Damen wasn't sure what would be expected from him. A reporter contacted him to do a video call interview about his sudden fame and he had agreed, what would it hurt? He just never expected the reporter to be this focused on his relationship with Laurent.
Laurent who sat across from him while he did the interview, was trying to read a book, but by the look on his face he was to busy gritting his teeth and keeping from telling the nosey bloke exactly what he thought of him to really read.
"Your followers call you two Lamen, what do you say about that?" Damen sighed. "Mr. Hammon, are we here to discuss my relationship or how I integrate my knowledge as chiropractor in my videos? I can, once again, only underline that I have no interest gossiping about my relationship in this interview."
The man ignored him but asked a real question for once and Damen hoped that this would be the turning point for the interview. He was wrong, so very wrong. "Is it true that your partner is a lawyer? With a face like that I can't imagine him being any good. Is that the reason for you to start with the videos?"
This was obviously enough for Laurent to snap. He stood, walked around the table, put one hand on Damen's shoulder and leaned down. The moment his face appeared on the screen, the interviewer sucked in a sharp breath. Damen almost grinned.
Laurent looked beautiful like always, however the quarantine had softened the edges around him and Damen had almost forgotten how intimidating his boyfriend could be. Because now Laurent looked exactly like the asshole lawyer he could be if he wanted to.
"I suggest you contact the legal department of your newspaper because what you did here is not at all what had been prematurely agreed upon and I heard every single word. And, as you already helpfully pointed out, my profession is in the law." He raised an eyebrow.
"If you doubt my capabilities as lawyer, I think you are not only disrespectful and noisy but also rather incompetent at your job. I suggest doing your research first before asking insulting questions. So, I recommend in your best interest to stop this farce or I might be tempted to sue your paper and even in the best case, where you and your employer would be found innocent of any charges I put against you, it wouldn't do your image any good. Did I phrase that clear enough for your intellectual capabilities Mr. Hammond?"
Damen didn't wait for an answer, he closed his laptop without saying goodbye and drew Laurent in for a kiss. "I love you. Gods, it's almost unbelievable how much I love you." Laurent rolled his eyes. "I would have loved to hear his answer, but you are always so impatient. You could have kissed me to your hearts content two minutes later and I would have had the pleasure to hear him stutter through some excuses."
Damen laughed. "And people still think you are not devious enough for youâre your job." Laurent shrugged elegantly and straightened up again. Damen admired how the now longer hair brushed his shoulders, that was honestly one of the best things coming from the quarantine. Laurent's longer hair.
He didn't see a reason to restrain himself, so he stood and buried his fingers in the long, blond strands. He tilted Laurent's head up and kissed him softly. "Sorry for ruining your fun but I will make it up to you."
"And how do you plan to do that?" Laurent nipped at his jaw with a grin and Damen felt how he melted. He felt like goo. It was a rather nice feeling. "I will cook the fish pie you liked do much the last time and I will bring you freshly squeezed orange juice at your afternoon meeting with Auguste."
Laurent drew back, framed Damen's face with his hands and grinned, like he had done rarely before the quarantine and did more and more since they were confined to their own four walls.
"You are honestly the best man in the whole world Damianos. If I could love you more than I already did, I would do so now."" Damen laughed. "Good to know that my cooking skills do spark such enthusiastic declarations."
He bent down and kissed his partner again before making his way for the kitchen to start with an afternoon snack for Laurent while he had his meeting.
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Damen was still a little bit surprised how much his followers liked Laurent. Not that he thought it was surprising that people liked Laurent, because he loved the man to death. He was surprised that Laurent opened up to them enough that there was something to be loved.
Most of the time Laurent was a closed off kind of person. Not sharing much of himself or his life. It all changed towards Damen's most supportive fans. This was a group of maybe twenty people who watched every single training live and then also on YouTube.
They grew to be the biggest fans of Laurent too. And Laurent interacted with them as if he had never done something else in his life.
