Submission for Two

Chapter 21

When Sebastian woke, he found that the bed he was in was cold beside him. Empty, his lover gone. He jolted into a sitting position, his eyes darting around. The entire room was empty.

The first thing he did was check their bathroom, finding that it as well was empty. He could feel his heart beginning to race as he jerked on his pants before jerking the bedroom door open. He felt frantic as he left the room as quickly as he could until he heard a quiet laugh from the kitchen.

All of the tenseness melted from him at the familiar sound, a low sigh falling from him as he came to a stop in the kitchen doorway. Nickolas was sitting on a stool, eating a bowl of oatmeal with coffee. Across from him was Rico, whom he seemed to be talking with.

"There you are." He murmured as he approached, leaning over Nickolas from behind to gently kiss his cheek. The small grin Nickolas let loose made it clear that he was rather pleased with the touch. He leaned back into him with a low sigh.

"There is some coffee on the counter for you to get a cup." Nickolas murmured the words. Sebastian offered a slow nod. He was up far earlier than he would like to be, even earlier than his other family. His mom hadn't even started cooking yet, which was insane.
"Can we leave for the beach soon? I want to watch the sun rise."

Nickolas' voice was soft, and Sebastian's gaze drifted to the window that showed it was still black outside. A scowl played on his lips; he had not realized exactly how early it was. All he had known was that Nickolas was gone and he had to find him.

"Why the hell are you up so early? I thought that you weren't a morning person." Sebastian puffed out, receiving a quiet laugh in response.

"I'm not. I just wanted us to be able to do something romantic." Nickolas huffed, glowering at Rico, who had been the one laughing.

"Bullshit." Sebastian scoffed, leaning over Nickolas to place his coffee cup on the counter. Afterward, he moved to make his oatmeal.
"Why are you up so early, Nickolas?"

The words were spoken more softly once Sebastian could settle down next to him. He was gifted silence in response before Nickolas released a deep sigh, shrugging.
"I'm feeling antsy, and so is Isaiah. I kept waking up in the middle of the night, and so this time, I decided to just stay awake."

The words were a soft mumble, and Sebastian softened. He placed his palm onto Nickolas' thigh to give it a firm squeeze.
"Of course, we can try to get to the beach before the sun rises. We should have an hour and a half to get everything and get there."

"You are so whipped." Rico heaved an exaggerated sigh as he stood, taking his own plate as well as Nickolas' empty one. It was surprising for Sebastian to see his brother trying to do something for Nickolas, but it was also reassuring. It was clear that Rico was trying, despite everything that had been forced into his mind about gay men.

"Thank you." Nickolas murmured the words and offered an easy smile to him. Rico seemed taken aback before he simply shrugged, washing both sets of dishes.

"I'll, uh, go ahead and wake up Walter then." Rico grunted. Sebastian snorted, lifting the glass to his lips while Nickolas straight up laughed.
"What?!" Rico scowled at them.

"Good luck with that. I would recommend bringing a nice cup of coffee with you. Perhaps some food as well. He likes his oatmeal with peanut butter and bananas." Nickolas explained, earning a look of surprise.

"How do you -"

"Isaiah likes to cook for people. He tends to learn what they like, and it sticks with me." Nickolas shrugged the slightest bit.
"Though the coffee knowledge is because he lives in my home and uses my pumpkin spice creamer, pumpkin spice, and caramel."