Always an Expiration Date

Part Ten

Aidan and Jake changed into shorts and t-shirts, each respecting the other's privacy by keeping their eyes to themselves and backs to each other. Just as they laid down and turned off the light Aidan's phone began buzzing with an incoming call. He groaned, checked the screen and groaned again. "Sorry, I should take this." He answered as he got back up to go into the main room.

Jake, not to mention Sara and Amara, could hear Mike's angry voice shouting through the tiny speaker but could only make out Aidan's words. "Hello?... Of course I went. ... What's that got to do with me?" There was a thump as if he slammed his fist on the table. "Look, Mike. You broke up with me. It wouldn't be any of your business if I did fuck him." They heard her start to respond to him before the phone went quiet with the cut call, he let out a frustrated whisper scream and his footsteps returned to the room he was sharing with Jake.

He slipped silently back into bed and Jake listened to him huff in aggravation for a short while before Jake quietly asked "do you want to talk about it?"

Aidan scrubbed angrily at his hair, making it stand up wildly. "Mike's blaming me for the breakup and your rejection. She asked me if I thought I was going to be able to get in your pants now."

"That's, uh, sorry. I don't know what to say."

"I'm guessing you're losing your engineer Tuesday."

"Sounds like. Are you going to be all right?" Jake rolled on his side to prop himself up on one elbow and give Aidan his full attention.

"Yeah. Like I said, I saw this coming a long time ago. But for her to blame me for everything that happened." Aidan let out a frustrated groan.

"It's unfair of her." Jake paused. "And who says you couldn't get in my pants if you tried?"

Aidan wasn't sure he heard the second part of that correctly. "What?"

"Sorry. That probably made you uncomfortable. I shouldn't have said it."

In the other room Sara and Amara were holding their breaths, squeezing one another's hands willing the two men to admit their feelings for one another.

"You didn't. But what did you mean by that?"

Jake took a deep breath and steeled his nerves. "Aidan. Do you remember the first time we saw each other?"

"Yeah. It was in the street a little while before we got stuck in the elevator."

Jake wasn't expecting that. He thought Aidan would say the elevator. He reached out in the dark and took Aidan's hand. "I didn't think you'd remember that. I looked up waiting to cross the street and there was a man who was suddenly all I could see. I was thrilled when you stepped onto the elevator and unreasonably disappointed to find out you were there to visit your girlfriend."

Aidan nearly threw up from the butterflies suddenly going wild in the pit of his stomach. The only thing that saved him was the electric charge running from Jake's hand covering his own straight to his cock. "I saw you. I remembered you."

Jake ran his fingertips lightly up Aidan's arm leaving a trail of goosebumps in their wake. "Aidan," his voice was husky with desire. "What did you think of me?"

Aidan was now at half mast. Fuck it. He could figure out a way home if this went south. He breathed out "You're the person."

There was crushing silence in the room after the declaration. Aidan blinked back the tears welling up and made a movement to get up and leave. Jake grabbed his arm and dragged Aidan into his own, crushing his lips to the other man's in a desperate kiss. When he drew back breathlessly he rasped "same," before he dove back in.

They kissed as if they were dying of thirst and the only way to quench it was found in the other's mouth. Their hands roamed one another's bodies, committing hard planes to memory, their existence distilled down into the points of contact as they tangled together. The world came rushing back when they heard the bedsprings in the other room creak agonizingly, reminding them that the walls in the house were thin.

They stilled, smirking in the darkness. Aidan whispered "we probably shouldn't right now" and rolled off Jake onto his side with wide open arms to encourage Jake to cuddle against him as the little spoon. Jake needed no further invitation and scooted back against Aidan who peppered tiny kisses down his neck and across his shoulder. "Goodnight," Aidan murmured, his breath hot against Jake's ear.

"Goodnight."