#6462

It was just one avoidable mistake in a second’s time that had sent William flying.

Ellis was bellowing commands in all directions, too much chaos whipping around them for him to pay particular attention to the former prince who was currently making his way up a mast, fingers gripping ropes and feet slipping with each gust of wind. Amongst the calamity, he didn’t yet have the chance to realize his partner had just left his side. He probably wouldn’t have approved of his decision with as bad as the bitterly cold autumn storm had so quickly gotten. William prepared himself with every tremendous wave that came up and washed over the ship, holding onto ropes tightly and pushing damp hair away from his eyes. A lanky pirate climbed up behind him, the two making their way up to fasten storm sails, pairs of others doing the same above and below them.

Once up, he and the man who’d advanced with him clung to the mast as they began unfastening the trysail. The ropes got caught in the man’s hands, however, unsure of how to pull them away from the sail correctly, almost even undoing a piece that would have sent the main sail flapping away. William tried to shout directions, now knowing this ship like the back of his hands, but the man’s clumsy hands fumbled, shaking in fear as the rain pelted their skin. They’d finally gotten it loose, the two gripping onto it and preparing to tie it properly, but as they stood to do so, the pirate made his mistake. A look of panic filled the man’s eyes at the sight of the sea’s enormous hands coming up over them, and he wrapped his arms around the mast, letting go of the sail as he clung to the column like a child holding dearly to their mother’s legs.

Upon the sail being released from his grasp, the wind quickly whipped it against William. The force of it knocked his feet from the main yard, throwing him with the wind. His heart dropped into his stomach, trying to think faster than the storm that was taking him. The rope attached to the sail was still wrapped around his wrist, and as he began falling from a near 119 foot drop, he held onto it the best he could, but the rough rope slid through his wet palm quicker than he had time to stop himself. The cloth was too slippery and the wind too wild, and he was running out of length as it uncurled itself from around his wrist and through his fist. Once he’d run out of length, he was tossed away by the gusts of air, the skin on his arm feeling as if it was on fire from the intense friction of the harsh material.

Drops of cool rain stung his skin as he was thrust out, falling through the air more rapidly than he had time to even comprehend before finally hitting the frigid water so hard he felt as if he’d broken every bone in his body. It had happened so quickly he didn’t have time to prepare himself for the fall, his side hitting the unyielding water violently. The force shook him, inhaling sharply at the immediate pain, but as he did so water filled his mouth. He spit, coughing and trying to breathe, each pathetic inhale painful. An angry wave washed over him, and upon being washed under the cover of the sea, the physical pain was fast forgotten, all he could focus on now was staying above and finding the ship.

The attempt was proving near impossible with nature waging its war, William giving everything he had to battle the ferocity of the storm. Salt water crashed and pulled, viciously hitting him over and over. There was finally a moment in which he was able to stay above for more than a few seconds and he squinted, looking around desperately. The ship had to be close, he couldn't have gone that far. Right? Lightning cracked across the sky, providing light for a fraction of a second and allowing him to catch the silhouette of the ship off to his left, but just as he’d seen it, a wave came at him from the side, dragging him down yet again. He tried to push himself above with every ounce of energy he had, but his head was getting foggy, his body tired and feeling heavy with his mass intake of water.

He continued to fight as hard as he could, kicking frantically to find his way up, taking in air when he could but half of his attempts ended up being a breath full of water instead. How long had it been? It felt like forever now. He was sure his chest was going to explode at any moment, making each effort to pull himself up incredibly harder. He could feel his body giving up, his mind clouding over. Ellis was all he could think of, refusing to live or die without him, but in spite of his determination, his flailing limbs began to slow, the heartbeat that was pounding loudly in his ears now quieting at a gradually decreasing rate.

The sea shook her brutal fists and the sky brought down an unrelenting fury, and William began to fail in his attempt to fend off the blackness closing in on him. The cold water started to feel warmer with each passing moment, the potent pain in his chest being relieved of pressure as he stopped fighting the ocean. The last of his air left him, his body going limp as he accepted the sea’s invitation, welcoming him into the depths with strong and open arms.

