Disclaimer: I own nothing.

TEA (AND MORE) FOR TWO

Adrian entered the flat with his hands full. He immediately made for the kitchen, dumping a couple of bags onto the nearest counter. He wiped a hand across his face; the day was pretty humid. Every time he thought he'd gotten used to Florida's hot climate the state proved him wrong, again. He liked it though, it wasn't quite home yet but Adrian felt settled at least. That was something, wasn't it?

He filled the kettle and got out the mug that he knew Tyler liked best – it was purple with gold lettering spelling out 'Of course you know who I am.' Adrian shook his head and put the kettle on to boil. The flat's curtains were all drawn, everything looked a bit dead to be honest but he knew that it wasn't. After all, it wasn't even his flat. Actually he'd expected Tyler to have made an appearance by now or to have at least made some noise. So Adrian was more than a bit worried.

He carefully opened the bedroom door, if Tyler was asleep than Adrian didn't want to wake him. The room was dim, almost dark, and there was a lithe motionless shape occupying the bed. Adrian's eyes soon got used to the low light and he found himself smiling and shaking his head because there was Breezy – perfectly posed, like he was featuring in a very exclusive magazine photoshoot, even when sick and asleep. Unbelievable.

The kettle whistled pointedly and Adrian hastened away to enact what he'd actually planned on doing in Tyler's flat in the first place. He quickly unpacked the grocery bags and tipped a spoonful of black spiced tea into Tyler's mug followed by the hot water. He broke open a packet of biscuits while waiting for the tea to steep, munching on flavours that still didn't taste quite right on his tongue. He missed British biscuits, a good custard-cream or digestive. He was definitely living his dream in America right now but he missed Newcastle. It was like an ache that came with a long-term injury; always there in the back of his mind, more obvious at some times than others.

He put the biscuits down and got the milk and sweetener that Tyler always demanded when drinking tea. Adrian mixed up the beverage and grabbed the biscuits along with everything else he'd need. He didn't fancy trying out an impromptu juggling act with a scaldingly-hot drink. And he had a very difficult patient to see to.

He made a bit more noise as he re-entered Tyler's bedroom, just to warn the bed's occupant. Adrian carefully put the tea down on the bedside table, piling everything else up beside the mug. He turned the nearest lamp on just a touch, the light throwing flattering rays across Tyler's face. Adrian paused and just looked at the man sprawled out so beautifully across the bed. His face held a sheen of sweat thanks to his illness but he still looked picture-perfect. It was almost supernatural, Tyler's physical beauty. And at moments like this, Adrian really liked to admire it.

Tyler's brow puckered and his body shifted as he sluggishly surfaced into wakefulness. His gaze glassily focused on Adrian.

"You're here."

That could have been flat disappointment but Adrian knew Tyler; the tone was actually something else – an observation and a thank-you. Adrian didn't like being alone when he was sick either. He settled down on the bed, sitting close to Tyler and watching as one of Tyler's hands brushed against Adrian's denim-clad legs. He nudged a knee into Tyler's palm as Tyler noticed the tea and everything else.

"Is that this month's cope of Vogue Magazine?"

Adrian smiled, amused and a little proud as well. Surprising Tyler was always a lot of fun. Adrian nodded.

"Just what the doctor ordered, am I right?"

Tyler was looking at him with an expression that was pure Tyler – penetrating and apparently unimpressed but there was a twist to his mouth too that said otherwise. He imperiously waved a hand and Adrian retrieved the tea for him, watching as Tyler drank down a couple of fragrant mouthfuls. His gaze darted towards Adrian and Adrian raised his eyebrows, daring Tyler to complain.

Tyler didn't say anything, which was a compliment in itself. Adrian knocked his knee against Tyler again, causing Tyler to glare at him and push at Adrian's leg.

"Don't you dare bruise me, hobbit."

Adrian snorted. "You're still camera ready, Breezy. Don't worry."

