Chapter Text
Everyone had a good reason to go, and excuses not to were scarce.
It wouldn't be exam week at that time, the get-together would be a good excuse to decline other parties, they would be among friends, it would be more fun than wearing cowboy boots at home and answering the door every fifteen minutes to give the kids chocolates. Besides, they would decide the food, the drinks, the start and end times of the party, and best of all, they would have a mansion all to themselves.
Except that not everything was their decision. When they went to see the mansion for the first time, on an all-afternoon appointment to clean the place, the first thing muttered was “does your mom hate you?” (to which Mel replied something back, annoyed that Jinx had asked), because the place was being guaranteed to them through Ambessa, Mel's mother, and, well, that… building looked more like a vampire's haunted property than a mansion for a party among friends.
“I'm just kidding, honey. This place would be perfect for a Halloween party.”
Jinx stated, already hatching her plans.
This was the other exception to “the party is ours, the decisions are ours”: most of the organization was in the hands of Jinx and Caitlynn, two women who wouldn't back down on what they thought needed to be done. Why were they the ones in charge? Nobody knew.
So, first of all, Claggor and Mylo couldn't invite the people who they were having a situationship with, because Jinx didn't want to hear about a couple's argument when they weren't even a couple yet. Caitlynn also wanted to forbid Jayce from inviting his third roommate, Dmitri, but she wasn't quick enough, and the man showed up with Jayce and Viktor, bags in hand, ready to go. Besides them, the whole group of friends went, totaling twelve people for seven rooms.
Cait obviously went with her girlfriend Vi, and Vi's sister, Jinx, one of the organizers, brought her boyfriend, Ekko. Because of their childhood friendship, Vi and Jinx invited Claggor and Mylo. Cait had a best friend, Jayce, who was also best friends with Sky's best friend, Viktor, who was also Jayce and Dmitri's roommate, so the three of them went too. Last but not least, Sky's girlfriend, Mel, also a friend of Jayce and Cait and the house provider, went and brought her best friend, Elora.
It wasn't such a tight-knit group. There were some rivalries here and there, but they would make it work.
The mansion was large enough to keep Jinx/Ekko's and Cait/Vi's rooms quite far apart. Each couple could have a room, actually, if it weren't for the detail that neither Elora, nor Dmitri, nor Jayce and Viktor, nor Claggor and Mylo were dating each other. So Caitlynn left the decision in Mel's hands, who found the best solution: close living spaces, close beds. Whoever wanted to sleep alone could do so; there were rooms for some lonely souls.
“Viktor should get one of the rooms,” Jayce stated to Mel in one of the meetings before the party, “he deserves some comfort, you know.”
“And you’re going to sleep with Dmitri?” Mel raised an eyebrow, knowing the rivalry Jayce felt with his roommate. Something that involved Viktor, she was sure.
“It’s better for me to sleep in the same bed as him than for Viktor to sleep with him.”
“And why don’t you and Viktor share the same bed?”
The question made him clench his jaw and look away in irritation, unable to answer.
So it was settled. Jayce and Dmitri. Jinx and Ekko. Mylo and Claggor. Cait and Vi. Mel and Sky. Elora and Viktor would each have a room.
Another detail that may have gotten out of control was the amount of drinks that would be brought. Jinx learned to make drinks from her parents Silco and Vander, who owned a bar together, and promised to make only amazing things for everyone (suspicious, Vi never saw her sister behind the counter as the bartender). Claggor also promised to help. But Elora warned that, even though she was in nursing school, she wouldn’t be there to take care of anyone. Luckily, the food was Mel’s responsibility, who calculated more than enough for each person for the two days they would be there — one for the party, the other to cure the hangover.
But, well, the two days meant there wasn't exactly a set time for the party to end. Isolated in a forested mountain, they wouldn't have many excuses not to socialize.
Even so, everyone went. With their costumes safely tucked away, nerves on edge, and internal plans for what awaited them. They were among friends and, even in a building abandoned for years, far from society, they were happy to go.
