Julien hadn't had to do much begging and pleading to get the afternoon off this time around - they weren't in the middle of anything and he was slightly between projects himself after the all-nighters he'd been pulling lately. He'd almost gotten distracted with a problem in someone else's work but Alfie Alfie Alfie was more important to him, and to the surprise of his boss he didn't need to be reminded to leave on time.
He was still tired when he got home, but it was nothing like the bone-deep exhaustion he usually had. Their house looked odd to him, seen in the daylight through eyes that could stay open; it looked nice.
He hadn't called out, but he heard the shower going and grinned as he quietly toed his shoes off. He undressed slowly, pulling his top up and over his head, dropping his trousers and stepping over them, pulling off his socks so that by the time he reached the bathroom he was unclothed and ready to whisper the door lock open, step into the bathroom and then... he just had to stand there. Fuck Alfie was beautiful. He fell in love with this boy over and over again every morning, every evening, every time they met up again like this.