He cracked jokes, teased them and flirted with Damen from the off. It was charming, sweet and hilarious. Damen couldn't get enough of it. He looked forward to the 15 minutes of talking at the end of every training almost as much as his fans.
Laurent did not take part in every session Damen made. Maybe twice a week would be more precise, but still, he was always part of it one way or another. Because even when he wasn't lurching in the comment section, talking from the off or dropping a wet towel over Damen's head, the people asked about him.
Damen smiled. They were still very curious over how Laurent looked, as they had only seen his fully clothed lower half. But Laurent kept quiet, never telling anything more about himself.
One day, it was hot outside, even for Damen's standards, it happened again. Damen was maybe in the middle of his training, doing planks, when he saw Laurent come outside from the kitchen. He said nothing when he approached but dropped off another bottle of water and touched his hand to Damen's forehead.
"Don't overdo it, you are horrible if you have a headache." His voice was soft, his fingers cool, and his eyes concerned. "Don't worry, sweetheart, I will do a lot more stretching today." Damen gasped. Laurent nodded and went back inside.
When he looked into the comments next, he was hit by people freaking out.
Lola123: OMG! Laurent was there!!!
IsHeAKing: His hands <3<3<3
CrazyL: Is Laurent really that pale or�
"He really is that pale, also a reason why he stays inside in these temperatures." Damen smiled when he answered.
After he finished training, he could listen to multiple comments on how Laurent's hand was much more interesting than his whole training routine. He didn't feel attacked at all. Laurent HAD very nice hands.
The discussion was further fueled when Nikandros joined the discussion.
NikiIsInTheHouse: Now, U better take guesses what his hair color is.
CrazyL: Just because of Damen I'd say blond. MMW
Lola123: No! Laurent's hair is a light shade of brown.
FO691: GR8. Blond definitively.
Damen laughed. "Nik, I can't believe you are doing that to me."
NikiIsInTheHouse: I need to get my revenge.
It was hilarious. Damen refrained from answering the hair color question. It would be funny enough if Laurent did it himself the next time.
"Sorry guys, I promised to cook Laurent's favorite dish today and that takes a while. I will now excuse myself. Have a nice day you all and till tomorrow." Damen excused himself with a smile on his lips. It was really very funny.
thank goodness we can at least interact with friends on Tumblr - Switzerland is now in lock-down. Only groups allowed are swans and sparrows :-D. I hope you guys are all well and keep a âstiff upper lipâ.Â
Laurent felt so thoroughly fucked out he suspected he couldnât move a muscle for the next week. Since their talk two days ago, Damen had taken every opportunity to show him exactly how much he was wanted and desired.
Laurent felt a smile tug at his lips. He wasnât complaining at all. Especially not when Damen showered him in kisses afterwards, caressed his back and sucked small bruises into the skin.
"Sweetheart? Do you want to join me?â Damen stood in the doorframe, his shoulders almost filling it out completely. He had a amused expression on his face. Laurent rolled onto his back. Even that small movement ached.
A humming sound left his mouth. Damen chuckled, "What does this mean?â Laurent sighed, closed his eyes and just lounged in the luxurious feeling of his heavy, loose limbs and blissful satisfaction. "That means that I would love to join you but I am afraid that I wonât be able to handle the staircase right now.â
He turned his head again and saw Damen outright grinning. "I could assist you.â Laurent contemplated if he should take Damen up on his offer of carrying him down the stairs, that would, however, mean that he took his chances with his own self-control. Whenever Damen carried him it did something to him and he didnât know if he could take another round of fucking right now.
"Please.â He wasnât self-preserving enough to dismiss an opportunity of Damen carrying him. He loved the feeling of Damen against him. He was just so solid and firm and strong. Laurent melted against his chest when Damen carried him down and then outside.
"I put up our hammock, I thought you might like it.â Damenâs voice was soft and tender in his ear and Laurent forced his eyes open. He turned his head on one broad shoulder and blinked slowly. Damn, the last days truly did a number on him. Even his thoughts were slow like molasse.
