![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
asphaltcowgrrlTitle: Texas Thesaurus
Fandom: Romani Detective original fiction
Pairing: Andrej Zeklos/Zayne Reyes
Rating: PG-13
Word Count: 1,205
Summary: Andrej’s contemplating Zayne’s demeanor while Zayne cleans up breakfast.
Author’s Note: Written for the A to Z Challenge at 1_million_words. The letter was O and I rather ran with it all.
“All done,” Zayne said, coming out of the kitchen, a dishtowel slung over one shoulder.
It annoyed Andrej when he did that with the towel, but he wouldn’t say a word since Zayne had volunteered to wash the dishes in the first place. So, he held his tongue in this instance. “Did you wipe down the counters?”
Zayne frowned. He had a habit of getting water everywhere when he did dishes. The counter, the floor, sometimes he even managed to get suds on the refrigerator, a whole kitchen length away from the sink. It was harmless, those little water spots all over his pristine tile, but again, it annoyed him. Andrej frowned, unconsciously mimicking Zayne’s face. Maybe he ought to reconsider Trish’s offer of a referral to her therapist. There were a lot of things that aggravated him lately it seemed.
“No,” Zayne said, shaking Andrej out of his reverie. “But I’ll go do that now. Are you okay? You have a funny look on your face right now.”
“I am fine,” Andrej said, smiling up at his lover. “Something occurred to me, but it is not important.”
“If you say so,” Zayne said. He whipped the towel off his shoulder. “I’ll go wipe down the counter, the window, and check the fridge while I’m at it.” He tossed a flirty wink in Andrej’s direction, as if Zayne was reading his thoughts.
“Thank you,” he said, watching Zayne leave the living room.
It occurred to him as he was reaching for his phone to text Trish that Zayne was being awfully obedient these days. Not a word he’d ever associate with his wild Texas cowboy. If asked, he’d have offered up obstinate, possibly even obnoxious, but never obedient. And yet, here he was, doing dishes and cleaning up after himself.
Shaking his head, he sent Trish a text, requesting the information for her therapist. His phone rang in his hand before he had a chance to put it down. Startled, he answered, “Zeklos.”
“So, those two finally push you over the edge,” Trish asked in her husky voice.
“No,” he laughed. “Not exactly. However, Zayne is behaving oddly.”
“Oddly how,” he heard Hilary ask. They must’ve been hanging out together.
“He volunteered to do the breakfast dishes,” Andrej announced.
His proclamation was met with dead silence.
“This is not a joke,” he said. “He really did. And he is doing a good job, too.”
“You don’t need a therapist, Andy,” Hilary said. “You need a priest. Zayne’s possessed.”
He laughed, despite himself. “He is not possessed,” he insisted. “At least not demonically so.” Zayne passed by then, giving him an inquisitive look.
“Then what is he possessed by, Andy, because I dated that boy long enough to know that he does not clean anything unless forced.”
“The answer to that is obvious,” Trish said, and Andrej braced himself for what he knew was about to come flying out of her mouth.
“And that is what, exactly,” Hilary asked.
“Please do not say what I know is on the tip of your tongue,” Andrej begged, eliciting a laugh out of Trish.
“What? I was just going to compliment your obvious hold on that boy.”
“You were going to do no such thing,” Andrej chuckled. “You were going to say something very inappropriate in an attempt to embarrass me.”
“Sounds like whoever you’re talking to succeeded without actually saying anything,” Zayne said from across the room.
Andrej smiled at him. “It is Trish and Hilary I am speaking with,” he said, knowing that was enough for Zayne to get the picture.
“My point stands,” he said. Moving across the room, he took the spot on the couch beside Andrej. He leaned in, brushed his lips across a swath of exposed skin. Mouthed, ‘hang up’.
“Sounds like Zayne’s suggesting something inappropriate,” Trish muttered into Andrej’s ear.
“Yeah, but he’s allowed,” Hilary added. “Because, you know, he’ll go through with whatever perverse shit he suggests.”
And that was it. “I have to go,” Andrej said quickly. He was only slightly embarrassed by what the girls were suggesting, more surprised by the quick way Zayne’s fingers were working at unbuttoning his shirt.
Trish spluttered. “Yeah, okay, Andy,” she laughed. “I’ll text you the information you asked for.”
“Thanks,” he said, giving Zayne a pleading look. One that said, I’ll only be another two minutes, please wait. Although they both knew that he wouldn’t wait.
