*Content Warning: some parts of this episode is nonconsensual but nothing too 'extreme'. Please read at your own discretion. 

Even for Ian, the tension in the bedroom was crushing. He peered down at Eton’s petrified face, feeling flashes of guilt ring through him. He didn’t want things to come to this, but if Eton wasn’t going to try, Ian had to push things along himself. He was tired of feeling so disconnected from his own husband, and intimacy was one of the main things that connected them. He had to try this. 

He already knew that Eton wasn’t going to willingly agree to sleep with him. He had to do some convincing, which he didn’t mind. It had been years since he properly touched his husband, and he was ready to remind both of them of how much fun they used to have together.

“Don’t! Please,” Eton whimpered, trying to writhe away as Ian crawled over him. His eyes trailed over Ian’s body as he got close before shutting tightly.

Ian ran his fingers through Eton’s hair, adopting a light grip.

“Look at me,” he ordered. He wanted Eton to see him, feel him. That was the only way that this would work. He just had to let go, to give himself over to Ian like he used to. Every single time, Ian took care of him, showing him true passion and pleasure.

Eton reluctantly opened his eyes, staring up at Ian with a tight jaw and nervous expression. He shook under Ian, trying to lean away as much as possible. He was trying to be firm and strong, but he wasn’t as tough as he tried to look. Ian could see right through him.

Ian pulled Eton’s head to the side, leaning down to press open-mouthed kisses along the side of Eton’s neck. He felt Eton try to move away, but he tightened his grip on Eton’s hair, keeping him in place. Ignoring Eton’s pleas for him to stop, he traveled down near his collarbones, hitting all of the sensitive spots.

Eton clenched his teeth, shuddering with each touch that Ian left on him. When Ian’s lips graced one of his nipples, a gasp broke from him.

Ian’s eyebrows lifted slightly. That sounded more like a pleased sound than anything else. He moved his tongue in a circle, brushing his thumb over the other nipple and feeling how hard it already was. Eton’s words denied his pleasure, but his body was certainly speaking another language.

“Stop,” Eton demanded, but his voice was weak and breathy. His back even arched slightly as Ian brushed his fingertips along his side teasingly.

Ian lifted his head to peer down at Eton, noticing how flushed his face was. He was fighting the pleasure. It did feel good.

“Why are you fighting this, Eton?” he asked before leaning down near Eton’s ear. “You know exactly how good I can make you feel.”

Eton’s breath hitched in his throat.

Ian grinned to himself as he lowered himself again, kissing down the middle of Eton’s chest. He could see the goosebumps along Eton’s arms as he kissed him and touched him all over. He also didn’t miss how hard Eton was growing by the minute.

“This… isn’t right. I can’t…” Eton murmured beneath his breath. His words eventually morphed into sounds, bordering on frustrated and pleased.

Ian knew that Eton had to get rid of this weird religious morality block for this to actually work. The mind and body worked together. If one was resisting, the entire system would shut down. Ian had to make Eton realize how right this was.

They had spent night after night enthralled in ecstasy, in the warmth and sensitivity of each other’s bodies. Of course, they bonded outside of the bedroom, but this was where their souls felt aligned. Pleasure was the ultimate connection. He was trying to make that connection, but Eton kept shying away.

“If it’s not right, why is your body reacting like this? Wouldn’t God keep you from getting hard over a man touching you?” Ian smirked as he peered up at Eton. He didn’t understand overly religious people. With how terrible the world was, he understood why people saw it as godless.

“Do not speak of him,” Eton hissed, but his voice faltered when Ian’s lips brushed under his ribcage. He tilted his head back slightly, exposing the smooth slope of his throat.

Ian lightly pressed his teeth into Eton’s side, making a heavy breath break from him. Eton’s reactions gave his thoughts away. He was basically fighting with himself, and each one of Ian’s touches broke down his control more and more.

“Why? Are you afraid that it’s true?” Ian replied, continuing to move down Eton’s body. His lips brushed along Eton’s stomach, his fingertips digging into Eton’s hips. He missed touching Eton like this so much. It drove him crazy not being able to.

