Fic: Coming Home 22/?
Author: PABWECG (aka Patricia)
Title: Coming Home
Genre/Type: Romance
Rating: PG-13 to NC-17
Characters/Pairings: Luke/Reid, Luke/Noah, Lily/Holden, Katie, Casey, Bob, assorted little people, possibly others
Warnings: None really, except some Nuke intimacy
Disclaimers: I don’t own any of them, zilch, nada…
Summary:Luke and Noah moved to L.A. in the Summer of 2009 for Noah to do his last year of school with an internship of sorts (no Mason, no blindness, etc. Everything else in their history has happened). Reid arrived, temporarily, at Memorial in August 2010.
It’s now Fall.
Thank you Slayerkitty, my terrific beta!
Previous Chapters: 1/ 2/ 3/ 4/ 5/ 6/ 7/ 8/ 9/ 10/ 11/ 12/ 13/ 14/ 15/ 16/ 17/ 18/ 19/ 20/ 21/
Chapter 22
Morning came early, but Reid was used to that. He wasn’t sure how late it was before they went to bed, well…fell asleep. But it wasn’t that far away from midnight before they left the party, the Ball; it was at least after eleven. He was tired. But, he’d functioned on less sleep, that was for sure. He didn’t have any surgeries today, but he did have to go in to work - soon.
He wasn’t quite ready to leave yet.
Luke lay sound asleep, on the pillow beside him. Practically face down, worn out. Beautiful. Reid looked at the loose strands of hair at Luke’s neck, where they fell just slightly down past his neck, to his upper back. It had been chilly last night; Luke lay mostly covered, but his upper back was exposed. Reid knew that down beyond those beautiful muscles, underneath those sheets, lay Luke, in all his naked beauty. Reid wanted to let him sleep…he did. But, there he was, under those sheets.
Reid brushed the hair away from his forehead, to see the one closed eye that wasn’t buried in his pillow. Luke’s mouth slightly open, breathing deeply, soundly sleeping. He let his fingers trail down Luke’s back, slowly, pushing back the sheets, inch by inch, exposing Luke’s lower back. “Beautiful,” Reid whispered ever so quietly. He really did want to let Luke sleep…sort of. His hands moved further, lower, removing the sheets to just below Luke’s ass. He inhaled, licked his lips and looked. He removed his hand, trying not to disturb Luke, and laid his hand on his own hip, and just took in this beautiful sight - from head, over shoulders and back, down to his ass. Admiring the curves, the way Luke’s hair fell back down over his eyes, the way his chest and back rose and fell slowly. Luke so at peace, so relaxed, so at-home.
Luke’s hips started to oh-so-slightly move, pressing into the bed. He was still sleeping, Reid could tell, but he was not in that deep sleep; some part of his brain was waking up. He sighed in his sleep. Reid’s hand, subconsciously, moved to stroke his own cock, just a few times; he wasn’t even really aware that he was doing it; his whole thought process was on Luke, watching him. His hand seemed to just move there, without him deciding. It felt good, his hand on his dick, his eyes on Luke’s beautiful form - yes it felt really good. It was a nice way to wake up.
Luke’s hips started to move a little bit more intentionally. Reid found Luke’s eye, still closed; but there was a little bit of motion behind the eyelid. Luke was waking up, perhaps he was already awake. Reid’s hand reached out to brush through Luke’s hair once more - slowly moving over his shoulders and down his back, stopping at his waist. He repeated the motion several times; Each time he got close to Luke’s ass, it would lift off the bed slightly, trying to make contact with Reid’s hand. Finally, on the fourth or fifth run, Reid let his hand follow all the way down. “uhhh.” Luke let out a long sigh, which turned into a moan. “Ungh.” Reid continued the motion from head to ass several more times. “Yes…yes…”
“I didn’t want to wake you.”
Luke laughed. “Sure you didn’t.”
Reid laughed. “I didn’t…well, not really…well, I sorta did. I have to go to work this morning.”
Luke’s eyes opened. “You do?”
“Yeah, I do.” Reid’s hand continued its path. “I don’t have any surgeries…but I do have some people to see.”
Luke moaned as Reid’s hand reached his ass once more and trailed a finger between his cheeks. “Ungh. You don’t have to leave…quite yet…do you?” Luke said between grunting sighs. He panted quietly.
Reid smiled. “No, not quite yet. Soon though.”
“Oh.” Luke’s hips rocked - harder - into the bed. He pressed up on his elbows, just a little bit, to get a little more leverage. Reid’s own cock was left untouched. He scooted up closer to Luke and pressed into his hip, making some contact. He caressed and squeezed Luke’s ass. Reid, Reid…Luke, Luke. They traded whispers.
Luke lifted his head off the pillow and turned towards Reid; he leaned forward to lick Reid’s mouth and taste him. It had been so long, all those hours of sleep; he kissed him and kissed him again. His tongue found its way inside Reid’s mouth; Reid moaned around it, sucked it in, gently, slowly, pulling on it, his hand continuing to squeeze and fondle, occasionally slipping a finger between those cheeks. Luke lifted his ass to meet Reid’s finger. It felt so good - so good.
Reid took his hand away and Luke’s eyes protested. Reid put his finger - just one - in his mouth. He wet it, sucked on it. “That’s so hot.” Luke moaned. Reid licked the finger, eyes never leaving Luke’s, and lowered his hand to Luke’s ass once more, and found his hole, just pressing little circles around its edge. Luke looked a little afraid, but very aroused. Reid silently asked, do you want this? Luke let the question stir in his heart, in his mind, in his groin - for just a moment - and then gave the smallest nod of his head. Reid smiled gently back at him and kissed him once more.
