Scathefire(MxM)[Unedited]

8

ᓚᘏᗢᓚᘏᗢᓚᘏᗢ

Avery is a quiet drunk, perfectly content with leaning against the soft arm of the couch, watching the tv with a low lidded, sleepy stare. His stomach is warm and full, the satisfying taste of pizza still lingers in his mouth from a few hours ago, and Austin sits at the other end of the couch, still nursing a glass of the old fashioned. Well, Avery's second drink, the one he hadn't finished, to be exact.

The spinning room is somehow a comfort. There's always something new to look at as Avery's sedated eyes flick around. Soon, he feels too restless to continue laying down, and sits up, hugging his knees. His motion draws Austin's eyes towards him, and for a moment, they merely stare at each other and Avery's heart flutters.

"Thank you." Avery murmurs, and Austin tilts his head.

"What for?" He responds. Avery's brows furrow and he looks towards the window.

"I don't know." He whispers, fingers coming up to pinch at his lower lip. "You've been so nice. And I've just..." Every time he feels like he's about to say something thats worth saying, his mind fizzes out into emptiness. Austin, however, seems to prove that words don't need to be said, as he sets his drink aside and takes Avery's hand, pulling him in.

Any misgivings from earlier are gone, and Avery doesn't waste a second in crawling closer, allowing the embrace of Austin's arms to secure him. He tucks his wings in tight around himself, the warm, soft down on the insides better than any blanket he could've asked for

He can't even remember why he would've been against this kind of thing in the first place. How could this be wrong? In what universe could such a kind soul be a sinner? It's easier to just exist with his legs crossed over Austin's lap, Austin's calloused hand rubbing absently over his calves.

"Is this also a sin?" Austin asks after a moment, tapping his fingers against Avery's shin. The question stirs Avery a bit, and he tips his head, resting it against Austin's chest, closing his eyes as he drinks in the rapid thumping of Austin's heart.

"Does it matter anymore?" Avery responds, shrugging.

"I guess not."

"Do you want me to get off?"

"...no."

It only takes moments after that for Avery to fall asleep. When he wakes up, Austin is no longer by his side, instead seated on the small loveseat adjacent to the couch. He's dressed up, with a button up shirt tucked into his slacks, sleeves rolled up to his elbows. He's bent down to tie on a pair of casual dress shoes.

"Are you leaving?" Avery asks groggily. His sudden voice has Austin jumping out of his skin, looking up and bringing his hand up to rub over his buzzed hair.

"Shit- yeah. I was just gonna leave you a note. I have work. I'll be back around 1 pm. You have free reign here, sweetheart. The landline is by the front door, my phone number is written under it, so is Jasmine's, if I don't pick up." Austin says, finishing lacing up his shoes and standing. Avery wrings his fingers together, watching Austin with a sullen gaze.

"I've gotta go. When all else fails, watch TV. Red button is the power, that's the home and select." He points out each button to Avery, who nods, but isn't really paying attention, too tired to have much awareness of his surroundings at this point. The couch is much comfier than the bed of the guest room. Austin watches him for a moment more, and Avery can't read his expression. He doesn't mind so much, casting Austin a small smile and tucking his feet underneath the couch cushion for comfort.

Austin's eyes darken on him, and he finds that along with the anxious rush the expression brings him, comes a sinful twist in his lower stomach and a strange sort of humor. It makes him wonder what else he can do to draw out that dark gaze, but he decides against trying to find out.

He turns away and nestles himself against the couch cushions, pretending to be asleep. When he hears the door close, however, announcing Austin's departure, he can't keep his eyes closed for much longer. He instead stares at the back of the couch for a moment or two. He sits up with a soft sigh, and retreats into the bathroom. He takes care of his business, and glances up to the mirror as he washes his hands. His eyebrows raise as he stares at himself in shock. Linus had, of course, taught him not to be vain. It's unbecoming and sinful, but Avery can't help that horror in him as he studies his tangled, frizzy curls.

He half heartedly combs his fingers through his hair until he can run them through it without any hitches. It doesn't do much for how his hair looks, but at least his hair isn't tangled anymore. He leaves the mirror to spy through Austin's spice cabinets. He tips a small pile of sand into his hands and trots back to the sink, wetting his hands and rubbing the salt in, slowly adding more water until it dissolves but doesn't overflow out of his hands. He turns away from the sink and bends over, flipping his hair upside down and scrunching the water into his curls. He adds more water until his hair is thoroughly dampened before he stands straight up. It's not perfect, but it will work for now. He curls a loop around his finger with a quiet sigh, tugging lightly and letting it bounce back up. He walks back to the living area, standing in the middle of the room and looking around. It's quiet, too quiet. The clock reads just a few minutes past 5 am, and it's still dark outside. When had they woken up? Avery can't remember ever checking.

Desperate for something to do, he walks over to the couch and picks up the remote, trying to remember what Austin had instructed him to do with it. He manages to figure the TV out quick enough, flipping through channels, occasionally pausing on one or two, before he finds MTV. To his disappointment, however, it doesn't display as much music as he would have liked. He manages to find a channel that consists of mostly classic hymn. He finds himself merely enjoying the music as he cleans up the dishes that had been used but not cleaned, but around the time that the sun begins to peer over the city buildings, the channel shifts, playing more folk-pop style songs. Similar to Rain Clouds by The Arcadian Wild and Like The Dawn by The Oh Hellos. It's new to Avery, but he finds that he quite likes it.

The gentle scraping of the guitar strings in response to a messy strum tickles a part of Avery's mind that he didn't know could exist. He walks over to the sliding door that leads out onto the balcony, and tentatively opens it. The balcony is high up enough for Avery to be tentative about walking over to the edge and bending over to peer down at the road below, but the crisp, firm breeze catching his feathered wings is enough to melt away those inhibitions.

His chest puffs out as he draws in a deep breath and his wings open up. They spread fully for the first in ages, sore and aching from their folded position, the flight feathers trimmed and blunted. His limbs quiver as they fight against their limited range of motion. He's not sure he could even fly anymore, it's been so long. But this is enough for now. His heart beats painfully hard as he stands out on the balcony until his feet hurt, wings just extended. Instead of going inside, he just sits down, fingers curled around the ornate wrought iron railing.

The sun warms his rosy cheeks and illuminates his blond hair, the wind cooling his face right back down and allowing him to just appreciate his basking in a continuous loop.

ᓚᘏᗢᓚᘏᗢᓚᘏᗢ

Thanks for reading :)