Rowan

Rowan should have been happy that he was finally free from investigations and revenge. Instead, he felt a lack of purpose. Matteo remained the most famous hero of his generation, and the rest of the team always seemed at ease in their masks. Rowan, on the other hand, found himself thinking more and more that he didn’t want a mask or a secret identity. One thing had been gnawing at him for weeks, ever since he had too much time to think.

“Ro?”

Matteo suddenly appeared behind him, holding his computer. They were spending time in the villain’s apartment in Goldby City because Matteo, as Citadel, had to stay on alert over the weekend in case a hero's intervention was required, so Rowan decided to stay with him.

"What?" the villain asked, not recognizing the expression on his fiancé’s face immediately. It almost looked like he wanted to talk about something important. But Rowan was sure they didn’t keep secrets from each other, so that couldn’t be it.

"Don't be mad—" the hero began, and while his face showed guilt, Rowan frowned in confusion.

"I forgot the name of the site I wanted to check, so I opened the browser history," Matteo finished, and Rowan immediately understood where this was going. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

Rowan sighed, took the computer from Matteo’s hands, and moved it to the kitchen counter so that nothing would be in the way between them.

"It wasn't anything worth mentioning," he said. However, his fiancé's expression clearly showed that he didn't accept that explanation.

"I looked it up. You’ve been checking university options for weeks,” Matteo countered. He didn't even try to hide the fact that he had gone through Rowan's computer to get more answers before confronting him.

“It’s stupid,” the villain tried to dismiss it.

“It’s not,” the hero objected immediately, stepping closer. He grabbed his fiancé by the forearms, slowly sliding his hands down to hold Rowan’s palms. The look in his blue eyes became tender, and as he leaned even closer, there was no trace of reproach on his face.

“Do you want to go back to school?”

Rowan bit the inside of his lip before daring to answer. He knew the truthful response, but he didn’t want to admit it—not to himself and certainly not to the hero.

"I've been thinking about it," he finally said.

“Have you found a university you like?” Matteo asked next.

Rowan nodded but immediately gave the reason why he didn’t want to go. "But it's not here. We wouldn't see each other as often." Although this was a deal-breaker for Rowan, the hero didn’t see it the same way.

“Rowan.” From the tone he used, the villain could already guess what was coming. "I'm here, and I'm not going anywhere. Signing up for school doesn’t mean we won’t see each other or have time together. We both work now, and it still works.”

Now, though, Rowan could work from home, as he always did when the hero was at Legion or saving someone. He had adapted his schedule to match Matteo's so that he could spend every free second with him.

“I think you should do it.” He hadn’t expected such a direct response from the hero.

"But—" he began to protest but didn't get the chance as the blond quickly silenced him the best he could.

When their lips parted again, Matteo had another argument ready. “You completed your diploma. Nothing’s stopping you from continuing your studies. The only problem is that you might struggle to find an IT class where anyone knows more than you.” The hero gave him an amused smile.

He wasn’t lying when he said he had thoroughly checked the villain’s browsing history. That’s exactly how he knew all the programs Rowan had been looking at were IT-related. Although Rowan was quite skilled at hacking and illegal activities, he believed there was still plenty he could learn. Naturally, school was the first method of learning that came to mind, and so Rowan found himself caught up in a whirlwind of university searches and program listings. It was silly.

“Which one did you like the most?”

“Krasport,” the villain replied truthfully. The harbor city wasn't far, less than two hours from Goldby City, but it still wasn't a distance he was willing to travel if it meant less time with his fiancé. Besides, Krasport was further from his home, so he wouldn't see Casey and the rest of the team as often either.

Matteo made a sound of agreement. “That’s a good school.”

Rowan wanted to protest that Matteo couldn’t possibly know that, but the blond didn't give him the chance again. “I was in Krasport when I was still at the academy. Their branch is quite similar to ours. They showed us the city. It would be nice to have a reason to visit it.”

A smile played on the hero's lips, but Rowan didn't find the effort to return it. “It’s two hours from here.”

“And you have an uncle who can teleport any of us there in a second, your point?” The blonde superhero raised an eyebrow.

Rowan sighed. “I don’t want to go back to school,” he repeated. “I was just looking at them. It was stupid.” Seeing the hero draw a breath to protest again, he added: “I just have more free time now than I expected. Nothing more.”

“Okay.” Surprisingly, Matteo gave up the fight, and Rowan immediately narrowed his eyes in suspicion. He didn’t believe it would be this easy. However, the hero gave him a soft smile and pressed another gentle kiss to his lips. “I wanted to go take a shower. Wanna join?”

Naturally, the villain did not refuse.

…

Rowan thought the university topic was closed, but a few days later, when he reopened the Krasport University website, he cursed himself under his breath. He had already told Matteo that wasn't his plan, so he didn't know why he returned to it.

The colorful website, full of smiling students and offers not only for applicants but also for existing students, drew attention to itself from his computer, tempting him to join them. As if it were doing it on purpose.

In the end, angry at himself, Rowan turned off the computer and walked away from the desk, heading to the gym to clear his head and forget the nonsense.

…

“Do you have time next week?”

The hero appeared in the bedroom doorway, and judging by the fact that he was only in a towel barely clinging to his hips and was rubbing his wet blonde hair with the other, he had just stepped out of the shower. Rowan could barely focus on the fact that he was speaking to him, having such a tempting sight before him.

“Hmmm?” he replied vaguely, forgetting what his fiancé had asked, as the only thing he was focused on was how long the weak knot of his towel would hold up.

Matteo's laugh forced him to look up for a moment, as it was his favorite sound right after his moans.

“I was asking if you have time next week,” he informed him.

“I always have time for you,” Rowan assured him.

“I need to handle some things at the branch in Krasport. I'll have to stay overnight there, so I thought you could come with me. You know, so I don't have to go alone.” The hero's tone was casual, as if there wasn't a secret message hidden behind his words, which the villain immediately caught.

“Matteo—” he began, but didn't finish his protest, as the hero suddenly moved his hand to his waist and accidentally—it was definitely on purpose—brushed his fingers against the fold of the towel, which fell to the floor.

“Oops.”

Rowan had long forgotten what he wanted to say and instead stood up, moving toward the hero as if he were his prey. Although he tried respectfully to keep his gaze on his face, his hands did not have that much decency and automatically aimed below his waist.

“You didn’t answer my question,” the blonde pointed out, while Rowan was too busy squeezing his naked ass. “Will you come?”

“Huh?” The villain wasn't fully paying attention, but it wasn't important right now. He needed to shift Matteo’s attention where it was more needed as soon as possible, and so he automatically blurted out, “Yes, of course.”

Immediately after, the hero's lips landed on his neck, while his hands took on the task of fixing the clothing imbalance between them, and Rowan got what he wanted. At least he thought so.