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“If you peek, I’ll never forgive you,” Benji said, glancing back.
“B, I know this house like the back of my hand. I know exactly where we’ve been.” Victor squeezed his hand, shrugging. “And this blindfold is really good.”
Benji grinned. “Okay, where are we?”
“Hmm, living room?”
Dammit.
“How do you know?”
“I have stumbled around this house more times in the dark then I like to admit.”
Benji rolled his eyes fondly, pulling Victor to the middle of the room. “You and your midnight snacks.”
“Eight hours is too long to go without food.”
“For you, maybe,” he said with a chuckle.
Victor laughed along with him. “All part of the routine.”
Benji hummed. Victor had been an NBA player for a good number of years now, with the Atlanta Hawks. He had, in some way, become knowledgeable of all the statistics in basketball over the years due to watching Victor and learning about the sport. Mainly an expert in statistics when it came to Victor and his personal stats, but still, Benji knew a lot these days. Certainly more than he ever did back at the beginning. He even enjoyed watching the sport, when he could tear his eyes off Victor for more than two seconds.
“You are a ridiculous man, sweetheart,” Benji said as he pulled Victor to a stop, by the sliding doors to their garden.
“And you have officially taken me in a big circle.”
Benji gave the thumbs up to his helpers outside, and they scampered off. He was still surprised they had come down for this, but when he had briefly mentioned his plans in passing, they had been adamant. “We started in the kitchen.”
Victor huffed. “The kitchen is like…” He reached out, his right hand hitting against the double doors, “right here.”
Benji laughed brightly. God, he loved him so, so much. “Oh, yeah, I guess it is.”
A warm sigh escaped Victor’s lips, and Benji knew he was rolling his eyes underneath the blindfold. “You are the ridiculous man, with your songs, and your gestures, and your love.”
“Ooo, a list of three, fancy.”
Victor squeezed his hand. “It’s not that fancy.”
Benji laughed again, grinning, breathing shakily. He was glad for this quick distraction, because he was so nervous. “I’m the musician here, I know that it is very fancy.”
“Mhm. Is that why you use it sparingly in your songs?”
“Touché.”
Victor knocked his shoulder. “Come on, where next?”
“We’re here.”
“Oh?”
Benji smiled, staring out at what was before them. He stepped forward and slid the door wide open, squeezing Victor’s hand. “Are you ready?”
Victor’s expression (of what Benji could see) went soft and gentle. “Yeah.”
Benji reached up and undid the blindfold, letting it fall into his hands. He stood before Victor, grinning at him. And for a moment, Victor smiled at Benji, until his eyes shifted to the garden, and his jaw fell open. Benji turned slightly, eyes both on Victor and the garden. His helpers had done a lot of work in a short space of time, getting everything set up.
In their garden stood a homemade sign that had taken Benji about a week to complete. Having to keep it hidden at his friend’s house. The art of the sign had taken the most amount of work, the writing took significantly less. But the colours had been a mess to mix together, getting the right tones and shades was never an easy task. And it was a rather large thing, about the size of their dwarf apple tree.
The art was based off a very old picture of them. It had been taken when they were seventeen and sixteen, at the start really. It had been a hot day, in the middle of summer, and Benji had dragged Victor out just before the midday sun to their favourite park, near a bunch of trees. And they had sat on a large tree stump, sun shining on them. Victor had taken out his phone for a selfie, grinning like a loon with his arm wrapped around Benji, and he had beamed just the same, curling his pinky around Victor’s like the picture was a promise.
And Victor had said ‘Say until the end of time!’ just before taking the picture, and the result of that… Benji had never thought his words would have been repeated to him in such a way, and his smile had gone so soft, the beam clear in his eyes. And Victor had this glint in his eye, like he knew exactly what he was doing, his grin so bright that the picture instantly cheered Benji up whenever he was down.
It had felt suiting to paint that picture upon the sign. The words, rich with the colour of metallic gold, surrounded by rainbows and musical notes and a basketball here and there, were simple yet, and hopefully, effective.
‘Until the end of time?
Victor, sweetheart, will you marry me?’
“Oh… my god,” Victor whispered, his grin growing. “Oh my god I will be right back.” He turned and ran down their wide hallway, swerving around to the stairs and sprinting up them. “Oh my god!” he shouted. “Oh! My! God!” Soon enough he was running back down the hall, something clutched in his hand. “Oh… my… god… Benji.”
