A/N: This is a very long chapter and I hope you guys don't get bored at reading it. But I assure you, all of you won't get disappointed.
As soon as Alex and Nora came back to Henry's room, they both saw Henry already up standing by the bed putting on his shirt that he wore yesterday and was halfway buttoning it when he turned to face Alex. He can see half of his chest exposed on the top part before his eyes went back to Henry's smiling face. "What the hell are you doing?" He asks angrily.
"I'm being released soon. Might as well changed into a better clothes while I wait." Henry replied and he'd already finished buttoning his shirt before he went to grab his phone by the table and as he was about to lean down, he gasped in pain that had him gripped on his side. "Hey, hey." Alex came to his side holding on to him worrying that he might fall but Henry relaxed soon after and took a seat on the chair on the side. "I'm fine, I forgot." He says and Alex sighed.
"At least eat your breakfast. The discharge will take some time. Plus Shan is not here yet." Alex told him and Nora placed the food on the table right in front of him. Alex took a seat next to Henry on the long couch and Nora next to him when Henry watches them both bickered about who's coffee and who's sandwich it was. He smiled feeling the warmth spread all over his chest feeling it felt right where he belong for once since five years they are apart.
Few hours later Shan came by bringing Henry his duffel bag and he changed in the bathroom. Shan saw Alex and Nora still by his side and he sighed in relief seeing them both keeping Henry's company. "Thank you." He said and they both shared the same expression over their face. "Why?" Nora asks and Shan smiled. "This is the first time I feel Henry is where he supposed to be. He used to tell me about you guys and I felt like I was there. How you, Nora was always there for him and for Alex. You are like their sisters that they both had lost."
Alex turned his head to his side and his eyes sets on Nora's side of her face. She smiled and her eyes glistened before she returned the gaze back at Alex. "Somebody has to take care of these idiots." She says and Alex laughs joined by Shan as well. They both still smiling when Henry came out of the bathroom wearing his long sleeves jumper and his casual pants. He had brushed his teeth and washed his face when he came out, he looked fresh than earlier. Alex couldn't help staring at Henry's wiping his hand on the paper towel before he tossed it in the trash can.
"Shan, what time did the captain said to you?" Henry asks and Shan pulled out his phone to check on the message, "Uhm- yeah, about that. I uh- he said that they had some technical failure and it's still a no fly yet. He will let me know when. I'm so sorry sir." Shan told him and Henry was about to reply when Alex interrupted them both. "Wait, you're leaving already?" He asks and Henry can see the look on Alex's face almost pleading for him.
"I had too, work and all." He says and Alex felt the strained fall in his stomach pulling him deeper. He will lose Henry again and he might never see him anymore. "Stay." Alex says and Henry looked up to meet his gaze while they faced each other. "I can't Alex." Henry told him and went to gave Shan his bag and he handed him his phone.
"Guys, a minute. Please." Alex told Nora and Shan and they both nodded before they left the room. Henry stares at both of them before they left and Nora smiled at him nodding in assurance for Henry before she stepped out and Shan closed the door right after. Henry inhaled sharply before he took a seat on the couch where Alex sat earlier and placed his phone down on the table. "Talk." Henry told him and he can see Alex scratched the back of his neck pacing right in front of him.
Alex tried to find the right word to tell Henry in his mind right now. Nothing can make this a little less awkward and he didn't want Henry to see him still hoping on their loves.
"Alex," Henry called him and he stopped pacing letting his eyes went back to Henry by the couch. He exhaled a long breath before he took a seat next to Henry leaving a space in between them. "I don't know how to say this." Alex starts and Henry turned his body to face him. "What is it?" Henry asks and he can see how hard Alex is trying to get his words out.
"I can't lose Gideon in my life." Alex can see how Henry starts to shift in his seat and he licked his lower lip nodding at him. "But I can't lose you too Henry." Henry turned his head sharply at him before he let Alex continued. "If I choose you, I will hurt Gideon the same way you hurt me and if I choose him then I lose you and I get hurt the same way I did the first time I lost you."
