Page 90 of Filtration Play

“Yes, really.” Their hazel eyes grew a little darker. “I didn’t let people in my place, Ollie. No one ever stayed over before you.”

He swallowed, his eyes stinging. “In case you’re not aware by the sheer amount of my shit I’ve brought over, the answer is yes.”

“Good, good,” Fin said, but he seemed somewhat distracted. Right, the other key.

“And this?” He lifted the smaller key.

Fin burst past him without saying anything and headed to their room. They emerged a second later with a thin chain that looked like a necklace.

“So, I know you’re new to kink…” They blew out a breath and stepped in front of him. “This is a collar. Yours. Mine. Fuck. I’m getting this all wrong.”

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen you this flustered.” Giddiness bubbled up inside him.

Fin arched their brow, shooting him a look. “Don’t get used to it. Especially if you accept this collar. Because that’s going to declare to everyone that you’re mine, babe.”

“Is this like getting kink-married?” he teased, even though warmth spread in his chest.

“Yes,” Fin said, their voice dead serious.

His eyes widened, and he stared at the collar in their hands, more like a nice chain that would look like an everyday necklace. The idea of wearing that every day, of knowing what it meant—that he belonged to Fin—made a heady rush swirl through his veins.

“Being yours is all I’ve wanted,” he said, his voice coming out hushed.

“But I’m giving you the key,” Fin said. “I know we’re new and I’m rolling in strong—”

“Keep it,” Ollie said, a firmness in his voice that startled even him. But it was the damn truth he felt deep down. “I’m already yours, Fin, and that’s not going to change. You’ve had my key for a long time if I’m being honest. I’d been spinning my wheels over and over again, lost, confused. You showed me a way out and a path forward. I only want to walk it with you.”

Fin swallowed hard, their hazel eyes growing glossy. “You fucker.”

He grinned. “How romantic.”

Their lips crooked into a smirk, and they reached up to fix the collar around his neck. The moment the cool metal settled on his skin, his pulse soared.

For so long, he’d viewed himself as an inconvenience, as someone who didn’t deserve the love he’d been given. Except this chain was a reminder that he wasn’t. That he was loved. That he belonged. And that he was important.

And on the dark days, every tether mattered.

Fin stepped in front of him and ran their fingers over his collar. “And you’ll be mine?” The hesitant question was them giving him the out one last time. No way in hell would he take it.

Ollie leaned in and pressed a soft kiss to their lips, just to taste. When he pulled back, he looked into their eyes, and the future he saw there was one he wanted to reach for, as wild and tumultuous and free as the sea.

“Always.”