In collaboration with the wonderful, truly amazing Maonethedwarf, we'd like to kick off the start of The Gang AU, in which everyone is a fucking badass. Enjoy our drabble that turned into something unexpected.

It all started with an encrypted message, a question, Vanoss was looking for help in a bank robbery. He needed a point man, someone that knew what he was doing, someone who wouldn't sweat under pressure. Delirious was not the person he expected, dressed in armor covered in a sky blue jacket, a hockey mask covering his face. He almost didn't take him seriously but when he caught sight of those piercing blue eyes and how they screamed something dark, Evan was sold. The job went down without a hitch and Evan asked him to stick around once they had split the cut and the man pushed his mask back, revealing another mask, one made of clown paint and he smiled crookedly, "Absolutely, Boss."

They reached this serious bond between each other to the point that Delirious was furiously defensive of Evan and his position as the leader of their gang, even though Evan was perfectly capable of proving his superiority to others, Delirious was always supporting his decisions and willing to put his life on the line. He's loyal to death. He's the silent type who sits to the side (Evan's side) and only speaks when spoken to and always gets shit done when it needs to be done. But in the heat of the moment, the gunfire, the killing, he comes alive with laughter. Until his boss is on the front lines and then he's doing whatever it takes to protect him.

Evan on the other hand, takes Delirious as HIS and anyone trying to take over his spot is a DEAD MAN. Evan never abandons him if shit goes down, even though that's what the other gang leaders do, they care about their own survival because they know how important they are. Evan cares about his people, they're his family and if Delirious ever tells him "Just leave me behind." "Don't worry about me, I'll be fine." "Run, I'll distract them." he never does and he never will. Delirious is his right hand and he'd be as good as dead without him. Evan's the leader of the pack, looking after his family with fierce passion. Always helping where he can and getting his right hand to do what's necessary to keep them safe. He keeps Delirious close, closer than the others. Because he's the most important of them all, he keeps the group alive, he makes the runs, he brings home the intel.

Their gang grew and they were steadily getting offers for more help, some gangs even made the decision to join them instead of fight. They wanted the same thing; peace in Los Santos. They had contacts all over the city, men on the inside, spies here and there. Eyes in every corner, but it still wasn't enough. They handled it the only way they knew how, themselves. Eventually word started to spread, even through the authorities, of the their work, of Vanoss and his right hand man. The two men that everyone saw last before they died. A man and his clown, they thought it was a joke, until they showed up on their doorstep to kill the unrighteous.

They were notorious and Delirious had never felt so alive in his life while he was by Evan's side. They knew what the other was thinking and they'd reached the point where they were communicating just by looking each other, reading each other's eyes. And it pained Delirious to know that he was going to fall face first in love with him, because he did, slowly but surely. It was the way Evan took care of him, never letting a scratch go unattended. It was the way Evan had taken wet fingers and touched his face for the first time, wiping away his secondary mask until he could see him for what he was. It was the way he had said, "You don't need to hide from me."

It got worse when Evan helped him with his addiction. The way he would hold his body down with his own as he thrashed and screamed. And as much as he grew to love him, he never showed it.

As much as Delirious loved Evan, he still kept his distance. He knew it probably wasn't the best image for someone like Evan, someone who had a strong reputation to keep. He didn't need distractions or weaknesses. So when everyone was finally going to sleep at the end of a rough day, Delirious stayed in the room with the others while Evan walked to that one room that's reserved for the boss. He felt the stab of pain in his chest, he wanted to be with Evan so bad, but it wasn't his decision to make. Evan wass the boss and he'd decide when he wanted him. If he wanted him. So he sat there in the room, everyone falling asleep around him and he just thought, internally calming himself down.

It's okay, he's got to treat us equally, it's fair, it's how it should be. But he was still upset, he wanted to be loved and he quietly cursed himself for not being good enough for Evan. Cursed himself for not being the person that Evan deserved. He was a murderer, a clown, a shadow. He really needed to stop thinking. He couldn't afford to have these thoughts on his mind, especially when he had a job to do tomorrow.

