Gabriel rolls his eyes but he smiles behind his glass as he finishes his drink.
For a moment the whole thing feels like a strategic retreat into something comfortable and familiar between them. He's seen flashes of unguarded sincerity and passion when they've been together before, and some part of him hopes that those weren't flukes. Still, he tries not to think too deeply about it as he pushes away from the bar. Unlike Anthony, his ability to compartmentalize is shaky at best and ephemeral.
It's cold enough that Gabriel gets them a ride rather than taking the walk. He's quiet for most of it but his fingers find Anthony's in the dark back seat, briefly lacing together. He pays when they arrive at the Bramford and he feels his heart starting to pick up again. Confessional things linger on the tip of his tongue, but he feels like he must protect himself somehow in keeping them to himself. If he's going to lay himself bare, it will have to wait.
Either way, it feels like an inevitability; a when rather than an if.
"Did you really like the play?" he asks as they get to his door, curious now that he's able to focus for even half a moment on the fact that Anthony came to watch it at all.
no subject
For a moment the whole thing feels like a strategic retreat into something comfortable and familiar between them. He's seen flashes of unguarded sincerity and passion when they've been together before, and some part of him hopes that those weren't flukes. Still, he tries not to think too deeply about it as he pushes away from the bar. Unlike Anthony, his ability to compartmentalize is shaky at best and ephemeral.
It's cold enough that Gabriel gets them a ride rather than taking the walk. He's quiet for most of it but his fingers find Anthony's in the dark back seat, briefly lacing together. He pays when they arrive at the Bramford and he feels his heart starting to pick up again. Confessional things linger on the tip of his tongue, but he feels like he must protect himself somehow in keeping them to himself. If he's going to lay himself bare, it will have to wait.
Either way, it feels like an inevitability; a when rather than an if.
"Did you really like the play?" he asks as they get to his door, curious now that he's able to focus for even half a moment on the fact that Anthony came to watch it at all.