Page 94 of Sycopation
“Shush, Ray. Just let me hold you.”
Both their breathing evened out. The morning and the night before tumbled through Ray, heavy but comforting. Zavier’s arms were loose around him, one warm hand near his cock and the other idly stroking near his nipple. Pleasant little shocks cascaded down Ray’s limbs. Heat and light. Splinters of color. He hummed the notes and felt Zavier inhale.
“Will you sing for me, Ray?” A rough whisper, full of those emotions Ray still couldn’t name.
“What song?”
Zavier stilled. “A new one. Something no one has heard before.”
Ray shivered in his strong arms. “You’ve heard pieces.” Helped puzzle out the beats in his head. Listened when he needed an outlet.
Zavier kissed the back of Ray’s neck. A request without words.
So Ray sang the lyrics that had been dancing in his mind for days. Chased the colors and movement and sounds.
In the heat of summer
We were gods of a thousand dreams
In the night of winter
We were dust and ash
Where did the light we held go
Strands of silver and gold
When will we meet the sun again?
Stretch out your arms toward the moon
Sing to your soul to find the room
Dare to dream
Scream out loud
Dare to be
Who you are
When the last note faded, his voice was as rough as Zavier’s had been. “That’s all I have.”
“Oh, Ray.” Those hands drew them tighter together. “That’s glorious.”
“It’s ‘Dare to Be.’”
“I know.” Zavier’s breath ghosted across the back of his neck. “Ray, what do you see when the music’s in your head?”
He found Zavier’s hand on his hip, and twined their fingers. “Colors. Shapes. If I close my eyes, I see the music dancing.”
“And what do you see when you sing ‘Dare to Be’?”
He shivered against Zavier and felt more than heard the soft moan in response. Wasn’t sexual, but so intimate. They could stay like this forever, the two of them. “Red. Deep red, like good wine. And blue, like the sky in summer, dotted among the red. They move and twist and everything turns to crystal and light.”
Zavier kissed his neck. “Thank you.” Such reverence and joy.
Ray closed his eyes and tried to etch this perfection into his mind before it slipped away. Because of course, it would.
