Archive of Our Own

Can you die from stress?

Alex bites his nail as he presses enter and scrolls through the first page of results. Some pages say no. Some say yes. All of them say long-term exposure to stress is a big no-no. Too bad he was in fucking law school with the ambitions of, you know, becoming a lawyer, a notoriously non-stressful job indeed. 

He scrolls onwards to the bottom, now chewing his lip, before being sidetracked by a suggested search and pressing into it.

Physical signs of stress:

• Difficulty breathing (check); 
• Panic attacks (no, thank goodness); 
• Muscle aches and headaches (only everyday for the last month);
• Chest pains (check); 
• Trouble sleeping (when does he not have trouble sleeping?). 

Pissed off, Alex turns his phone off and shoves it in his pocket. Between law school, his policy internship with his mum’s office, helping out at the shelter and his crushing need to simultaneously be the best and do the most, he was on his way to an early grave. A stress-induced heart-attack was imminent. 

Fuck it. He takes his phone back out and googles ways to de-stress. He clicks into the first link he sees that doesn’t look like some mummy blogger cobbled it together and scrolls through. 

• Eat a balanced diet; 
• Self-care; 
• Minimise screen time (Alex tries very hard not to snort); 
• Reduce caffeine intake (over Alex’s cold, dead body thank you very much); 
• Practice mindfulness 

He scans the rest of the page quickly and zeroes in on a word two-thirds of the way down the page - cuddles. 

Okay. True. Cuddles were a good way to destress, especially when you had a big, squishy boyfriend to squeeze. 

Alex can’t help but smile as his thoughts drift to Henry. His boyfriend truly was aces at the whole cuddle thing. He was warm and soft and smelled so fucking good. Just his presence was enough to perk Alex up. 

It’s thoughts of Henry that propel him out of the subway and along the sidewalk to home. Their Brownstone with its sandstone exterior, stone stoop and Italianate features calls to him; the blooming flowers sitting on their windowsill set their home apart from others on the street. Pot plants and flowers are Henry’s new thing and Alex is happy to indulge him. His boyfriend looks so pretty with flowers behind his ears, after all. 

The momentary relief is eclipsed by a sudden wave of anxiety as his phone buzzes. Alex knows it’s an email without looking - probably containing something else he has to do within a ridiculously short timeframe. The pounding in his head increases, and as he unlocks their front door, he feels tears prick the back of his eyes. Don’t cry. Don’t cry. Don’t cry. 

Blinking back moisture, he pushes the door open and is immediately welcomed by the low sound of a piano ballad and a muffled bark. David comes skidding around the corner, his big ears flopping around his head and his long pink tongue lolling about. “Hey, boy,” Alex says with a soft laugh, squatting and reaching out to pat his furry son. David butts his head into Alex’s palm and then licks it without warning. 

“Hi, love,” a gentle voice greets him. 

Alex looks up from his crouched position to find his boyfriend approaching him, dressed in soft blues and greys and smiling tenderly. “Hen,” Alex breathes. He springs up from the ground and launches himself into Henry’s arms. Unbidden, fresh tears leak from the corner of his eyes as he sinks into Henry’s embrace. Just his very presence lifts Alex’s mood and makes things feel a little more bearable, though. 

“Oh.”  Henry’s arms come around him, squeezing Alex to his chest. Alex is shorter and stockier, and Henry taller and broader. But their bodies fit together like puzzle pieces, and Alex has never been more glad for the way Henry is the perfect height for Alex to nuzzle into his neck. “Bad day?”

“The fucking worst,” Alex mumbles into the soft fabric of Henry’s sweater. He smells fucking fantastic like always - like fresh grass and vanilla and clean laundry. Those smells should not go together, but they just do.  “Margaret has no concept of what “law student” actually means. Looked at me like I had sprouted another head when I said I needed time off for exams. Then tore apart the advice I drafted. And the professor for my criminal law class wants us to read that new appeal that was released yesterday and it’s five hundred pages on top of all the other readings I have to do. And that torts problem paper is due on Monday. Oh and do not get me started on fucking Hunter-” 

“Love,” Henry says, cupping the back of Alex’s head and pressing a kiss to his temple. “Breathe.” 

Alex emerges from the depths of Henry’s sweater and takes a few calming breaths. “Okay, I’m calm. I’m calm. I’m so calm. How are you? What did you get up to today, sweetheart? You look so cute right now-” 

“Alex,” Henry interrupts gently, running his thumb along the cut of Alex’s jaw. “Are you sure you’re alright? Do you want to talk about it?”

