This chapter continues from where the previous one ended with Chris heading over to Jem's home for their date.

Once Chris had arrived at the flat, Jem buzzed him in and met Chris in the entrance. He handed Jem a bottle of Montepulciano d'Abruzzo, which Lucy had recommended that he buy just before he left.

"Wow" Jem exclaimed as he took it and read the label, "This is my favourite, how did you know?"

"Lucy told me" Chris replied, then inwardly kicked himself for already mentioning the 'L' word within ten seconds of arriving, "I had to take her word for it, I don't even know how to pronounce it, let alone what it's like"

Jem laughed, "Well it's delicious" he told him, then gestured for him to follow, "Come in"

Chris followed Jem into his home. It was only on one floor (not that Chris was surprised considering that Jem was in a wheelchair), but it was modern, clean and rather homely with a small table in the centre of the living room area laid neatly.

Chris smiled, "Wow, what a cool place you've got"

Jem smiled, "Thanks. It doesn't normally look like this though" he replied, "My brother and I aren't exactly the kind of guys who clean up after themselves all the time"

Chris looked surprised, "Your brother lives with you?"

Jem nodded, "Well, if by 'lives with' you mean 'scrounges off', then yes - Zach 'lives with' me"

Chris scoffed, "What a lovely brother you are" he remarked sarcastically, then looked curious, "Is he around? It'd be great to meet him"

Jem pulled a face, "Actually, I may or may not have paid him some money to stay out for the evening"

Chris chuckled, "Why, is scarily overprotective of you?"

Jem shook his head, "Not exactly" he began, "I just didn't want him to freak you out or scare you off"

"He can't be that bad" Chris insisted, "If he's anything like you I'm sure we'll get along just fine"

Jem shifted uncomfortably, "He's not, that's the problem" he replied slowly, "Zach's got Asperger's syndrome, and that can be quite difficult to handle"

Chris nodded in understanding, "Well I appreciate the thought, but your brother shouldn't be the deal-breaker here" he pointed, "I'm dating you, not your brother"

Jem was taken aback and Chris realised what he had said, "Sorry, I didn't mean to assume that we're dating" he apologised hastily, "I meant 'on a date'"

Jem actually liked the idea of exclusively dating Chris so he shook his head and blushed slightly, "No, it's fine" he assured him, then cleared his throat, "Anyway, I think dinner's nearly ready, I'll go and dish it up. Make yourself at home"

Chris nodded and watched Jem hurry into the kitchen. Chris studied the room as he wandered around. He noticed a framed photograph of Jem next to a man who looked a few years younger than him. Chris assumed that the other young man was his brother, Zach, but he didn't notice anything unusual about him that would hint at a disorder. However, Chris knew through previous research that Asperger's syndrome wasn't a physical disorder, it was a mental one and was completely invisible. Scanning the room again, Chris noticed a guitar sitting by the television and smiled as he approached it. Jem emerged from the kitchen, carrying a couple of plates full of food.

He noticed Chris staring at the guitar and smiled, "Do you play?"

Chris glanced up at him in surprise and shrugged, "A bit, yeah. What about you?"

Jem shook his head, "No, that's Zach's talent" he replied, "I'm pretty good at Guitar Hero though, if that counts"

Chris considered this, "Sure, we'll say that counts" he replied flippantly

Jem chuckled before gently commanding, "Well sit down, dinner's ready"

Chris smiled politely and sat down opposite Jem, who had opened the bottle of wine and was filling their glasses. Chris watched him carefully, beginning to get curious about the rest of Jem's family. Jem caught his eye and smiled coyly, which caused Chris to feel butterflies in his stomach: a feeling that he had not experienced in a long time, and one that he had thought he would never experience again.

xxx

"So, have you thought about baby names yet?" Jem asked casually, breaking the silence that had been filled with cutlery tapping against the plates as they hungrily ate Jem's tasty food.