He wasn’t very well lubed, and he wanted this to be good for Luke, so he pressed in just a little bit. But it was enough. “Oh, God.” Luke rose up a little bit more on his elbows and his hips started to rock against the bed. Each motion caused his ass to clench and squeeze around Reid’s finger, sending a jolt of pleasure to his cock. Being morning, it wasn’t going to take long - they both knew this. Reid pressed even closer against Luke’s hip and captured Luke’s mouth with his own; they kissed fiercely and slowly - deep and wet, Luke thrusting against the bed, Reid thrusting against Luke. Luke reached one free hand out and wrapped around Reid’s head, pulling him in closer, closer, closer, as their thrusts sped up and they both reached climax, mouths letting go just enough to breathe, but not so far that they weren’t still touching, still touching.
Luke curled up in Reid’s arms again - happier than he’d felt in a long time. Reid’s arm wrapped around his back, trailing up and down his back; Luke fingers of one hand were making lazy circles on Reid’s chest. He sighed. Reid smiled, and pulled him closer, kissed his forehead. “I have to go,“ he said. Luke sighed again and smiled. “I know.”
A few moments passed and Luke’s eyes were drooping. “You tired?”
Luke yawned. “No, no, no…yes. God, how late were we up last night?”
“I don’t know, Mr. Snyder. How late did you keep me up?”
“Me?” He put his hand on Reid’s chest, lifted his head and looked at him.
Reid smiled. “I’m teasing.”
“God, last night was…” Luke began. He sighed, remembering so vividly. “Um…we can…well…there’s nobody, um...if you want…you’re probably busy.”
“Luke, Luke…what is it?”
“Well…nobody’s here tonight…if, um…you wanted to stay.” He said almost apologetically.
“I’d like that.”
“Yeah? Really?”
“Luke…are you really surprised that I’d like to spend another night with you?”
“No.” He wasn’t sure why he was surprised. “I guess I’m not…I just…no, I’m glad. So, you want to stay.”
“I want to stay. I’ll be done working by five, six, somewhere round there. Do you want to have dinner?”
“Yes. I could make something?” Luke added hopefully.
“What, cook?”
“Well yeah, if you…”
“ I’d love that.”
“Yeah? I mean if you’d like it, I’d love to. I love to cook. I’d love to cook for you…for us…I mean for me and you.” He babbled on.
Reid laughed. His hand found Luke’s chin, and he smiled at him, giving him a quick soft kiss. “Luke, I’d like that. Dinner. Here. You and me. Tonight.”
“Sounds good.”
“Yeah, sounds good. Now, I really do have to go. As much as I’d like to stay here, with you, all day.”
“Well, off you go then…Dr. Oliver.”
“I’ll see you later.”
“Yes, you will.” And he gave Luke one last kiss. Luke pulled him in, deepening it, hands in his hair, and then he let him go and flopped back down on the pillow. He watched Reid walk towards the shower and let his eyes close, falling asleep pretty quickly. Luke wasn’t used to functioning on just a few hours of sleep.
“Dr. Oliver?” Reid turned around and smiled at the approaching nurse.
“Yes, um…Nurse…I’m sorry, I can’t remember your name.”
She looked confused and shocked. “Simmons, Doctor…Nurse Simmons.”
“Sorry, Nurse Simmons, right. What do you need?”
Again she looked confused and a little concerned. “Um, it’s this order here…can’t quite make out your writing.”
He took the file from her, smiling, and looked at it. “Yikes, no wonder. I can hardly read it myself. Let’s see…”
Bob looked on, amused. After she walked away, he approached. “Good afternoon, Reid.”
“Hey there, Bob.” He looked back down at his own file, reviewing a few details before seeing his next patient.
“You’re going to scare the nurses, if you keep acting in this unusual manner.” Bob said, smiling up at him.
“Hmm?” he looked up. “What manner?”
“Friendly…polite…kind.” He tilted his head at Reid. “Have a good night?”
Reid smiled to himself, looking a little dreamy. “Yeah.” Bob hid his own smile, watching Reid, who seemed to be lost in thought.
“Well, I’ll be in my office if you need me, Dr. Oliver.”
Reid smiled…again…and walked off to see Mrs. Henderson about her bladder concerns.
Luke slept in; he didn’t remember when he last slept so well. He woke up refreshed; the pillows, the sheets all smelled like Reid…and like Reid and him…and like sex…and it smelled good. Filled him with all sorts of feelings - warm feelings, and hot tingly feelings, and ‘I can’t wait for Reid to get home so I can throw myself all over him’ feelings. He doesn’t remember the last time that he woke up feeling this good. A huge part of it was having slept in Reid’s arms all night long; and another part of it was knowing that he would sleep in his arms again tonight. He felt so alive and energized, so ready to get up, and to live, and to move and to do. He hadn’t realized how un-alive he had been feeling for so long. Spending time with Reid for the last couple of weeks had been so good for him; he had a bounce to his step, a smile on his face, he was standing taller and feeling more confident. But spending the whole night with him. God, it was like he was breathing new air, new oxygen pumping through his body. He felt good, really good.
He showered and got dressed and went over to the farm; nobody was around except his grandma, and she very willingly loaned him her lasagna pan and a pie plate. Next he went to the grocery store, where Casey found him wandering around in the produce aisle, muttering happily to himself about different kinds of apples - some sweet, and some tart. After filling Casey in on his night and the dinner plans for that evening - Casey did not want to know what the butter was for, sure it’s for the pie, Luke. That’s what they all say - Luke finished his shopping and made his way back to the cottage, where he happily settled in to the temporary domestic scene and began dinner preparations.
