What Comes Before

[Raffe]

The blush made him grin like an idiot. Raffe half stumbled when Nox pulled him into the alley, one hand braced against the wall as the tangle of Nox’s fist in his shirt pulled him in. With his balance restored, he rested his forearm against the bricks, just to stay close. As deep as melancholy ran in Raffe’s blood at times, he could be quick to catch himself back in the moment. The shift restored an equilibrium that was quick to forget about strange powers and worries for later. 

The look in his eyes was soft, though he laughed for the chandelier comment. His brows rose, impish. “I am not opposed to the blushing,” he murmured, grinning the grin that lit him up inside out. That small spark was like kindling in his chest, like it had been in the hospital; not just physical desire. Though there was certainly that too. His heart was beating hard. It was the first time he didn’t remind himself to be careful with his feelings. Not that he’d ever paused to take his own advice.

The tease flushed him through. Nox had had that gift from the beginning, and if there had been any witty retort in mind, well, words were gone now. His hand trailed up the back of Nox’s neck, charmed by the kisses and the smile. Home sounded like a beacon just about then, but Nox only drew him in closer. The pressure on his hip was gentle, though for a moment he was aware that it was not the flesh and blood hand. He tried not to think of that burst coffee cup, which honestly was not so difficult with Nox’s mouth pressed against his neck. It pulled a not quite voluntary sound from his throat.

Raffe had still been half asleep when Nox had impulsively said the words this morning. They were purposeful now, and it shivered Raffe through, not least because he understood what kind of step it was for a guy who didn’t even profess to do relationships. There was a reason he hadn’t said it back then, and not because he didn’t feel it. Those seeds had been growing a while, and he had been prepared to nurture them privately while Nox figured himself out. Saying it out loud made it very real though, and some part of him still rang with that warning. At some point he expected Nox was going to freak out.

But Raffe led by the heart. The connection ached in him now, and he grasped it with both hands. He touched Nox’s jaw, sought the darkness of those familiar eyes with his own. “I love you too.”