Chapter 59

Art bounced into the dorm room, very early the next morning. �Come on guys!� he said cheerfully, �I know you�re tired, but we have to get up now!�
Ash sat bolt upright in bed, �Why?� he asked excitedly, �What are we doing today?�
Marcus groaned, and rolled over so his face was buried in Fergie�s chest, �Less speaking,� he mumbled, �more sleep.�
Fergie grinned, and, placing a gentle hand underneath his boyfriends chin, tilted his face to see him better, before kissing him tenderly on the mouth. �You�re adorable.� He whispered.
�You�re soppy.� Muttered Tor from the bunk above them.
�Love you,� Marcus muttered, but returning to snuggling into Fergie, to avoid the light getting to his eyes.
�What are we doing?� Ash asked for the second time
�Come on guys,� Andi popped her head around the door, �Lets see you getting up, we�ve got quite a way to travel today.�
�What are we doing?� Ash asked for the third and final time, getting really rather irate.
Andi laughed, �We�re going ice-skating,� she said.
Marcus fell out of bed.
Andi blushed to see him, clad only in his boxers, lying on his back, sprawled across the floor.
�Serious?� he asked, grinning.
She nodded.
Marcus grinned up at Fergie, �Awesome.�
�So dress warm,� Art said with a grin, �And be prepared to make a fool out of yourself.�
They all crammed into two minibuses, their swimming stuff with them, most of them dressed in really warm clothing. Apart from Marcus and Mara. She was wearing a short skirt and a thin jumper, he was wearing a pair of jeans and a very tight t-shirt.
Fergie smiled and slipped his arms around his boyfriends waist, �You look utterly huggable in that t-shirt.�
Marcus wrinkled up his nose as he agreed, �Yep, and really gay.�
�I think,� Fergie whispered in his ear, �What makes you look gay, is me, with my arms around you.�
Seiji leant back in his chair, stretching his legs out in front of him as much as he could, he hated bus journeys, there was never enough room for his long legs, and this journey seemed to be dragging on for far too long.
They arrived at the leisure complex (*wink wink*) about an hour and a half later, gratefully tumbling out of the minibuses, fed up of being cramped and feeling car sick.
Marcus was beginning to bounce from one foot to the other in excitement, hardly able to pay attention to anyone other than himself he was so keyed up. His great mood only heightened when he found out that the school had rented the whole ice-rink for a session, so there wouldn�t be anyone else on the ice. As the gates were opened he was first on the ice, getting his footing immediately as he slid out to the centre of the ice, going straight into a spin on one leg, gradually bending his supporting knee in a perfect move. Laughing, he straightened up and skated gracefully over to where Fergie stood nervously on the edge of the ice, �I�ve been needing that.� He said.
Fergie�s face was a picture of surprise, �I didn�t know you could skate.� He said, astonished.
Marcus shrugged, brushing off the comment lightly as he said, �I used to skate for Italy when I was younger, with Bianca.�
�Really?� Mara stuttered, overhearing.
Marcus nodded proudly, grinning at her, never missing the opportunity to boast to all the girls who were now listening, �We were the under nine European champions.�
�Wow!� Mara�s eyes widened, �that�s so cool, you�re such a talented person.�
Fergie didn�t need to look at Tor to know that a frown was forming on his brow. He reached out and hugged his brother with one arm, using the other to firmly grip onto the wall surrounding the rink, he really wasn�t comfortable standing on these thin blades.
Tor smiled at him, �thank you,� he whispered, quiet enough for only Fergie to hear.
Marcus turned to Tor, knowing that his boyfriend�s twin probably wasn�t going to take his next request well. �Can I take your girlfriend for a skate?� he asked.
Tor frowned, still clinging tightly on to the edge of the rink, and watched Mara, who was actually not a bad skater, starting to whiz around the rink. He shrugged, and nodded, knowing that Fergie would intervene if Marcus started to go too far with Mara.
Marcus skated confidently across the rink, and took Mara by the hand. �Come on gorgeous,� he whispered, �Let�s show them how real people skate.� He took her gently by the hand, and started to pick up his speed. Within minutes they were whizzing around the rink, looking very professional.
