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Ryan unwrapped the box and stared at it, confused, as it was solid black.
“Open it, dummy.”
Peeling back the lid, he reached in and pulled out an item in bubble wrap that looked an awful lot like a dick. As he removed the bubble wrap, he stopped, burst out laughing, and looked over at his husband. “Stop it! No, you did not have a custom mold of your cock made into a dildo.”
“Uh, you’re damn right I did. Now you can take it with you wherever you go. And tell that blond bitch to fuck off while you’re at it,” he muttered.
“Hayes?” Ryan warned.
“Sorry.”
Ryan twisted it around in his hands and examined it. “That’s…yeah, that’s your cock alright. Look at that.”
“Fuckin’ better be for what they charged.”
“Well, listen. You’re nothing if not thoughtful.” Ryan leaned in and kissed him. “Thank you. But,” he said, getting up from the couch and walking to one of his nearby bags. He pulled out a Dora the Explorer gift bag and walked it over to Hayes. “I have something for you, too. Don’t mind the bag. It was a two-pack. Only thing I had.” He sat down next to his husband. “Happy Valentine’s Day, even though it’s a bullshit, made-up, crap holiday that now just so happens to be our wedding day.”
Hayes reached into the bag and removed a book.
Ryan’s book
Breaking Ryan Baylor.
“Yo, you finished your memoir? Like, it’s published now?”
“Almost. This is an author proof. That gray ‘Not For Resale’ ribbon,” he said, pointing to it, “won’t be there on the final one. But, open to the dedication page.”
Hayes flipped to it, then read aloud slowly.
“To Tyler Hayes.
My reason.
My truth.
My home.”
Hayes nodded, wiping his eyes and clasping his hands on top of the book on his lap. “Wow, Rook. I’m gonna…actually have to read this now, eh?” He peeked over at Ryan, whose sour expression didn’t disappoint. “I’m kiddin’. I can’t wait. This is…awesome. And I’m so proud of you for puttin’ it all out there. I know it wasn’t easy for you.”
“There’s a lot that hasn’t been easy for me. For both of us. And there’s…I went into some pretty heavy detail in there,” he offered, pointing to the book. “But it’s because of those struggles that we’re here today, Tyler. And I wouldn’t change anything. Not one single thing about any of it.”
“I gotta admit, Rook. When I was a kid, dreamin’ about what my happily ever after might look like, it wasn’t this.”
Ryan placed a hand on his husband’s thigh. “Me either. But this is only the beginning for us. We’ve…there’s a lot we both have left to do in this life, Hayes. And there’s no one I’d rather do any of it with but you.”
“God, I love you.” Hayes grabbed onto Ryan’s shoulders and lay back on the couch, pulling his back down onto his chest and wrapping his legs around Ryan’s waist. “But Rook?”
Ryan clutched his husband’s forearms against his chest as he felt Hayes’s heart rate increase. “Yeah?”
“What if I relapse? Or, like, what if the depression gets too bad or somethin’?”
“I don’t understand the question.”
“The rest of my life is gonna be an uphill battle, you know? And I’m not sayin’ it’ll happen. But, if it does, and you wanna leave? I won’t blame you.”
Ryan slid his left hand up to Hayes’s, placing their rings right next to each other. “So, what if my anxiety gets too bad? Or I struggle with my sex addiction again? You out?”
“Never. You wanna get rid of me? Gonna have to murder my ass. And even then I’ll probably come back and haunt you. Yo, remember that one show we watched where people believed they were bangin’ ghosts? Shit was crazy.”
