Lowering his eyes to the pavement, his blush deepened as he wrestled with the concept. Booker was his lover… his lover! While he had grappled with the idea of falling in love with Booker, the realization he was his lover had only just occurred to him. Why it had taken too long to acknowledge the fact was one of life's many mysteries, but there it was, out in the open for all the world to know. Except the world didn't know, no one did, apart from Tom and Dennis. Theirs was a clandestine affair, a cloak-and-dagger romance carried out under the covers of darkness. Not that the young officer cared, he wasn’t comfortable coming out to his friends and family, at least not while his feelings were still so new and confusing. He was still coming to terms with his bisexuality in his own mind, and until he had it straightened out in his head, he figured it was better to let sleeping dogs lie. However, he couldn't help but wonder if there was more to it than just his sexual confusion. As much as he tried to ignore it, the annoying voice of doubt continued to whisper in his ear, telling him it was all a game, and Booker was playing him for a fool. Deep down, he knew it wasn’t true, but his insecurities gnawed at his intuition, chewing at his confidence until all that was left was uncertainty. It was the story of his life. Despite what most people thought, he lacked faith in his own …show more content…
The oppressive atmosphere was a far cry from Tom’s modern apartment building, and the young officer wondered why Booker chose to live in such depressing conditions. When he’d visited two weeks before, his high levels of anxiety had blinded him to the rundown surroundings his friend lived in. But on reflection, it seemed out of character. Booker certainly wasn’t a snob, but he was somewhat vain, and his apartment didn’t really fit the image. Except, the more Tom thought about it, it did. The dark-haired officer loved to portray the bad-boy persona, and living in a building on the wrong side of the tracks added an element of danger to his facade. The thought amused Tom, and he chuckled softly. He was starting to see through Booker’s prickly exterior, and beneath the surface, was someone who battled with the same insecurities he