Delirious wandered around the quiet hideout, his feet clicking against the cold wood floor and he stared out at the sun slowly making the skyline become more visible from their position on the hills of the mountain. The city was in turmoil and it was slowly wearing down on their gang as they tried to clean it up, make it right. But there was so much trash that needed cleaning up and he was doing everything he could to keep the weight off of the Evan's shoulders. More gangs were forming by the day and it was getting harder to control what they already had.

"Delirious." Evan called his name and he was already walking towards the sound like a trained pet. He stood at his open doorway and waited for further instructions. He caught his boss's eye and the man nodded to the chair beside him. So he sat, trying not to wince at the dull pain in his side. There was a bowl of steaming water sitting on his desk and he dipped a rag into it before leaning closer and wiping at the dried blood and face paint. He rubbed slow circles into his skin until it was all gone and all he could see was the fair flesh of Delirious' face.

Evan put a finger under his chin and inspected him further. "You're tired."

Delirious sighed and closed his eyes. "Just a little."

"You're a terrible liar." Evan said with his smooth steel voice and Delirious wished he would keep talking, keep soothing him with that reassuring voice of authority. He opened his eyes again and Evan grinned at him, the stress fading from his face and he looked like he did before all of this shit started.

"Go get in my bed and get some sleep." He gestured behind him and Delirious looked into the dark room and felt his heart flutter a bit. He'd never been in Evan's room. No one had.

"What about you?"

"I'll be fine. I have some more calls to make. Go." Evan said and gave him one last look before he turned back to his work. He listened until he heard Delirious shedding his clothes and crawling under his sheets.

"Goodnight, Jonathan."

"Goodnight, Evan."

"It's a fucking ambush! They knew I was coming!" Evan hears Delirious say before his comm turns into nothing but static. He ripped the piece from his ear and threw it across the room. He took a few breaths before he looked around at his men and gave them a simple nod and they knew what to do. He headed down to the armory, throwing whatever he could get his hands on into his duffle. Marcel already had the SUV ready and waiting when he heard Tyler trying to keep up with him.

"Listen, Boss. This is exactly what they want. For you to come out there. They're picking at your weak spot and you can't give in!"

Evan spun on him and put a finger to his chest, "No! Tyler, I'm going. Call Brian and you find the piece of shit who ratted him out! I'll take care of the rest."

Tyler could do nothing but watch him storm out with their best men behind him. And when he got there they were met with a shit storm of armor and guns staring back at them. The fucks were waiting and Evan could see Jonathan on his knees with a gun to his head. He felt his blood boil.

The gang leader smiled at him as they walk up to the open gates to the warehouse, "Surrender or we kill him."

Jonathan caught his eye, his paint running down his face, smeared with a mix of blood. "Vanoss, just leave me! If you surrender, everything we've done would have been for nothing!" He sucked in a breath. "I'm not worth it."

But he could tell by the look in Evan's eyes that he wasn't going to leave him behind.

Evan was looking directly at him, seriously hoping that Delirious was joking. How could he ever think that abandoning him would be an option?

A deep frown formed on his face and he hissed, "Let him go or I'll rip your next generation from it's mother's womb."

The enemy gang members looked at each other with slight concern when Evan's death stare didn't leave the man holding a gun to his man's throat. The guy was staring intently back at Evan, his eyes momentarily flashing to his captive. Evan shook his head.

"Pull that trigger and you'll be picking up your intestines with a fucking spoon."

That's the moment Delirious decided to make a move, punching his distracted captor in the stomach. The gun went off and shots rang out through the base. Evan hit the ground and rolled out of site behind a tree, the bullets whizzing past his head. his men were smart and spread out, making gaps in the enemies fire. He thought he saw a flash of blue running out of site before he ducked, but he couldn't be sure. He couldn't be sure that Delirious was still alive.

