Expensive Mistakes

We're Only Liars

A few weeks passed and Tobi and Emilio had mainly put the fight behind them. It worried Emilio slightly that Tobi never ended up wanting to talk about the issues he was facing, but Emilio worried more about prying and upsetting Tobi. It was best to just learn what he could on his own, he decided. His research so far hadn't taught him much more than he already knew, but he didn't feel discouraged. He was bound to find something eventually.

Emilio pressed his lips against Tobi's head and pulled him closer as they snuggled on the couch, watching TV and enjoying each other's company.

Tobi gave a happy sigh and leaned into the embrace.

"Are you going to fall asleep on my couch again?" Emilio teased lightly.

"I shouldn't," Tobi mumbled, smiling as Emilio kissed him on the head again.

For the third time that day, Tobi thought about bringing Emilio to the church. What Mattis had said was true: they didn't need to say they were dating. But would everyone be dense enough to not pick up on what was really going on?

Maybe I should come out...

He considered the idea for a moment before deciding it was ridiculous. He shook his head to clear his thoughts.

"Is everything alright?" Emilio asked.

"Yes. I just had a stupid thought."

"And what was said stupid thought?"

Tobi shifted slightly, embarrassed. "Nothing. Just maybe coming out to my family. Like I said, it was a stupid thought."

"It really wasn't," Emilio replied. "There's nothing wrong with wanting to be open."

Tobi tried to ignore the meaningful silence that followed.

When nothing was said, Emilio continued hesitantly. "Speaking of..."

"Emilio," Tobi warned.

"We never talked about what happened. You never told me what was going on."

The sentence hung in the air with a certain weight to it. This was the first time the fight had been brought up since it happened.

"No," Tobi agreed.

"Talk to me. You don't have to deal with things alone." Emilio smiled, trying to put Tobi at ease.

"I don't have to, but I would like to keep my business my business," Tobi admitted. "For now."

For now.

It was almost a promise that Emilio would find out in the future.

But how far in the future? Soon? A few years down the line? Emilio didn't know what was going on with Tobi, but he had an idea. Did Tobi even have that long?

But Emilio didn't voice these doubts for fear of scaring Tobi away.

With a small "Okay," he allowed Tobi's guarded heart to push him away.

"Thank you for understanding."

And that was the padlock on the gates. Emilio knew Tobi didn't plan to tell him anytime soon. He would just have to take matters into his own hands.

"Of course."

Tobi returned his attention to the TV as Emilio pulled out his phone. Adjusting their position so that only he could see his phone, Emilio opened his search engine and continued his research on the Schneien family. There had to be something interesting. Something that would give him any clue as to what Tobi was dealing with.

As he scrolled deeper into the results, he stumbled across a particular site that piqued his interests: a social media account. A rant on a blog. The user seemed to have some experience with the family.

Who is Rudolph Richardson? he wondered.

"You seem a little more quiet than usual. Is something bothering you?" Mattias asked.

Tobi had taken to splitting his free time between Emilio and Mattias. Mainly because Mattias insisted on regular updates of Tobi's love life.

"I've just been thinking a lot. Since Emilio and I had that fight—"

"What? You didn't tell me about a fight!"

Ah. That was right. He had been trying to bury the argument, so he hadn't mentioned it.

"Oh, um, he asked about my scar and I didn't want to talk about it. He kept prying and we got in an argument," Tobi explained.

"You don't plan on telling him?" Mattias asked. The topic of Tobi's scar was very sensitive and rarely brought up, even between the two of them.

"I'm not sure," Tobi admitted. "Maybe someday, but things need to be more serious between us. He would have to meet everyone before he could really understand."

Mattias thought about how best to word his next sentence. Talking about the scar put him on thin ice. He had to be sure to tread carefully. "So you should take him to the church. I think it would be good to have someone you feel you can really talk to."

Tobi frowned a bit. "I suppose," he mumbled. "I just feel it would be a bit difficult to explain. I've considered coming out, but..."

"Maybe you should," Mattias suggested. "You're an adult. You have your own house. It's not like they can kick you out."

Tobi squirmed uncomfortably. "That's true..."

"But don't feel pressured. It's probably pretty nerve-wracking," Mattias added quickly, sensing Tobi's discomfort.

"I'll see how things go when I introduce him before deciding whether or not to come out."

Mattias raised his eyebrows in surprise. "So you are taking him to the church?"

"It seems like it," Tobi sighed.

"Are you sure you're ready?"

"No, but I can't put it off forever." He frowned. "And you were the one just trying to convince me to take him!"

"Yes, but I expected you to ignore my advice. You tend to do that."

"Not recently," Tobi mumbled indignantly.

"Well, reconstruction is nearly finished, so you should talk to Emilio about it soon."

"I know. I will. Would you talk to our octuplets and see when they're free?" Tobi asked, pulling out his phone. "I might as well introduce him to everyone at once."

"Sure, I can do that. What do you want me to say if they ask questions?"

Tobi shrugged, opening his messages with Emilio. "I don't really care. Just let me be the one to come out." He thought for a moment, composing a text to Emilio. :The church is almost fixed. When do you think you'll be free so you can meet my family?:

Emilio's reply was nearly instantaneous. :Give me a date and I can clear my calendar.:

:I'll get back to you when my siblings reply with a date they're free.:

Tobi's phone gave another buzz. He checked the notification and realized that Mattias created a new group chat with their octuplets. The first text read, :When are you guys free? Tobi and I were thinking of going to the church and he wanted to introduce someone to the family.:

:Did Tobi get a girlfriend?: one of their brothers, Wolfe, asked.

:No,: Tobi replied, glancing up at Mattias.

Okay, we're doing this.

A/N  Happy Wednesday, guys! The italics didn't carry over to Wattpad when I pasted from Docs. Really love that. I'm going to have to check all of the other chapters now to make sure that hasn't been happening every time I update. Before y'all call me out, I'm aware that Tobi probably has younger siblings with a small age gap which means they would also have been old enough to move out. I'm just lazy. Chapter title from "Our Lawyer Made Us Change the Name of This Song So We Wouldn't Get Sued" by Fall Out Boy.