Diego (gravitated) wrote in shadows_rpg, @ 2020-04-17 09:03:00 |
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Entry tags: | #flashback, diego, diego x oliver, oliver |
Who: Diego and Oliver
When: 15 years ago
Where: The facility out west and on
Status: Complete, Part 1
It had taken Oliver a long time to figure out his move. Well, it felt like a long time, even if it had been a couple of days. He supposed he had gotten complacent working at the facility, seeing Diego every day, bribing Frank with some money to take a smoke break whenever Oliver was there to drop off Diego’s meals. They never had much time, and it had never been enough but it was something. So when Oliver had overheard two of the scientists talking about Diego and termination, something dark and deep had sparked inside of him. He had no idea why they wanted to terminate Diego, only that they did. The bits and pieces he was able to pick up through the pounding of his heart in his ears was that Diego was too powerful, that they would never be able to sell him, that no one would be able to control what Diego could do and unleashing that would put the facility at risk. A shame. One of them had said. A shame. That was it. It was like they had done this before, with others, and just knowing that made Oliver rush into the bathroom to lose his lunch.
And then he had started planning. He hadn’t told Diego. Doing that would have put them both at a greater risk and he didn’t want to scare the other guy. Oliver knew that there were very few people in the facility after hours. Security and a doctor. Oliver had bribed Frank again, as usual, before Diego’s lunch that day, but instead of spending it with Diego, Oliver had waited until Frank disappeared down the hall before sneaking into the office to find a different badge. The one he had let him into rooms, but they didn’t let him into the building after hours. There were two security badges in a locked drawer, and Oliver had found the key in one of the cabinets, attached to a key chain of a metal Bud Light bottle. He had moved quickly, sweating and with shaking hands, but he had the badge in his pocket and was out the door before Frank returned. Oliver had only had time to set Diego’s food tray in his room and slip out, unable to speak or give him any words of comfort. He knew it would confuse Diego, but Oliver had no other choice.
That night he dressed in black, feeling as though he was robbing a bank as he pulled up to the road that ran behind the facility. He supposed in a way he was robbing something, but he didn’t consider Diego to be cargo, or someone else’s property. He was a person, and Oliver wasn’t going to let this place terminate him for not being some kind of controllable weapon. Oliver knew who the night guards were. Deacon and Martin were their last names. Both were smokers. Some nights they took smoke breaks together. Some nights they didn’t. Oliver could only hope that tonight would be a joint venture outside so Oliver had time to get inside and grab Diego. He just had to be fast and hope Diego didn’t resist or ask too many questions. He would have anywhere from ten to fifteen minutes. Assuming Deacon and Martin stepped outside together.
So Oliver waited, keeping out of sight of the cameras until finally, at a quarter past two, the double doors in the back of the building opened and the two guards stepped out, already lighting up their cigarettes. They were laughing about something. Exhaling sharply, Oliver closed his eyes, sent up a prayer, and then slipped away from the tree he had been hiding behind to move with fast, but quiet steps to the side of the building where there was another door for deliveries. Oliver swiped the badge, momentarily panicking when the light didn’t switch from red to green. His hands were shaking so he tried again and nearly wept when the light turned green and the door audibly unlocked. Oliver tugged it open and reached for the light switches to flip them off. The lights above were already dim, but he knew they used motion detection. Turning them off meant he could move down the hall without the lights flickering on.
As he moved down the corridor, he couldn’t help but think this was the stupidest thing he had ever done. He was going to get caught. They would catch him and kill him. He wasn’t a superhero, or some kind of spy. He was just a nineteen year old kid working a thankless tech job. But if Oliver didn’t try to help Diego, they would kill him, and he wasn’t willing to let that happen.
Every step he made down the hall sounded like it echoed. Even his breathing was too loud in his own mind. They would hear him. God, what time was it? Were they still smoking outside? Where was the doctor? He didn’t think the doctor offices had access to the security feeds. Did they? Fuck, why hadn’t he checked that first? Because he hadn’t had the time. It wasn’t like he had months to plan this.
When he got to Diego’s room, Oliver rested his forehead against the door before swiping the security badge. It turned green and Oliver pushed open the door. He didn’t turn on the light but slipped inside. “Diego,” he whispered, letting the door close to only half an inch behind him. “Please wake up.”