Benji raised his eyebrows, his heart going a million miles an hour. Was this… This had to be a good reaction right? It just… had to be. “What…?” he asked, baffled. He hadn’t even gotten on one knee yet, hadn’t had the time.
Victor presented the box to Benji, opening it with ease, falling to one knee. “You ruined all of my plans.”
The… the ring inside was– He knew from the very first look that Victor had chosen it to compliment the rest of his rings while also standing out. It had a thick silver band with a green gem – which seemed to be jade – sticking out of the top. It was… so amazing.
Benji pulled his own ring box out of his pocket, getting down on one knee. He opened it up, showing it to Victor with a smile. The ring he had chosen was a silver band, with sapphire running along the middle and diamonds encrusted at each side. “What were your plans?”
Victor smiled, ducking his head. “I was going to take us on the scenic route to our spot. Right at the stump.”
Benji couldn’t stop himself from beaming at the mere thought. Of the stump where that picture was taken, imagining Victor on one knee, saying the words, possibly repeating the same thing. It had become a joke, really, but now it very much wasn’t. “You could still do it.”
“Nah, this is perfect.” Victor tilted his head. “So, is that a yes?”
Benji grinned, biting at his bottom lip. “I asked you first.”
A laugh burst from Victor, and it was so joyful, and he was so smiley. “Yes. You?”
With a snort and a smile Benji said, “Yes, of course, yes.”
They grinned at each other, and, oh my god, this was happening, it was real. Victor had said yes, they were going to get married, they were fiancés now! Not only that, but Victor had also planned a proposal at exactly the same time! Which was so on brand for them. They were always so in sync that for years now, the people close to them had been saying they were like an old married couple. But not in the bickering sense, just the… knowing everything there was to know about the other sense.
Ever since the beginning they had been on the same wavelength. Victor always knew what Benji needed from his body language. And Benji always knew what Victor needed from a single shift in expression.
Victor plucked the ring from its box, holding it up. “Can we exchange rings now? And can I go first?”
Benji smiled. “Yeah.” He extended his left hand and Victor slipped the ring on, which fitted absolutely perfectly. It was so much prettier out of its box, and it would definitely go with all of his jewellery. Victor just knew him, he really was the love of his life… “Your turn.”
Victor offered his hand, wiggling his fingers. “Slip it on.”
Benji scoffed a laugh, shaking his head, his grin bright as he pulled the ring from its box. He pushed it onto Victor’s finger, sighing with relief as it fit as if it was made for him alone. “It’s so beautiful on you.”
Victor wiggled his fingers once again, twisting the ring around his finger. “It’s perfect. I love it.”
“I love yours too. You know me so well.”
“I would hope so. I am your fiancé after all.”
“Use that word often,” Benji whispered, his heart about to explode, “and I’ll be happy forever.”
“Happier when it’s husband though?”
“Yeah, even happier then.”
“Good.” Victor knelt on both his knees, moving close. He cupped Benji’s jaw, and the ring was such a different feeling against his skin, but it was a welcome one. “I love you.”
Benji curled his hand into Victor’s hair. “I love you too.”
They met halfway, their lips coming together like it was the first time. It always felt like that, when they moved together, as Benji got lost and began brushing his fingers through Victor’s hair, as Victor could never settle on where he wanted his hands. Because of all the emotions their kisses could spark. The soft slow exchange of love that this kiss was blew Benji away. The joy, the love, the promise, he could feel it all.
And he pressed into Victor, telling him with a gentle nip of his lips that he was his forever, always.
When they pulled away, Benji rocked towards Victor, pressing their foreheads together, his eyes still closed. He smiled, licking his lips. God, it was intoxicating, to be close, to kiss, to know they would be married sometime in the future. It was… It just was.
For a musician he was lacking the words he so dearly needed right now. But he supposed he was allowed to lose a little of his eloquence when his heart was daring to beat out of his chest, how his whole body flared with love.
“I have another surprise,” Benji said, pulling away.
Victor raised his eyebrows. “Oh?”
He stood up, offering his hands to Victor, which he accepted, and he pulled him to his feet. Turning on his heel, Benji stepped out onto their decking.
“You guys can come out now!” he shouted, smiling as he shot a glance over his shoulder, watching Victor’s expression morph into his excitedly curious one.
