Walker wiped off the honey from the knife he'd been using to make Marsh a few peanut butter and honey sandwiches. The guy had been helping him around the house for most of the day and he knew that he'd be hungry soon. He'd also found the extra jar of honey stashed up behind some of their older groceries an d figured that he might as well use it before his bear sniffed it out... likely sooner over later.

"Marsh?" he called as quietly as he could, not wanting to wake his brother. It would be better if Heian heard him and got up first, though. If he stayed and Ranger woke up with him there, he might just start grooming him without really being awake all the way yet.

Not that he'd think Heian would mind, at all, but his brother would turn red from embarrassment.

He searched the main rooms first, but when he came up empty-pawed, he nudged open the door to his office.

Uh...?

"There seems to be a slightly chubby bear sitting in my computer chair," he said with humor winding through his words as he leaned against the doorjamb.

Marsh was, indeed, sitting in his chair, his stubby back legs sticking out mostly forward and slightly down. Both of his thick, heavy paws were placed on some of the random paperwork that had been left on the desk's surface. When he heard Walker come in, he lifted his head slightly and sniffed the air with a few loud grunts.

Looking down at the butter knife in his hand, Walker snickered and shrugged.

"Oops, forgot to put it in the sink. I made you some sandwiches, if you'd like to come to the kitchen? That is, if you aren't too busy working?" he asked, pursing his lips to try and hide his growing smile.

Marsh's bear opened and closed its mouth a few times, as if tasting the sweet treat already, but then it tapped the desk with its long claws, drawing Walker toward it curiously.

"What's up? Is something bothering you?" he asked as he looked down at the slightly cut-up papers.

Thankfully, none of them were really important and he'd already scanned them all into his online files, so it didn't matter if they got destroyed.

"Walker?"

Hearing his name, he looked up to see that Marsh had shifted and was now sitting in his big officer chair... completely naked.

What the...?

"I think I got bigger."

Feeling like his brain was short-circuiting, Walker reached into his back pocket and pulled out his phone. Two minutes later and he was looking through an article on bear shifters, and more importantly, on how they grow when faced with malnutrition.

"Evidently, bear shifters have a remarkable ability to regain body weight, and sometimes, even increase their general size after bouts of malnutrition because of the way hibernation affects both of their forms," he read from the web page he had pulled up before looking up at Marsh.

Granted, he hadn't grown that much, but for it to be so abruptly noticeable overnight was a little overwhelming. He looked back down at his phone and continued to read silently as he heard Marsh stand up and move around his desk.

If a bear shifter has not eaten sufficiently for many months, or even years, and then suddenly has access to food and water constantly, they can experience small bouts of growth that were missed during adolescence, but the amount will still be limited and will never reach the intended weight or height for that individual like if the malnutrition had no occurred.

"Wow, that's pretty cool," he said as he looked up again, only to see Marsh standing right in front of him.

Walker opened his mouth to speak, but couldn't find any words to say.

"Walker? You look really tired," Marsh said as he stepped a little closer, putting them nearly chest to chest.

He really has gotten taller.

The growth spurt didn't quite put them eye to eye, but he was suddenly a bit more aware of the age of the person standing right up against him.

Clearing his throat awkwardly, Walker took a step back, but to his surprise, Marsh immediately mirrored his action with a mischievous grin.

"I made you sandwiches... in the kitchen," he said as he took another step backward and quickly turned toward the door. He made it a few steps before he felt warm fingers reach into the waistband of his black jeans and hold him back.

"I wanted to ask you something," Marsh said as Walker slowly turned back toward him.

Thankfully, the guy released his hold on his pants as they returned to facing each other.

"Oh, uh, sure. What did you want to ask me, Marsh?" Walker replied, a little relieved that the situation was beginning to feel normal again.

"Do you like mating with men, or women?"

Well, that hope for normal just went out the window, fast.

"It's not something I think about," he answered honestly as he quickly turned and walked out the door.

He heard footsteps following behind him, but thankfully Marsh didn't try to grab his pants again. The guy actually grabbed a pair of clean shorts from the laundry room and remained silently until they stopped in the kitchen, then he tugged them on a second before beelining for the small stack of sandwiches on the counter.

Walker took the single peanut butter and banana one he'd made for himself and dropped down into a seat at the dinner table to eat. He wasn't really hungry, but he figured that a snack couldn't hurt. Right after he finished scooting in his chair so that he didn't get crumbs on the floor, he heard Marsh speak behind him from the kitchen as he took his first bite.

"I want Walker to be my mate... but you seem afraid of me when I try to touch you."

