brought Mina out of a light sleep. His leg and backside were finally close to mended and he was able to walk around well enough... when Del let him. The guy had gotten surprisingly dominant. Or really, more dominant, but in a different way. His previous demeanor had slowly changed, but he'd gotten almost stiflingly more protective. At least of Mina's backside. He hadn't even tried to have sex with him again since he'd accidentally hurt him a little just by touching the area on Mina's human form.

"What are you looking at, Claws?"

Del's grumble made Mina grin as he nuzzled into the blankets more. They smelled like a mixture between him and Del, and while he hated to admit it, he loved the scent they made together.

"Your naked body," he finally replied, not seeing any reason to try and lie since Del could pretty much hear most of his thoughts, anyways. His lion shift probably had something to do with that, but he'd gotten used to it.

Del had shrugged out of his crisp white work shirt and tossed it on the back of a chair in the corner, then removed his pants before stopping by the bathroom door with just a dark pair of boxers on.

Mina bit back saying any of the suggestive things his lion wanted him to, but the smirk forming on Del's lips told him that he'd heard his thoughts loud and clear.

"Not yet," he simply replied before walking into the bathroom and shutting the door most of the way.

Mina grunted out a breath and rolled over to press his face into the pillow. He expected Del to take a shower like he normally did when he came back from work, but instead, the guy was sliding into bed with his laptop a few moments later.

Put some clothing on.

His mental groan just made Del's grin grow wider as he got himself comfortable propped up against the pillows, then patted his chest.

I hate you.

Even though he thought those words, Mina's body moved on its own accord and was soon settled against him. Feeling Del's left hand settle against his back as his arm cradled him close was both heaven and hell.

"Just accept it, Claws," Del said as he started clicking through documents on his laptop with his free hand. Mina didn't bother paying much attention as he settled his head beneath Del's chin, but as he noticed what the guy was going through on his computer, and how big the numbers on the screen actually were, his eyes grew wide and he sat up slightly.

"You have that much money saved up?" he asked, looking back at Del with a disbelieving expression on his face.

Del simply raised one eyebrow and continued to navigate on his laptop with the touch-pad mouse.

"This is just one account," he replied nonchalantly, making Mina's eyes go wider.

He couldn't fathom ever needing such a huge sum, let alone having more!

"Why are you still doing all of this," Mina said, gesturing to the building around them, "when you could just retire and live easily for the rest of your life?" he asked.

Instead of responding, Del just tightened his one-armed hold around Mina's back and continued with what he was doing on his computer.

You are infuriating sometimes.

That thought got a side-glance from Del, but again, no words.

"Why won't you just stop all of this? You have enough money. You shouldn't have to do any of this anymore," Mina said as he glanced at another spreadsheet of numbers that Del was messing with on the screen. He hated that Del's company was based on murder. Sure, the guy rarely ever killed anyone himself, but that wasn't the point.

It was never about the money, Claws.

"Then what is it about? I've heard bits and pieces of your background. I know that you hated your life and wanted revenge... but this? Isn't it enough already? Why not just stop?"

Del gave him a look that warned him against continuing, but Mina wouldn't let himself be deterred. If he was ever going to be Del's actual mate, and not just his benefits buddy, he wasn't going to just sit back and watch him continue what he was doing.

Pushing himself up into a sitting position, Mina rested his hands on the left side of Del's chest and scowled down at him.

"You're going to stop with your killing business. You've had enough revenge. Now it just seems like you're helping people kill for pleasure."

Del's fingers froze on the touch-pad, his eyes watching the screen but clearly not processing any of the information any longer.

"There is only one thing I do for pleasure, little lion," he rasped as his eyes finally lifted to Mina's.

When Del slid the laptop to the side and began to turn toward him, Mina was easily forced onto his back with the slight bit of effort. He was determined to not let himself get intimidated, but the moment Del began to lean down Mina squeezed his eyes shut.

Once Del's's lips were pressed gently against his right ear, he nipped it and whispered, "and that, is you, Mina."

He'd had a retort ready. He really had. Except, when Del actually said his name, and not some dumb nickname, his frustration with him seemed to just melt away.

"Just keep looking the other way. I will take care of you."

That was exactly what Mina hadn't wanted to hear. If his lion was anything, it was stubborn and antisocial. Yes, it loved Del, though it was now thankfully a lot wiser about that than it had been before, but that didn't mean that it wanted his attention all the time... or that Mina, himself, could overlook the massive elephant-wolf in the room. He would not stay with a murderer, or anyone who promoted such atrocious acts such as what Del's business did.

Narrowing his eyes, Mina nudged Del's mouth away from his ear, then met his eyes when the man leaned back enough to look at him.

"Don't be stubborn, Mina. I could give you everything you could ever want here. You wouldn't have to be by yourself anymore, or around others you don't want to be near," Del said before leaning back down and trying to claim Mina's lips.

He was promptly denied when Mina turned his head with a quiet growl.

"I don't want to be associated with you, as long as you're running this business."

It had hurt to say, but it was the inevitable truth. He loved Del, for some strange reason, but he hated what he did to others and it was not something he could just turn a blind eye to.