Zayne plucked the phone out of Andrej’s hand the second he heard the line disconnect. He set it on the coffee table and went back to work on Andrej’s shirt. “Why do you have to wear a damn dress shirt on Saturday, baby?” He shook his head in mock confusion. “Never mind, I can still get it off you.”
Laughing, Andrej pulled the tails of his shirt out of his pants and let Zayne go back to his glorious work. Other words floated through his head while he watched his boyfriend. Obsessive. Ornery. Obscene. Yeah, because nothing else could describe what Zayne was about to do better than that one word: obscene. Not that he was going to complain or anything, because that would be counterproductive in the end.
Later, when they lay in a naked, sweaty heap, Andrej toyed with a loose dark curl of Zayne’s hair. “Be honest,” he said, giving the curl a little tug. “Is this why you cleaned the kitchen?”
Zayne laughed, the vibrations resonating in the depths of Andrej’s chest where the Texan lay on him. “Not entirely,” Zayne said. “I mean, the thought crossed my mind but…” He shrugged as best he could when he was face down on another body.
“But?” Andrej gave the lock of hair another gentle tug.
“But I’m trying, okay? I mean, I know it’s not enough, but –”
“But since I have not asked anything of you, it is more than enough,” Andrej cut him off. He was going to have to talk to whomever it was that kept putting these ideas into Zayne’s head. He’s not doing enough, he’s not appreciative enough. He sighed. Another item to add to the list of things to talk to the therapist about.
“I love you,” Zayne murmured into Andrej’s skin.
And that was the crux of it right there. Zayne had a reputation for being a brazen womanizer, an arrogant prick, and worse. But the truth was much more complicated than that. Sure, he spoke without thinking, but he also loved without reservation. He might act impulsively, but he also was loyal to a fault. You had to take the good with the bad and that’s exactly what he’d told himself he’d do. Not jut with Zayne, but with James, too. And Hilary, Trish, Jake, and anyone else who came into his life.
Yeah, Zayne would never be completely obedient, but Andrej was content with what he already was. Affectionate. Opinionated. Trustworthy. He brushed his hand along the curve of Zayne’s face and thought about another word – the one that had gotten him into trouble in the first place. Sexy. Because that – and the word charming – are how he lost his damn heart all those years ago.
He’d never even had a chance to resist.
Fandom: Romani Detective original fiction
Pairing: Andrej Zeklos/Zayne Reyes
Rating: PG-13
Word Count: 1,205
Summary: Andrej’s contemplating Zayne’s demeanor while Zayne cleans up breakfast.
Author’s Note: Written for the A to Z Challenge at 1_million_words. The letter was O and I rather ran with it all.
“All done,” Zayne said, coming out of the kitchen, a dishtowel slung over one shoulder.
It annoyed Andrej when he did that with the towel, but he wouldn’t say a word since Zayne had volunteered to wash the dishes in the first place. So, he held his tongue in this instance. “Did you wipe down the counters?”
Zayne frowned. He had a habit of getting water everywhere when he did dishes. The counter, the floor, sometimes he even managed to get suds on the refrigerator, a whole kitchen length away from the sink. It was harmless, those little water spots all over his pristine tile, but again, it annoyed him. Andrej frowned, unconsciously mimicking Zayne’s face. Maybe he ought to reconsider Trish’s offer of a referral to her therapist. There were a lot of things that aggravated him lately it seemed.
“No,” Zayne said, shaking Andrej out of his reverie. “But I’ll go do that now. Are you okay? You have a funny look on your face right now.”
“I am fine,” Andrej said, smiling up at his lover. “Something occurred to me, but it is not important.”
“If you say so,” Zayne said. He whipped the towel off his shoulder. “I’ll go wipe down the counter, the window, and check the fridge while I’m at it.” He tossed a flirty wink in Andrej’s direction, as if Zayne was reading his thoughts.
“Thank you,” he said, watching Zayne leave the living room.
It occurred to him as he was reaching for his phone to text Trish that Zayne was being awfully obedient these days. Not a word he’d ever associate with his wild Texas cowboy. If asked, he’d have offered up obstinate, possibly even obnoxious, but never obedient. And yet, here he was, doing dishes and cleaning up after himself.
Shaking his head, he sent Trish a text, requesting the information for her therapist. His phone rang in his hand before he had a chance to put it down. Startled, he answered, “Zeklos.”
“So, those two finally push you over the edge,” Trish asked in her husky voice.
“No,” he laughed. “Not exactly. However, Zayne is behaving oddly.”
