The hangman's first love

09 One big and two small problems

Warning: This episode is a bit ... uhm ... steamy. Not really NSFW but ... hot. Enjoy :)

~~~

"Hey Cole?" Jay stood at the door and lurked into the room. He held a pillow and the pot with ointment in his hands. It was already late but he wasn't dressed for the night and wore still his blue dress  and the bonnet. 

"Huh?" Cole made and smiled a bit.

"Uhm you seemed to be a bit stiff today. So I thought I could treat your shoulder once more?"

"Well, it still hurts," Cole answered, but he was more confused and curious about the pillow. "What's that for?"

Jay blushed heavily and it took a while before he stepped into the room and answered the question. "Well, uhm, there was someone outside the house the last few nights."

"What? Who?" asked Cole and frowned. He couldn't believe he hadn't notice something like that.

"I'm not quite sure." Jay shrugged. "Pater Zane told me that he had heard rumors about someone spying on us. And if they notice that I," he stopped immediately and his eyes went dark. "I think I shouldn't be sleeping in a separate room."

"Why should someone care ... oh!" Cole remembered that some people still believed Jay was an evil witch who might have cast a spell over him to save her own life. "Oh, I see. But do you really think someone will notice where you sleep?"

"I," he stopped and cleared his throat. It seemed like he didn't know what to say while his face was flushing red. "If you don't mind, I would prefer to sleep here. It ... it feels much safer."

Cole blinked a few times. Was he dreaming? Did Jay really want to sleep next to him to feel more secure? "Uhm sure, make yourself at home!"

Jay took a deep, relieved breath and threw his pillow on the bed. "Thank you. And now take off your shirt."

A little laughter tickled in Cole's throat, but Jay didn't seem to notice his poor choice of words, so he tried to ignore the dirty thoughts and bad jokes his brain spat out. Instead he did what he was told and took off his shirt.

While Jay treated his shoulder with the fragrant ointment, Cole thought a lot about the past few days and the newest development between him and his ... his ... husband? What a strange word ... and what a strange concept behind it. Jay did what every good wife would do: taking care of the household and family. But nevertheless Cole was certain Jay wouldn't like to be called a wife – his wife! At least not at the moment. But what about the word and concept of a husband? Sure, Cole fulfilled the archetypal characteristics for that: He was the one who earned money for his daily work and provided the family and it was his house where they lived in. But did that make him more of a husband than Jay? Should he maybe consider to invent a new word? Partner? He had already used that term for Jay once. But it still didn't feel right.

"What are you thinking?" Jay asked quietly.

"Uhm nothing."

"Uh-uh," made Jay. "You're not so stiff from nothing. Your muscles feel hard like stone."

Cole took a deep breath and turned his head. Jay's gaze was so warm and full of friendliness, that his heart skipped a beat. This kind of open and warm look was it, that had made him fall for Jay once, and every time he saw him anew. "I thought about us and our ... well our," he shrugged and searched for a better word but wasn't able to finde one, so he just gave up and used the common description. "Our relationship."

"Oh," Jay chuckled. "You mean because I asked you to sleep here?"

"Wha-? No!" Cole huffed and scooted uncomfortably to the side, away from Jay. "I just try to understand why you changed your mind about me in only one night and what that means."