"That… doesn't sound completely ridiculous," Tom admits. The fact that Cin insists on a chase is a big part of why he enjoys being around him so much. There are other reasons, but that's definitely one of them.
"So I have to go and finish the last semester of my degree, put up with not having you exactly where I want you on a pretty much permanent basis, and the payoff is that at the end of the year, I can come back here. Paint some more walls. Find at least two or three new surfaces to fuck you on." Cin turns and rests his head against Tom's chest. "Missing it's gonna make it all the sweeter."
"I'm gonna miss you." Tom tilts his head to kiss Cin's hair. "The wall is beautiful. You continue to be insanely talented."
"Thank you." Cin looks up, his expression earnest. Tom takes the opportunity to peck him on the lips. Cin doesn't make any attempt to move, so Tom wraps his arms around him and holds him gently, looking over his head at the intricately-detailed scene on the wall, marked in the bottom corner with the chaotic scribble that passes as Cin's signature. It's a great piece of art, sure, but more than that, it's a promise that Cin's coming back.
It's more than Tom would have dared ask for, but it makes the prospect of leaving a lot less miserable.
*~*~*
"So is this okay? We could've gone apartment hunting if there'd been more time, but I think this has everything you need?"
Cin was still staring at the inside of the apartment Tom had brought him to, which Tom was hoping was a good sign. There wasn't a whole lot available near campus three days before the start of the semester, so he'd had to pick from a few that didn't have everything he'd wanted for Cin. This place lacked a twenty-four-seven doorman, but security was otherwise pretty good and it was a safe neighborhood.
"The bathroom is bigger than my entire dorm room," Cin says flatly. "You get in here by key card."
"Well, I can promise you it's secure, because they're using one of my systems," Tom tries. He's really, genuinely not sure whether Cin is happy or not.
"When can we move in?"
That has to be approval, even if it's hard to tell. Tom lets himself relax. "Right now, if you want. It's already leased."
"Is there a bed?"
"I assume that's what 'fully-furnished' means, yeah." Tom nods. Cin's probably exhausted after the drive out here and everything; it makes sense that he'd be ready to sleep. "I can leave you in—"
Cin grabs him by the lapel and drags him toward what he's guessing is a bedroom door, then pauses and changes direction to drag Tom to the couch instead. "This is my place and I can fuck you on the couch if I want," he says by way of explanation.
Tom's not about to argue and goes easily when Cin pushes him back onto the couch. It's not one he would have picked for himself, but it's nice enough and he's comfortable on it. He beams up at Cin as Cin settles on top of him, letting his weight rest on Tom's hips. Experimentation over the summer taught them that this is easily one of Tom's favorite ways to get off, which is nice, because it's going to be a while before they get to do this again.
Before Tom can tell him how glad he is that he likes the apartment, Cin leans in and kisses him, occupying his mouth and most of his brain at the same time. His hips grind up against Cin's eagerly without having to think about it. This is okay. As long as he isn't being touched in a deliberate way, a lot of things are okay.
"Love you," Tom murmurs between kisses. He can't stop saying it now that he knows it's all right. Cin laughs at him, not cruelly, but because he's already heard it a dozen times today.
"You're ridiculous." Cin lets his head fall to Tom's shoulder, rocking eagerly against him. "I think you're just setting me up in this apartment so you'll know where I am. So you can come get me whenever you're in the mood."
"You got me." Tom laughs and tilts his head back to give Cin easier access to his neck. "I have a collection of cute art students stashed all over the country."
Cin growls through his orgasm, which is probably Tom's third-favorite noise to get him to make. Second is moaning his name. First is moaning what is probably supposed to be his name, but comes out a jumble of sounds because Cin can't really remember how to talk.
Tom lets himself come as Cin rolls his hips lazily into him, orgasm washing over him and making him shiver down to his bones while Cin nibbles at the sensitive skin of his neck. No one's ever bothered to find out what actually gets him off before.
It's kind of insane how in love with Cin he is. Questions like, 'how early is too early to ask someone to marry you?' pop into his head every now and again. He's trying to figure out how to tell Poppy he's found The One.