It already started strangely when they discovered where the house's electricity was. In the basement, on the far left of the house. Under stairs that screamed when someone stepped on them. The wind howled loudly above the mountains, and their cell phones lost signal far too easily. Everything ideal for a horror movie. In addition, the bedrooms, most of the bathrooms, and the game room — with old arcades and pool tables — were upstairs, certainly inconvenient for movement in the middle of the party. No, there was no working elevator. If anything worked, it was by luck.
And, luckily, the electric heater worked like a charm. The first thing Jayce did upon arriving at the mansion was to turn it on, because he knew Viktor's joints ached more in cold environments. After that, he helped Vi and Ekko carry their bags to their respective rooms, wrinkling his nose at the sight of the double bed and realizing how close to Dmitri he would have to sleep.
It was his fault, really. He knew that Dmitri had a crush on Viktor, and he wanted to prevent the two from being together that night. With a little alcohol, the room together, and with Viktor wearing some costume that accentuated his slim waist, or his narrow shoulders, or his long legs, or his thin face, or—well, ah, surely Dmitri would find the courage to hit on him, and Jayce tried not to think about what Viktor's reaction would be, jealousy too strong to leave room for imagination, but either way he probably wouldn't like the end result. So him sleeping with Dmitri was a genius move, to tell the truth. Jayce sometimes outdid himself with his ideas (he mentally patted himself on the back). He just had to endure his own stupidity for not suggesting that he himself sleep with Viktor.
But what was stopping him, after all?
Fear. Of losing a friend, of Viktor thinking he was in some kind of bet, of not being able to be so close to him anymore. Jayce would rather cut off his hands than not be able to touch Viktor anymore — contradictory, perhaps, but in his mind it made sense. He was happy the way the two of them were. It was just… Viktor couldn't be with anyone else, nor talk about past experiences. That way everything would be fine. Nothing really needed to change.
So, seeing the king sized bed chosen for those two days, Jayce swallowed his pride and went downstairs to help his friends set up the decorations.
He didn't quite know why he had agreed to it.
Well, deep down, he did, but admitting it was embarrassing.
It was because of Jayce. He would face two days in the mountains in a remote, almost haunted mansion (that certainly wasn't acessible nor adapted for people with disabilities). Eating food the way others liked it, having to talk to more people all day than he was used to, to look presentable for as long as he was visible... it wasn't easy at all, but Viktor wanted to make the effort because, well…
It was stupid. Petty of him, really. But Viktor had a certain… crush on Jayce. Maybe crush was too empty a word, adolescent, not appropriate for his twenty-five years of age. The truth was that Viktor liked Jayce a lot. Having him around brightened his days, his partner was the only person he felt fully comfortable with, so the idea of missing a party with Jayce, where all his friends would go, of being alone at home without him and with the possibility of them drifting apart in just two nights…
Viktor couldn't bear it.
Perhaps it would be easier if Viktor spoke of his feelings, but he lacked the courage. Because who could he fool? Jayce was straight, and even if he wasn't, Viktor wouldn't be his ideal of beauty. Besides, why ruin the beautiful relationship they already had? Their friendship was already worth enough; he felt lucky to have found someone like Jayce. There was no need to change.
So, Viktor took a deep breath and decided to face the situation with optimism. And, seeing his friends laughing as they hung fake spider webs next to existing ones, he smiled too, appreciating from afar (who could judge him about that?) the sight of Jayce's muscles appearing as he carried the beer crates to the refrigerator.
“It is so unfair.”
Viktor murmured when it was his turn to take the shower. Despite the antique settings, the warmth in the corridor and bathroom were enough to make him comfortable.
In the corridor, however, he saw Jayce, already dressed in his wizard costume — a long, dark blue robe with sleeves that accentuated his biceps, a sash cinching his figure, a pointed hat that made his face look as handsome as possible, a wooden staff that made him seem even taller and more imposing —, who gave him a toothy grin, to which resulted in Viktor murmuring unfair, unfair in front of the mirror, where Jinx was applying blue eyeliner.
“What’s unfair, beanpole?”
