who: Eliot Waugh and Quentin Coldwater. what: Quentin had a rough day and Eliot has a surprise. where: The cottage. when: Late afternoon. rating: Nothing too high. Just Queliot being coupley. status: Complete. And written nine years ago.
Retreating into the forest and the cottage was definitely like coming home and Quentin was definitely here for it. It had a lot of memories associated with it, some happy, some not so happy, but ultimately it was the one place that Quentin had felt the most comfortable in his entire life.
He slipped in, shrugged out of his jacket before idly sweeping his fingers in a motion that was so ingrained and so familiar now that he didn’t even have to think about the magic involved in lifting and securing the jacket on a nearby hook. He tangled his fingers in his hair he rounded the corner to find one Eliot Waugh stretched out on a nearby couch and his lips tugged into a soft smile at the sight.
It was made a thousand times better by the fact that he knew without a shadow of doubt that it was his Eliot rather than something wearing his skin.
Quentin wasted absolutely no time in stepping out of his boots and in sock clad feet padding over to crawl onto the couch where he promptly dropped his head into Eliot’s lap that resulted in his hair flopping over his eyes. Honestly didn’t seem to matter how short his hair was it seemed determined to just get in the way.
“Whatcha doing?”
It had been a long...time for both of them. Between Fen’s arrival - and the awkward and painful discussion that had come from that - and Alice’s arrival and subsequent departure, there had just been a lot. It was weighing on Eliot, and he could only imagine how bad it was for Quentin.
He just wished Q hadn’t had to deal with Alice at all. She’d just swooped in and out like a whirlwind existing solely to fuck up Quentin’s life. Maybe that was uncharitable. It was definitely selfish. But Eliot didn’t care much. All he cared about was Quentin’s emotional well being, and Alice had been terrible for that. Besides, Alice didn’t care one way or the other about him, so why should he give a single fuck about her?
Though he’d never said anything when they were together, he’d always thought Quentin and Alice where a particular sort of toxic together. They fed into the worst parts of each other and Eliot had always hated to watch it. He didn’t want to sit by as Alice wreaked havoc on the man he loved.
Of course, that was over and done with now. Alice was gone and Quentin was here and that was the important part. And right now he was waiting at the cottage for the moment Quentin got back from wherever he was, idly thumbing through a book and pretending he wasn’t anxious for his boyfriend’s return. He was always anxious for Quentin’s return when he was away. Having the love of your life die would do that to you.
From the way Q all but collapsed onto him, he knew it had been a rough day. It was all too obvious from the tension in the shorter man’s shoulders. Quentin had a lot of rough days, and Eliot was fine with being there for him through them. With a sigh, he began stroking his fingers through Quentin’s hair, hoping it might help him relax if only a little.
“Waiting for you,” he said at Quentin’s question. “Figured you would want some company.” Leaning down, he brushed his lips against Quentin’s forehead, then his lips. “I love you.”
Quentin’s lips tugged into a soft smile at the murmur of “I love you” which could be felt quite easily by Eliot. A hand lifted and buried itself in those dark locks and Quentin leaned up to nudge Eliot’s nose with his own, a slow inhale being taken, and not for the first time in a long while he was reassured by the fact that Eliot smelt like Eliot.
The Monster had never smelt right.
“You thought right,” he assured Eliot as he leaned back to regard the other man. “Can we just hide out in here for a while and only go back out into the world only when absolutely necessary?” He was mostly joking but there was a part of him that was serious as he wanted to spend as much time as was possible with Eliot, they’d already lost so much time and it felt important to cherish every moment.
Besides, some of his happiest moments had been in the cottage.
Eliot smiles contentedly, happy to just exist with Quentin in the moment. His boyfriend didn’t seem too damaged by whatever had him down, which was all Eliot could really ask for. He knew life was harder for Quentin in some ways than it was for other people and he worried often. But he knew he couldn’t magically fix Quentin with a spell or a potion. All he could do was be there for him.
