Work Text:
To say Exer had been in a rush to get home would be an understatement. Work, despite his love for it, had dragged on and the bustling volume of customers coming in didn’t make it go any quicker.
The cold was bitter and rampant, the streets an icy mess and it was that time of year when Exer longed for nothing more than to snuggle up on the couch with Lucy-Furr nestled at one arm and David at the other. Which was how most evenings were spent nowadays. This routine had become the norm ever since the season grew colder, and despite feeling like a love-sick fool, Exer couldn’t help but chuckle at the likelihood that Day and Lucy were merely using him to steal some body heat.
Working was always so much more tedious when Exer knew David was staying over. His mind was completely and utterly infatuated with the pretty boy; meaning that almost everything else was deemed far less important. And who could blame him? It was only basic chivalry to ensure that every sleepover was Christmas perfection.
Given everything that had happened, David deserved all the festive solace on his favourite holiday. So, if it meant nearly passing out from the heat beneath layers of fluffy blankets, meticulously wrapping gifts until his fingertips were red and raw, or persuading his dad to go all out with decorations this year, Exer was prepared to do it all. And there is still so much to do.
Even now, his mind was racing with ideas.
Maybe he could go on a hunt for mistletoe. Do you buy mistletoe or climb trees or something? Oh, he could think of so many ways to get David under the mistle-
“Sea!! Exer is daydreaming about that blondie again! I think he’s about to start making out with the mop.” Marco hollered from behind the counter, a sly, shit-eating grin plastered across his face as Exer startled from his thoughts.
“Exer’s what?” Sea yelled back innocently, her voice calling out from the back room.
The wooden mop handle nearly slipped from Exer's grasp, and he winced at the puddle forming at his feet—a consequence of absentmindedly mopping in place. Still, his eyebrows knitted together and he sent the most soul crushing death-glare to the still smirking man.
“Dude shut up! Don’t announce that!” He spluttered, frantically looking around for any straggling customers.
“What? There’s no one here. Sea said we’re closing early.” Marco shrugged, waltzing past Exer to lock up the front doors.
“Wait! For real?” The fantastic news certainly brought a smile to Exer’s briefly grumpy face and he had to stop himself from dropping the mop right then and there and bolting for home.
“For real. Friday treat.”
It was then that Exer glimpsed the make-shift sign that Marco was seemingly about to place on the door. ‘Sorry, closed early :(‘ sprawled out in pencil.
“Hell yeah!” Exer’s voice brimmed with excitement, his grin widening as he eyed the closed sign. “I’m outta here!”
Marco chuckled at Exer’s enthusiasm. “Easy there, buddy. Don’t break the mop on your way out.”
“Ha-ha, very funny.”
As Exer began putting away the cleaning supplies, Marco leaned against the counter, a mischievous glint in his eye. “You know, you make this little kissy face whenever you start to zone out.”
Exer’s cheeks flushed slightly as he rolled his eyes. “Yeah, yeah, I’ve heard that before.”
“Goes a little something like this.” The man began puckering his lips and clasping his hands together, to which Exer just groaned, pushing past him to hang up his apron.
“Dude.” He deadpanned.
“Just an observation,” Marco teased, holding up his hands in mock surrender.
That was when Exer’s previous question sprang into mind, the question that had his lips puckering in the first place. A little detail that would quite literally be the cherry on top of his Christmas plans. After all, he had promised Day it would be perfect, so he was willing to swallow his pride and ask Marco his pretty humiliating question.
It would’ve helped if he could stop sweating though. Wringing his hands together, Exer tried to look anywhere but his—much cooler than he was—coworker.
God is this something he should even be asking a coworker?
“Hey Marco?”
“Yeah man?”
“On a completely unrelated note.” He squeaked out, clearing his throat anxiously. “Where might one find some..ugh, mistletoe .”
Exer took no joy in the way that Marco’s jaw dropped, pausing his movements from where he was wiping down the surface. That was until the query properly sunk in; a cunning grin crept across Marco’s face as he pretended to ponder the question. “Mistletoe, huh? Planning some romantic manoeuvres?”
