DISCLAIMER: I own nothing. The boys belong to themselves and the characters they portray to WWE and Vince McMahon. This is a work of fiction and I claim no knowledge of actual events that went on in real life.
Every time they were in Europe, it was like a glimpse of the life they could've had. Ten straight days on the road, a different town every night, a different show… but coming back to the same room. For a little while the reality of the choices they'd made in the past was far away, left back in the States, and it was just them. Time differences were an easy excuse why calls home were only far and few in between. Those trips were stolen moments they had come to cherish.
Hunter was already lying on the king-size bed they shared, his left leg propped up on a pillow with an ice pack resting on his knee. He'd taken a bit of a nasty bump earlier, but nothing to worry about. Or so he claimed at least.
Shawn had just come out of the shower, a towel firmly wrapped around his waist and long locks still wet. He was leaning against the doorframe and simply watched Hunter with a fond smile. The other man had his eyes closed and was blasting some of that heavy metal he loved so much. Metallica? Motörhead? If it wasn't one of Hunter's theme songs, it was one and the same to him. And why Hunter even bothered to put headphones in was beyond him. He kept telling him that one day he'd end up as deaf as Steve, but did he listen? Nope, of course not. Probably couldn't because the music was too loud. Shawn laughed quietly. It was one of the quirks that made Hunter who he was.
Just then Hunter looked up and carefully took the headphones out. "Now if that's not a sight to behold." A smirk immediately found its way onto his lips. "You should dress down more often."
In all the years they did this song and dance, Hunter would never get tired of telling Shawn how stunning he looked. He would often jokingly reply that Hunter only turned on the charm to get into his pants, but it wasn't that. He genuinely meant every word, as corny as that may be. Time may have left its marks and scars, on both of them clearly, but in Hunter's mind Shawn was still the closest thing to divine perfection he'd ever laid eyes on. That usually also got him a slap on the arm or whatever body part Shawn could reach while he mumbled something about blasphemy. Which was kind of ironic considering what they were doing behind closed doors, wasn't it? But that was Shawn, forever walking that fine line between his belief in what the Bible told him was wrong and his belief in them and what they had. Hunter was grateful that at this point in their lives, the latter had finally come to outweigh the former. On most days at least.
A towel flew across the room and hit Hunter right in the face. With regret he realized it was only the one Shawn had used to dry his hair. What a shame.
"Quit starin', you perv!"
"Since when did you start complaining about either?"
Shawn simply shook his head, the smile from before still present. Darn, he loved that man. He utterly and truly did. He couldn't help it; God knows he tried. And wasn't that the truth? When he came back a few years prior, he had started a family and found his faith. He had been convinced that they could just be friends. After all, it wasn't like Hunter wasn't in the same boat by then. They weren't those carefree boys anymore that could mess around without worrying about the consequences. He figured they should've known better, that they'd only been fooling themselves. The pull between them was still there and eventually there was nothing they could do but give in. Feelings didn't go away because you wanted them to or rationalized them. Was it always easy? Heck no. There were regrets and doubts every day, but in the end none of that mattered, they both knew. They made the best of what they had.
Hunter reached out, his voice soft, "Stop standing there and come to bed already."
Shawn walked over and slipped in, covering them with the blanket Hunter had disregarded so far. When strong arms wrapped around him, a sense of home, of being right where he was supposed to be, washed over him once again. Hunter pulled Shawn even closer, feeling the same way.
They stayed like that for a few minutes, a comfortable silence between them. Nights like these were rare and both men knew they would have to last them through periods apart. Those were the cards they'd been dealt and it was okay. They'd made their peace with that a long time ago and didn't let it tarnish the private moments they got to share.
Gently, Hunter touched Shawn's chin and traced the slight stubble with his thumb, before he kissed him. "I love you."
The glint in Shawn's eyes and beam on his lips never failed to melt Hunter's heart. That look on his face alone made it all worth it. And he wanted to continue to be the one to put it there for as often as he was allowed to.
"I know." Shawn grinned back at him, confidently. He returned the kiss and then rested his head on Hunter's chest, his breathing evening out while Hunter played with his hair. He watched Shawn sleep until he couldn't keep his eyes open anymore and drifted off himself.
It may not be all they could've had, but it was enough.