All of a sudden, Simon, Bram, Abby, and Leah came running around from the corner, all smashing into each other as Abby on the far side stopped suddenly. All of them were grinning, and looked as if they had been waiting for Benji to call out for them. They probably hadn’t even gone that far, in fact, he was sure they had been peeking around the corner, especially with how quickly they had appeared.
“Well?!” Simon shouted.
Victor stepped outside, movements slow, confused. “You guys are here? Why?”
Leah shrugged. “It’s Simon’s fault, and someone had to put up the,” She pointed with her thumb over her shoulder, at the sign, “the… thing Benji made.”
“It’s a sign,” Benji said, walking down the stairs to stand with the others on the grass. Victor came up beside him.
She nodded slowly. “Yeah, it’s like seven foot.”
“Still a sign.”
She rolled her eyes with a smile.
“Anyway, what did you say, Victor?!” Bram half squealed, and Benji was sure the last time he saw him this excited was on his wedding day.
“Obviously yes,” Victor replied, holding his hand up, wiggling his fingers again.
“Yes!” all four of them shouted. Abby jumped, actually jumped, Leah grinned, and Simon and Bram high fived, pulling each other into a brief hug.
“Our son is gonna get married,” Simon said to Bram, beaming at him. And once again, the joke continued on.
Bram turned to Victor, stepping forward. “Oh, Victor, you’ve made it so far.” He wiped under his eye, and to Benji’s surprise, there were tears there. Wasn’t just some dramatic gesture. “You make your gay dad so proud.”
Victor fondly rolled his eyes, smiling bright, and doing that twisty smile and hunched shoulders thing he only did when Simon and Bram went all gay dads on him. “You are such a dramatic gay, Bram. And Simon, are you crying too?!”
“My son is getting married, of course I’m crying!”
Abby and Leah broke down into giggles, holding onto each other, shaking their heads at Simon and Bram. To which the two of them rolled their eyes, and shrugged their laughter off. And Benji just smiled, because this was their queer found family. Well, there was more to this family, but Simon and Bram were super important to Victor. Leah and Abby had been introduced to them about… six years ago, and they had loved them ever since.
There was Justin and Ivy and Kim, who they knew less but Victor loved them all the same whenever they all caught up on video chat, along with Simon and Bram, and Benji loved them too. And there was of course Felix, Lake, Andrew, and Mia, who had all come out in their college years. Mia was pan, Andrew and Lake were bi, and Felix was nonbinary and bi. And Benji was so glad their group ended up being the ‘queer people group together’ trope.
But they weren’t here, mostly because he hadn’t mentioned it to anyone but Simon.
It had only been in passing, about a month ago, but Simon, being the absolute dramatic he was, decided he wanted to help. So he and Bram had come down earlier in the week, and since Abby and Leah had been visiting them, they dragged them along. He was sure he had seen Bram cry three times this week already, and he had cried with joy the first time he had told him. Same with Simon, but he had cried more.
They were both ridiculous. And Abby and Leah were heroes for keeping them in check all week. They were awesome, and Benji had never expected them to help, but Simon and Bram had been really persistent about it. Apparently, Leah and Abby were always happy to help ‘hopeless gays’, as they had called Benji and Victor, and had indirectly called Simon and Bram.
“It’s not the end of the story,” Victor said with a grin.
Benji huffed a laugh, slowly grinning. He extended his hand, showing off his ring. “I wasn’t the only one.”
Bram moved closer, observing the ring, before his eyes shifted to Victor. “Oh you sly… Why didn’t you say something?!”
Victor shrugged. “I bought the ring on impulse. I had barely come up with a plan.”
Upon hearing this, Benji nearly fell to the floor laughing. He moved closer to Victor and pulled him into a hug. “Never ever stop being your impulsive self.”
Victor laughed, pulling back. “Okay, you’ll regret saying that.”
“Never,” Benji asserted. He turned back to the group. “So, it turned out we both kinda proposed.”
Simon covered his mouth, smiling so much while also looking like he was about to break down sobbing. “This is so beautiful.” He patted Bram on the arm until he turned to face him. “Our sons did the gay both proposing thing.”
“Oh, it’s ‘our sons’ now?” Leah asked with a straight face, but Benji could tell she was about ten seconds away from crying with laughter.
