Work Text
Nick looked more than beautiful whenever he was working hard at something. It had to do with the way his muscles flexed when he reached up or over and how he stuck his tongue out of the side of his mouth while focused.
“You’re staring at me.” the ginger-blonde told Charlie, glancing up momentarily from where he was fiddling with the connecting pieces and instructions from the box. They were sat on the floor in the corner of the brunette’s home office, all sorts of things scattered over the carpet between them and surrounding them:
The pieces to put together the cage, blankets and pillows to put inside of it when it was done, and all the cardboard and plastic from these items that had yet to be discarded.
Anyone who didn’t know any better would think that they were getting a dog for the apartment, or that they were preparing to dogsit Nellie or Henry for a little while.
They knew better, though.
Charlie shifted, humming slightly, “You look hot when you’re being handy.” he told the other man, causing him to roll his eyes. His face flushed, though, so it was clear that he wasn’t actually annoyed.
“It would be much more efficient if you helped me instead of drooling over me this whole time.” Nick handed off the instructions, which Charlie took and immediately set to the side.
“My two choices were to help and get this done about two times quicker or to enjoy the sight of you doing it for a while.” Charlie smiled, reaching to the side to grab his water cup. He took a slow sip, letting his eyes run over Nick’s body like it was nothing at all, “I have a feeling that you don’t
really
mind the choice I made.”
Nick leaned forward in the direction he was facing, linking one piece into another and Charlie doesn’t really know what he’s doing, but there’s a click and he sits up slightly, smiling, “Is that it, then?”
“You’d know if you helped me at all.” the ginger-blonde teased, and Charlie gave him a look. Nick sighed dramatically, but he was smiling, too,
“Yes, it’s done.” he confirmed, “At least, I think so. The instructions said that there should be a few extra connecting pieces left when everything is done.”
He motioned over in the vague direction of the instructions and a mostly-empty bag of the same sort of metal pieces he had been fiddling with while Charlie sat back and watched. The brunette narrowed his eyes, scanning over the sight of the currently empty cage.
It was a metal-framed thing, a simple rectangular box with a latch-hook door that was big enough for the ginger-blonde to climb into and curl up in- maybe sit up in, too, but Charlie couldn’t be sure.
“It looks structurally sound to me.” he told him, “Good job, baby.”
Nick hummed in response, and it’s clear that it’s somewhat absentmindedly. Now that his hands and thoughts weren’t occupied by the task of putting the cage together, he was grappling with the idea of the cage itself and the fact that it was for him- the fact that Charlie had made good on his playful threats about buying him one.
The brunette sat his cup down in the same spot is had been sitting on the carpet behind him before, sitting up and reaching forward. He placed gentle hands on Nick’s back, just over his shoulder blades, and massaged the muscles there for a beat, “I’ll be right back, okay, honey? You can go ahead and put all the stuff inside the cage, if you’d like.”
Nick leaned back into the touch, his eyes staggering on the cage in front of his for a moment too long as he moved to look back at Charlie. The brunette smiled approvingly at the eye contact, and leaned forward to kiss his cheek.
The ginger-blonde remembered that he was meant to respond, “Okay. I can do that.”
As Charlie moved to leave the room, taking his water cup with him, Nick busied himself with the new task, slotting the dog bed-like cushion they had bought, which was the perfect size for the cage just like Charlie thought it would be.
After that, soft blankets and an extra pillow went in. And on top of everything else, there were a few toys.
They were all human stim toys that were colorful and on-theme enough that they could pass as dog toys. A blue bone-shaped chew stim, multicolored squishy balls that Nick like the occupy his hands with- that sort of thing.
And all of these things are innocent and innocuous on their own, but the sight of them all together, carefully arranged in the cage?
Nick doesn’t really know what to do with himself once it’s all gathered up, really.
“Oh, you finished that quickly.” Charlie commented, entering the room once more just in time to interrupt Nick from slipping further into whatever feeling this was causing to well up in his chest and take over his brain. He sat down, closer to his boyfriend this time.
“What’d you leave for?” Nick questioned, looking over. It was then that he could see what was bundled up in his hands- his blue-ribbon collar and wound-up leash. He furrowed his eyebrows and looked up to his love once again with a slightly tilted head as if to silently ask
‘why those?’
