Page 19 of Homesick, Lovesick
Then Match appeared in front of him, hand on his chest."Ronan, stop."
Anger turned to hurt and then back to anger."What the fuck, Match."
"I'll handle them, like I should have sooner, but I talked myself— Nevermind, it doesn't matter right now.I'm sorry for letting you down.I'll take care of these cretins.Go rest, you've done more than enough."
Utterly bemused, not knowing what else to do now, Ronan obeyed.Completely not fucking caring about anyone or anything, he stripped off his sweat-soaked sleeping clothes and pulled on actual clothes.
He stared at his sword arm, frowning."The scar has stopped hurting."
Match whipped around, a fury in his eyes that Ronan hadneverseen, not even when his shitheel, so-called friends had stabbed him in the back.He moved so quickly Ronan blinked, but was gentle as he took hold of Ronan's arm to exam the scar."Icheckedfor anything weird, purely on reflex.There was nothing but residue from the punctured protection spell."Snarling, he slapped his right hand to one of the tattoos on his left arm.The bottom of his hand glowed white, but as he slapped it to the scar, the light turned orange.
"You son of a fuckingbitch," Match bellowed before Ronan could ask what the fuck was going on.He rounded on Lynwood and Marvin, who stood there staring wide-eyed, mouths gaping, like a pair of dumbasses.Match stormed across the short distance between them and threw a fist right into Lynwood's face.
Ronan's mouth dropped."Holy shit."He hadn't known Match could throw any punch, let alone one good enough to break Lynwood's nose.
"You aggroed my boyfriend!I'll fuckingkill youfor this!And you—" He rounded on Marvin, who held up his hands like that would do anything at all to save him."You've been drugging him!I'm so fucking pissed.I thought it this morning, when we struggled to wake him up, but then I thoughtI'm just paranoid, pain and annoyance are making me paranoid.I just decided my poor boyfriend was extremely tired and maybe getting hit by the elevation, even though it's never bothered him before.But no, I was right, I should have listened to me:You've been drugging him."
Marvin scowled."I have not."
"Yes, you did!"Match howled."He poured out the chamomile tea tonight when he thought nobody noticed, and low and fucking behold, he didn't sleep through pulling aggro on a goddamn golem."
"It wasn't supposed—" Lynwood snapped his mouth shut.
Ronan was going to be sick.They'd drugged him.Cast a spell on him to draw monsters.They'd put himandMatch at risk.Put themselves at risk.Why?Just to convince Match that Ronan was a worthless piece of shit and he should leave Harper Valley for them?Thatwas worth risking all their lives?
Marvin raised his hands again in a show of peace, which Ronan could have told him would just piss Match off more, but fat chance of that.The bastard haddruggedhim.Could have so easily fucking killed him.
He really just wanted to crawl into his own bed and cry.
Lynwood lifted one of his own hands, though to what purpose, Ronan couldn't say."Come on, Match, we can't work this out if you don't calm—"
"Calm?"Match bellowed."I'll fucking show you calm."
Then, in the single hottest move Ronan had ever seen, he drew not one but two matches, struck them together, took one in each hand, and crossed his arms to press them against both sleeves, reigniting them.As Marvin and Lynwood were still bumbling out stupid excuses and pleas, various markings on Match's left arm lit up like a damned Christmas tree.He slammed his hand over Marvin's face, and the little bastard dropped like a sack of potatoes.
He turned to Lynwood, who'd given up any pretense of being nice."Fucking touch me and I'll kill you."
Match laughed, low and mean."Try it, bitch."His right arm flared like the left one, and even as Ronan made to surge forward to protect him, right as Lynwood called up his sword, Match threw out his right arm and suddenly there was fire everywhere.
Lynwood shrieked, panicked, actually let go of his fucking sword like some sort of fresh-faced newbie, and started swatting uselessly at the flames that were very obviously an illusion.Match slammed his hand over his face, and Lynwood dropped down beside Marvin.
With a sharp jerking motion of both arms, Match put his magic back to dormancy.His breath hitched in a way that said he was trying not to scream or cry.
"So that was stupid hot," Ronan said into the silence."Where'd you learn to throw a punch like that?"
"My uncle."Match turned to him, ran across the few paces separating them, and threw himself into Ronan's arms."I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry.I feel so stupid and awful.I suspected drugging, especially when I couldn't wake you up, and I was so scared that it was so difficult and so mad at everything because Lynwood wouldn't stop telling me how perfect a fighter he was and how you clearly couldn't do anything once you left Harper Valley, and I've been trying so hard to play nice, but I'm sosickof it—"
Ronan grabbed his flailing hands, squeezed them gently, then let go to cup his face."Hey, breathe.It's all right.Whatever they did, they failed miserably in the end.Are they okay where they are?"
"Huh?Yeah, they'll be fine, but who cares if they aren't?Are you okay?Let me see your arm again."
Ronan obeyed, watching fondly as Match fussed over his arm, running more spells over it, even though he was pretty sure the earlier orange-colored one had taken care of the matter."Where did you learn a term like aggro?I don't think you've ever played a video game a day in your life."
Match looked up, the barest hint of a smile curving his mouth, though his eyes were still dark with hurt and anger."I'll have you know I played thirty whole minutes ofCall of Duty.Under duress.Because I lost a bet to Benny.I hated it.But Benny is the answer—I know the word because of Benny.That doesn't matter right now.What matters is that I failed you.When it mattered most, when you needed me most, I failed you."
"Hey, hey, don't speak like that," Ronan said softly, wiping away tears with his thumbs."I'm not gonna lie, this trip has fucking sucked.It's nothing at all what I thought it would be.And I'm gonna be processing getting cursed and drugged for a long time.But these people purported to want to be our friends.Well, your friend.Why would they assault your boyfriend?Of course you dismissed that idea."
"I shouldn't have.You clearly caught on, not drinking the tea."