“I’m fine,” Alex insists. It feels hollow. Henry raises his eyebrows, doubt colouring his features before Alex blurts out exactly what’s on his mind. “I’m going to die of a heart attack before I’m thirty, Hen. Or worse, develop grey hairs in the very foreseeable future. I can’t even say the word “foreseeable” without thinking about the law. There’s so much stress in my body, Hen. It’s eating me alive. I’m just a twenty-four year old baby. I shouldn’t have this much responsibility or this many deadlines. I should be at the clubs, not locked in some soulless cubicle filing through data from 1995! I wasn’t even born in 1995! And who let me take on mooting this semester. The workload is insane and the number of meets scheduled each week? There’s only so many hours in the day. And we have the fundraiser next week with Pez that we agreed to help set up for. Ohmygod I’m going to explode. I’m going to get stress hives. You’ve never seen me with stress hives. All up my arms and over my hands, Henry. I can feel it happening right now-” he stops and gulps down oxygen. He feels sweaty and out of breath just thinking about the mounting pile of work before him. 

“Alex,” Henry repeats his name in that soothing voice he puts on when Alex gets like this. “Darling, take another breath for me, please. Just like that. Good. So good for me, Alex. ” 

Alex’s brain lags at the praise. In his mind's eye he sees explosions and stars. Fuck. Now thoughts of hives and tweezing out grey hairs were competing with bedroom thoughts. Alex preferred the bedroom thoughts. Now that was certainly one way to calm him down... Alex is so caught up in the horny that he almost misses what Henry says next. 

“How about you go for a run?” Henry suggests, his palm rubbing soothing circles on Alex’s upper back. “Getting out in the fresh air and sunshine might help, and you always say you feel better after a run.” 

“No,” Alex says immediately, stubbornly jutting out his lower lip. “Wanna stay with you and David.” And I can think of some stress relief only you can help me out with. 

Henry laughs at Alex’s antics, the sound bright and warm in Alex's ears. “A walk then?” he suggests, twining their hands together and squeezing his palm gently. “Together? You, me and David?” 

He’s probably right. Exercise and the endorphins really did help Alex calm down. And it made his body tired, which helped when he tried to sleep at night. That was the thing about an office job and studying - sitting nine or ten hours a day doing mentally exhausting work didn’t really help the physical tiredness side of things. 

“Alright,” Alex agrees, nodding almost to himself. “We can do that. We should do that. I think it’ll help. Do you think it’ll help?” 

Henry presses another kiss to his temple. “We can certainly see if it does. Let me get changed. Then we can take David to the park, alright? And you can tell me everything. Spare me no details.” He lets go of Alex and makes to leave. Unbidden, Alex’s hand shoots out and grabs his wrist. 

“Wait,” Alex says quickly. His heart hammers in his chest. “I read a list about de-stress techniques. Exercise was on it, obviously. But so was something else.” 

“What was it, love?” Henry asks curiously, eyebrows pinching. 

“Sex,” Alex blurts out. 

Henry blinks in surprise. A pink blush climbs over his cheeks. “Oh?” he says in a slightly higher voice. He clears his throat. “I- well, yes. Sex does have stress relief benefits, that’s correct.” His lips quirk up, clearly amused. 

“I could do with some extra endorphins and serotonin,” Alex says, stepping forward. 

Henry’s eyes drop to Alex’s mouth. “Is that so?” he asks softly. He gnaws at his own lip, as if in thought. 

“Yep,” Alex says, taking Henry’s hands and pulling him into his space. “Kiss me,” he invites. 

Henry hurries to comply, capturing Alex’s mouth with his own and sliding his hands around Alex’s waist. Alex smiles into it, joy blossoming in his chest as Henry pulls him closer and runs his tongue across the seam of Alex’s mouth. 

There’s another idea forming in the back of his mind as they wordlessly stumble towards their bedroom. Something not entirely untraversed between them, but not exactly fully explored either. 

“Alex,” Henry breathes, reeling in Alex’s attention. Alex obediently lifts his arms as Henry tugs at the hem of his shirt, and divests Henry of his shirt in return. They fall onto their bed and its soft 500 thread count Egyptian cotton sheets Henry insisted they needed (he was dating a Prince, after all). He’s quickly lost in a tangle of limbs, his hands running along Henry’s arms, down his spine, curling into his hair as Henry kisses Alex thoroughly and completely. 

After a long moment of open mouthed kissing and nibbling at Henry’s lower lip, Alex pushes off the bed with one leg and rolls them over, pulling Henry on top of him with a soft oof. Henry moans into his mouth at the move and grabs Alex's hip, pulling it up around his waist and sliding his hand higher and higher until his fingertips are on Alex's ass.

