This story is fiction, copyrighted and property of the author. It can only be reprinted with permission of the author. Any resemblance to anything or anybody is one hell of a coincidence. If M/M stories offend you or are illegal for you to view, scram.
*
He was drowning.
After hearing of Sebastian's impending arrival from Mych, Aurel had lectured himself while getting ready. As he hurried through his ablutions he told himself that he could stay calm, collected. He would remain in control.
His social strengths were many. He was charismatic; sophisticated without being pompous. He was friendly, but never clingy. He was polite. He had nice teeth.
He wanted Sebastian, needed him, but that didn't mean that he couldn't function like a normal adult. This was the most important thing he would ever do in his lifetime. If he could charm the Garuda into retracting their claws, he should be able to attract one human male. He just had to.
He knew what needed to be done. He could finesse this.
Make him comfortable.
Be complimentary.
Show an interest.
Say something witty.
Smile. Mischa always said his smile was his best asset.
He was comparing ties for the umpteenth time when the absurdity of his behavior caught up to him. Ties? He'd rather wear nothing at all.
Mych insisted on being the one to meet Sebastian at the door. To Aurel's dissatisfaction, he also insisted that the others be present for their initial meeting.
A chaperone. At his age. Not for the first time Aurel wondered who was really in charge. It wasn't him. If he were in charge Sebastian would already be here, chained to a bed.
It was a nervous wait. Uncomfortable. Everyone seemed to have advice. Mych with his list of do and do nots. Alex with his courtship remembrances.
And then...
He was there. All of Aurel's resolutions, all of his ideas of careful seduction, all of his vaunted control went straight out the window as he stared once more at sheer perfection.
He didn't understand one word of what went on around him. He was on total autopilot. Mechanical responses to questions he didn't hear because of the thundering of his blood. On some level he recognized the other's attempts to include him, but he was struck dumb. He operated totally on emotion. Fury. Relief. Jealousy. Despair. Lust.
Love.
He felt primitive. Suddenly, kidnapping Sebastian and keeping him chained didn't sound bad at all. It would keep others from looking at him, coveting him. It would keep Aurel sane.
He nominated Alex for Sainthood when he finally left, taking everyone with him. Mych was harder. Aurel might not have had psychic ability, but he tried to put as much pleading into his eyes as possible, begging him for time alone. He could see Mych waver, then acquiesce.
He didn't know what he was doing. He wanted to talk, truly. He wanted to know Seb. He wanted to know his hopes and dreams. He wanted to know who Sebastian was, he wanted to hear Seb's laughter. He wanted...
Oh how he wanted.
He was drowning. Seb's lips and teeth, the taste of him, all cinnamon toothpaste and male. The dueling of tongues unwilling to submit, moist flesh against flesh hardwired to his very heart.
He cradled Seb's face in his large hands; slanting his head so he could probe deeper, plunder with his tongue, get inside Seb. Get so far inside that Seb could never get him out.
His thumbs gently traced the planes of Sebastian's face, learning the contours; at odds with the demand of his kiss. And Seb was kissing him back in a dark, hot way that nearly sent him to his knees.
It was so much more than mouth and hands. Aurel was taller, bending down for the kiss, finally picking Seb up and pressing him to the door, putting them chest to chest; cock to aching cock. They shifted against each other, hard and ready; their small movements almost too much to bear.
Seb whimpered at the new contact, almost painful in it's intensity. Aurel answered with a groan of his own, finally breaking the kiss, eyes clenched in ecstasy.
"Oh God..."
He was so lost in the feeling bombarding him that he failed to notice the impact his words had on Sebastian until he went rigid in his hold. It was like he had flipped a switch. Aurel looked down in stunned incomprehension as Sebastian started to squirm, trying to release himself from Aurel's iron grip. Surprised, Aurel quickly let go, Seb collapsing in a heap on the floor.
Aurel had to look away from the picture Seb presented. Resting on his elbows, legs spread, jacket askew. His mouth was red and wet from the kiss, his eyes wide in disbelief, hair loose in total disarray. Aurel clenched his fist so that he wouldn't succumb to the urge to reach out and touch him.
"What the..." Seb still hadn't caught his breath. "What the fuck was that?"
"I..."
"I mean, holy shit! That was-"
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean- I don't know what I was...I'm sorry."
