~Sunday 31st March 2013~
"You're shaking, bunny," Eden looked up from rubbing his legs dry with one of the black towels Malcolm kept in his ensuite when he heard his lover's voice, "you've been shaking since you got out of the shower, cold or nervous?" Eden didn't answer, deeming the question a pretty obvious one, going back to drying the rest of his body, "I'll take that as nervous then."
"I can't help it," Eden murmured, pushing his damp curls back out of his face, hating how low they hung when wet. He felt as though he looked like a sodden rodent when got out of the shower, Malcolm looked more like a God with the water droplets cascading down his body, it almost made the boy drool.
"It's OK to be nervous, bunny," Malcolm wandered across the room, searching through one of the top drawers of the dresser and picking out a pair of those skin-tight black boxers that Eden loved on him. Too bad the boy was too consumed by anxiety to fully appreciate it.
"It might be OK to you but I hate it. I don't want to feel like I'm gonna throw up all night," Eden sat heavily on the bed, hanging his head in his hands, trying to count to ten in some wayward attempt to calm himself. He was interrupted when Malcolm knelt in front of him, gripping his chin lightly and tilting his head so their eyes met. He had only made it to six, Malcolm really was a terrible distraction.
"Open," Malcolm commanded, holding another of those little black pouches, immediately making Eden frown sceptically, "it's not chillies, OK?" Malcolm's wry chuckle wasn't very convincing for the boy but he had no other choice than to believe him. He opened his mouth, sticking out his tongue a little and just hoping whatever it was didn't taste vile. It was salty, whatever it was, and not particularly pleasant, but Eden forced it down, immediately met with a warm sensation seeping throughout his body.
"What is it?" Eden was hit with a wave of drowsiness that had him clutching onto Malcolm's shoulders to stay upright, thankfully it only lasted a few seconds. Whatever it was, it was working fast. Eden's nausea disappeared, taking with it the nerves and dark thoughts.
"Just a little mixture I made for Ari a long time ago when he would get nervous about big meetings. He doesn't need it anymore but I keep it on hand," Malcolm smiled warmly, pressing a kiss to Eden's thigh, sending tingles spreading through his body, before starting to rise. Immediately, the boy stopped him, biting his lip as he applied a little pressure to Malcolm's shoulders, having him return to his previous position.
"What are you doing, bunny?" Malcolm rested his hands either side of Eden's thighs, a sly smirk on his lips. Eden laced his fingers into Malcolm's hair, guiding him closer to his semi, a heavy blush on his cheeks. Despite having been together for more than a month, Malcolm had never sucked Eden off. He had eaten him out, fucked him, fingered him, just about everything else, it just seemed to have slipped by them. Not that Eden minded all that much.
"Please," Eden whispered desperately when Malcolm stopped just a few inches from his twitching cock, that smirk looking more and more wicked as the seconds ticked by. Malcolm was an awful tease, and sometimes that was good, right then, Eden just wanted release. He didn't care for foreplay.
"Please, what, bunny? You want me to touch you?" Eden nodded, swallowing hard, his mouth suddenly dry as a bone, "mmm, OK, I'll let you get away with not using your words just this once," Eden gasped quietly when Malcolm trailed a line of feather-light kisses up his inner thigh, probably to ensure that the boy was fully aroused by the time his lips actually reached his member.
Malcolm began at the bottom of Eden's shaft, kissing and licking up it, practically making the boy insane with just those small touches. When he finally reached the head, Eden was panting, catching those bright eyes that glinted with mischief. Malcolm had clearly understood by the boy's desperation that neither of them were in the mood for edging that evening, not that they had the time anyway.
Eden's breath hitched in his throat, every thought dispelled from his mind the second Malcolm bobbed his head down swiftly, taking the entirety of the boy's length in one movement. Heat swathed the boy, a blissful burning sensation spreading throughout his body as Malcolm continued to deep throat him. Eden wasn't as well endowed as his lover, but he wasn't too small either, Malcolm had to have been lying when he said he hadn't bottomed before. Only a bottom could give head that well, Eden should know, he was one after all.
When Eden finally found the coherence to actually create some train of conscious thought, a long moan drifted from his parted lips, his head thrown back, totally lost in the pleasure his lover was providing. How had he gone without this for so long? It was like heaven. Eden tightened his grip on Malcolm's hair, making the man hum in appreciation, the vibrations very nearly sending the boy over the edge as they reverberated through his cock.
