Page 89 of Small Sacrifices

"I'm sorry," he says. "I'm a bit of a cuddler. Didn't think about that before we went to sleep last night."

"It's okay." Reid's eyes are flicking from Everett's adorably tousled hair to the teeth he's digging into his bottom lip to the way the old t-shirt Everett brought to sleep in stretches around his biceps and back. He not only doesn't mind that Everett was touching him, but he also wants to touch himmore.

As a slow smile spreads across Everett's face, Reid is reminded of that helpless feeling he had when they woke up together in that hotel, the desperate wish to reach out. Only, he realizes, now he's allowed. Hecouldreach out and touch Everett, kiss him. The thought makes his throat constrict just a little.

"Yeah?" Everett asks.

He scoots closer so that he's within reach again, but he doesn't try to touch Reid. Not even when Reid answers in the affirmative. Why isn't he touching him? Reid frowns. There's a possibility that Everett is just teasing Reid again. But his face is so open and vulnerable that Reid can't imagine that's what's happening.

Still, the way to solve this is communication. Reid takes a breath and asks, "What's going on over there?"

He also moves his hand forward on the bed a bit, to make sure that Everett can see that he is inviting touch. But he can't think about the fact that Everett isn't taking him up on that invitation. The flush that darkens his cheeks is way too mesmerizing. Reid could swear he could even see Everett's neck color slightly.

"Just thinking," Everett says with painfully fake nonchalance.

Reid narrows his eyes at him. "No, you're not." How is this communication thing supposed to work if Everett isn't cooperating?

"Right." Everett looks down at Reid's hand between them on the bedsheet, then up at Reid again. "I just really wanna kiss you."

Oh. Heat sparks in Reid's stomach so suddenly that he sits up straighter. "Then why don't you?"

Across the bed, he can see Everett's Adam's apple bob as he swallows. "Well. One: Morning breath. Two: We're in bed. I wasn't sure… I don't wanna do anything that you don't want."

"I want to kiss you."

Reid doesn't even have to put thought into saying that. He wants a whole lot more, too. He just isn't sure whether it's smart to let himself have these things right now. There's still that feeling in the back of his mind, like he's waiting for the other shoe to drop. He'd like it if that went away first.

But he definitely wants to kiss Everett. And hegetsto kiss Everett, who scoots over and closes the distance pretty much immediately. It's soft and warm, easy to fall into. Do people ever get used to this? Even if they do, Reid hopes he never will. There's something about the feeling of Everett's lips on his that he wants to preserve for all eternity.

He doesn't understand why morning breath was a concern for Everett when they both have it. Sure, Reid can taste that his own mouth is a bit stale. But Everett? He doesn't really notice anything about Everett except for how he makes him feel. Especially when helicks into Reid's mouth.

When Reid whimpers at the sensation of Everett's tongue against his, he draws back to check if everything is okay. Normally, he'd be a lot more appreciative of that than right now—because right now, it just feels mean. Everett only just gave him that feeling, and now he's taking it away again? Mean.

By the time Reid notices he's moving, he's already halfway in Everett's lap, wide brown eyes staring up at him in something akin to shock. Oh. That's… Yeah. This might be a lot. Whenhe asks if it's alright, Everett nods eagerly, but he still doesn't move until Reid has settled himself on top of his thighs. Then, he raises one eyebrow, and he looks so smug doing it that Reid wants to punch him in the shoulder. But they've got more important things going on, so he just kisses him again.

Now that he's finally doing it, French kissing isn't nearly as daunting or complicated as he always thought it was. Sure, he's awkward at it, but Everett doesn't seem to mind. As a concept, it's so weird that Reid can't think of a way of doing it wrong that wouldn't also mean he's doing a bunch of other things wrong. Really, there seems to only be one rule:Make it feel good.

And oh, does it ever. The first time Everett twists their tongues together, Reid moans right into his mouth. It gets him an amused huff of breath against his cupid's bow—but Everett isn't laughing. Not really. He's not laughingathim. Mostly, he just seems happy. There are all these little noises that he makes in the back of his throat. And then there's the way he moves in and withdraws, nips at Reid's lips and even kisses Reid on the tip of the nose once, which makes him go cross-eyed. It's not teasing. It's just playfulness. He'shappy.

That's what gets to Reid most of all, the levity of it. Somehow, he's always thought of moments like these as somber and serious. When people talked about making out or having sex asfun,he thought that was just a synonym for arousing. But thisisfun. And, ironically, that's what turns him on.

At first, he doesn't notice that's what's happening. But then Everett decides it would be a good idea to suck on his tongue, and that makes his entire body seize up with want for a moment. He can't ignore that.

Neither can he ignore the fact that he's well on his way to an erection. He'dliketo ignore it, because he really wants to go back to making out with Everett. But considering the circumstances, it would probably be best to stop now. Just to make sure thatthey don't slip into something that might be uncomfortable for one of them. They should talk about this.

Reluctantly, Reid detaches himself. He gives Everett a brief peck on his lips, but then he sits back and just looks at him for a while.

It's always nice to look at Everett. But right now, with his pupils blown and his hair tousled, his chest expanding with deep breaths and his lips a deep red and still a bit slick, he's asight.Going by the grin lifting the corners of his mouth, he knows exactly what he looks like. Heaven help him. Reid really needs to start talking, or he's going to get sidetracked, and then they'll never get to it.

"So," Reid starts, his voice steady despite the nervous flutter in his chest, "I don't think I want to have sex while all the big stressful things are still going on."

If this line of conversation surprises Everett, he doesn't show it. He just nods. "Can I ask why?"

Reid exhales slowly. He knows the reasons aren't simple, but he starts with the most important. "I want to be sure that I want it for the right reasons. You know? It shouldn't be about relieving stress."

That gets him a soft smile. "I can get behind that. For the record, it doesn't ever need to be about relieving stress. But waiting seems like a good idea. Everything is so chaotic at the moment. If we have sex, you deserve my full attention."

"When," Reid says."Whenwe have sex."

---