After the eventful night at the Sparrow Charity Ball, dawn quietly welcomed a brand new day.
Gentle rays of sunlight slipped through the curtains, slowly bathing Foca's bedroom in warm gold.
The moment the light kissed his face, Foca stirred.
His eyelashes fluttered.
Slowly, he opened his eyes, blinking away the last remnants of sleep.
As his vision cleared...
A small, warm smile naturally found its way onto his lips.
Beside him...
Still fast asleep...
Was Luca.
Foca simply watched him for a while.
There was something oddly peaceful about seeing Luca like this.
No teasing.
No flirting.
No playful grin.
Just... sleeping.
Quietly.
Peacefully.
Beautifully.
Luca had always been handsome.
Painfully handsome.
The kind of handsome that made people forget what they were saying halfway through a sentence.
His features looked as though someone had sculpted them with unreasonable attention to detail.
Pair that face with the body he'd worked so hard for, and it was no surprise people practically short-circuited whenever he walked into a room.
Entire undergarments had probably filed for early retirement after making eye contact with him.
And yet...
For as long as Foca had known him...
Luca had only ever looked at one person that way.
Him.
Of course, Foca had never been blind.
He'd always known Luca was attractive.
Objectively speaking, the man was well above average.
It simply... never affected him before.
But...
There was one very important difference now.
A very, very important difference.
Now, every time Foca looked at Luca...
His heart gave the tiniest squeeze.
And ridiculous thoughts suddenly wandered into his head.
Has Luca always been this handsome...?
It was honestly becoming a problem.
Not that Foca could complain too much.
After all, plenty of people would say Foca himself wasn't exactly average either.
The difference between them was amusing.
Luca knew exactly how handsome he was and wielded that knowledge like a finely sharpened weapon.
Foca, meanwhile...
Could accidentally steal someone's heart while wearing oversized pajamas, messy hair, and carrying grocery bags.
Completely oblivious.
Now...
I already know what some of y'all are thinking.
"Wait..."
"They slept in the same bed?"
"Where's the smut?"
"Where are the scandalous details?"
"Who's topping? Who's bottoming?"
"Why are we fading to black?!"
Everyone...
Calm your tits.
Nothing happened.
Well...
Nothing happened.
Yet.
The only thing these two did...
Was sleep.
In the same bed.
Together.
There may have been a generous amount of cuddling involved.
But that's where the story ends.
Last night, just as Foca had tucked himself into bed and was ready to call it a night...
The bedroom door quietly opened.
In walked Luca.
Wearing absolutely nothing except a pair of boxers.
Without saying much, he climbed into bed.
Wrapped an arm around Foca.
Pulled him into a warm embrace.
Placed a gentle kiss on top of his head.
Then mumbled,
"Goodnight, Hale."
A beat.
"Dream of me."
...
And immediately fell asleep.
Out cold.
The entire sequence happened so quickly that poor Foca didn't even have time to react.
He simply lay there.
Blinking.
Processing.
Trying to determine whether any of that had actually happened.
Once his brain finally caught up...
He couldn't help smiling.
Nestled comfortably in his soft cotton pajamas, Foca inched just a little closer.
He leaned forward.
Placed a feather-light kiss against Luca's neck.
Then whispered,
"Goodnight, Luca."
And with that...
He quietly drifted off to sleep in the arms of the man who had waited so patiently for him.
So there you have it, everyone.
No smut today.
Sorry to disappoint some of y'all. 🤭
At least...
Not yet.
I'm still debating whether I even want to write one somewhere down the line.
What do you guys think? 👀
****
Anyways...
Back to Foca and Luca's world.
Remember, people, this is their world.
We're just lucky enough to visit it.
After another quiet minute passed, as if sensing Foca's unwavering gaze, the corner of Luca's lips slowly curled into a smug little smile.
"You're gonna burn a hole through my face if you keep staring at me like that."
Fresh out of sleep, Luca's voice came out low and raspy.
The unmistakable bedroom voice.
Honestly?
It should've been illegal to sound that attractive before brushing your teeth.
His eyelids slowly fluttered open.
Golden morning light spilled across his face, softening every sharp angle, making his already handsome features look almost unfair.
It was the kind of sight that could steal someone's breath away.
And...
It quite literally stole Foca's.
"Puta..." Foca whispered under his breath, almost sounding offended.
"...Why are you so handsome?"
Luca let out a sleepy laugh.
Without a word, he slipped an arm around Foca's waist and gently pulled him closer until Foca was wrapped securely against his chest.
Strong arms.
A warm body.
A protective cocoon that Foca found himself fitting into far too naturally.
Their faces were now only inches apart.
Literal inches.
"I've always been handsome," Luca replied with the confidence of a man who had absolutely zero doubts about that statement.
To prove absolutely nothing, and yet somehow everything, he leaned forward and pressed the gentlest kiss against Foca's lips.
Soft.
Brief.
Unhurried.
...
Then realization suddenly smacked Foca right between the eyes.
"...Wait."
His eyes widened.
"I didn't just say that out loud, did I?"
Luca laughed again, this time a little louder.
"You absolutely did."
