Matteo

Despite the fact that it was all over, after Citadel and the rest of the team appeared before the Legion leadership — even Shield, who protested at first and insisted that he wouldn't take any risks — the hero decided not to return to his assigned apartment. Instead, just a day later, after spending the night at Rowan’s, he chose to return to the house. The villain was, of course, by his side the entire time and took over piloting.

The rest of the team wasn’t eager to split up so quickly, either. Drew was the first to head back home. He promised he would stay in touch but firmly warned them not to call him for any more heroic missions, even if it was a matter of life and death. However, he kept the suit, so Matteo had no doubt he was ready to help again if necessary.

They finally had a moment of peace, but, as expected, they didn't know what to do with it. Over the past few months, they had grown accustomed to being constantly on alert, so this calm felt anticlimactic. They ate some food, took a few naps, and then gathered in the training room since they couldn't sit still for long.

Their team still had a few gaps, especially when it came to combining their abilities, and now they had more than enough time to train. Several members of the team were also facing the question of whether they would continue this work after achieving their goal since it was the only case to which they had made a commitment. However, that conversation kept being postponed, and no one wanted to start it. For now, they simply enjoyed each other’s company.

The next few days were also the perfect time to introduce Casey to modern technology. Ciara showed him how to use a tablet, reasoning that even toddlers could easily learn to use one and considering it the best place to start. Casey spent his days watching videos and playing games. He was practically turning into an iPad kid. Matteo noticed how Rowan always looked at him with amusement whenever his uncle was absorbed in the tablet, so he didn't see it as a bad thing. After all, after so many lost years, no one could blame him.

They were all adjusting to their new reality, and Matteo was always there for his boyfriend—correction, fiancé—whenever he started to feel guilty and needed reassurance that he was still a good person despite what he had done to Theresa. The blond hero always assured him that he had done the right thing, bringing justice not only for himself, but also for everyone the traitor had hurt. He never hesitated to use the plural, showing Rowan that even though he never had her blood on his hands directly, he considered the matter settled. If they went down, they would go down together.

Max and Casey eventually learned what had happened at the post office that day. Well, first, Matteo told them the official version, but it was immediately clear that neither of them believed him. So the blonde told them that they had done what was necessary, and they had nothing to worry about since Drew had taken care of all the evidence. Plus, one knife that ended up buried near the house was something the hero had also handled, just in case. Everything was fine.

The Legion approved their request for time off. After all, the members of the team who officially worked for the organization hadn’t had time off in as long as they could remember. Meanwhile, those who didn’t officially work for them could take time off whenever they wanted. Sawyer and Kaitlyn did just that, and nobody questioned it. Everyone was simply happy to be together and certain that they were safe, even though they had neutralized the threat and no longer had reason to worry about their loved ones' safety.

Speaking of loved ones, Matteo hadn’t realized how long he had been working on the case and keeping his distance from his family for safety reasons until he sat in the kitchen, freshly showered after a short training session, when his personal phone started ringing.

It was a miracle he even had it with him after the last few weeks, during which it had been safely tucked away in the drawer of Rowan’s bedside table.

“Hello?”

His tone sounded slightly confused, even though the screen clearly showed that Jonas was the one calling him.

Instead of greeting him, his older brother said, “I know I’m not supposed to call you, but after all the crazy things I’ve seen on TV, I had to try.”

The blond hero flinched guiltily. He had had several days to let his family know he was alive and well, but he had somehow forgotten. He was surprised that only Jonas had called, and not his parents. Although they knew that when he was on a mission, they were not allowed to contact him first.

"I'm sorry," Matteo said right away. “I planned to call, but the last few days were hectic, and I focused on recovering.” As soon as he gave that explanation, his brother seemed to understand that he could freely bother his younger brother, and quickly switched the call to video.

“Is that your apartment in Legion?” Jonas asked, his tone skeptical, already suspecting the answer.

“No,” the hero answered simply, panicking as he tried to think of what to say next.

"So where are you?" came the question he had been expecting.

It was the perfect opportunity to tell his brother about Rowan, but he didn't know how to start the conversation. After all, he had never told his brother that they used to hook up or that he had had feelings for him long before the villain revealed that he felt the same way, leaving the hero feeling pathetic.

Before he could open his mouth to answer, he heard a short laugh behind him. He didn’t need to turn around to know whose it was.

Ciara stepped closer, standing behind the blond so she would be visible on screen. “Hi, Jonas.”

"Hi, Ciara," he greeted her back. “Are you all together?”

"Yep." The redheaded heroine nodded. "We're resting and celebrating, you know, for several reasons." 

He did not know.

“So…” Matteo spoke up before Ciara could again, seeing his brother furrow his brows in confusion on the other end of the call. "I have news." In the small preview window on the screen behind him, he could see the heroine’s smile widen.

