Chapter 2: Feelings

The interaction between the two was always smooth, fluid, as if they were a liquid or a gas when with each other. Their touches, caresses. Like a creek flowing gently over stones in its bed of soil.

'Charlie, ' Jeff said with a smile.

The other man raised an eyebrow over the book he was reading. 'Yeah?' He didn't put anything past Jeff, so he stayed put for the time being.

'Aw, c'mon, stop bein' such a worry wart, ' Jeff grinned. 'It's nothin' bad, promise.'

Charlie simply shook his head with a chuckle and a small laugh. 'Yeah, well... What's up?'

Hardy shrugged a shoulder and walked over to Charlie, crouching in front of him, hands over Charlie's knees. 'Nothin'. Just wanna be over here. That's all.'

Charlie set his book down on the end table next to the chair he was sitting in, and then slid down out of the chair, sitting cross-legged on the floor in front of Jeff. Raising a gentle hand to Jeff's jawline, he ran his thumb over his cheek. 'Always did like your accent.' He tilted his head, a half-grin slipping over his expression.

Jeff laughed, his own expression sheer amusement. 'You're silly sometimes, y'know that?' His southern drawl became more prominently so. He figured if Charlie liked it so much, he'd make it more noticeable.

'You are just as much.' He looked into Jeff's eyes, his own sparkling slightly as he looked back and forth between them. 'But you make it work one helluva lot better than I ever could.'

Jeff laughed again in response. 'But I think it's cute when you try to be silly.'

'And when I fail at it?'

Jeff shrugged. 'It doesn't matter whether you succeed or fail. You're bein' you. That's what matters to me.' His hand came up to stroke Charlie's face now, looking at him with such pure and raw passion and emotion that he didn't know what else to say, but couldn't contain it at the same time. His voice lowered to a whisper. 'Sometimes... there's just so much I wanna say to you.'

Charlie nuzzled his jaw into Jeff's hand. 'Like what?'

A shrug. 'I dunno. Just... Stuff, I guess.'

Charlie chuckled, smiling some. 'It's not just stuff if you wanna say it and you can't.'

'I... '

Still smiling.

'I... I got feelin's for you. You know that, though. It's just... '

An eyebrow arched slightly, but not mockingly.

'I dunno how to put it. That's all.'

Charlie nodded. 'That's cool. I know what you mean, though.' He laughed, nervously, this time. 'Can't say I haven't really felt the same myself.'

Jeff, taken aback, just stared at Charlie, withdrawing slightly. 'Whaddya mean?' He cocked his head slightly.

He shrugged a shoulder. 'I guess I'm in the same boat as you. Don't really know how to put it.' He shook his head. 'I want to say what I'm feeling, it's just... how do you put something like that into words, really? I don't know you can.'

Jeff smiled brightly, warmly. 'Well, I say we work on that sometime.'

Charlie returned the smile with one of his own and a nod. 'We will.'

Jeff grinned now, but then said, 'In the meantime, I think I'm going to borrow you for the day.'

Laughing, Charlie nodded. 'All right, then, sounds good to me.'

Jeff stood, and extended a hand. Charlie took it, and Jeff helped him up, then wrapped his arms around his waist, head slightly tilted again. 'I think I've got about the best way I can put it.'

'How's that?'

A whisper, now, almost inaudible, 'Ain't ever met no one else I felt like this about. That's the truth.'

His words were returned with a nod, and a gentle kiss, then a whisper, 'And I'm still in the same boat.'