"We don't have much time before the cops come!" He yelled into the walkie attached to his vest. "Marcel! Get eyes for me!"

"Roger that!" Marcel pulled a drone from his pack and guided it into the air before he threw the tiny monitor to Evan. More bullets hit the ground around him, but all of his focus was on finding that flash of blue again. He looked through the camera and moved the drone around until he noticed some of the enemies were shooting in another direction entirely. His heart climbed to his throat and be check his gun.

He clicked his walkie again, "Lui, I need you in the air, on my location!"

"Already here, sir. Tyler sent me after you." Lui said and Evan heard the displacement of air as Lui and the chopper came into view.

"Take them out, but steer clear of the warehouse! Delirious is pinned down in there!"

"You got it, Boss." Explosions rang out and flaming metal flew past them digging into the dirt as they landed. Shouts eventually died down and what was left of the enemy got in their vehicles and ran. "You're clear!"

Evan didn't waste time and he kicked dirt up behind him when he heard a pistol firing, echoing against the metal warehouse. His lungs were burning when he rounded the corner and saw the gang leader in a fight for the gun with Delirious. Evan tossed his own gun to the floor which got the guy's attention and he turned just in time to catch Evan's blade beneath his chin where it sank into his throat. Blood spilled out over his arm and he lifted the guy before slamming him onto the cold hard ground where he took his last breath. He heard a heavy breath leave Jonathan's lips and he caught site of the blood that was gushing from his shoulder as he held it tight.

"Fuck!"

"No! I'm okay!" Delirious insisted when Evan tried to rip his clothes to get a better look. Evan was in a furious panic, Jonathan had been shot and the cops were coming. He as losing his grip on the situation.

"We need to leave, Evan!" Jonathan shouted and Evan grabbed his face, the blood on his hands smearing across the bruises and scrapes as he pressed his lips against his in an attempt to express his fucking worry. To express the relief that he wasn't dead, to express the fucking love he had for him, his right hand man, the one that kept his heart beating through the daily spray of gunfire and murder.

The kiss surprised Jonathan and God, he had to fight the urge to drown himself in it, the need, the desire, it was strong but the time was wrong and he gently pulled away from Evan, an apology on his tongue.

Evan understood though. Later. They'll have plenty of time later.

He clicked the walkie, eyes fixed worriedly on the gunshot wound on Jonathan's shoulder. They had to get out and fast.

"We're leaving, Marcel! Get the car, we'll be in front of the warehouse in a minute!" He ordered and took a firm grasp on Jonathan's arm as they quickly made their way black Subaru WRX came to a halt in front of them and Evan quickly opened the backseat and pushed Jonathan inside first, before climbing in after him. With the screech of tires, Marcel took off and made a sharp turn, Jonathan bumped into his injured shoulder and screamed out, nearly doubling over and Evan was instantly at his side, wrapping his arms around him and he shouted angrily at Marcel.

"Be careful for fuck's sake, he's been shot!"

Marcel momentarily looked back, surprise on his face. "Oh fuck, I'm sorry Delirious!" He said apologetically. Jonathan shut his eyes, it burned like hell. He felt lips press against his temple and Evan whispered in his ear.

"Just hold on. You're going to be fine. We'll fix you up in no time." His voice was shaking, Jonathan had never heard him so scared before. He was starting to feel weak, faint, dots were clouding his vision and Evan kept shaking him. "Hey, stay awake. We're almost there."

Evan was trying to wipe the sweat from his brow but he only succeeded in getting more blood on his face. "Tyler! We're almost there, is everything ready?"

"Yes! Everything is prepped, just keep pressure on it!" Tyler voice crackled over the radio and Evan switched frequencies.

"Brock, Craig, Daithi! How are the cops coming?"

"We've got it under control, just ducked into an alleyway and they didn't follow you. How is it on your end?"

Evan took a breath as Marcel drove around the twists and turns until he could see their hideout come into view, "Jonathan's been shot, we're hitting HQ now. Tyler's prepped and ready to take the bullet out. Get back here as soon as you can."