“Good news?” Jonas asked, immediately answering himself, "Probably, if there's a reason to celebrate."

The blonde, who had been holding the phone with both hands until now, moved his left hand closer to himself and rested it on the table, giving his brother a clear view of what he planned to show him: A big, shiny ring.

“I got engaged,” he said, getting straight to the point.

"You what?" Saying Jonas was shocked would have been an understatement. He looked like he had seen a ghost.

"It happened just a few days ago," Matteo said in his own defense, although he knew it was a weak argument.

"I didn't even know you were dating someone," his brother countered. These were exactly the words the hero had expected. But he did not yet have a good answer prepared. Meanwhile, Ciara had already stepped away during his moment of panic. Now, she was smiling at his suffering from a distance with no intention of rescuing him.

"It's complicated?" he said, though it sounded more like a question than a statement. “It just...felt right.”

"You're telling me you got engaged to someone you never introduced to us or even mentioned? You...who always plans and thinks things through ahead of time. With ten supporting arguments." Jonas still sounded disbelieving, and Matteo couldn't blame him. His brother had known him his whole life, and the description was accurate.

The hero shrugged. "I don't know what to tell you. I love him, he loves me, and we’re getting married. I'll introduce you to him before then, of course."

Jonas stared at the screen in silence for a moment, seemingly unable to find the words. Then, he surprised him with another question. “Does that mean you’re at his place now?”

For this one, at least, Matteo had an immediate answer. "Yeah."

“Wait, wait, wait.” As it turned out, Ciara wasn’t the only one who quickly joined the conversation, eager not to miss any of the juicy details. “Did I hear that right? You’re getting married?” The first thing the hero heard was Mary’s voice, and then his sister-in-law appeared on the screen as well.

“Hi, Mary,” he greeted her before answering any of her questions.

"No, no, no greetings. I want all the details first.” She immediately saw what he was trying to do and cut him off. “How long have you two been together?”

"A difficult question,” the hero said. "Technically, a year?" His answer sounded more like a question. "It's complicated."

"You kept a relationship from us for a whole year?" Jonas asked, his tone clearly reproachful. After all, Matteo always tried to keep his family informed. He knew they worried about him because of his career choice, so he did everything he could to ensure they wouldn't have to fear for his safety.

"I didn't hide it," said the blonde. "I just didn't talk about it. For different reasons at different times.” At first, it was pathetic; later, it was information that definitely shouldn’t reach the public. Even though Revendel, as the public had named them, had plenty of fans.

“Is it someone from your work?” Mary clearly understood where he was going, and her disappointment slowly shifted into excitement.

Deciding it would be easiest to rip the band-aid off right away, Matteo revealed, "It's Revenger."

The squeal that came from the other end of the call nearly deafened him. Mary and Jonas reacted differently. While the hero’s brother looked concerned, his sister-in-law was the complete opposite.

"Oh my God! I didn’t want to say anything because I didn’t want you to feel uncomfortable, but I always shipped you two,” the brunette admitted. "We even talked about it in the book club."

“You did what?” Matteo dared to ask since his brother still hadn’t said a word and didn’t seem like he would anytime soon.

"We had a theory," Mary began. "Before he joined your team, he was a villain, right? He had to intimidate people with his appearance. My friends and I thought he chose that mask because his real face wouldn't help his image. If he were ugly or scarred, he wouldn’t need to hide his entire face. We were sure he was hot."

Then, of course, came the question. "Is he?"

Matteo didn’t answer right away, and his brief silence prompted someone else to join the conversation.

"Am I?"

Rowan's ability to sneak up on people caught the hero off guard once again.

The villain leaned his shoulder against the kitchen doorway, arms crossed, a playful smile on his face. It wasn’t clear how long he had been standing there, but his expression suggested it was long enough to satisfy his ego.

Their eyes met, and the blonde man made it clear with his look that he was not amused. He definitely didn’t plan to answer that question in his presence, even though they both already knew the answer.

“He’s there?” Mary immediately understood what was happening, and when the hero turned back to the screen, he saw that his brother had sharpened his focus as well, as if expecting the villain to appear on camera at any moment.

"It's his house. Of course he's here," the blond answered. He knew only one thing could follow his words. But, to his surprise, he was saved from an unexpected introduction by a call he attributed to fate.

"Dad is calling me," Jonas suddenly announced. "I'll call you later." Without waiting, he hung up, leaving the hero hoping his brother wouldn’t tell their parents the news before he could.

"I'm still waiting for an answer," the villain said, sounding even more amused. This time, Matteo didn't have to turn around because Rowan came closer, placed his hands on Matteo's shoulders, leaned down, and wrapped his arms around him.

"You're annoying," the hero assured him, though he didn't mean it.

"Annoyingly hot," the villain corrected him immediately, making the blond roll his eyes.