Let it be known I hereby declare that I demand the following things from life:

* Health
* Happiness
* Prosperity
* Knowledge
* Love
* Excitement
* Peace
* Longevity
* Compassion
* More back rubs from my sweetie

Dev looked down at the sand before dropping onto his towel with a giggle. "I heart you. Did you write that?"

"Hmm?"

"This." Dev looked at the message in the sand. "Did you do it?"

"No idea what you're talking about."

"It had to be you. There's no one else here."

"So why ask me if I wrote it?"

Dev laughed. "Because you made it clear you're not interested in falling in love with me. You just want to have a good time."

Dev's companion opened his eyes and smiled up at the younger man. "Guess I changed my mind."

"I'm dying of thirst," Dev said, walking into the condo and dramatically collapsing face first onto the sofa.

"Too hot for you, baby?" Tom asked with a laugh.

"Yes. Beer me," Dev said, his voice muffled by a cushion.

"Water might be better for you, you know," Tom teased.

"Don't make me hurt you, husband," Dev said with a growl, flipping over onto his back. "I'll withhold sexual favors from you if I don't have a Stella Artois in my hand in the next five seconds."

"I'm fairly sure that's an idle threat."

Dev pursed his lips. "Yeah, it is."

Dev stretches lazily and wraps a leg around Dean. "That was an awesome homecoming," he murmurs.

Dean nuzzles Dev's neck. "Considering how we left things, I'm surprised you were so accommodating."

"Bygones, sweetheart," Dev whispers into his ear. "Now, let's go for a swim. The Pacific's calling my name."

Dean raises his head from the beach chair. "Really? I swear it's telling you to stay right here with me."

"I can't stay," Dev says, slowly getting up. "After a swim, I've got to go get ready for a date." He touches Dean's cheek. "But I'll be back tonight. I promise."

"Hey, Mr. Hall, mind if I use your pool? Ours is being cleaned."

Dev's neighbor smiles at him from his lounge chair. "No, go right ahead."

"Thanks," Dev says, stripping off his clothes.

"Whoa, aren't you wearing trunks?"

Dev grins at him. "Nah, I'm going skinny dipping. That's okay, isn't it?"

"Uh...yeah...it's fine..."

There it is. That look Dev's been seeing in men's eyes since he was eleven and had that unexpected growth spurt. Six years later and he's an expert at manipulating men to get what he wants from them. He knows Hall's as good as his.

"She's gorgeous. And I love that dress."

Dev smirks at his friend, Carly, as they watch the red carpet coverage. "She's a beard."

"No, she's not. They're engaged."

"Oh, and gay actors never do things like get married," Dev snorts softly. "Trust me."

"How do you know? You didn't..."

Dev nods. "At one of Dean's parties. We ended up in a guest room. The man loves dick. Though I'm sure he was thinking of his pretty fiancee the whole time."

Carly's face falls. "Damn. How come all the hot ones are gay?"

"It's just the way of the world, sweetie."

"Time to come in!"

Dev looks over his shoulder. "Just one more jump, Mom. Please?"

"Okay, but just one."

It's the last night at the lake house before they have to go home. Dev loves this place. Even at the age of eleven he knows how special it is. He can be normal here and do normal things. It isn't like home where all he thinks about is pushing every boundary possible without getting caught. The Dev who's here doing things like swinging out over the lake and plunging into the water is a child who doesn't exist anywhere else.

After an afternoon spent christening their hotel room, Dev and Tom got ready to head back to the beach house for dinner with Dev's family. They made one stop on the way over to pick up the tart that Sadie had requested. Dev looked down at the box as Tom drove them to the house.

"I think I should tell you that we can never break up because it would break my sister's heart."

Dev had been waiting patiently for months to spring his surprise on Tom. Once he'd found out when the university would be having its spring break, he'd booked them flights to California so they could spend the week at his parents' beach house in Malibu. His parents and sister would be vacationing in Greece that week, so they'd have the entire place to themselves. Plus, he thought it would be fun to catch up with Dean now that the man's boyfriend was in a hit movie. He could probably score them admission to some good parties.

Checking the time, he hummed happily to himself when he saw it was time to go. He took the bags he'd packed for them down to the car and headed to the school to pick up Tom. He planned on driving them directly to the airport and not letting Tom know a thing until they got there.

He glanced at his watch as he made his way to Tom's office. His lover's office hours would be over in a few minutes, and he knew that Tom would need to pack up a few things before he headed home so he wouldn't miss him on his way out. He couldn't help grinning as he knocked on the door and poked his head inside.

"Professor, may I have a word?"