[PRP] The Perfect Place in Mind (Shyian)

[mare]

It was infinitely harder to plan surprises when the person he wanted surprise now lived with him. Shiloh wasn’t the most organized to begin with but having Ian around made things that much worse, he couldn’t leave himself notes or things out to remember, and packing alone was a nightmare. As hard as it was, though, he found it impossible to be frustrated – how could he? Every day he got to wake up next to Ian, got to kiss him before they headed off for work, got to see him when he got home from his shift, or wait excitedly for Ian’s imminent return. It wasn’t all that different from how they’d gotten by before but at the same time it was worlds apart, because they were really living together, they’d taken the step and it was official.

When he opened the closet, he found Ian’s clothes as well as his (and a plethora of new shirts to borrow), when he looked at the desk, Ian’s books were sprawled across it, everywhere he looked it was obvious and he couldn’t have been happier about it.

He was excited about his surprise, and he’d managed to find workarounds, proud of himself from being able to actually keep it a secret. Possibly the biggest obstacle in stopping Ian from finding out was keeping his own mouth shut, which when it came to Shiloh, was quite a feat. All he’d said to Ian was to keep the weekend free so they could maybe do something together, and he’d taken it upon himself to pack their clothes and necessities while Ian had been on shift, so everything was ready to go when the Friday morning came, they’d be ready to go.

And when the big day came, he was practically bursting, and it was all he could do to try and act even the slightest bit nonchalant about the weekend ahead of them. It was hard, because he woke up far too early, and far too excited.

“Ian,” he chimed, “Wake up, Ian.”

He followed it up with a good morning kiss, rolling over on top of him with a grin.

kuroopu

 

[kuropeco]

Ian was already very used to living with Shiloh; so much, in fact, that there was a nice pile of his clothes on the floor where he'd kicked them off the night before and hadn't bothered to pick them up yet. He'd all but collapsed into bed, exhausted from the day's work shifts, curled himself around an already-sleeping Shiloh, and fallen asleep within seconds.

If he was being honest with himself, he loved living with his boyfriend, for many reasons, the most important of all of these was the fact that when Ian woke up every morning, it was to see Shiloh next to him. Sometimes he opened his eyes and Shiloh was already awake, moving around the room and getting ready, but he never left without saying goodbye, pressing a kiss to Ian's lips and flitting out the door.

It was blissful and beautiful and wonderful and Ian was stupidly, ridiculously, head over heels in love with Shiloh Parish.

On the morning that Shiloh had prepared everything so carefully, Ian was still sound asleep when his boyfriend awoke, laying on his back, mouth slightly open. His hair had started to grow longer (finally), and was curling against the nape of his neck, which was still wrapped in bandages. His torso was bare, but he wore a pair of black boxer shorts, hidden beneath the blankets.

He heard someone talking, and then something rolled on top of him - something warm and snuggly and something that pressed against his lips. Ian opened his eyes to find a very excited looking Shiloh looking down at him, his expression clearly pleased.

"That's a nice thing to wake up to," said Ian sleepily, stretching a little. He lifted his arms and wrapped them around Shiloh's waist, snuggling up with him as he pulled him down for another kiss. He smiled against his lips and drew back, then purposefully and obnoxiously planted both of his hands on Shiloh's butt as casually as if he were holding his hand.

"You look happy," he said, "Are you happy?"

sammpai

 

[mare]

His grin widened, pleased with Ian’s answer and with the way his arms snuck over his back and around his waist, settling with a comforting weight against his skin. It was rare that Shiloh ever woke up fully clothed and this morning was no exception, clad, like Ian, in only a pair of boxers with some sort of indiscernible print. He wiggled up to Ian and into the kiss, not the least bit groggy. He practically melted into it, butter in Ian’s hands and he shot Ian a look as those hands found his rear.

It was futile, though, to pretend he didn’t like it, to pretend that he hadn’t thought about abandoning the weekend ahead just to spend the days wrapped up in their bed. He liked this very much, in fact he loved it, and was entirely sure nothing else could top the precious moments they got to share every morning, just the two of them.

“Very happy,” he answered, and he leaned down to kiss the tip of Ian’s nose. Then he pushed himself up and swung his legs over Ian and the edge of the bed, getting up before his happiness became too apparent, and the weekend went the way moving, and most anything they tried to do alone ended up.

What could be said? They’d just gotten back together, just moved in together, after all, it made sense to take advantage of every moment of it, to celebrate it.

And that’s exactly what this weekend was meant to be, as Shiloh stood, taking a moment to stretch before searching through the pile of clothes on the floor, separating his from Ian.