“I figured all the puppy stuff should be together. Makes it easier to shut the door to my office and tuck this all away if we feel the need to.” Charlie responded to his curiosities easily, moving to set the leash on top of the cage, but keeping the collar in his lap. “You should climb in- make sure you fit, and everything.”
It’s not as much of a command as his suggestions usually tended to be- it’s careful and encouraging and inviting. Nick could say no. He could say that he could try the cage next time he was in his puppy headspace and save this for later, because he hadn’t fully slipped yet and Charlie wasn’t going to force that.
It was important to Charlie that Nick was the one to initiate their sessions, at least most of the time. Even if initiating was just clinging on to him or looking at him in that way that told him he needed orders and support.
Nick shifted, and he whines, “Right now?”
“If you’d like to, baby.” Charlie hummed, and there’s an especially gentle implication there. A silent assurance that if Nick wanted to be his puppy right now, he could. The brunette reached forward, unlatching the lock to the door of the cage and letting it swing back open.
The ginger-blonde found himself staring at the thing again, a million feelings swirling up inside of him. He was scared, admittedly, but he wanted this. He had been thinking of this since Charlie suggested that they tried pet play, since he made that joke that first time- and maybe even before all of that, too.
He nodded quietly, and then he’s crawling forward and ducking his head, just slightly, under the “frame” of the gate. Charlie simply watched, relieved to see that it’s not a tight fit, or anything, and that he had picked the right measurements when ordering the thing.
Nick is able to turn around and remain sitting up while kneeling, running his palms over the blankets layered there. Charlie carefully reached forward to shut the door and slide the lock back into place, slowly enough that if Nick panicked, he could push it open.
Charlie had been particular about getting a cage where Nick could reach through the gaps in the crossed metal and undo the lock himself if he really wanted to, because he only wanted the illusion of him being trapped. It was the same as teaching him how he could undo his bounds when he tied him up, or making sure that he could reach up and unlatch his leash.
Nick was never actually going to do these things, but him having the option to escape any situation he put him into made Charlie feel better about placing him there.
“Is it comfortable, baby?” Charlie questioned softly, “I can find more blankets and pillows around the house, if it’s needed- or buy you new ones, too.”
“No, no, this is good.” Nick managed to answer, and he’s stumbling over his words a bit as he shifted so that his hands are fisted and planted in front of him, so that he’s kneeling on all fours like he liked to when he started to feel like this.
He takes a moment to look around inside the cage, and there’s something about the sight of Charlie sitting in front of the thing and looking down on him through the crated metal that makes him whimper.
“Sweetheart?” Charlie frowned, furrowing his eyebrows as if he were concerned, and then a primal and illogical part of Nick’s brain pushed him to whine and grab at the door of the cage just because the brunette was upset and he wanted to
fix
it.
A healthy dose of affection and attention couldn’t harm him, either, though.
It’s almost scary how quick the dominant undoes the lock of the cage and gently tugs him out, guiding him to sit on the carpet just in front of it. Nick feels a bit less overwhelmed, then, soaking in the feeling of Charlie’s hands on him, but he also misses the enclosed space.
The ginger-blonde tilted his head, trying to understand why Charlie pulled him out so quickly. His boyfriend scanned over his face, letting out what seemed to be a breath of relief at the fact that it didn’t seem like Nick was upset. “How’re you feeling, Nick? Are you okay?”
Nick nodded, quick and playful and all smiles, happy that he could answer a question. Charlie smiled at him, just softly, “Can you try using your words for me, baby?”
The ginger-blonde pouted, then, and he glanced back to the cage. Charlie’s hands were positioned on his shoulders, and the two of them were facing each other.
“I’m okay. I think- the cage melted my brain a bit, sorry.”
“No s-word, darling.” Charlie reminded, and Nick hummed, dipping his head. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you drop that quickly before, so I just wanted to check in. You’re okay with this, though?”
“Yes. Yes, sir.” Nick assured quickly, and he somehow shuffles closer to him. He snaked his hands around his waist and leaned forward- and for a second, Charlie thinks that he’s going to kiss that same spot he always did on his neck, but is pleasantly surprised when he’s wrapped in a gentle hug.
When Nick’s face is effectively hidden in his neck, he asked in a whisper, “Are you okay with this, too? Can I be your puppy, now, please?”
