15 Like Sugar | Chapter Fifteen

The rest of dinner had an awkward air about it. Darnell and Yves had spoken to each other and exchanged numbers before the older men got back, and it seemed Jared and Austin had a talk of their own.

"Call me," Yves said, kissing Darnell's cheek as the group of four stopped at Jared's car. Darnell smiled, nodding before waving off Austin and Yves as they walked in the direction of Austin's car. When they were out of sight, Darnell opened the door to the passenger seat of Jared's car, slipping in before drawing out the seat belt and wearing.

"Did you have a good time?" Jared asked as he turned on the car and heater. Darnell nodded, resting back on his seat as he played with his fingers.

"I like your friends," Darnell trailed, not really knowing whether it was accurate to call Yves Jared's friend. "Yves is nice."

"Oh." Jared's one word was filled with so much insecurity that it was impossible for Darnell not to pick up.

"As a friend," Darnell added, making Jared realize that his jealous spat had been noticed.

"I'm sorry—"

"It's alright," Darnell assured him, cutting him off as he reached out to put his hand on Jared's thigh. "I like it, actually," Darnell said in a low tone, squeezing Jared's tight before giving him a small smile. Jared blinked, his eyes moving from Darnell's face to the hand he had on his thigh. He liked that he was jealous? Was Darnell just saying things to make him better or was his being serious? Jared looked up, clearing his throat before driving the car out of the parking lot and into the main road. Darnell didn't remove his hand from Jared's thigh, and Jared had to do a lot to try and concentrate.

When they got to Jared's place, he turned off the car, and they both got out before Jared locked the door. It was late out now, probably somewhere around eleven or twelve P.M. They walked into the living room, and Darnell made a beeline for the living room's long sofa, sitting on it with a dramatic sigh as he hugged one of the throw pillows. Jared chuckled, shaking his head as he started to make his way upstairs.

"Hey, where are you going?" Darnell asked, making Jared turn back to look at him. Jared looked down at the floor, playing with the keys he had in his hands. There was something about looking at Darnell in the eyes for too long did to him.

"I'm going to take a shower," he explained, and Jared looked up when he heard footsteps. Darnell had gotten up and was now approaching him.

"Let's take one together," Darnell offered, smiling before pressing a kiss to Jared's cheek when he came up to him. They were loosely the same height. When Darnell's curls were thicker and stood up more, he even looked taller. "You don't want to?" Darnell asked when Jared didn't give him a reply. Darnell leaned away from Jared a bit so that he could look at the man's face.

"No," Jared said, turning his gaze to the floor. "It's not that. I'm just a little shocked," Jared muttered, rubbing the back of his neck. He wasn't sure why he was acting like he was. He had seen Darnell naked many times — a handful of nights a week to be specific. So why did he feel the offer was a little more intimate than just being naked in the shower together.

"Do you want me to share the shower with you or not?" Darnell asked, chuckling a bit. Jared blinked, realizing that he had spaced out. Darnell reached out, wrapping his hand around the man's shoulder as he hummed. "Hmm? Yes or no?" he asked, cocking his head to the side as he gave Jared a teasing look. Jared's face and body were hitting up. He wondered what had gotten into Darnell. He seemed a little more flirtatious than usual. He didn't drink, so Jared couldn't blame it on alcohol.

"Y-yes," Jared stuttered, watching as Darnell's brown eyes twinkled as the younger man undid his hands from around Jared's shoulders. Although Jared now had some space, he still felt suffocated by emotion. He didn't know why Darnell was being touchy this night, but he liked it — maybe too much, even. Jared walked up the stairs with Darnell following behind him. They made it to Jared's room and Darnell wasted no time getting out of his clothes while Jared was a little clumsy about it. He was always like this around Darnell. It was hard debating whether you really deserved to be intimate with someone when you weren't sure of your own body. It was hard when you were on the fence on them seeing your body eight times out of ten.

It was only when Darnell left for the bathroom that Jared could get out of his clothes without issues. He walked to the bathroom door, standing there and not being able to find the will to open it. He pressed his forehead on the door, listening to Darnell hummed along to the music that was playing. He took his phone in with him and had a playlist lined up.

Jared let out a sigh, taking a hold of the door handle before pulling it down and opening the door. He walked in, closing the door behind him before looking over at Darnell was under the stream of water. Jared's shower wasn't that big, but it was big enough to hold two people. It would be a tight fit, but a fit none the less. Darnell smiled, edging to the side and making space for Jared, and Jared just stood by the door, shaking like a leaf as he looked at Darnell. He wanted to move, but it was hard to will himself to.

"Come on," Darnell said with a little assuring smile, and that was enough to get Jared across the bathroom and inside the shower with him. They were so close, just half an arm's length's space away from each other. Jared tried to go about washing himself, but Darnell beat him to it, giving the man a smile as he was his back.

"What is it?" Darnell asked, leaning to the side so that he could look at Jared's face. His soapy hands were pressed on the man's back, and the sound of music mixed with pouring water filled the void of the bathroom. Jared tried to say something, but a small whimper left his lips instead. His face was red, and he was shaking a bit, nervous with the way Darnell was pressing himself close to him.

Darnell managed to make Jared turn his head, and he took the opportunity to catch his lips, kissing the man as he pressed himself against his back and massaged his shoulders. Darnell managed to get Jared to turn, and soon his hands were around Jared's shoulder as they faced each other while they kissed.