“How about you, sleepyhead? Are you ready to get up? You don’t have to right away, if you wanted to sleep a bit longer, there’s still some time.”

kuroopu

 

[kuropeco]

They had already spent several days doing nothing but breaking in their new apartment together, and a good portion of that time had been spent cuddled up in bed. Ian would have been lying if he had tried to say it was a lot easier to hold back now that they were living together. But still, he liked the cute cuddling moments more than anything else, and he beamed up at Shiloh, face flushed with pleasure, because sometimes he still couldn't quite wrap his mind around that they were not just together, but sharing a room.

"Good," said Ian with a smile, and squeezed Shiloh's butt obnoxiously before reluctantly letting go so that he could slip away. Ian turned over on his side, propping his head up in one hand and watching Shiloh as he moved around the room, eyes tracing the lines of his face, the flow of his body with an amused, almost greedy look in his eyes.

"I'm so luckyyyy," he crooned, and finally pushed himself upright, stretching and yawning. Ian swung his legs over the side of the bed and twisted his neck from side to side, trying to work out the kinks in it. "No, it's fine, I'll get up; I shouldn't be lazy all day, right?"

sammpai

 

[mare]

“Nope, you definitely shouldn’t,” Shiloh said brightly, leaning over to kiss Ian’s cheek after he’d sat up, while he meanwhile attempted to pull on his jeans at the same time.

“I’m gonna go shower and stuff, otherwise my hair’s going to be a mess but, I’ll just be quick… And for the purposes of keeping it quick, you can shower after and then we can hit the road? I did tell you to keep this weekend free, right?

kuroopu

Have a short tag so we can do some back and forth @ convo <3

 

[kuropeco]

Ian half debated crawling back into bed, thought better of it, and finally got to his feet and dragged himself away from the bed, stumbling around sleepy eyed and tousle haired. He scratched absently at his neck, reminding himself mentally that he needed to change the bandages before they left, and began rummaging around in his dresser for clothes.

"I could shower with you," Ian called out, tossing Shiloh a smirk over his shoulder. "Though we might not be out for a while longer than you anticipated, come to think of it, so maybe that's not such a good idea after all."

He ran a hand through his messy hair. "You did," said Ian with a smile. "I don't have any duty shifts this weekend, so it's just you and me, handsome."

A laugh escaped him, Ian straightening with a plain red shirt in one hand and a pair of black jeans in the other. He crossed the room and leaned over, pecking a quick kiss to Shiloh's lips. "Fine, fine, go shower, hot stuff, I will be ready and waiting for when you return, okay? I promise I won't go back to sleep while you shower."

sammpai

 

[mare]

“Exactly,” Shiloh said, pulling out a towel and some shampoo and a fresh change of clothes. Nothing fancy, just a pair of slacks and a striped tee. “There’s not really any rush but we do need to leave our room at some point today.”

He returned Ian’s quick kiss with a quick kiss of his own, though quick was perhaps not the right word as it continued for several moments, Shiloh’s excitement for the weekend ahead getting the better of him.

He was just so happy and he knew he shouldn’t rely on a single person to create that happiness for him, but he couldn’t help it. Just looking at Ian made him beam, made him want to wrap his arms around him and never let go. Reluctantly, despite what he’d just said, he finally drew away, stepping halfway out the door.

“Love you,” he said softly, smiling at him. “I won’t be long.”

Then he disappeared down the hallway.

kuroopu

kuro is the nicest butt

 

[kuropeco]

Ian had started to pull away after his quick kiss, but since Shiloh had held on, he'd been forced to stay put - not that he minded in the slightest, Ian wrapping his arms around Shiloh's waist and dragging him close. He smiled against his boyfriend's lips, relishing the feel of his mouth against his, and was just as reluctant to part as Shiloh was, Ian looking somewhat drunken as he pulled back.

"You're making this very difficult," he said with a groan, and then slapped a hand on Shiloh's butt playfully. "Get out of here, you troublemaker, before I get too distracted to even get dressed because otherwise we're not leaving this room for another day, and that would be bad.."

But his expression was gentle, and filled with emotion as he added, "I love you, duck," before Shiloh had slipped from the room.

Once alone, Ian gathered together everything needed for his own shower and piled it on the bed. He flopped down atop it and grabbed a book, flipped it open, and began to read to pass the time until he would go shower himself, Ian lying on his back.

sammpai

 

[mare]

“I know,” he said softly, but there was no helping it. When it came to Ian, he lacked the power to resist or perhaps, more honestly, he lacked the power to want to resist. Just looking at him as he backed out of the room with a laugh, hiding his rear from further attacks, he was tempted to steal a hundred more kisses and to give in to exactly what they were trying to avoid.

But there would be plenty of time for everything later, he reminded himself. They would be spending the entire weekend together; they could handle ten minutes apart for a shower.