Damen walked towards the hammock and put Laurent down. He tenderly brushed a strand of hair out of Laurentâs eyes. His gaze was so soft and adoring that Laurent felt his heart flutter. "By the gods, I love you.â Damen said things like that so easily. Laurent smiled at him. "I love you too.â
Damen bent down to kiss him. "Shouldnât you start your work-out? I want to watch.â Laurent waved a hand and Damen laughed. "Yes, your Highness.â Then he went to his training set-up.
Laurent tapped his phone screen and logged in to Damenâs live-stream. First of all he saw that the hammock was also partly in the frame. But instead of being disturbed by that he just lay back. His head was not visible, yet his dangling hand was. People noticed immediately.
Damen and Laurent both ignored it. It wasnât as if Laurent wanted to be mysterious or Damen wanted to keep him a secret. Rather, Laurent didnât want to be the center of attention while Damen started his video channel. Now however, people got more and more curious and Laurent suspected that he would draw less attention if he just showed his face.
Laurent watched the stream in parallel to Damen, it had the advantage that he saw the front and back of his boyfriend while he trained. Both views were equally delicious.
At the end of the stream, Damen sat down in a relaxed posture and saw all the comments on Laurentâs arm, which still dangled from the edge of the hammock. He laughed and shrugged it off.
Laurent decided right then to get it over with. Damen had already assured him that it wouldnât bother him in the least and now was as good a time as every other. He swung his legs over the edge. Clad in blue linen trousers, he knew his legs went on for days. He stood and walked over. On the screen of his phone he saw how his figure came closer and closer.
He walked past Damen, brushed his fingers through the sweaty curls and then said, "Iâll be in my office.â
He knew that his face was visible, he also knew that he still looked a bit debauched. His hair was mused and his lips most likely still a bit redder than they normally were. Yet, he didnât care in the least. Especially when Damen smiled at him as if he had hung the stars and the moon just for him.
Hello you all! It started with a little post some days ago and then inspiration hit in form of a response by @marcreads. From there it spiralled, and now we are here. So prepare yourself.
Laurent stared blankly at the bookshelves in their living room. He really didnât know what to do with himself. It was day three of the lock-down, nobody knew how long it would last in the end. He had been ordered to do home-office and now he didnât have to commute, nobody could coerce him to work some more shortly before he wanted to leave the office, Auguste wasnât there to force him to regular breaks and the cases came in much slower than normally.
All in all, the whole situation caused an immense decrease in work-load. Today he had had not more than two meetings, one with the partners to decide how they would handle their law firm and a second one with his brother, where Auguste said he would finally take a vacation from work because now there was not enough to do anyway and he wanted to remodel his garage. Additionally, Laurent had finished up two cases, they wouldnât even have to go to court because both sides in both cases wanted a settlement. And now he had nothing to do anymore.
He was at a loss. The last time he had had so much free-time was probably before college. He realized that Damen was right, he was a fucking workaholic. He refused to let the situation get the better of him. He was Laurent de Vere and he would power through boredom, confinement, and the quarantine in general by sheer power of will.
Laurent just wanted to reach out to get the first book off the shelf when he heard the door click. It was Damen, because who else would it be?
âSweetheart?â Old habits die hard. Where should Laurent be if not at home? It was not like he could go somewhere.
âIn the living room,â Laurent answered nonetheless. He heard footsteps and then his boyfriend of almost ten years walked around the corner.
Damen was sweaty but he looked very happy. Laurent couldnât stop the smile that tugged on the corner of his mouth. The red workout shirt clung to Damenâs skin, his curls were plastered to his forehead and his pants hung low on his hips. He looked delicious. Laurent let his gaze wander up and down over his form. He would probably never see enough of Damen. The man had ruined him for everyone else.
