The Sheikh's Rebel (gay) ☑️

15. The medallion

Jared woke up first and saw that Tyler was on his own side of the bed. He dressed in his room and worked for a while before he called for room service.

Tyler woke up to the smell of fresh coffee. Moaning, he remembered the events of the past evening and night. Lying on his back, he figured out that the best way to deal with the situation was to thank Jared and not talk about it anymore. In a dressing gown from the hotel, he carefully walked into the living room. Without making eye contact, he poured coffee. 
"Are you all right?", asked Jared. 
Tyler nodded. "Jared?" 
"Yes?" 
"Thank you." 
"Let's not mention it anymore, okay?" 
"Okay," Tyler nodded with relief. Approvingly he let his hands slide along the service trolley. "What's on the agenda for today?" 
Jared replied without looking up from his laptop. "The jet is on standby. As soon as you've had your breakfast and got dressed, we'll leave for home."
"Home!", he repeated longingly and quickly gathered his breakfast together. Less than half an hour later, they got into a waiting car.

Tyler didn't expect Eric on this return flight, so he wasn't surprised that it was just the two of them. However, he felt it necessary to inquire about the well-being of Aisha, Mira, Joy and also, Eric.
"Shocked, but okay," was Jared's short reply.

Tyler sincerely felt that they needed to reaffirm their working relationship. His weakness last night was unfortunate, but had to be overcome now, otherwise Jared would make him his lapdog. A well-known fire of resistance specifically aimed at his dominant boss began to rekindle in him. A fragile flame that he had to cherish carefully. For now, he kept his head down and performed his tasks silently. More than work-related conversations were not conducted during the flight back.

"You're free tomorrow," Jared said as they walked from the jet to the waiting cars. A cab was waiting for Tyler and for Jared an SUV.
"Friday, at nine o'clock sharp I expect you at the practice."

"The ruler had reclaimed his rightful place," Tyler thought on the way home, breathing a sigh of relief. 'Jared was probably just as keen as he was to put the situation behind him. He had shown a weak side of himself that he was probably ashamed of now.'

Because Tyler came home late at night, he was as careful as possible. Despite this, his mother was at the top of the stairs. "Welcome home, son." She gave him a firm hug. Much to his horror, he felt the tears burning in his eyes. He sniffed them back.
"Sorry," he said quickly. "I caught a slight cold. Luckily I'll have time off tomorrow."
"Rest well. I'll let you sleep in, okay?"
After a last hug, he walked to his bedroom. Naomi was sleeping in his bed with three toy bears. Nobody was as good at driving out bad spirits as Naomi. Tired of everything, he kicked his shoes off and crawled next to her. With his brave sister in his arms, all spirits were defeated and he slept peacefully.

The morning ran into the afternoon before he appeared downstairs. When unpacking his bag, he realized that he had completely forgotten to buy souvenirs for everyone. He couldn't and wouldn't tell anyone the reason for that.
Naomi was playing with a friend and his mother was running errands, he read on the note she left for him. Walking around aimlessly had never been his hobby, so after a quick breakfast he grabbed his bike and drove towards the beach.

A few hours of surfing took restored the inner balance he needed. He had also thought about Lindsey. She was supposed to start College next week. It was time to talk to her seriously about the future.
Not for the first time, she seemed to know exactly what he wanted to talk about before he said anything. "How do you do that?" he wondered.
"Oh, Tyler. You are so easily readable to the people who know you well."
She hugged him and held him tightly. "You've wanted to talk to me about this before, but I wasn't ready. Now I am."

Sitting at the kitchen table with her parents in the living room, they spoke openly about the future. "First love is very important. It lays the groundwork for the relationships you'll have for the rest of your life. I'm really glad you were my first love, Tyler. I hope we will always be friends." Despite her thoughtful and down-to-earth words, she broke down in tears. 
"Thank you, Lindsey. I love you too," Tyler said, holding her in his arms. So they said goodbye to their time as lovers and continued as friends.
"Oh, I almost forgot to say. Thank you for your wonderful gift. You really didn't have to." They walked through the living room. On top of a pile of boxes was a hand-woven plaid that Tyler recognized. It was similar to the one that Princess Jasmine had used. "I really did. You're the best, Lindsey."