Aurélien Cullen thrived on chaos. Maybe that's why fate presented him with a werewolf for a soul mate. After all, what's more chaotic than a love that goes against your very Biology?
"You have such a beautiful soul, Seth Clearwater."
Seth Clearwater...
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"Seth," Aurélien whispered softly to his sleeping boyfriend, brushing inky hair away from a tan forehead affectionately. Every time they shared a bed, he found himself admiring Seth the way a blind person who'd been gifted the ability to see might look upon their very first they saw — with wonder and awe, finding everything, the perfections and flaws, to be stunning. If you truly loved someone, you never stop finding the things you first thought were beautiful, beautiful. In fact, you find more. As you familiarise yourself with everything about them, you discover things you'd never noticed and never thought you'd find so pretty. The way Seth's harsh exhalations as he slept sent his hair fluttering upwards; the way his russet coloured skin shone like the sun in the day and glowed like the moon when it was night; the way he would immediately react to any affection Aurélien showered him with: curling into the hugs, chasing after the kisses and leaning into the sweet touches. The longer they spent together, the more things he found about Seth to love.
The only response Aurélien received to his whisper was a nonsensical mumble and Seth burrowing further into his chest. At this point, he should just add being a personal pillow to his long list of acquired skills, alongside things like speaking numerous languages, playing many instruments and being an amazing cook despite not being able to actually eat food. This was probable his favourite skill yet because there was nothing quite like the warm feeling in his chest when Seth curled up against him; looking content and safe. Aurélien could never see himself wanting to be anywhere but cuddled up with his boyfriend.
"You need to get up, mon amour."
"Don't wanna."
"Don't you have a barbecue-slash-bonfire tonight to prepare for? And a visit from me," Aurélien reminded Seth, running his hands up and down the boy's spine in a motion that was completely counterproductive when it came to getting the both of them up and ready to go.
"Why did you have to remind me?" Seth groaned out, his face smushed against Aurélien's shoulder.
"Are you not looking forward to today's activities?"
"Are you insane?" Seth asked. "Spending my afternoon watching you get questioned endlessly by my mother and Leah, and then the evening sitting around with my pack members and their imprints, all of them ignoring the very obvious elephants in the room."
"Am I one of those elephants?"
"Yes. And Jacob's wedding fiasco. And fact I stayed with you after. And Bella and Edward's honeymoon. Actually, anything to do with Bella and Edward is pretty much taboo at the moment."
"Well at least it not all me," Aurélien said cheerfully. "Good to know that those three are causing more drama." Seth sent him a withering look, to which Aurélien only shrugged. It was genuinely comforting to know that he wasn't the only source of people's problems; Bella, Edward and Jacob were arguable overshadowing him, really.
"Just kill me now."
"No can do," Aurélien said, grinning down at the grumpy boy in his arms. "Carlisle is a pacifist and would disapprove of murder under his roof, I don't want your pack to hate me more than they do, and I don't feel like hiding a body today, if I'm being honest with you." Seth let out one of the longest sighs Aurélien had ever heard. "Do come on, rise and shine. Up an at 'em. Any other idioms."
Watching Seth haul himself out of bed, shuffle across the room and into the en-suite bathroom to take a shower was one of the most painful things Aurélien had ever had to witness. Mostly because the boy carried them out with such reluctance, and down right contempt, you would think he was walking to his death rather than preparing to get ready for the day. Aurélien was almost glad that he no longer slept and therefore no longer experienced the apparent torture that was waking up and starting the morning. Almost, because he often wished he could truly sleep beside Seth on the nights they shared a bed, not simply lie beside, as much as he enjoyed doing so.
"Do you want to borrow some clothes?" Aurélien offered when Seth exited the bathroom with a towel wrapped loosely around his waste (he definitely let his eyes linger in certain places). He had worn a pair of the French vampire's grey jogging bottoms and no t-shirt to bed, so really it shouldn't seem like such a big deal to wear his clothes. But still, there was something intimate in the action. To get out wearing someone else's clothes was to publicly declare the closeness of your relationship; and considering the entire pack would smell that the clothes belonged to Aurélien, it was even more of a big step. Neither of them were sure how aware they were about their relationship, especially considering they liked to ignore its existence.
"Sure," Seth said, reaching out to take the clothes Aurélien held. It was a pair of loose, denim jeans, a red t-shirt with a raised, clenched fist emblazoned on the front and a black hoodie with a white zip. He didn't recognise the brand, Seth assumed it must not be an American one. All the clothes seemed to have Aurélien's scent seeped in the material and it filled up the boy's senses. Soft vanilla and sharp mint, with the undertone of vampire that was vaguely reminiscent of sweet shop — slightly artificial but not unpleasant.
The moment for Seth's departure finally arrived and neither of the two really knew what to do with themselves. The previous evening and night had been a dream, in which they were simply two young boys hopelessly in love and high on the revelrous atmosphere. But now it was time to face reality. Seth had to return home, a place where Aurélien wasn't really supposed to go unless strictly necessary, and their relationship still had to bare the weight of their warring species. Every moment felt precious and stolen and slightly forbidden. It was always underlined by the fear that something would separate them, that a vampire and a werewolf could never make it work and it was only a matter of time. After all, their relationship was still a subject of contention among the pack.
"I have to go," Seth whispered softly, reaching across the space between their bodies to take Aurélien's hand in his.
"I know."
For a moment they just stared at their conjoined hands.
"I don't know why it feels like such a big deal, I'm seeing you again in a few hours," Seth said, his eyes still glued to their hands. He sniffed slightly and Aurélien hoped he wasn't about to cry because that would make him panic.
"I know," Aurélien agreed. "But it's because of that that you're anxious. Our relationship is easier when it's just us, no eyewitnesses and no one to remind us of the problems we face. It's just Seth and Aurélien and the only important thing is how we feel about each other. We're boyfriends, mates, imprinted. But we don't have to think about the gravity of that because of what we are, because we're just us."
"How is it you're always able to explain things so well? I struggle to put my feelings into words and you do it so eloquently, and you're not even the one feeling them."
"Practice. I've had years and years of practice when it comes to processing thoughts and emotions," Aurélien explained, drawing Seth in for a hug when he heard the raw emotion in his words. "The longer you live, the better you understand yourself. The better you understand yourself, the better you understand other people."
"It's times like this I remember how goddamn old you are," Seth said with a grin, laughing when Aurélien began to complain about his word choice. "Face it, you're super old."
It felt nice to just laugh together while they were wrapped up in each others arms. A moment of peace before the oncoming storm.
A/n: I know this was a lot shorter than the other chapters I've been writing recently but i wanted Aurélien's visit and Seth's birthday bonfire in one chapter and it would've been too long on top of this. But I'll be back to chapters with a minimum of 2000 words after this.