Suddenly, Alex both knows what he wants and has the courage to ask for it. 

“Fuck me,” he blurts out. 

Henry pauses his ministrations and pulls back. “What?” he asks tautly. 

“Fuck me,” Alex repeats, squeezing the back of Henry’s arm where his palm currently rests. 

Henry pauses, blinking. “You want me to fuck you?” He asks, as if in a daze. 

“Yes,” Alex breathes, searching Henry’s face for a sign of assent. “Please.” 

“I-” Henry swallows hard. Alex’s eyes catch on the strong column of his throat and the bob of his Adam's apple. “It might be, erm-”

“I don’t care,” Alex tells him, reaching up and cupping his jaw. Henry leans into the touch and looks down at him with those bottomless blue eyes, plump lower lip caught in his teeth. “I don’t care. I don’t,” Alex repeats again, carding his hand through Henry’s blonde locks. 

They’ve done it a couple of times; switched things up. The first time Henry had orgasmed purely from fingering Alex open and had refused to try again for several months out of embarrassment. The second time had been marginally more successful - a few stuttered thrusts before he was coming undone, fingernails digging into Alex’s waist and laughing into Alex’s mouth. 

Alex loved every second of sex with Henry. The squeeze of Henry’s tight ass around his cock was nothing short of pure bliss. Sheathing himself inside Henry and fucking him silly was one of his favourite past times. But sometimes Alex yearned to be filled up too. Sometimes he wanted to be so intimately connected with Henry in that way, to feel him for days afterwards. 

Alright - they hadn’t gotten to that part yet. Henry comes as quickly as a virgin getting their dick wet for the first time. But they will get there if Alex has anything to say about it. 

“Mhmm,” Henry says and kisses Alex’s palm. “I suppose practice makes perfect.” 

“You’re already perfect,” Alex tells him honestly. Henry flushes at his words and drops a kiss on his lips before pushing himself up. 

“Tell me what you need.”

Alex props himself up on his elbows and surveys Henry. His hesitance has transformed into determination. He’s eyeing Alex’s body with a calculating look, like he’s making a mental list of exactly what he wants to do to him. It makes Alex shiver at the prospects of what might be coming. 

“I need you in control,” he says honestly. “Edge me. But I wanna come more than once.” 

Henry licks his lips. “That can be arranged,” he says hoarsely. He slips off the bed and beelines for the top drawer of their chest of drawers. Alex admires him as Henry collects what he needs, eyes tracing his broad shoulders and the dimples at the base of his spine. His sweatpants sit low on his hips, the curve of his back accentuating his little tummy. It drives Alex crazy. 

“Can you take your pants off for me, love?” Henry asks, his back still turned. 

Alex’s mouth goes dry at the tone of his voice. Light yet expectant. He hastily undoes his jeans and kicks them off. They hit the floor with a soft thud and Alex is left in only his tight grey boxer briefs. 

Henry turns back to him, arms behind his back. He assesses Alex quickly and nods. “Good boy,” he says. Alex flushes red with pleasure. “I have an idea, are you interested in hearing it?” 

Again, there’s an undercurrent of authority in the tone of his voice. Alex finds himself nodding enthusiastically before he’s even finished comprehending what Henry is saying. Henry smiles in response, ducking his head for a moment and blushing lightly. “Alright,” he slowly takes his arm out from behind his back and produces three objects that almost make Alex black out - two sets of handcuffs and a vibrator. 

“Fuck,” he curses softly as Henry crosses to him. 

“Is this okay?” Henry asks, his knee resting on the edge of the mattress. He watches Alex closely. 

“Uh huh,” Alex nods more vigorously. His body already feels like it’s on the edge - every part of him alight with desire. His cock is straining against the seam of his underwear. If Henry doesn’t hurry up, Alex is going to be the one orgasming prematurely. “Very okay. More than okay. Amazing, actually-” he’s cut off by his own moan as Henry slings a leg over him and straddles his waist. 

“Hi, love,” Henry says, smoothing back Alex’s curls from his forehead. 

“Hi, sweetheart,” Alex whispers, feeling a little stupefied. He reaches up and strokes Henry’s cheek, his thumb sweeping across his bottom lip. Henry nips at his thumb playfully before sucking the digit into his mouth. The swipe of his tongue across the top and the warm, wet heat makes Alex groan low in his throat. 

“How do you feel about these?” Henry asks, holding up the silver handcuffs that usually have Henry’s name written all over them. 