Eyes falling shut, Ellis was the last thing on his mind, pieces of their childhood stringing together in a golden tinted movie. Reminiscence for their lives together filled him up, no sadness for their story anywhere to be found. Ellis may be the only thing William ever truly loved, and he did so with his whole heart, his entire being. The projection played through their memories, their story on display up until the very last kiss, their final touches.

As the memories dissipated, a shimmering darkness colored everything, and his conscious faded away. The last thing he felt was the ocean’s arms wrapping themselves around him in a positively familiar embrace, tugging him away...

“Wake up! ... Open your eyes, please...”

William, pulseless and pale, lay on the damp floor of the ship, Ellis’s body hovering over him as he attempted to bring the love of his life back from the depths he’d sunk into. The crew stood around them, watching anxiously with mouths open as their captain fought fate’s gruesome grasp, displaying weakness in front of them for the first time ever before. He broke out into a burst of tears, his body shaking with sobs as he checked for a pulse again only to find that it was still missing.

“William, my love, please… Wake up!”

Muffled sounds filtered in, but William couldn’t tell what it was, sounding as if he was underwater. Wait… he was, wasn’t he? The darkness he was under broke for a passing second, an image of Ellis passing through. It slipped through the cracks, though, and the image faded into nothing.

Numbness tried to hold on to him with an iron grip, but something was wrong. Through the clouded noises, he could feel him. Ellis. Ellis was with him. He clung to that feeling, using it to pull himself from the blackness. He needed him. Hold on.

“Just take a breath. Open your eyes,” Ellis begged through the tears streaming down his face, pushing down against William’s chest. He didn’t even care that his voice was breaking, he was crying, or that all of his crew was standing around him to witness his current state of vulnerability. Nothing mattered in the moment but seeing William’s crystal eyes again.

The sounds reached to him more clearly now, knowing it better than almost anything else. The sound alone caused a spark in his chest. He swam toward the sound, still pulling himself out of the dark. He felt Ellis all around him, his voice echoing. The shimmering behind William’s eyes began to break up, moderately fading toward the corners of his eyes, a plain dark grey taking its place. Ellis repeatedly pressed down on his chest, then blew a breath of air into his mouth. All William could feel as he slowly came to was a warmth against him, then a hard pressure, then warmth again.

Suddenly, a stinging spout of liquid burst up through his body and out of his mouth and nose, hard and fast. A briefest flash of light passed over his closed eyelids before they shot open, William taking in a painfully harsh gasp of air. His body began convulsing as he regurgitated salt water. Every bone ached as he turned to his side, coughing up every last bit of it.

“William!” Ellis’s voice rang in his ears, a pang in his chest as he heard it, becoming overwhelmed with the need to be with him. He couldn’t look to him as he coughed, only finding enough energy to weakly reach out for him to let him know he heard him. Ellis’s hand gripped onto William’s outstretched arm and pulled him to his chest, squeezing his arms around William as tightly as he could, neither of them aware or worried about his injuries in the moment. They just needed each other. “I love you,” he kissed along the side of William’s face over and over, repeating the words as he did so, “I love you, I love you.” He held onto him, and for some reason his crying worsened, now jolting his chest even more than before. “I thought I lost you,” he cried, but William couldn’t do anything but cough in reply, the last of the water in his lungs coming up. 

Ellis’s hands gripped onto a limp William in desperation, moving from his shirt to his hair and back down to his shoulders as William came around, grabbing onto him as if to make sure that he was really there. As soon as William was able to take a few shaky breaths without coughing, Ellis scooped him up and stood to his feet.

“Move,” he demanded roughly, pushing through the crowd of men.

William shook roughly in Ellis’s arms, the feeling of his soaked clothes returning him to the perception of being unable to breathe. Normally, he didn’t mind wet clothes especially seeing as they were almost always halfway soaked being on the ship anyway, but right now they were freezing cold and making him feel like he was suffocating all over again. He couldn’t stop shivering, and he turned his face into Ellis’s chest, feeling like he could close his eyes and just… sleep again.