Every time Malcolm would draw back a little, Eden's hips would tilt up involuntarily, chasing the man's lips, trying to capture the release he so desperately craved. Other than those small movements, Eden remained still, not daring to match anything to Malcolm's pace, afraid the man might stop. Eden was the bottom, after all, it wasn't like he was going to fuck Malcolm's face, that would just be a bizarre scenario. Tempting, but unlikely.
Eden felt his insides quiver when Malcolm cupped his balls, fondly them pretty roughly, breaking apart the groan that had been passing over his lips. His touch was heavenly. Eden suddenly felt every muscle in his body stiffen, the pleasure finally drowning him, making him tremble as he came, with Malcolm swallowing every drop easily. He clutched onto the man's shoulders for support, his eyes having drooped closed, the residual energy making him hypersensitive, shivering from the lightest touch.
"Thank you," Eden whispered in a barely audible voice, instantly caught up in the kiss with Malcolm, only able to respond lazily due to his sudden fatigue. He was sated, and that was the perfect remedy for anxiety. In fact...
"Did you give me an aphrodisiac?" Eden asked, his eyes snapping open to find Malcolm grinning at him cheekily, apparently his suspicions had been correct, "you practically roofied me, you creep," Eden scolded, hitting Malcolm's shoulder playfully, rising from the bed and pulling on his own boxers.
"I didn't roofie you, bunny, I gave you a little something to get you in the mood because I knew you'd calm down if you got release," Malcolm corrected, chuckling whilst he dressed himself in one of those stupidly expensive suits he owned. Eden didn't even dare mention the price tag he had seen on one of the newer ones, it made him nauseous at the thought of anyone spending that much money on him.
"You roofied me," Eden repeated, scowling at himself in the mirror whilst he struggled with his tie. Over seven hundred years old and he still couldn't master the simplest task.
"Whatever," Malcolm stepped behind Eden, reaching around the boy's neck and tying his tie with ease, barely even having to look as he did so.
"Show off," Eden muttered sullenly, his scowl bleeding away to a look of content when Malcolm leant down, nuzzling his nose against the boy's neck, pressing a few gentle kisses to the silken skin, "I love you," Eden whispered, an abrupt twinge in his chest urging him to profess his affections to his lover. He had been feeling that a lot recently, that subtle fear that all of a sudden everything was going to be ripped from his grasp. He was plagued by it for a few weeks after Archer's death, which totally baffled Audrey whenever he would break down crying telling her how much she meant to him. Choosing to downplay the situation and neglecting to inform Malcolm of his feelings seemed like a great idea at the time but he wasn't sure how that would fare as the weeks passed.
"I love you too, bunny," Malcolm murmured through the kisses, his distractions giving Eden ample time to take a few pictures of them together in the mirror and shift them into that locked file where he kept all the others, "you ready to go now?" Eden turned to face Malcolm, taking a deep breath and attempt some shade of a smile.
"It's now or never."
Mitchell's house was beautiful. Eden had expected it to be like Malcolm's, with a well-dressed garden and pretty outdoor features. But, although he would never admit it to his lover, Mitchell's house just seemed more regal. It was definitely modern, with wide expanses of windows rather than the natural walls. It looked open-plan, from what Eden could see as he and Malcolm walked up the drive from where they had parked the car, and the interior decor looked to be beautifully organised.
"I'd love to live in a house like this," Eden whispered as Malcolm raised his hand to knock on the front door and the two waited for it to be answered.
"If you want a house like this, I'll have one commissioned to be built for us," Eden didn't have the opportunity to press further into that topic, or how casual Malcolm sounded when he spoke, before a beautiful woman opened the door. She had long black hair that fell in subtle waves, stopping just below her shoulders, and bright peridot eyes. She was gorgeous, physically looking only in her early thirties, a large difference to Mitchell's near fifties.
"You must be Eden, it's so lovely to meet you," the woman took no time in engulfing Eden in a tight hug, startling the boy more than he had expected it to. He hesitated for a moment, before returning the hug, trying to make it seem more enthusiastic than it was, thankful when she turned her gleaming smile toward Malcolm.
"And you must be Malcolm," Eden couldn't help feeling a little disgruntled that the woman merely shook Malcolm's hand, though he probably looked far too intimidating for a hug.
"Mom, you're supposed to invite them inside before you introduce yourself," a quiet voice whispered, although Eden wasn't able to find the origin, not until he stepped inside anyway. His eyes landed on a sheepish-looking teenager with a mess of curled brunette locks tied back in a loose bun on top of his head. The minute their eyes met, however, the boy's gaze averted to his feet, so Eden didn't get much time to assess his facial features.
