seekevolution | Quarantine

Quarantine

News had a way of spreading a little too quickly. The moment Nathan had fallen at the press conference, media began having it's field day. Mohinder paid little attention.

He arrived at Odessa fourteen hours after the incident, severely jet-lagged and with a computer pre-loaded with all of the information that the Company thought he'd need. Mohinder had been down this road before, though never with such dire circumstances. The Shanti Virus was a subject near and dear to his heart, though it was far less stressful when all he needed to cure it was a bit of blood. Even though it was his own blood, at least he felt as if he was doing something.

Knowing from experience that not everything was black and white anymore, Mohinder kept his laptop and medical kit close at hand and made his way to the quarantine line with a grim look in his redrimmed black eyes. "Mohinder Suresh," he said, forgetting his title again for just a moment. "Doctor. You need to let me through."

The National Guard service man looked wary before radioing it in through the barricade. It was tense. Mohinder's shoulder bag slipped twice and he nearly dropped his sample kit. "All right, cleared to go in. Good luck, doctor."

Mohinder nodded, rubbing the back of his neck. He'd gone from New York to India and back again in two days, bringing Molly to stay with his mother. After what Sylar did to her, again, he could not risk leaving her in anyone else's care. Not with Matt gone.

Seeing the man, however, after he'd just gone off on this quest to find his father at the expense of helping him with a child they both sort of promised to look out for, did not make Mohinder smile. If anything, it only made the lines on his face etch in more deeply. He stood in front of him, looking as tired as Mohinder felt, ill fitting clothing a bit more rumpled than usual. Never mind, of course, that Mohinder had done his fair share of leaving too on his attempts to bait the Company through lectures across the globe. "Do I have a lab yet?" Mohinder asked. No greetings. No necessities. That's what happens when you abandon people, Matt.

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The first few hours of work had been slow, on Matt's end. There was a lot of waiting around for results, but he expected them back in by the time he'd dropped Molly off at home, which meant he'd probably be working pretty late. He was going over names in his head, connections, blood splatter - unpleasant things for a school yard with kids playing everywhere, but that's what his job meant.

When his phone vibrated at him and he read Mohinder's name on the display, he didn't waste time answering. It took a split second for Matt to figure out what that way of greetings meant, but when he did, he reacted with a grin in his voice. "Oh, sweet! You got it?"

That was really good news. It'd really help them get back on their feet, not to mention make Mohinder a lot happier - and offer a lot more stability for Molly. Despite the discussion of Odessa and what dangers they still might have to deal with, it felt like things were finally starting to fall into place. Properly.

"When do you start?"

"May," Mohinder said, talking with his hands even if Matt couldn't see him, striding back across campus with an extra bounce in his step. "I'll be teaching a summer sessions course and begin in earnest come the Autumn semester. Few week gap there while I prepare a lesson plan, but I'll be able to pick my days and bring Molly with me if we decide not to put her into summer camp."

More parental decisions, always something to make them feel connected to one another, to make whatever else they had going on wash away again.

"I'm about to lose you to the subway, but will you be home tonight? Or are you on a case?" Matt didn't really talk about his job or what he's working on, but Mohinder understood that sometimes being a detective meant working nights. Once Matt confirmed he'd be pulling a late one, Mohinder still smiled. "That's fine. I'll get Molly to bed and we can celebrate ourselves when you get home. Talk to you tonight."

He didn't mean it the way it sounded... And ooh, oh how it did sound so promisingly dirty.

"Yeah, see you then", and he didn't get a lot of time to reflect on Mohinder's tone of voice when Molly waved and ran up to him. He pocketed the phone, gave her a hug, and told her the news.

She was happy - excited. No doubt Mohinder would be tackled by an excited little girl with lots of questions when he got home, but Matt had to leave her for the half hour-forty five minutes it'd take for Mohinder to get there. He couldn't help but fuss. Obviously.

"Number's on the fridge, Molly."

"I know, Matt! I'm going to go draw."

After some discussion with Mohinder about it Matt had gotten a cell phone to keep around the apartment until they'd figure out a landline. It was an outdated thing that only had a few numbers in it but it'd do in case anything came up if she was home alone and had to reach them.