He settled back into the couch, resuming playing with Quentin’s hair, his free hand reaching down and grabbing one of Quentin’s, intertwining their fingers. It was a good suggestion. The two of them and this place. But there were still so many other people here. The peace here would only last so long.
Which was what led to a surprise he’d been working on for Quentin. With Julia’s help. Because she had the power needed for that sort of thing. He’d waited until she’d dealt with Richie’s brain monster, because that took priority, but he’d gotten her help in the end.
“That’s an idea,” he said. “But I have a better one.” He nudged Quentin’s head off his lap and got to his feet, tugging Quentin with him by their joined hands. “Come with me. I have something to show you.”
Quentin’s brow furrowed as Eliot got to his feet and he ended up propped up on his elbow, hair draped over his eyes which peered between the gaps in the strands at Eliot.
It didn’t take long for Quentin to be tugged to his feet where he tipped his head to regard Eliot, curiosity written all over his face.
“Should I close my eyes or…?” He asked as he trailed after Eliot.
This still felt so surreal but he definitely wasn’t going to take it for granted or complain about it.
Eliot laughed at Quentin’s question, considering it. “You’re giving me ideas,” he said, voice going low. Then he slipped off his tie and held it up. “Do you trust me?” he asked, reasonably sure of the answer but still needing to ask.
When Quentin affirmed that he did, Eliot took his tie and carefully used it to block Quentin’s eyes, firmly tamping down on the part of him that enjoyed that a little too much. Yes, Quentin’s trust and submission was very hot, but this was not the time to get caught up in that. He had other things to focus on.
“There we go,” he said, leaning down and kissing Quentin gently. “Now we’re going on a little walk. Don’t worry, it’s not far. And I won’t let anything happen to you.” And with that, he began guiding Quentin out of the cottage and into the woods.
Quentin lifted his eyebrows as Eliot covered his eyes with his tie and chuckled at the playfulness involved. It was nice. Well more than nice. It was literally everything because well life hadn’t been very easy on either of them. Eliot especially. And it was reassuring to know that the desire for play was still very much there.
“I’d hope not,” he threw out with a lopsided grin as he let Eliot lead him out of the cottage and into the woods, that much he could tell by the crunch of leaves under foot. “Pretty sure that would be in total opposition to the whole idea.”
He felt a small twig snap underneath the sole of his shoe.
Eliot might have undersold the walk just a little. It took them a good few minutes of walking to reach the other side of the lake and a little beyond it into the trees, but he guided Quentin the entire way, ensuring that he made it to the clearing without tripping or running into anything. He wanted it to be a surprise, but he didn’t want Quentin getting injured in the process. If he could keep Quentin from ever hurting again, even in small ways, he would.
Soon though, they were in a pretty clearing in front of a familiar little house. The only place other than the cottage where Eliot could ever really remember being happy. It had taken work, and Julia’s help to recreate it, but it looked exactly like he remembered. He’d modernized some things, because Fillory had been lacking in some serious innovations, but it was a home. For him and Quentin.
If Quentin wanted it.
“Okay,” he said, leaning down to speak the words softly, directly in Quentin’s ear. “Keep your eyes closed and I’m going to take this off.” He gently removed the tie, tucking it into his pocket, then rested his hands on Quentin’s shoulders, giving them a light squeeze. “Alright...now, open your eyes.”
He just hoped this hadn’t been a huge mistake.
The longer he spent blindfolded the more that insatiable unquenchable curiosity of his began to mount and then it seemed like they were stopping. Good thing too as he felt he might explode from the anticipation and the not knowing what the surprise was. It didn’t help that his mind went rapidly south when he felt Eliot’s lips brush his ear, but Quentin was thankfully able to control the flush of colour to his cheeks, thankfully.
He waited until Eliot gave him the all clear and opened his eyes, his pupils taking a moment to adjust to having natural light back after being covered in material, and as they did he took in the sight of a place he would never ever be able to forget. Not in a hundred years.
