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 Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2022 6:10 pm
Michael and Devyn could have done just about anything for their date. It wouldn’t have taken much to make Devyn happy, and it wasn’t as if he actually needed to see if he and Michael were compatible. So, he treated it less like a romantic evaluation and more like a nice night out.
Devyn could have brought the bouquet with him, but he’d been practical and only hid it until it was nearly time to go. While they were getting dressed up–nothing too fancy, just enough to keep out the chill of the late afternoon–he’d presented Michael with the bouquet. It was better to do it now so neither of them had to carry it around all night.
He’d chosen an array of flowers, white and gray and blue. He didn’t worry about the language behind them, he just chose something beautiful, because Michael deserved something pretty. The flowers themselves were pretty, but he couldn’t help but to add a few little gold embellishments here and there; he had an array of shiny little things, and delicately twirled gold sticks were hardly anything abnormal for him.
The bouquet was accompanied by a kiss before they headed out.
They’d ordered food to go, because Michael could afford it and they were both supposed to be resting, anyway. They walked to pick it up and appreciated the weather, and looked at Halloween decorations, and told seasonal stories.
Devyn had picked an odd spot for a date, in that they had to go into town, take an elevator up to the top floor, sneak through a near-hidden stairwell, and climb up to the roof. Devyn explained that when he had a tendency to get lost, when he didn’t know where he was, he liked to get as high up as possible to get a good look around. So, on one of his adventures, he’d found an artificial park installed on the roof of the landscaping business it belonged to. It was several stories tall and offered a good view of the city, and where they were now they had a perfect view of not only the city, but the sunset, too. A light breeze blew but it wasn’t overwhelming. There was a park and a few trees, and flowers, and carefully laid turf that was either very convincing or very real grass. There was a picnic table that Devyn directed Michael too as they set down the bags.
“How’s this?” he asked, visibly proud of this private little place in the city, away from all of the business and noise and yet still offering such a good view of the sun dipping towards the horizon.
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Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2022 6:18 pm
“I’m impressed. I had no idea this existed,” Michael admitted, looking around at the rooftop park, admiring the solitude from other people, while also pleased with his current company.
The flowers had been a nice surprise, or rather something Michael hadn’t expected. Although he was quickly getting used to Devyn doing all of the things he said he would do to court him. Even if they’d already agreed to spend the rest of their lives together.
And now they were standing together with a perfect view of the sunset.
Michael couldn’t remember the last time he had a nice date like this. He was sure they existed, but he was usually the one setting them up. And that was to be expected, since he had the money to do so. But this…? Michael was also starting to realize that he needed to step up his game if he wanted to keep up with the thoughtful, affectionate gestures from Devyn.
With the bags set down on the table, Michael reached first for Devyn’s arm, lightly touching it, before he reached for his back, giving it a scratch to show his appreciation.
“This is really nice, Dev. Thank you. We’ll have to sneak up here again.”
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Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2022 6:59 pm
Devyn could have purred at the scratches at his back, and he deliberately avoided sitting down for a few extra seconds to eke out as much of the affection as he could get. He leaned over to kiss Michael on the cheek and then tugged him to sit down at the table before their food got cold.
“I’ll show you all of the secret little places I’ve found. I’m sure you’ve got plenty of places I wouldn’t have thought to visit, but sometimes while you’re at work, I just explore. Although, I feel a bit guilty. You work so hard and I’ve got my whole day to do whatever I want. Are you sure you don’t mind?”
He looked at Michael with sincerity, because if they were going to have a life together, he didn’t want to get into any bad habits or press his luck. Michael had already been incredibly generous, and Devyn wanted to make sure he never felt taken advantage of. He knew Michael didn’t have to work, but he wanted to make sure that he pulled his weight.
He began to unpack the food and lay it across the table for them, eager to get everything in place so they could just enjoy a nice dinner together.
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Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2022 7:41 pm
“You shouldn’t feel guilty,” Michael promised as he sat down beside Devyn so he could help take the food out of the bags they’d brought with them. “I’m not sure I’ll be teaching much longer. I want to make sure Atticus and Elliot get through high school, but I think after that, I would like to take time to get Alastor and Sessrumnir cleaned up. And maybe travel with you, if you’d like that. Or we could just find something to do here. Whether it be helping with Senshi and Knight things, or just… doing whatever we want.”
He liked working with the teenagers, but he also knew he wasn’t getting any younger. If they were going to get Alastor fixed up, he wanted to do it as soon as possible. They had a lot to do. Especially if they were going to be helping out others with their Worlds and Wonders.
