It's Still Just Us: (Sequel to It's Just Us)

by R. Phoenix

  I’d written a couple of lines, just telling them I sent it, but it was from Micah. We’d see how they react… but so far, nothing had happened, which kind of worried me.

  I saw it in Micah’s eyes, every time when I was at my laptop, the question in his eyes. But I shook my head whenever he asked… or didn’t ask. There was no reply, nothing.

  And it’d been nearly a week and a half.

  Micah had quit his internship and gotten back to working at the shelter more. They were delighted to have him back more than just a few hours on Saturdays, since he apparently was really good at finding the right people for their animals — or the other way around. Anyway, he came home every day, beaming with the familiar joy I’d grown accustomed to seeing from him.

  It was what he wanted to do, and it completed him. He still worked more during the days while I did evening classes, but he now didn’t fall asleep as soon as he got home, and he also wasn’t in a hurry to get up in the mornings. In short, everything was back to being perfect.

  Except for the issue with my parents, but if they didn’t want to be a part of our lives, they could just fuck off.

  I was happy without them as well, because I had what was important.

  Chapter Seventeen

  Micah

  I never thought I’d miss working at the shelter as much as I had. I’d still been there on Saturdays, unable to give up my time there even though it had cut into my time with Carter. I couldn’t very well encourage him to have a life outside of me when I didn’t do the same, now could I? I’d missed him, but my few hours a week there had given me a little bit of spending money.

  I still wasn’t working full-time, which meant I got to spend time with Carter, and I was happier than I’d ever been. Getting to go into the shelter in the afternoons while he worked on grading papers and preparing lectures meant I had something to do outside the house, and I got to spend time with the animals.

  “I’m glad you’re back with us,” my boss told me a week after I’d started back up.

  I smiled at her. I’d never really been very social with the people I worked with, but I’d tried a little harder when I’d come back to real part time hours. “I’m glad I’m back too. My internship was miserable.”

  She gave me a sympathetic look. “I can only imagine. I’m just glad you were able to get things sorted so you could come here again. Maybe you’ll consider full time…?”

  The problem with full time was that it meant I wouldn’t get to see Carter very much. By the time I got home, it would be time for him to leave, and we’d run into the same problems we had before — though I’d be a lot less stressed out about it. “I’ll think about it and let you know,” I promised.

  “That’s all I can ask,” she said. “Will you clean the big dog runs before you leave today?”

  I nodded, heading off to do just that.

  My phone vibrated in my pocket half an hour later. I expected a text from Carter, but instead, it was from Finn.

  “Want to hang out tonight? I can show you how to do some of the makeup we did last time if you want.”

  I smiled. With my exams and work, we hadn’t managed again, but it’d been so much fun the first time, I was definitely up for it.

  “Sure. You want to come over? We can make a trip to the store to get what we need so we don’t have to use any of yours.”

  A pause, then my phone pinged again. “Sure. How about we meet at Walgreens by the school, then I can follow you home?”

  “That would be perfect. It’s right by where I live.” I got a bit of a thrill typing those words. Where I live. In Carter’s house. I couldn’t stop smiling, and even the fact that I was shoveling dog poop couldn’t take away from my good mood.

  It was a great day. I’d gotten to wake up and spend time with Carter, I’d gotten to go to work at the animal shelter instead of the IT firm I’d been slaving away at, and now I was going to have company while Carter was working.

  “Great! See you at 7?”

  That would give me time to go home and shower first. I didn’t want to smell like dog when Finn came over, even though it probably wouldn’t help. Snowflake would want to climb all over me the second I was clean. I’d have to leave him out back until I found out whether Finn liked dogs or not. The big furball liked other people, maybe a little too much, and he could be a little overwhelming.

  “See you then,” I messaged him back.