He clutched onto Ellis, focusing on his presence to keep himself awake. He only just noticed that he was also wet, and he knew it was him who’d saved him. His head became fuzzy for a moment and he gripped Ellis’s shirt tighter, focusing on his presence. Ellis. It was him. Of course it was, it was always him, in every way. He probably wouldn’t even let anyone else try to jump overboard after William. Ellis had vowed to never lose him again, to always protect him. If William were to drown out there due to someone’s failure of finding him, he’d at least rather it be him and end up drowning alongside his lover, instead of being angry at someone else and ending up without William once again... but this time for forever. There’s no way that was going to happen.

“S-s...tor...mmm?” William inquired of the ship’s state hoarsely, his chattering jaw causing him to stutter.

“We’re fine,” Ellis assured, shushing him. They’d finished preparing the ship for the storm, now heaving to safely until they were out of it. 

The very moment William was set down on the bed he already missed Ellis’s arms, the warmth he provided. Having not been in the water as long or going under in the way William had, he’d retained his body heat, and William wanted it back against him. He shivered, his teeth clattering as he sat at the edge of the mattress, Ellis quickly working through the quiet tears that were still rolling down his face to pull William’s soaked boots off of his feet. William tried to unbutton his shirt, but his shaking hands gave him quite a bit of difficulty. Ellis pushed them away with his own, pulling the shirt open quickly without worrying about buttons. He tugged the fabric that stuck to his wet skin away, a look of concern passing over his face as he stared at William’s torso. “Oh, baby…” he whispered, gently pressing a warm hand against the vibrant redness that had started forming on his ribs.

“What?” William breathed through his noisy shivering, looking up at him. He was utterly cold and his brain mind wasn’t all that present, a dull headache drumming on and causing his thoughts to be cloudy. Every movement he made felt blurry, like maybe he wasn’t really him moving, things around him were. All this, combined with his inability to focus on anything but Ellis’s presence and wanting him against him, the physical pain was still lost on him. Similar to being so concentrated on your work, that upon getting a papercut, you don’t even feel it until you see the blood, then all of the sudden it hurts.  

Ellis met William’s eyes, allowing William to see how bloodshot his were. Another fountain of tears came from Ellis, his other hand coming up and drawing a line along William’s cheek where a thick cut was embedded unbeknownst to him. “I’m so sorry,” Ellis apologized, his voice breaking. He pressed his lips to the top of William’s head. “I’m so sorry, my love.”

“No,” William shushed, furrowing his brows. Why would he be sorry? That didn’t even make sense. “D-- don’t be… s…” His words were deformed through his shaking, but he grabbed Ellis’s hand against his cheek and Ellis pulled back to look at him. William spoke with his eyes, knowing his man could read them without fail. Ellis only shook his head, biting his lip. He looked like he was about to fall to his knees, and that knowing he needed to get the clothes off of William’s body being the only thing keeping him up.

He bent and rolled the remaining items of clothing off of William’s body. He was overcome with relief as his cold skin was no longer trapped underneath the drenched fabric. Ellis tugged his frigid body up against his chest momentarily so that he could pull the covers down and put William inside. His head spun with the movement, trying to steady his breath but feeling as if he couldn’t get enough oxygen, the feeling worsened due to the shivering.

The blankets were nice, but it wasn’t helping fast enough. He wrapped his arms around himself, continuing to shake aggressively as he watched Ellis undress himself hastily. He closed his eyes, trying to calm his body. He thought it was working, the sounds and lights of the world shutting down for a moment. Just think warm thoughts…

“William.” With a quiet breath, William opened his eyes again, the light of their bedside lamp shining behind Ellis momentarily blinding him and as he blinked, coldness returned to him, immediately causing him to pick up the shivering again. Ellis’s hand, which had been gripping William’s jaw, moved up to cup his cheek. “Don’t close your eyes again,” he said sternly.

“Okay,” he whispered in response.

In the time that had just slipped away from him, the setting had changed a bit; lamps were lit; Ellis had gotten into bed with him; their wet hair was loosely tied back; cloth was now wrapped tightly around William’s hand and wrist, a spot of blood staining the palm, as during his fall, the rope gave him a good burn around his wrist and broken open the skin on his palm and fingers. He blinked the blurriness out of his vision, looking intently at Ellis.

