When Mark woke up the next morning, he stretched across the bed, yawning. John was still sleeping next to him, which made Mark smile. It was the first time they had slept next to each other, and they had been cuddling all night. Mark leaned forward and gently pushed back some of John's curls before kissing his forehead. The smaller man had wanted to stay next to John, but his bladder had other plans. So Mark carefully got up from the bed, so as not to wake the older man. Mark crept out of the room and stretched, yawning. He almost bumped into Sarah.

"Good morning, Mark!" She called, smiling. Mark giggled.

"Good morning."

"How did you sleep, darling? Good?" Mark nodded. "Well, Phillip is out already. He's at the coffee shop down the street with some old friends every morning, you know? I'll be in the kitchen when you've freshened up, okay?" Mark nodded, smiling, and watched her go before heading into the bathroom. He did his business before leaning on the sink with his strong arms and looking at himself in the mirror. Damn, the years hadn't gone unnoticed. His hairline was slowly receding, his eyes had dark circles under them, but not as bad as they used to be when he was younger. Mark yawned again before combing his hair and trying to comb it over the bald patches a little. Damn, what did John see in him? He looked like an old man. Mark let out a sigh before splashing some water on his face and then going down the stairs to the kitchen. The whole house already smelled of bacon and eggs, which made Mark smile. "Coffee or tea, Mark?" Sarah asked without turning from the counter.

"Er...coffee sounds good." Mark smiled. Sarah nodded.

"Sit down." Mark sat down at the table and soon a plate of scrambled eggs and bacon was in front of him, as well as a cup of coffee. Sarah sat down opposite.

"What about you? Aren't you eating anything?" Mark asked in surprise. Sarah giggled.

"Honey, I've been awake for two hours. I've already had breakfast." Mark's cheeks turned a little red. She giggled. "Don't worry. John is a late riser when Flora isn't here. He always slept late as a child too." Mark giggled a little and started eating his breakfast. Sarah watched him with a weak smile. "Can I ask you something?"

"Mh?" Mark raised his head in surprise.

"I could hardly sleep all night." She sighed. "I couldn't help but think about...your parents." Mark's eyes widened. "I'm so terribly sorry you lost them, honey." She reached out and rubbed Mark's wrist, which was now covered by the fabric of his shirt again. Mark smiled weakly. "What were your parents' names?"

"My mother's name was Louisia, my father's name was Erwin." Mark said, swallowing a forkful of eggs.

"And your siblings?" She asked gently.

"My big sister's name was Ruth and my little brother's was David."

"You were the middle one?" She asked with a smile. Mark nodded.

"Mh. My mother said I was always the most difficult child for her." They both giggled a little. "I miss her a lot." Mark sighed, looking down at his half-full plate.

"I'm so sorry." Sarah whispered quietly. "It doesn't change anything, but I'm really sorry."

"Thank you." Mark smiled weakly.

"I think it's important, through all the sadness, to still think of the beautiful moments you had with them, you know?" She rubbed his wrist again. "And I know it's not the same, but...now that you and John are a couple, I'm here for you too, you know?" Mark raised his head and looked at her in surprise. "I know I'm not your mother and I don't want to replace her, but...I just wanted you to know that me and Phillip are here for you." Mark felt a few tears in his eyes and wiped them away with a smile.

"Thank you. That means a lot to me." Sarah smiled gently. She stood up and kissed Mark's forehead before holding him tightly in her arms. Mark smiled a little as she rubbed his back. "Well..." She pulled back and sat back down on her chair. "As you know, John was married. Does that bother you?" Mark bit into a piece of bread and looked at her in surprise.

"No. Of course not. He told me about his ex-wife. She must have been quite an asshole to leave him alone with Flo." Sarah let out a laugh.

"Yes, she...she was a special girl." She took a deep breath. "What about Flora? Does she bother you?" Mark looked at her in shock. "Well, you know, single fathers usually don't manage to get back into relationships and I just wanted to know what you think about that." Mark swallowed his food.

"Well...I'm 35 years old and I'll never have a family of my own." Mark said sadly. "I love John. With all my heart. Even though we're only at the beginning of our relationship. And Flora... well, she is currently my student, so we haven't told her about our relationship yet. But when I start teaching at the university again next school year, we can tell her about it. She's a very pretty and intelligent girl." Sarah smiled. "I think she deserves to have two parents who love her. And I also think that, as far as John and Flo want me to, I could see her as my daughter." Sarah nodded in agreement.

"Were you married, Mark?" Mark pushed his empty plate away and took a sip of his coffee.

"No. I had one relationship when I was 28. The girl wanted to marry me then." Mark swallowed. "Well...how can I put it...she was quite manipulative. She didn't really love me. But I didn't understand that at the time. My best friend opened my eyes and so I broke up with her. But other than that, I've never had a relationship."

"What a shame." Sarah whispered. Mark looked at her questioningly. "Your children would have been pretty." Mark felt his cheeks warming. "I'm glad John is happy with you." She stood up and kissed Mark's forehead again before going to the fridge and making a sandwich. She put it on a plate and handed it to Mark. "Here. This is John's favourite sandwich." Mark giggled as he took the plate.