  I finished cleaning out the kennel I was standing in, pulling the hose back so I could go to the next, then I glanced surreptitiously around me before sending a text to Carter. I was suddenly aware I’d just invited someone to his house — our house — for the first time, and I wasn’t sure if he’d be okay with it. I had no reason to think he wouldn’t be, but…

  Shit, I’d have to clean up the sippy cups and the toys…

  Suddenly, dread pooled in my stomach. I didn’t even get off of work until six, and I’d be cutting it close to shower and try to get rid of the evidence of last night’s playtime. Maybe I should cancel.

  But no. At least not until I found out what Carter thought about me having someone over.

  “I invited Finn over tonight. I hope that’s okay,” I texted him. “We’re going to go get some makeup and he’s going to teach me how to put it on.”

  I was a kennel down before he answered me.

  “Of course it’s okay. I’d like to meet him, if he’s still there when I get off work.”

  That sounded utterly terrifying, but it wasn’t like I was going to say no. “Sure. I don’t know how long he’s going to stay though.”

  “No problem. :-) If I don’t get to meet him, that’s fine. I just want you to have a good time, baby.”

  “Thank you <3 I need to get back to work, but I’ll see you tonight.” Tomorrow was Saturday, which meant I didn’t have to work until the afternoon. I wouldn’t have to worry about calling it an early night, and after Carter saw me in my makeup, I doubted he’d want to anyway.

  “I love you.”

  “I love you too, Daddy.”

  I ended up running late, of course, and it was 6:30 by the time I got off work. I cursed as I looked at my phone. I’d barely have time to take a shower, let alone hide my toys away in the nursery. Maybe he wouldn’t care about what he saw… Or maybe he’d take one look around at the play mat and the sippy cups and the coloring books and bail.

  My stomach turned, but there wasn’t much I could do about it. It would be beyond rude to cancel now, and he was probably going to be heading out the door in just a few minutes — if he hadn’t already.

  I took the world’s shortest shower, at least thankful for the fact that I always stacked my toys neatly in their boxes when I was done playing with them. Maybe I could just say they belonged to a relative of Carter’s? I hated lying, and I wasn’t very good at it, but it had to be better than telling the truth.

  I pulled on a pair of green panties under my tight jeans, adding a flowing top before I tried to get more of the moisture out of my hair. It was still damp when I left, and I barely got to the store before 7.

  Finn was already inside, perusing the makeup aisle. I eyed the basket in the crook of his arm.

  “Started without me?” I asked, looking at what he’d already put in it.

  He beamed at me. “There were some things I could pick out without you here. I don’t know how big your collection is, so we can always put things back, but I figured it’d be nice to have a starting point.”

  I knew next to nothing about makeup. Carter had bought me everything I had, and he was the one who’d gone through the YouTube tutorials to try to figure out how to use everything. It was high time I learned to do it to myself, even though I was nervous I’d stab myself in the eye when I tried.

  Finn chattered on as he picked up different things and put them into the basket. It wasn’t going to be a cheap trip, that was for sure, but he assured me everything would last and it was worth the price.

  Thankfully, I had my spendin
g money from the shelter, though I felt a little bit guilty because I’d wanted to give some of that money to Carter for rent. He’d already refused me once, but I couldn’t help it. I didn’t want to just live there and mooch off of him, even if he said he didn’t mind.

  Finally, Finn stopped mid-sentence, grabbing my left hand. “Micah, is there something you forgot to tell me?” he demanded.

  I looked down at my hand, blushing when I saw the ring Carter had given me. “I… Yes?” I ventured, not sure what to say. Would he judge me for moving so quickly with Carter? He couldn’t, really; he didn’t even know how long we’d been together. But I was still worried. Carter had told Rick and Sean, and they’d seemed supportive, but this was Finn, and I didn’t know him as well.

  “Micah! You should’ve told me the second it happened!”

  “It wasn’t like I was live-streaming it,” I pointed out a little dryly. “I didn’t know it was going to happen until it did.”

  He gave me an accusing look. “How long have you been hiding this from me?”

  I scoffed. “Drama queen.”

