Lullaby found Hyde on the porch outside in the sun, drinking something out of a mug while he leaned on the low fence. He must miss the sun from his home or something. Rune and the girls were inside together.

Now that she knew how serious Rune’s feelings for him were, she wanted to be sure he was worthy of them.

She joined him on the porch, leaning against the wall a small distance away. “Can I ask you something?”

Hyde swallowed his sip of whatever was in his mug—judging by the brown left on his lip and in his moustache, hot chocolate—and said, “Sure.” He licked the remnants off his lip.

“Why did you let Rune stick around? You barely knew him, all you knew him as was a thief. Why did you help him? Why did you let him stay in your house?”

Hyde chuckled. “Rune asked me exactly the same thing. When I was questioning him, he told me about his family and that the gang he worked for threatened him and everyone he cared about. Later, he told me he hadn’t seen his family in five years; I related to that a lot. And I felt bad for him. Not that I pitied him, but I saw he needed help, and I could help him.” He stared off into the small yard and took a small sip. “And I like having him around. He livens up the space, you know?”

Lullaby snickered. “Yeah, he does.”

Hyde seemed like a genuinely sweet and compassionate guy who had Rune’s best interest at heart, Lullaby concluded. She only wanted Rune to have someone who cared for him and would make him happy. She wondered if he liked men. He probably did. She wasn’t sure why she assumed that, Hyde wasn’t stereotypically gay at all. Perhaps it was the vibe he gave off when he was around Rune.

“Rune hasn’t told me about this in detail before,” Hyde began. “How rough did he have it at the orphanage?”

Lullaby sighed. “Pretty rough. He was quite aggressive and prone to fights in his teens, because of all the anger and hurt he went through.”

Hyde frowned and drank his hot chocolate again.

“It didn’t help that some older kids liked to pick on the girls, he constantly fought the bullies off. Moon and Night would often threaten the bullies with their brother, like ‘If you don’t stop, our big brother will kick your ass!’ ” 

Hyde snorted into his mug.

“The bullies, of course, expected a boy about their age, not a teen years older than them, with a lot of hormones and pent up anger to take out.”

“I hadn’t expected him to be so violent in his teens. Not that he’s an angel now, he can still throw a punch, but he’s usually a chill guy.”

Lullaby shrugged. “He processed his grief and grew up.”

Hyde hummed. He glanced at the door into the house, then glanced back at her and said, “Your name is quite odd—sorry if that’s rude,” he quickly added. “Where did it come from?”

Lullaby smiled a little. “I was left at the orphanage as a nameless baby. The only way the caregivers could calm me down was by singing me a lullaby. So, that’s what they named me.”

“Oh, that’s so sweet.”

“Do you know where your name comes from?”

“I think my dad just liked the sound of it. And my parents liked for both their kids to have a y in their name.” 

He frowned off into space. 

Lullaby wondered what his relationship with his parents was like, but it seemed like a topic too sensitive for her to ask about. She was sure Rune knew the answer.

Rune sat in bed in the late evening, with Hyde beside him. They both wore their pyjamas and had their legs under the covers. Hyde had his legs flat, Rune with his knees up.

“How was your family day?” Hyde asked.

“Nice. Night isn’t mad at me anymore, so it finally wasn’t tense. It was great to just hang out and have fun, like we used to.”

Hyde smiled, but there seemed to be a bit of sadness to it. “Sounds great.”

“What did you do all day by yourself?”

“I doodled in my notebook and let my thoughts wander.”

“About what?”

“I don’t remember.”

Rune laughed a bit. “Sounds productive.”

They were quiet. Rune thought about snuggling up to him; about kissing him, even if it was only a brief peck on the cheek. He shook the thought out of his head. He didn’t know how Hyde felt.

“I had a conversation with Lullaby,” Hyde spoke up. “I asked what things were like at the orphanage.”

“Oh.” Rune didn’t like to think back to those times. He wasn’t proud of who he was back then.

“She told me you were quite aggressive and prone to fights.”

Rune sighed. “Yeah, I was a menace in my teens.” He hugged his knees. “I didn’t know how to cope.”

Hyde paused for a moment before he softly asked, “Didn’t you want me to know?”

“I—I don’t want you to see me that way. Like a violent prick that lashes out for no reason.”

“I don’t.” Hyde put a hand on Rune’s arm. “You don’t do that, not anymore. You lost your parents, you were protecting your sisters, it makes sense you lashed out. And besides, no adult is the same person they were in their teens.”

Rune smiled at him a little. “What were you like in your teens?” He let his knees go and leaned back. 

Hyde took his hand off his arm, then sat turned towards him. “I was always quite a lone wolf—no pun intended.”

Rune snickered.

“I never put a lot of effort into friendships, but I wasn’t afraid to stand my ground. If I wanted to socialise, I’d go to my family. Mostly my dad. I never felt the need to connect with my peers.”

Rune raised a brow. He was his peer, right? “Until now?”

“Well.” Hyde pushed their shoulders together with a little grin. “Unless they’re worth the effort.”

Some blood rushed to Rune’s cheeks, he glanced away with a shy smile. “I’m glad I’m worthy.”

Hyde chuckled. “That makes me sound like such an ass. Don’t talk to me unless you’re worthy, peasant.”

“No, it’s okay to be picky about who you socialise with. Especially if you have limited social energy.”

Hyde stared at him, then smiled with his own small blush. He pushed his face into the crook of Rune’s neck. Rune flinched at the sudden touch, his face heated up more. 

Hyde was tense, but then relaxed; like he’d surprised himself with that move too, but decided to roll with it.

Rune released the tension in his muscles and laid his cheek against Hyde’s head. The message was clear to him.

You get me.

Rune packed some cans of blood into his backpack by the fridge. Hyde was taking a shower before they went on their long trip again.

Moon stood at the counter, a frown on her face. “Do you really have to go?”

Rune sighed with a sad smile. “Yeah. But I’ll be back soon.”

“What’s so important that you have to leave again, before Grandpa comes home?”

“Hyde helped me build up the courage to come home, I want to return the favour now. He’s been away from his family for longer than I have. I don’t want to give him the opportunity to run away again.”

“Okay…”

Rune ruffled her hair, then pressed a kiss to her forehead.

After his shower, Hyde waited at the door with Rune’s coat on. Rune had an arm around both his sisters, also wearing his coat. Lullaby stood next to them.

“I won’t be away for long,” Rune promised. “I’ll send a letter when we get there, okay?”

“Okay,” Moon repeated. She let Rune go and turned to Hyde. “You.” 

Hyde perked up in surprise. 

“Take care of my brother.”

“I’ll do my best,” he answered.

Rune chuckled. He looked down at Night clinging to his chest, hesitant to let go. He hugged her tight with both of his arms. “I’ll be back soon,” he whispered to her. 

Night nodded and took a deep breath. She stepped away. “You should go, you’ll miss your train.”

Rune smiled sadly. “Yeah.” 

Lullaby put her arms around his neck and hugged him. She whispered something in his ear, causing Rune to gain a slight red tint on his cheeks. Hyde couldn’t hear what she had said, but he felt an unpleasant tingle in his gut. They let each other go and Rune looked to the side at Hyde by the door. 

Hyde shrugged. “Ready when you are.”

Rune sighed and stepped towards the door, he pulled it open. They both stepped outside. Rune waved back at them one final time.