Things had been strange lately.

Quiet.

Almost lonely. 

Vincent hadn’t seen much of Ian during the last few days. Their usual routine of Ian forcing Vincent to eat meals with him or go to the office with him had stopped. Instead, Ian gave Vincent space, never asking for his presence.

Of course, Vincent was glad that Ian wasn’t forcing himself on him or handcuffing him to the bed, but this was just odd. Ever since he woke up to find a note addressed to him and not Eton from Ian, things changed. Maybe Ian finally came to accept that his husband was gone.

However, Vincent still waited for Ian to burst into his room and demand something else of him. As the days and nights passed, that still didn’t happen. Vincent could hear Ian come home late at midnight, but he walked right to his own room. When Vincent woke up in the morning, Ian was already gone too.

Something had to be up. What if this was some sort of trick? Eventually, Vincent got tired of theorizing and decided to take advantage of the quiet time. He spent most of his time in the library, reading everything that he could. He was never alone, but he didn’t mind Josh’s company.

Josh stood off to the side quietly, watching over Vincent. He only spoke when Vincent talked to him first, but he held a conversation well. Eventually, Vincent got him to loosen up a little, and they discussed a few books and current events. Josh was helpful in answering Vincent’s questions about history and the state of today.

As nice as their conversations were, Vincent still found himself feeling a bit lonely, nearly empty. His thoughts constantly shifted to Ian, wondering what he was doing and what was going on with him. At times, he would imagine Ian’s firm touch or his deep voice. Shudders followed, and then guilt struck him. He shouldn’t miss Ian. So, why did he?

Something had to be wrong with him. His brain was messed up or poisoned from being here. That had to be the explanation for why so much sin tested him. He tried to remain strong, but temptation was so strong, especially around Ian, who was like the definition of sin.

“I believe it’s time for dinner,” Josh spoke up, snapping Vincent out of his thoughts as he lounged in a leather chair in the library with a book on the Cold War.

Truthfully, Vincent hadn’t been too invested in reading today. He couldn’t get Ian off his mind, wondering if they were even going to have a full conversation anytime soon. How did Ian go from putting his hands all over Vincent to nearly ignoring him?

“Already?” Vincent asked, looking over at Josh, who sat in another chair closer to the door of the library. He didn’t realize how much time had already passed.

Josh nodded as he rose to his feet.

“Lost in your book again?” he asked with a small smile.

Vincent grinned sheepishly. That wasn’t the case, but he wasn’t going to tell Josh what was actually on his mind.

“Something like that,” he replied before closing the book and standing up. He stretched his arms over his head. It was nice having a younger body. He didn’t ache as much as he used to, even if he wasn’t even that old. Any amount of time was taxing on the body. This entire experience, even if his body was younger, was taxing on his mind. “Is Ian home yet?”

“Not yet. He might be late again tonight,” Josh said as he led Vincent out of the library and toward the dining room.

Vincent withheld a sigh. Was it always going to be like this? Maybe the space was good for him. The more distance was between them, the easier it would be for Vincent to move away from his sinful thoughts. Time with God was what he needed the most, not time with Ian.

“Do you ever not work?” Vincent asked. It felt like he saw Josh all the time.

“Of course, but Mr. Barabossa trusts me to keep you safe, so I try to be here as much as I can,” Josh explained.

Vincent could appreciate Josh looking over him, but he really didn’t need to be watched over all the time. What trouble could he possibly get in here at the villa? All he did was eat, sleep, and read. There were too many guards around for him to sneak out or for anyone dangerous to sneak in.

However, he knew that De Leon stressed Ian out. Deep down, Vincent was a bit nervous about this De Leon guy storming in here and finishing the job. He didn’t want to die. It wasn’t that he was afraid of dying, but he wanted to atone for his sins before he met God. He feared that heaven wouldn’t welcome him after all that he had done and thought.

