Work Text:
A cold sea breeze gently blows through the apartment’s open window. A comfortable silence had settled over the two men as they stood face to face in the middle of the candle lit kitchen. A summer storm had rolled in earlier in the evening, causing power outages across the city, leaving James’ apartment blanketed in darkness. Candles of an array of colours burned bright on the countertops, both men’s phones long dead were forgotten somewhere in their shared bed. Under the warm glow of the firelight, Will felt a gentle hand find home on his waist. He let himself be guided by the other as he was briefly led to an old CD player. The pair spoke in quiet whispers, as if the moment was fragile, as they decided on a disc to put into the player. When both pairs of eyes fell on a disc that had been burned as a gift to James by Will, every other option was immediately forgotten.
In the lag time between pressing play and the start of the first song playing, James had eagerly pulled Will back into the dim kitchen light. Their bodies pressed together perfectly, as though they had been sculpted to slot into place. Both of James’ hand fell to Will’s waist, Will sighed out a breath of approval, feeling the familiar weight on his body. In response, he careful laid his head against James’ shoulder, closing any gap that remained between them. Slowly, James led their delicate dance, humming along to the melody of the song that played over the speaker. Will could feel the deep vibrations in his boyfriend’s chest as he beautifully sang along with the music that played. Where Will had his arms wrapped around the sturdy frame of the younger man, he caressed the space between James’ shoulders as if searching for something. He ran his fingers up and down soothingly, looking for any sign that James could have wings. In Will’s eyes everything about the other man was so perfect it was angelic. Although he felt nothing, it didn’t change the fact that James was his angel, planted on earth and destined to find Will wherever he was.
James felt Will push his face deeper into the crevice of his neck and began to wonder how many lives they’d already lived together. Since day one, the pair was inseparable, it was never just Will or James, they came as a duo and nothing could ever change that. Within hours of meeting each other they had settled into comfortable conversation as though they’d known each other for years. Their lives had quickly become intertwined, as did their souls, until it seemed even their heart was one, beating in steady rhythm for the both of them. James had always put it down to fate that they had stumbled upon each other all those years ago, Will was far more insistent that their stories had been written together decades ago, but their love was so profound it could never truly die. Many loving nights had passed during their time together, where both men had sworn that no matter what, they’d find each other in any lifetime. Although, James slowly grew to feel that that promise was unnecessary. In their current life, they’d drifted together so naturally that it seemed impossible for that not to happen again and again and again. If James could have his way, he’d want them to be reborn as penguins. He deeply craved the prospect of being comfortably monogamous, for their relationship to be unquestioned and a symbol of blossoming love and total devotion. He imagined how it would feel to be a flightless bird. Traditionally used to depict entrapment, powerlessness or frustration, but to James his wings would be more than that. To James, a flightless bird was just the epitome of loyalty. Despite having wings, the key to the cage of endless possibilities, they had adapted to not need them because everything they could possibly want was right there already. Not even the precious gift of flight was tempting enough to carve a hole in the relationship of a penguin. If not a sign of loyalty, the flightless ability of the penguin could only otherwise been seen as contempt with what is already known, happiness with the current, and James adored that. Someday, he hoped they’d be flightless birds together.
They slow danced in the flickering candle lights till the wicks burned out and the kitchen was slowly consumed by the night once again, only then did their movements stop so that they were stood still in an all consuming hug in the darkness. The closeness of their bodies allowed Will to inhale the intoxicating smell of James that lingered on his clothes and skin. The light woody aroma of sandalwood combined with the sweet richness of vanilla, swirled with the raw smell of James was like a drug to Will. He bathed in the scent, so deeply in love with the fragrance. The room remained quiet, a lingering warmth settled between the men as they both ran their hands over each other, mapping out every inch of each others bodies. Eventually, James moved his hand to hold Will’s, guiding him down the hall to their shared bedroom where he laid the older man down on satin sheets. Passion and love merged together as limbs entangled under the duvet, and breathy moans escaped parted lips. It was beautiful and raw, both men laid tangled up together, their bodies moving as one as it would do for years to come.