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“Oh.” Zack’s eyes went round as pizzas. “They want to come here.”
“Yup.” In the weeks since they’d started fooling around, they hadn’t had any visitors other than a few brief supply dropoffs from the senior chief’s wife. This totally felt like their island paradise, a place where they could forget about the outside world. Last night at the party it had been hard enough trying to not act like a couple, something made far more complicated by Zack suddenly turning into attentive boyfriend material, sharing food and acting like he couldn’t wait to get Pike alone.
But this was different. Neither of them had known the people at the party very well, which was probably why Zack had felt safe trying out some couple-like behaviors. This was their close friends, people who could guess. And they were invading Pike and Zack’s safe place, threatening everything. Despite an empty stomach, Pike seriously wanted to hurl.
“Okay.” Zack nodded sharply.
“Okay?”
“Okay. One of us really should clean the bathroom. Might want to hit the kitchen and the cat boxes too.” Zack stood, not meeting Pike’s eyes. Fuck. Pike couldn’t tell whether he was remarkably stoic about this or every bit as freaked out as Pike was. “You showered already?”
“Yeah.”
“Then let me take a fast one, and I’ll do the bathroom after. You want to start with the kitchen stuff? Then I can help out with the rest.”
Was it seriously going to be this easy? This domestic? Pike nodded because he didn’t trust himself to speak.
“And uh.” Zack paused, halfway through the door. “We shouldn’t... I mean...you know...”
Pike sighed. Nothing was ever that easy. “I know. I won’t say anything. Promise.”
“Thanks.” Zack’s eyes narrowed and he chewed on his lip, seeming to debate something. Then he took a step back into the room, gave Pike the world’s fastest kiss. “Thanks, man. Knew I could count on you.”
Knew I could count on you. Fuck, just like that Pike was fifteen again, assuring Roger that everything was their little secret, Roger just assuming Pike could keep everything on the down-low around their large friendship circle.
Zack’s not Roger. And he wasn’t—unlike Roger, who had always held a part of himself back, even when they were alone and intimate, Zack gave Pike everything, each kiss a window into a guy no one else got to see. Last night, Zack had let Pike see every bit of his wonder and tenderness, and said such sweet things. You’re all I need. Which only meant that the end was going to hurt that much more. For both of you.
Fuck that. Pike kicked a pile of laundry under his bed rather than taking the time to sort everything into his and Zack’s clothes. He needed to get into crisis cleaning mode, not mope around about things that weren’t going to change.
He did the cat boxes first because that nasty task was guaranteed to chase any emo feels away. Then he hit the kitchen while Zack, fresh from his shower, did the living room. With the newly painted cabinets and the tile counters they’d installed a few weeks back, the kitchen looked more than presentable after Pike loaded the dishwasher and wiped down the counters. Zack had swept the living room and even brought their laptops out and set them on the entertainment center near the TV. Funny how easily they could go into and out of each other’s rooms now.
“There. Our place looks awesome.” Zack grinned at Pike while he scarfed a bowl of cereal.
Our place. Pike’s heart might seriously not survive the day. The doorbell rang while Pike was considering his emotional EKG, and then everything was a rash of greetings and back-slapping hugs. Gentle on Ryan because he was on his prosthetic legs and Pike did not want to send him crashing to the floor.
Pike offered sodas and beer all around before he took a seat on the floor so that Josiah and Ryan and their laptop bags could take the couch while Zack took the papasan chair that Pike had recently picked up for free on the curb a few streets over. Josiah gave Pike a searching look.
And yeah, a few months ago, he totally would have wedged himself in between Josiah and Ryan because he liked being a dick like that, and he would have added more than one threesome joke and been a shameless flirt with Ryan, who it had to be said was hotter than sin. But not as hot as Zack.
“You okay?” Josiah asked him. “I didn’t interrupt your weekly sleep-till-two thing, did I?”
Another thing that had changed. Pike hadn’t slept late in ages, readily adapting to Zack’s early schedule. Behind him, Zack coughed. Way to play it cool. Got to hope you never get interrogated. “Nah. Anymore I’m up early to work on house stuff with Zack.”
