Once the staff came in to clean up the morning spread, Kirian finally stood up and walked back towards his bedroom.

The room was once again spotless, a fact that scraped at his already precarious mental state. He sat in front of the vanity and tried to fix up his appearance. He toyed half-heartedly with his hair while thinking back on his disastrous morning.

Sebastian saw him during a bad nightmare, and directly after. Sebastian felt bad for him. Sebastian saw him vulnerable.

Kirian took a deep breath and tried to calm himself. He needed to think about this logically.

It was objectively terrible. He could not be seen as weak and unsure in front of Sebastian. How was he supposed to be trusted as a cold-blooded killer now? Kirian had to find a way to rebuild his reputation in front of the man.

Cruel and clever. He was going to have to lay it on thick now.

It wasn’t a lie. Kirian was both of those things at his core. Killing and antogonizing were the only things that made him feel like himself. It was those jarring mornings and moments of panic that made him into a different man. A weaker man.

He couldn’t have Mr. Radashawn believing that he had seen the ‘true’ Kirian today, because it wasn’t the true him. It wasn’t.

Kirian stood resolute. First, he pushed the rolling chair against the door. It wasn’t much, but would hopefully wake him up if someone tried to enter his room.

Next came a long shower, and his usual morning routine. He brushed his teeth, washed his face with the soap provided, and fixed his hair into an artfully disheveled masterpiece.

Then, and only then, did he open up the file.

It was thick, and it took almost an hour for Kirian to make his first pass. The first page informed him that the mission was in fact tonight and that he wouldn’t be alone.

—------------------------------

When Sebastian walked into his room that evening, Kirian was ready.

“What a gentleman, escorting me to the dance!” Kirian cooed.

Sebastian was looking the the smaller man a bit too long. Perfect,

Kirian walked over to Sebastian slowly. He reached up and fiddled with the man’s collar in mock concern. “Are you really going to wear that? Have you ever been to a party?”

Sebastian’s voice was slightly strained but he face remained stoic as he responded, “There’s nothing wrong with what I’m wearing.”

Sebastian was wearing a black polo and tailored black dress pants. He did look good, but he would stick out like a sore thumb.

“Ask old man Tobias to find you a regular black t-shirt and some jeans. We have time, “ Kirian said.

“We were supposed to go over the plan again, “ the taller man responded, stepping back from Kirian slightly.

“We can do it in the car. Trust me, the mission will be compromised if they think a big, dumb fed is there, “ Kirian replied casually.

His grip on Sebastian’s collar was firm and his eyes staring up at the rigid man through thick eyelashes. “You don’t trust me?”

Sebastian stepped back fully before turning on his heel and storming out. “Be ready in 15, “ he threw over his shoulder.

Kirian snickered to himself. So far, things were going well.

He gave himself another once over in the mirror. He had had to do some tweaking, but his outfit had come together nicely.

He had decided to rewear his favorite baggy jeans (now clean of any blood) but had cut down the sides slightly. They now hung dangerously low on his hips, well past where the waistband of his underwear should have been. He had used the knife again to cut the shirt he had been given for tonight, a plain white tank top, and had cut off the bottom half of the shirt and notched the collar. The outfit was quite simple, but it now looked more than a little seductive. His physique was on full display. Though he was much slimmer than Sebastian, his muscle tone was nothing to scoff at.

Kirian had requested some skincare and some basic makeup, and had received it a few hours ago.

Now, his skin was dewy and his eyes were rimmed with kohl. A faint glittery sheen coated his bare arms and shoulders, and trailed down his exposed abs and V-lines.

He had been to enough douche-bag parties to know the dress code, and the effect it had on Sebastian was a welcome plus.

He winked at himself in the mirror, and ruffled his hair once more before opening the file once more.

He was scanning the blueprint when Sebastian walked back in, looking much more casual. A gold chain now sat around his neck.

“Sarah pick that out?” Kirian asked.

“She’s still at work," Sebastian replied firmly, "We need to go." Though, in his new outfit, his commanding presence was less… formal.

