Closed Establishing Boundaries

Cedar Dunn

american | laid-back | medley bar staff manager
 
Messages
51
OOC First Name
Rowan
Blood Status
Mixed Blood
Relationship Status
In an Open Relationship
Sexual Orientation
Bi
Age
12/2028 (31)
((Set after this))

After finally finishing up his shift at the Medley, Cedar was almost dreading getting home. He had seen Jeong leave the bar alone, to his relief, but it was clear in Cedar's mind that they needed to talk. Cedar had felt as though he was walking on air ever since Jeong had arrived in New Zealand, overwhelmed with warmth that Jeong would go so far for him, move halfway around the world and finally solidify their relationship from a nebulous series of hookups to something more concrete. Or something... Cedar had thought was more concrete, anyway. That lightness and joy was gone from him now, filled with anxiety and a strange sense of betrayal. There was no way he had misinterpreted Jeong when he arrived - moving countries wasn't something you did for a casual hookup - but Jeong flirting with someone else directly in front of him had Cedar confused again. They had been too overjoyed about seeing each other again to really set any boundaries on this thing, and now it had to be addressed.

Cedar took a deep breath before unlocking the door to their flat, stepping inside nervously. The combination of warmth and uncertainty that flooded him at the sight of Jeong was painful to unravel, but Cedar did his best to ignore it, pressing on as he closed the door behind himself. "Hey." Cedar said with a wary glance at his boyfriend. "You... have fun tonight?"
 
Jeong had enjoyed himself a lot at the party, and was feeling pretty pleased. Parties had always been fun for him, and it had been a while since he had attended one that had been so exciting and new for him. Going to an entirely new place was like an adventure, and even after the party had been over Jeong was happily thinking back to all the new people he had met. He should definitely visit Cedar at work more often. Though, he knew guiltily, that he hadn't really given Cedar much attention tonight. In his defence, and he did defend himself in his own head, Cedar had been very busy. The drinks had been flowing freely, and Jeong had enjoyed himself without Cedar by his side. His flirty conversation with Vincent had left him feeling a little thrilled, and while he was happy that he was with Cedar now, it had definitely been good for his ego. Jeong had returned to Cedar's place before him, and had showered and put on his pajamas before making himself comfortable on the couch to wait up for Cedar. A part of him naively assumed he had been too busy working to notice Jeong's flirtation,and he fully intended to bring it up... but perhaps in a lighthearted way that was easy to dismiss. But the moment he saw Cedar's face, he knew that the other boy had seen more than Jeong had assumed. And that it had hurt him, something he hadn't expected. Unsure how to react to the underlying feelings he could sense, Jeong answered the question instead. "Yes, I did..." He said, fidgeting with the sleeves of his pajamas in a slightly guilty way. "How was work?"
 
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Cedar had always taken a casual approach to his life, preferring to take things as they came and get in as few fights as possible, but this situation felt different, for sure. He and Jeong had been supposed to be starting something different, a real relationship, and Cedar was going to stand up for that. As soon as Jeong spoke it was clear that he felt guilty, that he knew Cedar had seen him, and his dodging of the subject only made Cedar more frustrated. "I dunno, I wasn't exactly enjoying the view." Cedar said pointedly, folding his arms. "Did I completely miss the point of you coming halfway around the damn world to be with me? It's been like, a couple of months and you're flirting with other guys in front of me!"
 
Jeong winced as Cedar cut right to the chase. It seemed like there was no avoiding the conversation, and no doubt that Cedar had seen him and that it bothered him. Jeong ducked his head, a wave of guilt washing over him. What had he done what he'd done? It had seemed harmless at the time, but now... he realized that he'd hurt Cedar, and while he was working too. He winced a bit as Cedar raised his voice slightly, and peeked up at him through his pink hair before looking down again. "I was just talking." He muttered. "Nothing actually happened. I don't know anyone here... I was just trying to be nice." But even as he said it, the excuses sounded weak. "Sorry..." He added.
 
The second Jeong spoke, Cedar found himself regretting his harsh tone. He was angry, sure, but upsetting Jeong made him feel guilty in an instant, and the guilt only deepened when Jeong reminded Cedar that he didn't know anyone here yet. Cedar had never had a confrontational bone in his body, and he backed down immediately, unfolding his arms uncertainly. "I... f*ck, sorry for being harsh." He said slowly. "I just... wanna know where we stand, I can't trust you if you're flirting with other people without... talking to me." Cedar paused, wishing he was better at phrasing things like this. "I thought you came here to... you know, be my boyfriend..."
 
Jeong bit down on his lip, his guilt only intensifying when Cedar apologized. He knew he had been in the wrong, and now his boyfriend was saying sorry for it. Jeong had wanted to be with Cedar, and now... he was already messing it up. "It's okay. You're right." He said softly, lowering his eyes nervously. "I did come here to be your boyfriend. But... I've never been anyone's boyfriend before, not seriously. I wasn't sure what was and wasn't allowed, but... I think I knew deep down that it wasn't right." He rubbed his neck, feeling awkward. "I'm sorry, Cedar. I came here for you, and I want to be with you. I just have to get used to things being different."
 