"Oh, of course, my name is Isabella," the woman looked like she was going to go in for another hug but thankfully stopped when Malcolm snaked an arm around Eden's waist, smiling politely at the woman.
"You have a beautiful home, Mrs Moir," Malcolm commented, making Isabella blush lightly and giggle. God, he was even attractive to married, straight, women; Eden imagined he was going to have a field day out on public dates with his lover.
"Isabella, please, or Izzy," the woman looked toward the sheepish teen, gripping his elbow and pulling him a few steps closer, making his cheeks flare with a deep rouge, "and this is my eldest, Penn, and one of your half brothers, Eden," Penn still didn't look up and all the pieces clicked into place in Eden's mind pretty quickly. Penn's gaze had dropped not when he had seen Eden but when he had seen Malcolm, it was beginning to make sense.
"Would you mind showing me where your bathroom is, please, Isabella?" Malcolm sounded so nonchalant Eden was sure Isabella would have no idea that he was purposefully leaving the two half brothers alone. He could probably make that distraction last for hours if he wanted to, he was just that good with talking.
"I could never pull off the whole long hair look, it really suits you though," as much as Eden wanted to jump out with the question emblazoned across the front of his mind, he knew he had to build up some sense of a rapport first.
"Thanks, Nola shaved it all off as a prank a couple years ago, it's still growing back," Eden grimaced, having had many a prank played on him by Archer over the years. Somehow, only his brother found the jokes funny.
"That sucks, I always thought older brothers were the ones to watch out for but clearly you had a different experience altogether," finally, Eden saw the flicker of a small smile cross Penn's face and he lifted his head, startling the boy somewhat.
"Oh my God, you have the prettiest eyes," Eden couldn't help gushing over Penn's heterochromic eyes, the left being a striking evergreen and the right being a smooth, near caramel, hazel. Penn's heavy blush returned but he didn't dip his gaze, so Eden stepped a little closer, lowering his voice, hoping not to unnerve his half brother.
"Mal has pretty eyes too, don't you think?" Eden whispered, a complacent smile sticking to his lips, but Penn's eyes widened suddenly, fear crossing his expression.
"I-I..." he tried to protest but didn't get very far, stumbling over his words awfully.
"Don't worry, I don't mind you thinking he's attractive," Eden resting a hand on Penn's arm, his smile becoming far more sympathetic, "I mean, even his friends think he's drop-dead gorgeous," Eden began to worry when he saw tears in Penn's eyes, instantly dropping his voice to something lower than a whisper, something he could be sure not even anyone stood right behind him could hear, "Penn, you're not out, are you?" the boy shook his head vehemently, a tear streaking down his cheek when he did so.
"P-Please don't tell anyone," Penn implored, gripping Eden's hand so tightly the boy feared the bones might actually break.
"I won't, Penn, I promise, I won't," Eden brushed away Penn's tears, having learnt long ago how to hide when one had been crying, "is there someone you're afraid to tell? Because Mitchell and Isabella seemed pretty accepting of Mal and me, I wouldn't be here if they weren't. I don't take well to bigots."
"I-I'm not sure yet," Penn choked out through quivering lips, sniffling and rubbing his eyes, clearly trying to dispel any more tears before they had chance to fall.
"You're questioning?" Penn nodded weakly, "OK, I won't mention it again. Talk to me if you need to, or even Mal, he's a lot older than me, he'd like to think he's wiser too," when a brief giggle drifted from Penn's lips, Eden knew he had calmed enough, "come on, I should really get back to Mal before he says something to embarrass me," Penn took a few deep breaths, clearly trying to alleviate the flush colour in his cheeks, before he led Eden into the kitchen.
"Hey, bunny," Malcolm smiled when Eden slipped in to stand next to him, taking a sip of the wine from the glass in his hand. Mitchell and Isabella seemed to be too busy cooking dinner to have noticed Eden and Penn enter, which the boy was quickly thankful for. He wanted to take a minute to himself.
"Woah, you really do look like Archie," Eden's gaze flickered over to the other boy perched on the counter, staring at him with wide, bright eyes. He looked only slightly younger than Penn, and his hair was much shorter, laying in looser, darker curls.
"Eden, my God, you're so light-footed, I didn't even hear you come in," Mitchell chuckled, looking like he was going to go in for a hug but stopping himself. Eden took it upon himself to complete that action, feeling a sense of comfort when his father held him tightly. He might not be able to call him 'dad' just yet but that didn't mean he couldn't appreciate that he was trying.