Henry lowered his gaze down to Alex's hand and slowly he grabbed his hand in his. "Then let me choose for you." Henry said and Alex looked up to his eyes and Henry can see the confusion clearly plastered all over his face. "Be happy with whoever you wanted to be. It doesn't matter if it's Gideon or someone else. As long as that person will make you the happiest person in your life. Someone who won't hurt you, who won't let you cry, over and over. Someone who doesn't make you worry, who doesn't constantly making that line in between your eyebrows exist." Henry pointed to the line over Alex's and he smiled pressing his finger to soften the line.
"Just know that you will always have my heart Alex. Always and forever. I could never find another love the way I love you. I was happy, it was enough for me. Maybe in another life we would find our way back to each other." Henry said and Alex can see Henry's eyes are flooded with tears. "But I'm not done loving you in this life." Alex says and Henry broke in tears hearing Alex's words. "We both had to make sacrifices for each other."
Henry heard a buzzing noise came from Alex and he wiped his eyes before he took out his phone from his pocket. He saw the screen had Gideon's name on it and Alex lingered his thumb over the screen before he answered. "Hey."
"Morning babe, you didn't call or text, I was worried. Are you alright?" He asks and Henry stood leaving Alex to talk privately with Gideon. He grabbed his phone from the table and walked towards the door and took one last glance at Alex by the couch. He smiled looking at Alex pressing his phone over his ear with a smile on his face and it broke his heart to see him this happy.
He met Shan by the corner and found Nora next to him. "I wanna leave now." He said and Nora had her face changed into a worried. "No, Henry you can't." Nora told him and Henry smiled gripping her shoulder. "They took my IV out, the discharged is in process, I don't have any medications to bring home so I'm good to go whenever I want." Henry says and Shan was looking at Nora before he sighed in defeat and nods at Henry.
Henry turned the corner followed by Shan giving Nora one last look before they left.
Nora went back to Henry's room and found Alex on the phone with Gideon before she joined him on the couch next to him. It took him a while before he stops talking and ended the call right after. "Still can't say I love you to him huh?" She ask and Alex sighed. "How do I fix this Nora? I can't lose him both." He leaned his head over Nora's shoulder and she stroked his curly hair back with her manicured nails.
"Sometimes we just have to accept the fact that it wasn't ours to keep." Nora told him. Alex couldn't accept that, he can't accept the fact that Henry isn't his anymore.
"I love him. I still love him but I was too scared to hold on to that love because of what we had." Nora shifted letting Alex pulled away from her shoulder and turned her body to face him. "Alex. I don't understand." She starts and Alex stares at her letting her continued.
"You love Henry, obviously. You can't lose him. You said you love Gideon but you couldn't' even tell him that you love him. You choose him, you will lose one of the epic love that you had for years and there is nothing would ever beat that love the way you and Henry did. Do you see any future when you're with Gideon?" She asks him and he stares at her face deeply thinking hard about the time Gideon and him together.
Gideon for Alex is more stable than Henry. He never had any childhood trauma or any abused like Henry did. He had a stable family back in Miami, son of corporate lawyer and his family is normal to what Alex seems. Countless time he had spent with Gideon's family and the only drama they had was if someone forgot someone's anniversary or someone drunk enough to ruined the party. No one had panic attacks, no one in his family had lost someone tragically. Gideon was the only son and he didn't had the experienced of losing a sister like he and Henry did. He didn't understand grief the way he and Henry did.
"Where's Henry?" He asks her and she sighed, "He left." Alex stood up abruptly upon hearing what she said, "What?! Why?! He wasn't supposed to be out yet." Alex protest and Nora sighed looking at him frantic over Henry. "They discharged him. He was allowed to leave. Not your decision remember." She says and Alex turns his head towards her, he sighed shaking his head and decides for them both to leave Henry's room that day.
.
Henry went back to the hotel with Shan feeling the weight over his chest pulls him deeper. Shan saw how Henry's face dropped the soon they both reached the hotel room seeing the empty bed and it mirrored the empty feeling in Henry's life. Henry stares at the bed in the middle of the room when Shan called him from the door. "Sir? Everything alright?" He asks and Henry shook his head with a sharp inhale of breath.
"I chose for him. He can't make a decision about us so I made it for him." Henry said and Shan can hear the break in his voice. "Thought it would be easier but it wasn't. It's hurts just the same." Henry sighed letting himself sat down on the bed with his hands over his face letting a sighed on his palms. Shan couldn't say anything to make Henry feels better. He knows how strong he tried to be for Alex.
