Chapter Text
Contrary to what Estinien had feared, Aymeric and his little adventure didn't seem to adversely affect them.
Having sex once didn't turn Estinien into the kind of annoying sex-obsessed knight he despised. Aymeric continued to be far too invested in his well-being and company, but exactly in the same manner as he had been so far. The other knights continued to be loud and obnoxious, exactly as they had been. Most importantly, as far as Estinien could tell, the knights' rumour mill hadn't been fed any new material to disparage Aymeric, so his intervention had been a success despite his… participation.
He'd never been into the vulgarities the other knights got up to. "Needs", they called them. He had never felt such needs.
He certainly didn't need to… swive Aymeric into the mattress, as his fellow knights would put it.
Estinien was no fool; he could clearly understand that he wanted to see Aymeric come undone again. To lie in bed with him, as they did every night, but this time, to let Aymeric's scent and body warm envelop him for a reason other than Ishgard being balls-freezing cold. To watch Aymeric's handsome face, to hear him moan in bliss. Maybe even be the reason for Aymeric's pleasure, without the excuse of a third party between them.
When it came to how he was supposed to initiate that, however, he had no damn clue.
It probably didn't help that he did not have a drop of romanticism in him.
It definitely didn't help that he did not want to start courting Aymeric, despite that being the obvious solution.
Fury, why was this so complicated? Maybe this was why Aymeric paid for his first time like most knights.
A loud gasp from Aymeric suddenly cut through the background noise of knights sleeping, snoring or trying—and failing—to masturbate quietly, startling Estinien out of his thoughts. Estinien only had a moment to recover before Aymeric rolled over, searching for his presence under the pile of furs, his breathing frantic. "Estinien?"
"Right here," Estinien whispered as he grabbed onto Aymeric's arm. As prickly as he usually was, Estinien knew all too well how disturbing nightmares could be.
He heard a sigh of relief, then felt Aymeric shuffle closer to get his bearings in the dark before tucking his head under Estinien's chin, nose pressing into the hollow of Estinien's collarbones. "Apologies for waking you," Aymeric whispered. "I need but a moment."
Estinien let out a sharp sigh, and not just because Aymeric's nose was like ice against his skin. "It's fine," Estinien finally grumbled against Aymeric's soft hair while draping his arm over Aymeric's side, the same way Aymeric would do for him when he had nightmares.
Except, somehow, it felt entirely different. Aymeric's presence, his body warmth radiating into Estinien, his breath against Estinien's skin, the smell of his soap lingering in his hair, it all… it's like it was shutting the outside world out. Estinien's world shrank down to just. Them. Together. Warm. Safe.
He almost felt at peace.
"I dreamed you died," Aymeric admitted, more breath than voice. He shivered as he pulled Estinien closer.
Any dismissive retort that Estinien could have offered about his own mortality was lost the moment he was pulled in and felt Aymeric shiver, be it from cold or emotional distress. Speechless, unsure what to do except go with the flow, he brought up the hand of his arm draped over Aymeric to card his fingers through the hair at the back of Aymeric's head and pause there.
For now, he was alive. And so was Aymeric.
He pressed a kiss to the top of Aymeric's head. That felt. Right.
Shit. What the Fury would Aymeric—
Aymeric gave Estinien's back a gentle squeeze before he fully drifted into slumber.
Estinien allowed himself to breathe again and removed his hand from Aymeric's hair to nip any potential gossip in the bud.
"You have leave coming up in two weeks, right?" Aymeric asked as he took a seat next to Estinien on the bench.
Estinien paused in the polishing of his lance's blade. The crisp breeze of morning blew some stray white strands in his face as he took a moment to recall what day it was, when was his next leave, and calculate how far off it was. Not that it was strictly necessary: Aymeric kept better track of his off time than he did, and usually insisted on making their leaves coincide. "Same as you, I believe."
Aymeric nodded. A moment passed as they both watched other knights spar in the middle distance. "If you don't have any plans," and Estinien usually didn't, "please come have dinner with me at my house? My door is wide open for you."
