Alan got home and leant his Scythe against the wall in the hallway. He shrugged off his suit jacket and hung it over the end of the banister and went into the kitchen. Eric wouldn't be home for a few hours so Alan had time to make plans.
Alan opened the freezer door and checked the ice tray. There was plenty of ice. He pulled out a glass from the cupboard and put three ice cubes in the bottom, before topping the glass off with orange juice. Alan drank his juice quickly and washed the glass before heading upstairs into the bedroom.
Alan looked around and sighed. The bed was unmade and there were clothes everywhere. Alan started making the bed then decided the sheets needed washing. He went and got fresh bedding and put the dirty bedding in the washer. Alan made the bed and smiled.
"Much better." He said, smiling to himself. He went about picking clothes up and placed them in the wash room. Once the bedding was done he would swap that to the dryer and start on the clothes.
Alan looked around the bedroom and nodded. Now that the room was tidy he decided a shower was in order. He undressed and put on a robe and added his suit to the washing pile. Alan liked weekends because he could get house work done and spend time with Eric.
Alan turned on the water nice and hot and hung up the robe. He stepped under the jet of the shower and let the heat take the stress from his shoulders. He felt the knots release in his neck and back and he rolled his shoulders to remove the last of the tension. Once his body was clean, Alan quickly washed his hair and turned off the water. He shivered at the sudden cold and went to get his robe.
Alan stepped from the bathroom and into the bedroom. It was much warmer in there. Alan listened carefully and nodded to himself. He went to the kitchen and through into the wash room. He changed the bedding over and put in the load of clothes, then went back to the bedroom. Once he was dry, Alan dressed quickly. A pair of dark jeans and a shirt was Alan's usual everyday clothes.
Alan looked at the clock and saw that there was still three hours until Eric came home so Alan decided to start baking something special from him. Although Eric was the better cook, Alan was the better baker. He scanned the cupboards and decided Eric's favourite cookies were the best plan for this news.
Alan got the ingredients out and started baking. He mixed the ingredients and then spooned individual cookie sized dollops onto trays. He placed them in the oven and waited for them to cook. While waiting, he washed up. He took the cookies out of the oven and let them cool slightly before transferring them onto a plate. He washed the tray and put it away. Alan then went to change the washing over again.
Alan folded the bedding and put it in the cupboard at the top of the stairs. Once that was done, he went and sat in the living room and sighed. There was still just less than two hours until Eric came home and now he was bored. Alan had an idea. He grabbed his coat and put on shoes. He wrote a quick note explaining where he was and left it next to the cookies on the kitchen table.
Alan locked the front door behind him and headed next door to Ronald's house. He knocked on the door and waited. Ronald opened the door and smiled at Alan. Ronald let Alan in and shut the door behind him. Ronald's blonde hair was its normal neatly messed style, and his jacket, tie and waistcoat were discarded.
"Bored waiting for Eric to get home?" Asked Ronald, following Alan into the kitchen and putting the kettle on. To say Ronald was a young, single male, he kept his house tidy and was a very good host.
"Yes. I'm not used to us coming home at different times. We're partners so we're usually working together but Will gave Eric some extra paperwork to do. I've already done the washing and tidied. I even baked Eric's favourite cookies because I was so bored." Alan looked at the table as Ronald placed a cup of tea in front of him.
"I understand, Alan. Grell moans about the same problem waiting for The Undertaker. But she should be used to it because The Undertaker works late most nights." Ronald smiled across at his friend.
"You are the only person I know who calls Grell by his preferred pronouns, Ron. Even Will calls him 'he'." Alan laughed softly. He took a drink of his tea.
"Grell was my mentor. It took me months to work out she was a guy, so 'she' stuck. It took me getting shouted at by William to find out. Before that I just assumed that Grell was a woman and that there were few women in the Dispatch because few qualified. I didn't know at that point that Grell was a guy and there were no women in Dispatch.