“Smells delicious,” Vincent said as he walked up to the dining table, seeing his plate already made full of roast and potatoes. At least he was fed well here. Not every single detail of this life was terrible, but this entire situation as a whole was bad and sinfully tempting.

Josh nodded, watching Vincent take a seat at the dining table. He stood a few feet away, adopting his usual guard stance with his hands joined behind his back.

Vincent glanced back at him, giving him a pointed look.

“Sit down. Please,” he said. He didn’t want Josh to just stand there and watch him eat. He deserved to rest for at least a little bit. Even if Vincent didn’t like having so much authority over others, he would use it for their good if need be.

Josh looked conflicted by the request, but he obliged and sat next to Vincent.

“Have you eaten at all today?” Vincent asked him. There were only brief moments when he and Josh were apart during the day. He doubted that Josh could fit in a decent lunch in those brief moments.

“I had a small lunch. I’m fine, sir,” Josh assured him.

“Don’t call me that,” Vincent sighed. He had told Josh that multiple times, but he felt like Josh believed that he needed to call Vincent that out of respect or to avoid getting in trouble by Ian. He waved over a servant that stood at the door of the kitchen. “Can you fix him a plate please?”

“That really isn’t necessary,” Josh tried to say, but Vincent shook his head to silence him.

“You can watch me while you eat,” Vincent replied, smiling a little. It really wasn’t a big deal. He liked Josh, and he wouldn’t mind talking to him over dinner so that he wasn’t so alone.

Josh finally gave in and relaxed, giving Vincent a grateful look. They ate together, talking and laughing as Josh shared some of his craziest security stories. He had dealt with so many crazy people over the years.

“You’re so brave. I couldn’t imagine doing your job,” Vincent chuckled as he shook his head. If anyone came at him with a knife while naked, he would’ve probably fainted.

“You could stand to beef up a little, if you’re determined. You can do anything you put your mind to,” Josh replied as he patted Vincent on the back in a friendly manner.

Right as his hand touched Vincent’s back, Ian stepped into the dining room quietly. His presence was still loud, like he filled the entire room. All conversation stopped as all eyes in the room shot over to him.

Josh quickly took his hand away, clearing his throat and starting to rise from his seat.

Ian put his hand up, stopping his movements.

“Sit,” he replied before moving to sit across from Vincent, who he subtly nodded to. When his plate was placed in front of him by one of the servants, he started to eat, not saying another word.

Vincent glanced over at Josh with a confused, surprised look and then to Ian.

“You’re home early,” Vincent said to Ian, his voice coming out quietly. He didn’t know what was going on, but things felt off and tense. They weren’t tense in the usual way, like when he felt heat and electricity between his body and Ian’s. It felt like Ian was upset, but he wasn’t voicing that.

Honestly, Vincent felt like he had just been caught doing something that he wasn’t supposed to be doing, like a lover caught in bed with someone else. His heart started to race, battling between anxiety and the fact that Ian was actually eating dinner with him finally.

“Yes. I see that I surprised you,” Ian said simply, his eyes flickering over to Josh, who kept his head down. He then looked back at Vincent, his jaw tightening slightly. “I didn’t mean to interrupt your conversation. Feel free to carry on.”

Vincent narrowed his eyes slightly. It almost seemed like Ian was jealous, but why? Vincent didn’t feel any sort of energy between him and Josh. They were just friends. Obviously, things between him and Ian were more complicated, but he suspected that was because he was in the body of a gay man. Perhaps, Eton’s thoughts were tainting his mind.

“It’s fine. I just haven’t seen you in a while,” Vincent replied, feeling his face warm up when Ian’s eyes met his. His chest tightened, like the air had been stolen from his lungs. He wished that his body didn’t react like this, but Ian had a hold on him that he couldn’t explain or control.

“Busy. It seems like you’ve been busy too,” Ian replied, weight in his words. He was saying words, but they weren’t his actual thoughts.

