“Look who decided to show up,” Chester let go of the door that he left open and walked away from it, leaving his unwanted guest in the doorway.

“Hi, Chester,” Mike said uneasily, shifting from one foot to another. “I heard you got out, so I decided to…pay you a visit, if you don’t mind.”

Chester just scoffed and rolled his eyes before turning to face Mike once again with a harsh look.

“Of course I don’t mind!” he dramatically exclaimed. “Since you didn’t even fucking bother to even ask me how I was doing while I was in that shithole, I would love to see my best fucking friend.”

Mike looked at his own feet as the older man said that, feeling a sharp pain of guilt in his chest. He couldn’t look at his friend right now; he began wondering whether rehab even helped him. The broken man seemed just as cranky as he usually was when he didn’t have his fix.

“I just thought…” Mike searched for an excuse. “I thought maybe… you’d like to be left alone. Just so you could get your life ba-”

“For two fucking years!?” Chester snapped, stepping forward in a threatening manner. “If that’s what you thought, then you’re a fucking dumbass. First Sam, now you. Thanks, man.”

The guilty man frowned after being compared to Chester’s ex-wife, who was one of the reasons that the man before him was so messed up and broken that he needed an institution to get him back on track. Silence fell between them as Mike looked around Chester’s house. It was a lot less messier than it used to be. He glanced towards the bathroom, memories of Chester’s thrashed body sprawled on the floor flooding back into his mind. The pair had been through a lot together, especially with Chester’s terrible addictions, and Mike just wanted to get the friendship back.

“I’m sorry,” Chester suddenly sighed, coming closer to Mike. He looked exhausted as his shoulders slumped and he looked up at Mike with heavy eyes. “I’m not supposed to get angry at you. I’m trying to control my temper now, you know.”

Cracking a smile, Mike let out a sigh of relief as the mood between them lightened. He hoped that Chester would return at least a grin; he thought that Chester’s smile was one of the most beautiful things in this world.

“No, I’m sorry. I am really sorry. I should have at least called you or something. I really was worried,” Mike rambled on, hands in the air gesturing. “I missed you, man.”

Finally the tough man before him cracked his shell and a smile spread its way on his pale face, eyes shining up at Mike. He leaned closer and wrapped his arms around his friend’s shoulders and enveloped him in a hug. Mike immediately slid his arms around Chester’s torso, pressing their bodies together in a needy embrace.

After a few seconds they pulled apart, shared a hesitant smiled as the smell of nostalgia filled up the atmosphere.

“Coffee?” Chester asked and strolled to the kitchen, Mike following close behind. The younger man got comfortable as he watched his friend move about the counters, gathering the cups and pouring coffee into them. A sudden curiosity took over Mike like an itch, so he decided to initiate a conversation.

“What was it like?” he asked. The question made Chester halt his movement for a split second.

“Shitty,” he said without turning around. “Worse than that AA thing. They put me with some pretty messed up people, and it really made me question where I was going.”

Mike only nodded, even though he yearned to find out more about what Chester experienced in the institution. He wanted to know everything, the past and the present and where they stood with each other.

“At first I thought I was going there by my own will,” Chester started in a quieter voice. “But then I realized that I was destroying all my relationships with what I was doing. Hell, I’m surprised you guys didn’t kick me out. You probably all hated me.”

“Chester, you know I would never-”

“It’s alright, really,” he turned around to halt Mike’s words. “If it wasn’t for you and the guys, I would have probably never gone through with it.”

He sighed loudly and turned around, holding two coffee mugs in his hands and coming over to the table where Mike was seated. Carefully, he set the mugs down and sat next to Mike, thinking it would be easier to avoid looking at him if he didn’t sit across from him.

“I just wish I would have seen how damaging it was before it got out of control,” Chester shrugged. Mike’s lip quivered as he was incredibly saddened by his friend’s confession, but the hope that the friendship is rekindled lingered in him.

“At least you’re back now. And you’re alright,” Mike spoke the last part with a slight hint of hopeful question. Chester glanced at him with a chuckle before taking a sip of his coffee.

“I’m really sorry for all the shit that I put you through,” Chester said, looking off into space.