Exer’s cheeks burned with all the fury of the sun, but he tried to maintain composure. Act cool. “Something like that, yeah.”
Marco didn’t skip a beat. He swiftly surveyed the room, his eyes searching for something that Exer couldn’t quite place, before slipping behind the counter and strolling toward one of the garland displays draped across the back shelves.
Very carefully, he reached up to pluck at one of the small red berries to detach it from the display. Once it was free, he inspected the faux decoration with a whistle.
Despite the mistletoe not being exactly real, it was vibrant and a flawless copy of the evergreen plant. It was probably a whole lot safer too, considering the no thistles aspect. Which could’ve been a disaster, nothing says ‘kiss me’ like bleeding fingertips,
‘Hey Day, how’s about a kiss under the mistletoe? Sorry, just ignore all the blood.’
Yeah, definitely wouldn’t have worked.
A shrill whistle escaped Marco’s lips as he inspected the decoration, a smug sigh being sent in Exer’s direction. “Top tip from the ex ladies man of Jeanes High, Christmas is a mistletoe goldmine. You just gotta know where to look.”
“But don’t tell Sea.” He added quickly, dangling the decoration teasingly in front of Exer. “Here you go, Casanova. Use it wisely.”
Regardless of the ridiculous nickname, Exer couldn’t help but laugh, taking the mistletoe with a grateful nod. “Thanks, Marco. You’re a lifesaver.”
“Don’t sweat it dude. Consider it a Christmas gift from me.” He quipped back, his smile softening.
“Well technically Sea, but your expertise is still appreciated Marco.”
Regardless of his joking, Exer really did appreciate Marco and all the normality he had with his approach to David and Exer’s relationship. As sad as it sounds, he really thought that they would be treated differently in a way. By everyone, family and friends alike. But it turns out that that wasn’t the case here at least. It was terrifying at first, telling Marco, but he had reacted so warmly in the end. Like a proud older brother, which is exactly what he felt like to Exer.
The brother he never had.
“Yeah..yeah. Go on kid, get out of here. I’m sure there’s a certain blonde waiting for you at home, huh?”
“Later tonight! So I gotta cosy the sitting room.” Exer chimed with a wink. The fluttering in his stomach rampant as he beamed down at the mistletoe in his palm.
“Tell him I said hi, would ya?”
“You got it Marco.”
With that Exer grinned, feeling another rush of excitement as he carefully pocketed the mistletoe. It didn’t take much longer for him to gather his belongings, shouting a courteous farewell to both Sea and Marco—ignoring the crude kissing gestures he was met with on the way out—before he finally found himself sucking in the crisp winter’s air.
Exer headed home, his mind already spinning with whimsical ideas for incorporating the mistletoe into his Christmas plans with David.
By the time he reached home, the sky was still a magnificent shade of blue— courtesy of the shops’ early closing—but there was a subtle dimming of the clouds that blended together perfectly. Just dark enough for Exer to spot the outline of the moon from where it sat amongst the sun and stars.
That’s right. The sun too.
This was by far his most favourite time of day. And one that he rarely got to see. He loved it because, contrary to popular belief, you can see the sun and the moon in the same sky. Sharing the space and basking in it, existing together in solace regardless of what the people on earth think.
Even when people say it shouldn’t be possible. Even when people think that it’s unnatural and contradictory. Almost everyday, just before the sun rises and again, just before the sun sets, you can see the moon and sun entangled in the sky.
Day and Night, meeting at last. And it’s so beautiful.
No one can take that away from it, no matter how much they deny its validity. No matter how much they preach the separation of the sun and the moon.
Exer understood what that’s like. His Day understood what that’s like, more so than anyone else.
They found camaraderie in the sun and moon. Maybe that’s why he found himself gazing upwards, the snow beneath his feet forgotten as his mind wandered to the boy he loved. As it so often did.