And it’s begging and gentle and sweet, and Charlie can’t help but smile at it. He wrapped his arms around him, moving one hand so that it entangled itself in his hair, scratching his scalp gently. The other one remained at the small of his back, and he moved his thumb up and down in soft patterns.
He could feel him melt into the hold, there, “Of course you can, baby. I can’t say no when you’re so, so sweet for me.”
Nick only makes a noise in response to that- this sweet, small one, against Charlie’s chest. The brunette was observant enough to know that this had to be an especially gentle and rule-lenient day, so he lets him stay in that embrace for as long as he needed, continuing with his motions for scratching his scalp and running the gentle patterns over the fabric of his shirt.
Charlie thinks distantly that as soon as the boy did pull away, he was going to get him changed into something more comfortable.
Nick lifted his head after a little while, and when he glances up at Charlie, it’s incredibly clear that he’s settled into this, now.
“There you are.” Charlie smiled, moving his hand from the back of his head to the side of his face and the other one from the small of his back to the slight dip of his waist. “Hi, honey.”
“Hello.” Nick is looking up at his face in admiration, but he’s not making eye contact with him. Instead, he was taking in each and every feature: the upturned corners of his lips, the shape of his nose, the way his curls fell over his eyes. Just when Charlie was about the tease him for thinking he was pretty, Nick leaned forward to kiss his cheek.
The brunette gasped softly, and the ginger-blonde giggles sweetly as he pressed one more kiss, and then another, to his face. “Oh!” Charlie was chuckling, too, as Nick moved his hands to push him backwards by the chest so that he was ‘forced’ to lay back on the carpet.
The dominant lets it happen, if not only because it was sweet. Nick followed him to their clumsy position on the floor, and continues on with the gentle, quick kisses all over his face- over-excited and eager while not being too rough or fast. Charlie moved his face like he was dodging the kisses, letting out a laugh that fell on Nick’s ears so, so wonderfully,
“You’re so- so hyper today, puppy.” the brunette teased between kisses, and Nick pulled back then, using his arms to prop himself up in a hovering position above him. He pouted, trying to gauge what Charlie was feeling- if he was in trouble for this or not. The brunette is sure to smile so, so softly as he continues poking fun, “So energetic and playful.”
As soon as it clicked for Nick that he wasn’t being scolded, he whined and tucked his head in the crook of Charlie’s neck, gently settling himself down so that he’s laying on top of him.
“Oh, Nick.” Charlie clicked his tongue, “Are we feeling shy today, too?”
Nick hummed in response instead of providing any words. Charlie lets them lay there for a moment, trying to figure out what could get him to get up. It comes to him a few beats later, as the ginger-blonde is nuzzling into him.
“I’ve gotta collar you, sweet boy.” Charlie reminded, a soft and teasing lint to his voice that layers itself easy with more guiding, commanding notes. Nick lifted his head slightly, and the brunette taps his hip, “Come on, now. Good boys wear their collars.”
And that’s enough to get Nick to scramble upwards and resume his previous kneeling position. Charlie loved it when he did that because it felt like he was presenting himself, just for him.
The brunette reached over him easily to pluck up the collar from where it had been discarded to the side when he panicked and pulled him out of the cage, and then Nick sits up straight and tilts his chin up obediently so that it’s easier for Charlie to clip the thing on.
“Good boy.” Charlie mused, and it comes so naturally. Nick partakes in his favorite part of this routine: admiring Charlie when he was so, so close and being so, so gentle with him. “You like staring at me, baby?”
He sits back slightly and used his fingers to smooth out the ribbon and lay the bone-shaped charm flat, and Nick nodded, “You’re very pretty, sir.”
“And you’re very sweet, Nicky.” Charlie told him, and the submissive’s face lights up like it was nothing at all.
The ginger-blonde leans in, then, tilting his head and connecting his lips to that spot on the brunette’s neck that he liked. Charlie takes in a deep breath and savors the feeling for just a moment before warning, “
Nick
.”
The dominant could feel the soft gasp against his neck as his boyfriend scrambled backwards, averting his gaze down to where his hands were in his lap. He lifted them to cover his mouth, whispering his rambled apology through his fingers,
”Sorry, sir. I’m…affectionate, today. I’ll ask next time, I promise.”
