Hello again! I just want to thank everyone who left me reviews on the last chapter, it really means the world to me. Seriously, I'm like a damn kid on Christmas when I get an email telling me to check my FF app, so thank you from the bottom of my heart.
I gotta warn you, this is a bit of a "nothing" chapter but I really enjoyed writing it and I'm happy with where it leaves me/what it helped to set in motion. Hopefully it's alright, but I don't see why it wouldn't be. Either way, thank you for making it this far, I know this chapter is a little short but I fully intend to start on the next chapter as soon as I can, so keep your fingers crossed for another installment before Christmas. With all that said, enjoy!
Skylar and Matt had been concerned when they'd arrived. Even through their worry for River, they'd both taken the time to thank Greyson for sending his car, they even complimented his apartment before going off to hug their friend, something that he figured he'd find sweet and amusing later on.
River had stayed stood beside the breakfast bar, possibly fighting off tears. That's what Grey had figured anyway.
Only, when Skylar has rushed forward and yanked the other young woman into a hug, the dam was broken once more. The tears started out small, easily wiped away as she sniffled and tried to babble nonsense about her being okay, but in the safety of the blond's curtains of hair, River allowed herself to cry once more.
On his way over, Matt fondly clapped Grey's shoulder, giving him some kind of a kind, knowing smile and a squeeze.
He knew what it meant. They both loved River in some way and seeing her like this, seeing her hurting and crying, it was a fucking lot and it sucked hard.
After their tiny moment of understanding, Matt was gone, wrapping both women in his massive arms. Safety in an emotional storm that he still knew nothing about.
"Dude," The huge man had eventually looked up at him expectantly, eyes eerily similar to River's for a moment. "Come on." He'd said, nodding pointedly into the hug.
An intense feeling of longing washed over Grey in that moment, nothing sexual or even remotely romantic in nature, just a wanting. He didn't waste time though as he headed over and threw himself onto the pile of hugging limbs. He made sure to mostly press himself against River's back, allowing an arm to go around Matt and another to go tentatively around Skylar.
In all honesty, it wasn't as awkward as he would have expected a group hug between the four of them to be. Even now, as he knew what they each had been to River before him.
He felt spectacularly not threatened by them or their presence in her life. Surprisingly, it looked like all he'd needed was to know, to truly know where they all stood.
It was next to no time at all before they were all sitting on one of the huge couches together. River had managed to sit Grey up against an arm, insistently placing herself about as firmly into his side as possible without risking them merging into a single being. On her right side, Skylar sat cross-legged, facing the young lovers, with Matt lounging directly behind her, both of them watching intently.
"He... confessed?" Matt asked, eyes shooting from his ex girlfriend's to her lover's uncertainly.
Having shifted to face the other two, Grey leaned his side into the back of the couch, holding River softly against his front as she nodded. Her head was heavy against his arm before she readjusted herself, practically in his lap, not that he minded.
"Why now, after so long?" Skylar muttered, but it was more said into the room than directly to River.
Sniffling, the brunette swiped at a stray tear, leaning heavily backward against Grey's chest before talking. "The cops caught him." She stated simply. Grey was intrigued, not knowing the ins and outs of it all. "I haven't seen it yet but apparently they've got some doorbell camera footage of Jerry and Karen on the night the cops brought me in about, getting out of his Merc a couple blocks away from the gym. He helped her into my gear, then some traffic cams have them both walking to the gym together, him stopping in the dead spot that Gilley sells 'roids out of, everything."
With each word out of her mouth, River's voice grew a little weaker.
Skylar reached out and laid a hand on her knee, smiling softly when the other woman withdrew her knee. They both knew why. She wanted to stop crying, something that didn't feel possible with the sweet blond placing comforting hands on her.
"It wasn't even the guys on my case that found it." She chuckled sadly after a quiet moment. "For all the cops and detectives, all the pompous assholes that treated me like dirt, it wasn't even one of them. It was someone looking at drug cases, I think that's what they said. Someone thought it was suspicious and followed them on street cameras..." She stopped raking in an angry breath.
No one said anything. No one interrupted. She wasn't done yet, they all knew it, so they waited.
Clasping one of Grey's arms in her hands, holding onto it for some kind of comfort, she continued. "They could have gotten them both weeks ago with fucking traffic cams." She growled out. The fury was evident, as was the betrayal. "I mean seriously, what kind of cops didn't think to just retrace from the gym? They lost them on a single corner and just gave up. If they'd have just checked the only four fucking streets that it could have been, this all would have been over with-" She stopped suddenly, huffing.
