The music is still playing through the speakers as I leave my room. I wonder what Duncan found to watch because it’s weird to also have music on too.
Except when I make it out of the hallway the TV in the living room is black. Nothing playing on the eighty inch screen.
"Duncan?" Maybe he wandered off somewhere.
He doesn’t answer but as I get closer to the sofa I find him curled up and asleep.
His face is soft and the usual smile lines he sports are barely visible. His hair is unkempt and a little frizzy. His glasses are smooshed off center from where his face presses into the pillow.
Gently his chest rises and falls and the urge to curl up with him wins as I slowly make my way around the sofa and lower on to the cushion near his head.
My W-I-L-D fingers caress the hair at his temple, slowly trailing lines between his forehead and his ear.
Duncan hums in his sleep and my hand hovers over him.
When he exhales I wait another beat and continue to touch him. His hair is soft, his body warm, and repeating this path is soothing something inside me.
The afternoon sun travels across the horizon and my mind slows as a gentle melody forms in my head. It sounds like the swish of his track pants back in Marreldir, but slower, like the pace of my fingers across his temple.
My eyes drift closed as a smile brushes my lips and Duncan stirs again.
Brown eyes blink up at me and he smiles. "Hey Charming."
"Hey."
"C’mere." I lean over and press a kiss to his lips.
I pull back and Duncan starts to turn onto his side but he hisses like he’s in an incredible amount of pain.
"Don’t you throw people into the boards for a living?" I tease as he makes it to his side.
His body is propped up on his elbow and he twists to look back at me. "I’m going to get you for that."
"Not right now you’re not." I pat my thigh and he scoots up a bit to rest his head there.
"I can hold a grudge." He grumbles as he leans against me.
"I doubt that." He’s far too kind.
"Oh so you know me so well do you?"
Instead of caving I challenge him. "If you’re such a grump, tell me about a grudge you’re holding."
"No." He pouts.
I reach down and pinch his side. He squeals and tries to tuck his legs in to protect himself but he’s so stiff he doesn’t get far. "Not fair, Charming. Stop!"
"You can’t tell me a grudge you have because you don’t have any."
"I might not have any personal ones but I hold them for others."
"Explain." My hand comes to rest on his ribs and I gently soothe where I had tickled moments before.
"Well, my best buddy, Crosby, his dad is a total dick. Ever since college I’ve hated the guy. When he gets up in Crosby’s business I’m on alert and I’m always there to make sure Crosby moves on and doesn’t dwell on it. Well, I was that guy I guess."
"What do you mean, ‘was’?"
Duncan sighs and his finger starts to trace circles on my knee. It tickles but I would never tell him to stop. "He’s got a girl now."