In contrast to all of Oliver’s planning and anxiety, it had been a fairly normal day for Diego. They were so rarely abnormal, considering his extremely confined routine. He had been kind of hurt when Oliver had dropped his lunch off and left immediately, but that hurt had turned to worry soon after. By now, Diego had spent hours on end poring over every sweet note Oliver had snuck into the books he’d given him, when he wasn’t busy daydreaming and languishing in memories of the brief moments they’d been able to steal together. He’d always lived in his own head to a certain degree, just letting his imagination wander ... it was almost a survival tactic now, and Oliver had opened up whole new internal worlds for him.
But after the brief non-encounter that afternoon, Diego had started worrying. Had someone found out about them? Had they been seen? Had Frank ratted them out? He didn’t think Oliver would’ve been allowed back in his room if that was the case, but maybe they were waiting to reprimand him or something. Maybe he’d just been warned. Abuse had to happen in places like this, right? But that wasn’t what they were doing. Useless as he was from his cell, Diego had fretted and gnawed on his thumbnail for most of the evening. He’d cried a little, off and on, sure he would never see Oliver again, and waiting for guards to come in and confiscate what he’d been given. It didn’t happen though.
Diego fell into an uneasy sleep after lights out, his eyes puffy and raw, his body aching from all the tension. He jerked awake when he heard the door unlock, sitting up with his heart suddenly pounding in his ears. Diego half-expected it to be those guards to take his stuff, but then he registered Oliver’s voice and a different sort of electricity jolted through him. “Oliver?” he whispered back in the shadows, kicking his blankets off and hurrying to stand. “I’m here, que pasó?”
Oliver was relieved to hear Diego's voice. That meant he didn't have to waste precious moments trying to wake the other boy up. "Get whatever you need," he whispered, unwilling to move away from the door for fear someone might see what was happening and lock the door from the inside, making it impossible for them to get out, security badge or not. "We don't have a lot of time. As quickly as you can. I can explain later. Please." He knew Diego didn't have much to begin with, but he might want the things Oliver gave him, and hopefully they weren't scattered about.
Diego just stood there for a few seconds as he tried to process what was happening. It was the middle of the night, Oliver couldn’t be there in a professional capacity. He was telling Diego to get his things ... was he breaking him out? The door was still open, and that never happened. Adrenaline surged through him, breaking the paralysis and getting him moving. He rushed to get the small stack of books Oliver had given him, some art he’d been working on, and a few of his spare shirts. After a second’s thought, he tugged the pillowcase off of his pillow and dumped everything inside. Diego only had the slippers they issued him for shoes, and he slipped into them and turned to Oliver at the door. It felt like he was taking forever, but it couldn’t have been more than two minutes. “Ready,” he whispered, feeling intensely focused now, some instinct recognizing that this was going to be an important moment in his life.
The fact that Diego didn't question him told Oliver that he was trusted. He didn't have much of a plan beyond this, but he was sure they would figure it out. They just needed to put enough distance between them and this building. As soon as Diego was ready, Oliver opened the door again, peeked out up and down the hall and then moved out of the way so Diego could slip out. He took Diego's hand and began to lead him swiftly down the hall to the corridor. If the two men outside were done with their smoke break they would be back in front of the monitors any moment now, and then the alarms would go off. The building was so quiet but for the hum of the dim lights above them and Oliver was sure Diego would be able to hear his heart beating. When they got to the end of the hall, Oliver glanced around the corner, his eyes drawn to the red EXIT sign flickering above the thick door. His hand felt clammy in Diego's, but he gripped him tightly. "When we get outside, we head directly for the trees," he whispered. "No matter what might happen, don't stop, okay?" He didn't want for an answer, but moved around the corner to the exit with long, purposeful strides.
It was almost like a dream, and if Diego’s hands hadn’t been occupied holding his stuff and holding onto his love, he would’ve tried to pinch himself. He’d never been in the outer hallway without an escort, and even though he was leading, Oliver obviously wasn’t acting as an escort right now. He felt hyper-alert and ready, but terrified at the same time. Any second now, the alarms would start blaring and people with guns would descend on them, he felt sure. If that happened, he was prepared to do whatever he had to to protect Oliver and himself. He could feel the crazy pulls of gravity inside him, ready and waiting to be unleashed. He gave a tiny nod at Oliver’s words but he was already walking, so Diego kept pace with him, his head low and his eyes shifting around them. Straight for the trees. He was going to see the fucking trees again. Stopping was not an option, he completely agreed. It was escape or die now.