“Of course it is,” Bram replied, gesturing to Benji. “Victor is marrying him, so we’ll have a son-in-law.”
Leah exchanged a look with Abby, almost as if they were deciding whether to tease them more or leave it be. In the end, Abby turned to Victor, smile bright, in that very Abby way that just screamed the purest happiness.
“So… what inspired the green gemmed silver ring impulse buy?” she asked.
Victor’s everlasting smile softened. And from seeing that smile alone, Benji knew he fell a little deeper in love. “I saw it in the window when passing a shop, and I don’t know… it felt right. I was already planning things, but the ring set everything in motion.” He turned to Benji. “Until someone ruined my plans.”
Benji grinned at him. “But this was good, right?”
“Oh yeah.” Victor gestured to the sign. “We’re hanging that up on the house.”
Abby spluttered. “On the house?”
“Yep.”
Benji glanced over his shoulder, narrowing his eyes. “Oh! It can go on the side!”
“Exactly what I was thinking, babe.” Victor leant down and kissed him on the cheek, and Benji blushed a bit, like he was still some high school kid. He blamed the audience.
“And your choice of ring, Benji? What inspired you to get that one?” Leah asked, a knowing glint in her eye. They all knew… So, why ask?
“You know why?” he said.
“But does Victor?” Simon added, smirking.
Benji rolled his eyes at the antics and ducked his head. “He doesn’t know… anything about that.”
“I don’t know… what?” Victor pressed his hand up against Benji’s back, rubbing circles into the space between his shoulder blades. It was the fastest way to get him to calm down and open up, and Victor abused that power all the time.
Benji glanced up to him, his cheeks heating up a lot now. “This might sound weird…”
Victor shrugged, his eyes soft. “You’re my fiancé, nothing is weird.”
Benji pressed his lips together, hunching his shoulders up. “You’re… blue to me. You feel blue? So when I saw the simple band with diamonds and sapphire running down the middle, it just felt like you…”
Victor held his left hand with his right, twirling the ring around. “So… to you, this ring feels like me?”
“Like an embodiment.”
Benji breathed shakily, watching Victor carefully. Never did his judgemental expression cross his face, just pure bewilderment. It didn’t calm his insecurities completely, but it helped.
“Huh.” Victor smiled, his eyes still soft. “I can’t believe there’s always new things to find out about you.” He kissed the top of Benji’s head, wrapping an arm around him, and Benji melted into it, leaning into him. Victor was just… the best person on the entire planet and he couldn’t wait to marry him.
He loved him so much.
Bram mock sniffed, wiping his eyes again, and this time there were no tears. “This is so soft and tender and gay.”
“So gay,” Simon chimed in.
Leah and Abby nodded along with grins, before Abby sorta turned on her heel to Leah. “Shall we go…?”
Leah nodded, she looked to the two of them, smiling sheepishly. “Sorry, we have to run. Someone decided to say yes to a family lunch that I still swear we could have gotten out of.”
Abby rolled her eyes. “They would have begged us until we went, I did us a favour.”
Leah tilted her head back and forth. “Okay…”
“You know I’m right!” She playfully shoved at her arm, and they both dissolved into giggles.
Benji chuckled watching them, they really were a strange pair, but they were truly awesome together. “Hey, it’s cool, if you have to go to your family lunch, go. We won’t hold you back.”
“Seconded,” Victor said. “Just make sure you get to your destination safely and on time.”
Abby half pouted at Victor. “Why are you so sweet? No wonder Benji wants to marry you.”
Benji patted Victor’s stomach. “He’s sweet due to all the calories he inhales. Sugar’s in a lot of food.”
Victor laughed, shaking Benji a little. “You’re ridiculous.”
“Yeah.” He looked up and memorised those soft eyes in this one moment. They were chockfull of emotions, but always, always, when he looked at him, they were soft. And became even softer with every gaze, stare, glance. “I know.”
“Oh… they’re doing a thing,” Simon whispered to Bram, but it was in no way discreet, and Benji was sure everyone heard him.
“It’s a very nice thing,” Bram whispered back.
“Well, anyway,” Leah said, “we should get going.”
Abby made a small noise. “You just don’t like watching their intimate moments.”
Leah shook her head, gesturing to them vaguely. “They’re too much. It’s like a tooth-rooting fluff fic but in real life.”
“Writers hate them for making romance books obsolete,” Bram said, in a voice that sounded like something straight out of an old advert.