Alex’s mouth goes dry. He knows what they mean. His cock twitches again and his blood heats. “Good,” he admits. “So good. Can you please-” 

Henry rolls his hips, grinding their clothed cocks together. Alex chokes on his tongue as white hot pleasure licks up his spine. “Can I please what?” 

“Pleas- mhmph.” Henry rolls his hips again, grinding down hard. 

“Sorry, love. I didn’t catch that-” 

“Pleasepleasepleaseplease,” Alex begs, kicking his feet. He feels uncomfortably warm and the anticipation is killing him. When he realises Henry hasn’t cut him off again, and is in fact looking down at him with amusement he grips onto Henry’s thighs and bursts out with, “Please handcuff me. I’ll be good.” The moment it passes his lips he becomes aware of how acutely he needs it. 

“Christ,” Henry murmurs. “I forget how bratty you can be. Give me your wrists. Now.” The last word is a demand. The Prince voice. Alex gives his wrists up willingly. Henry cuffs one and then the other in quick succession with an expression of serious concentration. “Does that feel good?” 

“Fucking spectacular,” Alex grits out, pulling feebly against them. He’s seen the effect the handcuffs have had on Henry; the way he acts when his hands are bound out of his reach is delicious. The whining and the moaning and the begging. Now that Alex is the one locked in the predicament, completely and totally at Henry’s mercy, he truly gets it. The thrill of it. The joy of handing over the reins. The way he can sink into the dynamic knowing that Henry is safeguarding him, watching out for his every need. 

Henry sits back on his hunches and appraises his handiwork. Alex flushes redder under his hungry gaze. Goosebumps erupt on his skin as Henry’s eyes take in every ridge of his stomach, every muscle in his arms. “Traffic light system,” Henry reminds him as he picks up his next item - the vibrator. 

Alex barely has time to nod before Henry switches it on. The first press of the vibrator against him knocks the breath from his lungs. His hands fly forward only to be stopped by the handcuffs. The clink echoes around the room. “Fuck!” 

Henry hovers the toy a hair's breadth away from Alex’s rapidly hardening cock. “You sure you’re up for this?” Henry quirks a brow at him. 

“Yes,” he snaps through gritted teeth. “Yes, yes, yes.” 

“I don’t know-” Henry pulls the toy away. The soft thrum of it fills the air between them. 

“I am-” 

“Are you sur-” 

“Henry!” Alex says hoarsely. 

“Shhh,” Henry soothes, laying a palm on Alex’s stomach. His hand, smaller than Alex’s own and pale as milk, trails along the line of his underwear. Alex focuses on the sensation, and the way it pairs with the weight on his wrists. 

He jolts in surprise as the vibrator touches him again; lighter this time as Henry learns on the fly how to wield it to maximise Alex’s pleasure. He grits his teeth at the feeling, clenching his fingers and toes as Henry focuses his efforts on the head of his cock. Breathless seconds float by until a twitch of the toy presses just right and Alex’s hips jerk off the bed, searching for more friction. 

“Fuck,” Alex curses as Henry lifts it just out of reach. “Fuck, fucking hell. Henry,” he whines, squeezing his eyes shut. “Henry, Henry, Henry,” he chants, “I need it.”

Henry clucks his tongue. “Is that so?” 

“Henry-” 

“Be good for me, Alex.” 

Alex’s jaw slams shut. Good. Be good. He is being good. But he can be better. He bites his lip and looks up at Henry under his lashes. Henry’s resolve appears to melt under the weight of his gaze and Alex feels a sharp sense of victory flow through him. That is until the toy, now switched up a notch, is pressed against him without any warning at all. 

And kept there. And then slid up and down his shaft as he warbles out words that mean nothing at all. There’s please and thank you and I’m good I’m good, I promise. Alex is hardly aware of his back arching off the bed until he falls back with a soft oof . 

“So good for me,” Henry murmurs, slipping one finger beneath the band of his underwear. Alex lies supine on the bed, waiting for the next assault with the toy, his body twitching and his nerves alight. “You love this, don’t you?” Henry grins as he snaps the elastic. Alex gasps softly at the slap against his flesh. The sting grounds him. 

“You’re exquisite,” Henry tells him reverently. “Look at you. Tied up and at my mercy…” he trails the vibrator up Alex’s abdomen and brushes his nipples. Fuck. Alex whimpers at the sensation, his nipples hardening under Henry’s ministrations. 

“Perhaps I should have started here,” Henry says in a low voice. He bites his lip as he surveys Alex, his blue eyes almost eclipsed by his pupils. “Should’ve gotten you all warmed up and pliant …” he trails the vibrator across to Alex’s other nipple. Alex whimpers again as he circles his pec. 

