Sean
SEAN
Gentle violin music streamed from the speaker on the counter. looked up from the tablet, listening to the notes as they floated out. A small smile crossed his face as he looked over the kitchen in front of him and the living room behind him, unable to help feeling sentimental. His eyes flicked to the ceiling briefly at the sound of a thump overhead, but he ignored it. If it was a problem, he would know soon enough.
Evidence of two lives lived as one was scattered about. The cookware was Eric’s because Blaine couldn’t be trusted to cook properly without a grill. The hamper full of clothes by the front door, a pant leg that was far too long to be Eric’s sticking out of it. He couldn’t see them, but he knew if he got up, he’d see the pictures hanging on the walls, some from when they were younger and some from recent years. Eric’s dining room set, Blaine’s couch. The decorations were a mix of Blaine’s desire for comfort and simplicity and Eric’s desire for order and some degree of aesthetic.
Ah, his little brother was getting married.
The smile on his face slid away at the sound of another thump, followed by a third. When the next thump came, it was followed by a muffled but vehement curse. wondered if he needed to investigate when he heard angry footsteps descending the stairs from where Blaine and Eric’s bedroom sat.
Eric rounded the corner. “I can’t find the charger.”
looked his brother over. Eric’s normally tamed dark hair was in complete disarray, though had grown used to the sight after watching Eric run his hands through it repeatedly for weeks. Unsurprisingly, his dark brown eyes were narrowed in annoyance, and was pretty sure he saw a not-so-small dose of panic in them.
“Which charger?” asked him.
“Blaine texted,” Eric grunted, stomping to the fridge and yanking it open. “Once he got a connection to the Wi-Fi anyway. Said they had a speaker system that would work great for music because people wanna dance, I guess. But I can’t find the tablet charger.”
looked to his left, where it sat on the floor beside him. “That one?”
Eric peeked over the fridge door, frowning. “Why the hell do you have it?”
looked at the tablet in front of him. “It was dying earlier, and I didn’t have my charger.”
Eric’s scowl deepened. “You could have told me you were going to use it. I just tore our room apart looking for it, and I’m going to have to clean it up. You know how Blaine gets if things get messy, Christ I don’t want to listen to that.”
“I’m sure Blaine will be more focused on the fact that he’s getting ready to marry the love of his life than if you messed up the room a little,” told him.
Sure enough, just mentioning the romantic idea eased some of the creases in Eric’s forehead. thought it amusing that the wedding, which had Eric more stressed than usual, was the same thing that could take the edge off, if presented in the right way. Then again, Eric had always been a bundle of contradictions and paradoxes.
Well, except to those who knew him.
“He also said the place is absolutely gorgeous, even better than the pictures. Have to see it to believe it was how he put it,” Eric said, closing the fridge door.
watched him slap a bottle of water in front of him as he drank his own. “Thank you. And I’m glad. I know you were both hoping it would be beautiful.”
“And fucking expensive. Jesus, from the sounds of it, the owner has places all over the country. You’d think he could go easy on asking you to hand over an arm and firstborn to rent it for a few days,” Eric grumbled as he flopped into the seat across from .
“Well,” said as he opened his bottle of water. “I imagine there is some cost to owning that sort of place. Plus utility bills.”
Eric huffed. “You’re being way too reasonable right now.”
laughed softly. “It’s a sign of how good an influence Blaine has been on you that you said, ‘too reasonable’ rather than other colorful phrases you’ve used before.”
Eric narrowed his eyes. “Is this what getting a degree does? It makes you talk like a fucking smarty pants?”
leaned back in his seat, opening a new tab on his browser. “No, that’s what being a psychiatrist for the past decade has done. Well, and I’ve been told I can be quite pretentious.”
“Who the fuck said that?” Eric asked.
chuckled. “As if I’m stupid enough to tell you who.”
“Why not?”
“Because if you happened to meet them, you’d tell them off.”
“You’re not fucking pretentious.”
flipped to the to-do list for the day and scanned its contents. “While your defense of my character is appreciated, it’s unnecessary, Eric. I think I can hold my own pretty well.”
“You’re too damn nice to do anything,” Eric muttered.
“I think some would say that if I got through raising you, I can handle just about anything,” said lightly.
“I’ll give those people a piece of my mind as well.”
“Yeah? I believe Blaine was one of those people.”
“You believe, or you know?”
chuckled, knowing he wasn’t doing himself or Eric any favors by teasing him. Although Eric could be aggressive and curt, he had a good heart. He was devoted to those he cared about, and that devotion tended to come out as almost rabid when he thought something threatened them. Of course, he could be just as defensive about his own heart as well, which was something Blaine had learned a few years before.