“Eh, nothing.” He sighed, still bothered by how hot Jayce was. How did he manage to get even sexier? God, he wanted Jayce to make magic to him so much, to use his magic wand—
“I know that sigh,” she picked up her makeup case and stepped away to analyze her looks, “you saw the big handsome guy in costume, didn’t you? What’s he dressed as? Why is he already dressed up, huh?”
“Jinx, no—Don’t talk about him so loudly.”
Viktor tried his best not to show his romantic desires, but Jinx knew him like the back of her hand. Their parents were great friends at some point, forcing them to bond since Viktor's adolescence and Jinx's childhood. Despite the age difference — she being nineteen and he twenty-five — the two ended up closer than others, probably because of the similarities they found in life — Jinx took the same amount of medication as him (although for other stuff), both were on the asexual spectrum, both were trans, both were interested in the same sciences.
This meant, to Viktor's annoyance, that Jinx knew everything about him. Including the uncomfortable stuff.
“Why not? He won't listen anyway. His big head is too high up for that.”
“Don't say he has a big head.”
“But he does. I bet he has to buy the biggest hat size to fit that big head of his.” She smirked, noticing something on her face. “Oh crap, I messed up the eyeliner. Can you help me with the other side, real quick?”
He grunted, trying not to compare the size of Jayce's head to other people's — after all, he was big all over, not just his head, Ximena did a great job feeding him well — and picked up the eyeliner to help his friend. As he finished, he had to listen to more teasing and suggestions from Jinx.
“You two have to confess soon. Oh, I know! I'll get him drunk and then you can pounce on his stupid face. I'll suggest a game in the middle of the party and you'll have to kiss. What if we play truth or dare?"
Despite his irritation, Viktor smiled. He liked Jinx's company, and during the rush of the semester he hadn't had much opportunity to spend time with her. It was good to have a moment just like that, him with his friends. Maybe that night wouldn't be so unpleasant.
The heater broke down just before the party started.
Luckily, they had brought plenty of blankets, everyone had already showered, and Jayce knew Viktor was wearing something warm. He laughed when he noticed Viktor's costume — mad scientist, reusing the lab coat he wore to work, with boots, gloves, and goggles, the only difference from everyday life being that his hair was styled all up — finding his choice adorable. Viktor was always handsome, but him dressed almost like on his experiment days at work was even better. It was even kind of sexy. Jayce had to bite his tongue to avoid making bad pick-up lines, like you should analyze the chemistry between us in a private session, or want to do an experiment with me? or anything ridiculous like that.
If he was into me, though, he'd like it, he thought.
Everyone complained amongst themselves about the heater, but they were content to close the windows tightly — even if cracks opened and made the howling wind even louder — and warm themselves with the available alcohol. With decorations of spiders, ghosts, skeletons, and pumpkins, tables laden with snacks and candy, sweet drinks already prepared, open wines and well-chilled beers, candlelight and low lamps illuminating the atmosphere, music playing in the background to liven things up, the party was ready. The full moon in the starry sky and the scent of mixed perfumes complemented the view.
Jayce turned up the volume and went to join some of his friends on the couch.
Despite everything, two hours after the party started, everything was going well, as expected.
Mylor and Claggor were upstairs, in the game room, dressed respectively as a 1950s mobster and an old airplane pilot, Claggor's goggles round like the ones he wore every day.
(Everyone ignored Mylo's ridiculous mustache, overgrown and with rounded tips, which certainly wasn't going to be discarded after the party.)
Elora went to her room to adjust the ears of her cat costume, and Dmitri, in his tourist costume — unbuttoned Hawaiian shirt, blush highlighting a fake redness on his cheeks and shoulders, straw hat, flip-flops, and white shorts — went to the bathroom after spending minutes talking about academic research in Viktor's ear.
(For some reason, Jayce, with his beer bottle and hat still on his head, stared intently at the two of them for all those minutes, as if he saw something wrong happening. But nothing was happening, right? Viktor had difficulty understanding certain social rules, but despite the proximity of their thighs, something that honestly bothered him, he felt he wasn't doing anything wrong. Did Jayce think it was wrong to use his lab coat for his costume? Perhaps it wasn't very ethical of Viktor...)