  “Your accusations hurt me,” he said, dropping my hand to put it over his chest.

  “I’m sorry,” I said a little more seriously. “I’m still getting used to the idea that I’m… engaged. It all feels like it happened so fast.”

  “In a good way, I hope,” he said, fixing me with an intent stare that made me uncomfortable.

  I squirmed beneath his scrutiny. “Of course it’s a good thing. I’m just still not sure like… I don’t want to draw attention to myself or anything.”

  His look softened. “Micah, sweetie, this is something big, and I’d be worried if you didn’t want to shout it to the world. I mean, unless you’re closeted?” It was like it was the first time he thought about that being possible.

  I shook my head. “No, I’m not. I don’t advertise that I’m gay or anything, but apparently it’s pretty obvious.” The bullies at school had always seemed to know, at any rate.

  “Well, you should still be proud. I’ve never met him, but from everything you’ve said about Carter, he seems like a great guy,” Finn said, finally turning back to the shelves of makeup.

  I breathed a sigh of relief, though that instantly faded when I realized they might be meeting for the first time tonight. “Well… Depending on how long you stay over, you might get to meet him. I hope that’s okay.”

  Finn brightened. “I’d love to meet him. I have to make sure he’s worthy of you.”

  I let out a little laugh. “If anything, I’m not sure I’m worthy of him,” I said. “He’s amazing.”

  “I know,” Finn said. “You only tell me that eighty times every time we talk.”

  My cheeks heated up. “Am I that bad?”

  “Hmm… Maybe I’m exaggerating a little. Seventy-nine?” He grinned at me, and I elbowed him in the ribs. “But seriously, it’ll be nice to meet the infamous Carter.”

  I wasn’t sure I’d told Finn how much older Carter was than me, and I didn’t want to come out and say it now like it was something I was ashamed of. But there were a lot of things about our relationship that weren’t exactly typical, and I was becoming more and more aware of that.

  Finn tossed a few more things into the basket before handing it to me. “Here. This should be everything you need.”

  It was a lot, and I winced at the total it rang up as, but I’d already committed to this. I pulled my debit card out of my wallet, but Finn waved me off.

  “I’ve got it,” he told me. “I’m the one who went a little crazy.”

  “You can’t pay for this for me,” I protested. “I can afford it.”

  “I have my father’s credit card,” he said with a mischievous grin. “He’d hate knowing I’m using it to buy some guy’s makeup.”

  My stomach twisted. “Are you going to get into trouble for it?”

  He shook his head, sobering as he finished paying. “Nah. He doesn’t pay attention to how much I spend, as long as I don’t go completely crazy.”

  “Does he… know about you?” I asked as we headed out of the sliding doors.

  Finn laughed. “He’d have to be blind not to,” he said, but he made the words gentle enough to where I only blushed a little. “It took him a little bit of getting used to, but he’s sort of resigned himself to it. My mom would’ve kicked his ass if he hadn’t.”

  There we were again, back to the parent talk. It made my smile drop.

  Finn noticed it, and he frowned. “Anyway, I’ll follow you to your place,” he said, changing the subject. I appreciated it, but it was a little late.

  “Sure. It isn’t far.” I took the bag from him and got into my car, and he followed me to our house. The whole time, I was worried about what would happen when he got a glimpse into my private life. He seemed open-minded enough, but there was no way to be sure unless I outright asked him — or he saw the things at our house and asked me instead.

  My palms were sweating when we arrived, but I did my best to play it off. I led him to the front door and unlocked it.

  “I don’t know how you are about dogs, so Snowflake’s outside. And I didn’t even think to ask if you’re allergic to animals. We have a cat too. You won’t see him because he hides from everyone, but he’s still furry too,” I started to ramble as I pushed the door open. Had I at least folded up the play mat in the living room?

  Finn was giving me a sidelong glance, like he wasn’t sure what to make of my sudden babbling. “No, I’m fine. Not allergic to animals, and I don’t mind them.”

