(BL) Hunting The Field Guide Chapter 259: Mom to the rescue?

A knock sounded at the door and Kellen wondered who got past Maeve.

Both the Captain and Casper froze, and Kellen had to detach himself from Rhys, and use one hand holding onto the bookshelf to get to the door since his cane was behind the desk. Unlocking the door, he opened it slightly to stare into the sa eyes he had.

"Mom?" He said, startled and she frowned at him.

"Why aren’t you opening the door more?" She demanded and Kellen glanced behind her to find Maeve looking shocked and Brent with the smaller Guide Kellen had left him in charge of. Brent looked a little guilty, but didn’t apologise.

"Uh, well,"

"Are you and Rhys getting up to sothing you shouldn’t in your office?" She asked, not quietly at all. Kellen’s cheeks flushed.

"Mom! Of course not!" Kellen felt his voice get a little shrill. He cleared his throat. "No. I’m having a...impromptu eting. What brings you here? I didn’t think you’d leave Dad’s side." Her face fell and her cheeks flushed.

"Your Dad got uh, a little angry at and told to give him so space." She mumbled and Kellen smirked. So she’d hovered a little too close to him and he’d finally snapped. Figured. Kellen’s grip tightened on the door.

"So you ca to bother ?" Kellen asked and she huffed.

"I didn’t co to bother you. I ca to ask about the kid, where you found him, and if you’d heard any news about who’d done this yet?" Kellen shook his head.

"I’m not sending my Mom who can turn invisible to commit cris, alright? Not happening." Kellen stated clearly and she scoffed.

"Who said anything about cris?"

"Your glowing, purple eyes, Mom. No. He’s here now, and he’s going to be fine." Brent did look apologetic then.

"We ran into her when we were leaving the dical Bay. I saw your text, but I couldn’t just-" Kellen raised his free hand, cutting him off.

"It’s alright, Brent. Um, while you are here..." Kellen looked over his shoulder at the still shaking and trembling Casper, who the Captain was now hugging, trying to comfort him. "Mom, I think I have a present you can bring to Dad to win his favour back." His Mom’s eyes narrowed.

"What kind of eting were you having that would have a present he’d like?" Kellen’s expression was grim.

"Well, let’s just say, you’re going to bring our newest recruit, and the Guild’s oldest recruit, and Dad’s going to be able to baby them both." No one understood his words, and Kellen was fine with that. They would understand in ti.

~

The office was too small for everyone to enter at once, so after everyone had rotated in and out of the small space. Maeve had generously let everyone overflow into the main office with the scientists on a coffee break, and Kellen got to catch Brent up on everything that had happened without violating Rhys or Casper’s privacy. Of course, Kellen told Brent that Gunther had a fucked up perception of love, and Brent didn’t need to hear more.

He was stone faced, and at first, Kellen had worried he was upset in so capacity, but he found out he was only thinking about how he could trick the man into therapy. Brent quickly ran out of ideas since Casper as a honey trap was the only thing he could co up with.

It was a slight mont of laughter in the trying ti.

Kellen’s Mom was all for Kellen’s proposed bribes. Casper needed convincing, but when Kellen told him that he could stay in the Guild, no one would know where he was (Gunther) and he could heal and take as much ti as he needed, while still getting information and possibly ho cooking, he folded.

Kellen’s newest Guide was a little harder to convince. Especially since he thought he was vaguely responsible for the violence committed against Kellen and his Dad. Kellen had to soothe and comfort him, and even bribed him by telling him that Casper was the man in charge of Guides. It was an easy way for him to get to know what would be expected of him as a new Guide in the Guild.

Everyone had stared at him like he had two heads when he’d said that, since everyone could see the kid wasn’t ready to start working any ti soon, but it relaxed him, and got him to leave with Kellen’s Mom.

The sa woman had all of Casper’s bags in her hand, as well as Rhys’ keys to his apartnt. She waved at Kellen, a muscle twitching in her jaw, but at least when she hugged Kellen she’d seed more stable internally.

With Dad awake now, she was going to be able to relax. At least sowhat. He didn’t think things would ever go back to what they had been before until they found the fuckers who did this.

Even then, it was probably going to take her a lot to go back to the house. He knew that the attack hadn’t happened there, but she’d heard the news there.

Kellen understood having a hard ti going back to places where you heard bad news.

Now, it was just Brent, Rhys and Kellen in the small office space. Brent and Kellen had made sure that Casper had packed away all the snacks that the scientists had given him and even gave their new Guide a bunch from the snack bowl as well.

The two malnourished Guides weren’t going to remain that way if they had a say in it.