As he entered the house, shaking off the sprinkles of snow from his jacket, Exer immediately noticed his father bustling around the sitting room. Harry was diligently adorning the door frames with long strips of tinsel and muttering to himself as he attempted to secure another piece to the bannister of the stairs.
Taking a closer look, there were a lot of decorations dotted about the place; far more from when he had first left the house with just their tree and lights up.
“Hey Dad! The house looks great!”
His dad whipped his head toward Exer at the greeting, smiling widely as a bead of sweat trickled down his forehead.
“Exer!” He breathed, slightly out of breath as he finally finished wrestling with the tinsel. “You’re off early.”
“Yeah, there were hardly any more customers so Sea let us go.” Without letting another moment pass, Exer moved in closer and placed a steady hand upon his father’s shoulder. “How come you’re putting the decorations up? I would’ve done all this Dad.”
In a peculiar way, Exer felt a hint of disappointment—not due to a lack of gratitude for the help, but because he had genuinely intended to do everything. Work really hard. Decorating to such an extent wasn’t their typical Christmas tradition; usually, they preferred a quieter, simpler celebration. However, this year, Exer had practically pleaded with his dad to allow him to decorate, all for the sake of David. He wanted to express his care, demonstrate his commitment as a good boyfriend, better than he was as a best friend anyway, and do anything possible to ensure David felt a touch safer after the recent incident.
He wanted to do this. He had to do this.
“Oh, well we were gonna wait for you kiddo, but we thought it may be worth it to get a head start.” The man explained, a hand on his back as he stretched his wary muscles.
“Oh okay- wait. We? Who’s we?”
“David. He got here early and offered to help out when he saw all the boxes. He looked really excited.”
At just the mention of his name, Exer’s stomach did a somersault and all of a sudden his disappointment vanished into thin air.
“David’s here? Where is he?” Exer asked eagerly.
“He’s out back. Putting some of the lights up on the fence. He really wanted to help.” Harry gave his son a knowing look, nudging his head to the kitchen where the back doors were located.
“That’s awesome! Thanks, Dad, I’ll go give him a hand right away- oh unless you…?” The boy trailed off, giving his exasperated dad a slightly concerned look.
“It’s okay son. You go see David. We’ll finish up here later.” His father plopped himself down onto the couch as he spoke, kneading his temples as he shooed Exer off.
So, without waiting for another word from his father, Exer swiftly made his way towards the back garden.
But nothing could’ve prepared him for what he was met with.
There wasn’t much that could really take Exer by surprise these days. When you have literal magic seeping through your bones, there is very little that can be considered out of the ordinary. Especially when you yourself are out of the ordinary , it turns even the strangest of instances into the norm.
But as he realised the back doors were still wide open, Exer heard something that he would never in a million years have suspected.
Singing.
“-suddenly appear, everytime you are near..” Exer recognised the song immediately, Close to you by the Carpenters. It was one of Day’s guilty pleasures, a love song he had admitted to adoring.
And after hearing this, Exer confesses that he doesn’t just like it anymore, no he adores it too, and he will never listen to it the same again.
“Just like me, they long to be close to you.” The singing continued. Light and breathy as the winter’s breeze carried it lovingly through the kitchen, the tune a mixture of sugary hums and sung lyrics. It was safe to say that this was the first time his ears had ever been blessed with such sweetness and he had no idea that David had it in him.
He almost never really sang. Not like this at least. Placing a hand at the edge of the door, Exer marvelled at the peace that had seemingly overcome his boyfriend. Who was singing completely candidly, almost like muscle memory, his back turned to Exer as he threaded the Christmas lights through the ridges of the fence.
Even Lucy looked mesmerised from where she was sitting at David’s feet, her little chin resting on her paw as he flowed through the song.
“Why do stars fall down from the sky, every time you walk by.”
The closer Exer got, the more his face flushed, his heart thumping dramatically at the sight ahead of him. David had turned slightly to direct his attention to the black cat, and Exer’s eyes almost sprang from their sockets as he marvelled at the boy’s beauty.
