Welcome to Gaia! ::

Normally- Holden would have made some announcement about their return, but not this time. He had reasons he wanted to surprise Jace, so the last message he’d sent had been a saved photo of his brother training with a selfie of him looking bored.

Where he was in actuality, was pulling up on his Vespa, gifts tucked into the basket on the front, and half hiding the delighted smile of mischief behind his phone.

He was still fairly jet lagged but there were some stops you made before any others.

He hurried up the walk to knock and wait eagerly, bag with gifts over one shoulder and tapping the top edge of his phone against his upper lip to try and hold back the laugh of delight to be HOME and about to see his best friend again.

“Oh no…” Holden’s shoulders sank a little, the phone lowering as he took in the disheveled state that Jace was in
“All nighter, you did, didn’t you.” He bemoaned.

“I wanted to surprise you! I didn’t want to deprive you of sleep!”

Holden moved forward and wrapped their arms around Jace in a hug.
“Nooooo why do you do this to yourself!” He started pushing as much as his smaller frame would allow trying to drive Jace back into his own house.

“Bed! Sleep! I can come back! But I’m tucking you in first! Have you even eaten anything? I would carry you but I’m not allowed! AAAA I totally could too! Don’t make me call my Brother!”

“Oh? What exactly?” Holden countered. “I’ll make you eat properly before bed! Don’t think I won’t!” Holden leaned back enough to wave a scolding finger. Thankfully not high enough to be in Jace’s face but absolutely perturbed.

“I made you something, and I missed you, that’s what was so important. You’re important!”
He nudged at Jace’s shin with his foot, a mocking ‘kick’ of punishment.

“I missed you a lot! and here you are trying to kill yourself by not sleeping! I can declare myself here tomorrow after we rest, but I wanted to find YOU and I -did. Kitchen! Food! If you argue I’m making eggs! you know how I feel about eggs!”

Holden shot Jace a -dry- look, the sort that would have been over the rim of glasses had Holden needed any corrective lenses, but in this case, it was just over the top of his phone, which once again had risen to tap against his chin as he pulled open the fridge to judge the contents.

“You look tired, nothing you could do should of mainlining a caffeine drip would change that. Also if you ever try that I will beat you with my phone! “

Holden pulled out the ingredients to start making a sandwich, one of the haphazard ‘dagwood’ style ones that he seemed to have a knack for putting together.

“Mmmm, just long enough ago for me to drop my bags off and grab my Vespa.” He said cheerfully. Pushing the bread down in the toaster and starting to lay out portions of ingredients on the edges of the plate.

“I get a rush of joy coming to see you, and now I’m running on pure scolding.” He flashed a smile over his shoulder as he took the toast and started laying toppings onto the sandwich.

He was not going to contribute to the lack of sleep though, he found a juice drink and poured it before scooping up the works and carrying it to Jace.

“I’ll clean up the kitchen, you’re going to eat this and relax. Because unless whatever test or paper is due, is due within the next forty minutes you can at the very least take a nap! Honestly! Retaining information when you’re this sleep deprived is even more of a struggle!!”


“You eat, I’ll be right back from cleaning and you get to open my box if you’re awake enough, if NOT then I share your reaction with Xander and Q.” He had a look that said ‘cat that got the cream’ when he said that, which meant it was at least a little dangerous whatever was in the box.

“I don’t know what they’d think…I really don’t”

Such an innocent tone.

“You’re adorable,” Holden said, and they sounded like they meant it, the pink rising in their cheeks.

“I missed you too but it’s just an excuse to dream about each other.” The phone got wagged like a scolding finger. “I’ll include Q in my reports, not just my brother! You need to take care of yourself!”

He set down a box, a simple cardboard thing, the kind he so often used when presenting clothes.

“I couldn’t do a lot, but I did have SOME fun while I was away, you get to open this, and tell me if you need another sandwich too! I’d let that one sit first though!
He pulled up a chair and leaned back into it, holding the phone like a shield though there was a smile peeking around the plastic case regardless.

“Remember when you were hiking with Xander?” He grinned.

Holden laughed softly. “Part of what’s in that box relates to certain conversations, I know you look SO good in purple.”

He pulled up his feet and sat crosslegged on the chair, balancing his elbows on his knees in delight.

“I promise I won’t make you try it on, unless…. UNLESS, you do another all-nighter, especially one without eating.”

He reached over and tapped the box with his phone, eyes glittering with delight.

“I don’t know… do you think you can handle it?”

"Also I am absolutely kidnapping you when we're both rested, I MISSED YOUUU...." He tipped his head back and crowed the statement to the ceiling.

Holden laughed, hiding behind the screen of their phone again as they watched, probably not recording but the grin just widened as you lifted the lid.

There were two colors of paper within, peeling back the first layer revealed…
Something that looked - suspiciously, like… purple snakeskin, with black pleather.

A…wrestling costume.

“You know, so you have a backup in case all those sleepless nights catch up with you and you fall asleep during something important, which you’re going to say you wouldn’t do. But also in case my Brother ever catches up to you.”

He laughed again, delighted at the expressions.