With a groan, she screwed her eyes and threw her head back against Grey. All he could do was hold her.
He, just like everyone in the room, was speechless. He knew that cops missed things from time to time, but this? This, their lack of attention to detail, could have ruined River's life. Matt's, too.
"They called them both in earlier today," She continued, voice tired. "Karen tried saying that it wasn't her, then that it wasn't my gear, even that they snuck in to carry out of some roleplay or something. Jerry folded the second they showed him the clips though. He told them everything."
Grey could hear the devastation in her voice as she spoke.
Jerry and Karen, two people who had played a huge part in River's safety and security as a teen and the last couple of years, truly had intentionally fucked her over. For what, money?
"The cops called just before I rang Matt." Grey spoke up, thinking back to walking into his apartment and finding River on the phone. Nothing had seemed so terrible at a glance. She'd been trying so hard to hold it together. River nodded at that, confirmation for him and the other two.
As Grey watched Matt and Skylar, he saw a range of differing emotions pass over them both.
Skylar. Sweet, beautiful Skylar. She looked heartbroken as her eyes remained glued on River. Grey wasn't too sure what the gym meant to her, whether it had been as huge a part of her life to her as it was to River or even to Matt, but he could tell that her world was crashing down around her.
Whatever hope she'd been holding onto, whatever prayers she'd whispered into the night for Jerry and Karen to have not been behind the arrest of her two friends, were clearly squashed. The people that she so clearly had believe to be good were now shown to be anything but, having committed a laundry list of crimes from stealing from their own customers to lying to the cops, had done the worst thing imaginable by trying to pin all of this onto someone that she so deeply cared about. Just like him and Matt, Grey could see that Skylar held some kind of love for River, love that was now tearing her in half as she so desperately wanted to find a way to comfort River, the one person who didn't seem to know how the hell to let someone truly comfort her.
It was difficult, every second of it.
Then there was Matt. Tall, handsome, funny Matt.
Where Skylar had been upset and emotional, he was flitting between livid and dead inside. It was a terrifying combination.
Watching him, Grey saw it all. He saw each peak and fall of the other man's emotions wash over his face. River had gotten him his job at the gym as far as Grey knew, or maybe it had been the other way around, but the two of them working together had been intentional. They'd clearly been through so much together, so many highs and lows as kids and as teens, having come out of even a relationship with the unwavering ability to love one another in whatever form they could. If not romantic love, then familial, friendly, anything at all.
More than that, more than what they'd tried to do to River, there was also what they'd done to him. They'd been planning for him to take the fall with her, to have been pinned as her accomplice in all of this.
Whatever it was that Jerry and Karen had been to him, whether it was familial or even just that they'd been decent bosses, it was clear to any who watched him that Matt was questioning every single second that he'd shared with them. Every interaction was being pulled apart at the seams in his head. For every kind or loving thing they'd ever done for him, he now held hatred in his heart for what they'd done to both him and to River.
For what must have been hours, they sat and talked. The four of them, slowly sinking into the plush couches, covered in blankets. They were safe together, grieving what once had been as they marched toward an uncertain future.
Though Grey hadn't personally met either Jerry or Karen, he decided silently that he hated them both. He and his family could ruin the couple for what they had done, but was that something he needed River's permission to do? After all, this wasn't his revenge to take. He just couldn't help but want to protect from... well, everything. Any possible threat, no matter the size.
Eventually, it was Skylar who spoke. "Why would they do this?" She asked no one in particular, her gentle voice sounding so small and broken.
River scoffed against Grey, shaking her head. "I don't fucking know." She admitted, defeated. The pain in her voice was clear. Undeniable. It sent a jolt of hurt through Grey's entire damn body. "God, I-" She cut herself off with a sharp huff. Greyson practically felt her clenching and unclenching her jaw.
No one else spoke. The remaining three of them simply gave her time. Time to say whatever it was that was eating at her.
Eventually, so continued.
"I want to sue them into the ground for this."
There was a moment of silence afterward, one in which Greyson found himself glancing up and meeting Matt's eyes uncertainly. As much as he also wanted them to pay for what they'd done, this... this wasn't River. She'd said so many times now that she just wanted for things to blow over, that she wanted to let things go. He understood, of course, that part of this was purely an emotional response to having had her worst fears of the situation confirmed, by a cop no less.