In the circle with Jayce, standing near the sound system, Vi was telling a story aloud, dressed as Marceline — with a tank top that highlighted her well-defined muscles, ripped rocker pants, vampire teeth, and her hair dyed black, combed down — the effects of the alcohol already making her noisier and more active. Smiling with a glass of wine in her hand, Caitlynn listened to their conversation, dressed as Princess Bubblegum, pink defining her entire outfit. She even managed to get a pink wig.
“Did they change colors?” Ekko, with makeup, braids dyed red, a bodysuit that accentuated his pectoral muscles and highlighted his well-defined thighs, green gloves and tights, adorned with accessories simulating plants on his body, joked before heading faster than Jayce to the sofa, sitting carefully so as not to invade Viktor's space, aware that he wasn't very fond of unusual touches (that didn't come from Jayce). He handed him a glass with a drink so blue it could easily be mistaken for radioactive debris.
“Jinx told me to give it to you. Drink it slowly, please.”
Viktor knew he couldn't refuse, seeing his friend, dressed in a black and red cropped top, shorts, stockings and accessories following the same line, the makeup that Viktor recognized as blue and pink, throwing herself onto the sofa next to theirs to witness the first sip. So he drank it. It was delicious, sweet with a hint of peach in the background. Danger in liquid form.
Facing them, Mel reached out to grab some Doritos, and Sky picked up her wine glass to make sure nothing spilled on her clothes. They were both wearing kigurumis. Yes, basically large, hooded pajamas; Sky in green, Mel in blue and purple, the eyes of their respective characters on the hoods. Viktor actually liked the idea, being so used to seeing them both in contexts where they were always overdressed. Now relaxed, they sat on the sofa with their food and drinks in hand, right after Jinx moved to the arm of the chair.
A strange group, each member unique, certainly. But all happy, the warmth of the alcohol affecting each in their own way, and Jinx noticed this and, already with an intention in mind, opened her mouth to—
Click.
Darkness.
Silence.
Luckily, the candles didn't completely block their vision, but there were far too few for the room they were gathered in.
“Ah!” Vi was the first to “speak”, looking confusedly at her colleagues, who also looked at each other in confusion. It was strange to hear their breathing and movements more clearly without the music.
“It must have been a power outage… should be back soon.” Sky stated, taking advantage of the moment of peace to clean her glasses.
But they waited a few seconds, and nothing.
“I think our nerds should go down to the basement and fix this.”
“We're in an old mansion. I'm not going down to the basement to investigate.” Viktor put the glass on the table and, even though he refused to do what Jinx suggested, he walked over to Jayce, accepting too easily that the nerds were the two of them. “I know horror movies well enough to know that I would be the first to die.”
“Well… Technically, you two are the most privileged here.” Ekko moved to the end of the couch where he was closer to Jinx, and their costumes, so close like that, took on a new air, even in the dark. “The minorities are the ones who tend to die first.”
“Yeah.” Jinx nodded. “You’re men. Jayce is straight and you’re white. You’re the best candidates to check.”
Jayce opened his mouth to protest, but Viktor was faster.
“And I’m trans. With a disability. Have you ever seen a movie with a disabled person?”
“Technically, horror movies with someone with a disability usually portray them as the killers…” Sky pointed out, with a slight nervous tic of continuing to clean her glasses. Right, Jayce once heard Viktor say that she had a bit of an aversion to the dark. “So the danger for you isn’t that big of a deal…”
“Sky.”
“Thinking about it, technically, the most privileged one here is sweet Cupcake. But I didn’t send her because she won’t know how to fix the power.”
Mel covered her mouth so the snack against her teeth would stop making so much noise, and also to cover the smile that insisted on appearing because of the craziness of the conversation.
“What do you mean, me? And I—I could… try…”
“You’re feminine, rich, and white.”
Everyone turned to Jinx.
“According to TikTok.”
Everyone continued to stare at her.
“What?”
Cait’s voice came out so loud that it startled Sky.
“Jinx. Explain.”