Darnell broke the kiss, moving to kiss Jared's cheek, neck, and shoulders until he slowly got down on his knees. Jared gulped, reaching out to hold on to the man's hair as Darnell took a hold of his shaft and kissed the tip before coaxing it with his tongue.

There was a low moan from Jared, then a small whimper as Darnell took him in his mouth, sucking and moving his head as he closed his eyes. Darnell's eyes fluttered open as he looked up at Jared, taking him in as deep as he possibly could, pulling his mouth away before he could trigger a gag reflex. He heaved a bit, rubbing off the trail of spit on his face. He chuckled, looking up at Jared again.

"Not very graceful, was it?" he joked, getting up on his feet as a glint uncertainty flashed through his eyes.

"It was," Jared muttered, taking a step forward and closing the space between them. "Everything you do is graceful," he went on, not caring that a lot could be read into his words. The simple act of baring himself made Darnell lick his lips before leaning in to kiss him again. He wished he could say more — he could tell Darnell he loved him and that he wanted them to be together, but even the way Darnell was flirting with him wasn't enough to spike his confidence to that level.

"I was supposed to be the one flirting with you, not the other way around," Darnell said, breaking the kiss.

"You were flirting with me?" Jared blinked, a bit surprised that he had gotten something right. He had guessed it, but he had been a little on the edge.

"You didn't notice?" Darnell asked, pouting.

"No, I did. I just thought—" Jared paused, not having the words to finish the sentence. What did he think? That Darnell couldn't possibly be flirting with him? That he was probably imagining things?

"Babe?" Darnell called, bringing Jared out of his thoughts. The man blinked, moving to wrap his hands around Darnell's waist before pulling him closer. Jared's face was red, and his mind was filled with one sentence that bounced around like it was a spring. Darnell's flirting with me. He couldn't get it out of his head. There was something just thrilling about the realization. Something about the fact that made him feel desirable — gave him confidence.

"Dee," Jared started, determination boiling inside him. "I—" he paused, the words running away when Darnell stared at him with expectant eyes. He sighed, closing his eyes. Where had all the confidence gone?

"I'm sorry, forget I was going to say anything," he mumbled, running his fingers through his wet hair as he opened his eyes to look at Darnell. Darnell didn't seem pleased, but he nodded before reaching out to cup Jared's face in his hands. They kissed again, pressing up against each other, and backing up until Darnell's back was pressed against the shower's glass enclosure. The water was still running, and the songs on Darnell's playlist had run out. It was just them kissing under the shower now.

When they were done bathing, they shared a towel and Darnell chatted on to Jared as he texted Nathalie on his phone. Jared moved around in the background, listening to Darnell's voice as he looked for something to put on.

He walked back to his bed when he was in a pair of shorts and a loose nightshirt. Darnell looked up from his phone, putting it away when Jared took a seat beside him, his weight sinking the bed's mattress a little.

"Hmm?" Jared hummed, raising a brow in confusion at the look Darnell was giving him. It was soft and filled with an emotion he really couldn't pinpoint.

"Nothing," Darnell hummed, before putting his phone away and crawling into bed. Jared followed suit, spooning Darnell as the two stayed in silence for a bit.

"I'm not sleepy," Darnell said after a while and Jared laughed, nuzzling his hair.

"Neither am I," Jared admitted. It was two A.M. now, but that was okay because the next day was Sunday, and neither of them had to be anywhere important.

"When's your birthday?" Darnell asked out of the blue making Jared a little confused.

"December seventeenth, yours?" Jared asked, running his hand down the man's sides. Darnell rarely wore anything to sleep, and this was one of the times he was naked.

"Wednesday next week," Darnell said, and Jared went a little quiet.

"April fifth?"

"Yeah," the younger man replied in a low tone. It sounded sad, and Jared realized he probably missed something that he was supposed to get.

"Do you want me to get you a present?" he asked, thinking that maybe that was it, because what else could it be?

"You don't have to," Darnell said, his voice still low and sad sounding. "But I'd love it if you went somewhere with me," Darnell said, deciding that Jared would never take the hint himself. Jared's hand paused rubbing Darnell's side. There was silence, and Darnell was a little afraid he was going to say no.

"Sure, where?" Jared asked, making Darnell's heart race a bit.

"A flea market. I could text you the details."

Jared blinked, biting down on his bottom lip. Darnell wanted him to buy him things at the flea market? He guessed he could do that—

"It's a date so that we're clear," Darnell added, pushing up against Jared to cuddle up more. his voice was low, but it was high enough for Jared to catch his words.

A date.

"Darnell—"

"You said yes, you can't take it back," Darnell said in a firm tone. His voice was fast, and his grip on the pillow he was hugging was tight. Jared swallowed his question, not believing that Darnell had asked him that out of the blue. A date. He was asking him to go on a date. Maybe Darnell wasn't just a big flirt. Maybe, just maybe he — Jared closed his eyes. He still couldn't let his thoughts run that far. He was still afraid of embarrassing himself by jumping into conclusions. He bit down on his bottom lip, kissing Darnell's head of hair as he stayed quiet. The man didn't know what to do with himself, so he just hugged Darnell close and hoped he wouldn't change his mind when they both woke up in the morning.