The other man had a fire in him, one that Grey knew was mirroring River's. They were so damn alike, something that he saw more and more each time he saw them together. The product of them having shared their formative years, no doubt.
"I want to ruin them for destroying our family. For ruining the gym. For pinning this on us. Fuck them for inviting us to Christmas last year, too."
Grey had known that River had been close with Jerry and Karen, but he hadn't known they'd been that close. The kind of close where holidays were shared.
"Fuck Karen for that bland-ass turkey, too!" Skylar piped up, caught in the moment as she sat up in search of a high five from River. As quickly, as she'd done it, she cringed and shook her head, making to retract her hand. "Or... you know, now's not the time."
Sitting quickly, River leaned forward and slapped her friend's still outstretched hand. It was oddly serious for such a friendly gesture. "No, Sky, you're right." She stated, letting her hand linger on the other woman's for a second. "Fuck Karen and fuck her stupid turkey. That thing never met a single fucking seasoning."
Okay, so Grey was admittedly feeling a little confused, but this turn of events seemed good, right?
If nothing else, he figured this was a healthy way for her to be getting the anger and such out.
"She didn't even salt it." Matt muttered, disgusted. "Fuck Jerry for not helping her out once in the kitchen, too."
Over the course of what must have been another hour or so, River, Matt and Skylar each cussed out Jerry and Karen to the fullest. They brought up anything and everything from an hour of overtime that they didn't get paid for all the way to River's beloved bike being little more than a pile of dirt now.
Though Grey didn't join in, he actually found it oddly cathartic just listening and making noises of agreement with each new thing.
River's tears had long since dried by the time she and the others were done. She'd relaxed a little somewhere along the way, lounging back against Grey with her legs stretched out, feet in Skylar's lap. The blonde was all too happy with that outcome, rubbing small, comforting lines into River's calves.
As he sat and thought about it, he realized that the drunken evening with the three of them really had done wonders for him. Being in the company of Matt and Skylar was infinitely easier this time, though he thought at least a little of that was down to the love of some sort that they all shared for River. Still, being them around the two of them was easier this time, too. He wasn't worried about what they thought of him, what the two of them thought he and River were, none of it. None of it mattered, not when she was comfortable enough with them both to be herself and to relax with him.
She was all that mattered.
Granted, when the mood was better, he was sure that part of him would feel some kind of anxious around them both again, especially around Matt given the whole kiss thing, but right now? Well, right now, River was his only focus. Nothing else in the world mattered as much as taking care of her, so that's what he planned to do.
Eventually, once the angers and frustrations of the former gym employees had long since been voiced, Grey suggested food.
Once everyone had agreed, none of them having realized how hungry they were until he'd brought it up, he stood and headed to the kitchen to find takeout menus. Tonight sure as hell wasn't one for cooking.
In the kitchen, Matt followed him to grab drinks.
"How're you holding up?" Grey asked as they both stood beside the island. He pulled open a seemingly hidden compartment, producing a host of expensive drinks, none of which he'd ever drink alone.
Had it really been so recently that he'd been such a dick to Matt in his office? It had been, what, not even a handful of weeks, yet it already felt like it had been a lifetime ago.
Smiling a small smile, the other man leaned heavily against the kitchen island for a moment. "I'm okay." He stated with a shrug. Grey almost believed it too. Only, standing there, looking at the taller man, he figured out how to tell whether or not he could trust what had been said. It was simple really. Would he have trusted the same thing out of River's mouth? They were so similar, after all.
No, he decided. Had River be looking like that, he wouldn't have taken an I'm fine.
So, he returned the smile, though his was a little larger. He hoped it was inviting and kind. "Matt," He chuckled softly, resisting the urge to reach out and softly shove the other man. "Dude, come on. How're you holding up?" He asked again.
Looking up into those big, deep brown eyes, he couldn't help but recall their fight. The physical one that had followed the end of his and River's friendship. They'd both been hormonal messes back then, still teenagers. It really had been so stupid, the trading of playground insults that had turned to trading blows. Matt had been big and strong, even back then, but so had Grey.
After a second of silence, Matt chuckled and shook his head softly. "Man, I forget that you're good at that sometimes. That whole tentative, good listener thing." He grumbled, looking Grey up and down just once before scratching his beard, seemingly deciding whether or not to open up.