“You should explore, as long as you’re safe,” he said as he leaned against the table so he could look back at Devyn with a smile. “What about you? Do you want something more to do during the day? I bet we could figure out a way to get you involved at Azure too,” he suggested with a quiet laugh. “Those boys have a lot of energy. I bet the physical education coach could use some help.”
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Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2022 7:58 pm
Devyn laughed and shook his head. “Me, with a bunch of teenagers? I might be too competitive. Are you sure you’re not thinking that just because you want to see me in shorts?” he teased, and leaned over to bump shoulders with Michael.
“If you thought I should, I would. But I’d be sorely tempted to take every opportunity to try and sneak in to visit you. For now, you know most of what I get up to.”
He sent pictures and updates often enough so Michael didn’t have to wonder what he was getting into. Sometimes, it was something simple–a general adult class where he could learn something. Sometimes he wound up on strange tours, or in odd places, just because he was curious about them. There seemed to be very little Devyn would say no to learning about.
“Maybe we could get up to things together if you weren’t teaching. We’ll need to take breaks from cleaning up every now and then, and it’s like we can make that our full time job. I don’t think we can travel that often. Maybe Soleiyu can do something to help us?” he suggested, if only because Soleiyu was the one to give him the phone in the first place.
“I’d like to travel, I think. Around town, or around Earth, or–you know? Or even to other worlds. Anywhere with you sounds nice. One of the things I regret not doing more with Percy was taking vacations. We were always working, and always promising that we’d take time for ourselves ‘later’, or ‘when there was time’, or ‘when we fix this problem’. But, I think I’d like to make an effort to make sure there’s time for us regardless of how much work we have to do. And that’s very hard for me to say because I feel obligated to do so much, but.”
He glanced at Michael. “Then I think, ‘I don’t want Michael to spend the rest of his life working,’ and it helps put things into perspective, I think. Because when I look at you, I want you to have fun and enjoy life and then I think, well I want to be with him, so it only makes sense that we should. I want to do everything you want to do. We could go to poetry readings. Or we could go sailing. Or we could go dancing, or to shows, or horseback riding.”
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Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2022 10:35 pm
Michael laughed at Devyn’s tease about him in shorts. He didn’t think he needed an excuse, although he hadn’t requested that Devyn wear shorts yet. But now that he had the idea in his head…
“Do I look like I need a vacation?” he asked, purposefully wearily, but he couldn’t hide the smile that tugged at his lips. “I would like to take vacations with you. And with Atticus and the Reids. You’ll have to help me talk them into it. They’re just as bad as you when it comes to working, I think. But I would like to take vacations with just you.”
He would like to do a lot of things with Devyn, but they also were in no rush. Well, not any more than they already were.
“I’m sorry you didn’t get enough time with Percy,” he said after a moment, reaching up to play a little with Devyn’s hair, pushing his dark bangs from his face and behind his ear.
“I want to make sure you have enough time to spend your life doing what you want. You’ve waited long enough. You’ve done enough, Devyn. So much and so much more. You deserve some time to enjoy things other than just working.”
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Posted: Tue Nov 15, 2022 7:21 am
“You know, it’s not all bad. I do enjoy working. Or, at least, seeing the end result. I have worked a lot, but it doesn’t look like I’ve got much to show for it. Sometimes I think if I had a thousand more years, it still wouldn’t be enough. But…I think that when one thing gets fixed, I just look for the next thing. And when you live like that, there isn’t ever going to be an end to it. There’s always going to be another project, another thing that needs to be taken care of. So, I’ll always have something to do. But I understand that it’s not a race to get everything done. I don’t have assassins coming after me anymore, so that’s going to free up a lot of my time.”
He smiled, so Michael would know he was teasing, and when he turned to face him his heart skipped a beat. He knew the necklace would pick it up, so he wasted no time reaching over so he could rest his hand on Michael’s cheek. Devyn was weak to his touches already, and it was easy to lean into his touch any time he played with his hair.
“You’re handsome, you know. But you in this sunlight has taken my breath away. I must have been working very hard before to ignore how attractive you are. Your eyes catch the light better than most gemstones. We’ll have to go on vacations just so I’ve got an excuse to admire you in different lightning.”
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Posted: Tue Nov 15, 2022 9:06 am
Michael might have known Devyn was teasing, but he still let out a slightly exasperated sigh. Knowing there had been assassins after him was hardly comforting. But… they were all gone, and it was just Devyn now.
The skip in the necklace pulled his attention again, and he offered Devyn a smile in return, leaning into the touch.
“That’s very flattering of you to say,” he couldn’t help but laugh softly, and he moved his hand to press against the back of Devyn’s against his cheek to hold it there. “You were a little preoccupied with saving your world from Chaos. I don’t mind that you were distracted. It didn’t stop me from seeing you, though,” Michael hummed, turning his face enough to be able to kiss Devyn’s palm.
