Vorentine’s Day: Eric and Seth

by the Wolf

 

Eric stood outside the door to his apartment, holding a small bouquet of flowers and taking a deep breath. He’d just come home from the gym after a long day of work, his muscles were sore, he felt mentally drained, and he was trying hard to get into the right headspace.

Valentine’s Day should be a wonderful day for Seth and him; it always had been the last five years they’d been together. And he couldn’t deny that thinking about the thin, blond-haired guy just on the other side of that door still made him feel romantic, loving, lustful … all those wonderful things his boyfriend inspired. Yet in the last year, there had also been some hard times developing, and Eric had so much trouble putting it out of his mind, even if it shouldn’t matter on an evening like this one.

Slightly over a year and a half before, Seth had lost a decent job in a round of layoffs when his company had been bought out. At first there’d been stress and worry, but Eric had just hugged his smaller boyfriend close to his bodybuilder chest on the couch and told him that he could handle things. Seth had pounded the pavement and collected unemployment, but with the local market flooded with plenty of other tech geniuses with more experience, he hadn’t been able to get any of the coveted positions. Then the unemployment had run out, and the weight of the difficulty saw Seth staying home more and more.

He wasn’t idle at home; he at least kept things clean, but the extra financial burden still caused some frustration and resentment for Eric. He had to remind himself that Seth was still trying, that it really wasn’t that much more than he used to pay in rent, and it wasn’t really Seth’s fault. But the financial strain and the extra expenses brought on by two cars, extra insurance, and all the other living costs had led to belt-tightening and some hard sacrifices. Which had led to fights and other tension in the course of the last several months.

Still though, today was a day to forget all that for at least an evening. Part of what the flowers were about, just a small gesture to set the mood, which Seth had already started earlier in the day. Eric knew he still loved Seth, and nothing could ever change that in his mind, especially with all the communication today.

At the start of the day, just when he was beginning work, Eric had received a text message. Just a simple something from Seth: Got something special planned for tonight! Love you hun! xoxoxo

Despite other incoming stresses of the day, it had made Eric smile. Their last blowout had been only a couple days ago, but it had probably been months since they sent cute text messages to each other. It reminded him of when they’d first been getting serious and constantly teased each other until they could be together at the end of the day. So he’d just texted back, Can’t wait to see. Love you too!

Then the texts had come regularly through the day. Not enough to get repetitive or annoying, but just at the right times to let Eric know that Seth was thinking about him. That he was loved. At his lunch hour, his phone had buzzed with a naked photo of Seth stretched out on their bed and the lewd message, Wish I could suck your cock for lunch! Wait until you see what you get when you get home!

Eric had shivered in a pleasant way and tried to focus on his sandwich and not get too excited. He’d texted back, Driving me crazy here. ;) Can’t wait to be with you.

What time u getting home?

Probably 7:30 or 8. Need to hit the gym.

I’ll have your surprise ready then! Love you!!! xoxoxoxo

The reminders of their best times had continued through the afternoon, putting Eric into a good mood. Though at the gym, his mood had faltered just a bit. With the phone locked in his locker and the meditative state of stretching, lifting, and breathing, Eric’s mind decided to play the trick of going over all the rough times. Even so far as to wonder a few times what Seth’s “surprise” would actually cost Eric in the long run.

But that hadn’t been fair. He wasn’t about to ruin whatever work Seth had put into tonight by letting the pettier part of his mind get him down. A few more teasing text messages (Can’t wait for my big, strong man to come home and use me! <3) waiting for him on his phone had confirmed his resolve. So on the way home, Eric had stopped by a grocery store to grab the flowers as a reminder of how he wanted the night to go and how he knew he felt about Seth.

Now he stood at the door, thinking that whatever Seth was doing, it was probably something with a lot of effort. So tonight he wouldn’t think about anything but that and how much he loved his boyfriend. Maybe he’d made a nice dinner for the two of them. Keying open the door, Eric entered the apartment, wondering what to expect.

He didn’t smell anything cooking, and a brief glance at the small kitchen of their two-bedroom place said there was nothing going on in there. Well, maybe that would come later, but he was starving now. And if they had to order out…

Eric stopped himself. That line of thinking would just ruin the evening and whatever Seth had planned. He had to trust his boyfriend, especially on Valentine’s Day.

“Seth?” he called out.

“In the bedroom, hon!”

Ah, so that was the plan. Start off there and then maybe get some food in-between. Eric could go along with that. The gym did usually get the blood pumping, and he’d been thinking about Seth all day. He could already feel the mood shifting into a more pleasant gear as he headed down the short hall into their bedroom.

“Okay, sweetie,” he said as he opened the door and stepped in. “So what’s this—”

Eric stopped and his eyes widened. The flowers slipped from his slack fingers to the floor. His mouth watered, and he swallowed a few times as he took in everything.

The entire room was bathed in soft firelight from candles placed carefully on the dresser, nightstands, and floating shelves all around. Seth had removed the covers and stretched the rubber play sheets over their queen-sized bed and wrapped the pillows similarly, and the smell of chocolate filled the room. The thin man knelt in a large pool of chocolate sauce on the bed, his body drizzled in the condiment. Streaks of it ran through his short, blond hair and he rubbed a hairless nipple through a line of it as he gave Eric a small smile.

“Happy Valentine’s Day, hon.”

Eric swallowed again, trying not to drool as he found his voice. “Seth … what is all this?”

“Isn’t it obvious?” Seth said with a little sparkle in his eyes. “I’m your Valentine’s treat. Figured it would be better than a box of chocolates. Tonight you get to eat me up and live out one of your fantasies!”

He couldn’t help it; Eric licked his lips in nervous temptation. Seth looked delicious perched there on the bed and covered in the sweet sauce. But Eric had never imagined he’d offer something like this.

 

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