Babysitting the Mafia’s Heir.Chapter 6: don't get us killed. "Oh, right. Yeah! Yeah, of course. I'd love to meet him. How old is he?" Jesse hears his own voice softening and he wonders if this is why Joaquin thought of him to look after his boss' kid. It's been a while since he's been able to dote on his younger siblings, but when he does, nothing makes him happier than playing with them. He's always had the biggest soft spot for children."Seventeen," Ivanov tells him with a blank face and Jesse is a little bit rattled, stunned from where he was midway to standing up. “I'm kidding," the man laughs, amusement curling at his lips. "He's six." And Jesse can hear the softness to his voice."Great age." Ivanov’s eyebrows raise in silent question as he leads him out of his office. “You know, it's when they're at their softest. They think you're the funniest and most entertaining person ever, like you know the answers to the universe."Ivanov seems to get it, going off the way his fa
Babysitting the Mafia’s Heir.Chapter 7: babysitting for the weekend. .Jesse picks him up that Friday, and he can see by the look on his face that he's pensive, clearly second guessing this."Come on," Jesse says as his brother drives them over to Ivanov’s. "It's gonna be fine. I've already had a long talk with Ivanov--" he stops at the look Wallace sends him. "I've already had a long talk with Mr. Javier, alright? I know the rules. No answering the door, put the alarm on at night, in by seven. I even made my own list. You know how serious I am about things if I bother to make a list."Wallace sighs, giving a nod, running his hand through his hair as they stop at a red light. "Just don't fuck up, Jesse. I'm your brother, but I can't be held accountable for your actions this time. Okay?"Jesse frowns, lips pushing into a sulk. "I can handle my own, thank you. It'll be fine," he repeats, this time a little more assertively. His brother just nods, not saying anything else on the matt
Babysitting the Mafia’s Heir.Chapter 8: Anger, fear, anguish, confusion. .By seven, they're both full from their dinner - and what a dinner it was. Jesse is not sure he's eaten that good in a long time. All the food was already prepped or plated, and all he had to do was heat it up or follow the last few instructions, which actually proved to be a little difficult in such a high tech kitchen. So many knobs, so many buttons. But he managed to figure it out with the help of Indor and a couple of texts to Ivanov, who was actually almost as clueless as him, considering they had a chef. A chef. Jesse eventually ousted Ivanov away and got it sorted. He's got his arm stretched over the back of the couch behind Iandor, the TV playing an animated movie that neither are all that interested in, and Jesse has got one popsicle in his mouth, and the other in the hand behind Iandor as the kid draws lines onto the tablet. They've been at it for the last forty-five minutes, Iandor creating a
Babysitting the Mafia’s Heir.Chapter 9.He struggles to fall asleep.Iandor has been in bed for almost six hours now, and Jesse for two. He stayed up a while to clean up and try and watch a movie, bring some type of normality back to him. But to no avail. He still feels the tumult inside him, thinking about that file in Ivanov’s office. The file on him. The more he thinks about it, the more the apprehension sizzles into animosity. That fucker. Jesse would have had no problem giving him all the information he needed, would have given it to him willingly. So the fact that he dug - and boy, he dug deep - into Jesse’s life without consent, it bothers him like none other. He's close to foaming at the mouth as he lies there in sheets too soft to ignore, still thinking of a way he can accidentally step on Ivanov’s toes and have a knife recede from the heel of his shoe. Jesse’s plans are disturbed, though, when he hears a noise from downstairs. He strains his ears, because he's heard the
Babysitting the Mafia’s Heir.Chapter 10."Jesse."It's such a soft, sweet sentiment, and it has Jesse waking up with a smile.Iandor called him when waking up. He sees him as a big brother. But his smile soon slips at the sight of the worried frown between Iandor’s eyebrows, immediately curling a protective arm around him. "What's wrong, bug?" He whispers, voice grainy with sleep."Bad dream," the kid replies just as quietly as he curls up into the space of his chest and Jesse can't help but internally croon at how soft of a gesture it is."Did I forget to turn your nightlight on? Oh, gosh, I'm sorry, Ian, I--"Ian shakes his head against his collarbone. "No, you didn't forget. I just had a bad dream anyway. Can I stay with you?"Jesse feels his shoulders go a little more slack, pulling the covers up around them both, giving Iandor all of his body heat. "Of course you can. I feel safer with you in here too," he confesses, hoping to ease Iandor as much as possible.It seems to work
Babysitting the Mafia’s Heir.Chapter 11: what a billionaire mafia jerk.After getting the earful of a lifetime from his brother regarding respect and just not being an asshole to someone like Ivanov, life goes back to normal for him. Jesse still insists on not knowing anything, though it seems Joaquin is very careful not to slip up anymore, whether it be from Jesse’s attitude towards Ivanov, or Wallace’s wrath, he doesn't know or care.He keeps on chugging through school life, keeps getting his work done and even combines Iandor’s drawings into one of his projects. The project is entirely customised to him personally, and Jesse bases it on creativity through the years and how it can become morphed by society and reused ideas. The only time Jesse thinks about Ivanov is the one night he dreams of him. Dreams of him coming into his room late at night and wrapping a hand around his neck and squeezing and squeezing until Jesse’s choking for breath and clawing at his wrists. He wakes u
