Chapter 17
Listening To Your Heart Part Two
Stefan sat on the edge of the bed, fidgeting with the hem of his short robe, and watched Francois get dressed. He woke up this morning to a normal day in his mundane life, and now here he was, living in a fairy tale dream. He believed he was never going to see Francois again, and he would live with the heartache for the rest of his life. But this was no dream. Francois was really here. Stefan watched Francois pull on his boots. Silently, he thanked whatever force was in the universe- that controlled the destinies of people’s lives- for bringing his soulmate back to him.
Francois went to the bed and put his arms around Stefan, gently standing him up. He tucked Stefan’s silky, soft hair behind each ear, and held him against his chest.
“I need to make arrangements to bring my things here,” Francois said, kissing the top of Stefan’s head. “Especially my strong box. I have money, Stefan, lots of it. I can take care of you. I won’t be long. I don’t want to spend any more time away from you.” He kissed Stefan on the forehead. “How late is the tavern open?” He kissed Stefan’s cheek.
“I won’t close until you get here,” Stefan assured him, hugging Francois’s waist. “Before you go, I have something to give you,” he smiled, then gave Francois a light kiss on the lips. He turned and walked to his dressing table and took something out of a small wooden box.
Francois loved the way Stefan’s hips swayed when he walked. Just looking at his round, firm ass under the smooth cloth made the heat rise in his groin and his cock twitch. He fought the impulse to swoop Stefan up and take him back to bed. But he had things to do first, and then he would spend the rest of his life with the man he so deeply loved.
“Here,” Stefan said with a coy smile, and placed a key in Francois’s hand, folding Francois’s fingers around it. “You never need to knock. This is your home now, our home.” He kissed Francois then said, “Hurry back, love.”
********
“That was so good, but I can’t eat another bite,” Magnus said, licking his fingers.
Klaus leaned over and licked a bit of chocolate from Magnus’s lip, then kissed him, tasting the chocolate on Magnus’s tongue. “Why don’t we get comfortable? It’s after midnight. Don’t you want to lay down and see what else the night has to offer?”
“Are you propositioning me?” Magnus teased and started
unbuttoning Klaus’s shirt.
“Trying to. Am I succeeding?” Klaus chuckled.
The door suddenly flew open then slammed shut. Francois rushed into the room and started gathering up his things, stuffing his pistols and clothes in his travel bag.
Magnus sat up, a dumbfounded look on his face, “Francois, what’s going on?” He could tell Francois wasn’t drunk. On the contrary, he looked excited, almost glowing.
“I’m staying here in Frankfurt,” Francois announced, slinging
his musket case over his shoulder, unable to look Magnus in the eye. “This is
where I bow out. I’m staying here with my, uh, friend. It’s been fun. You guys
have a safe trip.” Francois headed for the door, then paused, “I have someone
coming to get the rest of my shit. Thanks, guys. Au revoir.”
“What the fuck?” Magnus jumped up. “Just like that you’re leaving?”
“Hey, later man,” Klaus waved, keeping a straight face, even though he was overjoyed. “Have a good life.”
Without another word, Francois was out the door and down the hall. Yes, he was going to have the best life anyone could ask for.
“Klaus, Francois left us,” Magnus almost wailed. “Who is this friend of his, anyway?”
“I don’t know, Magnus. Let him go.” Klaus got up and started to put his arms around Magnus, but Magnus was already going out the door. “Magnus, where are you going?”
“I have to talk to him.” Magnus called back as he ran down the hall and down the stairs.
Francois was already a distance down the street when Magnus finally caught up to him.
“Francois, wait,” Magnus huffed out of breath, as he grabbed Francois’s coat sleeve. “Talk to me. Why are you leaving?”
Francois turned and looked at Magnus, saw the desperation in his eyes, and felt a pang of guilt. He knew he owed Magnus an explanation. It was just so hard to face him after all they had been through. But, he would not be a coward. He quickly looked around the area. “Alright, I’ll tell you.” He took Magnus by the hand and led him across the street to a bench in front of a shop. They sat down, side by side.
“Why are you leaving? You promised me we were going to dance in Paris,” Magnus said with a shaky voice.
“Listen, Magnus, I’m sorry,” Francois said, letting out a long sigh. “I said I was going to take you to Paris, but then what? I can dance if you want to dance. I can laugh with you if you want. I can take you anywhere you want to go. I can take you to bed if you want that. For all those things, I’m perfect. But I can’t do it forever, because I can’t give you, my heart. I gave it to someone else years ago, and I never took it back. Shit, Magnus, I’m not the guy you need. I’ve enjoyed the time we’ve spent together, but now I need to move on.”
