Author's Notes: Annnnnnd here's part two! This is in which people talk through their feelings like adults. Once again, the previous warnings always apply.


The next day he found himself once again alone, and worse, with a painful pound in his head. Luckily, a quick look at his nightstand showed that Chang, the wonderful and kind man that he was, had left him a glass of water and a painkiller for his headache. Upon further inspection, he was surprised to find a note placed next to the gift.

Grant,

Take this for your headache, I'm sure it can't be pretty. I love you so much, and I promise I'm not angry with you. We'll talk later like adults. Come have breakfast, please.

Chang

GB sniffled as he read the note and downed the glass of water with the pill. He then got dressed quickly, attempting to ignore the still pounding in his head from the night before, begging silently for its medicinal magic to do its work quickly.

Before making his way out though, he moved to his bookshelf where he had hidden his journal in and took it out, opening it up to a new page. After writing and trying to sort out his overwhelming emotions in a completely disorganized manner, hoping to be more prepared for everything he'd have to face than the day before, he hid the book again and got up.

GB hesitantly poked his head outside, trying to get a feel for the situation outside of his room. His alarm clock on his nightstand had told him that it was only 09:32 in the morning and that he hadn't slept in nearly as much as the day before. This meant he was going to be expected to eat with his family. The would-be upsetting but considering his stomach had just reminded him that all he'd eaten yesterday was a few bites of the breakfast and a stomach full of alcohol, he couldn't afford to not eat.

The quick look outside showed the usual morning ritual of Francoise holding Ivan on the couch, while Joe sat next to her chatting, as well as Albert sitting on the living room chair reading a newspaper. He figured maybe he could slip by himself to the kitchen to grab something with caffeine, even if it meant he had to face the music with Chang.

When he finally found himself timidly slipping into the kitchen, he was met with an incredibly heartbreaking sight. Chang was, of course, in there busily preparing food for the whole team, but instead of his usual cheery self who would hum and dance slightly to a tune on the radio, he was met with silence and a man who was moving slower than usual.

GB willed himself to not cry and slowly walked in, heading for the kettle.

"Good morning…" GB greeted, flinching at how almost scared his voice sounded. He grabbed the kettle and watched as Chang looked up, almost in surprise for a moment, before he slammed down as much of a wall of stoicism as Chang Changku could ever muster.

"Good morning Grant, how are you feeling?"

GB shrugged slightly as he filled the kettle up using the tap and made his way over to the stove. "I feel better now that I've taken painkillers. Thanks for leaving one by the way. I appreciate it."

He placed the metal on the stove on one of the smaller burners than he figured wouldn't be in the way of meal prep and switched the element on. GB couldn't help but notice the small smile that appeared on Chang's face for only a moment before it quickly faded away.

"You're welcome…I'm sure you feel crappy enough as it is, I wouldn't want you to feel any worse."

Not knowing what else to do, or say to that, GB opted instead to walk over to Chang and gently wrap his arm around the smaller man.

"I'm really sorry…you don't deserve any of this. You're too good."

Chang made a choking noise of surprise as he clutched at GB back and shook his head.

"Please don't say stuff like that. I'm with you because I want to be."

GB swallowed and pressed his face into the top of Chang's head, causing his back to bend over slightly.

"I promise, tonight we'll talk about this, but Albert offered to talk to me first and I want to sort my feelings out first before I try to explain them to you. Lord knows that when I talk before, I think, things don't ever really end up well."

Chang nodded and pulled GB closer. They didn't notice how long they were holding each before they were both shocked out of their moment by the sound of the kettle whistling. Sadly, GB gently extracted himself from the hug and pressed a gentle kiss to Chang's forehead before moving to make himself his cup of tea.

"Would you like some help with breakfast?"

Chang shook his head. "No, I think I've got it, it's okay. You go relax."

GB couldn't help but feel a pang at the rejection of his help. It was always their thing to cook together, and it was almost like these past two days he'd been pushed out of the kitchen kingdom. Instead of saying anything, he finished making his cup of tea and forced a smile.

"Alright, let me know if you change your mind."

After receiving an affirmative, GB grabbed his mug and decided to make his way outside to get some fresh air before breakfast.


Breakfast ended up going well with no drama, but once everything had been cleaned up and everyone was sent to enjoy the rest of the day, GB had been pulled aside by Albert to go for a walk. A real one today.

GB hadn't felt like talking much until they found a quiet bench in a park not too far from their house. Without really saying he wanted to stop, GB just sat and placed both of his hands on his knees. Albert said nothing, just wordlessly sitting next to the other cyborg and looking at the park scenery.

GB spent a few moments to organize his thoughts and take a few steadying breaths.

"It's okay GB, take as much time as you need, there's no rush."

"I'm just so scared that I've screwed everything up with Chang…"

Albert glanced over with a questioning look. "What do you mean?"

GB sighed, placing his face in his hands. "Chang has just been…so wary lately. It just feels like he doesn't want to spend time with me like he's worried about setting me off as if I'm some ticking time bomb, and it's starting to feel less like we're a couple and more like… I don't know, a parent almost. I just want things to go back to how they were. And if they don't, what if it's just over? What if he breaks up with me? I don't know what I would do, he means too much to me."

It wasn't until GB stopped speaking that he realized that he was starting to hyperventilate and curl into himself. Immediately, Albert stepped into action.

