From Silas
( Silas' Gifts )

Two days after they met, Silas was invited to Juan Pedro's brother's church. He'd been so in need of confession and absolution and a congregational community, and this…was exactly what he'd needed. He tried to refuse dinner, but Mama Ramos, as she insisted on being called, would hear nothing of it. When he left at long last, Silas bowed his head, ( Read more... )

Pride was a sin. Silas knew it, but he couldn't help it. The colors and cut of his suit were perfect, and instead of looking like he was aging three years for every three months in office, he just looked…distinguished. He was silvering at the temples, a little, but it didn't look bad. He looked good, and it had his spine straighter and shoulders ( Read more... )

"Happy birthday," he was told when his eyes cracked open at the smell of bacon and fresh coffee. Was it his birthday? Silas couldn't be sure anymore. He'd lost count of the days, so busy with work lately. There was more paper coming across his desk this quarter than ever before, at least according to his memory ( Read more... )

It was just too hot for a full suit. Silas knew it, and so did everyone else, and yet he'd made a valiant attempt, only to sweat through his undershirt and button-down in next to no time. Fortunately, he kept spare clothes in his office, so he could change easily ( Read more... )

It wasn't often that Silas stayed home on Sundays. Wasn't often that Juan Pedro stayed home with him on Sundays, either, but today Silas just wanted to stay in bed with his lover, curled up and pretending to sleep just so that those warm arms would stay secure around his waist ( Read more... )

With a smile, Silas bathes Arachne. She's too tiny for the bathtub, really, so he's got her supported against his body with his arm around her while he delicately cleans her skin via sink. There's not much fussing, not much squirming, as long as grandpa's got her, and he's grateful for that ( Read more... )

It’s not enough to think about how hard the road here has been, or how far he still has to walk before he can finally rest. And it certainly isn’t enough to wish that things could be different, that those lost could come back and try again, and guide him on his path ( Read more... )

It doesn’t matter how tired a Diamond is, how much a Diamond wishes he could stay in bed, refuse to acknowledge the world, and simply try again tomorrow, or maybe not. It doesn’t matter how much it hurts to think, or to breathe, or to try to sleep, or to eat. Nothing can ever be amiss ( Read more... )

It’s almost normal, now, for him to wake up in the pile of blankets in the space that Cadogan shares with Adrien. Usually, he wakes up alone, but sometimes - sometimes, there’s another thin man beside him, warm and bony and such a great friend ( Read more... )