Page 13 of The Homecoming: The Island

“Don’t be, everything will be over soon. I set aside some money and I’ll start looking for a place to stay and a job, and I’ll leave that house forever. For almost six years, they treated me more like a servant or a dog than like a son, there’s only so much I can take.” Lazarus sounded tired and disappointed, but also determined, as he ran a hand over his face.

Lochlin stopped walking and faced his boyfriend, a mix of compassion, understanding and concern invading his sky-blue eyes. “I…I’m terribly sorry that my whining led to you making this drastic decision. Please, don’t let an isolated incident affect your life.”

Lazarus slowly shook his head. “Don’t you understand? I have no life, if you are not in it, baby. For the last three years, since you agreed to be my boyfriend, there was no more me or I. Only us. Always us.”

Lazarus cupped Lochlin’s face with both hands and ran his fingertips through the golden, rebellious curls, getting lost into his boyfriend’s innocent eyes. With a will of their own, his lips touched the blond’s brow, descending to his cheeks, covered them in sweet, barely there kisses.

When his lips reached Lochlin’s mouth, Lazarus hesitated, but his boyfriend opened his eyes for a moment, encouraging him to continue. Tentatively, the black-haired teen brushed his mouth over the sweet-tasting, velvety lips of the blond, his heart hammering. Lochlin opened his mouth, inviting his boyfriend to taste and explore.

Lazarus captured the other boy’s bottom lip between his own, gently sucking, then released it, sneaking his tongue inside the blond’s mouth, drinking Lochlin’s sweet essence and getting high on it. The other boy responded with the same mix of gentleness and passion, and soon the two boys’ tongues danced together to the rhythm of love.

My first kiss with the boy I love,Lochlin thought, abandoning himself to the sweet pleasure as Lazarus safely held him in his protective arms.

CHAPTER 10

“Boy, this was quite a day.” Whitey stretched, hands above his head. “I worked for a whole week, my poor muscles are stiff and sore. All I want is to go home, grab a bite, take a shower, crawl under the blankets, and sleep for two days straight.”

“Nah.” Nico waved his hand, grinning. “You’ll come back for more first thing in the morning, because you love being chased by Winter around the kitchen and dining room. Plus, all the tasty food…” Fergus’s son accompanied his words with a suggestive moan.

“Gods, kid,” Ira groaned, rolling his eyes, “if someone who doesn’t know poor Winter would listen to you, they would think the guy is a serial killer or something.”

“You’re right.” Tarrin nodded, a huge grin on his face. “I have this image in my head of Winter chasing Whitey around the kitchen, a big knife in his hand, and it won’t go away.”

“Where is Lochlin? I didn’t see his lazy ass around for quite a time,” the platinum-blond boy asked, in an attempt to change the subject of the conversation.

“He must have left earlier,” Thorvald answered in an affectionate voice. “His lazy ass worked more than all of us combined,” the boy added, all the others nodding in agreement.

“Is it only me or he was kind of down today? I know Lochlin is not the most cheerful of us, but still… Emery, did he tell you what was bothering him?” Lorcan turned to Lochlin’s twin.

“Look over there.” Whitey pointed in the direction of the playground. “On the alley, isn’t that the object of your worries and…” The platinum-blond kid let out a loud gasp, eyes wide with surprise. “Whoa, it seems he’s having the time of his life, performing CPR on his boyfriend, while we…I can’t believe this boy.”

Whitey wanted to go where Lochlin and Lazarus were standing, too absorbed in sharing their first kiss to notice what was happening around them, when a hand on his shoulder stopped him. “C’mon, turn around, there’s nothing for you to see there.” Gavin spoke in a somewhat firm voice. “We were heading that way, remember?”

“Gods,” Nico whined, “I can barely walk, and I’m famished. Now I wish we stayed for dinner, too, but it was getting too late, and the folks back home would have gone crazy with worry. Speaking of, I’m going to ask mom to make me some sandwiches for dinner. I’ll wash them down with a big mug of steamy, aromatic tea, then go to bed.”

“Sandwiches and tea! Oh, cousin, that is sweet music to my ears.” Tarrin moved closer to Nico, hugging him. “Do you think it would be too much trouble for Auntie Helen to make a few more sandwiches for two skinny-assed, hungry boys?” He grinned, pointing to him and Ira.

“Not at all. You forgot about Grumpa and Dunbar, who are always happy to help mom feed us. In fact, I think she would be thrilled to have all of you as guests. I’ll message her, and you should do the same with your folks, so they know where you are.”

“You guys go ahead,” Cian spoke in the middle of enthusiastic acclamations, “I just remembered I have something to do, it won’t take long. Lorcan, will you please message Pater and Spitfire for me, too?” He pulled the phone from his jeans, giving it to his twin, who gave him a small smile and nod.

He turned around, heading to the school. It was the time for the guards to change shifts, and Cian hoped it wasn’t too late. The closer he got, the harder his heart hammered against his ribcage. It was getting dark, but the boy was still able to tell the guards from one another, a smile brightening his face at the sight of the familiar silhouette.

Soames. The guard, four years older than Cian, came to The Base a few days after the boy got the terrible news of his mother’s death. For a while, Soames followed him everywhere, like a shadow. He was very protective of Cian, but in a completely different way. Unlike everyone else at The Base, Soames saw past the boy’s heart condition and physical fragility.

He perceived him more as Ardan’s son than as Lorcan’s vulnerable, ailing twin. He continually reminded Cian that he shared not only the boss’s blood, but also the personality traits that defined the man: kindness, generosity, understanding, and intelligence. Of course, Soames didn’t forget to mention Cian was a handsome young man, just like his father, making the boy blush every time.

“Hi there,” Soames spoke in a soft voice that starkly contrasted his somewhat rugged appearance. “Perfect timing, I was about to head to the dorms, but then I decided to wait a few more minutes. The guys patrolling around the kitchen building told me they saw you guys in the morning, and I was hoping to…” The young guard left the sentence unfinished and lowered his gaze.

“We were in a hurry this morning, so we won’t be late. Breakfast is the busiest time of the day in the kitchen. The volunteers don’t come so early, and we didn’t want Winter to do everything by himself, so… Anyway, if you were no longer here, I would have come to see you at the dorm.” Cian was grateful that it was almost dark outside, and the young guard couldn’t see him blushing.

“I missed you.” Soames ran the tip of his fingers through Cian’s dirty-blond strands. “I missed seeing your brothers, cousins, and your chatty, cheerful friends heading to the kitchen, whenever your schedule allowed. The Base was kinda empty and sad without you guys around. However, I missed you the most.”

“At some point, I was drained of energy, my heartbeat rate went sky-high, and I was suffocating, but I pulled myself together and kept going, because I wanted to make it out of there alive, so I could get back to this.” Cian gestured around, a small smile playing on his pink lips. “And I wanted to see you, my best friend.”

Soames didn’t reply; the lump in his throat didn’t let him, in spite of his efforts to push it down. He put his arms around Ardan’s son, and hugged him tightly to his chest. The young guard, usually so reserved when it came to expressing his feelings, didn’t care what people would think, seeing him in such an intimate posture with one of the boss’s sons.

He is my best friend,Soames thought, as he rubbed Cian’s back,the one I trust and whose company I cherish. There is nothing wrong with me hugging him, friends do this all the time,the guard continued his internal monologue, holding the blond boy tight and rocking him. Smiling against the other boy’s hair, he kissed the top of his head.

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