Ethan hadn’t seen Mr. Carter in years—not since he’d walked across the graduation stage, exchanging a fleeting glance with the man who had been his high school English teacher. He had harbored an innocent crush back then, something he never dared to act on. But now, at twenty-three, Ethan was no longer a shy, unsure teenager. And when he spotted Mr. Carter at a café downtown, he knew he had to say something.

“Mr. Carter?” Ethan’s voice was smooth, confident.

The older man looked up from his book, eyes widening slightly before softening with recognition. “Ethan? Wow, it’s been a while.”

They talked, catching up over coffee, laughter threading between them like an invisible string. Mr. Carter—James—had left teaching a year ago, now working as an editor for a publishing house. As the conversation flowed, Ethan noticed the way James’s gaze lingered on him, the way his lips curled when he smiled. There was something unspoken between them, a tension that neither had acknowledged all those years ago. But now? Now, there was nothing stopping them.

“Would you like to come back to my place for another drink?” James asked, his tone measured but laced with suggestion.

Ethan didn’t hesitate. “I’d love to.”

James’s apartment was lined with bookshelves, the faint scent of aged paper and cologne filling the air. As soon as the door closed, the space between them disappeared. Ethan pressed against James, their lips colliding in a kiss that was years in the making. It started slow—tentative—before deepening into something raw, needy.

James’s hands explored Ethan’s body, gripping his waist, sliding beneath his shirt to feel warm skin beneath his fingertips. Ethan moaned against his mouth, pressing closer, feeling the hard lines of the man he had once only dreamed about. Clothes melted away between them, each piece discarded carelessly as they moved toward the bedroom.

James guided Ethan onto the bed, hovering above him, trailing kisses down his neck, over his chest. Their bodies moved in perfect rhythm, heat building with every touch, every breathless whisper. Ethan arched into him, desperate, craving more, and James gave him everything. The night was filled with gasps, moans, and the sound of skin meeting skin as years of pent-up desire finally found release.

Afterward, they lay tangled together, Ethan’s head resting against James’s chest, listening to the steady beat of his heart. Fingers traced idle patterns over damp skin, silence stretching between them in the most comfortable way.

“I used to have the biggest crush on you,” Ethan admitted with a chuckle.

James smirked, pressing a kiss to his forehead. “I had a feeling.”

Ethan glanced up at him, his expression playful yet serious. “And now?”

James brushed his fingers along Ethan’s jaw, tilting his face up for another slow, lingering kiss. “Now, I don’t have to wonder anymore.”

Ethan smiled against his lips, knowing this was just the beginning.