�I hate it,� Tor whispered to Fergie as they both inched their way around the very edge of the rink, �He suits her better than I do, they look like more of a couple.�
Fergie glanced across at them, just in time to see Marcus swing Mara over his head in a lift, before putting her back on the ice. He shrugged, �I don�t know, I think you and Mara look better together.�
Marcus glanced across to where the twins were stood and whispered something in Mara�s ear, before skating smoothly over to Fergie, and grabbing him by the hand, �You come skate with me now.� He said.
�No,� Fergie protested softly, �You�re brilliant, and I�m not. You go off and have fun,� he grinned at his boyfriend, �I�m more than happy clinging to the side anyway.� He laughed.
Marcus shook his head defiantly, �I love you,� he said stubbornly, �And I love skating. Why can�t the two go together?� he reached forward and grabbed both of Fergie�s hands, �I�m teaching you to skate,� he told him determinedly.
Clenching tightly onto Marcus� outstretched hands, Fergie stepped tentatively onto the ice, wobbling slightly as he did so.
�It�s ok� Marcus reassured him, �I�ve got you.�
After an hour of ice-skating, which Marcus protested wasn�t nearly long enough, the kids all traipsed off to go swimming, their muscles aching.
Quietly, subtly, as they all lined up outside the swimming centre, Nienna approached Art. �Um, Art,� she said softly, speaking in a low voice.
Art inclined his head towards her, being over six foot tall he often had to stoop to talk to people. �Yes?�
Nienna blushed slightly, �Um, I can�t swim,� she said subtly, but putting a stress on the word �swim� so he�d know what she really meant.
�Aw,� Art put a hand on her shoulder, �Now I�m sure that�s not true,� he said sweetly, �And you can always just stay in the shallow end,� he added, predictably not getting the point.
Nienna blushed an even darker crimson, and suppressed a giggle, wondering how exactly to explain to Art about her �womanly troubles,� knowing (from half a term�s worth of sex ed with him) that he knew nothing about girls.
Fortunately Andi had noticed the situation and rushed in to save the day. She whispered something in Art�s ear.
�Ah, oh, right,� Art stammered, blushing a fierce fiery red. �Well, uhm,� he seemed completely lost for words.
�Shall I just watched instead?� Nienna suggested.
Andi nodded her approval and let Nienna return to her friends before Art turned to her.
�Oh,� he said softly, �I never know�� he trailed of pathetically.
Andi patted him on the shoulder, �You�re gay,� she said in explanation, �And you�re very good at being gay.�
Half way through swimming, Ally said in a pointed voice to mike, �I�m just going to the changing rooms to find my goggles, I�ll be back soon.� Before leaving.
He hadn�t got any goggles with him, instead he just sat patiently on the bench in the changing room, waiting for his boyfriend to appear. The second Mikey did, Ally slammed him against the wall, smashing their mouths together.
�This is not fair,� he stammered breathlessly, �I can�t do this, with you in your swimming shorts, and me not allowed to touch you.�
Seiji was hidden away in a corner with Art, snuggling into his boyfriends arms, �I feel naked,� he said softly.
Art sniggered slightly, being really unsympathetic, �You nearly are naked,� he grinned.
Seiji scowled at him, and considered swimming away from him, but that would mean that everyone would be able to see him in those damn swimming shorts, so he just hugged Art tighter, and buried his face in his chest, refusing to look at him.
Above the pool, Nienna and Fergie sat, watching from a balcony. For the most part, they sat in silence, until Fergie turned to Nienna.
�Why do you hate me?� he asked her bluntly.
She shrugged slightly, �I still can�t believe what you did to Mara last half term.� She said simply, not looking him in the eye, �I thought it was so harsh!�
Fergie frowned for a minute, trying to remember what he�d supposedly done, before laughing, �Oh, having sex with her?� he grinned, �It�s a twin thing, we share everything.�
Nienna scowled, not wanting to believe him, �So he�s slept with Marcus has he?�
Fergie shook his head, �Not yet. I wouldn�t complain if he did though.�
But Nienna refused to give in to his somewhat twisted logic, �You�re such a prick,� she muttered, thinking she was the only in her year to think that.
Fergie nodded silently, before realising she wasn�t looking at her, �I am a prick,� he agreed, �It�s something people don�t get about us, Tor�s actually the nice one, and I�m really fairly messed up.� He grinned to himself, �Marcus understands that.�
�Where is he anyway?� Nienna glanced down the pool below them.
