Edgar Aeternum, Book 1: Tales of Aeternal Love (28 page)

"Totally," Edgar agreed, obliging him with a
slow, deep kiss. They parted moments later. "Let's not think about
that, though."

"Agreed," Maddi said, leaning his forehead
against Edgar's. "Not to break up this happy moment, but I have to
piss again." He pulled back and kissed Edgar's forehead before
getting out of bed.

"More coffee?" Edgar asked.

"Mmmm... Mind reader," Maddi answered,
pointing a finger at Edgar. "More coffee, definitely!"

"You got it!" Edgar said, getting out of bed
and heading for the door. He stopped halfway and said, "This is
great! We still have time to go to church," and turned back to the
door, hiding his goofy grin.

"What!" Maddi said from the bathroom door.
"Don't you dare drop that bomb and leave the room! Get back
here!"

Edgar got his smile under control and turned
to Maddi, deadpan. "Yes?" he said.

"Here!" Maddi pointed to a spot on the floor
in front of himself. Edgar looked perplexed as he slowly walked to
face Maddi. When he got to the spot, he stopped.

"What's up?" he asked, all innocence.

"Church?" Maddi questioned him. "You must be
joking, right? I thought you didn't do that."

Edgar had intended to draw the joke out a bit
longer, but he couldn't contain his laughter at the serious look on
Maddi's face. Maddi, catching on, gave him a playful punch on the
shoulder.

"Ow!" Edgar exclaimed in mock pain. "Abusive
louse!" he said with a smile.

"Closet Christian!" Maddi shot back, also
smiling. "You deserved that!" he added.

"True enough," Edgar turned his back to
Maddi, bending over slightly and said, "Do I deserve a spanking?"
He wiggled his ass suggestively.

Maddi gave him a semi-serious swat, chuckling
at Edgar's surprised yelp. "Later," he said. "Piss now, punish
later."

"Yes, Sir!" Edger turned and gave Maddi a
sharp salute. The younger man returned it laughed, and went relieve
himself. Edgar chuckled and rubbed his ass where Maddi slapped it
before going to get coffee. He paused at the guest bath and decided
a quick piss sounded good. Moments later, he completed his coffee
run and returned to the bedroom.

Maddi was standing by the side of the bed and
took his mug with a quick thanks. Before Edgar could get back in
bed, Maddi beckoned him over with a one finger wave. Edgar set down
his own mug and walked around the end of the bed to meet him. When
he got there, Maddi put both hands on Edgar's chest, one on each
smooth pec. He stood up on his toes and gave Edgar a quick
kiss.

Maddi looked up at Edgar, a serious
expression on his face. Edgar took the cue and refrained from
cracking wise. Maddi quietly said, "You are obviously a man of
honor as well as an all-around great guy." Edgar opened his mouth
to respond and Maddi gave a slight shake of his head. Edgar kept
his peace and Maddi continued. "I know you were joking about
church, but I think you should know that there is only one altar I
worship at," he paused a beat, "and that's this," he patted Edgar's
chest gently. "The only things I believe in are masculine honor,
self-sufficiency and myself. And love, when it happens, of course.
I just want you to know; these are serious concepts for me."

Edgar's jaw dropped, but he said nothing.
Maddi was waiting for a reaction, slightly surprised at Edgar's
silence. He began to back up when Edgar stopped him by putting his
own hands over Maddi's and holding them in place. He took a deep
breath, letting it out slowly. "I understand," he finally said.
"What you're telling me is that you're Andro."

"Yes," Maddi said, looking up into Edgar's
eyes. "If we're going to go further, you need to know." Edgar was
familiar with this particular conversation, having had it numerous
times in his past. Those who didn't know sometimes confused Andros
with gay or bisexual males; while technically the same, there were
some distinct differences. The high values Andros placed on the
items Maddi listed, for one.

They held such beliefs in as high a regard as
Star Trek: TNG Klingons held honor; it wasn't just an idea, it was
their way of life. Edgar took these beliefs equally seriously. Some
mistook this high standard as snobbishness or disdain for other gay
and bi men. To Edgar, and most Andros, nothing could be farther
from the truth. No, Andros didn't participate in many traditionally
gay activities, including the still
en vogue
feminine
behavior of some.

