"Hey! There you are at last!" Noah greeted him cheerfully as he opened the front door.
"Good evening," Isaac replied politely.
But Noah's attention lasted only for a brief moment. His gaze fell on Noctis, and immediately his grin widened even more.
"You brought Noctis?!"
Isaac followed his gaze involuntarily. Noctis was standing far too close to him—so close that Isaac could feel his body heat. His eyes were fixed on him as if nothing else in the room existed. An amused, almost tender smile played on his lips, making Isaac's breath catch.
Embarrassed, he turned his head away, quickly stepped aside, and put some distance between them.
"Have fun with him," Isaac muttered, squeezing past Noah into the apartment before he could say anything.
Behind him, he heard Noctis chuckle before Noah drew him into a conversation. Isaac, on the other hand, moved away as fast as he could, his face bright red. The past few hours, he had barely had a single moment alone. He hadn't been able to do anything because Noctis had always been there. Isaac rubbed his face, thinking about how Noctis had insisted on taking a shower with him and how he had barely managed to fend him off.
It had been too much.
And everything was happening far too fast for him.
He simply wasn't used to allowing so much physical closeness. For years, he had kept his distance, had learned to function alone. But since the kiss, it seemed Noctis had thrown all restraint aside. All those years he had been alone still lingered, and although he longed for Noctis's touch, it was hard for him to fully allow it.
From the living room—Noah liked to call it the "main control center"—he could hear the rhythmic clicking of a keyboard.
Enough, Isaac. The others don't need to know what happened between you and Noctis. It's nobody's business!
Besides, Noah would probably react completely, and then they wouldn't be able to focus on the heist. Isaac let out a quiet sigh. He could do without that. He just wanted to get this over with quickly and then disappear back into bed.
On top of that, he couldn't even say what they were. Were they like those lovesick couples he saw so often in the café? They hadn't talked about it—he had been far too exhausted for that.
He was angry at himself. He had wasted an entire day because of the alcohol, even though Noctis had genuinely taken care of him. Otherwise, he would probably still feel nauseous.
At least this had to work. Otherwise, he wouldn't have accomplished anything productive that day at all.
Isaac admonished himself to calm down and not think about everything that had happened in his apartment earlier. Although it hadn't really been much—thanks to his nausea—he couldn't stop imagining what might have happened if he hadn't been hungover.
Suddenly, his face flared up again.
Damn Noctis! It was all because of him that these far too vivid fantasies were playing out in his head. He was definitely not ready for something like this!
And yet, all of it only made everything even more complicated.
Think about the mission. You have to function, Isaac. Don't mess everything up just because this is throwing you off!
He forced himself to repeat these thoughts like a mantra while focusing on the rhythmic clicking of the keyboard. With each keystroke, he tried to smooth out his inner restlessness, to channel it into orderly paths. Finally, he got moving again.
Noah and Noctis were still in the hallway. They were talking about something Noah had gotten up to last week—at least, that's what it sounded like, one of his typical escapades. Noah spoke animatedly, gesturing wildly, while Noctis listened attentively.
At least Noctis was a little distracted by Noah.
In the living room, Isaac found Ashe as expected. She sat cross-legged in her favorite chair, balancing her laptop on her thighs. Her hair was styled into two messy double buns, with several strands loose and falling freely over her shoulders. A pair of glasses sat slightly crooked on her nose. She wore a loose, cropped shirt and high-waisted leggings that reached up to her waist.
Completely focused, she stared at the screen and worked undisturbed. She probably hadn't even noticed that Isaac had entered the room. He said nothing, not wanting to disturb her. They could talk when she was done.
"Hey, Isaac," she said anyway, without taking her eyes off the monitor.
"Hello, Ashe."
He walked over to the couch and sank into the soft cushions. He almost let out a relieved breath but held back. For a moment, he rested his head and closed his eyes briefly before the others could join him. He felt much better than he had that morning, yet every part of him craved lying down. Sleep would have been ideal.
Or at least just lying down. Lying down wouldn't have been wrong.
Or just closing his eyes for a few seconds.
From the hallway, he could still hear Noah talking excitedly with Noctis. So he allowed himself this small moment of calm and closed his eyes again.
"You look terrible," Ashe said suddenly. The clicking had stopped, and Isaac opened his eyes and sat up. Ashe still had the laptop on her lap. She studied him with concern. "Are you sick?"
"No, it's fine," Isaac assured her.
