Will parked his car in the small lot behind the Glenlo Apartment Block. It was tucked away on the south side of Dublin city, hidden behind a large department store and flanked with houses in every other direction. It was five minutes from Renmore Park, and twenty minutes from Trinity College, two places he planned to frequent this semester.

A cold breeze cut through his thin jacket as Will climbed out of the car. Autumn had taken hold of the country early this year. It was only first week of August, and even the leaves of the oak trees lining the front of the sleek, Glenlo building were fading to brown—though that could be more to do with the city air than the weather.

Will punched in the code Gabriel had text him and the front door buzzed open. There was no lobby, only doors with numbers written on them. He went through the one that indicated ‘201-210’ and trotted up the stairs. Outside ‘203’ he stopped.

Gabriel had said to go straight in, the door was open. But Will was nervous. It had been months since he’d seen Gabriel in person. They started texting after Will turned eighteen, and then started calling       , but that was different from meeting face to face. What if things had changed between them? What if months apart had let the fire between them turn cold? What if Will felt the same, but Gabriel didn’t?

He rubbed his sides and winced at the old habit of insecurity. He pretended he’d just been smoothing out the white shirt. Since he’d last seen Gabriel, he’d put on weight. Not fat, just weight. Enough that his ribs didn’t poke out, and enough that  he could work out without energy crashes. Just enough that  he could still breathe easy when he looked at his reflection. Laragh, his therapist, said mental changes could take years before catching up to what the body could do. She said not to rush it.

His mental functions were certainly lagging today.

“Just go in.” Dune didn’t waste any time saying hi when he answered the phone.

Will wondered away from the door, keeping his voice soft so Gabriel didn’t hear. “I’m nervous. I’m crazy nervous, I think my heart might stop if it doesn’t chill out.”

“Go in. And stop worrying about your appearance, you look great. Okay?”

“Okay” Will echoed.

“It’ll be okay. You’re just nervous. Take a deep breath and go inside. If you can get an A in a math exam, you can go through that door.”

Dune, as always, was the master of pep talks.

“You’ll run this country some day.”

There was a low chuckle, then; “You got this.”

Will stood in front of the ‘203’ door again. He tried to call up the courage and certainty he’d felt on the drive up, when he went so far as to stop at a gas station and buy a pack of condoms. And then in the car when he’d stuffed six of them  into his back pocket. But seriously, six? God, he felt dumb…

He knocked and pushed the door open. “Hello?”

The entrance way was tiled, decorated with a stand for shoes and a coat rack. Will closed the door behind him, recognising the black coat hanging up. It was warm. A small plume of steam drifted through the first door on his left. Will walked toward it, calling out again. “Gabriel?”

The room opened into a spacious kitchen. It was modern, with black marble counter tops and gleaming silver electronics and a large window along the wall straight ahead of Will. The steam was coming from a pot on the stove with boiling rice. Gabriel was in the middle of tossing a pan's contents—it looked like a stir-fry.

Will’s heart stuttered, and the strain against his chest was painful.

Broad shoulders, a flat stomach that led to lean hips, flanked by muscular arms—all of which was shown off by a snug, v-neck black shirt. Gabriel’s dark brown curls had been trimmed away at the sides, and even the little swirls at the top had been tamed down into waves. His face was more handsome than Will remembered. Fine features, a firm jaw with at least a weeks scruff, and dark eyelashes that framed even darker, glittering eyes.

Eyes that moved over Will, assessing and taking in the same way he had. Will waited until they returned to his face. Their eyes met, and Gabriel’s smile lit up his entire face. “Will.” He greeted, voice rich and smooth.

Will’s words deserted him. The impact of seeing him in person again was too much for him to form anything coherent, and there was only one thing he really  wanted to do       anyway       . He crossed the room and kissed Gabriel. Gabriel let out a surprised breath. His hands slipped onto Will’s waist, taking a firm hold as their chests flattened together.