A ripple of laughter spread throughout the group, all except for Simon and Bram.
“Did you just–” Simon said, but quickly stopped talking, staring at his husband like he had grown another head.
Bram grinned, pressing his lips together like he was trying not to laugh. “Yes.”
Simon pursed his lips, shaking his head, before he too succumbed to the giggles, and Bram went down as well, and so another ripple of laughter burst from them all, because laughs really were that infectious. And the joke had been good. Even if it was an ancient meme at this point.
“Right,” Abby said, grin large. “we do have to go.”
“Well, thank you for coming and helping with the sign,” Victor said. “It was nice to see you.”
“It was nice to see you too.” Abby smiled. “We need to meet up more often.”
“Yeah, nice to see you,” Leah said, sorta plainly, like she was trying to pretend that she didn’t want to be here. But Benji knew she actually wanted to participate.
“Thank you,” he said, “for all the help. Honestly, I don’t know how I would have done the sign thing without you. Bram might be strong, but he’s not that strong, you know?”
“Hey! I’m here?!” Simon said, mouth gaping, looking to Bram as if he was saying ‘can you believe this guy?’.
“Yeah, but you’re painful unathletic,” Victor teased, his smile large. Benji loved whenever they brought up that old joke because it was so true. Simon, along with Lake, Leah, and Justin, were the least athletic of the lot of them.
Bram raised his eyebrows. “He has a point, Simon.”
“True, endlessly true,” Abby said, grabbing Leah’s hand. “And I’d love to hear more of this conversation, but we have to go.”
They said their final goodbyes, and Benji managed to thank them once more, before they were off and well and truly gone. He was sure the lot of them could have kept talking for hours on end, especially with how easy it was to tease each other. They all had weak points the others exploited for fun laughs. Nothing mean though, just fun innocent things.
“Wanna head inside?” Benji asked. “I could whip up everyone’s favourite coffee orders.”
“Oh, that’d be great,” Simon said, grinning.
Benji knew fine well Simon needed his iced coffee fix, he hadn’t even run for one this morning, because, and this was a direct quote, ‘A marriage proposal is more important than coffee, a former barista should know that’. And so, for the second time ever, Benji had seen Simon put something else above coffee.
They all headed inside, and as the others went to the living room, Benji slipped into the kitchen and got started. He did the iced coffees first, because they couldn’t cool any further on a spring day like this. He made sure to add milk to Bram’s, smiling as he recalled the story Simon told of five iced coffees having a terrible accident the first time Bram had been picked up by Simon for school.
Those cardboard containers could never be trusted.
Then he whipped up a sugary latte for himself, and a simple milky coffee for Victor. These days he drank a lot less coffee to avoid messing with his sleep schedule.
Soon everyone was settled with their drinks, Simon and Bram on one sofa, while Benji and Victor were curled up on their cosy comfy loveseat.
Bram nudged Simon. “So, which one will be obsessed with the plan?”
“Oh no,” Benji murmured. He knew exactly where this was going.
Simon thinned his lips, drinking a quarter of his coffee in one fell swoop. “That is not one I can answer. Pass.”
Victor chuckled. “It’ll be me.”
Benji quirked an eyebrow at him. “I think you’re forgetting what I get like.”
“Are you referring to the college thing?” He took a sip of his coffee as Benji nodded. “Yeah, no, I don’t accept that over all the shit I’ve done.”
Mulling over that for a second, Benji came to the conclusion that Victor was right. He was the one who wanted a plan to come together perfectly, always double and triple checking things. “I’ll give you that one.”
“More importantly,” Simon cut in, “have you guys ever talked about this before? What is the dream day here?”
Bram laughed, nudging Simon again. “You make it sound like a job interview instead of a fun question.”
Simon shrugged. “I guess I’ve gotten practice with the recent auditions.” He gestured towards Benji, but his eyes shifted between the both of them. “I know you’d like us to believe Victor is the romantic one in this relationship, but Benji, I know you were totally the type of child to dream up an entire wedding, so…?”
Benji glanced to Victor, then to Simon. He smiled slightly, and turned more to Victor, who was almost sort of leaning on him at this point. “Simon is hitting a weak spot right now, but hear me out, as a kid I always loved the idea of a three-foot cake, each layer decorated with memories.”
