Jin snorted at the silent answer, ready to say yet another sarcastic comment when Jael spoke up. He had to force himself not to give him a dangerous glare, nodding curtly instead and waiting impatiently for him to leave.

When they were finally alone, Jin turned back to Xavior, sitting in silence for a moment before flashing him an almost sheepish smile. "Sorry for freaking you out," he said, wishing he could shake the kid's hand or give him some form of contact as reassurance. He was more inclined to express himself through actions than words, if that wasn't already obvious with his violent streak and somewhat short, not at all wordy conversations.

When the kid turned to look at the bed across the room, he followed his gaze back, finally settling on the notebook and pen he had been using to communicate earlier.

It was cute how he begged with his eyes, almost like a puppy asking for a treat. Part of him wanted to tease Xavier a bit, treat him like the animal he was acting like, but he decided against it. He still felt as though the relationship between them was shaky, and with what had happened earlier he didn't want to lessen his chances of getting closer to the kid.

Xavior studied the others face as he waited for the pen and pad. Originally, he thought that Jin made nothing but unattractive and unpleasant expressions. How could he not think otherwise when he had been greeted with curt snorts of impatience and indifferent words dripping with sarcasm? At least the two of them were getting along a bit better; at least, their relationship didn’t seem to be as shaky as it had been a few hours ago.

Falling back into his thoughts, Xavier momentarily forgot about the pen and pad. His mind rewound to the hospital room scene again. A cringe crawled up his spine at the idea of him reliving this moment. Regarding what had happened, he had been vividly aware of Jin’s presence whenever they shared the same room since they’d met, so the matter of “who touched me” was pretty clear. He replayed the event, feeling his muscles twitch as if anticipating for him to make the same movement. Watching himself react the way he did made his stomach clench.

Jin must think something’s wrong with me.

He couldn’t help that he lashed out like that. What he’d been through, it was ingrained into him. To get away was the only defense mechanism he knew that worked, and his body had just instinctually followed suit.

Blinking away the memory, he immediately realized that Jin had probably been standing there waiting for him to come back to the real world. He frantically looked up to see if his roommate was holding the pad.

Finally deciding against teasing the kid, Jin turned around and picked up the pen and notebook, looking back only to find Xavier's eyes glazed over in unknown thought. His brow furrowed, lips pursing slightly in concern as he moved back to the edge of the bed.

He waited with patience that surpised even himself, not urging Xavier out of his thoughts or doing anything that might disturb him. He didn't want a repeat of earlier. When Xavier finally looked up, his lips curled into an amused smile, enjoying the frantic, wide-eyed expression he wore.

He held out a hand, holding the notebook and pen, and shook it a bit as if urging him to take it. His impatience had returned, though only a bit. Before he would have been growling and tapping his foot in unreasonable urgency, but instead he was treating Xavier like something that deserved his attention more than anything.

"You okay there, Xav?" he asked with one brow raised in questioning amusement. "You know if you space out like that, I might just end up jumping you." His tone, paired with his expression, weren't at all serious, and hopefully Xavier would get the message that he didn't mean it in a threatening way. He just couldn't resist the urge to tease the kid, at least a little bit.

Xavier looked up just in time to see Jin gently shaking the pad in his direction. Reaching out, he carefully pulled it and the pen from his grasp and slid the objects into his lap. He noticed Jin talking and at the question, he picked up his right rand, dropping it back down almost instantly in a quick "yes" motion. Regarding his other statement, due to the amused look on his face, he took the playful taunt with a grain of salt and offered a light smile.

Glancing down into his lap, he slid the pad onto his thigh for support and jotted down a quick statement, his smile thinning out. He turned the pad towards his roommate and slid it quietly across the bed.

I'm sorry about what happened.

Glad Xavier had seemed to take his words with only a bit of skeptisism, Jin returned his smile with his own, somewhat twisted one and slid his hands into his pockets. He felt awkward just standing there, but seeing as there was quite the gap between his own bed and Xavier's, he settled for taking a small chair from the single desk at the edge of the room and sliding it to the side of the bed.