Chris almost choked on his delicious steak, "What?" he coughed

"Names for the baby" Jem repeated

Chris narrowed his eyes at him, "You don't have to do this, you know"

Jem blinked at him, "Do what?"

"Pretending to be interested in the baby" Chris replied, "It's still early days, and I don't want to waste this opportunity to get to know each other by discussing my unborn child"

Jem shrugged, "Is it so wrong to show an interest?" he argued, "I know it's early days, and we don't know where things are gonna lead, but I want to show you that I'm sorry for freaking out about it, and that I like the idea of you helping Lucy have a baby, I know how passionate she was about it"

Chris smiled, "Thanks" he replied sheepishly before taking a sip of his drink.

After a pause, Jem looked at him expectantly, "So come on, any ideas for names yet?"

Chris considered this, "Well we don't know whether it's a boy or girl" he replied before hesitating, "I was actually thinking about it recently because last week was the anniversary of my friend Kate's death"

Jem looked surprised, "Oh, I'm sorry" he apologised softly

Chris shook his head dismissively, "Don't be. I just can't believe it's been a year. You know, in some ways it feels like a lifetime ago because so much has happened since, but I can still remember it as if it was yesterday"

Jem nodded in understanding, "How did it happen?" he asked hesitantly, worried that it might be an upsetting topic for Chris to discuss

"She was shot" Chris replied, then sighed, "It was the most tragic thing ever, she had just got engaged and she was happier than she had ever been before. Then 'bang', she was gone"

There was a long silence before Chris suddenly glanced at Jem, "Sorry, I'm turning this into the most depressing first date ever, aren't I?"

Jem shook his head, "No, you're not" he argued weakly

Chris looked at him disbelievingly and Jem sighed, "Ok, yes you are" he admitted

Chris scoffed, "Anyway, to answer your question, yes – if it's a girl I'd like to name her Katherine or Katie in memory of Kate" he paused, "But no matter what, I'd like it to be a name that means something to me and Lucy, something special"

Jem smiled, "That's really sweet" he commented softly and Chris smiled bashfully at Jem before returning to his food. Jem watched Chris for a few more moments, realising how thoughtful the other man was and inwardly scolding himself for almost letting this guy slip through his fingers just because he couldn't deal with Chris helping his friend to have a baby.

xxx

"Thanks for the lovely meal" Chris began as he stood up to leave

"It was no problem" Jem replied dismissively, "We should do it again sometime"

Chris nodded eagerly, "Definitely. Either way, I'll see you at the class next Wednesday"

Jem nodded, "Good point" he agreed, "I'll see you then"

There was a pause as neither of them knew what they should do next. More than anything, they both felt an urge to kiss the other person but Chris was concerned about the height difference between himself and Jem. However, he realised that kissing him would be like kissing any of his previous boyfriends whilst they were sitting down, so he leant down to place a gentle kiss on Jem's lips. To his surprise, Jem kissed him back eagerly and placed a hand on Chris' cheek to hold him in place as the kiss grew more heated. After a few moments Jem pulled away before breathlessly suggesting, "Do you want to stay the night?"

Chris immediately panicked and stepped away from him, "Uh, actually I've got to work early tomorrow so I should probably head off" he babbled

Jem nodded in understanding, "Ok, well I'll see you soon then" he replied optimistically, not realising Chris' discomfort

Chris nodded in agreement before hurrying out of the flat, mentally kicking himself for his reaction. He hadn't meant to leave in such a hurry, but the reality of having a relationship with someone in a wheelchair had suddenly dawned on him, and Chris wasn't entirely sure whether he was ready for that yet.

Thanks for reading: I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, and the next one will be up in due course! When I first wrote this a few months ago, I didn't know the baby was going to be called 'Anne', so I went along with 'Kate' instead - that's why the reference to Kate was there - and didn't want to delete that whole section. Anyway, as previously mentioned, if anyone wants to put their own ideas in, I'll definitely take them on board (especially now that the story is progressing). In the meantime, reviews are always welcome!