Blaize peered at the other man with admiration. He could have felt like he was being scolded but if that was the case, it wasn’t a lesson that he was going to rebel against. Blaize was no longer a stubborn teenager who would rail against authority. He was a grown man – a confident one who didn’t like to be told he was wrong, but if he was wrong he could handle it. He could nod, and set his jaw. Yes – he was good enough to get around the hurdles. He was a ******* superstar. If their schedules didn’t fit his, then they could change their schedules.
Although Lyonel wasn’t giving Blaize the choice, Blaize nevertheless accepted, wordlessly, the invitation to stay. Truth be told, he didn’t want to go home to be alone. This was a life changer. Nothing was going to be the same and the man whose house he was in was the one who’d done it. They were in this together. They were connected, and when Lyonel left the room it felt like something was missing.
It was an odd sensation, to feel so beholden to someone else. But Blaize didn’t dwell on it. He instead relished the odd sensation, even looked forward to it. Poking at it only made him squirm and he didn’t like uncertainties. He was certain that Lyonel was a good man, he was certain that he felt good in Lyonel’s presence, and that was all there was to it. It was a fact, and it did not need to be dragged out and into the light.
And so Blaize stayed at Lyonel’s; he stayed that day and the day after, and the day after that. He stayed until he had no more questions, and even then he stayed more often than not. If not at Lyonel’s, then at the West penthouse. ‘Home’ became something different, something new. Something that actually meant something. Home had always only been a place to sleep but now it was a place to be. Not that Blaize really knew it, or admitted to it.
Life turning on its head didn’t kill Blaize’s determination, and his focus. For one minute he had slipped, his focus had wavered, his confidence had taken a blow. But one sound lecture – and he got it all back again. That, and more.
Although Lyonel wasn’t giving Blaize the choice, Blaize nevertheless accepted, wordlessly, the invitation to stay. Truth be told, he didn’t want to go home to be alone. This was a life changer. Nothing was going to be the same and the man whose house he was in was the one who’d done it. They were in this together. They were connected, and when Lyonel left the room it felt like something was missing.
It was an odd sensation, to feel so beholden to someone else. But Blaize didn’t dwell on it. He instead relished the odd sensation, even looked forward to it. Poking at it only made him squirm and he didn’t like uncertainties. He was certain that Lyonel was a good man, he was certain that he felt good in Lyonel’s presence, and that was all there was to it. It was a fact, and it did not need to be dragged out and into the light.
And so Blaize stayed at Lyonel’s; he stayed that day and the day after, and the day after that. He stayed until he had no more questions, and even then he stayed more often than not. If not at Lyonel’s, then at the West penthouse. ‘Home’ became something different, something new. Something that actually meant something. Home had always only been a place to sleep but now it was a place to be. Not that Blaize really knew it, or admitted to it.
Life turning on its head didn’t kill Blaize’s determination, and his focus. For one minute he had slipped, his focus had wavered, his confidence had taken a blow. But one sound lecture – and he got it all back again. That, and more.
