Here's Chapter 4! Thanks for all the wonderful feedback. You are the reason I continue writing. :)
It was an early morning for Ryan and Mike. They had been assigned to work together on a new case, which pleased them. It was also the day they came out to their co-workers.
Both of them arrived at the bureau at 8:00 am. They decided to carpool since Mike had spent the night at Ryan's apartment. Mike opened the car door to get out, but Ryan grabbed his arm, pulling him back in.
"Are you sure you want to do this?" Ryan asked.
"I'm positive. Unless you don't want to."
"I definitely want to. I just wanted to make sure you're ready. I don't want to make you feel uncomfortable."
"I'm not uncomfortable at all. I'm really looking forward to this."
"Me, too."
Ryan leaned in and gently pressed his lips against Mike's. They both wanted more, but they had to get to work.
"Please tell me there will be more of that later," Mike said.
"You bet. You can spend the night at my place again if you want."
"I could go for that."
"It will give us something to look forward to after a long day working on a case."
"Are you ready to head in?"
"Yep."
Ryan and Mike got out of the car and went inside. They walked in as they usually did, Ryan a few steps ahead of Mike.
They worked on the case non-stop until 12:30 pm. When the majority of their co-workers were taking their lunch break, Ryan and Mike decided to make their announcement.
"May I have everyone's attention for a few moments?" Mike asked.
Everyone in the employee lounge turned their attention to Mike.
"Ryan and I have an announcement to make."
Mike too a deep breath. He slowly reached for Ryan's hand. Their fingers interlocked.
"Ryan and I are together. We've liked each other for quite a while, but we couldn't risk Joe Carroll knowing about us."
Everyone in the room was silent. A few people exchanged glances, and some just stared at Ryan and Mike with wide eyes.
"I know this is definitely a shock to all of you, but we thank you for taking the time to listen to us," Ryan said. If you need to talk to us, please don't hesitate. From here on out, we are going to be open about our feelings."
"Thanks again," Mike said.
Ryan and Mike sat back down. The employees remained silent for a few more moments, then resumed to their normal conversations. Throughout the rest of the lunch break, the employees would glance over at Ryan and Mike holding hands under the table. They quickly looked away when Ryan and Mike turned their heads toward them.
"It could have been worse," Ryan said. "I'd rather them be silent then say hateful things."
"True that."
"I'm glad you did most of the talking. You're better at that stuff than I am."
"You did fine. And I'm sure as people get used to us being together, they'll talk to us more."
"Did you see the look on Deidre Mitchell's face?"
"I did. She's just shocked. I don't think she would have seen this coming in a million years."
Ryan and Mike laughed.
A few minutes passed, and their lunch break was over. As they were heading out, Deidre approached them.
"I'm sorry if you found the look I gave you to be offensive. I just didn't know how to react."
"It's no problem," Ryan reassured her.
"We understand that it's a shock to everyone," Mike added.
"I'm happy that the two of you are being open about this. Not everyone has that courage."
"We just couldn't hide it anymore. Mike and I developed feelings for each other as we worked so closely on the Joe Carroll case, and we figured that it was time we did something about it."
"I wish you all the best. And you can always talk to me about anything."
"Thank you, Deidre," Mike said. "We're here for you if you ever need anything."
"I appreciate it."
Ryan sighed.
"Now it's back to the case."
Ryan and Mike went back to working on their current case. They put in two hours overtime interviewing witnesses. They finished at 6:00 pm.
"I'm beat," Ryan said, taking off his jacket.
"You can say that again."
"I'm ready to go home and relax with my boyfriend."
Ryan slipped his hand into Mike's as they walked out of the bureau.
"I could go for that."
Ryan drove home as quickly as he could. He took his shirt off and flopped onto the couch a few seconds after walking into his apartment.
"I'll pick up my shirt later. Come relax with me."
Mike sat down next to Ryan. He pulled down the blanket that was on the back of the couch.
Ryan put his feet up and motioned for Mike to get closer. Mike laid his head in Ryan's lap, and covered himself with the blanket.
"Are you comfortable?" Ryan asked.
"Yeah. Are you?"
"You bet. I couldn't be more comfortable with you in my arms."
Ryan rested one of his hands on Mike's shoulder.
"I'm happy today went well," Mike said. "Now we can live our lives the way we want."
"No more hiding our feelings."
Ryan turned on the television. He flipped through the channels until an old Western film came on. It didn't matter what they were watching. All that mattered to both Ryan and Mike was that they were together. Safe and sound, in each other's arms.
I have something exciting planned for the next chapter. My aunt and cousin are visiting this week, but I will try to update soon.