"I'm surprised you
don't
have a lover in every port. Plenty of people would be happy to fuck you," Cin mumbles into his neck.
"I can barely keep up with you. What would I do with more than one boyfriend?"
"Threesome. Duh." Cin smiles at him, one corner of his mouth raised lazily.
"Is that something you'd want?"
"Not especially. There is a certain appeal to getting to watch you make out with someone, but I'd get jealous. I haven't got much of my own and I plan to keep you."
Tom laughs happily. "Funny, I plan to keep you, too."
Cin kisses his lips softly and then squirms around for a moment. Tom's about to tell him that there's no way he can go another round just yet when he pulls out his cell and props it up on Tom's shoulder to use it.
"What're you doing?"
"Texting Rachel the address. She probably won't get here today, but I want her to know that she definitely has somewhere to go."
"She's really looked after you, huh?" Tom's only heard half-stories without context, but he's gotten the impression from them that Rachel had done a lot for Cin. That Rachel means a lot to him.
"She's amazing. I asked her to marry me once."
"Really?" Tom turns his head to get a look at Cin's face. For just a second, he wonders if maybe he's about to lose him to Rachel. Cin pecks him on the lips, apparently understanding the look on his face.
"We were five. I hadn't actually spoken to her before then, but she was so pretty. I'm easily swayed by a pretty face." Cin rubs his nose against Tom's and then climbs gracefully off him. Tom isn't completely sure he'd even be able to get his legs under him without falling over, so he stays where he is, sticky mess in his underwear and all.
"So does that mean we've got the place to ourselves for the day?" Tom asks after him.
"As soon as you've helped me bring all my stuff up from the car, me and my apartment are all yours until you have to leave."
Tom smiles to himself at Cin calling it
his
apartment and gets up slowly and carefully to help.
*~*~*
Tom's late. He promised Cin a week ago that he'd be there for his first doctor's appointment and now he's been in traffic for an hour, and Cin is going to
kill
him and he can't exactly just fill his apartment with stuffed animals or something in apology. The problem with Cin not wanting to be bought is that he also
can't
be.
He bursts through the door of the doctor's surgery just as Cin's coming out, escorted by a kind-looking doctor with her hair in a high bun. She actually reminds Tom more of a librarian than a doctor, but a nice librarian. They're both smiling, so he's willing to guess that nothing's gone horribly wrong.
Cin waves at him, excuses himself, and then rushes over and throws his arms around Tom's neck. Tom's ready to pass out with relief as he hugs Cin back tightly. He’s missed Cin so much since the semester started again and now he’s screwed up getting to see him again.
"You're late," Cin murmurs in his ear. "Luckily, I'm in a good mood." He pulls back and rocks on the balls of his feet. The doctor follows him over.
"You must be Tom." She offers her hand. "I'm Doctor Williams, but I'm trying to get Mr. Allard to call me Kamille."
"Kamille it is." Tom shakes it and smiles warmly at her. "I hope he's nicer to you than he is to me."
"Asshole." Cin swats Tom's arm. Tom raises an eyebrow at Kamille, who laughs.
"See?" Tom pulls Cin under his arm. "So are we good to go, so I can start making it up to you with dinner?"
"We're good to go." Cin snuggles close to him. "Thank you again, Doctor. This means so much to me."
"I'm a sucker for cute boys." Kamille winks at Tom. "Just don't tell my husband."
"Secret's safe with me." Tom has the urge to call Kamille 'ma'am', but resists it. He does think she might appreciate it, though. "So is there absolutely anything else we need right now?"
Kamille gives Cin a look, and he nods back at her. “I’m still okay with discussing this with Tom.”
She looks back to Tom, leaning in a little to speak lower, though there’s no one but the receptionist left in the office. "Just an appointment in a week's time when we've got Cin's blood tests back. Just checking to make sure we won't hurt him when we treat him. Then he can start his hormone therapy and we'll talk about options to do with that next time. Otherwise, you two are free to go to dinner."
"Thank you
so much
, Doctor." Tom offers his hand again. "Means a lot to both of us."
"I know." Kamille nods. "You take care of him, or I can hurt you."
