A/N: Sometimes I feel like writing down cute little scenes with no deeper meaning just to put some emotions into it or drool a little myself. Well, this is one of them I thought I'd share.
Something wasn't right. Or at least different. Very different. As much as he tried to hide it, Max could sense it. Leo was silent. Way too silent. And although the younger man had his phases of being not exactly talkative, this was too much even for him.
"What is it?" Max asked carefully, looking over to his partner from the side.
As though shaken awake Leo flinched a little baffled but then tilted his head slightly and stretched his mouth into a soft smile.
"It's nothing," he answered.
He had been out for a while. Heaven only knew what he had been doing since one short glimpse outside was enough to figure the beastly weather. And judged by Leo's drenched clothes and his strands almost edging the soft outlines of his face told him it was raining cats and dogs too. Way to go, Sherlock!
He must have been caught off guard by the rain walking. But since Leo wasn't exactly rushing to dry himself up Max definitely knew something was going on. Leo hated being caught in the rain. He hated wet clothes. He was scared of thunderstorms and he definitely was the embodiment of the word 'rush'.
Yet he didn't flinch. He didn't try to find a way out of a question-answer game he surely had noticed as such. No, he smiled. And even though he was definitely and in a one-hundred-percent certain way lying right now, he was amazingly calm. Just as though this was planned. As if he wanted Max to ask and as if he'd been practicing his answer at least a million times.
Max raised his eyebrows in disbelief. He wanted to say something, but actually he had not the slightest clue what to respond.
For Leo on the other hand this conversation was over. He casually walked past Max and vanished behind the white door on his right, probably heading towards the bedroom to get some dry clothes and take a shower.
Max followed him with his eyes, slightly turning his head but not daring to move.
What the...
….
Leo pulled his shirt over his head slowly. Wet clothes sticking to his body always gave him goosebumps. So doing it slowly was a way to make it more bearable.
Carefully he flung it over the cabinet door of one of the closets which stood open widely. He started to unfold the crumpled sleeves but suddenly stopped, staring out of the window. The city appeared blurry through the thousands of raindrops sticking in weird shapes to the windows and in a way looked like soap bubbles floating through the nightly sky.
Leo smiled by himself. He'd never noticed before. And somehow the idea of them dipping the city in rainbow colors made him feel warm. And that storm less scary although a big part of him absorbed the mood that came along this otherwise threatening black sky. It was new. And in a way exciting.
"Alright," he heard Max's voice behind him and closed his eyes, still smiling. "Will you tell me what's going on?"
He was slowly coming closer. Leo heard his footsteps on the old wooden floor and much more than that he could feel it. Just the way you feel people are close behind you whenever you are walking somewhere.
"It's really nothing," he answered calmly and turned to smile at his partner once again.
"Let's be honest, okay?" Max's face looked concerned and his eyes were fixated on Leo although he was speaking almost timidly. "You start to really worrying me. This... this is a little unlike yourself, don't you think?"
Leo didn't lose his smile though. He was worrying. He could have expected that. And as much as he wanted to answer Max, this was hard to explain somehow. So, he closed his eyes and folded his arms before turning to the windows again. He thought about telling him. That warm feeling was still there despite the goosebumps on his naked torso. But every time he wanted to reply something the complete loss of words made him speechless again. He took a deep breath when suddenly he felt the warmth of another body on his back. He opened his eyes again and felt Max's hug and noticed his head next to his own while his hands softly cupped Leo's in front of his chest.
"You're gonna catch a cold standing around like that," Max spoke a lot softer now, snuggling his head closer to Leo's.
"I don't mind," Leo grinned.
"Listen, don't think it's not important," Max kept on. "Anything that bothers you is actually. At least to me."
Leo turned his head and looked at him a little surprised.
"You being melancholic is new to me," Max continued, smiling slightly softly. "Forgive my worries."
"Max," Leo said and closed his eyes, leaning his head to Max. "It's really not what you think."
He turned and looked at him, diving into his eyes and smiling.
"The rain didn't bother me," Leo whispered while their foreheads touched. "For the first time. Can you imagine that?"