“That’s a lot of cake.” Victor grinned, brushing strands of Benji’s hair out of his face. “I love that idea. Each layer can be a different type of cake too.”
“Even better.”
Victor’s smile widened. “Three foot memory themed multiple different types of cake wedding cake it is then.”
“That…” Bram began, tilting his head. “That’s the best idea I’ve ever heard for a cake.”
Simon nodded along. “Yeah. See, I was right, Benji is the more romantic one.” He cheekily sent a grin their way, and Benji rolled his eyes at the call out. “Victor! Dream thing to have at your wedding, go!”
Victor twisted his mouth, narrowing his eyes slightly. “I… don’t know why but whenever I thought of weddings as a kid I always thought of blossom.”
Benji could see it now, a three foot cake with a backdrop of blossoming trees… He beamed, resting his head on Victor’s shoulder, staring up at him. “Spring wedding?”
Victor’s cheeks warmed and he ducked his head. “Maybe, if you’re in agreement.”
“Definitely in agreement.”
As Victor smiled softly at Benji, a flash went off. He didn’t need to look to know what had happened, but he did so anyway, and lo and behold, Bram was holding his camera sheepishly, smiling in a way that suggested he knew he was going to be caught in the act. Benji raised his eyebrows, not requiring an explanation, because Bram was well known to capture memories, but he wanted one anyway.
“Sorry,” Bram said, tapping away on his phone. “You looked cute, and I thought you’d want to see.”
Benji’s phone dinged, as did Victor’s. He reached over to the arm of the chair, where he’d placed his phone down, and quickly unlocked it. Bram had sent the message through a group chat in which only he, Victor, Simon, and Bram were in. And the picture… He tapped on it to make it bigger and, yeah, this one really explained their love.
Just a… tenderness. There always was to them. In Victor’s eyes, in Benji’s smile. A gentle sweet love, that was what they had.
Because Victor’s smile in the picture, paired with Benji’s, and their eyes, the way he was looking at Victor, the way Victor was looking at him, it screamed love so loudly it almost hurt to look at.
“Wow,” Benji breathed, unable to take his eyes off it.
“Yeah,” Victor said quietly, peering down at Benji’s phone. His fingers flexed where his hand rested at his waist, and he took a sip of his coffee. “Put that picture in the ‘until the end of time’ folder.”
Simon spluttered, choking (perhaps on a sip of his iced coffee). “You have a what folder? Like you have a folder named what you put on the sign?”
“Yeah.” Benji moved the picture over to their special folder, smiling at the rows of memories staring back at him. Over their seven years together. “For all the pictures that explain what our love is like.”
Bram hummed. “The softness?”
Victor clicked his fingers, pointing towards Bram. “Yeah! That’s the criteria.”
Simon gaped at them, looking to Bram. “Can we go back to the ‘they have a special folder for their lovey dovey pictures’ please?”
Bram chuckled, in that deep and gentle way he did when Simon was being silly. And yes, Benji had catalogued their relationship quirks. “Darling, I think we have to admit Victor and Benji shouldn’t surprise us with their romance anymore. Case in point, the sign outside.”
Simon nodded, lips pressed together. “Yeah, you’re right.” His eyes flicked over to Benji. “Can I just say again that sign was something else.”
Benji raised his head from Victor’s shoulder, eyes dipping to the ground. “I mean–”
Victor smoothed his hand up Benji’s side to rest at his shoulder. He squeezed three times, promptly cutting him off. His fingers brushed at his neck, just to shut him up thoroughly. “It was amazing.” His eyes were focused on Simon, but his grip was a constant presence of ‘don’t speak until I’m done’, reassuringly warm. “We’ve done some pretty romantic things over the years, but that one has to top them all, and it was a marriage proposal too.” He looked to Benji now, eyes alight with passion. “It was everything a man could hope for.”
“Victor…” Benji whispered, his stomach still constricting.
“You did great, okay?”
He smiled and nodded. “Okay.”
“Good, because I love you, and there is never a reason to be insecure.” Victor kissed his forehead gently. “I love you so much.”
Benji sighed, and the weight on his stomach disappeared entirely. “I love you so much too.”
With all his damn heart.
The conversation sparked back up again, which involved more general catching up than it did teasing, or Bram and Simon playing around with the gay dads joke. All was well for Bram and Simon up in New York, both proclaimed things were as normal as ever, but they were considering adoption. To which Victor nearly jumped out of his seat with how excited he was for them.
