Stendan fic. What I would like to see happen between them, though is highly unlikely. Some of the storyline is taken from my interpretation of spoilers. Hope you enjoy :)

If you had told Stephan Hay six months ago that he would be in a happy, open relationship with someone, he'd probably have laughed in your face. If you had then told him it would be with Brendan Brady, he probably wouldn't be able to stop. Though underneath the surface of it all, he'd been wishing for it to come true.

And now, as he walks into the flat he shares with his boyfriend, he couldn't be any happier. After everything they had gone through, the stupid and almost unforgiveable things each of them had done, it was almost a miracle that they had ended up in the position they are now in. But something, like a band of elastic, just pinged them back together. No matter, at times how they and others tried to stop it. Something special, something that no one else really had a control over, and deep down neither did they.

For Ste had been with Noah, trying to forget the man he had fallen for quite a few months ago. With Brendan, some may have thought that they were in a relationship that was damaged from the start. The number of times people who knew told him to leave, stay away, and he had just ignored it all until everything built up. He just flipped out, and consequently realised he needed to take a step back, because the bond had been tinged a little toxic.

But as much as he tried to convince himself that everything would be better that life would be better with Noah, he began to resent him. That's partly why he returned to Brendan, plus he knew he loved him, no matter how hard he tried to stop. He had watched Brendan suffer too much from his demons, looked on as he embraced the breakdown he was heading straight for, had been for months.

As Ste shrugged of his coat and greeted his boyfriend with a deep kiss, he remembered the day they reunited. How they fought it out in the club, growing violent from both sides, with blood pouring from each of their faces, until Brendan corned Ste, and grasped hold of the hands that were banging against his chest. And as they stared into each other's eyes, they descended into a passionate, and very much missed haven of ecstasy and bliss. And love.

They snuck around once more, trying to keep it hidden from all those that had known previously and those that never found out. Ultimately though, they knew they were living in secret of themselves, lying to try and fix the mess that were their heads.

As Ste settled down on the settee, in the arms of his lover, he thought back to when the fallout began. They knew that secrets were dangerous things, even when they believed that deep down; it was for the right reasons, at least for them in the long run. But they lived in Hollyoaks, and secrets don't stay secret for long.

And everything erupted, those closest feeling the most betrayed, by the lies they had told to keep the truth hidden. Cheryl, having thought she now knew her brother after his past was revealed by Pete, was thrown by the bombshell, wondered how much more of her sibling's life she had missed out on, and if anything that she had known was even the truth. Amy was, though disappointed that Ste had gone back, could see that maybe it was better things were over between Ste and Noah, having witnessed the misery and sadness he tried to hide, just like everything else. She knew without asking that he was only sticking with Noah until he could work out how to get out of his grasp.

The gossip had run strife through the village, with the two lovers avoiding the outside world, hiding in their respective flats. And despite the strong bond between them, they sat depressed and refusing to be the one to sort out their lives. So as they relaxed and watched them gangster film Ste had forced Brendan to loan out, they had to thank both Amy and Cheryl for the situation they now found themselves in.

They put their plan into action after bumping into each other in the village, and realised that the loss and depression that had beset the two boys was not going to sort itself out without a little help. Cheryl decided to tackle Ste, and it didn't take her long to make him realise that he was acting like a sulking Lucas, and had laughed when she saw the likeness between father and son. Amy, on the other hand, forced Brendan to face up to his emotions, and to the love he felt for his Stephan, over a cup of tea.

So that night, Brendan had gone round to the council estate, and confessed to Ste what he had felt for a long time. That he loved him.

And they talked, about the past, the present, about feelings, about lies and secrets, the things that not only had they hid at the back of their minds, in the bottom of their souls. And then they went to bed, made sweet love to each other...

That had been just over a month ago, and having settled into their own flat, their own space, they know that very little will tear them apart. For their biggest enemies had been themselves whilst their relationship was behind closed doors. But now, nothing could stop the two men from being together, as the devil was no longer on their doorstep, or within either of them. Interferences could only happen if they allowed them, something neither were prepared to tolerate. And those that doubted they could survive the poison and toxic relationship they had started with, well they were prepared to say to hell with them. Because no one had felt a love like theirs, and probably no one would.