Estinien was halfway sure Aymeric was attempting a subtle innuendo. It would have been far too awkward to ask, however, and if Aymeric was not coming on to him, Estinien didn't want to be the one to make his only friend awkward and distant over a foolish thought. "Aye, I will."
"Thank you, my friend." With a smile, Aymeric clapped Estinien on the shoulder before getting up to leave. "I look forward to it."
That smile earned Estinien a knot in his stomach, but if anyone asked, he'd blame it on the day's breakfast.
Aymeric's manor was warm. Not just because it had good heating and the doors weren't constantly opening and closing from knights coming and going at all hours, either. The manor was warm. The welcome was warm. The food was warm. Aymeric's smile was warm. Even Aymeric's ornery old cat hadn't hissed at him yet.
The dinner had been shared in mostly comfortable silence. Estinien wasn't any good at small talk, so it pleased him, but at the same time, he could feel anticipation hanging in the air. Or maybe it was just him? Aymeric was all bright eyes and soft smiles and seemed perfectly relaxed. Was he… supposed to just ask? Over dinner? "Are we swiving tonight or not?" Fury's tits that sounded like he wanted to get it over with, he knew he couldn't just say that to Aymeric.
But then… how?
The "when" came in the form of Aymeric suggesting they have a bath and retire for the night.
"A bath? What for?"
Aymeric paused with his near-empty cup of tea in mid-air before lowering it. "Don't you wish to get clean before bed?"
Estinien put away the open book he had not actually read this entire evening. "Aren't we going to, uh," with words failing him and his hands free, he made a vulgar gesture that nearly made Aymeric drop his cup.
The panic that washed over Aymeric's face made Estinien freak out completely. Fuck. He misread. He made it weird. He fucked up. Estinien bolted from the sofa. Get out. Get out! OUT!
Aymeric tackled him to the ground in a flurry of limbs colliding, porcelain smashing, and cat yowling. "WAIT! Wait!"
Fury, Estinien had always thought of himself as stronger than Aymeric, but he might have to review that opinion. "Unhand me! This was all a mistake!"
"I do wish to have sex with you!" Aymeric admitted, hoping this would calm Estinien down. "I didn't think you'd ask the way you did is all!"
Estinien cocked his head to look at Aymeric partially laying on him. "You want to… but I saw you panic!"
Aymeric's ears turned a bright crimson, as did his face, as he mumbled, "Your asking was nearly enough to make me come undone."
Seemed like the anticipation in the air had not been a product of Estinien's imagination. Estinien swiftly looked away to hide his flushed face as Aymeric's words made him finally register that Aymeric's erection was pressing against his thigh.
They hurried to Aymeric's bedroom. Aymeric was determined to bed Estinien in his own private room for their first time, so he had to hurry before he got overwhelmed. Estinien was too breathless to call Aymeric out on his excess romanticism, so he didn't protest. They tumbled on the bed together, Aymeric pulling Estinien in and still somehow ending up on top, with his face buried right up against Estinien's neck, before tracing his way along Estinien's long, heated ear with his tongue.
"I've been hoping you'd allow me to love you physically for so long, my dear friend," he spoke against Estinien's ear. It made Estinien shudder and cling to his shoulders even tighter, pressing his lips together to block any sound threatening to escape him.
"Tell me," Aymeric continued, maddening. "Let me know what you want from me. I want this to be good for you." With a final lick to the tip of Estinien's ear, Aymeric pulled back to settle on top of Estinien and watch him catch his breath.
"You hopeless romantic," Estinien eventually grumbled as his grip on Aymeric's shoulders loosened. Not that that prevented him from rolling his hips up to watch Aymeric gasp as their clothed groins slid against one another.
Fury. Aymeric was already infuriatingly handsome publicly, in broad daylight. Pleasure only made him closer to divine. How, then, was Estinien supposed to resist the urge to take Aymeric's head in his hands and kiss that handsome face, those pretty eyes, that perfect nose, even that smug smile? Curse this man. Even though he barely understood the urge, he wanted, needed, to see his dearest friend overcome with ecstacy.