Oliver was sure the only thing pushing him forward now was adrenaline. Even if the alarms went off and the guns came out, all he knew was that he would free Diego. He knew he would take a bullet if he had to. If Diego could get to the woods, he could disappear and that would be that. He felt like maybe he was holding Diego's hand too tightly, but he couldn't seem to loosen his grip. As they got to the exit, Oliver closed his eyes, murmured a soft prayer and then carefully and quietly scanned the badge again to open the door without fear of the fire alarms being set off. Outside the night was warm... and quiet. The treeline was ahead. So damn close but it felt like miles. It was do or die now and he swallowed before pushing open the door wide and stepped out with Diego. "Let's go," he breathed, not even bothering to watch the door shut behind them as he began to lead Diego across the paved lot. "As fast as you can."
Suddenly being thrust into the fresh air called up a surge of emotion in Diego, but he didn’t have time to entertain that nonsense, so he pushed it down for the moment. The only thing that mattered now was escaping. Oliver didn’t have to tell him twice to move quickly, but after a few steps he realized the slippers were just slowing him down, so he kicked them off to run in just socks, his own grip staying tight on Oliver’s hand. The house shoes would no doubt be found later by guards or whoever started looking for him, and Diego kind of wanted to take a piss on them before he left, but there was no time. He didn’t know what Oliver’s plan was after the woods, where they were even going, but he didn’t care. Diego trusted him, and this was as far from the Facility as he’d been in years, so nothing was going to stop him now. He was ready to lift them up out of sight or crush anyone coming after them or anything he had to do to get free. They were both getting free.
As they ran for the treeline Oliver braced himself for shouts, for alarms, for gunfire or something as equally terrifying. For a moment he felt insane guilt for leaving the other patients behind but he was only one man, and he wasn't a spectacular one at that. He could only do so much and how he was managing to pull this off was beyond him. Maybe there were greater forces at work. With some semblance of thought, Oliver tossed the security badge as far away from him as he could while running. For all he knew the badges had tracking devices in them. He wouldn't put anything past the people in charge of that facility. He didn't breathe again until they were in the woods, and even then he kept moving. His car wasn't far and he didn't want to stop until they were there. Oliver was panting by the time his car came into view and he finally slowed, but only a little, before looking back at Diego. "Are you okay?"
Diego was a little amazed himself that they made it to the woodline without anybody shooting or even shouting at them. He had fantasized about escaping the facility hundreds of times, and it was always dramatic and violent in his imagination. But it had just taken one person with a soul, someone who had inexplicably come to care about him, to make this happen. The sticks and detritus on the ground in the woods hurt his socked feet, but Diego hardly felt it as they made their way through. He didn’t talk or ask any questions, completely trusting Oliver to lead them to safety. It was still surreal, like some wonderful dream, but he could feel the sense of freedom vibrating through him like some kind of sound wave, making all of him tingle. He was out, he was free. He was grinning like a loon when Oliver looked back at him, even if his senses were still on high alert. He spotted the car they were headed toward and felt like he could scream with joy. That wasn’t a good idea though, so he just nodded breathlessly. He was better than okay, but he could show Oliver that when they were a little more safe.
Oliver nodded in return and exhaled with a smile before leading Diego to the car. They weren't in the clear yet. Who knew if they would ever be. But they could start driving and put as much distance between them and the building as they could. Maybe they would never be able to stop, but that was okay. As long as they were together, Oliver felt like they would be okay. Oliver had left his keys in the car, so he tugged open the passenger side door and let go of Diego's hand so he could get inside. Then he hurried around to the driver's side, his heart still tripping in his chest. He wanted to scan the treeline for any sign of movement, but time was running short. The guards were no doubt back at their stations, checking monitors. With any luck they wouldn't notice Diego's bed being empty in the dark until morning, but Oliver wasn't going to hold his breath on that. Slipping into his seat, he started the engine and glanced over at Diego, feeling a bit breathless. "Ready to go?" he asked with a grin before pulling away from the side of the road to get moving.