The blue haired girl shook her shoulders.
“I saw a bunch of people on TikTok saying your dad is white.”
“W-What? He’s not white. Where did these people get that from?” Her expression sank. “Why are they talking about my dad on TikTok?”
“Wait, don’t you follow the Piltover University TikTok account?”
Jayce looked at Viktor picking up one of the candles, his handsome face highlighted with strong shadows thanks to its flickering light. While the girls argued, Viktor murmured to him that the cell phones were all upstairs, so they better use that instead.
“The most privileged one here is Violet!”
“Of course not, she binds and dates a woman! She's a butch. I still vote for Jayce.”
And before Jayce could speak again, Viktor grabbed his wrist and cleared his throat, which helped to get everyone's attention.
“Mm… We're going. We'll be right back. If anything happens, it's Jinx's fault.”
She laughed.
“We'll take care of Rio for you.”
“Right.”
He wasn't going to lie. Walking in that silence, late at night, with only the light of a candle and in a mansion too big for any human being who howled with the winds was a little scary. Even more so with the floor creaking from his cane and the cold that was starting to seep into him, despite the feeling of lightness provided by the radioactivity that Jinx called a drink. Luckily, he had Jayce by his side, supporting him with a hand on his lower back. However, to his sadness, the hat was left behind.
“Hey, Viktor, can I tell you something?”
They stopped in the middle of the hallway because Jayce's tone seemed serious. What could he possibly mean? Viktor tried not to tremble or sweat from his hands; being responsible for the light for both of them there, it would be noticeable if he did.
“Sure, Jayce. What’s wrong?”
Was he now going to discuss the ethics of wearing a lab coat and protective gloves in a party context? Or was he questioning something about Dmitri? Maybe he wanted to tell Viktor to go fix the light alone, although unlikely given their history of friendship so far. No, wait, what if Jayce somehow discovered his attraction, what if he noticed how much Viktor was looking at his ears while holding his wizard hat, and felt disgusted by it? What if—
“I’m not straight.”
There was a long pause, in which Viktors brain apparently froze. Still looking embarrassed, but never breaking eye contact, Jayce continued.
“For the past few months, I’ve noticed some things and… I was absent for a while, right? I was thinking about some stuff more seriously. You know, my current goals, and about myself and… I-I ended up realizing that I’m actually bisexual.”
During that semester, Jayce had really faded from Viktor's life a bit. They saw each other at work and during their doctoral studies, of course, but where there had previously been movie nights every Friday, bars on Saturdays, libraries on Wednesdays, outings to plays and studying together, and everything else, there had become a void. Viktor even questioned whether he was being a terrible friend, but soon realized that Jayce was absent even for Dmitri and other colleagues. It was a time when Jayce visited Ximena a lot and dedicated himself to his studies even more, so Viktor simply accepted the fact that Jayce was probably maturing. He himself had gone through something similar recently, after visiting his foster parents.
It had nothing to do with his creepy behavior of dreaming about Jayce's hands…
“Oh.”
Viktor blinked, a little dizzy, relief immediately coursing through his veins, amplified by the alcohol. Jayce wasn't going to send him to do something alone, nor leave him alone, nor did he feel bad about it. He was entrusting Viktor with something precious.
“So you're not the most privileged after all.”
“What? Ah, yeah, hahah.”
It came out automatically, remembering the previous group talk, and Viktor had chuckled to himself for his own joke, feeling awkward for doing it, until Jayce followed. When they finished, Viktor cleared his throat.
“Uh… Have you told anyone else besides me?”
“Not yet. At least, not anyone I really know. I wanted you to know first.”
He still seemed nervous, and Viktor thought it wasn't just because they were in a hallway that was too wide for the darkness that enveloped them.
“I understand. Thank you so much for trusting me to tell it, Jayce. I'm sure it must be strange to verbalize something new like that for the first time.”
“Well, it's not exactly the first time, but… It is. Thank you, V.”
A pang of something hit Viktor, but he couldn't quite understand what it was, so he didn't hold back from continuing the conversation.