He felt Aymeric's hand slide into his open shirt to caress his chest, then his neck; it began trembling as their lips pressed together. Then, Aymeric ran his tongue over his lips, and although it felt a bit strange, it wasn't like Estinien didn't expect it, so he opened his mouth slightly in response. Aymeric wasted no time raking his fingertips through the hair at the back of Estinien's head to get a good grip before deepening the kiss, plunging his tongue deep in Estinien's mouth to seek out its counterpart, and that made Estinien shudder, though not in a good way. The slide of a slimy, wet tongue against his felt… he should have enjoyed this, he knew. Everyone did. But all it did for him was make him gag and try to yank his head away.
Despite, or maybe because of, his tight hold on the hair at Estinien's nape, Aymeric felt Estinien jerk his head back and broke the kiss immediately after, heart thundering in his chest. "Estinien?" he asked, worry obvious in his voice, in his wide eyes. Oh no. Did Estinien… had he read him wrong? Did Estinien hate this? Was Estinien forcing himself against his will???
Estinien turned his head away in fear and shame, arms flying to his own face to hide as he swallowed down the heaves and tried to forget the texture of Aymeric's tongue in his mouth, against his. He could feel Aymeric let go of his hair and move away to lay on the bed instead of pinning Estinien down on the mattress. Immediately, he missed the warmth of him.
"Dear friend, I'm so sorry. Was I too bold? Do you wish to stop?" Aymeric didn't dare touch him for fear of making things worse.
Fury, those blue eyes staring at him, filled with pity… Estinien didn't need to see them to feel the pain of that look upon him. With one hand, he covered Aymeric's eyes as he turned onto his side, cuddling against Aymeric's warm body anew.
"… don't…" full glad he was that Aymeric couldn't see his undoubtedly pained expression. He almost wished he had his friend's eloquence and tact, for once. "… no… tongue's gross." Shit, he was making kisses sound like a complete dealbreaker. "Don't kiss me with tongue." He didn't expect Aymeric to understand. He wanted to use good words for Aymeric but Fury's tits this was the best that he could do and once again, Aymeric deserved better.
Rather than reject him as Estinien feared, however, Aymeric let out a breath and brought a hand up to touch Estinien's hand covering his eyes. "Okay. I will not kiss you with tongue." Aymeric used his other hand to feel for Estinien's presence, his fingertips lightly caressing Estinien's jawline. "Is it too bold to ask if that means I can kiss you on the lips?"
As an answer, Estinien awkwardly moved in and kissed Aymeric on the lips, mouth firmly closed, while still covering Aymeric's eyes. When he pulled back, he removed his hand, but still hid his burning face in the crook of Aymeric's neck, and clung to Aymeric's back, almost crushing him.
"I understand." If Aymeric was being held too tight, he didn't let it show. If anything, he welcomed it, now that Estinien had confirmed he wanted this, with him. He cupped the back of Estinien's head, letting his other hand trail down from Estinien's jawline to his chest, sliding into his open shirt again. A few elements of Estinien's behaviour clicked into place for Aymeric, but now was not the time for that. "Never be afraid to tell me if I do something that displeases you."
"Aye." Estinien couldn't imagine anything his limited desires wanted him to do to Aymeric would ever displease his friend, but he would do the same, of course. Still, he was immensely relieved that Aymeric hadn't kicked him out of bed for refusing to do a basic essential of… lovemaking? He hated that word and all the smarmy insincere sentiments around it, but he didn't know how else to describe their joining together. It certainly was borne of more affection than paying someone for relief, but, once again, Estinien found his vocabulary lacking.
"Lovemaking", unfortunately, would have to do.
Gentle nibbles on the long shell of his ear pulled Estinien out of his thoughts and back into Aymeric's loving embrace again. This time, however, Estinien had been too distracted to contain the loud gasp and the moan that rose out of him. He would have been embarrassed about it had he not felt Aymeric's returning interest pressing insistently against his thigh through their pants. Right. This was what he came here for, to see handsome, beautiful Aymeric come for him and him only.
Glancing down Aymeric's body, as much as was possible while embracing so closely, Estinien reached down to slide a hand between Aymeric's elegant legs and cup his crotch in a way that left nothing to interpretation. "I…" Aymeric's desire was obvious, and he felt almost… giddy. "You… for me."