Fergie shrugged, �Probably in the Jacuzzi with one of the girls,� he grinned.
His statement was affirmed by Marcus walking out from behind the fake palm trees that hid the Jacuzzi, with his arms around Andi.
�Andi,� Fergie sighed, rolling his eyes and pretending to look fed up, but genuinely not minding, just leaning forward to catch a glimpse of what his boyfriend was doing.
Marcus slipped his arms around Andi�s nearly naked waist, pressing his lips against hers. Feeling her body relax against his he smirked slightly to himself, as he slipped his tongue between her lips, walking very slowly, walking her backwards, pushing her backwards, pushing her�into the pool. She fell in with a resounding splash, and Marcus turned around and grinned at Fergie, mouthing the words �I love you.�
Fergie grinned slightly, as he leant back in his chair.
When he had finished counting the kids back onto the bus, glad that he hadn�t lost any, Art turned to Seiji. �I�m just gonna go check on Fergie,� he said softly. �See if he�s ok.�
�No,� Seiji said simply, grabbing Art by the hand and pulling him into the seat beside him, �He�s fine, stay with me.�
�Uh, no.� Art said firmly, pulling away from his boyfriend, �He probably needs his bandages re-doing.� He stood up, �I�m going to go and see him.� Unfortunately for Art, he hadn�t reckoned on his boyfriend�s strength, he found himself being forced back into his seat, Seiji�s arms around his waist.
�You stay here,� Seiji whinged slightly.
Art pulled away from him for a second time with a jerk, �Stop being so needy,� he muttered, wandering off to find Fergie before Seiji could react. He stayed in a bad mood with him for the rest of the day�however something must have happened over night because at breakfast the next day, for the first time ever, Art sat with the lower sixth, a lazy arm around Seiji�s waist.
�What are we doing today?� Ash asked, smiling sweetly at the teacher.
Art shrugged, �How mature are you guys feeling today?� he asked.
Ariadne, who had been eavesdropping, snorted, �That lot,� she laughed, �Are about as mature as a nursery school class.�
�Good,� Art said with a grin, �Because we�re going to the adventure playground today.�
The reaction of the lower sixth was clearly visible as they straightened up in their chairs, and eyes shining, turned to Art.
�Really?� Matt grinned, �that�s awesome.�
It wasn�t until after breakfast that Fergie approached Art, tugging softly on his sleeve. �Uh, Art,� he said nervously, �I�m really not reeling up to it today.�
Art hung back from the general movement of the students before pulling Fergie into a hug.
Fergie felt himself subconsciously relax into Art�s frame. He couldn�t help it if he fancied the bloke.
�You poor thing,� Art muttered into his fiery red hair, �Do you want to stay here then?�
�Yuhuh,� Fergie muttered, not wanting to seem like a drama queen, but also not wanted to let go of Art.
�Do you want someone to stay with you?� Art offered, �I can�t, because I can�t let Andi go on her own. But Tor or Marcus could stay with you.�
Fergie shrugged, �I don�t want to spoil their day.� He said softly.
Art pulled away from him, and grabbed him by the hand, �I�m sure neither of them would mind.� He led him towards the other students, �Who do you want?�
Fergie thought about it for a moment before deciding that much though he loved his twin, Marcus would probably be more comforting, given the circumstances.
Art went and gently pulled Marcus away from the group of kids standing, waiting for the coach. �Can you stay with Fergie today?� he asked, �He doesn�t want to come with us.�
Marcus nodded, looking around to find Fergie and grinning at him.
And so as the coach load of children pulled away from the school, down the drive, Fergie stood in the dorm, watching out of the window, Marcus� arms around him.
�Thank you,� he whispered softly.
Marcus grinned, �I wasn�t exactly going to leave you to suffer on your own.� He said in Fergie�s ear, �Besides, it�s a whole day without Tor glaring at me, and without annoying girls flirting with me.�
�Oh come on,� Fergie teased, drawing away from the window and turning around to face Marcus, �It�s not exactly as if you don�t flirt with them.�
Marcus shrugged, �That�s not the point.� He said with a grin, sitting down on Fergie�s bed. He reached out and pulled Fergie to him, placing him on his lap.