Ellis fixed the covers over the two of them and grabbed onto William’s hips, pulling his naked body flush against Ellis’s own. If he hadn’t been completely drained of all of his energy, he would have made some kind of suggestive joke. If Ellis hadn’t been so concerned and serious, he most definitely would have done the same. Maybe he was thinking about that, too. Or he was just worrying. He didn’t need to worry, though. William may be frozen, but he was fine. He was just… so tired.  

Giving him exactly what he wanted, Ellis wrapped his arms around William’s back, enveloping him in much needed heat. He hummed, nuzzling his face into Ellis’s neck and pressing his icy hands against the man’s chest. This resulted in giving Ellis a shiver of his own. William smiled and pressed a kiss to his skin, wishing he could somehow be even closer, share in every bit of his partner’s warmth. And of course, as if he was reading his mind, Ellis managed to pull William in even closer. His arms tightened around William, and the mood shifted. Suddenly it felt like he was holding on for dear life, as if it tethered William here and loosening his hold would mean he’d just crumble away.

Now that he had a feeling of safety and the numbness from the cold was just barely retreating, he was beginning to feel his injuries. Each passing second became increasingly uncomfortable, even breathing hurt. He tried to take a few careful breaths, but winced at the sensation in his chest. His eyes stung at the sensation, biting down hard on his cheek to keep his eyes from watering.

William shifted, thinking it would help, but as he moved his arm, his shoulder and chest suddenly lit up in a violent discomfort. It shot through his chest, the pain wrapping around his throat and preventing him from breathing. Finally, he gasped loudly, eyes burning as he cried out.

“Fuck,” Ellis cursed with a look of panic on his face, eyes frantically studying William. He moved the covers down to peek at the damage, a look of pain crossing his face. It had gotten worse, the redness spreading in a giant oval on his side, reaching toward his chest and up to his shoulder. “You’ll be badly bruised on this side. And… I think you broke a rib… or a few.”

William exhaled and winced again at the feeling that created. “Oh.” With a pained look on his face, Ellis pulled him back in, stroking his hair. He concentrated on the feeling, keeping his mind on breathing carefully and getting warm. The full extent probably wouldn’t hit him until tomorrow and get worse from there, when the bruising had had a chance to form and he was more coherent.

They laid there like that for a long time, Ellis intermittently pulling back to ensure that William was keeping his eyes open. He did his best to ignore his pain, instead basking in the comfort of Ellis. William wrapped his leg up with Ellis’s, garnering every bit of warmth he could while simultaneously feeling closer to him. They didn’t speak, savoring the other’s presence in a melancholic silence. Ellis’s heated hands made a slow path up William’s back all the way to his neck, then back down to his bum. He did this for a good while, as if to make sure that he was warming his backside while they laid chest to chest. Body heat returned to him at every point he was connected to Ellis, gradually spreading through his body from where they touched.

A long while later, now that his teeth had stopped clattering and William could feel his digits again, he pulled his head away from Ellis’s neck to look up to him. He still had that serious, concerned look on his face. William moved his thumb back and forth on his chest, staring at his features. “I love you,” he told him softly. Ellis said nothing in return, closing his eyes and causing the crease between his brows to become more prominent. William sighed and reached a still slightly chilly hand up and pressed it against his forehead, smoothing out the wrinkles he created with his expression. “I love you.”

Ellis opened his eyes and exhaled. “I love you, too, William.” His face got closer to William’s, resting his forehead against his. “You know that.” William stared into his eyes as they glossed over, a single tear now falling out of his eye and across the bridge of his nose.

“Hey,” William whispered, moving his hand to the back of his neck, “I know. I know.” He frowned, his own eyes stinging at the sight of Ellis’s tears. He hadn’t been able to focus on the pain Ellis was feeling before, but it was now filling William with a stomach full of rocks. “It’s okay,” he assured, “it’s okay.” Every muscle was tired, his eyes heavy, and a lack of awareness of anything around him made up his being at the moment, but he was fiercely aware of Ellis. He knew he was alive, here with him. Ellis was the only thing he knew with absolute certainty. His presence, his voice, his heart, his everything.