He had to show her that everything was truly okay. After all, everything depended on him. The success or failure of the mission was his responsibility. He couldn't show any weakness.
Ashe sighed and set her laptop on the table. She seemed to be downloading something.
"Seriously, you're paler than usual, and that means something," she said, unconvinced. She stood up and stretched, and Isaac could only guess how long she had been sitting in that weird position. She placed her hands on her hips. "I need something to drink. Should I bring you something? Maybe some tea?"
Isaac thought briefly about what his sensitive stomach could handle. He would have loved a coffee, but that definitely wouldn't have gone well. He wasn't really a tea drinker either, but he nodded. "Just pick anything."
Ashe gave him a look as if she had completely seen through him but said nothing else and disappeared into the kitchen.
No sooner had she gone into the kitchen than Noah and Noctis entered the living room. Noah was still grinning from ear to ear, looking more than satisfied.
"How long has it actually been since we, the brothers, were all together?" he asked cheerfully. "I swear, it feels like an eternity since I last saw you and Noctis together."
Isaac felt his stomach tighten slightly.
He sighed quietly. Here came that ridiculous "brother" nonsense again. They weren't blood-related; they had just grown up together. Unfortunately, Noah had somehow convinced himself—and much to Isaac's annoyance—that he considered them the closest part of his family.
Noctis approached Isaac with smooth, deliberate steps.
"Good question. It really has been a long time since we last saw each other," he said, settling next to Isaac. He sat so close that their knees touched. Isaac could feel the warmth through the fabric of his pants. Noctis tilted his head slightly, an amused expression on his face. "I'm naturally honored that you still see me as your older brother, but, if I remember correctly, you got a younger brother too, right?"
Subtly, Noctis leaned even closer to Isaac. His gaze remained on Noah, but his voice lowered as he whispered softly:
"Though it would be a bit… forbidden, if we were actually related. Don't you think so, darling?"
Immediately, the kiss flashed before Isaac's mind again. The closeness, the breath, that brief, dangerous feeling of warmth and safety. His face flared up. He would have given anything to just shut Noctis's mouth before he ruined everything.
"Stop it, Noctis," he hissed at him.
Noah, however, didn't seem to notice. He waved a dismissive hand.
"Yeah, yeah. But he's eight," he complained. "I can't do anything with him."
"Really?" Noctis' gaze slid to Isaac, a faint smile on his lips. "I think eight is a really cute age."
"You don't know my little brother," Noah rambled on. "He doesn't want to do anything and always hides behind his mom. I'd love to do something with him—no idea, maybe the arcade or shopping or something. But he doesn't want to go anywhere and always looks at me like I'm a stranger."
Isaac felt his cheeks warm again. Eight years old. That was exactly how old he had been when they first met. The thought struck him unexpectedly. Noctis rested his arm on the back of the couch behind Isaac as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
Isaac was about to warn him not to act so obviously when Noah suddenly clapped his hands.
"Can we maybe order first before we get started? I'm starving!" he said—but it sounded more like a rushed attempt to change the subject.
"What do you have in mind?" Noctis asked calmly.
"Good thing you asked," Noah grinned. He scooted closer to Noctis and pulled his phone from his pocket. "There's a new burger place nearby. I've been dying to try it."
While Noah tapped eagerly on his phone, trying to sell his idea to Noctis, Ashe returned from the kitchen. She handed Isaac a steaming cup of herbal tea, set a glass of water in front of him, and silently placed a tablet next to it.
Isaac looked at her questioningly, but she just shrugged. "You could really use the vitamins." She glanced briefly at Noah and Noctis, who were meanwhile looking at the menu. Then she leaned closer to Isaac. "The tea's good for nausea. Luckily, we still had some left here because of Noah."
"Where did…," Isaac began, but Ashe interrupted him. She just winked and gave a brief nod in Noah's direction.
"You look just like him when he drinks too much. Even though I never expected to see you in this state," she said with a smirk, sinking back into her chair.
Isaac twisted his mouth slightly. That explained more than he cared to admit.
Ashe placed a bottle of water on the table, unscrewed the cap, and at the same time grabbed her laptop again as if she had never left. Concentration immediately returned to her eyes.
"Okay, we've already picked something. What do you guys want?" Noah asked.
"A double cheeseburger with jalapeños and fries with lots of mayo," Ashe said without looking up. "Oh, and we're out of Coke."
"Got it! Do you want the light version?"
This time Ashe did look up, shooting Noah a lethal glare. "Make it, and I'll make sure your phone can't connect to the internet for a whole week."