Fergie relaxed as he felt Marcus� arms tighten around him, holding him safe. He grinned at his boyfriend.
�So,� Marcus whispered, �A whole day to ourselves,� he grinned, �What do you want to do?�
Fergie was about to shrug nonchalantly, when he yawned massively, �Sleep,� he said reluctantly, �I�m tired.�
�Stand up,� Marcus ordered, �I�ve got an idea.� As Fergie did that, he grabbed the mattress off Fergie�s bed, and, duvet and all, dragged it onto the floor in the middle of the dorm. Then he did the same with his mattress, shoving it right next to Fergie�s before flopping down on it, and patting the space beside him.
�There,� he said with a grin, �It�s almost as if we�ve got a double bed.�
Fergie laughed, and gingerly sat down to lie beside his boyfriend.
Slowly, Marcus sidled closer, and slipped his arms around Fergie�s waist, kissing him on the cheek, �I love you,� he said simply.
Fergie turned to him, and nodded. �That�s nice.� He said, �I love you too.�
�Good,� Said Marcus and they both turned to stare at the ceiling, before bursting out laughing.
�Do you ever,� Marcus reached up a hand to softly brush Fergie�s cheek, �Do you ever think about what we�ll be like when we�re old.�
Fergie shrugged, �Do you reckon we�ll be together when we�re old?�
Nodding, Marcus nuzzled his face against Fergie�s �We�ll be all soppy, even when we�re�� he paused for effect, �as old as forty.�
A/N I am well aware I often do flashbacks, but here, as a little treat for you, is a flash forward. The year is 2031 and Marcus and Fergie are both 41 (This is what will happen)
Fergie stood in the kitchen, shirt sleeves rolled up to his elbows, arms deep in the washing-up water.
Marcus froze in the doorway, the dirty plates in his hands, and stood for a few moments watching his ex-boyfriend wash up. �I thought you might want these,� he said eventually, holding out the dirty plates.
Fergie turned around and grinned at him, making Marcus� heart flip inside him. �Thanks,� he said.
Marcus walked over and put the dishes down beside the sink, but, much to Fergie�s surprise, he didn�t go back through to the living room, where everyone else was sat, instead sitting down at the kitchen table.
�What if,� Marcus said softly, �What if I�d done something really stupid?�
Fergie froze, just for a second, before comply drying his hands on a towel and sitting down at the table with Marcus, just as he would do when one of his children came to him for advice. �What do you mean?� he asked gently.
Marcus felt unable to meet his eyes, �What if I�d hurt some-one, I�d made a mistake, do you think that person would forgive me?�
Fergie simply raised his eyebrows in question.
Marcus added, softly, almost inaudibly, �Would you forgive me?�
Fergie smiled softly, �I love you Marcus,� he whispered simply, �I�d forgive you for anything.�
Safe in that knowledge, Marcus found the strength to continue, �What if I�ve been really dumb?� What if I don�t really love Emma, and this past year has been a huge mistake? What if I still love you?� Marcus paused for breath, and looked hopefully to Fergie, �Would you take me back? Could I come home?�
Fergie took a deep breath, already hating himself for what he was about to say, �That depends on how Em feels about it.�
Marcus frowned, �I don�t love her.� He said bluntly, �I love you, and the year I�ve just spent with her has been hell.�
�But,� Fergie interrupted softly, �She�s my daughter, and I can�t let you hurt her. If you splitting up with her will break her heart then you have to stay with her. I can�t let you hurt my little girl.�
�She�s twenty two,� Marcus said sulkily.
Fergie smiled softly, and reached forward, gently pulling Marcus onto his lap, and wrapping his arms about his waist. �Ask her,� he repeated, �I�ve a sneaky suspicion she won�t mind.�
Marcus twisted around to face Fergie, �And then I can come home?�
Fergie tightened his hold around Marcus, never really wanting to let go, burying his face against Marcus� neck and letting himself relax for the first time in a year. �Of course you can come home,� he said softly, �I�ve missed you so much.�
�I�ve missed you too.�
Fergie reached out and linked his finger�s through Marcus� �Rain or shine,� he whispered, �I�ll always love you.