“But I thought… that I lost you.” A short silence sat between them. “Again.” He bit down on his lip and took a deep breath. “I don’t know what --,” he swallowed a sob that threatened to shake his voice, “...what I’d do. If you were gone. I don’t know what I’d do.” Tears fell, his hand trembling as he caressed William’s face.

William had tears of his own now, unable to look at the man he loved in pain like this without all of his hurt radiating into William’s own body. He nudged his nose against Ellis’s cheek, his heart breaking at the sight in front of him. His voice broke as he spoke, “You didn’t lose me. It’s okay.”

“No,” Ellis shook his head, his next words making William’s heart skip. “It’s not. I don’t know what I’d do. I don’t. I can’t live without you again.” Barely speaking above a whisper, his rough voice was low and full of emotion, breaking with his words.

William believed him. He couldn’t live without Ellis either, he couldn’t deal with it again. He wouldn’t even try to go on without him, there’s no way he could. He’d follow Ellis into the afterlife if he didn’t die of a broken heart first. He’d gone without Ellis once before, and it took literal years and years before he was even halfway to whole again, and the hole in his heart remained unpatched until Ellis returned to his life. He’d spent the whole time without his beloved empty, even after he’d finally found the footing to continue on with daily duties, because even then he was deeply in love with Ellis, before he was fully aware of what his feelings for him even meant. When they parted again it was so unbearable that they’d found each other almost right away, and even that was too long.

He’d loved Ellis before he knew what love was. William had never, ever loved anything more than he’d loved Ellis, and he continues to fall in love with him harder and more deeply every single day. He didn’t know how it was even possible to feel so strongly for one person, to love someone that greatly, but he was blessed enough to know that Ellis felt the same way.

William hadn’t had the chance to think about it all, but as the feelings rushed back to him, his stomach dropped. Remembering it, the blackness, caused a razor sharp shiver to crawl up his spine. Everything he’d felt while being under ran through him in one quick go, his heart beating in his ears. The worst part is that it wasn’t even entirely bad, but that’s exactly what was most shaking. The struggling was a nightmare, his muscles crying now at just the thought of it alone, but the serenity he felt once the pain went away and he accepted the promise of death… that was terrifying. After that, it was just nothing. Love flowed through him before the blackness closed in, but then it was just... gone. No love, no consciousness, no Ellis. Just black. He was just… gone. There was nothing until he was suddenly on the deck, gasping for air. It cut through him, shaking him to the core.

It was as if the reality of what had happened had only just dawned on him, the seriousness of it all. He’d almost died. Really, he think he had died for however long, until his savior brought him back. He’d really almost involuntarily left Ellis again, lost in a cold dark emptiness before Ellis found him.

The weight of what happened hit him, crashing into him a hundred times harder than the waves he’d been dragged under that night. Overwhelmed by a flood of emotions barreling through his chest, he smashed his lips against Ellis’s fervently. His hand made its way up, fist closing in Ellis’s hair, the throbbing in his hand the last thing on his mind. His certainty of Ellis was replaced with a fear of loss after he was plagued with remembering the details of his departure from the world. He needed to be reminded that he was here with Ellis. He needed him, he needed to feel him -- every bit of him, -- and he needed it badly.

William untangled their legs, bringing it up around Ellis’s hip and rolling him over onto his back. His entire body was tired, his bones screaming against his movements. He didn’t care. The pain was insignificantly minuscule in contrast to his desires. It didn’t matter. All that mattered was getting as close as he could to Ellis, and he could work through any amount of physical pain to achieve that.

The aching in his body was utterly nought compared to the aching in his heart.

His lips danced desperately against Ellis’s, pulling on his curls. Straddling his hips, William rolled himself into Ellis with a palpable desire.  The pinch of pain he felt in his side was relieved by the pleasure the action gave him, moaning quietly into Ellis’s mouth as their lengths joined. His hands came up to cup William’s face, returning William’s kiss with eyes shut tight as he met William’s passion with an urgency of his own.

Nothing existed in that moment but them, their love soon filling the air around them, keeping them safe in a world that was all their own and made up entirely of them; careful hands memorizing naked flesh, and fingers lovingly sliding across damaged skin;  the strings that loosely tied their hair back falling away as they gripped at each other, hands seeking to hold the other; teeth lightly knocking together amidst eager kisses; hips rocking against each other; hearts beating and blood rushing; bodies heating up under the friction created between them; the music of quiet moans, sincere kissing, and heavy breathing filling the space between them.