“I’m glad there aren’t any assassins coming after you, any more. And if you need to work and do something, then that’s fine. Would it be okay if I helped you with some things? Maybe we could work on projects together. I was thinking about building something in the backyard for the boys. Give them somewhere away from all us old people.”
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Posted: Tue Nov 15, 2022 9:29 am
Devyn smiled softly as Michael kissed his hand, and tried to stretch his fingers to brush over Michael’s cheek as he did so.
“I would love to work on projects with you. I don’t feel like I have to do anything alone. And right now I can’t think of anything I want to do alone. I don’t want you to feel obligated to help me, just know that, but you’re always welcome, and wanted. I enjoy your company, Michael. You could lay there and watch the clouds go by while I did all the work and I’d still be happier to have you there with me. Although, I really must mention that you’re very talented, and I like watching you work. I think we could do wonderful things together. And building something in the backyard sounds good. Better they have a place away from us so they don’t have to run off to that blackberry bush any time they want to be alone,” he said, but there was an unmistakable fondness in his words.
“Atticus wants to grow flowers, I told him we could ask you if we could do something in the backyard. And that we could ask the Reids, since I know they enjoyed their garden.”
He curled his hand around Michael’s now, because he couldn’t help it, and drew it so he could kiss the back of it. The smell of food was permeating the air, but he couldn’t bring himself to be distracted by it, not while Michael’s face was basked in the warm, golden light. He didn’t want to miss even just a second of it.
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Posted: Tue Nov 15, 2022 12:40 pm
“Being around you, or wanting to help you has never been out of obligation,” he promised as Devyn took his hand to kiss, although he paused and made a face at his own claim. “Well… maybe when I first met you, I wanted to make sure you weren’t going to get yourself killed, but… that wasn’t really out of obligation, either.”
He didn’t have to mention to Peter that the strangely costumed man was a Senshi. He didn’t have to spend any time talking to Devyn either when he was brought to his house. He wanted to make sure he was at least warned about things. And he didn’t have any argument about the food Peter had offered Devyn since it was obvious that he needed to eat.
“But now, being around you brings me peace. Even with you running around and being ridiculous,” he added with a forced sigh of exasperation and intentionally weary look at Devyn. But his lips twitched into a smile soon after. Devyn’s energy and enthusiasm for things was endearing, if not a little exhausting for him. But he wouldn’t want to tell Devyn to slow down. Maybe remind him to breathe, but that was different.
“Atticus can have all the flowers he wants. Backyard, front yard, wherever. I was thinking of building a treehouse. Did you have those on Alastor? I’ll show you pictures when we get home. Maybe not actually attached to a tree since I wouldn’t want damage caused to the trees or the structure, but something raised up to help them feel like they have a place to go. Or… I could take a page out of your book and be ridiculous by doing something completely over the top,” he said with a laugh, leaving whatever that was purposefully vague.
“You’re very handsome, you know. I feel like I could look at you for hours and never get bored. I don’t know how you managed to avoid getting your face scared after so long, but I’m glad you did. Not that it would make a difference in how I feel about you, but I think you’re perfect as you are.”
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Posted: Tue Nov 15, 2022 3:33 pm
Devyn could only laugh with Michael’s intentionally weary look, and he took no offense at Michael’s commentary about him being ridiculous.
“You’ll have to show me pictures of a treehouse, yes. I haven’t seen a single tree on Earth wide enough to make a house out of. But I have heard of worlds that hollowed out trees. So what you’re describing sounds very different from what I’m imagining. But if it’s something that can be built, I know you can make it happen. Of course, there’s nothing wrong with adding a little extra flair. ‘Over the top’ can be very fun.”
He laughed again, and let himself get caught in Michael’s eyes again.
“You give such nice compliments, Michael. You’re very sweet, you know. Thank you, you’re welcome to look at me as much as you like. To be honest, I’m surprised I’ve never gotten any of my face, either. There were a few times when it came close, but I’ve always healed up. I’ve got one here,” he said, and tilted his head back to show Michael the underside of his jaw. It wasn’t easy to see the thin white line that almost reached his neck but ended an inch or so before his chin. “I’ve got a bit more in my hairline, too, but they’re not very impressive. I got a scar from running into a branch as a child.”
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Posted: Tue Nov 15, 2022 5:00 pm
“Earth has some pretty big trees in isolated areas, but the people who live here have been using so many resources, it’s amazing anything is still standing, sometimes,” he said with a frown. But it didn’t last long.
“I’ll show you everything I can think of. Maybe there will be some things I didn’t know. There’s a lot I don’t know, mind you,” he laughed, because he didn’t want Devyn to think he was that knowledgeable about everything when he wasn’t. Just a wide variety of things that came with experience over the years.
