Read Holiday Specials & Bonus Content :: Isolation Blues Pt. 2/ Dakota and Connor

"And finally," the news anchor on the television reported, "after nearly four months in Stage 4, the premier has announced an ease on restrictions. As of midnight tonight, we'll be moving to Stage 3. The conditions of this stage will allow people to exercise without time limits, abolish the five-kilometre travelling rule, a maximum of two people from separate households to visit-"

Connor and his parents were sat on the couch. None of them spoke, eyes fixated on the TV as they listened to the news reporter rattle on about the new restrictions and what small piece of freedom they'd be granted after tonight.

Connor's leg was bouncing and he tapped his fingers against his thigh in a staccato rhythm. "C'mon," he muttered, neurons firing explosively in his brain as he remained transfixed. "C'mon."

"Honey, you're shaking the entire couch." his mum said gently, resting a hand over his own. Connor didn't answer her, too busy scrolling through the text that had popped up on the screen.

The anchor picked up a piece of paper from his desk onscreen. "In addition to outdoor gatherings now being limited to a maximum of ten people-"

Connor went dead still.

"- individuals in romantic partnerships-"

He was barely breathing, hanging onto the reporter's every word.

"-may commence social visits from no more than two separate households."

Romantic partnerships. Social visits. He played the words back in his head, because that could only mean one thing.

Dakota.

Connor was up and moving before the reporter had even finished speaking. His mum called after him, Dad laughing beside her with that quiet smile of his, but Connor was already at the top of the stairs.

His phone was on charge on top of his dresser. Connor snatched it up and pressed it against his ear, the device humming as the call was sent out.

The call connected a moment later. Connor didn't wait for an answer, bursting out, "We can see each other! Finally, after all these months!"

A familar laugh filtered through the phone speaker before Dakota Anderson said, "I just heard, though I didn't think you'd call me this quickly."

"I'm excited."

"Clearly." Dakota chuckled. "Though you've still got a few hours of isolation left."

Connor stretched out on his bed, laying on his back to stare at the ceiling. A smile played on his lips and he whispered, "I'm so happy."

"Four months is a long time. Let's hope this doesn't send us back to the start."

"Don't say that. You might jinx it and then where will you be?"

"Back to missing you."

Connor pulled the phone away from his ear to check the time and sighed. "It's only two-thirty."

"Only nine and a half more hours," Dakota replied, but he knew Connor better than that. "Tell you what, I've got to finish a report this afternoon but how about we call tonight and wait it out together. That way when midnight comes it won't feel any different."

Connor liked that plan. He liked it a lot.

"Okay," he smiled. "Let's do it."

Dakota rung him back at ten o'clock that night and they waited out the storm together. When midnight came and the new restrictions were activated, it felt like waking up to a new dawn.

***

Connor was out the door by seven o'clock the next morning.

Shoving his feet into his runners, he tried not to trip down the stairs in his haste to get out the door without waking his parents. Connor had barely slept the night before due to a sustained adrenaline rush and speaking on the phone for hours with Dakota. Now he was finally on his way.

He'd underestimated the weather in his excitement. It was cold outside with grey clouds on the horizon but that didn't stop Connor. He was a man on a mission.

Adjusting his black Manchester United mask, he dashed across the lawn to his car and climbed in.

Dakota lived on the other side of town. Usually it only took ten minutes to get to his house but with restrictions easing, early morning traffic set him back ten minutes and it took double the time to get there.

By the time Connor was pulling into the affluent neighbourhood, his fingers were drumming on the dashboard. He pulled up to a large set of iron gates and pressed a button on the small keypad next to him.

No one responded but someone buzzed him in. The gates opened with a long whine and Connor drove through and up the driveway toward the house. The front door opened as Connor put his car in park and took off his mask. He looked out the window.

Dark hair, pale skin, grey eyes.

He was out of the car in seconds and racing across the driveway. Dakota barely had time to react before he had an armful of Connor.