"I'll be home real late, okay? Go to bed when Mohinder tells you to."

She made a face at him but then she smiled and he kissed her hair before he headed back to the station.

The thing about being a mind reader and also being a cop was the constant balancing act. Matt knew a lot more than any of the people he worked with but he could hardly tell them that. The guy they were interrogating kept thinking about another guy, a name that kept popping up in his head, but he never said anything about it and there were no links between that name and the scene.

In essence, Matt was working a bit backwards. Instead of evidence leading him to the facts he was often trying to find evidence in order to justify something he already knew. It was ... interesting. And kind of frustrating.

All in all, they made some headway, but a lot of it was of the tiring, lots-of-talking-taking-statements-paperwork variety and Matt was yawning when he finally made it home.

He toed his shoes off, hung up the coat, and was removing the tie from around his neck when he entered the still-sparsely decorated living room to find Mohinder with some book.

"Hey", he started, then showed a tired grin. "Prof. Molly asleep?"

Of course she was, but it was a way of touching ground.

"I sincerely hope so," Mohinder said without looking up right away. He was at the end of a passage and he was evaluating the use of the book itself in class this summer. He would be teaching theory more than practical application, just to get his feet wet. The shortened twelve week semester didn't play well with labs anyway. He wanted his students to like him, not tear out their hair.

Once he was finished, he put a marker in the book and uncurled himself from the couch to take Matt's tie from him (yes, right out of his hand as if he wasn't capable of rolling it up himself) and head to the fridge. There was a neat little stack of dishes in there to be warmed up and after getting the stove and oven going, Mohinder disappeared into Matt's room to tuck the tie away.

He'd done his laundry that evening, he didn't see why it might be considered invasive to open the other man's drawers.

Bustling around taking care of Matt might be considered to be just a bit housewifishly, but he had a month or so of nothing to do, why not care for his family? Getting Molly to school, seeing Matt home from work-- It seemed so normal. He was so incredibly excited about it!

"I hope you don't mind curry. I have some chicken as well if you feel the need for extra protein." He'd let Matt cut it up, however, once the oven was done it's job.

Matt gave Mohinder a funny look as he just sort of ... did that, because yeah, it was incredibly domestic and familiar and kind of unnecessary in a way, but he didn't care particularly in the end. It wasn't like that was the first time Mohinder displayed those qualities.

He undid the top button of his shirt to get to breathe a bit easier now when the tie was gone and rolled up his sleeves before he went to investigate the curry in question. It wasn't a bad look for him - although he much preferred jeans and a t-shirt, suits looked classy on anyone and had a charming quality when partly dressed down.

"Thanks, man", he said, feeling a bit like yawning again but not quite managing to when he after a moment by the sink sank down into a kitchen chair, running a hand through his hair. Just tired, though. Not upset, not unhappy. Just glad to be home. "Feels like I haven't eaten all day. Thank god for coffee." Then he shot Mohinder another grin. "And uh, congratulations. Science, right?"

"Did you actually eat anything all day?" he nagged lightly with a smile, smiling at Matt when he came over to peek at the contents of the pot he was stirring slowly to warm it. "Don't answer that, if it's got anything to do with pastries or a greasy street sandwich." He'd have to pack Matt something to take with him, he decided. Fruit bars, crackers, small containers of strawberries or pineapple chunks, peanut butter sandwiches. He even half zoned out day dreaming about fixing two bagged lunches for the important people in his life.

He'd just leave out the note on the napkin for Matt. Something told him that he might not appreciate it. And what would it say anyhow? 'You make me feel safe when you smile?' Or how about 'Have a good day at work, I love you?' Both might go over about as well as a sinking ship.

It didn't occur to him that Matt might be too tired to guard against reading thoughts either. He went about his business as usual.

Mohinder inhaled softly, tugging up the sleeve of an over sized sweatshirt he'd been lounging in, and reached over head for a bowl with little kittens on the inside of it. Molly's....but they were a bit hard up on dishes.