“You’re forgiven,” Mike nudged him on the shoulder, smiling. “Looking back at it, it’s kind of funny.”

“Yeah, I did some pretty fucked up stuff,” the older man laughed again but the sound seized the second his eyes connected with Mike’s. The image of the last moment they spent together flashed through that stare, and Mike looked away, his cheeks reddening with embarrassment while Chester just kept looking at him, admiring the way he had cut his hair short.

This time the silence was uncomfortable as the two men were engulfed in a confusing, yet pleasurable memory.

“I’m sorry I kissed you against your will,” Chester blurted out, but quietly, as if ashamed that the walls can hear him.

Mike’s head snapped toward his friend, shocked that Chester mentioned it out loud. He thought that what happened was just Chester’s drunken mischief, one they would forget and move on from.

“I never said that,” Mike mumbled so Chester almost didn’t hear him. Almost.

“What?” the older man pushed. “Never said what?”

“I never said that…it was against my will,” Mike looked down, eyes glued to the mud-colored coffee in his mug.

Incredulously staring at his bandmate, Chester sat with his mouth hanging open as a million thoughts rushed through his head. Every time he was drunk or high, his feelings for Mike would come out in some way, revealing his true self. The last straw for him was the moment he went and kissed Mike, running away soon after. Now hearing that Mike didn’t mind was shocking to him.

While Chester’s mind was running wild, Mike was gathering his thoughts together and figured that this was the time to be perfectly honest and open with each other, even when they were both still fragile.

“The reason I didn’t even talk to you while you were in rehab was because,” he paused with a gulp. “I wasn’t really sure whether I wanted you to be in there.”

Chester frowned, greater shock settling in him. Mike was one of the biggest reasons that he went and turned himself in there.

“Why?” his voice cracked, not sure whether he was ready for the full truth.

“Because I wasn’t sure whether you’d ever want to kiss me again,” Mike said, bravely looking at Chester now, only inside he felt like he was slowly crumbling with each second that they looked at each other.

Yet Chester sat dumbfounded, Mike’s words settling on his hearing and seeping into his mind like honey. Before another thought, his instinct pushed him forward as his body leaned towards Mike to hastily connect their lips together. It was a brief lip lock, unsure and experimenting. They pulled away quickly, trying to get their thoughts in order, but in a moment like this it was in vain.

Removing his hands from the mug, Chester cupped Mike’s face and kissed him again, pressing his lips firmly onto Mike’s, taking both their breaths away. Mike closed his eyes, surrendering to the kiss, wrapping an arm around Chester and pulling his body closer. This was the best way to be reunited, he thought.

Their lips moved against each other, eager to taste and smell what they had missed and almost forgotten over the span of two years. Their movements were jerky and somewhat sloppy, but the kiss mended them perfectly, repairing their bond.

Panting out of their noses, their lips kept moving. Mike’s tongue darted out to lick Chester’s bottom lip, noticing that the seductive piercing had been taken out. Chester’s tongue responded to Mike’s hesitant wandering, colliding them together and creating delicious heat between the men.

After a while the air was completely gone from their lungs. Chester took this opportunity to pull away and stand up to straddle Mike and sit on his lap, dipping his head down to reconnect their lips once again. He wrapped his arms around Mike’s neck, pulling him so close to himself that he wondered whether Mike was choking.

On the other hand, the younger man was fisting the material of Chester’s shirt on his back, pulling at the fabric. Their lips kept moving, tongues colliding in a frantic passion that has risen between them. Suddenly, Chester pulled away to gain his breath once again, leaning his forehead against Mike’s, eyes still closed. The man underneath gazed over Chester’s face, soaking in the gentle beauty it held masked with exhaustion.

Chester sniffled, jumping to bury his face in Mike’s neck, his arms tightening to hug the younger man closer to him. Mike returned the embrace once again, welcoming the warmth it gave both of them.

“It’s been so fucking long,” Chester said, his voice breaking in a sob.

Mike only held him closer, arms strong, cherishing the skinny man in silence.

Dedicated to Autumn (a-past-to-overwrite.tumblr.com).