Muscled arms wrapped around his torso and pulled Connor close. He sighed into his boyfriend's neck. "Hey."

Deep laughter erupted from Dakota's chest and he pulled the shorter boy closer to him, hooking his chin over his shoulder. "Hey."

Three months. Twenty-one days. Seven hours.

Maybe it didn't seem like much in the long run, especially when there were people who hadn't seen their loved ones for much longer, but life was so right now when you were twenty-two years old.

Connor wasted no time pulling Dakota's head down and kissing him fiercely. Dakota chuckled against his mouth and kissed Connor back, arms coiling around his waist in a tight grip. When he went to pull away, Connor only pulled him back.

Dakota broke away eventually, laughing as he grinned down at Connor, who was smiling at him like he'd hung the sun and the stars.

The pair stared at one another for what seemed like hours, drinking in every missed attribute about each other.

"I missed you." Connor said.

"I missed you too." Dakota replied.

They were quiet for another minute before the couple grinned and embraced each other tightly. Connor threw himself at Dakota, arms twisting around his neck and Dakota spun him around in a bear hug.

"That was hell," Connor groaned as Dakota set him back on his feet. "Let's never do that again."

Dakota ruffled his hair. "I don't think we have much say in the matter."

"Don't do that."

"What? Be realistic?"

"Yes. Realism is the stone attached to the balloon that is myself. I was born to soar. Don't weigh me down with your sense of reality."

"Are you saying I hold you back?"

"I am but a leaf in the wind. I'm not meant to be tied down."

Dakota's mouth twisted up in the corner and it was so damn smug. "Connor, if you wanted to be blown, all you had to do was ask."

Connor gaped at him. Dakota smirked back.

They were racing into the house a moment later. Connor found himself shoved up against the door, Dakota's teeth attacking his neck and his hands tangled in the taller boy's hair before he ground out, "Where are your parents?"

"Working." Dakota said but his voice came out muffled. "Don't talk about my parents when I'm trying to seduce you."

"Oh, excuse me for not wanting to get caught by my boyfriend's parents while I makeout with their shirtless son on the hallway table. Again."

"You're excused."

As it turned out, being a couped-up athlete indoors for four months really worked up a lot of tension in the body. Connor wondered if the release would feel the same as playing on a soccer field. Somehow he doubted it.

"As fun as this was," Dakota said beside him on the floor, both of them sweaty and panting. Dakota's grin was cocky and victorious. "Please don't tell me you rushed over here at seven-thirty in the morning just because you just missed my dick."

Connor grinned at him sideways. "I could tell you how much I missed your ton-"

"Nope!" Dakota sat up, wiping sweat from his forehead with the back of his hand. "That's okay. You really don't have to."

"And you used to think I was a prude." Connor scoffed from the floor.

"You were never a prude. I was just your first guy."

"And last." Connor muttered under his breath.

"What?"

"Nothing!"

Dakota looked down at Connor where he was laying on the floor. The other boy blushed and looked away but he didn't have to meet his eyes for Dakota to know what he was thinking.

Both of them were young. They'd finish studying and graduate from university by the end of this year. Connor had a few job opportunities lined up and Dakota's work was flexible to work with.

They were twenty-two years old. Neither of them had marriage on their mind but the option of moving in together had been thrown around once or twice in conversation before. If it weren't for the pandemic, they may have already been touring open houses.

Despite what they had now, the couple didn't forget the years it took to get to this point. The amount of time spent hating each other and doing everything in their power to one-up the other. Love had replaced the hate and passion had replaced the spite, but relationships that weren't taken care of could easily fall back into old rhythms.

They were in no rush. Years later Dakota still had a trying relationship with his father and Connor was working out where his future would take him. They'd wasted too much time competing with one another and just wanted to enjoy life as a couple at a pace they dictated. Maybe it didn't work for everyone, but it worked for them.

"C'mon," Dakota said.

Connor's head rolled toward him to look up. "Where are we going?"