"Theory this coming semester. Science basics but yes. No more cabs."

Matt was going to joke about it, something like "street falafel, actually", but he couldn't really get the words out when those thoughts drifted over to him. He didn't get the whole picture but definitel enough to notice the mix of warmth and resigned - what, bitterness? Not quite, but something slightly darktouched. That's when he really knew they'd have to talk about it. Like ... right now, probably.

And that made him feel nervous in a way that was altogether too physical because he still didn't know what he wanted to say, exactly. But there'd have to be something.

"That's good", he said, only a tiny bit shaky in his voice. "You'd start climbing the walls otherwise. But really, I- I'm happy for you."

Yeah, they had to talk, but that didn't mean he couldn't stall.

"Can you imagine? Actually, that might be a very useful ability," Mohinder said, making small talk as he set the bowl down in front of Matt and plated the chicken warmed from the oven as well. "Sorry one has a bite taken out of it. Molly said that she wanted to be here when you had dinner. Clever, really, though probably not quite as sanitary as one might hope. Leaving her germs behind at least will make her part of your meal all right."

It was an easy easy way he laughed as he returned to the sink to clean up and then to the kettle to pour himself some tea. It was late, late enough that he hoped Matt could sleep in a little tomorrow. He'd get Molly off to school just fine on his own. A little walk might do him good. He was even planning on going to the grocery tomorrow and perhaps to the book store to find something on braiding.

He'd have to call his mother and thank her for that. Their girl was obsessed with it now! India had really interested her, and he was glad to share as much as he could with her curious little mind when she wasn't fretting about fingernail polish and if she was old enough to wear lip gloss.

Lip gloss! Oh he thought he'd have another year or two before this happened!

"Nah, it's taken", Matt said back, not missing a beat. "Spiderman would sue."

He laughed at the Molly thing, shaking his head. There wasn't a lot to say about that but he loved the girl dearly. She had her antics, but she was clever. And had a mature way about her that they'd both learned to look out for.

Thanking Mohinder for the food he ate in relative silence for the most part, keeping a tentative ear out for the other man's thoughts, but as they mostly revolved around Molly he felt himself relax a bit.

He still couldn't quite focus though, not really, and when he'd eaten he went to wash the dishes - not allowing Mohinder to, because honestly. He made quick work of it though and then wiped his hands on a towel and leaned back against the sink, feeling like he was twelve and about to make a speech in front of the class.

"Hey, Mohinder?" he said, veeery tentatively, and looked up with some hesitation. "So uh, I get the feeling that ... that there's something we should talk about."

Having been happily going on about lesson plans by that point -- no he hadn't noticed Matt was being quiet, he just assumed he wasn't really paying attention to him again though there'd be no blame for that -- he almost felt himself run into a wall again. Normal conversation and easy going banter screeched to a halt.

He could actually feel his throat closing and his mind raced back to anything he might have thought about. Lingered over. Matt at the sink washing up, sleeves rolled up? Yes, he'd admired him.

Oh God, about the lunches--

Mohinder had no way whatsoever of policing his thoughts, it turned out. He sat frozen in the chair, trying not to be defensive.

"Yes, likely," he said, looking at the table. "Very likely. I'm doing my best to keep my thoughts neutral, Matt. I realise they make you uncomfortable but I want you to know that I would never-- I would never do anything to cross that boundary. I'm very sorry." Better to admit it and nip it in the bud now.

Just in case Matt was afraid he'd jump on him later.

Or...

Or maybe Matt was just wanting to talk about buying whole milk instead of 2%. Mohinder's face flashed a bright copper.

Edited 2014-02-04 21:07 (UTC)

Matt was a little relieved how upfront Mohinder was being about it. He could do the whole dance-around-the-topic thing, but he'd never been a fan of it, and as unsure as he sometimes was with words he'd much rather they talk about this now and ... well, figure it out.

"No, I know, I know", he said quickly, wanting to make it clear that he did trust Mohinder. He'd never once thought that he'd - jump on him, yeah. He hadn't even considered that. He'd just spent a lot of time kind of confused and then after that fighting with himself about it.