"Everyone always wants to hurt me over this kid." Tom kisses the top of Cin's head. "Thank you."
Tom leads Cin out with his arm around Cin's shoulders. Cin stops him once they're clear of the building and drags him off to the side to kiss him, hot and eager, clawing at his shoulders. Tom's hands go to his hips automatically, holding him close. He tries to suck an apology into his lips, but Cin doesn't actually seem mad.
"You didn't miss anything worth seeing. Doct—Kamille is really nice. She's been through this herself, so I know she understands."
"I figured that was why you picked her. Poppy tells me she's one of the best in her field."
"I get the impression she is, and I imagine you'll be paying for it accordingly." Cin kisses Tom again softly.
"Worth every penny if it makes you this happy. Money is really not an issue here."
Cin smiles at him so his eyes sparkle in the light of the sign for the doctor's office. It's late enough in the year that it's almost dark at seven o'clock. In the shadows between the buildings, Tom can see glimpses of what Cin's going to look like with a sharper face and five o'clock shadow. Maybe even a beard or something. He hasn't asked and he's not sure he wants to spoil the surprise for himself.
Tom leans down to kiss him, taking the initiative for once. "So are you gonna change your name? Because we could do that now."
"No. Hyacinth is a perfectly unisex name and I'm not going to perpetuate the idea that flowers are only for girls. I like flowers."
"Okay, cool." Tom nods. "If you change your mind, Poppy wants to call you Cinnamon."
"
Only
Poppy is allowed to call me that. Also, I'm not certain that's inherently more masculine."
"Well, if you
do
change your mind, I'll volunteer to stand in line and wait with you." Tom takes Cin's hand and links their fingers together.
"You know, when I first met you, I assumed you'd be the kind of man who just threw money at things and hoped they'd go away. And while you do your fair share of money-throwing, I'm always pleasantly surprised when you offer to personally do something for me. Like come here tonight, even if you were late."
"I have several good excuses for that."
"I don't care. I know you wouldn't stand me up on purpose." He tugs on Tom's hand. "Did you drive or take a taxi?"
"My car is still in Oregon. At home." It's not a coincidence that the house he spent a summer with Cin in, even when their relationship was new, feels more like home to him than anywhere has in maybe thirty years.
"Okay, so, in that case, I propose that we go grab takeout and you stay the night here. Since I'm not remotely dressed for dinner, and to be honest, I'd rather get you naked as fast as possible. It's been weeks since I saw you in person."
Tom beams at him. "Lead the way!"
*~*~*
"So." Cin breaks the post-orgasm silence. "Doc says I'm supposed to talk to you about any concerns you might have going forward, and I think she's right about that. In a lot of ways, it's only a small change, but in a lot of other ways, it's kind of a big one. I know you've said you want what's best for me, but I want to hear what you're worried about, too. Because I know you're worried. I'm worried. Any sensible person would be."
Tom laughs nervously. He
is
worried, about a lot of things, but letting himself think about them has always felt like a kind of betrayal of Cin. His worries don't come before Cin's comfort and happiness.
"Well, to start with something kinda trivial, I
am
going to miss you getting so wet that my neck gets soaked when I eat you out." Tom looks to Cin for a reaction. He grins back instantly, and a weight lifts off Tom's chest. This is okay to talk about.
"The trade-off is you get a little more to play with down there. Besides, that's why they make flavored lube," Cin points out.
Tom decides not to mention that flavored lube mostly tastes of plastic and deceit. "I
am
looking forward to getting to explore your new body. Well, sort of new. You know what I mean."
"I know what you mean." Cin nods. "
Really
looking forward to that, too. That might actually be worth revisiting adolescence for all by itself."
Tom raises an eyebrow. "You've got a lot of faith in my sexual abilities there."
"Because I taught you like, ninety percent of what you know."
"That is true." Tom leans over to kiss Cin. It strikes him that this might be the last time he gets to do that before Cin starts growing facial hair, so he does it again for good measure. "Stubble rash."
"Yeah, well, I put up with that from you, so you don't get to complain."
"I'm scared you're gonna get sick or injured or something. I know it's basically as safe as any medical intervention can be, but…"