"I'll order you some lunches. Rest sir." He said and Henry nods seeing him closed the door and left. He laid his head on the pillow next to him and let his tears fell on his satin pillow case and drifted him off to his dreams.
Henry woke up hours later and was confused on where he was. He looked around the room finding himself in an empty hotel room with his low light on. He looked to the window behind him and saw the sun is almost setting in creating an amber sky and he laid on his other side watching the beautiful sky he had always dreamt off when he's not here in New York.
His thought was interrupted by a buzzing noise of his phone by his bedside and he took it to answer not even bothered to see who it was that is calling him. "Hello." His voice croaked and he waited for the person to reply. "Henry?" The voice made him sat up on his bed abruptly and he could feel his breath quickened at the thought of that person. "Alex?"
"I need to see you. Now." He says and Henry eyebrow's furrowed, "What? Why? Is something's wrong?" He asks and Alex sighed, "NO! I just need to see you, please. I'll text you the address." Alex says and before Henry could replied him, he ended the call and Henry pulled the phone away to see the screen and saved the number of Alex in his phone. He wonders how the hell did Alex got his phone number. A few minutes later he got a notification and he tapped on the screen to see the location Alex had sent him and Henry literally jumped out of the bed in hurry, only to regret it later after the pricking pain over his side and he groaned in pain.
It took him awhile before Henry could get himself ready and he didn't let Shan knows where he went exactly cause he didn't want anyone else knows where he's headed. He grabbed his jumper and put on his casual shoes before he walked out of the room headed to the lobby and hailed a cab.
The cab ride took him twenty minutes due to traffic and Henry finally arrived at one of the apartment building right here in New York. He took an elevator up to tenth floor and immediately went to the right apartment unit number and pressed his thumb over Alex's apartment doorbell. It took him a few seconds before Alex opened the door for him revealing Alex in his casual black t-shirt and his sweatpants bare footing in the apartment. "Hey." Henry said and Alex welcomed him with a smiled, "Hey."
Alex let Henry in and closed the door before following Henry to the living room and it was actually bigger than his older one. "Nice loft. You always wanted the fireplace and the bigger outdoor balcony." Henry stopped himself before his thoughts went to the memories of that night of them both in the balcony. "Hey, you okay?" Alex tapped his arm seeing Henry hasn't move or speak and staring at the balcony before his gaze went back to Alex next to him. "Yeah." He cleared his throat and Alex nodded at him.
"Why did you call me here?" Henry asks Alex as his eyes followed Alex walking towards his liquor cabinet and poured himself a drink. "Wanna a drink?" He asks him and Henry shook his head declining his offer. Alex shrugged pouring more drink for himself and took a sip before he went back to Henry.
"I wanna give this back to you." Alex handed him a small box in his hand and Henry took it suspiciously and opened the box in his palm. Inside the box revealed his old engagement ring that Alex kept and his heart beats faster and he looked at Alex sharply. "What? Why did you keep it?" He asks and Alex pressed his lips together. "It's yours Henry, I could never throw it away." Alex told him and Henry closed the box and handed it back to Alex.
"It's not mine anymore. You can throw it away or sell it, do whatever you want." Henry handed him the box but Alex didn't take it from his hand and instead he stares at Henry's face. "It's yours, keep it. Do whatever you want with it. I don't want it anymore." Alex told him and Henry felt defeated. "Is this the only reason why you're calling me here? You could have just call Shan and get it for me. Why bothered calling me to come then?" Henry asks with his face contort in confusion.
"That and I still need to clear something in my mind." He says and Henry eyebrows crooked further. "What is it?" Henry asks and he can see how Alex is trying his best at controlling his emotion. "You told me before that I was the best thing in your life Henry. That I was your great consuming love. You taught me how to love. You taught me that I don't need all the money in the world to love someone. That all I need is you." Henry can see Alex is at verge of crying but he held it strongly.
"But then you left me. Leaving me all alone in this world. You proved me that love doesn't exist because if it does, you won't leave me. You won't let me get hurt like this." Henry turned his body around trying to hold on to the fact that Alex is calling out all of his greatest mistake. "What do you want me to say Alex? It's in the past."
