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There’s a moment where everything comes to a complete halt, breaths catching and eyes flickering between the three of them. Curious, scared and confident. And Sebastian is stunned how perfectly it reflects their personalities.
Hayley’s propped up on her elbows, hair still in her long ponytail, but messed up and sloppy from rolling around on the couch Sebastian has tickled her on mercilessly. His fingers are curved around the hem of her wrinkled shirt, wondering if they are allowed to be there, but she hasn’t shied away from his touch yet. Chris’ hand is circling her right wrist, pressing into her pulse point in hopes of calming down the uncertainty screaming inside of his brain.
Sebastian knows what he’s asking himself, they’ve talked about it. So, so many times.
Brown eyes smile at Chris, stroking over his facial features and his lowered lids. She knows he’s troubled, but judging from the way she’s cocking her head into his direction, he doesn’t have a reason to. He, Sebastian, is strangely calm considering she seems to sense what they are longing for.
In a fluent and graceful motion, Hayley turns her arm in Chris’ loose grip and presses her palm into his skin, putting reassurance and affection into the contact it’s building between them.
When Sebastian is about to loose the touch to her shirt, she moves her left leg towards him and nudges it against his own, requesting for it to be allowed to tangle with his body. He lets her. Of course he lets her.
“Look”, she says and it’s stunning how strong her beautiful accent is on one word only. She sighs and chuckles to herself a little. “I think I know where this is going, but I need you both to know I don’t do sex. With anyone.” Sebastian is expecting her to go tense for a few seconds, but that’s not what is happening and he immediately feels incredibly arrogant for assuming she could be ashamed of her preference - no one should ever feel like they have to. Ever since he’s known Hayley, she’s stroked him as a very confident and unapologetic person. She doesn’t feel sorry for who she is, ever.
Chris is the first to respond. “So that’s why you mentioned asexuality once.”, he says, quietly, keeping it inside the security of the trailer. Just in case Hayley wants to keep it a secret. Cause those are sacred to him, worth being protected with everything he has to give.
Making a mental note to ask Chris about it later, he stores the word in his memory - asexuality - and makes the connection from the literal word and what Hayley just told them.
“Yeah, I was testing the waters when you two started getting a bit breathless every time I jumped your bones to hug you a while ago” and now she’s just teasing, a lopsided smile mocking them playfully. But through the cheerfulness, Sebastian can see them: Stories of disappointment, rejection and ugly words. Very, very faintly, but present enough to clutch his heart with a shock of pain.
They all laugh, huff and huddle a tiny bit closer, limbs touching, taking the progress of the situation slowly. Chris is now watching her closely, visibly relieved, but tension still holding his body in a careful posture. “Kisses?”, he whispers and Sebastian doesn’t even have to look to know he’s biting the inside of his right cheek. A habit he’s adopted from Sebastian at some point.
The question makes sense and it’s loaded with a lot more meaning than the word is able to carry. Kisses are important to Chris. It’s how he communicates when words are failing him. When he’s panicked, scared, too overwhelmed by love to be coherent enough to speak. They ground him and they lift him off the ground when he needs it.
Hayley sits up at this, body re-positioning so effortlessly and beautifully that even that makes Sebastian’s insides respond in glee, warmth spreading through his bones. She doesn’t stop touching Chris, leg still intertwined with Sebastian and laces the fingers of her right hand through his, holding onto him now as well.
Her smile is that kind powered by the sun, radiating a sort of happiness that is unique. “Oh yes”, she says and lifts Chris’ hand up to her lips to kiss his knuckles to demonstrate. “I just don’t like when they are heated or demanding. I like my kisses non-sexual.”, she explains and raises an eyebrow in expectation. They know her decision is made, even without the question being verbalized.
“I like being kissed in greeting and goodbye.” Chris opening the door for her, her tiny trolley standing at her feet and her hair is a bit greasy, her nose and cheeks burnt from shooting in Miami for the past two weeks. Not wearing make-up and being gorgeous. Her standing on her tip-toes and wrapping her hands around his jaw to peck his lips two, three times before letting them linger, wordlessly telling him how much she missed him before she makes her way over to Sebastian sitting on the couch in the open space of the boyfriends’ living room. Melting against his side with a kiss to his bare collarbone and his stubbled jaw while he breathes into her hair, making up for three weeks of separation. His boyfriend joining them on his other side, playing with Hayley’s fingers as they enjoy being reunited in the most comfortable silence.
“Or just randomly kissing for any reason, really.” Sebastian warming up for his morning run, doing a few sit ups to meet Hayley’s lips every time his body raises, muffling her counting down to 30 as Chris is filling his water bottle and probably sneaking a few random songs into his running playlist.
“Good”, Chris responds. His face is pure bliss now, relaxed and young-looking. They’ve been hoping for this for so, so long. Although it’s taking an unexpected turn, it’s everything they’ve wished for. Promises of having her around them when they can. They know they can make it work.
“Cause I am planning on kissing you both a lot.”, Chris continues. Hayley playing with Dodger in the backyard, screeching when the dog lounges onto her and throws her onto the grass fully where she had already been kneeling down. Sebastian and Chris taking that as their cue to join the impending cuddle pile and carefully plastering themselves over Dodger and their breath-takingly wonderful girlfriend. “That’s why you don’t mess with my baby!”, Chris crying out in his false and booming dad-voice and blowing a raspberry to the shell of her ear before pulling her lips into a sloppy, but effortless kiss they are both laughing through. Sebastian waiting his turn while Dodgers is licking and slobbering all over his chin. And then kissing her lightly, but so lovingly as Chris is stroking the floppy strands of hair out of Sebastian’s face.
“Okay”, Hayley states in a clipped, but chipper way, nothing short of serious and meaningful, nevertheless. She brings their hands together, making the two men tangle their fingers while she slips hers underneath them, her thumb stroking along their knuckles. It’s positively overwhelming how sure she is about this.
It’s Chris who needs to make sure, just in case. “Okay?”, he asks and Sebastian thinks he’s never seen him so stunning before, even if he’s sworn to have been through countless moments of seeing his true, beautiful self on full display in their 3 years of relationship. For his eyes to witness only. And that’s when he sees it even more, all of it.
The kisses Hayley places on the never-ending span of Chris’ shoulders, a floating curtain of brown framing her slightly tired face and tickling their boyfriend’s sensitive skin.
The two of them - Chris and her - hugging him from behind while he’s chopping and slicing fruit for their breakfast smoothies, pecking his neck and back groggily, one warm from the sheets, the other from a long and refreshing shower.
Tangled bodies pressed against each other. Naked for no intention except being close and feeling each other in every way possible. Sharing warmth, memories and hopes for their shared future.
It’s all he will ever need of her in his life.
“Okay.”