After eating like kings and bidding goodbye to Masha, who was ready to leave for work, the group went to the living room and sat on pillows that littered the floor around a low table. The sitting order was as follows: Misha, Gabriel, Tristan, Jake, and Stephan. Misha had already decided which board game they would play this evening and proudly laid it on the table, disregarding Stephan's halfhearted laugh. So what if he always got his ass kicked in that game? Misha loved it!
"If you're unhappy, you can always stand by and watch us play," Misha snorted. "No one is forcing you."
"It's not that I don't want to play," Stephan's mouth twitched. "It's just that I already know how the game will end for me. It's kind of destroying all the fun, y'know?"
"Not my problem."
"Not your problem?" Stephan sighed theatrically. "You're the one who's going to ruin me! You're going to backstab me the moment you can."
"Of course I will!"
"…"
Right, arguing with Misha was no use. Whenever that guy decided he wouldn't throw in the towel, he'd keep retorting with whatever nonsense came to his mind until the other gave up. It was like talking to a wall. And this shameless act of his hadn't changed for the better over the years. No, it grew worse, thanks to Stephan's influence. As such, Misha wasn't feeling the least bit apologetic. Monopoly was all about betrayals and alliances, so he would obviously backstab Stephan whenever the opportunity arose and do everything in his power to drag him down, even if that meant losing the game.
It was petty, but Misha didn't care. He just wanted to get back at the man for the darn embarrassing clothing he had to wear at work. Maybe he really should quit. But Dereck and Vanessa were still working at the café, and Misha wanted to spend time with them. Dereck would leave town for University after high school, while Vanessa wasn't so sure about her future. She was hesitating between pursuing her studies, finding another job, or keeping this one. The café had become a second home to her, and she was reluctant to leave.
As for Misha, he also had no idea what he wanted to do after graduation. He didn't have many options either, as his grades were so poor that they made the teachers cry. Elementary school had been smooth sailing, but high school was hell, and Misha couldn't wrap his head around everything the teachers tried to cram into his brain. Nothing made sense. Academic stuff definitely wasn't for him, but finding a job without the proper accreditation was easier said than done. And with his fiery temper…
Yeah, right, good luck.
Unlike in the first timeline, Misha and his friends were walking different paths, and Misha didn't know how long they could maintain their current relationship. He knew they would stay friends, but out of sight, out of mind. He was afraid to lose contact at one point as they made their lives and grew distant. So, he wanted to spend as much time as possible with them while he still could.
Moreover, no matter how much Misha complained about Stephan, the guy wasn't a bad boss per se. On the contrary, even. Thanks to him, his schedule was so flexible that he could do almost anything he wanted. He could adjust his working hours as needed, which he did fairly often to match Gabriel's own schedule. It was a laid-back working environment where he could be himself without fearing being fired because of his colorful personality.
Still, Misha hated these cursed uniforms. So, Stephan had to deal with his pettiness one way or another. And he knew just how to twist the knife and add insult to the injury without going out of his way. Being himself was enough.
And as expected, it didn't take long before Stephan got annoyed again. It wasn't about the board game this time, though.
"What are you?" Stephan pouted as he resentfully side-glanced at Misha, who was hanging all over Gabriel. "A leech? Can you let the man breathe?"
"Hm?" Misha cocked an eyebrow, glancing at the space between Jake and Stephan. At the same time, he leaned against Gabriel and nestled his head in the crook of his neck, a smug expression lingering on his face. Then, he slowly and purposely said, "You do know jealous men aren't charming, right?"
Tristan stifled a chuckle, which turned into a snort, as he separated the monopoly money into their respective stacks. As always, he took on the role of the banker, and no one complained. Meanwhile, Jake opened the board game and distributed the figures as well as the cards on the board, pretending not to have noticed Stephan's puppy-eyed gaze. No need to be a genius to understand what that gaze meant: Stephan might not precisely be jealous, but he was undoubtedly feeling sour at the sight of Misha being lovey-dovey with Gabriel. Pink bubbles and hearts were seemingly floating around them, and the illusory image felt offensive to his eyes.
Because, for goodness' sake, Stephan also wanted to cuddle with Jake! But sadly for him, their relationship still maintained the status quo, even though they had been pretending to be a thing for the past two years to fool Angela. Stephan was clingy but not overly clingy. He knew his boundaries and never crossed the line. However, it didn't mean he didn't want more.
So, yes, Misha's blatant display of affection poked at where it hurt, and Stephan had a hunch he knew it. Unlike Misha, Stephan wasn't so sure of his crush's feelings toward him, and he'd been waiting for two years without much certainty about the future. Jake didn't seem to hate him, but did he love him? It was hard to say. Jake's poker face could be difficult to crack sometimes, even for him.