“Is the guy you gave your heart to that friend you were talking about?” Magnus swallowed hard.
“Yes, Magnus. His name is Stefan,” Francois smiled when he said Stefan’s name. “He’s waiting for me right now. I have to go.” He stood up, looking down at Magnus who looked so lost at the moment.
“I really like you, Francois. Please don’t forget me,” Magnus looked up at Francois, memorizing his face, his soft brown eyes.
“I could never forget you, Magnus, we’ve shared too much. That’s a promise I can keep.” Francois leaned down and kissed the top of Magnus’s head.
“Magnus, you have someone waiting for you too. Someone who wants to give you, his heart.” Francois waited, but when Magnus didn’t say anymore, he crossed the street and walked away.
Magnus watched Francois until he couldn’t see him anymore. He felt so heavy all of a sudden, and there was an empty feeling in his heart. Tears trickled down his cheeks as he stared into the dark. He just lost a dear friend, and he didn’t think he’d ever see him again.
“Au revoir, François," He whispered.
********
Klaus downed the last drop of rum and threw the bottle at the wall where it crashed into a thousand pieces. He staggered to the bed, sword in hand, and slashed at the pillows and sheets.
“Why does he care about that fucking Francois?” Klaus slashed through the down comforter sending feathers flying. “Fuck you, Francois, I hate your fucking guts.”
With the bed thoroughly destroyed, and Klaus completely hammered, he set his sights on the sofa. “I should’ve killed you when I had the chance, you fucking prick. I should’ve cut your dick off!” he yelled, staggering forward. He stumbled, his ankle twisted, and he fell to the carpet, landing on the side of his sword.
“Damn, fucking hell, shit,” he spat out the words with slurred speech, and fumbled with his sword, trying to pull it out from under his leg. He finally got it free but ripped a huge hole in his pant leg in the process. He had a tiny cut in his leg from the sword tip, but he ignored it. His ankle, however, was throbbing. “Aw… who gives a shit? I don’t. Magnus isn’t coming back,” he said to no one. Curling into a ball, he lay on the floor, whimpering. First one tear, then another rolled down his face and dripped onto the rug. Klaus laughed at himself. He never cried, not even as a kid. What the fuck were these tears for? He was a fucking fool. He didn’t need anybody… right? Then why did his heart feel like it was breaking? Why did he feel like he wanted to die?
“Magnus, please come back,” he sobbed, then he passed out cold.
********
Magnus hugged himself and shivered. The night air had a cold, bitter bite that wanted to seep into his bones. He had run out of the hotel so fast he didn’t think about a coat. Even though he was chilled, his steps were slow and deliberate, like someone walking in a funeral procession.
He walked along thinking over everything Francois had said, and while it hurt to know he would probably never see his friend again, he was going to accept it. He had to. After all, Francois deserved to be happy. It was obvious he loved this man named Stefan. So, yes, he was going to be happy for Francois. Magnus walked a little faster.
But there was something else Francois had said, ‘There’s someone waiting for you, too. Someone who wants to give his heart to you.’ Magnus started walking faster. That’s right, Klaus was waiting for him, and Klaus wasn’t going to leave him. He’s left Klaus waiting too long, in more ways than one. He needed to talk to Klaus. He needed to tell him… With that thought, Magnus took off running.
Magnus came in the door, panting. “Klaus, I’m…” The words stuck in his throat when he saw Klaus laying on the floor, looking lifeless. “Oh, god no… oh, fuck!”
He knelt on the floor next to Klaus and checked to make sure he was breathing. Examining Klaus all over, he found the cut on his leg and a few drops of blood that had already clotted. The cut was not serious, and he breathed a sigh of relief. The pant leg was another story. He couldn’t help but smile, thinking of all the clothes they had managed to ruin so far. One whiff of Klaus, and a glance around the room told him all he needed to know. Klaus was drunk, and for whatever reason, had been pissed off enough to tear up the bed.
Magnus forgot about being cold. He stretched out his legs and carefully lifted Klaus’s head onto his lap. He fixed Klaus’s eyepatch, which had somehow gotten pushed to the side, and just sat there, staring at the wreck of a man that he loved. Klaus had always been there for him, taking care of him, spoiling him. Now it was his turn to take care of Klaus.