"It's just that; wow. That wasn't me, dude. I mean, I just don't do this sort of thing." Sebastian had the grace to blush. "At least, not since my freshman year of college." He looked around, trying to figure out the best way to get up without looking like an ass.
Aurel gave him a hand, flinching at the contact, fighting the instinct that told him to pull Seb into another embrace.
"I'm sorry."
"I know. I got that general idea."
"I don't do this sort of thing either. I just..."
"Got carried away," Seb finished for him.
"Yes." Aurel turned around and walked away, convinced that he had blown his chance.
"So did I."
It was now Aurel's turn to be surprised by Seb's proximity. He almost jumped when he felt Sebastian's hand against his side.
"Seriously, what was that?"
"I don't know. I've just been wanting to. I've never done this before. I'm strictly an amateur."
"If you go pro you'll kill somebody."
"I'm not interested in just somebody."
"Well, you'd definitely kill me."
Aurel paled at that. Any reminder of Sebastian's mortality was anathema, yet with every word exchanged he was pulling Seb deeper into danger.
"I saw you, that day," Sebastian said.
"I know."
"Why were you there?"
Aurel ran his fingers through his hands as he worried about what to admit. He settled on the truth. An edited version, but a fairly close approximation of the truth.
Mych would kill him.
"You were in the wrong place at the wrong time. We've been having some security problems. I can't discuss it, but there have been certain threats. No one knew who you were."
"I'm a pretty open book. It couldn't be that hard to figure out that I'm no threat."
"I wouldn't say that you aren't a threat."
"What!" Sebastian's brows were beginning to gather in anger. "Look, Mr. Draco-"
"What I'm trying to say is that I saw you. I've been a mess since then. Ask Mych. You've been driving me insane." He waited a moment while Seb digested his words. "I want you. Badly. I call that threatening."
Seb had a hard time swallowing past the lump in his throat. His dream man had just told him that he was obsessing in the same way that Seb was; right after Seb pushed him away when things got too intense. Sebastian wished that he could just jump back into the guy's lap and wiggle to his heart's content, but...Seb was still Seb.
"I don't know what you want from me, but I don't trust you." He went on despite the small sound of distress that Aurel made. "And I'm not interested in just a quick fuck either." It was almost a dare.
"You are a perceptive man. You shouldn't trust me. I have more secrets than one person should have to bear." Sebastian wasn't prepared for the vehemence of Aurel's voice, or the way his shoulders were suddenly gripped. Aurel's face was close to his. Sebastian turned his head away, but instead of following and continuing their lip lock, Aurel's voice sounded in his ear, soft and seductive. Deadly.
"But I'm not interested in anything quick with you either." Sebastian was about to protest, but the feel of a tongue caressing the shell of his ear quieted him. "Certainly not a quick
fuck
."
Sebastian almost came when Aurel said fuck. Guttural, promising, slurred like they really had just exploded together; imbued with a wealth of imagery involving the two of them and all they could do.
"I like slow," Aurel said. "I would like slow with you."
Sebastian could do slow. He could do slow now. Like right now.
"So we will go slow."
Seb was disoriented when Aurel released his shoulders, taking his hand instead.
"But make no mistake, I'm not going anywhere. You don't trust me, I understand that, but I need the chance to change your mind. I want to get to know you. If I have to go slow, I'll go slowly. If you need time, I'll wait."
Aurel tugged on Seb's hand, pulling him towards the door.
"Where are we going?"
"The tour." He laughed at Seb's blank look. "You know, the snakes? Consider it our first date."
Aurel looked back over his shoulder at a speechless Seb, a small smile playing across his lips.
"And just so you know, when you finally want fast and hard, I'm available."
***
"Oh my god! It's
so
big. I've never seen one this big."
Aurel groaned and leaned his forehead against the glass. Sebastian was going to be the death of him. He had imagined Seb saying something similar so many times, but this is not what he had in mind. Oh no.
"Really. This is the biggest Reticulated Python I've ever laid eyes on, in a zoo or in the wild. Awesome!"
Though there was something to be said about Seb's enthusiasm. And he liked snakes. That was a big plus. Aurel was fond of snakes too.
He had payed particular attention to Seb's reaction when he first saw the mural. The mural was on a large, curved wall before the habitat, dominating the space with it's lushly rendered depictions of vipers. Aurel watched Seb with satisfaction as he traced one figure after another. Ourobouros. Tiamat. Ophiuchus and Serpens. The Tree of Knowledge.
