Another Shot

The dark wet streets of the Barrel were empty besides the young gang members that were hiding from the rain under the pent on the top of the stairs. He could see them follow him from in front of the houses on his left and right. But he kept his eyes trained on the street in front of him while his fingers ticked on his revolvers on his waist. He heard the sounds of the club before it came into view.

Jesper walked in the Crows club, rubbing the rain out of his hair as the door closed behind him. The club was crowded with people. Men and women gambling, laughing and tapping their fingers nervously on the table as the ball rolled waiting to see if they got lucky. Seeing them all gamble made him want to scratch an itch, but he pushed through. He pushed through the crowds until he reached the backdoor. He closed the door behind him quickly, drowning out the sounds of the club. He rested his head against the door and let out a deep sigh.

"Another day." He whispered to himself with his eyes closed. He didn't hear someone slide up next to him, so focused on his breathing. So, he startled a little when he heard a voice, his voice.

"How many?" He asked, but Jesper had a feeling he knew just how many it has been.

Jesper opened his eyes and looked sideways. The deep blue eyes from Wylan Van Eck or like he prefers Wylan Hendriks, were already on him. His beautiful red curls hung loosely around his face, framing it perfectly. That boy was going to be the end of him. He thought to himself as he looked at Wylan.

"Lost count." He shrugged, trying to pretend it wasn't hard not to place a bet in the room behind him. Pretending he didn't know the exact number of days since his last bet, or the last place. 

A betting hall where he must walk through every day to meet up with the others in Kaz's office. Was it still punishment for letting something slip to one of Pekka Rollins' men? Or was it so he could learn something from it. Whatever it was, it wasn't easy, the only bright side was the young red-curly headed boy that was standing next to him. His blue eyes, that Jesper had missed so much, were staring up at him.

They were still looking at each other, the only ones in the silent empty hallway. It has been a few weeks since their first kiss in the hotel and neither knew why but it hadn't happened again. They were living together for Saint's sake, but still nothing had happened besides the obvious flirting. He would never admit it, but Jesper dreamed about the kiss almost every night. How those plump rosy lips brushed against his, how his hand went to the nape of his neck, pulling him closer.

They were both leaning against the door as they looked at each other. They both inched closer to each other, slowly but steadily. But when he heard the tapping of Kaz's cane echo through the hallway, Wylan jumped back. Jesper looked at him with a cheeky grin as Wylan's cheeks flushed. It was only when he saw Kaz appear in the corner of his eye, that he looked away.

"Jesper, Wylan. Let's go." Kaz said as he leaned on his cane and walked past them, apparently oblivious to the tension between them. Jesper shot Wylan a last wink before they followed him into his office. The others were already there. Nina was curled up in the corner of the couch next to Matthias, while Inej was perched on the other side.