fingers that are too cold clutch the strap of his bag as he carefully navigates the crowd, head down and eyes carefully avoiding catching the gaze of those around him. anxiety claws at his stomach and chews at his heart, but he plows forward, determined to reach his destination quickly. the items that he'd just bought feel like they're weighing him down, slowing his progress as he makes his way to the familiar apartment. still, he forces one step in front of the other over and over again until he's at the door of the place that he calls home.
his too cold fingers fumble with the key for a moment before finally unlocking the door and stepping inside. the freelance filmmaker breathes a sigh of relief as he shuts it behind him, glancing around for his boyfriend. "tom? thomas? are you home already?"
he carefully sets his bag on the kitchen counter, opening it up and digging around inside for a moment. "i earned a little bit of extra money, so i bought you something," he continues to speak, still not fully sure if the other man was home. he carefully sets out the inkwell and the beautiful ink pen that he'd just bought before reaching back into the bag to pull out two books, the picture of dorian gray and emma. both of them were older editions, clearly the kind that's hard to get one's hands on. "i hope you like them," he says this last part to himself as the anxiety claws harder at his chest.
@daedpoet gets a surprise starter!
