[08:53:15] Lairo: heeeyyyyyy
[08:53:22] Lairo: my dad’s about to leave and he’s gonna be gone all dayyyyyy
[08:53:27] Lairo: you gonna come over? :>
[08:53:37] Cielan: Oh, is that so… :)
[08:53:44] Lairo: yeah he’s getting ready to go now
[08:53:50] Lairo: he’ll be gone by the time you get here
[08:54:13] Cielan: Alright, let me take a shower, and then I’ll be on my way over.
[08:54:20] Lairo: don’t even knock
[08:54:24] Lairo: come straight into my room
[08:54:35] Cielan: What, no kisses at the door? :(
[08:54:41] Lairo: i got something better for you
[08:54:45] Cielan: ? 
[08:54:52] Lairo: see you sooooon
[08:55:03] Cielan: Well, okay. See you, then. <3

Cielan closed the lid of his laptop and stretched as the morning sun faintly illuminated his bedroom. His imagination swirled with possibilities, trying to piece together Lairo’s clues. All of it sounded fun. 

Cielan glanced over at a calendar on the otherwise sparse wall. Their one month anniversary was coming up, and his love for his boyfriend had only grown. Despite this, their routine hadn’t changed much; they were still mostly hanging out in Lairo’s room. But occasionally, they’d have little outings together at restaurants or the local game store. It killed him to be unable to show affection in public, but Lairo was still terrified of being outed. One day, though. One day.

He tossed the blanket to the side and climbed out of bed. After a quick shower, he bounced down the stairs, feathers still somewhat wet, and slid into his shoes.

“Going to Lairo’s, Mrs. Breling,” he said, poking his head into the living room.

“Have fun, dear.”

He threw open the door and dashed outside. The greens and blues above him rushed by as he jogged his familiar route to the Kova residence. His mind wandered, trying to imagine what Lairo had in store for him, and soon after, he arrived at the front door. Out of habit, he knocked, then, after a brief pause, slowly pushed it open.

“Hello?” he said, quietly closing the door behind him. No response. He tiptoed through the house, feeling as though he was committing some kind of crime. Lairo did ask him to come straight to his room, so he crept toward the cardinal’s bedroom and turned the doorknob.

“Hey?” Cielan asked.

Lairo’s voice wafted through the air like an inviting dessert. “Come in…”

The blue jay pushed the door half-way open, but froze. What was Lairo doing? He had a good idea, but… no, he wouldn’t, would he? They’d only been able to have sex a few times—Nev was home annoyingly often—but each time, Lairo seemed to become a little louder, a little more assertive, a little more confident. But still… he wouldn’t, right? Cielan took a deep breath and threw open the door. 

Oh. He would.

Lying on his bed, facing down and directly away from the door, was Lairo, completely naked, spreading his legs and lifting his tail feathers.

“Well…?” Lairo asked, wiggling his hips back and forth. “Gonna keep me waiting?”

Cielan gawped. Lairo certainly was coming out of his shell. Even so, he retained much of that demure innocence that Cielan had fallen so painfully in love with. Still, he didn’t quite know what to think about all this, but the view was getting the blood pumping to all the important places.

“Where’s the lube?” the blue jay asked as he closed the door behind him.

“In my desk drawer.”

Cielan hopped over to the computer desk and pushed the chair out of the way. As he reached down to open the drawer, a browser tab that said ‘pleasure top best way’ caught his eye. He stifled a giggle, but his heart fluttered. Man, he loved this damn bird. He slipped his pants down to his knees, waddled over to the bed, and straddled his boyfriend. “You ready?”

“Uh-huh,” Lairo said, his voice now muffled somewhat by his pillow.

Cielan applied the lubricant to both himself and the cardinal, then pushed in slowly, listening to the soft moans of his boyfriend as he sank deeper and deeper inside. As he did, warmth enveloped his length, sending a jolt through his spine and into his upper body. His shoulders tensed as the feeling coursed through him, and his cock jumped, dripping its precum into Lairo. Soon after, he reached his deepest point, and his hips met his boyfriend’s.