Aymeric's moan against Estinien's forehead also left nothing to interpretation. "In that case, dear friend," Aymeric asked, breathless as he reciprocated the gesture, undeterred by Estinien's current lack of erection, "will you help me?"
As soon as he felt Estinien nod, Aymeric let him go to sit up and throw his own clothes off unceremoniously. In no time at all, he was naked on the bed, waiting for Estinien to finish undressing with an adoring look on his face. Like his Estinien was Halone Herself, come to bestow her bounties upon him.
Even with his pants still on, Estinien felt incredibly naked under Aymeric's gaze. He looked down in fake concentration, the flush on his face spilling over his ears and down his neck as he divested himself of his last items of clothing, before he hooked an arm around Aymeric's neck and pulled him down. They lay on the bed together again, on their sides, so Estinien could hide from the intensity of Aymeric's gaze by hooking his chin over Aymeric's shoulder once more. "I assure you," he grumbled, "I'm not worthy of the way you look at me."
"Let me be the judge of that, my friend," Aymeric answered softly, trailing a fingertip down Estinien's strong back to then grab two handfuls of that wonderful, muscular ass, making Estinien shiver most deliciously.
Annoyed despite the shivers running up his spine, Estinien figured that since he couldn't, could never, shut up Aymeric with words, he would have to resort to actions.
Grabbing Aymeric's hard cock with one hand and pumping the shaft roughly, if it didn't quite silence Aymeric, at least momentarily removed his ability to use his words.
But shutting up Aymeric was not enough. He had to see him squirm from his touch, feel him get hot just for him, see him lost in pleasure and coming his brains out and moaning his name. The memories of Aymeric mouthing his name as he came inside the woman they'd both lost their virginity to, combined with the desire and hope to hear Aymeric climax, maybe moan his name out loud, this time, was getting Estinien going more than any physical touch he had ever experienced. Soon enough, he was humping Aymeric's groin, right next to his hand jerking Aymeric off, panting harshly as he forced himself to keep his eyes open, afraid to miss even a split second of Aymeric's loving, hungry expressions.
Despite feeling himself getting close very quickly, with Estinien roughly pumping his cock while also desperately humping him, Aymeric still managed to be gentle when he grabbed Estinien's head with both hands. That was just before Estinien's free hand awkwardly cupped the side of his face, trying to touch Aymeric more without throwing off his balance. The touch lit a fire inside Aymeric, and he dug his fingers into Estinien's hair, short nails pressing into his scalp, to better return the intense stare of those stormy grey eyes. "Est…" he panted out, interrupting himself with a loud groan and biting down on the next as he hooked both his legs around Estinien's hips.
"Noplease," Estinien gasped as he suddenly felt himself come against Aymeric's warm skin, unable to stop himself, overwhelmed by even just a fraction of his name from his beloved ecstatic Aymeric. Aymeric was not far behind, though, and as Aymeric's nails dug into his scalp in a desperate, trembling grip—"Estinien!"—Aymeric's wild azure eyes stared deep into his as Aymeric's hips slammed up into his fist and he spilled white heat all over his hand.
"Estinien, Estinien, Estinien," Aymeric continued as Estinien pulled him closer, impossibly closer, like they hadn't been huddled close already, like he could eliminate any and all space between them if he could wriggle just right. Aymeric pressed kisses at the root of Estinien's nose as he carded his fingers through his friend's messy hair, finally closing his watery eyes.
His legs slipped, heavy, from around Estinien's hips, hitting the mattress with barely a sound. Estinien reached down with both hands to press Aymeric's thighs against his own, finding comfort in being between them, so close. He moved his hands back up, never breaking contact with Aymeric's heated skin, up his hips and his waist and his ribs, to wrap his arms under his armpits and hold him securely. He still didn't understand why he had had this urge to see Aymeric come undone by his hand. Now that he had seen it, though, he felt he may want to see it again. Not now. But in the future. Right now was a bit… drippy.
In fact, if Aymeric was still willing, he would very much like to bathe now.
As soon as he got tired of holding Aymeric close enough to feel his heartbeat in his chest, responding in kind to his own.
It might take a moment.