Erian had been awake for quite a while, though he was still lying down as Seirion had asked him to.
Yet for the first time in a long while, his body didn't feel heavy or tense. There was a strange lightness in his chest, almost unsettling, as if the darkness that always accompanied him had retreated a little.
He took a deep breath. The air felt cleaner, warmer.
It didn't take him long to understand why.
Seirion.
Remembering him was like feeling the brush of his hands all over again, the weight of his embrace, the unexpected softness of his lips.
And just thinking about it made Erian's face flush so intensely he gripped the sheets in both hands, trying to push out of his mind the image of Seirion leaning toward him with that calm, affectionate expression that melted every one of his defenses.Erian had never felt anything like that for anyone.
No one had ever touched him with that kind of tenderness.
And Erian had never wanted anyone to.
