It's been too long... (Sage Bane)

[The Cartographer]

​

​

Tonight was a very special occasion for Baelfire Lenasin. It was odd for him to book a reservation at Gailior, Corellia's restaurant for those who could afford to blow their money on gourmet food. Normally, he never ate in such stuffy places. But this night was different. Why? Because for the first time in at least six months, he was finally going to get to see [member="Sage Bane"]. His young, gorgeous boyfriend had been in a detox facility for his glitterstim addiction for a long time. Bael had been growing so lonely in those months. So, it was no surprise that there was a childish grin on his face and a skip in his step as he made his way down the stairs and to the main entrance of his mansion.​

​

Gailior was quite obviously a formal area, which was exactly the reason why Bael was donning such casual attire. That, and he knew that Sage loved it when he wore black.​

​

​

 

[Sage Bane]

Sage Bane was finally out of rehab. After one too many slip-ups with his longtime spice addiction, drug treatment had been mandated by the Jedi temple on Ession and funded by his brother who also wanted to see him get clean. After six long months and many uncomfortable nights of sweating, shaking and puking up his guts, the young half-Chiss was glitterstim-free. Sobriety was a treacherous road for Sage, and one he traveled down precariously.

A fresher, less haggard-looking version of the Jedi padawan entered Gailior, the Corellian restaurant where he was scheduled to meet his Epicanthix boyfriend, Baelfire Lenasin. The wealthy Epicanthix had obviously spared no expense picking a restaurant for their reunion date. His chest heaving nervously, Sage bit his nails as he laid his eyes on Bael, a roguish vision all in black. Picking up the pace, excitedly he made his way over to the other man and embraced Bael for as long as the other man would allow.

Reluctantly releasing him, a blush crept up on his face as his hazel eyes dallied over the man who made his heart beat so wildly. “I missed you,” he said in a silky voice. “Believe me, there wasn’t anyone as good-looking as you in rehab, Mr. Lenasin.” The former addict was teasing, of course. “No” was a word he’d always had trouble with in the past, but right now Sage only had eyes for one man.

[member="The Cartographer"]

 

[The Cartographer]

Bael embraced Sage for a long while. Six months could've been as long as six years with how much he had missed his half-Chiss daydream. When they parted, Bael couldn't help but blush a bit in return. His smile was so wide that it made his eyes crinkle at the edges. "I missed you more. Not even a thousand cocktails could keep you off my mind." He purred, lightly stroking Sage's cheek. "Hmmm.... even more handsome than I remember...."​

[member="Sage Bane"]​

 

[Sage Bane]

As Bael’s fingers brushed lightly across his cheek, Sage smiled and let his eyelids flutter closed for a moment while he ran his fingers along the back of the other man’s hand. Then he quickly moved to pull the Bael’s chair out for him so they could both sit. “Not as handsome as you, ji muna,” added the half-Chiss, shaking his head in admiration, his eyes flashing red for a moment.

At the mention of cocktails, Sage’s palate was tempted in the worst way. The bottle of wine at the table sang to him like a siren. Although part of his sobriety pact upon leaving the rehab clinic involved giving up all substances, liquor had never been Sage’s main demon. It wasn't as harmful as glitterstim in any case. His fingers absently played on the stem of his glass. With no one to tie him to the mast, he wasn't sure if he could resist its allure. One little drink wouldn't hurt, would it?

Drawing his eyes away from the wine, Sage met the Epicanthix’s hypnotizing gaze. “What did you get up to while I was away, darling? Broke a few hearts as usual, I imagine?”

[member="The Cartographer"]

 

[The Cartographer]

"Found out I had a long-lost half sister, actually." Bael replied with a smirk. He noticed Sage's slightly uncomfortable glances at the wine in front of them. Oh, OF COURSE! How could he have been so stupid?? His boyfriend had just spent six months sober, and here Bael was, flaunting it right in front of his face. The Epicanthix motioned to a waiter, having them remove the wine and replace it with some sparkling grape juice. Just as satisfying, minus the risk of getting drunk.​

​

Bael opened the bottle, pouring out two glasses for them.​

"Sorry about that, love. I was just so excited to meet up with you again, I wasn't exactly thinking clearly." ​

​

[member="Sage Bane"]​

 

[Sage Bane]

"A long-lost sister, eh?" Something in Bael's tone told Sage that the reunion wasn't pleasant. "Intriguing," he added with a smile. "Sounds like an interesting story there. What does this sister of yours do?"

Sage had to admit, he was a bit disappointed when the wine was replaced with a substitute. The more out of reach something was, the more one wanted it. Or maybe that was just Sage. Still, it was incredibly sweet of his boyfriend to make that gesture, and he gave the Epicanthix an appreciative smile.

"No apologies necessary, pateesa. I don't expect you to give up all of the lovely vices that the galaxy has to offer, simply because I can't enjoy them." Sage gave Bael a devious grin and stretched his hand across the table, letting fingers trace the other man's palm. "Besides, there's one vice I'm still allowed to indulge in, and I'm looking at him."