"Shit … Copy that."

Jonathan's head hit his shoulder just as Marcel pulled the Subaru into the garage. Tyler was waiting and threw the door open to help him out."How long has he been out?"

"He just fell over." Evan grunted as he lifted the dead weight from the backseat, Tyler grabbed his feet and they hauled him into the house and laid him out on the bar in the kitchen, cutting his shirt off and stripping the fabric back.

"Christ." Tyler muttered.

"What?!" Evan ask, getting frustrated the longer Tyler stayed still.

"A few more inches to the left and that bullet would have hit his heart."

Evan didn't say anything, he just clenched his fist and bit the inside of his cheek.

He was upset, angry, absolutely furious. He couldn't believe he let this happen, a traitor slipping into his territory and getting the man he loved so dearly nearly killed. He started doubting his skills of leadership, but almost immediately shrugged it off. He placed his hand on Tyler's shoulder, making him look at him.

"I'm going to get the fuck who's responsible for this. You make sure he," he nodded to Jonathan's unconscious form, "gets through this, got it?"

Tyler nodded. "I'll do my best."

Evan turned to Jonathan one more time, stroking his hair with unusual gentleness to Tyler's surprise, and then walked out of the room. Marcel was waiting for him, arms crossed with his back against the wall.

"Did they find him, yet?" He grunted and Marcel looked up, nodding and pulling away from the wall.

"Yeah, the boys got him chained up in the basement. No one touched him yet."

The smile that formed on Evan's face, was probably the most haunting that Marcel had ever seen him and he was silently grateful for being on his side. Evan wasn't angry anymore, he was a blood thirsty hound coming for his kill.

Evan descended into the dark basement, one light was hanging in the middle of the room, a single chair beneath it, and in it was a guy he thought he knew well. "Where did you find him?"

Brian's ear perked up, "I found him running scared, trying to get to the airport."

Evan breathed through his nose and Brian grinned evilly as he walked around his boss and up the stairs. "I never liked the prick anyway."

"Why did you do it, Scotty?"

He watched his lip tremble, he knew what was going to happen next. "They told me they would kill Anthony if I didn't give them the details. Evan, I didn't mean for-"

Evan connected his fist with his face and felt the satisfying crack of his nose breaking, "Don't give me that shit, Scotty! You should've come to me! We stick together, we were family, that's what family is for! Fuck!"

He pulled his brass knuckles out and Scotty whined, "Please Evan, please!"

Evan felt the anger swell and his fist was out of control, he was losing feeling in it as he continued to wail away at the face before him. He was covered in blood once again and he felt a hand on his shoulder.

"Evan, stop." Lui's small voice said behind him. Evan couldn't catch his breath.

"If you kill him, you will never forgive yourself. Let him go. He knows what he did and he did it for love. Just like why you did what you did."

Evan looked down at the peace talker and he couldn't stop from agreeing with him. As much as he wanted to kill Scotty, he couldn't, he'd been with them for so long and he couldn't imagine what Anthony would feel if he just … disappeared. They were family, but he couldn't let him stay.

"Fine. Him and Anthony have twelve hours to leave Los Santos. Get him the fuck out of my house." He fumed. "If Jonathan dies, I'm coming after him anyway."

Lui nodded and Evan walked back up the stairs and took the towel Marcel offered him. He wiped at his hands and the fabric came back red, red like all the blood that was dripping from his kitchen counter. "How is he?"

"Evan, it's been barely thirty minutes. Tyler shushed everyone out of the room saying that he needed to focus on fixing Delirious up. The only thing that he mentioned was that there's a possibility that Delirious had a nicked artery, but he wasn't sure." sighed Marcel.

Evan nodded, swallowing thickly. "Stay by the door in case Tyler needs something and if there's trouble, call me."

"I'm on it, Boss." Marcel said and headed to his spot by Tyler's door once again.