  At least there was that. I’d let Snowflake inside a little later, then, but I didn’t want to be distracted while Finn was trying to show me how to use some of the things Carter had liked so much.

  I took in a deep breath before leading him into the living room and flicking on the light. Everything was put away, including the mat I raced cars on, but there were still bins of toys, and my coloring books were on the bottom shelf of the bookshelves.

  He didn’t respond to them, even though he looked around curiously.

  “Do you need anything to eat or drink?” I asked, trying to figure out how to be a proper host.

  “Nah, I’m good,” he said, shaking his head. “You want to get started? We should probably go into the bathroom so we can use the mirror.”

  The bathroom. With all my bath toys. I fought the urge to whimper. Had I remembered to pull the shower curtain closed when I’d gotten out of the tub earlier? I wasn’t sure, but I didn’t think so. I never bothered to.

  “Sure.” I tried to pretend I wasn’t panicking as I led him upstairs with the bag of makeup in hand.

  Finn looked curiously into the tub where, sure enough, the bath toys were all visible in their bin, and I about died of mortification. He didn’t say anything about it, though, and we started to get everything out of its packaging.

  “Do they have to make it this hard to open?” I grumbled as I struggled with the eyeliner.

  Finn, on the other hand, was halfway through opening his part of the pile. “You just have to get used to it,” he said with a little bit of a smirk.

  I couldn’t get a read on that smirk. Was he laughing at me for having trouble? Teasing me? Or was he thinking about those bath toys?

  “How much do you buy to where you get used to it?” I asked.

  “Enough,” he said loftily, but I caught the blush on his cheeks. “Maybe a little more than I should,” he amended.

  I laughed, and I finally finished fighting the new package of mascara he’d chosen for me. “Here,” I said, adding it to the rest.

  “Good. Okay. So. Here’s where we’re going to start…”

  By the time Carter got home, my head was spinning from the sheer amount of knowledge Finn had been trying to get through my head. We’d already applied and reapplied the makeup more than once, and I was still having a hard time getting the hang of it.

  “I look like a raccoon,” I complained after I messed up my eyeshadow agai
n.

  Finn giggled, but he only took the makeup remover and blotted some on a cotton pad. “You do not. But here. Let’s try again.”

  I heard a throat clearing from the doorway, and I jerked my head up to see Carter standing there. My lips curved into a smile.

  "Hey D-Carter." I caught myself just in time before I slipped up and called him Daddy. Hopefully, Finn hadn't noticed it.

  Carter smiled at me, bending down to kiss me before he even acknowledged Finn. "Hi. You must be Finn?" He extended his hand and shook Finn’s.

  "Yeah, I'm Finn. I guess you’re the famous Carter?" Finn's eyes sparkled.

  Carter’s eyes met mine. "How much have you told him about me?" he asked, but I could see his grin.

  "Not too much…" I trailed off, knowing very well how much I told Finn.

  Apparently, my friend saw it the same way, because he just laughed. "Let's just say I know more than only your name. But he's told me a lot of good things about you, so…"

  "Thanks for ratting me out." I glared at Finn, but I wasn't serious.

  "Considering how much I've heard about him, I guess it's just fair that I'm letting him know.” Finn batted his eyelashes and smiled at Carter. "And I can totally see why you're gushing so much." His eyes wandered over Carter's body, and a touch of jealousy rose inside of me. "I wouldn't ever do anything, so stop glaring at me. By the way, he got engaged to you, so I doubt I’d have any chances and, lastly, I’d never even try to do anything with the partner of a friend. But I need to check him out, that's just human."

  I elbowed him, but I was laughing. "Look at other guys, but not mine. He belongs to me, only me."

  "It's nice to see you two discussing me like a piece of furniture, but you might want to think about me standing right here, being able to hear you. And, Finn, I have to say, staring at me like this is kind of rude,” Carter said calmly. “How about you make it up by showing me how to apply makeup, because apparently, my — Micah needs a lot more practice before he can do that."