Incendiary Hearts

chapter Twelve

Something strong and bright annoyed Kevin's brain enough for his eyelids to squint open. It took him a second to realize it was the morning sun, blinding his vision with its glaring light. Apparently, he'd forgotten to pull down the blinds last night. He spotted a person lying next to him, and it took him another second to remember what had taken place yesterday.

Michael.

He and Michael had spent the night together. Had had sex together...

Michael was lying on the other side of the bed, several inches away from Kevin. Completely separated. So near yet so far away, but he was here.

He was still here.

His eyes were open, and he was staring up at the ceiling, so he was clearly wide awake. Kevin so desperately wanted to know what he was thinking about. What had last night meant to him? He did remember it, right? If not, waking up next to Kevin, in Kevin's bed, should be a nice reminder. Was he enjoying the memories of it, or worse, was he regretting them? Kevin himself got butterflies just thinking about last night. And like he said, Michael was still here, in bed with him, that had to account for something, right? He hadn't snuck out in the middle of the night.

Where would he have gone? A nasty part of his brain retorted maliciously. Shut up! Just... shut up!

"Good morning," Kevin whispered, deciding to step into the uncertain territory, his heart already beating a little faster, wondering if the reaction he'd receive would be a good or a bad one.

Michael glanced over at him through his peripheral vision before looking back up at the ceiling. "Good morning."

The shield was back up, Kevin could tell as much, and in that moment, he didn't know what to do with himself. How to act or react. He suddenly felt very naked in every sense of the word. Man, he was too hung over for this shit! Yet, he didn't have the courage to confront Michael about it, his inner hopes and dreams too persistent to succumb to the frustration over the situation. He eventually decided on the kinder route. After all, that was the one who still allowed him to keep his hope. "How you feeling –"

The doorbell rang, interrupting him. Michael sat up at the same time Kevin did.

"You expecting someone?" Michael asked, growing anxious.

"No..." Kevin murmured, feeling just as perplexed. He got out of bed and pulled on a pair of boxers, but not before Michael accidentally snuck a glance at his perfect ass. A perfect ass he'd had so much enjoyment from last night. He cleared his throat and looked away. "Let me just check who it is."

While Michael made sure the duvet was covering the important parts of his body, Kevin made his way over to the front door. "M-mom?! Dad?!" Kevin exclaimed as soon as he'd opened the door.

Michael's body jolted. Kevin's parents were here?! Shit! Fuck! Shit! He quickly scrambled out of bed, stubbed his toe on the bed's front leg, cursed under his breath and frantically began searching for his boxers. Where the hell are they?!

"Wh-what are you doing here?" Kevin asked as his parents barged into his apartment.

"We haven't seen you in forever, darling, or heard from you," Aurora sent Kevin a disapproving look, "so we thought we'd surprise you –" Michael had just had enough time to put on his boxers before Aurora spotted him. "Oh my!"

On instinct, Michael's hands went to cover his crotch. Pained seconds ticked by as Michael and Aurora stared at each other. Realizing only he held the power to break this horrifying spell, Michael reluctantly parted his lips. "Hi Aurora, hi Henry," he uttered slowly, awkwardly while fervently wishing the ground would open up and swallow him thousand times over.