His conjecture was immediately proofed when Damen came over and planted a kiss on the top of his head. âI am going to take a shower.â He smiled down at Laurent, the dimples in his cheeks the most adorable thing in the whole world, turned around and made his way to their master bathroom.
Laurent followed him, itâs not as if he had anything else to do, and watching Damen shower was certainly not the dumbest thing to do right now.
âHow was your workout?â He had a fantastic view of Damenâs ass while he walked behind him. It was a mighty fine ass. When Damen pulled the shirt over his head to drop it into the workout-laundry bag, Laurent could admire his back even better. The V-shape of his torso was worth of being worshipped. Not that Laurent would ever tell him. He suspected, Damen knew it anyway.
âFine. But I really thought it would be more diversified. It was a bit boring if I am being honest.â Damen shrugged his shoulders, pushed the pants over his hips and turned around. Laurent stood, leaning against the doorframe of their bathroom, and enjoyed the view provided to him by one very sexy boyfriend. Damen grinned when he saw Laurentâs look. âCare to join me?â
âNo, thank you, I already showered and I relish being able to just watch you like that.â The thing was, Laurent somehow enjoyed the time he had with Damen now. Normally, they both worked a lot, saw each other only two to three hours a day and then both of them were exhausted and needed some time to recuperate from their workday. Now, however, they spent almost the whole day with each other and it was like a honeymoon.
Damen grinned, and then stepped under the shower. The crazy guy didnât even wait until the water warmed up. It had to be freezing. Laurent saw the goosebumps all over his body. He bit the inside of his cheek to keep from making any noise. Damen looked over to him, a knowing look on his face. Yes, the idiot knew exactly what he was doing.Â
He started to shampoo his hair and remarked, in a nonchalant tone of voice, âyou know, sweetheart, it would do you some good if you got a bit of fresh air today too. How about I get our parasol out of the garage and fix you a spot in the backyard? You could read there and get fresh air, two in one.â Before Laurent could protest, he added, âand it would really reassure me if I knew you were living healthy and getting enough Vitamin D.â
Laurent obviously couldnât decline now, even if he wanted to. He sighed. âFine, if you insist.â Damen smiled, brightly and full of joy. âYou could watch me tomorrow while working out, if you donât have a meeting, that is.â
Oh. Yes. That was an idea. A good idea even. Laurent shrugged. âSure, if I donât have any meetings, I could come and watch you tomorrow.âÂ
He would absolutely block the time from nine to eleven AM in his calendar.
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Damen was still overwhelmed by the response Laurentâs appearance on his live stream provoked. His followers lost it. He could relate. Truly. Laurent was beyond breath-taking. Especially, when he smiled.
Right now, Laurent read something on his phone, a grin splitting his face. And Damen knew he never saw someone more beautiful than Laurent in that particular moment. He was finishing their dinner and just enjoyed seeing his boyfriend so relaxed and happy.Â
âStop staring, Damen.â Laurent didnât even look up when he said it.Â
âI am just admiring you from afar.â Damen grinned and didnât bother to try and avert his gaze. He knew he would persevere for a maximum of five minutes.Â
Laurent laughed softly. âYou are cute.â
Damen felt the blush rise. Laurent was in a very good mood apparently. He busied himself with cutting the tomatoes for their salad.
âAre you embarrassed?â, Laurent asked giddily, âare you blushing?â He fixated his gaze on Damen and tracked every movement.
âNo.â Damen didnât dare to lift his eyes. He knew he was a horrible liar.Â
âLetâs pretend I believe you.â Laurent still smiled and then he waved his phone at Damen. âDid you read the comments to your video?â
Damen shook his head. âNo. I could listen to shrieks and excited shouts for ten minutes straight after you appeared and then I wanted to cook dinner. I know that people are absolutely overwhelmed by your beauty.â
Laurent shrugged. âIt runs in the family.â
That much was true. Damen knew Laurentâs brother and his parents. It was really not surprising that the blond man looked so damn gorgeous.
