Running From Him (ManxMan)

Chapter 32: Comforting Me

🏃‍♂️Clark’s POV🏃‍♂️

My breaths came out in heavy pants,  little to warm my cheeks as I rushed through the building. I tripped over myself due to my panicked rushing but ignored the sting on my calf and continued on.

I received a few odd looks as I ignored the elevator and started the long trek up the stairs. Maybe it was irrational of me to use the stairs instead of the elevator but I was impatient and certainly not in the state of mind to be making smart decisions.

I finally came up to my floor and moved nearly twice as fast to get to the door. I practically collapsed against its cool hard surface when I got in front of it. I used a shaky hand to unlock the front door and released a sigh when it swung open easily.

I trudged my way slowly through the front door, letting the door swing closed behind me and lazily pulling off my shoes.

“Clark?” I heard called from inside the living room. I first tensed before recognizing who the voice belonged to.

“Santiago.” I sighed, a smile coming onto my lips. Santiago entered the room, he wore a plain white T-shirt and tight blue jeans, his lean muscles pressing against the fabric around his body.

His hair was pulled up into a messy bun at the top of his head with curls falling down around his face and his stubble was even thicker than usual.

But his warm eyes were as bright as always, bringing me more comfort than I could ever thank him for.

“Thank you.” I whispered, ignoring his confused look and pulling the taller man into a hug. “Thank you.”

~~~~~

Ethan was seated at the kitchen table but instead of being productive and getting his work done, the older man stared at Santiago and I. He had a soft smile on his face and bright eyes because he could see how happy the two of us were.

Santiago, clearly hearing the distress in my voice when I called him earlier, had brought a pack of cards and a few board games. The two of us had foregone our phones and the TV to play some good ol’ fashioned board games. I had never felt better.

We laughed, talked, and had a steady competition going to see who could win the most games. I was losing, but that was obviously because he played the games more. Nothing else. We finally calmed down when Ethan called us for dinner and like two little kids, raced away from the games to get to the dinner table first.

Over the few years that I had lived with Ethan, I have seen the older man’s culinary skills improve drastically.

Ethan used to be the type of guy whose best friends were Postmates, Just Eat, and Grub Hub. The most he could cook was instant macaroni and he had become a professional with wooden chopsticks. He almost never cooked and had crafted the habit right when he entered college.

But, when I moved in, he seemed to feel guilty and want to get me actual food. The two of us had to struggle around with cooking for a while but now Ethan seemed to be a natural in the kitchen. The chicken parm was a testament to that.

Even the conversation over dinner was fun. Ethan knuckled down on Santiago to try and get more information about the man and Santiago was happy to supply it. I watched on with a wide smile and was happy to learn more as well.

Finally, when the plates were clear and the glasses of juice empty, Ethan shooed us off to my room and got started on the dishes.

Santiago and I had tried to protest but Ethan was nothing if not stubborn and soon we were walking toward the room.