Rhys was sitting on the couch, looking shell shocked. Kellen knew that neither of them had the ti for this, and that hurt his heart. Rhys had big responsibilities on his shoulders, but the man needed ti. Even Brent kept glancing at him in concern.

"Look, you took the morning class, I’ll take the afternoon class. You need to-"

"No, I don’t want to bother either of you. I can...I’ll be okay." Rhys got to his feet, his body unsteady and both of the Guides frowned.

"Rhys, I don’t feel comfortable leaving you like this." Kellen told him with a frown and Brent wasn’t any better. He scanned the other man, his one hand on his hip.

"How are you less stable on your feet than Kellen right now? Don’t make us more worried and sit back down, sir." Brent’s tone was harsh but kind. A hard balance to do, but he was capable of it. Rhys chuckled, shaking his head as he took a deep breath.

"I can’t collapse right now. I don’t-we don’t have ti. Just...can I have Kellen for a few monts?" He asked softly, and Kellen and Brent both lted. Brent patted the man on the shoulder as he left, his eyes full of sympathy.

"Talk to if you need any help. I know a ton about toxic families." Brent offered and closed the office door behind him. Rhys only waited a second before he rushed to Kellen, wrapping his arms around the other man. Kellen held onto him tightly and Rhys trembled in his arms.

"I can’t believe I never noticed. Or even thought to ask." He muttered, his voice tense. It sounded like it hurt to speak.

"You were a kid." Kellen told him and Rhys’ grip grew bruising.

"I wasn’t always a kid." He shot back. "I got everyone else help. I made sure we had the best help. I benched other Espers, even Hill. Made her go to therapy. Don’t know how much that helped her, but I did it." He told him and Kellen just held him.

"Rhys...I am a strong believer in therapy, but people need to want to get help first. If it helped others, I’m glad that you did it. I also want to make sure I understand this clearly and correctly. You two...you both ca from abusive families?" Kellen asked softly and Rhys squeezed Kellen again. Kellen said nothing about the slight pain.

"Yes." He admitted. "But I’m fine. I was able to-"

"Did you ever go to therapy?" Kellen cut him off, his voice soft while his heart thumped in his chest. Rhys let out a shaky breath, and Kellen knew he knew where he was going with this.

"No." He replied and Kellen let out a joyless laugh.

"Did you ever consider that you thought you were fine, so you didn’t think to ask Gunther that he was fine? Or vice versa? I bet you Gunther also sent people to therapy for their actions, didn’t he?" Rhys shifted uncomfortably as Kellen pointed it out.

Kellen moved back, his sore butt hitting against the edge of the desk behind him but he didn’t care. He needed to look at Rhys’ face.

Rhys looked sad, like a beaten and bruised kitten. His eyes were bright, lost, and in pain. His hair was rustled, and his skin was sallow. He looked like he’d gotten the life sucked out of him, and not in a good way.

"I didn’t want to think about it." Rhys muttered and Kellen chuckled. He pulled Rhys down until their foreheads touched.

"I’m not going to force you, but I think you should also go to therapy. You can’t exactly send your best friend into sothing without doing it yourself first, can you? And, it would be an easy way to convince him to go. If you’re already doing it, he won’t feel it’s as big of a deal." Rhys groaned.

He rubbed his forehead against Kellen’s, and Kellen chuckled at the intimate way the man was holding him. His grip was tight, but at the sa ti, Rhys was holding him like he was important. Delicate.

"This sounds like a ploy to get into therapy." Rhys grumbled and Kellen laughed.

"I’m not going to lie and say I don’t think therapy is a good thing for you to go to. It’s nice to get your thoughts and feelings out to soone who is paid not to judge you, and specialises in your issues. Therapy and being on the front lines really helped get over the chip on my shoulder." Kellen told him and Rhys’ breath washed over Kellen’s face as he sighed.

"I’ll...think about it. Would you...have a couple drinks with tonight? I just, I need to clear my head." He mumbled. Kellen didn’t think drinking would solve all of his problems, but he wasn’t going to get angry at him for a couple of nights.

Kellen grabbed his face, pressing a kiss against his cheek with a soft smile.

"Alright. Should I grab them? Did you want to order food in or did you want to make sothing?" Rhys’ eyes watered and he hugged Kellen tightly.

"Whatever you want. Whatever is easiest. God, you’re perfect." Rhys’ words washed over Kellen and he flushed. He was in no way perfect, but now didn’t seem like the ti to protest Rhys’ words. So, he just hugged the man back until their few monts were up, and they both had to go back to work.