For a moment, Noah's face went pale, then he chuckled.
"So, the full sugar load, coming right up!"
His voice betrayed his nervousness because if anyone could actually pull that off, it was Ashe. Without her, their heists wouldn't be nearly as easy as they currently were—especially with the increased number of police around.
Isaac took a cautious sip of his tea.
"What do you want to eat, Isaac?"
"A simple salad and plain pizza rolls," he said.
He would have preferred to eat nothing, but a light meal sounded better than nothing at all. He trusted that his queasy stomach could handle it. Otherwise, he could always take the food home.
"Got it!" Noah said. "Okay, everything should be here in about half an hour."
Isaac nodded. "Can we get started then?"
"I'd be for that too," Ashe said, pressing the "Enter" key with a flourish. At the same moment, their phones rang. Almost simultaneously, all three of them grabbed their phones to check the message they had just received.
"Listen carefully and pay attention," she said.
"What is it?" Noah asked.
"That's exactly what I'm about to explain, so quiet now," Ashe said impatiently.
Noah pouted but said nothing further.
"Open the app," she instructed.
Isaac started the download and opened the application as soon as it installed. It launched immediately with no long loading times. Upon opening, he saw a black background with just a few buttons. He looked at Ashe, puzzled.
"I designed our communication network," she explained proudly. "The app gives us a stable, encrypted line for calling each other. Plus, it's bomb-proof and extremely hard to hack."
She tapped on her laptop a few times.
"Doesn't sound bad, but what does it actually do differently? Our old communication system worked perfectly fine."
Ashe snorted in irritation. "That's something only someone would say who doesn't have to juggle a hundred things at once during our heists."
Noah raised his hands defensively but didn't say anything.
Isaac frowned slightly and looked down at his phone. "Do I need to activate anything once I'm in?" he asked calmly. "As you know, I don't have time to use my phone while I'm stealing."
"That's exactly why I developed the app. Maybe you remember the last heist? I shut everything down and you were completely cut off from me. I couldn't reestablish contact until after you were with the boss."
He remembered it all too well. He had actually seen it as an advantage, since no one had noticed the gunshot.
He gave a brief nod. "The lack of communication wasn't a problem for me."
"For you, maybe," Ashe said quietly. She looked at him, and for a moment there was something unguarded in her eyes—genuine concern. "There were so many cops in the museum," she continued, "that I was really scared for you."
Isaac opened his mouth, then closed it again. He didn't know what to say to that.
She looked at him sadly, then smiled faintly. "If I'm monitoring everything anyway, then I want to know everything and have access to you at all times," she announced. "So I've been working nonstop on this app for the past two weeks."
"T-that sounds like you'll be monitoring us all the time from now on," Noah said nervously.
Ashe waved him off. "It's strictly about the jobs. I couldn't care less about your private life." She shot him a crooked look. "So go ahead and keep flirting."
Noah stared at her in horror. "But Ashe…!"
"Noah," she interrupted impatiently, "we have more important things to do."
She shifted the laptop slightly aside and gestured toward the table.
"So before we get started, we'll all launch the app. That way I'll have live tracking on all of you, you can send an emergency signal if you're in trouble, and you'll be getting new earbuds," she continued. She pointed at the small boxes on the table. Surprisingly, there were three of them, even though Noctis hadn't been planned. "If you tap the right one once, you'll be talking to me. The connection will stay open until you tap it again."
They opened the boxes, which contained new black earbuds. They looked completely inconspicuous and bore no markings that could give them away.
"I've also built in an emergency signal. If you tap the Morse code for SOS on the earbud, the entire team will be notified. All channels will then be fully open so we can reorganize more effectively."
"That's incredible," Isaac said in amazement.
He knew how brilliant Ashe was, but if this small app really had that kind of impact, then they would have a true ace up their sleeve.
"By the way, my general jamming signal can no longer interfere with the app," she grinned proudly. "That means we have a consistently stable, smooth connection while those idiots in the police force can't do a thing against my cyberattack."
"That's pretty useful, but why did I get one too? I'm not really part of your team," Noctis said.
"You're involved often enough, Noc," Ashe replied. "Besides, I've always seen you as a kind of wildcard. You've gotten Noah out of some pretty tight situations more than once, and the way things are shaping up, I see a lot of trouble coming Isaac's way as well."
Noctis tilted his head. "What do you mean by that?"
