William left a trail of dirtied water all the way through Hanbury Manor. He was glad that Edward didn’t put him down the moment they stepped into the embrace of his home. Instead, Edward continued to carry him through the back living room, into the corridor and up the stairs to the first floor. He understood just how viscously he shook as he was pressed into Edward’s unwavering form. There wasn’t a muscle in William’s body that wasn’t spasming, working against the warm air of the manor as if it longed to prevent the warmth from reaching him.
Instead of turning into William’s bedroom, Edward cut directly across the landing and nudged open the door to the bathroom. To William’s disappointment, he sat William on the edge of the bath, finally peeling their bodies apart.
“You need to warm up, or a bruised ankle is the least of your worries.”
William caught his reflection in the clouded mirror opposite him. He was covered in dirt. Some now clung to Edward’s jumper and jeans, staining the material in splodges of dark stains. The side of Edward’s jaw had a smear of dirt from where William’s head had been leant against him.
William almost laughed at the absurdity of it. That was if he had the ability to do more than tremble in silence. He felt the need to lean forward and apologise, but words failed him. If he spoke, it would be about what happened, but he wasn’t brave enough to have that conversation right now.
Notyet.
Edward didn’t ask questions, either. He didn’t even speak after his first declaration. He was a focused man, reaching for the brass handles of the tub, which he turned. The rush of water hitting the porcelain bath made William jump.
Edward kneeled on the floor before him, hands fumbling for the sodden clothes as he began peeling them from William’s body one item at a time.
William didn’t stop him. He didn’t ask questions. It was obvious what was happening between them, just as it was obvious what had happened in the hours leading up to that moment.
William had fallen asleep reading Robert’s journal. He’d sleepwalked beyond the manor, led to Robert’s grave by whatever malevolent energy lingered in Hanbury’s shadows. He’d then clawed at the earth as though that would free the corpse that was buried beneath the headstone.
It was easier for William to lose himself to his reality, to let it frighten him. To lose himself to the distress. But he wasn’t going to let that happen. So he did the only thing he could think to do: distract himself with the man before him.
William focused on how determined Edward was as he undressed him. The lines between his brow, the clear tiredness that shadowed his rich eyes like pools of ink. William didn’t even care that he was soon naked to the world before this stranger. All that mattered was how gentle the brush of his knuckles was as they skimmed his cold skin, how – even though his clothes were ruined – Edward still took his time to fold them and lay them in a dirtied pile beside the bath.
Careful. Methodical. Two words that summed Edward up so perfectly.
Then, finally, Edward spoke again, his voice the most beautiful thing to grace William’s ears after hours of kneeling in mud listening to the wind and rain taunt him.
“Get into the bath,” Edward commanded. “And don’t think about coming out until every single one of your bloody bones are warmed through, okay?”
William gritted his teeth and nodded.
There was a part of him that wanted to pretend to ignore Edward just so he could hear his commanding tone again. But the promise of warm water was enough for him to lift a leg over the tub’s side and ease himself in.
The stark heat stung initially, but soon enough it evicted the cold from William’s bones. Just as Edward wanted. Although the bath was simple – no salts or fragrances – it was still the best William had ever had.
He thought he’d relaxed until Edward pushed away from the tub. Then, the panic returned with a vengeance. It had William lashing out like a serpent, striking out for Edward’s hand before it left the tub’s side.
His fingers dug into soft flesh, nails pinching it pale.
“Wait,” William gasped, surprised by his own strength. “Don’t leave me… I can’t… Please, just stay.”
Edward’s mouth drew into a harsh line, whereas his furrowed brow softened into an expression of pity and worry. “Trust me, William. I’m not letting you out of my sight again. You can relax, because I’m here and I have no plans of going anywhere else.”
Both men stared at each other soundlessly, yet their locked gaze seemed to say a million words. William was mesmerised by just how equally their hearts beat in tandem. It was then he realised that the dread he’d felt matched what Edward had suffered with.
Edward’s emotion was from believing he’d lost William. And that, the honesty of that realisation, made William ease back into the bath water, slipping down until he was submerged up to his chin.
More unwavering silence, and heavy stares.
“How – how long was I outside for?” William braved the question, preferring the sound of their voices to the silence between them.
“Only God knows.” Edward broke their eye contact, looking down to the ground as if the weight of the question was too heavy to bear. “I was looking for you for close to an hour, maybe more. I checked every room twice, even the gatehouse outside. I kept shouting your name but you never… you never called back.”
Had he? William thought he’d heard his voice, but put that down to his delirium.
“Thank… you.” He was slowly warming up, but his jaw was still wrecked with trembles. Regardless of his physical discomfort, internal relief came thick and fast. “For looking. For not giving up on me.”
Like so many others had. Like I had.