Day’s pale complexion gracefully blended with the white snow, accentuating the vividness of the redness that sat at the tip of his nose and cheeks. Against the snowy backdrop, he seemed wonderfully alive—so much more so than he had been in the previous month. Delicate snowflakes had nestled in his silky blonde hair, and his eyes, illuminated by the waning sunlight, shined with a breathtaking shade of blue, a sight that not even the most expensive of sapphires could compete with.
Any other person would take in this scene and question the fairness of someone so perfect existing amongst them. But Exer watched with fond eyes, and a single sentence crossed his mind.
‘He’s mine. That’s my person.’
As the boy continued singing, he scooped up a curious Lucy-furr into his arms and gently swayed her along, cradling her little body as if she were the most precious fur ball on earth.
Which isn’t exactly wrong.
“Just like me, they long to be. Close to you.” David cooed, a light finger booping the kitten on her nose as she mewed. His voice was almost crystal clear, significantly higher than Exer’s but much more whisky and delicate than he would’ve imagined.
Allowing Lucy to bounce from his arms, David continued to hum the rest of the tune as he, unintentionally, wrapped himself into a little bit of a knot with the multi-coloured lights. Obviously without noticing as he continued to string them up along the jagged fence.
Not that Exer could pay much attention to it either, far too distracted by the ethereal sound gracing his ears.
Why on earth hadn’t he heard this before?
But the second Exer took a step outside; the snow crunching under the pressure of his boot had seemed to immediately alert David to his presence.
Day has been more vigilant lately.
“Gah! He yelped, but his shoulders immediately dropped when David saw who had scared him.
“Oh! Exer, I didn’t realise you would be back so soon,” David exclaimed, his cheeks turning a shade of pink. He adjusted the lights in his hands, trying to mask his surprise. “ Unless, I lost track of time again…I was just, you know, helping out with the decorations.”
Exer chuckled softly as he made his way over to his boyfriend and cocked his head at the clear disaster waiting to happen, that was the wires wrapping around David’s waist and left arm.
“You didn’t lose track of time Day. I was let off early.” He resided, a tentative hand resting on David’s waist as he used the other to carefully unwravel the string of lights.
David seemed to catch on, and he offered his boyfriend a sheepish grin as he positioned himself in a way that would be easier to manoeuvre the lights around.
After his boyfriend was safely freed from the potential tripping hazard, Exer cupped David’s cold-to-the-touch face and left a sweet peck against his lips, pulling away before leaning back in again to kiss the small scar that shadowed his bottom lip.
Whilst the other cuts and bruises healed, the deep gash of the busted skin on his mouth remained as a stubborn red line. It would most likely fade over time but as of right now it still poked out against his face and David had grown quite insecure of it.
Day had attempted to conceal the mark with Brenda’s makeup and at one point even asked Exer to rid him of it with his powers. But in the end the makeup would always wash away and both boys came to realise that completely removing it with magic may raise a few questions. Suspicions that they wouldn’t be able to explain away.
So, Exer encouraged him to embrace it.
Seeing the remnants of horrific abuse was soul crushing, but Exer would always kiss the scar when he saw it. A sign of acceptance, not of what had happened but of who David was and what he had endured.
David scrunched his nose at the contact, his eyes shining as he wiped a few droplets of snow from Exer’s curls in return.
Both boys were a blushing mess, but the pink stood out beautifully against the white backdrop that was the December evening.
“Thanks for freeing me Ex.” David said softly, gathering the lights back into his arms but keeping the distance between them short.
“Pffft of course, even Lucy-furr was looking a little nervous at the knot you got yourself in.” Oddly on cue, Lucy meowed in what sounded like feline agreement.
Yet, David only rolled his eyes as he whirled back to the fence to continue his task.
“Hah, as if I would ever do anything so clumsy.”
“Actually, you absolutely would and have-“
“- Anyways! How was work, Ex?” It was a sweet question, probably a change of topic, but still sweet. However, they had talked enough and Exer had no intention of answering about his day when there were more pressing matters at hand. His head was still far too infatuated with the gorgeous melody he had just listened to, he couldn’t shy away from it a moment longer.
