Sweet Devil [BL]

Chapter 147. Lego Castle

Tristan glared at Stephan, and Stephan stared back; sparks seemed to fly about. The standstill lasted until Stephan smiled and stretched his hands to pinch the child's cheeks, letting go of Jake's waist. The kid's skin was smooth and white, and it soon turned bright red under the mistreatment.

Stephan said in a teasing tone, "I know that you love your big bro, but there's no need to glare at me. I'm not gonna steal him from you, you brat!"

"I'm," Tristan stuttered, "I'm not glaring at you...."

"Uh-huh."

The boy pursed his lips before hiding his face in the crook of his brother's neck. He glued himself to Jake and pretended Stephan didn't exist, unaware that his beloved brother's heart was about to jump out of his throat. Even if Jake was a strong-willed man, it was still hard to steel his nerves when the tormentor of his past lives was clinging to him, sitting on his lap. The hell he had gone through was trauma-inducing, whether he wanted to admit it or not.

"Tristan," Gabriel's voice echoed within the room, and the boy's shoulders stiffened. "I'm getting jealous here. Where's my hug?"

Slowly, the child glanced over his shoulder. When the three of them were together, he usually clung to Gabriel instead of Jake. He'd sometimes even hide behind Gabriel's legs, only daring to peek at his eldest brother from a safe distance. Now that Tristan thought about it, he couldn't even remember the last time he had hugged Jake.

"You'll have many other chances to hug him," Gabriel coaxed. "Now, come here. Your brother is still feeling weak, and you're a little heavy. How about letting him rest?"

Tristan chewed on his lower lip, peering at Jake. He saw his pale face and realized that he indeed didn't seem to be feeling well. Thus, he reluctantly climbed down from the bed, not without kissing his brother's cheek first.

"Get well soon!" he said before plastering himself against Gabriel's right leg, wrapping his arms around his waist. "When you feel better, can you come over to my room? I want to show you my new Lego castle! It's bigger than me, and I built many rooms inside. You can see them through the windows! So...."

"Oh? And can I also come? I'd like to see it!" Stephan chimed in before Jake could answer. Tristan responded by puffing his cheeks, and thus Stephan added with a theatrical sigh, a hand pressed against his chest, "You've been so cold to me today! My poor heart is about to break, you know? Where did my cute little Tristan go...? I'm missing him!"

The boy tried to stifle his laughter but couldn't. With a chuckle, he finally nodded, "Alright, you can come over too!"

"Thank you, your highness!" Stephan bowed with a solemn expression, drawing out another laugh from the boy.

Standing by their side, Misha watched their interaction with rapt attention. He had realized it over the years, but Stephan truly was good at leading people by the nose. He just knew what to say to either please them, lower their guard, or anger them to death. It was something Misha could never do, his EQ too low. It was still interesting to watch, though.

"TRISTAN!!!" Angela's panicked voice resounded throughout the house, so shrill that it pierced people's eardrums. "WHERE ARE YOU?! ANSWER ME!"

'Tsk. Looks like she has finally found out her dearest son has sneaked out,' Misha thought with a grimace. 'It hasn't even been ten minutes.'

"TRISTAN!"

Tristan's body stiffened upon hearing his mother's voice, and Gabriel patted his shoulder to comfort him. He bent over to take him in his arms, his voice soft as he said, "Let's go meet up with your mom, ok?"