“More,” he begs. 

Henry tilts his head to the side and gives him a pitying look. “You can barely take it here-” he presses down on Alex’s nipple, causing Alex to gasp. “I don’t think you can take more, here-” he presses the vibrator down on the tip of his cock again and Alex shouts out at the mix of pleasure and pain zings through his body and arches his spine. 

“I can, I can, I can-” he chants wildly. 

The toy is lifted away again. And then pressed back down. Alex’s body trembles, warmth spreading from his groin and down his legs and arms, right to the tips of his fingers. His whole body is stretched taut, waiting for the pleasure to rise to orgasm. A few moments pass, Henry expertly manoeuvring the toy and alternating pressure until Alex can feel it building; he squeezes his eyes shut and breathes deeply as the wave rises and- 

Henry takes the toy away again. Tears prick Alex’s eyes. “Henry-” he squeezes out, but the word comes out funny and jumbled. Like his tongue has forgotten how to work. 

“Yes, love?” Henry asks airily. 

“Mhmph-” Alex pulls against the restraint as the wave inside him recedes. “I’m going to make you pay for this,” he chokes out, clenching his fingers. 

“Good,” Henry says succinctly, switching the vibrator off and throwing it to the side. “Ensure you punish me for this too.” He pulls off Alex’s underwear in one swift movement, and Alex breathes a sigh of relief as his cock springs free. He’s leaking profusely, drops of precum dribbling down his flushed red tip. 

Henry fists Alex’s cock at the base, squeezing it and drawing out a groan from Alex’s throat. “You’re going to let me suck you off, alright?” Henry says, shuffling back and lowering his body down in the v of Alex’s legs. “But you’re not going to cum. You’re going to take it until I say so. That is, if you’re amenable-” 

“Fuck,” Alex swears. The sight of his pretty, angelic boyfriend between his legs with his cock in hand is almost enough to take him to the edge. Nevermind the way the note of authority in his voice melts Alex’s brain. Okay, sure, maybe he doesn’t quite hit the mark on the whole dominance thing - who the fuck asks if their submissive is “amenable” - but it’s so atypical of the usual language of the role, and so Henry that Alex is on board. So on board. So fucking amenable. He tells Henry as much. 

“Good boy,” Henry says and then he places his lips around the head of Alex’s cock and sucks. 

“Oh god-” Alex says weakly as Henry hollows his cheeks and swallows him down to the root. “You’re like my own personal fleshlight,” he says deliriously, forgetting himself and snapping his hips up. 

Henry moans around his cock, his hands scrabbling for Alex’s hips and pressing him down. “Alex-” he snaps, the Prince voice back. Alex freezes; almost quailing under the glare Henry is giving him. “I thought you said you wanted to be good for me-”

“I-” Alex says, his eyes widening. Hot shame fills him, colouring his cheeks red and causing his spine to fall limp. “I do, I do, I do,” he rushes out. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry. Let me make it up to you. Please-” 

Henry presses Alex’s hips down harder, his grip bordering on bruising. “You lift your hips again,” Henry warns, “And you’re not coming tonight. Not now. Not later. Not with me. Not in me. Not until tomorrow. Is that what you want?” 

“No!” Alex bursts out, raw and unadulterated panic clawing at his throat. 

“That’s what I thought,” Henry says silkily. “Lie flat, love. Let me make you feel good.” 

He does. It’s obscene, the way Henry twists his wrist and throats Alex’s cock, pink lips stretched wide and drool collecting on his chin. But Alex… he stays flat, trembling from head to toe and ascending to cloud fucking nine as Henry’s tongue works its magic. 

The third time Henry delays Alex orgasm - pulling off and squeezing his base - he reaches for the lube and Alex’s heart rate picks up. Yes. Yes. Yes. He watches through half-lidded eyes as Henry sits back on his hunches, the bottle in hand and surveys him. 

“You’ve been so good for me,” Henry tells him. Alex bites his lip and tries to stifle his moan as the words shoot down his spine and to his cock. “I’m going to undo your cuffs now, alright.” 

Alex nods quickly, not trusting himself to speak as Henry leans forward, his torso stretching over Alex’s face, and begins to undo his handcuffs. If it were any other time, any other dynamic, Alex would have attached himself to Henry’s nipple by now, and be sinking his fingernails into his tiny fucking waist. But not tonight. Tonight Alex would do as he was told. 