There’s a moment where Charlie debates how to respond, because he could lean into scolding him and following the established rules they had- which is what he probably should’ve done, to be honest. Or, he could lean into the sweetness, just there, and go easy on him.
The sight of the ginger-blonde all pouty, his collar lingering on his neck and his hair falling out of it’s style from that morning- it’s more than enough to sway him one way.
“Oh, baby. You’re just a puppy, aren’t you?” He’s decided to go easy on him, but he’s still teasing and that’s torturous in the best way all on it’s own. He reached forward and grabbed Nick’s wrists, pulling them away from where they were covering that face of his. “You’ve been so, so good recently, so we can bend that rule today, okay?”
Nick’s eyes widened, and he nodded eagerly.
“And you’ve been so, so brave- being my puppy and trying all of this when it’s so, so scary, huh?” Charlie moved so that he’s holding Nick’s hands in his, nodding to the cage. Nick nodded again, and it’s a bit more desperate this time. He squeezed his hands, too. “I think you deserve a treat for that. What do you think, puppy?”
Nick tilted his head, and he’s asking a silent question:
what kind of treat?
“You’ll see what it is later, if you want.” Charlie hummed, reading him more than easily. “It won’t be scary, though. You’ll like it.”
Nick nodded along again, then, and because he seemed to realize that it had been a moment since he’s spoken, he added: “Yes, sir.”
“Okay, then.” The brunette clicked his tongue, “There’s some stuff to get done around the flat, though, darling. You can either sit in here in your cage while I do it all and be so, so patient for me or you can be a really helpful puppy and help me with the chores.”
Nick considered this for a moment, furrowing his eyebrows and flicking his vision between Charlie and the cage.
Charlie didn’t seem to prefer one of the other, tying traits he often labeled as “good” to each one, which implied that Nick would be doing a good job either way. He’d either be patient or helpful, and he’d get praise at the end of it all regardless.
On one hand, curling up in the cage and letting the subsequent feelings that came with it swallow him whole would feel nice in it’s own way, but he wanted to stick close to Charlie. He remembered what the brunette said about being lenient about the rule surrounding touch and affection, and decided to take advantage of that:
“I want to help you, please, sir.”
--
Charlie considers giving Nick his own job entirely so that they’re getting two chores done at the same time, but the boy all but helplessly followed him around the apartment on clumsy feet, so he ends up deciding to keep him close.
He changes Nick out of everyday clothes and into dark blue and white basketball shorts he liked to work out in, leaving his top half naked because he liked to look at his torso. Then, they’re in the kitchen, Charlie washing the dishes left in the sink from lunch and Nick
supposedly
putting the ones from the dishwasher away, but it’s a lot of him staring at Charlie, actually.
“It doesn’t look like you’re drying cups and putting them in the cabinet to me.” the brunette teased, and Nick’s face flushes but he also giggles,
“Sorry, sir.” He doesn’t sound very sorry at all as he reached up to place the cup he had working at into the cabinet with the others, “Got distracted. Because you’re too pretty.”
“So you’ve said.” Charlie hummed, “I appreciate it, baby, but we’re never gonna get anything done if you keep staring at me.”
“You always stare at me, and we get plenty done that way.” Nick argued but it doesn’t sound like he means to be arguing. Charlie glanced back at him, raising an eyebrow,
“
I’m
allowed to stare at you, honey.” Charlie reminded, and Nick shifts his weight from one foot to the other. “Back to work, now.”
Nick takes the command, but he still very unsubtly glances up at his dominant as much as he can between each motion, and it’s a sweet feeling the fills the air between them.
After that, they’re making the bed in their room, the ginger-blonde holding corners of sheets in place and handing off pillows and such while Charlie did the bulk of the work.
Nick waits until they’re mostly done to stop being helpful, sitting on the edge of the mattress and looking up at his love. Charlie looked at him as if silently questioning what he was doing but doesn’t say anything, continuing through his motions of fluffing and arranging the pillows against the headboard.
“Charlie, can you come here, please?” Nick requested, and with the way he’s leaning back, he’s looking up at his dominant with such a sweet, lovely expression. Charlie clicked his tongue, shaking his head as if he disapproved,
“You just keep distracting me, puppy.” And it’s teasing, but he still abandons what he’s doing to walk over to him and spread his legs apart so that he could stand between them. He smiles, too, so the ginger-blonde knows that he doesn’t really mind.
