| Memories - Chapter 23 |
| Josh spent the entire morning and most of the afternoon in his bedroom, working on planning out Lance�s surprises. He�d figured out the perfect way to tell Lance he loved him. He was so excited, and he just hoped that Lance would like his surprises. Josh looked over at the clock and realized that it was three already, and he still needed to shower and figure out what to wear. He hopped up from his bed and walked into the bathroom, turning the shower on and removing his clothes. He climbed in the shower and sighed as the hot water hit his body. He found himself wondering what Lance was doing right then. He was probably getting ready too. That led to Josh thinking about Lance being in the shower and� Josh turned the water to cold as his thoughts went to Lance�s naked body. They�d been moving very slowly, so he hadn�t seen Lance naked yet. He wasn�t sure how long it would be, but it didn�t matter. He was ok with imagining it for now. The cold water helped cool the heat that had been building between his legs, and he wrapped a towel around his waist as he stepped out of the shower. He went back into his bedroom and over to his closet, trying to figure out what to wear. After about ten minutes, he finally chose a dark blue tight-fitting long-sleeved shirt and some nick black pants. He put them on and examined himself in the mirror. He grabbed some gel from his dresser and spread some through his hair, shaping it until he was satisfied. Finally, he went to the bed and grabbed his papers with the plans and headed downstairs. Ten minutes later, Lance arrived. Josh opened the door, and he smiled when he saw that Lance was holding flowers. �Hey Josh,� Lance said, stepping inside. �Hey Lance,� Josh replied. �I�m hoping those aren�t for Leah.� �Not this time,� Lance teased with a smile, handing the flowers to Josh. Josh brought them to his face and inhaled, unable to stop smiling. �They smell wonderful, Lance.� �I was hoping you�d like them,� Lance said, taking off his coat and hanging it over a chair nearby. �I do, very much. Come on in,� Josh told Lance, leading him to the kitchen. He got out a vase from the cabinet and put the flowers in, arranging them carefully. �Happy anniversary, baby,� Lance whispered, coming up behind him and wrapping his arms around Josh�s waist. �Same to you,� Josh replied, turning in Lance�s arms once he finished with the flowers. He smiled softly before leaning in closer so that their lips met. �Mmm, so good,� Lance murmured as they broke their kiss. �Uh huh,� Josh agreed. �So, do you want dinner?� �Yeah,� Lance replied, his stomach growling at the same time. They both laughed as Josh went to get the phone. I had no time to make something, so I thought we�d just get something delivered. I hope that�s ok,� Josh said. �Of course it�s ok,� Lance assured him, and they decided to get Chinese. Once Josh had ordered, they moved into the living room, both carrying their drinks Josh had gotten for them. Josh sat down on the couch, and Lance sat next to him, their bodies automatically melting into each other. They sat together in silence for a while, loving the feel of the person next to them. Finally, the doorbell broke them out of their silence, and Josh got up to get the door. He came back with a big bag of Chinese food in hand, and motioned for Lance to follow him to the kitchen. He set the bag down on the table and went to get dishes and silverware. Lance unpacked the food while Josh set the table and lit a few candles around the room. He turned off the lights when Lance was seated and sat down beside him. �It�s beautiful, Josh,� Lance commented, looking around the room. �So are you,� Josh replied, blushing a little when he realized what he�d said. �Thank you,� Lance whispered, blushing a little. He leaned close to Josh and kissed him on the cheek. �But I�m not the only beautiful one in here.� Josh smiled as they began to eat. They didn�t say much, but they didn�t have to. Josh loved the times where they sat together in silence, or ate together in silence. It was so peaceful. So wonderful. He felt so� loved. He hoped that that was how Lance felt, or he knew he�d be very embarrassed soon when he told Lance he loved him. He put that thought out of his head, and turned to looked at his angel. His soft blonde spikes were tousled, and it looked like he�d gone without gel. His pale skin glowed in the candlelight, and, when he turned to look a Josh, his beautiful green eyes sparkled. Once they�d finished dinner, Lance was ready to help clean up. But Josh had something else he wanted to do, and finally, he was able to convince Lance to leave the dishes. �Come with me, Lance, I have a surprise for you,� Josh whispered in Lance�s ear. He held Lance�s hand and led him into the room that held his piano and a desk where he often wrote his songs. Lance gasped as he realized what Josh was going to do. Well, what he thought Josh might do. He knew that Josh hadn�t played the piano or sang for anyone but Joey and Leah, so he knew it was going to be very special. He was curious as to what Josh was going to play/sing for him. He followed as Josh brought him over to the piano. He sat down on the bench, pulling Lance to his side. He dropped Lance�s hand and settled his hands on the keys. And started playing the most beautiful song Lance had ever heard. Then, he started to sing, looking into Lance�s eyes. It�s amazing how you can speak right to my heart Without saying a word you can light up the dark Try as I may I could never explain What I hear when you don�t say a thing Lance�s eyes welled up with happy tears as he watched Josh sing with more passion than he could ever have imagined. He was so touched that Josh would write a song for him and then sing it for him on their two-month anniversary. He continued to watch and listen as Josh played and sang. The smile on your face lets me know that you need me There�s a truth in your eyes sayin� you�ll never leave me The touch of your hand says you�ll catch me if I ever fall You say it best when you say nothing at all Lance couldn�t agree with the words of the song more. He and Josh had spent countless hours just looking, staring at each other, into each other�s souls, not saying a word. Just by glancing at Josh, he could tell how he felt. And he always knew what to do, he always seem to do the right thing to make Josh feel better. And day long I can hear people talking out loud But when you hold me near, you drown out the crowd Old Mr. Webster could never define What�s being said between your heart and mine Josh watched Lance watch him as he sang, and his eyes mirrored Lance�s own. They were both filled with unshed tears. But they were tears of happiness, tears of� love? Josh hoped so. He looked deep into Lance�s eyes, and thought he saw love. But he knew that he wouldn�t know for sure how Lance felt until he said the words. Josh smiled up at Lance, feeling with his entire being that Lance would say the words back. The smile on your face lets me know that you need me There�s a truth in your eyes sayin� you�ll never leave me The touch of your hand says you�ll catch me if I ever fall You say it best when you say nothing at all Lance watched as the most beautiful smile formed on Josh�s face as he sang. The beautiful man, with a beautiful smile, was creating the most beautiful sounds, and had the most beautiful voice. Lance wasn�t sure what he did to deserve this man, but he was so thankful to have him. The smile on your face lets me know that you need me There�s a truth in your eyes sayin� you�ll never leave me The touch of your hand says you�ll catch me if I ever fall You say it best when you say nothing at all Josh smiled softly at Lance as he finished the song and the piano faded out. He only had one more thing to do. He pulled Lance down to sit with him on the bench and whispered three beautiful words. �I love you.� Lance�s eyes widened. Song Credit: �When You Say Nothing At All� � Alison Krauss |