How To Fall From Grace [MxM]

Step 9: Fall in with servants (pt. 2)

"I wanted to know if your absence was because of what happened last night," Marius called out behind him and Frey squeezed his eyes together.

Damn it.

He didn't turn around, but he slowed his pace enough to make sure Marius could hear him.

"People have talked ill about my family for a long time now. It's unpleasant, but I'll always rise above it. You shouldn't worry about things that don't concern you."

To Frey's great shock and confusion a hand grabbed his shoulder, and before he could stop it from happening Marius had already spun him around.

"I meant the kiss," he said, and Frey screamed on the inside. "I think that very much concerns me."

Frey's mouth opened and closed. He hadn't decided on how to deal with that part, so what would he say?

"I feel like there was a misunderstanding," Marius continued, quickly removing his hand as he once again remembered the no-touching rule. "And I figured I should apologise."

"... Oh?"

Frey remained expressionless. An apology? Marius was supposed to apologise for Frey kissing him? It was certainly a preferable outcome, but he couldn't grasp the reasoning behind it.

"I should have elaborated on why I pushed you away before you ran off." Marius rubbed the back of his neck. "I didn't mean to reject you like that, or... I suppose I was going to anyway, but I could have—"

"It's fine." Frey shook his head irately. "We'll forget that it happened. That any of it did. My mind was in an unfortunate, intoxicated state and I acted without thinking. I'm sure you know by now how I actually feel about being touched by servants."

"Yes, that's..." Marius awkwardly glanced at Frey's shoulder where his hand had just been. "... That's why."

"What?"

"Why I pushed you away. Because you were in a vulnerable state and I... I couldn't take advantage of that."

A moment of silence, and Frey tried to crush a sudden, annoying sensation of astonishment to death inside his head. He wasn't supposed to have any positive feelings towards this man, no further than casually acknowledging him doing his job well, but that was also to be expected.

"Well, it was the right thing to do," he therefore said, voice painfully low. "Good to know even my stable boy can show common decency."

Marius tilted his head, looking as though he was holding back a smile.

"Am I your stable boy, my Lord?"

A sudden itch in Frey's throat, stemming from his dry mouth, attacked him from nowhere at that and with a hoarse attempt at holding it back he turned away, but it was no use. It was an unbecoming kind of cough and the more he tried to keep it down the worse it got.

"Are—Are you all right?" Marius stepped forward and reached a hand forward only to quickly retract it again. "Did you swallow down the wrong pipe?"

"I don't—" Frey could barely get any words out. "I don't swallow down the—"

A moment of what seemed like forever passed by before he could recover properly.

"Hope you haven't come down with something." Marius leaned in only a little bit to scan Frey's face. "You look a bit pale."

"I don't need your opinions on what I look like." Frey was tired, but Marius wouldn't let his theory go.

"Perhaps taking Tea for Two out would have been too much for your health then... If you feel ill."