As any good boyfriend would do, Exer approached David, who was now facing the fence again, and wrapped his arms around the boy’s middle, smiling to himself as Day sighed against the warmth.
Though, Exer didn’t like how easily he could loop both arms around the boy. He’d always been on the slender side, a testament to his football position, but David had definitely lost more weight, looks like all those skipped meals were catching up on him.
But, Exer wasn’t mad. He knew it was hard to eat when you are constantly at battle with your own head.
Leaving a tender kiss against the skin of David’s neck, Exer gave his boyfriend a subtle squeeze before asking, “So..how long were you going to deprive me of your awesome singing voice?”
But a sharp gasp exuded from David and it took Exer slightly off guard, his eyebrows raising as Day spun on his heel and bore his wide panicked eyes into Exer’s mildly confused ones. Instantly the calmness of the two evaporated, David gaping like a fish at his boyfriend.
“What! Dude, you heard that?” David all but shrieked, looking completely and utterly mortified.
“Yeah, David, it was-“
“Holy sugar! This is so embarrassing. This is so embarrassing I think I might throw up.” A hand was brought up to David’s face as he theatrically fanned himself, the movement carrying the intensity of the wings of a trapped bird.
“Woah man, what are you talking about? You sounded insanely good! I had no idea you could sing.” Exer cried, his tone filled with genuine admiration.
“Oh no, no no no. My Dad always used to say I sounded like a ‘Whiney girl.’”
His boyfriend hugged himself as he took a seat on the garden bench, lights decidedly forgotten as he processed being caught acting so freely. “I’m surprised you didn’t find it annoying.”
The very mention of the man infuriated Exer beyond belief, because of course he said that. Of course he made David feel that way about himself. Judging from the bits and pieces that Day had told him about William Miller’s A+ parenting, he would bet money that the man went out of his way to shun Day from singing. Make him feel guilty for enjoying it.
Hell, it wouldn’t be the first time. Exer remembers the day that a 13 year old David hid in the toilets crying, devastated after being forced to quit art club. Something that he had raved and rambled about for hours, even practising his drawings throughout lunch and break. Until it all came crashing down, his father finding the art pieces he had worked so hard on and ripping them all to shreds.
Which David had only told him recently. At the time he drew one final picture, a gift for Exer and the last remaining sketch that wasn’t in pieces. He had drawn Exer a cat as a fleeting goodbye to the hobby he loved and after that day, Exer never saw David draw again.
It is extremely safe to say that a very similar turn of events went down for William to kill David’s enthusiasm for singing.
‘No wonder I’ve never heard him sing’. He thought to himself, pondering on the fact that David never even really sang in the car, ‘ Well all that ends today.’
Larks may never sing when they’re captive. But when they’re free, their song is as natural and joyous as any other wild bird. They just need to know they’re free.
Exer gingerly took a seat next to David, who was clearly already spiralling —sadly, a not so uncommon sight these days— and he did a quick mental rerun of the Carpenter’s song.
Theatrically, Exer cleared his throat, letting out a single breath before singing.
“On the day that you were born the angels got together, and decided to create a dream come true..”
David's initial reaction to Exer's sudden singing was a mix of surprise and confusion. He froze for a moment, his eyes widening as Exer melodically began the lyrics. His tormenting thoughts must’ve paused momentarily, his stressed features replaced by a look of astonishment and curiosity at the unexpected actions of his boyfriend.
Who then quite goofily started riffing like a rock star, making David cringe but affectionately.
Leaning over to a flustered David, Exer trailed off the notes with a finger gun pointed at his direction, a silent encouragement for the other to finish the verse.
In a way, he was glad when David huffed and shook his head, because the next lyrics were crafted especially for Exer, a very fitting delight to sing if he did say so himself.
So this time before proceeding, Exer angled himself to fully look at David, threading their fingers together the very moment that they locked eyes. David, who obviously knew the song and what was to come, shied away from his boyfriend with a big tight lipped smile.