As William parted from their kiss to take a breath, he breathed too hard and he groaned at the sharpness in his torso. Ellis knew the difference between a pleasured groan and one that was not, however, and looked at him with concern in his eyes. “You’re in pain.” His voice was filled with sadness, and a hint of disappointment underneath that he was actually suggesting they cut their activities short -- something he’d never done before.

William stared intently into Ellis’s eyes, his own eyes full of love and desire, needing him more than anything else. “Make it better,” he whispered, his forehead against Ellis’s, noses touching.

A flicker of emotions passed through Ellis’s eyes before his lips came crashing into William’s. He kissed him this time with a determination he didn’t have before, sharing in every emotion that William was. His hands, currently gripping William’s ass, moved to wrap around his back, rolling the two of them over with ease. He hooked his hands behind William’s knees and gently pulled him into Ellis so that their hips were rejoined, making a home between William’s legs.

As they settled into the position, William’s hands gripping onto Ellis’s shoulders, they immediately picked up the rhythm they’d had before. One hand on the bed next to William’s head, Ellis brought the other between them, gripping the both of their lengths as they ground into each other. William’s lips left the kiss, kissing down Ellis’s prickly chin and to his neck. William’s uninjured hand traveled back into his hair, holding onto his curls while his mouth unintentionally created red marks all along the skin beneath his jaw. Ellis released a quiet moan, fingers pressing into the mattress as William indulged in his skin.

Ellis’s hands left their spots and reached up to the headboard, still grinding into William and only faltering once as William bit down onto his shoulder. Only upon returning his hands to the space between them had William realized he was covering his palms with oil. Tongue against skin, he trailed his way back up to Ellis’s lips. Their mouths moved against one another as if they hadn’t kissed in far too long, the short separation enough to make them miss one another.

“Please,” William breathed needily against his lover’s lips, to which Ellis could only huff out a lustful breath in response.

Slippery hands went to work, one sliding along his own length, the other coming up to press against William. William sighed against Ellis’s lips, the two of them breathing heavily in anticipation. Ellis pressed himself against William, but they remained there for a short time, just taking in each other’s breaths and looking into each other’s eyes. After a few moments passed between them, William hooked his legs up against his waist and brought a hand up to Ellis’s face and pressed a single soft kiss to his lips.

Slowly, Ellis began to push himself into William, the two of them still gazing into one another’s eyes. Ellis searched William’s expression, lips parted and blue eyes glazed over with the new sensation. Once they were connected as far as they could be, a sigh escaped the both of them in unison, William’s head falling back against the bed.

Ellis kissed him, slower this time, brows furrowed as he tried to memorize the feeling of William, the taste he left in his mouth. William fell into the kiss, lips moving against each other gently, tongues meeting sweetly.

Their kiss picked up by just a couple notches when Ellis took William’s silent cue to continue. The moan that left Ellis resounded in William’s ears, the assurance of his presence, his pleasure, giving something for William’s tired body to hold onto. William’s legs tightened against the sides of Ellis’s body as the two kissed and found a slow rhythm, Ellis pushing and pulling himself against William’s body with the utmost care. William followed the shape of Ellis’s back with his fingers until they settled on his bum, gripping the flesh he found there as Ellis pushed himself back into William.

Waves of love rolled between the two of them like the tides that washed up on the sand, greeting one another gracefully, again and again. He wished he could make this moment last as long as he possibly could. None of the pain of the past, no potential struggles to come in the future, the world around them nonexistent. Even the sound of the rain against the windows and the ship rocking more actively than normal as it retreated from the danger of the storm was lost on them as they wrapped themselves up in each other.

The feeling of Ellis against his skin was like magic, every nerve tingling at his touch. He was his everything, and he always would be. His love for Ellis made up his entire being, his soul a love letter to the man, his heart a song that would beat on for him only, forever. It filled him to the brim, pouring into every vein and flowing out with every little touch and each breath he breathed into Ellis.

