Ridgeview institute

The day after the incident with Ryan, the boys barely let Kai out of their sight.

He didn't protest—not really. Not when Julian kept looping an arm around his waist every chance he got. Not when Elio sat beside him in group therapy and wordlessly rested their knees together for the whole hour. And definitely not when Luca pulled him into his lap again during breakfast like it was the most normal thing in the world.

It was becoming a habit now. A gentle, protective one.

The four of them curled up together later that evening in their dorm room, with the TV on low and snacks half-finished on the desk. Kai was in Julian's lap again—because apparently that was just his spot now—and Elio was lying on his stomach across the foot of the bed, flipping lazily through a book while Luca sat behind Kai, braiding a piece of his hair with surprisingly careful fingers.

"Didn't peg you for the nurturing type," Kai murmured without looking back.

"Shhh," Luca said, twirling the strand expertly. "I'm in my artistic era."

Julian smirked against Kai's shoulder. "He just wants an excuse to touch you again."

"I don't need an excuse," Luca replied. "I've got rights."

Kai snorted. "What rights?"

"The right to hold you," Luca said casually, "kiss you when I feel like it, sit you in my lap when you're being too adorable to resist..."

"Basically all the rights I should have had from the beginning," Julian chimed in, his hands tightening slightly around Kai's waist.

Elio didn't look up from his book. "You're all so dramatic."

"And you're jealous," Luca said.

"I literally kissed him first," Elio deadpanned.

"Yeah," Julian said, nudging Kai playfully, "but I made him blush the hardest."

Kai made a noise of protest, burying his face in his hands. "You guys are ridiculous."

"Maybe," Elio said, finally closing the book and sitting up. "But this is part of how we show we care, you know?"

Kai glanced over at him, the teasing still lingering in the air but softening now.

"We don't just flirt because we think you're hot—although, don't get me wrong, you are," Elio added, smirking. "We do it because we want you to feel wanted. Safe."

Kai was quiet for a moment. Then he said, "It's weird. I've never been... teased like this before. Not in a way that didn't feel like someone was trying to hurt me."

Julian leaned his cheek against Kai's back. "We know. That's why we're careful."

"You're not that careful," Kai said with a weak smile.

Luca kissed the back of his neck. "No. But we're always watching to see how you respond. And if you ever say stop..."

"I know," Kai said quietly. "That's why I let you."

There was a pause. Then, Elio asked gently, "Can I tell you something?"

Kai nodded.

"I wasn't always the calm, collected genius you see before you," Elio said, a hint of a smile in his voice. "I used to have panic attacks that would leave me shaking for hours. My parents didn't get it. They thought I was faking."

Julian shifted slightly, voice softer now. "I was in and out of foster homes for years. Some of them were okay. Some weren't. I think that's why I always try to make people laugh. If they're laughing, they're not hurting."

Luca paused his hands in Kai's hair. "I was angry. Just like you. Broke someone's nose in my second week here because they called me a freak. Almost got kicked out."

Kai turned slightly, looking at each of them in turn. "Why are you telling me this now?"

"Because you're not the only one with a past," Elio said. "And we want you to know you're not broken. You're just healing. Like we are."

Kai felt the warmth of Julian behind him, the steady weight of Luca's arms around him, and Elio's honest eyes watching him.

He let out a slow breath. "You guys are... kind of disgusting."

Julian laughed. "In what way?"

Kai smirked. "In the way that makes me want to kiss all of you right now."

Luca grinned. "Then do it."

So he did.

He kissed Julian first, soft and slow, and felt the warmth of safety wrap around him. Then Elio, who met him halfway with a hand cradling his cheek and eyes that saw straight through him. And finally, Luca—bold, teasing, and warm like firelight. Their kiss was deeper, and when they pulled apart, Luca whispered, "I like when you initiate. Do that more."

Kai rolled his eyes. "Don't get used to it."

"Too late," Luca replied, smug. "Already addicted."

And as they all collapsed together in a warm pile of limbs, teasing, laughter, and the occasional whispered kiss, Kai realized something simple but true:

This—they—were his safe place now.