The cardinal let out a high-pitched sigh. “Fuck, that’s so good…”

Cielan giggled and put his hands on Lairo’s hips as he slid his cock out, then back in. The tightness in his shoulders spread to his chest as his boyfriend’s snug anus stimulated every bit of his sensitive penis. As Cielan drove himself to the hilt, Lairo arched his back and pushed his plush behind into the blue jay’s hips. “Someone’s enjoying it,” Cielan said, pushing aside the red tail feathers, leaning forward, and resting his chest on Lairo’s back. 

“Ahhh, I love when you lean on me,” Lairo said, giggling as he nestled his face into the side of the pillow. Cielan rubbed his crest against the back of Lairo’s head and thrust even faster, the cardinal’s walls like a vise around his erection. The sensation made him shudder with delight as his cock continued leaking its precum, each thrust sounding sloppier than the last. Soon, the room was alive with the wet sounds of sex and the moans of two birds in love.

“God, you feel so good…” Cielan said, his beak against Lairo’s ear.

“Cielan… Cielan! Ah!” With each thrust, Lairo’s voice became louder and higher pitched. He reached an arm between his legs and began stroking himself.

Cielan reached his own hand back and put it on Lairo’s. “Need some help with that?”

The cardinal gasped as the blue jay’s hand displaced his own and began jerking him off. “Oh my god… yes, Cielan… oh, Cielan—”

Clunk.

The boys transformed into statues. The room, which just an instant ago shook with the sounds of passionate lovemaking, became perfectly still. 

“What was that?” Cielan whispered into Lairo’s ear.

“I don’t—”

Click. 

Click. 

Click.

Cielan rolled off Lairo, off the bed, and onto the floor, trying to pull his pants up at the same time. His heart was beating so hard he could see his chest moving beneath his shirt as he lay flat on the floor.

Click.

Click.

Click.

Cielan could barely hear the sound of talons tapping outside the room over the rush of his blood pumping through his ears, yet it was possibly the loudest thing he had ever heard. Lairo seemed to be scrambling on the other side of the room, but the blue jay dared not poke his head over the edge for fear of being caught.

Click.

Click.

Knock knock.

“W-who’s there?” Lairo said, his voice already cracking. Cielan’s stomach turned. Oh no. Oh no no no.

“Who else could it be?” Nev said through the door. His tone was soft like his footsteps, but it echoed through Cielan’s eardrums as though it were blasting out of a megaphone.

Lairo gasped. “Dad? I thought you left!” 

“Are you okay? Can I come in?”

“No! I-I mean, yes, I’m fine!” 

Cielan slammed his eyes shut. Lairo was blowing it. He didn’t blame him one bit—it’s not like he’d do any better. The blue jay pressed himself against the floor, trying to flatten himself as much as possible.

“I just—” Nev said as he turned the door handle. Cielan heard a clamour from the other side of the bed.

“No, it’s fine!” Lairo said.

There was a sigh from outside the room. “Lairo, can you come into the living room for a moment?”

Cielan wasn’t sure whether his heart would beat clean through his ribs or stop cold. They were caught, and he knew it. What was he supposed to do? Part of him wanted to escape through the window, but he would not—could not—abandon his boyfriend. He felt like he had been stapled to the cold wood floor. Then, voices, one deep and one high. They went back and forth, and Cielan could only pick out the occasional word here and there. Then one line resonated through the house. 

“No, dad! He’s-he’s my boyfriend!”

Cielan bolted up, floorboards creaking beneath him. Lairo was all alone right now. Facing his biggest fear all by himself. He needed to go to his boyfriend. He pushed himself up to his feet and moved to the ajar door. As he pulled it open, moving very slowly to keep the hinges from creaking, he could hear the cardinals more clearly.

“Well, a lot of boys your age do like to experiment…”

“Dad! Please!”

Cielan poked his head around the corner. His stomach and chest felt like they were going to collapse. He could see Lairo slouching, his arms crossed against his torso, rocking back and forth. 

“I just don’t get it, Lairo,” Nev said, his voice even but lacking its usual geniality. “What’s wrong with the girls at—”

Lairo grabbed at his forehead. “Why won’t you listen to me? You think I want to be like this? You think I liked hiding this from you all my life?” His voice was cracking and getting whinier. His rocking was getting worse.

“So why did you never tell me?”

“Because I knew you would react like this!”

Nev sighed, and Cielan crept down the hall, stepping lightly to avoid tapping his talons directly on the floor.

“What were you and Cielan doing?”

