Soulmate [~Mavin~]

Chapter 7

Michael didn't want to get up the next day. He just wanted to curl up in bed forever and never leave. He stared at his arm, the string of zeroes seeming to mock him. He liked Gavin, he really did, and he knew that he wouldn't be able to help but fall in love with him bit he was still conflicted about the whole thing.

He looked away from his arm when his phone buzzed on his nightstand. It was a text message from Gavin, saying good morning. As he was typing to respond, another message came through.

From: Gavino Free - 8:32AM
It's Friday. Wanna get bevved up and make a night of it?
Read

Michael didn't respond right away. Yeah, he did want to go do something tonight, but he wasn't sure he could be around Gavin so much. What he really needed was a night in with Lindsay.

To: Gavino Free - 8:34AM
I dunno, I'll see what Lindsay's plans are and get back to you.
Sent

He sighed and got out of bed, going to the kitchen where he was greeted by Lindsay making coffee, and Barbera on one of the barstools. He tried not to think about what had probably happened on the other side of his bedroom wall last night and just grabbed a cup of coffee. He rubbed his eyes and sat down.

"Hey, Linds?" He said and she looked over from where she was chatting with Barb about their plans tonight.

"Yes, Mikey?" She said with a grin and Michael motioned her over. She stepped closer to him and he leaned forward to whisper in her ear.

"Defcon three." He said simply and Lindsay nodded, leaning away.

"Sorry, Bee, Michael just reminded me that we've had tonight scheduled to spend in together for months." She said and Barbera nodded.

"That's alright." She said and drained her coffee mug. "I should really get my place unpacked a bit more." She smiled and got up to go get dressed, but not before kissing Lindsay gently and winking at her. The ginger female watched her girlfrind go with adoring eyes and eventually snapped out of it, turning to Michael again.

"Defcon three? You must be in a bad spot to pull that on me."

"Hey, I almost bumped it up to a four." He said.

"Jesus, Michael!" She said and he sighed.

"Desperate times call for desperate measures." He muttered and pushed his coffee to the side.

"Is is Gavin?" She asked quietly.

"Is dunno." He muttered. "Is dunno what it is. We'll talk about it tonight, okay?"

"Okay." She said and patted his head of fluffy curls before going off to get herself dressed and probably make out with Barbera. Michael texted Gavin back, apologizing and telling him that he was busy tonight. He got up to get dressed as well and pulled a beanie over his unruly hair.

Lindsay, Barbera, and himself drove to work togeter having a really nice conversation. Michael really liked Barbera and could tell that she made Lindsay happy. He just wished that he and Gavin could he happy like that already.

The day was long and busy and Michael was tying to avoid Gavin without it seeming like he was trying to avoid him. It seemed like five o'clock would never arrive, but when it finally did, he said his goodbyes and left as quick as he could with Lindsay. They stopped at the grocery store to get booze and ice cream and then headed back home to find a movie on Netflix and curl up under a fuzzy blanket and have a night in.

"So," Lindsay spoke up after a while. "Having boy troubles?"

"Yeah, I guess you could call it that." He mumbled and sipped his drink. "I'm not sure. I think he likes me, but I keep second guessing myself. One second, I just want to kiss him forever, and the next, I just want to push him away because I'm so confused. Why was finding my soulmate not the happiest day of my life?" He groaned and Lindsay soothed him.

"Hey, Michael, it's not easy for everybody. Barb and I got really lucky. Most couples don't get Names for at least six months or so!" She assured and Michael looked up.

"You have names already?"

"Oh, um... yeah." She said, a light red tint on her cheeks. She rolled up her sleeve to show him the gorgeous and intricate script on her arm. The edges of the letters curled in to beautiful swirls and the text filled Lindsay's forearm. Michael smiled as he studied the maple leaf pattern under the letters.

"It's beautiful, Linds. I'm really happy for you." He said and she grinned, tracing the letters absently.

"I know you'll get Names eventually. You'll have to, no matter what." She said and Michael just sighed.

"Of course we'll have to, but I don't know if it will be platonic or romantic love. That's my dilemma here." He groaned and put his head in his hands. "He likes me, and I like him, but every time one of us tried to make a move, we get inturripted or one of us gets shy. It's like the Fates are trying to urge us just be to friends. It feels like we'll never decide which way this is going and I'm afraid we'll never settle on something. We'll go back and forth forever, not really knowing if we're friends or boyfriends or-"

He was inturrupted, not by Lindsay, but by the door bell ringing. He looked up at his friend pleadingly, and she stood up and went to get the door. Michael pulled the sleeves of his sweatshirt over his hands and hugged his knees. He heard muffled conversation at the door. He couldn't make out words, but he could tell that the voice outside was male. And British.

Michael got up and walked towards the door to see why Gavin was here. The American man's eyes were red and his hair was a mess and he was wearing a baggy sweatshirt and pyjama pants. He looked like he had been dumped by somebody he'd been with for years. He noticed that Gavin don't look sloppy at all. The taller man wore nice jeans and a light blue button down shirt with the sleeves rolled up. His hair was the usual "effortless" mess and it seemed that he was holding something behind his back.

"Hi, Micool." Gavin said softly and smiled at him. Lindsay novel back to the living room. Michael shuffled his feet, looking at Gavin sadly. He could feel his eyes burning with fresh tears.

"What are you doing here, Gav?" He asked quietly, his voice cracking slightly. Gavin cleared his throat gently and licked his lips.

"I came to apologize." He began, his voice sweet and gentle. "I've been acting weird and we keep dodging the subject of our actual relationship. This is strange for boh of us and we need to be able to communicate if this is going to work at all." Gavin had a cute little smile on his lips. "And I know we'll never actually talk about it by choice, so I've made an executive decision, but we can discuss it later." He sighed nervously and removed his hand from behind his back, holding out a single red rose. "Will you be my boyfriend, Michael?" Gavin asked sweetly and Michael felt tears in his eyes again. Happy tears. He took the rose and tossed it on the sofa table behind him. He wrapped his arms around Gavin's neck, put and hand on the back of his head, and pulled the taller man down to kiss him hard on the mouth.

Gavin tensed when Michael grabbed him, but quickly relaxed when he felt lips against his own. He kissed back and his hand drifted to Michael's waist in order to pull him closer. Eventually, Michael broke away and looked up at Gavin with a small smile and shining eyes.

"Fucking finally." He muttered fondly and Gavin grinned, a giggle passing his lips. He hugged Michael tightly and buried his face in his curls.

Michael saw a flash go off through his eyelids and looked behind him to see Lindsay with her phone.

"Oops! The flash was on! You have to pose again, the light ruined it." She said and Michael flipped her off before hugging Gavin again. Gavin chuckled and kissed his ear breifly before leaning away.

"I'm gonna assume you're saying yes to being my boyfriend?" He said with a smile and Michael nodded, staying close to him. Lindsay left them alone again and Michael sighed.

"Fucking finally." He said again and grinned up at Gavin. His boyfriend.