At the sound of his new-found lover’s heavy steps on the stairs, Erik replaced his formerly concerned look with a small smile, watching the boy step in the room and close the door with a click behind him. In seconds he was on his feet, wrapping his arms around Tony and supporting him, as he relaxed all his muscles and sighed, melting into Erik. “It’s been a long day…” he muttered softly, as Erik pulled him towards his bed, laying him down and sitting beside him. In the dying light of the sunset, the boys simply started at each other, content to let the silence stretch between them without feeling the need to speak.

A comforting hand began to rub Tony’s shoulders, further relaxing the muscles that had been so tense the entire day. “You know, Tony, it hasn’t exactly been a bad day,” Erik said quietly, continuing the topic from minutes ago. Tony’s deep brown eyes locked onto Erik’s piercingly blue ones, and he closed them again, smiling. “Come on, you know it’s true,” Erik added, smirking.

Wrapping an arm around Erik’s waist as well as he could, Tony nodded and snuggled in closer, while Erik held him closely. “I do know it’s true,” he replied, turning his face up to gently kiss Erik’s neck. “But that doesn’t mean it hasn’t been a long day.”

“That’s true…” a soft voice replied as Erik kissed Tony back on the forehead, brushing hair back with delicate fingers for lack of something better to do. Oddly, if his hands weren’t moving, Erik felt like they should be. “I’ve thoroughly enjoyed it since I got to your house, though.”

Smiling, Tony nodded again, glancing up at those blue eyes again. “And I have too… more than I ever though I could have, in fact,” he replied, grazing his lips against Erik’s. Before the other boy could react, however, he cuddled back into the crook of his neck, letting his breathing become slow and steady, and soon had Erik thinking he’d fallen asleep.

Afraid to move and wake him, Erik simply sat there, feeling as though he should be bored but having no such thoughts. All he could think about was all the time he had wasted without realizing he and Tony were a perfect pair. They’d been friends for years, and very close friends at that. Not only had they played sports together, but they compete against each other as well, and did other things along with that. But they had both been raised in such a way that wouldn’t let them think they could belong together, since both of their religions stated that homosexuality was wrong.

Then again, who cares what religion says? There were no set rules, no true regulations set against gay men or lesbian woman, except in those few discriminatory states that couldn’t accept the fact that people of the same sex can live a happy, beautiful life together if given the chance. He and Tony would be no different than those loving same-sex couples on TV and in the movies.

Parents would cause problems only for a little while. Once each family saw how happy and content the two were together, there could be no denying that they were meant to be a couple. And if things didn’t go so well… that was just too bad for whoever thought so. Erik made up his mind, laying there on Tony’s bed and holding him that they would be together no matter whom had an issue with them.

He was replaying the day in his head, smiling at every part of it that had included Tony. Sadly, the majority of his day had been wasted away from the warmth and comfort of his… boyfriend? Blushing slightly at the thought, Erik forced himself not to feel slightly embarrassed. Yes, Tony was most certainly going to be his boyfriend. There was no reason for them not to be together—except for that whole problem that they both had girlfriends.

Wide eyes came with that thought, and Erik’s small gasp of slight horror caused Tony to lift his head groggily, looking at Erik through half-closed lids. “Wazzamater?” he asked gently, running his hand lightly over Erik’s leg.

Erik looked into Tony’s chocolate-colored eyes again and made a gulping noise, clearing his throat before speaking slowly and rather painfully. “Think we should tell Sam and Tannique anything?”