Cielan froze, staring at Lairo, who had also gone rigid, staring at the floor.

“We were just playing games—”

“That is certainly not what it sounded like. Perhaps I misjudged him…”

Lairo’s head shot up. “What the hell is that supposed to mean?”

Nev raised his voice. It wasn’t by much, it made the words seem like they were crashing down the hall like a vicious wave. “Did he talk you into… whatever it was you were doing?”

“No! No, he didn’t!”

“So you were doing something… unsavoury.”

Lairo shrieked. “That’s none of your fucking business!”

The sound of a chair scraping against the floor reverberated through the house. “Excuse me?” 

“Why can’t you just accept me? Why don’t you love me?” The cardinal was weeping now. Cielan continued to creep down the hallway, and Lairo looked over at him. His eyes bore the same pain he saw when they first confessed to each other, only more intense; more anguished.

“How can you say I don’t love you? I shelter you, feed you, support you—” Nev didn’t sound angry to Cielan, but there was a palpable exasperation coming through with each word.

Lairo sniffed. “Support me? All you do is make me feel inferior…”

“How? How do I do that?”

“All that talk about”—Lairo dropped his voice and tried to copy his father’s intonation—”nothing is more beautiful than the love between a man and a woman. We need to protect traditional marriage. Men should not—”

“I didn’t mean—”

“So, what did you mean? You think my love is worth less than yours and mom’s was?”

The silence blanketed the house, broken only by the periodic ticking of a clock near Cielan’s head. He wanted to continue slinking down the hall, but that one nailed him to the floor.

Nev exhaled slowly. “Is, Lairo. I still love your mother. I love her more than—”

“More than what? More than me?”

“I—”

“You’ve only ever cared about me because I remind you of her!”

Nev gasped. “No, Lairo! That’s not—”

“Then why won’t you accept that I’m gay?” Lairo drove his knuckles into his eyes as he wailed at his father.

“It’s just… I… what about our family? Our bloodline?”

“That’s all it ever is with you! It’s about mom, it’s about the family, it’s about the church, but it’s never about me! Why do you hate me? Why? Why? Why?!” Lairo, sobbing loudly, swung around and ran out of view. Moments later, the house shook as the front door opened, then slammed shut. Cielan felt like he was being ripped in half. He could never unsee or unhear that. He wanted—needed—to go after his boyfriend, but he was terrified of Nev. His leaden legs anchored him in place, but Lairo’s anguished eyes flashed across his mind again. No, he couldn’t stand here. If he ran fast enough, Nev wouldn’t be able to get him. Lairo was out there. All by himself. Cielan took a quiet but deep breath, then launched himself as fast as he could to the front door. He dashed around the corner and reached for the doorknob—

“Cielan.”

Nev’s voice locked the blue jay’s muscles up again, but it wasn’t threatening or scary. It was a weak croak, struggling to escape the throat that produced it.

Cielan chanced a look back and saw that Nev had collapsed in a dining chair, slumped forward, staring straight down. He probably would have fallen onto the floor if not for his bones holding him in place. The aging cardinal’s beak opened slowly, and he looked up. They made eye contact, and a chill ran through Cielan’s spine. Nev’s eyes were even more dolorous than Lairo’s.

“Please don’t take my boy from me. He’s all I have left.”

The blue jay’s throat tightened. “I… I need to go.” He twisted the knob and stepped outside, hearing a shaky moan escape through the crack in the door just as it closed. He squinted as the morning sun filled his vision, the dingy hallway ill-preparing him for its intensity. His mind was a mess, but he had to find his boyfriend. He put a hand on his brow and looked around, spotting a red figure stomping off in the direction of his house. Cielan darted toward him, cutting through lawns and around trees to take the most direct path.

“Lai—” his voice didn’t come out. He continued running and cleared his throat, trying again. “Lairo! Wait!”

The cardinal stopped and turned around, rubbing his eyes on his forearm. He began to plod toward Cielan as the blue jay closed the remaining distance. When they reached one another, Cielan pulled Lairo into a deep hug and rubbed his hands on his boyfriend’s shoulders.

“I’m sorry. I’m so, so sorry,” Cielan said.

“For what? I’m the fuck-up here,” Lairo said, still sobbing.