“I’m here, Klaus. Your Magnus is here. Please wake up.”
Magnus thought about getting a doctor to check on Klaus. He wasn’t used to seeing him in this condition, and he might be hurt from falling. Yet, he couldn’t leave Klaus while he was still passed out.
“Oh, babe, why do you do shit like this to yourself? It hurts to see you this way,” Magnus sniffled, letting the tears fall.
“You better wake up, you beautiful jerk. You better not die on me and leave me here alone. Not when I have so much I want to say to you.” He brushed strands of hair away from Klaus’s face, and held him by his shoulders, gently rocking back and forth.
“I love you. Do you hear me? I love you, Klaus… I love you.”
Klaus let out a low groan, rolled his head away from Magnus, and proceeded to heave his guts out on the rug.
“You’re awake!” Magnus said excitedly. “Do you have a handkerchief in your coat?” Magnus fished around inside Klaus’s coat and found one, then wiped Klaus’s face off.
It took a minute for Klaus to realize it was Magnus who was cleaning him up. But when he did, he reached up and touched Magnus’s face. “You came back,” he said with a weak smile, letting his hand drop.
“Of course I did. Why wouldn’t I?”
“I didn’t think you’d come back. You like Francois.”
Magnus squeezed his eyes shut and shook his head. So that’s what all this was about. When he opened his eyes, he gave Klaus the softest, sweetest smile.
“How can you be so smart and still so foolish? Yes, I like Francois, but I love you. I’m not going anywhere. You’re stuck with me.”
“Good. I’ll hold you to that and kill any man that tries to take you away.” Klaus put his cheek against Magnus’s stomach. “Just stay here.”
“What did you do to yourself? Why are your pants torn up?”
“I fell on my sword,” he mumbled into Magnus’s stomach.
“Well, I need to get you a doctor. You might have hurt yourself when you fell. If I help you, can you make it to the sofa?” Magnus lifted Klaus to a sitting position.
“I’ll try. My fucking ankle hurts.”
It wasn’t easy getting Klaus up. He was still drunk and couldn’t put any weight on his ankle. But with some effort, Magnus managed to get Klaus to the sofa and help him lay down, then propped Klaus’s foot with a sofa cushion. He wanted very much to kiss Klaus, but between the booze smell and the vomit, he decided to wait for a better time. He tugged on Klaus’s boot to get it off.
“Ow… shit, that hurts,” Klaus protested.
“It’s swollen. I’m going to the desk and have them get a doctor here right away. I’ll be right back,” Magnus turned and went to the door.
“Magnus,” Klaus called to him. “I love you.”
“I love you, too, Klaus.”
********
When Magnus returned, Klaus had either passed out again or fallen asleep. He wasn’t sure which. He looked around the room, shaking his head. There was no Jesse to help him clean up the mess. Klaus’s butler knew what to do when shit like this happened, but Magnus didn’t have a clue. He grabbed some towels and decided to wipe up the vomit first. There wasn’t much he could do about the tear in the rug. He figured it must have happened when Klaus fell with his sword. The rug needed to be replaced and Klaus was going to get the bill. It was the same thing with the bedding. While he was gathering up the shredded sheets the doctor arrived.
The doctor spent about a half an hour wrapping Klaus’s sprained ankle and checking him over. Klaus was going to have to stay off the leg for at least a week to give his ankle a chance to recover. Because Klaus was still out, Magnus took Klaus’s purse out of his coat pocket and paid the doctor, giving him extra for coming at two in the morning.
Since Klaus’s pants were ripped and he smelled like vomit, Magnus decided to change Klaus’s clothes. This, in itself, was a big issue for Magnus, who was just learning how to dress himself. He grew up with servants doing everything for him, and it was Klaus who was teaching him how to do things on his own. Now it was time to see how well he learned.
He spent the better part of the next two hours undressing a passed-out Klaus, washing the vomit off, and putting clothes back on him. Pulling Klaus’s other boot off had been a chore all by itself, but Magnus stuck with it. The whole ordeal had become a labor of love, and he was bound and determined to take care of his man. He found a couple of extra blankets in a dresser drawer and used one to cover Klaus. He took a cushion from a side chair, to use for a pillow, and laid down on the floor next to Klaus. He covered himself with the other blanket and closed his eyes.
Magnus felt like he had just lived a lifetime in the last twenty-four hours. He was exhausted beyond anything he had ever experienced. But he was also content. He and Klaus were a team, a couple, and they loved each other. It couldn’t get any better than that.
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