Owen has been struggling with addiction since he was a teenager, but it takes a DUI involving another vehicle for him to finally face his issues. The road to recovery is a rough one, and for Owen it's a journey made harder by bankruptcy, loneliness, and repressed memories.<br><br>His new apartment doesn't help either. It's small, worn, and hot as hell. The only way to reach it is a tedious stretch of stairs that seems like the final insult on top of a whole pile of misery.<br><br>Thankfully, the mess comes with one bright spot: intense, pretty Sebastian, who seems to have a knack for keeping his head up and finding the beauty in everything.

Forty-Two Stairs

“Maybe I should come back later then?”


Owen offered back a smile, just a touch more feral, his voice all tease and no sincerity. “Or maybe you should come on in?”


“Ooh.” Sebastian drew the vowel out. “Hot. But, actually, I was going to ask you to come with me?”


“Shopping.” Sebastian nodded. “For clothes.”


“Do you have five dollars and a bag?” Sebastian swung around, thumbing at the backpack he had flung over his shoulder. He lifted a finger, shaking it. “And don’t say you don’t because I saved you eight dollars the other day.”


“Maybe I don’t have a bag,” Owen sniffed, not able to hold back the laugh when Sebastian glared at him defiantly.


Owen threw both hands in the air. “All right, all right, geez. I guess I’ll just dump out my garbage or something.”


“Get with you,” Sebastian laughed. “Smart mouth.”


Chapter 26