He sat with a slumped posture, one leg crossed over the other as if he was the most important person in the world. His father had ingrained the idea that one's posture expressed their personality into his mind, and being the heir he was, he took those words to heart.

He blinked when the notebook was pushed towards him, leaning forward to read the message and giving a dismissive shake of his head. "S'no problem," he replied simply, shoulders rising in a brief shrug. "Just surprised me is all. Besides, you're pretty light, so it wasn't like there was an issue carrying you."

There was a momentary, thoughtful pause before he continued. "It's my fault for stepping over my boundaries. Won't happen again, so you're fine."

Blue eyes examined the fiery teen as he went over towards the desk and retrieved the chair, bring it back near the bed so he could sit. It was a little intimidating, seeing how Jin sat in a manner that showed he was giving Xavier his full, undivided attention. It wasn't that he didn't appreciate it; he did, he just wasn't used to so much attention. Years of having so little of it made him more used to being in the shadows.

He watched Jin's lips move, his gaze taking in every little movement of his mouth like he was analyzing scientific data. Well, in a sense, that was practically what he was doing. Reading lips was a science that Xavier had luckily picked up rather quickly.

His brow creased as Jin formed his own version of an apology. Xavier could tell that he regretted it, and he secretly worried it would put distance between them. His overreaction had already caused enough trouble.

Grabbing the pad again, he scribbled onto its surface. He looked at the words when he had finished, hesitating. Although he had been wary of sharing a room in the beginning, he was actually getting used to the company. Oddly enough, it bothered him to think of coming home to an empty room. Swallowing, he turning the pad Jin's way.

I'm sure Jael would let you request a new roommate.

Jin found that he enjoyed having Xavier's gaze locked on him, even if it was only so he could 'hear' what he was saying. It gave him a delighted sensation he could only pair with the self-satisfaction he felt when women became enamored with him during his little night-life experiences. It was always fun having someone utterly fixated on you, but with Xavier it became even more exciting. Perhaps it was because the kid looked so detatched most of the time.

Whatever the reason, in the back of his mind he knew it was a stupid presumption. It was obvious that this was Xavier's only way of completely understanding what he was trying to say, with his inability to hear. But it didn't hurt to fantasize.

When he noticed a shift in his roommate's mood, sensed in the air around him, he shook himself free of his thoughts and settled his gaze on the other's blue eyes. His lips were set in a thin line, eyes shining with a slight hesitation that showed he was bothered by something.

He would have tried to get Xavier's attention and asked what the problem was, had he not eventually brought up the courage to 'tell' him himself, using the notepad he required to speak. Jin read over it carefully, then another few times to make sure he'd understood it correctly, before leaning back.

He drew in a brief breath, staring with newfound concentration at the kid before him. "Yeah, sure," he said with what seemed like a nonchalant shrug. "I'll just go ask him that. I'm sure you'll be fine on your own, and I've been wanting a room to myself for ages."

Pausing to let his words sink in, Jin finally crossed his arms over his chests, flashing his roommate a smile. "Is that what you wanted me to say?" he asked with a knowing tone. "I may have only just met you, Xav, but you don't seem the type to give up that easily." He shifted slightly, leaning forward on the edge of his chair. "And even if you are, like hell I'm gonna let you do something like that anyway."

Xavier watched his roommate’s expression, nervous about how he was going to react. This is was the best thing, at least he felt like it was. There was no way Jin could possibly want to be stuck in a room with him. Most likely, he wanted a space to himself. That seemed to fit him better; a space he could dominate on his own.

He noticed the teen lean back into the chair and Xavier’s chest tightened. He had insulted him, didn’t he? Watching closely, he read the other’s lips as he spoke. Regret flooded over him. Jin seemed so calm. Was this what he really wanted? Xavier was convinced by his body language, the unfazed shrug he gave. Why was he disappointed? Why did he want to take it back? Why did he care so much about what Jin thought of him? Normally, he wasn’t the type of person to even give him a passing glance, but here he was, giving him more attention than he could have ever expected.