Cedar's heart twisted as Jeong spoke, and he stepped closer, hesitating before he reached out and took Jeong's hand. He could certainly identify with what the other boy was saying - Cedar had never been in a serious relationship before either, and still didn't really know exactly what they were doing. "Hey, I... it's fine." He said slowly, squeezing Jeong's hand gently. "I've never done this serious thing either, I think we... just need to talk about this." Cedar hesitated, thinking about how things had been back at Ilvermorny. "I don't... exactly mind you... flirting, you know, I just wanna have... talked about it before. Like... I don't know where you'd draw that line for me either, I think we just need to discuss this." Cedar said, thinking as he spoke.
 
There was a sense of relief when Cedar grabbed his hand, but also more guilt. Cedar had always been a wonderful friend, and recently a wonderful boyfriend, and Jeong had disappointed him. "It's not fine... I should have talked to you." He said softly, not quite meeting his eyes. "You shouldn't have to watch me flirt with someone while you're working..." He hadn't really thought too much about how awful it had been, what he'd done. But now it was dawning on him. It surprised him that Cedar didn't mind him flirting. Sure, they had never minded before when they were at school, but they had never been boyfriends. In fact, Jeong had always been very careful to keep that word far away from them. He hesitated. "Do you... want to discuss it now?" He asked softly.
 
Cedar knew he had a tendency to be a bit too forgiving for his own good, so it was a relief when Jeong affirmed his initial reaction. It hadn't been an overreaction to be upset, Cedar knew that, and he was glad they were on the same page for now. He nodded quietly, relieved that Jeong understood why he had been hurt, and contented not to continue that part of the conversation. He hesitated when the other man asked if he wanted to discuss things, thinking a moment before nodding. "I think we should..." Cedar said slowly, gently pulling on Jeong's hand to lead him over to the couch. "So we both know what we're cool with."
 
While Jeong was happy Cedar wasn't mad, there was a part of him that thought that maybe... he should be a bit mad. But Cedar was never one to anger easily, which was one of Jeong's favorite things about him. Jeong's heart sank a bit when Cedar confirmed he wanted to discuss things, well, now. Jeong preferred procrastinating things, especially talks like this one. But he knew he couldn't say no now. Not when it had been his actions that had caused all this. He took a deep breath, letting Cedar lead him to the couch. "Maybe you should start... since I already went over your boundaries and I'd like to know where to stop..." He was kind of making Cedar start because that was easier, but he hoped he wouldn't call him out for that.
 
Though he had known he'd likely have to talk first, Cedar had somewhat hoped Jeong would have something to say, not entirely sure where he wanted to start drawing lines. He could hardly not say anything once Jeong had asked though, so Cedar sighed, looking down a moment as he thought. "Well... mainly, like, check in with me, I guess." He said slowly, thinking back to before they had been an official couple. It had never really bothered Cedar that Jeong would flirt around, and he had enjoyed doing the same, and he couldn't really see why that would need to change, as long as they were both committed to each other. "I don't care if you wanna flirt with someone else, or... make out with them or whatever, I just wanna know I come first, you know?" He said slowly.
 
Jeong curled up a bit on the couch, pulling one leg up and hugging his knee to his chest as he looked over at his boyfriend. He knew it wasn't entirely fair to make Cedar speak first, but Jeong didn't know what to say. If he asked for something Cedar wasn't willing to do, he might ruin everything. He didn't want to seem too greedy or unreasonable. "Alright, so... I should ask you? When something comes up?" He asked, wondering if he meant that he should ask Cedar every time. "You don't care if I want to make out with someone?" He asked, startled. "I figured you wouldn't want that." Jeong shrugged. "I mean, you always come first. You always have. You're different than anyone else."
 
This was... maybe the most delicate conversation Cedar had ever had in his life, and truth be told he had no idea how to navigate it. He nodded in response to Jeong's first question, and shrugged when he asked if Cedar minded. It brought a small smile to his face when Jeong said he was different, and Cedar reached out, gently lacing their fingers together. "I... yeah, I want you to ask me, but it's more like... I mean, we both used to hook up with a bunch of people in school, and that was... cool. I guess it'd be like, an open relationship, kinda? But with, like, rules and stuff. You know, we can... flirt or hang out or whatever with other people, but we gotta communicate, and we gotta put each other first." Cedar hesitated, staring at their joined hands. "I've never been... in love before, y'know, and that's, like, totally different. I just wanna make sure we keep that special, but I don't care if, like, some stuff is the same as it was before, you know? We just gotta communicate."
 
Jeong was nervous about this conversation, but his nerves eased a little bit when Cedar laced their fingers together. That wouldn't be something he'd do if he was upset. He looked down at their entwined hands and sighed softly. "So... you'd want to both hook up with other people, like we did in school... but still date too?" He asked, trying to see if he was understanding it correctly. "We can... do that?" He asked uncertainly. He didn't think he knew anyone who did that. He knew it was their choice, but it still felt like there were unwritten rules they had to follow. And this definitely wasn't a part of those rules. He blushed as Cedar mentioned being in love. "Me neither. Not... not before you." He said softly. He listened to what Cedar suggested, then took it in for a moment. He looked down. "I only want to do this if we both want to. I don't want it to be imbalanced." He said after a pause.
 
Cedar nodded at Jeong's question, chuckling slightly at his incredulity. "I mean, why not?" Cedar smiled. "Like, open relationships and polyamory are definitely a thing. We should probably... do some research about how to do it right, but it's totally a thing." He ran his thumb gently over the back of Jeong's hand as he listened, nodding in agreement. "Same here. I think we should only do this if we're both totally into it. So, like... we'll do some reading and figure out what sounds good and what sounds bad before committing, yeah?"
 

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