A beat.
"You looked me dead in the eyes and asked why your partner is so ridiculously handsome and hot."
Foca slowly closed his eyes.
"...Fantastic."
Another beat.
"My life is over."
Luca looked positively delighted.
"Oh, it's just beginning."
Foca let out the kind of sigh reserved for people who had accidentally inflated their partner's already astronomical ego.
"Great."
He gently pinched the bridge of his nose.
"Now you're going to be even more insufferable."
"I was already insufferable."
"You really were."
"And you still fell for me."
"...Unfortunately."
Luca gasped dramatically.
"You wound me."
A tiny smile tugged at Foca's lips.
Then, after a brief moment of comfortable silence, he looked back at Luca.
"...But..."
His smile softened.
"I'd be lying if I said I didn't think you were extremely handsome."
A tiny pause.
"...And hot."
There it was again.
That warm smile Luca loved so much.
The smile that always reached Foca's eyes.
Luca blinked once.
Twice.
Then grinned like he'd just won the lottery.
"Damn right."
That was all it took.
The two of them dissolved into quiet laughter, the sound blending effortlessly with the peaceful morning that welcomed the first day of their new beginning.
****
After a little while, their laughter finally subsided.
Silence settled between them once more.
Neither of them seemed to mind.
They simply lay there, gazing into each other's eyes with matching, hopelessly lovestruck smiles plastered across their faces.
Then a thought suddenly crossed Foca's mind.
"...It's been a while since we've actually slept in the same bed."
Luca blinked before letting out a thoughtful hum.
"Huh..."
"Now that you mention it..."
A nostalgic smile tugged at his lips.
"It really has been."
"We were what? Seven? Maybe eight? The last time we shared a bed."
Foca chuckled softly.
"And here we are again."
He looked at Luca with quiet fondness.
"Except now we're adults."
A beat.
"Best friends..."
Another beat.
"...And now lovers."
His smile grew just a little brighter.
"To be honest... I kind of missed this."
Luca's expression softened into something impossibly tender.
"Don't worry."
He gently brushed a loose strand of hair away from Foca's forehead.
"We'll be sleeping in the same bed from now on."
A small smile.
"For as long as we're alive."
There wasn't an ounce of hesitation in his voice.
It wasn't just a sweet thing to say.
It was a promise.
Foca's heart swelled.
"...I'd like that."
For the third time that morning...
They simply looked at each other.
No words.
Just two people hopelessly in love, smiling like complete idiots.
Meanwhile...
The rest of us were developing diabetes just by watching.
Seriously.
How are these two being this disgustingly adorable first thing in the morning...
When neither of them has even brushed their teeth yet?
I'd tell them to get a room...
But they're already in one.
Foca's room, to be exact.
Although, judging by the way Luca was already mentally calculating where to put his wardrobe, bookshelves, and probably his favorite coffee mugs...
It was rapidly becoming their room.
Honestly?
The man had probably started planning the move-in sometime around their second kiss.
Unfortunately for the two lovebirds, no matter how tempting it sounded to spend the entire day tangled up beneath the blankets...
Reality still existed.
Bread Music wasn't exactly going to run itself.
With great reluctance, they finally untangled themselves from one another.
Luca headed back to his room to get ready for the day, while Foca disappeared into the bathroom.
After a refreshing shower and getting dressed, Foca stepped out of his room.
The first thing that greeted him wasn't Luca.
It was the rich aroma of freshly brewed coffee drifting through the condominium.
His lips curved into an unconscious smile.
Following the heavenly scent into the kitchen, he found Luca already dressed for the day, humming softly as he moved around with practiced ease.
Luca glanced over his shoulder.
"Come sit."
"Breakfast will be ready in a few."
Foca slipped onto one of the bar stools by the kitchen island, resting his elbows lightly against the countertop.
For a quiet moment...
He simply watched.
There was something oddly mesmerizing about Luca in the kitchen.
The confidence.
The efficiency.
The little habits he'd probably never noticed before.
It was domestic.
Comfortable.
It felt...
Like home.
"So," Luca asked as he slid a steaming cup of jasmine tea toward him, "what's on today's agenda?"
Foca's face immediately brightened.
"Thanks."
He wrapped both hands around the warm cup before taking a content sip.
"Mmm..."
"Still preparing for Bread Music's Christmas party."
"It's our very first one, so I want to make it special."
He smiled to himself.
"It's our way of thanking everyone who helped us build this company."
Luca nodded while placing a generous stack of fluffy hotcakes alongside crispy bacon onto a plate before setting it in front of Foca.
"Come to think of it..."
He leaned against the counter.
"It hasn't even been a full year."
"But Bread Music's already been through one hell of a journey."
Foca laughed softly.
"It really has."
Countless memories rushed through his mind.
The sleepless nights.
The setbacks.
The impossible deadlines.
The victories that once felt unattainable.
The people they met along the way.
Every step had somehow led them here.
Luca looked around the apartment before smiling.
"You know..."
"I've got a feeling."
"Bread Music's future is brighter than ever."
Foca looked up from his tea.
Hope shimmered quietly in his eyes.
"...Amen to that."