At Odd's Ends (Bruce Kulick x Eric Carr)

Ch 23: Make Up

I snuggled up closer against Bruce, wrapping my arms around his waist and resting my head on his chest. I felt instantly soothed by the steady and constant beating of his heart and closed my eyes, pulling the blankets higher over us. "Mm good morning," he murmured, patting me on the head. "Morning. I love you," I said gently, opening my eyes to look up at him. He gave me a fond smile, eyes shining. "Love you too." 

There was a long pause as I clung even more to him, wrapping my legs around his and burying my face even more in his bare chest. He laughed, slipping an arm around my shoulders. "Damn, you just super affectionate to make up for hurting my feelings and making me fight with Paul?" he teased. I winced, letting him go. "Sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you. Or-or to make you uncomfortable just now," I mumbled, face burning. 

"Aw no Eric don't be like that! I was just kidding, you know I love you," he said. "It's okay, you weren't making me uncomfortable, I love it when you do stuff like that. You're like a little sloth, it's adorable and I love it." "I still feel really bad for what happened," I whispered, turning away from him. He put a hand on my shoulder, rolling me back over so I had to look him in the eyes. "Listen to me. I'm over it, alright? Paul and I are both over what you and Gene did. I'm really happy with you, I'm really glad we're together! Don't be upset still. If anything, you two were right. The four of us are all happier with this outcome," he said, kissing me on the forehead. 

I tried and failed to force a smile and his eyes immediately filled with worry, making me feel even worse. "Er Bear, come on. Don't be like this," he murmured, putting a hand on my cheek and gently lifting my face toward his. "I'm sorry! I just feel bad still, I feel like I haven't done enough to make it up to you." "You don't have to do anything, I promise! You don't even need to feel bad because I'm not upset with you and it's all okay now and as long as we're together I'm happy," he said, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear. "Well I know but-" "Eric. I said it's okay. Just let it go," he said in a firm voice. 

Wincing, I nodded, going back to cuddling with him. "But come on, let's get up. Gene and Paul wanted to meet up with us for lunch and it's like ten," he said, prying me off of him. "Aw but babe! Just a few more minutes?" I begged. "We'll have plenty of time when we're back from lunch," he said simply, kissing me and sliding out of bed. I watched as he got dressed, admiring how he looked, before jumping to my feet and throwing on some clothes. "Alright, let's go," Bruce said, taking my hand and pulling me into a kiss before leading me out of his house. 

It was nice to meet up with Gene and Paul since it had been a few weeks since we'd seen them. I tried to enjoy the meal and just allow myself to relax and be happy with Bruce and my friends, but I still couldn't help but feel guilty about what Gene and I had done. After the meal, I pulled Gene aside, feeling my face turning red. "Look, um...what did you do to make it up to Paul? For making him and Bruce fight so much and stuff," I said. Gene gave me a baffled look. "Uh...nothing? I just apologized and we talked it through and made up and we're all good now. Why? Are you and Bruce like arguing about it or something?" 

"No no he keeps telling me it's fine but I just feel really bad and I wanna fix it somehow and I don't know how," I said sheepishly. "Well, if he says it's fine, it's probably fine," Gene said slowly, but I shook my head. "No! It's not fine! I gotta make it up to him somehow!" I protested. "Well I know but I don't think you should like overreact about--" "No! If you're not gonna be helpful just forget it!" I snapped, turning on my heel and walking off, rejoining Bruce. He picked up my hand, lacing his fingers through mine and giving it a squeeze. "Ready to go back to my place?" he asked. "Hm, actually let me run to the store, I gotta grab something," I said, and he nodded. "Sounds good, I'll drop you off at your apartment," he said.

I pushed myself up onto my toes and gave him a kiss. "Thanks babe, you're the best," I said. "Yeah, I know," he teased, kissing me back. The instant he dropped me off at my apartment I ran to my car, heading off to the florist. The bell above the door rang as I walked inside and I gave the lady behind the counter a smile. "Hello, what can I do for you today?" she asked. "Um...I'm looking for a bouquet to apologize to my...girlfriend," I said slowly, not really knowing why I was lying. "Oh, of course! For apologies we usually recommend a mixture of roses, lilies, and tulips. What are some of her favorite colors?" 

I froze, heart sinking as I realized I didn't even know the answer. "You know, I'm not...sure," I said, running a hand through my hair. "Maybe...blue and red?" "Well, I can work with those. What size bouquet would you like?" "Uh...like a medium one? Wait no make it a large one, it's kind of a lot to apologize for," I said. She nodded, jotting something down. "Well give me a few minutes and I'll see what I can put together." I waited in the front of the shop, fidgeting with the hem of my shirt before she walked back out, holding a bouquet of flowers. "Does this seem right?" 

"Oh, perfect! Thank you so much!" I said eagerly. "How much do I owe you?" "For a bouquet of this size, $70," she said, pressing a few buttons on the cash register. I let out a low whistle. "Damn, flowers are expensive," I mumbled to myself, but nevertheless I pulled out my credit card and paid for it. It was worth it, to make things better between Bruce and I. After paying, I grabbed the bouquet, walking to the car and driving to Bruce's house. 

Heart pounding, I rang the doorbell, clutching the flowers. There was a pause before he opened the door, giving me a surprised smile. "Oh, hey Eric! What's up?" he asked. "I got you flowers because I still feel bad about what I did b-but then I panicked and I said that you were my girlfriend and I feel really bad about that and I'm really sorry I don't know why I did that I didn't mean to!" I said in a rush, heart racing. 

"Eric, I told you you didn't have to do anything to make it up to me!" he cried, before taking the flowers and pulling me into a kiss. "I appreciate it babe, I really do, but it's not necessary!" "I know but I wanted to and now I feel bad because I said you were my girlfriend and I'm sorry!" He laughed, running a hand through my hair and planting a kiss on my forehead. "Shh, it's okay. Don't worry about it, really. Come on, come inside, I'll put these in a vase and then we can like watch a movie or something," he said cheerfully.

Despite how much he was telling me not to worry, I knew I still had to do a lot to make up for what I had done to him.