Just like his old therapist used to do to him on days that he didn't want to open up as a teen, he stayed silent, simply looking at Matt with a soft but warm smile.
It worked like a charm, just like it had on him. The other man was talking in a matter of seconds. "I'm okay, man. I think," He started with a light sigh. He seemed to shock himself when he carried on speaking, but not Grey. "Seeing all this shit coming down on River, it kinda makes me forget I have a stake in all this, too, you know? River's about to get cleared on everything and that's awesome, but I'm still stuck with having thrown a weight at a cop car. Don't get me wrong, I don't regret it, I'd do it a hundred times over after what they did to her, but I know it was stupid... I mean, realistically, where the hell can I work now?"
When he was finally done, having slinked into one of the seats at the kitchen island, Matt dropped his head heavily into his hands, looking up at where Grey was still standing as if he couldn't believe that he'd just said all of that.
Just like with River, Grey's first instinct was to offer him a job. He wanted to solve the problem and make things right. Alas, just like with River, he knew that Matt would feel as though he was a charity case, someone being pitied. The thing was, Matt and Skylar needed jobs just as badly as River did and Grey didn't want to see them punished for having protected her. He also found himself wanting to reach out and lay a hand on Matt's shoulder in some effort to comfort him, but he didn't. Was that too far, or was he overthinking the implications on their almost-friendship of their single drunken kiss?
"You know," He started, pushing all non-related issues from his mind. "I think you're being too hard on yourself. Also, never underestimate the Greys. That lawyer? He got Boof off when he hit a cop car with his Lambo last year, your case is gonna be a cake walk for him."
"He..." Matt trailed off, head tilting like a dog for a second. "Did... Dude, did you just say that Boof hit a cop car?"
Grey couldn't help but snort at that. In all honesty, he forgot from time to time that it wasn't public knowledge. "Totaled it." He confirmed easily. "Both the cops were hurt, too. Cost a hell of a lot of cash, but yeah, no one knows about it."
There was a moment of silence, one in which Matt had a look somewhere between amazement and disgust on his face. Then, just as quickly, the large man was laughing.
It was a real, genuine and loud laugh, one that Grey couldn't help but join in on.
He wasn't blind to the fact that Boof getting away with that was disgusting, because it really was but it sure did seem to Matt feel a whole lot better. Grey knew why, of course. He had faith in the lawyer now, faith that he wasn't going to see the inside of a cell and was probably going to be able to avoid a huge fine too.
Together, with drinks and takeout menus, they headed back to the huge living room, stopping beside one another in the doorway.
There, on the couches, River had turned around to lay herself against Skylar's legs. With her head in the other woman's lap, she seemed content with the blonde playing with her hair mindlessly, both of them watching videos on River's cell.
Upon the two guys stepping into the room, the women on the couch looked up. River's eyes went to Matt first, probably because he was slightly in front of Grey, then to him. When she looked at him, their eyes meeting, he saw that same hunger in them that he was slowly but surely getting used to seeing from her.
"What're you two girls giggling at through there?" She asked, just a hint of her usual smirk on her face.
In all honesty, Greyson was glad to see it.
The evening had, so far, been a miserable affair. It was no one's fault, of course, but he was pleased to see that, after a good cry, River was seemingly wanting to get back to being herself. He was sure that she'd have more moments in which she needed support and he planned to be there to hold her through all of them, but he was glad that she was pulling herself out of this one and was enjoying their company.
With takeout leaflets in his hands, Greyson took his place back at the end of the couch, happy to scoop River's feet up into his lap as she continued to lounge back against Skylar.
Behind the blonde, Matt took his place too, popping a bottle of wine open and pouring glasses carefully. "Mr. Grey over here was asking for another smooch." He said without missing a beat. "I had to let him down easy."
Immediately, a light flush took Grey's face. "Asshole." He laughed, glad to see River and Skylar do the same. Over them both, he playfully gave Matt the middle finger.
Silently, knowing it wasn't something to bring up in that moment, he told himself that he'd talk to River about all of that. Kissing Matt. How relaxed he was feeling about him and about Skylar. All of it. Anything that had been on his mind.
"Oh, please!" River scoffed aloud, clearly amused by the distinct attitude change between the two men. "If Grey so much as winked at you, your pants would fall down."
Skylar burst out laughing at that, nodding rapidly. At the mental image, Grey's cheeks burned redder. He was glad for the lower lighting in the room.
