LOGINOUR END. DOMINIC The house was quiet.My mother had gone to bed an hour ago. The lights were off downstairs. The only sound was the wind outside and the creak of the porch swing settling.Cyrus and I were in the living room. The fireplace was burning. The flames were low. The room was warm.He was sitting on the couch. I was sitting on the floor between his legs. My back was against the couch. His legs were on either side of me. His hand was in my hair. His fingers moved slowly."We have to go back to work tomorrow," he said."I know.""The companies are merged now. Everything is official." I leaned my head back. I looked up at him. His face looked a little anxious."Are you nervous?" I asked.He was quiet for a moment. His fingers kept moving in my hair."Yes," he said. "A little.""Why?" He looked at the fire. The flames reflected in his eyes."Because people will talk," he said. "The staff. The board. Everyone. They will point fingers. They will whisper. They will say we only
I WANT YOUR COCK. DOMINIC We sat on the porch swing until the realtor showed up twenty minutes late. She apologized. We did not care. Cyrus signed the papers with his left hand because his right hand was holding mine. The realtor asked if we wanted to take a walk through the house together. We said no. She handed us the keys. Two of them. One for me. One for Cyrus. Cyrus looked at his key like it was made of gold."Congratulations," the realtor said. "You are homeowners."Cyrus turned to look at me. His hand went into his pocket. He touched the key again."What do you want to do first?" I asked. He looked at me. His eyes were dark. His lips were parted. His chest was rising and falling faster than normal."I want to fuck you in our bedroom," he said. His voice was low. The words landed in my stomach and spread down to my cock. I felt myself get hard. My jeans felt tight."Our bedroom does not have a bed," I said.He grabbed my hand. His fingers wrapped around mine. He pulled me
A NEW HOUSE DOMINIC We stayed on the lake until the sun started going down.Cyrus had the key in his pocket. He kept touching it. Every few minutes, his hand would go to his pocket and his fingers would feel the metal through the fabric. I watched him do it while.He did not know I was watching. His eyes were on the water. His lips were parted. He was thinking about something.We did not talk much on the water. The boat drifted. Cyrus sat across from me with his feet up on the seat. His shoes were off. His socks were wet from dragging his feet in the water earlier. He had rolled his pants up to his calves. His legs were pale. I could see the small scar on his right shin from when he fell off his bike as a kid.I let the boat drift. I did not care where we went. We were in no hurry.Cyrus touched his pocket again. He pulled the key out. He held it up to the light. The brass caught the last of the sun. It glowed."I cannot believe you bought a house," he said. His voice was quiet.
FATHER IS DEAD. DOMINIC The phone rang at 2:47 in the morning, The phone vibrated on the nightstand. The screen lit up to show the name HelenMy stomach dropped. Sweat broke out on my forehead. My hands started shaking before I even reached for the phone. I knew why she was calling. The doctor said weeks, maybe less. But knowing did not make it easier.Cyrus stirred. His hand moved on my chest."Dominic?" He sounded sleepy. "What's wrong?""My mother is calling.""At this hour?" I stared at the screen. Helen. My mother. The woman who had stood in the doorway and watched my father throw me out. The woman who had not spoken a word in my defense. The woman who was now alone in that house with his body."I think he's gone," I said.The words came out flat."Baby," Cyrus said softly. He sat up. His hand moved to my back. "Do you want me to answer it?""No. I need to do this."I picked up the phone. Swiped answer. Pressed it to my ear. My hand was shaking so much I almost dropped i
TYING LOOSE ENDS.DOMINIC The drive to the old house took forty-five minutes. It felt like forty-five years.Cyrus drove. His hand was on my thigh. His thumb moved back and forth. He wasn't trying to calm me down. He was trying to calm himself down. I could feel it in the way his leg bounced. The way he checked the rearview mirror every few seconds. The way he kept looking at me like he was afraid I would disappear."You're quiet," he said."I'm thinking.""About what?""About the last time I was in that house.""When was that?""Seven years ago. Almost to the day."He glanced at me. His eyes were soft he looked like he was really Worried. "Do you want to talk about it?""I had just told them," I said. "About being gay. About you. About everything.""You told them about me?""I told them I was in love with someone. I didn't say your name. I was too scared. I thought if I said your name out loud, they would find you. Hurt you. I couldn't let that happen."Cyrus's grip tightened on my
DOWN TO TWO OPTIONS DOMINIC The doorbell rang at seven in the morning Not the polite buzz of a delivery person it was a long, insistent ring. I was still in bed. Cyrus was draped across my chest, dead to the world. His hair was in my face. His leg was hooked over my hip. He was warm and heavy and I didn't want to move. The morning light was soft through the curtains. The apartment was quiet. Everything felt safe.The doorbell rang again.Cyrus groaned. His face pressed deeper into my neck. "Who the fuck is that at this hour?""I don't know.""If it's Festus, I'm going to kill him.""It's not Festus. Festus texts first.""Then who?"The bell rang a third time. Longer this time. More insistent."Stay here," I said. "I'll get it.""No. Stay.""Nothing is important before coffee," I said, echoing his words from a hundred lazy mornings. But my voice didn't sound right. Even I could hear it. Tight. Strained.Cyrus lifted his head. His eyes were still half-closed, but he was looking at
cyrus's point of view.The door closed behind me gently, Machines hummed softly, as Phoebe lay in the bed, impossibly still.For a second, I couldn’t move. I stood just inside the door, my hand still hovering where the handle had been, like I might bolt if I let myself think long enough. She looked
cyrus's point of view.The door closed behind me gently, Machines hummed softly, as Phoebe lay in the bed, impossibly still.For a second, I couldn’t move. I stood just inside the door, my hand still hovering where the handle had been, like I might bolt if I let myself think long enough. She looked
NEAR DEATH.CYRUS POV.The smell of disinfectant and old coffee hung in the air, the latter a potent aftertaste left in the throat. I stood in the doorway a moment too long, my feet rooted in place as if they were stuck, my hands clenched into such tight fists they ached. A I didn't have to look f
A SUICIDE ATTEMPT.CYRUS POVI woke up before my eyes opened. There was a tightness in my chest, My body felt coiled, restless, the way it feels when it's been bracing itself all night for impact. When the phone on the nightstand started vibrating again, I didn't jump. I already knew it was there.







