'We'

Chapter Seventeen

"Erik? Where are you? You didn't turn up to work today, and you're not answering your doorbell." Seb's voice sounded concerned, and Erik was genuinely touched that he had cared enough to call.

"I'm at my mum's house," he replied quietly. "I wasn't feeling well. She forced me to take a day off." As he spoke, Erik realised the implications of what Seb had said. "Are you in my flat?"

"I was worried," the other man insisted through the phone. "You've never missed a day of work.

"I miss work days all the time."

"Not since you started dating that coffee guy."

Erik couldn't deny that. Felix had certainly had an influence on him, and he was sure it was a positive one. The man felt himself becoming emotional again and glanced over at his mother as she worked to ground himself. Seb, incredibly, picked up what his silence meant.

"Oh. Do you want me to come see you?"

Erik thought for a moment. Usually, he would have said no immediately. That is before Felix he would have said no immediately; he would have done all he could to push Seb away and not allow him to get close enough to find Erik's weak spots. He had proven to himself that this sort of thing could never happen to a man like him. Felix had made sure of that.

But Felix had also forced him to discover something else about himself. That, all this time, he had been craving companionship more than anything else.

"Yes," the man replied, painfully aware of the rise in pitch as his voice cracked. He could feel the onset of tears and heard movement behind him as his mother, too, caught onto the moment. She wrapped her arms around him from behind, offering the silent comfort that he so desperately needed.

With a sniff, he pushed his mother away gently, smiling to let her know that her gesture was appreciated. She watched him for a moment, concern sparking in her eyes. For a woman that had never wanted kids, she was one hell of a mother.

"Can I go out with a friend?"

"Of course, dear. Don't stay out too late."

"I'm not a kid anymore," he joked half-heartedly, smiling up at his mother.

"But you'll always be my kid," she insisted, love burning in her eyes. "And I always want you to be happy."

Erik was reminded of the events of that morning. He had stayed the night at his mother's, sleeping in the room that had always been kept empty for him, although he had never used it before today. He had passed out from emotional exhaustion almost as soon as he had got home, and his mother had told him how traumatised Jacob had been by the event. He would never let it show, but he was shaken by how upset Erik had been.

He had roused just before lunch, late for work, and his mother had insisted that he took a day off to recover from what had happened. Jacob had gone to school hours earlier, and Erik's mother sad quietly as she watched her son eat his cornflakes.

"How much has Jacob told you?" he asked slowly, not taking his eyes away from his untouched bowl. He stirred the spoon around in the milk absentmindedly.

"Not much," his mother responded with a sigh. "That something had happened, and he didn't know what."

"I see." Erik placed his spoon down, but still refused to look up. He took a breath. "Mum. I'm gay."

"Okay," she replied simply. "That can't be why you were so worked up."

Erik was honestly surprised that she didn't react further. He smiled despite herself. This was exactly the reaction he had dreamed of. No anger. No overreacting. No pretending she was happy about it. Simply acknowledging a fact that didn't change anything.