"Anyway, you are the only one apart from Grell that calls William 'Will', and only you get away with it." Ronald looked across at the older brunette and smiled.
"Grell is a strange one. I was in the academy with Will and we were roommates while there. Will's reaction to getting placed with Grell for final assessment was a picture. He was horrified. His reaction to Eric taking me on final assessment was indescribable.
"At the time, Eric was a stand-in tutor and I was left unpaired. The council tossed idea's back and forth before Eric said he would take me and assess me at the same time. The rest is history. Three days in, we were on first name terms and after I graduated we became good friends. We couldn't be friends while I was still a student and him a tutor.
"I then got a job in the London office, where Eric officially worked, and our friendship grew. We started living together after a decade and then a decade after that we started dating. Two hundred years down the line here we are. Eric is worried because his 'forever' is actually ending. He feels like he lied when he said forever because we can't be together forever." Alan took his final mouthful of tea and watched Ronald.
"I knew Eric was older than you, but not that much. I always thought it was a year or so. What do you mean, 'you can't be together forever'?" Ronald picked up my mug and his and placed them in the sink.
"There's about a century between us. I'm just a baby in Eric's eyes, but he doesn't care. Age doesn't matter to Shinigami, we live so long. Forever is ending for us because I'm dying. I probably have less than a week left." Alan looked at his hands, not wanting to meet Ronald's eye. He's come to quite like Ronald over the past couple of years.
"Dying? But, h-how?" There was fear in Ronald's voice. Ronald thought of Alan as a friend more that a superior.
"Thorns of Death. It's painful and makes me weak. Sometimes the pain in my chest gets so bad I pass out. Eric looks after me, even though I ask him not to. I feel like he's not at his full potential because he worries about me so much. My comfort is that once I'm dead, he can go on to be the great Shinigami I know he is." Alan's voice wavered slightly. Ronald knew he didn't want to die; he wanted to stay with Eric.
"Eric worries about you because he loves you. You're not holding him back, he's happy with you." Ronald watched the smaller brunette. Alan was shaking slightly, but it was nothing serious. Alan took a deep breath and the shakes stopped. They were interrupted by a knock on the door. Ronald got up to get it.
When Ronald came back into the kitchen, Eric was with him. Alan smiled from the table.
"At some point, William needs to understand that there is such a thing as too much paperwork. You made cookies?" Eric walked across to Alan and swept him up in a huge hug.
"I was bored waiting for you so I cleaned, tidied and baked. Then I came here to talk to Ronald for a bit." Alan leant his head again Eric's chest and felt his partner's warmth.
"Do you mind if I steal Alan from you?"Asked Eric, turning to Ronald. Ronald shook his head.
"Not at all. Have a good night. I have a feeling Grell will be by later complaining about William so I have that fun. If he doesn't come by here complaining, I feel sorry for Undertaker." Ronald shook his head slightly and followed Eric and Alan down the hall to the door. He waved at them as they went to their house and then he closed the door.
Once through the door, Eric pulled Alan in for a deep kiss. Alan relaxed into the arms of his lover and sighed when they broke apart.
"I missed you. I don't care if I'm with you all the time. I still miss you when you're not around." Alan said, speaking into Eric's chest. Alan felt Eric stroke through his hair and then kiss the top of his head.
"Let me go shower and get changed and then we can have dinner." Eric said, smiling down at the smaller man. Eric felt Alan nod against his chest and then his arms relax around his waist. Eric went upstairs to shower and Alan went into the kitchen to start dinner for Eric.
When Eric came back into the kitchen the smell of cooking food filled the room. He wound his arms around Alan's waist and kissed his neck gently.
"What's for dinner, my love?" Asked Eric. He rested his head on Alan's shoulder.