“So obedient for me,” Henry whispers once he’s free. He takes one of Alex’s hands with both of his and kisses feeling back into Alex’s fingers and wrist, his lips soft. When he’s done with the other, he holds it to his chest and cradles it. “Option A or B. Pick.” 

Alex blinks slowly up at Henry, his mind a soupy mess. He’s still recovering from the spoiled orgasm; still trying to respool the thread and put himself back together enough to form words.  “Um… B?” 

“Good choice,” Henry slides off him, leaving Alex a limp mess of awkward limbs. “Get on your stomach first.” 

The words take a moment to register. Henry’s gaze softens and he helps push Alex onto his stomach, adjusting his lower limbs just so as Alex folds his arms under his head. He closes his eyes as Henry shucks his pants and sits behind him. “Colour, Alex?” 

“Green,” Alex says immediately. 

“Good.” Then Henry’s palms are on his ass, stroking the soft skin over and over. Alex closes his eyes and breathes in, letting the sensation wash over him and cocoon him in pleasure. 

His cocoon is blasted to pieces as all of a sudden Henry’s palm connects with his left ass cheek with a loud thwack. Alex jolts, gasping out as another palm lands, slightly lower, at the crease between his ass and leg. 

“Henry,” he chokes out as the sensual atmosphere gives away to something even more Dionysian. 

“Transgressions have to be punished, dear.”

“I’ll transgress you,” Alex mutters out darkly. Tears pool at the corner of his eyes. Not from pain, but from panoptic pleasure. 

“By all means, go ahead,” Henry invites but then he’s pulling Alex’s asscheeks apart and bearing his hole to the night air and Henry’s blue eyed gaze. Alex squirms, trying to peek behind him to see what exactly Henry is up to. 

He moans as Henry’s hot breath fans over the crease of his ass. “You don’t get to come until I say so.” Then Henry’s tongue is on his taint whilst he simultaneously presses his thumb over Alex’s hole. 

Alex lets out a choked noise and grabs at the sheets to ground himself. Henry explores further, kissing his skin and his hole, his pillow soft lips contrasting with the slight scrape of his afternoon shadow. The textures and sensations drive Alex wild; his chest hammers and he squeezes his eyes shut to stave off a horribly pitiful noise from passing through his lips. 

He buries his face into the mattress as Henry continues, firmly licking from Alex’s taint up to his hole with the flat of his tongue. He might even mewl as Henry finally circles his rim. But there’s still a thread of tension in him, whether it’s leftover shyness about this part of his body, or about the worries still in the back of his head, he can’t be sure. 

“Alex,” Henry murmurs, withdrawing, “Relax, love. Let go. I’ve got you, remember?” 

His words coax him free. The tension in Alex’s body melts away. He waves his concerns goodbye as he floats through liminal space, the press of Henry’s tongue driving him towards euphoria. “Henry,” he moans out. 

Henry pulls his cheeks apart wider and presses his tongue more firmly against his rim and suddenly Alex is gone. His body spasms and his cock twitches as he tries to fight off the overwhelming tidal wave taking him over. Not yet, not yet. He wasn’t allowed to cum yet. Not until Henry said so… 

“Alex,” Henry sighs his name like a prayer. “Christ. Can you handle a finger? Do you need a minute?” 

“O-One,” Alex stutters out. 

“One minute? Or one finger?” 

Alex clenches his eyes shut and moans wantonly at the thought of Henry’s fingers slipping inside him. He wants it - needs it. Right now. But can he handle it?

“Love?” 

Alex grits his teeth and forces himself back off the precipice. “Mhmph,” he manages. One. One what? What was the question again? 

“I can’t read minds, Alex. Use your words, love. You know so many …” 

A choked sob is ripped from him. The hint of degradation makes his cock jerk painfully. “N-Need a minute-” 

“Oh, love,” Henry says. He lets go of Alex’s ass. “You want to come?” 

“Please-” 

“Thank you for remembering to ask permission,” Henry says, running a hand over Alex’s ass. “You’ve done so well. Held on for so long. I think you deserve it.” He gently pulls Alex up and directs his hands toward the headboard. Alex follows his lead blindly, shuffling forwards on his knees and grabbing onto the solid oak crest of their bed. 

“Alex?” Henry breathes in his ear, shuffling up behind him. Alex feels the thick length of Henry’s cock press against his lower back as Henry pulls Alex’s back to his chest. 

“Yes?” he manages. 

Henry kisses between his shoulder blade and snakes his hand around to grab hold of Alex’s cock. “You deserve everything, love,” he whispers, his breath ghosting over the hill of Alex’s back. 