Which got them onto the conversation of kids, which almost entirely consisted of Bram and Victor debating what was the best way to bring up a child without making them believe in the default thought that someone was straight and cis until proven otherwise. Benji and Simon added their two cents in, at points, but Bram and Victor hardly let them get a word in, with how passionately they were talking.
So Benji sat back and enjoyed watching his fiancé debate with the great Bram Greenfeld, the King of Debating. He did pretty well, though, it was more of a conversation than a debate. But Benji still counted it as a win for Victor.
Eventually, Simon and Bram had to go, saying the newly proposed couple needed time alone. Benji hadn’t noticed how quickly the time had gone by, but it was half past three now. All of this had started at ten, just after breakfast. And the house tour had taken an hour, as that was how long it had taken the four of them in practice to put up the sign.
A lot of chatting had taken place between then and now.
They had decided to leave the sign up, for now, but after a quick weather check, they decided getting it down tomorrow was the best course of action to protect it. Of course, they weren’t actually going to hang it up outside, but maybe they could fit it somewhere.
After calls with their parents, which included a lot (too much) screaming, they ordered takeout. It was easier than cooking up anything special, as Benji hadn’t planned that far into the day, and he certainly hadn’t planned Simon and Bram staying for so long. So ordering their favourite takeout food seemed fitting. Besides, Benji had been craving his usual curry for a good week and a half.
They called up Pilar, Adrian, then Felix, and they managed to get into contact with Lake and Mia, who happened to be hanging out together. Andrew was also informed, but he declined a video call, proclaiming that they were an outdated form of communication, so they stuck to texting him.
And once all the informing and communicating was done, their ears could rest. There had been far too much screaming, and Benji was sure he was going to hear the happy screams of all their loved ones echo in his brain for days to come.
“I’m telling you,” Victor said, kneeling on the bed, “I haven’t seen Adrian smile like that since he got a reply from one of his favourite Youtubers when he was thirteen.”
Benji chuckled, leaning further back against the headboard. “He did look happy.”
“Yeah, he’s been rooting for us since the start.”
And he really had, he’d been so excited when he first found out, had nearly screamed the house down. And even now that Adrian was an adult and in college, he was still excited about them, in a childlike way. It was nice.
“Yeah, he has.”
Victor scooted up the bed and sat beside Benji, holding his phone up. “Wanna make a post? We don’t have to, but it could be nice?”
Benji quirked an eyebrow, they both had quite a following. Benji’s fans would explode, and Victor’s would probably like, celebrate in the replies, and move on. It was a good idea. “Shall we… take a picture of our hands overlapped, rings on show? Caption being… ‘It takes two to propose’.”
“I love it.”
And that was exactly what they did. The light shone on them well enough, and with flash on, it was perfect. Their hands carefully overlapping, rings shining in the picture, the colours of their blankets providing the perfect backdrop. They both posted it to their accounts, with the same caption, and waited for the replies to roll in.
The first being Simon, because they had apparently both forgotten that he had notifications on for their accounts, and that he was absurdly fast at typing. His message was short but sweet.
‘So glad I could be there for these two today, they deserve everything.’
It was a touching message, and totally over the top, but then that was Simon.
After they read a few more replies, all congratulating them, they put their phones on charge and slipped under the covers.
“It’s been a long day…” Victor yawned, latching onto Benji like he did when he was overly tired, acting like a limpet.
Benji chuckled, curling into him. “Yeah, I’m going to be hearing the screams of our parents for at least five years.”
Victor gave out a tired laugh, head half buried in his pillow. “Me too.”
“I do have a fun final surprise for you tomorrow, because I knew you’d be too tired tonight,” Benji said slyly, smirking.
Victor turned his head to him, eyes still tired, but definitely interested. “Is it what I think it is?”
“Definitely.” He brushed his hand through Victor’s hair, resting it behind his head. “But sleep first, okay?”
Victor nodded, eyes already closing. “Yeah, you’re right.”
With a soft laugh, Benji pulled the covers up further, fully enveloping them. He watched as Victor drifted off, keeping his hand in his hair, and as soon as his breathing fully evened out, he moved his hand to settle at Victor’s waist, closing his eyes to fall deep into one of the most restful sleeps of his entire life.
True love… it really was worth it all.