Evan made his way to his room, sitting at the edge of bed and taking off his gear. A lot of things were going through his mind, from blinding worry to disappointment.

Maybe I've gone too soft. This kind of shit wouldn't have happened if I kept a firm hand over my people. God, Scotty, what have you done…

He put his head in his arms and breathed deeply. Exhaustion was crawling up his body like a nasty bug, it'd been a long day and it wasn't even remotely close to being over. As much as he wished to just lie down and sleep, he couldn't, not while Jonathan was downstairs presumably fighting for his life. If he didn't make it….

He curled his hand into a fist. Family or not, I'll hunt you down Scotty. You fucked with my trust, but fucking with my man…there are limits you don't want to cross…

Time passed painfully slow and Evan nearly dozed off when Marcel came into his room. He immediately stood up, showering him questions. "How is he? Is he going to make it?"

Marcel put his hands up defensively. "We need you downstairs, he woke up when Tyler started poking around the bullet wound and nearly knocked our poor medic out." Evan headed out the door, Marcel hot on his heels. "Don't get too excited, the thrashing is making him lose more blood and he doesn't have much left as it is. If he doesn't stop, he's going to kill himself." At that Evan started to run.

The amount of blood was borderline scary and he nearly slipped on it as he ran to Tyler's side. Brock was holding down Jonathan's legs, or trying to, while Craig was holding his shoulders down. Tyler was keeping pressure on the wound and it was making Jonathan scream even more out of pain.

"I need to get in there and sew it up, dammit! I can't if he won't stop moving!" Tyler said as he struggled against the thrashing muscle beneath him. "He needs an anesthetic!"

"No! That is out of the fucking question and you know it." Evan shook his head and looked down at the distressed man on the counter. "He used to be an addict and none of us can afford for him to have a relapse."

"Then talk him down, Evan! Or he's going to die from blood loss!" Marcel yelled frantically as he stood to the side with Lui and Brian.

Evan shoved Craig out of the way and ran his hands over Jonathan's face. "Hey! Look at me, look at me. Calm down, I know you're hurting but you need to be still." Evan stroked his thumb over his cheek softly, uncharacteristically sweet as he kept talking to him, soothing him with his voice. The guys were looking around at each other in shock at his actions. They all knew Jonathan was close to Evan, as close as he could get without belonging to him, but the way Evan treated him, protected him, and took care of him . . . . you couldn't help but assume that he was his. Evan always held him on a higher level than the rest of them, Jonathan was with him from the beginning and he'd held him together when things seemed to fall apart.

Tyler watched in awe as Jonathan started to go still, flinching at the pain instead of kicking. His breathing was steady and he was looking Evan in the eye, listening to his voice, soaking up the feeling of his hands on his face. His lips moved and he pictured them against his again and he almost couldn't feel Tyler digging into his flesh, poking and prodding, saving his life.

"Okay. Fuck." Tyler breathed and took a step back to wipe at his sweaty forehead. "The bleeding has stopped. He needs to rest, he'll be weak for a while."

Evan exhaled and let his lips leave a light kiss on Jonathan's head, "Thank you, Tyler."

Tyler just waved him off and started to clean the blood off Jonathan. "Where do you want to put him? He needs peace and quiet to rest, but you know, someone has to look after him and make sure he doesn't suddenly decide to get up and waltz around, ripping his stitches, which I'm pretty proud of, mind you."

"Wouldn't be the first time around here." Murmured Craig, thinning his lips when he received Evan's gang leader was infamous for getting up and going back to his work almost instantly after he'd been patched up, Tyler hated him greatly for that.

Before Evan said anything, Luke showed up at the door.

"I'll look after him, you don't need me for anything right now anyways." he glanced at Evan. "I know what you're thinking, but you look dead on your feet and Jonathan is even harder to handle when he's hurt, trust me, I went through all of his limbs being broken, he's a magnet to accidents." Luke put a comforting hand on Evan's shoulder. "I'll take care of him for you, don't worry".