Cielan squeezed him tighter. “I left you alone… you shouldn’t have had to do that by yourself.”

“Wouldn’t make a difference. No way dad ever wants to see me again.”

Nev’s miserable eyes flashed in Cielan’s mind, and he shook his head. “That’s not true.”

“I wish he loved me.”

“He does, Lairo… he just…”

Lairo suddenly pushed away. “We’re in the middle of the street… everyone can see us.”

Cielan’s stomach twisted. He knew Lairo was scared, but still… he didn’t have to do that. “Lairo…”

“I’m sorry… I just… I don’t want to be out here.”

Cielan sighed and looked at his boyfriend. The cardinal looked even smaller than usual. He was hunched forward with his arms crossed, hands under his armpits. His golden eyes were bloodshot, and the surrounding feathers were wet and clumped together.

“You live this way, right?” Lairo asked.

“Yeah… why?”

“Let’s go…” Lairo said as he turned around and hurried down the sidewalk. 

Cielan strode forward to keep up with the cardinal. “You’re going to Mrs. Breling’s place?”

“I don’t know anywhere else where I’ll be safe.” His voice was flat, completely lacking its usual musicality. “Um… that’s okay, right?”

Cielan knew Mrs. Breling wouldn’t turn Lairo away, but he was a little worried about the girls making a fuss. But they should both be at work, right? Yeah. Yeah, it would probably be—

“Cielan?”

The blue jay looked over at his boyfriend, who had stopped moving. The cardinal’s shoulders sagged and the corners of his eyes leaked as he blinked. Cielan wanted to hug him, to kiss him, but Lairo was too vulnerable right now, so he settled on a smile. “Yeah, it’ll be fine. Don’t worry. Let’s go.”

“Thanks,” Lairo said as he spun around and resumed walking down the sidewalk.

Cielan wished he knew what else to say. As the two moved wordlessly toward the blue jay’s dwelling, he watched his boyfriend move quickly but stiffly, slouching as his red legs dragged his rigid upper body forward. Cielan tried several times to encourage, to reassure, to soothe, but the words never quite came to him. After a few painfully long minutes, the two reached the two-storey white house that Cielan had called home for the past few months.

“So this is Mrs. Breling’s house, huh… it’s nice…”

“Your place is nice, too!”

Lairo grunted. “If it even is my place anymore.”

Cielan put his hand on Lairo’s shoulder and smiled at him. “It is. We’ll get this sorted out.” He pushed open the door and walked in, with Lairo following behind him. 

“We’re back, Mrs. Breling,” Cielan said, leaning around the corner. 

The grizzly bear looked up from her book. “We?”

Lairo walked behind Cielan and looked at Mrs. Breling, who sat up straight in her chair.

“Lairo! Goodness, child! What happened to you?”

The cardinal’s brow furled and he looked at the floor.

“His father found out and, well…” Cielan said.

“Oh, Lord in Heaven… took it poorly, did he?”

Lairo cleared his throat and spoke, his voice barely audible over the soft whirr of the fan in the corner. “Umm… do you have… another room, or—”

Cielan turned around and put his hands on Lairo’s shoulders. “He’s not going to kick you out!”

Mrs. Breling huffed. “Mercy, not if I have anything to say about it. Shall I give him a ring?”

The cardinal and the blue jay looked at Mrs. Breling and replied simultaneously.

“No, please!”

“Yeah, probably.”

Cielan glanced back at Lairo, who had started to tremble. “Lai, we’re going to have to figure this out, and soon.”

“I-I know. I just… want some time right now, okay?”

“Why don’t you two go along to Cielan’s room? You’re safe here, Lairo, but I am worried about your father. You don’t have to talk to him if you don’t want to, but I do want to make sure he’s doing alright.”

Lairo groaned, but nodded at Mrs. Breling.

Cielan took the cardinal’s hand and guided him toward the stairs. “Here, this way.” The two made their way to the upper level as Mrs. Breling pulled the receiver off her sun-bleached corded phone and began dialing. When they reached the top floor, Cielan pointed to a door. “That’s mine… you can go on in. I’m going to make sure the girls aren’t here.”

Lairo ambled into the room while Cielan knocked on the other doors. After no response, he joined Lairo, who had sat on the bed, elbows on knees, head buried in his hands.

“It’s just us,” Cielan said.