“Have you already… already, uh…”
Jayce laughed without much enthusiasm.
“Yeah. It’s kind of different from being with girls, right? But it’s pretty cool too. I mean, I don’t think I connected much with the guys, and I felt kind of lost because I didn’t know them very well and I wasn't—uh. I didn't know what they liked, you know.”
Something in the tone of the conversation made Viktor look away, the unfamiliar feeling growing in his chest. It was nice that Jayce was talking about his inexperience in the matter, his discovery, his difficulties; he should be a good friend and listen attentively and offer words of comfort, so why did he feel irritated with the direction the conversation was going? Was it because he was inexperienced and Jayce wasn’t? Was he envious, perhaps?
(Jealousy? But Jayce wasn’t his, he could do whatever he wanted).
“I understand.”
“You’re asexual, right?”
“Yes. Demi.” Before Jayce could ask for specifics, Viktor continued, familiar with that kind of conversation. “I only feel attraction when I establish a relationship with the person first.”
Which was rare, because some close relationships he had formed hadn't resulted in sexual attraction, and he had established very few close relationships during his life. Therefore, what he felt for Jayce seemed more intense. Viktor didn't like to think about his racing heart when Jayce spoke too close to his face, how his stomach burned when his hand slid too low down his back, or how when he grunted with something — frustration, pleasure, nervousness — Viktor felt heat spreading between his legs. He always tried to stop fantasizing when his imagination went beyond study desks and work reports, when he saw hand in hand and the contrast between their skin, when he imagined lips…
A scream echoed through the house.
Immediately, Jayce placed his body in front of Viktor's, the quick movement causing the candle to fall from his hand and go out.
Darkness enveloped them once more.
“Whose scream was that?” Viktor asked, slightly breathless, and tried to bend down to retrieve the candle. On the way, however, he tripped over himself and felt his torso being held by Jayce's.
“Oof, careful. And I don't know. It sounded like one of the girls, didn't it?”
Even in the dark, the two stared at each other, the greater proximity not important in the main plan; after all, they clearly heard the scream of terror, the danger that someone in the group had been in. The voice was so shrill to them that it was impossible to know whose it was.
But Jayce's hands held Viktor by the waist, and he noticed how his fingers easily encircled Viktor, almost touching at the tips. And Viktor felt how, even being used to part of this, and even with Jayce's extracurricular physical activities in the gym, how soft he was. His chest, his palms, his breath, everything felt cozy with his warmth and light scent of mint, beer, and woody perfume.
He felt, for a moment, that they could stay like this forever. His heart could endure so many beats, it would struggle to let Viktor stay there, in his arms, so close, so close…
Another scream reached their ears.
Immediately, Jayce straightened him up, bent down to pick up the candle, and held onto his shoulders.
“Viktor, can you run?”
“Not really, but I can walk fast. Would you rather want me to stay here?”
“No,” his voice sounded in another direction, probably observing where the shout had come from, “we can just walk fast. Are you alright?”
“Y-Yes. I believe the shout came from our right.” He adjusted himself, cleared his throat. “The light, uh, the light can wait.”
“That’s right.” Jayce decided, leaving only one hand in the middle of his back. Viktor waited for him to remove it as well, but instead, Jayce just pressed himself even closer. “Let’s go then. We’d better get together.”
So they followed the same path they had returned, in much less time than they had taken on the first crossing. At no point did their bodies stop touching. Jayce was trembling more than Viktor, but he couldn't tell if he felt the same panic as him; after all, part of his energy was being concentrated on the handle of his cane.
They arrived in the room, the candlelight making the atmosphere familiar. However, where there had been several figures before, there were now only Mel and Sky on one sofa and Ekko on the other.
“Guys?” Jayce said, his voice low as a whisper.
With Mel holding her hand, Viktor noticed that Sky was lying down, eyes closed.
“What happened? We heard someone scream.” Viktor asked, quickly approaching his friend, but Ekko stopped him on the way.
“Where are the others?” Jayce asked.
Mel stared at them, worried, her voice coming out deep and heavy.
“Boys... I think there's someone else besides us in the mansion.”