Evan sighed. "Fine." He looked over at Jonathan who passed out again. "If something's up -"

"I'll let you know, got it." Luke cut him off, smiling. Evan patted him on the shoulder and walked out.

Luke moved over to the counter and slid one arm under Jonathan's knees and the other carefully under his uninjured arm and lifted the dead weight off the counter. "Alright buddy, time to move to a proper bed." Halfway through the door, Tyler could hear him whisper, "You really gotta lay off the twinkies, Christ."

Evan walked through his office and into his bedroom where he fell onto his bed, the sheets still a mess where he had crawled into them the night before when Jonathan had flinched in his sleep but never woke and Evan was grateful. He always felt like he asked too much of Jonathan, sending him out to do pretty much anything and everything that required silence and precision. He was good at what he did and it was why he had teamed up with him in the first place, even if he was a bit strange and maniacal at times. Evan had helped him get over his addiction and thus made a vow to bring down the drug ring that was ruling Los Santos. The one that was destroying it, bringing it to it's knees. Turf wars were sprouting here and there and soon the trafficking of guns became the next problem. He and Jonathan started recruiting and soon their gang grew into a massive network that stretched across the entire city. He had more contacts than he knew what to do with, but Jonathan was always there to help lighten the load by taking calls and collaborating with him about their plans.

He was the glue that kept their empire together. He kept him together. Evan could never thank him enough for the times he himself would wander in at the wee hours of the morning covered in blood, clothes ripped from close calls and Jonathan would look him over and clean him up when he didn't have the strength to move. Jonathan always waited up for him no matter how fucking tired he was or how rough of a day he had, he always made sure that he was okay before Evan had to force him to sleep. And he loved him for that.

When the strong possessive feelings started to form when it came to Jonathan, Evan didn't know. He knew that he didn't want anyone to lay a finger on him, didn't want him hurt, didn't want him too far away. So he kept him close. But he failed and Jonathan was hurt and Evan was hurting for letting it happen.

He closed his eyes and fell into a restless sleep and dreamt of gunfire and blood, cars zooming past at the speed of light, Jonathan's lips. He jerked awake when his phone went off beside his head.

"Vanoss." He answered and cleared his throat trying to shake off the sleep.

"Hey, Boss." It was Adam, who was in charge of their base down by the docks. He and his guys were the eyes and ear on what was being shipped in and out of the city and where it was going. "Shit is about to hit the fan. More coke and guns coming in under the radar as we speak."

"How long do we have?"

"A week at most before the freighter arrives at port."

Evan sighed, "Alright, I'll get back to you."

"Yes, sir."

He hung up and squinted into the light filtering in through the window and heard mumbled voices coming in through his office. He stood, letting his stiff joints loosen up before he walked out and found Brock and Tyler at his desk going over the map, marking drop zones and pick-up locations for intel and deals. He gave them a nod and walked into the kitchen smelling lemon cleaner. The counter was clean and there wasn't a speck of blood to be found, except on Jonathan. It had dried to his clothes and he was mumbling in his sleep as he was stretched out pitifully on the bed. Luke was fast asleep in a chair next him. Evan sat on the edge of the bed and brushed a hand through his hair.

Jonathan's eyes opened slowly, tiredly, and caught Evan's hand. He placed a small kiss to his palm and Evan grinned. "You look like shit."

"Feel like it." Sighed Jonathan, the hand on Evan's slowly let go and slid down to his side again. The fatigue was visible on Jonathan's face, the large loss of blood was taking it's toll on his body and every movement looked like an enormous struggle for him. Even though Tyler warned Evan that Jonathan was going to be weakened, it still worried him. Jonathan's eyes were drooping already.

"Jonathan?" Evan said softly. Jonathan only hummed in response.

"Sleep well . . ." Evan placed a light kiss on his cheek and stood up. Jonathan was deep asleep again.