Dakota stood and extended his arm. Connor took it and Dakota pulled him to his feet, both of them unashamed of their naked state. "As much as I love doing this with you," Dakota said and began to drag Connor down the hallway, "I missed my boyfriend, not just his body. We're going to spend the whole day together and do cheesy couple things because I finally get to hold you in my arms again after four months and I'm going to take advantage of it."

"You're such a sap," Connor said but he was smiling.

They showered and dressed before going back downstairs. Connor could barely make toast without burning it so Dakota made them pasta which they ate on the couch in front of the TV. Dakota sat against the arm with Connor tucked between his legs, both of them comfortable as they blindly watched some Spanish opera on TV.

Connor put his bowl on the floor beside them before leaning back against Dakota, relishing the scent of his boyfriend's cologne paired with his natural tones of cedarwood and mahogany. Dakota wrapped his arms around him as they breathed one another in.

When they got bored of soap opera, the couple took to the backyard where they kicked a soccer ball around for old times sake. Love was quickly forgotten as the game became competitive and ended with Connor tacking Dakota to the ground when he swiped the ball out from under him, both of them laughing like it was the greatest thing in the world.

They ended up in the kitchen during the afternoon when Connor became convinced that baking a cake was something they absolutely had to do. Connor had qualifications or skills in the culinary arts by far but it didn't stop him from doing his damn best to make an edible batter.

Dakota watched in amusement as Connor twirled a spoon around in the mixing bowl, tongue poking out the corner of his mouth with bits of flour in his hair. Connor let Dakota take over for the preparation stage and sat on the kitchen island, legs kicking out like a small child as he watched his boyfriend expertly pour the batter into a cake tin.

Dakota sent him a smug look when not one bit of batter spilled and Connor let out a little hoot of victory. His emotional support earned him a sweet kiss once the cake was in the oven, and Connor smiled into it as Dakota stood between his legs, arm wrapped around Connor's waist to pull the shorter boy toward him on the counter.

Things had been going well until the timer went off forty minutes later and Connor realised he'd added salt to the recipe instead of sugar. Connor groaned as the cake came out deflated and filled with more craters than the moon.

They didn't even bother to try and salvage it, opting to throw the wasted cake in the bin and walk to the bakery down the street and get jam donuts. Unfortunately for Connor, Dakota thought it would be funny to smear a glob of jam across his nose the second he took his mask off.

Connor retaliated by smearing jam down the front of Dakota's hoodie. The taller boy gaped as Connor smirked at him, promising to do far worse should Dakota mess with his food again.

By the time the pair had cleaned up, the day was ending and Connor had to leave. It was bittersweet saying goodbye again after what seemed like only a few hours together, but Dakota pulled his boyfriend close.

"I love you," he whispered in Connor's ear.

Connor beamed at him. "My mum's demanding you come over for dinner on Sunday night. She literally told me not to come home without an accepted invitation since she, and I quote, 'misses her future son in law who needs to come over more often because he's too skinny and needs to eat more of her pot roast'."

Dakota laughed. "Hmm, maybe I should decline then. That way you don't get to go home and I can keep you here forever."

"That's holding me hostage, and it's against the law."

"I don't think you'd mind too much," Dakota nuzzled the spot just below Connor's ear. "I'd make it worth your while."

Connor shivered. The twist of lips on his skin meant that Dakota had felt it and Connor realised right in that moment how much he'd missed his boyfriend. Not just for sexual reasons, but the way he took Connor apart with very few words. It was like a drug and Connor never wanted to get over his addiction.

When they parted, it was slow and caring. Dakota kissed Connor sweetly and promised he'd be there for dinner Sunday night. Connor grinned and pulled Dakota down by the strings of his hoodie for one more kiss before stepping through the front door and out to his car.

Dakota watched Connor's tail lights disappear down the road until darkness swallowed them up. It was fifteen minutes later when Dakota was back upstairs in his bedroom when his phone buzzed in his pocket.