Reid set down the file from one of his morning patients; He was done seeing patients for the day and he just had to finish up some paperwork; he knew that if he didn’t do it now, all his thoughts would get muddled and jumbled…but right now he couldn’t seem to concentrate. He was distracted by thoughts of…well, who else? Luke.
Somehow, Luke had managed to totally turn his world upside-down in just a couple of weeks. The wedding had only been two weeks ago, and he’d only met Luke a couple of days before that, having dinner with Katie and Jacob and Ethan. He’d seen Luke before that, but that had been the first time he’d sat down, and actually talked with him, heard his voice, his thoughts, sat so close across the table. Their gazes settled upon each other. He’d actually started to fall for Luke - just a little bit - right then. He knew he wanted to know more about Luke Snyder. And Now? Well, now there was no turning back; he wanted to know everything about Luke Snyder.
Last night…last night had been amazing; he’d discovered things about Luke…already knowing just the right places where Luke liked to be touched. How his tongue could drive Luke wild…whether it was behind his ear, exploring his nipples…or any number of other very pleasurable spots. And the sounds that Luke made. He’d discovered - that first night having dinner with him and Katie - that Luke was good with words. Even though Luke seemed nervous, he was still good with words. He wasn’t at all surprised to discover that Luke loved to write; he was probably a very good writer. But…take away all those words, and Luke was still very vocal. The sounds he made last night, this morning. Yes making love to Luke Snyder had been amazing, and was something Reid could definitely get used to doing on a regular basis.
And he got to sleep beside Luke; once during the night, he’d woken up - disoriented for half a moment, the way he always is when he wakes up somewhere new. But before his conscious mind realized and remembered where he was and why he was there, his senses told him where he was. He was with Luke, that’s where he was, as if Luke was a place. Luke’s arms were wrapped around him. Luke was sound asleep, settled up close to him; Reid felt like he belonged there, when Luke was holding on to him. Before they fell asleep, Luke was so vulnerable, and Reid was more than happy to be his safe place. But then during the night, as Luke lay asleep, with his arms wrapped around him, Reid felt safe.
Even though Luke was sleeping, Reid felt protected by Luke’s arms, by the way Luke settled against him, and the way Luke held him. Luke seemed to know - in his sleep - that Reid belonged in his arms. Reid had never felt that way before - that he belonged in anyone’s arms. Luke’s arms seemed to be saying that to him last night. They seemed to say, “you can stay right here…this is where you belong…you’re home.” Reid never let anybody say that to him and…well, he felt scared about letting anybody that close, and yet, somehow, with it being Luke, it felt right. He felt safe in Luke’s arms. Reid doesn’t remember when the last time was he felt that safe.
Luke’s phone rang and he picked it up, hoping it was Reid again; Reid had called earlier, just to say hello, to see how he was doing, to hear his voice. The pie was almost done, and the lasagna ready to go in the oven for their dinner together. Luke picked up his phone, smiling, remembering.
“Hello. This is Luke.” He said cheerfully.
“Luke?”
Luke’s smile disappeared. “Noah?”
“Yeah, it’s me.” Silence. “You there, Luke?”
“Yeah…why are you calling?”
“Do I need a reason?”
“Yeah, of course you need a reason. I really…this isn’t a good time, Noah. I don’t…I’m not ready to talk to you right now.”
“Luke, just…just, I’m sorry about last night. I’m sorry about talking to Natalie…I’m sorry about what I did, I know it wasn’t fair…to you or to her. I shouldn’t have…”
“No, you shouldn’t have…”
“I um…I stopped by the house this morning…the farm.”
“What? Why? I thought Dad asked you not to.”
“Yeah, but I called ahead of time to make sure…I knew Natalie wouldn’t want to see me, so…and she wasn’t there.”
“Well, that’s good. Why did you stop by?”
“I had left my…well no, I wanted to see you, and I wanted to apologize for last night, and for…well, everything…everything with Natalie…and…I was hoping…I was hoping to see you.”
“Oh?”
“Well, like I said, I wanted to apologize for everything, and I wanted to see…I couldn’t believe that…I know I was angry last night but…I guess I…I guess I still couldn’t believe that you and me…were done. That you’d really want to be with…well…anyway, I got there this morning and you weren’t there.”
Luke remained silent.
“You spent the night with him, Luke?”
“Noah, I’m not…I’m not gonna talk about Reid with you.”
“Luke, I just…it’s so soon, I mean…I just…I don’t get it… you didn’t even know him a few weeks ago. How could you…how could you sleep with him so quickly?”
“Noah…”
“What, Luke? What…I mean, it’s true…are you?” More silence.
“Noah, I’m not going to talk about Reid with you.”
“Luke, we were together for three years…don’t I deserve to know.”
“Noah…if you want to talk about us…then fine. But not…about him.”
“But that is talking about us, Luke. I mean that’s what this is about. We were together, and then you come here and you meet this guy…I come for the wedding and…and all of a sudden, everything has fallen apart, because of him.”
“No, Noah, not because of him.”
“I don’t…you keep saying that, Luke, but I don’t see how that’s true.”
“Noah…you and I haven’t been happy for a long time.”
“I was happy, Luke. I was! I wanted to spend my life with you.”
“Noah…I can’t tell you how you feel, but I wasn’t happy. I thought I was happy.”
“Until you met him. Right? It is about him.”
“No, Noah…yes.” Luke sighed. “I didn’t realize all this until I met him, that’s true. But it’s not like…it’s not like I left you for him.”
“You left me…and now you’re with him. How can you say you didn’t leave me for him?”