However, this did not mean Andros looked down
their noses at gay men or effeminates; it simply meant they,
themselves, didn't feel inclined to participate. They believed that
those who chose to emulate such behavior, as well as those who were
naturally effeminate, should be perfectly free to do so. Andro was
originally conceived of as an identity for gay men who weren't
naturally effeminate and didn't wish to be, either. In those early
days, such men felt a sense of isolation from community; some of
the gay men of that time felt that such seemingly traditional
masculinity was the source of all of society's problems. Their
belief was that could only achieve true equality and acceptance
through the destruction of such ideas.

Eventually, society changed; rather than
defining equality as sameness, individual differences were
celebrated and intolerance was no longer tolerated. However,
despite such societal enlightenment, the differences between gay
& bi men and Andros did occasionally require some
clarification. Edgar was so into Maddi that he hadn't yet even
thought of having this conversation. That Maddi had was a true
testament to his honor and Edgar felt an overwhelming sense of
respect for the younger man.

"I understand completely, Maddi," Edgar
finally said, a catch in his voice. "I respect your honesty. You
honor me with your truth." Maddi looked at Edgar in pleasant
surprise; these six simple words were one of the most
highly-regarded terms of respect one Andro could give to another.
The final word sometimes changed, but the form remained the
same.

Maddi looked Edgar a moment longer before
finding his own voice. His words, too, shook with emotion as he
spoke the traditional response, "As you honor me with yours," he
said. Without another word, they joined in a tight embrace; each
man understanding, and silently celebrating, this discovery.

While Andros were much more prevalent now
than in the twentieth century, it wasn't uncommon for them to find
it at least a bit difficult to find a mate. Bedmates were easy to
come by in this age of freedom, but a true mate - one who not only
held the same set of values and beliefs, but also, one with whom
there was a true connection - that was not always easy. Edgar once
compared it, loosely, to being a member of a little-known religion
trying to find a spouse in an almost completely secular world.

There were mixed marriages, of course, as
well as those who converted, for lack of a better word, to an Andro
philosophy, but the ultimate goal of an Andro when it came to love,
was to find another Andro. Especially given the intense mating
ritual that bonded Andros in what the rest of society thought of as
marriage. The sharing of blood was considered to the highest form
of bonding, the idea being that the blood of one's mate flowed in
one's own veins. It was an extremely private ceremony, attended
only by the two men in question. Celebrations with family and
friends sometimes came later, but for the most part, becoming mates
was held to be an intensely personal affair.

Quite often bonded Andros would share their
status as mates with those whom they loved, but not with a public
celebration. Instead, they kept the personal details of their life
together private; not from a sense of shame or fear, as those
things no longer had a place in society. It was driven by their
fierce commitment to the concept of self-sufficiency; outside
interference in their bond was neither welcomed, nor tolerated,
even from their families and closest friends.

Edgar knew from centuries of experience, that
some Andros spent their lives alone with the exception of the
occasional bedmate. This was a matter of personal preference as
well as a decision to simply accept that finding one's true mate
was difficult and often disappointing and tiring. He thought,
briefly, of Sterling.

A breach of trust like that suffered by his
friend was the equivalent of a death blow to a pair-bonding; it was
the ultimate betrayal, a dishonor so severe that no amount of
talking or even counseling could save the bond. The pain of the one
betrayed ran soul-deep and the mere thought of what his friend
lived with on a daily basis almost brought Edgar to tears. He
hugged Maddi even tighter, his thoughts turning to his own
life.

Honor demanded total honesty; anything less
made a travesty of the pair-bond. Edgar had a mate once, centuries
ago, before he knew he was immortal. They spent two happy decades
together before a tragic car accident took his mate's life. It was
a few years after that, that Edgar - approaching his fifties but
looking like he did today - began wondering about his life. While
he'd mourned his mate for years, when he finally discovered his
immortality, part of him felt a sense of relief. Revealing such a
secret carried a great risk, but honor would have demanded that he
share it with his mate. It was a frightening idea, even given the
deep trust mates shared.

