Beats of the Heart [MxM]

30. Boomerang

Shawn and Miles stayed curled together in the bed for a while, not wanting to break their moment. Their journey to reconnect had been too arduous, and any slice of time they carved out for each other was truly magical.

Miles' head rested on Shawn's chest, listening to his heart. He would flick his fingers across Shawn's stomach, mentally drafting something new. However, his reverie was interrupted when his phone started to ring.

He jolted and fumbled to find it. When he looked at the Caller ID, his emotions twisted with nerves. "I've been waiting for this call," he explained as he scrambled off the bed and answered.

"This is Miles," he answered. He paced a little, revealing that he was a little nervous.

"That's right. Unfortunately, unforeseen circumstances have made that payment method somewhat unstable, and I do not want to risk his education..."

His fingers tapped on his leg subconsciously. "Correct. I would appreciate it if we could refund what was paid to the original form of payment, and I can pay the first semester in full from my personal account..."

Miles nodded. "Right, I have already set up my account for future automatic payments... I'm aware of the costs, but no payment plan will be needed... Correct."

Miles laughed, the stress melting from his shoulders. "Yeah, the dean and I go way back. I owe her a few favors, so we'll tack this on the list."

He sunk down on the bed, finally exhaling. "I truly appreciate this."

He hung up the phone and fell back on the bed, sprawling out. A laugh escaped his lips.

Shawn crawled over to him and pulled him into his embrace. "Good news?"

Miles nodded. "Danny's free and clear. Larry is not paying a single dime for his college education."

"Really?" Shawn was equally optimistic, knowing Larry's personality. 

"I wanted to get everything approved before I tell Danny, but we have been on edge with Larry lately. He had been hinting he would pull Danny out of Columbia to seek a degree he deemed acceptable."

Shawn's brow creased. "And he was going to threaten to use Danny's tuition against him?"

Miles nodded. "Danny is independent at this point. When he started with Dirge, we started a new bank account for his checks. That way, he doesn't need to touch the account Larry has deposited his allowance. He pays most of his small bills, and I handle everything else. Tuition was the last item we needed to cut ties with Larry."

"Will Danny be okay knowing you did this?"

Miles sighed. "Yes and no. He will understand that this needs to be done. But he sometimes thinks he's a burden, which is bullshit. Still, I can't blame the kid for his insecurities. Larry... fuck... he did a number on him."