“I’ve been unhappy Noah, for a long time…I just didn’t know that I deserved to be happy…that I was supposed to be happy. I thought that the way things were with us…you know, these little bits of happiness between all the other unhappiness…I thought that was what I was supposed to want… I thought that’s what a relationship was supposed to be like. That what it was like with my parents for so long. I didn’t realize that…”
“And how do you know you’re going to be happy with him?” Noah interjected. “You’ve only been with him for two weeks…you’ve only known him for two weeks.”
“I don’t know that I’ll be happy with him…I don’t know that. I do know - thanks to the time that I’ve spent with him - that I don’t want to settle for only being happy occasionally, which is what I felt when we were together. And honestly, Noah? It was like that for a long time. I thought that being happy occasionally was what life was supposed to be like. If Reid walked out today - left for God knows where, and I never saw him again - I still wouldn’t move back to LA, I still wouldn’t be with you, Noah, because, whether I’m with Reid or not, what he’s shown me is that I’m not supposed to settle for occasional happiness. Yeah, life is supposed to have rough patches and hard times and sadness, but it’s not supposed to be mostly that, Noah. It’s supposed to be mostly joy, and happiness and a feeling of contentment…with a little bit of those other things sprinkled in. We had it backwards. A whole lot of rough times, with a little bit of happiness sprinkled in. Well, with or without Reid, I’m not gonna settle for that anymore.
A long silence.
“You there, Noah?”
“I was happy, Luke…I really think I was.”
“You were? Were you really happy, Noah?”
“I was, Luke. We were together and things were…were good…you know, I mean they weren’t perfect, but what relationship is? And, I love you Luke.”
“You love me?”
“Yes, I do. You know I do.”
“Then why was it so hard for you to make love to me?”
“What? What does that have to do with…anything?”
“Well, it’s important to me.”
“Sex. This is about sex. Is that why you’re with him, Luke?”
“Noah…let’s just talk…can we just talk about us, please?”
Noah sighed. “Fine…Luke, you know it was hard for me. It was always hard for me…you know the way my…with my father and my upbringing…”
“I know Noah…I do, I do…but how was I supposed to be happy, when my boyfriend could barely make love to me?”
“We made love Luke…it was beautiful.”
“Noah.” He said gently. “When was the last time that you…”
“What?”
“When was the last time you were inside me?”
“Luke, you know I never…”
“I know…it’s hard for you.”
“It’s just…it feels so…”
“What, good?” Luke says somewhat sarcastically.
“Yes, no…God, yes, it does…and I…”
“And you hate that.”
“Luke…” he stammered. “I’m sorry, I just…I can’t get over this…this feeling that…”
“What?”
“Well, that it’s…”
“That it’s not the way it’s supposed to be.” Luke says automatically. God, they’ve had this conversation so many times.
“Luke, you know that I love you. And that…I love being with you…but, yeah…I thought we were okay with this…that you knew that it was…that that part of our life was challenging for me. That I was never going to be comfortable with…”
“What? Two men having sex?”
“Two men…doing that. You knew that, you’ve known that. Why is it such a problem now?”
“Noah.” He spoke quietly. “It’s always been a problem. I’ve always…whenever we’ve done it, whenever you’ve been inside me…”
“God, Luke do you have to talk about it?” Luke could hear Noah grimacing, even over the phone.
“Yes, Noah. Yes. I do. Whenever you’ve been inside me…” He spoke clearly now. “Every time - and it hasn’t been that many times, has it - sometimes it’s felt good, but then afterward it’s always felt bad, because you’ve always felt bad. And you’ve never let me…”
“Luke, God…”
“What?”
“Do we have to talk about this?” Noah’s voice was raising, almost panicked.
“Noah, I am so tired of not talking about this. I am so tired of not doing it.”
“What…fucking, as you like to call it?” Noah was sounding angry and uncomfortable.
“Noah, I don’t care what we call it.” He had found his voice finally, and Noah was going to hear it. “You never let me do it…and you hardly ever did it yourself. And that’s…that’s just the way it is! You don’t like it. Well, you do like it, but then you don’t like that you do like it…and you don’t like that I like it…and I can’t live like that Noah.” He ran his hand through his hair, pacing the room. “And that’s just one piece of what’s wrong with us. But Noah…it’s an important piece of what’s wrong with us.”
“We can work on that, Luke. We can go to therapy, maybe?”
“Noah, there were a lot of ways that I wasn’t happy in our relationship. Our sex life was just one area where I felt like I was always walking on egg shells…always waiting for you to disapprove of something I did, or something I said…get upset about something and walk away. But it was happening in every area of our relationship, Noah.” There was no stopping Luke now. “I was always tiptoeing around, hoping to do everything just right so that you wouldn’t walk away…and inevitably you always did walk away…and yes, you came back. But I can’t do that anymore Noah, I can’t. With or without Reid, even if I never see him again, I know that I can’t be with you. Because I wasn’t happy, and I deserve to be happy. I deserve a relationship…a life…where I’m happy most of the time, and that the sad times, the hard times, are sprinkled in, not the main event. I’m sorry, Noah.”
“Me too, Luke.” They were both quiet for a few moments. “I hope…well, I hope you come back…”
“Noah…”
“No, Luke. I don’t know where you’re at with all this. I’m not ready to say we’re done, but I will leave you to your space, your life…just know that I’m here, if you change your mind. I gotta go.”
“Noah.”
“Luke, I gotta go. Take care.” And Noah hung up.