“Come here…”

Cielan sat down next to Lairo and threw an arm over his shoulder. “It’s going to be okay, man. I promise.”

Lairo leaned into Cielan and sniffed. “I hope so.” His voice was hoarse, throat strained from all the crying and screaming. “Fuck… I fucked up.”

“No, you didn’t.”

“I should have waited to make sure he was really gone. I just wanted to do something nice for you…”

Cielan’s loins stirred as memories of Lairo’s presentation filled his mind. He smiled and tilted his head, resting it against the cardinal’s. “I really liked it.”

Lairo giggled for a moment, then sighed. “Is it so wrong for us to be happy together?”

“If it is, then I don’t want to be right.”

Lairo giggled again. “That’s cheesy.”

“But it’s true!” Cielan said, falling backwards onto the bed, pulling his boyfriend down with him. They laughed as Lairo rolled onto his side, staring at the blue jay. There were those eyes again. Those amber stars that burned bright and melted Cielan’s heart every time. There was unmistakable melancholy in them, but behind it, love and joy that desperately wanted to be free. The corvid rolled on to his side as well, pressing his crest against the cardinal’s. The two boys lay together in silence, and Cielan was grateful simply to be in the songbird’s presence.

“I love you so much,” Lairo whispered. The bed creaked beneath them as the cardinal pushed his torso into Cielan’s. “Please don’t leave me.”

“I love you too, Lai. And I’m not going anywhere.”

“Thank you…” the cardinal said as he rubbed Cielan’s cheek and smiled. “My beautiful boyfriend.”

“Not as beautiful as you.”

Lairo scoffed. “You’re the most beautiful man I have ever seen.”

“What, you’ve never looked in a mirror before?” 

Lairo stared at Cielan, mouth slowly opening, before rolling onto his back and putting both hands on his face. His chest bounced as he chuckled, then giggled, then laughed. “Oh my god, Cielan…”

“What?” Cielan asked, drawing out the word with a lilt.

“You’re so cheesy!” Lairo said as he continued shaking with laughter. The boys cackled together on the bed for the better part of a minute, and when it subsided, Cielan put his arm on Lairo’s chest.

“I love when you laugh,” the blue jay said.

Lairo rolled back over and pushed himself against Cielan once more. “You always know how to cheer me up.” 

They lay together, listening to the sounds of each other’s breathing. Cielan’s muscles relaxed as the anxiety of the morning seemed to wash away. It was going to be okay. He knew it was.

Lairo put his hand on Cielan’s chest, then, after a moment, slid it down to his torso. “Um…”

“Yeah?”

“I, uh, well… we didn’t get to finish earlier…”

Cielan pulled back, shaking his head. “This bed creaks too much.”

“Aw, well…” Lairo said, reaching down to Cielan’s groin. “Maybe we can… you know…”

Cielan’s heart sped up as Lairo’s hand brushed against his clothes. Yeah, maybe he could do that. “Let’s be quiet, okay?” he said, pulling down the band of Lairo’s pants and tucking it under his scrotum, releasing the cardinal’s semi-erect penis. 

Lairo giggled and looked into Cielan’s eyes. “Oh, eager?” 

The blue jay felt a light squeeze as Lairo fondled him through his pants before pulling them down. Cielan smiled and kissed his boyfriend, and they stroked each other as they made out. Their tongues swirled around in each other’s mouths as they sped up, and Lairo began thrusting his hips into Cielan’s hand. The bed groaned as he did, and Cielan stopped and pulled back.

“Shhhh. Mrs. Breling’ll hear us.”

Lairo pouted, but steadied his hips. The two kept still, with only their arms moving. Lairo’s hand grew slick as dollops of precum gushed from the blue jay’s cock. “Holy shit… you’re leaking so much…”

Cielan exhaled, his breath shaky as the sensation washed over him. Squelching noises filled the room as his wet shaft slid across Lairo’s hand, each sloppy stroke bringing another jolt of pleasure to his thin body.

Lairo let go of Cielan’s length. “Look at all this…” he said, making a loose fist, then extending his talons. Strands of precum connected his palm to his fingertips before snapping as his digits fully extended. The cardinal brought his hand to his mouth and licked some of it off, maintaining eye contact with Cielan the whole time. “You taste so good…”

Cielan watched the cardinal’s tongue flit across his red-feathered hand, slurping up the strings of fluid that hung off it. His heart thumped into his chest and his whole body felt hot. He reached down and started stroking himself, more precum leaking from his tip as he watched his boyfriend swallow the clear, sticky liquid.