"You know what? I'm man enough to admit that's true." At the other end of the couch, Matt snorted out a laugh. "Mm, I'm pretty sure it's your pants that he's in these days though, dickwad."
Sipping the glass of wine that she'd been handed, River locked eyes with Grey before she spoke. "It is, actually." She said, looking deep into his eyes, searching for some sign of discomfort. Sure, she'd asked his permission to be honest with her friends, but she was still looking out for him.
Just as he'd assured her earlier, he didn't mind, not one bit.
"I knew it!" Skylar, oddly, seemed genuinely elated at that news.
Grey couldn't shake the blush from his cheeks, not at River's admission. Only, there, in the safety of his living room, he realized that neither of them were judging. They weren't trying to gossip or put any heavy expectations on either of them.
"Fucking finally." Matt groaned teasingly with an eye roll.
At that, River spun and made to swat his leg, something that amused Grey a little as she missed. "Sky, hit him for me." She mumbled, all four of them laughing when the blond obediently turned and smacked Matt's thigh. Naturally, he feigned hurt, but he was quick to laugh that off too.
Sitting at the opposite end of the couch, having a good view of the three of them, Greyson couldn't help where his mind ended up going.
Look, it wasn't that he was some horny, sex obsessed freak, okay? It was just that, in his newly found lack of unpleasant feelings toward the people that he previously saw as his competition, he couldn't help but find himself curious. He knew that the three of them used to sleep together, River had told him as such. All three of them though? Oddly, he almost couldn't imagine it. He had to wonder, was that some oddly sad testament to how adventurous his taste in porn clearly hadn't been? Hell, probably.
With them each in his sights though, he sure as hell was starting to get a picture, one that made his existing blush deepen drastically.
Quickly, he drank some of his wine, hoping that he could put the flush down to alcohol if anyone brought it up.
Through it all, all of his curiosity and all of his looking, he somehow didn't notice River.
As he watched the three of them, eyes roaming, she watched him right back. She was watching the curiosity on his face, taking it all in. His body language. His facial expressions. His blush. She saw right through him. So much so that, when the other two were distracted, playfully hitting one another in a mock fight, she slid one of her feet along the inside of his thigh, stopping mere inches from his crotch.
Naturally, his eyes were on her in an instant. They flitted briefly to Matt and Skylar, somehow not yet seen by either of them, then back to River. There was a look of knowing on her face. A light smirk, a raised brow, those hungry eyes again...
Fuck, he'd been caught!
Quickly, he downed the rest of his glass, cheeks on fire as she withdrew her foot, chuckling. She also, coincidentally, knocked a small pillow into his lap, something he was thankful for as she placed both of her feet atop it. He hadn't even realized that he'd been getting a little carried away until then, thankful that she'd noticed and had been quick to hide him.
Damn, maybe he was the horny freak that he'd so recently assured himself that he wasn't?
With the mood in the room very much changed from where it had been when Matt and Skylar had arrived, they all chose a takeout together and ordered some food, putting the TV on in the background. It was sweet, Grey decided, that each of the other three separately tried to offer him money to pay for their own food, but he declined each time. Neither Heather nor Boof had ever offered to pay for anything, not even when he'd been paying for huge, expensive things. Hell, he'd bought Heather a freaking car when she'd passed her test, but then she'd complained about paying for her own food a week later when he'd genuinely had his freaking wallet stolen in the streets.
River, Matt and Skylar were undoubtedly better company than any of the people he'd previously thought to be friends. Of course, he wasn't sure that he could call Matt or Skylar his friends yet, but he figured they'd be there soon enough. At the very least, he considered them friendly acquaintances.
When they were waiting for the food to get there, an idea came to him.
Huh. It was, as far as he could tell, actually a pretty good one too.
It wasn't really all that often that he figured he had good ideas, but a single glance around the room had him certain that this was one of those rare times. He was sure about the people in his company, so he spoke it into existence.
"When was the last time you guys went on vacation?" He asked them, feeling the win loosening his lips a little.
Conversation had been lulling, quieted by the enormous screen before he'd spoken.
Immediately, there were three pairs of eyes on him. He didn't feel anxious under their curious gazes, least of all when River looked at him. "Last time I went somewhere with your folks." She answered simply, the first of the three of them to answer.
"I went hiking with my sister last year." Skylar answered with a smile, clearly curious as she eyed him and then River.