Alex stepped closer behind Henry and he can feel his hot breath fanning over Henry's neck. He can feel Alex's hand wrapped around Henry's arm to turn him back to face Alex. Henry had his face wet with his tears and softly Alex's palm cupped him on his cheek and he leaned towards his warmth. Alex let his thumb run over Henry's tears and he sighed a relieve breath feeling the familiar warmth from Alex's skin.
"I miss you so much. There isn't a day in my life I didn't thought about you Henry." Alex can see how Henry had more tears fall down on his face and Alex cupped his other hand over Henry's cheek and Henry held his wrist. Their forehead leaned together and felt their warm breaths over their face. Their lips are inches away from each other and begging for a kiss.
"I can't Alex. I can't ruined your life anymore. You have a good, stable relationship right now. I don't want to ruin it. You deserved a good life. Not drowned in mine." Henry pulled Alex's hand away from his face and Alex's face dropped in defeat. "I guess I'm more complicated than that. You understood me more than anyone else Henry. You know how it felt losing someone in your life. You know how hard life is before you were given this luxury. I admired you for that. I just wished I didn't spend five years thinking badly about you."
Henry smiled stroking Alex's arm before his palm caught Alex's cheek and he smiled at him. "I never hold any grudges on you Alex. Believe me. I want nothing but the best of you." Henry saw Alex's eyes glistened in tears. Alex pulled away from Henry's hand and paced a step behind rubbing his face with his hand. "You thought this was best for me?" He asks and Henry nodded weakly.
"That's the thing Henry. Everyone is so adamant about finding what's best for me. My parents, Nora and Sophia. They all thought that forgetting you was the best thing for me. That choosing Gideon is best for me. That is not true!" Alex raised his voice at him and Henry pressed his lips together forming a line.
"You are the best thing that ever happened to me! You are the only reason for my being! That choosing you, marrying you was the best decision I have ever made and that was the best for me! Why can't you see that? Why can't you just accept that? I can't live without you Hen, I know it's toxic but- I tried and I can't." Henry felt his heart beats out of his chest when he heard Alex told him what he needed to hear for the past five years.
He didn't think twice, he stepped closer to Alex and cupped his head in his hand and crashed their lips together in one heated kiss.
"I love you, I never stop loving you Henry." Alex told him after they both released their lips and Henry didn't say anything else but crashing their lips again together. Alex felt the kiss got more heated and Alex's hand went lower to cup Henry's behind and he remembers how firm it was in his gripped. Henry moaned felt sinful for Alex and he can't help feeling the tightening in his own pants when he heard Henry moaned in his ear like that.
He lifted Henry's off the ground and let him wrapped his legs over Alex's waist and guides them towards the couch. Alex sat down letting Henry straddled him and they both couldn't stop kissing each other. Henry lifted Alex's shirt up and tossed it across the room before letting Alex pulled his shirt up and they are both naked on the top part. Alex stops and admired Henry's broad chest with his strong built seeing all the scars and the bruised over his pale colored skin.
There was an old scar over Henry's chest and stomach and there is new one over his upper arm from when it was broken. Henry can see Alex's eyes lingered all over his body as his fingers traces the line of his scar. "I'm so sorry for what happened to you. I wished I was there to help you recover Hen." He says and Henry shook his head. "I wouldn't want you to see it. It was horrible. But you are here now." He whispered and leaned to kiss him again on his lips.
Alex's hand went back to Henry's waist pressing it lower as Henry grind against his erection. He moaned in Henry's ear and his lips found Henry's neck sucking on the skin and knows it would definitely leaved marks over his pale skin. He lifted Henry and laid him down on the couch before he settles in between Henry's legs. Henry winced upon the contact feeling the pain over his side that made Alex's concerned but he shook it off by pulled him into more kisses.
His lips trailed more kisses on Henry's chest and slowly letting his tongue lower over Henry's abdomen and Henry's moaning his name felt like music in his ears. He looked up to see Henry's mouth gaped apart as his fingers runs through Alex's curls and softly tugged them. He loves when Henry does that and he missed this about them.
His fingers found the waist band of Henry's pants and pulls them off revealing his hard cock sprung out and he definitely miss this the most. He couldn't hide his own smirk and Henry noticed before he tried to hide his embarrassment with his palm over his erection. "Why would you be embarrassed by this? I've seen it countless time." Alex pulled away Henry's hand and he smiled. "It's been a while." Henry says and Alex smirked grew, he leaned back on top of Henry and pressed his lips over Henry's and they smiled.