It proved infinitely easier to do once he was in the shower, because it required time, running the shampoo through his hair and the soap across his body. It was easy to be a bit lazy, to take a few more minutes as he stood beneath the warm spray and relaxed, thinking about the weekend ahead as he tousled his fingers through his hair.

Then came the stepping out, the towel, and then his clothes. He wrapped the towel up around his hair and then bent one leg over the bench to roll up his pant leg, and then the other, before slipping on his shoes and heading back to the room.

He wasn’t surprised to find Ian reading. Though it was a pastime Shiloh had never really picked up, he found the idea of Ian doing it adorable, as he did with almost everything his boyfriend did. Unwinding the damp towel from his head, he threw it at Ian with a grin and began hunting around the room for a brush.

“Your turn, chicken.”

kuroopu

 

[kuropeco]

When Shiloh returned, Ian was still reading, but he sat up as the door opened, just in time to get a face full of damp towel. Spluttering, Ian batted it from him and stood up, gathering his supplies and marching across the room towards where Shiloh was rooting around in a drawer.

"Rude," he said dramatically, and leaned to nuzzle Shiloh's face with his nose. "I love it when your hair is wet, you look fantastically hot and it's very distracting, just like everything about you is. Jeez, how did I land myself such a good looking man?"

(He really needed to learn to keep his hands to himself.)

Grinning, Ian pecked a kiss to the tip of Shiloh's nose and disappeared out the door for his own shower.

Fifteen minutes later, he came back, dressed in a pair of worn jeans, a black teeshirt, and clean bandages wrapped around his neck. The usual bracelets jangled merrily on his wrists. His hair, slightly longer than before, was slicked back from the shower, and Ian tossed both his pajamas and his towels onto the chair without bothering to do anything with them, and practically bounced up to Shiloh, looking pleased with himself.

"All clean!" he said cheerfully, and shoved his hands into the pockets of his jeans so that he wouldn't start doing anything and prolong their leaving anymore than he already had. "You ready to go wherever it is that we're supposed to be going?"

sammpai

 

[mare]

“You’re awful,” Shiloh said, Ian’s breath warm against his skin and every bit as distracting as he’d just described. After so long together, minus any intermission, he’d gotten used to the compliments, the words that let him know just exactly how Ian felt yet despite however used to them he might be, the faint blush that crept over his cheeks was just as familiar and he ducked away, shoving Ian playfully.

“I’ll distract you,” he threatened, but it was an empty threat, especially since Ian was already half out the door. Smiling to himself, Shiloh turned back to the drawer in search of his brush, only to spot it sitting on the nightstand, nowhere near the drawer at all. Closing it, Shiloh wandered over and picked it up, running it a few times to get the tangles out of his hair.

By the time Ian got back, Shiloh’s hair was a little bit dryer but not enough yet to throw up into his usual ponytail, and so it hung slightly curled around his shoulders, strands of pink and blue twisting against each other. Two duffel bags had also mysteriously appeared at his feet, Shiloh having pulled them from the closet while Ian was off showering. He had really wanted absolutely everything to be a surprise but he couldn’t exactly get away with not packing clothes and other essentials. Living together, however, had certainly made it convenient for Shiloh to pick out everything for Ian, so at least what was in the bags was a surprise… Sort of.

Ian bounced in and Shiloh eyed him up, thinking that whatever Ian thought of him with his hair wet, it was nothing when the tables were turned. Ian was naturally handsome, even fresh out of the shower he wouldn’t have seemed out of place on a movie set or photo-shoot, was what Shiloh thought. He also thought a lot of other things, that were better left unsaid and that produced the same sort of blush as earlier. Picking up the bags, he held out one of them towards Ian, reminding himself not to drool.

“You look, um, you look really good,” he managed to squeak out without jumping him. “And clean.”

And delicious. And a whole host of other things.

“And yep, I’m ready! Let’s get this dog and pony show on the road. Off to the main portal!”

kuroopu

 

[kuropeco]

The best thing about living together was that he could see Shiloh every day, even when their schedules didn't quite match up. At the very least, every morning like clockwork, and every night before he crawled into bed, he could rest easy knowing that Shiloh was the first thing he saw when he woke up and the last thing he saw when he went to sleep.

It was a very comforting thing.

"Thanks, handsome," said Ian with a grin, leaning down to shake his head vigorously in Shiloh's direction, spraying him with water. He glanced curiously at the bags, and then reached out and took the one offered to him, totally noticing the blush on Shiloh's cheeks.