Del's expression changed several times over the next several moments as he slowly leaned back to sit on his heels. Mina carefully pushed himself up and to the side so that he could sit partially facing Del, unsure what his final decision would actually be. The guy had calmed down quite a bit since they'd first met, but he was still extremely controlling and had a temper when things got stressful.

So, when Del finally spoke, Mina wasn't surprised to hear him say, "you can't go. I won't let you leave for such a reason."

He ignored him, of course, and slid out of bed anyways. His backside and leg ached a little, but it was tolerable as he began getting dressed. Del was behind him in seconds, his arms wrapping around Mina's chest to tug him backward into a strong, restricting hug.

"You can't leave. I've been trying so hard, but I can't change everything for you. Don't make me try to do that," he said as he nudged his nose into the crook of Mina's neck and licked lightly but frantically.

I'll never make you do anything, Del. That's not how these kinds of things should work. If you don't want to change, then that's fine. I just can't stay.

Mina finished getting his pants on, though it was a struggle with Del holding him. He then calmly and carefully worked his way out of the man's embrace, then turned to face him with a small smile.

"I do appreciate how much you've tried to change for me, but I also understand now, that you don't want to. If you are happy being you and doing what you do, then I won't hinder that... but I won't stay here to be around it, either."

He could sense Del's anger and frustration in his mind as he walked over to the door and pulled it open. The sound of rustling clothing was quickly replaced by footsteps behind him as he calmly walked toward the elevator at the end of the hall. He only turned around when he'd pressed the down arrow and heard the elevator start to ascend.

Del was standing only a foot or so away with a pair of sweatpants pulled haphazardly onto his hips and no shirt. He was panting, but clearly not from exertion. The stress that flowed through their bond from him made Mina's heart ache, but he wouldn't change his mind.

"Where will you go? You can't just leave, it's cold outside and supposed to storm," Del said as the chime above the elevator went off, then the doors slid open.

Mina turned and stepped inside without a backwards glance. Del followed. The second the doors slid closed he had Mina back in his warm arms. If he hadn't been alone for a large portion of his adult life, it might have been hard to resist. As it were, his lion was actually willing to relent in its affections and let Mina continue to think clearly about the situation. He was grateful that it actually had a heart, too, and didn't like the idea of Del's murder business.

When the doors opened onto the darkened lobby, Mina stepped off, still barefoot, and headed for the front doors. He knew that they would be locked, but he also knew that Del would no longer keep him there against his will. He had changed in that aspect, at least. They stopped at the locked doors and Mina turned, facing a very worried-looking Del.

"It'll be fine. I was just someone passing through your life. You'll forget about me soon enough," Mina said before nodding toward the doors. He knew that  Del hadn't brought his keys, but the doors could also be unlocked with a code that he would undoubtedly know.

When he looked back up at Del, he was surprised to see a sheen of tears in the man's eyes.

"Will you at least let me get you some real clothing?" Del finally asked after a long stretch of silence.

Mina glanced down at himself and frowned. He did only have on a pair of pants. No shoes, socks, shirt, or even underwear. He was about to turn the offer down, however, because he wasn't sure how long he could keep up his determination, when Del turned and hurried over to the large lobby desk and grabbed a key. A few moments later and he was opening what appeared to be a small supply closet and pulling out a new-looking backpack. Once he replaced the key in the desk, he walked over to Mina and knelt down, unzipping the bag to reveal a set of clothing.

"I always keep spares in here because..." he licked his lips nervously as he pulled out a pair of drawstring pants, a grey shirt, tennis shoes and black hooded sweatshirt.

"Things happen," Mina said, finishing his sentence as he took the offered clothing and quickly tugged on the pants over his own thinner pair, then added the shirt and stepped into the big shoes.

He was about to reach for the sweatshirt when Del gently pulled it over his head and settled it in place. It was huge on him, of course, since it was Del's, but it was extremely warm and soft, too. Mina moved the hood away from his face and looked up into the dark eyes he'd come to know so well over the past several weeks. Del was made up of so many demons that Mina couldn't count them all... but the man had also shown that there were other things buried deep down beneath all of that aggression and hatred.

I'm just not the one who will be able to stay by your side and help those things get to the surface.

Seeming resigned, Del walked past Mina and punched in the code for the door. The lock clicked open and Mina didn't hesitate to step outside. It was definitely chilly, and rain clouds were threatening overhead.

You'll be fine. You've been on your own for a long time.

He could sense that Del had something he wanted to say in response to his thought as he followed him out into the cold, but he bit his tongue. Instead, he took a moment to rethink his words, then walked forward and gently settled a hand on Mina's soft hair.

"I'll always be here if you want to come back... and if you ever need help but don't want to be around me, please go find Magnus. You know where he works. He'll help you if you're in trouble or just need somewhere to warm up."

Mina knew that Magnus was one of Del's kidnappers, so he definitely would not go to the man, but he wouldn't turn the offer down. Del was already clearly having a hard with the situation, so Mina just nodded and tugged the hood back up over his hair.

"Good bye, Del. Take care of yourself," he said with a slight nod of his head.

He couldn't see that well with the hood pulled down and was just lifting a hand to nudge it up a bit when he felt cold fingers grasp either side of his face. Cooling lips soon found his, but the kiss was fleeting, and before Mina could even process what had happened, Del was back inside and the automatic lock for the door had clicked loudly in the still evening air as it settled back into place.