“Is that-” He was going to ask but one look at Eliot told him everything he needed to know and Quentin breathed out, a smile pulling at his lips. “It’s amazing, Eliot. I never thought I’d see it again but here it and I just- Wow, I love it.”
“It is,” Eliot acknowledged, his hands still resting on Quentin’s shoulders as he pressed himself against his back. “The cottage is going to get crowded eventually and...I mean, I actually started this a while ago, if I’m being honest. I just wanted us to have a place...just for us. So I asked Julia if she would help me recreate it.”
He turned Quentin away from the house to face him, wrapping his arms around his boyfriend. “It’s not exactly the same,” he said, “For one thing, I figured you might appreciate plumbing and electricity. But it’s as close as I could make it.”
He smiled down at Quentin, reaching over to brush his hair from his eyes. “We were happy there,” he said. “I think...I was happier there than I’ve ever been anywhere else.”
Quentin’s eyes remained transfixed on the small home that for the longest time had been their home during the time that it had taken to solve the mosaic puzzle until Eliot turned him on the spot and wrapped his arms around him.
“Good call on the whole plumbing and electricity,” he assured Eliot with a smile. “Not having any of those things was fun for a while until you know it stopped being that.” It hadn’t taken long if he was being completely honest.
He reached up to squeeze Eliot’s wrist. “Yeah, it was great. And it will be again.”
Had to be, right? With everything they’d been through?
There was something about just having Quentin in his arms, standing in front of a home that was theirs, that made Eliot feel like breaking down. Because he’d thought this was lost to them. He’d thought Quentin was gone forever and that he would never get him back. And even with his time here, with Quentin right there, it was hard to let go of that pain.
How stupid was it to grieve someone who was right in front of you?
He looked down at Quentin, taking him in and doing his best to memorize every inch of his face. Some days he felt overwhelmed by the love he felt for this man. Like he couldn’t find space to breathe past the weight of this feeling in his chest.
“So,” he said, “I did this a little out of order I guess, but...Q, would you like to move in together?”
“Just a little,” Quentin teased softly, a crinkling at the corner of his lips where a playful smirk lingered. “But the answer is yes I would like to move in together.” They’d done it before and not murdered one another so this could only work out better this time, right?
He’d been with people before and in relationships but there was something about Eliot that made Quentin feel safe, wanted, and most of all treasured. That was kind of key. Hell truth be told he would have put up with anything in the past, some weird conviction that he deserved it and that was his lot in life. Not so much anymore. Not since he’d almost lost the man that he had gone and fallen in love with. It hadn’t been planned by any means but it had happened and he didn’t regret it. Not one bit.
“So,” he drawled as he tipped his head in the direction of their soon to be home. “You wanna check it out with me?”
Eliot couldn’t help but grin down at Quentin. He’d said yes. They were going to live together and have a proper relationship and something about that seemed so bizarrely foreign and new, even though they had done this once before, that Eliot had no idea how to process it. He was happy, he knew that much, but it was just so much to feel.
So he just leaned down and kissed Quentin because that was so much easier than overthinking things.
He’d never let himself have this before. Never let himself have a relationship that meant something. Quentin was the only one who had ever made him feel like it was something he deserved. He’d come close with Mike, but that was a mistake he didn’t like to think about. Those fifty years with Quentin, that both did and didn’t exist, were the only time he’d let himself be truly happy. And they were almost behind glass. A distant, beautiful dream. Not quite real. But now, here, he was choosing to build something like that. With Quentin. Because Quentin deserved that. And, maybe, so did he.
“Quentin,” he said with a fond smile, “I would like nothing more than to check out our home with you.” His smile turned almost mischievous as he opened the door with a flick of his wrist, then scooped Quentin up into his arms. He wouldn’t be able to carry him far, but he was pretty sure he could manage the whole over the threshold thing. Sure, they weren’t married yet, but it was the thought that counted.