Chapter 205: Welcome To My Man-Cave!

When the blue dot stopped outside his building, Liam didn’t wait for the doorbell.

He pushed himself off the couch, legs protesting every inch of the way, and hobbled downstairs and out to the curb. Reggie’s sedan was idling by the sidewalk. The back door swung open before Liam reached it, and Mateo climbed out in a grey hoodie with his backpack slung over one shoulder.

"Yo," Mateo said.

"Yo." Liam said right back, he knew Mateo was trying to stayv composed.

Mateo squinted at him. "Why are you walking like that?"

"Leg day."

"You look like my abuela getting out of a car."

"Your abuela could probably squat more than me right now. Come on."

Mateo followed him inside and stopped two steps past the door.

He turned a slow circle. The brand-new sectional. The huge TV on the wall. The PS5 sitting under it. The kitchen that looked like nobody had ever burned anything in it.

"Bro," Mateo said. "Are you rich?"

"You wouldn’t believe me if I told you."

"Try me." Mateo pointed at the TV. "That thing is bigger than my bed."

He kicked off his sneakers and narrowed his eyes. "Are you secretly a drug lord?"

"I’m a lawyer."

"That’s what a drug lord would say to hide his identity."

Liam laughed. "Sit down before you break something expensive."

The two paper bags sat on the coffee table, books stacked neatly beside them in the order Liam had photographed them on the bench.

For a second, Mateo didn’t move. Then he dropped to his knees beside the table and picked up the first volume of Jujutsu Kaisen like it might disappear.

"Bro," he whispered.

"I know."

"No, like... bro." He flipped it over, ran his thumb along the spine, then grabbed Court of Owls and held one book in each hand. "These are actually mine?"

"They’re actually yours."

Mateo looked up at him, and for a moment the usual teenage swagger slipped. He just looked like a kid who’d been handed something he hadn’t expected anyone to bother with.

"Thank you," he said quietly. "For real."

Liam waved it off and lowered himself back onto the couch with a groan. "You already said that like forty times."

"Forty-one now."

"That’s not very nochalant of you."

Mateo carefully stacked the books back into the bags, then zipped them inside his backpack like he was storing treasure in a vault. Then he spotted the PS5 controllers on the couch cushion, and his whole face changed.

"Okay," he said, grabbing one. "Now I destroy you."

"Relax, remember who got you comic books, you little sadist." Liam informed him right away.

"There is no mercy in the land of the damned"

"Damned? Dude, I will send you back to your sister!"

Mateo couldn’t contain his laughter, he quite literally laughed out loud.

"Besides, your internet is better than mine, Mateo."

"Lag is the famous excuse," Mateo repeated firmly, already scrolling past every game Liam had queued up. He ignored all of them, exactly as Liam had predicted, and settled on Tekken 8.

Liam sighed. "Of course you’d pick that."

"You scared?"

"Of a sixteen-year-old? Please."

Twelve minutes later, Liam was indeed scared.

Mateo played fighting games like he’d been born holding a controller. He chained combos Liam didn’t even know existed, juggled Liam’s character across the screen, and narrated every hit with gleeful commentary.

"This is a learning experience for you," he said.

"I’m learning I hate you."

"Ten-zero," Mateo announced, raising both arms. "Flawless."

"Victory...?" Liam added and Mateo just shook his head in disappointment.

"That is mortal combat..." Mateo muttered under his breath because he knew telling Liam would make no difference.

They played for another hour. Liam won exactly two rounds.

Around eight, Liam ordered pizza. Two larges: pepperoni for Mateo, and a veggie for himself that he immediately abandoned once he realized how good the pepperoni smelled.

Mateo watched him take a second slice with a smug grin. "Thought you were watching what you eat?"

"I’m watching it go into my mouth."

"That’s why your body can no longer support your weight." Mateo teased him.

"It will tonight."

Mateo snapped a picture of him mid-bite, a string of cheese hanging from his chin, and sent it straight to the group chat before Liam could stop him.

[Mateo: the lawyer in his natural habitat]

[Sophia: ??????]

[Sophia: Liam you have sauce on your face]

[Liam: I’m aware]

"Traitor," Liam muttered.

"Documentation," Mateo corrected.

They ate cross-legged on the living room floor, backs against the couch, pizza boxes spread out between them. Mateo talked about everything and nothing. A theory about the Jujutsu Kaisen ending that he refused to explain because "you haven’t read it yet, it’ll ruin your life." Owen, who had apparently challenged him to a Tekken tournament at lunch and lost so badly he’d demanded a best of fifteen.

"Owen sounds like he takes losing well," Liam said.

"He took it so bad. He said my controller was rigged." Mateo grinned. "It was his controller."

Liam laughed, and for a while they just sat there, full and comfortable, the TV paused on the character select screen.

Then Mateo spoke again, more quietly. "Can I ask you something?"

"Sure."

"Did Sophia say anything to you? About school?"

Liam kept his face easy. "She asked if you’d mentioned anything."

Mateo picked at a pizza crust. "What’d you tell her?"

"That you hadn’t." Liam shrugged. "Because you haven’t."

Mateo was quiet for a moment. Then he nodded slowly, like he’d been holding his breath and finally let it out.

"Thanks," he said.

"Mateo." Liam waited until the kid looked at him. "Whenever you want to talk about it, about anything, I’m here. No pressure. No telling your sister unless you want me to."

Mateo held his gaze for a second, then looked away and gave a small, crooked smile. "You’re kinda soft, you know that?"

"Don’t tell anyone, it is a secret."

"Too late. I’m already posting it."

Mateo grabbed the controller again, grinning. "One more round. Loser has to admit the winner is better."

"You’ve already beaten me eleven times."

"Then this should be easy for me."

He won. Of course he won.

By ten, Liam’s phone buzzed in the group chat.

[Sophia: Reggie says he’s ready whenever. Home by 10:30 please.]

[Mateo: 5 more minutes]

[Sophia: Mateo.]

[Mateo: omw ??]

At the door, Mateo hitched his backpack higher and hesitated.

"This was fun," he said. "Like actually fun."

"Same time next week?"

Mateo’s face lit up. "Deal. And I’m bringing my own controller so you can’t blame yours."

"I never blamed my controller."

"You blamed it like six times."

Liam walked him down to the curb, legs complaining the whole way. Mateo bumped his fist and climbed into Reggie’s car.

"Get this little rascal back home safetly..." Liam said and Reggie gave him a nod.

Liam stood on the sidewalk and watched the car pull away. A moment later, his phone buzzed.

[Mateo is sharing his live location.]

[Mateo: best night ever btw]

Liam smiled and limped back upstairs to the couch.

His legs were going to kill him tomorrow morning.

It was worth it.