"Would you like a drink?" Eden nodded, requesting whatever Malcolm had been given, not usually one for wine but appreciating the sweeter taste of that particular variation, "Izzy mentioned you had met Penn, now that Nola's opened his big mouth, I suppose that's a good enough introduction," Nola stuck his tongue out at Mitchell, who merely chuckled, busying himself with pouring Eden's drink.
"It's the eyes," Nola frowned a little at Eden's seemingly out of the blue comment, "it's the eyes, that's why you think I look like Archie. We have similar eyes, we get them from..." Eden paused for a moment, his confidence boosting when he caught Malcolm's proud smile, "we got them from dad," Eden saw Mitchell's stance falter a little, his hand trembling ever so slightly as he placed the wine bottle down on the counter. He decided not to mention what he saw, giving the man chance to get his emotions in check whilst he continued to converse with Nola.
"Looks like Penn's the odd one out," Nola teased, nudging his elder brother's arm, only gaining a scowl as response.
"I think Penn actually is the lucky one," Malcolm interjected, nearly making Nola's jaw drop and causing the heat to flare up in Penn's cheeks again, "heterochromia is very unique, it's not often you see one so pronounced. Certainly catches your attention," Malcolm was only trying to be nice to Penn but Eden hadn't had the opportunity to tell him to dial it back. He hoped switching the topic might help.
"So, what did you think of Archie? I know you didn't know him very long, he was a bit of a character, don't you think?" Archer had managed to find Mitchell's details a few years ago and, without informing his siblings or mother, he made contact. Mitchell had been over the moon, wanting to meet with Eden and Audrey too, but Archer had told him he thought it was best everything moved slowly. Eden had been a little irritated when Mitchell had confessed that the other night however he knew safety had been Archer's intention. There was no point holding a grudge against a dead man anyway.
"He was cool, it was cool having another brother," Nola said with a distant smile, his energy seeming to have dulled when their lost sibling was mentioned in more detail, "I thought you'd be like him, kinda spooky, standoffish but you're really not. You're quieter, for one," Eden thanked his father with a smile when the man passed him his drink, just about noticing his off-colour pallor before he excused himself. Maybe Eden had played the dad card a tad too early.
"Excuse me," Isabella murmured with a brief smile as she followed Mitchell out.
"He gets like this sometimes," Penn explained quietly, "ever since Archie died he goes all weird when he's mentioned. He went too quickly, he had only just got comfortable with calling him dad," Eden felt tears prickle at his eyes, biting them back quickly, "I don't know if he told you but Corinne barred him from going to the funeral, that's probably why it hurts him so much," Eden dampened the flames of anger licking within his veins. No matter Corinne's opinion on Mitchell, she had no right to prevent him from coming to his own son's funeral.
"You need to talk to her," Malcolm said firmly, not a suggestion anymore, a command, "seriously, Eden, she's out of her mind," Eden sighed softly, shaking his head.
"She doesn't deserve it, I'm not trying anymore. I have nothing to say to her," Eden placed his glass on the counter behind him, "I'll be back in a minute," Eden leant up a pressed a chaste kiss to Malcolm's lips, squeezing his hand curtly as he walked from the room. He had no idea where he was going, hoping Mitchell and Isabella hadn't walked too far. Luckily, Eden only had to wander through a few rooms before he came across the pair. Mitchell was facing away from him, so hadn't seen him enter, but Isabella flashed a reassuring smile to him, exiting the room to leave the two of them alone.
"Not attending his funeral doesn't mean you lose your right to grieve for him," Eden kept his voice gentle, not wanting to startle his father, but the man remained facing away from him, "Corinne took this issue with you a step too far banning you from his funeral. You're his parent too, whether you were in his life two years or two centuries. You deserved to be there with us, so did Penn and Nola. They lost a brother too, I know Audrey and I would have appreciated having some more support there with us," Mitchell finally turned to look at Eden, his expression darkened with grief and even a tear track mottle his left cheek.
"I don't even know where he's buried," Mitchell rasped, his voice hoarse from the emotions that were clearly crowding him, "Corinne took my name off the birth certificate, there's no proof I'm his father so no one will tell me where he was laid to rest," Eden stepped forward, resting his hand gently on his father's shoulder, a lopsided smile trying to stick on his lips but not managing it entirely.
"Maybe I could take you up to see him sometime soon. I haven't been as much I would have liked to recently. It's not exactly a traditional father-son bonding place but I think it'd be nice," Mitchell's eyes started to look watery again, and he quickly pulled Eden into a hug, one so tight that the boy was sure his father feared he would be torn away from him just as swiftly as his other son.
"I'd love that, Edee. I'd love that so much."