The lower Ian got, the more Eton started to shake. His breaths started to become shallower and quicker. Eton's eyes then suddenly shot wide open, and he yanked against the handcuffs. He continued pulling, not even caring as the metal dug into his skin.

“Stop! Stop! Stop!” he cried out in a panicked voice. If he pulled any harder, the handcuffs would cut into him.

Ian pulled away with a frustrated sigh, kneeling next to Eton’s trembling body on the bed. He felt like he had been so close to nudging Eton in the right direction, but Eton kept pulling back. It just didn’t make any sense!

Ian breathed in and out through his nose, trying to calm himself down from his sadness and frustration. It hurt him that Eton was laying there, naked and hard, but he still didn’t want Ian to touch him. Did Eton lose his love and attraction to him during the coma?

He didn’t want to just give up after putting in all this effort to get Eton here. He had to try something, even if that meant not sleeping with Eton. Slowly, Ian peeled off the rest of his clothes, feeling Eton’s wide eyes on him. He tossed his clothes into a pile somewhere in the room before laying next to Eton.

He wanted them to be together while naked in another sense other than just laying there, but this would do for now. He just had to take things slower. Every time he tried to push things, Eton freaked out. He didn’t want to scare Eton, who had already been through so much. He was just trying to help.

Eton tried to scoot away from Ian as they both laid on their backs next to each other, but Ian kept closing the distance. He even tried to move his arm closer to himself, but Ian refused to let there be any distance between their bare bodies. Eventually, Eton sighed in defeat and laid there as stiff as possible.

“Relax. I’m not going to try to sleep with you,” Ian said as he gazed up at the ceiling. His hand gently brushed Eton’s, and he felt a faint glimmer of victory when Eton didn’t immediately pull away. He seemed to be getting used to Ian’s proximity, or he just knew that it was pointless to pull away.

“We shouldn’t be doing this,” Eton replied. His words didn’t have as much venom as they used to. They still didn’t sound particularly warm, but at least they were gentler than before.

The side of Ian’s leg brushed Eton’s as he shifted slightly. He wanted to bring Eton into his arms, but he suspected that Eton might make a run for it if Ian took the handcuffs off. He never thought that he would have to force Eton to be naked in bed with him. Typically, it was Eton dragging him off to fool around.

Ian closed his eyes for a moment, feeling an echo of pain in his chest. He just never expected to face so many problems with Eton. Of course, he was so happy that Eton was alive and awake. He was grateful for that every single day, but he didn’t expect to be faced with so much heartache if the miracle of Eton waking up happened.

It was a lot of stress on Ian. He tried not to let it show, but Eton was the one person who he could open up to. He didn’t have to hide his feelings or act tough all the time. Now, he was hesitant to open up around Eton because he received harsh words and disdain in return.

Ian turned his head to gaze at Eton, who was staring up at the ceiling. Still, despite everything, he thought that Eton was still so beautiful, so alluring. It twisted him up inside because he wanted to bond with his husband so badly, but he was never allowed close enough.

“I really am sorry about tonight,” Ian murmured, brushing his fingers along the side of Eton’s hand. When it came to Eton, that was the only situation where Ian ever felt guilt. He didn’t care if he hurt anyone else, but he did care about Eton and his feelings.

Tonight had been a trainwreck. It was supposed to be a fun time for both of them, but things went downhill. At least a spy had been found, but there were probably more, and De Leon hadn’t been captured. On top of it all, Eton freaked out about Ian killing someone, even if he knew that was what Ian did. It had all been an unexpected whirlwind.

He wanted to make things up to Eton if he would let him. Ian could take his thoughts off everything, but Eton had to lower the walls that he built around himself. He couldn’t shut out the one person who knew him and loved him the most. Ian could only imagine how lonely Eton felt.

Eton swallowed hard, not saying anything as he continued to look at the ceiling. It seemed like he was struggling to just do that.