Evan had no idea how is he going to do this now, Jonathan was their main guy, he was the one taking all the important heists. His injury was a great hit to the gang as well, Evan didn't know if he could trust anyone else with the jobs he assigned to Jonathan, but at the same time he knew that his man was going to be out of work for a long time. He wouldn't let him on another mission, even if Jonathan said he was feeling alright. He couldn't risk him getting shot again, presumably fatally the next time.

The thought made him shudder.

It was days before Jonathan could walk on his own again, Luke always at his side to help him. Even then he was still slow on his feet and sore as fuck. Evan was never around, either stuck in his office making calls or making runs and setting up deals around the city for the shipment that was coming in. Jonathan didn't like it one bit and Evan knew that. They still hadn't talked about them, or that kiss, or the heavy air that hung between them. There just wasn't enough time to yet.

"I think you should just blow it to fucking pieces, to be honest." Jonathan said and Evan gave him a hard look from across the table as they all had a meal together, courtesy of Nogla and Lui. It was something they hadn't done in a long time and the upcoming weeks were going to be long ones. It was good to have face time while they had the opportunity.

"I know you don't really mean that." Evan said and everyone put their forks down to watch them bicker.

"I do. Because I know you and I know that you're planning to let the ship dock and let the drugs and guns spread so you can track them, thus leading us to every supplier in the fucking city. Do you have any idea how big of a job that is?" Jonathan sat back in his chair and crossed his arms. "If you blow it up, then no one gets any of it. We can track them down another day and no one gets hurt."

Evan sighed and tilted his head at his blue eyed companion, "Is this because I'm making you stay here until you can use your arm again? Because that is exactly what is sounds like. It sounds like you don't approve of Lui taking your place, temporarily of course, and you don't approve of not being able to throw yourself out in the line of fire. Again." Evan shook his head when Jonathan didn't answer, he knew he was right.

"I can't afford for you to get hurt again, you can't use your arm for shit right now, you need to heal. Lui is the best gun we have and I know you trust him because I trust him. We'll be fine and you'll be fine. You'll be squirming in your seat, but you'll be fine. Tyler is going to need help anyway keeping up with the drop points and deals and keeping us updated on where things are moving."

Jonathan huffed a sarcastic laugh, "You want me to sit here for weeks and pin thumbtacks on a fucking board? No offense Tyler."

Tyler held up his hand, "None taken. Trust me."

"That is exactly what I want you to do. And you're going to fucking do it." Evan said with finality in his voice and everyone silently started to eat again because that was the end of that conversation. Except for Jonathan who cleaned his plate and put it up, feeling eyes on his back as he left the dining room and stepped outside onto the deck, sitting in silence until the sky darkened. He tried to pull his arm above his head but he just came back wincing in pain. He was worthless and the biggest part of their lives was about to happen. This entire shipment could mean everything for the gang and the city. He wouldn't get to see it firsthand.

He watched everything happen from Evan's office, or the Planning Room, as Tyler liked to call it. He watched as their guys tagged the boxes as they were being unloaded, with tiny trackers. That's when things really started moving fast and Craig joined them as they filled the map one thumbtack at a time. And soon the entire thing was filled, they stood back and looked at each other, a grin spreading across their faces.

"We fucking did it, guys." Delirious said. "This is all we need."

Weeks went by and Jonathan was slowly getting his arm back, it was still a pain to lift it above his head or touch his wound, but it was progress. Evan was almost always gone, coming back only when he needed a shower and sleep, which was normally when Jonathan was asleep and he sometimes caught a glimpse of him as he was walking out the door again. He felt his absence weighing him down, pulling at his heart strings. He missed him when he was so used to being by his side almost every day and it clawed at his sanity.

But he waited up one night, into the early hours of the morning when everyone else had drifted off to sleep. He waited for the sound of the door silently clicking shut and he let his feet guide him to Evan's room where the man had already shed his shirt and was kicking out of his shoes.

"Hey." Jonathan said and Evan turned in surprise, his expression softened.

"Hey, you." He said and looked him up and down. "You should be sleeping."

