Charles stares down at Erik’s sleeping face, a rare sight. Erik has come back to his home, came back to him. There is no day that passes without Charles being thankful. The children didn’t understand why Charles sparkled at the sight of his return, but that’s ok, because they don’t see what Charles sees.
Erik’s face is square, beautifully sculpted, as if chiseled by the ghost of Michelangelo. His jawline is sharp, smooth but not straight, fractures shielded by his gold-kissed skin. Charles absently glides his thumb over Erik’s cheek, cherishing the warmth racing to the surface. The fading freckles upon his face were painted on by the Sun’s rays, a parting gift to match it’s child’s fiery soul. But their glow is a mere backdrop to Erik’s eyes. Even closed, Charles’s memories are coated with their eternal light. His lashes delicately frame those gates to heaven. They never cease to mesmerize him with every glance and gaze, to halt the Earth’s movement with every glimmer. They shine like topaz, gleam like rubies, and glint like diamonds, but no collection of gems can be traded for a single glimpse they bestow you. His irises are a mix of steel grey and sky blue, a reflection of himself. Flecks of metal float within those endless seas of beauty, drifting by, blinking in and out of sight. Charles slides his thumb over the ridge of Erik’s nose, perfectly crooked to fit his face. One too many fights, and yet his ability to captivate is untouched. Aphrodite herself would be plain compared to Erik’s exquisite charms. His thumb drifts down towards Erik’s mouth, gently resting over the lower lip. They are lit with the embers from melting silver, red-hot in their color as their master’s desires. Charles cannot recall the amount of times these lips have seared his body with lust. Erik’s lips are thin, stretched taut like a tightrope, yet bloom like orchids at the lightest touch. Only a single brush is required to unlock the riches within. When awake, corners of these lips are perpetually pointed downwards, only replaced by a smile in privacy. Oh, that smile, how quickly it could conquer Charles’s heart in a beat. How it could cure any disease more completely than any doctor. How it could bring life to the most crestfallen champions, the most depressed defenders, the most exhausted emperors. It is the elixir to immortality, the secret to prosperity, the energy that flows through Charles’s veins. The sun shines when that smile comes out, and sets once again when that smile fades away. He yearns for the sight once more. There is nothing else that could bring more joy to Charles than Erik. There is no other that could hold his love forever.
What Charles sees is a dream, an illusion, a fantasy come to life. One that he never thought to come true. The first and only wonder of his world.