Alexi had been quiet since Andrei let it slip about me not staying here. I hadn't had a chance to tell Alexi, with the shit going on about having to go back to Italy, only for a week, two max. It was just to tie up loose ends with what I had been doing there before. There really just hadn't been a good time the tell him. 

Currently, we were sitting in the medic wing, Alexi still wrapped up in my sweater his hair messy and his nose scrunched. He did this well he was deep in work. His laptop was sitting in his lap and he was typing away furiously. He was chewing on his lip and it was really distracting for me. I wanted to stop starring at him because I knew it made him uncomfortable. 

"Stop starring at me."

"If I don't?"

He looked right at me. His eyes looking over me slowly.

"I'll--- just stop."

I raised an eyebrow at him and he went back to work. I deeply wanted to ask again why he had my dog tags. I didn't believe that when he said he wasn't sure why he had them. He had them around his neck. I saw the way he touched his neck when he realized they were gone. I wondered if he would fight me if I tried to kiss him, probably. He would probably punch me.  I was well aware of why he didn't like the feelings I had for him. Alexi really hadn't been shown love and found it dangerous. Me being shot really hadn't helped much with that either. 

"Creed?"

Looking up at Alexi he had set the laptop aside and he was looking right at me. His eyes were studying me intently. This man drove me nuts. The pain he had suffered as a child and a teenager had made him unable to trust people that close. I knew he did trust me more than others, I had worked hard to get it that way. It wasn't easy either. 

"Yes, Alexi?"

He was pretty much wrapped up entirely in my hoodie. 

"Are you planning on leaving somewhere? What did he mean when you're gone?"

"There was some truth to that. I have to go back at some point in the next few months to tie up loose ends. It will only be a week or two max."

"I see."

"I would have told you, there's just been a lot going on, as I'm sure you can imagine."

"It's fine, you have your own life."

I wanted to grab his hand and make him understand that I wouldn't go if I didn't have to. He was trying to push me away now too. He did this often, more often now than before. It was his way of trying to put distance between us. I wasn't about to allow him to be like that, reaching out I grabbed his hand and laced my fingers between his. I found this pretty funny because his hand were smaller than mine. He wasn't small like Zev, he had muscles and was a good-sized man, but he was dwarfed by me. 

He looked at me and down at our hands. He didn't say anything, just like he hadn't this morning. His fingers were chilly to the touch, which was probably the reason he accepted me holding his hand.  Alexi had a week of the Iv meds before he could even come back to his wing. He then had plenty of antibiotics for me to feed him. I was also keeping Maddox updated on his situation because Maddox was pretty busy with Ares and Emerson and of course working as the don. 

Watching Maddox with his son left a small ache in my chest for my own child and wife that I had lost. I swore I would never love another as I did her, but I found it easier to move on when I looked at Alexi. Something about him made it easy for me to toss my promise to never love out the window and chase after him. It was funny because I wanted to kill him the first time we met, he was so cocky and didn't fear death not even in the slightest. Working with him was like pulling teeth and I found myself enjoying the game of annoying him in every way possible. When it had turned into loving him had escaped me, but it was there now as it had been for at least a year. I missed him deeply when I was in Italy. 

Alexi took his hand from mine making me lookup. He stuck the other hand where the one had been before. He didn't say anything he just went back to sitting quietly. The fingers on this hand were just as cold as the other hand had been. 

"I can grab you a heated blanket."

"No. it's fine."

I tried to stand up to grab him one regardless but he wouldn't let go of my hand. 

"I said don't worry about it."

"Let me grab you one. You are cold."

I had to use my other hand to remove his hand from mine. The worst part was he probably wouldn't let me hold his hand again now that I was getting him a heated blanket. Sometimes he gave me mixed signals to my affection as well. Like right there. He didn't want to let go of my hand. Sometimes I wondered if I was reading too deep into it. 

Grabbing a blanket and tossing it in the dryer, I walked back to Alexi. He had his eyes closed and looked a little sweaty. Getting close to him I went to check to see if he had a fever by pressing my lips to his forehead, but he opened his eyes and I startled him. His lips brushed mine in passing.

"What are you doing!"

"I was trying to check to see if you had a fever, you looked feverish."

"I'm just fine."

"I'll take your word for it."

I watched Alexi touch his lips as I walked back to the dryer. I hadn't meant to brush his lips with mine but, it had happened and I wasn't even slightly sorry about it. Pulling the dryer door open I pulled the blanket out and tossed it over my shoulder. It was pretty warm. 

Alexi was fucking around with the bed when I came back and dropped the blanket on the bed. He looked at me.

"What you can't even tuck me in? Geeeez."

I picked up the blanket and made sure he was covered and tucked in the end under his feet. He was looking at my neck and I knew exactly what he was looking at since I had felt them fall out from being hidden under my shirt. 

"Can I have a hug?"

I looked at him mildly shocked by him asking for a hug, but I had a clue what he was up to. I walked closer and bent down to hug him as he had asked. I tried not to pay attention to what his hand was doing behind my neck with the chain of the dog tags. They hit the bed with a small ting and he snatched them with his free hand. 

"Alexi, Those belong to me."

He looked at me like I had no clue what he had done. 

"Don't you have things you have to do today other than bug me?"

"Yes, but I can spare a little more-----"

"Off you go then! Thanks for the laptop and phone."

He was trying to get me to leave before I took the dog tags back. It was pretty easy to see that. 

"I'll be back with food in a bit ok? You haven't eaten anything yet." I said, turning around to leave the medic wing. 

"Bring me something good, I'm sure I'll be starving then"

I shook my head as I left the medic wing. Alexi had stolen my dog tags again. This time right off my neck. To have my dog tags around his neck did something right to my dick, but now was so not the time to address that.