Page 29 of The Titan and the Trainer

“If you wouldn’t mind pressing again to confirm, the door should open and the lift will take you upstairs where Mr. Newman is expecting you,” Dimitri added.

Dutifully, Callum put his thumb on the scanner again. This time the beep was quicker, and as if by magic, the lift doors opened.

“Thanks,” said Callum, giving the guy a nod, and stepping into the lift. The lift was clean and well maintained, not like most Manhattan lifts. He checked himself in the mirror. He looked good. He wasn’t a vain person; he practically lived in sports clothes, so it made a difference to dress up. It felt nice, and he was happy to do it for Julian.

The control panel was a myriad of floor numbers and different buttons, but it wasn’t obvious. At this point, Callum realised with horror that he didn’t even know which apartment Julian lived in. He didn’t remember an apartment number on the contact card; in fact, he was sure there wasn’t one. He pulled his phone from his pocket, but the lift started on its own, no shudder, no noise, no groaning cables, just a stomach-flipping sense of gravity shifting in a silent, high-speed ascent. Maybe Dimitri had pressed which floor from outside? He didn’t remember there being any buttons.

He saw himself again in the mirror, now slightly less confident, clutching his brown gift bag. Right now, his heart was pounding. He was about to enter the Titan’s Den, and for the first time, he wondered if he’d leave it the same person he was when he entered.

When the lift stopped, the panel said 10. 10th floor? Callum still couldn’t work out how many floors there were in the building. He stepped out expecting a corridor with lots of doors, but it was instead a large white square room, with only three other doors and the strong scent of lilies from an enormous arrangement on the central table. Callum loved lilies, his favourite flower, and stepped forward to inspect them.. The scent was intoxicating.

Now he looked around, he realised none of the doors had visible apartment numbers on them but also had no locks. Maybe thumb sensors hidden somewhere? What a weird building this was, fancy fingerprint door panels and no locks… all rather strange.

Reaching for his phone, he also noticed the spotlessly white carpet, thinking that’s a bit dumb in a corridor, mind you; they’d managed to keep it nice and clean.

Callum dialled Julian. It rang. This would be the first time he’d spoken to him on the phone he realised. It was answered in three rings.

“Hey Cal, where are you? Are you here yet?” he asked. His voice was sexy, Callum thought to himself, now slightly distracted.

“Well, I’m pretty sure I’m in your building. I hope I’m on the right floor, but I am in a room with a huge lily flower arrangement. There are some doors, but I can’t see any numbers, and I don’t know which apartment you’re in. It’s not on your contact card, you realise, and…”

Before he got any further, the door in front of him opened and Julian was there.

Relief swept over Callum, who was beginning to panic. He put his phone back in his pocket and smiled. Julian smiled too as he crossed to him, wrapping him in a huge hug.

Suddenly none of the drama mattered, everything was okay, although his heart was still beating out of his chest. Julian relieved him of the bag, with an intrigued look on his face.

Callum noticed Julian was barefoot! He’d changed clothes and traded the hoodie for a snug navy sweater and some dark formal trousers, but no socks or shoes in a corridor? Callum pointed at his feet and looked at him with a ‘what the hell’ face.

Julian squeezed his hand tight. “All will become clear my beautiful man,” he paused, thoughtfully, “just come with me, but please take a breath and try not to freak out, okay.” He looked Callum square in the face, eyes intense, gave him a kiss on the lips, and led him back through the same door he’d arrived from.

Chapter 14 - The Cathedral of Glass

Sun. 19th Jan. 25

Callum followed, nervous as hell, not sure what Julian meant by try not to freak out, but as he stepped through the door and entered the room, the best words he could find to fit the moment were…. “Oh my God.”

He stopped dead in his tracks, his heart pounding so hard, he thought he would possibly faint.

He knew Julian was rich, but this was beyond anything he could have imagined.

The apartment was not just an apartment; it was a vast cathedral-like space, with ceilings that had to be twenty feet high. He didn’t take in the detail, because far opposite his focus was immediately stolen by two walls of floor-to-ceiling glass, affording the most spectacular views of the Brooklyn Bridge, set against the dramatic sunset, now purple with the last streaks of red fading to bright orange, like some epic Turner painting.

The bridge felt close enough to touch and filled the view, with Brooklyn visible across the river.

He looked at Julian but couldn’t stop himself. “Oh my God” again was all he could squeeze out of his mouth as he gestured with his hands at the view. His mouth was dry; he couldn’t swallow. He dropped Julian’s hand and walked over to the window. He passed a kitchen area, a huge dining table and other sofas and furniture, but he ignored all that; he just had to get to this view, close up. It was everything to him.

His years of studying photography, a life spent living in this city where the bridge and Brooklyn meant so much to him, and a subject he’d snapped from almost every angle. He remembered the small gift he’d brought Julian; the bridge was at the end of the street in the photograph. Everything was aligned here. Was this too much of a coincidence? He knew that this moment was somehow a pivotal one in his life. Impromptu tears pricked his eyes, his shoulders sagged, and he just sobbed.

Julian found him, coming from behind and wrapped his arms around his shoulders. He didn’t fully understand the cause of Callum’s tears, but he hoped they were from a happy place. This was the first time he’d seen Callum cry, and as Julian wiped away his tears, he felt deeply inside how precious Callum had already become to him.

“Sorry, I’m being silly, it’s just that bridge has been such an anchor in my life. I’m obsessed with it,” he explained. “I’ve taken hundreds of pictures of it, walked it so many times, I can see it from my apartment roof and go there on New Year’s Eve with my friends to watch the fireworks. It’s just been such an important part of my life; it really does mean a lot to me.” He was genuine and every word rang true with Julian.

“To then come here, see all this, and,” he turned to the view again, “see all this,” he gestured to the bridge, “it was just too much. I’m sorry. The things I’m thinking and feeling,” he banged his chest on his heart, “you and me, us, this, it’s just too many coincidences; it has to mean something.”

“Ssshhhhh.” Julian pulled him in, seeing he was getting upset again. “I think you’re wrong, Cal,” he said gently, as Callum pulled away from him slightly, wanting to understand what he meant. “I don’t think any of this is a coincidence; I think it’s fate, my love. I’m a great believer in fate. He gestured to the two of them. “This is our fate, Cal. I think we are meant to be.” He placed his hand over Callum’s heart now. Callum felt the warmth of his touch through his shirt. “The universe brought you to me, Cal, for a reason, and when the universe speaks, I think the least we can do is listen.”

These words were powerful to Callum. He’d been secretly thinking about futures and whether they could work out as a couple, coming from such different places. So, to hear this, which was Julian pretty much expressing how he felt, was music to Callum’s ears. Also, he used the word love, and that didn’t go unnoticed.