"I should be, but I'm not." Jonathan grinned and stepped closer seeing the bruises that littered his perfect body. "You look like shit."

Evan sighed and soaked up the feeling of Jonathan's hands running over his skin. "Feel like it."

"Let me help you." Jonathan placed a kiss to his chest. "Like I used to."

Evan nodded and led them both to the shower where he turned it up to full heat to ease his aching muscles. Steam filled the room and he watched.

Jonathan slowly, carefully raise his arms above his head and pull his shirt off. His arm was in a lot better shape if he could finally do that again. Evan watched his pants fall, his briefs as he kicked them off and stepped into the shower looking back only to hold his hand out in offering. Evan's mouth watered at his skin, the fair flesh that he's always pictured against his.

"Stop staring and get in." Jonathan smiled and Evan shook himself from his daze and pulled the rest of his clothes off, following the man into the source of heat. He groaned as the water stung his skin but he soon got used to it. Jonathan soaped his hands up and immediately put them to good use, pushing into the tense muscle of Evan's back, his torso, and he earned a short moan when he went for the swell of his hips.

Evan felt the tip of Jonathan's nose touch his shoulder, where he pressed a tender kiss against his skin. A hard line of heat ran straight to Evan's gut and he turned. He touched his hand to his face, cupping Jonathan's jaw before he pulled his lips to his and the feeling that crawled up his spine was so severe, an ache so deep he couldn't think, and he did his best to breathe properly. It was gentle, but soon turned heated when Jonathan's slick fingers slid up his chest until they were around his neck and in his hair. Evan squeezed his fingertips into his hips and pressed his back against the cold tile wall and Jonathan arched his back away from it with a hiss.

He caught his eyes, those blue eyes that knew him inside and out, and he brushed a thumb across his cheekbone before delving back in. Their tongues collided in a slick battle for more and it never seemed to end, a wet eternal slide of unspoken words that they'd felt for years but never had the time to say.

Evan moved his hips and coaxed a sweet noise from Jonathan as he rocked his hips back in return. They were both on edge, hardness pressed against the smooth line each other's hip and they moved with each other until the friction coiled their muscles, heat spilling between their bellies, mouths hanging open in a silent cry of ecstasy. If only for a moment, it was just the two of them, coming down from a temporary high. A high they could only ever achieve together, one that Jonathan was already addicted to.

Evan kissed him slow and Jonathan drank up every inch of him while he was still here, memorizing every inch of his bare skin as they curled around each other under the thin sheet of the bed. He took what he could until Evan rolled out of the bed and kissed him sweetly before he had to leave for another early job that would take him all day.

"It's almost over isn't it?" Jonathan asked and Evan looked down at him from the edge of the bed, sliding his boots on. He smiled and nodded, "Yeah, it's getting close."

He leaned down again and placed a kiss to his clown's forehead. "Pretty soon you can come with me. Pretty soon this entire city will be ours."

Jonathan smiled up at him and pulled his lips to his for a proper kiss. He pulled away and ran a hand through his jet black hair, "Sounds amazing."

Evan caught his hand and kissed his palm, "I love you. I've always loved you."

Jonathan bit as his bottom lip as he grinned like an idiot. He'd dreamed about those words coming out of that man's mouth for years and here they were and they were his. "I love you, too. Ever since you held me down and saved my life. Ever since you tamed me."

Evan smiled and kissed his lips lightly, "I'm sorry. There's just never been time. But soon we'll have all the time in the world."

"I'm looking forward to it."

"Me, too."

Jonathan shooed him off and laughed, "Go kick some ass … Boss."

"You got it, baby." Evan winked and Jonathan watched him disappear into the early morning light. Things didn't always go the way he wanted it to, but he couldn't argue with the situation or how it had all panned out. It worked, their job was getting easier, the city was looking better, things were getting brighter. And every second of it, the hurt, the pain, the good and the bad, it had all been worth it.

-w.a.l.k. & maone