They parted, for a moment, to take in a much needed breath. Will studied Gabriel’s eyes, took in the glow and the grin, and decided that bringing condoms had been a good idea       after all . He laced his fingers through Gabriel’s hair, taking a firm hold of the longer strands at the back, and kissed him harder and deeper. They moved, until Gabriel was against the counter, and Will was keeping him there.

Warm, greedy hands moved across his body. One pushed underneath his shirt, flattening against his back, and the other moved down, cheekily slipping into the back-pocket of Will’s jeans and squeezing. Will gasped into Gabriel’s mouth.

The sound was obscured by a loud, deliberate throat clearing.

Will’s eyes flew open, and he stepped back. Over the kitchen counter, in the other half of the room, was a living room. A living room full of people. Two guys, two girls, and Gabriel’s niece, Sarah. The woman next to Sarah had a startling resemblance to Gabriel, and looked like she was in her early thirties, Will guessed that was Gabriel’s sister. The next woman, again, looked like Gabriel, but she was older. He prayed to god that wasn’t Gabriel’s mom, but knew, she was his mom. One of the men looked to be in his thirties or forties, and Sarah sat on his lap. The last guy leaned against the back of one of the couches       . Will couldn’t detect any familial resemblances between him and anyone else in the room, and he looked to be about the same age as Gabriel. A friend?

Not that it mattered. Heat crept into his cheeks. He was an idiot.

“I’m going out on a limb here, but you must be the boyfriend.” The friend came over with a wide smile. “I’m Charlie.” He offered out his hand.

“Will.”

Gabriel’s hand returned to Will’s back, and he gave a gentle rub as he kissed his cheek.

“Sorry to interrupt your reunion.” Charlie apologised.

“It’s no problem. Sorry, I didn’t notice you all in here.” Will shot Gabriel a look. He hadn’t known they were there, but Gabriel did. And it was not cool to kiss someone like that in front of other people, especially family.

Gabriel didn’t look even a smidge embarrassed. His smile was lazy. “I missed you.”

“To be fair, he’s been trying to kick us out the last hour.” Charlie added. “I’ll leave you to it. Join us for drinks the next time Will.”

Charlie left, and the others in the living room all got up and made their way toward the kitchen. Will moved to lean against the counter and cross his arms. He was still red. Still embarrassed. Gabriel returned to the stove and dumped the rice onto the pan and mixed it together with the vegetables.

“Bye Will.” Sarah ran up and hugged him. “Can you show me how to do a spike? I’ve gotten good at all the passing.”

“Sure thing.” Will agreed. “ Have Gabriel tell me next time you come over, we can head down to the park and practice.”

Sarah’s mom, Joyce, and her dad, Dave, both introduced themselves. It was more awkward with them. They were polite, but distant. Gabriel’s mom didn’t even say goodbye to Gabriel, never mind introduce herself to Will.

“She’s still not over the fact that  I like men, don’t mind it.” Gabriel said after they’d gone.

“What’s her name?”

“Rose.”

Gabriel took the stir-fry off the stove and placed the entire pan into the oven. He brushed off his hands and turned to Will. “That’ll be ready for us whenever we get hungry. Ready for the tour?”

Will let his embarrassment sink away. “Ready.”

There was an office, a spare bedroom, a large bathroom, and the master bedroom—which Gabriel introduced as ‘their’ bedroom.

“I told you that  I got into a student apartment.” Will said as he looked around. He’d worked all summer at one of the local restaurants and saved every cent of his wage to pay for accommodation. Even with a grant and a scholarship, the cost of rent would have left him with no money to spare. Gabriel had offered the room, for practicality’s sake, but Will had been firm in his refusal. Moving in together should be about their relationship, not Will’s financial situation. “How did you afford this place, anyway? I thought teachers were all poor.”

Gabriel hugged Will from behind, resting his chin on his shoulder. “The public system doesn’t pay much, true. But tutoring rich kids failing out of college is very lucrative. And summer schools pay very  well too.”