“I’ve just been reading,” Vincent said, noting that a lot of the tension was directed at Josh. He didn’t want Josh to get in trouble for eating with him or anything. He was still doing his job. When Ian didn’t reply, he went back to eating, dinner turning awkward and quiet. No one met each other’s eyes.

It was a relief when Vincent finally went back to his room to go to sleep. He didn’t know if tomorrow was going to be more of the same or not, but there was a shift in the air tonight. He would have to wait until the sun rose to see if things changed.

***

Vincent woke up late the next morning. He spent too many hours last night tossing and turning, wondering what was going on with Ian. He thought the distance would be a blessing, but it felt more like a curse at this point. His mind was indeed messed up. He just hoped that he could fix it.

He pulled on his clothes for the day, always choosing Eton’s more modest pieces of attire. He chose a grey v-neck and a pair of black jeans. The clothes were a bit too tight for his taste, but he was starting to get used to the fitted attire. He ran a hand through his hair before opening the door, parting his lips to greet Josh only to shut them when he saw a new guard by his door.

“Where’s Josh?” he asked. Josh was always by his door in the morning when he woke up. He walked Vincent to breakfast too.

The new guard, a burly, stocky man with thick, dark eyebrows and a beard, turned to Vincent. He didn’t even offer a smile.

“He’s on leave for a few days,” he merely said before turning back around.

Vincent blinked in surprise, not expecting to hear that. He felt like Josh would’ve told him if he planned to be gone for more than a day. However, after last night turned out, he suspected that something else was going on. Ian had to have something to do with this. Was he actually jealous and made Josh stay away from him?

For an intimidating, dangerous man, Ian sure did give into his emotions a lot. It constantly surprised Vincent how easily Ian buckled to Eton, like he was Ian’s true weak spot. No wonder Ian was on a hunt for De Leon’s head. De Leon was the only one who had struck his weak spot.

“Well, I’m going to take a walk around the grounds after breakfast,” Vincent told the new guard. Josh always let him take a walk outside after breakfast to enjoy the morning’s fresh air and chirping birds.

“That’s not happening,” the guard said as he turned his head to look at Vincent with a hard stare. “Boss said not to let you wander too much without his permission.”

Vincent’s jaw dropped. He had been allowed to wander as long as Josh was with him. Now that Josh was gone, he had more of his allowances stripped away? It wasn’t fair! He was tired of Ian throwing a fit and being so controlling.

“I want to take a walk. Ian was fine with that until last night,” Vincent said firmly. He refused to be locked up in this villa again. He could at least be allowed to walk outside and get some fresh air.

The guard stared at Vincent for a few moments before huffing.

“I can call him and ask,” he said.

Vincent shook his head, wanting to talk to Ian himself about this. They needed to sit down and actually have a conversation. He was tired of this weird silent treatment that he had been dealing with lately. He used to know what was going on because Ian didn’t hold back his thoughts and feelings around him. Now, he could hardly get a word out of Ian if he even managed to see him.

Not only was he going to get to the bottom of what was on Ian’s mind, but he was also going to request that Josh guard him again. He didn’t like these other guards, who were cold and boring. All they did was make him uneasy, and they hardly even spoke to him. He only felt comfortable with Josh.

“Don’t bother,” Vincent muttered before walking away from the bedroom and to the dining room. He could hear the guard’s heavy steps trailing him, making him even more agitated. What felt like paradise in prison just felt like prison again. No Josh. No outside time. No Ian.

Everything was being taken away from Vincent, and he was nervous at the thought of Ian losing what remaining sense of care and kindness that he had for him. What if now that Ian saw him as Vincent he wasn’t going to show him mercy anymore? What if things were about to get a lot worse for him?

Vincent feared that he might’ve made a big mistake pushing Ian to accept him as Vincent rather than his husband. He had seen Ian when he was cruel and unforgiving, and he was well aware that Eton was the only person who Ian truly cared about. The future was dark and ominous, but there was no going back now.