*

A few minutes later, Mark was back on the bed. He lay on his side and studied John's face. He smiled to himself. John was really handsome.

The opposite of you! You're ugly! Mark heard a voice scream in his head. Mark bit his lower lip hard. You don't deserve him! You're going to hurt him and you know it! Mark angrily wrapped his arms around his head and tried to push the voice away. You're going to hurt him! You're worthless! Look at yourself! You can't do anything on your own! You're a big baby! A nobody! A...

"Stop!" Mark shouted angrily and squeezed his eyes shut. Suddenly he felt a big hand on his cheek.

"Why are you crying?" John whispered sleepily as he wiped the wet tears from Mark's cheeks. Mark stared at him with wide eyes. "What happened?"

"Nothing." Mark sniffed and quickly tried to wipe the tears from his cheeks.

"Come here." John whispered and lifted his blanket. Mark didn't move for a few seconds before crawling under the blanket. John covered him up and wrapped his arms tightly around him. The curly-headed man kissed Mark's forehead and hummed contentedly. "I love you."

"I love you too." Mark whispered and closed his eyes. He felt John's body against his and strong arms wrapped around him. John gently rubbed Mark's spine.

You're going to hurt him! And you know it!

*

They stayed in bed for a long time. John didn't get up until late afternoon and went to take a shower. Meanwhile, Mark packed their things because John wanted to drive home. He didn't want to leave the record store unattended for too long. And since Mark had met his parents, the visit seemed over for him. As the sun slowly set and dusk set in, John stood in the driveway with his parents. Mark packed the suitcase and bags into the trunk while John was still talking to his parents.

"Take care of him, my boy." Sarah said sadly and hugged John. "He's suffered a lot." John looked at her sadly and nodded.

"I know." He sighed quietly and watched Mark loading the suitcase. "I'm afraid he hasn't even told me a fraction of it."

"That will come, darling. You're only at the beginning of your relationship. When he feels safe and is ready, he'll tell you everything." Sarah assured her. Phillip nodded in agreement. Mark closed the trunk and then walked towards his in-laws, smiling.

"Ready."

"Come here." Sarah smiled and held out her arms. Mark hugged her, smiling. "It was very nice to meet you, Mark." She said.

"It was nice to meet you both too." Mark giggled.

"Take care of yourselves and drive carefully, okay? And give Flora a kiss from me. Maybe you can come over for a week during the summer holidays? We'd love that." John nodded. Phillip hugged Mark tightly and patted him on the back.

"You're a good man, Mark." Mark felt his cheeks heating up. "Take care of my John, alright? He's hot-headed."

"Dad!" John exclaimed annoyed, which made the family laugh.

"Oh, I made you some food for the road!" Sarah exclaimed, handing John a basket of sandwiches and cold lemonades. "Your favourite sandwich, just the way you like it, my boy." She grinned and pinched John's cheek. Mark giggled when he saw John's red cheeks.

"Thanks, Mom. Goodbye."

"Bye, boys!" The two men got into the car, Mark started the engine and turned on the lights before reversing out of the driveway. John waved to his parents with a smile as they drove down the street. It was almost dark by now. John held the basket on his lap.

"And?" John asked with a smile.

"And what?" Mark grumbled.

"What do you think of my parents? And please be honest with me." Mark giggled.

"They're very nice. I was worried they wouldn't like me. But either they were very good actors or they like me somewhat." John sadly put a hand on Mark's left knee.

"Honey, of course they love you and aren't just pretending. You're their son-in-law." Mark giggled a little and felt his cheeks heating up.

"I'll have to get used to that title." John grinned.

"Don't worry. You'll have many years to get used to it." The curly-head yawned loudly and stretched a little before putting the basket in the back seat.

"Is someone tired?" Mark teased.

"Mh." John grumbled and looked out the window a little. They were still driving through Leicester.

"Close your eyes and sleep, honey." Mark hummed and reached out to rub John's thigh. "I'll wake you up when we get there."

"Will you carry me to my bed too?" John yawned sleepily. Mark giggled.

"Anything you want, baby."

"Mh. I'm lucky to have you." John whispered with his eyes closed. Mark giggled before turning his attention back to the traffic. John had fallen asleep almost immediately and was sleeping like a log. When Mark stopped to fill up just after Leicester, he covered him with a jacket and kissed his forehead. The younger man went into the petrol station to pay for his petrol before getting back in the car. He looked at the traffic signs that indicated which motorway exit led to which town.

London 102 miles

Manchester 106 miles

Leeds 99 miles / Newcastle upon Tyne 188 miles

Mark bit his lower lip. He had an idea. And this idea seemed pretty stupid. But somehow he really wanted to put it into action. Mark looked over at John, who was sleeping quietly in his seat. His head was leaning against the window and the warm jacket was wrapped around his upper body. Mark took a deep breath and started the engine again. Let's go!