Tyler inclined his chin, as though posing for an invisible horde of cameras. His cheekbones looked ridiculous, in fact every inch of him did, causing Adrian to reach out and poke Tyler's chest. Tyler scowled and made to grab Adrian's finger but whatever bug had made him sick had really gotten into his system because his grab was actually more of a weak flail. Adrian smiled in a way that could only be described as fond, his hand stroking down Tyler's side by way of an apology.

Tyler accepted the movement as though it was his due and let his free hand drop to loosely curl at Adrian's nearest elbow. That was a thank-you, it was all Adrian needed right now. He gathered up the biscuits from the bedside table and offered Tyler one. Tyler reached forward and actually ate one right out of Adrian's hand. Adrian grinned, his thumb smoothing crumbs away from the corner of Tyler's perfect mouth. Adrian liked Tyler's mouth a lot, he liked how it looked right at that moment in fact.

They stayed silent for a little while, Tyler drinking his tea and nibbling on biscuits. He was actually keeping it all down, which was a step up from yesterday, and he kept stealing looks at Adrian that made Adrian smile. Tyler finished the last of his tea and handed the mug back to Adrian. His skin felt a little too warm so he wasn't completely recovered yet but he was looking like he was now actually on the road to recovery. He'd need more rest though so Adrian thought about making a move towards home, with more than a twinge of something strongly like regret.

Tyler must have seen that thought move across Adrian's face because his fingers tightened an inch around Adrian's elbow.

"You can stay."

It was practically a decree rather than an invitation, which made Adrian smile a bit wider and he let out an amused chuckle. Prince Pretty was laying out commands, of course he was.

"Oh, can I? Very gracious, Breezy."

The look Tyler wore now was pure disdain. Adrian just felt more fondness and definite affection. Maybe he was getting sick too, maybe he liked it.

He handed Tyler some vitamin C wafers and a plate of papaya fruit slices, he'd often heard Tyler extolling the fruit's virtues and they'd probably slip down a treat in his current condition. Tyler had that look on his face again, the look that said weeks after this thing between them had started he still wasn't exactly sure what was happening or how it had begun in the first place. Adrian liked having that effect on Tyler, it felt very good indeed. He'd felt the same bewildered way initially about his own interest in Tyler but Adrian had always thrown himself towards whatever caught his eye without thinking about it too closely. It was how he'd won championships and made a name for himself all over the world. It was how he'd ended up visiting Tyler Breeze's flat, before tonight and all.

Tyler appeared to have regathering his composure because he was gesturing towards the copy of Vogue Magazine that Adrian had bought him.

"Read to me."

Adrian's chuckle was loud this time because the sickness hadn't made Tyler petulant and gloriously self-centred, that was all Breezy, all the time. And yet he wanted Adrian to stay with him, instead of just glorying in his own presence. Adrian would take that.

He made himself more comfortable, lying down next to Tyler.

"Oh my God, take your shoes off! Do you have any idea how much these sheets cost?"

Adrian kicked off his trainers and leaned across Tyler to pluck the wanted magazine from the bedside table. He noticed how Tyler's breath hitched just a little at Adrian's sudden closeness, at how Tyler swayed even nearer for just a millisecond before he corrected himself, because Tyler was always all about Tyler. Interest in anything or anyone else was not something he was used to yet, even when sick with a temperature. He didn't decree that Adrian should leave though. Instead his fingers curled at Adrian's wrist, like possession, like he was posing all over again but including Adrian this time.

Adrian smiled down at the magazine and twined a foot around Tyler's closest ankle, his own little contribution to the overall aesthetic. Never let it be said that he didn't pay attention when Tyler talked. Thumbing open the magazine, Adrian took a piece of Tyler's papaya fruit and popped it into his own mouth.

Tyler wasn't feeling or looking his best but he was letting Adrian see him anyway. He was letting Adrian see a lot, maybe without even realising it. In their own ways, they were both leaping towards what interested them. Adrian bit down on the fruit and felt Tyler's fingers rub against his pulse.

"What are you waiting for? You should be making me feel better."

Adrian was pretty sure he was already doing that and that it ran both ways.

-the end