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He likes his apartment. It is spacious (for a single man with no kids), it has big windows that make the entire thing look open and light filtered in most of the day from where it is facing the outside; the stairs up to his bedroom, closet and bathroom allow him to keep active while he is cramped inside; the colors he wants to change, indeed he had been planning on re-decorating the entire place, but given the current circumstances, that’s going to have to wait.
Sebastian had woken up that morning and had jumped into the shower before he went to make tea (and coffee) because it was needed this early in the morning, to make him feel more awake in the endless days of not doing much. Another very important thing was that he needed to be presentable for the video call he had agreed to do with Don and Zack. Don had called him the night before to talk him into this interview (that wasn’t really one) with his friend Zack Zeigler, who was also into the fitness business and had a YouTube channel where he liked to talk about fitness related things and most important now, how were people coping with not being able to keep up their activities because of this staying at home rule.
It hadn’t taken Don a whole lot of convincing, he was going to be there and Sebastian had heard about Zack once or twice while he was still going to the gym. He was nice, funny too, so there really wasn’t a problem with the whole interview and sharing a nice time with people outside of the apartment. Besides, he was missing Don a whole lot, just another good excuse to take part into it.
He had enough time to get his coffee maker set up and prepare his tea mug before he was setting his computer on the kitchen isle and letting it load while he was pouring boiling water into his mug. Sebastian thought about going upstairs to grab his earphones but thought better of it, too lazy to do so and second of all, he didn’t want to make too much noise. So he sat down and opened his Skype and waited for the other two men on this interview to show up.
Don came online first and sent him a message right off the bat.
[Don S: Seb!! Long time no seeing you, brother.]
[Stan Sebastian: Wasn’t all that long ago, dude. Called me yesterday, remember?]
That made him laugh, the phone call had been a nice one, even if it wasn’t all that long.
[Don S: Not the same as seeing that handsome face!]
Another soft laughter left his mouth just in time for Zack to come online too, already sending invitations to both Don and him so they could join the group video call. Before Sebastian clicked on it, his eyes drifted up the stairs, ears trying to catch any noises that could come, but nothing happened, so he shrugged and turned to his computer and entered the group interview.
It was fun to talk to them; they had important things to mention and made him feel like he wasn’t the only one feeling like he was losing his mind a little bit. He wasn’t Don or Zack when it came to fitness, but he had been training with Don for at least 7 years and he was used to being able to go to the gym, to work out, leave his house, feel like he had a purpose or at least a destination in mind at least four times a week, when Don let up on his training, other times it was every single day, Saturday included. But even when it was tiring, Sebastian enjoyed it, he was feeling so good about himself lately that spending that little extra time training wasn’t a task anymore. He had known some pretty awesome people too, and that was a plus that he was never going to deny.
Two minutes into his little video chat they were talking about how being in quarantine (alone or with family) was. Yes, Sebastian was the one who was alone, as stated into the interview. Conversation continue on about routines, the impact it would make on people and younger generations, jumping then to training routines and the family time they hadn’t had in the past. It jumped then to how Sebastian was literally pissed about people not taking this whole thing seriously. He actually used the expression ‘Dumb Fucks’, getting his interview partners to agree with him.
News, the struggle, how was the best way to help, more exercise related topics…
‘It’s funny because, it’s like how do-.‘
He was in the middle of talking about some very important shit when the bark came, loud in his open apartment, the other two men were still listening intently at him when a brown small body rushed down the stairs, full speed and moved towards the kitchen. Another noise came right after, footsteps on the stairs and a body that was moving too fast for how heavy he was. His voice ringing on the apartment too as he called for: ‘Dodger!’
There was no way that Sebastian was going to cover that one. Don’s face was showing his amusement and the only thing Zack was able to say was: ‘Don’t worry, I’ll edit this.’ Sebastian’s face had never been as red as it was right now, the fact that Don’s booming laughter was filtering through the speakers on his computer wasn’t helping at all either.
‘That doesn’t look like you are in quarantine alone, Brother.’
Chris heard it loud and clear and stopped dead in his track, eyes wide as he looked from Seb towards his computer and back again, regret coming all over those handsome features, hand covering his mouth.
‘Hey, Chris, it is very nice to meet you, this is Zack, a good friend of mine.’
It was such a Don thing to do, trying to make the best out of a situation, even when Sebastian was trying his very best to keep his eyes down and away from everyone. Chris’ lips turned up a little, thankful for the man he didn’t really know but had heard a whole lot about; he waved toward the camera and then spoke.
‘Sorry about that… My dog doesn’t know how to be socially respectful.’
