LoveAffair( mxm )

13

"You seem to be in a bad mood"
Archibald commented as Timothy dried his hair, droplets of water cascading down his body slowly as if tracing the marks he had- telltales of the intense activity he engaged in half an hour ago.
Usually sex was the best cure to reduce his stress level and calm him, sort of like an unconventional therapy. But now despite the fact his body was relaxed, refreshed and understandably aching, his mind was still rambling relentlessly .
Timothy had a lot to absorb after the talk with his father, he couldn't stop calculating, processing, analyzing and thinking about the near future. He had a lot to deal with , starting with the management of the firm which was a difficult task as itself to handle and ending with him being the one to take over the case of Carmichael.
He held so many concerns regarding the heavy weighted responsibilities that were practically dropped on him.
Timothy although a capable and successful man was still anxious to fill in a role he deemed as nothing but a burden more than opportunity.
He knew losing his senses was the last thing he should do right now but he couldn't help the fear that he might fail grip onto him.
And that man calmly staring at him with his signature confident smirk did nothing but aggravate him!
Archibald was a pain in his ass in more than one way. The last thing he wanted was to share his problems with him, mainly because he was one of said problems.
"I'm fine"
He muttered finally and flopped on the bed, he was in no hurry to return home, Lizzy spent the weekend at her friend's place and would be back only at late Saturday.
"I don't think you are..."
Archibald let his fingers caress Timothy's warm skin, making patterns on his stomach. Timothy shivered as goosebumps were created as reaction.
"Want to share?"
He pressed .
"No "
Timothy breathed out. Archibald was the last person he'd share his concerns with, mainly because he was one of them.
"I think you do"
He just never knew when to give up and back off and it annoyed Timothy.
"I don't care what you think!"
He snapped and threw Archibald's hand away.
"Definitely a bad mood " he teased.
"Whatever, I just want to sleep. "
Timothy rolled so his back faced Archibald, closing his eyes. It was weird to admit but even though the man next to him was annoying him, something about his presence was calming and he preferred being here than anywhere else. Maybe because right here with Archibald he was himself .
"Goodnight."
He felt Archibald wrap his hand around him as he whispered in his ear .
He never thought cuddling was his thing up till now, mostly because he never experienced it with a man but it sure was nice and what other choice did he have?
Archibald got anything that he wanted so he went along. Or so he liked to think.

_____________________________________

Archibald watched silently with a smirk as Timothy settled in his arms, pressing his back to Archibald's chest.
It was baffling how comfortable he seemed in his position, almost carefree and a thought passed through Arch's mind- How many men were in his place?
It didn't come from any ill rooted or misguided feelings,  it was simply curiosity. The fact Timothy was in his late twenties and still seemed far from coming out of his closet , made Arch wonder for how long would he keep the pretense? hooking up with guys on one end and living as the ideal straight man on the other.
Perhaps Timothy liked his double life?
No, it couldn't be. Arch refused to believe that but Timothy also didn't seem like the type to lack courage so why was he living like that?
Was he afraid of disappointing his parents?
But surely nowadays people were more tolerating and accepting, or maybe it was naive of him to think like that?
Either way, Arch knew that Timothy couldn't continue living this way. Those kind of stories always had a bad ending - the illusion would break at some point and the hard truth would be revealed . For some reason Archibald wanted to be there when Timothy would reach that point. Curiosity was of course his main reason - he wanted to see this drama unfold and moreover the contrast of someone else's life compared to his. They were both gay but while Arch felt in his own skin, Timothy was uncomfortable and struggling. Their  environment was different as well- Arch was mostly accepted by his surrounding, his parents supported him. Timothy on the other hand didn't seem to think he'd be accepted and while  Arch didn't personally meet his parents, he didn't think them to be much different from his. They loved their son , no?
But then the sadness lurking in Timothy's eyes made Archibald question that. What was the source of that darkness? and why did it bother him so much?
But other than curiosity there was another thing he couldn't quite explain that made him want to be there just for the sake of being there.
He didn't try to pinpoint it, it wasn't much of a concern, so he just let his eyes close as he drifted away with his thoughts.