The incident plagued Dom the entire way home. He kept seeing the look on Orlando's face when he'd said he'd moved in with Karl...so terrified, so fucking clueless. Why the hell couldn't Orlando see what Dom saw? Why couldn't Orlando see that Karl would take care of him, be with him? What had happened between the two of them? Nothing ever phased Orlando. Ever. Dom pondered the question as he let himself into the house, called Karl's name. "In the bedroom." He went down the hall, found Karl making up the bed. The sheer domesticity of the situation caused him to pause just inside the door. Karl, fitting sheets... It was too odd for words. Dom wondered why he had such a problem with thinking of Karl in normal terms, doing normal things. Karl looked up as he entered the room, focused those amazing eyes on him. And, again, always, the impact of them simply floored him. That Karl had chosen him was still such a mystery to him. Why not Orlando? Why not someone more beautiful, more perfect, more worthy? "What happened?" It took Dom a second to realize that Karl was speaking to him. "With what?" "With Orlando." "What do you mean?" How in the world had he known? Was he that transparent? "The look on your face. Did you and the pretty Elf argue?" "Not in the way you mean," Dom shrugged. "He was a little freaked that I'm living here now." "Yes, I can see where he would be." Dom shivered, in spite of the warmth of the room. "What happened with you and Orlando?" The words just hung there for a long beat after Dom blurted them out. Karl merely continued to look at him through emotionless eyes, body relaxed and still. "I thought we went over this already." "So, let's go over it again." Bold words, when all Dom really wanted was an assurance that Karl was sure about him, about them. Tell me why you've chosen me, tell me why I'm yours. "What did he tell you?" Karl asked, his voice mild. "Nothing. I didn't feel like talking to him about it." Another slight shrug was all the nervousness Dom would allow himself to show. "I see." Another long beat. "Would you like me to show you what I did?" Dom paused, unsure of how to reply. In the end, self-preservation won out. "No, no. I don't think that'll be necessary. I just want to know what you said to him to make him go all twitchy on me." "Such trust issues. It grows tiring. If you need to ask, then we don't need to be having this conversation. And I don't need to be here." Karl turned to leave. "Wait, don't!!" Dom panicked, felt his breath catch. Karl couldn't leave...he couldn't. "You promised. You said you'd never leave me." "I'm not leaving you. I'm leaving the room." Hazel eyes stared at him, then Karl crossed to him, brushed at the side of his face. "Such fear. I will never leave you. Why would you think that I would?" "Because everybody else has." "Why do you say that?" "Because Graham left me." The words escaped Dom's mouth before he could stop them. He paled, not knowing what the mention of another man would do to Karl, but he just smiled and continued to stroke Dom's face, his hair. "Whoever he is, he's your past. I am your now. And your future. Tell me." Dom let out a slow breath. He hadn't thought about this in so long. "It's been about three years now. I was doing "Hetty" -- Graham was another actor on the show, did a guest stint for about eight weeks. And we really hit it off. I was mad about him and thought he was mad about me. We lived together for about six months and then, one day, I woke up and all his stuff's just...gone." Dom took another long breath. Karl continued to hold him, stroke his hair. Dom rushed the next part, eager to get it said, eager to get it out in the open. "No forwarding call, no note, no nothing...just gone. Found out from a few acquaintances that he was doing theatre work in Bath. So, I went there, confronted him. He told me I was getting too serious for him, that all he'd wanted was a bit of fun and games...and he bolted when things heated up. And I learned my lesson. Then you came along." Karl smiled. "I see. I am sorry that he broke your young heart, but you do understand now why it didn't work out between the two of you, don't you?" "What do you mean?" Karl pulled Dom to him and against the wall with a lithe, controlled movement. Eyes that haunted Dom's every moment burned into him with a searing intensity. "You." Karl brushed his hand along Dom's cheek and Dom felt the familiar sensation of bliss at the touch. "Are." A soft kiss on his jaw contrasted with the sandpaper feel of Karl's unshaven chin. "Mine." Karl bit down on Dom's lower lip. "All of you. Everything." "Prove it." The silence lasted a few long heartbeats. Dom wondered what exactly was going on in Karl's mind, what he thought, what he saw. "Are you positive you need another lesson?" Karl finally said. "Be very sure of this." It seemed Dom's impulsive streak hadn't completely left him after all, because he just pulled Karl to him, leaned up and whispered, "Fucking prove it to me." Onto Part Sixteen
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