(This chapter is dedicated to Candace, because she'll be the only one to read it. XD)
The rain tapped on the window panes, cold and desperate like a murderer. Lanum pulled the cheap comforters that surrounded him closer.
The television before him was bright and jarring. It was the only breach of the tense peace. It was as if the world was holding it's breath. The boy's skin crawled.
All of the sudden, light flooded his blurred window. The sound of a car engine followed his thought to the driveway, before it was abruptly cut off. A slam, heavy boots in the loose gravel, the jangle of keys. Before he knew it, the door was creaking open.
Quickly he scrambled out of bed to meet the man he knew to be his lover, but the world knew to be his chef. He tiptoed across the cold, hard, wooden floors, splashed with deep blue light. Lanum was reminded of the ocean, and, in turn, reminded of the man. His fingers slipped around the frozen brass knob, turning it ever so slowly.
The parlor lay sprawled before him, the ebony bookcases and tall, cold windows stretching to the ceiling above. Deep velvet curtains hid more delicate, lacy ones beneath. They casted brilliant shadows, shadows that danced across the floor so carelessly. What Lanum wouldn't do to be that free.
The most beautiful thing about the room was, in fact, not part of it. No, it was the man. He stood facing a small accent table, laying his keys and his cell phone onto it, hanging his jacket on the rack behind him.
His face was thin and angular, with hollow cheeks and a sharp jaw. The man's enchanting eyes were slim and grey in color, pushed down by thick, straight brows.
His hair was a pale shade of brown, cut to medium length and swept over his head in a clean manner.(although Lanum's favorite past time was destroying that neat display.)
The blouse he wore was dry and orderly, despite the disarray outside. His slacks were black, and tight in all the right places.
Calm down, Lanum- He reminded himself. He felt giddy just looking at him.
The man at the table turned around. His features lit up, his lips melted into a smile, his eyes crinkling in the most endearing way possible- and Lanum fell in love all over again.
"Lan," he whispered, "I've missed you so. And by the look of it, you've done the same for me."
I felt my face burn. "Hush up, Darren. You make it hard, what with those pants and all." My eyes wandered down his chest, to his thighs, to elsewhere...
Darren's solid embrace stirred me from my daydreams. I squeezed his shoulder. "How was the banquet?"
"It was fine. Terribly boring without you bugging me about glazes every few minutes, though," he said, ever so matter-of-fact-ly.
"Shut up," I joked, pecking his ever-growing smile. He laughed gently, laying his lips across mine.