"My special pasta bake." Replied Alan, turning slightly to kiss Eric softly. Alan poured the pasta and the sauce into a dish and placed it in the oven. "I have a surprise for later as well. It's not the cookies." Alan winked at Eric then turned to wash the pans he'd been using. Eric just stood watching him, slightly worried as to what he had planned.
Alan was not usually the forward one in the relationship, but he had been coming out of his shell sexually in the past century. Even more so after the Thorns attacked. Eric was intrigued.
Once Alan finished washing up and had put away the pots, he turned to take the bake out of the oven. He dished it up for Eric and himself and they sat at the table. Eric kept watching Alan, looking for a hint of what was to come. He got none. After dinner, Alan washed and Eric dried the pots and they put them away. Eric turned to Alan after he folded the tea towel and raised one eyebrow.
"What?" Asked Alan. He looked at Eric and slid his arms around the larger man's torso.
"You said you had a surprise. Do I get my surprise yet?" Eric smiled and bent to kiss his small partner. As his tongue slid past Alan's, he heard the smaller man let out a quiet moan. Alan's arms went from around Eric's waist to his neck. He pulled the tall blonde closer to him, not wanting the kiss to ever end. Eric's hands pressed Alan against his body, and he couldn't help but moan at the warmth of his lover.
"Bedroom." Panted Alan when they broke apart. Eric nodded and took off up the stairs. Alan looked to the freezer and smiled.
"Alan! Hurry up!" Eric shouted down the stairs. His body was humming with anticipation. What he wanted most at this point was to be tangled in the bedding with Alan. As soon as Eric had that thought, Alan walked through the door with a glass in his hand.
"Ice? Are you going to spank me hard again?" Eric smirked at Alan, his eyes glittering.
"No. If I was going to do that, I would have my Scythe with me, as well as the ice." Alan set the ice on the bedside table. Eric nodded. It might not have been formally against the rules, but using Scythes as spanking paddles probably wasn't smiled on; even so, Alan's worked so well.
"I was talking to Grell earlier. He gave me some ideas." Smiled Alan. Eric shuddered slightly. The last thing he expected was Alan to be taking sexual advice from Grell. His advice was scary sometimes. Alan crawled on the bed over Eric and kissed him gently.
"I love you Eric." Whispered Alan. He kissed Eric's lips once, very softly.
"I love you too Alan." Eric whispered back. He felt Alan relax on top of him and start unbuttoning his shirt. Alan kissed softly down Eric's chest and rested his head over Eric's heart, just to hear it beat.
"I don't want to go. I want to stay with you." Alan's voice was small and vulnerable.
"You're not going anywhere just yet. Now, you're going to kiss me again and then you're going to give me that surprise." Eric pulled Alan up to his face and kissed him slowly. Alan shifted so he was straddling Eric and deepened the kiss. Eric's hands went from Alan's waist to his hips and rested, just keeping Alan in place where he was.
Alan moved on top of Eric to get further into the kiss and moaned slightly at the friction between them. Eric broke the kiss and smirked; he raised his hips to meet Alan's, causing Alan to moan again, this time louder. Alan pressed his hips to Eric's and rotated slowly, earning a slow groan from the taller man beneath him.
Alan went back to work unbuttoning Eric's shirt and soon it was being pushed from his shoulders. He sat up slightly to take it off completely then lay back again. His hands went to the buttons on Alan's shirt and started slowly undoing them. The shirt soon joined his on the floor and Eric ran his fingers over the black scarring on Alan's arms.
The outward effects of Thorns of Death were the black markings that covered the body. They usually started at the ankles and wrists and moved their way to the heart. Solid black thorn vines wound their way around Alan's arms to his shoulders. They had proceeded to his back and chest since Eric had last traced them. Eric knew that the vines wound around Alan's legs to his hips as well. Alan shuddered when Eric's hands changed course and wandered gently down his back.
Alan bit back a moan as his lover's hands rested back on his hips. Alan ran his hand down Eric's chest, feeling all the muscles there, and rested it on his belt. He slowly undid the belt and fly of the jeans. Eric wriggled out of the restrictive denim and they got tossed on the floor.
