Devil's House

Purgatory

Vacation was over, and Jason stood naked in the bathroom of the Seattle apartment as the steam from his shower settled around him. He couldn't deny that he was looking forward to popping into the office in just a little over an hour from now, wearing a suit he hadn't touched since he'd moved back to L.A. months ago. Working from home left him in button down shirts and slacks most days, and that was typically fine. But today he would be meeting with his team in person for the first time since he and Chester had come back to Seattle, and he wanted to look nice.

He looked at himself in the mirror as he brushed his teeth. It was hard to believe he was thirty. That number had seemed impossible to him not too long ago, but here he was... looking pretty okay for a thirty-year old who didn't get to work out as much as he had in his early twenties. His stomach was still flat, even if it was less defined, and his shoulders had broadened a little more in the past few years. Overall, he liked what he saw in the mirror, and he knew Ryan did, too. It had been obvious in bed just thirty minutes earlier.

He rinsed off his toothbrush and put it in the holder, wiping off his hands and mouth immediately after as he looked toward the frosted bathroom door. Ryan and Julien were already downstairs for the day, having breakfast. He could hear Ryan's laugh even through the closed door, and Jason's thoughts turned away from the morning sex they'd just had to the improvement in his husband's mood. It was good to hear him laugh.

He's looked distraught the past few days. I know it's not helping to have Chaz ask him five times a day when we're coming home. I know it's a lot for him and Mike to handle alone right now... but that's what Mike wanted. Right? For it to just be the two of them?

Jason scowled at the thought of Mike. He'd sent Jason at least one message a day, sometimes more than one, and Jason had stopped answering them completely. Deep down he knew it was cruel to ignore the messages, but Jason's heart felt petty. More than once Mike had acted impulsively, without considering anyone else's feelings. Now he'd created a huge mess, and destroyed Jason's trust in him, all because he thought he was in love. He's not in love with me. If he was in love with me, he'd never have suggested stopping.

That thought was troubling as Jason slipped into his boxers and then his suit pants. He knew what he was doing was punishing Mike for hurting him, but it was beyond him right now to be forgiving. Just because Chester and Mike were struggling without them didn't mean Mike had automatically earned Jason back. He'd already taken Mike back once. And like Ryan had said, he was nobody's side boyfriend.

Ry looks like he's going through it, though, Jason thought as he put on his shirt and started buttoning it. I know it's hard for him to be away from Chaz. And I wasn't supposed to be listening last night, but I heard them. I heard Chaz tell Ry that he and Mike had been fighting. I heard Chaz asking again when we were coming home. What if I don't want to go home yet?

He finished his buttons and grabbed his tie. Nothing is resolved. I still don't want to be around Mike, and Chaz and Ry haven't worked out how things are going to be between them, so why go home at this point? Just so we can be a part of their arguments? Jason knotted his tie expertly and turned toward the closet to take his suit jacket from the hanger. There's no reason to go home right now. I know Ry is worried about Chaz's mental state, though. We're going to have to go back by the end of the week.

The thought of going home, back to the chaos they'd left, was unappealing to Jason. He folded his suit jacket over his arm and flipped off the bathroom lights before he headed downstairs. He could hear Ryan and Julien more clearly now, and it sounded like they were playing instead of eating. It had Jason back to smiling before he hit the bottom step, and saw his husband and son laughing as they fed each other bites of frozen waffles.