"You should REALLY have just let me up that ladder"

The voice that droned the line was coming from a man who was incredibly bored. Chad Blaise Elliot, or 'Blaize' as absolutely everyone called him, was standing at the bottom of a far-too-tall ladder, watching another man climb it to try and find a very specific book.

He normally wouldn't have bothered to come to this place, a remote storehouse that contained racks and racks of books that simply couldn't be housed in the University that owned them due to space and budget limitations. The most important or most widely consulted books stayed within the walls of the establishment for easy reach, other books that were more obscure or simply took up too much room were stored in this special warehouse.
Blaize agreed to drive the other man down here, though it was obnoxiously obvious he'd really rather be somewhere else. He didn't have much time for books that weren't related to his specific tastes, but Oliver insisted they come here on his week off, and Blaize obliged.

He wouldn't do it for anyone else. He had two main reasons he was here instead of at home, though; one, he wanted to avoid the deeply distressing fact it was his father's funeral tomorrow by any means necessary ...

And two, the man on the ladder was not only his long-time assistant Oliver Marks, but also his recently acquired lover.

Not that they called themselves lovers. At least not out loud. Blaize was nothing short of a flighty whore, consuming the lust and attention of woman like a dying man devouring chocolate pralines. He had never looked at men, his womanising brain couldn't even contemplate the idea. Not until his faithful assistant acted on his persistent crush and kissed him when it looked certain they were about to die in a remote and hostile jungle. Three lovemaking sessions and a year apart, an emotional reunion and a painful talk about how they viewed each other had finally brought them together as lovers, and this week was going to be rough on them ...

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"I almost have it!" Oliver shouted back, holding onto the ladder tight enough his knuckles were white. He wasn't afraid of heights persay but didn't like the sensation of not being firmly planted on the ground. While he trusted the ladder to hold his weight, Oliver wasn't sure he trusted himself to hold tight enough.

Glancing at the notecard in his free hand, Oliver reread the poorly written location number before putting the paper in his pocket to use his hand and search the collection of books.

While his attention was on the book in front of him his thoughts did wander for a moment down to Blaize. Oliver was grateful that Blaize joined him simply because it was nice to spend time with him outside of dangerous missions. Not that Oliver minded but it felt oddly domestic for Blaize to be with him and something Oliver selfishly enjoyed.

"Damn it," He stated to himself but his voice travelled well in the large storeroom.

"The book is just out of reach," He told himself but also glanced downward to Blaize to see if he heard him. Adjusting his stance on the ladder Oliver managed to scoot closer but was forced to stand with just one foot on the ladder.

Stretching out as far as he could Oliver managed to grab the spine of the book and pull it out enough to get a better hold. The book itself was heavier than he expected and for a moment he was afraid he was going to drop it. In that split second Oliver stretched out his other hand to ensure he had the book, realizing almost too late that he lost all balance on the ladder.

"Blaize!" He shouted as he started to fall, the book far to cumbersome to let him try and grab at the ladder. As he fell he thought about how many ribs would be broken once he landed.

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Blaize's eyeroll was almost audible as Oliver protested that he was close to getting the book. Blaize would have just bought the thing to save the time and trouble, but Oliver won him round to getting it.

The ladder was solid metal, Blaize had surreptitiously checked that it was propped correctly - a force of habit from exploring - before Oliver ascended, so all Oliver had to do was get the book. But, like most people, he found the thing just out of reach and naturally stretched to get it.
The more he did, the more Blaize frowned from his place on the ground, opening his mouth to correct Oliver but his words were stuck in his mouth as he witnessed Oliver suddenly lose balance with both hands on the book and no hands on the ladder.

Moving without thinking, he dove forward, eyes fixed on the plummeting Oliver, arms outstretched to catch the man before he dashed his brains out on the solid concrete floor. He managed to catch him, but the sudden stop of all the inertia forced his arms to bring Oliver towards him, and his legs collapsed to try and absorb the force of the fall.

Oliver managed to fall right into Blaize's arms, and without a single limb hitting the deck. Blaize's knees protested at the slam on the concrete, but apart from any fright, both were unharmed.

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The sensation of falling had his stomach doing backflips. He anticipated the hard smack of concrete had him tensing, eyes shut tight. However instead of feeling the cold unforgiving ground he was caught by Blaize who broke his fall. Oliver let out a loud exhale, as he slowly opened his eyes, his heart hammering.

For a second Oliver wanted nothing more but to cling to Blaize, the safety he provided him in such a terrifying moment. Forcing himself to relax, Oliver removed himself from Blaize's hold long enough to stand on shaky legs. His heart continued to race as he bent over to quell the quivering in his stomach, taking long deep breaths.

"Thank you," He managed to say his glasses having slid down his nose as he looked at Blaize.

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Blaize placed an index finger carefully on the bridge of Oliver's glasses and slid them back up his nose, pausing to look him straight in the eye.

"Next time" His voice was light enough, but the tone of it suggested he was being completely serious, "I'm going up the ladder, and you are staying on the ground"

Before Oliver could properly take anything in as the shock of the fall wore off, Blaize placed a kiss on his lips, then walked off as though nothing had happened. Blink-and-you-miss-it was not an understatement.

"Are you done here or not?" His voice echoed through the bookshelves as he made his way back towards the exit.

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Oliver felt an embarrassed flush warm his cheeks and all the way to his ears. He nodded in agreement to what Blaize suggested. Oliver was still a little shaken from the fall and willing to agree to anything. He didn't anticipate the kiss and for a second he was upset he wasn't able to deepen it and find comfort in the familiarity of Blaize's lips. However, their relationship let Oliver have all the Blaize kisses he wanted (within reason).