"Maybe I listened in on police radio a bit before I shut everything down," Ashe admitted. "Someone seems to be breathing down their necks, and they're taking off the velvet gloves. Apparently, they've been cleared to use firearms—and who knows what else they might come up with."
Her gaze fell on Isaac. "They're desperate to catch you, no matter the means," Ashe said, then her eyes shifted to Noah. "The same goes for you, Noah."
Isaac already knew that much. Still, it wasn't good that Ashe knew it too. Damn it—what else did she know?
"Have you talked to the boss about it yet?" Isaac asked. Strangely enough, he was completely calm, even though his heart was in turmoil.
"I sent him a report, like always."
"And what does Father say about it?" Noah asked next.
"That we should be careful," Ashe said. "And if it gets too dangerous, you'll be pulled out, Noah."
Noah jumped to his feet. "What?!"
"Calm down. You know how much your father loves you," Ashe waved him off. "In any case, there's one more safeguard. If any of you get caught, I can completely destroy your phone. There will be no data left at all—any evidence, numbers, or messages will be permanently erased."
"Will you be monitoring us constantly? How would I even know you're checking my phone?" Noctis asked with a dangerous grin. "Maybe I don't want you learning anything about my private life. Or my own missions."
"I don't have any permissions to read or download anything, and I only see your location when the app is active. Even after you close it, it stays active for half an hour—just to be safe. When I have access, a small flower appears in the status bar next to your battery level, like it does now."
Simultaneously, they all looked at their phones, where a small flower was indeed visible.
"So you can't spy on us? Otherwise, I'd have to ask you to delete the app from my phone."
Noctis didn't sound pleased at all. Isaac knew exactly which kinds of jobs he was referring to. Most of what Noctis did was under the strictest secrecy. He could completely understand why Noctis reacted this way.
Ashe shook her head and pulled an irritated face.
"Seriously, Noc. I don't want to know who you're texting or what exactly you're saying in detail. The app is only for the heists—nothing more," she explained calmly. "Aside from the destruction mode, everything only runs while the app is active, and even that mode only destroys. It can't download or save anything."
"Hm…" Noctis leaned back and suddenly pulled Isaac closer to him. "So now I can always know what's happening during the heists? No matter where I am, so I can rush to help our Isaac here?"
Ashe nodded. "Exactly—at least you can, as long as you're in this city."
She didn't seem bothered in the slightest that Noctis now had Isaac in his arms. For Isaac, however, it felt like he was standing under a spotlight. His shoulders tensed involuntarily; his body betrayed him before he could say anything.
Noctis leaned closer, gently lifting Isaac's chin with two fingers and forcing him to meet his gaze.
Isaac's heart beat a nervous rhythm.
He wouldn't just kiss me here in front of the others, would he?!
Noctis chuckled softly, his expression making it clear that he knew exactly what Isaac had just thought.
"That's pretty convenient, then. I can come to you anytime, darling," he said contentedly.
Isaac hurriedly pushed him away, his face burning.
"I don't need help," he said firmly. "There were so many cops in the building during the last heist, and nothing happened."
Noctis's gaze darkened for a brief moment. Something unspoken lay within it—something Isaac couldn't quite decipher. To his relief, Noctis said nothing further. Still, his arm remained loosely draped around Isaac's shoulders, as if demonstratively showing that he had no intention of letting him go.
Finally, Ashe cleared her throat.
"That's all from my side for now, at least. I'd like to go over the plan for the next heist with you and set some ground rules so this doesn't end in a catastrophic mess," Ashe said at last.
Isaac nodded. "They've apparently expanded their team," he said.
Ashe tilted her head. "They do that all the time."
"Yes, but the security measures were different this time," he explained. "They've changed their strategy. Securing the target was trickier, and it wouldn't surprise me if, after getting clearance to use firearms, they come up with one or two more creative ideas."
"Tsk. It was only a matter of time," she said thoughtfully. "Will that be a problem for you? Otherwise, we might need to rethink our overall strategy."
"It won't be significantly harder," Isaac said calmly.
Ashe studied him closely. "Do you know who's behind it?"
Isaac hesitated. "Let's say I have an idea," he finally replied. "I'm working on it. But I can't promise I'll come up with a concrete solution."
"Okay," Ashe said after a moment. "If anyone can pull this off, it's you, Isaac."
She leaned forward. "Do you need backup? You know the boss is more than willing to provide us with everything we need."
Isaac remained silent.
How much could he reveal without giving everything away?
He put on a confident smile. "We don't need to bother him about this yet. If my plan falls through, we can still figure out what to do next."
