LIGHT ME UP ↝ Lucifer Morningstar

TWENTY-TWO.

   THE HOUSE WAS rather cozy — something that Benjamin could see himself living in one day, perhaps with a family of his own, the days of partying and breaking the law behind him. But for now, he was the forgotten son of a man that he had come looking for, only to find out that he wasn't there at the moment, but luckily, Chase Allen's wife, Laura, was kind enough to let him and Izzy in, with the offer of a fresh pie tempting them. Benjamin had politely declined, but Isadora, always up for some desserts, had accepted the apple pie that had now led them to the quaint kitchen, with Laura cutting pieces for them. Needless to say, the whole situation reminded Benjamin of home — perhaps, even the home he could have had.

          "So, how long have the two of you been together?", Laura inquired, gesturing towards the two young adults seated by her table, and chuckling instantly, they both shook their heads.

          "I, uh, actually like my partners a bit more... male", Benjamin pointed out proudly, a grin on his lips, while Izzy informed that she didn't care for the opposite gender, either. It seemed to fluster Laura, merely because she had made an assumption that was only funny now, but she never questioned their identities, which both Benji and Izzy appreciated. They could never know how people would respond to them admitting they were gay, but much to their relief, Laura didn't seem to have a problem.

        The sun was already going down as the three of them sat in the kitchen, sipping coffee and eating delicious apple pie, with the moments of silence filled by the sound of an old clock tocking away on the wall. But, once they had reached some kind of silent comfort with one another, Benjamin took the opportunity to talk more about his father. "So, uh, you know about... me and...", his smooth attempt to bring the subject up failed miserably with the stutter of his words, but the warm smile on Laura's lips assured that it was more than okay.

        "You've been mentioned. You're his son. Only son, really", the woman hummed softly, "it was really hard to get him to stop blaming himself once he came to the realization he had done a terrible mistake. Leaving you, that was. But you did have a family to live with, right?", her eyebrow lifting slightly as she made sure that Chase hadn't abandoned a child on the streets, and nodding in response, Benjamin smiled — mostly at the thought of Dan. Even though he had spent a lot of time thinking about the way things could have been, what kind of a life he could have had with Chase, he wouldn't have thrown away his relationship with Dan for anything.

        "I did. Or—I still do, actually. I left L.A to travel for several years but I recently returned and I've been living with my brother", he confirmed, before clearing his throat and poking the slice of pie nervously. This felt good, though, like baby steps. He didn't have to face Chase right away — instead, he could progress slowly by talking to his wife first. "I guess this is a question I should ask him instead of you, but why did he leave in the first place? Has he ever thought about looking for me?", Benjamin wondered quietly, knowing that if he were to speak any louder, his words would only falter and he'd be one step closer to crying.