Some Alone Time

After Victor's arrest, Peter was busier than he had ever been before at the District Attorney's office. Johnny tried to help as much as he could but after a few days he started to feel neglected. This surprised him since he had never considered himself as the clingy type. It was usually his boyfriends or partners who wanted more attention, which usually led to the inevitable break-up.

Peter had been working long hours and didn't want to wake Johnny up so he had suggested that they each sleep at their respective homes, but Johnny insisted that Peter come home to him at the penthouse just to be safe. That's what he said, and it was true, but the real reason he wanted Peter to come to him was because he missed him so much during the day. He knew how important Peter's work against Victor was, so he didn't want to interfere with it. At the same time, however, he was missing Peter to the point where it was distracting him from his own work. This was such a new feeling for him that he didn't know what to do with it.

The situation came to a head about a week after Victor's arrest. Peter had come in around midnight again and was trying to sneak into bed without waking Johnny. He didn't know that Johnny was already awake until he turned over and said, "Hey."

"Hey yourself," Peter responded as he scooted next to Johnny.

Johnny wrapped an arm around Peter who then asked, "Why are you still awake?"

"I don't know," Johnny replied, even though he did know.

Peter kissed Johnny and whispered, "I know I should want you to be getting a good rest but I've missed you so I'm a little glad you're still up."

"Hmmm," was all Johnny said in response, which made Peter lift his head.

"Hmmm is all you've got to say?," Peter asked with a frown.

Johnny sighed and removed the arm that was around Peter, putting it instead over his eyes.

Peter probed further, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," Johnny answered.

Peter reached over and removed Johnny's arm so it was no longer covering his eyes. Then he moved on top of Johnny, so he was all on fours hovering over him. Looking straight into his eyes, he said, "I know it's not nothing. I'm not budging until you tell me."

Instead of saying anything, Johnny reached up and pulled Peter into a hug. He held Peter like that for several moments. Peter could hear Johnny's rapid heartbeat against his ear. He grew worried but decided to give Johnny the time he needed to let him know what was wrong.

When Johnny still hadn't said anything for a little while, Peter said, "You're starting to scare me. Did something bad happen?"

"Sorry. No, it's nothing bad," Johnny replied.

"You know you can tell me anything," Peter reassured.

Johnny sighed, "I don't want to make a big deal about it because I know you're busy for a good cause, one that we've all been working years toward."

"So then?...," Peter trailed off hoping Johnny would fill in the rest and he did.

"I miss you, okay? It's nothing earth shattering," Johnny said flatly.

Peter raised his head and gave his partner a big smile, "Is that all? Geeze Louise, I thought something terrible had happened to your family or mine."

Johnny shifted so that Peter fell off of him.

"Hey, what was that for?," Peter huffed. In the darkness, he could tell that it was serious though.

With another sigh, Johnny said, "I don't want to push you away, alright?"

"I'm confused," Peter contemplated. "Why would you missing me push me away?"

"I don't know. I don't know why I feel this way and it's frustrating. I mean, it hasn't even been a week that you've been working overtime but somehow I miss you," Johnny answered.

Peter wrapped his arms around Johnny's waist and leaned his head on his shoulder. "That's a good thing my little dimple cheeks. I would be worried if you didn't miss me," he told Johnny.

Johnny chuckled, "Dimple cheeks?"

"Oh yah," Peter started to explain. "I was talking to Selene about pet names for our significant others and I decided to call you that."

"But I don't have dimples," Johnny began and then a light bulb went off above his head like in cartoons and he let out an "ohhhhh." He laughed, "I don't think this is a name to be said outside the two of us since no one needs to know about my backside." Johnny had two dimples, one above each butt cheek. Even though they hadn't had sex, Peter had seen them once when Johnny came out of the shower with only a towel around his waist. The towel had accidentally fallen when Johnny reached up to grab a shirt in the closet.

Peter smiled, "So what should I call you in public then?"

"I don't know. I'm not an expert on this sort-of stuff," Johnny responded.

"You're no fun," Peter declared with a pout.

"Okay, it's late," Johnny said as he laid them both back down. "We can think of something tomorrow."

They cuddled for a bit and then Peter suggested that they have lunch that day (it was past midnight, so it was technically that day).

"Are you sure you have time," Johnny questioned.

"I have to eat, you know. And besides. Like I said, I miss you too," Peter whispered.

Johnny gave him a kiss and soon they were both asleep.

That week was also busy for Max and Lucy, but, of course, they were busy having fun. With Victor arrested, Lucy felt a burden lifted off her shoulders. Even though the trip had been enjoyable, there was always something in the back of her mind that was worrying for her friends. The day of the arrest, she felt that she could finally and truly relax.

They decided to spend about five days on the island of Paros since no trip to Greece could be complete without a visit to one of the islands. Even though Santorini was a tourist favorite, both Lucy and Max agreed that they wanted something more low-key so that they could relax.

The trip required a ferry ride, during which Lucy became seasick. Having Max take care of her just made Lucy fall even more in love with him.

They spent most of their time on the beach but decided to do one "touristy" thing a day. For a small island, Paros had a surprisingly large number of sites to see. Between museums, churches, and various sanctuaries, there was plenty to keep them occupied.

On the ferry back to Athens, Max and Lucy were quietly sitting next to each other, when Lucy asked, "So what was your favorite part of the island?"

"Hmm, I'm not sure. What was yours?," Max asked back.

Lucy didn't hesitate, "I definitely enjoyed laying out on the beach, but I think my favorite was Mycenaean Acropolis, not only because it dated to 13 century BCE, which is just so cool, but also because of the gorgeous view."

Max's favorite was the beach because he loved seeing Lucy smile and laugh as they played in the ocean. But he didn't know how to tell her that for fear it would come out too sappy. So instead, he said, "I liked the beach too."