âWhat do they write?â
âShould I read the best ones aloud?â
Damen nodded. âYes, I really want to know.â
âLola123 wrote: I canât believe we were withheld Laurentâs beauty up until know. I didnât even know anyone could look like that.â
Damen laughed. Lola was one of his most regular subscribers. âShe was always a fan of yours.â
âWell, I see no reason that she shouldnât be.â Any other person would have shrugged, but Laurent only raised one perfect eyebrow in challenge.
âMe neither.â Damen couldnât suppress the fond smile he shot at Laurent. He grimaced, as if to tell him he should stop to be so sappy, and turned back to the comment section.
âCrazyL wrote: OMG I KNEW he is blond. But have you seen his FACE? If I were Damen I wouldnât spend so much time doing some video. And Nik replied: Believe me, they spend enough time doing other things. Somehow I think he wants to insinuate something with that comment.â
Now Damen couldnât contain his laugh anymore. âHe canât squabble with you in person so he does it in the comment section. You two miss each other, and neither of you can convince me from the opposite.â
The shocked gasp from Laurent was mostly an act. âHow can you say something so offending? Are you trying to break my heart?â
Damen laughed again. âCome on, dinner is ready.â
Laurent put the phone away and they ate their food. Damen observed the other man very closely. He loved to watch Laurent eat. It was amazing how he could enjoy food. This was also the primary reason for Damen to take up cooking. He just wanted to see Laurent enjoy his meals.
âI love you, you know.â
Laurent looked up to him. âI love you too. Very much so.â His blue eyes sparkled, the smile on his lips was achingly beautiful. He was so endearing that Damen had to pinch his thigh to make sure that he wasnât dreaming.
âNow listen to the next comment. Itâs from someone called HJ777: This man is epitome of perfection. I would love to see Damen and him together in person. He had a lot of replies where people screamed and agreed and started a petition to get a meet and greet with us.â Laurent sounded so amused Damen could listen to him for hours.Â
âYou certainly made sure my followers are properly occupied with thoughts of you. This is my reality, so they should just know how that feels.â Damen stood up and started to put away their plates, while Laurent observed him with rosy cheeks.
âLeave them, we should go upstairs.â He stood and started to tug Damen towards the stairs. Damen grinned and started to take the steps two at a time.
Laurent frowned. This couldn't be, it made no sense and he hated things that made no sense. He simply refused to believe that this actually happened to him. Even while he lowered himself to the floor did he try to find an explanation.
"Laurent? What are you doing?" Auguste's voice sounded from the laptop, a bit contorted, not as full as in person. "This makes no sense, Auguste. Am I blind?" Laurent knew he was frustrated and that was never a good sign.
"No, you most definitively are not. What's the matter?" Auguste immediately sounded worried. "What's the matter? I finished this damn puzzle that Damianos wanted to bloody start and then abandoned after he finished the fucking frame and now the last piece is missing. I am not admitting defeat. If I have to carve one out of cardboard and paint it myself I am going to finish this."
It was suspiciously silent after that and Laurent knew exactly what had happened. "Are you laughing at me? You bugger! I can't believe you." He raised his head until he could look over the edge of the table and saw how his brother pressed one hand over his mouth, tears in his eyes and the microphone of his computer muted.
Auguste bit his bottom lip hard, while he unmuted his computer. "You know, I think I see the piece. It is behind the tea pot." Then he had another laughing fit but that was only of secondary importance. Laurent almost cried when he actually found the missing piece and finished the puzzle.
"That was Damen's idea?" "Yes. He said something along the line of, 'Come on, Laurent, sweetheart, it will be fun, we can finish the puzzle together. We have enough time and just look at how beautiful it looks.' And then he had enough after finishing the frame." Laurent huffed.
"And why did you feel compelled to finish it?" Auguste sounded curious and Laurent sighed. "Because I didn't want to admit that I couldn't persist. And then it was fun, until I realized that every damn piece looked exactly the same."