Luke stood holding his phone to his chest and sighed - a little sad - and said “Well. That was that, huh?” And he took the pie out of the oven, stuck the lasagna in, and set the timer for 45 minutes, just as Reid walked in the front door; and then Luke smiled - he smiled for the first time since Noah had called.
next part /
Title: Coming Home
Genre/Type: Romance
Rating: PG-13 to NC-17
Characters/Pairings: Luke/Reid, Luke/Noah, Lily/Holden, Katie, Casey, Bob, assorted little people, possibly others
Warnings: None really, except some Nuke intimacy
Disclaimers: I don’t own any of them, zilch, nada…
Summary:Luke and Noah moved to L.A. in the Summer of 2009 for Noah to do his last year of school with an internship of sorts (no Mason, no blindness, etc. Everything else in their history has happened). Reid arrived, temporarily, at Memorial in August 2010.
It’s now Fall.
Thank you Slayerkitty, my terrific beta!
Previous Chapters: 1/ 2/ 3/ 4/ 5/ 6/ 7/ 8/ 9/ 10/ 11/ 12/ 13/ 14/ 15/ 16/ 17/ 18/ 19/ 20/ 21/
Chapter 22
Morning came early, but Reid was used to that. He wasn’t sure how late it was before they went to bed, well…fell asleep. But it wasn’t that far away from midnight before they left the party, the Ball; it was at least after eleven. He was tired. But, he’d functioned on less sleep, that was for sure. He didn’t have any surgeries today, but he did have to go in to work - soon.
He wasn’t quite ready to leave yet.
Luke lay sound asleep, on the pillow beside him. Practically face down, worn out. Beautiful. Reid looked at the loose strands of hair at Luke’s neck, where they fell just slightly down past his neck, to his upper back. It had been chilly last night; Luke lay mostly covered, but his upper back was exposed. Reid knew that down beyond those beautiful muscles, underneath those sheets, lay Luke, in all his naked beauty. Reid wanted to let him sleep…he did. But, there he was, under those sheets.
Reid brushed the hair away from his forehead, to see the one closed eye that wasn’t buried in his pillow. Luke’s mouth slightly open, breathing deeply, soundly sleeping. He let his fingers trail down Luke’s back, slowly, pushing back the sheets, inch by inch, exposing Luke’s lower back. “Beautiful,” Reid whispered ever so quietly. He really did want to let Luke sleep…sort of. His hands moved further, lower, removing the sheets to just below Luke’s ass. He inhaled, licked his lips and looked. He removed his hand, trying not to disturb Luke, and laid his hand on his own hip, and just took in this beautiful sight - from head, over shoulders and back, down to his ass. Admiring the curves, the way Luke’s hair fell back down over his eyes, the way his chest and back rose and fell slowly. Luke so at peace, so relaxed, so at-home.
Luke’s hips started to oh-so-slightly move, pressing into the bed. He was still sleeping, Reid could tell, but he was not in that deep sleep; some part of his brain was waking up. He sighed in his sleep. Reid’s hand, subconsciously, moved to stroke his own cock, just a few times; he wasn’t even really aware that he was doing it; his whole thought process was on Luke, watching him. His hand seemed to just move there, without him deciding. It felt good, his hand on his dick, his eyes on Luke’s beautiful form - yes it felt really good. It was a nice way to wake up.
Luke’s hips started to move a little bit more intentionally. Reid found Luke’s eye, still closed; but there was a little bit of motion behind the eyelid. Luke was waking up, perhaps he was already awake. Reid’s hand reached out to brush through Luke’s hair once more - slowly moving over his shoulders and down his back, stopping at his waist. He repeated the motion several times; Each time he got close to Luke’s ass, it would lift off the bed slightly, trying to make contact with Reid’s hand. Finally, on the fourth or fifth run, Reid let his hand follow all the way down. “uhhh.” Luke let out a long sigh, which turned into a moan. “Ungh.” Reid continued the motion from head to ass several more times. “Yes…yes…”
“I didn’t want to wake you.”
Luke laughed. “Sure you didn’t.”
Reid laughed. “I didn’t…well, not really…well, I sorta did. I have to go to work this morning.”
Luke’s eyes opened. “You do?”
“Yeah, I do.” Reid’s hand continued its path. “I don’t have any surgeries…but I do have some people to see.”
Luke moaned as Reid’s hand reached his ass once more and trailed a finger between his cheeks. “Ungh. You don’t have to leave…quite yet…do you?” Luke said between grunting sighs. He panted quietly.
Reid smiled. “No, not quite yet. Soon though.”
“Oh.” Luke’s hips rocked - harder - into the bed. He pressed up on his elbows, just a little bit, to get a little more leverage. Reid’s own cock was left untouched. He scooted up closer to Luke and pressed into his hip, making some contact. He caressed and squeezed Luke’s ass. Reid, Reid…Luke, Luke. They traded whispers.
Luke lifted his head off the pillow and turned towards Reid; he leaned forward to lick Reid’s mouth and taste him. It had been so long, all those hours of sleep; he kissed him and kissed him again. His tongue found its way inside Reid’s mouth; Reid moaned around it, sucked it in, gently, slowly, pulling on it, his hand continuing to squeeze and fondle, occasionally slipping a finger between those cheeks. Luke lifted his ass to meet Reid’s finger. It felt so good - so good.
Reid took his hand away and Luke’s eyes protested. Reid put his finger - just one - in his mouth. He wet it, sucked on it. “That’s so hot.” Luke moaned. Reid licked the finger, eyes never leaving Luke’s, and lowered his hand to Luke’s ass once more, and found his hole, just pressing little circles around its edge. Luke looked a little afraid, but very aroused. Reid silently asked, do you want this? Luke let the question stir in his heart, in his mind, in his groin - for just a moment - and then gave the smallest nod of his head. Reid smiled gently back at him and kissed him once more.