“Yes, God yes.” Diego barely remembered the last time he’d been in a car. Even then it hadn’t been a car-car, but a windowless van as they transported him from where he’d been to the facility. He’d been relieved at the time, thinking that the doctors in white lab coats were kindly authorities who were going to take care of him, that he was going somewhere safe. He didn’t understand any English at the time, so he didn’t know what they were telling him, but some of them were nice to the terrified Salvadorian child who had just brought a seedy apartment building crashing down around him. It had been a sweet lie, a way to get him to come quietly into containment. Diego didn’t think Oliver was selling him a sweet lie, unless all of this was a setup by AIR, and Diego highly doubted that. The way Oliver kissed him was real, the things he’d written in the page margins of the books he’d given him were real, this freedom was real. As the car started to move, it all hit Diego all at once and he burst into tears that were backed by laughter, covering his face with his hands as the first big wave of emotion demanded to be purged.
The sudden outburst of emotion didn't startle Oliver. He had been expecting it and as he drove he reached over with one hand to slip it around the back of Diego's neck in a comforting gesture. He would drive, and keep driving until they put this state long behind them. "It's okay," he murmured. "We're going to be okay." Oliver knew Diego's tears weren't sad ones. He had been locked up like an animal for years now. This kind of freedom was going to feel overwhelming, but hopefully in a good way. His thumb brushed back and forth over Diego's skin and Oliver kept his eyes on the dark road ahead, wanting Diego to purge as much as he needed to.
The quiet support was perfect and very much needed, and Diego let himself be a wreck for a little while, stupidly grateful that Oliver was doing the same. He couldn’t quite wrap his head around it yet, expecting to wake up from this at any second and be back in his cell. He’d lived there so long, through so many formative years, he didn’t know how to feel now that they were driving away from it. He kept checking the mirrors through watery eyes, looking for swirling colored lights to suddenly appear and chase them, but there was nothing but darkness. Diego was okay with that for now -- he got the sense that being able to see wide open spaces or wilderness around them would be too much at the moment. He had to keep his focus small or he would go mad. After a while the main emotional storm seemed to have passed, and Diego used his shirt sleeve to wipe his face with. “Dios mío,” he muttered, clearing his throat as he looked over at Oliver. His rescuer, his angel. Diego caught his hand and kissed the back of it in a line up to his wrist, then leaned over the console and pulled on his arm a bit. “Pull over, just for a minute.”
The urge to protest was strong. Oliver was afraid if they stopped that would give them time to catch up, if they were searching now. But he knew Diego was dealing with a lot of intense emotion at the moment, and maybe he felt like he was going to be sick. So Oliver pulled his hand from the back of Diego's neck to pull to the side of the road, shifting the car into park and cutting the lights, just in case. He had a feeling this might be part of their lives now - the constant awareness, the caution. The just in case. Concern was etched in his features as he turned to Diego. "Are you okay? I have water in the back if you need it."
Diego knew they couldn't stop for long, his brain was ringing with the same sort of caution. But he couldn’t quiet the overwhelming desire to be closer to Oliver, if only for a few minutes. He shook his head at the questions, not really sure which he was answering, turning in his seat and getting one knee under him to lean over the console and grab hold of Oliver. Diego put one hand at the back of his neck and the other fisted in his shirt in the front, and he kissed Oliver hard on the mouth. His heart had just started to slow down but it picked up in an entirely different way now. There were so many words bouncing around, stuck, in his head -- te amo, me salvaste, nunca me dejes -- but Diego thought he was communicating enough at the moment, with his lips working hungrily over Oliver’s. Just for a minute, he told himself. They had to get somewhere safer than the side of the road, and then they could have all the time they wanted. Just the thought made his chest feel tight.
Any lingering protests were lost as soon as Diego's lips were upon his. Oliver could taste some of the saltiness left over from the other boy's tears and he brought both hands up to cup Diego's face. There would be no timers this time, no worry about Frank coming back from his break, or someone else interrupting them. This could be their life now and it was worth every terrifying moment of being inside of that building. "Te amo," he murmured against Diego's mouth. Oliver had never said the words before, though he was sure Diego knew by now. It still felt important to say, so that Diego understood this was real. He wanted so badly to just wrap himself around Diego and cling for a while, but he told himself they could do that when they were far away and safe. Safer, anyway.