He sighed and was gnawing on the inside of his cheek again, having a hard time looking at Mohinder, and so the table got to carry both of their downcast gazes.

"It's just ... um, I was freaking out a little, to be honest", he managed, sounding apologetic. "You probably noticed. A bit. It's just ... it's not a situation I'm exactly used to anymore and ... so that's why I stopped listening", he added, looking up, hoping that'd explain that. "But ... I don't know. I missed you, I guess."

He was building up to something, but he wasn't sure how to proceed, exactly, so he let that be for now, waiting for Mohinder to .. well, to misinterpret it, honestly. It's how things usually went with them.

It was really Mohinder's singular talent. He misinterpretted everything, that was likely why he struggled so much in life...and why he so gladly embraced a very simple philosophy of keeping to himself, having friends at the fringe of his life, and focusing on research.

"I missed being here," Mohinder said, almost tentatively. Matt was telling him that whatever his feelings were, he still thought of him as a friend, and it was somewhat a relief, really, even if his stomach twisted. No one wanted to have a one sided emotion confirmed, after all.

But what did he expect? Matt was straight, had been with the same woman since high school, and all he knew was women. Mohinder himself was mostly straight too. At least, he'd found himself more attracted to women then to men, but his sexuality was always based on personality. Anyone interested in him, even if he ended up exaggerating it, tended to form into a crush pretty damned quickly.

It wasn't Matt's fault. He was just a nice guy. A good guy. A guy Mohinder could see himself with and--

Stop, stop, stop, he yelled at himself, swallowing, his chin hitting his chest.

"I don't want you to feel as if you have to stunt the growth potential of your ability because of my... Because of me. It won't come in the way of our friendship, or in the way of raising Molly. Just-- Tell me if I'm making you...err...freak out."

Matt had to laugh at that because yeah, there you go, exactly what he'd expected - but even moreso that last bit.

"You freak me out all the damn time, Mohinder", he said, still sort of hiding his face a bit, and practically hearing the defeat in Mohinder's head he added before he could say anything, "no, not like that, just ... just hear me out."

He was silent, for a moment. He opened his mouth and closed it again and then threw back his head and stared up at the ceiling before he managed to start talking again.

"Okay, so ... so here's the thing." God, his heart was practically in his throat, no wonder the words came to him so slowly. "You've been thinking ... about me. And- and that's okay, it's just ... new. But lately I've been ... thinking ... about you, too."

He didn't actually feel all that much better after saying that, but he managed to give Mohinder a look that was a mix between pleading and plain uncertain. Then he laughed again and ran a hand over his face.

"And you have no idea how freaky that is to a guy like me. Like, I've just ... been going over it in my head, you know, what does it mean, what do I do with it ..."

Crazy thoughts ran through Mohinder's head as Matt spoke. They twisted his stomach and left a bitter taste in his mouth before everything dropped right down to his feet. What Matt was saying was difficult for him to understand and even more difficult for him to accept.

Matt wasn't the sort to joke with someone like this. He wasn't a cruel person. Mohinder couldn't do much but trust what he said was true. And still-- "What?" Dropping that on him felt like an assault. He had prepared himself for disappointment. Not for hope. Switching gears wasn't easy on him.

Openly staring at Matt before his gaze refocused on his palms, Mohinder tried to get his tongue to work.

"That--" he cleared his throat. "That is a conundrum. I don't-- things don't--" He switches gear to Hindi. The words were fluid and quick and though Matt doesn't understand, he didn't have to. Passionate as always, Mohinder stood and gestured to his chest, eyes refocusing completely on the other man as he took just one step closer.

"What I'm trying to say," he said in English, "is that, if you'd let me-- There's no reason we can't fumble through this too."

Matt stood too. He wasn't sure why, but he felt like he had to when Mohinder did, like maybe he needed to be ready to run or ... or something else. He stared back, flicking his eyes to Mohinder's hands when he gestured and up again to his face when he switched to English. Briefly to his mouth.

"Yeah?" He couldn't mask the nervousness in his tone, but he tried for a smile. "That ... sounds like a whole lot of fumbling."

