It's Been a While

[Dare Blackwood-Hardt]

Dare swept his thumb against Michael's hand as he looked up at the sky, watching the clouds float lazily overhead. He was silent for a while, just thinking, but the urge to speak got to him. "That was pretty awesome," he said, setting the words out for Michael to respond to, or just keep to himself. But it had been awesome. Dare's lips were curved into a broad smile.

[Michael Blackwood-Hardt]

Michael put his free hand under his head, stretching out slightly, and smiled at Dare's words. He looked over at Dare, letting the statement sink in and enjoying the warm feeling that spread through him because of it. "Basically," he said, eyes revealing the pleasant sensations still threading through him. "We should do it again sometime." Even if he had froze in the end he still had enjoyed himself.

[Dare Blackwood-Hardt]

Dare turned his head, his eyes meeting Michael's. He thrilled at the easy joy he saw in their depths, at the knowledge that it was mutual, and he had no regrets. "We should definitely do it again sometime," Dare said, giving Michael's hand a light squeeze. He let himself think for now about how attractive Michael was, how he'd felt and tasted. If he'd glamorized Michael a little in the drawings he'd made from memory, he knew it was only going to be moreso now. Thinking about it, he realized he hadn't drawn a proper portrait of Michael since the day they'd met. He debated suggesting it now, but didn't want to give up this moment of intimacy.

[Michael Blackwood-Hardt]

Michael grinned, keeping Dare's gaze and squeezing his hand back. He was still in a state of semi-disbelief about what had happened, the feeling mixed in with all of the lingering sensations and happiness. He had never really thought about Dare as a whole being attractive, the thought just had never crossed his mind, only that he loved Dare's hair and eyes. But when he really looked at him, he could admit to himself, and it felt odd, that Dare was good-looking.

[Dare Blackwood-Hardt]

Dare just watched Michael for a short time, watched him watch him, and enjoyed the feeling. After some unnumbered minutes, he rolled toward Michael, his free hand curving around the back of Michael's neck just long enough for a brief kiss. Then he broke away and pushed to sit. "I need to draw," he said, squeezing Michael's hand, not letting go just yet. "Can I draw you? Would you mind?" he hoped not. He'd been content laying there, but his artistic energy was building, and he wanted to get it out while Michael was still here.

[Michael Blackwood-Hardt]

"I don't mind," Michael said, making no move to get up and take his own book and pencil in his hand. He would be content to relax and let Dare draw to his heart's content. "I don't have to move, do I?" he asked, grinning. He felt like just laying back, reliving the last little part of the day over and over and watching Dare. He had always thought he was an artist, but had never been around anyone quite like Dare, that needed to draw all the time.

[Dare Blackwood-Hardt]

Dare grinned. "No, you don't have to move," he said. He just wanted something to immortalize the moment, something to capture what he was feeling, what he was seeing in Michael. He gave Michael's hand one final sqeeze, then sat back, setting himself up with his current favorite medium, pastels, and his sketchbook. "I've been drawing you a lot," he said offhandedly. "I'm not as good at realism through memory, but I've got a couple nice ones."

[Michael Blackwood-Hardt]

Michael stretched out putting both arms above his head, unknowingly letting his shirtsleeve fall down, for a few seconds before letting one hand settle back under his head and letting the other lay lightly on his abdomen. "Can I see them when you're done?" he asked, fighting down the pleasure he felt rush through him at knowing Dare had been drawing him, just like it had when he had been with Emilian.

[Dare Blackwood-Hardt]

"Of course," Dare said, glancing up from a clean sheet of paper. His gaze paused, flickered, taking something in, then lowered to the page as he thought about it, as he let the flashing glimpse he'd taken burn into his mind's eye. He couldn't imagine he could look there many times before Michael would notice, and then he'd pull his sleeve down, and it would be covered.

He hadn't entirely forgotten Michael's past, but it was easy enough to slip his mind. Michael was constantly tugging down his sleeves, covering the Mark on his arm. Dare had never seen the Dark Mark in person, and curiosity burned, but he tamped it down. That tiny detail, the sliver of the mark showing, would add an element to the picture that he couldn't have hoped for. Dare pulled a few pastels, tucked them between his fingers, and got started.

[Michael Blackwood-Hardt]

Michael watched Dare, taking him in, watching the concentration. He wasn't aware of his Mark showing, was comfortable enough with Dare that he hadn't even thought about it the entire time they had been together that day. He remembered telling Dare to not ask him to sit for a drawing, and it brought a smile, he couldn't imagine not agreeing to do it.

[Dare Blackwood-Hardt]

Dare let himself get lost in the drawing, in capturing first the curves and lines, then hues, letting everything develop. He didn't feel Michael watching him, as intent as he was on his own thoughts. He lost himself a little, pouring what he had into the colors flowing onto the paper. The technical aspect kept him busy, kept his hand moving across the page shade after tint, but through it all, he could feel the connection, and the drawing was built as much on emotion as it was on what he could see. The results would shine through in the end, and Dare worked diligently toward it.

[Michael Blackwood-Hardt]

Michael watched the emotions and concentration float across Dare's face. He wasn't aware of time passing, his mind was playing through so much stuff, so many thoughts and memories that he couldn't tell when one minute passed and the next began. He let himself think about Dare going to Emilian for the first time, taking advantage of his good mood to let himself work through it and decide that he was alright with it.

[Dare Blackwood-Hardt]

It was easy to lose track of time when he was drawing, when everything was reduced to connecting with his subject, to using that connection to seek details that weren't even visible on the surface. There were so many of those with Michael, tricks of light in his eyes that gave such an intensity that it was a challenge to keep it and still capture the peaceful joy so rare and profound.

It wasn't until the sun had shifted too far to be any further use that Dare realized he was changing the colors of the same shadows to suit the new light. He slowed, added just a few touches more to pull together the changes he'd made with what lay beneath, then stopped and looked down at his drawing. "Do you still want to see it?" he asked.

[Michael Blackwood-Hardt]

Michael leaned up on one elbow, looking over at Dare, "Well yeah." He grinned and reached over, taking the book from him and looking down at it. He examined the picture, a smile on his face as he looked over it. "You really are amazing," he said, flicking his eyes up at Dare. His eyebrows came together slightly when he saw his arm and glanced down, then reached over and tugged his sleeve down, remaining silent on the subject.

[Dare Blackwood-Hardt]

One of Dare's brows arched a bit, but he didn't say anything, either. Michael would work through it on his own time, the same as he'd worked through his initial nerves when it came to everything between them. He considered it a victory that Michael hadn't torn off the bottom few inches of the picture in protest. "Go ahead and look through if you want, I've got it out of my system for now. Dare didn't give much thought to the other pictures in the notebook, or he might have given a guided tour around the three with Emilian in them.