He hadn’t really thought it would happen, but Diego was glad Oliver didn’t push him away. The sense of dangerous urgency was still there, but he wanted -- needed -- this too. He wanted his first tastes of freedom to be all Oliver. The words rolled through him like a wave of electricity, and Diego’s heart squeezed tight in his chest. No one had said that to him since he’d been a little boy, and then it had only been family-love. Diego had read plenty about love in lots of books, and now it was right here in front of him, in the form of this beautiful man. “Te amo,” he whispered back. Diego wanted to climb over the console, find a spot in Oliver’s lap, kiss him until they died from it, give every atom in his body over to him. Instead he kissed him wildly, his fingers moving up into Oliver’s curly hair to hold him as close as they could get in the front seats.
It would have been so nice to be somewhere safe, where they could stretch out and kiss until their lips were swollen and their bodies were on fire. Diego's lips had never failed to spark some pretty intense sensations in his body and despite how scared he was, how anxious, he couldn't help but respond to the kisses. How had he managed to pull this off? They were really out, driving away from that nightmare. They could do this every day, all day if they wanted to. "We have to go," Oliver breathed, reluctantly pulling his mouth from Diego's. "We're still too close. There's a motel a couple hours away that I found. We'll go there for the night, okay?"
It was probably good that Oliver had that willpower, because Diego definitely didn’t at the moment. He was so overcome with emotion and tingling lust and exhilaration, he hardly knew what to do with himself. Oliver was right though, they were still in danger. It wouldn’t take the facility long to mobilize once they realized Diego was missing. At least he didn’t think it would -- already this had been much easier than he’d ever dreamed, there was probably another shoe waiting to drop on them. He nodded breathlessly, his fingers flexing in Oliver’s hair once more before he pulled back and let him go. Diego settled in his seat again, looking around through the dark windows again before he put his seatbelt on. There were no other cars around, nothing but darkness -- how far out in the wilderness was this place? “I can’t believe it,” he murmured, almost to himself. His eyes ticked to Oliver’s dimly-lit face again. “This is real, yes?”
Oliver understood Diego's need to feel as much as he could in the moment. And as soon as they were somewhere safe, Oliver would be more than happy to encourage all of it. It took him a moment to get his own breathing under control. His jeans were a bit tight but it felt good and promising. As soon as Oliver had pulled the car back onto the road he reached for Diego's hand. "It's real. And I'm going to do my best to get you as far away from his place as I can. We'll get a room, get some food and get some rest." Tomorrow they could formulate a better plan. Oliver had some thoughts in mind, but he hadn't decided on anything but getting Diego out of the facility. Oliver brought Diego's hand up to his lips, kissing his fingers gently.
Diego had no idea what would happen to them, where they would go, what they would do to sustain themselves, but he had complete trust in Oliver to guide them through figuring it out. He didn’t even know what part of the country they were currently in, or how to drive, or how to work or cook or anything like that. He was totally helpless, but he’d never felt so goddamn free. It was all doing intense things to his chest and his cock was hard and aching and even in the dark it was all just overstimulating. Diego clung to Oliver’s hand when he took it, nodding and sniffling some more. Food and rest and privacy -- real privacy, for hours -- sounded like absolute heaven. The press of Oliver’s lips against his hand was so sweet he almost cried again, but Diego swallowed it down. “You’re an angel,” he whispered instead, the words intense in spite of the volume. “A saint. Te amo. Gracias, gracias, gracias ...” He had to stop there when his throat closed up.
Oliver had some resources, but he wasn't a wealthy man so they would have to figure something out. He hadn't really had much time to plan ahead once he heard what they planned on doing to Diego. That wasn't something he was going to tell Diego about right now. Maybe later, when they were far away and settled. Even then, he didn't know that Diego needed to know what might have happened had he stayed in the facility. Oliver heard the words and looked over, pain clenching in his chest for a moment. He wasn't an angel, or a saint. He had worked in that building, even after realizing what was really going on. He hadn't told anyone, and he hadn't saved anyone else. The guilt was overwhelming and he didn't know if he would ever fully be over it. But he squeezed Diego's fingers and rested them down on his lap. "Try to get some rest, we have a bit of a drive," Oliver murmured.
