<span style="font-family:Assistant"><span style="font-size: 15px">Quentin smiled slightly when Eliot reached over and brushed some more hair out of his eyes. When the other man asked if he was okay, the brunette simply shrugged.<br/>
 "What does that even mean anymore, El? My whole life changed the moment I found out that not only is magic real, but Fillory, too. And then everything with the Beast happened, and then Old Fillory happened, and I was happy. And now we're back here, and I miss it. I miss what we had. Our lives, our family, our friendship. We were <br/>
so close back in Old Fillory."<br/>
<br/>
"And now it feels like the more I try to get to know you, the more you pull away. I don't blame you. I'm sure it's to protect yourself. But I need you to understand something. When I feel something for someone, those feelings don't just go away because the other person's feelings changed. My feelings are still there, but they change. For example, <br/>
I was never in love with Alice. She was nice, and a good friend. And sure, the sex was fine, but she's not you. From the moment I met you, Eliot, I knew there was something different about you."<br/>
<br/>
"I knew that you would end up changing my life in some huge way. I just wasn't sure how. And you have. I don't wanna imagine my life without you in it. I know that you think I'm using you as a way to get over Alice, but I'm not. There's nothing to get over. You're the one I wanna be with, if that's what you want. I want to spend the rest of my life learning about you, and getting to know you better. The real you, not the bitchy side that you put on display to protect yourself with. But anyway, back to your first question."<br/>
<br/>
"Am I okay? No. Not by a long shot. But I can deal with it as long as I have you by my side. You make me want to be better. The way you loved our son back in Old Fillory, that right there showed me who you truly are as a person. You weren't jealous or petty with Ariella or Rupert. You loved them and viewed them as your own family, and I love you for that. They felt the same about you. Hell, I just plain love you, El.." When the other man confessed to being worried about him, Quentin squeezed his friend's hand gently. <br/>
<br/>
"I know that you're worried, and I appreciate your concern. But for right now, I'm okay as I can be." He enjoyed the feeling of Eliot's hand on his chest, tracing patterns and then gripping his shirt. A moment later, he kicked off his shoes, grabbed the blanket and pulled it over both of them, and shifted onto his side. Once in that position, the brunette wrapped both of his arms around his friend's waist, rested his head against the other man's chest and closed his eyes.  "We should get some sleep. We'll need to figure out our plans in the morning."<br/>
<br/>
"Good night, El.." He said softly, shifting again a moment later. This was so that he could press the lightest kiss to the other man's lips, before moving back to his previous position. The younger man rested his head on his friend's chest, closed his eyes again, and it didn't take him long to fall asleep, curled up with Eliot.<br/>
<br/>
________________<br/>
<br/>
Margo stood there and waited until Julia was done. Once that happened, the two of them went back inside the Physical house and she turned to the other woman. "I think that you should stay here, and stay with me. We're better off in pairs since we don't know what the fuck's going to happen anymore. Quentin and Eliot are together, Kady, Poppy, and Penny 23 are staying in Kady's room, so I think the two of us should bunk together. We don't have to talk, but safety in numbers and all that shit, you know?"<br/>
After she spoke, she fell silent and led the way to her bedroom.</span></span>