It was funny but heartwarming for to see how much things had changed. After eight years of being apart, pushed apart really, while young and making impulsive choices that broke both their hearts, they had met again. Eric, being Eric, had been resistant to anything he felt, anything that could mean he still cared about Blaine. In the end, though, Blaine had been persistent, and Eric, well, knew how much his brother had always cared about Blaine. That had won out in the end, even among all the bitterness and pain that had led him to fight.
And now the man melted whenever Blaine was mentioned.
“He was,” said, answering honestly.
Eric huffed. “Man’s an ass sometimes, I swear.”
“Is he?” asked.
“I know I say I wonder how the hell he and Blake came out of the same womb, but then he says shit like that, and I know,” Eric groused.
“Blake will be thrilled to learn that you think he and Blaine share something besides a womb and looks.”
“They do not share looks. Fuck that.”
“Really? They’re identical twins. They don’t look alike?”
“No! For one, Blaine is good-looking, and two, there is no way in any world that I’m going to say they look the same because then I’d basically be telling Blake he’s hot. And that’s not fucking happening.”
Ah, there was the true source of the problem. Even when they were younger, teenagers nearing adulthood, Eric and Blake had a strange relationship. Admittedly, of the two twins, could see how Blake was more trying on the nerves. Eric wasn’t the most patient, and Blake’s admittedly lighthearted jabs and banter drove Eric to the end of his wits some days.
Yet, wasn’t blind. He knew Eric cared about Blake, and the reverse was true. It was his fiancé’s brother and the only family Blaine had left to back him up. And for Blake’s part, he knew, just as did, that Eric made Blaine happy, the sort of over-the-moon happy that Blake play-gagged at and found sweet. They were both bound by a man who loved them very much, and they loved him. And if they happened to get on one another’s nerves, well, that was life.
“Then I’ll be sure only to tell him you said Blaine can be an ass like him and leave the looks out of it,” amended.
Eric crushed his bottle of water. “You’re being an ass. What are you doing?”
looked down. “Going over the last of the to-do list for the day.”
“What do we have left to do?” Eric asked, getting up to throw the bottle away.
“The follow-up is all done, so all that’s left are the little things. Make sure we’re packed, eat something other than beef jerky, as we’ve done for six hours, and maybe allow you to have another breakdown or three,” added with a wry smile.
Eric stared daggers at him. “You’ve been hanging around Blake too much.”
sighed. “I can’t help it if you two made us your best men and then asked us to help ensure everything was in order.”
“Did you call the florist?” Eric asked suddenly.
nodded. “They are confirmed to show up with everything we need at eight am on Saturday.”
“Did you make sure they know what they’re bringing?”
“Double checked the list with the lovely woman on the phone.”
“Caterer?”
“Philip is fully aware of when he needs to show up. And yes, he has made sure there are no nuts in anything whatsoever. Blaine’s Marine buddy does not have to worry about a thing.”
“Officiant?”
“Will be showing up at five pm, dressed and prepared.”
watched the wheels in his brother’s head spin rapidly. In typical Eric fashion, he combed over every last inch of the plan, trying to find the slightest flaw. No one had the heart to tell him that every plan was bound to have a failure somewhere. In the end, it wouldn’t matter, Eric would fret and worry, but the only way to keep him calm was to show him everything was being taken care of. And barring any severe disasters, the little flaws that inevitably popped up would be forgotten by Eric.
“I should probably go over my vows again,” Eric muttered.
had anticipated that too. Eric had revisited his vows nearly a dozen times in the past week. Of course, he wouldn’t let anyone near the speech he was creating, insisting, sometimes quite loudly, that it was his vow to make, and he would write it.
smiled gently. “If I’ve told you once, I’ve told you a dozen times, don’t worry too much about it. The vows are for you and Blaine, not everyone else. We all know you’ll say what matters the most to you and what means the most to you both.”
“It just, it has to fit right,” Eric added, looking up nervously.
“You two fit,” told him. “So, of course, it’ll fit.”
Eric slumped in the seat, huffing. “You should be the one getting married. You’d be better at this than me.”
laughed. “I don’t think you can be good or bad at getting married. You just do it. Everyone goes through it differently, and the only way this could go wrong is if one of you decided you didn’t want to. And let me tell you, having seen my fair share of couples in relationships as a professional, I can say with complete confidence that neither of you will do that.”
Eric began fiddling with the tablecloth. “I always thought it’d be you getting married, not me.”
cocked his head. “Why?”
Eric shrugged, not looking him in the eye. “Because you’re...you, and I’m me. If anyone deserves to have someone to get married to, it’s you. You’d make a woman real happy.”
smiled, once more finding himself tempted to mention that a man was also a possibility. Yet, as before, he kept quiet. There was no point in mentioning it, he’d never seriously dated a man. Slept with, sure, had a few dates in the past, yes, but nothing serious. There just hadn’t been a man who had clicked with as he had with women. There was no point in bringing the discussion up with Eric when it was of little consequence, especially right before Eric was going to get married.