His brow lifted in surprise when a smile pulled at Jin’s lips. His next words made his chest constrict. The anxious bad feeling that had been rotting in the pit of his stomach was quickly replaced with the nervous fluttering of butterflies. Xavier’s gaze noticed the teen shift, leaning forward. He felt the natural instinct to lean away, feeling like prey, but he fought it. He glanced down, feeling a familiar heat race up his neck and coat his ears. Looking his roommate in the eyes now seemed like an impossible feat.

Jin kept his gaze locked in Xavier, waiting for the words to settle in and letting him process the whole situation. When his pale features flushed pink, he felt his own chest tighten, unable to hold back a broad grin because holy shit Xav was cute. He gave an honest laugh, clapping briefly as if applauding his roommate for that adorable performance.

He would have said something out loud, had Xavier not been completely avoiding his gaze. His smile faltered just a little with a small tick of irritation, which was soon suppressed by his own urge to get closer to the kid. He couldn't do that by coming off as dangerous, which was something he had already done more than a couple of times now.

Reaching over the bed with a slow, careful motion so to not surprise Xavier, he slid the notebook towards himself, giving the pen a brief, thoughtful nibble before writing down a small message underneath his roommate's neat handwriting.

He moved the notebook back toward Xavier so it was in his line of site, waiting patiently for him to read the silent words he had written.

You know, I don't think I'm really cut out for this whole pen-and-paper thing, so talking normally would be great.

The message was followed by a small heart, which he had mostly added just to get a reaction out of his roommate. He really did have the most interestingly unique responses to his taunting, after all.

Why did it feel like a thousand butterflies were flapping around in his stomach? What was this? Nerves? Yeah, that’s all it was. It had to be, right? Trapped in his own thoughts, he didn’t realize that Jin had grabbed his notepad and had begun writing on it.

Seeing movement out of the corner of his gaze, Xavier glanced over to catch sight of his pad being pushed towards him. The butterflies swarmed within him all at once as he noticed a different style of handwriting under his own. His fingers skittishly reached forward, pulling the pad close to him so he could read it. Eyes scanned the words until they stopped at the little heart at the end. The flush that had been clinging to his ears spread out, coating his cheeks in a pleasant rosy hue. Why was he so flustered? It was just a note. But, it was the fact that Jin had actually taken the time to respond to him in his way of communicating that was so touching, that was so…romantic, even.

His eyes widened for a second. Romantic? No, no way. This was not romance, more like admiration and appreciation. Right? Just trying to rationalize his own feelings made his flush darken. Looking at the little drawing of the heart definitely didn’t help, either. There was no way Jin had already developed feelings for him, surely. They had just met. What did he even see in him?

Rereading the sentence, his upper teeth took a nervous hold of his bottom lip. What was Jin asking? His brow bent in worry. It felt like he didn’t even have a voice, although he knew better. He could speak, and since he’d spoken so much as a kid, he probably actually sounded a tad more normal than the average deaf person. The thought of doing so was nerve wracking, though, and he shivered.

Bursting into a fit of laughter when he noticed Xavier's rosy ears staining the rest of his face a soft red, Jin almost wished he could take a picture of the sight. Of course, it wasn't like it was hard getting his roommate all flustered like this. In fact it would probably be faster to just tease him than to pull out a photo.

He paused briefly, noticing the almost worried atmosphere that hung around the kid before him, causing he himself to frown. Hopefully Xavier didn't misunderstand what he meant by his message. All he wanted was for him to look up so he could see what he was saying, rather than having to write everything down on paper. Perhaps Xavier was alright with doing so, but he didn't have the patience. It wasn't like he was urging the kid to talk out loud, even if that would be nice. He had learned his lesson earlier; stepping over his boundaries was not a good idea.

"Xav," he called, letting the vowel drag on in a playful tone. He waved a bit in an attempt to get his attention. "You okay there? You can keep writing in your notebook. All I'm saying is it's hard for me to communicate like you do. You know?"