Alan reached for the glass next to the bed and smiled weakly at Eric.
"I apologise now for this, I just thought to try it." With that, Alan gave Eric a quick kiss before running an ice cube down Eric's chest. Eric shivered but Alan could feel the effect it was having. To Eric, the ice burned against his already hot skin, and the effect was amazing. Eric arched his back off to bed and moaned. He pressed heavily into Alan's thigh.
Alan popped an ice cube in his mouth and waited for it to melt before moving Eric's boxers from his hard erection and engulfing it in his mouth. Eric moaned as Alan's now cold tongue met his hot dick. Something in his head told him that the feeling should be wrong, but his body begged to differ. He shivered as Alan licked up the underside of his length then plunged his mouth back over the head.
Alan sat up, lips leaving Eric's dick, and quickly pulled off his jeans. Eric swore as Alan wriggled on top of his uncovered dick, the cotton of Alan's boxers brushing and rubbing over sensitive skin. Eric groaned at the lack of contact when Alan rolled off him to remove the last piece of clothing. Eric's eyes scanned his lover's body and noticed the vines were curled up the curve of Alan's ass and were heading up his back to his shoulder blades.
"You've turned into such a tease lately." Said Eric. He moaned as Alan placed himself back on top of Eric.
"And you have got more and more impatient. But at least your stamina is a lot better than when we first started doing this." Alan rocked his hips slowly and then reached for another ice cube. He placed it in his mouth and let the drips drop onto Eric's hot skin.
"I have to have high stamina with you. You'd keep going all night if I let you. It's like an auto-" Eric was cut off mid sentence by the cold drips on his skin. He groaned and writhed beneath Alan, who just smirked and leant down to Eric's body.
Alan dragged his cold tongue slowly up Eric's chest from his heart to the hollow at the base of his throat. Eric shivered as Alan teased one nipple with his teeth before licking it slowly with his still cool tongue.
Alan raised his head and looked at Eric. Their eyes met and hot sparks seemed to fill the room. Alan eased himself up and slowly pushed down onto Eric. His jaw fell slack from the feeling of impaling himself on his friend and lover.
Eric gasped as Alan's hips met his. Alan started moving slowly on Eric and Eric could tell the effort was a struggle. Eric rested his hands on Alan's hips and guided him, almost picking him up to help. Alan threw his head back as his pace picked up and he pounded harder onto Eric.
Eric angled his hips slightly so he was constantly pressing Alan's prostate. The volume of Alan's moans was getting louder and louder, Eric was almost positive Ronald could hear them. He could see the muscles in Alan's stomach clenching and knew he was very close. Alan arched back and came across Eric's chest and stomach. He tightened around Eric and Eric came hard inside Alan, moaning as he did so. Alan rolled off Eric and smiled at him softly.
"I'll always love you, forever." Whispered Eric. "Even when I can no longer hold you in my arms, you'll always be in my heart."
Tears rolled down Alan's face. "I don't want to go, but I can't fight it any more. It should have taken me ages ago but I fought it for you. I'm tired of fighting. The vines get further every night, I can't fight while asleep. It takes all my energy to fight the Thorns, I get so weak." Alan's voice was quiet and soft. "I can't fight any longer."
Eric looked at his partner and saw the black marks spiral up his neck and stomach. Eric felt tears stinging his eyes as they knotted over his heart. Alan's breath came in rasps and sighs. The tears spilled down Eric's cheeks as he felt the life leave Alan. Eric just held his body, silently weeping over the loss of his best friend. His tears fell onto Alan's lips and face and the sight made him sob more. He knew he'd never seen the happiness held in those eyes.
Eric slowly got off the bed and dressed. He closed Alan's eyes and replaced his boxers before placing him in the bed. He went to the phone and rang William before heading to Ronald. He had to tell them.