He felt pulled towards the other man in a very inexplicable way and he was balancing that pull now, not entirely ready to fall into it, but very aware of it. There were some thoughts about what to even call it - dating? - and what would happen if that ended, and some predictable heterosexual ... not panic. No, it wasn't like that anymore, but just some doubts.

But then he realized that the smile, as unsure as it was in many respects, was absolutely sincere, too. He stuck his hands in his pockets. It was almost shy. "What would that mean, exactly? Sorry, you, uh, you might want to spell it out for me."

That answer was difficult to formulate because as much as Mohinder loved to talk and teach and lecture, there was only so much that could reasonably be done in this particular field by verbal explanation. He blinked instead, mind haywire with ifs and maybes and wild scenarios, before watching Matt slip his hands into his pockets for safety.

"I'm not a social scientist," he replied. "I'm afraid I would do a terrible job explaining the variables correctly, or even meaningfully." Matt's expression was just too perfect. He pressed his thumbs together in front of him before he finished crossing the distance between them.

Matt might resist the pull, but Mohinder had just been told that he didn't have to. And how wonderful was that?

"I could perhaps-- a demonstration--?" He suggested it with a sly smile and a craning of his neck. Keeping his hands to himself, Mohinder's cheek touched one gruff with five o'clock shadow. His lips were soft when they connected to Matt's mouth.

It might not be perfect, but at least it was real.

Matt had been laughing, just a little, at Mohinder explaining precisely why he couldn't explain. It was incredibly like him to mix in some academia in a situation like this. But when he approached and tilted his head slightly like that Matt was all anticipation, and he breathed in before Mohinder kissed him only to let it out moments later in a surprisingly content sigh when he kissed back.

It was soft. It was sweet, fairly short - just a gentle press of lips at first, to test the new ground - and had Matt look at Mohinder in a slightly incredulous way when he leaned back, but he did so with a gently crooked smile.

"Okay", he said, "I never thought we'd do that." Then he seemed to correct himself. "I never thought I'd do that. You've been thinking a lot." It wasn't meant in any way other than observation but then Matt kind of rolled his eyes at himself and added a kind of distracted "look, can I-?" before he leaned in to try his lips against Mohinder's again.

To Mohinder's credit, he didn't immediately melt against the American as he'd thought he'd might. He curled his fingers in the collar of Matt's shirt and lifted himself on his toes, heart pounding in such a merry rhythme that he might just start to dance.

Matt kissed him gently, like he kissed women, Mohinder thought in amusement. It didn't bother him at all. Men typically kissed other men more fiercely. But Matt was careful with him and Mohinder appreciated that. He understood why. All Matt knew was women. One woman in particular. Learning a whole knew person? That would certainly be a challenge to get over.

Letting the older man lead would work in Mohinder's benefit. Every dance needed a leader didn't they?

Go on. Touch my hair.

Bossy, Matt reflected back at him with some amusement, but he'd already started unfurling his position, opening up his body language a bit more, and part of that involved reaching out to Mohinder. He obediently lifted a hand to the side of Mohinder's face, fingers lightly skimming his hairline before he combed them into the curls.

It was natural, after that, to tilt his head a bit to the side and follow the better angle into a slightly deeper kiss. That wasn't new, in any way. And if Matt was careful it was only partially because of the situation despite the fact that he was very aware of it (Mohinder, he was kissing Mohinder, his decidedly male co-parent) but had just as much to do with the fact that he was a pretty gentle guy unless he had a reason to lash out.

He didn't really, right now, did he?

His other hand came up to hold Mohinder's upper arm.

Bossy, perhaps. Mohinder knew that Matt didn't mind.

There was nothing in the world more intimate than joining your body to another's other than also joining your mind to him. Lips parted and whatever sensually platonic kissing they'd been doing shifted gears slightly. Mohinder wasn't just exotic in personality, in heritage, or in gender--

He knew little things to do with his tongue that Janice, decidedly, did not.

