The Stag.

04.

The Stag.

Daniel Lien Mercia.

"Loving you is not easy, you're practically useless, and I'm not your sugar daddy, get out."

Sinan Englit.

"In another age I wouldn't have been so tolerant of your kind, this world and myself deserve better, you aren't better, you're just the stitched parts of what I had hoped I'd like, it was good whilst it lasted."

Malcolm Fesher.

"It's not you, well it is you, this was purely sexual for me and if I had known it was going to end like this, I would've just told you, I can't be with you, my family won't allow it, damn society can't even look at you, I'd rather not be the one to destroy my family's legacy for a nobody, so I'm not sorry you found me in bed with someone else."

Paul Maverick.

"Ill give you the world and all you'll ever want in it, just stick by my side, be mine and no one else."

Klaus Veros.

Falling in love has never been easy, being with someone has been a burden ever since these four men in Dan's life, ruined him, they didn't treat him like he expected, no he was disposable, a stain easily removed and forgotten, two of them he'd met before Lael, two after he'd started living with Lael, he should've known that this was a pattern, no one truly loved another person, unless they had truly given their all to that person and Dan knew a few people like that, the rest it was just lies told and retold for the purpose of keeping up an act.

Right now Dan was having an internal battle with himself again, had he been stupid to love again, had he been reckless in accepting the advances of a man who clearly had other motives over his life, no— Klaus had never presented himself as a liar or traitor, he'd been a good genuine man, he'd given him all he could, showed him that life could be better, but a nagging part of Dan knew, it never forgot past scars and those scars had been a painful reminder of what lies twisted to be believed as love could do.

"I'm waiting." Dan muttered as he stood by Klaus's convertible, there he'd been standing, watching as Klaus the one man he thought could've been different was kissing  business tycoon Sinan Englit, their non fleeting touches and surprised glances were a testament that this wasn't knew, Dan didn't need to have a deep perception that this had been going on for a while, and what hurt most about it, was that he had been stupid enough to believe, just to believe.

"Dan, you're different." Sinan muttered but Dan, all he could see was the man who'd kicked him out on the street after promising him everything, how funny that he turn up here, now, —after so many years. He couldn't deal with this, not now, —not again. So he turned away and walked briskly toward the building he'd just come from, it was where he studied on free nights, where most of his classes are and the next larger building on campus was where he taught another class of freshman. "Mister Mercia are you alright?" Greta asked as he had barged into the building out of breath.

"Yes  Greta, I'm fine." He lied, —no he wasn't fine  who would be fine in such a situation, how do you determine what fine would be like when everything was falling apart again. "Where is—." He heard Klaus's voice filter in, it was unmistakable because Klaus had an usual accent like Sal, Sal more but yeah, —Klaus was different, and that's what had attracted Dan to him in the first place. So Dan decided to be the bigger person, he had been taught how to deal with situations like these, he shouldn't break down because his heart was breaking, —no. When your inner self is falling apart, don't give people the satisfaction of showing it physically, hold your head high and show them, despite the pain, the hurt, the anger, —you are above it and above them, you are a Mercia, and Mercia's do not fall apart.