Babysitting the Mafia’s Heir.Chapter 12: fucking beautiful bastard .Jesse is emotionally exhausted.He's just finished all of the exams he has for the week, and he didn't think he'd seen the end of them. Friday couldn't come soon enough, it was a blessing. With how much time he's spent holed in his apartment, or the graphics department at school, he's raring to go when Momo and Cassie ask him to come clubbing with him. It feels like it's been too long since he's been able to go out and just have fun now that his exams are behind him. For now at least.He breaks out the leather pants, poor things. They've been catching dust in his drawer for a while now, so it only seems fitting that he wears them. He pairs them with a DIY black sleeveless tee and a thin choker, all with his pink and white silk bomber jacket. He knows he looks good, because he feels good.Jesse goes and meets the girls at theirs, considering they live closer to the district, and they pile into a cab and head to th
.Babysitting the Mafia’s Heir.Chapter 13: trouble trouble trouble .Jesse sighs through his nose, directing his attention back to his two friends who are now back on their feet and on the makeshift dance floor off to the side. He's tempted to leave them, go home and sleep this off. But he'd be thinking about them all night. He trusts Wallace, trusts Joaquin, but he doesn't know the rest of these guys.Fuck.He drops down to sit on one of the square couches, resigning himself to the fact that he's not going anyway anytime soon. Jesse casts a look over his shoulder to meet eyes with Ivanov, who's wearing that stupid expression again, and he really just wants to punch him. Right in the dick.The whiplash this night was giving him.He closes his eyes when the beat of the music starts to annoy him rather than appease him, slinking down in his seat and crossing his arms over his chest. He doesn't know how long he sits there like that for, when he feels the spot next to him dip with we
Babysitting The Mafia’s Heir.Chapter 21: preparing for what? ."Shut up and kiss me already," Jesse all but growls with a tug of Ivanov’s belt, patience suddenly non-existent, and just like that, they're kissing. It's not like their first kiss, all gentle and testing each other out. This one is a little more sensual, he can feel it building into something more dense, every little slide of their lips having Jesse’s nerves waking up. Especially when he swallows the low hum he's given, locks it away in the cage of his ribs, just for him. It's good. It's so fucking good that Jesse’s head is swimming, that familiar heat in his chest before it sinks lower into his stomach and lights up like a flare. It smoulders.He goes easy as Ivanov presses into him, laying back against the table and pulling the man to crawl on top of him, welcoming the weight with a deep breath through his nose. Jesse bites at Ivanov’s lip and the resounding groan he gets goes south immediately, pooling low. His han
Babysitting The Mafia’s Heir.Chapter 20: affirmative . "You really care about him, don't you?"He takes a breath and concedes to what he's been trying to fight since the first time he stepped into this house. It's too late to turn back now. "I care about all of you." Jesse can see that his answer takes Ivanov off guard, the surprise there for a half a second before it's masked back into something cool. But Jesse saw it, and he wonders if he's really been that much of an asshole that it wasn't obvious until this point. He swallows the thick, not unpleasant lump that's appeared in his throat as Ivanov steps forward, Jesse’s eyes falling to his lips for a second before darting back up. His blood is rushing behind his ears, his heartbeat almost deafening. But Ivanov’s voice breaks through it as their chests brush together."Even me?" He asks as he reaches up with a gentle hand and skims the pad of his thumb along Jesse’s cheek. Jesse’s hands have somehow managed to make their own w
Babysitting The Mafia’s Heir.Chapter 19: everything’s gonna be alright .Jesse gets his first real taste of what it's like to be wrapped up in Wallace’s world one day while he's waiting to pick Ian up from school.He's standing with the parents, waiting outside for the last bell of the day when he gets that tingly feeling of being watched. The warm sensation of eyes on the back of his head. He turns his head to try and meet eyes with someone, and he finds it in the group of three men. They're parked across the street in a black Jeep, one with his window rolled down, one leaning against the same door and one on his phone standing at the back of the car. They look away when Jesse meets eyes with them, the two at the front seemingly dropping into a casual looking conversation. It could be nothing, something entirely innocent, but Jesse’s gut tells him it's not, and he's always followed his gut. When he turns away, it's not long until he feels eyes on him again, and he tries not to