He finished his explanation with what he hoped turned out as the reassuring smile it was meant to be, wanting to come off as inviting as he could be with his threatening demeanor and rather dangerous upbringing. Needless to say, it was difficult. Almost as hard as he imagined it was for Xavier to actually be tugged out of that protective shell he'd made for himself.

The flighty motion of a waving hand brought Xavier out of his thoughts. Lifting his eyes up to his roommate’s face, he watched him speak. The blush that had stained his cheeks was slowly fading, and the realization that he had misunderstood the written words made it fade that much faster. Why did he have to overthink everything? Lifting a hand, he ran his fingers through his hair, releasing a relieved huff of air.

Offering Jin a sheepish and apologetic smile, he nodded, fully comprehending now what he had meant.

Making a mental note to pay better attention to the other teen, he quickly swiped the pen and lifted the pad, scribbling down a message. His eyes flitted a few times from the paper to his roommate’s face, like his gaze did when he was drawing. The action was an attempt to be more observant, to make sure he didn’t miss anything if Jin spoke. Finishing his sentence, he turned the pad towards him, eyes already on his face.

Yeah, I know. Thank you for putting up with me.

At the end of the sentence was a small smiley face, grinning brightly at Jin.

As Xavior moved to write a message, Jin felt almost as though he'd gone too far with his explanation. It seemed as though Xavier was intent on keeping constant watch on him, in case anything happened.

Well, going back on his own words would be a sign of uncertainty, and he made it a goal of his to be certain about absolutely everything he did. And if he was going to do that, he would have to put up with that concentrated stare that made it feel like he was being observed like some science project.

With a small, almost regretful sigh, Jin ran a hand through his fiery red hair, looking up to find that Xavier had written out a knew message on that notebook of his. Well, that had been fast. He would need to step up his awareness, too, if they were to have any decent conversations.

He reached out to pick up the pad, reading over the need handwriting before his gaze settled on a single smiley face punctuating Xavier's sentence. He suppressed a snort, setting the notebook down in front of his roommate and trying not to seem fazed by the hilarious addition to his response. It was so utterly not Xavier, and that was exactly what made it so funny.

"I should be telling you that," he returned with a smile that was honestly being forced down from what would have ended up as an amused smirk. "I have been kind of a jackass to you, after all."

Xavier’s brow bent at Jin’s words. He lifted his left hand in response, quickly dropping it again in a fast “no.” He wasn’t being a jackass, he was just acting in the only way he knew how. Of course, it was a bit unsettling but Xavier didn’t blame him for it. They were just starting to relax, to get to know one another face to face.

He felt a sudden itch and glanced down, catching sight of the cut in his arm. Brushing a finger over it, he noticed it was already starting to form a slight scab. Even though he was aware of his power, he still couldn’t help but be amazed every time. The idea of mere drawings becoming reality was farfetched, but he was blessed with a gift. How he had gotten this ability, he had no idea.

Speaking of powers…
Xavier’s cerulean gaze drifted back to Jin.

Getting up off of the bed, he stepped around the boy in the chair and walked over to the scorch marks in the floor. His eyes on his roommate, he pointed to them and arched a brow in an inquisitive manner. It was Jin’s turn for show and tell.

Deciding not to argue with Xavier's denial of his apology, Jin shrugged and shifted in his chair, back to that same cross-legged position he had been in before. His eyes trailed down to settle on that scratch in the kid's arm, brows furrowing. With all that had happened, he'd almost forgotten about it.

"Is it okay?" he asked, though from the look of things Xavier didn't seem to be in any real pain, at least not enough to be expressed outwardly. And he could already make out the rough outline of a scab on the skin, which meant it was healing nicely. Well, that was one weight off his mind.

His eyes followed his roommate as he moved across the room, finally stopping in front of the scorched footprints against the floor. For a moment he expected a disappointed look, but instead he received quite the opposite. Xavier looked curious, excited even.

"You want to see my power?" he asked, brow raising slightly. It honestly surprised him; his ability, or rather his species, wasn't nearly as interesting as Xavier's. He was just a simple demon; there were hundreds of those in the world. "You'll probably be disappointed, you know. It's not nearly as neat as your ability is."