something warm
by Helen

The kid was warm, Joey knew that. And he had oddly adult hands, chapped knuckles, nimble fingers. He was taller than he looked, because he tended to hunch his shoulders, probably a habit from hunching over the computer console. He knew shit about electronics that even JC didn't know, and could fuck up the safeguards on a facility better than anyone they'd ever had before, and Joey got used to his voice in his ear, through his headset, muttering "Hold on, I almost got it," and reading him security codes, got used to his warm body against his at night. He only ever relaxed in sleep, burrowing into Joey's side, sighing contentedly when Joey hitched him up against his chest, and it had seemed like a pain at first, because Justin was a lot bigger than he looked, and he took up a fair amount of room, tangled his bony legs in Joey's, elbowed him when he had nightmares, but soon enough Joey liked it, liked having something warm in his bed, liked how Justin looked at him when he walked into the canteen, and he didn't fool himself that it was anything but Justin being grateful, maybe a little hero worship, but it was good enough. The next time they trashed a security outpost, he found himself picking up several slim interesting looking pieces of electronics and sliding them into his bag.

"Those for the kid," Chris said.

"yeah."

"He's that good, huh?"

"As good as Josh, maybe," Joey said, and watched the grin drop off Chris' face.

"Don't—"

"Then shut the fuck up," Joey said.