He wasn’t very well lubed, and he wanted this to be good for Luke, so he pressed in just a little bit. But it was enough. “Oh, God.” Luke rose up a little bit more on his elbows and his hips started to rock against the bed. Each motion caused his ass to clench and squeeze around Reid’s finger, sending a jolt of pleasure to his cock. Being morning, it wasn’t going to take long - they both knew this. Reid pressed even closer against Luke’s hip and captured Luke’s mouth with his own; they kissed fiercely and slowly - deep and wet, Luke thrusting against the bed, Reid thrusting against Luke. Luke reached one free hand out and wrapped around Reid’s head, pulling him in closer, closer, closer, as their thrusts sped up and they both reached climax, mouths letting go just enough to breathe, but not so far that they weren’t still touching, still touching.
Luke curled up in Reid’s arms again - happier than he’d felt in a long time. Reid’s arm wrapped around his back, trailing up and down his back; Luke fingers of one hand were making lazy circles on Reid’s chest. He sighed. Reid smiled, and pulled him closer, kissed his forehead. “I have to go,“ he said. Luke sighed again and smiled. “I know.”
A few moments passed and Luke’s eyes were drooping. “You tired?”
Luke yawned. “No, no, no…yes. God, how late were we up last night?”
“I don’t know, Mr. Snyder. How late did you keep me up?”
“Me?” He put his hand on Reid’s chest, lifted his head and looked at him.
Reid smiled. “I’m teasing.”
“God, last night was…” Luke began. He sighed, remembering so vividly. “Um…we can…well…there’s nobody, um...if you want…you’re probably busy.”
“Luke, Luke…what is it?”
“Well…nobody’s here tonight…if, um…you wanted to stay.” He said almost apologetically.
“I’d like that.”
“Yeah? Really?”
“Luke…are you really surprised that I’d like to spend another night with you?”
“No.” He wasn’t sure why he was surprised. “I guess I’m not…I just…no, I’m glad. So, you want to stay.”
“I want to stay. I’ll be done working by five, six, somewhere round there. Do you want to have dinner?”
“Yes. I could make something?” Luke added hopefully.
“What, cook?”
“Well yeah, if you…”
“ I’d love that.”
“Yeah? I mean if you’d like it, I’d love to. I love to cook. I’d love to cook for you…for us…I mean for me and you.” He babbled on.
Reid laughed. His hand found Luke’s chin, and he smiled at him, giving him a quick soft kiss. “Luke, I’d like that. Dinner. Here. You and me. Tonight.”
“Sounds good.”
“Yeah, sounds good. Now, I really do have to go. As much as I’d like to stay here, with you, all day.”
“Well, off you go then…Dr. Oliver.”
“I’ll see you later.”
“Yes, you will.” And he gave Luke one last kiss. Luke pulled him in, deepening it, hands in his hair, and then he let him go and flopped back down on the pillow. He watched Reid walk towards the shower and let his eyes close, falling asleep pretty quickly. Luke wasn’t used to functioning on just a few hours of sleep.
“Dr. Oliver?” Reid turned around and smiled at the approaching nurse.
“Yes, um…Nurse…I’m sorry, I can’t remember your name.”
She looked confused and shocked. “Simmons, Doctor…Nurse Simmons.”
“Sorry, Nurse Simmons, right. What do you need?”
Again she looked confused and a little concerned. “Um, it’s this order here…can’t quite make out your writing.”
He took the file from her, smiling, and looked at it. “Yikes, no wonder. I can hardly read it myself. Let’s see…”
Bob looked on, amused. After she walked away, he approached. “Good afternoon, Reid.”
“Hey there, Bob.” He looked back down at his own file, reviewing a few details before seeing his next patient.
“You’re going to scare the nurses, if you keep acting in this unusual manner.” Bob said, smiling up at him.
“Hmm?” he looked up. “What manner?”
“Friendly…polite…kind.” He tilted his head at Reid. “Have a good night?”
Reid smiled to himself, looking a little dreamy. “Yeah.” Bob hid his own smile, watching Reid, who seemed to be lost in thought.
“Well, I’ll be in my office if you need me, Dr. Oliver.”
Reid smiled…again…and walked off to see Mrs. Henderson about her bladder concerns.
Luke slept in; he didn’t remember when he last slept so well. He woke up refreshed; the pillows, the sheets all smelled like Reid…and like Reid and him…and like sex…and it smelled good. Filled him with all sorts of feelings - warm feelings, and hot tingly feelings, and ‘I can’t wait for Reid to get home so I can throw myself all over him’ feelings. He doesn’t remember the last time that he woke up feeling this good. A huge part of it was having slept in Reid’s arms all night long; and another part of it was knowing that he would sleep in his arms again tonight. He felt so alive and energized, so ready to get up, and to live, and to move and to do. He hadn’t realized how un-alive he had been feeling for so long. Spending time with Reid for the last couple of weeks had been so good for him; he had a bounce to his step, a smile on his face, he was standing taller and feeling more confident. But spending the whole night with him. God, it was like he was breathing new air, new oxygen pumping through his body. He felt good, really good.
He showered and got dressed and went over to the farm; nobody was around except his grandma, and she very willingly loaned him her lasagna pan and a pie plate. Next he went to the grocery store, where Casey found him wandering around in the produce aisle, muttering happily to himself about different kinds of apples - some sweet, and some tart. After filling Casey in on his night and the dinner plans for that evening - Casey did not want to know what the butter was for, sure it’s for the pie, Luke. That’s what they all say - Luke finished his shopping and made his way back to the cottage, where he happily settled in to the temporary domestic scene and began dinner preparations.