“Oddly how,” he heard Hilary ask. They must’ve been hanging out together.
“He volunteered to do the breakfast dishes,” Andrej announced.
His proclamation was met with dead silence.
“This is not a joke,” he said. “He really did. And he is doing a good job, too.”
“You don’t need a therapist, Andy,” Hilary said. “You need a priest. Zayne’s possessed.”
He laughed, despite himself. “He is not possessed,” he insisted. “At least not demonically so.” Zayne passed by then, giving him an inquisitive look.
“Then what is he possessed by, Andy, because I dated that boy long enough to know that he does not clean anything unless forced.”
“The answer to that is obvious,” Trish said, and Andrej braced himself for what he knew was about to come flying out of her mouth.
“And that is what, exactly,” Hilary asked.
“Please do not say what I know is on the tip of your tongue,” Andrej begged, eliciting a laugh out of Trish.
“What? I was just going to compliment your obvious hold on that boy.”
“You were going to do no such thing,” Andrej chuckled. “You were going to say something very inappropriate in an attempt to embarrass me.”
“Sounds like whoever you’re talking to succeeded without actually saying anything,” Zayne said from across the room.
Andrej smiled at him. “It is Trish and Hilary I am speaking with,” he said, knowing that was enough for Zayne to get the picture.
“My point stands,” he said. Moving across the room, he took the spot on the couch beside Andrej. He leaned in, brushed his lips across a swath of exposed skin. Mouthed, ‘hang up’.
“Sounds like Zayne’s suggesting something inappropriate,” Trish muttered into Andrej’s ear.
“Yeah, but he’s allowed,” Hilary added. “Because, you know, he’ll go through with whatever perverse shit he suggests.”
And that was it. “I have to go,” Andrej said quickly. He was only slightly embarrassed by what the girls were suggesting, more surprised by the quick way Zayne’s fingers were working at unbuttoning his shirt.
Trish spluttered. “Yeah, okay, Andy,” she laughed. “I’ll text you the information you asked for.”
“Thanks,” he said, giving Zayne a pleading look. One that said, I’ll only be another two minutes, please wait. Although they both knew that he wouldn’t wait.
Zayne plucked the phone out of Andrej’s hand the second he heard the line disconnect. He set it on the coffee table and went back to work on Andrej’s shirt. “Why do you have to wear a damn dress shirt on Saturday, baby?” He shook his head in mock confusion. “Never mind, I can still get it off you.”
Laughing, Andrej pulled the tails of his shirt out of his pants and let Zayne go back to his glorious work. Other words floated through his head while he watched his boyfriend. Obsessive. Ornery. Obscene. Yeah, because nothing else could describe what Zayne was about to do better than that one word: obscene. Not that he was going to complain or anything, because that would be counterproductive in the end.
Later, when they lay in a naked, sweaty heap, Andrej toyed with a loose dark curl of Zayne’s hair. “Be honest,” he said, giving the curl a little tug. “Is this why you cleaned the kitchen?”
Zayne laughed, the vibrations resonating in the depths of Andrej’s chest where the Texan lay on him. “Not entirely,” Zayne said. “I mean, the thought crossed my mind but…” He shrugged as best he could when he was face down on another body.
“But?” Andrej gave the lock of hair another gentle tug.
“But I’m trying, okay? I mean, I know it’s not enough, but –”
“But since I have not asked anything of you, it is more than enough,” Andrej cut him off. He was going to have to talk to whomever it was that kept putting these ideas into Zayne’s head. He’s not doing enough, he’s not appreciative enough. He sighed. Another item to add to the list of things to talk to the therapist about.
“I love you,” Zayne murmured into Andrej’s skin.
And that was the crux of it right there. Zayne had a reputation for being a brazen womanizer, an arrogant prick, and worse. But the truth was much more complicated than that. Sure, he spoke without thinking, but he also loved without reservation. He might act impulsively, but he also was loyal to a fault. You had to take the good with the bad and that’s exactly what he’d told himself he’d do. Not jut with Zayne, but with James, too. And Hilary, Trish, Jake, and anyone else who came into his life.
Yeah, Zayne would never be completely obedient, but Andrej was content with what he already was. Affectionate. Opinionated. Trustworthy. He brushed his hand along the curve of Zayne’s face and thought about another word – the one that had gotten him into trouble in the first place. Sexy. Because that – and the word charming – are how he lost his damn heart all those years ago.
He’d never even had a chance to resist.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2021-10-25 11:40 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2021-10-26 10:51 am (UTC)