"Steph," Tristan called, snapping him out of his thoughts. "It's your turn to throw the dice."
"Ah, right. Sorry."
Although Stephan quickly hid how dispirited he felt deep down, Jake and Gabriel noticed it. The expression lasted a split second, but that was long enough for them to catch a glimpse of it. Gabriel raised an eyebrow at his brother, who responded with a roll of his eye, which could be translated as: Don't meddle in my business, deal with yours first. In other words, he was telling him to stay out of his romantic life. He did not need his comments or advice.
Thanks to work and their parents' watchful eyes, these two had grown accustomed to using body language to talk to each other, and one glance was often enough to understand what the other had in mind, just like now. This little ability of theirs also made them a real pain in the butt for their opponents when they played board games.
"By the way, Jake," Stephan opened his mouth, chitchatting as they played, "did that witch try to sell you out for an underside deal again during your business trip?"
"Yeah!" Tristan responded in place of his brother, not the slightest bit offended by Stephan calling his mother a witch. Why would he? He'd used much less polite words in the past to talk about her. The moment she went after his brothers, she was no longer his mother. "Angela is getting bolder about it, thinking Jake has you in his grip and that no matter what he does, you're going to pardon him anyway. But don't worry, I stuck to him like glue this past month and threw tantrums whenever the other party tried to approach us. I can't believe how powerful a weapon a kid's tantrum is. It's almost magical."
"Good job," Stephan gave a thumbs up before crying out, realizing he was heading to jail again. "Why am I always this unlucky? This darn square loves me too frigging much."
"Serves you right," Misha snickered as he threw the dice, his shoe figure stopping on a train station square. "I'm going to buy that, banker!"
"Alright!" Tristan took the money Misha offered him and gave him his change before continuing the conversation. They often did that, playing board games while discussing their next steps. "Also, I had an interesting dream last night. It seems like Pierrot's organization is getting ready for something huge."
"Oh?" Gabriel peered at his little brother as he gave Misha his money. He was unlucky enough to stumble upon the train station he had just bought. "What is he scheming this time?"
"I'm not exactly sure, but it seems to have to do with smuggling something through ports. They plan to load their cargo in about a week. Hopefully, I'll get more information tonight."
"And the business partner?" Jake asked.
"Take a guess."
"It seems like I'll get busy soon."
"'Cause you're not busy right now?" Misha shook his head, reminding Jake that he had brought his goddam work to a sleepover at his house. "If you didn't need sleep, you'd be working non-stop, twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week."
"I'm not that far gone. I do stop working to eat."
"Liar!" Tristan called his brother out without a second thought. "Who was it again who was skimming through reports while eating breakfast this morning?"
"I did, but Gabriel did it, too."
Jake didn't hesitate to throw his brother under the bus. If he had to be scolded for working too much, he would bring Gabriel down with him. This guy's bad habits were as bad as his! He also worked his butt off most of the time, only putting his job aside when Misha was involved. It was unfair to be the only one picked on.
"Oh, you did?" Misha didn't miss it as expected.
"Sorry, sorry," Gabriel smiled, ruffling Misha's hair as he added, "but I only overworked myself a little because I didn't want my work to interfere with the little time I can spend with you."
One sentence was enough to pacify Misha. Gabriel had more than enough time to learn how to appease him over the years, and if he had to use cheesy lines to get away from his wrath, he sure as hell would. He wasn't exactly lying, either. Gabriel did not want to be called to the office and cancel his evening plan because of some mistakes made by his subordinates.
The employees working under him weren't the brightest of the bunch, and he had to be very, very clear in his reports. There was no room for errors, or he could say 'hi' to an incoming headache and a disaster.
"Fine, that's a good excuse," Misha nodded before hugging Gabriel tightly. The man responded by patting his back as he continued to play, not bothered by the octopus. Since the day they made their feelings clear at the lake, Misha had grown increasingly clingy, never missing the occasion to latch onto Gabriel. Of course, he held himself back in the presence of others like his parents, but he didn't when it was only their group of friends. Why should he? They were aware of their yet-to-be-but-soon-to-be relationship. And if their friends weren't happy with his show of affection, they just had to turn their heads and avert their eyes. It wasn't like he was French-kissing the guy!
"I swear, these two lovey-dovey idiots," Stephan grimaced, averting his eyes to the board game. He had more pressing matters to attend to. Still one turn left before getting out of jail, huh…