Coughing several times as he tried not to choke on his bread, Walker pounded his chest a few times before swallowing, then taking in a few deep breaths. When he looked back toward the kitchen, he leaned away abruptly. Marsh was right there. He was about to tell him that he needed to back up a few steps, and they needed to have a discussion about personal space, but the worried look on Marsh's face made his tense body calm down a little.

"I... I'm not afraid of you touching me," he said, then paused as he tried to figure out what he should be saying.

What am I even supposed to say in this situation?

He knew that his brother would have plenty to say, but he wasn't used to people chasing after him... and especially not guys. It was always Ranger that caught the women's attention, and even if one did dare to look at him, they were quickly taken by his brother, and that had honestly been fine.

There was more than enough work on the farm to keep him busy, and having a significant other took up way too much time. At least, that's what he'd seen when it came to his brother, over and over and over again.

Feeling a warm hand against the side of his face drew Walker out of his thoughts.

"Sorry, I wasn't trying to ignore you. I just—"

"Drift off into your own mind when you get nervous," Marsh finished his sentence for him, then added, "and it's adorable."

Walker felt his mouth go dry as his face heated and he fought with himself not to look down. Pushing forward all of his determination, he lifted his eyes to meet Marsh's shining dark ones.

"My Walker," Marsh said with a cheerfulness that finally made Walker lift his sandwich up, but he didn't take a bite, himself. Instead, he raised it to press against Marsh's lips.

Thankfully, the guy bit it obediently, then chewed slowly, giving Walker some much needed time to calm his stumbling heart. He retracted his hand after a moment and took a bite, too, not really thinking about the childish indirect kiss thing that kids joke about nowadays.

A warm hand wrapped partially around his own to guide the remaining part of his sandwich back up to Marsh's lips. The young man took another bite, then moved Walker's hand back toward his own mouth. He, too, took a bite obediently.

They finished the sandwich quickly between the two of them, but once the edible obstacle that Walker had been hiding behind was finally gone, he wasn't sure what to do with the hand that was still holding his own.

"Have I been a good bear, Walker?"

Walker blinked, a bit surprised by the sudden simple question.

"You have. You've been a very good bear, Marsh."

Marsh tilted his head the slightest amount and actually gave Walker a shockingly beautiful smile.

"This bear is very happy," he replied as he moved his thumb gently beneath Walker's eye.

He'd forgotten that Marsh had even had his other hand pressed against the side of his face the whole time they'd been sharing his sandwich.

"You're blushing again," Marsh said before pressing a gentle kiss to Walker's forehead, then leaning away and retracting both of his hands.

"I no longer want to go back to where I was. I want to stay here, and I want to win over what I feel is already mine," Marsh said, then added with a sleepy smile, "well, I know he's mine, but he's not too sure yet."

He walked away then, heading up the stairs to likely rest. Walker felt like he needed to sleep for a few weeks after that encounter, but as he stretched his arms out on the table and then leaned forward, pressing his forehead to the cold, worn wood, he didn't think that he'd be able to sleep even if he bothered to go to the guest room. Sure, he'd been using that room since his mother had left, but had he gotten any real sleep in it? Not really...

What am I doing?

Sighing, he slowly forced his body up and out of the chair. He intended to go unload the dishwasher, but his feet took him upstairs, instead. To his surprise, Marsh was standing at the top with a big comforter in his arms.

"I will sleep somewhere else. Walker is tired and I took his den..." he said quietly as he nuzzled his nose gently into the blanket, already clearly drowsy.

Walker was going to tell him that it was okay and that he had just come upstairs out of habit, but when a yawn slipped past his defenses, he bit his tongue on his words. Instead, he reached forward, and now, up slightly, and patted the young man's head.

"Thank you."

He doubted that Marsh would mind the guest room. He could even make it his own den room, if he wanted.

Marsh closed his eyes for a moment to enjoy the attention. When Walker moved past him, he heard the guy walk a few steps, but when the sound of him going downstairs didn't meet his ears, he turned and raised an eyebrow at the guy who was now cuddled in the heavy blanket near the top of the stairs.

"What are you doing curling up there? Aren't you going to go to the guest room downstairs?" he asked, confused.

Marsh blinked open his good eye and looked up at Walker at the same time he nuzzled into the blanket and mumbled a rough reply.

"I need to protect my Walker... and there are a lot of stairs."

Shaking his head, Walker walked over to him, making Marsh sit up groggily.

He really isn't done hibernating quite yet, huh.

"Come on. You can stay in my den, but you best behave, okay?" he said as he helped Marsh to his feet and took his big blanket with one arm and grabbed his hand with his free one.

Marsh rubbed at his eye with his other hand and mumbled something unintelligible as they stepped into Walker's dark room. Right as the door was being shut behind them Marsh looked up at Walker and asked, "can I at least lick you above the waist?"