"You're so h-o-t - " Ian crooned, reaching to pinch one of Shiloh's cheeks before dancing away out of reach, throwing his bag over his shoulder. "And you make me h-a-p-p-y, oh so h-a-p-p-y - "

It was clear Ian was in a very silly mood, probably because it was their first outing together after having moved in with one another, but also probably because Ian was starting to feel better for the first time in a long time. There was less of a cloud of depression hanging over him, and he was starting to breathe easier, even with the nightmares that plagued him on an almost daily basis.

Ian stopped at the doorway and stretched out his hand towards his boyfriend, reaching for his fingers.

"Let's go, hot stuff, lead the way."

sammpai

 

[mare]

Shiloh laughed as the water sprayed over him, putting a hand up as if it might somehow stop it. It didn’t, but he was grateful for the distraction. He’d almost been able to completely push any unnecessary thoughts from his mind…

For about two seconds. Ian was nothing if not perceptive – and persistent. His sneaky hands found Shiloh’s cheeks, the ones on his face this time at least, and he pinched them with the sort of deftness only Ian possessed, skirting just out of Shiloh’s reach as he grappled with the bag on his shoulder and grabbed for Ian. He wasn’t sure what he wanted to do with him once he caught him, just that he wanted him in his arms, his silliness catching.

Luckily for him, Ian paused at the door and waited, hand outstretched. Shiloh had no intentions of settling for just a hand, however, and instead tried to throw the whole of himself onto Ian, catching him in a sort of tackling hug. He clung around him with his arms tightly and leaned up as he pushed Ian out the door, smacking a messy kiss against his cheek.

“You’re the worst, and the best. Let’s go.”

Without waiting for an answer, he finally unattached himself and settled for Ian’s hand, twining his fingers through Ian’s as he pulled him down the hallway and eventually out of the dorms and towards the lighthouse portal. It was the one he knew best and he knew that Mark was definitely not on duty for that particular day – which meant they were almost sure to reach the proper destination.

He nodded at the attendants quickly and gave a small wave; he’d been sure to obtain clearance ahead of time, so they could get through without problems but also because he didn’t trust Ian to behave long enough if they did have to wait and he was starting to doubt his own ability to do so as well.

When they finally reached the portal, he stood for a moment, hand still in Ian’s.

“Are you ready? This is your one and only chance for escape.”

He grinned.

kuroopu

 

[kuropeco]

Ian nearly toppled over with the force of Shiloh's leap, but he automatically raised his arm anyway, wrapping it around Shiloh's waist and laughing, stumbling out the door as he pressed a return kiss to Shiloh's forehead. The bag was still slung over his shoulder, Ian grinning.

"Same to you, silly," he said affectionately, and laced their fingers together, following along beside his boyfriend as they made their way down the hall and outside, going across the lawn to where the tall, familiar lighthouse stood. Inside, it was easy to get past the attendants - clearly Shiloh had already thought this through, and had planned ahead, which made Ian even more curious, but this was Shiloh's lead, and Ian was perfectly content to let him be the one to be in charge this time.

He squeezed Shiloh's fingers before ducking his head to press a gentle, chaste kiss against his lips.

"No way," said Ian, his mouth curving upwards in a smile as he pulled back. "There's no escape for me, no way in hell. I'll follow you to the ends of the earth and back, so take me and my cheesy, ridiculous, overly dramatic self wherever you want."

He was trying very hard not to laugh, but that was proving impossible, and Ian squeezed Shiloh's fingers again, bouncing up and down on the balls of his feet.

"Ready when you are, babe."

sammpai

 

[mare]

He savored the kiss, chaste though it was, and nodded resolutely, pulling Ian through the portal with him. All he could think was that he hoped Ian would like it.

What they stepped onto on the other side was worn pavement juxtaposed in the narrow alleyway between two old looking brick walks. The calling of cicadas, shrill in the warm August air was the first inkling that the buildings weren’t a part of a bustling city like New York and by the time it took them to shuffle out of the dark alley into sunlight, not a single car had passed on the street in front of them, making it very clear what sort of place they’d just landed in.

It was exactly how Shiloh had planned it, but he had no idea what Ian would think. Nothing was given away yet, except that they were in some sort of nondescript small town, the sort that though they were many, they all ended up looking the same. There was a collection of shops along the main street, looking antique when nestled next into an obviously new bank, and further down, a grocery store. To Shiloh it was familiar, it was everything he had known. It wasn’t quite home, he didn’t dare tread that close, but it was near enough and he’d spent many summers doing just this when he was growing up.

Instinct had him letting go of Ian’s hand, trying to hide his cowardice by bounding ahead along the sidewalk, and grinning at Ian as he turned around and tried to walk backwards.

“Well, it’s not quite the ends of the earth yet, we’ve gotta go pick up our truck to get there, but almost.”

He laughed a little, and almost tripped, giving up on the whole walking backwards idea in favor of settling in beside Ian, gently brushing up against his side.

kuroopu