Alex tilts his head back and gasps into the air as Henry grips his cock and begins jerking him off. The slick, obscene sounds of his hand gives way to Alex’s cry of pleasure as he comes almost immediately, spilling over Henry’s hand, the headboard and the pillows. 

He falls back into Henry’s chest, resting his head on the soft part of his shoulder. Henry wraps his arms around Alex in return and nuzzles into his neck, lips kissing up his jaw as Alex fights to reoxygenate his brain. His skin is covered in a light sheen of sweat and he’s sure he looks thoroughly wrung out - he feels thoroughly wrung out, just sort of floating, really. 

“How are you feeling?” Henry murmurs into his skin. Alex mindlessly reaches up and pats Henry’s sweaty hair as he takes another deep breath. 

“That was insane,” he says honestly. The anxiety inside him has dissipated and something has settled deep in his chest. He feels safe. Safe and cared for and blissed out. 

Henry’s hands run down his abdomen, ghosting over his abs and settling on his pec. He squeezes lightly as he asks, “You still want me?” 

“What?” 

“Do you still … want me. Inside you.” 

Alex laughs breathlessly. “Yes, Hen. I still want your cock.” He emphasises the word. “I need you to fuck me … that is, if you’re amenable?” He can’t help but tease him a little; prodding and poking Henry was a surefire way to cajole out the assertive side to him. 

There’s a low growl in his ears and then Henry is pushing him down flat on the bed as Alex laughs harder. Fucking yes. “Are you going to make me regret that?” he asks, voice muffled by the messy, bunched up sheets. 

Henry ignores him. Alex hears the tell-tale snick of lube being opened and braces himself, grinning like a madman into their mattress. He even gives his ass a little wiggle. 

“You’re incorrigible.” 

“You incorrige me.”

“Christ-” Henry pulls Alex’s cheeks apart more roughly, his hands cold from the lube. “Do shut up for a minute, will you?” Alex swears he feels his cock harden all the fucking way at his words and uncharacteristically rough tone of voice. 

Alex props himself up on his elbows and turns to look over his shoulder. Henry is wearing an expression of intense concentration as he runs a finger around Alex’s rim. He bites his lips to stop himself from saying anything more. Henry seems to hear his thoughts anyway and glances up with a quirk of his lips. “Yes, love?” 

Alex licks his lips. “I just… want you.” 

It’s all the encouragement Henry needs, He presses his thumb against the outer muscle and pushes gently. The sensation sends tingles down Alex’s legs as Henry pushes himself in up to the first knuckle. Mhmmph. 

The look of delight on Henry’s face makes Alex realise he said that outloud. He sways his hips a little, working his way back until Henry’s entire thumb is inside him. Double mhmmmph. “You’re so tight,” Henry says, mystified. “Christ.” 

“Need another one,” Alex says quickly, jerking his hips back again. “Please Hen. I’ve been good. I can take it. I really want it. Don’t you want to give it to me- Oh!” Alex gasps as Henry withdraws his thumb and starts pressing against his rim with his index and middle finger. He swears he can see fucking stars. 

“Too much?” Henry asks at the same time Alex lets out a wanton moan and bucks his hips back, searching for the stretch of Henry’s fingers. 

“Please Henry,” he says in answer. “Feels so good. Need more of you. The stretch s’good.” 

Henry complies; he slowly inches in, listening to Alex’s body as he clenches and gasps out stop and I’m okay now and keep going. Minutes drag by, Henry’s gentle but firm fingers working Alex open patiently. He scissors them and makes come hither motions that hitch Alex’s breath at the feeling. He feels good. He feels tingly. But Henry’s fingers are not the end goal here - his cock is. 

“Need you,” Alex whispers over his shoulder. There's another snick of the bottle and the wet sound of Henry slicking himself up. Whilst Henry relishes in the burn of the stretch, Alex prefers the extra aid. He curls his fingers and toes again in anticipation. 

“Open yourself for me,” Henry commands him quietly. Alex flushes at the lewdness of what he is about to do, but he does it anyway, a thrill zipping down his spine. He takes his cheeks in hand and pulls them open, whimpering as the tip of Henry’s cock presses against his entrance. 

“Good boy. I’m going to fuck you now, alright?” 

“Please-” 

Henry sweeps an arm around Alex’s shoulders and hauls him closer. “So good for me,” he whispers the shell of Alex’s ear before he’s pushing inside. There’s a slight burn, and the stretch robs Alex of breath as his ass clenches and unclenches sporadically. It’s insane. The feeling is insane. 