Nick’s hands end up at his waist, and Charlie’s end up on the side of his face and running through his hair. “I bet that you don’t even know why you called me over. I think you just want my attention.”
“Your attention feels so nice, sir.” Nick hummed along, “But I wanted to kiss you.”
And then, his lips are catching his jawline and trailing down, down, down, and Charlie gasps at the feeling. The hand that was on the side of his face slipped down to grip at the muscles on his back as if to orient himself.
He could feel his own breathing speed up as Nick continued working his way down to his collar bone, and the spark of arousal that sends itself over his skin when he feels Nick nip at his neck lightly with his teeth is nearly enough for him to push the submissive back onto the bed and pull his basketball shorts down then and there.
His hand curled, just slightly tighter, where it sat in his hair, and the puppy whimpered against his skin as if he knew that he wasn’t supposed to be doing what he did. Nick glanced up at him as he pulled away from marking up his neck momentarily, planting a gentle kiss or running his tongue over his skin between every few words,
“I didn’t- didn’t
mean
to, sir. I just… I got caught up- all caught up in kissing you.”
“It’s alright, puppy. Gentle, playful biting is okay- at least for today.” Charlie struggled to answer in his usual guiding, dominant tone between his panting breaths, and the fact that he had this effect on him seemed to excite Nick, “You’re so sweet, y’know? Kissing me in the way you know I like.”
“You said it earlier. I’m your sweet boy.” Nick finally pulled away, smiling up at him with his teeth on display.
When Charlie smiled back down at him, the boy giggled. Nick slid his hands back and pulled him in for a hug, and the brunette lets it happen because he needed to calm down enough to shift his focus back to the chores he had insisted upon them doing.
“Yes, you are.” the brunette mused, moving the hand that was positioned on his back up and down, scratching at and massaging the muscles there. “Maybe I should be gentler about this rule more often, hm? You’re real good at surprising me.”
Nick nodded without pulling away from the embrace, and Charlie doesn’t even know how to feel about it. The submissive is the one that eventually breaks the embrace, looking up at him with a tilted head to ask, “Don’t we have chores to do?”
He didn’t even know how he had impacted his love, and that’s sweet all on it’s own.
--
The submissive ends up kneeling, very prettily, at Charlie’s feet while he gathered up all of the plastic and cardboard from the cage and accompanying items. Once the brunette got it all in a bag and tied it off, he crouched down in front of Nick,
“I’ve gotta take all this out to the recycling, okay?” Charlie told him, “You’re gonna get in your cage for me, now.”
Nick’s first reaction is to fall into obedience, but he paused in his motions of shuffling over to the cage, “You’re gonna leave me?” he pouted.
“Just for a bit, sweet boy.” The dominant confirmed, “It won’t be for long, honey, and you can play with your toys while I’m gone. See?”
He reached in for the chewy bone-shaped toy, holding it out towards Nick’s mouth for him to take. He just narrows his eyes at it, and Charlie could see the spark of disobedience that this was going to cause flare up in his eyes, so he’s not shocked when the ginger-blonde starts whining.
“But I don’t want you to go, sir.” Nick said, “Can’t you take it out later?”
“It’ll get dark and cold outside, later.” Charlie disagreed. “Come on, now. You’ve been so good today- you’re supposed to get a treat, remember? Don’t mess it up over something this small.”
The ginger-blonde whimpered, sinking into himself slightly.
“You’re not in any trouble if you get in the cage now and be patient for me.” Charlie clarified, and this causes the boy to perk up slightly, glancing back at the cage.
Without saying anything else, Nick crawled over and climbed back inside like he had done earlier, and he lays down this time. The dominant shuffled after him, pushing the gate shut but before locking it, “Can I get a color, sweetheart? The recycling can wait until tomorrow, if you really can’t handle being by yourself right now.”
Nick considered this for a moment, and his eyes are glossy, “Green. I’m okay.”
“You’re sure?” Charlie pushed, just to be sure, and Nick nodded before letting his head settle down against one of the pillows,
“Yes, sir.” Nick hummed, and Charlie gently sets his chew toy on the cushion next to him before setting to work sliding the lock of the gated door shut.
