Chapter 3: Actually Love

It was bright. That was all Zeldris could register as he stared at the glass doors, harshly illuminated in what looked like ultraviolet light. The white, marble tiles were shining, as were the polished metal rails which separated arrivals from their friends and loved ones. It looked suspiciously like a hospital, only less clean.

He was just on the point of complaining about the interminable chatter that was filling his ears when Arthur showed up, extremely large cup of coffee in hand. With a grateful look, Zeldris took the proffered beverage, practically slamming the hot liquid down his throat. Scowling, his eyes swept over the throngs of people, some holding up cardboard signs of dubious quality, others grabbing hold of the railings, bobbing up and down like meerkats as the passengers walked past to the sound of suitcase wheels rolling over the tiles.

"What is this stuff," Zeldris complained as he crushed the empty paper cup in his fist. "I do not believe it is coffee…"

"It's airport coffee," Arthur said cheerfully, his violet eyes sparkling with his smile. "And no doubt it has as much caffeine in it as the proper stuff. Which is just as well because you're driving home."

"What?" Zeldris asked sharply. "You said you would…"

"I changed my mind." Arthur's grin broadened as his hands went to his hips. "Come on, you're a much better driver," he coaxed. "I'll only fall asleep at the wheel."

"It's not even that late!" Zeldris protested, glancing up at one of the many digital clocks which adorned the walls. "You cannot be that tired."

Arthur too glanced up at the clock, one eyebrow raised. "But Gelda's plane's not due for another half hour, and then she'll have to wait an age at baggage reclaim. It could be ages before she gets here, and you know I'm rubbish at staying awake."

Zeldris drew himself up at this, squaring his shoulders. "You seem to manage perfectly fine when those friends of yours are around." He watched Arthur's mouth open, then close again, this lover's eyes soft with a silent plea and he suddenly relented. He never could resist Arthur when he looked at him like that. "Fine. I'll drive."

"Yes!" Arthur punched the air dramatically and Zeldris's face worked as he suppressed his smile.

"But make no mistake - you owe me."

"Glad to pay off the debt. I won't even make you play Mario Kart this time, unless you want to of course." At this Arthur winked causing heat to flood to Zeldris's cheeks. "You look too cute when you blush," he added, his infectious chuckle echoing through the cavernous hall. Several people turned to look at Arthur, smiling as they did so.

Zeldris pouted, his dark eyes hard with annoyance. "I do not ever look cute… "

"Whatever," Arthur said casually, his lips curved in a smile as Zeldris's frown deepened. "You look even more adorable now…"

"Shut up!" Zeldris was on the point on continuing when he saw a shadow cross Arthur's face, the corners of his mouth dragging down. "What is it?" he asked, turning to follow Arthur's gaze up to the arrivals board. He let forth a groan of his own as saw the word 'delayed' flashing almost gleefully next to Gelda's flight number.

"Well that's just terrific!" Zeldris felt his hands curl into fists at his sides, his teeth clenching together almost painfully. It was already ten in the evening and all he wanted to do was go to bed.

He relaxed slightly as a warm hand squeezed his shoulder, allowing himself to lean imperceptibly into Arthur's touch. "Come on, it's not all bad." The words were murmured practically into his ear, comforting and soft. "You know, we could always use the time to join the mile high club."

"You have to be on a plane for that, you idiot," Zeldris snapped, his good humour gone. Spinning round he took in Arthur's innane grin and realised at once he'd been had. "Very funny," he grumbled, allowing his features to return to their usual glower.

"I know what will cheer you up. Wait here," Arthur commanded and before Zeldris could protest he was gone, weaving expertly through the crowds. People seemed to leap out of his way, as they always did, his ready smile and boyish good looks persuasive enough for most of the populous.

With a sigh, Zeldris turned back to examine the new arrivals, trying to check off how long it took between planes landing and their passengers turning up at the gates. From the looks of things, the wait at baggage reclaim was around forty-five minutes and Gelda's flight still had no concrete landing time. "Typical," he muttered to himself, his pulse ticking under his skin.

"Now come on, take this and stop scowling. You look like you're sucking a lemon or something." Zeldris was surprised to see Arthur holding a white coffee cup, a green Starbucks logo emblazoned on the side. "I got this from the other end of the terminal," Arthur explained as, with a nod of thanks, Zeldris took the cup, relishing the first sip. It was a lot better than the last one, and he allowed the familiar aroma to sooth his nerves.

Side by side, the pair watched as another stream of arrivals made their way through the doors. Without knowing why, Zeldris's eyes were drawn to a young man, maybe in his early thirties, dressed in a suit and dragging an enormous suitcase behind him. He looked like he'd been away for weeks, his sluggish gait showing him to be rather fatigued and he felt a stab of pity for the weary traveller. It was late in the day to be struggling back home.

Suddenly, he heard a high-pitched squeal, the sound reverberating unpleasantly on his ear drums and he whipped round, determined to locate the source of the irritating noise. He did not have to look far. A small boy, no more than three years old, was running full pelt across the terminal, ducking under the rails as he charged. With a clatter, the man Zeldris had been watching dropped his suitcase, kneeling down and stretching out his arms wide. The boy hurtled into him, nearly knocking him back to the floor, but the man steadied himself against the impact, picking up the boy and holding him tight against his chest.

"Now that's sweet," Arthur declared as the boy flung his arms round his father's neck. "I love airports."