“How do you make so much of that stuff?” Lairo said, looking down at Cielan’s drooling cock.

“I don’t know… I just kind of always have,” he said between breaths. “It helps that you’re the hottest guy on the planet.”

“We already went over this, mister mirrors,” Lairo said, giggling. The cardinal reached down and stroked himself as well. “Kiss me, you gorgeous—”

Cielan leaned forward and interrupted Lairo by planting his beak on his boyfriend’s. There was the faintest hint of saltiness on the cardinal’s tongue, but he didn’t mind. They rubbed their cocks together as they stroked themselves, and Cielan slid a hand under Lairo’s t-shirt and rubbed his nipples. 

The songbird moaned softly into the corvid’s mouth, then pulled back before putting his free hand over his beak. “Ahhh… Cielan…” he said, between his fingers. “You’re gonna make me cum…”

The tingling in his groin and chest told Cielan that he was close too, and he stroked faster. He pressed his soaked penis against Lairo’s and leaned in for another kiss.

The cardinal’s breathing sped up, faster and faster and faster, until he reached his limit. He groaned, his voice thankfully muffled by Cielan’s mouth. His penis shot sticky ropes of semen onto his boyfriend’s, and that was the trigger the blue jay needed. 

Cielan grunted into Lairo’s mouth as his cock twitched. He fought his body, trying to get it to stay still as electricity coursed through his groin, his chest, and his head. He wanted to thrash wildly, to buck and yell, but he kept it together enough to keep still and maintain the kiss as he painted the cardinal’s length and pubic feathers with his load. As the boys came down from their orgasms, Cielan pulled back and rubbed his cheek against Lairo’s.

“Fuck, I love you…” Lairo said as his breathing returned to normal. “I love you so, so, so, so much.” 

“You’re the best,” Cielan said, caressing the cardinal’s cheek. He looked down at their softening penises and saw the damage. It was everywhere. On their cocks. On the sheets. On their hands. In Lairo’s feathers. “Wow, look at this mess.”

Lairo looked down and giggled. “Oops.”

“Better clean this up,” Cielan said as he rolled off the bed, still holding his now flaccid penis. He grabbed his box of tissues and put it on the bed next to Lairo, and the boys wiped themselves off as best they could. 

Despite their best efforts, Lairo’s feathers were still a little matted. “I’m gonna need a bath and it’s all your fault,” he said with a sarcastic whine as he pulled his pants back up.

“Well, I’m gonna need to change this sheet and it’s all your fault.”

“Hey, most of it’s yours!”

“Yeah, I only came so much because you’re so hot.”

Lairo smirked and rolled his eyes. “Whatever you say.”

Cielan finished wiping the semen off and slid his pants back up, then dropped to his knees and pulled a clean sheet out from under the bed. Lairo hopped to his feet and helped replace the soiled linens with new ones, and the boys sat back down together. The blue jay reached over and took his boyfriend’s hand and gazed into his eyes. They got him every time. Every damn time. Like a bonfire crackling in a midnight field. Like a lighthouse guiding him to port in a storm. Nothing else in the world mattered when Lairo was smiling at him. 

“Cielan! Lairo!”

Lairo jumped, but Cielan was used to Mrs. Breling’s surprisingly loud voice. The blue jay hopped off the bed and opened the door.

“Yeah?” he said, trying and failing to match her volume.

“Can you two come downstairs, please?”

Cielan looked back at Lairo, whose eyes were closed. His smile was gone. 

“Alright, give us a second,” the blue jay said, then walked back to the bed.

“Do you think dad is here?”

“I didn’t hear anyone come in.”

“Yeah… yeah, neither did I. But… maybe he’s on his way…”

Cielan took his boyfriend’s hand. “Lai… I… we’ll protect you. I promise.” He recalled Nev’s pathetic, crumpled form. “But… I really don’t think your dad wants to hurt you. Let’s go.”

Lairo sighed and looked up at Cielan, who smiled at him. He pulled himself to his feet and the two walked to the door, holding hands, ready to handle anything.