“Okay, puppy. If you need me, you still have your phone- and I showed you how to undo the lock on this door earlier, right?” Charlie ran through everything, and Nick reached down to pat his pocket to confirm that his phone was still there.
He nodded, then, and the brunette smiled, “Alright, baby. I’ll be right back, and if you’re patient and good, you’ll get your treat when I come back.”
“You won’t be gone long?” Nick asked, just to be sure, and Charlie hummed,
“Of course not, darling. It’s like I said a while ago- you’re too lovely to be locked away for too long.” The dominant confirmed, and it’s loving and teasing and everything else Nick needed him to be in that moment. “Just to the curb and back. Be a good boy, Nicky.”
Nick ends up getting to wallow in the near-overwhelming feeling the cage brought him after all. He felt the most like a puppy he ever would- and even though he had pouted about being locked away, he didn’t mind the enclosed space. It was more about Charlie leaving him, even if it was just for a moment.
In fact, the cage felt weirdly…safe.
He sits very, very quietly, fiddling loosely with the few toys that were in the cage with him. He pushed the multicolored balls around and let the chew-stim find it’s way to his mouth, and it feels nice to bite something without worrying about hurting his love.
The more playful energy from earlier returns, and he kicks his feet to push the blankets off of his legs so that he could more easily jump after the balls when they rolled a bit too far away from him.
Charlie would find the sight of him playing like this incredibly sweet, but his mouth falls open with a gasp when he hears the front door open again, and the toy he had been chewing on falls out with the motion.
He scrambled to sit up and take his usual kneeling position, listening closely for the sounds of Charlie’s footsteps trailing towards the home office.
“There you are, baby.” The brunette greeted, and his face lights up with such a genuine smile as he asked, “Were you a good boy?”
Nick nodded eagerly as Charlie crouched down in front of the cage and moved to unlock the latch-hook hate, “So good, Char. I laid here and was very, very quiet.”
“Mm, I see. That is very good of you.” the brunette teased, taking in the sight of everything in the cage in a different spot than it was before, “Do you want me to let you out now, so that you can get your treat?”
“Please?” Nick hummed, and that’s all Charlie needs to oblige. There was no begging necessary, not then. When the cage is open, the ginger-blonde hesitates for a moment before the dominant says,
“Come on, then.” he patted his thigh and snapped as if calling him- as if calling his puppy, and it’s nothing if not tooth-rotting sweet.
“Oh!” Nick stumbles his way out of the thing, happy to have Charlie to guide him into a standing position. And once he’s on his feet again, he’s leaning down to kiss the brunette.
It’s clumsy and sweet and eager and full of heat, and Charlie laughs into his mouth. He still walked backwards toward the door, “I’m trying to get us to the bedroom, love.”
“But I need you now, Charlie.” Nick’s tone is begging and desperate and everything else wonderful, words whispered against his lover’s lips with a clear smile before he leaned back in to keep kissing him.
And Charlie can’t say no to that, so they’re kissing and stumbling through the apartment and blindly reaching for doorknobs and steadying themselves on walls and it feels like when they were making out in secret as teenagers- all desperate and clingy and loving.
“On the bed, baby.” Charlie finally pushes the submissive off of him once they make it to the bedroom, and Nick seemed confused on how they even made it there.
The ginger-blonde’s eyes are wide as he takes in the order, but he nodded and climbed onto the bed, positioning himself so that he’s laying back with his head on the pillows.
Charlie climbed up after him, straddling his lap like it was nothing at all, laying his hands over the puppy’s chest, “You’re such a good boy for me, aren’t you?”
Nick nodded, and his breathing is becoming something a lot closer to panting. “I try to be.”
“Well, you’re very good at it- being my puppy. You were made for this, darling.” It’s somehow both teasing and praise, as he leans down to kiss him.
It’s only for a moment, though, and Nick follows him partway up when he pulls away before collapsing back into the pillow. Charlie took in the sight of him, just like that: collared and with glassy eyes and swollen lips and that expression of absolute adoration and overwhelm on his face.
Charlie wasn’t even sure when Nick’s hands snaked their way around his hips, and was barely aware of how hard he was being gripped, there. “How’re you feeling, baby? You seem a bit…overwhelmed?”