"Show me." Laurent lifted the laptop and showed his big brother the 5000 piece puzzle of a forest. "Looks neat. Congrats. You used to love puzzles."
"I still like them, but I don't like being abandoned with them when I didn't even start them." Laurent set his brother back on the table.
"Where is Damen anyway?" "Outside. He has his afternoon traning session." Auguste grinned. "I saw some of his videos. He is really a good instructor. And people love him."
"I know." Laurent smiled softly, but then he remembered that he was, in fact, still angry about Damen just leaving him to finish the awfull puzzle all by himself. He scowled again.
"What is wrong, Lauri?" Auguste picked up on his mood immediately. Sometimes it was hard having an older brother who loved him to the moon and back and knew everything about him. Especially at times where Laurent didn't want to talk about it.
"I- It's stupid. Like really stupid and you will laugh at me, so I won't tell you." Laurent sighed. He dragged his fingers through his hair. It had gotten longer again. He could now draw it back in a small bun at the back of his head.
Auguste sobered up immediately. "I promise I won't laugh." "That's what you say now." Laurent rubbed his hand over his jaw, the stubble there scratching at his skin, he'd need to shave tonight.
"No. I swear I won't laugh. Lauri, what's the matter?" A heavy sigh escaped Laurent and he decided to just be forward about the issue. "He doesn't touch me anymore. He doesn't tell me I am beautiful anymore and we didn't have sex in over one week. I don't know how to talk to him about it without sounding absolutely stupid and I can't handle it."
Auguste's jaw went slack. "What? We ARE talking about Damen here, aren't we?" Laurent scowled. "Obviously." "One week?"
Now Laurent laughed but it was devoid of any humor. "Yes. Damen, who couldn't keep his hands off me at your birthday party, who had an eight hour sex marathon with me, who wanted to fuck me multiple times a day at the start of the lock-down. That exact Damen. I mean, you knew him even before we got together and he was like the biggest player on this green earth."
Auguste furrowed his brow. "I know. And he doesn't tell you you're beautiful?" "No. It's stupid, really, I know I am. I also know he thinks so, I shouldn't need to hear it. But usually, he tells me at least twice a day and now he just doesn't anymore." Laurent pulled his hair back and put it up in a bun.
"So, the real issue here is not the puzzle he let you finish by yourself but that you are sexually frustrated, uncertain if he still thinks you're beautiful and don't know how to talk about it?" Auguste summed the whole thing up pretty neatly. Laurent nodded, defeated.
"Well, I'd suggest, you go out there and just ask him straight forward." Obviously, Auguste would propose something like that. Laurent sighed. That's the approach Damen would have chosen too. "You could also appear in his live stream and then let people handle it for you."
"What do you mean?" Laurent was confused. "We both know how beautiful you are, good genes and all, maybe if his followers catch a glimpse of you, he will realize it too? But I'd still prefer if you went with approach number one."
Laurent nodded. "Yes, you are right. I should talk to him and if that doesn't work, there is still option two available. But you don't think it's because of me?"
Auguste raised an eyebrow. "Laurent, Damen loves you more than his own life. I am sure it's just some missunderstanding or something absolutely unrelated to you. Maybe he is tired? With all the training it wouldn't surprise me. Just ask him, would you?"
Laurent nodded. Yes, he would ask Damen about it. Tonight at dinner maybe. And then everything would resolve itself after one of the lengthy discussions Damen loved so much.
Damen knew something was wrong as soon as he entered the house. Actually, he had known for longer but he had diligently ignored it.
Laurent sat on the sofa in their living room. His long, long legs were curled up under him, his body tense as if ready for a fight. He somehow looked almost vulnerable, as if one word from Damen could destroy him.Â
It was surprising, Damen had never seen him like that. Not in all the years they had been dating and not in the years before, when they were only friends.
He also saw how Laurent set his jaw, squared his shoulders and looked up to him, suddenly nothing vulnerable about him anymore.
