1 The Present

Ivan Fitzgerald unlocked the front door to his suburban home. A simple single story, three bedroom, two bath home in an upper middle class neighborhood in southeast Texas. The city of Houston was a forty-five minute drive to downtown if the traffic on I-45 was down to a minimal, which often time wasn't the case.

The city of Tomball was set in a suburb of northwest Houston, a German settled town dating back to the eighteen hundreds; with a population of less than twelve thousand.

Upon entering Ivan was greeted by a low growl; the house was dark. "Easy girl," he said, flipping on the light in the foyer.

The one hundred and twenty pound Irish Wolfhound-Great Pyrenees mix went from deathly serious to happy puppy in an instant. Ivan smiled as he bent down at the waist, scratching behind her ears. "Where's Daddy, huh? Is he asleep already?" Ivan stood, crossing through the living room and down the short hallway to the bedroom he shared with his partner (he hated the term boyfriend). He entered and smiled.

Corbin McCollum lay curled under the covers, his knees drawn up to his chest, his arms bent at the elbow, tucked against his chest. Ivan watched him sleep. He smiled at the sight, but as always there was a familiar pang against his soul that accompanied it. A pang he had yet to quite figure out. A mystery he was determined to understand.

They'd been together now three years and they'd been collectively the best three years of his twenty-eight. He knew there was a dark secret Corbin kept tightly under wraps and close to him. Closed off and locked away, unable or unwilling to divulge the information. What was the reason behind the ever present sadness that never seemed to fade? Why did he sometimes catch him staring at him with a look he can never quite put a label on when he thought Ivan wasn't paying attention?

Ivan slowly undressed before crawling into bed next to Corbin. He'd learned over the years to be wary of Corbin while asleep. Normally jumpy and prone to nightmares and night terrors, he often fought in the throws of sleep. He gently laid his fingers against his upper arm, working his thumb in soft motions.

"My sweet, I'm home." He kissed the shoulder his hand rested against. Corbin responded with a sleepy smile before flipping around, circled his arm around Ivan's side, snuggled into his chest. Ivan smiled, running his fingers through Corbin's curly, blond hair. "Hi, my sweet love. I missed you, too." He checked his watch, rubbed his eyes. The analogue clock fastened round his wrist read 2:05. He sighed. He was thankful he had the day off the next two days. He needed it. He needed the forty-eight hours to recoup and attempt at getting this damn case off his mind. After five months they had yet to catch little more than fleeting, circumstantial evidence, and nothing to tie it to the main suspect. It was wearing at him. Pulling Corbin closer he closed his eyes and tried to concentrate on the feeling of having his love in his arms as sleep overcame him.

When he woke the sun was making its way across the sky, though he could tell by the light coming in through the blinds that it hadn't made it too far yet. The space next to him was empty, the sheets cold. Ivan rubbed his eyes and throwing his legs over the side of the bed, stood. As he padded down the hallway he followed the smell of breakfast to the kitchen.

Corbin had his back to him as he entered the kitchen, his visual focus trained on the skillet in front of him. Ivan hugged him, chest to back, and kissed the back of Corbin's neck. Corbin smiled, melting into Ivan with a contented sigh.

"Good morning, beautiful. Been awake long?" Ivan held him for a moment before dropping his arms and stepping back.

Corbin shrugged as he picked up the spatula. "An hour, or so. Long enough to shower and what not and make breakfast. Which is ready, by the way, so I hope you're hungry."

Ivan smiled as he grabbed two plates from the cabinet. "Starving. I was hungry when I got home, but I was more tired than hungry and just wanted to curl up with you and get some sleep."

They sat down at the kitchen table, conversing through their meal. "Hard night?"

Ivan nodded. "This case. There's something I'm missing and I can't put my finger on it." He shook his head. "I don't wanna think about it for the next two days. It's all I've been think about lately. Let's do something. I wanna relax for a bit. Get away."

Corbin took a drink of his apple juice. "Where would you like to go?"

Ivan shrugged. "What about the beach house? We haven't been able to get out there in months. And it's August. Weather is forecasted to be bright and sunny." He smiled.

Corbin returned the grin. "Sounds like fun. We can eat and pack up. We should wait until the morning rush has cleared on 45 though and try and beat the worst of the lunch rush."

Ivan grinned like a school boy who was excited to be allowed to skip school. "Ha. It doesn't matter what time of day it is, there will always be traffic on 45. Takes half an hour to go half a mile."

Corbin chuckled. "Yes, well, maybe if we beat the large part of the rush, it'll only take twenty minutes to go half a mile."

"Smart ass," Ivan laughed. "It's true though."

They finished breakfast amicably with silly banter and laughter before heading to their room and gathering enough clothes to last their trip to the beach.

With their things and the dog loaded, they set out traveling first down highway 249 before turning south on Interstate 45 toward Galveston.

Upon reaching the Sea Wall almost two hours later (due to traffic on I-45) Corbin said, "You hungry? I kinda want some Sonic before we jump on the ferry."

"Yeah that sounds good, actually. What about you, Juno? Need to pee, girl?" The dog wagged her tail in affirmation.

Corbin loved the smell of the sea air and rolled his window down to enjoy it. Turning off the AC, Ivan followed suit. Instantly, along with the saltwater air, the scalding heat flowed into the cab of the Chevy truck. Corbin smiled as the sunlight hit his face, closing his eyes.

Ivan smiled to himself before reaching over and lacing his fingers through Corbin's. They ordered their lunch, allowed Juno to do her business, and ate.