Ellis’s name escaped William’s mouth in a quiet moan when Ellis’s lips broke the kiss to take his own opportunity to accidentally mark up his man’s neck. His hand traveled up William’s torso, still just a little slick from the bit of oil left, making his way to William’s uninjured arm. His fingers grazed the inside of William’s arm, tickling his skin at the lightness of his touch, intertwining his digits with William’s.

His grip on William’s hand tightened, his thrusts growing needier after so long. They writhed together more hungrily now, William biting down on Ellis’s shoulder as he thrust into him. All of his pain had melted away for the time being, sensations sweetly spreading throughout every inch of him as they executed their passion.

Sounds of pleasure escaped William at the familiar pull in his abdomen, his body growing closer to climaxing. Ellis could feel it and his free hand reached between the two, fingers wrapping around William’s member. He picked up the pace, their rhythm quickening, while still being mindful of not hurting the injured brunette. Ellis worked his hand on William expertly, stroking with each time his hips met William’s.

William curled his fingers in Ellis’s locks, the noises between them increasing in volume as they sought each other out. He squeezed his legs against Ellis’s hips again, biting down on his lip hard enough that he drew blood. The desire flowing through him turned his cheeks red, his breathing becoming more labored. Butterflies flew around his stomach, a threatening pinch in his lower torso growing stronger with each second as Ellis’s touches took him higher and higher.

Inhaling suddenly, Ellis crashed into him with a groan of pleasure at the same time a warm sensation filled William, the feeling bringing William to his own heights, his eyes shutting tightly and mouth falling open as he came into Ellis’s hand. Ellis’s head dropped onto William’s shoulder as he orgasmed, and William could hear his name being softly moaned into his ear, whispers of love spilling from Ellis’s mouth.

White covered William’s vision, sparkling and pure. His chest was alight with raw emotion, the intensity between them enough to make a tear fall from his eye as he moved his hand from Ellis’s hair and wrapped it around his back. It was everything his grim experience was not, and was exactly what he needed. It told him he was still here, Ellis was still here, with him. The sparks flying between them was proof of it.

Ellis moved his head up to kiss William with a heated devotion as he slowed his movements, riding out the last bits of their pleasure together. Their bodies trembled, William’s limbs turning into mush as exhaustion slowly returned to him, hiding underneath the veil of his current bliss.

Normally Ellis would collapse onto William, paying no mind to the remnants of their love left stuck between them as he lay on his chest for awhile while the two came down from their highs, not even unattaching himself from inside William’s body until he had to. Tonight, he winced as he pulled out, William already missing having him inside him, and dropped onto his side. He rolled William onto his safe side and pulled his back as close to his chest as he possibly could, spooning him carefully. As usual, as Ellis wrapped his arm carefully around his midsection, the both of them paid no mind to the substance of William’s release that painted both of their chests (William more so), and Ellis’s hand.

“I love you.” His voice wasn’t as sad as it was before, but it was still coated in an unmistakable bundle of emotions.

“You’re the last thing I saw,” William blurted in reply, quietly enough that he could hear his heart beating in his ears. “I think I felt you.” He didn’t know how to explain what he meant, if he’d ever be able to explain what he’d experienced with words.

“Before…?” Ellis whispered.

“...Yeah.” William pushed his back against Ellis and found his hand, holding it with both of his own. He intertwined his fingers with Ellis’s again, drawing soft lines onto the back of Ellis’s hand with his bandaged one. “...Death... It was no better, maybe even worse than life without...” He took a shaky breath, unsure of how to say the words on his mind.

“Shh, love,” Ellis shushed, resting his head against William’s and kissing his shoulder lovingly. He swallowed, trying to understand what he was saying, using what he could feel radiating off of William to grasp his words. It was a similar feeling to how he’d felt when he thought he’d lost William. “You’re here.” He squeezed William’s hand. “So am I.”

William nodded, closing his eyes and letting his words soak in.  “I love you, Ellis.”

“I’m never letting you go again.” Ellis moved his arm down lower so that he could greatly tighten his hold on William without hurting him. They were together, and everything would be okay as long as they were never separated again. At this point, he’d let Ellis tie him to his waist if he so desired to.