The rest of AIR’s prisoners hadn’t even crossed Diego’s mind yet. He rarely if ever saw any of them, and nobody discussed them with him, so it had been easy to feel like he was the only one held captive in that building, even if he knew intellectually that couldn’t be true. All that mattered to him right now was the miles stretching out between him and that place. He could feel guilty later. Nodding at Oliver’s advice, Diego settled down further in his seat. His feet were cold and sore from running in just socks, and everything he owned was in a pillowcase on the floorboard, and he had no idea what would become of him, but he’d never felt better. He slouched and leaned his head to rest against the glass of the window next to him. Diego had been sure his racing heart would keep him awake, but he was asleep within minutes.
After Diego had fallen asleep Oliver settled back against his seat, his eyes on the road ahead. He had made sure to fill up his gas tank before leaving so there was no stopping between the facility and the motel they eventually came to. The drive had only been a little over two hours, but it had felt longer. Probably because he had felt intense fear every time a pair of headlights appeared in his rearview mirror. Oliver had managed to relax a little once they were on the highway but he was still sure someone was going to appear to ruin all of this for them. It was a little after five in the morning when he pulled into the small parking lot of the motel. He cut the engine and reached out to take Diego's hand again, squeezing. "Diego," he said quietly. "We're going to stay here and sleep for a bit..." They could stay and rest up and then leave at sunset. For some reason Oliver felt better traveling at night, like they were somehow harder to find in the dark.
The nap had been dark and dreamless for Diego, and he woke up disoriented and with a crick in his neck from the odd angle. Still feeling like he was in a dream, he blinked rapidly at Oliver and tried to register what he was saying. They were somewhere now, but not the facility. Diego squinted over at the motel in front of them and squeezed Oliver’s hand back. It didn’t take long for excitement to start leaking back into him. He hadn’t just dreamed it all, he was awake and this was real. Even if it was short-lived, he was going to enjoy every second as much as he could. “Okay,” he said, looking at Oliver as a smile grew across his face. The other man had to be completely exhausted, but Diego really hoped they wouldn’t just be sleeping for a while. “What room is ours?”
Oliver smiled. Diego looked cute when he was sleepy and Oliver was glad that he had been able to get some rest. Oliver knew the facility hadn't been overly predictable with Diego's schedule, but now Diego would get to make his own schedule. Or at least, he would once they were settled somewhere else for a bit. "I don't know yet. I have to go inside and get one. Are you okay to wait out here for a few minutes?" He didn't want Diego to be scared out here on his own, but he was afraid taking him inside might draw unwanted attention. Maybe he was being overly cautious and paranoid, but Oliver didn't think that was going to end anytime soon.
Diego didn’t really know how motels worked, he realized. None of the books he’d read had laid the process out, and he was nervous on Oliver’s behalf for a moment. Would they ask for ID? Were their names and faces all over the news yet? No, surely AIR couldn’t alert authorities about it, they were the ones keeping children prisoner. He didn’t want Oliver to go but he wanted to accompany him even less. He wet his lips and nodded, sitting up a bit straighter so he could keep better watch. “I will be okay,” he assured him, switching to English to emphasize the point. That didn’t mean he wouldn’t be a little edgy, but that was to be expected. Diego would feel better once they were inside.
"I'll be right back," he promised. Oliver let the keys in the car so it could stay running for Diego. The motel wasn't terribly large and the parking lot only had a handful of cars so Oliver didn't think he would have a problem getting a room. Grabbing his wallet from the console, he climbed out of the car. It barely took ten minutes to get a room for the night, or rather day considering it would be sunrise in a couple of hours, and clutching the key to room 10, Oliver returned to the car and offered it to Diego to hold. "We're at the end of the building so I'm going to park a bit closer," he said. "We'll stay for the day and head out again at sunset. Is that okay?" The motel wasn't great and there probably wouldn't be much to do, but there would be a television and a bed and shower and Oliver could order a pizza or something. What more did they really need?
Those ten minutes were fairly tense for Diego, but the rush of happiness he felt when Oliver came back out of that door made them worth it. And he had a key! Diego took it and examined it with interest as he gave Oliver a distracted “sure” as an answer. His giddiness was growing as they took the short drive to the end of the building. He was kind of thrilled that Oliver let him unlock the door too, and walking into the drab motel room was sublime. It was bigger than his cell had been, the bed was huge, and Diego gave a little laugh of delight when he saw the TV. He set his pillow case of stuff down on the tiny round table by the front window and went to peek into the bathroom. “There’s a shower!” he cried happily to Oliver, leaning back to look over at him with a big grin. A private shower, all their own!