“If it happens, it’ll happen,” said, believing it.
Not that it was always easy to believe, and some nights became lonely to the point of a physical ache. But he and loneliness had grown used to one another over the years. There was a special sort of loneliness to being nineteen years old, losing your parents, and then becoming the parent of your heartbroken ten-year-old brother. ’s grief had taken a backseat to trying to help raise Eric out of the dark stupor he had fallen into after their parent’s death. Afterward, it had been up to him, taking on work where he could, to support a child who was dependent upon him for so much.
As he grew older and the time between relationships grew longer, he became accustomed to loneliness. He considered it almost like a friend, one he understood and who understood him. But that was the sort of talk that concerned other people and would have alarmed Eric, which didn’t want. was happy with his life, work, and new additions to their family.
Eric cleared his throat. “Blaine said his Marine buddies are going to show up Friday afternoon for the rehearsal dinner. I don’t know how I feel about a bunch of Marines staying overnight, getting into the beer, but?—”
snorted. “Well, here’s hoping you get your deposit back.”
“That’s not fucking funny. Chief and Sam will be showing up on Saturday,” Eric said, then wrinkled his nose. “I still find it weird that Chief is showing up.”
had been surprised when he’d found out Eric and Blaine’s boss, the Police Chief of their precinct, had been interested in attending. It had been a bit of an issue when the man found out Eric and Blaine were a couple. had expected trouble, but apparently, all it amounted to was a chew-out on both of their parts, and then, because that was protocol, they were separated and given new partners. Eric had thrown an absolute fit, while Blaine had said it was for the best that only Chief had found out and had quietly reassigned them.
“Maybe Blaine’s right and the man likes you more than you think,” offered.
Eric snorted. “The man tolerates me but looooves Blaine. Ugh.”
“It’ll be good to see Sam again. I always liked him when he was your partner,” mentioned.
Eric’s expression lightened. “Yeah, he’s bringing his wife. Told me he would have beat my ass if I tried to get married and didn’t invite him.”
“Again, I always liked him,” repeated.
“Yeah, yeah, yeah, aren’t you hilarious?” Eric huffed.
pressed the lock button on the tablet, pushing it aside. “So, are we going to sit around and pretend like you’re not ready to burst?”
Eric glared. “I’m not stressing out...at the moment.”
That little admission made smile. It used to be that Eric would never admit when he was stressed or upset, leaving people to figure it out on their own or not at all.
“No,” corrected, grinning. “I mean because, in three days, you’re going to get married.”
Nervousness, then warmth. “I am.”
“To Blaine.”
Just warmth this time. “Yeah.”
“The love of your life.”
“The idiot who kept trying even after I kept telling him to fuck off, you mean.”
laughed. “Yeah, well, I’ve seen it enough to know that love makes people stupid sometimes.”
“You talking about him right now or me?” Eric asked with an arched brow.
hesitated. “You know, I thought I knew the answer to that, but now I’m not so sure, both?”
Eric snorted, reaching across the table to knock the closed bottle of water into ’s lap. “Ass, you’re supposed to be defending me.”
grinned. “As your big brother, I am, but I’m also supposed to keep you in check. Well, I guess now I get to hand that job over to someone else.”
Eric’s throat worked and he looked away sharply. “Quit it. I’m not crying over this shit, not today.”
“You’re gonna cry like a baby at the wedding, though,” promised. “Blaine will get up in front of everyone, read his vows, and you’ll cry your eyes out.”
Eric sighed. “Which is exactly why I’m reading mine first. I’m not doing that ugly choking thing some people do at their weddings.”
laughed. “You always have your priorities in line.”
Eric eyed him knowingly. “We know you’re going to be a sobbing mess.”
snorted. “God, I’ll be surprised if I make it to the vows before I start.”
“I think it’ll happen when you see me getting ready...and then again when I’m all dolled up,” Eric said.
“That’s being generous.”
“I am the very epitome of generosity.”
stood up, chuckling. “C’mon.”
Eric blinked at him. “What?”
“You and I are going to go get some street vendor food. Have a couple of beers and walk along the boardwalk like we did when you were little,” told him.
Eric glanced at the tablet nervously and then up to the second floor. “Uh, well?—”
held out his hand, smiling gently. “We can pack when we get back, get to bed early, and head out in the morning. Trust them to make sure everything gets started for when we get there to help do the rest.”
Eric huffed, taking ’s hand and letting himself be pulled up. “You know damn well I’m going to trust Blaine.”
wrapped an arm around his neck, hugging him. “I think you undersell Blake a little.”
“The fuck I do,” Eric sneered, then hesitated. “Fine. He does alright.”
pulled him toward the door. “Let’s go get some high calorie food and overpriced tourist beer.”