above all (m×m) ✔

29) my love

A delicious aroma of tomatoes, dough and arugula welcomed Steven home, and he followed it to the kitchen. Brandon was standing back to the doorway, and Steven suppressed his initial need to surprise Brandon by hugging him from behind. He would likely elbow Steven in the face or tackle him on the ground, and Steven had no wish to startle him like that.

"Do I smell pizza?" Steven asked, keeping his voice soft. Brandon flinched despite Steven's efforts of not trying to startle him, but when he turned to glimpse Steven over his shoulder, he was smiling. 

"I figured you'd be hungry." Brandon greeted him, then turned to face the dishes again. "How was work?"

"Well, you know, my friend. Same old, same old." Steven grinned and corked a bottle of beer before hopping up on the kitchen counter to keep Brandon company. "I'm getting too old for all of those poses.. My back aches so bad I'll need a crane to get up from bed tomorrow. How about you? You didn't do enough baking at work?" 

"Nah, it's Håkan that's gotten on my nerves." Brandon sighed, then dried his hands to the kitchen towel. He stepped in front of Steven and took the bottle from him. Steven couldn't tear his eyes off Brandon's Adam's apple as it bobbed when he swallowed.

Steven's own throat turned dry, when he realized how close Brandon was to him. He lifted his hands and looped them around Brandon's hips, keeping his touch so light Brandon could have easily stepped away if he wanted to. He didn't. Instead, he set the bottle on the counter, leaned in and pressed their lips together into a brief kiss.

"Is that okay?" Brandon asked then, just as softly as he had kissed Steven. 

"Okay?" Steven asked right back, widening his eyes. Then a wide, toothy grin spread on his lips. "That was so much more than okay."

"Yeah?" Brandon wrapped his arms around Steven's shoulders and mussed up his hair with his hands at the back of his head. His fingernails gently scraping Steven's scalp made shivers run up and down Steven's spine.

"Yeah." Steven closed the remaining distance between their lips again.

Brandon leaned against Steven, his body a warm and solid weight grounding Steven, when the kiss made him feel like he was floating five feet above the floor. Steven braved a little exploration, sliding his fingertips along Brandon's lower back and mapping the feeling of the croove of his spine. Brandon only deepened the kiss at that, his own fingers running down the back of Steven's head to the nape of his neck and down the arcs of his shoulder blades. 

"You don't have to call me your friend anymore." Brandon whispered, not pulling away from the embrace. At first, Steven's stomach lurched, like someone had poured a bucketful of ice cold water over his head. Then he halted to take a look at the small smile on Brandon's lips, one that definitely wasn't telling Steven he didn't want to be friends anymore. "I mean.. you keep calling me your friend, but I think we're past that by now."

"My love?" Steven asked, not even wanting to know how scary the glint in his eyes looked combined with the mile wide grin on his lips. Brandon took one look at him and turned beet red, then let his forehead thud against Steven's shoulder.

"I mean, if you still l.. like me like you said you did, then, I don't see why not." He explained, voice muffled by the fabric of Steven's shirt. Steven lifted Brandon's face back up, with his thumb under his chin, so that he could see the truth in Brandon's eyes when he answered his next question. Somehow its answer meant more to Steven than any other, probably more pressing matter did.

"Do you like me?" He asked. 

"Well, I mean.." Brandon furrowed his brows, as if the question confused him. "Isn't it kind of obvious?"