Devil's Drop

Control Issues

Mike hummed quietly as he moved around the kitchen stealthily, gathering his ingredients and supplies carefully so he wouldn't wake Chester. He couldn't quite put a finger on what it was that he was feeling this morning, but something was different. There was the post-sex euphoria from yesterday that he was still basking in, and something else. Some sort of shift in the universe, a change in how the same world looked through his eyes today.

He flicked his gaze toward the loft as he set a mixing bowl down on top of a kitchen towel. Chester had opened his eyes to a completely different world, one where he felt less like an observer of what was happening. Less like a passive participant. He'd be lying if he said that he didn't enjoy being in control yesterday afternoon, grabbing Chester by the hips, being inside his boyfriend... and that collar. That collar had really pushed him over the edge.

Mike felt a shiver of anticipation slide down his spine as he remembered the way Chester had reacted to him when he tugged on that collar, the way he trembled and fell apart underneath him. I did that. I made him feel that way, me. I want to do it again. I won't be so scared this time. I'll take him a little harder, I'll last longer. He felt so fucking good, I almost want to do it again before pancakes.

He paused and considered his plan, glancing around at the spread in front of him and the pans he'd placed on the stove. No. Food first. I need to keep my energy up. Mike rolled his eyes at himself and grinned. You're such a dork, Shinoda. He measured everything out and mixed it up, keeping an ear open for any sound from upstairs. The goal was to not wake Chester up until the pancakes were ready.

As he watched his pancakes on the skillets, Mike's thoughts drifted around the past week. The visit to YRS. Telling Anna he was moving out. Finding out about Mark. The conversation he'd had with Chester about his parents. Leaving his teaching position. So much had happened in such a short amount of time. He slid the edge of his spatula under the side of a pancake to check it, then flipped them both, the smell of cinnamon hitting his nose.

There was a possessiveness building inside Mike even though he couldn't quite put a name to it. Everything in his life was wrapped around Chester now, so entwined that it was hard to remember what his life had been before they met. All Mike knew, while he stood there making pancakes on a Saturday morning, was that he would do anything for his relationship with his boyfriend to survive. Chester was his love, his home, and now part of his job. Nothing seemed scarier than the idea that it could all come apart if things at YRS didn't go well. The familiar fingers of anxiety gripped his stomach as he wondered if he'd really be able to perform in front of the cameras. The bottom line now was - he had to figure it out. He had to make it all work for Chester, not just for their relationship, but to protect him from Mark.

Mark will never lay a finger on him again. Not while I'm around. Not ever. The thought made his stomach hurt. To him, Chester was so worldly and so capable, and finding out how he'd been manipulated and taken advantage of at work was sickening. The idea that he'd been unable to stand up for himself physically hurt Mike. But now, now that was all over. He'd be at YRS, and they had a deal. A contract. Mark couldn't touch him anymore.

With a stack of pancakes ready to go, Mike turned off the burners and made his way upstairs, anxious to wake his boyfriend. It was surprising he'd managed to sleep the entire time Mike was in his kitchen. I must have really worn him out yesterday. A smile crept over his face as he slid into the bed, wrapping his arms around Chester's naked body and pulling him over close. He gently rubbed his lips, then his nose, across the back of Chester's neck, alternating between dropping tiny wet kisses there and inhaling his boyfriend's scent. He snuggled their hips together and leaned over, nibbling at the bottom of Chester's earlobe before he breathed a whisper into his ear, "good morning, babe... wake up..."