51. It’s Evidence!

" F oxx…why are you once again baking right before Wes gets here?!" Harlow hissed, ignoring the pulling in his back as he crossed his arms. The pain pills were still going strong. He felt…a twinge of pain, but nothing he couldn't handle.

"Well, I'd rather be at that festival, but I'm pretty sure after yesterday it's likely canceled. And it's possible that I may have forgotten that Wes was coming today until you mentioned it this morning, thus I am…baking."

Harlow stared, repeating the man's words in his head as he tried to find any sort of logic. Eyeing the bowl Foxx was stirring, he asked, "What are you baking?"

"Brownies."

"And you aren't using the hand mixer, why?"

"Less mess?"

"Just get them in the damn oven so you aren't getting up to get them out while Wes is here!"

"What are you even getting pissy for?! It wouldn't be a big deal even if I had to!" Foxx started to glare at him, as the brat continued to stand there and slowly mix his brownie batter.

Harlow sighed. When the vampire had said he wanted to cause chaos yesterday…he should have known he'd be the one suffering from it.

Still stirring, Foxx slowly smiled and suggested, "Oh, while you are standing there doing nothing, why don't you move that one end table out of the way… So he doesn't trip over it again. I'd rather not have my lamp broken. Or a bleeding human on my floor." The vampire frowned, quickly adding, "Maybe you should just move all the furniture in that area so they're a bit away from each other, that way, the paths will be wider."

"Of courseeeee," Harlow said in a fake happy voice. "Instead of getting ready, as our psychologist will be here in thirty fucking minutes, I'll go move the furniture around, while at the same time, try to not pop a stitch. Anything else, my royal pain in the ass?"

Foxx giggled. "No, that will be all, my mere peasant. Also, as long as you just move things with your feet, your stitches will be fine!"

Harlow took a deep breath in and out. This was who he was contemplating building a house with?

He sighed again, and…walked his dumbass to the first half of the living room, where he started moving the motherfucking furniture, because the answer was still fucking…yes…

Foxx held out the plate full of warm gooey fudge brownies to Wes, asking with a sweet smile, "Brownie?"

His smile widened as Harlow scoffed next to him. Foxx wasn't sure why the dhampir was still complaining, as if the man hadn't scarfed down three before Wes had even gotten here.

The human had luckily this time made it to the chair without catching his foot on anything.

"I have to say, I'm going to try to come more often if you keep this up, Foxx," Wes chuckled. Grabbing one, the man's eyes slid shut briefly as he took a bite and chewed. "Mm, mm, mmmm. If all of Foxx's baking and cooking is up to this level, I'm honestly surprised you didn't gain weight when you were human while living here, Harlow."

Foxx giggled, sending the man a beaming smile. "Well, he would have if I could have made him eat it. But while ‘human', the man rarely ate anything I made. Besides the pies I baked for his birthday, that is." His smile turned slightly smug at that.

Wes' brow rose, but having just tossed the rest of the brownie into his mouth, he waited until he finished swallowing to say, "I'm not sure I'd have the willpower to resist. Baked goods are my weakness, I'm afraid. Which is why I generally avoid bakeries."

"Yeah, well, I don't have to avoid shit now," Harlow snorted.

"No, that is a benefit to no longer being…" the human trailed off on a frown. "I do wonder if you would have even gained weight before, considering you weren't, in fact, human."

Huh…Foxx hadn't actually thought about that. Had Harlow been avoiding food for no reason? He glanced over at the man to see if he was going to enlighten them, and found Harlow's eyes slightly wide as his brow furrowed more and more.

Oh...by the Goddess. "You can't recall ever gaining weight, can you?!"

"I…" Harlow trailed off, his eyes narrowing.

Foxx burst into laughter. "You can't!" He started to tsk. "All that wasted effort and time."

"Foxx, shut it," the dhampir hissed. "I recall…losing…muscle mass. That is evidence of me gaining!"

"Mm, no." He snickered. "That's evidence of you not working out as much. Vampires and paranormals gain and lose muscle mass all the time."

Harlow rubbed at his eyes with a groan. "Wes, did you really have to ask that?! Do you know what you just did to me? This one…" Foxx blinked as the dhampir pointed at him, "Will NEVER let this go. It's going to come up randomly now, just like me throwing my fucking back out!"

Foxx hummed, thinking on if he should feel insulted or not. No… Why be insulted when it was true?

"Ah, I didn't mean to cause an issue," Wes said, though the smile on his face really didn't suggest that he felt bad. The smile dropped a bit, the human's head tilting. "Why are you sitting so stiffly, Harlow?"

"A werewolf sliced up my back," the dhampir grunted.

"Ah…are you in pain?"

"No, the stitches just run the full length of my back, and they pull if I sit a certain way."

Foxx smiled and added, "He's on the good drugs." Only to be helpful, of course.

Wes' brow furrowed in what he'd say was concern. "What exactly is Harlow on?"

Harlow snorted. "It's fine, they aren't going to have me saying anything I don't want to."

"If…you are sure…" The human cleared his throat. "Well…I suppose it's time I steer the conversation to today's topic. Childhood."

Foxx's smile dropped so fast, he barely stopped the frown from forming on his face. "Harlow's childhood?"

"Ah…I was hoping to hear a bit from both of you. We don't have to cover everything today, but I'd like for us to get a jump start."

"I mean…is my childhood really important to know? Most of my issues started from the day after I turned," he said with a hesitant laugh, not even sure if it was a lie or not. "It would probably be best to not bother going that far back anyway and just focus on what happened with me recently."

"Our younger years are part of us, Foxx. Those years are sometimes the most important, as no matter how far back, they did in some way shape you into the person who is sitting before me today. You don't have to tell me anything you don't want to. I will never try to force answers out of you. As it would not only undermine my professional integrity, but it would also likely destroy any chance I had of gaining your trust, or in you feeling safe with me. And without trust and safety, how could you ever believe I am here to help you? So, I will ask questions and you can choose to answer them when and if you are ever comfortable to. All I ask is that you be honest with me when you do answer. Even if that is to tell me ‘no, I'm not comfortable sharing that right now'."

Foxx grimaced. Fuck a duck… Couldn't he…just go to his craft room?

Instead of saying that, he said, "Harlow can go first."