Nick nodded, “I am. But it’s good.”
“Good overwhelmed?” Charlie questioned, and he’s smiling.
“Good overwhelmed.” Nick repeated before quickly shifting the focus, “What’s my treat?”
“Whatever you want it to be.” Charlie hummed, “What do you want, sweet boy?”
The ginger-blonde whined, squeezing his eyes shut. “Mm- just tell me to do something, please. Pick for me.”
The brunette playfully pouted, “Oh, darling. This is your treat, though. Come on- what sounds fun?”
“Kiss me?” Nick tried, and Charlie smiles, dipping back down to oblige. Then, “Wait!”
The brunette sits back up, furrowing his eyebrows, “Color?”
“No, no- green.” Nick’s face was flushed. He felt bad for making such a fuss over it now, squirming under Charlie slightly, “Sorry. Just…can you take your shirt off, please, sir?”
“Of course, puppy.” Charlie moved to take it off himself, but Nick pushes his hands up and away and when the brunette raised his eyebrows and raised up his arms, the ginger-blonde peels it off of him and tossed it to the side.
“You’re usually the one doing that to me.” Nick giggled as he took in the sight in front of him. “You’re so pretty, Char. I love you.”
“I love you too, Nick.” Charlie hummed, and
then
he leans down to kiss the boy again. His hands slip from their spot against the other man’s chest back to where Nick was gripping at his hips, pulling his hands away and pinning them to the mattress above his head.
Nick tilted his head back and moaned at the force, and Charlie pulled back to look at him. Somehow, the sight of the submissive just got more sugary and sweeter.
“You can have whatever you want right now, puppy.” Charlie told him, and it’s very clear, “I can suck you off or fuck you or if you really want, we can just keep making out until you come. I can tie you up- literally anything. You just have to ask.”
Nick is overwhelmed by his choices, different images filtering through his head. Charlie’s request for him to “ask for it” is more of an order than anything, and Nick doesn’t know what to say.
And then, it dawns on him. He shifted his hands slightly where Charlie had him pinned down, and the brunette presses harder. The pressure felt grounding and every shade of absolutely lovely.
“Can I do something for you, sir?” Nick asked, and he’s begging for it. Charlie furrowed his eyebrows,
“But this is a treat for you.” he reminded.
“And I like serving you.” The ginger-blonde told him, “Please let me do something for you. It’ll make me feel so, so good.”
Charlie sighed, but he was endeared by this. “Alright, then, honey. What were you thinking?”
—
It shouldn’t have been shocking that Nick somehow ended up on his knees by the end of this, really. The sight of him kneeling down on a pillow on the floor in front of the mattress between Charlie’s knees was familiar and well-worn, at this point, but that didn’t make it any less wonderful.
Nick was somehow more desperate now that he had waited for Charlie to clean himself so, so patiently, but he had been more than willing to wait for what he had asked for.
Every step leading up to Nick eating Charlie out is more sweet than the last, somehow;
Charlie letting Nick pull down his pants and then his boxers so that he’s fully naked, just there.
Charlie tangling one hand in Nick’s ginger-blonde hair and orienting himself by squeezing at his shoulder muscles with the other one.
The submissive kissing and licking and biting at the insides of his thighs as he worked his way up and inwards.
There’s the praise, too: Charlie telling Nick that he was so, so good and so, so sweet and so much of so many lovely things.
Then there’s the sounds Nick made against and into Charlie even though he was the one giving and not the one receiving, the whimpers and moans and whines and begging.
Charlie could understand why Nick sometimes cried when he got overstimulated or overwhelmed by the stuff they did, now.
“Fuck, baby. I’m almost there.” he tugged at Nick’s hair but still felt empty when the ginger-blonde pulled his tongue out of him. The submissive licked his swollen lips and looked up at him through half-closed eyes, “I just wanted to warn you, puppy.”
Nick hummed, shifting forward again and running his tongue over the head of Charlie’s cock. The dominant gasped and moaned, tilting his head back again. Nick giggled, and it’s sweet, before taking his boyfriend into his mouth and working him that way.
And when Charlie comes, he swallows him up and makes sure that none of it goes to waste.