Reid set down the file from one of his morning patients; He was done seeing patients for the day and he just had to finish up some paperwork; he knew that if he didn’t do it now, all his thoughts would get muddled and jumbled…but right now he couldn’t seem to concentrate. He was distracted by thoughts of…well, who else? Luke.
Somehow, Luke had managed to totally turn his world upside-down in just a couple of weeks. The wedding had only been two weeks ago, and he’d only met Luke a couple of days before that, having dinner with Katie and Jacob and Ethan. He’d seen Luke before that, but that had been the first time he’d sat down, and actually talked with him, heard his voice, his thoughts, sat so close across the table. Their gazes settled upon each other. He’d actually started to fall for Luke - just a little bit - right then. He knew he wanted to know more about Luke Snyder. And Now? Well, now there was no turning back; he wanted to know everything about Luke Snyder.
Last night…last night had been amazing; he’d discovered things about Luke…already knowing just the right places where Luke liked to be touched. How his tongue could drive Luke wild…whether it was behind his ear, exploring his nipples…or any number of other very pleasurable spots. And the sounds that Luke made. He’d discovered - that first night having dinner with him and Katie - that Luke was good with words. Even though Luke seemed nervous, he was still good with words. He wasn’t at all surprised to discover that Luke loved to write; he was probably a very good writer. But…take away all those words, and Luke was still very vocal. The sounds he made last night, this morning. Yes making love to Luke Snyder had been amazing, and was something Reid could definitely get used to doing on a regular basis.
And he got to sleep beside Luke; once during the night, he’d woken up - disoriented for half a moment, the way he always is when he wakes up somewhere new. But before his conscious mind realized and remembered where he was and why he was there, his senses told him where he was. He was with Luke, that’s where he was, as if Luke was a place. Luke’s arms were wrapped around him. Luke was sound asleep, settled up close to him; Reid felt like he belonged there, when Luke was holding on to him. Before they fell asleep, Luke was so vulnerable, and Reid was more than happy to be his safe place. But then during the night, as Luke lay asleep, with his arms wrapped around him, Reid felt safe.
Even though Luke was sleeping, Reid felt protected by Luke’s arms, by the way Luke settled against him, and the way Luke held him. Luke seemed to know - in his sleep - that Reid belonged in his arms. Reid had never felt that way before - that he belonged in anyone’s arms. Luke’s arms seemed to be saying that to him last night. They seemed to say, “you can stay right here…this is where you belong…you’re home.” Reid never let anybody say that to him and…well, he felt scared about letting anybody that close, and yet, somehow, with it being Luke, it felt right. He felt safe in Luke’s arms. Reid doesn’t remember when the last time was he felt that safe.
Luke’s phone rang and he picked it up, hoping it was Reid again; Reid had called earlier, just to say hello, to see how he was doing, to hear his voice. The pie was almost done, and the lasagna ready to go in the oven for their dinner together. Luke picked up his phone, smiling, remembering.
“Hello. This is Luke.” He said cheerfully.
“Luke?”
Luke’s smile disappeared. “Noah?”
“Yeah, it’s me.” Silence. “You there, Luke?”
“Yeah…why are you calling?”
“Do I need a reason?”
“Yeah, of course you need a reason. I really…this isn’t a good time, Noah. I don’t…I’m not ready to talk to you right now.”
“Luke, just…just, I’m sorry about last night. I’m sorry about talking to Natalie…I’m sorry about what I did, I know it wasn’t fair…to you or to her. I shouldn’t have…”
“No, you shouldn’t have…”
“I um…I stopped by the house this morning…the farm.”
“What? Why? I thought Dad asked you not to.”
“Yeah, but I called ahead of time to make sure…I knew Natalie wouldn’t want to see me, so…and she wasn’t there.”
“Well, that’s good. Why did you stop by?”
“I had left my…well no, I wanted to see you, and I wanted to apologize for last night, and for…well, everything…everything with Natalie…and…I was hoping…I was hoping to see you.”
“Oh?”
“Well, like I said, I wanted to apologize for everything, and I wanted to see…I couldn’t believe that…I know I was angry last night but…I guess I…I guess I still couldn’t believe that you and me…were done. That you’d really want to be with…well…anyway, I got there this morning and you weren’t there.”
Luke remained silent.
“You spent the night with him, Luke?”
“Noah, I’m not…I’m not gonna talk about Reid with you.”
“Luke, I just…it’s so soon, I mean…I just…I don’t get it… you didn’t even know him a few weeks ago. How could you…how could you sleep with him so quickly?”
“Noah…”
“What, Luke? What…I mean, it’s true…are you?” More silence.
“Noah, I’m not going to talk about Reid with you.”
“Luke, we were together for three years…don’t I deserve to know.”
“Noah…if you want to talk about us…then fine. But not…about him.”
“But that is talking about us, Luke. I mean that’s what this is about. We were together, and then you come here and you meet this guy…I come for the wedding and…and all of a sudden, everything has fallen apart, because of him.”
“No, Noah, not because of him.”
“I don’t…you keep saying that, Luke, but I don’t see how that’s true.”
“Noah…you and I haven’t been happy for a long time.”
“I was happy, Luke. I was! I wanted to spend my life with you.”
“Noah…I can’t tell you how you feel, but I wasn’t happy. I thought I was happy.”
“Until you met him. Right? It is about him.”
“No, Noah…yes.” Luke sighed. “I didn’t realize all this until I met him, that’s true. But it’s not like…it’s not like I left you for him.”
“You left me…and now you’re with him. How can you say you didn’t leave me for him?”
