The Tea Shop [mxm]

XX: The Truth Comes Out

Elliot wasn't sure how to feel. Wren had clearly told him that he wasn't going anywhere, but there was still a nagging feeling in his gut telling him something wasn't right. He didn't want to believe that Wren was lying, because surely he wouldn't do that to Elliot. But there was something Wren wasn't telling him, and it made him feel insecure.

Christmas was getting closer by the minute, not even a week away. Elliot tried his hardest to find something suitable to buy Wren, but it was hard to figure something out. It couldn't be too expensive, because no matter how much he loved his job he couldn't deny that the pay wasn't the best. So he had to find something small but meaningful, but it wasn't as easy as he'd first thought. He really regretted procrastinating as much as he did, but that was't really something you could just flip a switch to turn off. Procrastination was a personal flaw Elliot couldn't deny, but throughout the years he'd learned to deal with it.

Now, he really wished there was a way to get rid of it.

All through the day he could only think of Wren, and what to buy him. He was so excited about spending Christmas together, even he could admit it was a bit insane. That didn't change the fact that every time he imagined Wren and him together on Auntie Mae's sofa in front of the fireplace, cuddling, his stomach erupted in butterflies and he let out a giddy laugh.

He was so excited.

He basically had the whole evening planned out. Auntie Mae had agreed to celebrate on Christmas Eve, and Elliot instantly jumped on the chance of completely redesigning her cozy house to fit their needs, and all decorations that were needed had already been purchased. He knew that Wren was a really good cook, and thought that they could cook dinner together, and while waiting for it to be ready they could have a glass of wine in front of the fireplace and just talk. He thought that this was the perfect time for Auntie Mae to really get to know Wren.

She'd been bugging him about it from the start, but at first Elliot wasn't sure how serious it was or if it would last, and the last few weeks he just couldn't let Wren leave his side long enough for anyone to really talk to him. Wren didn't seem to mind though, because if Elliot left his side for more than a minute he immediately came looking for a hug or a kiss or a cuddle.

Really, it had be sickening to watch them, but Elliot didn't really care. He wanted all that as much as Wren did. He could just imagine all the cuddles he would get during Christmas - he'd already decided that Wren would stay in his small apartment the whole week before he had to spend christmas with his own family, and he knew Wren wouldn't say no to that. Who would deny free cuddles? Only crazy people.

The day was coming to and end and Elliot had started wiping every surface in the kitchen clean while Abigail gently shooed the last customers out with the promise of equally delicious pies tomorrow too. He was nervous about going home, because he had decided to finally tell Wren about his issues. It wasn't fair that Wren had to deal with it without even knowing what was really going on.

The other day Wren had seemed so confused, like he didn't understand what was going on. That was perfectly understandable - how could he know what was really going on when Elliot didn't tell him?

It was time to let Wren know, and even though Elliot knew that was the right decision he couldn't help regretting it already.

What if Wren decided it wasn't with it? What if he didn't want to deal with all of Elliot's issues?

Elliot decided not to think about it. It wasn't easy to shut his mind up, but he knew he had to before he worked himself up again to another panic attack. It had happened several times before, but it wasn't something he wanted to go through again.