Relief. Chapter One.
Luke looked away and then quickly back again. Reid’s steely blue eyes bore into him. He had seen this look on Reid’s face many times before, but this time there was something different. He looked tired…defeated, and Luke knew that he was the reason for that weariness. He knew that he could take the pain away from Reid; he wanted to take his pain away, but as had been the case over the past few weeks, he just couldn’t find the words to do so.
Luke stepped forward and hesitantly brought his lips to Reid’s mouth. Reid’s hand was immediately on his chest, pushing him away. Luke inhaled sharply, involuntarily reacting to the heat of Reid’s hand through his thin t-shirt.
“Luke…" Reid's eyes softened, almost pleading. "...talk to me, Luke.”
Luke shook his head and looked away, his mind swimming in a tidal wave of heat and emotion. Whenever they were close like this, Luke could barely breathe, never mind trying to form a coherent sentence. “I can’t.”
Reid’s fingers slid down Luke’s chest and side, and laced themselves into Luke’s hand, just below his left hip.
“I need you to talk to me.”
Need. He needs me to give him relief.
“Please…Luke?” It was barely a whisper. Reid was open. Exposed. Luke knew this was an uncomfortable place for Reid Oliver to be. He also knew that Reid would not come willingly to this uncomfortable place much longer if he didn’t get some kind of confirmation from Luke about where things were going.
Luke looked back into Reid’s searching eyes. “I can’t describe how I feel.”
“Try.”
“It’s way too intense.”
“Finally…an adjective,” Reid teased, a light smirk creasing the corners of his eyes.
Luke took a deep breath and squeezed Reid’s hand. “I think the reason I’m having so much trouble telling you what I’m feeling is that I’ve never felt this way. Ever. And that’s very unnerving. I mean, a few months ago, I thought I had it all, you know?”
Reid looked down and nodded. Luke continued. “I thought I had myself figured out. I thought I knew exactly how to love someone, how to need someone. But now…to feel something new, something unexpected, something so powerful…it’s scary.”
“I scare you?”
“No…well, maybe. You’re new and different. You’re unknown. I don’t know how to navigate you." Luke sighed as he heard his own voice crack. "I don’t even know where to start.”
Luke stepped into Reid’s space again, so close that their hips touched. He could feel his heart pounding in his chest, hear it hammering in his ears, certain that Reid could hear it too.
Reid’s lips gently brushed the hair at Luke's temple. “Start right here.”