“I’ll never forgive De Leon for what he did to you… to us,” Ian said, their ankles brushing. He breathed in deeply at the feeling of Eton’s warm skin against his. He could never get enough of it. “I’ll make him pay for it.”

Eton turned his head away from Ian, his body tensing more. He breathed steadily, or he tried to. His breaths sounded slightly shaky.

Ian pushed on, seeing how hard Eton was fighting. Ian wished that Eton would just break down and give in. He could remind Eton of how in love they were. Right now, it felt like the love in their relationship was one-sided. That was one of many ways how relationships ended, and Ian refused to give up on the only relationship that ever meant anything to him.

“Everything will be back to normal soon,” he said. He hoped that was true. He was fighting for that, but he knew that things would probably never be the same. Too much had changed. It had been two years, and life had continued despite Eton being in a coma.

When Eton didn’t respond or look his way, he looked back up at the ceiling and closed his eyes. He decided to give Eton a little bit of time. Pushing had only gotten him so far. Now, he wanted to see if Eton gave anything back.

About thirty minutes passed by, and then Ian felt Eton slightly shift next to him. He remained still, keeping his eyes closed and pretending to be asleep. He wanted to see what Eton did on his own accord. Maybe he would be delightfully surprised.

At first, nothing happened, but Ian suddenly felt the lightest brush against the side of his foot. He had to fight to keep his eyebrows from lifting out of interest. Steadily, he felt more sensations along the side of his foot and then along his toes. He couldn’t believe that Eton was actually rubbing their feet together. It was subtle, but it was happening.

Ian’s heart started racing as he remained still, letting Eton gently brush his foot against Ian’s. The touch was so light, nearly intimate. Ian could feel heat and pressure building up in his body, making him grow hard all over again. It never took much when it came to Eton.

Eton had to be doing this with intent. This wasn’t some subconscious action. He wanted to do this, even if he didn’t express that while he thought Ian was awake.

“Wow, my darling, I didn’t know you were into toe play,” Ian commented, finally opening his eyes to look at Eton.

Eton’s face turned a bright shade of red as he quickly tried to scramble away. He looked like a kid caught red-handed.

Ian wasn’t about to let this moment slip away. He wrapped his arms around Eton as he struggled, turning him onto his side and spooning Eton from behind. He locked Eton up in his arms, pressing his thick erection against the curve of Eton’s ass. He pressed his face against the back of Eton’s head, breathing in the sweet smell of his hair that he missed so much.

Eton gasped as he was flipped around so fast. His wrists were still bound, forcing his arms to be strung upward. He couldn’t move as Ian hugged him from behind.

“Let go of me,” he said, but his voice didn’t sound as demanding as he wanted it to be.

Ian ran his hands up Eton’s chest, feeling it rise and drop heavily. He had a feeling that he wasn’t the only one enjoying this embrace. He could’ve mistaken it, but it felt like Eton pressed back against him slightly.

“Go to sleep. I’m not going anywhere,” he murmured near Eton’s ear, gently grazing his lips against it. He planned to sleep just like this with his husband in his arms. He wasn’t going to end the night any differently.

Eton wiggled a little, but that only pushed him back against Ian more. There was no use in trying to escape. He was stuck. Gradually, he stopped struggling, laying still in Ian’s arms instead.

Ian gently kissed the back of Eton’s neck, feeling him shudder in response. Smiling to himself, Ian laid his head down and closed his eyes, enjoying the feeling of Eton in his arms. He wished that Eton didn’t have to be handcuffed for this to happen, but at least he wasn’t thrashing and cursing Ian. He called that progress.

“Goodnight, Eton,” he said. He didn’t expect a response, but he was content with the silence that surrounded them. Tonight, he was sleeping with his husband, and that was better than last night when he slept alone.

He didn’t care if Eton wanted to scream and fight. Ian was going to fight for them and the happy life that they lived before De Leon tried to ruin everything. Nothing about the path ahead would be easy, but Ian was a fighter, and Eton was a fighter too. They just had to play on the same team. Whether he liked it or not, Eton was going to become a team player.