The motel wasn't the best, but it was a roof over their heads and Oliver couldn't help but grin at the excitement Diego felt over the place. Of course this was going to be better than his room at the facility. He had a feeling Diego would have been thrilled with sleeping in a small tent under the stars, simply because of his freedom. "I'm going to grab my bag from the car," he said, motioning back toward the parking lot. He had stayed in the doorway as Diego looked around. Leaving the door open Oliver moved to the trunk of his car, grabbed his duffel bag and tried not to think too much on the fact that his entire life was now shoved into his car trunk. He hadn't taken much from his apartment before he left. Everything he had left behind could be thrown out, and probably would be. Carrying the bag back into the room, he shut and locked the door. "I have some extra clothes in here, some pajamas too. They should fit you all right until we can buy some new ones." Diego was taller than Oliver, but he didn't think it would be too much of a problem. "I have some extra shoes too... again, until we can buy you new ones." Oliver paused and smiled. "You can take a shower, if you want to."
Anywhere outside of the facility and with Oliver was worlds better than where he’d been stuck for a decade or more, and even though the carpet was dirty and the lights needed dusting and the tile grout was a dingy gray, this room felt like a palace to him. Though he did find himself instinctually checking the corners of the ceiling for cameras. There were none. He sat on the bed and bounced a bit as Oliver fetched the rest of his stuff from the car, not thinking at all about what the other man had just left behind for him. The idea of new-to-him clothes excited him, and he almost reached for Oliver’s bag to start digging through it. That was probably rude though, he thought. Diego didn’t really know for sure, he’d never been in this situation before. His face briefly lit up in a bright smile again at the last part before his expression turned more questioning, eyebrows raised. “By myself?” he asked. Diego hadn’t had an unsupervised shower ... maybe ever. He’d been washed as a kid and then watched ever since then. The idea of privacy for anything at all was so surreal.
Oliver wouldn't have minded if Diego went through his things. There wasn't much to be seen, but he would understand the urge. He was feeling exhaustion seeping into his bones from the adrenaline he had experienced earlier, and then the drive. He hadn't slept since the night before, but he needed to make sure Diego was settled before he laid down. At Diego's question about the shower, Oliver stared for a moment, wondering if Diego was asking him to join him. It made his face feel hot and he stammered for a moment before realizing that Diego probably hadn't taken an unsupervised shower in years. "Yes," he said quickly, unzipping his bag to find some clean clothes for Diego. "Take as long as you want. Enjoy it."
It had crossed Diego’s mind that they could shower together, but the novelty of bathing alone without eyes on him was currently outweighing the desire to see Oliver naked. Part of that probably came from how tired his savior looked, too. Diego wondered vaguely when he’d last slept. “Okay,” he said, beaming again as he got up. He stripped out of his t-shirt on the way to the bathroom, letting it drop on the floor without a second thought before he walked through the door. Diego pushed it most of the way shut behind him, creating a bit of privacy for himself but leaving a space where he could hear Oliver if he needed to. He stripped down the rest of the way, distracted for a moment by looking at his body in the big mirror over the sink. He’d never been in front of a mirror that big that he could remember, and ... wow. It was different to see most of himself reflected all at once. He did some random flexing, then got a little embarrassed at himself and moved to start up the shower. The knobs were different, so it took a bit of figuring out, but soon enough he was standing under hot running water, all by himself, and it was fucking wonderful.
Oliver waited until he heard the water start before he walked over to pick up Diego's shirt from the floor. He wasn't sure if Diego would want to keep the clothes he left the facility in, but Oliver was guessing he'd want to trash them before they left. So he folded the shirt and left it on the small entertainment center holding the television. He found a clean pair of boxers, flannel pajama pants and a t-shirt, placing them neatly on the bed for Diego to use. Then he stripped out of his own clothes and pulled on his own pajama pants with a white t-shirt. He could sleep in his jeans and everything, but he wanted to be comfortable. They had a long journey ahead of them. Setting the bag down on the floor by the door, Oliver ran his hands through his hair and then crawled into the bed. He would just lay there and rest his eyes for a bit until Diego was done. The bed wasn't the most comfortable thing he'd ever slept on, but it felt like heaven in that moment as his muscles began to relax and exhaustion took over.