When Devyn tilted his head back, he reached up to lightly touch the scar underneath Devyn’s jaw, letting his fingers ghost over it for a moment, before letting his hand settle on Devyn’s neck, thumb brushing over his cheek. He was careful not to mess with his shoulder, which still needed time to heal, but the closeness to the injury was more of a protective gesture than anything else.
“I’m glad they’re not very impressive,” Michael breathed out softly in sympathetic amusement. Not at Devyn’s expense! He could just imagine how Devyn would run around not looking where he was going. “You know, that doesn’t help with any motivation I might have for building a treehouse. I don’t want you getting hurt.”
Ah, but all of this talking and their food was getting cold. Still, he didn’t want to take his eyes off Devyn.
“Aren’t you hungry?” he prompted, thinking maybe he just needed a little reminder.
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Posted: Tue Nov 15, 2022 5:17 pm
“Very hungry,” Devyn confirmed, but he spoke with such enthusiasm that it was hard to think he was suffering in any way about it. “But you’re a perfect distraction, you know. Even my stomach can’t compete.”
But, he smiled, and finally drew his eyes away so he could adjust the food before them. He wouldn’t have cared if it had gotten cold, but he didn’t want Michael to get tired of him admiring him so soon into the date.
“You don’t have to worry so much about me, I’m much more observant now. Much more careful. Much tamer. When I was a young man, we settled disputes with fist fights, and I’ll have you know that I haven’t taken my first to resolve one dispute since I got here. Oh, but I have done a bit of fighting. That doesn’t count, though. And it’s been weeks since I played fisticuffs with any of my old friends.”
Old friends being the group he’d met early on in his arrival to Earth; they were acquaintances at best, and Devyn had won every fight so far. Not that he needed the money, but he did like the challenge, and it was a good workout. He just didn’t want to come home bruised and startle Atticus, so he’d been more careful of late.
He patted Michael’s back gently, both for his sake and his own; he was taking it easy!
“Come on, you eat, too, or you’ll never be able to keep up with me. You’ll need your energy.”
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Posted: Tue Nov 15, 2022 5:26 pm
Michael laughed again, amused by the idea of having to keep up with Devyn. Well, perhaps that was true. Devyn seemed to have unparalleled energy, but Michael didn’t mind that.
“Here, I made sure to get us a few things to try. I wanted you to get an idea of what everything tastes like so you can pick your favorites,” he explained as he pulled the burgers out of the bag. But they weren’t just a fast food burger, they were high quality burgers each cooked with different toppings and flavors, in addition to the standard tomato and lettuce.
One had barbeque sauce with onions and cheese, another had bacon and avocado, and one had cheddar cheese stuffed inside the burger itself. Michael had no doubt that between them they could finish all three, despite their large size. In addition, he’d gotten various sides. French fries, of course, but dusted with various spices. Onion rings. There was a container of macaroni and cheese. Even one with green beans. Just for a variety.
“I might have gone a little overboard with the ordering,” he admitted, but still didn’t think it was a problem.
“I’m sorry. I try not to worry, I really do,” he promised, pushing the burgers closer to Devyn to choose one first, and picking up an onion ring in the meantime. “Things are a lot different here. Or at least they were when I was a young man. I was pretty naive back then. Apparently wanting to follow in my father’s footsteps and join the Navy meant I got in not from my own hard work. The others would try to provoke me into starting a fight, knowing I would be disqualified from receiving any merits. I guess I lost my optimism pretty fast there,” he said with a small shrug. It was a long time ago, and things were different now.
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Posted: Tue Nov 15, 2022 5:43 pm
Devyn looked across each of the options and nodded approvingly. “Overboard? No, this is perfect. It means we’ve got plenty to keep us busy, and energy to tide us over. It looks beautiful, I’m excited to try it all.”
He chose the burger closest to him and examined it so he would know what he was looking at, but the food was of far less interest to him than anything Michael had to say. He lifted the burger into both hands but didn’t take a bite just yet.
“I don’t mind you’re worrying,” he clarified. “I think it’s sweet. I know you trust me. I know you know I can take care of myself. But I think it’s a testament to your compassion that you do. I’m surprised to think that anyone could look at you and think you’d ride on anyone’s coat tails. You’re always working. Always putting your best into everything, I think. I wish I’d gotten to know you when you were younger. I wish I could have given you the support they tried to strip away from you. Whatever optimism they took from you, did you find a way to get it back? Or are you still looking?”
He took a bite of the burger only then, and nodded approvingly as he savored the flavors, but his eyes were already on Michael again.
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