“You look so pretty, up there.” Nick whispered when he pulled off of him, resting his head against Charlie’s thigh. His boyfriend cooed, scratching at his scalp while trying to steady his breath,
“Oh, yeah?” he encouraged.
“Yeah. You always say that I look pretty on my knees, but I don’t think I have ever said how pretty you look up there.” The ginger-blonde turned his head to kiss a spot he had bitten a hickey into on the inside of his thigh, but it doesn’t feel hungry like it did before. “So, so pretty, sir.”
“Do you need me to do anything for you, honey?” Charlie asked, but he wasn’t shocked when Nick shook his head and flushed down his chest. “We really are gonna have to figure out how to get you to stop coming in your pants, Nicky. Maybe that’s what I should train you on, hm?”
Nick gave a blissed out and embarrassed smile, pressing his cheek against the inside of his leg, all but collapsed against the edge of the mattress and him.
“Did you have fun, baby?”
And Nick nods without sitting up. Charlie laughed, “Come up here. Let’s cuddle for a bit before we shower.”
“But-“ Nick shifted, bringing attention to his soiled basketball shorts.
“Shh, it’ll be fine.” The brunette coaxed, “Just for a bit, sweet boy.”
—
And it only ends up being for a bit and then some before they’re taking their post-sex shower. Nick stays in his playful puppy-like headspace for the time being, splashing water towards his boyfriend and kissing him on the cheek and shaking his head to get the water out of his hair instead of letting Charlie dry him off.
He runs through the routine of rubbing cream over all the marks he left on his love, kneeling in front of him while he sat on the edge of the bathtub and insisting that he helped with aftercare, too.
Charlie likes the feeling of taking care of him, then, tucking them into bed and setting an alarm for a few hours later so that they could wake up and make dinner.
And when the ginger-blonde doesn’t wake up to the alarm, he leaves him curled up on the bed with a forehead kiss and slips out to the kitchen.
“You could’ve woken me up when you did, y’know.”
Nick’s voice was groggy whenever he creeped out to the kitchen, and Charlie turned around to face him. The ginger-blonde was behind him and wrapping his arms around his waist in no time at all.
“You seemed so sleepy afterwards- I wanted to let you rest.” Charlie leaned into his embrace, continuing to mix the ingredients in the pot in front of him. “Do you feel well rested?”
Nick hummed before nodding, “Yeah, I think so. And you?”
“I’m satisfied.” Charlie told him, “You are- very, very good at all of that.”
“You should be more lenient with the rules more often.” Nick suggested playfully, “I can do some fun things, y’know.”
“Or, I can make you beg to do the fun things.” Charlie suggested, causing Nick to sigh dramatically. “Was all of that okay, by the way? The cage and such?”
The ginger-blonde squeezed him slightly tighter around his middle, “More than okay. I’ve never…felt like
that
, before. It was nice. Was it a lot to deal with?”
“I wouldn’t know, because I loved dealing with it.”
Charlie shut down his worries with ease. “It was cute to see you be so clingy and playful, honestly.”
“You should’ve seen me when you left me in the cage.”
Nick joked, finally unwrapping his arms from Charlie’s waist and instead opting to lean against the counter next to the stove. Charlie gasped, looking at him with wide eyes,
“Did I miss you playing with the toys I got you for the first time?” he questioned, and Nick just laughed, shrugging.
“Don’t leave me alone next time, and maybe you’ll get to see it then.” he teased, and Charlie reached over to hit him against the chest, but it’s gentle and there’s no bite to it.
Nick held up his hands as if he were a criminal, “You’re the one who locked me up in a cage to go take out the trash.”
“It was the recycling, actually.” Charlie corrected, and they’re both laughing and smiling.
They joke back and forth for a bit longer before Nick decides to help him with dinner, and then they’re dancing around each other in the kitchen as they fall into conversation about how Nick felt in the cage and how maybe he should top more often and how Charlie needed to find a way to train him out of coming in his pyjama pants for the sake of their dirty clothes hamper filling up too quickly nowadays and it’s all so, so sweet and so, so playful.
And when Nick managed to fall asleep against Charlie’s chest once again when they’re watching something romantic and mindless on the tv after dinner even though they had only been up for a few hours at that point-
It’s just as much and more of both of those things and everything else lovely, too.