Playing catcing up Oliver put his legs into motions and worked out the shakiness by walking behind Blaize.
"Yeah I only needed this one book," Olive confirmed. Once he was sure his legs weren't going to give out on him Oliver picked up his pace to walk alongside Blaize.

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"I still don't understand why you need it" Blaize looked at the cover with disdain as the librarian on duty checked the book and stamped in a return date, shecking Oliver's university identification against a list of permitted borrowers, "You're supposed to be on holiday"

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Oliver offered the librarian a small smile as he handed her the book, hands still shaking but he pretended it wasn't happening. He didn't want her to know he had almost fell to his death, he'd be the laughing stock of the entire department.

"Well, I was thinking of taking up a teaching job next year and thought about teaching a course on on the early history of money and coins. This books of hundreds of photographs and details descriptions of various coins from all over the world," Oliver explained looking at the large book as he held on to it.

Oliver had a variety of collections, books mostly but he did have a love for old coins. Not enough to spend actual money on it but he admired them and knew quite a bit about them, perhaps enough to teach an entire course if given the chance.

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The irony of a man telling a rich man about loving the history of money and coins wasn't lost on Blaize, but his brain started to immediately drone out what Oliver was saying about old coins in sheer boredom. The tome in Oliver's hands was something Blaize would use to wedge a door shut or squash a very, very large spider, but had no use to him otherwise.

"There's money. People spent it. It's value was tied to a thing. There's your course, where's all my course credits, Professor Marks"

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Oliver blushed, hearing Blaize call him Professor was enough to ease away the shock of earlier and warm him up in another way.

"You'd fail my class for never showing up, but I'm sure there are ways for you to earn the credits," As soon as Oliver finished what he said he coughed, never in his life had he been so forward. He wanted to hide now out of pure embarrassment. Mentally he blamed Blaize, it was the other man's fault for turning him into a fiend. Oliver ignored the fact that the thoughts weren't 'new' but just spoken, Blaize was giving him confidence to say and take what he wanted.

Upon exiting the warehouse, Oliver looked toward Blaize for their next errand. Were they going to head back to the estate? Grab lunch or maybe go to Blaize's office? The other man was correct in pointing out that Oliver was supposed to be on holiday, which meant he technically wasn't supposed to be anywhere near the offices, but if he went with Blaize no one would stop them.

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Blaize uttered a snorted chuckle in response, beyond amused with Oliver's covert flirting. Now he knew what it was and how to look for it, it was downright amusing to him how Oliver could pepper his speech with these lines that Blaize himself normally used on women with the right tone of voice.

When he left the warehouse, blinking in the sunlight, the smirk on his face fell off at the sight of an older man in the distance just getting into his car. The name wasn't familiar, but Blaize instantly knew who he was anyway.
One of his father's friends. One that would be attending the funeral tomorrow.

"..." Saying nothing, Blaize simply walked back to his car, intending to return home, possibly to brood for a few hours.

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Oliver felt the shift in Blaize as they exited. He wasn't sure what reminded him of it, but Oliver knew in that moment that Blaize was reminded of what tomorrow was. Unsure of how to properly help his lover, Oliver kept close, brushing his arm against Blaize's to remind him he was there for him. The silence that carried on between them wasn't bad or unsettling, but easy. Oliver knew Blaize was having a hard time and wanted to give Blaize the space he wanted, for as long as he needed.

Returning to the car Oliver waited for it to be unlocked and placed the book carefully in the backseat, with his own bag before returning to the passenger side. Once inside the car Oliver looked toward Blaize and offered him a look of understanding and support. Oliver wan't sure he was permitted to go back to the estate, he just assumed after their errand he would be dropped off at his own apartment, but the idea of going home with Blaize was far more appealing.

"Do you want me to go back to the estate with you?" He asked trying to sound indifferent. He didn't want Blaize to feel obligated to have his company.

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Blaize said nothing to start with, simply looking down at the steering wheel but his mind and gaze a million miles away. Eventually his arms moved, taking their place on the wheel as he thought over what Oliver was saying, and trying to filter it through the funeral program that he had carefully went over so many, many times.

"I ... will drop you off home. The funeral walk starts from Anderson and Weiss' Funeral Parlour on North Street at 9:30am"

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Oliver nodded to show that he understood what Blaize said, but he didn't like Blaize's suggestion. Concern was easily readable on Oliver's face as he turned his full attention toward Blaize, doing his best to to seem like he was invading Blaize's life. Their relationship was new and there were lines and boundaries that needed to be found, Oliver wasn't excited to find them with such an emotional day looming over tomorrow.

"I can run up to my apartment and grab my stuff and be down in twenty minutes. That way we can arrive at the Parlour at the same time tomorrow. You know me, I hate being late," Oliver offered doing his best to phrase his words to sound to seem casual. He didn't want Blaize to feel backed into a corner and by making it about himself perhaps it would provide Blaize a distraction. Oliver wanted Blaize to feel okay leaning on him, but he also knew that it would take time for Blaize to do so. Considering Oliver waited a year for his return, Oliver was still okay waiting for him to be emotionally ready for their new relationship.

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Blaize said nothing as he drove out. He said nothing for the entire drive towards Oliver's apartment, merely staring at the road with his movements automatic and almost without any thought. When he finally pulled up just outside Oliver's building, he finally spoke again.

"Just be there early if you don't want to be late. I'll see you tomorrow"

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