"You would say that." Zeldris tried to inject a note of disdain into his tone but it did not work. He suddenly felt all gooey inside, the sensation only intensifying as a woman wheeled a pushchair over to the still hugging father and child, joining the ongoing embrace. After several moments the pair broke apart, the woman collecting both the man's suitcase and the pushchair so the father could carry their son, who was chattering enthusiastically. Zeldris was not surprised when he felt Arthur leave his side, rushing towards the family with a trolley to help them with their bags.

A few moments later Arthur returned, his eyes sparking like stars and his face slightly flushed. "Ok, I decided!" he blurted out as he practically shook with excitement.

"Decided what?" Zeldris asked in confusion. "If you want me to engage with this conversation you will have to be more specific…"

"It's been a year," Arthur said, his voice slightly hurt. "I thought you'd remember."

Zeldris felt himself start to grow impatient. "A year since what?" he snapped. "As I said…"

"Since, you know, the scare ." Arthur's voice dropped low, the final word coming as a hushed whisper and all at once Zeldris understood. It had indeed been twelve months, almost exactly to the day since they had sat with Gelda in their shared bathroom, glancing nervously at a small stick placed horizontally on the edge of the sink. They had waited for what felt like hours, eyes fixed on the thing which would show in just a few minutes whether or not they were to be parents. It had been negative of course, and Zeldris remembered keenly the disappointment he had unexpectedly felt as the other two celebrated.

Arthur took his hands, their fingers immediately interlacing together. "I said I needed to think," he murmured, "I didn't know if I wanted to be… a father. Well, I know now. I'm ready."

"You are?" Zeldris felt excitement surge in his breast, his face pulling into a grin. "That's… wonderful!" He looked up at the arrivals board, hoping to see that Gelda's flight had landed, bursting to share the news. But the interminable delay sign was still blinking.

Stepping closer, Arthur wrapped an arm round his waist, his fingers digging slightly into his side. "Just think, in a year or two we could be here, waiting for Gelda with a baby." Zeldris leaned against Arthur's shoulder, allowing his eyes to close with the welcome image. He was snapped from his reverie as Arthur said, "do you think it will have my eyes?"

"Who said you would be the father?" Zeldris pulled away slightly to look at Arthur properly. "It makes much for sense for me to… you know," he protested.

"I don't see that," Arthur replied, his head tilted to one side. "Why…"

"It's obvious," Zeldris retorted, "on almost any measure you could care to come up with, I would be the better candidate."

Arthur smiled and Zeldris was amused to see him stand to attention. "But you forget, I'm taller," Arthur said, his grin broadening. "We don't want our child to be tiny."

"Tiny?!" Zeldris practically yelled, "how dare you…"

"None of this matters right now anyway I guess," Arthur said placatingly, looking up at the arrivals board. "Gelda ought to decide, right?" After a few moments, Zeldris nodded, allowing the tension to leave his limbs. Arthur was right, nothing could be determined without her.

"When is this bloody plane going to land?" Zeldris looked at Arthur in some surprise; it was rare for him to show temper.

"I thought you liked airports." Arthur looked at him ruefully and Zeldris smiled. "Come on, no point waiting here until we know more about this flight. Let's go sit down." With a twist of the mouth, Arthur followed him towards the hard, grey metal chairs set a little back from the crowd, removing his phone from his pocket as he did so.

"You go get seats. I'm going for a walk." Zeldris glanced at Arthur's phone screen, rolling his eyes as the familiar Niantic logo appeared. Why Arthur liked this game he had no clue. "There's a gym!" Arthur exclaimed as the Pokémon Go app opened up, the phone vibrating as a number of the creatures he did not understand popped up out of nowhere. "And I've got to catch this Lapras! I've never even seen one in the wild before."

"This is why you want a child, you're practically one yourself," Zeldris called after Arthur's retreating back, chuckling to himself as a finger was raised in his direction. Slumping onto a seat, he pulled out his kindle, hoping to goodness that Winston Churchill's biography would keep him awake.

Strolling through the glass doors, Gelda looked around, her eyes feeling puffy and slightly sore as she scanned the few men and women scattered around the metal railings. There was hardly anyone in the arrivals hall and she sighed, trying to quell her disappointment. It was one in the morning, and no doubt Zeldris and Arthur had headed home, and let down as she felt she should not blame them. It made no sense for them to get zero sleep that night as well as her.

High heels clattering on the tiles, Gelda made her way towards the exit, wondering with some annoyance if there would be any taxis available at this hour. It was then her eyes caught a flash of ginger and black and she instinctively turned her head to get a better look. Her face pulled into a smile as she saw Arthur and Zeldris slumped against each other, their hair blending together as their chests rose and fell in their sleep. Arthur's mouth was open as he snored slightly and Gelda giggled as she moved closer towards them.

Without moving a muscle, Zeldris opened his eyes, meeting her gaze as she approached. Gelda smiled warmly; she should have known he would wake up, he always did sleep like a cat. Instantly on the alert Zeldris shook Arthur gently, the latter groaning slightly as he righted himself and rubbed his eyes.

"Thanks for waiting, you didn't have to," Gelda murmured as Zeldris shot to his feet, pulling her into a soft kiss and then taking her bags from her before she could protest.

"Of course we did. Come on, let's go home," he replied as Arthur reluctantly pulled himself up, Gelda supporting him as he staggered slightly. "Arthur has something to tell you tomorrow…" he added mischievously.

"Zel… lemme sleep, kay?" Arthur murmured and Gelda laughed as the three made their way out of the airport.