"How long?" Alex asks pressing his lips over Henry's neck earning him a moaned. He couldn't answer it seeing how pathetic it was for Alex to know. Alex waited staring at his face and raised his eyebrow, "Seriously? That long? Didn't you ever like hooked up or something? You're freaking rich you can have anyone." Alex says resting his arm over Henry's chest and he can see how annoyed Henry looked at him.
"I couldn't get it hard with anyone else." Henry whispered and Alex raised his eyebrow at him with a mouth gaped apart. "I don't see any problem here." His eyes lowered to Henry's erection and his hand found his member again. Henry moaned when Alex stroked his length in his hand softly and dreadfully slow making Henry groaned in frustration.
He can see how hard Henry tried not to explode his cum just yet but when Alex decides to let his tongue trailed over Henry's tip, he lost all control. His hand gripped the cushion of the couch by his side feeling the warmth of Alex's mouth with his lips sealed tightly around his length making him lose every single strength he had in self control.
His hand still wrapped tightly around Alex's curls and the more harder Alex sucked, the tighter his gripped were. "Alex, I'm go-gonna.. Fuck! Of God. Christ!" Henry felt Alex deliberately went faster and hoping he wouldn't stop. Henry exploded inside Alex's mouth and he swallowed every single drops of Henry's cum in his throat. Henry pants in his breath after his released and saw the hardened member pressing over Alex's sweatpants and he smiled.
Alex leaned to kiss Henry on his lips and Henry pulled his pants off till his ankle and Alex kicked it off to the floor. They didn't exactly say anything else and Henry saw Alex spat over his forefingers before he lubricated Henry's entrance and pressed his fingers in them. "No! Just fuck me!" Henry told him and he smirked wider. "Someone impatience." He says and wrapped Henry's leg over his waist.
He spat further on his finger and wet his tip before he guides them over Henry's entrance. He slowly pushed against Henry's entrance earning him a groaned in pain of adjusting to Alex's length. "Ahh." Henry groaned and Alex pressed his lips together. "I'm sorry." He apologized to Henry for the discomfort but Henry shook his head at him. "No, it's not that. It's -" Henry stops and moaned after Alex pushed deeper till his base and exhaled in relief. "Tight." Alex continued Henry's words and Henry smiled.
It took Henry a while before he nods softly at Alex and his face is pure bliss for Alex as he kept thrusting his member into Henry earning him more moaned in his ears. Alex's hand gripped tight on the couch by Henry's head as Henry's hand wrapped around Alex's neck and their lips found each other again.
The thrust create a skin flapping sound and their grunts echoed over Alex living room and soon enough, Alex found his tightening feeling over his lower abdomen and he thrust deeper into Henry earning him a screamed but Alex held his palm over Henry's mouth to muffled the sound coming out of him and they both found their released shortly after. Alex crashed over Henry's chest feeling the sticking cum of Henry's released gluing them both together on the couch. "That was- fucking amazing." Alex mutters still panting in his breath for Henry and he can hear how fast Henry's heart rate is going. "It was worth waiting for after five fucking years." Henry whispered into Alex's hair and Alex looked up to meet Henry's eyes and he smiled pressing his lips over Henry's lips.
After they cleaned up the messes, Henry and Alex puts their shirt and pants back on feeling the dreaded feeling in their chest. Alex still had that weight pulling him on the inside and Henry had that on his chest not knowing what to do right now. "I guess that's it then?" Henry starts earning Alex a look. "What do you mean?" He asks Henry as he stood by the space area closed to the door. "One last hook up before I leave." He says and Alex shook his head walking towards Henry.
"This isn't a hook up. I chose you Henry. I want you." He says and Henry smiled happily before crashing their lips together again, "I love you Alex." He whispered and Alex smiled happily at him, "I love you more Henry." He replied and they both shared another kiss.
"WHAT THE FUCK?!" A sudden voice interrupts them both and they literally pulled away from each other and shocked them both with a widen eyes. "Gideon?" Alex whispered and Henry pressed his lips together at the sight of Gideon in between them, caught them kissing each other.