There are few joys greater than waking up to complete contentment. For instance, waking up to both contentment and the smell of freshly made breakfast. Distantly, as I rolled over to clutch my pillow tighter, I heard clattering from outside the bedroom. I opened my eyes halfway and blinked slowly. Then I smiled. Then I got out of bed.

I pulled out a sweater from Rowen's closet, one that was big enough I didn't need to worry about sweatpants, and pulled it over my head. I inhaled the familiar scent and sighed happily. Glancing in the mirror, I remarked on how Rowen's clothes were still much too big for me. But it didn't bother me like it had before. It was... cozy. 

Half-dressed and ready to take on the morning, I walked into the living room in search of the wonderful smell that had woke me. I found Rowen was in the kitchen, standing over the stove in deep concentration. I leaned on the wall with my arms crossed, gazing at him. Finally, I greeted him, alerting him to my presence. "Good morning," I said.

Glancing over his shoulder, Rowen appeared happy to see me. However, upon meeting my gaze and then dropping his eyes to my attire, Rowen turned a light shade of pink. "Ah... Good morning, love..." He quickly went back to cooking.

Crossing the kitchen, I looped my arms around his neck. He tensed as I pressed my lips to his cheek. "Something wrong?" I asked.

At my teasing, Rowen relaxed. He continued cooking as he replied. "Not a thing," and gave my arm a return kiss. "Everything is perfect."

After the sentiment had passed, Rowen asked if I wanted a cup of coffee. I nodded and he retrieved a mug from the cupboard. He poured me a glass and resumed his preparation of breakfast, which was beginning to smell more amazing by the second. I sat down at the table to watch him as I sipped my coffee. 

"Honey-bacon and eggs okay with you?" he asked.

"Depends. Do you have syrup?" I countered.

Rowen grinned. "What kind of human would I be without syrup?" he said. He nodded towards the fridge. "Mind getting it out?"

I stood up and walked over to get the sticky sweetness from the fridge. While Rowen finished cooking, I set the table with plates and utensils. Then we both sat down to eat. 

"You've been practicing," I said. "If I remember correctly, you always overcooked the bacon."

Rowen made some snappy remark about my tastebuds being out of tune for thinking his bacon was burned, but he was grinning, and I was grinning, and for once, the back and forth comments were all in good fun. When we finished eating I offered to help clean up, but Rowen told me he could do it and went into the kitchen to wash the dishes. With my moment of solitude, I closed my eyes and relished in the peaceful domesticity. Then a thought occurred to me. "Hey, do you know what time it is?" I called from the dining room.

Rowen glanced at the clock in the kitchen. "Almost 11:00," he said. "Why?"

I jumped to my feet. "Oh, no, no, no! I totally forgot!" I said, hurrying towards the bedroom.

Rowen put the dishes down and dried his hands to follow me. "What's wrong?" he asked.

"I have class at 6 o'clock and it's at least a five-hour drive, maybe more," I said, rushing to get dressed.

Rowen looked far less rushed. In fact, as he stood in the doorframe with a frown, I caught a whiff of disappointment. "You're leaving?" he asked.

He was disappointed. But I couldn't miss this class, any class for that matter, but definitely not the first class of the semester. Pulling on my jacket, I said, "I'm sorry. I know everything just started being normal again, but I have to go. I promise I'll be back."

Though he sighed deeply, he kissed my forehead and managed a smile. "I understand. Drive safe," he told me.

As I got in my car, I could see Rowen watching me from the porch. He lifted his hand to wave, and I returned the gesture. When that only served to make Rowen look even more dejected, I backed out of the drive. Rowen looked unhappy to the end.

*******

"Was it scary going back?" Zane asked on the other line. I could hear him crunching on potato chips, so his concern was less convincing than it could have been.

"I mean, yeah. For the first few minutes I thought he was just gonna toss me out," I said. "But more than anything, I'm glad I could finally make things right again. And he didn't toss me out, so that's a plus."

Zane laughed before falling silent. Then he asked, "Do you think it'll last?" He had stopped eating and had lowered his voice; he was asking seriously.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"Well, you guys fight a lot, and I know he gets on your nerves," Zane admitted. "I don't want to see either of you get hurt if something gets ugly."

Of course, Zane was right; we did fight a lot. We had even fought the day before when I tried to tell him how I felt. Anyone who knew what we were like, what we were like together, would expect us to crash and burn in one final blowout argument that sent us both racing to get away from each other. A year ago, I would have thought the same. But that was just us; Rowen and me. Besides, we were just as good at fighting as we were at forgiving one another. A year apart had proven that.

"Rowen and I have a lot to work out," I acknowledged. "But it doesn't feel like work anymore. It feels like growth. I think we'll be fine."

"I hope so," Zane said. "You two deserve some peace for a while."

Zane and I talked for a while longer about school, and home life, and when we would see each other next. Then Zane said he had to cook dinner, so we spoke our goodbyes and hung up. Dropping my phone next to me in the passenger seat, I smiled and pressed on the gas. After I finished my last class of the day, I'd gotten back on the road. Rowen had called to make sure I got home okay, not knowing I was already on my way back to him. I was already halfway there, so there was no point going back to the dorm now. He'd just have a little midnight surprise.

The drive was quiet. Had I possessed an aux cord, I would have played music to keep me awake, but since I did not, I was resolved to blinking and shaking the sleep away every hour or so. It was past midnight by the time I pulled up to the cabin and I was sure Rowen was asleep. I walked up to the porch and grabbed the key from under the doormat, snickering at the fact that, despite being a notorious killer, he had yet to find a better place to hide the spare.

When I pushed the door open, the lights were all off and the house was quiet. As I suspected, Rowen was already in bed. I made my way to his bedroom and opened the door just enough to peek inside. From the moonlight outside his windows, I could see him sleeping soundly, one pillow pulled over his eyes.

I had to keep from laughing as approached the bed and crawled in next to Rowen. Carefully, I shuffled closer until I was pressed up along his bare side. Unsurprisingly, my touch startled him awake, and he fumbled frantically, reaching for his nightstand. I took his hands in mine to quiet him.

"Hi," I said softly. "It's just me."

Rowen blinked his sleep away and frowned at me, still asleep enough not to fully grasp the situation. "Kevin?" he said, shaking his head in confusion. "What are you doing here? I thought you had school tomorrow."

"Yeah, but my roommate wasn't home, so I was lonely." I smiled and climbed on top of him. He was awake enough to know what that meant. His breath hitched when I gazed down at him and bit my lip. "Can I stay here?"

Rowen squeezed my ass, grinning. "It's kind of late to be asking that question, don't you think?"

"I guess your right," I said, leaning down to kiss him. He kissed back, adding passion to my sly kiss. With his hands on my hips and my fingers in his hair, everything was right again. I knew we would fight. I knew there would be days when I wanted to kill him. But I didn't care. This was were I belonged, and this was who I belonged with.

*******

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