Last but no least, Matt. He let his head loll back for a second, thinking, before he sat back upright and spoke. "I think, like, when I was... fifteen?" He shrugged, taking a drink. "Mm, fourteen." He then corrected.
Fourteen. "That's, what, like... seven years ago?" Grey asked, glancing between Matt and River. It was almost like he was asking her as much as asking Matt.
"Careful, Mr. Moneybags, your wealth is showing." Matt muttered, tone teasing.
Okay, Grey knew that vacations were a luxury. It was just that, well, his folks having taken River most places with them had honestly made him forget that plenty of kids just didn't get to go anywhere, let alone once they became adults and had bills of their own to pay.
With all of that in mind, he spoke. "We should do something. The four of us." Okay, so the delivery had been a little awkward, especially as he realized that maybe they wouldn't have wanted to vacation together, but he remained hopeful. "I mean, River and I are going to my cousin's wedding abroad soon, why not make a thing of it?"
At that, he was met with silence.
Immediately, he understood why.
"Look, you guys should just let me play the rich asshole card, okay?" He put on as charming a smile as he could, thinking to himself what a great time they could all have together. Not, you know, in any kind of sexual way. Well, not that he'd specifically complain... fuck, what was wrong with him? He cleared his throat. "We could stock my boat up, take it anywhere-"
"You've got... a boat?" Matt interrupted, clearly asking the question that had been barely a second from falling out of both Skylar's and River's mouths as well.
Still smiling, Grey shrugged. "Technically it's a yacht." He stated, watching their eyes go wide. "Everything's on me. Food, travel, bathing suits, whatever. You guys deserve a freaking break, let my wallet do some good."
They all took convincing. Skylar was first to crumble, admitting that she didn't want to argue with anyone, but assuring him that she was more than happy to pay as much as she could afford. With a laugh, he thanked her and assured her that he didn't want a dime. Matt was next to fall, admitting after a long moment that he hated taking handouts but that he'd never been on a boat before.
Naturally, River was last. She voiced that she was starting work for his folks soon, but he shot that down with ease. They both knew that the dates of her employment were flexible, as was her schedule. Hell, his folks had also said that neither of them was looking to make any kind of progress so close to the wedding.
Eventually, deepening that previously forgotten blush on Grey's cheeks, it was Matt that convinced her. "Your, uh, yacht," He'd started, getting Grey's attention. "It got a deck?" He asked.
At that, Grey shrugged. He didn't want to seem too nonchalant, like some rich asshole flaunting his wealth, but, well, it had far more than a deck. "Sure," He nodded. "A deck. A hot tub. A gym. A sauna. It's a real asshole-mobile." He admitted somewhat sheepishly.
Shocking him, River rolled her eyes and flipped Matt off.
Had he missed something?
Matt's booming laugh confirmed it. He had. He must have done. Skylar was smirking into her glass, confusing him further.
"I'm in." River grumbled lowly. Was that an embarrassed smile on her face? Holy shit, was she blushing? Grey almost couldn't believe his eyes. She could clearly feel his gaze, uncertain as it traced her. With an embarrassed whine, she threw herself back against the blond and closed her eyes. "I'll tell you later." She grumbled, earning loud barks of laughter from both Skylar and Matt.
Needless to say, Grey's interest was piqued.
So, naturally, that was when a knock came at the door. The freaking food guy, it seemed, had perfect damned timing.
River was up like a shot before any of them could offer to get it, all too eager to be out of the room. Grey couldn't help but glance curiously between Matt and Skylar as they laughed together. What the hell could they have known that would make River act like that?
Noticing him after a second, Matt glanced once at the door, then back to Grey, stifling a laugh. "She, uh," He started, getting a sharp slap on the thigh from Skylar to silence him. Luckily for Greyson, it didn't work. "Riv's got a bit of a thing for decks. Balconies. Hulls. Beaches. Risky sex."
Oh. Oh.
Suddenly, Greyson found himself thankful for the pillow that was still in his lap.
Hi! Hopefully that was all okay. I know it was a bit of a short one, I found myself weight up the options of posting it like this or potentially having more of the evening and some of another day in here but this clearly won out. In all honesty, I was eager to post today and this is what I managed to finish writing/editing this evening, so here we are.
As always, I'd absolutely love any feedback, no matter the nature. Further than that, I hope you have an awesome day and that I (fingers crossed) have you back for the next chapter!