Zyan
"You play dirty, Aquino," Zyan said, still breathing heavily.
"You gave me no other choice."
"Oh, there were many options."
"None that would've gotten me what I wanted," Carter replied, taking the letter out of its envelope.
Wrestling, or rather, tickle-fighting, might not have been the most grownup way of getting Zyan to hand it over, but it was the easiest and most fun way to do it, which was the only reason Zyan wasn't mad right now. There had been a lot of shouting, and they'd almost crushed Cookie and fallen off the bed several times, but in the end, Carter had managed to pin Zyan to the mattress and retrieve the now-wrinkled envelope from his pocket.
Now, Carter was lying halfway on top of Zyan to stop him from moving freely while he scanned the pages.
"Pauo'le," Carter said softly. "Wow, I'd almost forgotten that name."
Zyan huffed a breath. "Great boyfriend you are," he teased.
Carter elbowed him. "As if you could list all my aliases from over the centuries."
"I will neither confirm nor deny that statement."
"'Course you won't," Carter muttered. "Now, shush, I'm trying to read."
By the time they headed downstairs, the episode was long over, and Ava and Jessica looked ready to go off to bed in their pajamas, though that didn't stop Ava from wiggling her eyebrows when she caught Zyan's eyes. He only shot her a pointed look, which made Ava smirk.
They squeezed together on the couch, like old times, with Ava and Zyan on either side.
"So…what were you two up to?" Jessica asked.
"Stuff," Zyan answered, keeping his gaze locked on the screen.
"Did you do the horizontal tango?" Jessica inquired, her voice teasing.
Zyan rolled his eyes and Carter laughed.
"If they did, why would they be yelling in twenty different languages?" Ava questioned.
"Good point," Jessica admitted before looking back at them. "What were you up to?"
"Zyan found this letter I wrote to him ages ago," Carter told them.
"And?" Ava pried.
"And he didn't want me to read it." Carter paused. "I forced him."
"I think you left a few bruises," Zyan mumbled, lightly poking at a spot on his upper arm.
Jessica looked horrified. "Oh my god, did you hit him?"
"What? No! Of course not!" Carter exclaimed.
"Well, I had to be sure," Jessica muttered.
"We played around a little, that's all," Carter assured her.
"So, you did have sex," Ava stated.
"No, we didn't. What is it with you?" Zyan was starting to regret leaving his room.
"Hey! No need to be rude! Respect your elders!" Jessica warned him.
Ava snorted, the action making her cough.
Carter laughed. Zyan rolled his eyes. Jessica patted Ava on the back in an attempt to help her through the coughing fit.
"Okay, okay," Carter reasoned. "Before Ava pukes out an alien, I'm just gonna tell you." He turned so he could face them better. "Back when he and I moved into our first place together, I wrote this letter—"
"In Hawai'ian," Zyan added.
"In terrible Hawai'ian."
"I thought it was cute."
"'Thought?'"
"Now it's funnier than anything."
"Thanks. I love you too."
"I know," Zyan teased. "I read your three-page essay on it."
"See? That's why I gave up on the romantic gestures! You always tease me for it!"
"Oh, I'm sorry, babe."
"Don't call me 'babe,'" Carter muttered.
"Wait, wait," Ava interrupted, still a little teary-eyed from the coughing. "So you actually wrote three pages on how much you love him?"
"That's adorable," Jessica cooed.
"Makes me wish you guys would get married before my time is over," Ava said.
"Not gonna happen," Zyan replied immediately.
"Why not?" Ava asked. "You guys cleared up the entire Aaron thing years ago! Don't you think it's time to put the rings back on? Hell, you're always wearing them, anyway!"
Zyan automatically reached for his chest, where his rings were hidden under the thin fabric of his clothes as he watched Carter do the same.
"Don't push them, honey," Jessica said, her voice light.
"Fine." Ava paused. She looked at them for a few moments. "Can I read the letter?"
"Do you speak Hawai'ian?" Zyan countered.
"Can you translate it for me?"
"Do I look like I'd do that?"
"Not really." Ava turned her eyes away from him. "Can you translate it for me?"
Carter smiled. "I could, but I doubt he'd let me."
"How would he stop you?"
"I'm sure he'd find a way."
"You're all no fun."
Two days later, Zyan found out that Carter had slipped Ava a full translation of the letter, which Jessica had also gotten her hands on.