“Oh, okay.” Then, because it just looked so cool, he moved the computer onto Dev’s lap. “Can you play this part? I just want to watch? It looks so awesome.”
“Sure,” Dev said, smiling. He moved his fingers onto the right keys, then continued to play.
In short order, he chopped three of the spider’s legs off with the trap, making it run off.
“That was too easy…,” Seth pondered out loud.
“Uh-huh, watch this,” Dev murmured and continued.
The skittering sounds were horrible and awesome at the same time, and then suddenly the character got stuck in—
“Is that spider web? Oh my God, no, I can’t watch this. No, no, no….”
“What the hell are you doing to Seth?” Leaf’s amused voice drifted to them from the kitchen.
“If you can, come look,” Dev called back.
“Well, thatisone creepyass spider,” Leaf admitted over their shoulders. Then he laughed when Dev got the now-cocooned character free of the web and jumped along the way again. “That looks cool.”
“It’s a pretty awesome game.”
“Isn’t the art gorgeous?” Seth beamed at Leaf, who nodded seriously.
“I never thought computer games would be this artistic. All I’ve seen are the driving and shooting ones.”
“Yeah, those look quite nice these days too. I still like the ones with a proper story, though, subtle as it may be,” Dev said absently as he guided their cocooned little friend onward.
“Dinner is ready, by the way. As soon as you can pause that, or however it works,” Leaf said, brushed his hand over Seth’s head, then Dev’s too, and went back to the kitchen.
“We’ll be right there,” Seth promised.
It still took five minutes for them to stop playing, simply because they got sucked right back in.
“I’ll start the download for the other game I wanted to show you, so it’s ready once we come back,” Dev said and did that quickly, then got up and stretched his hands over his head.
Seth couldn’t tear his gaze off the way Dev’s arms looked or the fact that his belly showed just for a moment where the shirt hitched up.
“Now, please!”
“We’re coming, we’re coming,” Seth called toward the kitchen, making Dev snort.
“Not on the first date, I don’t think.” He explained his amusement, making Seth blush again.
THEY SATaround the table in the semiformal dining room, because why not use it if they had it. Breakfast bar was fine for breakfast, but not dinner, after all.
Dev made a happy sound at the first taste of the tomato sauce. “This is so good,” he groaned when his mouth was empty again.
“Thank you.” Leaf smiled at him, and Seth could tell Leaf was happy for the praise.
“He has some tricks up his sleeve. If he’s home, he usually cooks something delicious for when I get home from work.” Seth reached over the corner of the table and squeezed Leaf’s hand.
Leaf sat at the end of the six-person table, with Seth and Dev kitty-corner from him. It was nice, almost like a family dinner. Usually it was just the two of them, or Seth sitting on the couch with his plate, alone.
“Hey, I never asked,” Dev said suddenly, looking at Leaf. “What is it that you do?”
“Oh, I train dogs.” Leaf smiled.
“Well, that explains the”—Dev waved his fork around—“general behavior of your canine friends.”