“Ohmygodohmygod-” Henry’s voice is a pitch higher than normal. His fingernails dig into the soft skin of Alex’s waist and he stutters to a stop. Meanwhile, Alex’s cock pulses. Apparently refractory periods don’t apply when your emergency top boyfriend agrees to fuck you.

“Do you need a min-” Alex’s snark is lost in the palm of Henry’s hand as he clams it over his mouth.

“You’re so tight.” Henry says, almost irritated. “You’re choking my cock. Christ.” He breathes deeply and, just as Alex is about to attempt words, he jerks Alex’s hips back and sheaths him fully on his cock. 

Alex shouts at the explosion of pleasure and the whisper of pain. Henry’s hand leaves his mouth and instead rests lightly around his throat. “Henry,” he gasps out, “Henry. You’re so deep. Fuck.”

“You feel-” Henry huffs out a breath as he rolls his hips. “Like heaven.” He withdraws and then snaps his hips forward. Alex whines, low and anguished. “How are you real,” Henry asks, his voice full of wonder as his hips pick up a slow rhythm. “Alex.” 

“Hen,” Alex whispers, his hands gripping Henry’s forearms as he leans back. The new angle punches new sounds from him; sounds he’s never heard himself make before. The way Henry’s front is flush against his back and Alex’s ass is pressed into the cradle of his hips is devastating. Miles of warm skin pressed together, their hearts beating in tandem. 

“Are you ready?” Henry breathes into his ear. 

“Ready for what?” Alex asks stupidly. His neurons are in overdrive; his brain has logged out. All that exists is him and Henry and their bodies wringing pleasure from one another. 

“This.” Henry shifts the angle again and his cock brushes against something and- 

Alex trembles in Henry’s embrace. His thighs first and then his entire body as the head of Henry’s cock brushes against that spot, over and over and over. Pleasure melts into euphoria and Alex’s eyes roll into the back of his head as Henry bullies at the spot with each thrust. The wave is rising again as the minutes past, cresting high in the air. Alex feels weightless. 

His boyfriend gasps into his ear. “I’m close. I’m so close, Alex.” 

“Harder,” Alex begs. “I don’t care if you come - just harder. Please. Please.” 

Henry tightens his grip on his throat and grabs for Alex’s completely hard and now profusely leaking cock. The combination of Henry’s fingers tightening around his fluttering pulse, the ungraceful way Henry’s hand is working over his length, and the merciless snap of Henry’s hips drives him right to the edge of the cliff and shoves him off. He comes with a shout, his voice echoing around their bedroom as, for the second time, his cum decorates Henry’s hand and their sheets. 

He digs his fingernails into Henry’s forearms as he rides out the wave. Ecstasy floods his body and pain and pleasure mingle as his ass stretches open to accommodate Henry’s messy, uncoordinated thrusts. In a blink of an eye Henry is coming undone with a breathy laugh, his come spilling into Alex’s body and filling him to the brim. 

Alex closes his eyes and groans. He feels so deliciously full. He wants to bask in this feeling forever, but Henry has other ideas. He whimpers, low and broken, murmuring about being too sensitive as he lifts Alex off his cock. His hands are gentle and warm on Alex’s thighs. 

“Alex,” he sighs, pulling him around. 

Alex goes easily, twisting his body and capturing Henry’s mouth. They kiss hungrily, open mouthed and clumsy. Affection and love well in Alex’s chest. Always a man of action, he twists around in full and pushes Henry down, sliding into the v of his legs and draping himself over Henry’s body. They kiss deeper, teeth clacking and noses dangerously close to colliding a little too forcefully. Especially as Henry reaches around and slides a finger down the crease of his ass. 

Alex whimpers into his mouth. “Fuck, Hen,” he breathes, “I love you.” 

“I love you too,” Henry murmurs back, brushing their noses together. His eyes are wide, bottomless blue and hazy. Like he’s still coming down from the feeling. Alex relates a whole fucking lot right now. He nuzzles into Henry’s chest and kisses his pec. 

“You don’t fuck like a virgin anymore,” he jokes. 

“Are you fishing for more praise, dear?” 

“..Maybe.” 

Henry smiles up at him, broad and gummy. “You take cock like a champion, love.” 

Alex bursts out laughing and, in retaliation, reaches out to tickle him. Henry yelps, but Alex is too fast. He digs his fingers into Henry’s sides and he laughs louder as Henry explodes into giggles and tries his best to squirm away. 

His chest fills light again; his mind is unclouded. Tomorrow he can deal with his to-do list. But today, right now, he has Henry in his arms and laughter on his tongue and he’s been so thoroughly fucked, all he can do is grin ear-to-ear.