“So they sprinkled moon dust in your hair of gold-“ Exer serenaded mock romantically, trying not to burst out laughing as Day shoved Exer’s face away with the palm of his freezing cold hand.
“Ha ha! You idiot!” David giggled, but Exer paid him no mind as he jumped to his feet, extending his hand toward David, a warm smile dancing on his lips. With a swift, confident motion, Exer tugged David gently by the hand, drawing him closer into a more romantic pose. David’s arms found their way around Exer’s neck and he took the opportunity to lightly hold the other’s hips. Their eyes met once again, laughter still lingering in the air, as they found themselves intertwined in a spontaneous, affectionate moment.
Still, the very second that the quiet embraced them, Exer nuzzled his nose against Day’s. Cherishing the contact of the other’s icey skin.
“And starlight in your eyes of blue.” Despite mostly fooling around, the last line Exer put a little more effort into, singing it proudly because a line as true as that deserved to sound as beautiful as the eyes it pertained to.
If that was possible.
“You’re killing me man.” David protested and turned his blushing face away from Exer’s, leaning his head back against the snow fallen sky whilst using Exer’s weight as an anchor.
“That verse always reminded me of you. Even before we started dating. Guess even then I was smart enough to know you had the most breathtaking eyes in the room.” Exer reminisced slightly, fondly remembering the times he would hear this very verse and be immediately taken to the smiling face of his then best friend.
“Yeah well, the next verse always made me think of you, dummy. It actually meant a lot to me” Day responded, separating from Exer to pick up Lucy, who sought her father’s attention.
Exer didn’t even catch her pawing at David’s trouser leg, but it didn’t shock him, she took after her other father in terms of growing jealous easily.
And that cat really loved David.
"Ah, the next verse, right? My memory's drawing a blank on that one. Looks like I'll need a reminder—care to sing it for me?" Exer's voice hinted at anticipation, rising as he tried to appear naive.
But David saw right through that, only regarding Exer with an unimpressed expression. Exer’s amber eyes fixed on him with a mixture of amusement and bemusement as Lucy swatted at a tuft of blonde hair. Still, Exer only held his ground, placing his hands beneath David’s arms as he cocked his head at him, eye contact never breaking.
Eventually David dropped the stoic act and sighed heavily through his internal battle.
“I want to..I want to join in with you. But it just feels like his words are ingrained into my skull.”
The confession was enough to make Exer want to simultaneously crush William — because that was obviously who he was talking about — with a bolder and cry like a baby. And the hurt in David’s twisted face only worsened the overwhelming feelings.
“It makes me feel scared. Like something will still go wrong if I disobey him, even though I know he doesn’t care about me anymore.”
God, Exer hated that man. The way he went from weirdly obsessed with his son’s every move to not giving a shit about him at all was so mentally damaging and he watched the aftermath of that treatment unfold every day.
Exer placed a supportive hand on David’s shoulder, firm and reassuring as he spoke. “It’s okay to be scared, Day, I just-…..don’t let him take this away from you. Don’t let him take fun and creativity away from you. You have so much talent and wonder to bring to this earth,” he assured, his voice tinged with heartfelt sincerity. “And even if your voice came out as a terrified squeak. Even then, that’s a step closer to freedom.”
David’s eyes flickered between Exer’s determined gaze and Lucy, who was rubbing her face against David’s, letting out small purrs of encouragement.
Day heaved through a resigned breath, nodding slightly. “But I can’t get those words out of my head…”
Exer’s expression softened, understanding flooding his features. “I know it’s not easy, but I’m here with you. We’ll sing it together, rewrite those words and make new memories. Remember, you’re not alone anymore. We’re in this together.”
With a soft smile, Exer gently guided David’s gaze back to him. “Trust me,” he urged. “We’ll find a way through this, together.” And, meeting David’s uncertain frown with unwavering faith, he softly hummed the tune again, inviting David to join in, promising support every step of the way.
And, as enchanting as if the sun were to begin walking on earth, David sang. He held Lucy close and sang, Exer’s humming acting as the gentle nudging that he needed.