"Woah, hey, GB it's okay, take deep breaths. Everything is gonna be okay. Is it okay if I touch your back?"

GB nodded as he sobbed and attempted to inhale. Albert reached over and gently placed a hand on his back, rubbing gently.

"Hey, it's okay. Just focus on breathing for a minute."

Once GB had gotten control over his breath, a while later, Albert moved his hand to GB's shoulder instead and spoke gently.

"Alright, first, relationships have their tough spots, especially when you're going through something as difficult as you are right now. Second, Chang is a grown man who I know is willing to stand with you through this no matter hard as it is right now. He wouldn't string you along if he was done with the relationship, but he's also not going to panic and run-away being things got a little difficult. He knew who you were when you started dating, and while the extent of your alcohol issues is more than we expected, he was clearly more than prepared to help you on this journey. As for the 'parenting' I think that's just Chang. You know as well as I do that he's almost the 'mom' of the group."

GB couldn't really argue with any of that and he nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, that's true."

"Grant, I really think you ought to just talk to him about this. I'm certain Chang needs to talk to you about this almost as much as you do. Neither of you are ever going to feel any better unless you talk with him."

GB absorbed all of that for a moment before responding. "Yeah, I promised I'd talk with him tonight about everything, so I'll do it then."

Albert nodded. "Good. Now, is there anything else bugging you that you want to talk about?"

GB thought for a moment before shaking his head. "Not at the current moment. There's more to go through, but I think I'm just gonna try to deal with one issue at a time. Thanks for listening. And you know, comforting me through the freakout." GB smiled at Albert.

Albert smiled and stood up. "Alright. I just want you to know that next time you're upset you can come to talk to me. I won't be upset, and I'd rather do that than come pick you up at the bar. Okay?"

GB stood up as well and nodded. "Sounds good. Thanks, Al."

As they wandered back to cyborg house, they opted instead to make jokes and talk about less serious things. It almost felt normal.


It wasn't until the late evening that Chang and GB sat down for their talk. Everyone by then had already gone to bed and the two, carrying two warm mugs of hot chocolate curled up next to one another against the headboard of their bed, tucking their legs under their covers.

The two of them were silent for a few minutes, sipping at the foam at the top of the mugs and chewing on their marshmallows due to the rest of the drink being way too hot for consumption.

GB eventually realized that it should probably be him to initiate the conversation and he set his mug on the coaster on his nightstand. He tucked knees to his chest and wrapped his arms around them.

"I'm scared," GB admitted quietly, hoping he was loud enough for the other to hear despite his timid demeanour in expressing it. He heard a sad noise come from beside him as well as the sound of the other's mug being set down. It didn't take long for him to feel arms around him in a comforting embrace.

"It's okay to be scared GB. I think we all are. Especially in the lives that we live. If you weren't scared, I'd be concerned."

"Chang, I know that we already talked about how we didn't want to lose each other but I just can't help but continue to be afraid. Even if I am going to these meetings and trying to stop drinking, It doesn't help that I'm not going to get better any time soon. This is gonna be a problem that won't go away overnight. I've learned to lean on this for my way to deal with my pain and my failures and self-disgust and I have to unlearn that."

GB leaned his head against Chang attempting to get some physical comfort from the man he loved. "I guess with all that, I'm afraid that this will be too much of you worrying and wanting to take care of me, which I know is what you do, but what happens when that's too much to deal with? I know I'm not the easiest man to be with ever. I'm just so scared that things with you will end and I'll have lost not only one person whom I loved with all my heart, but two. I just don't know how I would handle that."

GB felt movement at his side and he felt his face become cupped in the other man's hands, his eyes meeting Chang's.

"You listen to me, and you listen to me good Grant Brighten. You are everything I have ever wanted, and if you honestly think that I would ever give up on you or what we have then I'm going to need to remind you that Chang Changku is not one to give up on the people that he loves. And that is a promise mister."

GB smiled for a moment before his smile dropped off and he averted his gaze. "What about not wanting me around to cook in the mornings?"

Chang gasped lightly before he maneuvered his face to latch onto GB's gaze again. GB looked more scared and vulnerable than he was usually ever comfortable with sharing usually. "Hey, it's not that I didn't want your help, I just thought I'd let you take a break from helping. I didn't mean to hurt your feelings, honey…"

"Oh." A blush of embarrassment began to stain GB's cheeks. "It's just that I really enjoy spending time with you in the morning. I like helping, it gives me some purpose."

Chang's eyebrows rose in surprise and he slid his hands down to GB's and gave a tiny squeeze. "Well, then I won't make the mistake of denying you that anymore, okay?"

GB smiled brighter than he had in days and leaned in to give his boyfriend a small peck. He then reached over to the nightstand and grabbed his mug, taking a big swig of the quickly cooling beverage. "What do you think, reading and cuddles until we get too sleepy?"

Chang smiled brightly back and nodded. Things were obviously not perfect between the two of them, but thankfully they were finally back on the same page again.


End Notes: Once again, thanks for reading! If you can, I'd really appreciate any feedback you can give me! I have no idea when the next chapter will come out, the fact that I have updated 3 chapters within a weekish is just...ridiculous. If you're still here, thanks for sticking with me in this crazy fic!