One Year Later
They took the lifts up to the terraces of the Duomo—no stairs, not on a day like today. Ramin had no intention of getting all sweaty.
Not until they were back in bed, at least.
Tourists packed into the elevator. Noah pressed Ramin into the corner as they ascended. He linked his pinky with Ramin’s. Excitement danced in his eyes.
Despite the extra time last year, they’d never actually made it back to the Duomo. They’d met up with Maria and Tomaso in Verona. They’d ventured farther south to see the museums in Florence. They’d explored Milan’s nooks and crannies. They’d lived, laughed, and made love every day until it was time to go home. Together.
And they’d been together ever since.
The past year hadn’t been perfect. They’d had fights. They’d learned how to annoy each other, but they’d also learned how to apologize to each other. They were growing, learning how to be, how to smooth out each other’s rough edges, how to support each other, how to listen.
How to have make-up sex.
Six months ago, after a lot of discussion—not just with Noah butwith Jake and Angela, too—Noah and Jake had moved into Ramin’s house. He had the space, Noah’s lease was up, and though Jake was sad to move schools, he was excited to have a backyard again. Not to mention a finished basement he’d swiftly taken over with a veritable Lego fortress. Ramin had to wear slippers when he went downstairs to do laundry, lest he step on a stray brick.
Still, he was glad to put up with a few stabs to the plantar fascia in exchange for the laughter and shouts of joy that carried upstairs from Jake and his friends.
They’d even started talking about getting a dog.
Ramin had never had a dog before.
He couldn’t wait.
And now here they were, back in Milan, a year after they’d found each other again. Jake had spent the summer in Como with Angela and Nonno and Nonna. Noah and Ramin were headed there in a few days to visit, and then the three of them would fly home together.
For now, though, it was just Ramin and Noah.
Remembering where they found each other again.
Where they fell in love.
What could be more perfect?
Well, one thing, and Ramin’s stomach was in his throat at the thought of it. Last time he’d tried this, it hadn’t gone well. But that was then. This was now. Ramin wasn’t Elle Woods, Noah wasn’t Warner, and they weren’t at a swanky restaurant.
They were Ramin and Noah, just like they’d always been.
Still, Ramin checked his pocket for the twentieth time. Just to be sure.
The elevator opened onto the lower part of the terraces: a narrow marble walkway, with carved rails and columns to the right, and the sloping slabs of rooftop to the left. The setting sun turned everything a soft, pinkish gold that matched the flush of excitement in Noah’s skin.
“Oh, wow,” Noah whispered. They didn’t have time to stop yet, not with another lift full of people already on the way. They followed theedge of the transept and turned left at the corner, past a little guard booth, then right again to follow the northern edge of the nave. In the Galleria across the way, tourists drank their Aperol spritzes seated on patios beneath orange umbrellas. Far below, folks mingled with the pigeons in the piazza.
Noah and Ramin passed beneath buttress after buttress, each decorated with several sizes of statue, and topped by spires capped with even more statues.
“It’s incredible,” Noah said. “Can you imagine? All the work that went into this?”
While Noah admired the architecture, Ramin admired Noah.
Every day he loved Noah more.
When they’d first gotten back to Kansas City, Noah’s attention was divided between work, helping Angela get ready for the move, and getting Jake settled full-time at his apartment. But they’d carved out time to be together, too, and as Ramin had started helping more and more with Jake, Noah had actually found time to do the things he enjoyed, beyond his daily gym routine.
He’d started taking drawing classes at night. Ramin’s house was littered with sketchbooks, all in different sizes, all in different stages of being filled. And Noah was making more friends, too, at church, at the gym, in class. He was blossoming, and Ramin loved to see it.
Noah had become a staple at Shiraz Bistro, too, sharing Thursday night dinners with Farzan and David and Arya, who grumbled good-naturedly about being the fifth wheel.