Will was glad that Gabriel had landed on his feet after leaving home. Even after months, it still bothered him that Gabriel quit his job and up-heaved his life because of him. Or for him. Either way, it relaxed him that Gabriel was okay. Will spotted his volleyball next to one of the bedside tables. “Is that my side of the bed?”

“Want to test it out?” Gabriel’s fingers toyed with the waistband of Will’s jeans. “Make sure it’s up to scratch?”

“I don’t know, are there any family members hiding in the closet?”

Gabriel chuckled. His answer was a trail of kisses leading up Will’s neck to his jaw.

Will closed his eyes, sighing as his warm, sure hands caressed his sides, and teased the V of his hips, as they trailed slowly downward. He wondered if it was okay to jump straight into being physical like this? Shouldn’t they do something romantic first? Go on a date? While he thought about it, he reached down and unbuttoned his jeans and tugged the zip down.

They’d been talking for months, and Will was already burning hot.

He twisted around in Gabriel’s arms, brought their mouths together in a fevered kiss. Shirts were discarded       , and Gabriel got Will onto the bed, on his back, and pulled his jeans and underwear off together. Condoms fell from the pocket, scattering on the bed next to them. Gabriel paused in surprise, taking them in, then looking at Will.

For once, the blush on his cheeks wasn’t from embarrassment. As they gazed at each other, any inkling Will may have had about taking their time went out the window. Will reached out. He pulled Gabriel on top of him and got to work on his jeans. His body moved and burned as if they were in the middle of love-making, and not just at the start.

“To think I worried about being over-eager.” Gabriel left marks on Will’s throat. He didn’t care. He was more concerned with the trouble he was having getting Gabriel’s trousers off.

“Stand up for a second.” Will mumbled.

“Screw that.” Gabriel said hoarsely. He reached down between them, helping Will shove his waist band down to his thighs. There was a little smacking sound as Gabriel popped out of his underwear and hit his stomach. Will felt around, snagged one of the condoms and ripped open the wrapping. Gabriel buried his face into Will’s neck, leaving him to put it on. Will messaged Gabriel instead, until lips were at his ear, nipping, and panted breaths made him quake. “Put it on you brat.”

He did.

And Gabriel propped his weight on his elbows. His eyes were dark with lust, and his cheeks were flushed red. “Lotion.” He muttered, his body leaning away from Will.

Will didn’t want them to separate. Not for a second. He looped his arms around the back of Gabriel’s neck, and pressed his mouth hungrily to his, dragging him back down. He hiked a leg around Gabriel’s hip, drawing him in. Gabriel grunted against his mouth, pulling back. “We need—”

“Don’t need it.” Will panted.

“It’s—”

Will kissed him again, reaching down to line them up.

Gabriel caught his wrist and pressed his weight into that arm to keep Will pinned as he sat up. “It’s just in the bedside table, I’m not going anywhere.”

Without Gabriel, cold air chilled Will’s skin. Naked, sweaty, and aroused, and having a hard time catching his breath. He shuffled backwards to get the pillows under his head, and then Gabriel was back. The lotion was cold, the fingers applying it hot. And what came after much, much hotter. It was nothing like the first time, where Gabriel had gone slow       , and gentle—the man above him now moved in a primal, almost crude manner. Fast and hard, pants and yells—an explosive finish.

They parted, panting, and Gabriel tied off the condom, tossing it off the bed.

“Gross.” Will whispered, his voice lost after one bout.

Gabriel grinned down at him. “And what about all this?” He indicated the mess on Will’s chest.

“Double gross.”

“Hot.” Gabriel corrected, “So fucking hot.”

Will chuckled. “Sweet talker.”

He came back to Will, placing a soft kiss against his lips, then lingering when Will deepened it.

“Slower this time?” Gabriel murmured.

Will nodded.