Chapter 132: Leaving The City
While Kyle’s relationship with Arcane wasn’t going well after what happened a few days ago, his relationship with his husband wasn’t going well either.
Ever since that misunderstanding, Kyle and Ethan’s relationship had grown increasingly distant. Their loveless marriage felt more and more empty and hollow.
Ethan speaks less and less, let alone looks him in the eye. He gets up very early, eats breakfast, and goes to work, not returning until late at night after Kyle has fallen asleep.
He even chooses to sleep on the sofa rather than in the bedroom with him.
Until finally, that morning, Ethan initiated a conversation that came as quite a surprise to Kyle.
"I’m thinking of accepting an offer for a major project out of town," he said, causing his husband to stop eating his breakfast and look at him.
"The project site is quite far from where we currently live. It’s roughly a 6 to 7 hour drive from here."
Kyle was a bit surprised by Ethan’s words, as he thought Ethan was going to leave him alone for the duration of the project. And he didn’t know how long that would be, since major construction projects usually take several years.
"Are you going to leave me alone?" he asked slowly, making sure he’d heard correctly.
However, the man simply shook his head and looked directly into Kyle’s eyes.
"I want you to come with me. And I think it might be better for us to start over somewhere else. I think living in that city would be much better than staying here, so we can start everything from scratch," he replied.
It turned out that Ethan wasn’t just thinking about taking on that massive project; he wanted to restart their marriage, which had never been based on love to begin with.
He admitted that he wasn’t a perfect husband, unlike Arcane, whom Kyle might prefer over him, a construction worker.
He just wanted to start everything over, far from whatever had disrupted their peace. Ethan felt that if Kyle kept seeing Arcane, he’d think about that man more often. So he decided to take Kyle out of town and settle far from where they currently lived.
"I admit I haven’t been a good husband to you all this time. Maybe that’s why you’ve been looking at others instead of me. Just like you, this marriage wasn’t something I planned. So it’s not just you who might have been forced to live under the same roof with someone you don’t love," Ethan explained.
Kyle fell silent upon hearing this explanation. Anyone would surely be moved by those words, thinking that Ethan was definitely trying to change and wanted to make things better. To make the marriage work the way it was supposed to.
Deep down, however, Kyle was still thinking about Arcane. If he had to move out of town or even settle there permanently. That would mean quitting his job at the school and never seeing Arcane again.
He might be able to find a new teaching job in his future home. But could he bear never seeing that man again?
Seeing how his husband just stood there frozen, with his eyes cast down, made Ethan realize that Kyle must be thinking about something related to Arcane.
Part of him wanted to get angry, feeling jealous because his own husband kept thinking about another man. But on the other hand, this was partly his own fault for letting another man give the attention he should have been giving all along.
"I heard he’s married. And now he’s adopted a little girl."
"You know that?" Kyle asked, and he nodded in response.
"I always find out anything related to my business. And I know he’s married to a man and has an adopted child. I know I can’t force you to forget him, but think about your self respect," Ethan replied.
He pointed out that Kyle could actually ruin other people’s relationships if a misunderstanding arose. Just like when Ethan thought you were cheating on him with Arcane. What if it turned out that Arcane’s husband, Julian, was thinking the same thing?
He stood up from where he was sitting and carried his dirty plate and used glass to the sink.
"Don’t dwell too much on your own feelings; think about others’ feelings too. You don’t want to ruin a family’s happiness just because of your selfishness, do you?"
Without saying another word, he grabbed his bag and jacket and left the house to go to work as usual. Leaving Kyle alone at the dining table, pondering Ethan’s earlier words.
Should he accept Ethan’s offer to move and settle so far away without being able to see Arcane again?
"He said he wanted to start everything over from scratch. Is he really going to change, or is this just a way for him to keep me away from Arcane?"
******
Meanwhile, Arcane and Julian were still sound asleep in their beds because it was Sunday. They usually woke up later than usual, since they had stayed up all night just to watch a soccer match.
Arcane’s arms remained wrapped around his husband’s waist, pulling him closer and hugging him tightly as he breathed in the scent of his body. Rubbing his face against Julian’s hair, he felt so at peace that morning.
Until, suddenly, they were startled by something climbing onto the bed and shouting their names.
"Papa, Daddy, come on, wake up!" shouted a 4 year old girl as she jumped up and down on their bed.
As soon as the two men opened their eyes, they were greeted by the cheerful face of their adopted daughter, Luna. Luna jumped up and down on the bed, then squeezed in between her parents to sleep with them.
"If Papa and Daddy don’t wake up, I’ll sleep here with you," she said.
Luna, who used to be a shy girl, now seemed much more active after being adopted by the two of them. Julian smiled, kissed Luna’s forehead, and gently ruffled her hair.
"In that case, come sleep with us. It’s still 6:12 a.m.," he said.
"But you promised to take me to the amusement park today! Aren’t we going there anymore?"
Arcane chuckled at the question. He kissed Luna’s temple and said they would still go that day, but not that early.
"We’ll go at 9:00 a.m. Go to sleep now with Papa and Daddy," he said.
It was then that Arcane opened his eyes, seeing his world now in his grasp. His heart melted at the sight of Julian and Luna sleeping soundly in his arms.
He kissed both their foreheads and continued to watch over them, propping his head up with his left hand.
"My family, my world, everything to me. I will always protect the two of you, even with my own life."
