Page 32 of Miles's Pact
Eleven
Miles
Heather seemed much warmer toward us when we returned, so whatever Duckie had said had worked. After a filling meal, she sat us down on the couch and proceeded to share album upon album of Duckie's baby pictures, much to his embarrassment.
"Damn, you were a cute baby," Mateo said, making Duckie groan.
"He's right," I agreed, watching in fascination as pink colored Duckie's cheeks. He only reacted that way whenIcomplimented him, and I loved that.
"You're lucky you have so many pictures of you. The earliest I have of My and me is when we were ten," Mateo said, and I smiled when I remembered the day we'd stumbled upon an album—and a printed one at that—full of pictures of the two of us. Our dads had been taking them for years, and we hadn'teven realized it. Of course, we'd posed for a few pictures, like our yearly family Christmas ones, but most of them had been candid shots. They'd done the same for our older brother, Micah, as well.
"Why's that?" Heather asked, and Mateo glanced at me to check. I nodded, and he turned to her.
"That's when our dads adopted us."
"Oh," Heather said, seeming unsure how to reply to that.
"They took tons of pictures of us too, like you," I said with a smile as Mateo turned to Duckie.
"I'll show you when we get back home. There's this one that was taken after we shifted for the first time, and I stole Miles's clothes before he could get dressed, and he chased me through the house. We were both naked, and our dads just about died laughing. In between taking pictures, of course."
I buried my face in my hands as Duckie laughed, resisting the urge to smack my shameless twin.
We looked through the albums for a while after that, neither me nor Mateo in any rush to leave after seeing how happy Duckie was.
"How about the three of you spend the night? It's too late to drive back," Heather's mom suggested, and while our senses were sharper at night so it wasn't a problem, I didn't argue. It was clear Duckie didn't want to leave yet, and I didn't mind staying.
"I'm up for that," Mateo said, and I nodded.
"Perfect. I have two guest rooms upstairs. You two don't mind bunking, do you?" She glanced between me and Mateo, and we shook our heads in unison, not wanting to lose the acceptance we'd gained. "There are spare toothbrushes in the bathroom cabinet, though I don't have clothes for you to sleep in."
"That's okay. I'll shift if I feel uncomfortable," Mateo said, and she smiled at him before leading us to the bedrooms. Was she making sure Duckie slept in the other bedroom?
Twenty minutes later, Mateo and I were sharing a queen-sized bed after brushing our teeth and calling our dads to let them know where we were.
We'd shrugged off our pants but kept our shirts on. Usually, I slept in my underwear, but I'd taken to wearing a t-shirt and sweatpants since Duckie came to live with us.
"Night, Miles," Mateo mumbled as he turned on his side with his back to me, and I flicked the lamps off before settling in.
"Night, Mateo."
Night, Duckie, I added through our bond, smiling when he returned the sentiment.
We stayed until lunch the next day before Duckie felt ready to leave. He'd grabbed some photos and keepsakes to take with him, and Mateo held the bag while Duckie hugged his mom. When they pulled apart, she cupped his face, her eyes misty, her lips trembling as she smiled.
Duckie swallowed hard, and I rubbed his back, wishing I could do more. He shot me a grateful smile, then kissed his mom's cheek. "I'm okay now. And I'll visit again soon, I promise."
His mom nodded, then glanced at me and Mateo. "Take care of my son, okay?"
"Yes, ma'am!" Mateo said as I nodded, and she smiled, then pulled her arms away. I'd given her our numbers, and I was planning to get a phone for Duckie now that he was in his human form, so he could talk to her whenever he wanted.
Once we got home, Duckie perched himself on the couch, looking a little lost as he ruffled through the things he'd brought. Now that he was human, we couldn't make him sleep on the couch. Maybe he could take my room and I'd sleep on the couch? Or maybe I could bunk with Mateo again like we had as kids. I didn't think he'd mind.
Oh well, we still had a few hours before we'd need to worry about that.
"Anyone else wanna go see the dragon babies?" Mateo asked a few minutes later, and Duckie perked up.
"How many are there?"