"Sweetheart?â
"Yes. Itâs me Damianos.â He sounded scathing. Fuck. Damen was in trouble and he didnât know why exactly. It was never easy to read Laurent but when he was angry, he was downright frightening.
His blue eyes were colder than glaciers. It made Damen shiver. "Is something wrong?â
A muscle ticked in Laurentâs jaw, that was not a good sign. That only happened when Laurent was furious. Which he was very rarely but when he was, Damen normally tried to avoid him. Usually, the anger wasnât directed at Damen and it was more intelligent to give Laurent a wide breath in those cases until he had calmed down enough to discuss the reason for his anger.
His boyfriend stood and came over. When he reached Damen, he couldnât help but take a step back. Laurentâs eyes widened for a fraction of a second. He looked almost hurt, then the anger upped to a new level.
"I donât know. Is something wrong? You tell me, Damianos.â Damen flinched. He knew whatever the situation was, him avoiding Laurentâs nearer proximities had made it a thousand times worse.
"Nothing to say?â Laurent raised his eyebrow and Damen was caught between thinking how beautiful he was and how screwed he himself was.
"I- I donât know.â Damen bit his bottom lip and Laurent bristled with anger.
"You have no idea, do you?â
"I am sorry, I really donât.â Damen tried to touch him, but Laurent swatted his hand away. "Donât do that if you donât mean it.â
What did he mean with that? Damen didnât understand. Did Laurent think he was apologising without meaning it?
"Donât touch me if you donât mean it.â Laurent looked up to him through blazing eyes, he looked so angry Damen had never seen him like that.
He took another step back and Laurent laughed. It was devoid of any humour but still, at least he didnât look so cold anymore. "I canât believe it. For fucks sake Damianos, if my presence is so unbearable to you, you should have said so sooner. I could have gone to Augusteâs for the time being.â
Damen was surprised. What did he mean by that? "Laurent? Whatâs wrong?â
"Iâd like to ask you that. You are acting odd." Laurent crossed his arms before his chest. Not meeting his eyes and Damen knew he had screwed up big time. Normally, if he annoyed Laurent, he would explode, tell him to fuck off and then calm down by himself. Only when the issue was bigger, did Laurent get this cold and distant look on his face.
"What did I do?â
"See? You don't even realize. Just forget it, I am being silly and I don't like to make an idiot out of myself. This discussion is over. I will be in my office." Laurent walked to the door of the living room, didn't grace Damen with another look and went upstairs.
Damen didn't know how to handle the situation, especially when Laurent banged the door to his office behind himself. He never acted so hot-tempered. Damen decided to call Auguste. If someone knew what had just happened, then it would be Auguste.
"Damen? Whatâs the matter?â
"That's what I would like to know. Laurent just stormed out of our living room, banged the door and accused me of acting odd." He could hear how Auguste let out a sigh.
"Gods, Damen, I thought you knew him better. You really don't know what could be the issue there?"
"No! For fucks sake, Auguste, you need to tell me. I am lost." Damen sat down heavily on the spot Laurent occupied just some minutes ago. The pillow was still warm and the fabric smelled like Laurent and home.
"I won't tell you just like that, you two need to figure this one out on your own. But I give you a clue. Just think about what was different this week from all the other weeks in your relationship. I think there were only a few similar instances. Like the time when Laurent had to accompany me to China for business, or the one time you were sick enough for you to keep to bed for a whole week."
Damen sighed. "Fine. Thank you anyway. Bye Auguste."
"Bye Damen. Don't take too long, you know my brother is rather impatient."
"Yes, I know." He flopped down on the sofa and thought about the last week. His daily routine didn't change much. He had his training sessions, one in the morning one in the afternoon. He had cooked lunch and dinner. He had stared at Laurent while he ate, because it was one of the most beautiful sights he ever laid his eyes on whenever Laurent ate what Damen had cooked. He had finished his cores, went for his jogs, watched the new season of the Umbrella Academy while Laurent read his book beside him.