Zack laughed and so did Don, but Chris’ eyes were on the back of Sebastian’s head. The man had told him last night about the interview and the video call and how he was going to get up early to be able to do it, but Chris was more than welcome to continue to sleep and come down for breakfast once he was done with both. But then again, Dodger wanted out and also wanted food, Chris had done his very best to stop the little one from running down stairs. He felt terrible about the whole thing.
‘Seb?’
Finally looking up at the people on camera, he smiled politely and excused himself before he muted the whole thing and stood up to walk around the counter, Chris following him behind, Dodger wagging his tail as he waited for one of them to feed him.
Sebastian wasn’t really mad, he was just really embarrassed about the whole thing because now he had been caught in a lie, he had lied to Don, who was one of his closest friends, and to Zack… he wasn’t friends with the guy, but lying was never something he felt comfortable with. But now there he was, his biggest secret out… even when it wasn’t to the whole world, because Zack was nice enough to tell him he was going to edit the whole thing, he still felt his stomach bottom out to the floor. His eyes looked at Chris, who was still frowning, hands on the counter top, doing his best to give Sebastian the distance he didn’t asked for.
‘Baby, I’m so sorry. I really did try my best to stop him, but he got away from me. You know I would never have done that on purpose. Shit! Seb, I fucked up so bad!’
Chris’ hands came up to cover his face, eyes already filling out with tears he was trying to keep from falling. He guessed it was endearing enough because his frown melted into a soft smile, his heart doing summersaults inside his chest and his hands were reaching out to hold onto his wrists, moving his hands away so he could look into those magnificent blue eyes he loved so damn much.
‘Honey… no, don’t do that.’
He took hold of Chris' hands and pulled him closer when his body went pliant.
‘I’m not mad at you or Dodger for that matter. It was an accident and Zack is kind enough not to mention this. If he does, we’ll know and we’ll sue him.’
He was joking of course; there was no way either Don or Zack were going to go tell about this little incident. Don was going to ask though, why he hadn’t mentioned it before, but he knew him well enough to know he wasn’t going to get mad. Chris took a deep breath, gauging the reaction and making sure Sebastian actually meant what he was saying, apparently what he saw was convincing enough because on the next second he was actually smiling and closing the gap between them to press a tender kiss to Sebastian’s lips.
They laughed then, Dodger who had been quiet for the moment, barked again to call for their attention and demand his breakfast. Sebastian pulled away from the kiss only to scratch the friendly pup on the head.
‘Alright, alright… You win. But quiet, I still have an interview to finish.’
Dodger answered with more tail wagging before he was pawing at Chris’ pant leg. The taller man nodded and planted another firm kiss on Sebastian’s lips before he was pulling away and saying:
‘We’ll go out for a quick bathroom break, you finish that. And then you are all mine, you promised yesterday.’
Sebastian laughed and nodded, knowing once he was done with this he was going to spend the whole day snuggling Chris on the couch and watching very bad movies or doing some work out or playing with Dodger.
The door closed behind his boyfriend and their beloved dog and with that Sebastian sat down in front of his computer again, unmuting his microphone and smiling at the two other men as they greeted him back into their little conversation. Sebastian took a deep breath and said:
‘Zack… thank you for-‘
The man in question held up a hand, smiled real big and shook his head.
‘Don’t even mention it, man. No worries.’
Don jumped right in then, talking about the makeover he had done to the room he was currently in, transforming it into a home gym. The conversation continued its natural course then, the main purpose of it fulfilled and Sebastian was feeling so much better about the whole thing. No one made a big fuss about a thing and the actor couldn’t have been more grateful for the people he was surrounded with.
Twenty two minutes later or maybe a little more, the interview was done, Zack was thanking him for his time and Don was telling him he loved him, making invitations for him to join in on his home workout IGTVs. Sebastian agreed, thanked Zack back, not only for the opportunity but for his discretion and logged out of Skype and closed his laptop. Just in time for Chris and Dodger to walk inside again.
The smile that covered his boyfriend’s face made his heart flutter inside his chest again. True… he wasn’t in quarantine alone, he had the best company he could ever ask for. And maybe it wasn’t such a bad thing that more people knew about them than just their families and a few close friends. Sebastian really loved this goofball of a man and his dog.
‘I’ll feed Dodger and then I’ll come help you with breakfast.’ Chris said as he dropped the keys by the front door and then walked pass him towards the pantry where the dog food was, all the while pressing a kiss to his forehead.
Sebastian nodded and whispered a very soft ‘okay’ back to him, Dodger’s small body sitting right next to him, face up, tongue hanging out, a happy little fellow sharing his joy.
‘Love you too, buddy.’
He said, to both the dog and the man, and then moved towards the fridge to get all the ingredients he would need to start on breakfast.
He was indeed in the best company.