The corners of his lips peeled upwards before he leaned away from Matt and let his hands slide down his chest. He knew by heart where those scars were. He couldn't help but smile.

"I might have thought about it a lot," he confessed, "but you're far better in person, Mstt."

Matt was smiling too, but in a more self conscious way when he looked down, shaking his head slightly. Not in disagreement so much as disbelief. His hand untangled from Mohinder's hair to come down to his shoulder, where his thumb came to touch along the line of his collar bone above the shirt.

"I'm gonna have to get used to this", he said out loud, some of that incredulous tone still in his voice. But even as he was saying it he knew that he didn't mind that. Was kind of curious and excited about it, despite the uncertainty trailing behind him.

He looked up and gave Mohinder a quick smile and then dipped his face to his shoulder, pressing still-tingling lips to where his thumb had been a moment earlier before he withdrew and let go, hands ghosting down Mohinder's arms when he stepped back.

"I uh, need to get some sleep. We're good?"

He hoped they were. It felt like they were.

So soon? Mohinder glanced at the clock and made a sort of disgruntled squeak in the back of his throat. "Oh God. Yes you do. And so do I or Molly will be waking us both up. "

For a split second, Mohinder actually thought about asking Matt to bed with him. Too soon? Hardly. They'd both just sleep. They'd both shared the same bed for a week. And yet, slow would be better. Mohinder tended to rush into absolutely everything. That would be a mistake here.

Matt needed time. And a buffering comfort zone.

That was something he could provide by backing off his natural intensity.

He took a step back to allow Matt some maneuvering room and gently took his hand. "For once, we have nothing else on than to practice and care for Molly. I'll take care of our girl in the morning. You sleep in. Good night."

He yawned into his hand but nodded. Shooting Mohinder a mild smile he said his "You too" before he disappeared into his room.

With all of that mostly figured out between them, he felt a lot calmer and sleep came easy to him. He managed to sleep through Mohinder and Molly's morning routine, something he regretted a little when he eventually got up and remembered that today was another late shift. He likely wouldn't see much of Molly at all, but then again, that'd be a good incentive to make some major progress on the case.

He got up around ten, ten thirty, and brushed his teeth and got into a pair of jeans without really realizing that Mohinder would still be home, so when he went into the kitchen with his thoughts on some cereal and spotted Mohinder by the table, he flashed him a quick grin.

"Morning. How'd you sleep?"

"Better than usual," Mohinder smiled back, letting his eyes lift from the newspaper. He rather enjoyed this more relaxed role of caregiver for the time being, a month off from any sort of responsibility would allow him to scrub down the apartment finally. He could take his time on dinners, on helping Molly with her homework. "Molly left you a note on the refrigerator."

He really did like Matt's bedhead. He didn't bother to conceal that fact this time around either and caught a few glances of him while he bent to look at the napkin Molly insisted on leaving for him.

'Matt. Mohinder made us matching sandwiches. I drew the heart in the peanut butter myself. Love Molly.

At the way Matt's face lit up, Mohinder's smile upped a few degrees in brilliance too. He waited for Matt to get his coffee and join him, however, before he folded up the paper and offered him the sports section.

"How about you? Did you sleep all right?"

Matt touched the napkin fondly, eyeing the charming writing of their girl. It took him a moment to read but yes, the way he smiled was very bright and he was still smiling when he sat down. Having chased down some yoghurt and cereal along with the cup of coffee, it was shaping up to be a great start of the day. Molly's note and Mohinder's affectionate thoughts certainly did their part.

"Yeah." He looked up, directing that smile Mohinder's way before he accepted the paper being handed to him. There was a moment of silence where he wasn't sure what, exactly, to talk about, but ultimately he didn't feel too bad. Not awkward, any rate, or at least less than he'd imagined. "Good thing, too. We're gonna try to round up some of the punks today ... it could get pretty late. You, uh, don't have to wait up."

It was the kind of thing he'd used to tell Janice, but after a while that line had become a mark of some kind of contempt. It wasn't like that when he offered it now. Had a different quality to it and a different inflection in his voice, and he watched Mohinder's face for a response as he took a sip of his coffee.

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