My oh my, my sister's husband? (mxm/bxb) *Under proofreading*

Chapter two - Day two (Wednesday, October 19th, 2016)

I awaken the next morning with the sun shinning in my face. Most people hate waking up like that but not me; I love the warm, petting-like feeling of the sun caressing my skin. I stretch my arms over my head and I hear the satisfying sound of all the kinks popping in my shoulders and back as a deep groan leaves my mouth on its own accord. With a content sigh and a lazy smile plastered on my face, I settle back on the pillow with sunlight once again dancing on my upper body. "You ever going to get up, sleepy-head? If you don't hurry, breakfast'll be either cold or long gone by the time you're up", I hear my sister say from the end of the couch. I crack one eyes open and instantly get a big, happy smile on my face – Lily's always been able to get the biggest of smiles to appear on my face; more often than not without even trying. "Good morning miss Sunshine. 'D you sleep well in my bed made in Heaven?", I ask in my sleep-filled voice. A loud coughing fit erupts by the dining table and I lift my body just enough to see Derek lightly hitting himself on the chest, still coughing. "You alright there, Derek?", my sister asks with a little amused smirk but Derek just shakes his left hand dismissingly in front of himself while his right hand keeps hitting his chest. A deep red blush soon lights up his ears and I suddenly feel sorry for the poor guy. I look at Lily and see her still smirking with that knowing glint in her eyes. "Ugh, what time is it anyways?", I ask, laying back down in the sun with closed eyes when I take pity on Derek. "7.30", is all the answer I get before I hear soft padding leading away from me. 'Well, I can't really go back to sleep when my guests are already up', so I get up from the couch, pad to the bathroom and start my day.

It's two p.m. and Derek and I are awkwardly sitting by the dining table drinking coffee while Lily's taking a nap. "So. uhm. Lily says you two met in India when you were both doing charity work?", I try, just to start somewhat of a conversation to break the deafening silence. 'Damn, me and my bad small talk skills'. For the first time since Lily went to bed, Derek actually smiles a little and my chest springs to life with warmth and giddiness. "Yeah, that's correct. We met in India and hit it of right away. We worked together for two months until Lillian left for her next destination. A month later, I also moved to my next destination and fate had us meet again in a small village in South Africa. It really is amazing because we never told each other where we were going next when we met in India so when we ended up meeting again in South Africa, it was really something else. We knew right away it was destiny that had us meet like that so not even two weeks later, we were married", he ends with a sincere and wholehearted chuckle. My chest tightens almost painfully so, "God, that's just so romantic! I've never really been a believer in stuff like destiny, gods etc. but *that* story almost makes me want to believe in a higher power", I end with an envious sigh while I lean back in my chair with a dreamy look on my face. Derek seems to search my face a few second before he says slowly, hesitantly, "You know. When Lillian and I met in India, we got to know each other quite well. I told her about me, my family, growing up in Romania and she told me about her life, Denmark, your mum, your dad... you", he trails off with that look in his eyes. My eyes widen and my heartbeat rises to twice its normal pace because I know that look all too well. 'He knows. He knows about me. He knows about me being gay'. "O-oh. Is that so? I hope it's all good things she said about me and not too much gossip", I try to joke but it's obvious in my voice just how scared I really feel. I rise from my chair without looking at Derek and I try to smoothly change the subject, "You want some more coffee? Water? Soda maybe?". I practically run the short distance to the kitchen and the fridge, all the while I inwardly try to calm myself. 'Take a deep breath, Michael. You know your own sister damn well enough to know she wouldn't tell anyone if she wasn't 100% sure they're okay with gays. Be a little more confident dammit. *Be proud*'. And with that thought and sudden boost of confidence, I take out the soda, close the refrigerator door and walk with confident steps back to my seat. When I'm once again seated, I straighten my back and look Derek dead in the eye. "So I'm guessing she told you I'm gay?", a ghost of a nod leaves him and his eyes briefly find his cup before he makes eye contact yet again. His hesitation makes me wonder aloud, "You know anyone, other that me that is, who's gay?". I'm sincerely curious because I have all these prejudices about homophobia in Eastern and South-eastern Europe. For a brief second, Derek's eyes get a hard, distant look to them and they fill with emotions I can't quite pinpoint before his eyes flicker to my left shoulder. He stammers a little when he answers, "Actually, you're not the only one... I-Um-I-I-", he gets interrupted by my bedroom door swinging open and out comes my sister with a bedhead even Tim Minchin would envy. I rise from my chair and turn slightly to Lily, "So I hear you told *someone* I'm gay", Lily's eyes widen and a big smile appears on her face, "OH!", she says happily while she looks a Derek with big, proud eyes. From the corner of my eye, I see Derek shake his head violently. Lily's face falls and her eyebrows scrunch together as she says more silently, "oh...". Her eyes meet mine and they roam my face before she gets a closed-off look to them and walks off to the coffee machine. "That's it?", I say, "'oh'? Not even an explanation?". Lily answers with her back still turned to me, "What can I say? My husband's very open-minded", and for some annoying reason, she puts emphasis on 'husband', which just pisses me off. I groan as I turn around and with my hand locked in my hair, I stalk to the bathroom and slam the door harder than necessary behind me. 'I'm sick and tired of feeling like people talk over my head and all time hint at things, I don't get'.