“That is why, all the girls in town.” It was a little shaky at first, quiet and hushed as if the entire neighbourhood— or more realistically, William Miller—was now lurking behind the light covered fence. But it still sent Exer’s heart soaring as much as it did when he had first caught him singing subconciously.
“Follow you, all around..” A meek smile was thrown Exer’s way, and he understood immediately what David was trying to tell him.
The next line was sung with even more confidence, and it prompted Exer to take Lucy from his arms, holding her in one hand, so he could twirl the gradually much happier boy.
“Just like me, they long to be close to you. Just like me, they long to be close to you.”
The outdoor lights from the houses next door showered David in gorgeous colour, red and green with wispy hues of gold as he smiled, genuine and true.
“Close to you..” As the sky shifted to a darker light, David finished the song with a note that seemed to echo among the stars, his arms outstretched as if reaching for the wind that amplified his voice. Like he wanted to catch the rebellion at its very core.
More snowflakes had settled into the golden strands of hair, creating a shimmering halo around his head. Each delicate flake glistened like stardust in the evening’s fading light, accentuating the radiance of his sun-kissed locks.
The scarf around his neck, once neatly wrapped, now hung loosely, tousled by the gentle breeze that swept through the wintry air. Its ends fluttered freely, occasionally brushing against the surface of his rosy cheeks, adding a touch of playful chaos to his lost-in-song demeanour.
He looked slightly deranged, but Exer had never felt so proud in his entire life, and the sight of the boy he loved left him speechless in a way he could never describe.
The very essence of his communication stumbled as his cheeks burnt with an emotion he couldn’t describe.
David Miller was so fucking pretty.
However, Day must have caught on to the silence because his face faltered and his arms dropped to his sides and Exer couldn’t help but find his confused face adorable.
“What?” David asked, shifting on his feet anxiously as Exer let a loving smile tug at his lips.
Then, in one solidified sentence. Perhaps the only one that could ever come close to describing everything that was the boy ahead of him, Exer spoke,
“You are perfect.”
The gap between them was very quickly closed by David crashing their bodies together, a few tears glistening upon his lashes as held onto Exer with fervour.
“Wow, that was so fun!” David chirped, a hand ruffling through his damp hair when he let go of Exer and he grinned with sheer excitement.
“I’m proud of you, Day. And Lucy is too, she told me so.”
They both huffed a laugh as the cat meowed in tandem, sensing the charged atmosphere and gracefully hopping down from Exer’s arms.
All of a sudden, David was looking at him with an impish twinkle in his eye, the adrenaline clearly boosting up his confidence.
“You know, I could totally kiss you right now.” David whispered, his hands finding their way back onto Exer’s chest, and Exer dropped his down to David’s waist instinctively. The very mention of a kiss made Exer think back to the secret weapon sitting in his pocket, and he smirked accordingly as an idea dawned on him.
But he would need a magical assist to pull this one off.
“Well would you look at that…” Exer hummed, eyes tinting an emerald green as he flicked his eyeline above.
David’s head snapped up as he mirrored Exer’s gaze, a scoff escaping him as he clocked the mistletoe hovering above them.
“Seriously, Ex? Oh my god, my boyfriend is the biggest dork on the planet.”
“A dork? I thought I was being pretty smooth there.” Exer gasped in feigned dismay.
“Smooth? More like cheesy.” David shot back.
“I thought you liked ‘cheesy’.” Exer retorted flirtatiously, slowly inching closer to David’s pretty pink lips.
“Lucky for you, I do.”
Without another second to spare, the space between them was sealed with a chilly kiss and the butterflies that he was pretty well acquainted with at this point, flittered and fluttered against his rib cage.
As always, the moment they pulled apart, Exer went straight back in, his lips resting on the scar that resided on his love’s face.
This evening was a small victory and one that they deserved to celebrate. Exer may never erase the scars that David bears, but beneath every starry night, he’d be there to kiss them.
Because what greater way of healing than healing through love?