He Makes Me Quiet

Chapter 11

Henry and Alex arrived as planned on Friday night, three weeks later.

Gansey opted to stay in while Dorian spent the night out with the two boys, saying he'd catch up with them over the weekend. So the three of them spent the evening drinking wine and telling stories, teasing each other and cuddling. Henry seemed to be doing well, as he was brighter and more affectionate than ever. Dorian had no doubt Alex had made a significant contribution to Henry's happy demeanour.

The next morning, he got dressed in the shorts that he'd sewed to match the bomber jacket he wanted to wear and tucked the ring he'd bought for Gansey inside a pocket. He didn't know when he would need it, after all.

Dorian had stayed up late into the night with Henry and Alex, and he was exhausted when Gansey started talking about driving to Lexington. Alex was curled up against him on the couch as Henry and Gansey talked, sleepily nursing a coffee and mumbling something about "morning people". Dorian leaned his head on his friend's shoulder and nodded in agreement. So they let their energetic boyfriends convince them to nap in the car.

Curled up with Alex in the back seat of the Pig, he drifted in and out as he felt the car get on the highway and head for Lexington. He smiled as he fell asleep against his friend, knowing he would wake up at home.

•••

Gansey drove fast, worried that Dorian would wake at any minute and realise they had driven slightly past Lexington and up into the mountains. Henry checked on him and Alex every couple of minutes, but both boys seemed to be fast asleep.

When they got near the church, Gansey stopped and let Henry and Alex out near Ronan's parked truck at the highway exit. Leo's car was also there, as well as Cala's. Meaning Opal and Penelope were with them as promised. They would walk down the road and meet Gansey and Dorian at the churchyard.

He drove carefully down the dirt road, trying to avoid any significant bumps, and parked off to the side of the churchyard entrance. He checked his waistcoat pocket for the ring once more and studied the array of lights before him before he reached into the backseat and gently woke Dorian.

"Jack? We're here."

"What? Where are we?" he asked as he sat up in the back of the Pig, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. "Where's Henry? And Alex?"

Gansey just smiled at him and helped him out of the car.

•••

Dorian had known. Even in the back of his mind, he had known where they were going when Gansey and Henry had been talking about driving into Lexington. He'd known it was going to be a lovely proposal by how Tristan had talked about it, but all this still took his breath away.

Along the trees in the churchyard and what remained of the church itself, hundreds of fairy lights were draped. Ronan's dream flowers— the leaves and petals all strangely shaped and glowing slightly in the dark— were growing around the crumbling church and  lit candles lined the steps up to the ruins of the building.

Dorian clapped his hand to his mouth as he stared at the beautifully organised set up glittering in the twilight.

•••

Gansey took Dorian's hand and led him into the churchyard. He hadn't removed his hand from his mouth and Gansey could tell he was trying not to cry.

He brought his boyfriend to a dry space at the top of the flower-and-candle-strewn steps to the abandoned church and watched as Dorian's eyes flicked up and he gasped behind his hand. The others must have joined them.