[member="The Cartographer"]

 

[The Cartographer]

Bael chuckled. "That's the funny part. She happens to be a very successful Crime Lord. She was overjoyed to learn who I was, believe you me." ​

So overjoyed in fact that she had personally offered to kill him if he so much as set a toe on her turf again.​

​

Bael had to bite his tongue to keep from shuddering as Sage stroked the sensitive lines of his palm. He blushed lightly.​

​

"Nonsense. My Sage deserves every luxury this Galaxy can offer. And if he can't have them, then neither can I. However..."​

​

He took Sage's hand to his lips, eying the half-Chiss almost hungrily.​

​

"This luxury is far from off-limits."​

​

[member="Sage Bane"]​

 

[Sage Bane]

"A crime lord, eh? How intriguing. So when do I get to meet this sister of yours, Baelfire? Or are you going to hide me away from your relatives?" At the joking accusation, Sage gave out a mock pout. However, there was truth in jest. It certainly wouldn't have been the first time Sage dated someone who was ashamed to play "meet the family" with him, especially during that year he was doing so much glitterstim that he couldn't see straight. That was the same year he couldn't keep his hands out of those relatives' jewelry stashes as well.

When his boyfriend took his hand and kissed it, a crimson shade crept to his cheeks. "Now you've done it," Sage warned. "I don't think we're going to make it through dinner, leeah." He stood up and slowly sauntered over to Bael where he sat at the table, trailing his fingers slowly across the length of the other man's arm. He placed a hand gently on Bael's shoulder and cocked his head in to whisper, "I just might have to take you into that bathroom over there."

[member="The Cartographer"]

 

[The Cartographer]

Bael laughed a bit. "I'm not so sure she would care to see you. She has a clever way of hinting at how much she wants to kill me when we meet again. And as for my parents, well.... I couldn't care less what they think. We aren't on the best terms, and no amount of beautiful boys and girls I let them meet will change that."​

​

His gaze flicked to the bathroom a few tables away. A playful smirk crossed his lips. "My my, but we are feeling restless tonight, aren't we?" Bael teased, his eyes shifting to their true golden color for a moment. There was a spark in Sage's eyes, something that only came around when they were ready to do something wild and spontaneous. It was one of the many things Bael had grown to love about him.​

​

He placed his hands on Sage's waist and gently pulled the half-Chiss into his lap. He leaned into Sage's neck, brushing his lips against the soft skin as he climbed to the man's earlobe. "Mmmmm.... You know, I do recall telling the waiter to give us a few minutes before he brings over the menus. Perhaps we could have a little appetizer before the main course...." He murmured in a low, seductive voice.​

​

[member="Sage Bane"]​

 

[Sage Bane]

Like tiny eclipses, the Epicanthix’s yellow cat eyes blocked out the light of all rational thought for Sage, leaving only desire. Sage sank into his boyfriend’s lap, wrapping his arms tightly around the other man, amid some minor glares from the waitstaff. Sage was about to take Bael’s hand and drag him off to the bathroom to be conquered, when he stopped himself.

Frankly, Sage was trying to clean up his act a bit, starting with the drugs. He was tired of feeling like he fell off the whore tree and banged everyone on the way down. Perhaps it would be better to take it slowly with Baelfire for a start. To prove that he was a class act, or at least becoming one. Despite the fact that the man seemed to be as smitten as he, he had the nagging sensation that he wasn’t good enough for the handsome and wealthy Epicanthix.

“No,” he finally said, running his fingers through the other man’s hair. “Let’s take it slowly tonight. It's been too long since we were together, and I don’t want to rush through any of this.”

[member="The Cartographer"]

 

[The Cartographer]

Well, that was a little unexpected. Normally Sage was very passionate with his pleas for physicality, and Bael could never resist indulging him. He cocked a brow for a moment, but nodded. If his boyfriend wanted to slow down and savor the moment, he wasn't going to ruin things. " Alright then, if that's what you want. How slow would you like to go?" Bael asked warmly.​

​

[member="Sage Bane"]​

 

[Sage Bane]

The surprise in Bael's face was understandable. After all, Sage had never been guarded about his desires before. In fact, when Sage stayed at Bael's mansion, it was common of him to pounce on the Epicanthix out of nowhere, much like a starving nexu. They had basically skipped courtship altogether, and went straight into the carnal.

"Well," he began, reluctantly leaving his boyfriend’s lap. "Maybe we should treat this like a proper date. Get to know each other a bit more?"

What was he saying? Sage was never one for long, drawn out getting-to-know you talks. What were they even going to discuss? Politics? The weather? Boring. Sage had needs. Maybe this whole rehab business was karking with his head. Nonetheless, he did want to prove that he was a better man than the one who had shagged in alleyways, and had once done so much glitterstim that he had convinced himself was he was god for about twenty-four hours. To drown out that nagging voice inside that mercilessly put him down and sounded suspiciously like his own.

[member="The Cartographer"]

 

[The Cartographer]

Bael straightened his jacket a little, unable to supress the grin forming on his face. He was both amused and relieved at the same time. Amused because this was the last thing he expected to hear from Sage, and relieved because there must have been a part of himself that was craving a more meaningful relationship than the sabrecat feeding frenzy that resulted from their usual get-togethers.​

​

"Perhaps this would be a bit simpler if we started over." Bael cleared his throat, put on his best Cartographer smile, and held out his hand for Sage to shake. "Hello. My name is Baelfire Jareth Lenasin. To whom do I have the pleasure of speaking?"​

​

[member="Sage Bane"]​