His next thought was that, depending on where
things went with Maddi, honor would demand that same sharing if the
two ever pair-bonded. Edgar's eyes flew open at the realization. He
took a deep breath, released it and closed his eyes again, gently
swaying from side to side, the two men holding each other as if for
dear life.

I will not think about this now. Tomorrow
will care for itself. Instead, I will focus on having the most
wonderful man I've met in the last three hundred years, Sterling
included. This is real, this is here, now and this is all I care
about. I may have to come clean someday, but I'll jump off that
bridge when I get to it. It's skating awfully close to the line,
but no one ever anticipated living forever when the Code was
conceived.

Edgar had had been a few other loves over the
centuries, but not another mate. The others were happy times until
the need to preserve his secret drove Edgar to end the
relationships rather than be discovered. He'd struggled with it
even then, and not just because it hurt both of them and was
unforgivably cruel. Just because the other men hadn't been Andros
did not excuse Edgar from honoring the Code. In the end, he'd
simply stopped looking for love rather than go through that pain
and dishonor again; but at some level, he never stopped wanting to
love and be loved.

He felt Maddi's arms tighten around him and
wondered if the young Andro was experiencing his own version of
what Edgar was feeling. For the moment, Edgar's only response was
to hold Maddi tighter and drop a kiss on his forehead. They stood
like that, gently moving together, for what seemed an eternity. Too
soon, Edgar thought, Maddi's arms loosened their grip. Edgar
stopped the gentle rocking and loosened his own grip, pulling back
to look down at his beautiful companion.

It was only then that he realized Maddi was
crying. Tears flowed freely down the younger man's face and he made
no effort to hide them or wipe them away. Edgar immediately pulled
him in close again, slowly moving them to the edge of the bed. He
turned and carefully lay Maddi on the sheets, joining him and once
again wrapping him in a hug, Maddi's head on his chest.

They lay in silence for another few minutes,
Edgar softly rubbing Maddi's side with one hand and gently wiping
away the boy's tears with the first two fingers of the other. Edgar
felt tears welling in his own eyes, finally spilling over and
running down either side of his face to fall on the pillow. Maddi's
breathing slowed and soon both men stopped crying.

Edgar moved his hand up from Maddi's side to
gently stroke his hair. He had to try twice to speak before his
voice would cooperate. "Are you OK, Maddi?"

It took Maddi as long to answer the question
as it had for Edgar to ask it. When he finally spoke, his voice
quavered with deeply felt emotion. "Y-yes, I'm fine," he breathed
out slowly, further collecting himself and noticing the trails of
wetness on Edgar's face. "Are you alright, Edgar?" he queried.

Edgar smiling, replied, "Never better," and
kissed Maddi's forehead. "I was very pleasantly surprised by the
fact that you're Andro," he said. "It's been so long since I felt
this way about anyone, let alone another Andro. Honestly, I'd given
up hope of ever feeling this way again." At that last sentence,
fresh tears spilled, flowing down his cheeks.

It was Maddi's turn to reach up and wipe away
tears. As he did so, his own started flowing again. "I know what
you mean, Edgar," he said, a slight hitch in his voice. "I've only
ever had feelings for another Andro once and they weren't
reciprocated," he paused, making an effort to control his voice. "I
know how tough it can be and I'm still young. Even so, the thought
has crossed my mind more than once that I might be end up living
un-bonded, wrapped up in my career to fill the void. It's a great
life, being an Andro, but it can be hard."

"That it can," said Edgar, fighting to regain
his own control. He gave a short laugh through his tears and said,
"Part of me is afraid I'm going to hear a wake-up chime any time
now and you'll disappear, that this is just a dream."

Maddi smiled, still crying, and said, "I
totally get where you're coming from. I feel the same way. It would
be a damn cruel joke, wouldn't it, to have all this," here he
paused, resting his hand on Edgar's chest, "be nothing but a dream.
The best dream I've ever had, granted, but cruel nonetheless."