Diego took his time, as Oliver told him he could, washing himself with the tiny shampoo and soap provided by the motel. It smelled weird but he felt squeaky clean by the time the water started to turn cold. He shut it off and gazed around at the empty bathroom as he dried himself off with the motel towel. It was a little stiff and smelled like bleach, but that was okay. The facility’s hadn’t been much better. It was just amazing to be alone. He couldn’t hear Oliver in the main room, so it was almost like he was completely alone. Thinking about it too much started to make his heart pound in a nervous way -- what if Oliver had abandoned him? -- so Diego hurried through drying the rest of him and wrapped the towel around his waist before he stepped out of the bathroom. His anxiety was for nothing, of course, because Oliver was right there in bed, asleep. Diego just stared at him for a few moments, smiling softly and feeling a happy pressure build up in his chest. He spotted the clothes laid out for him and quietly pulled them on. They fit well enough and smelled like Oliver and that was perfect. Carefully, trying not to wake him, Diego crawled onto the bed and started to settle in.
The mattress dipping under the weight of Diego's body was enough to pierce through Oliver's exhaustion and he squinted his eyes open to see Diego getting into bed, looking freshly showered and wearing Oliver's clothes. Had he fallen asleep? Oliver rubbed at his eye and managed a sleepy smile. "Hey, sorry... was just resting my eyes. Feeling better?" Oliver was aware of all the things he took for granted - showering alone, for instance. But Diego looked happy, and that made all of this risk and danger worth it.
It was sublimely nice to slip under blankets with someone he really wanted to be with. The first person, really. Diego hoped Oliver wouldn’t end up thinking he was dumb, now that he was out of the only environment he really knew. He didn’t really know how to do anything for himself, or anything about relationships, or have any job skills ... but maybe he was jumping ahead of himself. It was hard not to when his mind was racing and he didn’t feel sleepy at all. Diego tucked a pillow under his head, lying on his side and looking at Oliver. So beautiful, even exhausted and half-asleep. “Yes,” he murmured back. “Sorry to wake you. Stay sleeping, if you need to.” Diego could content himself with very quietly watching TV, or daydreaming, or just staring at Oliver’s beautiful face. He would doze off eventually.
Oliver wondered if he could keep himself awake for a while longer. His eyelids felt heavy and his bones tired but he didn't want to leave Diego to fend for himself and the sun would be rising soon. Still, he didn't want to be dead on his feet all day and there was no way he'd be able to drive safely if he didn't catch at least a couple of hours. "Maybe just for a few hours," Oliver murmured, reaching out with one hand to touch Diego's arm. "I don't want to spend the whole day tired. You want to watch tv? I promise I'll be more fun after a bit of sleep." He rubbed Diego's arm, feeling like this couldn't have been more perfect. They'd had some time alone before, but they had never taken the risk to stretch out on Diego's bed together. Diego looked like he belonged there in bed with Oliver, even if it wasn't their bed. Not yet anyway.
Diego was used to being up and odd hours anyway -- the lights in his cell had a strict schedule, but most of the time he was left to his own devices when it came to sleeping or being awake, so he just followed what his body wanted. Right then it didn’t want to sleep, it wanted to start kissing Oliver again, but he knew he would settle down after a while. He covered Oliver’s hand with his own, then took it to bring it up to his lips so he could kiss the knuckles. “Fun is not important right now,” he told him, switching back to his more eloquent Spanish. “Take all the rest you need, you deserve it and more.” He put the back of Oliver’s hand to his cheek for a moment, then leaned in to gently kiss his lips. “Goodnight my angel. Don’t worry about me, just sleep.”
Oliver wasn't worried about Diego. If something happened while he was sleeping, Oliver knew Diego would wake him up. As much as he wanted to stay awake, Oliver didn't think he would be much help to Diego if he was dead on his feet. So he smiled sleepily and squeezed Diego's hand before closing his eyes again. He didn't remember anything after that, except when his eyes opened again there was a stream of light coming in the room from between the thick curtains. It took Oliver a moment to readjust to his surroundings and as everything that had happened came flooding back, he rubbed his eyes and looked over at Diego. "What time is it?" His voice was hoarse from sleep and he looked around for the clock. How long had he been sleeping? Hopefully not too long.