Ashe smiled as well. "By the way, how far along are you with the preparations?"
"Step one is almost complete—let's say in two days. It'll be a bit tighter this time, but I should have step two finished about two days before the heist. As always, I'll stay in contact with the boss to make sure everything runs smoothly."
Ashe grinned. "I love working with you, Isaac. I really never have to worry that something will go wrong with you."
"I do my best," he replied evenly.
"Work your magic and everything will be fine," she said. Her gaze shifted to Noah. "How are things looking on your end?"
"Oh, I've come up with some nice ideas," he replied with a grin. Now that the attention was back on him, he leaned forward confidently. "I've got a few plans for keeping the cops outside busy while Isaac does his thing inside."
"I don't like that grin, Noah," Ashe said bluntly. "What are you planning?"
"Let's just say it's small, annoying, and comes in swarms," he said mysteriously. "I'm working my fingers to the bone, but it's worth it."
Ashe made a grimace. "I don't know why, but I'm somehow glad I'm not on-site."
Noah seemed to think for a moment. "Yeah, I can imagine. You won't see them, but you'll hear them."
"Creepy crawlies?"
Noah nodded.
"Whatever it is, just do everything like usual," Ashe said, disgusted. She looked at Noctis. "Just let me know before you get involved."
Noctis nodded. "I'll try to remember," he said casually. Yet it couldn't have sounded more indifferent.
"Before we talk about the heist, there's one more thing I want to address," Isaac said. His gaze fell on Noah. "Your safety is the top priority. If things get dangerous for you, we'll call everything off. Unlike me, you're outside and therefore more exposed."
"But I can take care of myself!" Noah said indignantly. "You don't have to treat me like a fragile egg all the time!"
"That's not the point, Noah. Thanks to the announcements, we've become pretty noticeable, and we always have to be prepared for the worst. That's why it's important that you make sure you always have an open escape route."
"I agree with that," Ashe added. "But I have everything under control and can guide him out at any time. In case of emergency, though, you should always keep your fake identity in mind."
Her gaze was sharp.
"Man! You always act like I'm the biggest idiot in the world!" Noah complained.
"Isn't that true?" Ashe countered dryly.
Isaac sighed quietly. "You just tend to act on instinct. That's fine in an emergency, but we have the luxury of Ashe supporting us technically. We need to approach the heists more carefully—especially with the new cop in play."
Noah snorted in annoyance and shot Ashe an offended look.
"Worried about the new cop?" Noah asked seriously.
"Not really," Isaac said. "I just want to be cautious."
Noah rubbed the back of his neck. "Alright. I should be able to handle that."
"Good boy," Ashe said dryly.
Promptly, a small argument broke out between the two. Isaac rubbed his face tiredly. It was always like this with them, and it was exhausting.
Next to him, Noctis chuckled softly. "Those two should just screw each other already; that would probably dissipate all the tension," he whispered quietly to Isaac.
"Don't say that like you're some kind of expert at this," he hissed. "Why are you getting so close to me anyway?"
"Because I want to be near you," Noctis grinned. His hand slid down Isaac's back, sending an almost electric shiver through him.
"Stop it, Noctis," Isaac warned.
"Why? I like how you squirm," Noctis said.
His hand moved gently down until it reached Isaac's butt.
"Besides, I've learned a lot, so I'm kind of an expert," he whispered in his ear. Goosebumps erupted all over Isaac instantly. A pleasant shiver ran through him. "And I'd like to put some of it into practice… with you."
"N-Noctis, stop it," he murmured, resisting softly.
But the ringing saved him.
"Finally!" Noah shouted, jumping up.
Noctis immediately released Isaac and sat back down as if nothing had happened, while Isaac's heart raced and his thoughts scrambled, trying to process everything Noctis might have meant.
They ate together and went over all the necessary details for the plan afterward—which was pretty much the same as they always discussed beforehand. It was important to map everything out and adjust to the environment, but later that evening Isaac felt as if his soul had been drained. He collapsed into his bed, utterly exhausted, wanting nothing more than to sleep.
Noctis hadn't come with him; shortly before they finished, he'd received a call from the boss and had to leave.
After spending the entire day with Noctis, the apartment felt strangely quiet without him.
Funny how things change when you allow yourself the closeness of another person, he thought wearily. He closed his eyes and turned onto his side, pulling the blanket up as far as he could. When will I see him again?
With that thought, he finally drifted off to sleep.