When they reached the car, Kirian was surprised to see the taller man get into the driver’s seat.

“No chauffeur?”

“We can’t risk him getting caught loitering in the target’s lawn. Get in the front, “ Sebastian responded without looking at Kirian.

Kirian stepped in asking, “This one’s personal, right?”

Sebastian gave him a sidelong glance while peeling out of the garage. “What makes you think that?” he shot back.

“There’s only one target and your coming in yourself this time. Seems personal, “ Kirian replied.

“Need to know. I just need to make sure it hurts,” Sebastian said. His jaw was clenched tight.

“I knew you had a little bloodlust! I like you a little better now,” Kirian laughed, turning his torso to face the other man fully.

Sebastian didn’t reply.

“Oh come on! I’m going to be taking a precious human life, “ Kirian continued melodramatically, “I would feel more comfortable if I knew what this man did to deserve such a dark and final fate!”

Sebastian looked at him again. This time, his eyes flashed with concern. “If you’re not ok to do this today, we can try again another day. The piece of shit has a party a week.”

Bitter rage swelled in the back of Kirian’s mind, but he pushed it aside. This is exactly what he didn’t want to happen.

Thankfully, he had planned for this. He rested a hand gently on the driving man’s shoulder and leaned in close. “Do you care about me, Sebby?” he breathed.

Sebastian looked away, his grip on the wheel was tight and his tone was angry as he responded, “What did I say about that stupid name?”

Kirian leaned back and laughed uncontrollably. Clutching his stomach and making a show of it. He wiped at a kohl lined eye and sighed. “Yeah, yeah. Sorry Mr. Radashawn, sir. You’re just too easy to rile up.”

He ignored the look of relief on Sebastian’s face and turned on the radio. He looked out the windows again in comfortable silence.

Skyscrapers turned into industrial buildings and soon they’d made their way into a well kept suburb. While most of the houses were quiet and dark, there was a muffled, thumping bass coming from the largest one. The driveway was full and the green lawn was littered with cars. Sebastian parked at the very edge of the lawn and they both stepped out.

“We didn’t go over the plan,” Kirian said in a low tone as they approached the house.

“I know my part and I expect you to know yours,” Sebastian said in an equally low tone.

Kirian looked at Sebastian’s perfect posture and rigid gait. “You’ve never done this before, have you?”he asked, smirking.

“I’ve never had to. I’m a recognizable person,” Sebastian said, looking around menacingly. His face was set in angry determination.

“Right, but it needs to be believable that you’re here. Like, it should look like you’ve already had a few drinks and your looking for trouble. This isn’t a dinner party, it’s a rager.” Kirian said while gesturing to himself, “Look, I’m swaying a bit and my face is relaxed.”

Kirian added a sway to his walk and almost tripped once before catching himself with Sebastian’s arm and giggled. He leaned in close.

“Now you try,” he whispered.

Sebastian looked at his feet intently, veering left and right dramatically. He looked vaguely like a broken Roomba. Kirian laughed in earnest.

“You might be a lost cause. Just let me do all the talking and," Kirian pressed his palms gently on the other man’s shoulders so they dropped a bit. It reminded him of that morning and he blinked a bit before rushedly continuing, “...and hold my waist. Then you can look like you’re sober on purpose so you can ‘take care’ of your trashed plus one.”

“I’m not one of those guys, “ Sebastian said seriously. His eyes dipped to Kirian with sincerity.

“No one’s saying you are, Prince Charming. I’m sure you’re not like the other boys, but you need to fit in somehow,” Kirian retorted, rolling his eyes.

He looked pointedly at Sebastian’s left hand. “I’m not gonna push you one way or another, but the kind of guy you’re supposed to be, doesn’t wear his wedding ring.”

Sebastian hesitated, looking at Kirian with a loaded expression before slipping the ring off and placing it in his front left pocket. Then, he snaked his right arm around Kirian’s bare waist.

“He dies tonight.” he snarled.