“I’ve been unhappy Noah, for a long time…I just didn’t know that I deserved to be happy…that I was supposed to be happy. I thought that the way things were with us…you know, these little bits of happiness between all the other unhappiness…I thought that was what I was supposed to want… I thought that’s what a relationship was supposed to be like. That what it was like with my parents for so long. I didn’t realize that…”
“And how do you know you’re going to be happy with him?” Noah interjected. “You’ve only been with him for two weeks…you’ve only known him for two weeks.”
“I don’t know that I’ll be happy with him…I don’t know that. I do know - thanks to the time that I’ve spent with him - that I don’t want to settle for only being happy occasionally, which is what I felt when we were together. And honestly, Noah? It was like that for a long time. I thought that being happy occasionally was what life was supposed to be like. If Reid walked out today - left for God knows where, and I never saw him again - I still wouldn’t move back to LA, I still wouldn’t be with you, Noah, because, whether I’m with Reid or not, what he’s shown me is that I’m not supposed to settle for occasional happiness. Yeah, life is supposed to have rough patches and hard times and sadness, but it’s not supposed to be mostly that, Noah. It’s supposed to be mostly joy, and happiness and a feeling of contentment…with a little bit of those other things sprinkled in. We had it backwards. A whole lot of rough times, with a little bit of happiness sprinkled in. Well, with or without Reid, I’m not gonna settle for that anymore.
A long silence.
“You there, Noah?”
“I was happy, Luke…I really think I was.”
“You were? Were you really happy, Noah?”
“I was, Luke. We were together and things were…were good…you know, I mean they weren’t perfect, but what relationship is? And, I love you Luke.”
“You love me?”
“Yes, I do. You know I do.”
“Then why was it so hard for you to make love to me?”
“What? What does that have to do with…anything?”
“Well, it’s important to me.”
“Sex. This is about sex. Is that why you’re with him, Luke?”
“Noah…let’s just talk…can we just talk about us, please?”
Noah sighed. “Fine…Luke, you know it was hard for me. It was always hard for me…you know the way my…with my father and my upbringing…”
“I know Noah…I do, I do…but how was I supposed to be happy, when my boyfriend could barely make love to me?”
“We made love Luke…it was beautiful.”
“Noah.” He said gently. “When was the last time that you…”
“What?”
“When was the last time you were inside me?”
“Luke, you know I never…”
“I know…it’s hard for you.”
“It’s just…it feels so…”
“What, good?” Luke says somewhat sarcastically.
“Yes, no…God, yes, it does…and I…”
“And you hate that.”
“Luke…” he stammered. “I’m sorry, I just…I can’t get over this…this feeling that…”
“What?”
“Well, that it’s…”
“That it’s not the way it’s supposed to be.” Luke says automatically. God, they’ve had this conversation so many times.
“Luke, you know that I love you. And that…I love being with you…but, yeah…I thought we were okay with this…that you knew that it was…that that part of our life was challenging for me. That I was never going to be comfortable with…”
“What? Two men having sex?”
“Two men…doing that. You knew that, you’ve known that. Why is it such a problem now?”
“Noah.” He spoke quietly. “It’s always been a problem. I’ve always…whenever we’ve done it, whenever you’ve been inside me…”
“God, Luke do you have to talk about it?” Luke could hear Noah grimacing, even over the phone.
“Yes, Noah. Yes. I do. Whenever you’ve been inside me…” He spoke clearly now. “Every time - and it hasn’t been that many times, has it - sometimes it’s felt good, but then afterward it’s always felt bad, because you’ve always felt bad. And you’ve never let me…”
“Luke, God…”
“What?”
“Do we have to talk about this?” Noah’s voice was raising, almost panicked.
“Noah, I am so tired of not talking about this. I am so tired of not doing it.”
“What…fucking, as you like to call it?” Noah was sounding angry and uncomfortable.
“Noah, I don’t care what we call it.” He had found his voice finally, and Noah was going to hear it. “You never let me do it…and you hardly ever did it yourself. And that’s…that’s just the way it is! You don’t like it. Well, you do like it, but then you don’t like that you do like it…and you don’t like that I like it…and I can’t live like that Noah.” He ran his hand through his hair, pacing the room. “And that’s just one piece of what’s wrong with us. But Noah…it’s an important piece of what’s wrong with us.”
“We can work on that, Luke. We can go to therapy, maybe?”
“Noah, there were a lot of ways that I wasn’t happy in our relationship. Our sex life was just one area where I felt like I was always walking on egg shells…always waiting for you to disapprove of something I did, or something I said…get upset about something and walk away. But it was happening in every area of our relationship, Noah.” There was no stopping Luke now. “I was always tiptoeing around, hoping to do everything just right so that you wouldn’t walk away…and inevitably you always did walk away…and yes, you came back. But I can’t do that anymore Noah, I can’t. With or without Reid, even if I never see him again, I know that I can’t be with you. Because I wasn’t happy, and I deserve to be happy. I deserve a relationship…a life…where I’m happy most of the time, and that the sad times, the hard times, are sprinkled in, not the main event. I’m sorry, Noah.”
“Me too, Luke.” They were both quiet for a few moments. “I hope…well, I hope you come back…”
“Noah…”
“No, Luke. I don’t know where you’re at with all this. I’m not ready to say we’re done, but I will leave you to your space, your life…just know that I’m here, if you change your mind. I gotta go.”
“Noah.”
“Luke, I gotta go. Take care.” And Noah hung up.
Luke stood holding his phone to his chest and sighed - a little sad - and said “Well. That was that, huh?” And he took the pie out of the oven, stuck the lasagna in, and set the timer for 45 minutes, just as Reid walked in the front door; and then Luke smiled - he smiled for the first time since Noah had called.
next part /