Babysitting The Mafia’s Heir.Chapter 18: books, Jesse. Books. ."I--""I'm glad you're okay too," Jesse continues before he can lose his nerve. But then, "You are okay, yeah?"Ivanov continues to stare at him, blinking before he gives a little nod. "Just. I have a bad feeling about it all. The deal that went down, it was a tight lip thing, only a few people knew about it. It could have all been a coincidence, the attack, but. I don't know. My gut tells me something isn't right."Jesse licks his lips, not sure what he's really meant to do. He's getting more of an insight than he usually lets himself hear. But he doesn't try and stop him. He's become so used to snapping at Ivanov, doing this back and forth with him that seeing him looking a little vulnerable throws him off. "I'm sorry," is all he can think to say, but he really finds that he means it.The man nods, inhaling deeply and finishes off the last of his drink. "It happens. Can't ever trust anyone completely in this field,"
Babysitting The Mafia’s Heir.Chapter 17: truce maybe? .Jesse licks his kiss swollen lips as risks a glance above, and-- fuck him. Seriously, fuck this guy so much.Fuck him because there's Ivanov - standing up on one of the metal walkways, amongst other people - pressing some guy back against the railing as he kisses him. To say it annoys him even more to see Ivanov kissing another guy would be... absolutely truthful. He's some young thing with dark blue hair and long legs, and Jesse has a sour taste in his mouth, which he chases away on Saint’s tongue the moment Ivanov’s open and settle on him. Jesse holds his gaze for an agonisingly long time before he forces himself to focus back on the pretty mouth against his own.He hums appreciatively into Saint’s mouth when his hand climbs up the back of his shirt, and Jesse decides to up the ante, slipping his thigh between the other man's and wrapping a loose arm around his shoulders, pulling back for a breather. He stares down between
Babysitting The Mafia’s Heir.Chapter 16: are you jealous .from: concrete lineHey, are you free this weekend?I need you to look after Iandor on Saturday.to: concrete lineyeh im freeu gonna pay me ?from: concrete lineOf course.to: concrete linethen im infrom: concrete lineThank you.Concrete motherfucking line. -- -- --Iandor falls asleep on him pretty early, having gone out earlier in the day for a friend's birthday party. Jesse spent all of dinner listening to the kid talk about what happened, what he and his friends did, what the birthday girl got, what he got her. Jesse pokes fun at him at the possibility of him liking her, and Iandor just sticks his tongue out at him. It's cute. Things are so much simpler when you're young, when everyone else looks out for you, when you have no responsibilities, when liking other boys and girls was no big deal. There was no wor
Babysitting The Mafia’s Heir.Chapter 15: there is a concrete line . Over the next few days, Jesse continues to take Ian to his classes and out to lunch and buys him snacks and ice cream and pens and pencils. He always sighs a breath of relief when he gets a text from Wallace telling him he's okay, and he can never fucking bring himself to ask how Ivanov is, never wants to admit to the fact that he's curious about how the older man is. Surely he's okay if Wallace hasn't said anything about it, he reasons with himself. Yeah, that's gotta be it. Ivanov is fine. Despite himself, he's still checking at his phone, finds himself picking at his nails in an anxious habit. Time seems to slow down once Iandor’s gone to bed, no longer having his laughter and curious questions about what he's drawing there to distract him. Being on his own, with his own thoughts and time on his hands-- it's grating on his nerves. A couple of nights later, there's a knock at the door, a slow thump of knuckl
Babysitting The Mafia’s Heir.Chapter 14: do I really give a damn? . With another sigh, he closes and locks the door, leaning his back against it as he turns and faces Ian, fast asleep on his couch. He's got classes tomorrow, ones he can't afford to skip out on, so he'll just have to take Ian with him. He feels a little lost. He hasn't got many kid suited snacks in his refrigerator. He makes a note to himself to get some stuff tomorrow while they're out.Jesse heads over to the couch, being gentle as he carefully picks Ian up and carries him to his bed, helping him out of the jacket he's got on, pulling off his shoes and carefully tucking him under the covers. He makes sure to dim his bedside lamp to the lowest setting, just enough to substitute as a nightlight, and he's just about to turn and leave when there's a soft voice."Jesse," Ian croaks, voice thick and small with sleep.Jesse’s careful as he lowers himself down to sit on the edge of his bed, reaching to smooth down the ki
.Babysitting the Mafia’s Heir.Chapter 13: trouble trouble trouble .Jesse sighs through his nose, directing his attention back to his two friends who are now back on their feet and on the makeshift dance floor off to the side. He's tempted to leave them, go home and sleep this off. But he'd be thinking about them all night. He trusts Wallace, trusts Joaquin, but he doesn't know the rest of these guys.Fuck.He drops down to sit on one of the square couches, resigning himself to the fact that he's not going anyway anytime soon. Jesse casts a look over his shoulder to meet eyes with Ivanov, who's wearing that stupid expression again, and he really just wants to punch him. Right in the dick.The whiplash this night was giving him.He closes his eyes when the beat of the music starts to annoy him rather than appease him, slinking down in his seat and crossing his arms over his chest. He doesn't know how long he sits there like that for, when he feels the spot next to him dip with we