It seemed to be another late night for Alexandre. Yet another faculty meeting but he supposed that was to be expected with this being the first year the school was open. Policies and procedures needing revision as students got settled into the new environment. Unlike the high school he went to Romano’s seemed a bit uptight but then again it was suppose to be more like a military school from how his boyfriend explained it.

Thinking about Alex brought Aiden back to his earlier musings. In truth it was still hard to believe that Alexandre had invited him to move in. True they had been dating for a long time now, but it honestly felt like last week when he had jumped over the retaining wall on his way to class and almost landed on the blonde as he was working on an art assignment. Either way with all the changes that had happened over the last few years, being thrusted into this war that was not his own, it was a big step in their relationship he wasn’t initially prepared for and in all honesty caught Aiden off guard.

Things between them had been smooth sailing between them, one day bleeding into the next as they settled into a comfortable routine. But then ,out of the blue, on one of the nights they had planned to get together and watch an episode of Game of Thrones, Aiden came inside to a dimly lit room with Alex in the kitchen finishing up dinner. Recently lit candles illuminated the dining room in a warm glow and for a moment he contemplated quietly excusing himself thinking that his boyfriend had forgot what day it was and had someone important coming over. But then he got caught when Alex looked up.

That smile on his boy friends face froze him on the spot. “You’re here early.” He had commented in that smooth voice of his. After that there was no retreating and so he played it cool, hanging his coat in the closet before joining Alex in the kitchen.

Tonight, however, was his chance to repay him.

While Alex remained busy with the other teachers Aiden planned to make him dinner as a thank you for the one he had made him. If anything it was an opportunity to surprise the blond - just like he’d been surprised by Alexandre. Thankfully no shopping was needed, as he pulled pots and pans from where they were stored in various under cabinets.

Vegetables were pulled from the fridge, save for the onions which were in the pan tree. With Cadha dancing about his feet he stepped outside into the greenhouse to gather some herbs and a few green onions to add to the mix.

When he returned to the kitchen Aiden moved between the sink and the kitchen counter as he cleaned off the various vegetables and began dicing them into smaller pieces so they’d cook at about the same rate until all that was left was the piece of meat chilling in the fridge.

This wasn’t going to be fancy like what Alexandre did but at least it would be a warm hearty meal that was pretty low key.

When the vegetables were done he moved on to unpackaging the meat and cleaning it, shaving off the large portions of fat, and cubing it since he was planning to make a pot roast stew of sorts which worked out well considering Alexandre typically had a big bag of potatoes on hand almost all the time.

That was another thing about Alex that he found rather strange, however it made perfect sense. He, for one reason or another preferred, to do his grocery shopping late at night claiming that he liked the silence and seeing very few people in the store. It also meant the lines were often shorter so long as not too many others had the same idea since grocery stores often only kept one cashier after 10:00PM

Lost in his thoughts, and memories, he wrapped up cubing the meat before putting it, as well as the rest of the ingredients, into the crockpot careful to avoid stepping on the little terrier as he worked efficiently. Only when everything was done and his hands clean did Aiden finally give Cadha the attention he so desperately craved as the two sat on the floor in the living room paying while they waited for Alex to get home.