He smiled and flung his arms around Max. Max let happen without backing away. As a matter of fact he was surprised by that sudden gesture of affection coming from Leo but it didn't take long and he couldn't hold back his grin as well. Having Leo close to him was nice. Seeing him smile was too. And Leo being the one who started it was definitely amazing. So worrying was probably overrated even though he knew Leo might as well could have reacted differently.
"So you liked the rain?" Max smiled at him and spoke in the softest voice he could accomplish.
Leo nodded and started to stroke through Max's hair with one hand.
"It was surprising but it kinda felt good," he answered. "And then I thought: Look how much you've changed. And I realized...for the first time really realized I was happy. And that's really nothing to worry about."
Max closed his eyes and chuckled slightly. This was so much Leo. Being excited about something new like a child. And for a moment he felt stupid having been worried about him. No wonder he was silent. He usually was when he needed to cope with himself and, quite frank, taking something that scared him for ages for something nice all of a sudden was a huge step. Max knew. And he knew Leo knew. In a way he admired the childish naivety Leo could develop from time to time. So who was he to break it by asking too many questions?
"Still you should put on something," he said then while noticing the goosebumps that covered Leo's chest. "You're shivering."
Leo on the other hand cuddled a little closer and pressed his body to Max's. He almost rested his chin on the older man's shoulder while the grip of his hands became firmer. They were standing there, cheek to cheek and Leo didn't seem to care his skin was wet and the air too cold to stop his body from shivering.
Max didn't dare to move. He felt his face getting hot. Usually Leo wouldn't cling to him. Not like that. Usually he'd be very careful when it came to physical contact. Usually...
Thinking about it there was no usual. Not really. Not anymore. And thinking about the thinking he decided was wasted time. What he really should do was enjoying this here.
But he almost hesitantly put his hands on Leo's back. It always felt a little like touching something very precious, so vulnerable it would break by the tiniest vibration. Which was silly of course.
But just as he noticed the unbelievable stir his mind was creating again each time Leo was close, the younger man lifted his head slightly until their eyes met.
"You'll get a cold," Max smirked at him.
"I don't mind," Leo answered and bent forward softly.
Max closed his eyes the moment their lips touched. Definitely new! And definitely unexpected. He felt a shiver down his spine and without thinking about it any more his left hand found its way to Leo's neck, holding it gently while the other wandered down his chest. The room began to spin around him as he felt Leo leaning more and more of his own weight to him. Max thought about giving him more room but the warmth of Leo's body against his own was way too tempting. And feeling his skin was indescribable.
He felt Leo's hand on his short, slowly unbuttoning it. He still had his eyes closed when it was gently striped off of his shoulders and fell down his arms. Leo's chest touched his. His skin was warm and solely still wet sticky. But he didn't mind. The image of Leo stuck on him was giving him goosebumps. And butterflies. And all the joys of this world whizzed around his head.
It was then he realized what happened and he lowered his head a little without opening his eyes, only to avoid Leo for a split second.
"Leo," he breathed. "What are you doing?"
Their foreheads touched again and Leo almost lovingly folded his hands around Max's nape.
"Would you stay with me a little longer?" Leo whispered back. "I need you close right now."
Max wanted to reply something but somehow Leo sounded so urgently; so in need. He couldn't refuse. Even though a thousand things crossed his mind he still had to do; all of them seemed so unimportant, so distant suddenly.
So he nodded, giving in to Leo's soft skin on his own. His breath on his face. His smell close to him. His hands in his nape and his huge brown eyes looking so wishfully back at him.
….
It was late at night when only Leo's long and steady breaths were to be heard next to him. They lay entwined next to each other and although Max had tried for quite a while now, he just couldn't sleep. He didn't feel tired at all.
Leo's warm body was still snuggling close to him and he watched him sleeping peacefully while their heads touched and Leo's brown strands fell loosely over Max's face. Leo held on to his hand as though he was afraid Max might pull it away again during the night.
Max smiled gently.
"Don't be afraid to stay that way," he thought before finally managing to detach from the almost heavenly sight of watching Leo sleep and closing his eyes.
~The End~